Before entering the palace, Li Yan saw a servant with an anxious face waiting tremblingly at the gate.
"Young Hero Li, you are finally back!"
His face was already red from the cold. Seeing Li Yan appear, he was immediately overjoyed. He ran over in a few steps and respectfully said, "Young Hero Li, Prince asked me to wait for you here. When you come back, go to the front hall first."
"Oh, how long have you been waiting?"
"I've been waiting since midnight..."
The boy didn't dare to complain, but he could not help showing a hint of grievance.
Li Yan heard the words but already understood the reason.
The destruction of Xu Residence has made Fifth Prince restless, especially at this critical moment, when any changes may be fatal.
Needless to say, the prince's intelligence capabilities are great. He fought in the city last night and later went to Chengdu Prefecture Yamen. He must know something.
Sure enough, when we came to the front hall, Fifth Prince Xiao Jinghong, Ming Shanzi, Sha LiFei and others came out to welcome them.
"Yan XiaoGe, are you okay?"
Sha LiFei looked worried and said in a deep voice, "After hearing the news last night, we were ready to go out, but senior Ming Shanzi said that Shu King Residence's people are still there, so we would be in trouble if we went out."
"Senior is right!"
Li Yan nodded seriously and said, "If you guys went out last night, I'm afraid there would really be a big problem."
Fifth Prince Xiao Jinghong was quite calm, and said calmly, "Everyone, let's talk after we go in."
Everyone took their seats in the hall, and the servants served hot tea.
The tea was the best Dongding Oolong, but no one was in the mood to taste it. They all looked at Li Yan.
Li Yan did not talk nonsense. He concealed the matter of "Six Idlers of the Bamboo Grove" and told about his experience in Xu Residence, the battle on the long street, and what he saw in the government office.
"Then Old Hag has extraordinary means and experience Old Taoist. He fled quickly after being defeated by me. City God Temple's movements were a bit weird..."
"King of Shu has Black Feather Guard, and there are many masters who died..."
In the hall, green smoke rises from the gilt Suan Ni incense burner.
Li Yan dipped his fingertips in cold tea and drew out last night's route and Shu King Residence layout on the huanghuali table.
The Three Stooges, the top one is Zhuge.
Although he personally experienced the battle, he was in the mountains, so others might be able to see more problems.
Sure enough, Ming Shanzi looked at the map, his eyes immediately turned gloomy, "City God Temple... there is indeed a problem."
As he said that, he also dipped his hands into some tea, clicked a few times on the table, and then connected them again, vaguely forming a Eight Trigrams Diagram.
"In the past Da Xing Dynasty, in order to resist the troubles of the Golden Horde Wolf Country monks, I, Qingcheng Emei, united with many dharma lineages to jointly set up a large formation in the city..."
"Although time has passed and the original power has long been lost, such a big movement cannot be missed by City God Temple."
"I'm afraid someone has already done something!"
At this moment, Du Gate Cao Yuanhuai next to him hesitated for a moment and suddenly said, "Black Feather Guard has a problem with those dead soldiers. Shu King Residence is in the center of the city, not far away. They have not arrived for a long time, even slower than the soldiers at the guard station..."
"Based on the speed of the galloping horses, their station is not at the palace, but somewhere outside the city!"
"Brother Cao has great eyesight!"
Li Yan nodded slightly in praise.
Although the other party had some problems with him, he really didn't expect this point mentioned.
This information can save lives at critical moments.
Cao Yuanhuai nodded indifferently, but felt a little happy in his heart.
And Li Yan turned to look at Xiao Jinghong, narrowed his eyes slightly, and said meaningfully, "Prince, what do you think?"
He also revealed this information deliberately.
He sent Xu Yongqing to Chengdu Prefecture instead of bringing him back here because he was afraid that Xiao Jinghong would hand him over out of consideration for his father and son.
Although it is cruel, there is nothing we can do.
Whether public or private, King of Shu must die!
If Fifth Prince retreats at all, he will leave immediately.
Now, even Shu King Residence may not be able to maintain this situation.
Sure enough, Fifth Prince seemed to be listening carefully, but in fact his eyes were a little flustered. He was silent for a while before speaking, "Young Hero Li, is my father really pretending to be ill and has rejuvenated his youth?"
Li Yan nodded and said, "It should be right."
"Hmph!"
Ming Shanzi also saw Fifth Prince's hesitation and snorted coldly, "It's just practicing evil magic. I don't know how many people have been harmed behind the scenes."
"If he had any friendship for you children, how could he leave Young Lord's position empty and let you kill each other?"
"At this point, the matter is no longer the fault of King of Shu alone. If he really conspires to rebel, you will also be implicated."
Xiao Jinghong took a deep breath and remembered something, his eyes became firm, "My father is in good health and his serious illness is just an illusion. What should Xiao Wang do?"
Ming Shanzi said calmly, "King of Shu's rebellion plan cannot succeed. If necessary, we can cooperate with Imperial Censor Wang."
"Also, he must die, and he cannot die in your hands!"
Fifth Prince took a deep breath, "I understand."
As he said that, he turned to look at Li Yan, "Today is Kitchen God Festival, the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month. As usual, the palace wants Three Sacrificial Animals Opening the Way, Kitchen God Army, Torch Exorcism, and Zhong Kui Dance."
"I thought it would be gone this year, but yesterday someone from the palace sent a letter asking all Prince Princess to attend."
"Pindao will accompany you."
Ming Shanzi said in a deep voice, "Shu King Residence, you must not bring too many people with you. If anyone does it openly, they will completely fall out with my Cheng family."
Li Yan thought for a moment, then said, "I'll go too."
He is not just sitting idle. The few conspirators he is looking for may be hidden in Shu King Residence. If so, he can get rid of them all.
A lot of troubles can be solved at the same time.
"That's fine."
Ming Shanzi thought for a moment and nodded in agreement, "You can go, but you just made a scene last night, so you need to dress up."
Cao Yuanhuai, who was standing next to him, hurriedly said, "I have a disguise mask, which is the master's treasure. Compared with the human skin mask, it is harder to see the flaws."
At this moment, he could already see clearly.
I and this Li Yan are not on the same level at all, and the other party has no intention of fawning over Fifth Prince, and even tried to test her just now.
The current situation is dangerous, and the safety of Fifth Prince is related to the development of their sect, so it is natural for them to do their best.
"Thank you."
Li Yan took the mask from his hand and put it on, immediately transforming into a plain-looking middle-aged man. With Dragon Snake Plate covering it up, he should be able to avoid most people.
With the plan in place, everyone immediately got busy.
As for Xiao Jinghong, he got up and went back to the backyard. He looked at Princess Consort who was full of worry, and held his beautiful hand, "A Man, things really went wrong..."
After hearing this, Princess Consort turned pale and said, "Prince, this matter is too dangerous. How about we leave? At least we can save our lives."
"Leaving? It's too late..."
"The arrow is on the string and has to be fired."
Xiao Jinghong sighed, pushed open the carved sill window, looked at the snow-covered Taihu Stone in the atrium, and said solemnly, "Kitchen God Festival Shen Hour Three Religions in previous years, my father would always be at Hall of Inherited Fortune, holding Zhu Pen Dian Zhong Kui Mu himself."
"I want to see if he still has any feeling of father and son..."
"Daoist Master, is there any harvest?"
Inside Bamboo Grove Abode, Li Yan looked at Wang Dao Xuan.
Wang Dao Xuan shook his head and smiled bitterly, "This <Five Chapters Divine Secret> is passed down from 'Chi Jiangziyu'. It is an ancient qi refining method. It is really mysterious. It is said that after practicing it, you can get Five Heads Mystical Power."
"It's Dharma Realm Mystical Power!"
Li Yan's eyes lit up, "What's the magic use of this Divine Ability?"
Wang Dao Xuan replied, "You can spit out Celestial Fiend Qi and bless the magic, but this method is really mysterious. Nowadays is no longer the time of ancient Savage Wilderness, so it is probably impossible to practice it."
"That's not necessarily the case."
Li Yan shook his head and said, "Dharma Realm Mystical Power, you can use the Divine Gang to practice. If you have this opportunity, you can't miss it. The Daoist priest just practices. Leave the rest to me."
All the divine weapons he has saved have been used up. As long as he finds another magical energy, he can give it to Wang Dao Xuan.
He naturally knows the power of Dharma Realm Mystical Power. The enemies he faces now are getting stronger and stronger, and he cannot do without the help of his companions.
"We'll talk about this later!"
Sha LiFei was a little anxious, "There are so many demons hiding in Chengdu. We can't let you be in danger alone."
"That's right."
Lu San also said in a low voice, "The Daoist master wants to practice the law, Old Sha wants to preserve his god, they just stay here, what can I do in my spare time."
"Nonsense!"
Sha LiFei rolled his eyes and said, "You stupid gourd, Wu Ba is a big fool, you are not afraid of being betrayed, so I will rest assured if you follow me. Besides, practicing at night is enough. After fifteen, it should be almost the same."
Listening to several people making fun of each other, Li Yan felt warm in his heart.
The world is dangerous, but at least these brothers care.
He pondered for a while and said, "Well, Shu King Residence is doing something, and I guess they won't send anyone to the streets. You go to the Chengdu Prefecture Yamen first to get some more gunpowder, and then go to the Fragrant Tea Pavilion, meet up with Senior Situ, and tell him what happened last night. If you have time, you can also get some news."
"Remember to dress up in disguise, Wu Ba is too eye-catching, so stay here to help the Daoist protect the law."
"Dele!"
After some arrangements, Prince also sent a servant to invite him.
Li Yan put on a mask, changed his clothes, pretended to be in charge of Xiao Jinghong's side, and followed the team out of Prince's house.
Sha LiFei and Lu San also dressed up, bypassed the back door, and walked along the path to Chengdu Prefecture Yamen...
The land of Shu is rich and prosperous, and the entire Divine Land ranks among the best.
As the only vassal king with one state as its fiefdom, Shu King Residence is naturally not small in size and is completely a reduced imperial city.
When we arrived at the Chengdu Prefecture center, we saw a towering red wall with a series of ice skates hanging on it from a distance. It was the palace wall named "Xiao Wall".
The main entrance of the palace, called Lingxing Gate, is now wide open.
Chengdu Garrison's sergeants even blocked the surrounding streets and expelled the nearby people. Only Prince Princess and invited officials could enter with tokens.
The wind and snow had stopped overnight, but the cold wind was still howling.
Fifth Prince's team was very low-key, only riding in the Qingyi sedan, including Li Yan, Ming Shanzi and others, all following on foot.
After passing through the guard line of soldiers, the streets became increasingly empty.
Arriving outside Lingxing Gate, the palace gate with red lacquer and copper nails was wide open.
Li Yan looked up and saw that on the cornices of the triple gate tower, the mocking wind Ridge Beasts was covered with plain snow, and the "Shu King Residence" in the center was polished to a shine, revealing the gold-plated Cloud Pattern written by the late emperor.
Two teams of halberd-wielding guards lined up along the Eight Characters screen wall. The red pom-poms on the shoulders of their armor were fluttering in the wind, and they both carried muskets behind them.
Of course, they are all ordinary firearms.
If the Black Feather Guard equipped with Divine Firearm appears openly and openly, the impeachment memorial will flood into the capital like snowflakes that day.
"Fifth Prince go home--!"
Wow!
The concierge sang "Nai", which frightened the jackdaws in the corners of the eaves.
Ten servants in soap clothes filed out from the side door and quickly spread out the scarlet carpet in front of the sedan. The old man stepped forward holding a gilt heating stove. The five bats holding longevity patterns were hollowed out on the stove lid, and curls of sandalwood smoke rose up.
The grandeur of the royal palace suddenly appeared.
Li Yan took a casual glance and saw several gold carriages parked at the east corner gate, and they were all pulled by green horses.
It seems that other Prince has arrived first.
"Prince, please!"
The tall soldier guarding the gate came over with a wooden tray, said something expressionless, and then glanced at the team behind him with cold eyes.
This is to enter the palace and hand over the weapons.
Li Yan already knew this rule, so he left Severing Dust Blade and Flintlock Firearm in Bamboo Grove Abode, only wearing the arm guards "Qian Nian" and Chuling Paper Figure.
These two are enough to cope with most situations.
Xiao Jinghong gave a signal, and the guards behind him presented their weapons one after another. Li Yan pretended to be a scholar and had Dragon Snake Plate in mind, so he didn't attract any attention.
After some inspection, they were finally able to get in.
Under the leadership of the palace guards, everyone passed through the five-room, three-open Duanli Gate, the towering corridor...
There are guards in full armor standing guard along the way, and the atmosphere is solemn.
Li Yan frowned immediately after seeing it.
He has also been to Royal Palace of Wu Prefecture, whose treasure house is famous all over the world, but compared to the style of Shu King Residence, it is still a level lower.
No wonder the high officials in the DPRK are so wary.
The reduction of vassal states was a national policy. In order to avoid causing resistance from the clan, the vassal king in the name of the local city was maintained as the king. If he could not appease the local area, he would be deprived of the throne.
Like a fish bait, the vassal kings were always wary of each other in order to compete for positions, making it difficult to unite, and they had to please the emperor.
It can be said that it is quite successful so far.
Only this King of Shu is particularly conspicuous. Even without these things, I am afraid that the ministers in the DPRK and China will try their best to change "King of Shu" into "King of Chengdu".
While Li Yan was thinking, they had arrived outside Chengyun Gate.
Passing through Chengyun Gate is the Shu King Residence main hall, and beyond that is the harem blocked by the palace gate.
Although it is not as large as the Royal Palace, it is still vast in area and has extraordinary momentum.
Outside Chengyun Gate, many people were already standing. The people in front of them were luxuriously dressed and wearing python robes. They were several Prince, and there were also several Princess dressed in Shu Brocade's gorgeous clothes.
Beside them, there were many Chengdu Prefecture officials, and the accompanying servants and guards were standing behind them.
Fifth Prince frowned slightly and asked, "Why are you all here?"
"Return to Prince."
The palace guard in front said solemnly, "The rules have changed today. We will first attend the ceremony outside Chengyun Gate, and then go to the palace to watch the show."
"Hmm."
Xiao Jinghong nodded and said no more.
Ming Shanzi and Li Yan glanced at each other.
They came here, firstly to protect Xiao Jinghong, and secondly because they wanted to see what kind of evil magic King of Shu had practiced now.
But depending on the situation, things seem to have changed.
Fifth Prince was the youngest. When he came to the place where Prince and Princess were, he immediately raised his hands respectfully and said, "I have met the eldest brother, the second brother, the fourth brother, and several sisters."
Before he finished speaking, he felt something was wrong.
Almost everyone's eyes were staring directly at him.
I saw that First Prince's face was as gloomy as water. He shook his fox fur and said calmly, "Lao Wu, you hid it deep enough..."