The Ji Xiang in Longde Palace must die, and the palace must be left unattended in order for the plan to be implemented smoothly.
After all, that hall was originally established to worship Emperor Zhenwu, and its real name was the Xuanji Treasure Hall.
Although the statue of Zhenwu is no longer in the temple and has been replaced by a wooden clay sculpture from Sanqing, the temple still has the ability to suppress the chaos of gods and ghosts. As long as someone worships and cleans it, the temple can produce supernatural powers.
After all, this hall is the only sacrificial place established in the Forbidden City. It was an important facility built during the reign of Emperor Jiajing... Of course, the later Emperor Longqing did not seem to think that this hall had any use, so he removed it. Leave it alone.
The man in Zhupao said that it was inconvenient to take action during the day when there were too many people, but at night there was a curfew and the rest were isolated outside the Forbidden City, so it was the best time to take action.
And tonight, the Lord of the Fire God, Zhu Changluo, who first met Zhu Changluo, will appear in the Fire Temple in the inner city.
Zhu Changluo was a little surprised: "Will she come?"
The man in red robe nodded: "For your great cause, how can our Lord not come?"
Zhu Changluo looked at the man in Zhu robe and frowned:
"The Fire Temple in the inner city has been renovated by the emperor, but the God of Fire enshrined in it is not your Lord, right?"
"You little fire gods, fire spirits, fire monsters... you all relied on the emperor to have people sacrifice to the fire gods of all directions when he was repairing the fire temple, so you took this opportunity to occupy the magpie's nest. Only those with national prestige can move freely in the Forbidden City."
"But the main god enshrined in the Nashichahai Fire Temple is Lord Huode after all. If you little fire gods are allowed to steal incense and get sacrifices, can you still allow your lord to steal incense and do bad things?"
Zhu Changluo let out a strange laugh: "Although the gods are all clay sculptures with wooden bodies, they also have spirituality under the incense sacrifice. These merits and deeds are not recognized by the main god of the temple or have matching strength. Those who cannot take the place of these great gods can only be sealed off."
"And if she can be replaced, unless...she has already obtained the position of True Lord Huode, which is justifiable."
"Can your lord bear the incense of all peoples? Even if she appears in the inner city, how could she enter the Imperial City, and how could she enter the Forbidden City?"
The man in red robe shook his head: "You should still remember the first time the Lord met you. At that time, how did the Lord come in? Haven't you ever thought about it?"
Zhu Changluo's eyes were fixed and he stared at the tea cup in front of him without taking his eyes away: "I thought at the time that I was the one who summoned her because of my sincere prayers. I thought she was a righteous god, but I didn't expect that she didn't seem to be."
The man in red robe smiled: "Actually, at that time, she was indeed the Righteous God. It is precisely because she is the Righteous God, and the Righteous God among the Righteous Gods, that she can appear in front of you in the Forbidden City."
"Of course she can bear the incense of all people."
"It's just that there was no temple to worship the God of Fire. When Lord Fire came here, she was like a duckweed without roots. She couldn't manifest here for a long time. She was summoned by your sacrifice. This thing is purely coincidental. .”
"But maybe it's also destiny that has already been determined?"
"In this imperial city, there are many righteous deities and deities, but as you said, no one wants to become a god. These deeds and achievements of gods, placed here, are all wood carvings and clay sculptures, or they have spirituality. , but not the real God after all.”
"Dead things behave in a rigid and rigid manner."
The man in Zhu robe looked sideways at the window. He and Zhu Changluo talked a lot. At this time, the sun was gradually setting, and it was almost time to take action.
"The taiyin generates light and illuminates the holy fire."
...
On June 18, the twenty-fifth year of Wanli, at the quarter of Xu, the first watch of the day
There are five shifts in a night, and each shift has five o'clock. One o'clock is equivalent to twenty-four minutes.
Countless "watchmen" appeared in the four cities of Shuntian Prefecture.
At this time, when the watch is called down (nineteen o'clock in the evening) and the watch is called out, the watchman in the city beats the gong, lifts the lantern, and beats the gong three times in a row, one slowly and one quickly.
"Boom!—Boom!"
After repeating this three times, Shuntian Mansion under the night was no longer a place where ordinary people could walk around.
In the outer city, there are seventy-two red bunks, each with ten officers and soldiers. During the night patrol, there are a total of seventy-six copper bells.
From the inner city to the imperial city, there are forty red bunks. Each bunk is guarded by ten flag soldiers day and night, and there are a total of twenty-eight copper bells.
Every day, a governor will take turns to lead the guard. Among them is a member of a thousand or a hundred households with a sword in Jinyi Guards. He will receive the Shenzi No. 17 order and stay in the imperial city to count the guards and sergeants.
The sky turned dark.
Dong dong dong dong...Drums that were louder than gongs and drums appeared.
All the four cities of Sunchon could hear clearly.
This is the evening drum.
The sound of gongs and drums.
Then, a clear and strange ringtone appeared.
"Jingle Bell....."
The strange and clear sound of the copper bell shaking violently caused the surrounding people to close their doors and windows and lock their doors.
At this moment, whether it is a dying person, a gentry, a woman, a man, a prostitute, a good family, a beggar, a merchant... or a native, an actor, a doctor, a medicine man, a scholar, a warrior.
Avoid if you can, walk if you can, and hide if you can. Even those places that are open for business have closed their doors, but the lights are still bright inside.
Outside Zhengyang Gate, Zhengxifang.
"The ringing has started, hurry up, come in, it's closed."
From this moment on, the huge four-layered city of Shuntian Mansion seemed to turn into an ancient ferocious beast with teeth and claws. Stars suddenly twinkled in the sky, and thousands of starlights dropped from above the Forbidden City.
"Why are you in such a hurry?"
The owner of the inn hurriedly allowed the outside guests to enter the inn, and then closed the door tightly.
Some of these guests come from remote areas to do business, and some are people from small places who have never seen a curfew. After all, the curfew is not implemented everywhere. The only places where it is strictly enforced, except for the capital, are in the border areas. Military town.
Nowadays, many systems of the Ming Dynasty have been abolished.
The innkeeper smiled and said to the outside guests: "There is a night ban. The evening drum is sounded at the first watch and travel is prohibited; the morning bell is sounded at the fifth watch before travel is allowed!"
"Those who walk on the street during the second, third and fourth watch shall be given fifty lashes; those who break the night ban after the first watch and shortly before the fifth watch shall be given 40 lashes!"
"Except for seriously ill dying people, pregnant women giving birth, and truly dead people in mourning, no one is allowed to go out during the Night Law!"
Those guests suddenly clucked their tongues: "Wow, is Shuntian so strict?"
Someone took over and said, "Anyone who goes out after this watch is either looking for fun or stealing."
"What is the bell?"
Someone asked.
But the person who answered, the Ming Dynasty Mandarin accent was not very standard, and looking at the clothes, he turned out to be a Korean.
"In the outer city, at the beginning of every watch, the place where the inner city and the outer city meet is the right gate of Chang'an. A bell is issued for the first berth. The sergeant picks up a bell and rings it to the second berth. After leaving the Zhengyang Gate, it is passed on in this way. , ends at the first pavilion at the left gate of Chang'an, and goes around the outer circle of the inner city from northwest to southeast."
"Korean?"
"What about the Koreans?"
This Korean is wearing a red military uniform, a pheasant feather hat, and a beautiful beard.
The innkeeper's laughter interrupted the guests' conversation and said to the Korean: "North Korean officer, why do you come out in military uniform and don't rest in the etiquette department at night?"
The North Korean smiled and his mustache twitched: "I came to the inn just to wait for the bell to be passed down. I'm sleeping in the Ministry of Rites in the Imperial City, but I can't see the scene of the bell being passed down."
