Journey to the West: All Heavens and Ten Thousand Realms

Chapter 52 Bird Clothes Lane
The cool breeze is blowing, the night is blurred, and the veil-like mist surrounds the Qinhuai River.

It has been more than ten years since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, and ten years since the Tang Emperor ascended the throne. Although the world has become peaceful, it has not yet reached the point of singing and dancing.

This bay of the Qinhuai River, the Qinhuai River that was extremely prosperous in the Southern and Northern Dynasties for hundreds of years, the Qinhuai River that was full of singing and dancing, and brightly lit... At this time, although there are pleasure boats swimming in it, they are only three or two simple boats, and the music is also there. Extremely simple and elegant, no charm, no extravagance.

There are only three or five literati inside, a glass of sake is facing the moonlight, and a flute is winding around a wisp of mist.Chat about the situation, talk about the past and present, talk about ghosts and immortals.

Just as the river was walking on the bank of the Qinhuai River, a slightly dilapidated boat floated on the river.

"Today, Mr. told us the information about the East China Sea. Obviously, we will ask about the countermeasures tomorrow! The countries in the East China Sea invaded and attacked dozens of cities in one day, and the soldiers have reached Yangzhou. However, there are generals Yuchi Baolin and Cheng Tieniu who are sitting in Yangzhou City , but no fear, the tiger father has no dogs! This cup of wine is dedicated to the soldiers who fought bloody battles on the front line. May the flag be victorious, and the souls of the soldiers who died in the Tang Dynasty will return!"

A man in a green robe raised a glass of wine to the east, and then slowly poured it into the river.

A scholar next to him with a long sword said: "The small country in the East China Sea has committed suicide, and the ghost king, who didn't devote himself to cultivating and became a ghost fairy, but was infected with the world of mortals, will not be able to escape the punishment of the [-]th hell. , will never be reincarnated."

Some people also raised their wine glasses and respectfully paid respects to the east, saying: "Confucian disciples of my generation should study and cultivate their energy. Member, you can suppress that ghost king with a single word, and return this world to a bright future. Now my Dongtu Datang is full of people who study, and in a few years, the evil spirits will have nowhere to escape. The mere ghost king, the mere East China Sea, the little It's just a disease!"

"That being said, it's easy to pass the test for a student, but it's hard to raise one's energy!"

"What Brother Zhang said is very true. I have been studying for more than ten years after the cold and summer. Although I have already started to cultivate Qi, I don't know how many mountains are away from the realm of refining and transforming Qi." Someone echoed.

At the very beginning, the man in Tsing Yi stood at the bow of the boat, and the night wind blew up, stirring up his long gown: "Refining and transforming Qi! In that realm, maybe we passed through Chunwei, and we were listed on the list, and then we have great wisdom, great perseverance, and a great source of blessings. Make a breakthrough with the help of the fate of the country. The great righteousness of the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, the fortune of a country is shared with the scholars of our generation. To become a great Confucianist, verbal criticism and pen criticism are all supernatural powers, the demons and evil spirits in the domain will definitely be wiped out, and the era of peace and prosperity will surely begin in our generation!"

"I heard that the admission of scholars began in the Sui Dynasty, so Yang..."

"Brother Zhang, speak carefully!" Someone interrupted.

The scholar surnamed Zhang was startled: "I was negligent!"

"Okay, okay, let's talk about the autumn test! Brother Zhao, this year's early autumn test, with your knowledge, Xie Yuan seems to be within reach."

The man in green shook his head, returned to the boat from the bow, sat down cross-legged, and said: "There are many people who are more knowledgeable than me, Xie Yuan dare not think about it, dare not think about it!"

Even so, his eyes were shining brightly, obviously determined to win.

"Hey! Although the Emperor Tang gave us the opportunity to be promoted from poor families, the wealthy families still control the lifeline of the country. Even the seemingly equal imperial examinations are sometimes not equal. The wealthy families only care about the rise and fall of their own families, and how can they care about the common people? , this test, we must not let the rich come out on top, we still need to work hard!"

At this time, the boat happened to pass by a ruin, and one of them pointed to the dilapidated building and said: "I heard that there is a student in Wuyi Lane, a student of Mingde Academy, who is very knowledgeable, Brother Zhao, that person It may be your rival this year!"

"Wuyi Lane? This is the ancestral house of the Wang and Xie families. Unfortunately, things are different and people are different, and the huge family is just a passing cloud. Thinking about how prosperous these two families were back then, most of the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty came from these two families. , now, don't say anything!"

"The student you are talking about is not Xie Hong, right? This person is nothing to worry about. He is physically weak and sick, and he is always running around for food and clothing. How can he have the heart to study and nourish his energy?"

"I also know this person. He is a bit conceited. He doesn't fit in with me and other poor family children, and the rich family children don't want to see him... Although he is a descendant of the Xie family, he is even more downcast than our poor family children!"

The hazy moonlight reflected the clear river, and the boat quietly entered the night from the front of Bird Clothes Lane.The river is flowing slowly, sitting on the back of the big buffalo, looking at a large area of ​​ruins on the bank, dilapidated houses, weeds, ruined walls, it is unsightly.There is only one cottage located not far from the water's edge, and it is still somewhat popular.On the water-stained wall, there are traces of green moss, and some are covered with ivy, only a window facing the river is exposed.

It was night now, except for the sound of frogs in the river and the barking of dogs in the distance, there was no sound to be heard, only a dim light from a narrow window at the east end, and coughs and coughs. ...

Looking in from the window, I saw only a table, a stool, and a bed, and a dark oil lamp was lit on the table, barely illuminating the space between three feet.On the bench was a rough porcelain bowl with a gap in it, and there were eight or nine Arhat beans in the bowl.A man in his twenties, dressed in a shabby robe and with a disheveled beard, was sitting on a stool, holding a book in his hand, and guarding the medicine jar beside him.

"Is he Xie Hong?" Jiang Liu asked, "With your help, why is he still so down and out?"

The big buffalo sighed, and said: "If it wasn't for us, he would have died already. Xie Hong was born weak and sick. We tried many medicines over the years, but they couldn't cure him. But the environment rich in spiritual energy can relieve his pain, so... Then... Come down and you will know!"

"I haven't asked you a question yet, how do you know that my master is gone?"

The big buffalo blinked and said, "The City God of Huaiyin City told me in his dream!"

"City God of Huaiyin? It's him again!" Jiang Liu frowned tightly.

The City God is a ghost fairy, an upright civil servant in heaven, who enjoys the incense of the world and the welfare of the gods.Whether the strength is strong or weak is closely related to the size of the city and the amount of incense. A large city with a large population and prosperous incense can naturally obtain more rights from the heavens.

If you want to use an analogy, it is the difference between the mayors of the second and third tiers in the Mainland and the mayors of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

Huaiyin City is an important town. Although it cannot be compared with Jinling and Yangzhou, it is still considered a big city.

The function of the City God is to maintain the movement between yin and yang. Mortals have to be judged by him before they enter reincarnation.However, if mortals are fighting, the City God cannot intervene. Only when cultivators, demons and ghosts endanger the city, the City God will take action.

The power of the City God comes from the incense, which is the power of faith. The more prosperous the incense, the stronger the City God.

These are the high-ranking local officials of the Heavenly Court facing mortals. The lowest level is the land and mountain gods, and the upper level is the King of Hades.

"City God of Huaiyin City!" Jiang Liu looked at the north with cold eyes.

(End of this chapter)