Longevity begins with slaying demons and eliminating demons

Chapter 355 Breaking out of marriage is the only way for the protagonist

The head of the Exorcist Department, Jin Yangzi, Master Fu Dao, guest lecturer of Longmen Academy, and leader of this year's "Luoshui Conference", Gu Xu, secretly colludes with ghosts and ghosts in an attempt to plot rebellion!
As soon as the Daqi court announced the arrest warrant for Gu Xu, it caused a huge commotion in Luojing City.

Luo Jing's cultivators and ordinary people felt unbelievable about this matter at first.

After all, in the past few months, they have heard too many legendary stories about Gu Xu—for example, he confronted the "fierce god"-level ghosts on Yishan Mountain and rescued Qingzhou Mansion from danger; With his power, he wiped out all the ghosts near Daguguan, bringing peace to the villagers in the outskirts of Luojing; another example is his creation of "fire characters", so that monks who don't know the way of talismans can also have the ability to draw talismans to kill ghosts...

It can be said that in the eyes of everyone, Gu Xu is already a hero who fights against ghosts, and also the most dazzling new star among the younger generation of the Da Qi Dynasty.

But now, the legendary hero has turned into a treasonous plotter.

This kind of news shocked everyone, no less than the crime of treason committed by Lu Huan, the chief minister of the cabinet.

However, as the Daqi court posted notices to the people, people quickly learned about the whole incident——

Gu Xu colluded secretly with the ghost king of Mangshan Mountain and the Zhao family of Youzhou, intending to break into the royal treasury through the "Luoshui Conference" and seize the "Jingshanbi" seal of the Great Chu State, so as to manipulate the evil spirit and destroy the "Dragon Formation" .

As long as the "Dragon Formation" is destroyed, the ghosts outside the city will break through the city wall and wantonly hunt and kill the people in the city.

After that, Mangshan Ghost King and Yan Guogong Zhao Changying also broke into the palace and tried to kill the emperor.

In order to stop them, the Grand Master of Qi and Luo Chuan, the head of the Exorcist Division, were both seriously injured in the battle and fell into a coma.

Fortunately, at the time when Luojing City was most in danger, His Majesty the wise and mighty Emperor broke through the barrier, with one against two, with great strength and God's blessing, he killed Mangshan Ghost King, severely injured Zhao Changying, and restored the "Dragon Formation" ", to rescue the people of Luojing in dire straits.

"Execute the traitor Gu Xu" was the first order personally issued by the emperor after leaving the customs.

If it weren't for the emperor's piercing eyes and keen insight to expose this traitor's identity, I am afraid that this traitor will still be lurking in Luojing City and continue to harm the people of Daqi.

…………

For His Majesty the Emperor, the people of Daqi generally have a kind of almost god-like worship.

In addition, three people become tigers, and everyone makes money.

People quickly accepted the court's statement.

The praise, praise, and admiration for Gu Xu in the past have turned into belittlement, rejection, and contempt.

For example, Longmen Academy, upon seeing this notice, immediately crossed Gu Xu's name out of the teaching roster to disassociate himself from Gu Xu.

For example, the Chen Clan in Xiangyang, after hearing the news, immediately burned the wedding gift they planned to give to Gu Xu to ashes, to show that they were at odds with the country's thieves... or in other words, to show their loyalty to the emperor.

There are also many people who made up many different versions of stories around Gu Xu's identity as a "rebel", and talked about it after dinner.

Some people say that the reason why Gu Xu has an astonishing breakthrough speed is because he practiced the "ghost cultivating method" to obtain true energy by devouring other people's souls.

Some people say that the reason why Gu Xu is well-read and knowledgeable and knows all kinds of Taoist moves in the world is because his real identity is a thousand-year-old ghost disguised as a human, with a long lifespan and rich experience.

Others said that the reason why Gu Xu narrowly escaped death on Mount Yi was because he was the lackey and accomplice of the Kongxuan Sanren—the evidence that he defeated many arrogances and won the inheritance of the ruins of Laoshan.If the sage hadn't arrived in time, I'm afraid the entire Qingzhou mansion would have been harmed by him.

……

One of these stories is more outrageous than the other, but there are many people who are willing to believe it and listen to it with gusto.

After all, for these monks with mediocre qualifications and mediocrity, they are more willing to accept a monk who practices evil methods and has a bad character than a young genius who is both wise and brave.

It seems that splashing stains on Gu Xu's glorious image can make them feel psychologically balanced.

…………

At this moment, Shi Lei, a thousand household in Laizhou Prefecture, was pacing up and down in the room, feeling restless.

After finally finding an ideal son-in-law, he was already preparing for the wedding with great fanfare, and wanted to let his daughter marry off in a dignified and splendid manner.

Unexpectedly, that talented and promising son-in-law became a treasonous traitor in one day.

Shi Lei just found it hard to accept.

He believed from the bottom of his heart that Gu Xu was a man of good character, and it was impossible for him to do such a despicable thing.

If he had been 20 years younger, he would have risked his beheading to meet the emperor in Zichen Palace and ask him for evidence of Gu Xu's treason, so as to return Gu Xu's innocence.

But now, Shi Lei is getting older, and he is no longer the hot-blooded boy who would fall out with his fellow clansmen for love and report to the supervisory agency for bribery by superior officials.

He has been sapped by years of official life, and by complicated interests and human relationships.

Unknowingly, the motto in my chest has changed from "self-cultivation, family harmony, country governance, and world peace" to "careful sailing for ten thousand years".

Now that he is an official, he no longer seeks to be promoted or make contributions. He only wants to be safe, not to make mistakes, not to offend others, and to be an official without incident.

For the sake of his daughter's future, he even thought about taking a gift and saying hello to the chief examiner of the promotion assessment in private—this kind of behavior was undoubtedly something he despised very much when he was young.

Such a middle-aged man whose edges and corners have been smoothed, naturally would not take the risk of offending the emperor in order to clear up Gu Xu's grievances.

The emperor only ordered Gu Xu to be killed without implicating his relatives and friends, which is already a great kindness.

If the emperor was annoyed by this matter, and the emperor regarded him as Gu Xu's accomplice, then both Shi Lei and his daughter Shi Xiaohan's lives would be in danger.

Of course Shi Lei admired Gu Xu very much.

But appreciation, after all, is just appreciation, nothing compared to his love for his daughter from the bone marrow.

As a father, he was not afraid of sacrificing himself, nor would he mind sacrificing anyone else, as long as he could protect his daughter from life-threatening danger.

So, after pondering for a long time, Shi Lei invited the matchmaker who had previously matched the bridge to his home, and in front of them, took out the marriage certificate of Gu Xu and Shi Xiaohan.

In the Daqi Dynasty, marriage emphasized "the order of the parents and the words of the matchmaker". Whether it is an engagement or a divorce, the presence of parents and matchmakers is required.

At the time of engagement, the matchmaker is responsible for writing the marriage letter, and after it is written, it will be in duplicate, and the man and woman will press their fingerprints and keep it separately.

Oral engagement between a man and a woman in private is not legally effective.

When retiring the marriage, if the two parties reach an agreement, the matchmaker will also write a document to contact the marriage contract. The man and the woman will press their fingerprints, and then destroy the original marriage certificate and return their engagement tokens.

Of course, if you encounter special circumstances, you need special handling.

For example, today, when Gu Xu was not present, Shi Xiaohan was still lying on the bed recovering from his wounds, and fell asleep because of taking the soul-repairing elixir.

Shi Lei took the marriage certificate, walked to the fireplace, took a deep breath, and threw it into the raging fire.

I only heard him say in a slightly trembling voice: "Gu... Gu Xu is a beast, rebellious against the sky, has no father, a dog with a wolf's heart, collaborating with the enemy and treason, I... my whole family, young and old, swear to sever justice and never give up on him." A total of death.

"This marriage contract was signed by my daughter and I before being deceived by his rhetoric without knowing the truth. Now... let's pretend it never existed."

In the stove, the fiery tongue greedily licked the bright red marriage letter, and the black handwriting and the two finger prints that were close together instantly turned to ashes.

Afterwards, Shi Lei ordered the servants to take out the betrothal gifts that Gu Xu had sent earlier, including betrothal cakes, seafood, tea, sesame, cloth, etc., and piled them up in the courtyard.

Now that Gu Xu has become a prisoner of the imperial court, it is naturally impossible for the betrothal gift to be returned the same way.

So Shi Lei used the fire of true essence to burn them all to ashes, to show that the Shi family and Gu Xu had made a clean break, and there was no relationship between them from then on.

As for the "Nacai gift" that Gu Xu sent - two wild geese, Shi Lei opened the cage and released them into the sky, where they can go wherever they like from now on.

When Dang Lei was busy burning the dowry, Xiao Han had a nightmare while lying in bed recuperating.

In the dream, she saw Gu Xu walking towards the distance along a long, narrow and rugged road.

She ran with all her strength, trying to catch up with his pace, but found that she had been standing still, and could only watch him go farther and farther, and finally disappeared from sight.

She shivered and woke up from the nightmare.

Afterwards, she was wearing a white unlined garment, with her tender white slender feet bare, climbed off the bed, and stumbled out of her room.

She had a lot of questions in her stomach - such as where Gu Xu is now, whether he was injured in the battle, when will he come here to visit her... ready to ask her father one by one.

However, as soon as she walked into the courtyard, she saw her father, under the witness of the matchmakers, burn down all the betrothal gifts that Gu Xu had sent with the fire of true essence.

The father looked tired, his eyes were red, and he was chanting in a hoarse voice over and over again words such as "sever ties with the national traitors" and "don't recognize this son-in-law who committed the crime of treason".

Seeing the betrothal gifts being reduced to ashes in the raging fire, Shi Xiaohan's mind suddenly went blank.

With weak legs, she galloped forward, while shouting loudly over and over again: "Gu Xu is not a national traitor! He saved my life! Don't break the engagement!"

But just after running a few steps, her legs gave way and she fell to the ground, causing her knees to hurt.

Seeing the fallen baby girl, Shi Lei immediately frowned in distress.

He hurried forward, stretched out his hand to help Shi Xiaohan up from the ground, and asked with concern: "Where did you fall? Did it hurt badly? Do you need me to give you some medicine?"

But Shi Xiaohan ignored him at all.

She struggled, trying to push away Shi Lei's hands supporting her, and rescue Gu Xu's dowry from the raging fire.

But Shi Lei's arm was like steel, holding her tightly, making it impossible for her to break free.

"Xiaohan, don't do stupid things," Shi Lei said to her earnestly, "I did this for your own good. Gu Xu's current identity is a criminal of the imperial court. I can't let you marry him again.

"My precious daughter is the most beautiful and outstanding girl in the world, and she will definitely meet someone better in the future——

"—I won't marry anyone except Gu Xu!" Shi Xiaohan shouted in a crying voice.

Shi Lei sighed silently.

He felt that it was because his silly girl couldn't accept the change of Gu Xu's identity for a while, so she acted so excitedly.

But he believes that time can dilute everything and make ignorant young people mature.

When Xiaohan grows up, she should understand her good intentions, and gradually forget this youthful relationship, and step into a new life.

So, he took out a bottle of sleep-promoting potion from the magic treasure storage, and poured it into Shi Xiaohan's mouth.

The petite girl soon fell into a deep sleep and stopped struggling.

Then, Shi Lei carried his daughter back to the room, put her on the bed, and covered her with the quilt.

"Sorry, Xiaohan."

Looking at his daughter's sweet and peaceful sleeping face, Shi Lei said softly, with complicated emotions in his eyes.

After staying for a while, he returned to the courtyard and said to the matchmakers beside him: "The little girl has a simple personality and is young and innocent. She was deceived by that traitor Gu Xu, and she still never forgets her... It makes everyone laugh."

The matchmakers expressed sympathy that Gu Xu was good at disguising, and even the saints couldn't see his true face, let alone a little girl who didn't know much about the world.

At the same time, they didn't forget to solicit business: if Mr. Shi wants to choose another husband for his daughter in the future, or wants to marry a second wife for himself, he must remember to contact them.

Shi Lei said polite words, but he just wanted to drive them out as soon as possible.

After Gu Xu and the dowry were burned, Shi Lei stood in the yard, looking at the clear blue sky above his head, and remained silent for a long time.

Suddenly, he remembered Luo Si's prophecy - "Gu Xu will be able to cultivate to the realm above a saint in the future."

Shi Lei thought: If Gu Xu was protected by God and successfully escaped this catastrophe, then one day in the future, he will return to Luojing City with a powerful and dazzling posture to settle the current account?
But he quickly shook his head, pushing the ridiculous thought out of his mind.

There were many strong men in the Great Qi Dynasty, and the security was tight. It was impossible for Gu Xu to have any chance to escape safely.

Even if he really ran out of the country and cultivated to a level above that of a saint, he might not be able to fight against Emperor Tianxing.

Like Yan Guogong Zhao Changying, isn't he the strongest true king of the eighth realm?

But he was still defeated by Emperor Tianxing.

"The emperor is invincible," Shi Lei told himself in his heart, "Xiao Han...she still has to work hard to adapt to a new life without Gu Xu."

…………

Luojing City, Shouchangfang.

As the saying goes, "the tree falls and the monkeys scatter".

When Gu Xu changed from being the proud son of heaven to a traitor who everyone shouted and beat, this elixir workshop under his name was no longer the scene of prosperous business and crowded people in the past, but became empty and desolate. deserted.

In the workshop, many monks who came here because they admired Gu Xu's reputation also took their luggage and went their separate ways.

Logically speaking, if Gu Xu committed treason, all his property would be taken over by the imperial court.

However, considering that "Shouchangfang" was originally the property of the Shi family, in order to appease Shi Lei and his family, Princess Zhaoning, who presided over the political affairs, returned it to the Shi family.

It's just that the "Shouchangfang" plaque written by Gu Xu himself was roughly torn down from the top of the gate by the court officers and soldiers, thrown into the stove, and burned to ashes.

At this very moment, in front of the bare gate, Yang Shuo, the steward of the Shi family, was grabbing Shen Qiu's sleeve and persuading him tirelessly: "Mr. Shen, please stay! This elixir workshop is Your hard work, can you bear to watch it decline day by day?
"Mr. Shen, the Shi family is very wealthy and has a strong foundation. The treatment it can give you will definitely not be worse than that traitor Gu Xu gave you.

"Staying here, you can realize your ideals and ambitions without any scruples, and you don't have to worry about being implicated—"

"—— Shi Qianhu taught you to say these words!" Shen Qiu interrupted his words in his usual sharp tone with his light luggage on his back.

Guanshi Yang was stunned for a moment, then smiled wryly, and nodded: "You still guessed it."

He knew that the reason why "Shouchang Fang" was able to develop and grow in a short period of time was because of Gu Xu's reputation on the one hand, and Shen Qiu's proper management on the other hand.

But now Gu Xu has become a wanted criminal.

If his retainer Shen Qiu also left, then this elixir workshop would be returned to its original shape in an instant.

Therefore, both Shi Lei and Guanshi Yang very much hoped that Shen Qiu could stay and continue to operate this elixir workshop.

Steward Yang paused for a moment, and then said: "But Mr. Shen, you must know that Master Shi is very sincere to you. If you are willing to stay, he is willing to pay double the salary—"

"I reject."

While Shen Qiu said calmly, he pulled his sleeves out of Guanshi Yang's hands, then turned around and walked towards the deserted street.

He is short in stature, but when the sun shines on him, his shadow is elongated.

Steward Yang used his agility to catch up with him in a hurry: "Mr. Shen, do you really stop thinking about it? You should be clear that your current identity is somewhat sensitive. If you leave here, you may not be able to find a better one in the future." -"

"——Tell me, Master Shi," Shen Qiu interrupted him again, "I, Shen Qiu, will only recognize one Dong Weng in my life."

As soon as he finished speaking, he walked like the wind and quickly disappeared at the end of the street.

　I found that the plot content is more than expected, and the second volume should take a day or two to finish.

　　PS: Gu Xu and Shi Xiaohan will not be BE, everyone can rest assured.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)