I was an alchemist in those years

Fengyang was originally an inconspicuous little place in China, because Zhu Yuanzhang, Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, gave Fengyang a deeper meaning in this small town. An important place in my heart.

All ages are fundamental.

It has been seven days since we arrived in Fengyang. After we left Dushan, we rushed here non-stop. When we arrived in Fengyang, we first saw the Fengyang Drum Tower, which is known as the first building in the world. The bell towers in the city are six miles apart, facing each other on both sides of the central axis of the capital city.

The Drum Tower is composed of two parts: the base and the building. It is the largest base of the Drum Tower. In the Ming Dynasty, the Drum Tower has always been regarded as the most tall and majestic in China.

According to the reminder on the Tongzi Diaowen Inkstone, the last Ming Tombs should be related to the Town God's Temple in Fengyang City. It is said that Zhu Yuanzhang was born in the Town God's Temple. Zhu Yuanzhang had the same horoscope and no one was spared. Zhu Yuanzhang's mother survived because she hid in the Town God's Temple to give birth. This is why Zhu Yuanzhang praised the Town God's Temple after he became emperor.

Since it can protect the Chenghuang Temple where the emperor came into the world, the incense must not go anywhere, so we can easily find this temple by asking a few people in Fengyang City.

The Town God's Temple in front of you is located in the south of Fengyang City. It has been more than 600 years ago. Although it has gone through vicissitudes, it is still magnificent. Exquisite, the original sculptures in the hall have statues of the city god, judge, and imp.

Town God's Temple is a Taoist temple. There are five large archways at the entrance of the mountain, with double eaves and a rolling shed roof before the rest, and a five-beam structure.The roof is five ridges and six beasts, with three rows in the middle, two rows on each side of the vertical ridge, and four wing corners covered with tiles.

Above the archway, there are overlapping bucket arches, and under the archway, there is a pair of iron lions. Inside the mountain gate, there is a bluestone corridor hundreds of meters long leading directly to the two gates, with a Wenchang Pavilion in between.

Entering the second gate, there is an exquisite and beautiful theater building. The theater building faces the main hall from north to south. In the middle is a magnificent wooden archway. The city god is enshrined in the middle, and the magistrates, bull-headed horse faces, and black and white impermanence are enshrined on both sides.

Zhu Yuanzhang left four words in Tongzi Yuwen Inkstone, have you come? We saw the same words on the plaque on the back of the doorway. Zhu Yuanzhang seemed to be implying this place, but although the Town God’s Temple is famous, it is not It's not big, I looked back and forth for a whole day inside and out, and I didn't find anything strange.

The Great Hermit hides in the city. Is that what Zhu Yuanzhang meant? There are many tourists in this Town God's Temple. It would make sense to bury the Fourteenth Tombs of the Ming Dynasty here. A small slit was cut in the pillar.

"This place has been renovated, and this archway was built by later generations. I believe that this Town God's Temple has not been preserved intact." Wen Zhuo dropped the stone in his hand and said in a low voice.

I nodded thoughtfully. The four words left by Zhu Yuanzhang have two meanings. Either the clues to the Fourteen Tombs are in the Town God’s Temple, or the Fourteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty are here.

However, if it is the first type, judging from the clues left by Zhu Yuanzhang before, he is an extremely cautious person, and he will never leave clues in a place that is easy to destroy, so even if there are clues about the Four Tombs of the Ming Dynasty here, he will not be here. In the Town God's Temple.

As for the second type, if Zhu Yuanzhang buried the Fourteenth Tombs of the Ming Dynasty under the Town God's Temple, then the project would not be too small. This is in Fengyang City, and such a large-scale construction project will definitely leak out. Let's kill all the people in the city, not to mention that he himself knows that this is the root of his claim to be emperor.

I turned around and found that Wen Zhuo brought a woman over. His peach blossoms were indeed blooming brilliantly, and he had never been coquettish in the places he went. The woman was a guide and Wen Zhuo brought her here after a few words. I asked her about the City God Temple. , the answer is the same as our guess.

It was rebuilt by the Hongwu 27th Company. It has been repaired and rebuilt in successive dynasties, but the architectural style and architectural groups have maintained their original appearance.

"It has been repaired all the time?" Xiao Lianshan asked.

"It was well preserved in the Ming Dynasty. However, due to wars, natural disasters and continuous riots in later generations, the Town God's Temple has been damaged many times. The Town God's Temple we see today was rebuilt in modern times, and even the foundation of the original site has been re-excavated." The female guide patiently explained to us.

"Has the foundation been dug?" I asked.

The female guide nodded. Before the reconstruction, the Town God's Temple was destroyed in a long period of disrepair. Because the original foundation was used for several hundred years of history, the foundation was overwhelmed by several repairs, so the foundation was also rebuilt and excavated for the last construction.

I looked around in amazement and asked in an emphatic tone, how far the foundation was excavated at that time, the female guide’s answer made me somewhat disappointed. Taking the Town God’s Temple as the base point, a 300-meter radius has been excavated, and the foundation was rebuilt and the excavation depth reached [-] meters. In order to prevent water seepage, digging to more than ten meters in various places.

"Is there..." Wen Zhuo had a smile on his face that the female guide couldn't resist. "Have you dug up anything? Maybe there is a treasure here?"

"You have too much imagination, but there are rumors that there is a treasure under the Temple of the City God. It has always been a rumor. During the reconstruction, the foundation was dug, but nothing was found." The female guide answered affirmatively.

Wen Zhuo looked at me. He must have thought the same as me. We guessed that it was wrong for Zhu Yuanzhang to bury the fourteenth tomb of the Ming Dynasty in the Chenghuang Temple. There must be a waterproof soil layer in the excavated soil. People with a little archaeological knowledge can also know that there is something underneath. Since they have not found it, it can only mean that the Ming Tombs are not underneath.

Then there is only one last possibility left. Zhu Yuanzhang left the clues of the Fourteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty in the Temple of the City God, and it is a place that will not die no matter what.

But this idea was shattered by the female guide's words after a few minutes. She told us that although the Town God's Temple we saw so far was built according to its original appearance, the Town God's Temple was destroyed by war after the Ming Dynasty. Some changes have been made, and what we see now is only similar to the original appearance in shape, but no one knows how much the difference is.

I suddenly found that the last Ming Tombs had become a very troublesome matter. If we followed the female guide's intention, even if we knew that the clues were in the Ming Tombs, it would not help. Maybe the clues left behind had already been destroyed. The only one who knows the exact location is probably Qin Yishou, he won't tell me, let alone I don't know where he is now.

It was impossible to start. I looked at the majestic temple in front of me blankly, feeling helpless.

"Are you here on a special trip to visit the ancient city of Fengyang?" The female guide was clearly asking Wen Zhuo alone.

"I heard that this Town God's Temple has a lot to do with Zhu Yuanzhang, so I came here to see it." Wen Zhuo was absent-minded now.

"There are two famous temples in Fengyang. One is the Huangjue Temple where Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang became a monk. It was built at the foot of Rijing Peak on Fenghuang Mountain in the north of Fengyang City. It was built in the 16th year of Hongwu and was a royal temple building in the Ming Dynasty." Female The guide didn't see Wen Zhuo's disappointment and said kindly. "Also known as Dalongxing Temple, the scale is grand. It is said that monks and boys ride horses to close the mountain gate. The temple was built by famous craftsmen in Zhongdu.

I was thinking about what to do next, but I didn't listen to what the female guide said. Wen Zhuo smiled perfunctorily, and was also a little upset.

"The most famous one is the Longxing Evening Bell. On the top of the bell is cast a pair of strange beasts that look like dragons but not dragons, called Pulao. Whenever the red sun falls in the west or the sun rises in the east, Fengling rings the bell, and its sound resounds through the sky, especially At night, the sound of the bell is very quiet, and it is spread tens of miles away. It is said that the rivers and rivers have changed, but the bell rings around Fengyang. Therefore, the ancients called the evening bell of Longxing the third of the eight scenic spots in Fengyang..."

The female guide enthusiastically introduced the scenic spots to us in detail, but Wen Zhuo interrupted her after holding back for a long time.

"We don't have much interest in other places, we just want to see this Town God's Temple."

"Then you shouldn't be here."

"..." I frowned and looked at the female guide, asking in surprise. "Isn't this the Town God's Temple? What do you mean by that?"

"If you want to visit the Town God's Temple, this is one place, but there is another place in Fengyang."

"There...is there another place?" I looked at Wen Zhuo with some surprise, and asked the female guide quickly. "Zhu Yuanzhang added the City God Temple, one temple in one place, how can there be two in Fengyang?"

"One is the original site, and the other is the place you see now."

"Isn't this the original site?!" Wen Zhuo immediately came to ask spiritually.

"Did you listen to my explanation? I told you from the beginning that the Town God's Temple here was built in the 21st year of Hongwu, and you also know that the Town God's Temple has a lot to do with Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang. There is no way to verify the fabrications of later generations, but if this is the case, it should not be in this Town God's Temple."

"Where is the other one?" I asked anxiously.

"Wolong Lake in the west of Fengyang City."