Jing country.
As the Chinese New Year approaches in Beijing, there is no trace of joy or festive atmosphere. More than 90% of the families take down the red lanterns and red couplets they have prepared and replace them with white lanterns with a big word "甸" (meaning "dian") written on them.
The cold wind blows and the chill is biting.
The soldiers in the capital were like crazy, constantly shuttling through the streets and alleys, tearing down certain special couplets written in black and white on paper on the gates.
Green mountains are lucky to bury loyal bones, while white iron is innocent to cast treacherous ministers.
After the news of Fang Yun's death spread yesterday, people from all over the city dressed in mourning and flocked to Quanyuan, causing black and white cloth to be sold out within a day.
Although the capital was built by a semi-saint and had a population of over three million, making it a megacity, the millions of people who went there paralyzed all the roads near Quan Garden.
The ten-mile-long Quan Garden was filled with crying sounds that lingered for a long time.
Yesterday afternoon, after the news that Zong Sheng would temporarily replace Dong Sheng was announced, the sick Zuo Xiang suddenly convened a cabinet meeting. He took down the general of the city guard who was in charge of the inner city's security with thundering means and replaced him with his confidant. In the name of the emperor, he prevented everyone from going to Quan Garden and dispersed the crowd nearby.
The two sides were on the verge of a conflict and bloodshed could occur at any time. The great scholar Jiang Hechuan was forced to come forward in person and call on everyone to remain calm and to persuade the people, thus calming the situation.
But the matter did not end there.
Since yesterday evening, from common people to great scholars, a large number of families in the capital have started to post the couplet written in black and white on their doors. Once, soldiers wanted to arrest a family, but the neighbors were so angry that thousands of people surrounded them and finally tore down the couplet and let it go.
On the early morning of the sixteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, when the people in the capital woke up, they found several extra couplets in the courtyard, all of which were the same couplet: "Green mountains are fortunate to bury loyal bones, while white iron is innocent to cast treacherous ministers."
Black words on white paper, like a sharp blade piercing the eyes.
Therefore, before New Year’s Eve, every household would put up couplets.
The left prime minister's party issued a death order. Soldiers in the city must tear down all the black and white couplets.
Everyone knew that the soldiers were also forced to do so, so they did not argue. They let the soldiers tear the cloth silently, and when this wave of soldiers left, they would silently apply starch and stick it on again, standing at the door and silently waiting for the next wave of soldiers.
Many soldiers saluted before tearing the couplets, which was to show respect for the other party and to hope to get the forgiveness of the spirit of the saint in heaven.
On the morning of the 16th day of the twelfth lunar month, a spectacular scene appeared in the capital. Every household wore mourning clothes, stood by the door, holding the couplets in their left hands, and the freshly made starch in their right hands, still steaming, waiting quietly.
The soldiers bowed to every household, not daring to look into the eyes of the people standing at the door. They lowered their heads, tore down the couplets and left.
There was no firmness or anger in their eyes, no fanaticism, and everyone was terribly calm, except for a little redness and swelling in their eyes.
The soldiers' eyes were also swollen.
It is the Spring Festival. Every family is in mourning.
This matter was circulated on the discussion board, and scholars from various countries criticized it angrily, but there was no refutation.
Wei Huangan and Meng Jingye came out of the literary world of the Chen Sheng family. The head of the Chen family, Chen Mingding, personally greeted them. After having a secret conversation with the two for a moment, he personally escorted them out the door and asked his eldest grandson Chen Jing to take them to Quan Garden.
The whole Chen residence was filled with grief.
Wei Huangan walked out of Chen's house, got on the carriage with Chen Jing and Meng Jingye, and sat in the carriage in a daze for a long time without saying a word.
Chen Jing did not speak from beginning to end. The eyes of this scholar from the Holy Academy were firm. There were faint flashes of swords and sabers.
Meng Jingye was the oldest after all, so he sighed and asked, "Nephew Chen Jingxian, what is the current situation in the capital?"
Chen Jing exhaled lightly and said, "Saint Fangxu has passed away, and Saint Zongfu has taken over as Eastern Saint. The left prime minister and his gang are celebrating. Although the old thief Liushan has lost all of Mizhou, he has many minions in the court. He took this opportunity to return to the cabinet and wipe out the previous decline."
Meng Jingye sighed and said, "Yes, after all, the left prime minister is the head of all officials and has the power to make arbitrary decisions. Once he gains power, he will be like a mountain stream and an avalanche, unstoppable. Not to mention you, even if my Meng family encounters it, we can only temporarily avoid it at this moment."
Chen Jing couldn't help but ask, "Uncle Meng, I heard that you and others went to the Blood Mang Ancient Land, ostensibly for the Dragon Clan Hall, but actually to help Fang Xusheng. Is the news of Fang Xusheng's death true?"
A trace of pain flashed across Meng Jingye's eyes, and he nodded gently, saying, "I and others have witnessed with our own eyes that Saint Fang Xu was injured by the power of the Ancestral Emperor, and then fought with the Demon King and died in the blood."
Chen Jing lowered his head, clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.
Wei Huangan opened the curtains and watched the soldiers tearing up the couplets and the people posting them. After a long while, he said, "A strange sight, a wonder of the past and present."
Chen Jing raised his head and said, "Grandmaster Wei, the road leading to Quan Garden has been heavily guarded and even guarded by the monster's private soldiers. What if they don't allow us to go there to pay our respects?"
"Singing and wielding swords, the streets are stained with blood!" Wei Huangan smiled slightly, as if such a trivial matter was not worth mentioning.
Chen Jing's blood boiled, and he said, "There are such righteous people in the Xuemang Ancient Land. It seems that we are just sitting in a well and looking at the world."
Wei Huangan and Meng Jingye looked at each other, both of them were quite embarrassed. They couldn't say that not all scholars in the Xuemang Ancient Land were like this. Only Wei Huangan dared to come, and the others either became enemies with Fang Yun or began to arrange a retreat.
"Singing and holding swords, the streets are stained with blood..." Chen Jing looked out the window, muttering to himself, his eyes becoming more determined.
Poetry and lyrics are one, and wherever there is poetry, there must be a tune. Therefore, singing a song often refers to the recitation of war poems and refers to battles.
Soon, the carriage stopped.
The driver whispered, "The Spring Garden is just ahead, but it's blocked by a thousand soldiers and more than a dozen tall barbarians."
"Get out of the car!" Meng Jingye said as he lifted his robe and quickly got out of the car.
When the three men got off the carriage, they saw a general who had passed the imperial examination and was leading thousands of soldiers standing in front of them. There were also many carriages nearby, some of which were from wealthy families and even people from other countries.
Anger was written all over the face of every visitor.
Meng Jingye bowed to the soldiers in front of him and said, "Meng family Grand Secretary Jingye, at the order of the Southern Emperor, has brought his friends to offer condolences. I hope you can help me."
A complicated expression flashed across the face of the Jinshi general, and he bowed and said, "This humble official greets Grand Secretary Meng. I am a humble person with little influence, but it is my duty. If there is any conflict, please forgive me. The Left Prime Minister has already ordered that no one is allowed to pass unless he has a handwritten order or a decree from the Eastern Saint Pavilion!"
"Is it not enough for the Southern Saint to give an oral order?" Wei Huangan said while trying to suppress his anger.
The Jinshi general said with a bitter face: "For us, it is possible one thousand times or ten thousand times, but if we let it go, the left prime minister will definitely take our heads."
Someone behind shouted, "They are talking nonsense! At dawn, some members of the Fang family went in to pay their respects, but Liu Shan didn't take their heads."
The three of them were stunned. Chen Jing and Meng Jingye looked at each other, and they both saw something wrong in each other's eyes.
Wei Huangan frowned and said, "Master Meng, as you said in the Crime Hall, the Fang family's Ji County is thousands of miles away from here, and it only takes one day. How could the Fang family get here?"
"Not good!" Meng Jingye stepped forward and said sternly, "Let them go immediately, and don't blame me for going on a killing spree!"
Without waiting for the Jinshi general to speak, Wei Huangan suddenly opened his mouth, and saw a sword light flashing like a white silk, flying forward and sweeping across with a swish, and the heads of the six barbarian demon leaders standing in front of the team flew up, and blood was spilled on the long street.
"Whoever stands in my way will die!" Wei Huangan's voice was like a torrent, echoing in the streets.
.(To be continued.)