The Ming Dynasty took an unconventional approach

Officials from various departments in the capital rushed to the courtyard and looked up. They didn't know what had happened, but they felt a heavy weight pressing on their hearts.

The clouds were so heavy they seemed you could almost touch them. An official murmured, "A terrible calamity has befallen us; we must quickly appease the people..."

Upon hearing this, the officials nearby snapped back to reality and rushed towards the palace in a panic: "Quickly, quickly notify the Imperial Guards and the Shuntian Prefecture! We must appease the people!"

We absolutely must not allow anyone to cause trouble at this time.

They were stopped as soon as they reached the gate. The imperial guards, who had been standing guard at the gate of the government office, reached out and stopped them, saying, "His Majesty has ordered that when the Imperial Preceptor undergoes his tribulation, all officials must remain at their posts and not run around."

The officials were all taken aback: "The Imperial Preceptor is undergoing tribulation? What kind of tribulation? Undergoing tribulation in the palace?"

Everyone turned to look at the gate of the Ministry of Works.

Just then, some officials from the Ministry of Works were peeking in from the doorway. When their eyes met, they quickly looked away, a little guilty.

In fact, there was also a commotion inside the Ministry of Works, with an official angrily pounding on a pillar: "The Imperial Preceptor is foolish! How could he undergo tribulation in the palace?"

Some people also patted Hu Cheng on the shoulder: "My lord, you must think of a way to go to the palace and persuade the Grand Preceptor. Before the heavenly lightning strikes, make her run as far away as possible, and make sure that the palace and people's homes are not implicated!"

"Most of the palaces in the palace are made of wood. Once struck by lightning, the fire will be difficult to control!"

Some officials even hugged Kuai Xiang and cried, "My lord, the Forbidden City is the culmination of your life's work! Please think of a solution!"

"It would be even worse if residential houses were affected. The houses in the capital are densely packed, and lightning can be unpredictable. If a fire breaks out, it would be a catastrophe!"

Hu Cheng didn't understand tribulation, but he understood Pan Yun. While pulling back his sleeve, he said, "The Imperial Preceptor cares about the people, but even more so about us. She won't implicate the people."

"Waaaaah..." The officials felt that Hu Cheng trusted the Grand Preceptor too much, and they hugged him and cried loudly.

Having no other choice, Hu Cheng shouted, "Stop crying! With the Imperial Advisor's greedy nature, do you really think she'd let lightning strike down palaces and houses?"

The crying stopped, and everyone sobbed as they thought, "It's true. If the house was destroyed because of the Imperial Preceptor's tribulation, given her character, she would definitely have to pay compensation. Let alone whether she could afford that much money, even if she could, would she be willing to give it up?"
the answer is negative.

So the officials released Hu Cheng's arm with relief, wiped away their tears, and stopped crying.

Kuai Xiang, who was standing next to him, was also relieved. With the demonic sound gone, he breathed a sigh of relief and explained, "I just looked at the direction of the gathering dark clouds. Although it's not far from the Ministry of Works, based on the feng shui of this place, the Imperial Preceptor should choose Coal Hill, which is directly north of the Imperial Palace, for his tribulation."

"Coal Hill?" The officials breathed a sigh of relief and said happily, "Coal Hill is good, Coal Hill is good. The south and east sides are occasionally maintained, but the north and west sides are just messy trees and rocks. The national treasury can't allocate funds, and we can't spare the manpower, so it has been abandoned. We don't care if a little bit is cut down."

"But judging from the shape of these dark clouds, won't they affect the palace?"

Everyone looked up at the sky, their hearts pounding again.

Dark clouds covered the entire sky, with only a sliver of light on the horizon.

It was not yet late afternoon, but the sky was already completely dark. Although it was not a solar eclipse, it resembled one, looking almost like nighttime. Behind layers of dark clouds in the sky, lightning flashed like dragons and snakes, appearing and disappearing intermittently, which was truly terrifying.

In both the inner and outer city, all businesses ceased their commercial activities. Shops without customers immediately closed, and shopkeepers and their employees stood at the doorways peeking out.
Shops with customers are also advising them to go home.

There was a brief moment of chaos on the street, but in less than a quarter of an hour, the Imperial Guards and the yamen runners of Shuntian Prefecture came out in full force. There were guards every fifty steps on the street, and the people went home in an orderly manner, and the shops closed in an orderly manner.
Meanwhile, in the outer city, due to a shortage of manpower among the Imperial Guards, Yu Qian had already asked the emperor to send someone with the military tally to the Five Military Commands to request troops an hour earlier, thus bringing the outer city under control.

Of course, most of the Imperial Guards were protecting the palace, while a portion of them were stationed outside the palaces with shovels and buckets in hand, ready to respond as quickly as possible should the lightning strike out of control.

There are 112 fire stations in the capital. Yu Qian did not allow the palace to use the fire station troops. Instead, he had them stand ready and take care of their respective areas. The palace had imperial guards and eunuchs. As long as preparations were made in advance, the fire station troops were not needed at all.

Although the emperor and his ministers were sitting cross-legged on the star-gazing platform waiting for the tribulation, they actually had just as much to do as Pan Yun, who was also waiting for the tribulation.

All state affairs are gathered here. One person comes up every now and then to report, makes a decision, and then leaves. Another person comes up every now and then...

Soon, the Minister of Works and Kuai Xiang were also brought here, and even Hu Ying was helped over by the Left and Right Vice Ministers of the Ministry of Rites. Now, not only were the cabinet ministers gathered, but the ministers and vice ministers of the six ministries were also present.

Of course, the commanders of the Five Military Commissions, as well as some astute military officers, also came.

These people could hold a court assembly if they were gathered together.

Therefore, regarding the security and fire prevention measures for the capital and the palace, as well as the measures to ensure the safety of the people, everyone pooled their wisdom and efforts, identified and addressed any shortcomings, and soon the entire preparation and follow-up work was arranged.

With all the officials watching and the emperor at the head, all the demons and monsters cowered in fear under the spotlight.

Standing on a corner of the eaves, Zhang Zijin belatedly realized: "This scheming... no wonder he came from a civil service background, he's got quite a few tricks up his sleeve."

There weren't many people, demons, or monsters in this world who would dare to mess with Pan Yun and take advantage of her weakened state during her tribulation. Now, there are none left.

Under the emperor's watchful eye, Coal Hill was also within the imperial city's boundaries and protected by Zhang Zijin. To come here again would come at too high a price.

If the benefits and costs are disproportionate, who would dare to come?

Pan Yun thought the same thing. After everything was prepared, she opened her eyes and murmured, "I should have known better than to send a message to my senior brother. I wonder if he has even come."

Pan Xiaohei, huddled in the spiritual realm, watched as lightning flashed above her head, nearly striking her several times. He said anxiously, "Don't think about your senior brother. You should think about how you're going to overcome your tribulation. You messed up your last tribulation, and your cultivation level plummeted to near the second Marquis level. Now you're trying to break through to the second Marquis level. Who knows if you'll be punished by the heavens? What if they strike you with lightning at the third Marquis level..."

Pan Yun's eyes flashed as she looked straight at the sky, fearlessly saying, "So what?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the clouds in the sky, which must have been holding back for so long, suddenly collided with each other in the strong wind, and a bolt of lightning as thick as a bucket crashed down on Pan Jun's head with a loud crack...

Pan Yun leaped into the air, heading straight for the lightning bolt, and shouted, "Bring it on! Who's afraid of who!"

Everyone saw the Imperial Advisor rise into the air. She flew to mid-air and used her head to catch the lightning. A gasp went up in astonishment. Amidst the deafening thunder, Pan Yun pressed forward, braving the lightning to fly another two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters), her entire body bathed in the intense light of the lightning. (End of Chapter)