Knife splashing

Chapter 693: Old Friends in Beijing
"How did you die?!"

Pei Zongti's face turned pale and his voice became cold.

He knew something, there was a traitor among the Xuanmen.

The emperor ordered an investigation into Zhao Changsheng and even set up a separate team to prevent this incident.

He was also one of the leaders, and many of the elite troops were selected by him personally.

Now that we have finally caught the key witness, if the news gets out that he was silenced in Xuan Priest's prison, it will be laughable.

When the Taoist guard heard this, he knew what Pei Zongti was thinking. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead. He quickly bowed and said, "Sir, please calm down. We dare not break the rules. There are three people present at all times, and there are doctors to take care of us at all times..."

"All right!"

Pei Zongti said in a deep voice: "Just tell me how the person died!"

"this…"

The Taoists looked at each other, one of them had a bitter face, "My Lord, we... don't know. We used the magic to make this guy speak, but he just said half a sentence and his head suddenly exploded. I don't know what method he used."

"It was gunpowder."

Pei Zongti was about to get angry when Li Yan next to him suddenly spoke.

He pinched his Yang Jue and sniffed, "It's very subtle, but it is indeed a new type of gunpowder."

"impossible!"

A Taoist priest nearby quickly spoke up, "The walls of this prison are all cast with iron sand, and we didn't hear any gunfire."

"I didn't say shoot."

Li Yan shook his head and squatted beside the body. "This is clearly an explosion from the brain."

Luo Mingzi's face was full of disbelief, "If it is true, how did the other party do it?"

This matter was beyond their imagination.

Li Yan also frowned, feeling something was mysterious.

If it were in his previous life, he would definitely think that someone had buried explosives in Yu Wenhai's brain and detonated them remotely.

But there is no such surgical level here, and there is no radio.

What means were used for this?
He really couldn't think of it, so he turned around and said, "Can you please ask a few of my companions to come over? Maybe they can guess it."

Pei Zongti did not comment, but still ordered, "Go and invite them quickly."

Sharifei and others were arranged to stay in an inn near Priest Xuan and soon arrived at the prison.

"It must be some kind of mechanism!"

After a careful inspection, Sharifi said confidently, "The new gunpowder is much more stable than black powder. It must be ignited by an open flame. If I put it in my mind, there must be an ignition mechanism. But as you said, without an outsider's help, I can't think of how to ignite it."

"Perhaps, it was the use of Gu worms..."

Just then, Long Yaner next to her suddenly spoke.

"Gu insect?"

One of the Taoists frowned and shook his head, saying, "Impossible, we checked everything before entering the prison."

Long Yan'er glanced at him calmly and said, "That's because you haven't seen the exquisite Gu technique before."

After saying that, he stretched out his hand, and a strange-looking lyre insect immediately crawled out, flapping its wings and flying up and down, then crawled into Yu Wenhai's broken wound, and then flew out, making a loud insect chirping sound.

"It is indeed a Gu insect."

Long Yaner nodded, took a step forward, ripped open Yu Wenhai's clothes on his back, and pressed hard with her fingers.

In an instant, dense bloodstains appeared on Yu Wenhai's back, vaguely forming the shape of a moth's wings.

"Sure enough, it's a mother-and-child cicada."

Long Yaner said in a deep voice: "This insect is rare, and its egg sheath is strong. It can sink to the depths of the mud and remain dormant for decades. The female insect is large, and the male insect is small. The egg sheath combines yin and yang. Once the shell breaks, they will mate with each other and lay eggs again."

"The Gu Cult has a secret technique. They refine it, have people take it, and set restrictions. Once the oath is broken, the Gu insect will wake up, and the Yin Sha Qi will only overflow when its egg sheath breaks. That's why you didn't notice it."

Sharifei suddenly realized, "One puts phosphorus fire, the other puts gunpowder, and it will explode. What a clever trick!"

Everyone was stunned. They didn't expect there was such a clever witchcraft.

Seeing that they had solved the mystery, Pei Zongti no longer dared to underestimate them and asked seriously, "Miss, can you find the person who put the poison?"

"Disaster."

Long Yan'er shook her head and said, "This Gu must have been there for quite some time, and it was triggered by a restriction, so there is no clue."

Li Yan looked at the corpse on the ground and said in a deep voice: "Sir, they abandoned the Peach Festival, they must have a bigger plan."

"Now, there is only one clue left!"

What he was talking about was, of course, the "Jiumen Yinxu".

As long as they find the Night Wandering God infected by evil spirit, with so many masters of Taoism in the capital, there are plenty of ways to track him down.

Moreover, he also accepted a mission from the underworld and had to capture the evil spirit.

"This matter cannot be messed up."

Pei Zongti sighed, "I will go to the palace and report to the emperor."

Then he looked at Luo Mingzi again, "Master Luo, those monsters haven't left yet, and the inn outside is not very safe. I have already told them to go to Rouyuan Inn with Li Shaoxia and the others. It is quieter and safer there."

"Thank you, sir."

Although Li Yan wanted to persuade him, looking at Pei Zongti's expression, he felt that this matter was indeed difficult to handle.

In addition, everyone had been busy all night, so they could only settle down first.

……

"This 'Rouyuan Posthouse' was originally a residence for receiving envoys from Goryeo, Siam and Ryukyu."

Arriving at the west side of Zhengyang Gate, Luo Mingzi introduced as they walked.

Li Yan wondered, "I'm afraid it's not convenient to host the envoys at the posthouse..."

It's not that he's reserved, it's just that he doesn't want to live with outsiders.

"Brother Li, you don't know something."

Luo Mingzi replied, "The Kingdom of Japan invaded Goryeo, and the war was going on there. Because the Goryeo envoys spoke nonsense in the capital a few years ago, Your Majesty was displeased and drove them out of the capital. In addition, you were preparing for war in the southwest before, so you ignored their requests for help."

"Because of the war between the two countries, the sea is not peaceful. The Ryukyu envoys have not come this year. As for Siam, they have not sent envoys since last year. Therefore, the posthouse has been empty for a long time. Lord Pei is the Minister of Rites, so you can stay here."

Wang Daoxuan stroked his beard and said, "If the vassal states don't come, will the imperial court not care?"

Luo Mingzi shook his head. "With so many things going on right now, I don't have time to take care of other things. Besides, our Daxuan doesn't value this."

Li Yan knew exactly what he meant.

The Emperor Daxing of the previous dynasty was ambitious and liked to stage a drama of having all nations come to pay tribute. The tributes paid by vassal states were often ten or even dozens of times higher than the amount paid by the emperor.

It is true that all nations came to pay tribute, but the problem was that the previous dynasty, Daxing, and the Golden Horde were confronting each other across the river. There had been constant wars of varying sizes for a hundred years, and the treasury had long been empty. In addition, most of the troops were deployed along the Yangtze River, and the dynasty had long lost control over the vassal states.

The small border states feared the power but not the virtue, and seeing the Great Prosperity weaken, they simply didn't bother to pay any attention and didn't even come to pay tribute.

The envoys who came to the capital were all disguised as merchants from small countries who sought profit by paying tribute.

What’s even more hateful is that those small countries also condoned this matter. The Daxing Dynasty sent people to investigate, and they all said that they were their own envoys.

At that time, Xiao Chengyou, the founding emperor of Daxuan, was a marshal on the front line. He came back to ask for money because his soldiers were short of food and clothing, but not only did he not get the money, he also saw a Goryeo merchant mocking him privately at a court dinner, so he was furious and beat him up.

The Emperor of Daxing lost face, so he ordered his men to drag Xiao Chengyou away and beat him with a stick in the court.

That was the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Xiao Chengyou had worked hard on the front line and made great contributions, but he did not expect to suffer such humiliation. From then on, he began to harbor rebellious thoughts.

Therefore, since its founding, the Daxuan Dynasty has never been friendly to envoys from vassal states.

And this matter has become politically correct in the court.

If anyone says that one should have the demeanor of a superior country, there will be people who will cite the example of the previous dynasty and ridicule him.

Just like this time when the Tianjin wharf was bombarded, the imperial court arrested foreign merchants without mercy.

There used to be many Western merchants leading camels on the streets of the capital, but now they dare not show up casually. One of the achievements of the current emperor Xiao Qixuan is that he has fought wars in the south and the north, and no one dared to harass him.

In short, the relationship between the Great Xuan Dynasty and the surrounding small countries has never been good.

The attitude was only slightly relaxed because of the decision to open up the sea for trade.

Of course, Li Yan was too lazy to ask about this kind of thing, nor did he have the energy to care about it.

Soon, they arrived at "Rouyuan Posthouse".

This is a three-courtyard building, built strictly in accordance with the regulations of the "Daxuan Hui Dian".

There were already people waiting outside, welcoming everyone into the inn.

Pushing open the black lacquered beast-head-holding ring-shaped door, you will see the "Mountain and Flowing Water" screen wall in front of you, and the bluestone base is carved with winding lotus patterns.

Going around the screen wall, there are twelve side rooms on both sides of the front yard. The window lattices are all decorated with a "Ya"-shaped grid pattern and are covered with snow-white mulberry paper that was tributed from Goryeo.

In the courtyard there is a Bodhi tree transplanted from Jiaozhi, and under the tree there is a stone table made of a whole piece of "camphor stone" presented by the Brunei Kingdom.

This thing can exude cool pine scent when the summer heat rises, refreshing the mind.

"This is a good place."

Luo Mingzi stroked the enamel self-ringing clock in the hall. "The Honglu Temple directly allocated materials to Rouyuan Post, and the accounts were recorded in the inner treasury. Even the Duwei Division could not find any trace of it."

He pointed to the corner of the east wing and whispered, "There is a 'Dragon Ban' iron plate hidden there. It was set up to prevent Wala spies. It can block the cultivators' spiritual sense from detecting it. You just need to know about it. Don't damage it."

After all, it is the Ministry of Rites' posthouse, representing the face of the imperial court, and its furnishings are very exquisite.

“This place is nice…”

Sharifei turned around a few times, touched the rosewood bed in the guest room and exclaimed in amazement: "Wow, this bed curtain is made of gold yarn?"

"My lord, this is Siamese gold yarn."

The postmaster of the posthouse smiled and said, "The things in Rouyuan Posthouse were all brought from various countries."

As he spoke, he lifted the tent again, and everyone discovered that the lining was sewn with a layer of silk as thin as a cicada's wing.

"This is the ice silk brought by the chieftain of Lingnan. It can keep away mosquitoes in summer and keep the charcoal fire warm in winter nights."

"Strange..."

Everyone was well-informed, but no private chamber of commerce or inn would be willing to use this thing, and they were all amazed.

Luo Mingzi blinked and said with a smile: "This is my first time here too. It seems that Lord Pei thinks highly of you."

"Thank Master Pei for me."

Li Yan nodded and said seriously: "But that place is the real business, Taoist priest, remember to remind me."

"rest assured."

Luo Mingzi understood, and then said: "There are still many things to do in the Yingwang Mansion. I will take people to carefully check the files. Maybe we can find clues. I need Mr. Kong's help..."

After saying that, he looked at Kong Shangzhao next to him.

"what?"

Compared to the Duwei Division, Kong Shangzhao prefers to stay with Li Yan and others.

But Luo Mingzi said she would support his family, and it was difficult to refuse, so he had to leave with her.

After the two left, Sharifei said happily: "Hey, this silly scholar is probably going to settle down in the capital."

Li Yan shook his head and said nothing.

Kong Shangzhao's qualifications and abilities are there, and anyone can see that Luo Mingzi intends to win him over.

To be honest, Li Yan was also a little tempted. After all, this scholar's ability to analyze intelligence was extraordinary.

But he also knew that the Duwei Division was his best choice.

They also had no ability to influence the Kong family and provide them with shelter.

After putting the luggage away, the postmaster immediately ordered someone to prepare a banquet.

The postmaster's surname was Yuan and his given name was Lu. He was a minor official who was born and raised in the capital. Knowing that Li Yan and his companions were favored by the Minister Pei Zongti, he naturally treated them with great care and prepared an unusually sumptuous banquet.

The main dishes are roasted venison, steamed shad, roasted lamb, and eight-treasure duck. The soups include bird's nest soup and three-fresh soup.

As for snacks, they were even more sumptuous, including a dish of pine nut and goose fat roll, which made everyone's mouths drool.

Li Yan looked at the people at the table. In addition to the Twelve Yuanchens, there were also Zhao Luzi and his wife.

He raised his glass and said solemnly: "Brother Zhao Luzi is not an outsider, I will speak directly if I have anything to say."

"You have seen the situation in the capital. Although it is prosperous, it is also very restrictive. We are a team of wandering immortals, and we are enemies with Jianmu. However, we have gathered together not only to enjoy this wealth and prosperity."

"This time when we come to the capital, we will do two things."

"First, I pulled out the nail that held Jianmu back in the capital. This was not only out of personal grudge, but also for the good fortune of Shenzhou. I had no choice but to do it."

"The second is Qiankun Academy. This place is very important. With the help of the imperial court, it will also be helpful for your cultivation. After eradicating the monster, everyone should be alert and see if there is any opportunity. Everyone should try their best to seize it."

"Brother Zhao Luzi, I will find a way to get you and your wife into Qiankun Academy as teachers. With Brother Yan's care, it will not be difficult for you to gain a foothold in the capital. But you have also seen that our enemies are all cruel people. You must be careful in the capital from now on..."

"Ah."

Zhao Luzi's face was full of gratitude, but he didn't know what to say.

Feng Feiyan was still excited, and pulled Zhao Luzi up, "Let's toast to you all with three glasses!"

After saying that, he poured the wine neatly and drank three cups in a row.

After seeing this, Li Yan nodded secretly in his heart.

He was originally a little wary of Feng Feiyan, but along the way, he found that the two of them still had true feelings for each other, and Feng Feiyan was good at observing people's words and expressions, and was good at speaking and doing things. With her help, Li Yan felt relieved that Zhao Luzi was staying in Qiankun Academy.

After a banquet, everyone decided on the plan for the capital.

Before the banquet was over, the postmaster Tian Lu came running over in a hurry, "Mr. Li, there is someone outside who wants to see you."

Li Yan was about to ask, but he sniffed and a smile immediately appeared on his face.

"Hahaha…"

He strode out, and before he even reached the door, he smiled and said, "Brother Yan, long time no see!"

There was a man standing outside the door, dressed in casual clothes and official boots, with handsome features and an elegant demeanor.

It was Yan Jiuling.

"Hahaha."

Yan Jiuling also strode forward, bowed and said with a smile: "After we parted at Huashan, I never thought that I would meet Brother Li again now. Everyone in the world knows you."

Li Yan was delighted, "As expected of the number one scholar, he is really good at talking."

Needless to say, the relationship between the two of them is very important.

At the foot of Mount Hua, Yan Jiuling came on horseback to help, single-handedly drove back the army, disregarding his own life.

When Li Yan heard that the Yan family was in trouble, he traveled thousands of miles to support them.

They appreciate each other, and it is no exaggeration to say that they are loyal to each other.

"Brother Li, Brother Li, there's me too!"

Next to Yan Jiuling, a fat man in brocade clothes hurriedly bowed.

It was the fat young master of the Lin family from Jiangsu and Zhejiang who I saw in Qinglong Mountain, a curious person who was always looking for treasures.

Li Yan was a little puzzled. How did these two get together?
But the door was obviously not the place to talk, so he raised his hand and said, "Come on, let's go in and talk..."

After saying that, he took the two of them into "Rouyuan Posthouse".

At the same time, on the street in the distance, a fortune teller packed up his stall, slowly stood up, glanced at the post station, held up a long banner with "good fortune and misfortune", and walked out to the street.

"Read the horoscope and predict the year. One sign will determine the fate of the world. Half of the remaining hexagram will tell you good or bad luck!"

(End of this chapter)