Knife splashing

Chapter 562: The Kitchen God Festival at the Royal Palace

Before entering the palace, Li Yan saw a servant with an anxious face, trembling as he waited at the gate.

"Young Master Li, you are finally back!"

His face had already turned red from the cold, and when he saw Li Yan appear, he was immediately delighted, ran over in three or two steps, and respectfully bowed and said, "Young Master Li, the prince asked me to wait for you here. Come to the front hall first when you come back."

"Oh, how long have you been waiting?"

"I started waiting at midnight..."

The servant didn't dare to complain, but he couldn't help showing a hint of grievance.

Li Yan understood the reason after hearing this.

The destruction of the Xu Mansion has made the Prince of the Five Commanderies feel uneasy, especially at this critical juncture, any change could be fatal.

There is no need to mention the intelligence capabilities of the Wang Mansion. He fought in the city last night and then ran to the Chengdu government office. He must know something.

Sure enough, when they arrived at the front hall, the Fifth Prince Xiao Jinghong, Ming Shanzi, Sha Lifei and others came out to greet them.

"Brother Yan, are you okay?"

Sharifei looked worried and said in a deep voice, "We heard the news last night and were ready to go out, but Senior Mingshanzi said that the people from the Shu Palace are still there, and going out would be troublesome."

"Senior is right!"

Li Yan nodded seriously and said, "If you had gone out last night, I'm afraid there would have been a big problem."

The Fifth Prince Xiao Jinghong was very patient and said calmly, "Everyone, let's go in and talk."

Everyone sat down in the hall and the servants served them hot tea.

The tea was top quality Dongding Oolong, but no one had the appetite to taste it and everyone looked at Li Yan.

Li Yan did not waste any words. He omitted the story of the "Six Idle People in the Bamboo Grove" and narrated his experiences in Xu's mansion, the battle on the long street, and what he saw and heard in the government office.

"That old witch was very skilled and experienced. She quickly fled after I defeated her. The actions of the City God Temple were a bit strange..."

"The King of Shu has the Black Feather Guards, and many expert assassins..."

In the hall, green smoke rose from the gilded Suan Ni incense burner.

Li Yan dipped his fingertips in cold tea and outlined last night's route and the layout of the Prince of Shu's Mansion on the Huanghuali desk.

Three cobblers are the best of Zhuge Liang.

Although he experienced the battle personally, he was in the mountains, so perhaps others could see more problems.

Sure enough, Ming Shanzi looked at the map and his eyes immediately became gloomy. "Chenghuang Temple...there is indeed something wrong."

As he spoke, he also dipped some tea, tapped the table a few times, and then connected them, vaguely forming a Bagua diagram.

"In the past, during the Daxing Dynasty, in order to resist the mischief of the monks from the Golden Horde Wolf Nation, I, Qingcheng Emei, united with many Dharma lineages and set up a large formation in the city..."

"Although times have changed and it no longer has the power it once had, it is impossible for the City God Temple to miss such a big commotion."

"I'm afraid someone has already tampered with it!"

At this moment, Cao Yuanhuai, the gatekeeper next to him, hesitated for a moment and suddenly spoke up, "There is a problem with the Black Feather Guards and those assassins. The Prince of Shu's Palace is in the center of the city, not far away. They have not arrived yet, and are even slower than the guards..."

"Based on the speed of the galloping horses, their base is not in the palace, but somewhere outside the city!"

"Brother Cao has good eyesight!"

Li Yan nodded slightly in praise.

Although the other party had some conflicts with him, he did not expect this point to be mentioned.

This information can save your life at critical moments.

Cao Yuanhuai nodded indifferently, but he felt a little secretly happy in his heart.

Li Yan turned his head and looked at Xiao Jinghong, his eyes narrowed, and said meaningfully: "My Lord, what do you think?"

He revealed this information intentionally.

The reason why Xu Yongqing was sent to Chengdu Prefecture instead of being brought back here was because he was afraid that Xiao Jinghong would hand him over due to their father-son relationship.

Although it is cruel, there is nothing we can do about it.

Whether for public or private reasons, the King of Shu must die!
If these five princes retreat in the slightest, he will leave immediately.

In the current situation, even the Shu Palace may not be able to be preserved.

Sure enough, the Fifth Prince seemed to be listening carefully, but in fact his eyes were a little flustered. He was silent for a while before he spoke: "Young Master Li, is my father really pretending to be sick and has he become young again?"

Li Yan nodded and said, "That should be correct."

"Humph!"

Ming Shanzi also saw the Fifth Prince's hesitation and snorted, "He is just practicing evil magic. I don't know how many people he has harmed behind the scenes."

"If he had any affection for you kids, why would he leave the position of Crown Prince vacant and let you brothers kill each other?"

"At this point, it is no longer just the King of Shu's business. If he really rebels, you will also be implicated."

Xiao Jinghong took a deep breath, and he remembered something. His eyes became firm. "Father is in good health. His serious illness is just an illusion. What should I do?"

Ming Shanzi said calmly: "The Shu King's rebellion plan cannot succeed. If necessary, we can cooperate with Wang Yushi."

"Also, he must die, and not in your hands!"

The Fifth Prince took a deep breath and said, "I understand."

Then he turned his head and looked at Li Yan, "Today is the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, the day of worshiping the Kitchen God. According to the custom, the palace has to use three animals to clear the way, worship the Kitchen God Army, use torches to drive away evil spirits, and dance the Zhong Kui dance."

"I thought it would not happen this year, but someone from the palace sent a letter yesterday asking all the princes and princesses to attend."

"I will go with you."

Ming Shanzi said in a deep voice: "When you go to the Shu Palace, you must not bring too many people. If someone takes action openly, it means that we are completely at odds with our Cheng family."

Li Yan pondered for a moment, then said, "I'll go too."

He is not idle. The criminals he is looking for may be hiding in the Prince of Shu's Mansion. If that is the case, he can catch them all at once.

Many troubles can be solved at the same time.

"Alright."

Ming Shanzi thought about it and nodded in agreement, "You can go, but you just made a scene last night, so you need to disguise yourself."

Cao Yuanhuai beside him said quickly: "I have a disguise mask, which is a treasure of our sect. It is easier to find flaws than a human skin mask."

At this moment, he had already seen it clearly.

He and Li Yan were simply not on the same level, and the other party had no intention of currying favor with the Fifth Prince, and had even tried to test him just now.

The situation is dangerous now. The safety of the five county kings is related to the development of their sect, so naturally they have to do their best.

"Thank you."

Li Yan took the mask from his hand and put it on. He immediately turned into an ordinary-looking middle-aged man. With the help of the dragon and snake brand to cover himself, he should be able to avoid most people.

With a plan in place, everyone immediately got busy.

As for Xiao Jinghong, he stood up and returned to the backyard. Looking at the worried Princess, he held her hand and said, "Ah Man, things really went wrong..."

After hearing this, the Princess turned pale and said, "My Lord, this is too dangerous. Why don't we leave? At least we can save our lives."

"Leave? Too late..."

"The arrow is on the string and has to be shot."

Xiao Jinghong sighed, pushed open the carved window, looked at the snow-covered Taihu rocks in the courtyard, and said in a deep voice: "In previous years, at 3:30 pm on the day of the Kitchen God Festival, my father would be in Chengyun Hall, personally holding a red pen and marking Zhong Kui's eyes."

"I want to see if he still has any affection for his son..."

.........

"Master, did you gain anything?"

In the bamboo forest, Li Yan looked at Wang Daoxuan. Wang Daoxuan shook his head and smiled bitterly, "This Five Heads Divine Secret was passed down from 'Chijiang Ziyu'. It is an ancient Qi refining method. It is really mysterious. It is said that after practicing it, you can obtain the five heads of magical powers."

“It’s the magical power of the Dharma Realm!”

Li Yan's eyes lit up, "What is the use of this magical power?"

Wang Daoxuan replied: "You can spit out the evil spirit to bless the magic, but this method is really mysterious. Now is no longer the ancient wilderness, most likely it is impossible to practice it."

"Not always."

Li Yan shook his head and said, "The magical power of the Dharma Realm can be cultivated with the help of the divine power. This opportunity cannot be missed. Taoist priest, just cultivate and leave the rest to me."

He has used up all his stored divine energy, and as long as he finds one more demonic energy, he can give it to Wang Daoxuan.

He was naturally aware of the power of the Dharma Realm's magical powers. Now the enemies he faced were getting stronger and stronger, and he could not do without the help of his companions.

"We'll talk about this later!"

Sharifei was a little anxious. "There are so many monsters hiding in Chengdu. We can't just watch you take the risk alone."

"Yes."

Lu San also said in a low voice: "The Taoist priest needs to practice magic, and Lao Sha needs to concentrate. They just need to stay here. I can do something while I am free."

"Nonsense!"

Sha Lifei rolled his eyes and said, "You are a dullard, Wu Ba is a big fool, aren't you afraid of being sold out? I feel relieved if I follow you. Besides, practicing at night is enough, and it should be enough after the 15th."

Listening to the jokes from several people, Li Yan felt warm in his heart.

The world is dangerous, but at least we have these brothers who care about us.

He pondered for a moment, "Okay, the Shu Palace probably won't send people out to the streets to do business. You guys go to the Chengdu government office to get more gunpowder first, then go to Mingxiang Pavilion, meet up with Senior Situ, and tell him what happened last night. If you have time, you can also get some information."

"Remember to disguise yourself. Wu Ba is too conspicuous. Stay here and help the Taoist priest to protect the law."

"Dele!"

After some arrangements were made, the prince also sent his servants to invite him.

Li Yan put on a mask, changed his clothes, pretended to be Xiao Jinghong's steward, and followed the team out of the Prince's Mansion.

And Sha Lifei and Lu San also dressed up, went out through the back door, and took the small path to the Chengdu government office...

…………

Shu is a prosperous land, ranking among the top in the whole of China.

As the only vassal king with a state as his fiefdom, the scale of the Shu Palace is naturally not small, and it is basically a reduced imperial city.

When you arrive at the center of Chengdu, you can see from afar a towering red wall with a string of icicles hanging on it. It is the wall of the royal palace, named "Xiao Wall".

The main gate of the palace, called Lingxing Gate, was now wide open.

The soldiers of the Chengdu Garrison even blocked the surrounding streets and expelled the nearby people. Only the princes and princesses, as well as invited officials, were allowed to enter with tokens.

The snow and wind had stopped overnight, but the cold wind was still howling.

The team of the Five Princes was very low-key. They only rode in green sedan chairs. People including Li Yan, Ming Shanzi, etc. followed behind on foot.

After passing the defense line of the garrison soldiers, the streets became increasingly empty.

When we arrived outside the Lingxing Gate, the vermilion-painted and copper-nailed palace gate was wide open.

Li Yan looked up and saw that the eaves of the triple gatehouse were covered with snow, and the words "Shu Palace" in the center were polished to a shine, revealing the gold-lined cloud patterns written by the previous emperor.

Two teams of guards holding halberds lined up along the eight-shaped screen wall. The red pompoms on the shoulders of their iron armor fluttered in the wind, and they all carried muskets on their backs.

Of course, they are all ordinary firearms.

If the Black Feather Guards equipped with the Divine Fire Gun appeared openly, it would be guaranteed that impeachment memorials would flood into the capital city like snowflakes that very day.

"The Fifth Prince returns home!"

Wow!
The doorman's hello startled the crows on the eaves.

Ten servants in black clothes filed out from the side door and deftly spread a scarlet felt carpet in front of the sedan chair. The old doorman stepped forward holding a gilded heating stove. On the stove cover there was a hollowed-out pattern of five bats holding longevity symbols, and wisps of sandalwood smoke rose from it.

The grandeur of the palace was immediately apparent.

Li Yan took a casual glance and saw several mud-gilded sedan chairs parked at the east corner gate, all pulled by blue horses.

It seems that other princes have arrived first.

"Your Majesty, please!"

The tall and strong soldier guarding the gate came over with a wooden tray, said something expressionlessly, and then glanced at the team behind him with a cold gaze.

This means entering the palace and handing over the weapons.

Li Yan knew this rule long ago, so he left the Dust-Breaking Sword and the Flintlock Rifle in the bamboo hut, and only took the arm guard "Qian Nian" and the Chu Ling paper figurine with him.

These two things are enough to deal with most situations.

At a signal from Xiao Jinghong, the guards behind him presented their weapons one after another. Li Yan dressed up as a scholar and carried the Dragon Snake brand, so he did not attract any attention.

After some inspection, they were finally allowed in.

Led by the palace guards, they walked through the five-room, three-opening Duanli Gate and the towering corridor...

There were guards in full armor standing guard along the way, and the atmosphere was solemn.

When Li Yan saw it, he frowned immediately.

He had also been to the Wuchang Palace, whose treasure house was famous all over the world, but it was still a level inferior to the Shu Palace.

No wonder the senior officials in the court are so cautious.

Reducing the power of the vassal states was Daxuan's national policy. In order to avoid resistance from the royal family, the vassal states maintained their positions in the name of local cities. Moreover, if they failed to pacify the local people, their thrones would be taken away.

Just like a bait, the princes are always wary of each other in their fight for the throne, and it is difficult for them to unite, and they also have to please the emperor.

It can be said that it is quite successful so far.

Only the King of Shu is particularly conspicuous. Even if these things did not happen, I am afraid that the ministers in the court would find ways to turn the "King of Shu" into the "King of Chengdu".

While Li Yan was thinking, they had arrived outside the Chengyun Gate.

Passing through Chengyun Gate is the main hall of the Prince of Shu's Palace, and further back is the harem blocked by the palace gate.

Although it is not as big as the imperial palace, it is also vast and imposing.

Outside Chengyun Gate, quite a few people had already been standing. The ones in the front, wearing luxurious clothes and dragon robes, were the princes, and there were also several princesses wearing gorgeous Shu brocade clothes.

Beside them stood many officials from Chengdu Prefecture, while their accompanying servants and guards stood behind them.

The Fifth Prince frowned and asked, "Why are you all here?"

"Return to the Prince."

The guard of the palace in front said in a deep voice: "The rules have changed today. We will first watch the ceremony outside Chengyun Gate, and then go to the palace to watch the show."

"Ah."

Xiao Jinghong nodded and said nothing more.

Mingshanzi and Li Yan looked at each other.

They followed here, firstly to protect Xiao Jinghong, and secondly to see what kind of evil magic the current King of Shu had practiced.

But things seem to have changed.

The fifth prince was the youngest. When he arrived at the place where the princes and princesses were, he immediately bowed respectfully and said, "Greetings, eldest brother, second brother, fourth brother, and sisters."

Before he finished speaking, he felt something was wrong.

Almost everyone's eyes were fixed on him.

The prince's face was gloomy, he shook off his fox fur coat and said calmly: "Old Five, you hid it well enough..."

(End of this chapter)