The author said: I have encountered some unexpected changes recently and I am a little flustered, but I will still insist on updating. Thank you all for your support!
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The officer leading the way shouted, "Are you fucking dead? Why don't you get up and pay your respects?"
The man opened his eyes slightly, glanced at the two of them, and then closed them tightly again, pretending not to see anything.
The officer was furious when he saw this and shouted, "How dare you pretend to be dead here? Don't you know who is coming?" Then he went up to fight, but Yizhi stopped him and said, "Forget it, you retreat first!"
After hearing what His Royal Highness Youyan's adopted son said, the officer dared not use violence anymore and retreated respectfully. However, as instructed by Zheng Xin, he did not go far after leaving the tent and quietly hid aside to eavesdrop.
How could Yizhi know this trick? He saw the officer retreat, walked a few steps, and saw that the man lying there looked like a scholar, so he asked, "Sir, may I know your name?"
This person had been interrogated countless times, and had been subjected to both soft and hard methods, as well as severe torture. When he heard Yizhi's question, he was not moved at all, and simply turned his head away and ignored him.
Yizhi smiled slightly and sighed, "Alas, it's pitiful that you are a scholar, but you were beaten into this state. Why did you do that?" Seeing that he had no reaction, he continued, "I see that you have a strong character. Even in the Holy Church, there must be few people like you."
Tianzun Sect has always been called a cult, and only its own followers call themselves a holy sect. When the man heard an officer say this, his back trembled, but he still kept his composure and said nothing.
Yizhi saw that he was a little tempted, so he smiled slyly and continued, "It's a pity that you still couldn't stand the beating and revealed the important secrets of the Holy Church. You are so afraid of death and have committed the 'greed' thought in the Holy Church. I wonder how the leader will deal with you if he knows?"
This made it very clear that the officer who was interrogating him knew such a doctrine in the Tianzun Sect, so he must be a member of the Holy Sect. The man sat up with difficulty and looked up and down at the officer who was interrogating him. He was wearing the uniform of the Youyan Army, and his clothes were neat and elegant. He had a handsome face. He must be an officer with a high status in the army. If he was in the sect, he would be very important.
The man thought for a moment, moistened his dry lips with his tongue, and finally asked, "Are you also a brother in the church?"
Yizhi smiled slightly and recited softly:
“The light is universal and pure, everlasting bliss and tranquility without motion or curse;
He experiences happiness and has no worries. To say that there is suffering is not true.
If one can live in that country, he will ultimately be free from all worries.
Always feel happy and bright, if you say you are sick, that is not true.
The place is pure and dignified, and all evil impurities are not there;
Happiness fills the whole world and one is always at peace. There is no point in talking nonsense."
This was the hymn he heard when he went on a secret visit and wiped out the Tianzun Sect stronghold in Guangyang City in one fell swoop. He found it quite meaningful, so he secretly memorized it, and it finally came in handy today.
The man was skeptical, but when he saw him, he asked seriously, "I wonder how many times this brother has started a new sect?"
"Is there such a saying in the cult?" Yizhi thought to himself that this was a way to report the rank, but he felt that if he spoke nonsense, he would be exposed, so he said, "Brother, I am just a nobody, not worth mentioning."
The man also felt that asking about rank right away was a taboo and a bit rash, so he said, "Brother, you are too modest. I wonder what advice you have for me this time?"
Yizhi heard this and said seriously: "I came here to save you!"
The man was surprised and happy when he heard it, and asked, "Can you save me out?" Suddenly he felt that he was talking too loudly, and hurriedly covered his mouth, and the chains tied on his hands jingled.
Yizhi said, "Brother, you have sacrificed your life for the Holy Religion, which has been recorded as a merit in front of the Heavenly Venerable Master. You will be able to reach the other side of the light in the future, and there is no question of whether you can be saved or not. But your faith was not strong at the moment, and you revealed the truth of the Yuhuangding main altar. If you are investigated, you have committed the great crime of apostasy. I don't know how the Heavenly Venerable will deal with you. Maybe you will fall into hell and turn into ashes!"
The man seemed extremely frightened after hearing this, and hurriedly explained: "The torture by the government troops was too severe, and I could not bear it for a while. Alas, it is all my fault that I did not recite the sutras diligently and did not practice meritorious deeds, so I fell into the devil's way. But I really have no intention of betraying my religion!"
"Brother, don't panic. I'm here for this very reason."
Hearing Qiu Yizhi's words, the man's eyes seemed to shine, and he asked anxiously: "Brother, are you serious?"
"We are both believers, so we are like brothers. Why would I lie to you? Should I save you? Although this is difficult, it is not impossible."
Yizhi was about to speak but stopped, which made the man very anxious. He asked hurriedly, "I wonder what advice do you have, senior brother?"
Yizhi felt embarrassed and smacked his lips, saying, "This matter is extremely risky. I wonder if you can trust me, brother?" As he spoke, he took out an object from his arms and placed it flat in his hand so that the man could see it clearly.
The man looked closely and saw that it was a bronze mirror with extremely delicate patterns on the back, which were curling like flowers scattered by a fairy. The man was shocked when he saw it, and looked around vigilantly and said, "Brother is really extraordinary. He actually has the Saint's token. I wonder how he got it?"
Yizhi smiled proudly and said, "When the Saint was in danger in Guangyang City that day, it was I who informed you in advance. That's why I made a great contribution. This item was awarded to me by the Saint herself." As he spoke, he put away the bronze mirror.
This matter was widely circulated among the followers of Tianzun. On the surface, they said that it was because Tianzun had boundless magical powers and the saint girl had great fortune that they were able to escape unscathed. However, secretly, it was said that followers of Tianzun had already infiltrated the Youyan army and tipped off the army in advance, which allowed them to escape by luck.
Today, someone had indeed taken the Saint's token. The two things matched, and the man dared not have any doubts anymore. He used up his last bit of strength, propped up his hands, and knelt on the ground, bowing to Qiu Yizi, chanting: "It's all thanks to my senior brother who saved me! It's all thanks to my senior brother who saved me!" Tears almost welled up in his eyes. He bowed harder and harder, and his movements became larger and larger. The iron chain between his hands was raised high, and then fell heavily. He accidentally hit the back of his head and almost fainted.
Yizhi was amused, but he managed to hold back his laughter. He used both hands to help the man up and said, "For now, the only way is for us to work together to break the siege of the main altar, rescue the leader and the saint girl down the mountain, and make great contributions. Only then can I forgive your sins!"
"Brother, don't you know? The leader and the saint are not on the mountain!" The man was quite surprised.
The imperial court made great efforts to integrate the military forces of Youyan and Henan, spent a lot of money and food, killed and wounded hundreds of thousands of rebel soldiers, and finally put down the rebellion and trapped the backbone of Tianzun Sect on Gushan Mountain. However, the two bandit leaders who were the main culprits were not among them. This was an incredible piece of information. Yizhi was no less surprised than him, so he had to explain casually: "I haven't seen the saint since I left Guangyang, and the leader is even more elusive. I have never had the chance to see him. I don't know if the two old men have been so smart and escaped long ago. It is really a blessing for our sect!"
The man said, "Not only you, but even the several deacons and altar masters who fled to the main altar have never seen the golden face of the leader. You are lucky enough to have a few words with the Saint and even received a reward. To be honest, I have never seen the Saint!"
Qiu Yizhi had never thought that the leader of the Tianzun Sect would act so secretly and never show his true face. Then he thought that if he was like this, he must have a special channel or method to issue orders. As long as we follow the clues, we can catch him in one fell swoop and punish him according to the law. In short, this is another extremely important piece of information. Even if we can't capture Yuhuangding this time, getting these two pieces of information is also a great achievement.
Yizhi thought about this and felt that he could not say anything nonsense to avoid revealing his true identity, so he made a feint and said, "Brother, I'm glad you trust me! I will make some arrangements when I go down, so please be patient. By the way, may I know your name?"
The man had long believed in Yizhi and replied, "I am Yu Mei, and I hope you will take care of me in the future." Suddenly he thought of something and whispered to Yizhi, "It is said that there are many believers of the Holy Church lurking in the Youyan army. You can contact them. I believe it will be of great help and will be of great benefit."
"What!" Qiu Yizhi almost cried out. Even the most elite Youyan army of the imperial court had infiltrated with Tianzun followers, and everyone from the King of Youyan to the top knew nothing about it. Yizhi was already confused, and did not respond. He turned around and walked out of the tent without hesitation. He ran all the way to the central army tent where Zheng Xin was. Seeing Zheng Sen was also discussing important matters, he quickly dismissed everyone, concealed the details of how to get a confession, and told everything he had just learned.
Zheng Xin and Zheng Sen were both shocked when they heard this and remained silent.
The three of them were silent in the big tent for a long time, and Zheng Xin finally said, "This matter is of great importance, and it is not something that we brothers can handle on our own. We have to inform our father as soon as possible and let him make the decision." He paused and said, "For now, we have no choice but to capture Yuhuangding as soon as possible and capture the bandit leader. Perhaps we can get more clues, so that we can be loyal to the country and relieve our father's worries."
Seeing his two brothers nodding their heads, Zheng Xin continued, "Yizhi just said that he has a plan to defeat the enemy. I wonder what it is?"
Qiu Yizi repeatedly said "I dare not" and revealed his plan in this way and that way.
Before he could finish, Zheng Sen had already slapped his thigh and praised: "Yizhi is indeed a brilliant plan. No wonder my father always wants me to learn from you, my little brother. I was not convinced at that time, but now I am finally convinced!"
Zheng Xin said, "Yizhi's plan is risky, but if we are careful, it is not without a chance. But, Yu Mei said that there are many evil cult members in my Youyan army, which is really worrying. I am afraid that these people will turn against us and ruin our plan."
Yizhi nodded and said: "It seems that only the personal soldiers of the three of us can be absolutely trusted. We have to use them to lead the charge, and then the large group of troops will rush forward to destroy this group of stubborn bandits first, and then we can make plans for the rest!"
However, Zheng Xin said seriously, "Only the three of us brothers know about this. No one else can know about it. If the news leaks out and alerts the enemy, even if eldest brother wants to protect us, he may not be able to do so." Seeing that his two younger brothers agreed, their expressions seemed to be relieved, and he said, "I will write a letter to inform father of this. Please sign your names as witnesses." With just a few words, he took all the credit from Yizhi.
Although Qiu Yizhi was smart, he didn't expect Zheng Xin to have such a plan. He just asked his elder brother to make it clear in the letter that there might be Tianzun followers among the guards of Youyan Palace, and he must be extra careful to prevent open and hidden attacks. Then he signed his own name after Zheng Xin and Zheng Miao's ink-stained signatures, and personally delivered it to Guangyang City by a fast horse of 800 miles.
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PS. This chapter is a link between the previous and the next. It not only fulfills the foreshadowing, but also lays a major foreshadowing for the following. Please look forward to it! (To be continued)