Pawn Crossing the River

In the forty-first year of Taiping, Xuansheng promulgated an edict at the Jinque meeting to "ban all associations not approved by the Taoist sect". Li Donghuang, then the great master of Taiping Taoism, was responsible for implementing the matter.

Confucianism and Buddhism also responded.

Since then, the three religions headed by Taoism have begun to ban, disband, suppress, and annihilate various associations that were not authorized by Taoism. Many associations have gone underground and become various illegal secret associations.

Qingpinghui is a behemoth among secret societies, and so is the Inn.

The reasons why the two were able to survive and thrive under the suppression of Taoism were different. In general, the Qingping Society is inextricably linked to the Taoist sect itself, which can be seen from the fact that the Qingping Society can help Qi Xuansu operate the Taoist priest level. The "Inn" has a deeper connection with the imperial court. This is the fundamental reason why the "Inn" will not easily accept transactions related to the imperial court. Therefore, the "Inn" dares to ambush a fourth-grade Taoist priest, but refuses to save him from the Qingluan Guard. The next seventh grade county magistrate.

Because of this, if you want to get the "inn" to speak, a Taoist priest with a fourth-grade wine sacrifice is not enough, but a Qingluan Guard Qianhu can. This has nothing to do with the status of the two, it just depends on the closeness of the relationship.

At dawn, a group of people galloped towards Fengtai County.

The leader is wearing a special blue official uniform with a bear bandage embroidered on it.

Daxuan custom-made, each grader has his or her own style. The dukes, marquises, princes-in-law, and uncles all wore white embroidery on their clothes, not counting civil and military affairs. From the first to the ninth rank of civil and military affairs, there are all kinds of uniforms.

Civil servants embroider birds to show civilization: the first-rank crane, the second-rank golden pheasant, the third-rank peacock, the fourth-rank wild goose, the fifth-rank white pheasant, the sixth-rank egret, the seventh-rank owl, the eighth-rank oriole, and the ninth-rank quail.

Military officers embroidered animals to show their ferocity: the first-grade unicorn, the second-grade suanni, the third-grade leopard, the fourth-grade tiger, the fifth-grade bear, the sixth-grade Biao, the seventh- and eighth-grade rhinoceros, and the ninth-grade seahorse.

In addition, there are pythons, bullfights, etc., which belong to the category of giving gifts.

It is for this reason that there is a saying about animals dressed in clothes.

The Daxuan court originated from the north and advocated the virtue of water. The official uniforms were mainly black. From the first rank to the ninth rank and then to ordinary soldiers, the official uniforms and clothes were all as black as ink, so they were called "men in black". There is only one type of military attache except the title, that is Qingluan Guard.

As a close official of the emperor, the Qingluan Guards were formerly the "Qingyi Division" of the former Wei Dynasty, responsible for the emperor's bodyguards. Later, they merged with the "Yiluan Division" in charge of the emperor's ceremonial guard and were renamed the "Qingluan Guards", so they wear Tsing Yi.

Emperor Gaozu of this dynasty abolished the Five Army Commander's Office and various military posts, and abolished the military household system, leaving only the Qingluan Guards.

Then the identity of this group of people is very clear. They are the Qingluan Guards with an outstanding reputation. The leader is Qianhu, a fifth-grade Qingluan Guards.

The fifth grade is not high, but it carries weight.

Today's Qingluan Guard has one commander of the third rank, two commanders of the third rank, two commanders of the fourth rank, two governors of the fourth rank, and twenty people of the thousand households of the fifth rank. . There are twenty-seven people in total, and this person is one of the twenty-seven. Looking at the entire Qingluan Guard, including those masters without specific official positions, they are also powerful figures that cannot be underestimated.

Such a person, who is in charge of a thousand households and is stationed in the capital of a state, came to Fengtai County today, so he naturally has something important to do.

When they came to a fork in the road, the Qianhu reined in his horse and stopped. The Qingluan Guards behind him also stopped their horses. Li Sanxin was one horse head behind and said softly: "Sir, to the right is the road to the county seat. To the right is the road to the county town. The left is the way to the 'Inn'."

Qianhu looks like he is about the age of knowing his destiny. His temples are gray and weather-beaten, and his body bears very strong traces of military service, indicating that he was once one of the men in black.

This is not surprising, Qingluan Guard is inextricably linked to the man in black, just like the imperial court and the Taoist sect are also inextricably linked.

Qianhu was silent for a moment and then walked to the left.

The death of a county magistrate and a trial household was not a big deal according to his and Jiang Bieyun's plan. The key was that the subsequent development of the matter had changed, which forced him to come to Fengtai County in person.

As a veteran Qingluan Guard, his first reaction was that the "inn" was the key. This person had appeared in the "inn", so he would definitely leave some clues in the "inn".

Soon, the Qingluan guards arrived at the gate of Yizhuang. It was quiet and dead.

Qianhu got off his horse and walked straight to Yizhuang.

Li Sanxin and some Qingluan Guards followed closely behind Qianhu, while the rest of the Qingluan Guards spread out and surrounded Yizhuang.

After walking through the long corridor and arriving at the lobby of the underground "inn", you can smell the strong smell of blood before even entering the door.

As Qingluan Wei, he was no stranger to this smell, and everyone's expressions became solemn.

There was no expression on Qianhu's face, and he could not see any hint of happiness or anger. He walked into the lobby of the "inn" in silence.

At this time, the "inn" has become a Shura field. Everyone is sitting in their seats, maintaining the last posture before death, without any trace of resistance or fighting, as if these people are not aware of the impending death.

The shopkeeper was still standing behind the counter, with his upper body leaning forward and his head slightly lowered.

A Taiping coin was embedded between his eyebrows, leaving only half of the circle exposed, just enough to see the word "Taiping".

Qianhu came to the shopkeeper's body, stared at the peace coin, and said softly: "Master."

Li Sanxin, who was following Qian Hu, felt a slight tremor in his heart.

You should know that this Qianhu Lord had reached the end of the Xiantian people ten years ago, and was on par with his uncle Jiang Bieyun. Qianhu had to praise him as a master, so what kind of cultivation should the murderer have?

Is he a Xiantian person in the return to the true stage? Or a celestial being who can't be seen from the head of a dragon?

Qianhu's eyes moved away from the body of the shopkeeper and looked at the ground in front of the counter.

Li Sanxin also looked there.

There were two clearly visible footprints, and even the lines on the soles were clear. The most eye-catching thing was that there was a pattern similar to a square-holed copper coin in the middle of the soles.

Judging from the size, it should be a woman.

The Qingluan Guard in charge of checking the corpses reported: "Sir, these people all died from some kind of sharp thin wire."

Even without the alchemist using the earth's energy to trace back, the scene at that time can be well restored.

The "inn" was still the same as usual, with a black lacquered counter and a silver-white Taiping coin spinning on the counter.

The shopkeeper standing behind the counter, with his right hand on his chin, stared at the spinning Taiping money in a daze.

Just then, a woman came to the counter and left two footprints.

Just as the shopkeeper wanted to reach out and pat the spinning Taiping money under his palm.

The woman tapped the counter with her fingers, and the spinning Taiping money jumped up and crashed into the shopkeeper's eyebrows.

Almost at the same time, many "guests" behind the woman, these killers and thieves who made a living by killing people, were all killed by the thin lines that appeared out of thin air and crisscrossed.

These thin lines spread across every corner of the lobby like spider webs, leaving these old Jianghu people who have been walking in the rivers and lakes for a long time without any power to fight back, and they didn't even know how they died.

This was a massacre.

But there was no ripple in Qianhu's heart.

There is no good person who can come to the "inn". The so-called hired killers to kill people, "murder" refers to these people, all of whom deserve to die.

If they die, they die.

The killer is always killed, and it is not a big deal.

However, considering the secret relationship between the "inn" and the Qingluan Guard, the death of the shopkeeper is beyond the line, which is intolerable to the Qingluan Guard.

The captain asked: "How many documents are left in the 'inn'?"

A Qingluan Guard trial captain replied: "My lord, all the documents have been destroyed, and all the official bills have been taken away."

The captain said softly: "One person does the work, and one person cleans up the mess. This is not a lone gang in the rivers and lakes, but a secret society with a strict system, or... it is simply a Taoist who took action."

"Is it... Donghua Zhenren?" Li Sanxin wiped the sweat from his forehead.

The thirty-six Zhenren have no clear distinction in status, but their realms are uneven. Donghua Zhenren is one of the best among the thirty-six Zhenren.

Qianhu's tone became more serious, and he said: "Master Jiang has communicated with me using the mother-child talisman. If it is Master Donghua, then this matter involves the internal struggle of Quanzhen Dao."

Li Sanxin was originally a disciple of Taiping Dao, and he knew all about these situations. He said: "At the beginning, Xuansheng ordered Quanzhen Dao to be responsible for many "creation" projects, which led to the emergence of two major factions. The two sides have been fighting over the route of the mechanism and talisman, and until today, it is still a problem that has not been completely solved."

Qianhu obviously also knew about this case, and whispered to himself: "Xuansheng Let Taiping Dao take charge of human affairs, let Zhengyi Dao take charge of ghosts and gods, and let Quanzhen Dao take charge of creation. Therefore, Taiping Dao is closest to human affairs, and Taiping Dao Great Immortal is known as the "National Master"; Zhengyi Dao is closest to Shinto, and Zhengyi Dao Great Immortal is known as the "Heavenly Master"; Quanzhen Dao is closest to the netherworld, and Quanzhen Dao Great Immortal is known as the "Earth Master". These three masters are much higher than the three masters of the court. If it was done by Donghua Zhenren, the Earth Master was involved behind it. I wonder what the National Master would think? "

Li Sanxin did not dare to comment.

He is a disciple of Taiping Dao, Xuansheng was born in Taiping Dao, and Xuansheng's wife is the eldest daughter of Emperor Daxuan Gaozu and the eldest sister of Emperor Taizong. The Quanzhen Dao Great Immortal Li Donghuang, who implemented Xuansheng's edict of "banning all associations not permitted by the Taoist sect", is Xuansheng's junior brother and one of the founders of the Taiping Dao Li School.

Therefore, Taiping Dao is closest to the human way and has a close relationship with the imperial court. It serves as a link between the Dao and the imperial court. The Great Immortal of Taiping Dao is called "National Master", which is not false at all. The thousand households walked out and ordered: "Prepare some kerosene, burn it cleanly, and don't leave any traces." Li Sanxin followed closely behind. Another trial hundred households respectfully accepted the order.