Endless route

Chapter 277 47. Entering the county to find the truth

The bright white moonlight shone on the open space in front of the wreckage of the ships. Mr. Liu was lying on the ground sweating profusely. Occasionally he raised his eyes to look at the people in front of him. He was even more frightened and his whole body was trembling.

This time it was really a big disaster.

They actually offended the immortal.

Every word of the angry-faced Taoist priest was like a divine voice filling their ears, one word after another, hitting their heads hard, making their ears hurt after just a few words.

The four cranes are also extremely frightening. With their slender necks raised high, they are actually about twenty feet tall. An ordinary person is seven or eight feet tall, which is about the same size as the beak and legs of the crane.

without any exaggeration.

A crane can crush someone to death with just one kick.

But these visions were just the beginning.

Looking back a little further, two little Taoist boys are serving a young man in white. One is holding a fairy light jade lantern, and the other is holding a black and red jade porcelain vase. They are undoubtedly fairy magic weapons!

The jade lantern dragged wisps of fairy light, slowly rising and falling under the moonlight, stretching out four to five meters in length. It was crystal clear and seemed to have a spirit. It was countless times more beautiful than gold.

And the darkness at the end of Fairy Light.

There was actually a skinny old man with an immortal spirit standing there, also wearing a Taoist robe, with an expressionless face and slightly closed eyes, standing quietly behind the young master with a long sword on his back.

Could it be the legendary Taoist Immortal Master?

It can be easily seen from the positions of these people that the young Taoist priest is serving the young master, and the Taoist immortal master is also protecting the young master. Although the young master has short hair and a strange accent, he must be a noble man.

Think of this.

Master Liu was even more upset.

The pomp of this young master is really scary, and he is more impressive than the immortals in folklore. Most of the mounts of ordinary immortals are cows and deers, and they have one or two magic weapons, but these immortal masters have four cranes, which are held by Taoist boys. The magical power of the magic weapon is hard to conceal.

The status of these immortal masters is probably among the best on the Immortal Mountain where the immortals gather, and they are even a bit more powerful than the ones posted on the door during the Chinese New Year...

How dare they hunt the master's crane.

Aren't you tired of living and looking for death?

I'm asking you something.

What happened to Nanze?

Ji Dao shouted angrily again.

These mountain bandits had stern eyebrows and fell silent when asking questions. They also quietly raised their heads and glanced around.

Immortal Master, I just heard that Old Man Shu said that our ancestors moved here from Nanze, but we really don't know what happened hundreds of years ago. One year in the sky and one hundred years in the mortal world. The life span of us mortals is really too short. I know!

Master Liu trembled and answered quickly.

Old Storyteller? By the way, are there any county records in the surrounding counties? Jidao suddenly thought of other clues.

Zheng Yun was slightly distracted. It has been a long time since he heard this saying. One year in the sky and one hundred years in the mortal world. However, if you think about it carefully, it is extremely mysterious. Could it be that the ancients also understood the theory of relativity...

Master Immortal, I don't know what's going on in the county town. If Master Immortal wants to go to the county town, I can lead the way.

Mr. Liu quickly answered.

Do we need you to lead the way? Jidao asked back, and then looked at Zheng Yun in a gentle tone: Master Xian, these mountain bandits really don't know the history of this place.

Then let's go to the county town and have a walk.

Zheng Yun looked solemn and sighed softly. Whether it was the wreckage of the boat master in the valley or the truth behind the abandonment of the ancient city of Nanze, the truth might be found in the county annals.

If only I had better luck.

This time you can solve two puzzles.

Master Immortal, how to deal with these people? They are definitely not good people. Jidao glanced at the bandits.

Although these bandits claim to be good citizens, they all carry weapons around their waists and have scars on their faces and bodies. At first glance, they are bandits entrenched on a certain mountain.

Why is Liuye not Liuye? Can an ordinary hunter in the mountains be called Liuye? Can you go and celebrate the birthday of some big boss?

Look at how crooked they are.

There is certainly no shortage of things that oppress good people.

Where is your mountain top? Zheng Yun looked at the Sixth Master and asked, feeling a little ridiculous for a moment.

Now in the 21st century, bandits can only be seen in movies and TV dramas, but now they have entered ancient times and saw live bandits wearing ancient clothes and speaking ancient sayings.

How bizarre.

These abandoned places are also in the 21st century, but they are completely isolated from the world, just like the Peach Blossom Spring written by Tao Yuanming of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. They don't even know what year it is today.

He probably didn’t know that the Ming Dynasty was dead.

Or perhaps, the Ming Dynasty survived in the Forsaken Land...

Master Immortal, if I tell the truth, can there be a way to survive? Mr. Liu asked with a trembling tone, his heart breaking.

may have.

Zheng Yun nodded and made a promise.

The main focus of the contemporary Jianxian Division is to be eclectic, regardless of whether they are Easterners or Westerners, criminals or explorers, they want everything that falls into their hands.

Go to Hades Pavilion for a walk.

All bad habits can be reformed.

It's definitely not possible to work in the Immortal Supervision Division, but these bandits can still do the job of cleaning pots and shovels in the Heavenly Palace.

The top of the mountain is behind the Tu'er Temple in Beitou Valley. There are more than a hundred people in the village, and they will all come back to the mountain to celebrate their birthdays in three days.

Liu Ye immediately betrayed the village without hesitation.

There are only 3,000 people in the surrounding villages. How can they afford to support more than 100 bandits like you? Jidao felt something was wrong.

There are more than a hundred bandits out of three thousand villagers, one in thirty people? Is this a bit high?

Master Immortal, we people don't often go down the mountain. There is a lot of good land in Beitou Gou. We farm the land and raise some livestock. We only want to go up the mountain to be free and happy. Liu Ye defended with a guilty conscience.

Are there many bandits nearby?

Zheng Yun asked with interest.

There are quite a few. This place is full of deep mountains and old forests, hundreds of miles in radius, and there are more than a dozen mountaintops that can be counted.

The sixth master answered truthfully.

Why are there so many bandits around and the county government's taxes are too high? Zheng Yun asked in confusion.

There are many reasons for the increase in banditry.

Zheng Yun's first suspicion was the local county town. Regardless of whether the Ming Dynasty was destroyed or not, this place was completely isolated. The situation in these small county towns was probably not optimistic.

There is an old saying that the mountains are high and the emperor is far away.

This boundless cliff is covered with lofty mountains for thousands of miles, which can be called a mountain. The shipping route is cut off at the end of the starry sky, which is consistent with the emperor's distance. When the two are combined, the government office may be darker than the bandits.

It's a seventy-three tax, but the immortal master doesn't know that the harvests of Liangdi and Goudi are different. The harvest of Liangdi is less than half of Goudi, but the county taxes are all collected according to Goudi.

Calculated in this way, although it is nominally a 73% tax, it is actually almost the same as a 50% tax!

Master Liu suddenly became energetic, his voice rose a few degrees, his eyes were piercing, and he opened his mouth and began to cry out for injustice. His eloquence seemed to be asking Master Qingtian to take charge.

To put it bluntly, he looked more energetic than when he was begging for a way out just now, as if he had lived a new life, and he seemed to be dragging the county magistrate into trouble even if he died.

This scene is depressing.

It seems like something really went wrong here.

Master Immortal, Liang Di means the land on the mountain ridge, and the ditch land means the land in the valley. There are indeed some problems in this county. Jidao explained to Zheng Yun while touching his chin.

Although he was not a farmer, he had been farming in Tiangong for many years. He felt a little sympathetic when he heard this, but his sympathy was for the farmers, not these bandits.

If you have the ability, go to the government office.

What kind of skill is it to go down the mountain and bully the people?

Take it back to Tiangong to shovel shit.

Zheng Yun nodded and said no more. It seemed that this place was really a treasure, and the harvest was not just some cannonballs.

Although the Supervisory Immortal Division only cares about gods, ghosts and immortals, Haiwei is more than that. Haiwei is a member of the same family as the Commanders and Envoys from all over the country, and he also has the title of Commander of the Western Region.

Regardless of whether they are commanders or sea guards.

As long as you, the Chief Envoy, are not doing things well and cause suffering to the people, both the Chief Envoy and the Haiwei will be able to take care of it.

Therefore, Zheng Yun had enough reasons and enough rights to go to the mountains to suppress bandits and to go to the city to check the county. Whether it was the bandit leader or the county magistrate, he could go there.

Anyone who breaks the law.

Drag them all to Hades Pavilion.

The scope of investigation can be the entire Wuhai Xianzhou, from the east to the west of Xianzhou, and thoroughly investigate everything from top to bottom.

If so, check it out.

From now on, the palace will never be short of people...

I just don’t know if there is a Commander-in-Chief and a Chief Envoy here. Although it doesn’t matter if they exist, Zheng Yun estimates that the possibility of having one is not high, and 80% of the time there is not one.

In many Xianzhous of the Ming Dynasty, there were only general commanders and envoys, but no chief envoys. That is to say, only the army was left without a large number of immigrants, and Xianzhou was completely included in the provincial capital.

Most Xianzhou companies do not have commanders or envoys.

In a situation like Wuhaixianzhou, even if it had a capital, it would probably have been abandoned long ago, or it would have been autonomous long ago.

There is also another possibility. After Nanze Dusi sent the people in the city to this place, Nanze Dusi managed it.

In any case, this place is completely different from Hongwu Ancient City. Hongwu Ancient City has a complete system that has been preserved at first glance, and they clearly know the existence of Hongying Dusi.

In fact, these little things don't matter.

Even if there is a Commander-in-Chief and a Chief Envoy-General, the worst case scenario is to move out the Jianxiansi. Comparing the size of the officials, the Jianxiansi has never failed. After all, the Jianxiansi can even kill the feudal king.

These abandoned places are all old feudal lands in the Ming Dynasty, and within the remaining framework of the Ming Dynasty, the Supervisory Immortal Division is fully capable of enforcing the law impartially, regardless of its strength or power.

Go to the county seat.

Zheng Yun raised his head and looked to the west.

He also had to admit that when he was thinking so much just now, he had some other thoughts in his mind.

If Wuhaixianzhou is completely forgotten, then the contemporary Jianxiansi may be able to take over the place, starting with the county seat.

The situation in Wuhaixianzhou is still unclear.

But Zheng Yun is very clear about the situation in other abandoned places, as well as the situation of the entire Haiwei and Jianxian Division. If the destruction of Ming Dynasty and Haiwei was due to some invincible thing.

Then you must be fully prepared.

This kind of preparation cannot be accomplished by just a few of them, but requires a large number of people, a large amount of land, a large amount of money, a large amount of modern technology and technological equipment...

That’s all.

Take it one step at a time.

…

Ji Dao tied up several bandits and put them on the back of a crane and sent them back to the Qingting Pond in the pavilion. He returned to the wreckage of the boat master twice and took Zheng Yun, the young Taoist priest and others back.

When Zheng Yun returned to Qingchi again.

But they saw that Jidao had already brought the bandits back to the Heavenly Palace to be imprisoned, and then led out seven or eight cranes from the black jade pillow.

Zheng Yun asked why.

The answer given by Jidao was that if Zheng Yun was worried about something happening in the county, it would be best to bring all the ghost masters with him for protection.

Zheng Yun didn't say much.

Ji Dao's expression had betrayed him. He was not thinking about safety issues at all, but wanted to show off to others and continue to show off. He couldn't wait to bring out all the old men.

He was so happy in front of the bandits just now. Those bandits were all immortal masters. Ji Dao is still thinking about it.

But that’s okay.

Just bring more people with you.

Don't underestimate the enemy too much and end up in the county seat.

So, when Zheng Yun rode the crane again, in addition to the two little Taoist priests and Ji Dao, there were seven more ghost generals, each riding a crane, and they flew toward the west together.

…

At the speed of a crane.

Two hundred miles away in an instant.

Zheng Yun and others passed through the same mountains and saw the county town built in the valley in the distance. A river ran through the city. The whole city was peaceful and quiet under the night.

The county is not large.

It’s just a population of a thousand households.

Zheng Yun let the crane fall outside the city so as not to disturb the people in the city, and then walked into the city with Ji Dao and the ghost general.

It's night now.

The city was very quiet.

Only the lights were on in the mansions of wealthy families. The ordinary people had gone to bed early, and a few used the moonlight to do their work.

Walking in the streets of the city.

Listening to the occasional baby crying, couples quarreling, old people coughing, and the ancient scenery along the way.

Zheng Yun felt strange again.

But Ji Dao next to him was completely different. He didn't know when he had a Tiangong waistband on his waist. He strode towards a mansion and led Zheng Yun to the door without stopping.

Master Immortal, this is where I am. I just looked down from the crane and saw that the scene inside this mansion is absurd.

Ji Dao pointed to the door of the mansion.

There were two gatekeepers dressed as servants at the door. They were sleeping lightly against the wall in the corner. They woke up immediately after hearing the noise. After glancing at a few people, their expressions changed slightly and they did not dare to neglect:

How many of Mr. Qiao's guests are there?

A few distinguished guests will come in first, and I will inform them.

No need, just lead the way. Zheng Yun didn't want to waste time.

Okay. The servant immediately led the way.

This matter is against the rules, but just one look at these people, especially the guards wearing dark cloaks and holding long and narrow swords, no one dares to say a word no.

They also know how to watch their actions on weekdays. Those black-cloaked guards have already sheathed their swords in their hands. If they and others shake their heads even slightly, the sword may be unsheathed.

Why bother.

Just lead the way.

Zheng Yun followed the servant into the door.

Before entering the city, Zheng Yun asked Ji Dao to put away the ghosts and ghosts. The Hanxian Yin ghost figurines and cranes were left outside the city, but the ghost generals all wore ghost cloaks, and the sense of oppression was not reduced at all.

Since you were in a place left in ancient times, you should wear ancient clothes, so Zheng Yun asked the ghost general to change his clothes as well.

Enter the interior of the mansion.

After walking for a short time, Zheng Yun heard bursts of faint sounds, as well as some women's screams.

Go to the deepest point in one breath.

Across the door, Zheng Yun already knew what was going on inside. He immediately frowned and said to Ji Dao beside him:

Catch him directly.

good.

Ji Dao drew his sword and took the order, kicked the door open with three ghost generals, rushed into the backyard and started arresting people.

After a burst of jumping and screaming.

Jidao and Guijiang picked up two disheveled middle-aged men and threw them directly on the floor tiles in front of Zheng Yun.

Who is the county magistrate here?

Zheng Yun asked with an indifferent expression.

Who are you?

The middle-aged man on the left asked timidly.

The small county town only has ordinary warriors to guard it, and there are no magical means at all. Because Haiwei always does not allow magical means to enter the human world, it is impossible for the local county town to have any.

So when they saw the ghost killing these 'killers in black' into the house, they were almost scared to death.

You don't have to ask too many questions, just answer them. If you're worried about dying in peace, just take a look at this man's cards.

Ji Dao pointed at the ghost general's waist card.

The ghost general's waist card is the real ghost-suppressing waist card, which is much higher level than the ghost-suppressing waist card in Zhang Ergou's hand.

ah?

The middle-aged man was stunned.

To be honest, he didn't recognize this badge. Not to mention his isolated county magistrate, even a normal county magistrate would be able to recognize the badge of Gui Si of Haiwei Town.

But he can feel it.

This waist card has a lot of background!

This place is called Wuhaixianzhou. Where does the name Wuhai come from? What are the allusions to the ruins of ships in the east? Does Wuhaixianzhou have a capital commander? Did you move here from Nanze? Why did you move? What happened back then.”

Zheng Yun asked them all in one breath.

These questions are all the key questions.