Everyone was looking up when suddenly the fireworks burning in the square exploded with a bang, sparks flew, black smoke billowed, and everyone stepped back in shock.
When the smoke cleared, Taishi Ci had already landed on the ground, with a black gauze veil on his head, but his eyebrows and features were clearly visible, his gray hair and beard, and his sharp eyes, all very visible under the firelight.
Sun Quan was shocked and doubtful, and under the protection of Jia Hua and others, he carefully surrounded Taishi Ci. The civil and military officials all stared at Taishi Ci and saw that he looked exactly the same as he was in life. They then looked up at Sun Ce who was standing on the eaves facing the wind, and they could not help but believe it a little more.
Sun Quan approached carefully, clasped his fists and said, "Ziyi... are you a human or a ghost?"
Taishi Ci's eyes were slightly stern, and he returned the greeting, saying, "I am not talented enough, and it is a pity that I cannot serve Jiangdong. What is the difference between a human and a ghost?"
Pan Zhang was a bit more courageous. He came up to Taishi Ci and looked at him carefully for a while. He murmured, "It is indeed General Taishi. I never thought that after a person dies, his soul would be so real."
Sun Quan's heart was pounding, and he asked anxiously, "Has my brother really become a god?"
Taishi Ci nodded and said, "Bofu is a contemporary hero who protects the peace of the region. He was tortured to death and his spirit is still lingering, so he was named the Qinhuai River God to protect Jiangdong."
Liu Qi stepped forward at the right time and said with emotion: "You are truly a hero in life and a hero in death!"
Sun Quan's face changed slightly, and he bowed to Sun Ce again and asked, "My brother was killed by a villain. His heroic spirit and his becoming a god are truly a treasure for Jiangdong! Tomorrow I will order people to build a temple and a statue of his body by the river, and let the people worship him."
Zhang Zhao and others were even more shocked. The Wu soldiers looked at each other in dismay, and their awe towards Sun Ce was mixed with a bit of piety.
Taishi Ci shook his head and said, "General, your grievances have not been redressed, and your resentment is hard to dissipate. You are not yet qualified to become a true god. Only your soul remains."
Sun Quan was startled and asked in confusion: "The assassins were all killed and Xu Gong's entire family was destroyed. How can he be wronged?"
Wu Guotai also came over at this time, staring at Taishi Ci with sharp eyes, as if trying to find a flaw. Under the light of the fire, his humble face looked a little ferocious. He said in a cold voice: "I think you two must have a conspiracy to disrupt our Dongwu. Zhongmou must not fall into the trap."
Taishi Ci stared at Wu Guotai, then suddenly burst into laughter. He clasped his fists towards Sun Quan and said, "My lord, I have died unjustly!"
Sun Quan was horrified and suddenly remembered that he had sent people to assassinate Taishi Ci. Could it be that they already knew about it
Feeling guilty, he looked at Liu Qi and shouted, "Liu Bowei, did you kill Ziyi?"
Wu Guotai also took the opportunity to say: "Ziyi went to Jingzhou for treatment and died. It must be you who did something behind the scenes."
Facing so many shocked looks, Liu Qi looked calm and said loudly, "As the saying goes: God is watching over us, and those who do wrong in secret will be seen by God. I have always done things with a clear conscience, and I am not afraid of being confronted by gods or ghosts. Please be fair."
Taishi Ci snorted coldly, clasped his fists towards Sun Ce and said, "General, please explain clearly!"
Sun Ce glanced at all the soldiers of the Eastern Wu and said in a loud voice: "You are all outstanding people in Jiangdong. I am very pleased that you have lived up to my trust. However, the situation in the Eastern Wu is complicated. It is not only a family affair of our Sun family, but also a national affair. Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival. I will use the Buddha's light to show myself and put an end to this matter. Let Ziyi do everything for you!"
Wu Guotai's eyes were in a panic, and she urged Sun Quan: "Even if it's not someone deliberately making a mystery, it must be the work of evil spirits. This must be a threat to Jiangdong. We can't stay for long, and quickly order the soldiers to destroy it!"
"Hmph, why do you feel guilty, Madam?" Taishi Ci glanced at Wu Guotai coldly. The cold murderous intent in his eyes made the old lady tremble all over and she grabbed Sun Quan's arm tightly.
Sun Quan was immediately displeased, stepped in front of her, and said in a deep voice: "Ziyi, I don't care whether you are a human or a ghost, you must not be rude to the Queen Mother."
Taishi Ci ignored him and walked to the incense table in front of the main hall. He brought a plate with pineapple cakes as tribute and placed it in front of Wu Guotai: "I wonder if Madam has ever tasted this pineapple cake?"
Wu Guotai pretended to be calm and sneered, "This is made by me, so I have to taste it."
Taishi Ci asked, "Madam, have you not been poisoned?"
Wu Guotai was furious and asked, "Taishi Ci, what do you mean by that?"
Taishi Ci snorted coldly: "Since my son returned to Jianye, he has been buying fish livers for his wife every month, specifically for making these pineapple cakes. In particular, the liver of a large red-finned fish from the East China Sea is poisonous. If people eat it, they will be injured and angry and the poison will cause death..."
“How do you know about red-fin whales…” Wu Guotai’s face changed drastically, and he suddenly said in a harsh voice: “You are slandering me!”
Seeing Wu Guotai lose her composure, Sun Quan's heart sank, and he asked anxiously, "I've eaten a lot of pineapple cakes before, how come you're fine?"
"That's because Madam favors the Marquis of Wu!" Taishi Ci sighed and said slowly, "You know that Bofu, Gongjin, and I, and even old generals like Lu Meng, were all delighted by this reward, but they didn't know that they were actually swallowing poison."
Zhang Zhao and others' faces suddenly changed, and they were suddenly glad that they had not made any contribution and had not received such a reward. Jia Hua and Dong Xi were lucky enough to have eaten a piece, and they couldn't help but hold their stomachs.
Wu Guotai was furious and said, "Who are you? How dare you talk nonsense and deceive people? Zhongmou is the lord of Jiangdong. How can I allow you to cause chaos? Quickly arrest these two thieves!"
"Who dares to be so presumptuous?" On the roof, Sun Ce shouted loudly and clasped his fists to everyone: "At the beginning, I was harmed by a villain, and entrusted my affairs to Zhongmou, thinking that my foundation would be protected. Who knew that I fell into a trap, and the person I trusted was the wrong person. My achievements have been used as a scapegoat for others."
Sun Quan felt a surge of sadness when he heard this, and turned around and said sadly: "Brother, are you... "
"I'm not your brother!" Sun Ce shook his head slowly and sighed, "Your last name isn't Sun either!"
"What did you say?" Sun Quan and Wu Guotai asked in surprise at the same time.
Everyone in Dongwu was shocked. Even Sun Shangxiang, who was supporting Mrs. Wu, widened her eyes. Although she knew some hidden secrets, she knew nothing about the truth of the investigation in recent days.
Sun Ce shook his head and laughed, "If you and I still have some affection, we are just cousins."
Sun Quan was confused and quickly stepped forward and asked, "Brother, if you already know the truth, why don't you tell me the truth?"
"Although family disgrace should not be made public, for the sake of Jiangdong's cause, I have to clarify this matter!" Sun Ce sighed helplessly and pointed to Wu Guotai: "Second Madam, she is your biological mother."
Sun Quan's whole body stiffened and he turned around with difficulty. Everyone present was shocked again and their faces were disheveled in the night wind.
Wu Guotai leaned on a cane, his fingers turning white from exertion, and pointed at Sun Ce with trembling hands, "Where did you come from, you ghost? Why are you talking nonsense here?"
Sun Ce was unmoved and just said: "There are hundreds of Ryukyu Islands in the depths of the East China Sea, and many pirates live on them. Every spring and summer, they take advantage of the east wind to cross the sea to Wujun and Kuaiji, either to trade or to steal, to obtain materials from the Central Plains. Because they sail on the sea all year round, most of them have long upper body and short lower body, square chin and big mouth, beard and red hair, blue eyes and wide nose..."
As Sun Ce narrated, everyone present turned their eyes to Sun Quan. All the changes that had happened tonight had made everyone numb, and they just stared blankly at the familiar stranger in front of them.