Knife splashing

Chapter 219 Yichang City

A few days later, outside Zhujiabao Phosphate Mine.

This mine has been taken over by the imperial court, and after exploration by officials sent by the Ministry of Works, it was found that the reserves are extremely astonishing.

What the thieves dug before was just the tip of the iceberg.

Phosphate ore may be used in the chemical industry in the future, but it is of little use nowadays and the imperial court does not pay much attention to it.

But now, because the development of firearms in the army also requires a large amount of yellow phosphorus, the garrison directly sent troops to close the waterway and build a mine here.

Mining phosphate is dangerous and the miners’ lives are short.

Just as the war broke out in Ezhou, prisoners and prisoners of war from all over the country were escorted here for mining and excavation.

Naturally, there were sorcerers accompanying the army. The evil spirit in the corpse-suppressing ground in Zhujiabao had been released, so they pushed down the statue of the foreign monk and built a mountain temple to suppress the evil spirit.

At this moment, the mine was crowded with people, with densely built shacks and garrisons guarding it.

In the night, the candlelight is twinkling, and it is very busy.

On a distant mountain, several men in black were standing still and watching.

One of them had an extremely strange appearance, was abnormally thin, and was a little hunched over. He squatted on the ground like a giant macaque.

He had a pointed face and monkey cheeks, but his eyes were huge. He pinched his Yang Jue with his hands and stared at the front, saying, "There are about 500 soldiers in the garrison. They all look green and inexperienced, and their deployment is not rigorous."

This place was far away from the mine and it was dark at night, but he could see it clearly, as if it was right in front of him.

There were several men in black, all of them had solemn expressions and stern demeanor.

In the center of them, an old man with a white beard stood with his hands behind his back. He was tall, with a broad back, sharp eyes and a hooked nose.

His eyes were unusually gloomy. "Have you found out?"

A middle-aged man beside him waved his hands and clasped his fists, "My Lord, they are a few wandering sorcerers from Shanzhou, and they have some reputation there."

"They were attacked while passing through this place and killed Master Karma, but these people hid the Thunderbolt Fire Sutra and did not report it to the court."

"Humph!"

The white-bearded old man said coldly: "These unorthodox sorcerers are ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth, and dare to touch anything."

"Where are they now?"

"News has come in that they showed up in Jingzhou yesterday and have headed to Yichang. Commander Wang has gone there personally to kill them."

"Ah."

The old man nodded slightly, then looked behind him and said calmly, "Are you sure that Zhao Changsheng will show up in Ezhou?"

One of them slowly raised his head and bowed respectfully, saying, "My Lord, 'Red Girl' has appeared in Ezhou many times. She is Zhao Changsheng's confidant. She must have some ulterior motive for staying here for so long."

If Li Yan was there, he would have discovered that this person was Bai Ruoxu, the head of the Yahang Hall who escaped from Chang'an.

The old man pondered for a moment, "You were once a member of the Maitreya Sect. I will leave the matter of contacting the Red Woman to you."

"Tell her to pass a message to Zhao Changsheng. The Tiansheng Sect and the mountain people will be ready soon. As long as this matter is accomplished, I will give him the treasure he wants."

"this…"

When Bai Ruoxu heard this, he hesitated.

A person beside him said with a smile: "Brother Bai, what are you afraid of?"

"You tricked the Maitreya Sect, and Zhao Changsheng was being hunted by the Maitreya Sect. We are in the same boat, so why would they attack you?"

"Now that you are under the command of the Lord, you must not be too cautious when doing things."

Looking at the indifferent eyes of the people around him, Bai Ruoxu sighed inwardly, knowing that he could not avoid this task, so he could only bow slightly.
"I obey my orders."

…………

Yichang, also known as Yiling, was originally the ancient Xiling tribe.

It is rumored that Huangdi's wife Leizu was the daughter of Xiling clan.

When the Eastern Jin Dynasty divided the western border of Yiling and established another county, it was named "Yichang", implying that it would be auspicious for the country to prosper. The name "Yichang" first appeared in history.

The Daxuan Dynasty was established and the name of Yichang was officially established...

"Young Master Li, we're here!"

On the deck, the hearty voice of "Clipper Zhang" rang out.

He was very nervous along the way.

It was not because of the intricate and dangerous waters, but because of the many firearms on board.

Although as a man of the underworld, he had done a lot of dirty work in the past, but the importance the court attached to firearms was now known to everyone.

In addition, with the war in Ezhou now, there are obviously a lot more officers and soldiers patrolling the river. Once they are caught, even if they can escape, they will definitely be wanted and have to live in the wild.

Fortunately, he had excellent ship-handling skills, and Lu San had been sending falcons to patrol, so they would immediately avoid the imperial navy as soon as they spotted it from afar.

Finally, we arrived in Yichang safely.

Naturally, these firearms could not be brought into the city, so they found a small hill by the river halfway and hid them in a secret cave.

Upon hearing this, Li Yan and others also walked out of the cabin.

It was just dawn, the sky was gloomy and drizzling.

On the wide Yangtze River, waves are surging, hundreds of boats and sails are crisscrossing, and in the distance is a huge river bay, and a huge city is built on the river bay.

The bustle of this place is no less than that of Jingzhou where we passed before.

Old man Zhang introduced with a smile: "Everyone, the ferry crossing in Yichang City controls Sichuan and Jingxiang in the north and is an important river and lake wharf in Ezhou."

"In the underworld here, besides Ezhou, there are also many gangs from Bashu. It can be said that good and bad people are mixed together. But with your abilities, you can stand firm wherever you go."

Li Yan nodded and said solemnly, "Senior Zhang, thank you for your help along the way. We will say goodbye after we reach the dock."

Clipper Zhang was stunned. “After you finish your business, you still have to go somewhere else. I can wait.”

Sharifei on the side said with a smile: "Please don't say any more. We have caused some trouble. The enemy is not a good person. Let's not get you into trouble."

"When the world is at peace, I will definitely go drink with you, Senior Zhang."

Clipper Zhang was silent for a moment, then nodded slightly and said, "Okay, I'm not afraid at my age, but these disciples have elderly and young people to support at home, so I'm sorry."

Li Yan laughed in silence, "What are you talking about, senior?"

Old man Zhang turned his head and looked at Wang Daoxuan again, bowing deeply and saying, "Master Wang, you are so kind. Please accept my greetings."

The boatmen on the boat also turned around and bowed respectfully to express their gratitude.

Along the way, although Li Yan was the leader, the person they respected the most was Wang Daoxuan.

Wang Daoxuan was a kind person who treated others warmly and generously. He was also open-minded and told everyone all the taboos to avoid evil spirits.

"Clipper Zhang" recorded it himself and filled up a whole notebook.

He knew that this was a treasure that could be passed down from generation to generation!
Although they are not as good as those people in the Xuanmen with this thing, they do not rely on exorcism to make a living. When they travel to different places and encounter some strange things, they have a way to protect themselves.

As they were talking, the wooden boat was gradually approaching the dock.

The river bank here is wide and there are several docks for ships to dock. Some of them only allow official ships to travel, while others are exclusively for large commercial ships to unload cargo.

The pier for small passenger ships is relatively small.

"Everyone, farewell!"

"Take care on your journey!"

After getting on the dock and saying goodbye to each other, Li Yan and his three companions watched "Speedboat Zhang" leave, then turned and walked towards Yichang City.

From a distance, you can see that the Yichang city wall is very different from the Guanzhong city wall. It is based on red sandstone, with blue bricks on the wall, and it is oval in shape.

There are moats around the city walls, which are four meters wide, and the river water is diverted into them, relying on the danger of the Yangtze River as a natural barrier.

At this time, the city gate had already been opened. Although it was busy, it was very smooth. There was no need to queue up to enter the city, but there were a large number of soldiers patrolling and checking at the gate.

As they moved forward, they soon discovered something strange. These soldiers were extremely strict in checking people dressed in various ethnic minority costumes and armed wuxia characters.

Several people looked at each other and guessed the reason.

Although they were on the road, when they passed Jingzhou, Sharifei also entered the city and bought a copy of the latest intelligence.

In Yunyang City, the war was in a stalemate.

After the mountain people occupied Zhushan County, they gathered a large number of troops and wanted to continue attacking cities and seizing territories, and even capture Yunyang City.

However, the city of Yunyang was very different at this time.

Governor Yuan Qian, who was originally recuperating at home, appeared in person, dragging his sick body.

He is a truly capable minister. For many years, he has been guarding Yunyang Prefecture, reclaiming wasteland for farming, and attracting mountain people, which has improved the situation.

It was precisely because he was too capable that he had a good reputation even among the mountain people, and he gradually eroded the reputation of the Tiansheng Sect, forcing it to take a risk.

As soon as he made a move, he immediately took control of the situation.

The reckless commander-in-chief was captured immediately, and steady generals were temporarily promoted to guard the important waterways.

With the precautions, the effect of gunpowder was significantly reduced.

The rebellious mountain people wanted to lure the enemy again, but were ambushed by Yuan Xun's men, achieving their first victory since the war began.

However, Yuanqian did not take any risks.

The number of the Tiansheng Sect’s troops was simply too large, and in a short period of time, they had gathered an army of 200,000.

Fortunately, thanks to the emergency support from Shanzhou Guard, they were able to hold on.

Yuan Xun’s strategy was simple: to defend to the death.

This riot was a slap in the face of the emperor. The Daxuan Dynasty had mobilized troops from all over and rushed to Ezhou to suppress the rebellion.

As long as Yuan Xun could control the war within a certain range, once the army arrived, he could razze the Jingchu mountainous area and completely wipe out the Tiansheng Sect.

Of course, they have a bigger enemy.

They are the chieftains who are causing chaos.

The imperial court of the Daxuan Dynasty had made up its mind to solve the issues concerning the mountain people of Jingchu and the policy of converting native peoples into officials in one fell swoop, in order to stabilize the situation in Shenzhou.

But Yichang is a little special.

On one side, it borders the territories of the chieftains in the southwest, and on the other side, it is connected to Bashu and is heavily garrisoned.

If the war in the Jingchu mountainous area subsides, this place will be the front line to suppress the four directions and eliminate the rebellious chieftains.

Prior to this, the court was reluctant to push too hard.

After all, there were still some chieftains who were loyal to the imperial court and were willing to cooperate with the policy of transforming chieftains into officials, while others were just watching and did not participate in the rebellion.

If we can win these people over, the war can end as soon as possible.

At the same time, the rebellious chieftains were also taking action. First, they were trying to find a way to infiltrate Yichang City to prepare for war, and second, they were trying to win the support of various forces.

Today, Yichang City is a gathering place for all kinds of evildoers...

"Stop!"

Sure enough, as soon as they reached the door, they were stopped by soldiers.

It is obvious from their appearance that they are not good people.

Li Yan took out the black Taoist certificate without any hurry. "We are sorcerers from Shanzhou. We have accepted the task from the City God Temple of Yunyang Prefecture and came to the southwest to investigate a few cases."

The effect of the black certificate was revealed.

The commander of the soldiers guarding the city saw this and his expression eased a lot. He bowed respectfully and said, "Please wait a moment. There are people in Yichang City God Temple who can check it out."

After saying that, he quickly turned around and said, "Go and invite Taoist Master Yulingzi!"

There was a guard house near the city gate. A Taoist priest with gray hair was meditating inside. He was slightly fat, his head was nodding, and he was snoring continuously.

"Taoist, Taoist!"

The soldiers guarding the city quickly woke him up and said, "A few sorcerers came from Yunyang Prefecture and said they had received a mission from the City God Temple."

"By the way, they said they were from Shanzhou, and the general flag officer asked me to ask you to check it."

"Oh."

The fat Taoist opened his eyes dazedly, then he shuddered and pulled the soldier over and asked, "You said they came from Shanzhou?"

"Is the leader a young man?"

"Well, do you know him, Taoist Priest?"

As soon as the soldier asked the question, the fat Taoist hurriedly put on his shoes and ran out in a panic.

Arriving at the city gate, he saw Li Yan and his companions. He immediately smiled and stepped forward to salute them. “Are you Mr. Li from Guanzhong?”

Li Yan was stunned and asked suspiciously: "Does the Taoist priest know us?"

The fat Taoist flicked his whisk, his face full of smiles, "I am Yulingzi, your nephew Guhanzi wrote to you saying that you are coming here, I have been waiting for you for a long time."

"I have arranged accommodation for you, please come in!"

Li Yan and the other three looked at each other.

Although they have gained some fame, they are not even as good as ants compared with the behemoth Taixuan Orthodox Church.

With such enthusiasm, I'm afraid there's something wrong.

But now that things have come to this, we can only act according to circumstances.

"Thank you, Taoist priest."

Li Yan gave a wink and led everyone to follow the fat Taoist into the city.

As soon as you enter the city gate, you will see a long street with shops lining both sides and many pedestrians coming and going. Even under the shadow of war, it seems extremely prosperous.

"Cold shrimp, cold shrimp, cool and thirst-quenching!"

“Radish dumplings!”

There are many restaurants on both sides of the street, and the sounds of hawking are endless.

Li Yan and his companions traveled for days without stopping day or night. They ate and slept on the boat, and they could not make a fire, so most of the time they had to eat dry food.

When I heard the hawking, my stomach started beating fast.

Sharifei couldn't help licking his lips. "The folk customs in different places are really different. This is the first time I've heard that shrimp can cool you down and quench your thirst."

The fat Taoist Yu Lingzi smiled and said, "You may not know that this cold shrimp is not a shrimp, but a kind of food. It is made by steaming rice paste and then dropping it into a basin of cold water with a colander. It gets its name because its head is big and its tail is thin like a shrimp."

"When you eat it, add sugar water to make it taste special. There's a Peng's shop up ahead that makes the best ones. Let's go and try it."

"Yichang is home to the best delicacies from both places. I know exactly where the delicious food is in the city..."

Seeing his smug look, Li Yan immediately understood.

Gu Hanzi said that in order to cope with the war, all the elite members of the Taixuan Orthodox Sect in Ezhou have been transferred to Yunyang Prefecture.

In Yichang, the power of the Dharma lineage is stronger. The Taixuan Orthodox Sect only occupies the City God Temple. Moreover, although Yulingzi is of a high rank, he is obviously not an elite...

It seemed that he didn't notice Li Yan's abnormality at all. Yulingzi walked forward, talking non-stop and introducing the scenery of Yichang City.

Of course, the most talked about thing is the various delicacies.

Before they knew it, they had passed through the middle city and arrived at a street on the right, opposite which was the City God Temple.

When everyone saw it, they were stunned.

I saw that half of the facade of the City God Temple had collapsed, and many workers were repairing it in the rain...

　The third update will be posted later

　　
　
(End of this chapter)