After settling the matter with Zheng Guo, Baitao took a dagger and followed the honor guard to Yongcheng alone.
Chased for almost two days.
I saw six bronze chariots, followed by a few more, driving quite low-key.
Two hundred cavalrymen with helmets and armor were ahead, clearing the way and driving into Yongcheng Avenue.
When the people of Yongcheng knew that King Qin was coming, drums were beating loudly and trombones were blaring. The two rows of people crowded in the road could not be seen at a glance. The cheers of farmers and women pulling ox plows in the fields reached a climax like a mountain roar and a tsunami. "Long live the King of Qin, long live the King of Qin!"
"Long live the King of Qin, long live the King of Qin!"
"Long live the King of Qin, long live the King of Qin!"
Ying Zheng stood on the chariot, with long eyebrows, a straight nose and thin lips. At a young age, he already showed a sharp and majestic appearance like a sheath.
The face of a king is not angry but he is proud. The people in Yongcheng did not dare to look directly at the king's face. Only Baitao, who was following him, pulled at the branches of the tree and kept secretly looking at his handsome face.
Well, it's really nice.
she thought.
As if aware of the prying eyes, he looked sideways, his hair twitching his slightly pointed chin. Seeing how keen he was, Baitao's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly pulled up the branches and hid.
After a while, the sound of carriages and horses faded away. Baitao slid down the tree trunk and looked at the shadow of the ceremonial guard. Only the people of Yongcheng around him were talking, "Hey, I really didn't expect that the King of Qin actually came to our Yongcheng." , I remember that I came here for a while last time, probably because I wanted to recognize my ancestors and return to my clan."
Someone sighed: "It was Prime Minister Lu who took the lead at that time. I didn't expect that after so many years, King Qin will be the master of the matter from now on."
"Tsk, you are the master of the family, you are a village idiot, what do you know?"
Someone said in a low voice: "Prime Minister Lu is generous. Isn't the article he issued good for us people? I don't know what it was like when King Qin got on the boat. The water is still shaking. I think it must not be so good."
"Shit! What our country of Qin wants is for the Qin people to be the masters of the country. No matter what happens to Lu Buwei, he is just an outsider in the final analysis. Don't say such ugly things. Look at these generations of Qin kings. Which one is not a great talent? You know how? Damn it, go away, go and find your mother-in-law behind closed doors to have babies!"
"Oh, you are such a weird person."
"But King Qin is already twenty-two, is he asking for a mother-in-law?
"Bah, you should be asking for the queen. Which country's princess are you asking for?"
Someone thought about it carefully and said, "It should be from the Chu country. I don't know, but it shouldn't be from South Korea. Think about it. A few years ago, when it was snowing and in the middle of winter, the Korean lady"
The old Qin man held his sleeves, and the heads of more than a dozen rows of meatballs touched each other, spittle flying, and even the ants passing by on the yellow muddy ground were startled.
The political atmosphere of the Six Kingdoms of Shandong was discussed not only on the war situation, but also on interesting things about the royal family, embarrassing things about the nobles, who had stepped down, who had become prime minister again, and even trivial matters could be discussed.
This kind of righteous comfort in words has become the most satisfying thing for the common people.
Baitao leaned against the tree pestle and listened quietly, becoming more and more fascinated.
When a few old Qin people asked, "You little girl, why are you so silent? In front of everyone, why don't you say a few words?"
Only then did Baitao react.
Without being disrespectful and modest, she quickly followed the path of the bronze chariot.
Well, it’s better to listen less to gossip.
As a matter of urgency, we must first protect Brother Zheng from being snatched away by the big red-haired snake.
*
A curtain of sparse shadows, the moon in the flowers.
Baitao always paid attention to the movements of the red-haired snake demon, and spent some money asking around. Finally, she found out that the red-haired snake demon would always be in the nine-story tower in the southeast corner no matter what happened, and would not come out at ordinary times.
This means that if you hide your evil spirit well, you can avoid being discovered by Hongmao.
Baitao felt relieved and returned to her original shape. She lit the plum blossom mat, quietly pressed it on the bricks and tiles, and rushed into the depths of Yongcheng Fengdeng like a traceless wind.
The crowning ceremony is the first ceremony in the world, something that both nobles and commoners need to go through, so the regulations that have been settled are very solemn and lengthy.
Before the ceremony officially began, King Qin had to settle down in the palace and wash his hands to show his piety. According to this point, he should be taking a bath.
Baitao thought about it and made some calculations secretly.
What can be ignored is that his diligence is always beyond ordinary people's thoughts. Across the mountain and river screen, I could hear him discussing political affairs with his subordinates while soaking in the bathtub.
Baitao: "."
The magnetic rustling sound came through the dense heat, which tickled my ears: "You mean, Father Zhong went to see the Empress Dowager Zhao just after he settled down."
The male voice on the other side was very familiar, and Bai Tao recognized it as the heroic Li Xin, but the aura that soared to the sky was much restrained, "Yes, Your Majesty, it's just that the Queen Mother has always been behind closed doors, and the main palace door has been closed tightly. , I can’t find out anything false even in my humble position.”
"The last time you went into Yongcheng, you only found out that Lao Ai had evil intentions, and also about smashing the official ship that sent the son?"
Li Xin hesitated and said: "Your Majesty, please forgive me for speaking bluntly. There are many weird things here, and there are all kinds of things that are difficult to explain. It may be an unpredictable place."
"Yongcheng has been the old Wangji of the Qin people since ancient times. It is the foundation of the Qin people." He said coldly, "Li Xin, if you say such strange things that mess with the gods again, you will be punished as nonsense."
Li Xin didn't dare to say more: "It's a humble faux pas."
While they were talking, the little fox Baitao jumped down, turned around and stared at the pastries arranged by Zhao Gao on the long table in the room, and pawed at them with salivation.
I am debating whether it is better to eat or not.
Unexpectedly, the conversation inside ended in a few words.
Baitao's ears stood up, and she turned around to grab a pastry quickly. She was about to run away, but suddenly she saw Ying Zheng standing in front of him, wearing a loose black robe.
His pupils were deep, wet after bathing, and reflected by the toad light outside the window, as fascinating as a water demon who had just landed on the shore.
He lowered his eyes and was looking at the little fox stealing pastries on the carpet.
"!"
When Bai Tao saw him coming out, her eyes almost popped out.
But it's all his fault.
It's all because he's looking for trouble. There's her favorite pastry on the table. Look, it's really a mistake.
She bit him back hard in her heart, and when Baitao looked into his narrow and searching eyes, she always felt guilty as if her fox fur was about to fall out.
She ran up to the long desk, intending to use the long desk to climb to the window sill and then to the roof. Unexpectedly, she knocked over the hot tea on it with her paw.
"Kacha."
Baitao froze, and another plum blossom stain fell in Ying Zheng's faint gaze.
Then, one kick, and another.
Really step on the pastry.
Under Ying Zheng's deep gaze, she just stepped on him a little more.
After trampling his rations to pieces, Baitao jumped into the moonlight and disappeared.
Li Xin heard the commotion and came from the side room. He pressed the scabbard nervously and said, "Your Majesty, who is intruding?"
"No problem."
Ying Zheng's bony fingers twisted the fox fur mixed with pastry crumbs on the table, and he turned it around, "It's a wild fox that's boundlessly wild."
Baitao, who was lying on the ridge of the temple with a pastry in her mouth, choked suddenly when she heard this. She didn't know why she cared so much about his opinion of her. Anyway, anyone could call her wild, but not him, no!
asshole!
Bai Tao grinded his teeth.
Below, Ying Zheng is calm and reading a book by the window, like a silhouette caught in a poem, extremely clear and meaningful.
Baitao was still grinding her teeth. After she finished grinding her teeth, she smacked his words carefully and wondered whether she was really wild?
She really wanted to ask Beaver Zheng Guo. After all, they were both goblins and had roughly the same aesthetics.
But Zheng Guo was still in jail, so she turned her fox eyes to the ghostly bird snake on the roof, purred her throat, and asked silently: Am I wild?
The ghost, the bird, the bird and the snake are all made of stone and paint, so how can they say anything to answer her?
The more I watched, the more unhappy I became, and the more I watched, the more irritated I became.
Baitao simply slapped him with his paw.
So annoying!
As the night approached, she imitated the ladies of Xianyang City and squatted down to look at the moon in a dignified manner. However, the more she looked at the moon, the more it looked like a giant chicken stretching its neck to lure a fox.
Forget it, no more studying.
After giving up on herself, Baitao went directly to the nearby woods to pull a few banana leaves, and then used a few branches to build herself a shelter from the wind and rain. She lay on the ridge and carefully felt Ying Zheng's heartbeat before falling asleep.
Early the next morning, the rooster crows, and Baitao stretches out under the tree house, opening his eyes and pulling apart the banana leaves.
Unexpectedly, when I woke up, I saw the dull summer wind blowing the vast red mist, and everything in the world was like a tumbling red sea. It was so strange that it made people's hearts beat.
Looking down again, I could see the endless palaces and even the boundless rivers and mountains from here. Now, all the pieces have disappeared, and the visibility beyond ten feet is extremely low.
Hell, sea of blood.
Without a second thought, Baitao quickly took away all the banana leaves.
There were deafening sounds of gongs and drums and a high-pitched voice coming from a distance: "It's not good, it's not good, the red mist is rising, it's a bad omen!"
"It's not good, it's not good, the red mist is rising, it's a bad omen!"
*
Several priests in sacrificial robes wore masks and had oily braids. They were shaking copper bells with both hands. They were walking the eight steps of Tiangang with their bare feet on red charcoal around the bonfire.
Ying Zheng was sitting in the upper seat, with his condensed eyebrows lowered and he didn't know what he was thinking.
"How's the divination going?" Lu Buwei asked.
The chief priest was silent and stepped on the dark charcoal until sparks popped up randomly. "The red mist has come out. This is not an ordinary disaster. It indicates that the Qin Kingdom will have great evil in the coming year!"
"Snapped!"
The King of Qin did not express his position, but Mi Qi, the Lord of Changping who was standing by, started to protest. He was the prince of the Chu Kingdom, and his mother was the daughter of Grandfather Ying Zheng. Now he was an official in the Qin State, and he was Ying Zheng's cousin who was more than ten years older.
It is also the parent who was crowned in Yongcheng this time, so he can accompany him.
He jumped up and pointed at the priest's nose and cursed: "You are sure that the auspicious day for the crowning is yours, and you are the one who said it is the omen of great evil. Why are you contradicting yourself? Now all I can do is jump on the big rope noisily, and a few pigs catch whatever chaff they can." If you dare to eat randomly, believe it or not, I will chop off your heads right now."
"Mr. Changping, spare your life!"
"Mr. Changping, spare your life!"
"This is the apocalypse. We dare not pretend to tell God's will." The priests knelt on the ground and trembled.
Lu Buwei saw that Mi Qi was the first to stand up to defend the King of Qin, and showed absolutely no aristocratic demeanor of the Chu Kingdom. He smiled and said, "Mr. Changping, please be patient and sit down."
With a snort, Lord Changping lifted his robe and sat down with a raised brow.
Lu Buwei said to the panicked clan members: "It's just a red mist. In the past, it was windy, snowy and haily, but it didn't necessarily matter. Just as the soil is bad, the grass and trees won't grow, and the water is bad, the fish and turtles won't grow. These are all This is the change of things. Please come to the King of Qin on time for the crowning ceremony the day after tomorrow."
"this"
"What the Prime Minister said makes sense."
All the people in the clan were reminded by these remarks that they surrendered to Lu Buwei's courage, "What the Prime Minister said is absolutely true, but it is just red mist. Since the sixth generation of the Qin Dynasty, there have been ups and downs, and Yinghuo Shouxin is not afraid. We are now You are still afraid of a bird, but the crown ceremony of King Qin cannot be missed!"
"Yes, you can't make a mistake!"
"You can't make a mistake!"
During the discussions between the clan and the Prime Minister, they had habitually forgotten about the King of Qin on the throne, until Mi Qi said carelessly, "But this red mist is not a thing after all. How can we be successful in this kind of chaos?" present?"
Although the people of Qin are rough and broad, they still fear the heaven and earth and the gods.
Someone came up with an idea and said, "Why don't we invite a few folk actors to worship the gods with Nuo noodles? It can also dispel filth and evil spirits, and pray to God for blessings for King Qin's crown."
"Yes, it's better to reward the gods and protect the Qin Dynasty. Even if it fails, it will protect Yongcheng and the King of Qin."
Nuo noodles are to reward gods.
It was mortals who put on silver masks to communicate with gods and dialogue with heaven and earth. It started in the Yin and Shang Dynasties, and it was not until the Zhou Dynasty that a complete etiquette system was established, and it is still continued all the way to this day.
Ying Zheng put his fingers on the seat and raised his chin in front of everyone: "Yun."
From beginning to end, he didn't say this word.
Should we follow the emperor's orders or ministers' intentions in "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals", or should we follow the Legalist approach of being quiet and doing nothing, seeing flaws in the dark, seeing but not seeing, hearing but not hearing, knowing but not knowing.
Lu Buwei sighed deeply in his heart.
This kid becomes more and more untamable as he grows up.
In a short time, it will be time for them to have a real meeting between their monarchs and their ministers, teachers and students.
It won't be long.
After the discussion was over, everyone dispersed.
Lu Buwei didn't move for a long time. He raised his eyelids to look at the boy on the main seat. Ying Zheng's sharp eyes were suppressed, and his whole body was filled with a coldness that kept strangers away, like cold thorns growing on his body.
He hesitated several times to step forward, but finally gave up.
After all, they are strangers, and the opposition of political solution cannot return to the past of drinking at night.
He was filled with joy. When he walked out of the palace, the officials behind him who wanted to chat realized that this old man who had been stable for three dynasties and had gone through ups and downs with the late king was finally stooped.
Someone came forward and said, "Prime Minister, what if this red mist doesn't dissipate and your crowning ceremony is not delayed?"
Someone else said: "Your Majesty, Prime Minister, this sign of red mist is indeed extraordinary. Your Majesty's crowning ceremony cannot be rushed for just a moment, right?"
"Yes, yes." Several mountain crowns nodded repeatedly.
Lu Buwei clasped his hands behind his back and pressed his thin eyelids, "Your Majesty gave the order, and I have my own mind." After saying this, he walked desolately into the red mist and never looked back. "It's like a torrent of water, it's hard to take it back." ah."
"This is not the Prime Minister."
The Alpine Crowners looked up in the red mist, but could only make out the vague outlines of their colleagues.
At this moment, I feel as if I am ready for tomorrow, but when the real tomorrow arrives, I still feel disappointed that yesterday’s existence is empty.
They unfolded their robes, took off all official entertainment, and said as they did in the past: "Prime Minister, make a clear decision."
Prime Minister, make a clear decision.
This is their deepest admiration and respect for Lu Buwei who has been an official for decades. At this critical moment, he still has the deepest admiration and respect.
On the carved eaves, Baitao was watching them talking with three big tails waving, and while watching, he was nibbling the roast chicken that came from Ying Zheng's house.
After the group of high mountain crowns had gone away, Baitao smacked again what he heard while hiding quietly in the hall: "Huh? Brother Zheng wants to find folk actors to perform the Nuo noodle dance?"
This was obviously the fault of the snake demon Lao Ai. How could a group of mortals like them do this?
She might as well be a vixen.
