Fu Shifeng

Chapter 272
The east wind is strong, and the giant boats are breaking through the waves. Standing on the deck and looking to both sides, the trees on both sides of the river are swaying, and the hills are rolling in the distance. Even in broad daylight, you can see the steaming smoke and the rippling mist. Under the rivers and lakes, there seems to be something. A gigantic beast swallowed clouds and puffed out mist.

Cheng Sanwu was very interested. Looking around, he could see with the naked eye dots of white sails on the river and boats like clouds. They were constantly going to and from Baling City, which was built on the river and had walls like embankments.

Baling City is not only adjacent to the Yangtze River, but also connected to Dongting Lake. The surrounding waters are vast and mighty. Cheng Sanwu even felt that it would not be surprising if there were any great aquatic monsters raised here.

After Changqing's wedding banquet ended, Cheng Sanwu packed up and set off on the road. Changqing was quite reluctant to leave, but he also knew that he could not keep her and could only agree to meet again in the future.

And Afu has already made all kinds of preparations. After Cheng Sanwu leaves, she will prepare for retreat and begin to break through the innate realm.

Of course, Cheng Sanwu did not go alone to do the work, he also brought Qin Wangshu, Zhang Fan and other subordinates with him.

"Your enemy Yang Wujiu seems to be the master of Zhurong Mansion in Hengyang, right?" Cheng Sanwu leaned on the side of the boat and asked Qin Wangshu who was standing beside him.

"Yes." Qin Wangshu nodded vigorously, with a rare fluctuation in his cold expression.

"I guess we will have to go to that area this time. If there is a chance, let's solve it easily." Cheng Sanwu looked at Qin Wangshu: "But you alone may not be the opponent of the Lord Zhu Rong."

"The Snake Sword Technique is designed for assassination. I don't need to fight him head-on." Qin Wangshu pressed his hand on the hilt of the sword.

"The truth is one thing, but doing it is another matter." Cheng Sanwu scratched his chin. After being separated from Afu, he could finally grow a beard with peace of mind:
"It is said that he has cultivated the Yanfeng Sword Technique to the sixth level. This is the only example in the world. I can't say whether he has an innate state, but assassination techniques may not be useful to him."

There are a total of six levels of Yanfeng Sword Technique, and it is not necessarily related to whether Yuan Gong's body has entered the innate state, but is a single-finger sword technique attainment.

Now that Cheng Sanwu has mastered the fifth level, the Yanliu sword light can move according to his heart, and combined with his extremely powerful Yuan Gong Qi, he can already compete with the innate masters for a short time. Of course, there are also differences between high and low people.

But for the sixth level of Yanfeng Swordsmanship, even the sword manual collected by Yinlongsi does not have much detailed description. Instead, there is only one sentence that "the wind and fire are endless, and the divine edge is invisible", which is different from the previous crude and vulgar writing. It's so different that one wonders if the comment was added by Master Yinlong himself.

But Cheng Sanwu was too lazy to care too much. Anyway, Yanfeng Sword Technique can only be experienced in life-and-death battles. The path of seclusion and meditation is not suitable for him. It is better to see the real results on the battlefield.

The big ship gradually approached Baling Pier. With Cheng Sanwu's eyesight, he could already see the government personnel displaying guards of honor on the shore and arranging a welcoming posture.

This time I came to Xiaoxiang to eradicate the thousand-year-old ghost king. Naturally, I took a boat upstream and came to Baling, Yuezhou to understand the situation, and then turned south.

Chu Zhongcheng himself did not accompany him, but returned to Chang'an after delivering the message. As for Chongguang Jun, the violent and aggressive little devil, he tried to trouble Cheng Sanwu several times on the ship, but was dissuaded by Rou Zhaojun.

After all, with Cheng Sanwu's style, if they really let go and fight, not to mention who wins and who loses, this big ship will probably be broken into countless pieces of driftwood.

After the ship docked and the bridge was set down, Cheng Sanwu heard the sound of blowing and beating coming from the ceremonial guard at the dock.

"It's so lively." Cheng Sanwu was quite curious. Seeing Rou Zhaojun coming to the side, he asked: "Do we have to be so high-profile now? Looking at this posture, I'm afraid we will have to clean the streets and clear the way later, which will cause a lot of noise. Everyone in the city knows it.”

Lord Rou Zhao gently put on his curtain hat, and Lord Chongguang couldn't help but speak first: "We represent the imperial court to eradicate the sneaky, so the local government should naturally welcome us!"

"Well, that makes sense." Cheng Sanwu nodded: "We should work with our heads in our belts and enjoy ourselves."

"Lao Zhaoyang is the one who handles the matter of handover with the government." Rou Zhaojun said, "Both Xiao Chongguang and I are not good at dealing with the government."

"Me?" Cheng Sanwu was stunned: "I don't know how to deal with the government."

"Jun Zhaoyang has not even attended the Gongchen Guard, but he has already made Fang Jiezhen fearful. This shows that he is very clever and makes me admire him for his good health." When Rou Zhaojun mentioned Shuo Fang's matter, her tone did not have the slightest hint of coercion or urging. It felt like It seems to be praising the man's virility, which makes people feel excited.

"Okay! Let you see how thick and hard I am!" Cheng Sanwu slapped his chest and stepped forward with his head held high.

"Lu Xuan, governor of Yuezhou, pays homage to the Minister of Internal Affairs." A red-robed official saw Cheng Sanwu arriving and hurriedly led a dozen meritorious officials to come forward and salute.

"Lu Xuan? Is Fan Yang from the Lu family?" Cheng Sanwu asked.

"Exactly." Seeing that the other party mentioned the Fan Yang Lu family, Lu Xuan subconsciously straightened his back and showed a proud look: "Xia Guan studied the "Book of Rites" at Hongfan Academy more than 20 years ago and gained some experience. Later, he was favored by the saint. Mu Shou Fang."

Cheng Sanwu felt his ears hurt when he heard these sour words, and said with a look of boredom on his face: "Okay, okay, stop talking nonsense. Let me ask you, what are you doing with these ceremonial guards?"

Lu Xuan did not expect that the other party would be so vulgar and uncivilized, and secretly regretted it. He considered himself to be from a famous family, and he hated those rude and reckless men the most. In order to make progress, I spent a lot of effort to restore the welcome etiquette and music from ancient books. This person turned out to be completely ungrateful. It is really hateful!
"This... envoy is here in person, so naturally he should be treated with courtesy." Lu Xuan answered while suppressing his displeasure.

"Who told you we were coming?" Cheng Sanwu asked, raising his eyes and scanning: "You actually know exactly how fast we are traveling and when we will arrive. You are quite capable."

Lu Xuan was confused for a moment, and turned back to look at the assistants behind him. One of them reminded in a low voice: "It's the news from the owner of Yunmeng Pavilion."

"Oh, it was Yunmeng Pavilion who informed me." Lu Xuan repeated to Cheng Sanwu.

"Yunmeng Pavilion?" Cheng Sanwu looked strange: "It sounds like a brothel."

"No, that is a spiritual sect active in the Dongting area." Lu Xuan then remembered: "The envoy did not know that the land of Jingchu and Chu has always had strong witchcraft and bad habits. An act of sacrifice. Many officials have tried to rectify it, but to no avail. Fortunately, there are disciples from the Yunmeng Pavilion who are hunting down evil spirits everywhere, and this has changed the local customs."

Cheng Sanwu didn't speak immediately, which was what he found strange. Because to deal with evil spirits and evil spirits, it is often not the Ministry of Internal Affairs' turn to send experts. Those Buddhist and Taoist masters and practicing sects who have been entrenched in the local area for many years can handle the matter themselves.

Whenever there are demons and monsters causing harm, these local snakes are often the first to be affected. Even from the most secular perspective, people have been rooted in the local area for a long time and have been operating for a long time. Even the officials dispatched and appointed by the court may not be in awe, how can they have a good look at the evil spirits sneaking into their territory?
It's just that this time Cheng Sanwu and the others have to deal with a thousand-year-old ghost king, and it's really hard to tell who is the "local snake".

"It seems that this Yunmeng Pavilion knows everything about our movements?" Cheng Sanwu curled his lips: "Where are they? Take us to see them."

Lu Xuan smiled bitterly and replied: "Yunmeng Pavilion is not in the city. Their dojo is located in Junshan in Dongting Lake. You have to take a boat to get there. The envoy might as well go to the guesthouse for a while, and the lower official will immediately send someone to invite the disciples of Yunmeng Pavilion to come. ?”

Cheng Sanwu looked disdainful and sneered a few times. He could see at a glance that Governor Lu had been ignored by the local subordinates, to the extent that he would just follow what his subordinates said. He probably created this set of rituals just to please himself, thinking he would have a chance to get promoted.

"Okay, you go and invite me." Cheng Sanwu didn't bother with the other party and let the other party arrange it. At the same time, he called Qin Wangshu and whispered: "Follow the person who sent the message and take a look at the Yunmeng Pavilion. What's the origin?" "Yes." Qin Wangshu agreed very simply. She had a background in doing this kind of sneak spying, and quietly left the crowd.

Cheng Sanwu and his party came to stay at the guest house. The so-called guest house was actually a large house in the city. It was equipped with carved beams, painted beams, pavilions and pavilions. It was obviously the residence of a wealthy family.

Not bothering to ask Lu Xuan how he got a place for them to live in, Cheng Sanwu waved away the state officials and then talked to the other two Tai Sui alone.

"We were targeted before we even landed. What do you think?" Cheng Sanwu asked.

"I don't feel like I'm being watched or spied on." Mr. Chongguang shook his shoulders and said with a hint of annoyance, "When the people from the Yunmeng Pavilion come, I'll beat him up and force him to tell me what he did!"

"If people don't know, wouldn't your efforts be in vain?" Cheng Sanwu asked.

"Then we have to fight!" Mr. Chongguang was very surly, playing with the three-pronged iron ruler.

Cheng Sanwu looked at the other one: "Rou Zhaojun is from Jingchu, so he should be very familiar with Yunmeng Pavilion, right?"

"No, I know very little about Yunmeng Pavilion." Rou Zhaojun replied: "This is not a sect with a long tradition, but a sudden rise in the past ten years."

"No way." Cheng Sanwu was greatly surprised: "These practicing sects recruit disciples and teach the Dharma. If they want to cultivate a group of disciples, it can take tens to hundreds of years, and these disciples may not be very powerful."

This is not an exaggeration. In fact, in many practicing sects, it is already very good to have one successful disciple in one generation to continue the inheritance. Even many sects, that is, three or two generations after the founder, can still hold on to the situation, but then they continue to decline.

Just like the Songyue Fu Zang Palace, Daguan Zhenren can be regarded as the founder, and Chang Qing is even more impressive. But apart from the two of them, there are many disciples in the Fu Zang Palace, but they are all mediocre people, and they can't even use magic. So.

According to Lu Xuan's previous words, Yunmeng Pavilion seems to be quite powerful. It doesn't look like a sect that has been famous for more than ten years.

"Since none of us have sensed it, it means that the other party is not using magic to spy, or..." Rou Zhaojun said: "The cultivation level is far above ours."

"How can there be so many masters in this world?" Cheng Sanwu said: "Maybe they are just good at calculating. They expected us to arrive today and informed the government in advance."

The group waited for a while, and Zhang Fan came to report: "The local supervisor is here. Do you want to invite him in?"

"Call him in."

I saw a short, fat man coming to the hall with a slight limp. He quickly bowed to Cheng Sanwu and others: "My surname is Luo, my single name is Hong. I pay my respects to the three envoys."

"Manager Luo, can we trust you?" Cheng Sanwu asked an irrelevant question.

Luo Hong was stunned for a moment and asked in confusion: "Why did the envoy say this?"

"A few of us just came from Jiangnan East Road. I believe you have also received the news." Cheng Sanwu said: "The supervisor of Jiangnan East Road took the lead in the rebellion, and the people in the Ministry of Internal Affairs there have all been changed from top to bottom. Regardless of Whether you want to participate in the rebellion or not, it’s because the person leading the rebellion was so reckless that even I was almost killed by him.”

Luo Hong's face turned slightly pale, and his voice became shrill with fright: "Xiaguan, Xiaguan has been in office for less than two years. Please give me a clear warning!"

"Less than two years?" Cheng Sanwu scratched his head: "It seems you don't know much about the local situation?"

Luo Hongzhan was trembling with fear and breaking out in a cold sweat: "I have been collecting information from all sources attentively, and I dare not make any oversights."

Cheng Sanwu sat there and looked up at the beams, rolling his eyes, suddenly thinking of something, and asked: "Didn't your predecessor leave you anything?"

Luo Hong replied: "It was precisely because the previous inspector general died of illness suddenly that I sent a subordinate to take over."

"Died of illness? Died directly in office?" Seeing the other party nodding, Cheng Sanwu asked again: "What illness?"

"It is said that he was not acclimatized to the climate and contracted dysentery. The medicine and stone were ineffective, and he died over time." Luo Hong was helpless. If he could, he would not take up a post in the Xiangheng area. It would be better to stay in Guanzhong.

Just when Luo Hong was thinking wildly, he was surprised to see Cheng Sanwu's figure flashing in front of him. He tightened his wrist and was clasped by the opponent's fingers. A hot breath penetrated into his body along his arm, making him unable to move.

Before Luo Hong could speak, Cheng Sanwu let go of his hand and sneered: "You are about to have a stroke. If you leave it alone, you will probably be paralyzed in bed in a year or two, unable to even control your bowel movements." .”

"Ah?!" Luo Hong was shocked.

"Don't you feel it yourself? You can't even walk with a limp!" Cheng Sanwu pointed at the opponent's legs and feet.

Luo Hong instinctively grabbed the hem of his leg and turned pale: "I thought it was a leg injury caused by falling off a horse in the early years..."

Cheng Sanwu sneered and sat back down. Rou Zhaojun lifted the corner of his hat, stared at Luo Hong for a moment, and said, "It's not poisoning or a poison, it's more like... a curse."

"A curse?" Cheng Sanwu was a little confused: "A curse like stabbing a little clay figurine with a nail?"

"almost."

Cheng Sanwu put his hands on his hands and laughed and said, "Okay, I'm sure the last supervisory director also died like this!"

Luo Hong was very nervous: "Did someone deliberately attack the chamberlain?"

"I still want to ask you." Cheng Sanwu said with a smile: "Our coming to Baling was not notified to the local officials in advance, but they were able to greet us at the pier without warning. I was originally wondering whether it was the people here who leaked the news. The news is that it needs to be cleaned up if it's not safe. It's good now, before we can take action, all the local staff in the Ministry of Internal Affairs are almost dead!"

(End of this chapter)