The Emperor is Above

Chapter 257: Journey to the Upper City: City in the Clouds
"The Sergeant guessed right!"

Yuanmu Qiujian nodded with a warm smile and said, "My Lord heard last night that you were coming to the capital, and he was overjoyed to tell me about it, so he asked me to take you to the upper city to meet you early this morning.

Sergeant, please tidy up your appearance now. I will take you to the palace in the upper city to wait for orders. By the way, I will teach you some etiquette to pay attention to when meeting with the prince, so as to avoid making a fool of yourself. "

Afterwards, Qing Yi bathed, changed his clothes, burned incense, and meditated quietly. He put on a brand new black robe for a senior officer, a cloud-swan crown on his head, and a sword given by the king on his waist. An hour later, a handsome young vassal came out.

Yuan Mu Qiu Jian couldn't help but praise him repeatedly: "Not bad, not bad, no wonder so many girls in the capital were so crazy yesterday. I was worried that some girl would stop us on the road and try to steal our bride."

“Yeah, I’m worried about that too!”

Qing Yi thought seriously for a moment, then said to Gongsun Wu, "Brother Gongsun, call Dongmen Hu and Dongmen Bao to escort me to the upper city."

Yuanmu Qiujian was speechless, and after a moment's silence, he gave a serious reminder: "In addition to the palace of Marquis Xing and the residences of the royal family, there are also the residences of the Shangqing, Yaqing, and Shaoqing families in the Upper City, as well as the Imperial College, which is guarded very strictly by the Royal Guards.

Even in normal times, anyone entering or leaving must be strictly checked. Even the senior doctors are not allowed to enter or leave without a pass. Senior officers must be careful and cautious when entering or leaving the upper city in the future."

"I will keep in mind the instructions given by the doctor!"

Qing Yi quickly walked out of the Zuo Shi camp while talking with Yuanmu Qiujian, his eyes fixed on the magnificent Upper City in the distance. This was his first time to go to the Upper City, and he was very curious about the scenery there.

The Upper City is the highest level of the capital city of Xingtai. It is more than 200 feet higher than the Middle City and more than 350 feet higher than the ground outside. In the winter mornings, there are often clouds floating between the Middle City and the Upper City. It can be called a city in the clouds and a city in the sky.

The wide passage leading from the middle city to the upper city alone makes people feel extremely magnificent. I wonder how the ancestors of the Xing State more than 800 years ago built such a miraculous city.

"Oh, look! It's the fruit thrown into the cart at Guqiuyi!"

Just after walking out of the camp of the Left Division and passing by the residences of vassal officials, they heard the surprised voices of a group of girls. Their loud shouting and giggling aroused the curiosity of many girls and their families.

The story of throwing fruits into the cart outside the south gate of the capital yesterday quickly spread throughout the capital after one night of fermentation, and everyone talked about it with relish.

Even married young women and middle-aged ladies were curious about how handsome and good-looking the young vassal was who could make the girls in the capital throw fruits all over his car.

"Look, it's indeed a handsome young vassal!"

"I heard that Guqiu Yi is only fifteen years old this year. He is truly a young hero!"

At the gates of each mansion we passed along the way, and from behind the walls, heads of young and old were poked out, and the sound of young girls whispering could be heard.

The girl in red who was holding a peach and singing Taoyao yesterday was passing by with her mother dressed as a noble lady. Her eyes suddenly lit up and she said:

"Mother, that young vassal is Guqiu Yi, the young hero who defended Guqiu alone and killed tens of thousands of enemies. Please ask father to talk to him and ask him to come and propose marriage as soon as possible."

Not only was the girl in red particularly fond of Qing Yi, but many girls from the families of officials in the central city were also interested in him. A young vassal who was about to be promoted to a lower-ranking official was simply their best choice for a husband, and they all begged their parents to propose marriage for them.

However, no matter how the red-dressed girl begged, her mother still said with regret: "He is such a handsome young vassal, and I feel pity for him because of his handsome appearance, but your father will never agree.

This Guqiu Yi was born with a lonely star, and has been without a father or a mother since childhood. He is naturally talented, but he is involved in the struggle between the nobles and the king. We can't afford to cause such trouble."

Not only did the mother of the girl in red think so, but many other vassal and minister families also asked their daughters to give up this idea after learning about Qing Yi's identity and experience. They were not only worried that their daughters would suffer after marrying, but also worried that their own families would be implicated.

The red-dressed girl still refused to give up, pouting unhappily, "That's not necessarily true, now that Yuanmu Shaofucheng is accompanying Guqiu Yi to the upper city, it must be that the king has summoned him personally.

Such a young and talented young vassal, the monarch will certainly use him. You are avoiding him now, and you will regret it sooner or later." "What my daughter said makes sense!" The middle-aged woman pondered for a moment and couldn't help laughing, "Then let's see what kind of use he can get from the monarch this time, and then I will talk to your father."

Along the way, Qing Yi kept hearing the admiring cheers of the girls along the way, as well as their arguments with their families. Embarrassed, he could only pretend not to hear them, which made Yuanmu Qiujian cover his mouth and laugh.

Fortunately, they could quickly reach the upper city gate. The private army of Guqiu could not enter after being sent here. Yuanmu Qiujian personally led Qingyi to climb up the steps on the side of the passage, which saved a lot of distance.

This staircase passage, which was dug out from a natural cave, is only about ten feet wide. It is used for rapid marches to support the city gates during wartime, and is also the shortest route from the middle city to the upper city.

The height difference is only over 500 meters, and there are nearly 2,000 steps. A weak person would be exhausted if trying to climb up. Fortunately, both of them were strong and healthy.

Qing Yi followed Yuanmu Qiujian closely and walked up the last step. It turned out that this was a lookout platform. The view in front of him suddenly became bright, and even the sunlight was much brighter than that in the central city.

Standing on this protruding platform, you can see a nice view of the upper city. Even the ground is paved with clean and flat qinggang stone. After all, it is the city where the most top people in Xing State live, and the terrain is more dangerous than the middle city.

Looking back, the scenery of the entire middle city and lower city is in full view, and even the vast plains and rivers outside the capital are clearly visible. It is really a good place to enjoy the scenery.

Looking down from a high place, you can see that there is a cloud rising from the upper reaches of the Xing River in the southwest direction, which is almost connected with the clouds in the sky. That is the birthplace of the legendary peach blossom fish and the reason why the Xing River never freezes in winter.

"The most beautiful scenery is on the top of a dangerous mountain. Isn't the scenery here nice?"

Yuanmu Qiujian smiled and pointed to the northwest, "Look, that's where the prince's palace is. The overall terrain is ten feet higher than the upper city, and it can almost be regarded as an independent city.

On the right is the guard camp, responsible for the security of the entire upper city and the palace, and on the left is the Imperial College."

"As majestic as the sky!"

Qing Yi followed Yuanmu Qiujian's instructions and couldn't help but exclaim in praise.

The palaces and halls have flying eaves, brackets, corridors and pavilions. Below is a sea of ​​clouds and behind is the majestic Yuanshan mountain range with endless forests. The golden glazed tiles sparkle in the sunlight, like a fairyland on earth.

As Yuanmu Qiujian approached the palace, Qing Yi noticed that the overall strength of the guards along the way was not much different from that of the soldiers of the Third Division, with only a few more at the ninth-grade level.

If we must find a difference, it is that the armor and weapons equipped by the Royal Guards are more luxurious. Even the squad leader wears armor engraved with runes and has rune weapons in his hands.

If outsiders do not understand the reason, they will think that this is the demeanor that the king's guards should have. Only those who understand the situation in Xing State know that this is a powerful weapon for the king to guard against the ministers.

"I still need my own talisman master. Otherwise, I can barely make talisman weapons by myself, but I simply don't have that much time."

Qing Yi was thinking about this when he suddenly saw many sorcerers, talisman masters, pharmacists, and weapon refiners wearing colorful robes going in and out between the guard camp and the Imperial College.

Yuanmu Qiujian immediately introduced him, "That is the military magician camp set up by the prince. Many of them are hired from various countries in Zhongzhou and serve as professors at the Imperial Academy. They are even often summoned by the king and are highly valued.

Usually, they are protected by the Royal Guards when they enter and leave the Upper City. They are truly national treasures. Even I often benefit a lot from talking to them."

After passing through layers of heavily guarded palace gates, when Qing Yi followed Mu Qiujian to the outside of the main hall, they saw several middle-aged and middle-aged men in luxurious clothes walking out angrily.

Thanks to Wuzi-Weiyang for the reward, and thanks to all the gentlemen for their voting support. I will add another chapter tonight.

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(End of this chapter)