Early the next morning, Chang Ling returned the case tray to Grandma Zhang. The bowl on the tray was turned upside down and a few taels of silver were secretly placed inside.
Grandma Zhang has always taken good care of Lan Sheng. She can't live here for a long time, so she can only repay him a little.
It was noon two days later when we left Mengtan Village and arrived in Quyong.
As the capital of Daqi, Quyong's city walls are majestic and full of traces of time. On the towering towers, strong bows and crossbows displayed their cold light, making the city even more majestic and intimidating.
Under the city tower, there was a flood of pedestrians and cars, and soldiers in armor took turns patrolling, checking every pedestrian who passed by.
At this time, the defense of Quyong City was very tight. Chang Ling inquired around and got some information, which was actually related to the dispute between the crown prince.
The current emperor has eight princes, and the prince is the crown prince appointed by the emperor. But a few years ago, the prince suddenly disappeared from the world, and there was no news about him. Even though the emperor is now extremely angry, he still has never shown his face.
The emperor was seriously ill, and the second prince acted as the second son in state affairs and won the support of all officials. After taking control of the imperial city, the second prince began to clean up the princelings in the court. Now the city defense was stepped up to prevent the reclusive prince from returning to the capital.
I heard that the second prince supported many cronies in the court and that ascending to the throne was the inevitable trend. The only one who was afraid was the third prince who was in charge of the military talisman. A few days ago, the third prince gathered troops from northern Xinjiang in the name of consolidating the border, and kept approaching the capital, with the implicit intention of forcing the palace, which made the second prince very afraid.
I also heard that the second prince was promiscuous and cruel. When he was young, he had nothing to do with the cockfighting lackeys. He had gold and jade inside but wasted inside. He was no different from other dandy princes. Hundreds of officials supported and responded to the call, but it was just a hypocritical conspiracy before the emperor's funeral.
There were all kinds of rumors. Chang Lingxiao listened to the whispers around him like mosquitoes and flies, smiled lightly, and then stepped into the city gate surrounded by mountains and seas. He didn't care about the uproar in the city. As long as it was not the third prince who succeeded to the throne, and as long as the demonic forces could be eliminated, anyone could sit on the throne.
As soon as he entered the city, a pressure hit him like a hurricane, and the spiritual power in his body was quickly dissipating.
Chang Ling was horrified. He raised his eyes and stared. The gloomy winter sky stretched out uncontrollably. Under the mottled cloud shadows, he could not detect any fluctuations in the aura of the formation. He secretly activated his spiritual power again, but still could not detect anything.
Under the powerful power of the Golden Dragon Formation, the huge Quyong City was like a demon prison.
After several attempts to no avail, I had no choice but to move on.
In Quyong City, the locator on the leader's order was completely discouraged at this moment, and he had less scruples when he acted, which made Chang Ling much more convenient.
Quyong is the center of power in Daqi, and it is also a place where merchants gather. The streets and alleys are full of dignitaries wearing colorful clothes. The streets are bustling with pedestrians and traffic, and there are row upon row of businesses, making it extremely prosperous.
An ordinary alley, an ordinary hotel, the four gold characters "Qingyun Inn" on the black lacquer door plaque are particularly eye-catching.
The Qingyun Inn is specially designed to accommodate candidates who come to Beijing to take the exam. Its name means that the candidates can rise rapidly and rise to the top, and secretly do some shady business such as buying and selling official positions.
"As a guest, please go inside. Should I stay at the hotel?" Seeing Chang Ling, the waiter greeted him enthusiastically.
Chang Ling nodded towards the waiter, not intending to talk too much. After confirming the identity of the shopkeeper, he showed the token given by Du Ce.
The waiter took the token, looked it over over and over, bowed to Chang Ling and said, "Sir, please go to the back room and wait for a moment. I will go and inform the shopkeeper now."
Unable to confirm Chang Ling's identity, the waiter glanced to the side and winked at the two guys at the door.
The two guys understood, and walked to Chang Ling's side, one on the left and the other on the right, and made a firm gesture of invitation. Chang Ling looked at the two of them, a little unhappy, but still followed their guidance to the backyard.
There is a cave behind the curtain at the side door of the inn. The corridor is lined with flowers and trees, and is long and winding. It is quiet and full of mystery.
Under the meager light coming from the view window, the two guys walked in a winding way. The leader entered a side room, and then guarded the door of the room, one on the left and the other on the right.
After only waiting for a moment, the waiter came over with the help of the shopkeeper. The two of them hurriedly walked along. After seeing Chang Ling, they quickened their steps and walked quickly to Chang Ling.
"I didn't know that when the immortal arrived, I was so careless." With the help of the waiter, the shopkeeper bowed his hands to Chang Ling and bowed deeply, showing the utmost respect.
This man is too humble. Could he be asking for something?
Chang Ling looked at the two of them with a more wary look, and said sternly: "The shopkeeper is so polite." After saying that, he raised his hand to stop the shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper slowly stood up using his crutches, his dry and flat body looking even thinner against the backdrop of his black robe. Turning his eyes to the shopkeeper, Chang Ling noticed that the shopkeeper had a stooped back and a slight limp, and he walked with a limp.
Noticing Chang Ling's gaze, the shopkeeper said: "To be honest, Mr. Immortal, I fell into the trap of evil people a few years ago. Fortunately, Mr. Du took action and only lost half of his leg." The shopkeeper's face was full of flattery. With a fake smile, he patted his leg with his hand.
Before Chang Ling could reply, the shopkeeper continued to compliment: "I have to say that all the immortals are so unpredictable that they are truly unparalleled and admirable."
The shopkeeper shouted one after another, looking at Chang Ling with flattering eyes.
"The shopkeeper has said it." Chang Ling waved his hand towards the shopkeeper, always keeping a distance from him.
The shopkeeper didn't care at all about this, and quickly asked Chang Ling to sit down: "Chang Ling, please sit down!"
"It happened that some of the immortals staying in the hotel went out this morning. I guess it's almost time to return. Please wait here for a while." As he spoke, the shopkeeper raised his head and glanced at the sky.
Chang Ling nodded to the shopkeeper and sat down on the round stool next to him without being polite to him. The shopkeeper followed closely and walked to the table, sitting opposite Chang Ling.
As soon as he sat down, the shopkeeper repeatedly called the waiter to see the tea. Before the tea was ready, he impatiently ordered him to prepare a guest room for Chang Ling, wishing he could do it himself. After Chang Ling gave a few symbolic words of persuasion, the shopkeeper once again expressed his admiration. The look he looked at Chang Ling during his words was full of utilitarianism, and his strong businessmanlike aura was self-evident.
Chang Ling showed no interest in him and kept talking to him. The shopkeeper is very talkative and talks incessantly. He has a goatee, and his gray beard trembles up and down as he talks.
After a while, Chang Ling had a rough idea of him. The shopkeeper's name is Shen Yun. He has been operating in the capital for many years. He is secretly engaged in collusion between officials and businessmen and has connections throughout the Qi Dynasty.
Since Du Ce rescued him, he has had close contact with Du Ce. Over the years, Du Ce has settled a lot of messes for him, and he has also provided Du Ce with a lot of intelligence.
Du Ce was able to be so well-informed about the news from all over the Qi court mainly because of his informant.
"Shopkeeper, all the immortal leaders have returned just now." While Chang Ling was talking to Shen Yun, the waiter knocked on the door.
Chen Yun put down the tea cup, stood up and looked at Chang Ling: "Xia Immortal, I will take you to the residences of the other immortals."
Chang Ling nodded and followed Shen Yun on the intricate corridors until they arrived at a courtyard. The orchid grass in the courtyard is fragrant, and the water mist rises between the rockeries, making it like a fairyland.
There were five or six figures in civilian clothes gathered in the courtyard, sitting around and discussing matters. From the unique temperament of the immortal cultivators, it can be seen that these people are all Yuntian's disciples.
Chen Yun did not step into the courtyard, but stood at the door of the courtyard, knocked on the door, and shouted to everyone.
Noticing the visitor, the discussion among several people in the courtyard stopped. One of the figures came up to greet them and hugged the two of them.
Chen Yun exchanged a few words with the man, stroking his hands as he spoke with caution, and then left respectfully.
"Senior Brother Chang Ling, the first disciple of Immortal Yunxu, I have admired you for a long time!" The man cupped his fist at Chang Ling again.
"Junior Brother Wenruo, you're welcome." Chang Ling responded with fists clasped at him, and he led the way towards the crowd.
Chang Ling and Wen Ruo had met several times before. They were neither acquaintances nor strangers. They only knew that this man was extremely talented and had already surpassed the others in the Cloud Exploration Conference many years ago.
At that time, Wen Ruo was as light as a swallow on the Broken Sun Cliff, and his sword skills were so superb that everyone was amazed.
Except for Wen Ruo, everyone else in the courtyard was a stranger. Chang Ling glanced at them and could tell at a glance that these people were all well-educated. Chang Ling smiled and nodded to them one after another, and they responded humbly.
Du Ce had sent a letter a few days ago, informing them of the follow-up arrangements. They were not surprised by Chang Ling's arrival. Coupled with Wen Ruo's casual and tolerant temperament, he took Chang Ling to introduce them one by one. They were all young men in the age of Dancing Elephant. They didn't have so many etiquettes in their interactions, and everyone quickly became warm to each other.
From their mouths, Chang Ling learned that they were all junior disciples who had gone down the mountain with Du Ce to experience. They had received a lot of care from Du Ce, and they had established a deep friendship in life and death.
About a year ago, Du Ce brought them together one after another by mobilizing personnel for the demon expedition, and made friends with the second prince. This year, he obtained a lot of secret reports about the demons.
Chang Ling nodded in surprise. It turned out that Du Ce had been paving the way for what he was doing now. With the second prince's relationship, it was no wonder that Shen Yun treated them with respect.
"Senior Brother Changling is here, have you brought the leader's order?" Wen Ruo asked with a smile.
Chang Ling looked at Wen Ruo, nodded, and then changed the topic: "If you intervene in the dispute between the crown prince, are you not afraid of being blamed by the head?" Chang Ling deliberately tested them, and glanced at everyone again, his eyes were very serious. sharp.
"If you can save the common people, there is nothing to fear even if you die!" Wen Ruo said nonchalantly and paused: "Senior Brother Changling, please don't underestimate us."
As he said this, Wen Ruo patted Chang Ling on the shoulder and laughed.
The young man's smile was like the breeze and the bright moon, bright and cheerful, which was very contagious, and the other people also cheered one after another.
"A few days ago, we tracked the whereabouts of the demons behind the third prince. We discussed with the second prince for many days, and he promised to send troops tonight to help us eliminate the demons." Wen Ruo's eyes lit up when he looked at Chang Ling, and the corners of his lips raised. An arc: "With the leader's order, wiping out the demonic forces will definitely be more advantageous."
The young man's passion was soaring above the clouds, and everyone's faces were filled with excitement, and most of all they looked high-spirited, eager to wield their swords and slay the evil spirits.
"Perhaps tonight we can uproot the demonic forces behind the third prince." Another person added enthusiastically, holding a sword in his hand and pointing it at the void, with the power to swallow up mountains and rivers.
Compared to them, Chang Ling was much calmer.
When he first came to Quyong, Chang Ling didn't know much about the current situation, so he just listened quietly to their next arrangements.
The demon soldiers are entrenched in a village called Huagang near Quyong. The village is surrounded by mountains on three sides, and the cliffs form a natural barrier. It is an easy-to-defend but difficult-to-attack place.
The second prince could not mobilize many troops, so he decided on a strategy of surprise attack at night.
The army went out to fight. In order to prevent attracting attention, the second prince assembled four armies in batches and prepared to surround Huagang Village from four directions. Speaking of this, Wen Ruo naturally assigned everyone to different armies to help out, and planned the subsequent actions impassionedly.
