Also tonight.
To the southwest of Youzhou, more than a thousand miles away, is Luoyang, the sacred capital of the Liang Empire.
Luoyang, the sacred capital, was originally the "Eastern Capital" of Daliang, which means "accompanying capital" and "second capital".
After the current queen ascended the throne and proclaimed herself emperor, she moved all the civil and military officials, major yamen, and royal family members to the Eastern Capital and renamed it Shendu. Today's Shendu is equivalent to the capital of Daliang.
This is the best place in Daliang.
The current queen also lives in the imperial city of the divine capital.
However, tonight, the city of Divine Capital is quite uneasy.
On the west side of the imperial city, Guiyifang.
It was midnight, and the people in the village were sleeping peacefully at home. Suddenly, a burst of shouts came from the direction of the imperial city, vaguely, as if they were shouting something... Lost?
Some of the elderly people who were sleeping were awakened. When they opened their eyes, they saw bright firelight reflected on the paper doors and windows, which was bright and bright, like the rising sun.
Listening carefully again, the faint shouts did come from the direction of the Imperial City... In other words, there was a fire in the Imperial City?
Guiyifang is several miles away from the Imperial City. From such a long distance, the fire coming from it is like the rising sun, which shows how fierce the fire is!
"Disaster! A terrible disaster!"
An old man got up shakily, put on a coat and pushed out the door. He came to the alley. Many frightened people had gathered here, pointing in the direction of the imperial city.
The old man stood still and squinted to the west, that is, in the direction of the imperial city. He looked past countless pavilions and palaces and could see that the north side of the imperial city was blazing with fire!
The fire is really fierce!
The area of influence seems to stretch for miles?
Even though it was midnight, the billowing thick smoke was illuminated by the firelight.
The sight was terrifying.
Although the old man and the ordinary people present were several miles away from the fire scene, the overwhelming heat was scorching, and the sky-high firelight was also dazzling.
This is a fire that has not been seen for hundreds of years.
And it still happened in the imperial city.
The people were worried and had heated discussions. They were also studying, which palaces were affected? They are all ordinary people who have never been to the palace, and their research has never yielded a result.
"Mr. Zhang!"
Someone accidentally caught a glimpse of the old man, came over with a loud shout, and complimented him in front of everyone:
"You used to be a craftsman from the Ministry of Industry. You have entered the palace gates and repaired the palace. You must be able to tell which places were affected by the fire, right?"
When everyone heard this, they thought it was reasonable and unanimously asked Mr. Zhang to explain it.
Mr. Zhang didn't think much, his body was trembling, he tightened his clothes tightly, raised a skinny arm, pointed in the direction of the fire and said:
】
"The fire started on the northernmost side of the imperial city, which belongs to the 'Tubi City'."
"Will it endanger His Majesty?" someone asked in a low voice.
"No, His Majesty lives in Ziwei City. There is also a 'Xuanwu Gate' between Ziwei City and Tubi City. Judging from the intensity of the fire, the fire was stopped when it reached the Xuanwu Gate."
"Your Majesty, I hope you are fine..."
The people breathed a long sigh of relief. The imperial city was on fire, but as long as His Majesty was fine, it should not affect ordinary people like them.
At this time, a person standing on the edge of the crowd pointed at the fire in the imperial city and shouted:
"Mr. Zhang, the place where you are standing is blocked by the eaves. Only here can you see the whole picture. Come over here and take a look."
"Huh……"
Mr. Zhang had indeed not noticed this problem before. He walked to the open area with his old steps, looked up and saw that it was true——
The view just now was partially blocked by the eaves, and the whole view was not seen.
Standing here, you can clearly see the entire scope of the fire.
"That...that's..."
Zhang Lao squinted his eyes and took a look, and his expression suddenly changed. His whole body was trembling, and he seemed to be unsteady. If someone hadn't supported him from the left and right, he would have fallen to the ground.
"Mr. Zhang, what's wrong with you?" People were concerned.
"Disaster! What a terrible disaster!"
Mr. Zhang said with an old cry.
The people around him felt horrified and asked what happened.
"Look at the intensity of the fire. Look at the easternmost part. The fire has actually spread to the 'East Palace' on the east side of Ziwei City! The northern part of the East Palace is also on fire!" Mr. Zhang said.
"Your Highness the Crown Prince..." Everyone looked at each other. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's East Palace suffered a fire. Although it was serious, it was not a "big disaster", right?
It’s not like Her Majesty the Queen’s Ziwei Palace is on fire.
What are you afraid of?
Mr. Zhang ignored everyone's suspicions, continued to point at a certain fire area with his trembling and skinny hands, and said in a trembling voice:
"The most serious thing is that area, northwest of the East Palace. Look there, the fire is shooting into the sky, the smoke is billowing, it's such a big fire!"
"Hey, why is the fire there so bright? Why is the smoke there so thick?" The people finally saw some clues.
"Because... because..." Mr. Zhang's voice trembled and his body trembled, as if he couldn't bear the cold in the middle of the night, "Because that area is... Hanjiacang City!"
"Hanjiacang City!?"
The people around were shocked, and then they frowned, as if they were thinking of something, their hair stood on end, and they were frightened.
Hanjiacang City is actually a huge granary.
Other granaries are called so-and-so granaries, such as "Xingluo Granary", "Liyang Granary", "Guangtong Granary", "Changping Granary" and so on.
But it is named after "Cangcheng".
A city composed of granaries shows its size.
There are countless granaries inside, which are said to be able to store all the grain produced in the country in three years.
Of course, it is impossible to store all the grain produced in three years, but over the years, the grain storage in Hanjiacang City accounts for two-thirds of the country's grain storage!
Hanjiacang City was built in the imperial city and played an important role. It was the cornerstone of the court's stability and could not be lost.
But what did they see now?
Hanjiacang City actually suffered a flood and a fire. So much grain, two-thirds of the country's grain reserves, was burned down just like that.
No wonder the fire in that area was extra bright and the smoke was extra thick.
Such a unique "firework" costs too much and no one can afford it...
After everyone was frightened, they looked at each other and started talking heatedly. They had a vague premonition that the world that had been stable for many years would most likely be broken up by the fire in Hanjiacang City.
The entire Daliang Empire may suffer heavy losses.
As ordinary people, their lives will probably be even more difficult.
Thinking of this, the people felt sad, turned pale, and were worried about the future.
"Take down all these people!"
Suddenly, a group of people appeared out of nowhere, wearing black clothes and black hoods. They surrounded the group of people and Mr. Zhang. Without saying a word, they caught and tied everyone up.
"Under the imperial city, how dare you arrest people for no reason? Is there any more royal law?" The people resisted.
"Hmph, the Meihua Internal Guard is handling the case, so there is no need to explain. You have seen things you shouldn't have seen and heard words you shouldn't have heard. During this period, it's better for you not to show your face."
A man shrouded in black clothes and a black hood appeared, glanced at Mr. Zhang, and with a wave of his hand, he captured all these ordinary people...
Such scenes occurred in various cities near the imperial city.
After hearing the news, the rest of the people did not dare to go out. They only heard someone shouting in the streets: "There is a curfew tonight. No one is allowed to go out or open the windows. Anyone who dares to cause trouble will be shot!"
