Yizhou, Bajun Prefecture.
Ren Quan, the prefect of Bajun, stood up and walked to the window, watching the bright moonlight outside the window shining on the earth. The tiny snowflakes danced in the air, and then fell lightly, dyeing the earth white.
He took a deep breath, feeling the cool air enter his lungs from his nose, and then the coolness blended into his limbs, making his whole body feel energetic.
Ren Quan put his hands behind his back, looked out the window at the night scene, and fell into deep thought.
Ren Quan was about to turn around and say something, but suddenly he heard the sound of "crunch, crunch" on the snow coming from the garden. He looked into the distance and saw a person slowly walking out from the shadow of the rockery. Wearing a crane cloak, he stepped on the snow in the garden and walked deep into the courtyard, like an immortal who was not stained by the dust.
Seeing this man's figure, Ren Quan was slightly startled and told his attendants: "You all stand down."
"No." The attendants also saw that scene. Although they were a little worried, they did not say anything because they were afraid of their master's majesty.
After Ren Quan said that, he picked up a short sword from the sword stand and held it tightly in his hand. He walked out of the door and looked for the sound, only to find that the footsteps had disappeared.
"How strange!"
Ren Quan carefully turned around the rockery in the garden, and under the moonlight, he spotted the back of the man, who seemed to be an old man.
The man who was walking through the snow before was nowhere to be seen!
I saw the old man wearing a brown robe and standing in the courtyard with a cane in his hand. His silver hair seemed very messy because of neglect.
"Who are you?" Ren Quan looked at the suspicious figure and shouted softly.
The old man's body did not move, but his head suddenly turned around. On his weathered face, a pair of sharp eyes like an eagle looked at Ren Quan, as if he could look directly into the heart of a person.
Ren Quan, who was already over 60 years old, was stared at by those eyes, and his body involuntarily took two steps back. He felt a chill rush from his back to his mind, and the hairs all over his body stood up, and his heart was "thumping." Violent beating, after all, the situation in front of me is too weird.
"Ren Quan, do you know that your deadline is approaching?" The old man's voice was hoarse, but it seemed full of energy, like a yellow bell, giving people an inexplicable sense of oppression.
Ren Quan's eyes were full of shock, and he quickly bowed to him and saluted, and at the same time sincerely asked for advice: "Quan pays homage to the master, and I would like to ask the master for some advice!"
"Get up." The old man signaled that there was no need to be polite, and then asked: "It's midnight, why can't you sleep?"
"The Jin army invaded, and I felt restless, so I couldn't fall asleep in the middle of the night..."
Ren Quan wanted to answer truthfully, but suddenly the old man's expression changed slightly when he heard the words. His eyes lingered on Ren Quan's face for a long time before he sneered lightly, as if he believed the words, and whispered softly: "You are already It is not a pity to die in your sixtieth year, but the livelihood of the Ren family of more than 40 people will be cut off from now on."
After saying that, he carefully looked at Ren Quan, who was getting more and more astonished, and then continued to move forward with his stick, "Because you are from a noble family in the middle of Shu, you have been jealous of Wang Guang for a long time. The Jin army that is attacking Yizhou now belongs to the people who destroyed the Li family in the past." Great army, it is definitely not difficult to destroy Shu today. There are tigers and wolves in front of you, and there is no retreat behind you. Once you are defeated and lose the ground, will the head on your neck still be intact?"
The night was getting deeper and deeper, and the snowflakes blowing in the wind had stopped. The old man and Ren Quan walked into another courtyard in the mansion and found that this place was different from the small courtyard just now. The candles in the courtyard were brightly lit. There were also maids and servants coming and going, making it very busy.
"Since the Rebellion of the Eight Kings, the Central Plains has been devastated and filled with fishy smell, so much so that the hooves of wolves and horses are making smoke, and the hujia and Qiang flutes are endless. You are a Han man, why do you help Zhou to commit evil? Today, Master Wang is following the destiny to attack the unjust. It is you who abandoned the darkness and turned to the light. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to return to our roots!”
The old man was as familiar as entering and exiting his own courtyard, and seemed to understand everything, making Ren Quan even more awed!
"If you miss it, there will be no tomorrow for Ren!" The old man finally stood under the old locust tree in the courtyard, like a dwarf rotten tree, blending in with the surrounding environment.
Ren Quan frowned and moved his gaze downward, seeming to be thinking about what the old man said.
Unexpectedly, the old man said again: "Wang Guang is an old member of the King of Qin, and you are an old member of Shu. The Jin army won great victories in both the Western Expedition and the Northern Expedition. He is afraid of the Jin army, and even more afraid of your strength, so he specially transferred you from Shu County to Shu. Ba Jun, this move may not be without the intention of killing someone with a knife."
It was this sentence of killing with a borrowed knife that struck the fear deep in Ren Quan's heart. Ren Quan's gray beard fluttered lightly in the night wind, and his whole body immediately became energetic!
"Expert, please tell me! Where should Quan go?" Ren Quan bowed respectfully to the old man below, his attitude was extremely respectful.
The old man smiled softly and said slowly: "In a head-on battle with the Jin army, both sides will suffer losses, and may even lose troops and generals, lose the city and fall to the ground. This is the worst strategy. Make peace with the Jin army, and quickly return to Chengdu to kill Wang Guang and stand on our own feet." As the master of Chengdu, this is the best strategy."
A battle with the Jin army would destroy his own strength, which Ren Quan did not want to see. As for returning to Chengdu to remove Wang Guang and stand on his own feet, this strategy was too risky.
Ren Quan thought about it again and again and asked, "May I ask an expert, what is the best policy?"
"This is the best idea - express your sincerity to the Jin army, help the Jin army recover Yizhou, and ask Huan Shimin, the governor of Jingzhou, to obtain a county and dukedom for you, which will ensure the prosperity of the Ren family for a hundred years!"
"I will be granted the title of Duke, and I will be honored and honored for a hundred generations. I invite you to live in the mansion temporarily. Quan is willing to honor you as a father and call you Yafu! If Quan is confused, please Yafu will not hesitate to teach you, answer Quan's questions, and give you guidance!"
Ren Quan respected the old man so much that he was willing to be his son. The old man gently stroked his white beard, thought for a moment and then agreed, and announced his family status.
The old man's surname is Ren, and he is also a descendant of the Ren family in central Sichuan. The old man claims to be the direct disciple of Zhang Zhaocheng, the fifth-generation Celestial Master of Celestial Master Tao. He was able to teach the secrets of Celestial Master Taoism and was responsible for the management of Celestial Master Taoists in various places in central Sichuan. He served as the high priest.
Because Du Zigong went to Shu to quell the chaos and the Longhu Mountain was in turmoil, he took up his post as the high priest and lived in Danqu, Xixi, and lived in seclusion in Guangwu Mountain in the east of Micang Mountain. His disciples respectfully called him Immortal Master Guangwuzi.
The high priest Ren's trip to Nanba County was originally to call on believers to participate in the Xiayuan Festival and supervise the rituals and rituals.
Passers-by arrived at the southern suburbs at dawn and hurriedly offered sacrifices to Xia Yuan.
Giving paper clothes can keep you warm, and the ancestors in the underworld know the cold.
The so-called Xiayuan Festival is the birthday of Shuiguan, a day to relieve people from misfortune. Based on the investigation, Shuiguan recorded the report to the Heavenly Court to relieve people's misfortunes. On this day, all the Celestial Masters and Taoist temples serve as dojos, and the people pray to the Yuanshuiguan to solve their problems.
At the same time, the Xiayuan Festival is also a grand gathering of the Celestial Masters in Central Sichuan. In order to compete with the Celestial Masters in Jiangzuo, believers in Sichuan took advantage of this opportunity to spread their doctrines, attract believers, and strive to develop and grow.
"My father is actually an immortal master practicing the Tao of Heavenly Masters!" Ren Quan was very excited. He himself is a believer in the Taoism of the Heavenly Masters. Now that he saw the legendary immortal master Guang Wuzi, he was naturally overjoyed!
"My son, don't say more. Which of these three strategies do you prefer?"
Ren Quan thought over and over again and decided to adopt the middle strategy, expressing his surrender to the Jin army, marching at night to attack Chengdu, beheading Wang Guang, and using the city of Chengdu as a token of surrender.
"It's so good. Soldiers are so valuable and so fast. Why don't you order your troops and set off tonight? With the Yizhou Talisman, no one will stop you along the way. Take them by surprise and attack them unprepared. You can drive directly to Chengdu within three days. Wang Guang Dancing and nepotism will definitely not be your match." High Priest Ren was extremely in favor of Ren Quan's decision.
"No! Since my father agrees, I will go and do it immediately. Please temporarily stay in Bajun to mediate with the Jin army. After taking my son to Chengdu, I will come to welcome you in person."
"Very good, very good." With the support of Ren Quan, High Priest Ren entered the bedroom in the backyard of the prefect's mansion. Before Ren Quan left Bajun, in order to make his father-in-law's life comfortable, he summoned the stewards of the mansion to pay homage to him one by one. Shi Yafu...
At night, Ren Quan led his five hundred most elite cavalry to Chengdu on a starry night journey.
"Squeak-"
In the dormitory of High Priest Ren, a seven-foot man wearing black night clothes suddenly appeared after opening the door bolt.
"Strategic advisor." The man in night clothes arched his head towards High Priest Ren.
"You're here." In front of the window, High Priest Ren just turned his back to the visitor.
"I originally planned to send someone to sneak into the prefect's house to assassinate Ren Quan. I didn't expect that the idiot prefect would be fooled so easily. Not only did he follow the advice of the military advisor to deal with Wang Guang and attack Chengdu, but he also considered you, military advisor Le, as his second son."
"Do you really think that Ren Quan is just a useless eunuch?" High Priest Ren took off his mask and revealed his true face.
"Please give me some advice from your military advisor!"
Before he finished speaking, High Priest Ren turned around, and Guo Shang's uninhibited smile emerged little by little in the dark night.
