Knife splashing

Chapter 349: Xiangyang Strange Stories
"There are 10,000 families living by the water and on the hills. Xiangyang has been rich and luxurious since ancient times.

Looking back from Beixuan in February, the red sun shines through the city, and the city is full of flowers. "

This poem "Xiangyang" was written by Jia An in the Northern Song Dynasty and it talks about the prosperity of the ancient city of Xiangyang.

Since the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, when the world was in chaos, the Jingxiang area was under the governance of Liu Biao. It was a "thousands of miles of fertile land and prosperous people". It became a pure land and many famous scholars emerged.

The most famous ones are, of course, Crouching Dragon and Phoenix Chick.

During the Yongjia Rebellion in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the elite migrated south and the wealthy families of the three prefectures fled to Fanmian and settled along the Han River, bringing with them a large amount of wealth and population.

No matter how dynasties change, this place has always been an important town in Ezhou.

The reason for this is due to Xiangyang’s special location.

Xiangyang is connected to Guanzhong and Hanzhong in the west, Nanyang and Luoyang in the north, and the three towns of Yangtze River and Wuchang in the south. It is located in the middle and connects the east, west, south and north, making it irreplaceable.

Therefore, this place has always been a battleground for military strategists.

Cao Cao was defeated at Chibi. Thanks to Cao Ren's defense of Xiangyang, Cao Wei was able to control the Xiangfan area and suppress the Eastern Wu and Jingzhou...

Yue Wumu recovered the six counties of Xiangyang and rekindled the Southern Song Dynasty's fighting spirit against the Jin Dynasty...

The previous dynasty, Daxing, defended Xiangyang for three years before resisting the southward advance of the Golden Horde Wolf Kingdom, and the Daxuan Dynasty also used Xiangyang as a starting point to start the campaign to unify China...

It can be said that the city of Xiangyang is made up of blood and bones.

Of course, now is a prosperous time, and Xiangyang City has long since recovered its prosperity. People from all walks of life gather here, and the city is full of wealthy people.

It is now July, and the Ghost Festival has just passed.

At the dock in Xiangyang City, the ashes from the incense burner rituals had not yet dissipated, but people were already coming and going, and vehicles and boats were constantly coming and going.

But people who are familiar with Xiangyang City know that although there seem to be many people here, it is actually much quieter than in the past.

What was even more bizarre was that everyone had a layer of cloth covering their face, silk for the dignitaries and coarse cloth for the common people, but no matter what the material was, it was filled with a strong smell of vinegar.

Not only that, people try to keep their heads down when talking and stay at a distance, and even avoid strangers when passing by each other.

In the distance on the river, a warship was moving forward at a rapid speed.

The warship was not big, with pointed ends that made it impossible to tell the front from the back. It was surrounded by a bunker made of neatly nailed bamboo, with a row of gun holes left between the bamboos.

Anyone who knows a little bit knows that this is the navy’s “eagle ship”.

This small warship is known for its rapid movement and strong maneuverability. It is often used for reconnaissance and detection of enemy situations, or to break into enemy positions.

Since the outbreak of the Southwest War, this ship could often be seen traveling on the Yangtze River waterway, either delivering military orders or transporting important goods.

It was flying the navy flag, and civilian ships along the way avoided it.

No one can afford to mess with this kind of ship, especially when you see a row of gun barrels sticking out of the gun ports, indicating that they are carrying out a mission.

Once blocked, the other party can even open fire directly.

Without any pause, the eagle ship continued forward, heading upstream of the Han River, after passing Xiangyang and the opposite Fancheng wharf.

Li Yan and others were on the deck.

Also traveling with them was Gu Hanzi from the City God Temple of Yunyang Prefecture.

He looked pale and obviously injured.

There were several Taoists beside him, all of them looking at the surrounding water with vigilance on their faces and holding the hilts of their swords.

Li Yan had been looking at Xiangyang Wharf. When he could no longer see it, he turned back and frowned, saying, "There's something wrong with Xiangyang Wharf."

"A plague broke out in Fancheng."

Gu Hanzi explained, "A few days ago, a boatload of people suddenly died on the Han River. Their deaths were bizarre, and their organs were covered in moss."

"It just so happened that the people from the Fancheng government office were on patrol, so they pulled the body back, performed an autopsy, and investigated the case. They also invited fellow disciples from the Fancheng Law Enforcement Hall to come."

"I originally thought it was a poisonous poison, but the method of exorcising the poison had no effect, and there was no evil spirit on the deceased."

"The next day, several runners who were transporting the corpse also died of the same symptoms. Finally, a doctor determined that this was a rare plague."

"The prefect of Xiangyang invited a Taoist doctor from the Huangzhou Li family to come and deal with the matter. He ordered people to cover their mouths and noses with vinegar cloth to stop the plague. The plague was temporarily contained in Fancheng and did not leak out..."

"Fancheng has been closed off now, but rumors are spreading that those people have offended the plague god on the river, causing panic among the people."

"Huangzhou Li family?"

Wang Daoxuan became interested, "Medicine Saint Li Shizhen?"

"Ah."

Gu Hanzi nodded and said, "The Medicine Saint Li family is also a local big family. Although many of their descendants entered officialdom, the family tradition has never been interrupted. There is one named Li Facheng, whose reputation has risen rapidly in recent years."

"Facheng... entered the Dharma religion?"

"That's right. This Li Facheng has the ambition of a medicine saint. He wants to travel all over China and continue to expand the Compendium of Materia Medica."

"In terms of the abilities of the people in this mountain, the Meishan Sect is still the strongest, so he found someone to become his disciple and joined the Meishan Sect..."

Listening to the two chatting, Li Yan looked at Lu San.

Lu San immediately understood, looked at the falcon in the sky, and made an "ok" gesture to indicate that everything was normal.

Li Yan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After leaving Liangzi Lake, they returned to Wuchang, strolled around the Yellow Crane Tower and Qingchuan Pavilion, and then prepared to set off for Wudang.

Unexpectedly, a Taoist priest suddenly came to ask for help.

It was Gu Hanzi and his men who went to the mountains near Huangmei to capture a traitor. They accidentally fell into an ancient tomb and found another blood jade cong. They were also ambushed by a monster on the way.

The relationship between Taoism and Buddhism is somewhat subtle.

Although the local law enforcement hall would definitely help if they asked, Gu Hanzi and the others were unwilling to do so. When they heard that Li Yan was there, they asked them to escort them along the way.

Li Yan was going to Mount Wudang anyway, so he naturally agreed immediately. He asked the navy for help and borrowed an eagle ship in order to reach Yunyang as quickly as possible.

Fortunately, we didn't encounter any danger along the way.

Hearing Wang Daoxuan asking about this strange plague, Li Yan's heart moved, and he asked, "Is this caused by a demon?"

Gu Hanzi shook his head and said, "Fellow Daoist Li, I know that you are helping Master Tu to gain the position of the God of Han River. If he can really make great contributions, my Zhenwu Palace will also be happy to see it succeed."

"But it may be difficult for it to gain a foothold in Xiangyang, and its news is already out of date. The Nanmu King has already been killed."

Li Yan was surprised, "Oh, what happened?" "This matter started more than ten years ago."

Gu Hanzi shook his head slightly and said, "The capital of the previous dynasty's Daxing Kingdom was in Jinling. The Great Xuan Emperor Xiao Chengyou raised an army to seize the throne. Although most of the former dynasty's old subordinates responded, some people would rather die than surrender."

"Many people died at that time, and more than a dozen members of the royal family hanged themselves in the palace, burned the palace, and released the blood curse, which caused a huge commotion. It was not until more than 20 years after the establishment of the Daxuan Dynasty that the curse gradually dissipated."

"Plus, the remnants of the Golden Horde were still preparing to make a move in the northern desert, so Emperor Gaozu issued the "Edict to Move the Capital" and changed Beiping to the capital."

He was silent for a moment, then sighed, "Nanmu is precious and auspicious, and is known as the 'king of all trees', but it is also called the weeping blood tree. Does Fellow Daoist Li know this?"

Li Yan nodded, "I've heard a little bit about it."

Sharifi, who was standing next to him, got anxious when he heard this. "Hey, stop playing dumb. This is the first time I've heard of this. What's going on?"

Gu Hanzi said in a deep voice: "Nanmu wood has a fine texture. Since ancient times, it has been the best choice for beams and pillars in palaces and temples."

"There are three types of nanmu: one is the Kaiyangnan; one is the Hansinan, which is yellow and as bright as gold thread, the best; and one is the Shuinan, which is slightly green and soft, the worst. When the palace was built after the capital was moved, the Jinsinan had to be used."

"The best golden nanmu is produced in Yuzhang, Huguang, Yunnan and Guizhou counties. It is not only old, but also must be a natural treasure. It is used in the Feng Shui formation of the capital. It is hidden in the deep mountains and old forests."

"The imperial court had treasure hunters who went into the mountains to look for these large nanmu trees. They were often guarded by ferocious beasts and poisonous creatures, and many were killed or injured."

"But finding the wood is only the first step. To pick a nanmu tree that is seven feet long and one foot and two or three feet in circumference, you need five hundred porters to pull and transport it. They will build ponds along the way, one every ten miles, and deliver the wood to the next pond..."

"To put it bluntly, sometimes a small canal had to be dug to transport a good piece of nanmu wood smoothly. It would take nearly a year to get through the Three Gorges, along the Yangtze and Huai Rivers, and across the Huai River and Si Rivers, and there were countless casualties."

"There is a popular saying in Shu, 'One thousand people go into the mountains, and only five hundred come out.' When people in Chu and Shu talk about cutting wood, they all choke up..."

Sharifei frowned and asked, "Do we have to use golden nanmu?"

Li Yan shook his head. "Other things can be used as substitutes, but Phoebe nanmu is the most precious. How can it look noble without this wood?"

Sharifei spat and said no more.

Gu Hanzi continued, "The golden nanmu wood that was transported out of the mountain is originally a spiritual wood. It absorbs blood and resentment along the way, so it is inevitable that something bad will happen. It must be sealed with a secret method so that it can be transported to the capital smoothly."

"At that time, the Paijiao and Caobang rapidly expanded their power because of this, but even so, many incidents occurred."

"Some nanmu trees are spiritual and will enchant people in the middle of the night, causing ships to be destroyed and people to die. They will sink into the Yangtze River, absorb the dragon veins and the yin energy of the earth, and turn into evil spirits."

"In the past, whenever there was a heavy rain in the Three Gorges, many nanmu trees would float to the surface of the water, like crocodiles, crashing into each other, destroying boats and killing people. They were called the Left General, Right General and Great General of Nanmu."

"My master and Qingcheng Mountain joined forces and performed rituals in the Three Gorges for several months before we managed to kill these things."

"The one in Xiangyang is even older. During the Tang Dynasty, there was an old nanmu tree, about a hundred feet long, that was originally going to be transported to Chang'an to be used in the construction of the Daming Palace."

"But halfway through the journey, the cable suddenly broke, and everyone on the boat died suddenly. Then the old nanmu fell into the river, hid at the bottom of the river, and turned into an old monster."

"During the turmoil at the end of the Tang Dynasty, this creature came out to cause trouble, stirring up storms at any time. Passing ships could only pass by chanting 'Panmu Great King Bless You'. At that time, the people along the way built more than a hundred 'Nanjun Temples' and worshipped them day and night to calm the situation."

"After the founding of the Great Xuan Dynasty, the Xuanmen Orthodox Sect cracked down on obscene worship. This 'Nan Jun' is naturally our primary target. All temples were demolished, and a magic altar was set up in Xiangyang to capture him."

"After the ritual, an old nanmu tree indeed floated up from the river, but its spirit had been completely lost. It was bought by a wealthy businessman from Xiangyang and used to build a temple to worship Prince Zhaoming."

"But for many years afterwards, this Nanmu King has been haunting us, often causing trouble, and we can't find the source."

"It was not until more than a decade ago that a scholar named Lu sailed to Xiangyang. A strange wind suddenly blew up on the river. The boatman was so frightened that he immediately kowtowed and chanted 'May King Nanmu bless you'. Only then did the strange wind and waves stop."

"After asking, the scholar flew into a rage. After landing, he wrote a letter and reported it to the Water Palace. Three days later, a giant tree floated down the river. Thus, the Nanmu King's rebellion was finally over."

Li Yan was surprised, "The Confucian method?"

Gu Hanzi nodded and said, "That's right. There is such a master hidden in Ezhou. The Law Enforcement Hall will naturally investigate. According to the intelligence at the time, the other party is from Lushan."

"Back then, one of my uncles went to visit him in person, but he couldn't find him several times. He even asked several great scholars from the academy to go, but they sneered at him and disappeared mysteriously afterwards."

Wang Daoxuan laughed dumbly and said, "The noble man of Lumen was arrogant to the emperor, I didn't expect that he is still like this now."

Li Yan knew about this matter.

Outside Xiangyang City is Lumen Mountain, which has been a place of seclusion for famous scholars throughout history.

Pang Degong, a famous scholar in the late Han Dynasty, refused to accept the invitations of Governor Liu Biao and took his family to Mount Lumen to collect herbs...

Meng Haoran of the Tang Dynasty was frustrated in his career and lived in seclusion in Lumen Mountain, where he enjoyed himself by chanting mountains and rivers. Pi Rixiu of the late Tang Dynasty also lived in seclusion in Lumen Temple...

There are also some people who live in seclusion among the Xuanmen Confucianists.

Gu Hanzi shook his head and said, "Lumen has changed a lot now. Some of them are true hermits, but most of them are using hermitage to gain fame. They recite poems and paint all day long, and hold poetry gatherings at every turn, making the place a mess."

"The scholar surnamed Lu has disappeared since then, and King Nanmu has not caused trouble since then, so we didn't continue to investigate."

Lü San, who was standing by, said in a deep voice, "Master Tu practices in secret and rarely causes trouble. I just learned about this, but why do you say that it is difficult to gain a foothold in Xiangyang?"

Gu Hanzi burst out laughing and said, "Don't you know about the 'Chuantian Festival' in Xiangyang?"

"During the Zhou Dynasty, Zheng Jiaofu often traveled to the Han River and saw two goddesses playing with pearls at the Han Gao Tune. There is a record of them in the Biography of Immortals. They were called the Two Jiang Feis."

"From then on, every 21st day of the first lunar month, the people of Xiangyang would go to the banks of the Han River for fun. Women would look for white stones with holes, thread them with colored silk, and hang them above their heads to pray for a child. This was the 'Chuantian Festival' unique to Xiangyang."

"There is a Goddess Temple on Taohua Island outside Xiangyang City, where the two daughters of Concubine Jiang are enshrined and listed as the main gods. Even when King Nanmu was wreaking havoc, the people of Xiangyang always believed that the two daughters of Concubine Jiang were the water gods of this place."

"This is an ancient custom, and the imperial court has also included it in the official worship. If the crocodile master wants to build a temple in the future, he must stay away from it..."

Everyone chatted along the way and it didn't feel boring at all.

The eagle boat was traveling at a very fast speed. It soon passed through Laohekou and Danjiangkou. At dusk, it reached a river bend and went ashore.

On the shore, there were already a dozen disciples from the Zhenwu Palace waiting to pick them up. Once they got here, they were already in the sphere of influence of Wudang Mountain. Even the most powerful monsters wouldn't dare to come and cause trouble, so they were completely safe.

When they arrived at the foot of Wudang Mountain, seeing that it was already dark, Gu Hanzi said, "Because of the war in the southwest, most of the masters on the mountain have gone to the front line to provide support. The mountain is closed at night and no one is allowed to go up the mountain."

"Let's stay in the village at the foot of the mountain for now, and then go up the mountain early tomorrow morning."

Li Yan nodded and said, "I will follow your arrangements."

As they were talking, they arrived at a village.

This village is located at the foot of Mount Wudang, and it is obvious that it has a close relationship with the Taoists in Zhenwu Palace. When villagers along the way saw the Taoists in Zhenwu Palace, they all greeted them warmly.

A strange look flashed in Li Yan's eyes.

All the villagers, men, women, young and old, practiced martial arts.

"Hahahaha...you're finally here."

Halfway through the journey, an old man came striding over. It was Zhang Xiaoshan, the gangster from Ezhou…

　Second update at 2 o'clock
　　
　
(End of this chapter)