Chapter 80 Undercurrent (Part 1)
The Tongtian River was surging, and a large ship was going downstream.
Suddenly, a huge storm arose on the river, and the situation of the large ship immediately became critical. It rose and fell with the waves, swaying unsteadily, and it seemed that it might capsize at any time.
However, it was winter, and even if the river had not frozen, it should have entered the dry season. The water would never be as swift as in summer. It was really strange to have such a storm.
A basin of clear water, a boat made of grass on the water, and a complete sail.
A slightly pale hand reached into the clear water in the basin and stirred it slowly, and a whirlpool immediately appeared in the basin. The grass boat on the water slid uncontrollably into the whirlpool.
At the same time, a huge whirlpool appeared out of thin air on the Tongtian River, and the water became more and more fierce.
A tall figure came out of the cabin, stood on the board, and looked at the huge whirlpool that appeared out of thin air, his face calm.
Although this person was wearing casual clothes, he had a waist badge hanging around his waist, on which were engraved several gold-plated official script characters "Southern Pacification Division".
Emperor Gaozu of this dynasty abolished the Five Military Commandery and the local garrisons, abolished the military household system of the previous dynasty, and only left the Qingluan Guard, which followed the old system of the previous dynasty.
Therefore, the Qingluan Guard still implemented the military household system established by Emperor Taizu of the Great Wei Dynasty, one of which was that each guard
Later, Emperor Taizong of the Great Wei Dynasty divided the Pacification Division of the Qingluan Guard into two. The Southern Pacification Division was still responsible for the criminal cases within the Qingluan Guard, while the Northern Pacification Division was responsible for the cases designated by the emperor, and had an imperial prison, which could arrest, interrogate, execute, and execute people on its own without going through general judicial institutions.
Since the previous dynasty, emperors of successive dynasties often handed over major cases directly to the Northern Pacification Division of the Qingluan Guard without going through the Ministry of Justice.
Because of this, the court and the public are afraid of the Northern Zhenfu Division like a tiger. When the word "Zhenfu Division" is mentioned, it refers specifically to the Northern Zhenfu Division, and even the Qingluan Guard mentioned by the world also refers specifically to the Northern Zhenfu Division. In most cases, the seal-holding officer of the Northern Zhenfu Division is directly responsible to the emperor, and even the commander of the Qingluan Guard cannot ask about it. Therefore, the seal-holding officer of the Northern Zhenfu Division can even compete with the chief officer of the Qingluan Guard.
Under the great reputation of the Northern Zhenfu Division, the Southern Zhenfu Division is inevitably a little bleak.
However, for the people of the Qingluan Guard, the Northern Zhenfu Division is only for external affairs and cannot control themselves, so it is not so scary. The Southern Zhenfu Division is specifically for internal affairs. Many of the "house rules" in the mouths of the Qingluan Guard come from the Southern Zhenfu Division. This is a man-eating tiger.
When Xu Kou wanted to leave the Qingluan Guard and was hunted down by the Qingluan Guard, the person who came forward came from the Southern Zhenfu Division. If it weren't for the fact that Qingwei Zhenren had too much face and the Taiping Dao had a close relationship with the court, Xu Kou would have died.
This person actually came from the Southern Pacification Division, which was even more mysterious than the Northern Pacification Division.
The boatman was actually a member of the Qingluan Guard who had changed into casual clothes. When he saw him come out, he immediately approached him: "Sir, the wind and waves are too strong, and there is something strange."
Before he finished speaking, a splash of water splashed onto the boat, almost soaking the cotton robe of the leader of the Qingluan Guard.
The leader of the Qingluan Guard looked at the whirlpool that was getting closer and closer, and his expression remained calm: "This Yishan City is indeed strange. I wanted to visit it incognito, but I didn't expect that before I saw the gate of Yishan City, my whereabouts had been discovered by someone, and even such a scene was set up. I am really flattered."
The subordinate asked: "Sir, do you want to stop the boat and dock?"
The leader of the Qingluan Guard shook his head: "Don't stop, keep going, I want to see if these people really dare to let me, the imperial envoy of the court, die in the river."
The subordinate dressed as a boatman had to bite the bullet and obey the order and continue sailing.
The pale palm no longer stirred the clear water in the basin, but gently moved the straw boat with his fingers.
The straw boat almost capsized, but when it was about to flip sideways, it was straightened by the palm.
In the end, the owner of the palm seemed to be a little impatient, and suddenly stretched out his hand to crush the straw boat.
On the surging Tongtian River, shocking dents and cracks appeared on the hull of the big ship out of thin air, and then it broke into two pieces and sank to the bottom of the water.
The pale palm shook the water drops on his hand, rolled up his sleeves, and the basin disappeared immediately.
…
In the Qingbai Temple.
The temple master Bai Yongguan went out to visit friends and had not returned. The two disciples Bai Yue and Lu Yu were waiting for dinner.
After a while, the temple master's wife Li Zhener came late, bringing a gust of fragrant wind. Lu Yu, who was sitting next to him, had a strange look on his face. He turned his head subconsciously and looked over. It happened that his master's wife Li Zhener was also looking over at this time.
The two people's eyes met, and the woman's eyes moved, wanting to speak but shy.
This shyness, like real and illusory, flashed by. When the two of them separated their sight, Bai Yue looked over and saw that the master's wife was already sitting dignified, quiet and kind, without any seductive charm? As for the junior brother Lu Yu, he sat upright, looking straight ahead, and there was no sign of anything.
The atmosphere between the three was quite strange, and because the head of the family, Bai Yongguan, was not there, no one spoke.
The master's wife Li Zhen'er didn't seem to have much appetite. She only ate half a bowl and left first, leaving only the senior sister and brother.
Lu Yu asked casually: "Senior sister, I have to go to the city to do business today. Do you have anything to bring?"
Bai Yue put down the bowl in his hand, thought seriously for a moment, and said: "Please buy me a box of rouge."
"There are only three of us in such a big Qingbai Temple. The master's wife is a woman like you. Who are you dressing up for?" Lu Yu joked.
Bai Yue rolled her eyes at him, said nothing, and continued to eat.
After dinner, Lu Yu changed into casual clothes, left Qingbai Temple, and headed for Yishan City.
Yishan City is not prosperous, but it has everything.
There are inns and restaurants.
Speaking of inns, they are not two-story buildings as many people imagine, but the layout of restaurants. Inns usually occupy a large area and are divided into small independent courtyards.
Because Yishan City is located on Yingfo Road, there are many people coming and going, so the inn's business is pretty good.
After entering the city, Lu Yu went straight to the inn and asked for a secluded side courtyard, two guest rooms, and a small hall in the middle. He also bought wine and food and asked the waiter to deliver them to the hall. Then he drove the waiter away and ordered: "Don't come if I don't ask you to. I'll collect the dishes tomorrow." After the waiter left, he also bolted the gate.
But he didn't move his chopsticks, as if he was waiting for someone.
About half an hour later, a man floated over the courtyard wall and came to the courtyard, wearing a veil hat.
The so-called veil hat was originally a Hu costume. The earliest style was called "Mi Li", which was generally made of soap yarn or white yarn, with a wide brim around it. There was a hanging silk net or thin silk under the brim. It was long enough to cover the face, and the longest one could even reach the feet. In later generations, the hanging nets around were shortened to slightly reveal half of the chin, also known as "shallow exposure", which can be regarded as a must-have for women going out.
The veil hat worn by this woman is quite retro in style. The white gauze hanging under the brim and the waist position are different from the "shallow exposure" highly praised by women today.
Through the white gauze hanging from the veil hat, you can vaguely see her graceful figure.
After seeing this person, Lu Yu took the initiative to greet him and whispered: "Master's wife, you didn't eat well just now. I will prepare some wine and food for you."
The person took off the veil hat on her head, and it was the master's wife Li Zhener.
However, at this time, Li Zhener no longer had the previous dignity, only charm.
Lu Yu reached out to support the master's wife.
Li Zhen'er was in her prime, so how could she need help? However, she just glanced at Lu Yu coquettishly and leaned half of her body on Lu Yu.
Lu Yu supported his master's wife and walked into the main hall. The two sat side by side. Li Zhen'er's charming figure was fully revealed under her gauze dress. Although Lu Yu sat still, he saw everything he should and shouldn't see, and there was also a faint fragrance that made him feel excited.
To be fair, this master's wife is indeed a rare beauty. Even though she is over 30 years old now, she still has bright eyes and white teeth, and fair skin. Because of proper maintenance, her figure is soft. When she walks, she is like a willow swaying in the wind, swaying gracefully. She looks like a woman in her twenties. Coupled with the unique charm of mature women, anyone who sees her will praise that Master Bai is really lucky.
Li Zhen'er filled two glasses of wine, handed one to Lu Yu, and took up the other glass to drink a cup of wine with Lu Yu.
After a glass of wine, Li Zhener pretended to be drunk and leaned on Lu Yu's arms.
Lu Yu understood, couldn't wait to pick her up and walked into the inner room.
The woman seemed to have softened all the bones in her body, and she wrapped herself around the man's body softly, with a pair of white jade arms softly around the man's neck, raised her pretty face full of spring, and slightly closed her pair of blurred autumn eyes.
Lu Yu's heart was moved, and he couldn't help but lower his head and kissed her.
At the same time, an elderly Taoist happened to pass by the inn, stopped in front of the door of the inn for a moment, looked at the inn with a deep look, and then left without expression.
About an hour later, Li Zhener, who had put on the veil again, left first.
Lu Yu stayed for another half an hour before leaving the inn.
As soon as Lu Yu left the inn, he saw a young man and woman coming towards him, both wearing the same style of cloak and hood.
Lu Yu was startled. Although he had been away from Yujing for nearly ten years, he could still recognize it at a glance. This cloak should be from a special clothing shop in Yujing.
Could these two people be Taoist priests from Yujing City?
Thinking of this, Lu Yu couldn't help but take a closer look. The woman was fine, but the man's waist was a little bloated, as if he was carrying a weapon, and he was holding a bag in his hand.
At this time, the man seemed to have noticed something and looked at Lu Yu.
Lu Yu quickly retracted his gaze, coughed lightly, lowered his head and left this place, walking towards the rouge shop.
He still remembered that his senior sister Bai Yue asked him to take a box of rouge back.
Qi Xuansu looked at Lu Yu's hurriedly leaving back and asked, "Qingxiao, this person seems to be a Taoist disciple?"
"It should be." Zhang Yuelu nodded.