Pawn Crossing the River

A hundred years are enough for the people of Fenglinzhou to figure out the Taoist nine-level system.

For outsiders, low-level Taoist priests are generally called "Taoist Masters", fourth-level Taoist priests are called "Masters", third-level Taoist priests are called "high-level Masters", or "Gaogong" for short, second-level Taoist priests are called "Zhenren", and first-level Taoist priests are called "Great Masters". Only people within the Taoist sect would address each other by title, which would show their closeness, just like not everyone can call the Celestial Master "old man".

At the beginning, the leader's title of "Masters" was more of a polite word, just like civilians shouting "General" when they meet a military attache. How can a military attache who can actually be called "General" be respected? He must be at the rank of chief military officer and will have little contact with the common people.

In the same way, when they meet a Taoist priest, they will respectfully call him "Master", which is to flatter him, but they never expected that the person who came was not only a genuine mage, but also a highly skilled mage.

The leader almost knelt down and sat down.

Qi Xuansu stopped this person's great gift: "Our Taoist sect does not pay attention to kneeling and worshiping. What is your name? Are you from the formation house?"

"Returning to Gaogong, the villain's name is Kinoshita Shinemon, and he is responsible for delivering ore to the Jinya." The leader's answer was very humble.

Qi Xuansu said: "Listening to your name, you are a warrior?"

"Nothing can be hidden from the public." Kinoshita Shinemon hurriedly said, "I once made an ashigaru for the domain lord, so I was given the surname Kinoshita by the domain lord. Later, because of my injury, I was sent here to transport ore."

Qi Xuansu nodded, not surprised.

Although the common people in Fenglinzhou do not have surnames, there is also a way to rise, that is to fight with the daimyo. As long as you make meritorious service, you can be given a surname by your master and become the lowest level samurai, that is, a non-staff samurai, similar to the Taoist sect. He was born as a fellow Taoist priest. The superior warriors are all hereditary warriors, usually from local wealthy families.

Qi Xuansu said straight to the point: "I want to see your Hatamoto-sama, please lead the way."

Kinoshita Shinemon opened his mouth and wanted to refuse, but he did not have the courage. In the end, he had no choice but to agree and led Qi Xuansu and his party to the Jinya.

When we arrived at the village, there were busy workers everywhere, both men and women.

This made Qi Xuansu a little surprised. It's not surprising that Taoism emphasizes equality, and men and women must match each other, even to the point of being crazy. But in Fenglinzhou, which is relatively backward, this is very rare.

Here, women work like men, transporting ore, and stepping on bellows. They are not like those women in Fenglinzhou who shrink and lower their eyebrows. Instead, they talk and laugh. Even if they have some conflicts with men, they do not show weakness. Obviously the status is not low.

Just like the women of the Taoist sect will also go to the battlefield.

Dignity and status do not come by relying on charity from others, nor by shouting out words. They must be obtained through practical actions, and they must adapt to the current environment.

A question arises from this. If someone could go back in time and apply the Taoist practices to the past, he could tell the ancients that they should stop farming because farming is useless. They should do a good job in trade, go to sea, be equal, and be equal. Use gunpowder instead of cavalry, discuss matters together, abandon Confucianism, enlighten the people's wisdom, and depose the emperor. Which court did this instead of what should be done as written in the history books? The country's destruction is just around the corner. This is a typical failure to adapt to the current environment.

As a Taoist woman, Lu Yuting couldn't help but admire when she looked at it: "There is a feeling that everything is competing and full of vitality here."

Han Yongfeng said: "If you ask me, it's still a problem of not enough manpower. If there are enough manpower, how can women be allowed to work in the workshops?"

Lu Yuting was unhappy: "Why can't women work in the workshop? Do you look down on women?"

Han Yongfeng waved his hand and said: "I don't mean to look down on it, I just state a fact. Men are stronger than women, and it is easier to use men than women. If you have a man, you must use a man first. Don't talk about women who are literate. Not all women can. Eliminate the innate differences between men and women through cultivation like you."

Qi Xuansu did not participate in the argument, he was just thinking about something.

From the smelting technology to the scene in front of him, this reminded him that some people in Fenglinzhou seemed to be deliberately imitating Daomen. Daomen crossed the river by feeling the stones, so they followed Daomen and crossed the river by feeling the stones.

Daomen rules Fenglinzhou and puts Fenglinzhou under its control. However, Daomen does bring certain development and progress to Fenglinzhou. Just like a wolf, when it is just a wolf cub, it is naturally casual. After you grow up, you can still control it, but it is not that easy. Whether it is a blessing or a curse, it is hard to say.

Just when Lu Yuting and Han Yongfeng were arguing about a grand proposition, two people walked out of a house in the middle of the village. They were wearing canopies on their heads, cassocks and tutu bags wrapped around their necks, gauntlets on their hands, and anklets on their lower bodies. He wore straw sandals on his feet and held a shakuhachi in his hand.

The so-called canopy is similar to a barrel-shaped or pot-shaped basket. If you place the basket upside down on your head and open some gaps for seeing, you will wear a canopy. The shakuhachi is a wind instrument similar to a flute.

Li Mingshan said softly: "It's the monk of nothingness."

Qi Xuansu asked: "What is the Void Monk?"

Li Mingshan explained: "He is a monk of the Puhua Sect of Fenglinzhou Buddhism, also known as the False Monk. He is not ordained and does not live in a temple. He can wear a sword and sword and travel around playing musical instruments. Fenglinzhou Buddhism is closely related to the court and ministers. There are various unclear connections with the government, and the Puhua Sect has been granted many privileges. Those who can enter the Puhua Sect and become void monks are first limited to being warriors. Ordinary townspeople cannot become monks. . In addition, the nihilistic monks of Puhua Sect are also granted the privilege of traveling around the world freely, so many spies will dress up as nihilistic monks and travel around. "

"Good guy." Han Yongfeng couldn't help but said, "This Fenglinzhou Buddhist sect is really outrageous. His mother opened the door to the outrageous family. It's outrageous. You can eat meat, marry and have children. Now you don't even need to be shaved. I really don't know what the so-called escape is. Where is the empty gate?"

The Taoist sect does not talk about nothingness, but only the mysterious, so the leader of the Taoist sect is called the Xuansheng. Buddhism talks about nothingness, so the leader of Buddhism is called the King of Space. However, Han Yongfeng did not mention the sword. After all, it is very common for Taoist priests to carry swords.

At the same time, the two void monks also saw Qi Xuansu and others, and subconsciously pressed the handle of the sword at their waist.

However, the two of them may have seen how powerful Qi Xuansu was, and they were just wary, but had no intention of taking action rashly.

Qi Xuansu looked at the two men and hesitated whether to take this person down.

If these two monks were nothingness monks loyal to the Prime Minister, then the Taoist priests would not be so nervous when they saw them.

At this moment, a woman's voice sounded: "Everyone here is a guest, please don't conflict."

He also speaks fluent Chinese Mandarin.

Qi Xuansu followed the sound and saw another woman walking out of the house. She was draped in feathers and dressed completely like a man. She wore a short sword called "Dianzhong Chai" on her waist and held a Zhongqi similar to a folding fan. However, the bun and makeup are still feminine, with buns on the temples and neat bangs on the forehead, as if cut out with a knife. The hair is tied at the back of the head, and a bar is worn on the forehead to tie the hair.

Kinoshita Shinemon hurried over and reported to the woman: "Master Fanki, this is the highest level of skill in the Taoist sect."

When the woman heard the word "high skill", her eyelids twitched slightly, and she looked at Qi Xuansu carefully again: "Such a young master of high skill is really rare."

Qi Xuansu asked: "Are you the flag bearer of this local battle house?"

"It's me. Gao Gong, just call me Fan Ji." The woman said.

In Fenglinzhou, the first king who was recognized and canonized by the Central Plains court was a woman, so it is not very unusual for a female flag to be king.

Qi Xuansu said: "For Fan Ji Qiben's sake, I can let them go."

After that, Qi Xuansu waved his sleeves to the two void monks: "Whether you understand it or not, if you still appear in front of me after half a stick of incense, then I don't guarantee that you will be able to leave Izumo Country alive."

After a slight hesitation, the two void monks left quickly.

Throughout, they didn't say a word.

Qi Xuansu looked at Fan Ji again: "Fan Ji Banner, we in the Central Plains pay attention to courtesy and exchanges. I will give you face and let these two suspicious monks go. You will also give me face, right?"

Fan Ji was silent for a moment, then smiled and said: "This is natural, Fan Ji respectfully welcomes the high-level master of the Taoist sect, please."

】

Qi Xuansu and his party followed Fan Ji to her house. The inside was not gorgeous, on the contrary, it was very simple. More importantly, there were tables and chairs.

After everyone sat down, Fan Ji looked around everyone and said: "I never expected that this small array house of mine would welcome a high-level master and four masters. Such a young high-level master is expected to become the leader in the future. The big shot in the Taoist sect is really brilliant."

Qi Xuansu said: "It seems that Fan Ji Qiben is very familiar with the Taoist sect. He can roughly judge our Taoist priest level just by our clothes."

Fan Ji smiled: "My husband is a Western businessman. I have traveled with him to various countries. It is not the Lingzhi countries in Fenglinzhou, but the Western countries, the New World, Borneo, Borneo, and the mainland. Lingnan, Qizhou, Jiangzhou, Liaodong and other places in the Xuan Dynasty. In these places, it is difficult to deal with either the Holy Court, the Taoist sect, or both, even if you are not familiar with it. "

Qi Xuansu asked: "Why don't you see your husband?"

Fan Ji showed a sad expression: "He is dead."

There was no expression change on Qi Xuansu's face: "I'm sorry, please have my condolences."

Fan Ji observed Qi Xuansu's expression and suddenly smiled: "I killed him. He had too many bad habits at sea. He was said to be a businessman, but more like a cruel pirate. I couldn't stand his tyranny, so I took advantage of his drunkenness. Drunk, pierced his heart, took away his treasure, then returned to Fenglinzhou, bribed the local feudal lord with gold, and obtained Hatamoto's identity."