Nanli
There are some houses in the streets and alleys, with sparse flowers and trees, the sound of birds chirping, outdoor canals and flowing water, three houses with a well, and one house with several pots of flowers. Hong Lin led Pei Ziyun to play in Nanli City.
Today we went to an ancient Buddhist temple, and the sound of drums and cymbals clashing with chimes and chanting sutras could be heard faintly from the meditation hall. Pei Ziyun followed the crowd and offered some incense, so he went out and watched along the stele corridor.
This Brahma temple is neat and tidy, and Pei Ziyun's eyes suddenly brightened when he looked at the murals. The Great Brahma God standing in the middle of the mural is lifelike, and then the little Brahma Gods and gods are all solemn in their heavenly clothes and precious treasures.
In addition to the big and small Brahma gods, it also has characteristics that are different from those in the mainland. There are various ghosts and monsters on the left and right, all naked, wearing shoulder pads, headbands, earrings... with their teeth and claws showing in strange expressions.
Pei Ziyun sighed: "How remote is Nanli? These are the so-called surrendered indigenous gods, or the clan gods of the big and small chieftains. This Sanskrit sect has also been working hard for a long time."
Thinking about it, he walked out of the temple. There were many people burning incense in the temple, but Pei Ziyun didn't pay attention. These days, Hong Lin was working as a translator, and he gradually understood the local customs.
There were many cottages in the mountains. There was great chaos decades ago. I heard that a chieftain wanted to unify Nanli. Now it has been pacified. However, it caused great harm to the former dynasty and the chieftain. As I was thinking wildly, someone came forward and said, "Sir, my lord Here we are, waiting for you.”
"Oh, then go back." Pei Ziyun went back and entered the hotel. He saw an isolated private room on the second floor. The chief clerk had been sitting with a plate of peanuts and a pot of wine. He was eating at this time. His face was cloudy.
Pei Ziyun felt something wrong with this expression as soon as he saw it. He had not offended the chief registrar. Why, looking at his appearance, he frowned and said, "It turns out that Mr. Shi came in person, and he was not welcomed from afar."
Finally, the bookkeeper still had some courtesy: "Brother, let's have some food and drinks."
Not long after, the waiter brought the wine and food, and the chief clerk poured a glass of wine. He was no longer as close as the previous few days, and squeezed out a smile: "Jie Yuangong, please have a drink."
There was some alienation and indifference in his words, which made Pei Ziyun a little surprised. After a few drinks, the chief clerk snorted: "Mr. Xie Yuangong, I treat you as a distinguished guest, why do you want to bully me and harm me?"
"Could it be that my uncle who defected from the master's sect is hiding in Nanli and doing something big?" Pei Ziyun thought to himself and said, "Why do you say this, sir?"
As for the honored guests, if they smile, they will buy some drinks and even stay in a hotel at their own expense. This kind of honored guest will make people laugh in the mainland.
"Don't you know what your uncle has done?" the chief clerk asked bitterly.
"I don't know, but my uncle from my mother's family left home and there was no news, so I came here to look for my relatives." Pei Ziyun replied: "If you know where he is and what he did, why bother to ask Mr. Shi? Just come to his door. That’s it.”
Speaking of this, Pei Ziyun couldn't help but feel a hint of sarcasm.
"Hmph!" The chief clerk felt that it made sense, and then he took a closer look and said with a slightly better expression: "Your uncle is not an ordinary person. He is a high priest. He has done great things in the past, but you'd better not investigate further. Otherwise, even Mr. Xie Yuangong will inevitably be in trouble."
"Please tell me something. No matter what, the bones of the elders must be restrained. Otherwise, how can I face my family?" Pei Ziyun exhaled and said.
There was a stalemate in the court. The chief clerk picked up the cup and took a sip: "Mr. Xie Yuangong, I got your pen and ink, but it doesn't matter. If you really want to know the details, you need to go to Mount Lumen."
"For the rest, don't look for me anymore." With that said, the chief clerk picked up a piece of meat with chopsticks and walked out.
"This chief clerk is so rude, but what he said is mysterious. It seems that this person in the master's sect really has an inside story. Let's forget about it in the sect. Even the chief clerk in Nanli refuses to say it clearly. Now we can only take it one step at a time. ." Pei Ziyun thought secretly: "But it has also provided an obvious clue. The high priest and Lu Menshan-Master Bo are not willing to continue, so why should I bother him?"
"Let's go to Mount Lumen and give it a try first." Pei Ziyun thought, called Hong Lin in, and threw out two taels of silver: "Hong Lin, this is a reward for you. You have worked hard as a guide these days. I will not treat you badly. There are still some coins inside." There is a table of food and wine, all for you."
Hong Lin took the money and turned to the side room. Seeing the table full of food and wine, he only took a few bites and was overjoyed: "Young Master is so generous. You've earned it."
Pei Ziyun returned to the room, and suddenly felt a bit of murderous intent coming over him. Pei Ziyun quickly drew his sword, and just a little, a little fire flew in the air.
Pei Ziyun looked around and saw a woman in black, with gold rings around her ankles, holding a Miao knife, trying to take her life.
"Who are you?" Pei Ziyun asked, squinting his eyes slightly when he saw the appearance of this Miao girl. After listening to Pei Ziyun's words, the woman said coldly: "Since you are the nephew of the high priest, I will kill you, otherwise I will keep you. Are you coordinating the cottage rebellion?"
After the woman finished speaking, the Miao knife struck again. Pei Ziyun understood in an instant that it must have been the investigation by the boss in the past few days that leaked the information and attracted the enemies of his master and uncle.
Pei Ziyun sneered: "Who are you? I'm looking for Li Xianlian, what does it have to do with you."
"Li Xianlian is the high priest of the Miao village, don't you know?" The man in black raised his knife with murderous intent, but his sword technique was very sharp and had a hint of familiarity.
"Capture this girl first, and then we'll interrogate her." Pei Ziyun thought in his mind, and sneered: "Turns out she is an elder enemy. Let's capture her later."
Just as he was about to kill with his sword, a flash of light suddenly appeared. Pei Ziyun narrowed his eyes slightly, and the aftereffects of the flash disappeared: "Is it Taoism? This is even weirder."
"Restraint!" Pei Ziyun stretched out his finger, and the woman in black was about to fall down. She quickly held the scimitar and hit it on the ground.
Pei Ziyun used Songyun Sword Technique to kill him, but with just a few swords, the woman in black retreated continuously, unable to resist. At this moment, the man in black pulled off his scarf and shouted: "Young Master, please stop. "
The long sword that was about to kill suddenly paused and Pei Ziyun squinted his eyes: "Who are you?"
Pulling off the face towel, it turned out to be a girl of seventeen or eighteen years old. The wind carried a strange fragrance, and all she could see was her bright eyes and white teeth. She was very beautiful. At this time, she respectfully bowed down and said: "I am the daughter of the master's maid. Now I have inherited the maid. I am responsible for daily work." I’m buying and selling some goods for the village at the foot of the mountain.”
"Why did you assassinate me just now? How did you identify me as the young master?" Pei Ziyun asked coldly.
The girl quickly said: "Young Master, this Shi Bao is really our enemy. Looking for news about Li Xianlian, I thought it was a conspiracy between the government and the village."
"After checking later, we found out that it was the lord's nephew who came. We were surprised and happy, fearing that it was a trick, so we came to test it. Now we see that the young master understands the lord's sword skills and witchcraft. The lord once left a He wrote his last words, saying that someone who understands his swordsmanship and witchcraft must be his successor, so let us pay attention, inherit his position and treasure, and lead the village to a bright future."
The girl looked excited and bowed deeply.
"Oh, really?" Pei Ziyun pondered, considered it carefully and said, "Throw the weapon to me and tell me the situation."
The girl obediently threw the Miao Dao aside, took out the dagger, poison powder, and hidden darts from her arms and put them aside. Then she answered: "Young Master, I was defeated and killed on my own initiative. My mother He gathered the remnant soldiers and their families, returned to Lumen Mountain, and later surrendered to the imperial court. If it weren't for the poisonous snakes guarding the mountain, I'm afraid they would have been killed by these strongholds long ago. But without the backbone, the stronghold is getting weaker and weaker."
"The high priest once left a prophecy that there must be descendants to succeed him and bring a future to the village that believes in him. My mother is someone close to the Lord, so she has witnessed the high priest's magical power many times. Just now the young master used witchcraft , and is proficient in the swordsmanship of the Lord, I only confirmed it now."
Pei Ziyun was silent for a moment, and then he understood why the girl bowed down and called her young master, but was speechless. No wonder this girl's sword skills and witchcraft clearly have traces of the Songyun Sect. With such Taoist and martial arts, it would naturally not be possible to make the village surrender. Difficult.
Even after decades, he is still loyal now, which is really scary. He immediately ordered: "Tell me about your master's affairs in detail. I came from the mainland, but I don't know the specific matters."
"Yes!" The girl explained the matter in detail.
"The Lord preached and cured diseases, and soon became the priest of a village. Later, he had great supernatural powers, saved countless people, and had many villages attached to him. At its peak, dozens of villages supported him and raised tens of thousands of troops, while Nanli King Guoyuan is in great decline and is already vulnerable. At that time, everyone will support the Lord to seize the Nanli Kingdom and become the king. We are all happy."
The girl said very proudly, but her face turned gloomy the next moment: "On the eve of becoming king, the Lord suddenly passed away, and it collapsed all of a sudden."
"In the beginning, there were still cottages attached to them, and mausoleums were built one after another. Later, there was no young master. As time went by, they stopped obeying orders, and some even attacked. King Nanli even declared that the master was rebellious and carried out a siege."
"In these years, only the truly devout believers of the Lord have gathered on the mountain. But over the years, they have been scattered and scattered. Now there are only a few hundred people left. It is very difficult and poor."
"I didn't want to finally wait for the young master today."
"What's your name? And what is Mount Lumen?" Pei Ziyun listened thoughtfully. His uncle was originally a Miao man. No wonder even a genius couldn't compete for the position of leader.
He just came back. Hearing this, he relied on Taoism to raise an army. It was huge for a while, but then he suffered a backlash and died suddenly? Although Nanli is a small country, it is still a country. Maybe it is possible, so I asked again at the moment.
"My mother gave me the surname He, and my name is He Qingqing. Lumen Mountain was originally the master's base camp. Our village is located on Lumen Mountain, and the master's mausoleum is also there." At this point, He Qingqing bowed and said: "Young Master , please save the village, they have been waiting for twenty years, life is very difficult, and now, there is no food in the village for three days."
"I am desperate this time. I want to sell all the tokens that the Lord gave to my mother and passed on to me." As he said this, he pointed to the golden ring around his ankle and started crying.
Pei Ziyun sighed, stopped what he wanted to say, nodded, and said, "Food is a trivial matter, it's nothing more than money. I have money here, go and buy it."
"It's just my uncle's mausoleum." Pei Ziyun said seriously, "I have to pay a visit."
(End of chapter)