Chapter 295: Words Come True, Formulate the Laws of the Immortal Dynasty
Chapter 295: Words Come True, Formulate the Laws of the Immortal Dynasty (Part 1)
Xu Qing straightened his clothes and walked into Yannian Palace with steady steps.
After entering the hall, he first bowed respectfully and meticulously according to the custom. Then he slowly stood up, with a serious look on his face, and mentioned the main purpose of his visit.
"Your Majesty, have you ever heard the story of the Legend of the White Snake?" Xu Qing said as he gently pointed his fingertips into the void.
His demonic skills have become increasingly unpredictable, and he is able to display his magical powers in front of the old emperor.
This is undoubtedly also a hint to the old emperor.
In an instant, a curtain of light appeared out of thin air, and in the curtain of light, the shadow of the collapsed ancient tower by the West Lake was looming.
Xu Qing continued, "In this storybook, Fahai suppressed the White Snake under the tower, claiming that he was subduing demons and monsters, but in fact he was a private vendetta, which was beyond the rules. I'm afraid there are many similar things happening in the world today."
At this time, seven-colored smoke was rising from the bronze alchemy furnace in the Yannian Palace.
The gorgeous haze spread, giving the entire palace a mysterious hue. The old emperor's figure loomed in the haze like a crane.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, with a look of scrutiny in his eyes, and slowly asked: "Xu Qing, what do you mean by this?"
Xu Qing bowed slightly and said earnestly, "Your Majesty, the power to hunt and kill demons should now belong to the court. At present, many powerful families have realized the benefits of demon flesh and blood. They have the ability to hunt and kill demons with their own strength. Some people are even so crazy that they consciously use the people in their own territories to feed demons and then hunt them."
"If this continues, the common people will only resent the court for not taking action, and will instead be grateful to these powerful families. In this way, not only will these powerful families gain the flesh and blood of the demons for nothing and strengthen their own strength, but the excessive expansion of local forces will be extremely detrimental to the overall situation of the court."
In today's Dayu Dynasty, there is an unwritten rule, which is what is the overall situation. Xu Qing and the old emperor are the overall situation.
The old emperor was well versed in political tactics, and naturally understood that what Xu Qing said was not alarmist, but something that must have happened quietly in reality. If it was not curbed, the negative impact of such things would snowball and bring extremely serious consequences to the court.
Although the gentry and dignitaries of the Dayu Dynasty usually talk about benevolence and righteousness, in fact, some officials had already secretly submitted memorials to the emperor.
The memorial mentioned that the current famine was caused by natural disasters, but the large population and the land being unable to bear the burden were also important reasons. The official also cited the example of herding cattle and sheep on the grassland, saying that when there was not enough water and grass, some cattle and sheep should be slaughtered to reduce the burden on the land and control the occurrence of civil unrest at the source.
This was an idea that the officials themselves took the initiative to propose, but in fact, some local officials and wealthy people had already been doing this in secret. Now that they had the demon as an excuse, they were even more unscrupulous in doing such things.
Xu Qing's intention was very clear. Heaven has its own rules, and the country has its own laws. Even when facing demons committing evil, only the court can arrest and deal with them.
After all, only names and positions cannot be delegated to others, and only the imperial court is qualified to do such a big thing as enforcing justice on behalf of heaven.
The old emperor understood everything immediately, a trace of approval flashed in his eyes, and a smile appeared on his face: "Xu Qing, you are a meticulous person, and you have considered everything so thoroughly. Let's do it according to your idea."
Seeing the old emperor's agreement, Xu Qing immediately said, "Your Majesty is wise and wise, which is a blessing to the world. I have one more thing to say. This kind of law should be independent of the current Dayu Law. A separate law should be established to supervise the practitioners in the world."
The old emperor raised his eyebrows slightly and asked with interest, "Do you mean to set up heavenly rules and regulations like the heaven in Journey to the West?"
Xu Qing nodded and said calmly, "Your Majesty is wise, and this is exactly what I am planning. However, it is difficult to think too thoroughly in such a rush. I suggest that you add laws one by one as appropriate. This way, we can avoid making the laws too complicated and prevent them from changing from day to day, thus ensuring the stability and practicality of the laws."
He spoke eloquently, with a confident look and an attitude that showed he had everything planned out.
The old emperor nodded slightly, and then asked: "If we encounter something beyond the Heavenly Law and with greater harm, how should we deal with it?"
Xu Qing replied without hesitation: "Such matters should naturally be left to the discretion of Your Majesty."
The old emperor smiled with satisfaction when he heard this: "What a great discretion. Xu Qing, with you here, I have no reason to worry about not being able to achieve my immortality. Go ahead."
Xu Qing's words "free discretion" really hit the heart of the old emperor. This is the essence of political tactics. If the laws are too clear and everything is taken into consideration, then the emperor will become a mere decoration.
Outside the law, those vague and opaque places are where power really plays a powerful role, and even the key to life and death. The meaning of this can only be understood by the heart, and cannot be explained to outsiders.
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“At the beginning of the year of Guimao, those who privately kill demons will have their foundation of Taoism taken away and their spiritual roots fed.” With the issuance of this decree, the first law of the Immortal Dynasty was officially issued, like a huge rock thrown into a calm lake, stirring up thousands of waves and causing a surge of public sentiment.
On the Qinhuai River, the pleasure boats were still filled with music and singing. However, beneath this prosperous and lively appearance, undercurrents were surging in the aristocratic mansions, and secret talks were quietly taking place in backrooms.
In a dark room of the Lu family, a member of the Lu family was so angry that he slammed over the bronze incense burner with his palm. The incense ashes fell like snowflakes and burned a scorch mark on the rubbing of "The Law of the Immortal Dynasty".
He gnashed his teeth and said, "What a 'spiritual root'! My Lu family spent three hundred years refining the Five Thunder Demon Suppression Talisman, and now it has become a piece of waste paper!"
Even though the Nanzhili Lu family has always upheld the family tradition of not fighting or competing, at this moment the family members are quite resentful.
The Lu family has always been on good terms with Longhu Mountain, and has learned a lot of methods to subdue demons and monsters from Longhu Mountain. On weekdays, they have been secretly capturing demons to help their own cultivation. Now that the court has suddenly promulgated the Immortal Dynasty Law, this has undoubtedly directly shaken the foundation of the Lu family's cultivation.
Situations like the Lu family's were not uncommon in the Dayu Dynasty.
When the first ray of morning light pierced through the thick leaden clouds of Jinling City like a sharp sword, Xu Qing's official sedan was slowly passing by the entrance of Wuyi Lane.
A breeze blew by, and the curtains of the sedan chair moved automatically, revealing seven newly hung white lanterns at the end of the alley... That was the direction of the Yan family.
These scoundrels were afraid of Xu Qing's power and did not dare to confront him directly, so they came up with these mysterious means in an attempt to intimidate Xu Qing's confidants.
After Xu Qing learned about this, he did not choose to go to the Yan family to appease Yan Shan's family, but went directly to the Duke of Wei's mansion. The Duke of Wei also lived in Wuyi Lane and was a neighbor of Xu Qing.
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The backyard of Duke Wei's mansion is quiet and deep, with a secret room hidden inside.
Inside the secret room, eighteen shark oil lamps emitted a soft and mysterious light, illuminating the rubbing of "The Law of the Immortal Dynasty".
Xu Qing stood in front of the desk, tapping lightly on the three words "Feeding Spirit Roots" with his fingertips. Wisps of primordial demonic energy overflowed from his fingertips and transformed into chains, slowly binding the rubbings into the shape of a scroll.
He raised his head slightly, looked at Duke Wei, and said, "Duke, do you know that the word 'shi' can be interpreted in two ways?"
"What Xu Shaobao means is..." Duke Wei's eyes were fixed on the spiritual fruit on the table. The pulsating purple lines on the fruit skin were strangely resonating with his increasingly weak heart pulse.
He was shocked and keenly realized that this spiritual fruit was by no means an ordinary thing and must have an extraordinary origin.
Xu Qing narrowed his eyes slightly, and quietly slipped out a gold-embossed list from his sleeve. He opened the title page and could clearly see the Xuanniao Seal of the Monster Catching Division.
He said slowly, "Last month, the Zhang family of Jianghuai killed three mandrills using armor-piercing crossbows that were discarded by the Ministry of Works. The Ministry of War and the Five Cities Military Command under the Duke are probably to blame for the outflow of such military equipment."
As he spoke, he turned to another page, revealing a pattern of the pleasure boat that Zhang had newly purchased on the Qinhuai River. The carvings on the boat were surprisingly similar to the armor of the imperial guards of the mausoleum.
Duke Wei couldn't help but sweat on his forehead when he heard this. At this moment, he suddenly caught a glimpse of the tassel of the Weiyang Sword on Xu Qing's waist, which clearly looked like the tassel of the jade pendant worn by his own son.
He suddenly understood what was going on. No wonder he had been smelling the scent of paulownia leaves in his eldest son's room recently.
Both of these items were made from the leaves of the sycamore tree, which Xu Gongming had always treasured.
"The prince is becoming more and more respected by Xu Liushou." The chief steward Yan Fu beside him thought to himself.
"Tomorrow the Duke will gather all the major families and tell them..." Xu Qing said as he gently pushed the spiritual fruit across the table and came to Duke Wei, continuing, "The Monster Catching Division is going to auction the first batch of 'Monster Control Orders'. The holder of the order can obtain this year's..."
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Three days later, at the auction venue jointly organized by Yingtian Prefecture's Monster Catching Division and the Ten Thousand Immortals Merchant Alliance, undercurrents surged under the glass dome. The atmosphere at the auction site was tense and heated, with representatives from various forces gathered here.
The elder sent by Mount Longhu stared intently at the "Demon Control Order" on the stand. The lightning patterns on his palms kept jumping and it was obvious that he was very excited.
It turns out that the Big Dipper diagram on the back of the token is crucial to Longhu Mountain's monster-catching targets this year. This token may very well determine whether Longhu Mountain can successfully complete the mission in this year's monster-catching operation.
When the bidding reached the eighth round, the head of the Zhang family, a big salt lord in Jianghuai, suddenly held up a gilded box, opened the lid, and the three hundred spiritual fruits inside instantly caused an uproar in the audience.
Everyone was amazed at the generosity of Mr. Zhang's generosity.
"Master Zhang is very generous." Xu Qing's voice came from the private room on the second floor. The silhouette of Duke Wei could be vaguely seen on the window screen.
Xu Qing frowned slightly, then clapped his hands lightly.
At this moment, there was a sudden commotion outside the auction house.
A group of black-robed monks carrying a blood-stained iron cage violently broke open the door.
In the cage, there was a six-tailed fox with a completely snow-white body, which looked very pitiful.
"Report to the Young Master!" The leading cultivator quickly showed the Laoshan Jade Plate and said loudly, "Someone has secretly set up a demon prison in Maoshan, and is actually using young boys and girls to feed the demon beasts!"
When Xu Qing heard this, his face darkened instantly, and a powerful primordial demonic energy instantly emanated from him, instantly covering the entire place like a surging tide.
The entire auction hall was instantly enveloped by a powerful and majestic aura. Everyone present felt the pressure of this power and fell silent, not daring to make a sound.
Xu Qing's primordial demonic energy surged like an angry dragon, and instantly condensed into eighteen ink-black shackles. With lightning speed, it lifted the head of the Zhang family into the air and suspended him under the glazed dome.
There were strange runes faintly on the shackles, as if telling of endless majesty and punishment.
At this moment, the six-tailed fox, which had been huddled in the cage, suddenly spoke in human language. His voice was clear but chilling: "On the seventh day of March, are the thirty dead children at the bottom of the Qinhuai River still fresh?" Before he finished speaking, the fox's tail lightly swept across the void, and in an instant, the scene of the secret room in the Zhang family villa appeared in the void.
In the secret room, a bronze tripod soaked in demon blood was filled with a child's skull engraved with his birth date and horoscope. The scene was eerie and terrifying, making one's hair stand on end.
"Master Zhang, do you know that those who are fed spiritual roots need to have all seven orifices open?" Xu Qing said coldly, his eyes like lightning and his fingers like swords. As he finished speaking, seven strange roots burst out of the seven orifices of Master Zhang. The roots were dark red, with a greasy luster on the surface. Each tip of the root was pierced with a beating demon Yuandan - it was obtained by Zhang's family from hunting mandrills with the armor-piercing crossbow discarded by the Ministry of Industry.
Then, the roots wrapped around the Zhang family patriarch suddenly exerted force, smashing him towards the demon-suppressing monument in the center of the auction hall like a cannonball.
There was a loud "bang" and the two words "Guimao" on the demon-suppressing monument suddenly split open with blood. A powerful suction force surged out from it, instantly swallowing up the Zhang family head and the human-demon pill, as if to bury all these sins deep in endless darkness.
The teacup in Duke Wei's hand trembled slightly, and three drops of residual tea splashed out and fell on the table, and magically turned into the words "sacrifice the chariot to save the king".
In the private room on the second floor, the representatives sent by various families to the auction site were all shocked and subconsciously pressed the long swords at their waists. They keenly recognized that the flashing words on the edge were the unique secret codes of the secret letters between each family and the Zhang family, which undoubtedly hinted at the intricate relationship between them and the Zhang family, and also made them realize that only by abandoning the chariot to save the king, as Duke Wei said, could the anger of Xu Shaobao be calmed.
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"I'm sorry to have scared you all." Xu Qing looked calm as he calmly brushed off the non-existent dust from his cuffs. At this moment, eighteen craftsmen from the Tiangong Institute, dressed in uniform, marched in neat steps and quickly lifted the red silk on the exhibition stand.
Nine exquisitely carved jade boxes engraved with black bird patterns slowly rose from the exhibition stand. A bronze tiger talisman floated in each box, exuding an ancient and mysterious atmosphere.
Xu Qing cleared his throat and said loudly: "This is the 'Hunting Assistance Order'. Those who hold the order can follow the Monster Catching Division to eliminate monsters. 70% of the monster materials captured must be handed over, and 30% must be kept by the unit." At this point, he deliberately paused and slowly swept his eyes across the entire venue.
The Hunting Assistance Order is actually a low-profile version of the Demon Control Order.
The Demon Hunting Order has greater power, allowing the holder to find an area on his own to hunt demons freely, without being subject to the jurisdiction of the imperial court's Demon Hunting Department.
The Hunting Assistance Order requires action to be carried out together with the Monster Catching Department.
It was for this reason that the auction of the Demon Control Order attracted so much attention from all the major families, and under the guarantee of Duke Wei, they all rushed to participate in the auction.
This time, the major families did not get the desired order to exorcise demons, but after seeing what happened to the Zhang family, they were already very grateful.
In addition, we received the hunting assistance order, so we did not return empty-handed.
On the other hand, Xu Qing can also expand the outer strength of the Monster Catching Bureau through the hunting order.
To put it bluntly, the Monster Catching Bureau is a public tool, but it is also the private tool of Xu Qing and the old emperor.
Moreover, it was Xu Qinglai who offended people and strengthened the power and authority of the Monster Catching Division. The old emperor was saved a lot of trouble and was only happy.
But only God knows where the relationship between the monarch and his subjects will end up.
At least for now, both sides are definitely model monarchs and ministers like Tang Wu and Yi Yin.
In fact, the power of the monarch and the power of the prime minister are not completely contradictory, and sometimes they need to rely on each other.
Since ancient times, when the king and the minister are one, great things can be accomplished.
Xu Qing himself believes that if power is not used in a way that benefits the world, it will backfire on itself. If you follow the will of the people and the general trend, power will come naturally without having to fight for it.
Of course, sometimes you can use a forward-looking vision to promote the general trend.
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The auction will end quickly.
After a while, outside the auction house, a blazing purple-blue demonic fire suddenly ignited in the direction of Zhang's villa. The demonic fire shot up into the sky and illuminated half of Tianjing City. From a distance, it looked like a strange sea of fire, dyeing the dark night sky into a weird color.
Xu Qing stood quietly on the observatory, overlooking the scene in the city. He saw carriages and horses from various families pouring into the monster-catching treasury like ants.
If you can't beat them, just join them. This is the norm for all major families.
The Prince of Wei held the newly drafted "Hunting Cooperative Rules" respectfully, walked quickly to Xu Qing, bowed and reported: "The Lu family asked for the order of the Mobei Desert, and the Zhu family chose the Mermaid Reef in the South China Sea." The voice echoed in the night sky, clearly conveying the choices and trends of each family.
At 12:30 pm, after a fierce bidding, the last hunting order was sold to the Laoshan sect for thirty carts of netherworld soil. The auction ended here, but it also foreshadowed the beginning of a new order and rules.
The "Law of the Immortal Dynasty" in Xu Qingxiu seemed to sense something and automatically turned to a new page. The clauses with ink that had not yet dried were glowing with a faint bloody light. It clearly stated: All the gains from hunting must be tempered in the Demon-Purifying Bottle before they can be used as medicine.
Your words are as good as the law!
The Prince of Wei, who bowed before Xu Qing to show his loyalty and respect, had a burning desire for power in his eyes.
This is what a man should do!
Xu Qing has been particularly fond of this rising spy chief around him recently. As for the power desire of the Duke of Wei, it is the whip he uses to drive him.
Of course, he also ordered Su Lianqing to monitor him in secret.
Nowadays, Su Lianqing doesn't need to do many things frequently. She is more like Xu Qing's eyes to help him monitor the world.
This will also free Su Lianqing from the heavy and trivial tasks and allow her to play a greater role.
And "Red Flower Ghost Mother", as Su Lianqing's code name, gradually became the most terrifying mysterious existence around Xu Qing.
(End of this chapter)