The master said not to judge people by their appearance

At three quarters of the hour, Xuanmen Street.

"Master, can you calculate the marriage for me?" A young woman in a blue gauze dress asked shyly.

"I don't know about marriage." Shen Fandi answered this sentence countless times.

The woman in the pink gauze skirt accompanied by the blue gauze skirt was more lively. She asked questions like a cannonball: "The master can make alchemy? Can he spell? Can you perform for us?"

Shen Fan said: "No way."

"Oh." The two sighed in disappointment, whispered together, and after a while looked at Shen Fan and secretly laughed.

Shen Fan vaguely heard some words such as "looks so stupid", "handsome and cute", although he didn't quite understand them, but he probably knew that these two people would not provide him with the kind of serious business he wanted , he wanted to leave.

But the two women were unwilling to just let him go, and followed up with the accompanying maids, and asked chirpingly from the side: "Master, what do you know?"

Shen Fan pointed to the white flag in his hand, on the white flag was written the same content as when he set up the stall yesterday, and even the cloth was the same piece from yesterday, he found a bamboo pole to support this flag for the convenience of travel.

"Subdue demons, exorcise evil spirits and avoid misfortune." The woman in the blue skirt read the words on the white banner and asked curiously, "Master, are there really demons in this world?"

"Yes." Shen Fan said lightly.

"Do the monsters live in the deep mountains and old forests? I have lived in Beijing for so long, and I have never seen a monster with my own eyes! I have only seen the tricks performed by those tricksters, drawing a grimace on yellow paper, and said It's a demon..." The woman in the pink skirt suddenly covered her mouth, she was quick to talk, and forgot that Shen Fan was also one of the tricksters.

She took a careful look at Shen Fan, and found that Shen Fan was not angry, and she didn't seem to think that the swindler was talking about him.

There was a faint sound of horseshoes behind him, probably a carriage passed by, Shen Fan walked a few steps towards the side of the street, his tone was as flat as before: "Not all, some will cultivate in the mountains and forests, and some will go to the world to hide In human towns, cannibalism and blood suck human life to practice."

"Are there any in the capital?" The woman in the blue skirt hid on the side of the street, not only to avoid the carriage, but also because she was a little scared when mentioning these man-eating monsters.

"Of course there won't be any in the capital." The woman in the pink skirt comforted, "With the master of the state teacher sitting in the town, how can the monsters dare to come?"

The woman in the blue skirt thought about it, and just about to breathe a sigh of relief, she heard Shen Fan say: "Yes, it's not just demons, there are also demons here."

Both of them were startled, and the woman in the pink skirt asked, "Demon? Is it more powerful than monsters?"

"It's more powerful, but also more terrifying." Shen Fan said, "Monsters can be divided into good and evil, and demons are the purest and most extreme evil. When demons appear in the world, they will always be accompanied by catastrophes involving mountains of corpses and seas of blood."

The woman in the blue skirt subconsciously hugged the arm of the woman in the pink skirt, and the woman in the pink skirt was also taken aback, but she reacted immediately: "No, Master Guoshi has great powers, if there is really a demon in Beijing, how could he Don’t know? Could it be that Master Guoshi is also a liar?”

Her tone was unbelievable. Although she had never seen the national teacher with her own eyes, the emperor of the Ninth Five-Year Respect respected him, so he must have real skills.On the contrary, it was Shen Fan, although his face was very attractive, but feeling her conscience, Shen Fan was more like a liar.

It wasn't just her, among all the people Shen Fan met after coming to Beijing, he was probably the only one who didn't think he was a liar.

Shen Fan didn't take it seriously, and still said indifferently: "Maybe your national teacher is a liar."

The woman in the pink skirt was about to say something when she suddenly found that the carriage that was supposed to drive straight past them stopped without warning.

Shen Fan also noticed the sudden stop of the horse's hooves. He looked back and saw a handsome and tall figure of a man hidden behind the curtain.

At the moment of time, the gate of Weiyang Palace.

Xie Yunlan walked in a hurry, his face sank like water, and he got into the carriage waiting at the door without saying a word.

As soon as Wang Tai saw it, he knew that Lord Hou was angry, and it was not ordinary anger, but a state of extreme anger. It was probably something happened in the court. Although he was curious, even if he had followed Xie Yunlan for many years, he would not dare to touch him at this moment mildew,

He didn't ask anything, just drove the car quietly, trying to reduce his sense of existence, hoping that Xie Yunlan would not burn his anger on him.

When the carriage reached Jinmen Street, he met an acquaintance. Wang Tairu was saved, so he stopped the carriage and winked at Wei Chengzhi who had just come out of the winery.

Wei Chengzhi stroked his goatee, guessed something, and shouted to the carriage: "Your Majesty."

"Mr. Yuanmou?" Xie Yunlan lifted the curtain of the car and took a look, "Going out to buy wine?"

"Well, this apricot blossom wine is a must. I drank up all the stock last night. I was so greedy that I got up early to buy it. Did the Marquis just come down to court?" Wei Chengzhi said.

Xie Yunlan responded: "If Mr. Yuanmou is fine, then get in the car and go home together."

Wei Chengzhi thanked him, picked up the corner of the scholar's gown, and got into the carriage.

Driven by the horseshoes, the wheels ran over the ground. Wei Chengzhi looked at Xie Yunlan's seemingly calm face, and asked after thinking: "Master, are you bored because of the flood in Huaizhou?"

It's okay if he didn't mention it, but when this matter was brought up, Xie Yunlan could no longer control the anger that had been suppressed since he left the court. Wang Tai, who was driving in front, heard a heavy "bang" sound from the carriage, like a fist hitting On the hardwood, there was an angry shout: "Absurd!"

"Why? The imperial court refuses to allocate funds to repair the embankment?" Wei Chengzhi frowned. "The state treasury has been short of money in recent years, but how can such important livelihood matters be ignored?"

Xie Yunlan sneered: "Naturally, I didn't ignore it. The imperial decree has already been issued, ordering the national teacher to open the altar, and doing it for 49 days will ensure that the weather will be smooth this year. If this is the case, naturally there is no need to repair the embankment."

Wei Chengzhi asked in astonishment, "The prince's decree?"

"It's Your Majesty." Xie Yunlan said, "The court quarreled over this matter for a few days, but the crown prince hesitated, and finally went to ask His Majesty for instructions."

Wei Chengzhi wanted to say something, but finally swallowed it back, and only sighed: "I thought the situation in the court could improve after the crown prince supervises the country, but I don't want it to remain like this."

"If Li Henian and other monsters who harm the country are not eradicated, the court will naturally be restless." Xie Yunlan said coldly.

Li Henian was the name of the national teacher of the current dynasty. When others called him, they would respectfully call him the national teacher or the Daoist Tongxuan, so Xie Yunlan would call him by his name with such contempt and disdain.

Wei Chengzhi glanced at Xie Yunlan, hesitant to speak.

"Mr. Yuan Mou just say what you have to say." Xie Yunlan restrained his anger a little.

"Lord Hou," Wei Chengzhi said after consideration, "in my opinion, the problem with the court today is not Li Henian, but..."

He raised a finger and pointed upwards: "Even if there is no Li Henian, there will always be another Wang Henian, Xu Henian."

Xie Yunlan said: "Of course I know, but..."

After all, he was concerned about his dignity, so he didn't say it directly.

More than half of Xie Yunlan's anger was actually due to Jianwu Emperor Yuan Shuo. Yuan Shuo was superstitious about these magic tricks. When he was young, he was not obvious, but now he is in his fifties. He is close to sixty years old. After being ill a year ago, his health is getting worse. , and began to recruit alchemists wantonly, seeking the law of longevity.

After Yuan Shuo met Li Henian, who claimed to have lived [-] years old, he believed him so much that he was appointed as a national teacher. He also built a longevity temple on Yanhui Mountain in the suburbs of Beijing, and asked Li Henian to pray to the immortals of the four directions to pray for his longevity. , and changed the Wanglong Pagoda in Weiyang Palace into Linxian Pavilion, and recruited a thousand beautiful women from the people to the pagoda, in order to entertain the immortals when they came.

The huge cost of these things almost directly led to the shortage of money in the treasury today, and even the courtiers quarreled endlessly over paying for the repair of the embankment, and finally stopped repairing it altogether, and just prayed to God and worshiped Buddha.

Xie Yunlan's anger surged again when he thought of this. The embankment repair matter affected hundreds of thousands of people in Huaizhou, but the court made such a ridiculous decision!

"Master Hou, don't get angry, there is still a turning point for this matter." Wei Chengzhi said.

"The imperial decree has been issued, what's the turning point?" Xie Yunlan asked.

"Send a letter to His Majesty to make His Majesty change his mind." Wei Chengzhi said.

Xie Yunlan frowned: "I have already written a letter to remonstrate."

Xie Yunlan did everything he could. He was a military general, and he went to write a letter of advice to the emperor like a civil servant, but Yuan Shuo's health was getting worse and worse. The more so, the more he believed in those alchemists, and he couldn't listen any objection.

Wei Chengzhi stroked his beard and smiled, "Master Hou can't do it, you can go with someone else."

"Who?" Xie Yunlan guessed, "It's the prince? But the prince is indecisive, and he doesn't have his own opinion, let alone try to persuade His Majesty. In today's court, His Majesty only believes in the words of Li Henian."

"Your Majesty does not believe in Li Henian, but in an alchemist with great magical powers. What if there is another alchemist who is even more powerful to stand on our side and give advice to His Majesty?" Wei Chengzhi said as much as he wanted.

Xie Yunlan was taken aback, he hated warlocks who pretended to be ghosts the most, so naturally he never thought of this method.

Wei Chengzhi continued: "If this plan is successful, not only will the embankment repair problem be solved, but also monsters like Li Henian can be eliminated. After all, Your Majesty is looking for someone to trust. Why can't that person be used by us? At least the Marquis will not let His Majesty Do these ridiculous things."

Xie Yunlan looked thoughtful.

"Master Hou, the theory of ghosts and gods is not credible, but it may not be unusable." Wei Cheng took the last strong medicine.

Xie Yunlan was moved by the persuasion, he said: "How to find this person? Although Li Henian has no real skills, he is not bad with his tricks to fool people."

If it wasn't for this, he wouldn't stand out among so many gods in the city and become a national teacher who is under one person and above ten thousand people.They wanted to find someone who could beat Li Henian, but it might not be easy.

"This..." Wei Chengzhi didn't think about it, he just came up with this plan today, so naturally there is no one to choose.

There was a moment of silence in the carriage. When the two were thinking about the famous alchemists in the world, they overheard a conversation from the side of the road. The phrase "Maybe your national teacher is a liar" was especially loud.

It was the first time I saw Xie Yunlan other than himself to say such wild words in broad daylight. He lifted the curtain and took a look, but he didn't see the other party's face, only saw the white banner in his hand.

Seeing the handwriting on the white flag, Xie Yunlan felt a sense of surprise as if he had fallen asleep and gave him a pillow. This person is an alchemist, and he is even an alchemist who dared to say that the national teacher is a liar.

"Stop." Xie Yunlan yelled at Wang Tai.

"Woo—" Wang Taile stopped the horse, and parked the carriage next to Shen Fan and the other three.

Just when Shen Fan turned around, Xie Yunlan looked at him through the curtain of the car window.