Knife splashing

Chapter 662 The Iron Lion of the Wu Family
"Hey, why did Zhenhaihou move?"

Wang Daoxuan was a little surprised when he saw it. "I also visited here many years ago. Isn't Zhenhaihou in the old city?"

What he was talking about was the famous Cangzhou Iron Lion.

This object was built in the third year of Guangshun in the Later Zhou Dynasty. It was originally the mount of Manjusri Bodhisattva in Kaiyuan Temple. It also has the meaning of calming the sea and eliminating disasters. People call it "Zhenhaihou". Today, Kaiyuan Temple has long been destroyed due to the "Huaichang Persecution", but the iron lion still stands for nearly seven hundred years despite wind, frost, rain, snow and war.

Because Cangzhou suffered from frequent floods, people held sacrifices there all year round, and the "Zhenhaihou" became a symbol of Cangzhou.

"The Taoist priest doesn't know something."

The Cao Gang disciple explained, "A few years ago, strange things happened in the canal. Fog often appeared in the middle of the night, and huge waves would occasionally appear during the day, causing boats to be destroyed and people to die. Therefore, rumors spread that the feng shui of the canal had been ruined by the unauthorized modification of the canal's waterway, which had attracted water monsters to cause trouble in the river."

"I heard that the Taixuan Orthodox Sect sent people to deal with it, and many people died. Later, they moved the 'Sea-Suppressing Roar' to the shore, and only then did they suppress the things in the river."

"I see…"

After hearing this, everyone was not surprised.

China is a vast country, with countless strange things happening from south to north. Coupled with inconvenient transportation and information barriers, it often takes a long time for strange events to spread to other places once they occur in one place.

The battle of Chengdu Prefecture spread quickly because it involved Jiuding and the rebellion of the vassal kings.

It was early in the morning and the bronze rust of the iron lion in the distance was glowing coldly in the morning light.

Li Yan stood at the bow, the humidity of the Grand Canal wrapped in a salty smell blowing in his face.

He closed his eyes slightly, made hand gestures, and his magical powers spread out like ripples - the hunched backs of the porters, the blood marks from the salt bags, the grooves on the wooden piles of the dock that had been worn for years, all were clearly visible...

There are many water systems in Cangzhou, which belongs to the Haihe River Basin, "the lower reaches of the Nine Rivers". It is also an important port hub on the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, and is therefore very prosperous.

Next to the dock, the masts of salt and grain ships are as dense as reeds, and the boatmen's songs and the sounds of merchants' abacus are intertwined.

Li Yan saw a shirtless man carrying three bags of salt on his shoulders and stepping onto the gangway to board the ship. A string of bamboo sticks hung from his waist, jingling with his steps. This was the thing that the dock porters used to calculate their wages.

For each bag carried, a bamboo stick will be given, and the total amount will be calculated in the end.

The more you carry, the more you earn.

When they are young, they can still rely on their strength to earn enough food, but often they become plagued by diseases just after middle age.

Suddenly, there was a muffled groan in the distance.

It was an old porter who staggered to his knees, the salt bag rolled and broke, and the salt grains spilled into the turbid waves.

"You old bastard!"

The supervisor with a fierce face was furious and shook the whip in his hand.

However, before the whip fell, it suddenly broke in mid-air.

On the deck, Li Yan threw away the remaining stones with a calm expression.

He has already entered the realm of Dan Jin, where even flying flowers and plucked leaves can hurt people. Combined with his supernatural powers, it is not difficult for him to do this.

The supervisor on the shore looked at the broken whip in his hand with a dazed look on his face.

Of course, he couldn't think too much about it.

After the old porter fell to the ground, he could no longer get up and gradually lost his breath.

The porters around also gathered around. They showed no sadness, but just numbness on their faces as they wrapped the old porter in a straw mat and carried him away.

They have seen too many cases of death from overwork.

Perhaps this is the ending for many people.

Soon, the crowd dispersed and the dock became busy again.

"Ah~"

The scholar Kong Shangzhao sighed, "People's livelihood is difficult. Instead of suffering here, it is better to go back to the countryside and plant an acre of thin land. At least I won't be beaten."

"Sir, you don't know."

The Cao Gang disciple next to him couldn't help but say, "If you have land at home, who would be willing to suffer this? There are many floods in Cangzhou, and the fields are often flooded. In disaster years, there is no harvest. In order to survive, you can only sell the land to the landlord."

"Then you can only work as a farmhand for a landlord. If you meet a good boss, it's ok, but if you meet a vicious boss, you won't even have enough to eat. If you work at the dock, as long as you are willing to work hard, you can at least eat meat occasionally."

"this…"

When Kong Shangzhao heard this, he was speechless.

He knew that the man was right.

Harvesting land in years of disaster and storing grain in years of plenty are the means by which almost all landlords make their fortunes.

All the farmland in my hometown of Qufu has become the property of the Kong family.

The Cao Gang disciple next to him didn't seem to notice his embarrassment and continued, "If it were in the past, something would have happened long ago, but now people are all running to Tianjin and the coast. There are many workshops there. As long as you are willing to learn and work hard, there will be a way to make a living."

Li Yan shook his head and said, "I'm afraid it's not that good."

"That's natural."

The Cao Gang disciple laughed and said, "There are too many people over there, and it's very messy. The living conditions are like doghouses, and the work every day can be exhausting, but at least there is food to eat."

As they were talking, the canal boat was approaching the dock.

The Cao Gang disciple immediately bowed and said, "Young Master Li, our brothers have already sent your visiting card to the Wu family. They will be back around noon. Why don't you find a place to rest first?"

"Alright."

Li Yan nodded and led everyone ashore.

Cangzhou is a famous martial arts holy land.

There is a strong martial arts culture in every township and village, and there are many schools of martial arts.

In places like this, the rules of the underworld are very strict, and you must send a visiting card before visiting.

After all, they are now quite famous, and Wu Qu is also a local figure who can keep the peace. People have to be prepared. If anything unpleasant happens, it will be very difficult for Wu Qu to do anything.

Not far after getting ashore, you will reach Shunhe Street.

The morning market is also bustling at this moment.

The silk shop took down its door, and the shop assistants shouted about the new Lu silk products...

In front of the grain store, mules and horses were breathing out white steam, and the Shanxi merchants were counting sacks with an accent...

The steaming steamer in the breakfast shop is opened, and the sweet aroma of golden thread jujube mixed with the mellow Cang wine and the smell of grass in the livestock market interweave into the fireworks of the market...

At the northwest corner of the pier, the morning bell of Shuiyue Temple broke through the fog. The long mountain of salt piled up in the salt field beside the temple glowed cold white. The salt workers shouted as they packed the salt onto the boats. The masts of the canal boats were like a forest, slowly sailing towards the river.

The most eye-catching thing is probably the three-story high building with porches on all four sides and an octagonal shape. The second floor has a hip roof and the third floor has a corridor with flying eaves that catch the morning light. It looks very imposing at first glance.

After seeing it, Wang Daoxuan stroked his beard and smiled, "That is Nanchuan Tower. It was built by Guo Wuchang, the salt transport envoy of Changlu many years ago. Later, the government office moved and it became a restaurant. In the past, scholars and poets would go up to the tower to enjoy the view."

"I heard that there is a hidden spring there, the water is sweet and deep, and the Magu wine brewed from the spring is very good. Unfortunately, I was short of money back then, so I didn't have the chance to taste it."

"Isn't this difficult to handle?"

Sharifei also became interested when he heard it, "I am also greedy for the old sand that the Taoist priest mentioned, let's go quickly."

After that, everyone went up to Nanchuan Tower.

At this hour, there were not many people inside, so everyone went up to the third floor and chose a private room by the window.

Climb to a high place and look out into the distance, and you can have a panoramic view of the canal.

To be honest, it is not as majestic as the Yellow Crane Tower, but it also has its own flavor.

After ordering a large table of local specialties, everyone ate and drank while chatting while waiting.

There's nothing much to see on either side of the pier, so why not just take a break here?

"The situation in the capital is somewhat complicated..."

While drinking, Li Yan told everyone the information he got from Zhao Wanfang.

"The Kaihai faction has now gained the upper hand, but the emperor probably fears that the court will be unbalanced, so he did not remove the local officials. In addition, the three provinces and six ministries have brought together forces from all sides, and there are many experts. We must not mess around..."

"Qiankun Academy is being watched by many eyes. When we arrive in the capital, we will definitely fall into the sight of those who have ulterior motives, so I plan to find a place to stay first and contact Elder Hetian and Brother Yan..."

The capital city is different from other places. Three of the ten great masters of Shenzhou live here all year round, not to mention the personnel stationed in the capital city from all over the major sects, as well as the Shenji Battalion who are all equipped with magic fire guns.

In short, when dragons and tigers gather together and undercurrents surge, it's not easy to get along.

Before I knew it, two hours had passed.

Near noon, I heard a sudden commotion coming from below.

Then, there were the sounds of horse hooves and a lot of footsteps.

Everyone rushed to the window to watch.

I saw a large number of garrison soldiers rushing in from the official road northwest of the wharf, running forward, obviously on a forced march, and in the distance, huge naval warships appeared on the canal.

The gongs and drums sounded, and the people and porters on the dock were all driven to both sides.

Some people ran too slowly and were whipped and rolled on the ground. The soldiers didn't waste any time and lined up to board the ship.

"Is this...something wrong?"

Sharifei asked uncertainly.

At this time, a Cao Gang disciple hurried upstairs and said with a look of relief: "Everyone, it's a good thing we left early. Something big happened at Linqing Pass!"

"Several major chambers of commerce and merchants in the city united to cause trouble at the gate of the tax collector. They also found several officials to help them calm the situation and use the evidence they collected to force Eunuch Ma to make concessions."

"The situation was very tense between the two sides. The chambers of commerce were backed by ministers from the imperial court, so Eunuch Ma didn't dare to act recklessly. But he didn't expect that the carriage companies in the city would also start to get into trouble."

"They attacked the tax collector and used gunpowder. I heard that there were numerous casualties. Eunuch Ma was even hung up and set on fire. The guards of Cangzhou were also ordered to quell the riot first..."

After hearing this, everyone looked at each other in surprise.

Li Yan also frowned.

He felt that something was wrong with Linqing Customs, but he didn't expect it to be so serious.

Zhao Wanfang probably went there for this matter...

Thinking of this, Li Yan asked in a deep voice: "Did your Cao Gang receive the news?"

The Cao Gang is one of the most powerful forces on the Grand Canal.

No matter what happens, nothing can be hidden from them.

"That's the weird thing!"

The Cao Gang disciple looked around and whispered, "Our captain didn't know about this beforehand. When we asked the brothers on this waterway, they were also confused."

Li Yan immediately understood, "Someone is deliberately hiding information."

"Ah."

This Cao Gang disciple is Chen San's right-hand man. He said with a worried look on his face, "I'm afraid someone is setting up a trap. Linqing Customs is the first customs on the Grand Canal. We in the Cao Gang didn't get any news of such a big thing in advance. It's not good."

"rest assured."

Li Yan thought of some of Zhao Wanfang's words and looked towards the northeast thoughtfully. "I guess the source is still in the capital. Someone in the court wants to use this incident to stir up trouble."

"I guess it has nothing to do with us, just be careful."

"Young Master Li is absolutely right."

Although the Cao Gang disciple agreed, he was still worried. He clasped his fists and turned away, probably wanting to continue collecting information.

After something like this happened, no one wanted to run around and cause trouble.

It was almost noon when the Cao Gang disciple who had delivered the visiting card finally came back.

There are two more people traveling with us.

An old man, wearing a coarse cloth shirt, although he has white hair, he has a big frame, and his beard and hair are like a lion's mane. When he walks, he is like a mountain, and his domineering and cruel aura is overwhelming.

Next to him stood a thin boy with a timid look on his face.

The boy's facial features are somewhat similar to Wu Qu's.

The Cao Gang disciple who was leading the way was trembling, his eyes full of fear. He swallowed and said, "Young Master Li, who is this..."

"I am Takezuka!"

The old man pushed the disciple away and said in a deep voice: "Wu Qu is my son."

"I've met my uncle!"

Upon hearing this, Li Yan quickly stood up and clasped his fists respectfully.

The relationship between Wu Qu and him can be considered as both teacher and friend.

The other party taught him carefully about the application of martial arts and the rules of becoming a god, and even introduced him to the "Huangquan Organization". Although it did not succeed, there were other reasons.

Moreover, Wu Ba's kung fu was also taught by the other party.

"Ah."

The old man Takezuka nodded and said in a deep voice: "That bastard often told me that he had made a brother with extraordinary talent, but it seems that he still has no vision. At such a young age, he has already reached Dan Jin. I can't compare with him."

"Senior has given you too much praise."

Li Yan said this modestly, and a bad feeling inexplicably arose in his heart.

Wu Qu never talked about his family affairs, but if you collected some information, you could find out.

Cangzhou Wu family Bajiquan is considered to be the best in the world.

Needless to say, this person is the Wu family patriarch Takezuka, who was once nicknamed "Iron Lion". Surprisingly, he is still alive. Even though he is old and his energy has declined, he is still at the level of Gang Jin.

No wonder some people said that this person was only one step away from becoming a master back then.

What made Li Yan feel strange was that, given the other party's seniority and status, even if he and Wu Qu had a good relationship, there was no need for him to go out of his way to meet him. Something must have happened...

While he was thinking, Takezuka had already looked at Takeba, his eyes full of sharpness.

"I came here for two things."

"First, that bastard passed on the family's unique skills to an outsider, and the leader Xiao at that. Many people are dissatisfied. I will test your punch to see if you are qualified to practice. If you can take it, this matter will be over."

Li Yan frowned slightly and looked at Wu Ba.

He was indeed not thoughtful enough in doing this matter.

He only thought that Wu Qu could make the decision, but did not consider the reaction of the Wu family.

"it is good!"

Before he could say anything, Wu Ba came out.

At this moment, Wu Ba's muscles were bulging and his eyes were filled with excitement.

Ever since Takezuka walked in, he felt a sense of provocation.

It's an amazing feeling.

It's like a wild animal breaking into the territory of another wild animal.

Seeing Wu Ba's appearance, Wu Zuka narrowed his eyes slightly and his face turned cold. "For martial artists, cultivating the mind is the most important. If you don't have a clear mind, even if you have brute force, what's the difference between you and a beast?"

However, Wuba didn't seem to understand at all, and the smell on his body became even more violent.

"Humph!"

Takezuka was a little impatient, snorted coldly, and raised his hand to chop down.

His movements didn't seem fast, but in the ears of everyone, it was like a huge millstone pressing down, with unrivaled momentum, which made people want to run away.

Li Yan's expression became solemn and he unconsciously tensed his muscles.

This is a manifestation of the extremely condensed spirit of boxing.

Just like before, Cheng Jianxian could hurt people with just his sword power.

It is also the training route after Dan Jin.

"Roar!"

Wu Ba was stimulated by the punch, his muscles swelled and he raised his elbow to block.

Boom!
It was like the roar of war drums, shaking the entire corridor.

Old man Takezuka's white beard was blown by the wind from his fist, and there was a hint of surprise in his eyes.

Wu Ba's physical talent was too exaggerated, far beyond his imagination.

Even so, Wu Ba was at a disadvantage. His face turned red and he stepped back slowly. His huge body lost balance and was about to crash into everyone.

Li Yan raised his hand with a calm expression, and the power of the Immortal Seal changed left and right, dissolving the force.

But in the eyes of everyone, he just gave him a gentle push and Wu Ba stopped suddenly.

It takes no effort at all, giving people a strange feeling of lifting a heavy weight with ease.

"it is good!"

An expert knows the tricks, and Takezuka couldn't help but praise him. Then he looked at Wu Ba and said in a deep voice: "I understand how that bastard feels. You are a bit weird, and I want to see how far you can go."

"If you can reach Dan Jin in the future, you can come to the Wu family to find me."

As he spoke, he looked at Li Yan again, his eyes becoming more gloomy, "The second reason I came here is to ask you clearly, what exactly did he get into trouble with outside?"

Li Yan's heart skipped a beat, "Brother Wu, what's wrong?"

Takezuka gritted his teeth, the murderous intent in his eyes could no longer be suppressed.
"That bastard was killed..."

(End of this chapter)