This is a very elegant and quiet room. Shu Guan, Qian Jing'an, and Professor Lai Sheng, who came from Yanjing, are sitting in this room at this time.
After knowing that Shu Guan was the Feng Shui master Qian Jing'an was going to introduce to him, Professor Lai Sheng immediately took them to the room next to the auditorium.
It can be seen that he seems to be in a very urgent mood.
"Brother Lai, you are so anxious, why do you need Xingyun's help for something?"
Qian Jing'an took the cigarette from Shu Guan, lit it and took a nice puff, then asked Professor Lai Sheng with a smile.
When he was at home in Shencheng, his old wife strictly controlled the number of cigarettes he smoked every day.
Sometimes he would sit in Shuguan's Zoumaguan for an entire afternoon, not only to play with the few ancient coins, but also to have the freedom to smoke for an afternoon.
However, Mrs. Qian quickly noticed his intention, and then specifically told Shu Guan not to indulge Qian Jing'an's petty thoughts.
Between Qian Jing'an and Madam Qian, Shu Guan chose to stand firmly on Madam Qian's side.
Of course, in Jinling, far away from Shanghai, both Shu Guan and Qian Jing'an felt that they could turn a deaf ear to Mrs. Qian's instructions for the time being.
"Brother Lai, it seems that you know Feng Shui yourself, why are you asking for help this time?"
Then Qian Jing'an, who was in a comfortable mood, asked.
Lai Sheng looked at him and then at Shu Guan.
If Qian Jing'an had directly introduced Shu Guan to him just now, Lai Sheng might have had doubts when seeing such a young Feng Shui master, because experience is very important when it comes to Feng Shui, so generally young people What I have learned is very good, but in practice, there is still a gap compared with those experienced old Feng Shui masters.
But now he has realized that this young man named Shu Xingyun may be really capable.
After looking at the two of them, Lai Sheng began to speak.
"Brother Qian, you know me. What I desire most in my life is to dig out the truth about the Monkey Army rebellion in history."
"Of course I know that I have basically read all of your research papers on the rebellion of the Monkey Army. They are very insightful. I, Qian Jing'an, am ashamed of myself. Now in the history circle of Dahua, I have to study the Monkey Army. Brother Lai, you are the well-deserved first person in the history of the Military Rebellion."
"...It's just that the history of the Divine Monkey Army's rebellion is due to a serious lack of historical data. The Divine Monkey Army seems to have never been interested in leaving its name in history for its actions. The Hua Tian Dynasty also seems to have been hiding something. All records about the Monkey Army are vague. Even after the restoration of the country, there are only a few sentences in official historical materials about this period of history that should be a big book. .”
"So it is probably impossible to dig out the truth of that period of history from historical materials."
Qian Jing'an shook his head and sighed regretfully.
The history of the Monkey Army Rebellion is probably a regret that cannot be erased from the hearts of all scholars in the field of history in Dahua.
Shu Guan sat aside and silently lit a cigarette for himself without speaking.
"If you can't find the truth in historical materials, then look for it in the ruins!"
Professor Lai Sheng waved his arms excitedly and said this.
"So you have been running around deep mountains and forests, desert wilderness, and snow-capped mountains and grasslands all these years, just to explore the relics left by the Monkey Army... However, this is indeed a promising method, but I'm afraid it still depends on luck."
Qian Jing'an nodded.
At this moment, Professor Lai Sheng suddenly lowered his head and remained silent for a moment. Then, as if he had made up his mind, he raised his head and said to Qian Jing'an:
"Brother Qian, what do you think is the most incredible mystery about the Monkey Army rebellion five thousand years ago?"
Qian Jing'an pondered for a moment and said:
"I think it should be the identity of the mysterious leader of the Monkey Army. What kind of figure is he who can lead such a rebellion that has swept the entire Dahua, breaking the extremely powerful Dahua Empire into pieces, and almost falling to pieces? .”
"But for this character, so far, apart from knowing that he is revered as the Monkey King by his subordinates, we know nothing else about his original identity, origin, age, and appearance. He seems to have never appeared in public. However, as the leader of a powerful rebel army, this is an impossible thing. Otherwise, how could he control the millions of monkey rebels, and why would such a huge army be willing to serve for him? !”
Lai Sheng nodded and said:
"This is indeed an eternal mystery, but I think the most mysterious thing in the Monkey Army rebellion was not the identity of the leader of the Monkey Army, but something else."
"What's up?"
Qian Jing'an asked with raised eyebrows.
Lai Sheng stared at him with a serious expression and said word by word:
"I think the most mysterious thing is why the Great China can fight back, lose, act, and win!"
"Of course it's because Emperor Gengshi is in Jinling..."
Qian Jing'an subconsciously wanted to say something, but then he suddenly closed his mouth, frowned, and seemed to be deep in thought.
He was also a very outstanding historian, and his status in the history circle of Dahua was higher than that of Professor Lai Sheng. However, he did not specialize in the history of the Monkey Army Rebellion, so he had not studied certain aspects of that history in the past. I haven't thought about these things.
But after Professor Lai Sheng reminded him, Qian Jing'an just thought for a moment and realized that there were many unexplainable mysteries in the matter that Professor Lai Sheng mentioned.
"Brother Qian, do you feel weird too?"
Professor Lai Sheng continued:
"When Emperor Gengshi fled to Jinling City, the Great China Dynasty had only this city left. There were only 20,000 remnants of the army in the city, and the number of the monkey army who pursued them was hundreds of thousands, and according to our According to the research over the years, that army should be one of the most powerful heavenly armies among the Monkey Army, and there are also several heavy troops approaching Jinling City from several other directions."
"Jinling is already the isolated city of Dahua. As long as Jinling is captured and Emperor Gengshi is captured, the Dahua Dynasty will be completely destroyed. Naturally, the Monkey Army will have to gather a large number of troops to complete its victory in one battle."
"In such a desperate situation, let's not talk about how Gengshi Emperor turned the tide and regained the mountains and rivers of his homeland in the future. How he persisted in the battle of Jinling without being attacked by the monkey army is just one thing. It’s already puzzling, but in the later history books of the Great China Dynasty, there are only a few words about the Battle of Jinling.”
"The rebels besieged the city for ten days and were defeated. Emperor Gengshi led his army to pursue them for hundreds of miles and beheaded more than 30,000 people!"
Professor Lai Sheng slowly read out from the official history books of the Great China Empire the record of the shocking battle that changed the destiny of the Great China Empire, but it was also the only record of that battle.
There is only one sentence!
"Why did the Monkey Army suddenly and inexplicably collapse? No history book has ever explained this!"
Professor Lai Sheng stared at Qian Jing'an and said slowly:
"I have always thought that the Great China Dynasty was able to successfully restore the country. It was a miraculous thing. An isolated city with 20,000 remnant soldiers. How did they achieve a comeback?"
"You must know that the Great China Dynasty was overthrown by the Monkey Army when the country was at its strongest. When their country was at its strongest, they could not defeat the Monkey Army. Why did they fail when there was only one city left? Are you suddenly able to fight?"
"Some people say it's because of Emperor Gengshi's great talent and strategy, but no matter how great his talent or strategy is, it's impossible for the Great China's combat power to suddenly increase that much."
"And the Monkey Army is different from other rebellions that have occurred in the Great China Dynasty. The top leaders of the Monkey Army seem to have little interest in things like power and money. After capturing the city, they immediately led the army to leave the city and return to the mountains."
"They are not like ordinary rebels. After occupying a certain territory, the top management begins to quickly become corrupted. It seems that there has never been a struggle for power within the Monkey Army. Regarding this, I have explored so many Monkeys. The remains of military settlements can be judged with certainty.”
"So the Divine Monkey Army has always maintained its combat effectiveness when they revolted. As for the combat effectiveness of the Divine Monkey Army, I dare say that no army in the history of the Great China can surpass them."
"So how Emperor Gengshi used the 20,000 remnant troops to regain the country from the powerful Monkey Army? This is probably the most incredible part of the history of the Monkey Army rebellion."
Qian Jing'an nodded frequently. When Professor Lai Sheng finished speaking, he couldn't help but sigh:
"Brother Lai, you are worthy of being the first person in Dahua to study the history of the Monkey Army Rebellion. You have unique insights into that period of history. I am afraid that if Emperor Gengshi was able to revive the Dahua Dynasty, there must be some ulterior secrets hidden in it. , so that historians can hide that period of history, so that future generations like us can no longer know the truth!"
"No, history can never be covered up. As long as something happened, it will definitely leave traces!"
Professor Lai Sheng shook his head decisively and said with some excitement:
"...Actually, I have discovered some things. Those clues may reveal the secret of how the Great China turned defeat into victory five thousand years ago. This is also the real reason why I came to Jinling this time. As for the exhibition, it is just a incidental matter. That’s all.”
When Professor Lai Sheng said this, Shu Guan, who had been sitting quietly by the side, raised his eyes.
He naturally knew the reason for the final failure of the Monkey Army. After all, although the eldest brother had not explicitly admitted it, Shu Guan had already guessed that the eldest brother was the Monkey King of the Monkey Army.
Over the years, he has come into contact with the Divine Monkey Army a lot, and he has roughly guessed that it was Heavenly Court that helped Dahua Celestial Dynasty put down the rebellion of the Divine Monkey Army, and the thirty-six people spread across Dahua. The Dingshi Zhong is proof of this.
Therefore, when Professor Lai Sheng said that he might have discovered the secret of the Monkey Army's failure, Shu Guan showed a faint smile.
He didn't think Professor Lai Sheng could really discover the secret.
But Qian Jing'an showed an expression of extreme shock and interest, and quickly asked:
"What did you find out?"
Professor Lai Sheng stood up, walked to the corner of the room, opened a suitcase in the corner, took out a slate, and returned to Qian Jing'an and Shu Guan.
"This is a rock painting I found in a ruins of the Monkey Army. I chiseled it out in its entirety. The ruins of the Monkey Army are the largest ones I have discovered in so many years. I I even suspect that that might be the base camp of the Monkey Army."
Professor Lai Sheng placed the slate in front of Qian Jing'an and Shu Guan.
I saw that the rock paintings on this stone slab were much more complete and clear than those displayed in the Great Hall outside, and the drawing techniques were much more refined, with the expressions and faces of the people in the paintings lifelike.
The content of the rock painting is a large group of soldiers wearing armor, kneeling on the ground facing a large city in the distance.
Behind them was a broken military flag, embroidered with a monkey holding a stick and soaring above the clouds. It was the military flag of the Monkey Army.
The people kneeling on the ground are naturally the soldiers of the Monkey Army. Many of these soldiers have their faces hidden under their helmets, but many of them have their faces exposed. The faces of these people who have their faces exposed are all... One is not an expression of grief.
Farther away is the rising sun.
Qian Jing'an first took a closer look at the city in the distance. Although it looked small in the rock paintings, Qian Jing'an was indeed the most famous historian in Dahua. Just from some features on the walls of that city, I immediately recognized what city it was.
"That's the ancient Jinling City, so this rock painting depicts the defeat of the Monkey Army at the foot of Jinling City?"
He raised his head and asked Professor Lai Sheng with a strange expression.
Professor Lai Sheng nodded, his expression becoming extremely serious.
"Brother Qian guessed right. This rock painting depicts the defeat of the Monkey Army at the foot of Jinling City. But to be more precise, it should be about what happened the night before the defeat. When I found this rock painting in the ruins , there is a text underneath, but that text is deeply engraved on the rock, and I can’t chisel it out and take it away.”
"What does that passage describe?"
"...The king died in Jinling, and the morale of the army was in chaos. In the middle of the night, ten military commanders suddenly fell ill and died suddenly..."
It seemed that Professor Lai Sheng had a very deep memory of that passage, and he slowly recited it.
Qian Jing'an's face gradually showed a look of extreme shock.
"You are saying that the Monkey King died in Jinling City, which caused the Monkey Army's morale to be so chaotic that the whole army was defeated."
"Yes, that's what is recorded in that text, and that night, except for the Monkey King, many senior generals in the Monkey Army suddenly died suddenly. It is naturally impossible that it was such a coincidence that everyone got a bad disease at the same time. I guess Emperor Gengshi sent people to assassinate them, and then launched a counterattack the next day."
Professor Lai Sheng's words left Qian Jing'an speechless for a moment. His chest heaved violently, and he didn't even notice that the third cigarette he lit in his hand was about to burn to the holder.
After a long time, the old man suddenly said "Ah" and hastily threw away the cigarette that almost burned his fingers.
"Brother Lai, you should know very well that those are only records in the ruins of the Monkey Army, but there is no record of this matter in the Great China. Logically speaking, like the leader of the Monkey Army in Jinling City, The important matter of being executed, no matter how obscure it is in the history books, should be mentioned. After all, the Monkey King was an unparalleled hero who almost overthrew the Great China Dynasty."
"We who do historical research can never judge the authenticity of something without direct evidence only based on one party's records. We must have other circumstantial evidence to restore the original appearance of the matter."
"The most important thing in this matter is why the Monkey King suddenly ran into Jinling City on the eve of the war and was caught by Emperor Gengshi. This doesn't make sense at all!"
"Brother Qian, I understand what you are saying. I want to correct Brother Qian first. That is, in the text under this rock painting, it only mentions the sentence 'The king died in Jinling', but it does not mention the monkey king. How did he die, let alone being caught and killed by the Great China Army in the city."
"In addition, I discovered that ruins eight years ago. When I discovered this rock painting and the text records under the rock painting, I also thought it was incredible. Why did the Monkey King die in Jinling City? , and the mysterious sudden deaths of the senior generals of the Monkey Army that night were really done by Emperor Gengshi? If Emperor Gengshi and his Dahua army had such abilities, they would not have been chased all the way from Jingcheng by the Monkey Army. Arrive at Jinling.”
"So after I discovered this rock painting, I never made the rock painting and the things recorded in the writings public. But over the years, I have been looking for additional evidence about this matter."
"I have been searching for eight years. I have gradually lost confidence. I thought I might never be able to uncover the truth of this matter in my life. I didn't expect..."
When he said this, Professor Lai Sheng suddenly paused.
"What didn't you expect? Tell me quickly."
Qian Jing'an urged impatiently.
At this time, even Shu Guan appeared to be listening attentively.
"...Unexpectedly, just three months ago, I discovered some other evidence, proving that the Monkey King might have really died in Jinling City on the eve of the Battle of Jinling."
"In the past few years, because my health has become worse and worse, I have rarely gone out for field archeology. Most of my time has been spent in Yanjing, doing some sorting and restoration of cultural relics and ancient books in the Ji family palace."
"Three months ago, I discovered a large number of ancient books in a dark room in the palace. I won't say much about the value of those ancient books. Brother Qian, you can come to Yanjing to see them in person."
"...I found a notebook in that batch of ancient books. The owner of that notebook is named Qi Xiaoquan. Brother Qian, you naturally know who this person is..."
Qian Jing'an's body trembled slightly, then nodded immediately and said:
"Of course I know that he is the most trusted servant of Emperor Gengshi. He has been serving Emperor Gengshi when he was still the son of King Xiang of Chu. He has accompanied Emperor Gengshi through the entire chaos of the Monkey Army and his displacement. After countless life and death dangers, he always stayed with Emperor Gengshi and never left him. He died a few years after Emperor Gengshi regained the power of the Great China. After his death, he was extremely mournful and honored. Emperor Gengshi buried him with the ceremony of Taishi. If this person really left a notebook, it would be a major discovery for our historians."
"Yes, Brother Qian remembers it very clearly. There are many records in that notebook that have never been seen in history books. Of course, for me, the most important thing is one of them."
"That is, after the great victory in the Battle of Jinling, Emperor Gengshi did something that even Qi Xiaoquan found extremely weird."
"What's up?"
"According to Qi Xiaoquan's records in his notes, the first order Emperor Gengshi issued after he returned victorious from chasing the Monkey Army was not to reward the three armies, but to order those surrendered Monkey Army soldiers to be guarded in Jinling City. A big pit was dug underground, a palace-like building was built underground, and finally all the surrendered soldiers were trapped and killed in the underground palace."
"Of course, Gengshi Emperor did this matter very secretly. Several generals who were responsible for this matter, and those generals who had made countless contributions to his life and death, were all killed by Gengshi Emperor soon afterwards with excuses. "
"The reason why Emperor Gengshi did this was never told to Qi Xiaoquan. Emperor Gengshi actually did this without telling Qi Xiaoquan. It was just because Qi Xiaoquan often served Emperor Gengshi and was vaguely aware of it."
"And once, he heard Emperor Gengshi say something strange in his sleep: He was ordered by heaven to suppress the monster monkey forever."
