After passing Baqiao, we set foot on the main road leading to Balong City.
Li Zhen kept looking back at the bridge.
Everyone thought he was worried about the two distinguished people on the bridge and how the ten heads would end.
Not really.
He won't worry about those things.
Li Zhen just remembered this place deeply in his mind and murmured: "I should stay in Balong City for a month. During this period, I will sit on the bridge at this time every day." Waiting for you. Every day I come here, I will always run into you."
A smile appeared at the corner of Li Zhen's mouth, and he couldn't help but giggle. He thought to himself: I will tell Zhang Zhi in my dream tonight that although we have crossed time and space, we will still meet under the same starry sky. Let’s agree on a place to meet from time to time.
After traveling through ten thousand years, this starry sky remains unchanged. After all the vicissitudes of life, we still have intersections...
After passing through Yanwu Gate and entering Balong City, Li Zhen saw many houses with brick and tile structures, which were obviously different from other places along the way.
Most of the buildings in the entire Balong City are concrete structures.
Things like cement were restored a long time ago. However, the formula was kept secret by businessmen in order to make profits, and the price of cement was driven very high due to the scarcity of the product. Those are not building materials that ordinary people can afford.
Reinforced concrete buildings are currently only popular among wealthy families in the capital.
Li Zhen sighed. In fact, Kyushu's science is not bad, but the confidentiality system is too strong. They are basically monopolies. However, a monopoly will inevitably charge a surprising price, and it will not be promoted under high prices. In fact, it is not suitable for the general public. This is a shortcoming of society, and Li Zhen can only sigh with emotion.
Entering the main city of Balong City, Li Zhen and Qi Lengzi, who had woken up, looked at the bustling surroundings. There are a dazzling array of goods on display, but the people along the way are standing silently pointing and pointing on the street, which seems a little deserted.
Li Zhen knew that the story of beheading ten people on Baqiao as soon as he arrived in Balong City had spread throughout the capital.
The people now have a very hazy attitude towards themselves, are they afraid of themselves, or do they despise themselves
He originally planned to walk along the way and take a good look around the Eight Dragon City, but seeing the fearful expressions of the people, Li Zhen could only smile bitterly and shake his head.
"Speed up and enter the palace."
Li Zhen jumped on the carriage and sat on the platform.
The imperial guards understood, flattered, and sped up towards the inner city of the palace.
In the center of Balong City, there is a building surrounded by high-powered people. This is the imperial palace.
The city wall was ten meters high and was unbelievably majestic. Standing in front of the city wall, people actually feel how small they are.
The palace has only two gates, the east gate and the west gate. When Li Zhen and others arrived at the east gate, they saw the iron vermilion gate, which was five meters high and about three meters wide. The whole body is made of metal, not wooden doors.
Extremely heavy.
A door leaf is actually about forty centimeters thick. A rough estimate is that this door probably weighs no less than two or three tons.
The red door only opened a small gap, which could only allow one person to get through, but there was a carriage behind it, and everyone was riding horses, but they couldn't get in.
Mingkang had no choice but to call the door: "Guard on duty, please open the door. The champion is about to enter the palace."
'Wow!' On the door lintel, a window that was only the size of two palms suddenly opened. Li Zhen jumped back in shock. He didn't realize that there was a room in the lintel six meters above, and there was a window here.
A head poked out of the window and said in a cold voice: "The officials from the government and the opposition get off work at four o'clock in the afternoon, and there are still two hours before the east gate opens. Register first, fill out the form, verify your identity, and then wait."
'Snapped'
As he spoke, the person in the window threw out a notebook. Above is the information column for visitor registration, where the name and other information of each person entering must be filled in.
Filling out forms is something I do all the time, but proving my identity is the most troublesome. Don't look at it. This door has a crack open for you, which can accommodate one person in and out. But as long as you don't go through all the formalities and dare to stretch your neck, you will be killed with one knife.
Mingkang took the imperial edict from Li Zhen and shouted: "We were summoned by the emperor to bring the imperial edict into the palace."
The person in the window was stunned, and then hung a basket: "Put the imperial edict in and take a look."
Mingkang put the edict into the basket and hung it up with a rope. After checking inside for a while, he put the edict in the basket and hung it down.
"Open the door!"
In the door.
A soldier walked behind the door. Behind the iron door on the left was a winch that looked like a car steering wheel. The soldier grabbed the winch with one hand and began to turn it in the counterclockwise direction.
It was very easy for him to turn the winch with one hand.
And as the winch turned, the left door leaf, which weighed several tons, slowly opened.
Not a sound at all!
Seeing the extremely heavy iron door open, Qi Lengzi exclaimed: "How many horses are needed to pull such a heavy door open? Why is there no sound when the door is opened?"
Mingkang smiled profoundly: "You have to ask the number one scholar about this kind of thing."
Li Zhen chuckled: "It seems that the empire's mechanical engineering is very advanced."
"I don't understand either."
Li Zhen was slightly shocked. What was surprising was not that the Nine Provinces Empire had thoroughly studied mechanical engineering. What is shocking is that the empire's forging technology is so sophisticated
Don't think it's just a door, don't think it's just a small winch that can open the door. There are countless mechanical gears running in this door. This is gear science in mechanical engineering.
Making gears with very precise meshing requires a lathe and a ruler. Gears are already precision instruments. But Li Zhen can guarantee that there is absolutely no lathe in Kyushu.
So he was extremely surprised. How were the countless precision gears installed in the door made? He can guarantee that these gears are absolutely precise and the error is no more than one millimeter, because only when they are extremely precise, the gears will not make any sound when they are running.
Could it be that there is still an empire that has developed something beyond lathes
Without any chance to think about it, Li Zhen immediately rode on a tall horse and took the lead into the door.
A long corridor.
It is at least one mile long, but the corridor is only wide enough for two planes to drive abreast. On both sides of the corridor are towering walls of concrete buildings, more than ten meters high.
Li Zhen could see that there were very large gaps between many bricks and stones on the wall. It is not difficult to imagine that during wartime, if an enemy rushed into the corridor. Deadly weapons will continue to protrude from the walls on both sides.
On both sides of the corridor, there were Imperial Guards all standing. Everyone has sabers on their waists, guns in their hands, and they are fully armed and can't even look away.
As soon as everyone came in, they subconsciously became nervous. Qi Lengzi didn't dare to speak and followed behind obediently.
Li Zhen stood in front with his head held high. The egg white and other dirt on his face had been washed away, but the wound on his forehead was still bright red.
After passing through the corridor and passing through an iron gate, we drove straight in and the road became wider.
"Military armor, stop!"
There was a sharp shout from the door.
"yes!"
The more than a thousand Imperial Guards who had followed Li Zhen for so long shouted in unison, and then took off their sabers, muskets, and armor in unison.
The leader of the Forbidden Army cracked his lips and smiled at Li Zhen: "No. 1, I finally made it to the palace for you to be safe and sound. My mission has been completed. We are about to report back to the military camp. You..."
As he said this, the leader of the Forbidden Army's eyes turned red: "I'll see you later."
Li Zhen felt a little sad in his heart. Along the way, these people loyally accompanied him and protected him. In Yanziji, they said they would level two mountains, so they accompanied them to level two mountains. They are the most loyal soldiers.
While walking in the desert, they asked for help, fearing that they would be too hot during the day and freezing at night. Afraid of being hungry or thirsty. They are also the most attentive nannies.
Trapped in Zhashui County, they accompanied him through the harsh mountains and rivers. In fact, there was no way for a carriage to pass through the mountain. In some sections, they almost had to carry the carriage on the mountain road. Most of the time I was paving the road and walking, and two people died. They are a great group of workers.
When he suffered on Baqiao and was hit with eggs and vegetable leaves, more than a thousand of them surrounded him and used their bodies to help him resist the anger of the people. What originally hit them were eggs and vegetable leaves, but when they hit them, they were replaced by stones. The common people thought that they were not champions, they were slaves and dogs, and it would be fine if they were injured or killed.
But at that time, Li Zhen thought that they were brothers. They are a great group of warriors in this empire who defend the land, the interests of the people, and the interests of the country.
I was wronged.
Li Zhen took a deep breath and turned to look at the more than a thousand Imperial Guards who had abandoned their armor. He cupped his hands into fists and scanned everyone's face with his eyes, hoping to remember everyone.
He bowed deeply and bent his waist to the end.
"ah!"
"I can't bear it."
"What is the number one scholar doing?"
“…”
Li Zhenlang shouted: "I have wronged all my brothers along the way. Li Zhen is here, thank you!"
In the palace, people walked around from time to time. Seeing this scene, they all snickered: "Lower yourself."
"Are you still going to salute those warriors?"
"An intellectual, going to salute some reckless men who have never studied and can only serve as soldiers? It is an insult to politeness!"
“…”
Na Na, a group of forbidden soldiers who followed Li Zhen, stood on the spot, not knowing how to express their thoughts, and they didn't know how to express...
In the palace, in front of the gate, in the corridor, and on the city wall, all the forbidden troops were visible.
They all looked sideways, looking down from above, from front to back. Get together and watch.
Look at the No. 1 scholar in Kyushu, saluting their lowly comrades.
I can't help but be moved. Looking deeply at the young man who was so small that it seemed he could be killed with one punch, he felt that this bow made him look taller.
I can’t bear to bow for a long time. Mingkang helped Li Zhen get up.
Li Zhen clasped his fists again and shouted: "Wang Yuanxiang."
The leader of the imperial army escorting Li Zhen shouted: "Here we are."
"See you soon."
After saying that, Li Zhen turned around and strode towards what Mingkang said - the most glorious place in the world.
Wang Yuanxiang looked at Li Zhen's back and felt puzzled. I haven't told him my name, how could he know it
He murmured: "See you again when we are destined..."
(End of chapter)