Chapter 29: A Grand Banquet

Gao Mingyin was in a good mood. In his opinion, with Tianchensi taking action personally, it was a sure thing. As long as this stumbling block was removed, the rest would be much easier.

All the previous things did make him lose some face and damaged his prestige, but after this incident, not only could he get back what he lost, but he could also move up a level.

Soon, his son Gao Shide would be released - after all, there was no big problem, he just took the "Five Stone Powder" and would not be detained for labor.

Green Cui Xiachu would also be able to reopen, and no one would dare to cause trouble again.

Even the people of the Beggar Gang would be released in the same way they were captured.

Without Qi Xuansu, those ordinary Taoists would not dare to confront him.

He was still the uncrowned king of North City, the underground emperor.

As for the revenge of the Taoist sect, it was indeed terrible, but it was not impossible to deal with it.

First of all, Taoism is not a monolithic entity. Today, Taoism is in an unprecedented state of division and confrontation. The two major Jiangnan cases that broke out in a few years are clear evidence of this. This is the result of the struggle between the two major camps and the three major sects within Taoism. If a Quanzhen Daoist died, the Taiping Daoist would not necessarily feel the same, and might even gloat over the misfortune.

Secondly, Taoism lacks an open leader and a person who can make the final decision. Many things will become a situation of open wrangling and mutual restraint in secret. This is somewhat similar to the cliques of the previous dynasty, who opposed for the sake of opposition, and there are fewer and fewer places where consensus can be reached.

In fact, the first two points can also be summarized as one point. Taoism lacks a strong leader who can integrate Taoism. This is the seed planted during the six generations of the Great Master, and it has borne bitter fruit today. If the five generations of the Great Master were still alive, would they dare to do this?

This is also the old tradition of Taoism, splitting and uniting, just like the general trend of the world, long-term unity will inevitably split, and long-term division will inevitably unite. Speaking of cracks, no matter how much internal fighting there is in the Dao Sect today, it is at least better than the fragmentation in the past. And the fragmentation in the past was forcibly integrated by Xuan Sheng? So, what Dao Sect lacks is a leader, a lord of rejuvenation.

Finally, this is the Imperial Capital. Dao Sect is not incapable of making some moves in the Imperial Capital, but it will not act rashly in the Imperial Capital because of the emperor's concern. In addition, Xuan Sheng admitted that he had used assassination in the process of integrating Dao Sect, but he believed that Dao Sect, as the master of the world, should not use assassination when it is absolutely necessary, because this will undermine the legitimacy and legality of Dao Sect.

The last time the Taoist master was killed, it caused a lot of uproar. Dao Sect did not take action in the Imperial Capital in the end, but endured it for several years before killing the person in question with thunder outside the Imperial Capital. It was not an assassination, but an open and aboveboard execution. The reason for making it look like an assassination was mainly to take care of the emperor's face. The court also knew what to do and hastily closed the case with the explanation of suicide.

In this case, Gao Mingyin would not leave the Imperial Capital.

Anyway, as the largest city in the world, the Imperial Capital has everything, so it is not a problem to live here for a lifetime.

After all, how can you kill a powerful person in the Taoist sect without paying a price?

Gao Mingyin thought that this price was completely worth it, not to mention that he saved more than 100,000 Taiping money - and there were still tens of thousands of Taiping money to be paid to the "inn".

As for those things that had to be done outside the city, he could leave it to his confidant to handle.

Of course, it is also possible that he would suddenly die at home one day, and finally come to the conclusion that he died of a sudden illness.

But this is also a matter of choice. It is better to die suddenly at home in the future than to be forced to death by Qi Xuansu now. He is also a person who has seen great storms and waves. He has experienced various difficulties and obstacles, which may not be less than those of the Jianghu tyrants, and he will still make the necessary decisions.

In short, this is a big hurdle, and he finally stepped over it.

On the second night after Gao Yanei Gao Shide was put on display, Gao Mingyin and Qi Xuansu met at the branch of Taiping Inn in Haosheng Southeast Square, and Qi Xuansu did not return all night. On the third day, Gao Shide finally ended the three-day public display and was allowed to go home.

So Gao Mingyin decided to hold a big banquet on this night, inviting friends to "welcome" his son, and the venue was set at the Taiping Inn Dijing Head Office in Xuanzhen South Square.

There is no doubt that Gao Mingyin wanted to take this opportunity to show his friends and enemies that he won this wrestling match, and the strong dragon cannot defeat the local snake.

Even Master Qi, who has a strong background, was defeated. Who would dare to challenge him rashly in the future?

Of course, this incident could not shake the court, nor would it attract the interest of the upper-level bigwigs, but it still caused a great shock in the middle and lower levels of the imperial capital. Many people were talking about the fact that Master Gao Mingyin was going to invite people to a banquet at the Imperial Capital Head Office of the Taiping Inn, and he also invited a troupe of actors to entertain them. The old three things and the loss of the empty sword were meaningful.

In the evening, the door of the Imperial Capital Head Office of the Taiping Inn was full of carriages. The Taoist sect advocated equality and did not like sedan chairs as human tools. They believed that sedan chairs were the symbol of the Confucian masters, so carriages became popular again and replaced sedan chairs. Of course, these dignitaries may not necessarily agree with the Taoist philosophy, and even many people in the Taoist sect did not agree with it, but what the superiors like, the subordinates follow. Since it was proposed by the old man Xuansheng, and it was a clear line with the corrupt Confucian sect, naturally a large number of people chose to follow suit.

The people who got off the carriages were naturally all dressed in silk and satin. In their conversations and laughter, they revealed a wealth that ordinary people could hardly touch.

It is said that Mr. Gao has reserved the entire place today. You should know that this is the head office of the Imperial Capital. Some people have estimated that the cost of the reservation, plus the banquets that are like running water, will be close to the mark of 10,000 Taiping coins for tonight alone.

Of course, the daily turnover of the Imperial Capital Head Office of Taiping Inn is not as exaggerated as 10,000 Taiping coins, but the reservation requires many guests to be rejected, which will cause losses to Taiping Inn, even long-term losses. Taiping Inn does not like to reserve the entire place, but it cannot refuse, so it naturally raises the threshold. So Taiping Inn calculated this part of the loss and magnified it, so it got such a relatively exaggerated number.

For anyone, it is not a small amount.

But Mr. Gao waved his hand and spent it.

Not only was he happy, but it was also for the same reason. Whether it was on the battlefield or in the mall, he could not show his cowardice. As long as others still feared him and believed in him, he could be free and easy even if he was heavily in debt. Therefore, the more difficult the situation was for many businessmen, the more they had to show their luxury to enhance others' confidence in themselves. ..

On this point, Westerners are right. Confidence and credit are more valuable than gold.

In the banquet hall on the second floor, the banquet was spread out like a peacock spreading its tail. There were many big businessmen, gentry and officials, most of whom had dealings with Mr. Gao. But no one from the Taoist sect was seen. Obviously, even if there were people from the Taoist sect who were gloating over this matter, they would not express it openly. It is precisely that words that are not conducive to unity should not be said, and things that are not conducive to unity should not be done.

A moment later, the main owner, Mr. Gao, arrived. He came in from a side door and was not ostentatious. However, as soon as he entered the venue, he still attracted everyone's attention. Almost everyone stood up and bowed.

Gao Mingyin was a businessman, but he made many officials take the initiative to salute, which shows that his power is huge. No wonder he dared to compete with the Taoist mage for a green jade.

As Gao Mingyin walked, he returned the greeting with a gentle, calm and dignified smile on his face, which was completely different from the way he was humble and then threatening in front of Qi Xuansu that day.

Gao Shide, known as the "Hua Tai Sui", had not yet appeared, but someone had already reported to Master Gao that the young master was on his way back, and that he was personally sent by the Taoist sect.

Gao Mingyin heard the news and his mouth curled up slightly, with pride, sarcasm, and a bit of disdain.

Everyone sat down, and Gao Mingyin sat at the main table. At this table, there were not only the commander of the North City Military Department, but also the Tongzhi, Tongpan, and Sili of Shuntian Prefecture, all of whom were important figures.

Gao Mingyin exchanged a few pleasantries with a few friends, saying that he would toast these uncles on his behalf after Gao Mingde came back.

At this moment, there was a sudden commotion outside the door. Soon a servant came in and whispered a few words to Jiang Zhupo, Gao Mingyin's strategist.

Jiang Zhupo's face changed slightly, and he got up and went out in a hurry.

Soon, Jiang Zhupo returned to the banquet hall with a dead look on his face, and even his whole body was shaking slightly, as if he had been frightened.

Gao Mingyin noticed the abnormality of the strategist, and his heart was startled, but he remained calm on the surface and asked: "What's the matter?"

Jiang Zhupo stammered: "Dong Weng, the Imperial Capital Daofu sent someone here."

"Since he is back, what is that unfilial son still doing outside? Why doesn't he come in to greet his uncles? Do you want me to greet him in person?" Gao Mingyin's face sank.

Jiang Zhupo trembled and said: "It's not that the young master doesn't want to come in, it's, it's..."

Just then, a voice interrupted: "I personally sent Young Master Gao back to Master Gao."

As soon as the voice fell, a man came up from the stairs, wearing the formal dress of the fourth-grade Taoist priest Hechang.

He looked around and said with a smile, "It's so lively."

Many people who knew him "jumped" from their seats as if startled, full of panic.

Some people who didn't know him asked cautiously, "May I ask the name of this master?"

The visitor smiled faintly, "Well, I'm Qi Xuansu, Qi of the Great Qi Dynasty, Xuan of the Xuanmen Zhengdao, and Su of the world's mourning."

In an instant, the entire banquet hall on the second floor was dead silent.

Everyone stood up.

Didn't they say that this Master Qi didn't come back all night? Didn't they say that he had an accident? How come he was here in good condition?

The most frightened person among them was Gao Mingyin, who knew the most inside information.

He was pale at this time, almost unable to stand, and had to hold on to the table with his hands.

That was seven celestial beings!