Pawn Crossing the River

The sky gradually changed from pitch black to deep blue, and a touch of fish belly white floated at the end of the sky.

The days are long in summer, and soon it will be bright.

It was very hot and muggy in Jinling Mansion at this time, and there was not even a breath of wind. Some people had already gotten up early and came out to fetch water.

Not all people in Jinling drink water from the Qinhuai River or other major rivers. There are still many wells in Jinling Mansion. Usually more than a dozen households share a well, and they usually queue up to get water, so they sometimes have to rush early in the morning.

At this time, many people were discussing in front of the well. Later people saw it and went forward. They saw a strange fish in the water pulled out of the well. It was completely black and had four limbs, like a four-legged snake. , and like a toad, the skin is full of pimples, a little disgusting and oozing.

At this moment, a Qingluan guard ran over with a sword in his hand and a small flag behind his back, which shocked the people and dispersed one after another.

The Qingluan guard came to the well, glanced at the bucket, and said loudly without taking a breath: "The county government has issued an order. A thief poisoned the well in the city. The well is temporarily closed and cannot be used!"

Jinling Prefecture is a trinity, it is both a state city and a prefecture city, and there is Fuguo County under the prefecture city. In other words, the county government office, the government government office, the provincial government office, the governor's government office, and the governor's government office were all in the same city. That is to say, the county magistrate, the prefect, the envoy, the governor, and the governor are all in the same city.

There is a saying in the official circles: If you were not good in your previous life, you will be a magistrate in this life; if you were evil in your previous life, the magistrate will be attached to Guo; if you are full of evil, you will be attached to Guozhou City. The other magistrates of other counties were Bailihou, but the magistrate of Fuguo County was like a servant girl, staggering and swaying, with hundreds of millions of servants, and exhausted. People in the officialdom thought that it was too difficult to be the magistrate of Fuguo County, and he was not worthy of it. That's why it is said that those who have done evil in the previous life should be attached to County Magistrate Guo. This is retribution. If you do more evil, the retribution will be heavier.

At this time, when dealing with ordinary people, the county government must come forward, so what Qingluan Guard passed on was the county government's order.

When the people heard this, they were startled again and started talking a lot. One of the elders asked: "I dare to ask this superior, when will we be able to use water? We can't go without water all the time. That's it." A well, we are far away from the water hall."

Qingluan Wei replied: "The water in the water hall cannot be used for the time being. When the Taoist priests come to purify the water and they say it can be used, that will be fine."

With that said, Qingluan Guard took out two yamen seals and pasted them above the well mouth to form the character "乂", and pasted the prepared notice on the wall not far away.

After doing this, Qingluan Guard went in another direction without stopping.

The people gathered in front of the notice, and some literate people stood up and read the notice loudly.

Speaking of which, this is also a merit of this dynasty. There are more than ten times more literate people than in the previous dynasty. Basically everyone can write their own name and understand ten numbers, which is enough for daily life.

After more than half an hour, two Taoist priests who were sweating profusely ran over. They had large and small satchels hanging on their bodies, carrying wooden boxes in their hands, and carrying a large box similar to a scholar's box behind them. They glanced at the seal on the well. , stopped, put down the large and small boxes, took out the talismans and various bottles and jars, and began to prepare to purify the curse of Zhiming Cult.

The Taoist sect and the Zhiming Sect have been enemies for more than a day or two. There are ways to crack many of the Zhiming Sect's methods. This is also the duty that Taoist sects should fulfill, otherwise why would Taoist priests be respected by others, and why would they have such aloof status and hold great power? They just have to stand up and protect the safety of a party at critical moments.

It's just that Jinling Mansion has been in peace for a long time, and there are too many Taoist priests in the flower garden. This sudden change made it inevitable that everyone was in a hurry, whether it was the high-quality Taoist priests responsible for dispatching and commanding or others above.

As far as Jiangnan Provincial Government is concerned, the old city is fine and well organized, and the situation can be easily understood. The difficulty is in shantytowns and other places, where there is a mixture of good and bad. In addition to the complex composition of the people, the environment and terrain are also very complicated. Even the government officials and Qingluan guards who interact with various forces are also difficult to explain clearly.

Fortunately among the misfortunes, Li Mingcheng transferred a large number of Beichen Hall spiritual officers into the shanty town, nominally to arrest the Beggar Clan. It was a mistake, but it indirectly maintained the situation here and did not turn into the worst situation.

But even so, the situation is still not optimistic.

In a low and messy shanty town in the outer city, a man was fetching water. The well was very crude and did not even have a pulley. He could only lift it up slowly with both hands. Without strength, he really couldn't do the work of fetching water. . But even so, it is still much less laborious than carrying water to the Qinhuai River.

It is precisely because this well is so simple that even the military command department does not know its existence, and no one comes to put a seal on it.

After a while, the man finally lifted the barrel up and placed it on the edge of the well.

At this moment, a strange fish with two wings jumped out of the barrel and bit the man on the shoulder.

The man screamed and stretched out his hand to tear off the strange fish. Unexpectedly, the strange fish had a pair of sharp teeth and tore off a piece of the man's flesh. Dark blood immediately flowed from the wound.

At this time, on a street in the old city, two soldiers from the Military Command Department were prying open the stone slabs above the culverts on both sides of the street. Two Taoist priests were standing not far away. Although it was early in the morning, it was still a bit hot. The two Taoist priests were not sufficiently cultivated. Sweat could not help but flow from their foreheads. They could not help but use their sleeves as fans to fan themselves.

A Taoist priest said: "Oh my god, I heard that other places are reinforcing dams to prevent floods. It's better here. It doesn't wind or rain. It's really a different world. Forget it, there was a big fire last night. The Zhenwu Temple was burned to ashes, and demons are making noise again this morning. What a world."

Another Taoist priest said softly: "Shut your stinky mouth, what kind of world is this? Of course it is a peaceful world, let people hear it. If anything happens today, you and I will inevitably be scolded."

The two soldiers from the Military and Horse Command Department were also whispering. They were not authentic men in black. They were among the ranks of auxiliary soldiers. During wartime, they were responsible for transporting grain and grass, digging fortifications, and various chores. Among their responsibilities in peacetime were There is the matter of clearing ditches. The sewers of Jinling Mansion are very large, divided into underground channels and open channels, and are complicated. The specific map is in the hands of the Military Command Department. Early this morning, before dawn, the Military Command Department issued an order to cooperate with Jiangnan. The government cleared the ditch.

According to the rules, ditches should be cleaned every year and repaired every three years. They were just cleaned once this year, so why do they need to be cleaned again? Isn't this what you feel after eating enough?

But I had no choice but to disobey the orders from above, so I had no choice but to come early in the morning to fight against the smelly ditch.

One person whispered: "Old Xu, if you tell me to clean the ditch, just clean the ditch. Why are you related to these Taoists again? These Taoists are usually the ones who keep the soles of their shoes from getting muddy. How can they care about this?" The thing is, you always stayed away when you saw us clearing ditches, why did you take the initiative to come closer this time? "

Another person said feebly: "It must be the same as us, it is a task pressed down by the superiors, otherwise they are willing to be supervisors here?"

"That's the truth. I don't know what the gentlemen above want to do. Could it be that His Majesty the Emperor is coming to Jinling Palace?" The man from before couldn't help but guess.

"Stop guessing and work quickly. The sun will come out soon, and you will suffer."

Just as he was talking, the thick stone slab was finally pried open, revealing the culvert below, and a damp air mixed with a stinky smell came up.

The two of them took a closer look, ignoring the smell, and couldn't help but gasp.

I saw many strange fish swimming in the culvert. They had tentacles, but they were not squid.

The two Taoist priests stepped over and their expressions became solemn after seeing the strange fish in the culvert.

The door of the Jiangnan Daofu warehouse in Dinghuaimen was pushed open heavily by several people.

A Taoist priest in charge strode into the warehouse, looked around, and immediately cursed: "You bastards, aren't you equipped with 'little dragon balls'? Why don't you use them? Are you waiting to catch fire?"

It's not his fault. It's hot in the summer, and the warehouse is filled with all kinds of supplies. It's like stepping into a steamer and sweating like rain. The Taoist priest in charge has just been angry at the deputy hall master, so naturally On point.

The deacon Taoist priest who followed in was scolded by the Taoist priest in charge, and immediately turned back to scold the Taoist priest guarding the warehouse: "The warehouse regulations clearly state that the 'Little Dragon Ball' must be opened at twelve hours. Who closed the 'Little Dragon Ball'? "

The so-called "little dragon beads" are Daomen's imitation dragon beads. They are divided into several models. They cannot drive the flying boat for the time being, but they can effectively reduce the temperature and have fire protection effects. However, they also need "xuanhuang" as a supplement.

Another deacon Taoist priest continued: "This month's 'Xuanhuang' has been used up."

"How come the accounts reported by Xuanhuang Division are all top-notch? I think you are so poor that you are crazy!" The Taoist priest in charge cursed again, "Even 'Xuanhuang' is greedy, so just be greedy and just connect a pipe to Zhenwu Lake. Even the water bill is saved!”

After all, the deacon Taoist priest felt guilty and did not dare to reply. He turned around and scolded his subordinates: "What are you doing standing there stupidly? Why don't you quickly activate the 'Little Dragon Ball'?"

Immediately a Taoist priest went to activate the 'Little Dragon Ball'.

The Taoist priest in charge let out a heavy breath and ordered: "Prepare relief materials. It's best if they are not needed. If necessary, they can be shipped out immediately. If there is a shortage, I don't need to say anything. The investigation team can It’s in Jinling Mansion.”

The two deacons and Taoist priests responded quickly.

Seeing that the two of them were still dealing with the same attitude as usual, the Taoist priest in charge suddenly raised his voice: "What I'm talking about this time is a serious matter. Don't think of doing it perfunctorily. I tell you, this is a big deal that will make you lose your head. If you can’t do it, or don’t want to do it, tell it in advance and let someone else do it. If you don’t do it, someone else will do it!”

The two deacons and Taoist priests quickly straightened their faces and responded submissively.

Similar scenes occurred in various places in Jinling Mansion. It can be said that except for the man in black, all available hands were mobilized.