early morning.
The south gate of the capital had just opened, and the people waiting outside the gate began to enter the city one after another.
Recently, the number of people coming to Beijing from all over the country has increased significantly.
There are a large number of traveling businessmen among these people, and secondly there are many elegantly dressed scholars.
Then there are some men and women dressed in fancy clothes and costumes.
Among the crowd, several swordsmen in short clothes and carrying short swords lined up with a somewhat reserved expression, preparing to enter the city.
These people were obviously a group. The leader was an old man with a goatee, followed closely by several young men, all with the wind and frost atmosphere of the northwest desert.
"Master, this is the capital? It's somewhat similar to Xijing. Tsk tsk, but I don't know if the entry tax is more or less compared to Xijing." A rather heroic young man said behind the old man while looking at the walls of the capital. .
The old man's eyes widened and he scolded in a low voice:
"Silence! I have to collect the weapons later. I will obey my master's orders!"
As he spoke, he reached out and touched a bag of silver in his arms.
They come from a fifth-rate martial arts sect in the northwest, Mo Dao Sect. Although it is a small sect with only a few dozen people in the sect, Mo Dao Sect's sword skills have always been great and their actions are also quite chivalrous. Therefore, in the northwest martial arts world He is somewhat famous among them.
Especially the sect leader, the old man Leng Shahai, has superb desert sword skills and is already an eighth-level mortal martial arts master.
They had also entered the big city of Xijing before, but Xijing was controlled by the Gongsun family. When entering the city, they had to pay a large entrance tax, which was collected on a per capita basis. At the same time, everyone who entered the city had to be searched, and those who carried weapons were required. Turn it in and wait until you leave the city to take it away.
When I went to Xijing City a few years ago, Mo Dao Sect suffered a big loss. All they handed in were the hundred-smelted steel knives in their hands, but what they got back were a few rusty and broken hatchets.
He wanted to get his good sword back, but he was surrounded by Gongsun's private soldiers, pointing strong bows and crossbows.
In the end, Leng Shahai smiled and said good things, and paid a lot of money, so they escaped from Mo Daomen and spent a lot of money to redeem their own weapons.
At this time, I heard that the gatekeeper of Xijing City said that it was because they did not show filial piety in advance that this happened.
Because of this, Leng Shahai remembered this incident particularly deeply.
It was time to enter the capital at this time, so I quickly took a bag of silver and prepared to take care of it, at least not to be replaced by someone else's weapon.
What he didn't expect was that when they followed the people around them into the city gate, they found that although the soldiers guarding the gate were obviously elite, they didn't even search and ask them, and just let them enter the capital at will.
No bribes were asked for, no weapons were handed over, and there was no entry tax.
Some of the surrounding merchants who obviously frequented the capital looked indifferent and hurried to the market after entering the city.
After everyone from Mo Daomen entered the city, they were all a little confused. Looking at the elite soldiers guarding the city, they felt puzzled.
Couldn't the other party see that they were martial arts people?
Next to them, there were also some people who were obviously people from the world of martial arts or people who came to the capital for the first time, and their faces were full of confusion and discomfort.
A disciple stopped a merchant who was on his way to ask a few questions, and then ran back to Leng Shahai happily and said:
"Master, I have made it clear that there is no entry tax in this capital, and there is never a need to hand in weapons!"
Leng Shahai stuffed the bag of money back into his arms, looked at the crowded Zhuque Street in front of him, and said to himself:
"The emperor...is he so trusting?"
As the master of the Mo Dao Sect, he had already found out clearly that the emperor killed En Hai, suppressed the four rebel armies, and exterminated the officials of the three parties and the three tribes. For a time, he was in the limelight and gained great momentum.
After the great government was restored, he was no longer the rumored puppet emperor controlled by the eunuchs.
There is even news that the emperor has obtained the martial arts certification!
But even so, Leng Shahai also got news from Baixiao Tower, an intelligence organization in the world. The emperor's series of actions touched the back of the world's famous families. Now the nine surnames and ten clans have elected a new emperor. Form a coalition to attack Emperor Shunlong!
There has been an undercurrent surging in the world for a long time. There are many people who secretly want the emperor's head or are creating chaos in the capital.
Under such circumstances, the emperor didn't even conduct inspections when entering the capital, and allowed everyone to enter the city with weapons in hand. I don't know whether to call him too conceited or unwise...
Fortunately, this has nothing to do with their Mo Daomen. They came here for another thing.
"Tsk, tsk, this Zhuque Street deserves to be called Zhuque. Even the bluestone floor is stained with vermilion. I wonder if it is dyed with cinnabar? That would cost too much money." Liu Zhihong, Leng Shahai's direct disciple, exclaimed. .
As soon as he finished saying this, he heard a "haha" laugh from the side.
Everyone in Mo Daomen looked over, but what they saw was a scholar carrying a book box. When several people looked over, the scholar raised his hands and said:
"Ye Huaixiang in Yongcheng, Xiahe East Road, you may not know something, but this Zhuque Street is not dyed with cinnabar."
Liu Zhihong is also a young man with a lively personality. At this time, he clasped his fists and said curiously:
"Brother Ye, hello, it's not dyed with cinnabar, is it dyed with red flowers? Please clarify my doubts, brother Ye."
Ye Huaixiang looked at how everyone in Mo Dao Sect was dressed and said with a smile:
"Aren't you all members of the Imperial Three Dao? Judging from your appearance, you are from the northwest?"
The three roads controlled by the imperial court, namely Gyeonggi Province, Yencha Province and Hadong Province, have recently been collectively referred to as the Three Imperial Provinces by the people, representing the traditional sphere of influence of the imperial court.
Liu Zhihong nodded quickly and said:
"Yes, we are from Mobei."
"No wonder you are not familiar with this Zhuque Street," Ye Huaixiang nodded, as if he suddenly realized, "This Zhuque Street was originally a green color. In the past, there was an allusion to the light rain on Tianjie that it was as moist as cakes, but this red color was only dyed recently. of."
"As for the dye...it's the blood of the 100,000 Bohai wolf soldiers and the criminal officials of the Kuomintang!"
Having said this, Ye Huaixiang's eyes shone, his words were eloquent, and he began to tell the people of Mo Daomen about the battle that took place in the capital a few days ago.
Why did the emperor hang in mid-air on the spot, showing the posture of a martial saint, with the eight characters "Ordered by Heaven to live forever and forever" on his back? Why did the emperor punch the Zhenbei general He Xingzu into flying ash? What did the emperor say? The 60,000 elite soldiers of the Right Army Governor's Palace were so frightened that they knelt down and begged for mercy.
Especially the scene where the rebel criminals rushed into the capital and massacred each other with the Bohai wolf soldiers to atone for their sins. The streets were filled with blood and oars. It was as if he was at the scene at that time.
As for the scene where a group of criminals from the Three Parties were pushed onto Tianjie and executed by the emperor himself, Ye Huaixiang even described the emperor as one emperor for all eternity.
Speaking of the emperor's heroic appearance, Ye Huaixiang felt even more relaxed and happy, wishing he could be a little bodyguard beside the emperor.
When Ye Huaixiang finished speaking, Leng Shahai on the side smiled slightly and said:
"Brother Ye is telling the truth, as if he saw it with his own eyes, but where did he hear it? These secrets are treasured by everyone. I must have relatives who are officials in the court, right?"
Ye Huaixiang looked at the people in Mo Daomen with the eyes of a country bumpkin, laughed and said:
"Some of you who have come from other places may not be aware that the Holy Emperor has personally set up the position of 'Preacher' in the army, specifically responsible for preaching the war situation to the people after the war. Moreover, there are storytellers and storytellers in the teahouses and restaurants in the capital. Dramatists and lyricists have already compiled works about these grand events in Beijing, which are sung every day."
"You all know the great calligrapher Jin Tanqing and the dramatist Liu Xian, right? These seniors with outstanding literary talents were recognized by the emperor's wise eyes, and were recruited into the palace to serve as Hanlin officials, and then became officials in charge of various ministries. Tsk tsk, It can be said that he has reached the sky in one step..."
When Liu Zhihong heard these names, his eyes lit up and he said:
"Jin Tan, Lord Jin? The author of "Shunlong Private Interview"? He actually entered the court as an official?"
Ye Huaixiang raised his eyebrows and said happily:
"I didn't expect that "Shunlong's Private Interview" would be spread to the northwest? Tsk, tsk, the Jin family were promoted to the Hanlin Academy long before the emperor's political affairs were returned, and now they are doctors in the Ministry of Personnel."
As he spoke, he raised his hand and cupped it in the direction of the palace.
At this time, everyone was walking forward, and a majestic building appeared in front of them. The towering inner city wall, red walls and green tiles, it was the imperial city.
Under the gate of the imperial city, there seemed to be a lot of people gathering at this time, and it was so dark that they didn't know what they were doing.
Leng Shahai then asked tentatively:
"This little brother, are you coming to the capital to take the Enke exam? But I heard that nine and ten families in the world have united in rebellion, raised an army of millions, and even established an emperor. They will attack the capital soon. Aren't you afraid, little brother?"
They had already heard about the Enke exam.
It is said that on the day when the emperor's great power was restored, he issued an imperial edict to Kai Enke, and anyone regardless of their origin, high or low, could participate.
Moreover, the imperial court provided food, accommodation, and even travel expenses.
Counting the time, it was only in the past few days. They met many scholars along the way, obviously all of them came to take the Enke exam.
Upon hearing Sha Lenghai's question, the scholar was stunned for a moment, then laughed loudly and said:
"When a man is born in this world, he should carry a three-foot sword and achieve unparalleled achievements! This is the time for the emperor to employ people. Today's saint has great martial arts and is invincible. What should we fear?"
"Besides, why did the Holy One destroy the family? Is it for the Holy One himself? Is it for the royal family? No!"
Ye Huaixiang's voice suddenly became much louder, and he stood tall and solemn, immediately attracting the attention of many passers-by around him.
Among them, there were many scholars dressed similarly to him, who stopped and gathered around.
Just listen to Ye Huaixiang say solemnly:
"Your Majesty suppresses the aristocratic families for the sake of the oppressed common people in the world, for the poor students who have studied hard for ten years but have no way out, for justice in this world, and for us!"
"We study the books of saints and sages so hard, not to be a bookkeeper for that wealthy family, but to display our ambitions and for the sake of the rise and fall of the world!"
Following Ye Huaixiang's words, the expressions of the scholars and passers-by who were standing around also became solemn, and their eyes were filled with excitement.
Sha Lenghai couldn't help but be stunned. He had never seen the expressions of these people, the high-spirited and unconcerned expressions, neither in Xijing nor in Mobei.
Although he was surrounded by a group of ordinary people who didn't know martial arts, he felt high-spirited and unstoppable!
Ye Huaixiang looked around with sharp eyes, clasped his fists in the direction of the palace and said:
"The Holy One has not failed us, and we will certainly not fail the Holy One and the Emperor's grace!"
All the scholars present clasped their fists together and shouted like thunder:
"Live up to the emperor's favor!"
(End of chapter)
