When the scholar named Qi left quickly, Ji Yuan had already walked away. He did some tricks on the two ordinary copper coins left behind. It was not exaggerated, but perhaps it could help the scholar at the critical moment. Judging from his temperament, this person was very determined and should be able to sense something special the moment he touched the copper coins. Taking the copper coins was considered a good deed, and there was no need for any greater favor.
Ji Yuan walked through the streets of Gyeonggi Prefecture and saw notices posted from time to time. Some notices had people standing by them, and some read the content to the crowd. Ji Yuan stopped to listen and roughly understood that there were notices recruiting talented people to join the army, as well as various words of encouragement and declarations of defending the country posted by the court to boost people's morale.
However, in Ji Yuan's opinion, there was no need to boost the morale of the people of Dazhen. The public sentiment was more indignant than many people in the court imagined. Not only did almost everyone support it, but many people also wanted to go to the front line.
After wandering around the city for half a day, Ji Yuan finally went to Yin's Mansion.
In front of the Yin Mansion on Rong'an Street, there are now eight armored soldiers with swords standing guard. However, these armored soldiers should not belong to the imperial guards. They should be the guards of the Yin Mansion itself, because Ji Yuan recognizes most of them. Of course, they also recognize Ji Yuan.
So when Ji Yuan arrived at the gate of Yin's Mansion, someone among the gatekeepers immediately recognized Ji Yuan and hurried down the steps to greet him.
"Mr. Ji, you are here?"
Ji Yuan was very familiar with the voice of the leading soldier and knew his name as soon as he heard it. Seeing him bowing with his fists clasped, Ji Yuan also slightly bowed in return.
"Yes, Manager Zhao, I am here to bother you. Are Master Yin and Qing'er here?"
At this critical juncture, Yin Zhaoxian and Yin Qing are both very busy people, and they must be busy handling government affairs in their respective offices, but Ji Yuan still asked this question.
The soldier accepted the gift, stood up and shook his head.
"The Prime Minister and the Minister are both in the government office. Sometimes they won't come back for three to five days. Those who stay in the government office always come back late. Also, the Second Young Master is serving in the army..."
As he spoke, the soldier remembered the key point and hurriedly invited him.
"Mr. Ji, please come in quickly. After we inform the old lady and Her Royal Highness the Princess, we will go to the government office to inform the Prime Minister and the Minister."
"good."
Ji Yuan nodded without saying anything more, and followed the soldiers into Yin's mansion.
On that day, Yin Zhaoxian and Yin Qing did not go home immediately after learning that Ji Yuan was coming to visit. Instead, they returned home at the normal "off-get off work" time only after dealing with urgent matters as much as possible.
Not long after Yin Qing and Yin Zhaoxian entered the house, the two children, Yin Chi and Yin Dian, ran out excitedly and called Yin Zhaoxian and Yin Qing sweetly.
"Daddy, Grandpa, you are back?" "Daddy, Grandpa!"
"Hey, hey." "Good boy!"
Yin Zhaoxian looked up and saw his daughter-in-law coming out, so he asked hurriedly.
"Where's Mr. Ji?"
Princess Changping, who was in her thirties, still looked as beautiful as a young girl. However, after she greeted her father-in-law and husband, before she had time to say anything, the two children, Yin Chi and Yin Dian, rushed to speak.
"Mr. Ji has finished his meal at home. He said he wants to go to the best place in the capital to watch the stars and the moon!"
"That's right, it's a pity that Mr. Ji didn't let us follow. Grandpa, Dad, do you know where it is?"
Princess Changping rubbed the shoulders of the two children and said to Yin Zhaoxian and Yin Qing with a smile.
"Okay, your grandfather and father are tired, let them rest first. Lord Xiang, husband, please go to the dining hall to eat. It's ready. It will be dark soon."
Princess Changping was very smart and naturally knew that her husband and father-in-law would definitely go to find Mr. Ji. The most suitable place for stargazing in the capital was the Great Altar, which was only used in major sacrifices. It was the main altar built by Emperor Yuande for holding water and land ceremonies.
"Okay, Qing'er, let's go have dinner."
Yin Zhaoxian was nearly seventy years old, but he walked briskly without the hunchback that an old man of his age should have. Yin Qing and Princess Changping followed behind with their children.
…
The large Dharma platform for the Water and Land Dharma Assembly was built in a magnificent manner. Even from Ji Yuan's perspective today, he feels that this Dharma platform was a huge project and it was indeed a waste of money and labor back then.
However, after that water and land ceremony, this altar became a somewhat special place, because Ji Yuan had cast a spell there, and the dragons had struck the evil spirits with lightning on it, and now it is the place where the royal family holds sacrifices every year, making this altar somewhat mysterious.
At this moment, Ji Yuan stood on the platform with his hands behind his back, looking at the bright moon in the sky. The moon was bright today, but perhaps because of the psychological effect after seeing the Golden Crow, Ji Yuan always felt that there was a silver toad squatting in this bright moon.
The area of the platform that served as the main venue for the Water and Land Dharma Assembly was certainly not small. Ji Yuan stood on it alone and it seemed very empty. There were footsteps coming from behind. Ji Yuan looked back and saw that it was not the Yin father and son who came, but Yan Chang.
"Master Taichang, I haven't seen you for a long time. How are you?"
Even when Yin Zhaoxian was pretending to be sick, Ji Yuan was in Yin's house and Yan Chang had been there several times, but he had never met Ji Yuan, let alone knew that Ji Yuan was there, so he really hadn't seen Ji Yuan for a long time.
Yan Chang was slightly stunned when he suddenly saw a person standing on the altar and heard these words. Then this scene suddenly reminded him of the time when he saw the immortal dancing with swords under the moon and giving moon cakes as gifts. He immediately became excited.
"Mr. Ji? Mr. Ji! It's you! Sir, we haven't seen each other for many years. I'm so polite!"
Yan Chang bowed deeply and then walked quickly towards Ji Yuan. When he was not far from him, he stopped and bowed deeply again. Ji Yuan bowed in return.
"Master Yan, there is no need to be so polite."
Yan Chang's hair and beard are now gray, with more white hair than black hair, but he is still very energetic, at least he has not reached the point of looking completely old.
"I came here to observe the stars, but I didn't expect to meet Mr. Ji. After not seeing you for so many years, you are still as charming as ever. I am so lucky!"
Ji Yuan smiled and looked up at the sky.
"Master Yan, you are observing the stars to see the fate of Dazhen, right? Are you worried about the war ahead?"
Stargazing is Yan Chang's forte, and he has been highly regarded by the emperor since the end of Emperor Yuande's era. Even now, the new emperor still values him very much. Like Yin Zhaoxian, he is a true veteran minister who has served three dynasties.
After hearing Ji Yuan's words, Yan Chang looked up at the stars while stroking his beard and responded.
"Sir, you are right. However, I am not worried about the war ahead. Although my soldiers may suffer occasional defeats, our country is rich, the people are strong, the government is clean, the stars are strong and powerful, the Ziwei Emperor Star is shining, and the Zuyue villains can only have their momentary pleasure. I am more concerned about the changes in the country's destiny predicted by the stars after this war."
Ji Yuan lowered his head and looked at Yan Chang again.
"Master Yan, do you have any conclusion?"
Yan Chang also lowered his head, looked at Ji Yuan and smiled.
"Seeing you here now, I feel the result is self-evident. My fate will surely..."
Yan Chang's words were very decisive, and before he could finish his last word, Ji Yuan raised his hand to stop him.
"You don't have to tell it, unless the emperor asks. Although it's not a secret, you still have to be careful about what you say."
"Yes, Yan knows!"
After finishing speaking, Ji Yuan continued to look up at the moon. Yan Chang was not a talkative person either, and he also looked up at the stars after a while. When Yin Zhaoxian and Yin Qing stepped onto the high platform step by step, they saw two figures looking up in the distance.
As the footsteps approached, Ji Yuan and Yan Chang lowered their heads and turned around.
"Prime Minister Yin, Minister Yin!"
Yan Chang hurriedly saluted the two court officials, but he was not too surprised that they came here. The latter two also did not seem to be too surprised that Yan Chang was here, and they approached him while bowing.
"Mr. Ji, Lord Yan!" "Lord Yan is here too!"
"Master Yin, Qing'er, come and sit down. Although I am not an official appointed by the court, I am interested in listening to you three court officials talk about current state affairs today."
Ji Yuan returned the greeting with a smile, then waved his sleeves, and a cushion and a table appeared in front of him.
The three of them did not bother to exchange pleasantries and simply sat down on the nearest cushions. Yin Qing picked up the teapot on the table and poured tea for everyone, speaking as he did so.
"In this case, we naturally have to prepare for the war ahead. Zu Yue's uprising was indeed unexpected, but it may not be a bad thing for us, Dazhen. As the saying goes, the righteousness and the time are all on my side..."
…
At this moment, in the far southern part of Qizhou, the army belonging to King Dazhen's division camped at a place where military tents were lined up. All units and teams went to bed and patrolled in an orderly manner, with a sentry every five steps and a sentry every ten steps on the periphery.
In a large military tent in the camp, under the light of an oil lamp, Yin Zhong, still wearing his armor, sat at a desk reading a book in the light.
The early winter in Qizhou was already very cold. As a general, Yin Zhong naturally had a brazier in his tent for heating. The charcoal inside reflected a red light, adding more brightness to the tent.
In the military tent, there were two large black short spears on the weapon rack on the left, which looked very heavy. On the weapon rack on the right was a long sword made of fine steel with a dragon and phoenix carved on the scabbard. It was a gift from the current emperor Yang Sheng to Yin Zhong before he went to war.
“Woo… Woo…”
A dark wind blew in the night, causing the tent curtains to sway gently and the flame of the oil lamp in the tent to move slightly. Yin Zhong raised his head and the wind had passed. He picked up an iron stick and picked up the wick of the oil lamp, trying to make the light brighter.
When the light came back on, Yin Zhong paused for a moment, frowned and looked up. There was actually one more person in front of the desk, a hunchbacked old woman with white hair. He had not heard any footsteps just now.
"Are you a demon or a ghost?"
Yin Zhong's voice was steady, without any ups and downs.
"The general is truly a rare talent. He knows that I am not a human, but he is not afraid at all!"
The old woman looked at Yin Zhong with admiration in her eyes. Yin Zhong's posture and response showed the demeanor of a great general.