Taiping Inn

After Chu Yunshen roughly recounted the process of his capture, Li Xuandu and Qin Su finally understood the whole story. The beginning of this matter has to start with the Grand Princess Xuanzhen. The Grand Princess Xuanzhen followed the order of Queen Mother Xie Zhi to go to Jiangnan to meet with Zhao Lianggeng, the governor of Jingchu, to discuss Zhao Lianggeng's visit to the imperial capital. At the beginning, Zhao Lianggeng did not respond. After all, in the eyes of others, giving up the real power of the governor of a place and going to Beijing to be a prime minister in name only was too risky and might not be worthwhile. But when the Confucian school headed by the Wanxiang Academy began to attack Liaodong, Zhao Lianggeng finally stopped delaying and agreed to it at once, and put forward five requirements, that is, his confidant and his son would continue to govern the three states of Jingchu. The court agreed to this request.

No matter how you look at it, Zhao Lianggeng's entry into the capital is inseparable from the Confucian school. Qin Daofang and Zhao Lianggeng had an old relationship in their early years, and they were considered old friends. He wrote a letter to Zhao Lianggeng specifically to persuade him to change his mind. Chu Yunshen came to Chuzhou secretly from Qizhou because of this matter. In addition to forwarding Qin Daofang's letter, he also acted as a lobbyist. Unexpectedly, the court had already prepared and sent Qingluan Guards to set up a net in Chuzhou. Soon after Chu Yunshen entered Chuzhou, he was discovered by Qingluan Guards' spies, and then an ambush was set. Chu Yunshen was caught off guard and was besieged by Qingluan Guards and finally captured. Qingluan Guards did not want to make a big fuss about this matter, so Ding Ce personally escorted him and prepared to take the sea route. Under the cover of Qingwei Sect, Chu Yunshen was taken to the Imperial Capital from under Qin Daofang's nose.

Li Xuandu did not doubt this statement. If the governors of various places wanted to gain real power, they had to work together with local tyrants. The situation in Qizhou was complicated, like a smaller Wei Dynasty. The local tyrants were not monolithic. In addition to the Pei and Xiao families, there were also two major forces, Qingwei Sect and Sheji Academy.

The struggle between the Qingwei Sect and the Sheji Academy has caused several governors of Qizhou to have a bad ending. If you want to hold the position of governor, you must survive in the cracks between the two major forces and be impartial. It is also because of the struggle between the Qingwei Sect and the Sheji Academy that the Qingyang Sect successfully started an uprising in Qizhou. If Qizhou only had the Sheji Academy or the Qingwei Sect, no one would let the Qingyang Sect make trouble on their own territory, but both sides failed to fully control Qizhou. In this situation, both sides are unwilling to sacrifice their own strength to pacify the Qingyang Sect. Instead, they want to divert the trouble to the east and use the Qingyang Sect to attack the opponent, making the Qingyang Sect grow. The position of the governor of Qizhou has become an absolute hot potato, but this also gave Qin Daofang an opportunity. He used the power of the local family to pacify the Qingyang Sect and gain a firm foothold in Qizhou. However, Qin Daofang is far from controlling Qizhou now, so it is not difficult for the Qingwei Sect to hide it from Qin Daofang. But in this matter, the Sheji Academy will never make things difficult for the Qingwei Sect.

After listening to Chu Yunshen's words, Li Xuandu looked at Ding Ce again and asked, "I would like to ask Governor Ding, whose order did you follow?"

Ding Ce had no integrity and pride, and answered honestly, "Both sides greeted me."

Li Xuandu immediately understood that the two sides should refer to the King of Jin and the Queen Mother. Therefore, in this matter, the Queen Mother and the King of Jin have reached a consensus. Things in the world are always divided and combined. From the perspective of the whole world, it is a dispute between the Central Plains and the grassland. From the perspective of the Central Plains, it is a dispute between the court and the local areas. From the perspective of the court, it is a dispute between the Emperor's Party and the Queen's Party. There are countless factions in the Queen's Party and the Emperor's Party, which sometimes join forces and sometimes turn against each other, just like water has no constant state and changes from time to time. If you look at it with an old perspective, you will inevitably suffer.

After Li Xuandu rescued Chu Yunshen, Yechi took Ding Ce and Tang Tingfeng as guards, and the group set out again to Taiping Sect in Huainan Prefecture, Luzhou.

On the following journey, there were no more twists and turns. Li Xuandu and his group arrived at Huainan Prefecture on the 30th of the first lunar month. When they came to the Taiping Inn at the foot of the mountain, they found that it had been completely renovated, with black tiles and white walls, a square shape, and a large flag with the words "Taiping Inn" written on it. However, the inn was not welcoming guests at this time, and only Shen Changsheng was waiting for Li Xuandu and others.

When Mrs. Lu took Shen Changsheng to see Li Xuandu, she took the extremely precious mechanical crane in Taiping Sect, and the flying speed was not inferior to that of the great master of the heavenly realm. Li Xuandu and others just walked on foot, and brought Ding Ce and Tang Tingfeng, two captives, and walked slowly, so Mrs. Lu and Shen Changsheng had already returned first.

After meeting Li Xuandu, Shen Changsheng told Li Xuandu that Madam Lu invited him to the Tianji Palace for a chat, and led the way for Li Xuandu.

The entire Taiping Mountain is a continuous mountain range, all of which are private property of the Taiping Sect. From the foot of the mountain to the mountainside, there are many stone steps and mountain roads, crisscrossing and with different end points. Li Xuandu has only been the leader of the Taiping Sect for a short time, and he has been traveling most of the time. He is not familiar with the Taiping Sect. He only knows one road up the mountain to the Taiping Palace, and has not walked much on other paths. Instead of taking the main mountain road, the group took a deserted path and climbed up along the stone steps in the mountains. After walking for about an hour, they could vaguely see the continuous terraces. After another journey, the mountain road became increasingly steep, undulating along the mountain, rugged and difficult to walk, and finally came to a cliff. There was a huge hanging basket here, almost the size of an ordinary carriage. There was an iron lock connected to the top of the hanging basket, leading all the way up to the vast clouds and mist.

When the group walked into the hanging basket, they heard the sound of a mechanism "clicking", and the hanging basket began to rise slowly. It turned out that there was a winch with a noose on it, which hoisted the basket up.

The hanging basket kept rising. Qin Su was quite curious. She looked up and saw only white fog. After a while, she could see clouds floating over her head. After a while, she was in the clouds and looked down. She could only see a vast expanse of white and nothing could be seen. This reminded her of the scene when she and Li Xuan climbed down from the cliff of Shanlao Peak that day. They were also like this. At that time, Li Xuan could not move and was carried on Qin Su's back. That was the first time Qin Su had been so close to a man since she could remember. Now when she thinks back, it is still vivid in her mind, as if it happened yesterday.

After a long time, the hanging basket stopped. We have arrived at the top of the mountain. The first thing that comes into view is a huge archway made of white jade. There are four golden characters on the archway: "Peace and Worry-free". However, compared with the archway in front of Taiping Palace, it is much worse in scale and momentum.

This was not the first time Qin Su came to Taiping Sect, but it was the first time she came here. She looked around and found a huge wheel not far away, which was ten feet high and was slowly turning and circulating. There were many long mechanical unicorn arms connected to the wheel, and it was unknown where they led to.

Qin Su pointed at the giant wheel and asked curiously, "What is that?"

Li Xuandu also saw it for the first time, and then heard Chu Yunshen say, "That's called the Tianji Wheel. We can ride the hanging basket because of this thing. But the function of this thing is far more than that. There are nine Tianji Wheels in the mountain, which maintain the operation of the entire Taiping Mountain."

Li Xuandu was stunned, and then remembered that Chu Yunshen used the Taiping Sect's unique skill "Wanhua Raozhi Sword" to repel Han Yaoyue, and couldn't help asking, "Mr. Chu is also a member of the Taiping Sect?"

Chu Yunshen smiled bitterly, "Let's just say it is."

After passing the archway, there is a straight stone road, and then there is a very long staircase. These steps made of unknown materials are not static, and are divided into two parts, one part moves up and the other part moves down. As long as you stand on the steps, you don't have to take a step, you will move up and down with the steps under your feet. And from the bottom of the steps, a clear "click" sound came. Through the gaps between the steps, you can see that the gears of different sizes are turning non-stop.

This time, Li Xuandu and Qin Su were not surprised. It was not a secret that Taiping Sect was proficient in the art of mechanical devices. Since Chu Yunshen had already revealed the key, they could understand the general principle even if they did not understand the details.

After passing the steps, there was a magnificent palace at the end, with carved beams and painted buildings, and the main color was white, like a palace in the sky. There was a huge sundial and a huge clepsydra on the left and right of the door to measure the time. A plaque hung high on the door of the palace with the three characters "Tianji Palace" inscribed on it. At this time, Mrs. Lu was standing at the door to greet everyone.

Madam Lu and Chu Yunshen had obviously known each other for a long time. After meeting, Madam Lu had a complicated expression, "Brother Chu."

"Junior Sister Lu." Chu Yunshen sighed, "The sect decided to close the mountain that day, and I did not agree with this move, so I left Taiping Sect alone, wanting to apply what I learned to the world, and vowed not to return to Taiping Sect until the day of peace in the world, but I never thought that I would not be able to keep my oath.

Li Xuandu smiled and said, "So you are a family."

Madam Lu looked at Ding Ce and Tang Tingfeng and asked, "Master, who are these two?"

Li Xuandu said, "These two are from the Qingluan Guard. They have bad intentions and were captured by me. Their cultivation has been sealed. Is there a prison here? If so, please detain them temporarily and order people to keep a close watch on them. "

Madam Lu said solemnly, "Master, don't worry, the mechanism of Taiping Sect may not be worse than Tangjiabao. There is a prison under the Tianji Hall, where they can be imprisoned. "

Li Xuandu nodded. Madam Lu immediately ordered Shen Changsheng to take Yeshi to the prison, and she invited the three to enter the Tianji Hall.

The Tianji Hall was paved with black marble, like a mirror, reflecting people's figures. The dome was a star map, and it was unknown what material it was made of. The stars of all sizes not only emitted a faint light, but also moved slowly according to a certain pattern. This place belonged to Mr. Shen, and Li Xuandu had never been here. If it weren't for Madam Lu's invitation, he would never set foot on it.

There were chairs in the hall. After sitting down, Madam Lu said directly: "Master, the reason why I asked Changsheng to go down the mountain to meet you, not to Taiping Palace but to Tianji Hall, is that there is something to give to the master, and this thing is stored in Tianji Hall, and the second is that the situation in the sect has changed during the few days I was away. "

Li Xuandu asked: "What happened?"

Mrs. Lu said softly: "Zhang Jingchen is a guest in the sect. "