Longevity begins with slaying demons and eliminating demons

Chapter 162 Read

In the southeast corner of Zichen Palace in Luojing City, there is an inconspicuous two-story attic.

Different from most buildings with red walls and golden tiles in the imperial palace, this building has a black glazed roof with green glazed tiles trimmed.

Behind the lake stones are piled up into mountains, like a barrier, with pines and cypresses planted in between.

From a distance, it can be described as simple and elegant, fresh and pleasing to the eye.

This building is called "Wenyuan Pavilion".

Its earliest use was to collect and compile books.Many historical materials and documents in the early days of the founding of Daqi were compiled here.

But over time, it gradually evolved into a direct office for cabinet ministers.

In the distribution of power in the Daqi Dynasty, the responsibility of the cabinet is to deal with secular government affairs.The cabinet ministers will read the memorials of hundreds of officials, write the handling suggestions on a piece of paper, attach them to the memorial, and then hand them over to the emperor for decision-this is called "ticket drafting".

Then, the emperor will use a red pen to give instructions based on the cabinet's "draft plan", agree or disagree-this is called "red approval".

It's just that the current emperor of Daqi is obsessed with cultivation and ignores political affairs, so he simply handed over the right to "approve red" to Princess Zhaoning.

It stands to reason that it is extremely inconsistent with the ancestral system to hand over the highest decision-making power of the country's secular government affairs to a princess who has no inheritance rights.

However, the emperor had the highest cultivation base and the biggest fist, and no one in the entire court dared to oppose him.

Just like the former Emperor Xingde handed over the power of "approving red" to the eunuchs in charge of ceremonies, no one dared to say "no".

So Emperor Tianxing got his wish and became the hands-off shopkeeper.

…………

At this moment, cabinet ministers are gathering in this plain-looking "Wenyuan Pavilion" to discuss state affairs.

A white-haired old man in a python robe sat at the head, looked around the crowd, and said calmly, "I have a few things to discuss with you today."

The old man's name was Tan Heming, and he was the chief assistant of the cabinet of the Great Qi Dynasty.

Although he is just a mortal, after all, he has a specialization in art - in recent years, he has always been able to grasp the emperor's mind and handle Daqi's government affairs in an orderly manner, plus he speaks nicely and is good at writing gorgeous articles. Won the trust of the emperor.

Speaking of this, Tan Shoufu cleared his throat, then looked down at a memorial on the table, and said slowly: "First of all, it is about the 'Luoshui Conference' that will be held this year... Due to the coming of the long night, the exorcism The head of the department, Luo Chuan, suggested that the rewards given to the leaders of the 'Luoshui Conference' be slightly increased, so as to encourage the young monks of Daqi to practice hard."

The "Luoshui Conference" is held every five years in Luojing City, and it is the highest-level event for practitioners of the Great Qi Dynasty to discuss and learn from each other.

Cultivators from all over the country, regardless of their origins and cultivation levels, can come to participate.

Big figures who are hard to see, such as the Great Qi Emperor, five sages, heads of sects, heads of clans, etc., will also be present at that time.

It can be said that the "Luoshui Conference" will become an opportunity for the proud sons of heaven to become famous all over the world, a way for disciples from poor families to get ahead, and an important channel for the great figures of the Qi Dynasty to select talents.

"Ge Lao, how can this work?" As soon as Tan Shoufu finished speaking, Yin Quan, the Minister of the Ministry of household affairs and a university scholar, immediately retorted, "Some time ago, the Exorcist Division proposed to create a "magic machine camp". More than half of the practice resources in the national treasury. Unexpectedly, after a few months, they actually came to the lion again, as if the resources in the national treasury were all the private property of their exorcism department. We can't let these practice What a fool..."

The cabinet ministers present were not surprised by Lord Yin's irritable and hasty tone.

In their impression, Mr. Yin, who is in charge of the financial power of the Daqi Dynasty, is a veritable "iron rooster"-he guards the treasury of the Daqi Dynasty for many years, collects taxes with great fanfare, and spends money with nothing.

But the emperor has always praised him, and praised him more than once that "although he is not a monk, he has the ability to conjure money out of thin air".

Therefore, even though he often quarreled with other cabinet ministers, his position was still as stable as Mount Tai.

Even if he secretly pocketed money from the treasury occasionally, the emperor would turn a blind eye to him.

"I haven't finished my sentence yet," Tan Shoufu interrupted him in a flat tone. "The head of Luoshui hopes to give the leaders of the 'Luoshui Conference' a chance to enter the imperial treasury to select magic weapons."

Hearing that Tan Shoufu referred to the "royal treasury" instead of the "state treasury", Yin Shangshu breathed a sigh of relief: "Then let Her Royal Highness decide this matter directly!"

Tan Shoufu nodded, picked up a pen and quickly wrote the "ticket draft" piece of paper, and pasted it on the memorial of Luo Chuan, the head of the Exorcist Department.

"The second thing," Tan Shoufu then took out the second document and continued to tell everyone present, "This memorial comes from Wei Jiusi, a thousand households in Qingzhou Prefecture, Jiaodong Province.

"He said that the spreading speed of Yin Qi on Yishan Xuenv's territory is accelerating, and more and more common people have been eroded by Yin Qi and turned into monsters.

"Wei Qianhu hopes that the capital can provide them with some supplies to help the nearby residents evacuate from the dangerous area. If it continues, Qingzhou Prefecture may be occupied by monsters."

"Why did you come to ask for money again?" Yin Shangshu muttered sullenly again.

In the next period of time, he bargained wildly with his three-inch tongue, and finally succeeded in reducing the total amount of materials proposed by Wei Qianhu to half of the original amount on the grounds that "the treasury is very short of money".

Tan Shoufu glanced at him helplessly, and thought: with this Lord Shangshu's bargaining skills, he might be invincible even in front of the aunts in Luojing City's vegetable market.

"The third thing is also the most important thing." Tan Shoufu opened the third document and continued, "This morning, His Majesty sent someone to send an edict to Wenyuan Pavilion."

Hearing the words "Your Majesty" and "Decree", all the people in the room raised their heads and looked at Tan Shoufu who was sitting at the head, showing surprised expressions by coincidence.

Because in recent years, Emperor Tianxing has been practicing wholeheartedly and ignoring the government.

So the decree he sent to the cabinet was even rarer than the snow ginseng on Mount Yi.

"You may have read in the mansion newspaper before that there is a young official named 'Gu Xu' in the Exorcist Department of Yishui County, who once solved the case of the Lu family's murderous house in Qingzhou Prefecture, and became a famous tool 'Jinghong Pen' The master," Tan Shoufu continued, "and now, he has successfully climbed to the top of Mount Lao, and has become the successor of the Ascension Immortal Kongxuan Sanren.

"Your Majesty values ​​his qualifications and talents, and wants to appoint him as a 'Student'. I hope that he can accompany the princes and daughters to study and study in the future, and be a role model for the princes."

"Servant reading", as the name suggests, is the attendant of the prince and princess, who is responsible for accompanying the emperor's heir to study and practice, and also has the right to give advice and suggestions.

Under normal circumstances, the servants are served by the children of princes and nobles with excellent qualifications, which can be regarded as an honorary title.

Today the emperor appointed a young man from a commoner background as a "servant", which undoubtedly surprised the cabinet ministers.

"Since His Majesty has made up his mind, let's go directly to the appointment process!" As soon as Tan Shoufu finished speaking, Yin Shangshu couldn't wait to speak.

Everyone here is an old fox who has been in the officialdom for many years.

They knew very well that the title of "Diange Grand Scholar" seemed to attract a lot of attention, but in essence, they were just tool people doing chores on behalf of the emperor.

Normally, the emperors practiced silently, and they still had some right to express their opinions.

But now, the emperor personally issued an edict—no matter how many doubts they had in their hearts, they didn't have the guts to object.

…………

at the same time.

With the help of Luo Chuan, the head of the Exorcist Department, the fourth prince Xiao Shangzhen finally got rid of the poison of the "Life-eating Pill" on his body, and successfully escaped from the danger of his life.

But as Shangguan Jin said before, he lost his true energy and became an ordinary person without any cultivation.

Now, in the backyard of Princess Zhaoning's Mansion, he is playing spinning top with some concierge children.

He stood under the eaves, with a whip in his hand, and like a tyrant, he cracked the top on the ground.

Strangely, Emperor Daqi did not respond to the assassination of the Fourth Prince.

Not only did he fail to track down the real culprit behind the scenes, but under his hint, the court characterized the incident as "an accident".

This undoubtedly made Princess Zhaoning feel a little unhappy deep in her heart.

In this regard, Empress Chen Anzhi once wrote to her to explain: "In recent years, the Chen family in Xiangyang has been booming, like a fire cooking oil. The emperor feels that it is time for us to cool down."

Seeing the letter from her mother, Princess Zhaoning sighed silently.

Once again, she deeply realized the so-called "the heavenly family has no family affection".

In the eyes of my father, the fate of my younger brother and myself is nothing more than a part of the balancing act.

At this moment, documents from the cabinet were sent to the princess' residence.

Princess Zhaoning saw at a glance that her father had appointed Gu Xu, the secretary of Yishui County, as the post of "student".

This made her feel even more lonely.

She had known for a long time that this young man named Gu Xu had extraordinary potential.

But what did it matter to her?

Xiao Shangzhen has now become a mortal without cultivation, and has no chance to compete for the "Tai'a Sword" in this life.

This newly appointed Minister of Attendance must eventually become the capable general of the other princes, right?

…………

Laizhou Mansion, Exorcism Division Yamen.

Shangguan Jin smiled brightly. Seeing that Gu Xu didn't answer immediately, he went on to say, "Gu Daoyou, Yishui County is almost six hundred miles away from Laizhou Prefecture. If you take a carriage, you may need to spend seven or eight days on the road.

"But if I take you back with Yujian Flying, it will take less than a day to reach Yishui. What do you think?"

Gu Xu gave her a serious look.

He just felt that the timing of this woman's appearance was too coincidental—just when he wanted to go home, she provided him with the help he wanted most, and it was difficult for him to think of a suitable reason for refusing.

What on earth was she trying to do to him?
"This is too much trouble for you." Gu Xuke said politely.

"No trouble, no trouble," Shangguan Jin said with a smile, "For me, it's just a slight detour. If Gu Daoyou is to be tortured in that slow and bumpy carriage, it's just unreasonable! "

After she finished speaking, she waved her hand and summoned out of thin air the natal sword - "Tian Yue".

Gu Xu stared at the "Tian Yue" sword shrouded in blue light, frowning slightly.

This sword is only two feet long, and the blade is extremely slender.

Can two people really stand on it?

At this moment, Shi Lei from Qianhu in Laizhou Mansion suddenly appeared in the corridor next to him, and said to Gu Xu: "Gu Xu, I saw you looking for a carriage everywhere in this yamen, do you want to go home now?"

"Yes, Master Shi." Gu Xu immediately turned around and replied.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Shi Lei said with a smile, "Recently, the Qingzhou Mansion has been filled with evil spirits, and there is a shortage of personnel. My adjutant has also been recruited there to help evacuate the people. He should just be able to send you off for a while." Procedure."

As soon as he finished speaking, a strong man with dark skin and strong muscles came to Gu Xu's side in three steps at a time, and greeted him enthusiastically: "Little brother, you are the one who killed Daqi's countless talents and succeeded." Is it Gu Xu, the cultivation genius who climbed to the top of Laoshan Mountain? He has been admiring his name for a long time!
"I heard that the closed disciple of the master of the Jiange pavilion was defeated by you, the son of the master of the Chen family in Xiangyang was also trampled under your feet, and even the personal followers of the chief minister were crying in front of you and begging for mercy... If my son had you Half of my ability, I would wake up laughing in my dreams..."

The strong man grabbed Gu Xu's hand and chattered non-stop with excitement.

This made Gu Xu feel a little embarrassed.

After all, Shangguan Jin, the "personal entourage of the chief executive", is still listening!
"What do you call your Excellency?" Gu Xu had to cough dryly, interrupting the strong man's words.

"My name is Xiong Qing, Deputy Qianhu of the Exorcism Department of Laizhou Prefecture," the strong man replied, "Young brother, just call me Big Brother Xiong."

Afterwards, Xiong Qing summoned his natal object - a huge hammer.

Gu Xu never thought that one day he would need to "fly with the hammer"!
If "Royal Sword Flying" is a fairy-like picture, then "Royal Hammer Flying" can only be described as horror.

If the hammer accidentally falls from the sky, it will probably kill the people below!
At this time, Shi Lei took out another box from the room and handed it to Gu Xu: "This is the swimming crab, a specialty of our Laizhou Prefecture. Xiaohan has always loved it. I have to trouble you to bring this box to her. "

"No problem!" Gu Xu readily agreed, and with a thought, he put the box into "Xianyunju".

At the same time, he complained silently in his heart: In this world, there are probably very few foods that Xiao Han doesn't like!
Afterwards, he followed Xiong Qing onto the sledgehammer, quickly soared into the sky, flew into the sky, and flew towards Yishui County.

"Master Shi, I should go back too."

When Gu Xu's figure completely disappeared into the sky, Shangguan Jin looked at Shi Lei who was beside him, a tranquil smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and no emotion could be seen in his eyes as quiet as lake water.

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(End of this chapter)