Taiping Inn

In the blink of an eye, it has been the season of heavy snow from the beginning of winter. There should be snow in the season of heavy snow, so God sent down a heavy snow, which decorated the entire Jinling Prefecture into a piece of white. Compared with the heavy snow in the northwest or Liaodong, the snow in the south of the Yangtze River is like the women in the south of the Yangtze River, graceful and implicit.

It is good to have snow, which indicates that next year will be another good year. As the saying goes, if the south of the Yangtze River is ripe, the world will be full. As long as the grain harvest in the south of the Yangtze River can be guaranteed, the court can barely survive.

The news of the public execution was announced seven days ago and spread throughout Jiangzhou.

The execution site has also been selected, which is the Falling Flower Terrace outside Yingtian Gate.

This place is a scenic spot in Jiangzhou. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, a high monk, Master Yunguang, set up an altar here to preach, and the falling flowers were like rain, hence the name. In this dynasty, the "Rain Flower Explanation" and "The Wind is High at the End of the Tree" here were listed as one of the "Eighteen Scenes of Jinling" and "Forty-eight Scenes of Jinling" respectively.

The news shocked the court and the public. Several governors and governors-general in the north opposed it, while several governors and governors-general in the south expressed their support. Although it was not a split between the north and the south, the internal struggle in the court was already visible. In the court, the emperor's party and the queen's party continued to fight, and in the local area, the governors and governors-general each stood on their own side. It is said that there are internal and external troubles, and this is the biggest internal worry.

However, no matter how the governors and governors-general in the north opposed it, they were out of reach. In the territory of the governor of Jiangnan, the governor of Liaodong could not march south. So the execution date remained the same, and the governor of Jiangnan also ordered the major families, gentry, and officials in Jiangzhou to go to Luohuatai to watch the execution.

Autumn is the main season for killing. Now that autumn has passed, the season is not important, but the three quarters of noon should still be taken seriously, because this time is the time when the yang energy is the heaviest in the day, so the execution time is still set at noon.

It is early morning now. Qian Yulong and Li Xuandu walked out of the Qian family's mansion side by side. They were accompanied by Sheng Zikuan and Liu Chen. Along with Liu Chen came the new news from Tingfenglou, that is, the Governor of Jiangnan has mobilized the Jiangzhou garrison to enter Jinling Prefecture, and there are also garrisons around Luohuatai.

The intention is obvious.

However, most people in Jinling Prefecture will not think so much, because they have no way of knowing the conspiracy between the Weaving Bureau and the Governor's Mansion, and they can't see the far-reaching influence hidden behind the scenes, so they will not have doubts about these garrisons, but just take it for granted that these garrisons are only used to guard against people who rob the execution ground.

At the same time, the Qian family mobilized 5,000 disciples of the Cao Gang, and after being disguised, they gradually entered Jinling along the Grand Canal.

In addition to these open mobilizations, both sides have many unknown arrangements in secret, such as the masters of the Weaving Bureau and Daozhong Sect, and the worshippers affiliated with the Qian family elders' hall.

Of course, no matter how ignorant the people below are, the big shots will gather together soon.

Qian Yulong looked up at the falling snow in the sky and exhaled a breath of white air: "This weather is suitable for eating a hot mutton hot pot. I remember there is a store in Dongcheng, which is quite famous and tastes good. The mutton used is goats from outside the Great Wall. Do you want to try it?"

Li Xuandu said: "Okay."

Half an hour later, Li Xuandu and his party came to the store mentioned by Qian Yulong and asked for an independent private room by the window. After a while, a waiter brought a copper pot and various side dishes.

After the waiter left, Sheng Zikuan waved his hand and set a ban in the room.

The four of them sat down, Qian Yulong sat opposite Li Xuandu, Liu Chen sat next to Li Xuandu, and Sheng Zikuan sat next to Qian Yulong. Qian Yulong picked up a piece of mutton and put it in his bowl. He didn't eat it in a hurry, but said: "Zifu, have you ever thought about what to do after rescuing Governor Qin?"

The two of them were separated by the white mist rising from the copper pot. Li Xuan didn't move his chopsticks. He said absentmindedly to the snow outside the window: "Let Governor Qin leave Jiangnan directly by sea, and I will go to Qizhou."

Qian Yulong nodded: "This is the best. Go by sea to Posazhou or Fenglinzhou. Hide outside for a while and come back when the situation is clear. The southern sea route is escorted by Cihang Sect, so nothing will go wrong."

Li Xuandu took back He frowned and asked, "Why not go to Liaodong?"

"Why?" Qian Yulong put the meat in the bowl into his mouth, chewed it carefully and swallowed it, then said slowly and methodically, "You won't forget, from Jiangnan to Liaodong, you have to pass through the territory of Qingwei Sect. Now the head of Qingwei Sect is Li Yuanying, who is now an official. Who will he stand on? He will never stand on the side of Qingliu, let alone your side."

Li Xuandu asked, "According to Brother Qian, there is no perfect way?"

Qian Yulong did not answer Li Xuandu's question directly, but said, "It is still uncertain whether we can rescue Governor Qin. Instead of worrying about these, we might as well think about whether the final plan is comprehensive."

Li Xuandu closed his eyes and began to review the entire plan.

On the other side, an old Taoist came to the gate of Jinling City in the wind and snow.

The old Taoist was wearing a badly patched old Taoist robe, and judging by the style, he was obviously not from a famous and upright Taoist family. He was carrying a large box on his back, which looked quite funny compared to his thin body. The box contained all his belongings. In his hand, he was leaning on a flag, but because of the strong wind, the flag had been taken down, leaving only a bare flagpole.

Because today is a big day for public execution, the inspection of the city gate is very strict. In the heavy snow, not many people enter the city. In the slightly sparse crowd, the old Taoist who has been walking slowly with his head down handed the pass to the gate guard holding a spear. The soldier, who was wearing a cotton coat and armor and looked bloated, took the pass and confirmed that it was correct. He handed it back to the old Taoist, glanced at the bag behind the old Taoist, frowned, and pointed.

The old Taoist put down his bag, which was full of things used for fortune-telling stalls, such as the cloth with Tai Chi Bagua and Yin Yang Pisces painted on it, the stick tube full of bamboo sticks, and the big flag taken down from the flagpole by the old Taoist, on which were written the four big characters "iron mouth straight judgment"

The gatekeeper was immediately amused: "I didn't know that the old Taoist priest could tell fortunes?"

The old Taoist priest habitually stroked his goatee and smiled faintly: "I know a little, I know a little."

The gatekeeper said: "According to the laws of our Wei Dynasty, customs duties are collected for entering the city, two cents per person. How about this, the old Taoist priest tells me a fortune, and I will exempt the old Taoist priest from the two cents."

"That's great." The old Taoist priest agreed immediately: "I wonder what this military sir wants to tell? I am proficient in 'Ziwei Dou Shu' and 'Xiantian Bagua', from lifelong events to naming children, as well as house feng shui, ancestral tomb points, and talismans? Consecration, all are possible."

The city guard was used to seeing all kinds of people on weekdays. If they were not those young ladies who never left the house, they would naturally not take it seriously. If they were real masters, how could they walk into the city? If they were high up, I'm afraid that even the city walls could not stop them. So fortune-telling was just a joke.

The soldier said, "Then please tell me how my luck is going to be recently and whether I can get rich."

The soldier's original intention was just to hear a few words of flattery, but he didn't expect the old Taoist to pretend to count with his fingers for a while and then said, "Sir, please forgive me for speaking frankly, but I'm afraid you will have a bloody disaster."

The soldier was stunned and said angrily, "Bloody disaster? Old man, can you speak? Do you believe that I will make you have a bloody disaster now?"

The old Taoist was not frightened by the soldier's intimidation and said calmly : "I have never asked for money from you, so why did you lie to me?"

The soldier was obviously shocked by the calmness of the old Taoist priest, and his momentum suddenly dropped. He asked: "Then... according to the Taoist priest, how can we resolve this bloody disaster?"

The old Taoist priest stroked his beard and said: "It's simple. You should take off your armor, put down your spear, return home, and refuse visitors. No matter what happens, don't come out. This way, you can avoid the bloody disaster."

"It's that simple?" The soldier was a little skeptical.

The old Taoist priest picked up the wooden box again and smiled: "It's up to you whether you believe it or not."

After that, he carried the wooden box and walked into the city.

The soldier guarding the city hesitated for a long time, but still planned to ask for a day off from the sergeant. Although he would be deducted three days' salary, he would just spend money to avoid the disaster.