At the beginning of winter, it rains continuously.
But in the city of Jining, there was a warm and festive atmosphere.
Because yesterday the young prince of the Nalu Palace issued an order: the Fire Lotus Sect’s status as a “holy sect” will be removed and it will be disbanded immediately. All the property collected in the sect will be confiscated and will be returned to the local people in Jining within a few days.
As soon as this announcement was posted, one can only imagine how the people reacted.
Perhaps one day ago they hated the Fire Lotus Immortal and Zhu Huo who supported him deeply, but after that day, in their hearts, even if Zhu Huo was not "reborn in the blue sky, loving the people like a son", he was also "a man who knows his mistakes, can correct them, and repairs them after they have been lost." "Yes.
The government didn't need to do any public opinion guidance. The common people came to the conclusion on their own - if there was anything wrong, it was all the fault of the Fire Lotus Immortal. The young prince must have been deceived by this traitor in the past few years.
Of course, such a reaction was within Eunuch Wei's expectation.
The old eunuch has lived to this age and has a clear view of many things, especially human nature. He knows very well: the people are the most difficult to serve, but also the easiest to deal with.
People at that time still believed in the concept of "imperial power and heavenly right", so they often had some blind admiration and awe for those relatives of the emperor, the so-called "noble blood" people.
Even if they have suffered great grievances, as long as a royal family member is willing to apologize, make a gesture, and compensate them... they will probably feel that the grievances they have suffered are "worth it" and they will accept the other party unconditionally. Any excuses and justifications given, even if the other party makes no excuses at all, they will make up for it on their own.
The general idea is: "The people of the royal family have bowed their heads and admitted their mistakes to me, a commoner? I still refuse to give in? Then am I still a human being?"
After seeing this, some people may say, is this cheap?
From our modern point of view, it is quite despicable, but in ancient feudal society, this was a common phenomenon.
Besides, isn’t that what our world is like today?
In this era where consumerism is rampant and even people are extremely objectified, hasn’t the trend of laughing at the poor but not at prostitution become more explicit? A person can get a large number of fans just because he is good-looking or born rich. What is the essential difference between this trend and the behavior among the elderly?
People who worship money make fun of those who worship imperial power? Do people who worship faces look down on those who worship blood?
When I look in the mirror and reflect, I am the bitch.
That's a long way off... Let's get back to Eunuch Wei.
Although the bodies of the Fire Lotus Immortal and the four hall masters under him were not found, Eunuch Wei and Mr. Zhao just knew that these guys were dead, and one of their "plans" was therefore started in advance.
On the day of the Winter Clothes Festival, the Fire Lotus cultists who had recovered from the sound of Yuzai's flute saw that Sun Yixie and Jiang Muchan had disappeared, so they simply... stopped pursuing them, because in their view, It is much more important to go to the main altar to "support and rescue the wealthy religious people" than to hunt down the few guys who escaped.
So, the hundreds of Fire Lotus followers just discussed it for a moment, and then they all rushed towards the main altar of the Fire Lotus. The fire on the Dharma platform in the market was not put out, so they didn't care. , patted his butt and ran away.
There was no choice but for the people at the scene to clean up the mess they left and go home one after another to get things to put out the fire.
After a while, all the members of the Fire Lotus Sect returned to the main altar, but they soon discovered that something was wrong: the brothers who stayed at the main altar told them that nothing happened here, and that the leader and The hall masters never came back either.
And just when these "leaderless" Fire Lotus cultists were confused, General Zhao Qi had already led a large group of troops to kill and surrounded the place...
What happens after that will be easy to handle.
Although there are nearly a thousand people in the Fire Lotus Sect, they are nothing in front of the regular army...Without the protection of the monster like Xi Xuanzi, all we need to do is dispatch a guard in Jinyi and bring some local troops. One to two hundred officers and soldiers are enough to take down all the eighteen hundred believers. Anyone who dares to resist will be shot to death.
That night, after getting some evidence collected by Zhao Zongqi from the Fire Lotus Sect, Eunuch Wei came to Zhu Yue and made his identity clear and his "mission" clear.
What he talked about with Zhu Huo that night is unknown to outsiders. What people know is that Zhu Huo gave the order the next day, and from that day on, the young prince became very honest. , became a very low-key person; not only did he dismiss all of his retainers, he was not even that interested in women and having fun, and he spent his days drinking in the palace, in a muddle-headed manner... until a few years later. , within a month, Zhu Huo and his father died of sudden illness, and the line of King Lu was cut off.
Of course, Eunuch Wei and General Zhao Qi did not stay here until that day. They both left Jining in the spring of the second year after the fall of the Fire Lotus Sect and returned to the capital to resume their lives.
Judging from the results of this whole incident: Zhu Xu's ambition was stifled in the initial stage, the power of King Lu essentially disappeared without being publicly "cut down the vassal", the face of the "old Zhu family" was not stained, and the emperor Very satisfied too.
As for what Lao Zhu's "lizi" did in this matter, and how long ago he started doing it... these are all secrets that no one will mention.
On the other hand, the story of Sun Yixie, Huang Donglai, Jiang Muchan, Xiao Wuji, and Wen Yuzhai, the five "folk righteous men" who "removed harm for the people" in Jining City, began to be widely spread under the conscious operation of certain forces soon thereafter. To spread.
Obviously, Eunuch Wei hopes that the people can focus on these "chivalrous knights" instead of thinking too much about things they shouldn't think about - although, in Eunuch Wei's view, what these people do is just the icing on the cake. , even without them, the outcome of things will not change.
…………
On the night of the Winter Clothes Festival, outside Jining City.
Beside the fire, five people were sitting or standing with different expressions.
Just now, Wen Yuzhai told them about Xiao Zhun's conspiracy to sacrifice the "Blood Sword Fetus" and his plan to use the "Seven Jue Formation of Swords" to break into Wujian Villa.
This was the first time that Sun, Huang, and Jiang had heard of these two pieces of information; although Shuangxi had already obtained information related to it from Kang Haijiao before, it had also been "stolen" by Master Xie San of the Yiyong Escort Agency. "Ming Yu" incident inferred that Xiao Zhun was engaged in some kind of evil beyond common sense, but this information was not enough for them to get to the real core of the incident... Until this moment, Wen Yuzhai told this paragraph, The two of them had a sudden enlightenment and connected all the clues.
"Master Wen, it's not that Jiang doesn't believe you..." After a moment, Jiang Muchan was the first to speak, "But this matter is really unbelievable..." He paused and frowned, "Although Jiang is in the green forest, , but also know that the Master Xiao of Wujian Villa is not only a world-famous swordsman, but also a recognized knight in the world... He has no shortage of martial arts, money or fame. People like this... are really necessary Would you do something so extreme?"
"Hmph..." As soon as he said this, Na Wen Yuzhai hadn't answered yet, but Xiao Wuji had already sneered, and immediately said, "If there is no shortage, there will be no fighting, then the world will be peaceful. ...I may not know about others, but Xiao Zhun, a hypocrite, would not be surprised to do anything."
"Huh? You seem to know him quite well." Hearing this obviously prejudiced statement, Sun Yixie had already sensed something. He squinted at Xiao Wuji and asked, "By the way, you were Didn’t I say that your surname is actually Xiao?"
As soon as this question came out, the expression on Wen Yuzhai's face changed slightly, and his eyes immediately turned to Xiao Wuji.
Xiao Wuji, although his "smile" was frozen, his eyes and face could also move. After listening, he looked obviously hesitant, and then he glanced at Sun Yat-sen University as if he had made up his mind. , Huang, and Jiang circled around, and then said: "Humph... It doesn't hurt to tell you." He paused for half a second, and then continued in an almost disgusted tone, "Yes, my surname is Xiao, and my original name is Xiao Xuan , is Xiao Zhun’s only son.”
"What the hell?" Shuangxi had the same reaction when he heard this sentence.
Jiang Muchan's eyes widened even more, digesting this fact in surprise.
"However, you don't have to worry... I have severed the father-son relationship with him a long time ago." Xiao Wuji said, "I changed my name and moved away because I don't want to have anything to do with Xiao Zhun, a hypocrite."
"Oh?" Huang Donglai followed the trend, "Then what happened between you two to get to this point?"
After Xiao Wuji heard this question, he first turned his head and glanced at Wen Yuzhai, and then sneered: "This is my private matter, I have no comment." He paused, "But I can promise ... I just heard what brother said, Xiao Zhun is completely able to do it, or in other words, it is precisely because of him that he can do it and succeed."
"I understand." Sun Yixie took over the conversation at this time and turned to look at Wen Yuzhai, "Mr. Wen tried his best to keep his smile in front of us last time because he was a person in your plan. A key figure, even if he does not join the Seven Swords Array, his knowledge of Wujian Villa will still be of great help to your plan..."
"That's right." Wen Yuzhai nodded, "Shaoxia Sun is indeed very clever..." He said, and bowed, "Speaking of which, Wen needs to apologize to you two. The last time we met, Wen I still have doubts about you two, so I didn’t explain the reasons clearly to you, and I ask for your forgiveness.”
"Hey, Mr. Wen, that's a serious statement." Huang Donglai then added, "We wouldn't tell a person we meet for the first time about such a big matter. It has nothing to do with whether the other person has a chivalrous name. It's true. The so-called knowing people, knowing faces, but not knowing hearts.”
"That's right." Sun Yixie also agreed.
"Thank you both for your understanding." Wen Yuzhai said with cupped fists.
"Eh?" Jiang Muchan interrupted at this time, "But Mr. Wen and I... this is the first time we've met each other. Why don't you tell me now?"
"Heh..." Wen Yuzhai smiled, clasped his fists again and replied, "Brother Jiang... you, Brother Sun and Brother Huang, in Jining Prefecture, risked their lives for the sake of the people, and were not afraid of the power of the palace, and killed them with all their strength. The Demonic Dao... has already made Wen Mou admire him so much that he feels inferior, so how can Wen Mou doubt you again?"
"Okay, don't take the opportunity to flatter others." But Xiao Wuji poured a basin of cold water on him at the right time, and said to Jiang Muchan with a smirk, "Brother Jiang, let me tell you the truth. I want you to join us in this 'Seven Jue Formation of Swords', are you willing?"
"Me?" Jiang Muchan was quite surprised when he heard this, and then he pondered thoughtfully, "This..."
Wen Yuzhai saw that he seemed to be in trouble, and immediately continued: "Brother Jiang, Wen knows that you are walking on the green forest road. This Jianghu matter has nothing to do with you, and it is very dangerous and the future is uncertain. ...So, if you don’t want to go, Wen will never force you.”
"No, no... Mr. Wen has misunderstood." Jiang Muchan said, "Jiang is definitely not a person who is greedy for life and afraid of death. Not to mention that you and Brother Xiao saved my life today. Jiang should repay; even if it is just Regarding what Xiao Zhun did, I am willing to do my part to stop him...but...Jiang is worried that with his own martial arts, can he be qualified for one of the 'Seven Skills of the Sword'?"
Jiang Muchan's worries were indeed justified. The experience of being "taught" by Eunuch Wei a few days ago was still vivid in his mind. In addition, he also fought against Xiao Wuji... These two confrontations made Jiang Muchan He clearly felt that even though his sword skills were extraordinary and unique, his internal strength would definitely become a major weakness when facing a real master.
"That's true." Xiao Wuji spoke at this time, and he said to Wen Yuzhao, "To be honest, although Jiang Muchan's sword skills are high, his internal strength is too poor. My own... internal strength It's okay, but in terms of moves alone, I'm afraid my swordsmanship is not as good as the swordsmanship I have given up long ago... Are you sure that we won't hold them back if we team up with masters like Haicangfeng and Three-Character King? ?”
"This..." Wen Yuzhai frowned when he heard this, "What you said makes sense, but... within a limited time, we have to come up with something that is trustworthy, has high enough martial arts skills, and just meets the requirements of the four It is really difficult for seven warriors with the condition of "three swords and three swords"..." At this point, his eyes glanced at the sword on Huang Donglai's back, "Eh? Brother Huang, you are also a swordsman, I don't know your sword Law……"
"Don't ask, he has no swordsmanship." A second later, before Huang Donglai could answer, Sun Yixie answered for him.
"Will you die if you don't say a few words?" Huang Donglai looked at Brother Sun and cursed unhappily. Then he turned around and said to Wen Yuzhao calmly, "He's right, I don't have any swordsmanship."
Wen Yuzhai wanted to laugh for some reason, but held it back.
"But... I have an idea." Unexpectedly, Huang Donglai immediately changed the subject.
"Oh? Brother Huang, please tell me." Wen Yuzhai continued.
Brother Huang raised his eyebrows at this time and looked at Xiao Wuji first: "Your sword skills are not very good, so if you ask Jiang Muchan, who is good at sword skills, to give you some guidance, won't you be able to improve quickly?" As he said, He looked at Jiang Muchan again, "Xiao Jiang, your problem will be easier to solve. Isn't it because your internal strength is not good? Let Brother Sun teach you a way to ensure that you make rapid progress in a short period of time, and make rapid progress..."
"Stop!" Sun Yixie quickly interrupted him, "I'm going to teach Mao Jiao? My internal strength needs to be practiced from scratch by someone who doesn't know any internal strength at all. Otherwise, people will die. Have you forgotten?"
"We can abolish his martial arts." Huang Donglai continued in a matter-of-fact tone, "Since his internal strength is already very poor, let him lose all his internal strength to you first, and then I will cut off his meridians and let him practice from scratch. With your 'Reverse the Universe' technique, you can surpass his original cultivation level in a few days, but the technique can't be used anyway, so why are you panicking?"
"Damn it, wouldn't it be over if we let him directly learn your 'Wu Qi Gong'?" Sun Yixie asked back, "Isn't your style better than mine, and he can practice it directly?" .”
"No, my martial arts belongs to the sect and I don't dare to spread it casually." Huang Donglai said.
"Nonsense, this is my family's martial arts. He is not my son, so I can pass it on?" Sun Yixie said, "Besides... doesn't your sect always rely on 'chance' for everything? Isn't this the case now? ?Have you ever heard of 'There is a Way for Thieves'? These four words have closely linked you two, so it can't be justified if you don't teach it, right?"
"Is that what 'the thief has his way' means?" Huang Donglai asked.
"Then on the other hand, for a person like you, it's okay to say that you are a thief, right?" Sun Yixie argued forcefully.
These two guys just talked to each other, talking about cross talk very naturally, talking about useless martial arts, cutting off people's meridians, saying that people are sons... Anyway, they are all evil in swearing, taking advantage, and making excuses, and the other three are stupid. Sorry, I can't get in even if I want to.
Anyway... After a while of wrangling, Huang Donglai finally relented. After these few days of contact, the two of them had already figured out Jiang Muchan's character, so they thought it would be okay to teach him some "wuqigong" , If something really goes wrong in the future, the worst possible outcome is to go to Xuanqi Sect and hire someone to "clean up the door."
As for Xiao Wuji, he is thick-skinned now, and he doesn't mind asking Jiang Muchan for advice on sword skills, and Jiang Muchan agrees with this.
After the few people agreed on this, they tentatively assumed that the "one sword and three swords" of the "four swords and three swords" were stable. Wen Yuzhao was very happy to receive such help from Shuangxie.
However, there is really not much time left for them; according to Wen Yuzhai's information, the creation of the "Blood Sword Fetus" is now in progress (the creation cycle is up to forty-nine days), and the birth of the fetus Within seven days, Xiao Zhun must use this object to kill 7,749 swordsmen to achieve the "Sword Demon Coming to the World". In other words, it will take more than a month at most, and Xiao Zhun must take action.
In this month, in addition to solving Jiang Muchan and Xiao Wuji's shortcomings in martial arts, they also had three swords to find, which was not an easy task.
Of course, in terms of "swordsman", Shuangxie already had a very reliable candidate in mind.
"Mr. Wen, if you have no direction, how about we recommend someone?" When everyone was talking about this, Sun Yixie said this.
"Oh? May I ask who it is?" Wen Yuzhai asked.
Jiang Muchan and Xiao Wuji also looked at Sun Yixie with expectant eyes, wondering who the person recommended by "Dong Xie" would be.
The next second, Sun Yixie and Huang Donglai looked at each other. Without communicating with each other, they both turned to look at the crowd and said in unison: "Lin Yuancheng."
"What?" Upon hearing this name, Wen Yuzhai's face showed a hint of surprise, "The two of you are talking about the ten masters who were singled out at the 'Yomeng Tower' in the capital a few days ago. Lin Yuancheng, the ‘Hunyuan Divine Sword’ Lin Shaoxia?”
As soon as these words were said, both Sun and Huang were stunned.
The two of them were either on the road or busy dealing with others, and had not inquired much about the news in the world, so when they heard Yuzhai's words, they were a little unable to react.
"Oh?" Sun Yixie said with a crooked face at that time, "How long has it been since we last seen each other? This kid has already caused such a big stir in the capital?"
"Cuna, this nickname of 'Hunyuan Divine Sword' has something to it. It sounds much more awesome than 'Eastern Harmony and Western Poison'." Huang Donglai said with an unhappy look on his face.
Wen Yuzhai didn't know why these two were so angry, but judging by their tone, they seemed to be quite familiar with Lin Yuancheng: "So...it's him you two are talking about?"
"That's right." Sun Yixie said proudly, "Xiao Lin is our brother... Since you know his whereabouts now, it's better. Ask Brother Huang to write a letter, and he will be there in a minute."
Wen Yuzhai didn't understand what "minutes" meant, but he understood the general meaning of the other party. He said excitedly: "Okay! If Shaoxia Lin is willing to come, then the second sword is decided!"
So far, five people have been selected for the "Seven Skills of Swords".
At this time, Wen Yuzhai did not expect that when he led the team to Wujian Villa later, there were still only five people in the team...
Because there was another person who they would not meet until they arrived at Wujian Villa.
What? Are you saying that even if one more person is added, there are still only three swords and three knives, and it is still not enough?
Then you are wrong.
Six people can still gather the "four swords and three swords", because one of them... after a month, he has mastered the skill of using the left-handed sword and the right-handed sword at the same time, and is a master of both swords.
And that person, without a doubt, is laughing without a disease.
