The clear water flows around this pavilion with double eaves and four slopes and a pointed roof. When the breeze blows from the stream, the spring falls from the rock wall not far from the pavilion and rushes into the rocks in the clear water, making a sound like a harp.
A few golden lotuses in the water spread their petals in the stream breeze.
In the pavilion, ten lying copper deer are used as bases. On the jade tabletop plan supported by gold dragons and silver phoenixes, the lamps and holders are integrated into a hemispherical celadon lamp. The light emitted by centipede beads illuminates Xiao Shizhu.
A livid face.
Xiao Shizhu's anger came from Qingqiu Fox Country's repeated challenges to his patience and bottom line, making Xiao Shizhu's anger difficult to contain.
But he still endured it, now was not the time to fight.
The country needs a period of recuperation and a period of recovery.
Moreover, it would be very disadvantageous to launch a rash attack during the rainy season, as logistics and transportation cannot be guaranteed.
So Xiao Shizhu could only choose to endure it for now.
"However, this will only make Qingqiu Fox Country even more arrogant." At this time, Lin Cong on the other side quickly admonished: "There is nothing wrong with taking this opportunity to teach Qingqiu Fox Country a lesson, let alone
Can preserve the majesty of our great country."
"Assassination cannot be seen in the light, how can we maintain dignity?" Xiao Shizhu asked immediately, then shook his head and said: "The only way is to let him come in peace and go back in peace, to show the peace and friendship between the two countries, and at the same time secretly prepare for war.
.”.
"My lord, what I mean is that the Qingqiu Fox Country should be held responsible for destroying peace." Then, the ghost mother, who already knew her husband's thoughts clearly, added: "And this will also make the Qingqiu Fox Country fall into disrepute.
Dare to attack rashly. It is always better to delay the war for a period of time than to start it early, and it will also give us sufficient time to prepare."
"Yeah." Xiao Shizhu had already put away his scowl and anger, and slightly chinned his head, indicating that this was exactly what he meant.
"Yes." Although Lin Cong was unwilling to do so, he thought for a long time and felt that Mu Qingming's method was a better one, so he agreed and stopped mentioning the assassination for a while.
"Protect Qingqiu Fox King well, and don't let ghosts with ulterior motives take advantage of it." Xiao Shizhu pondered for a long time, and slowly said with worry: "If the enemy writes, directs, and performs assassination activities,
You must be forewarned and nip these conspiracies in the bud.”
Xiao Shizhu's worries were not groundless. Many of the small actions of Qingqiu Fox Country were beyond his imagination. Qingqiu Fox King might not be able to do the act of assassinating himself and then blaming Jiuyou Country for it.
Jiuyou Kingdom had no choice but to take precautions before it happened.
Lin Cong nodded and agreed. He was also very worried about this matter and did not dare to be careless in the slightest.
"Then I'll go get ready now." Lin Cong stood up immediately and saluted to say goodbye.
Lin Cong had to hurry up and prepare for security; the Qingqiu Fox King was about to come down from Qingqiu Mountain and would enter the Jiuyou Kingdom soon.
Lin Cong's security work must start when the Qingqiu Fox King enters the Jiuyou Kingdom. It is forbidden to commit suicide for the Qingqiu Fox King and then blame the Jiuyou Kingdom.
After Lin Cong said goodbye, Xiao Shizhu and Ghost Mother still had no intention of leaving. They still sat in the listening room, drinking tea and resting.
"You're tired from the journey, so it's time for you to rest." The ghost mother slowly added water to Xiao Shizhu's tea cup and said, "But there is something I have decided on my own, and it's not easy to use the fungus to send messages.
, I have to tell you.”.
Xiao Shizhu was not very tired, so he naturally had no objection and continued to sit in the pavilion and enjoy tea.
But now there are no outsiders or ministers around, so Xiao Shizhu no longer sits upright.
He was leaning against the back of the chair, resting his hands on the armrests and resting his head, listening to the ghost mother's words.
The ghost mother told Xiao Shizhu in detail about the recent rebellion in the south and its origins.
Hearing this, Xiao Shizhu yawned and asked nonchalantly: "Where did Du Ziren's illegitimate son come from? Wasn't he killed by me?".
The tone is contemptuous and dismissive.
The various tribes of the Southern Barbarians are loyal to Xiao Shizhu. After all, Du Ziren squeezed them too hard in the past, while Xiao Shizhu always treated them favorably. Comparing the two, the tribes of the Southern Barbarians are naturally willing to be loyal to Xiao Shizhu and Jiuyou Kingdom.
Occasionally, a few desperate people come out to rebel, but they can't achieve great things. Naturally, Xiao Shizhu didn't take this rebellion seriously.
Moreover, the ghost mother handled it very appropriately. Since the enemy fled to the mountains after the rebellion, the conventional ghost army could not enter the mountains to encircle and suppress them. It was also best to leave it to Wu Xiaohui to lead the ghost soldiers who are good at mountain search and survive in jungle ambush to go south to suppress the thieves.
method.
It won't take long for the rebels to be wiped out by Wu Xiaohui and the battalion of soldiers he brought.
Stability and peace will be restored to all parts of the Southern Barbarians.
Xiao Shizhu was still very confident about Wu Xiaohui's ability and the combat effectiveness of Wu Xiaohui's army.
But just after Xiao Shizhu finished speaking, when he thought about it, he suddenly felt something was wrong.
He slowly sat upright in the chair, frowning slightly and began to think deeply.
Xiao Shizhu himself once led troops to exterminate the rebels. The rebels were definitely not as strong as well-trained soldiers and troops. Most of them were a mob, unorganized and undisciplined. However, they would not collapse at the first touch, and then disperse without any trace.
Organize some decent resistance again.
This is very abnormal.
Xiao Shizhu's keen sense of smell, honed on the battlefield, allowed him to smell a faint hint of conspiracy from this abnormal incident.
"You also said that not long after the rebellion, all the Beiyin Dynasty ghost detectives who were dormant in the southern region took action?" Xiao Shizhu recalled what the ghost mother had said before, and asked ***, "Yes
?”.
"Yes." The ghost mother nodded slightly and told Xiao Shizhu what happened and the countermeasures she and Lin Cong had discussed.
The method of handling this matter was reported to Xiao Shizhu by Lin Cong's fungi in a timely manner.
At that time, Xiao Shizhu didn't think there was any clue. But now in connection with the inexplicable rebellion, it seems that this was a secret investigation of the Jiuyou Kingdom by the Northern Yin Dynasty.
The purpose of the rebellion seemed to be to deliberately lead the sergeants trained by Wu Xiaohui to the south, where they would be exposed to the spies of the Beiyin Dynasty.
Moreover, Xiao Shizhu received a secret report a long time ago, and Beiyin Dynasty vaguely knew that Jiuyou Kingdom was training an all-powerful army.
This matter is indeed true. Wu Xiaohui has been busy with this matter at Yuque Hunting Ground in recent years under Xiao Shizhu's secret orders.
And there is no airtight wall in the world, so it is normal for a little bit of news about this matter to leak out.
Later, Xiao Shizhu used a clever lie to hide the matter again.
It was also a good show that was written and directed by oneself.
Xiao Shizhu secretly spread the news, claiming that the Jiuyou Kingdom was favored by the gods, and was developing secret technologies given by the gods somewhere to strengthen the combat effectiveness of the Jiuyou Kingdom army and the use of weapons.
He even told a big lie, saying that the Nine Nether Country even had technology that could dissect gods falling from the sky and capture gods and other ethereal creatures.
On the other hand, people are asked to declare that this news is very nonsense and has no logic at all.
Xiao Shizhu secretly and cleverly used the laws in the story "The Wolf Cried Wolf", and after several rounds of publicity and lies, he wrote, directed and acted in a good show. After all, most of the ghosts in the underworld have really received help from the gods in Jiuyou Kingdom.
, whether it is possible to understand the matter of gods, is like those people who were deceived by children in the story of the boy who cried wolf, and no longer believe in these nonsense stories.
Even the fact that Jiuyou Kingdom has cultivated an all-powerful army is no longer believed in.
The secret that was leaked turned into a shameful lie.
Moreover, this is not leaked by Jiuyou Kingdom. Jiuyou Kingdom has been trying its best to deny these nonsense things, so the ghosts who feel that they have been deceived will not blame Jiuyou Kingdom.
But now it seems that at least the senior officials in the Northern Yin Dynasty, perhaps only Emperor Fengdu, did not completely believe Xiao Shizhu's performance.
Emperor Fengdu is still completely dubious about whether there is an elite force that has always been all-powerful in Jiuyou Kingdom.
While Xiao Shizhu was thinking, he thoughtfully told his wife** one by one his conjectures.
After he finished speaking, the ghost mother, who had been thinking for a long time, took over the words and said: "Well, I also thought about this afterwards. And when Wu Xiaohui was sent, although he didn't think so deeply, for the sake of insurance
For the sake of safety, I still call myself Wu Xiaohui, so that I can be a member of the imperial army patrolling various places.
Then, when wiping out the rebels, they could only claim to be frontier troops to the outside world and the local defenders. When Shi Ben and Gui Lu requested to send troops, they also considered the confidentiality of the situation and requested the court to send troops.
It’s a secret sect, don’t make a big show of it.”
When Xiao Shizhu heard this, he slightly raised the corner of his mouth: "Interesting."
"Since the old ghost from Fengdu is so dubious, why not give him something more fun to play with." Xiao Shizhu paused and said, "Catch the leader of the rebels and interrogate him to find out how he got Du Ziren's jade pendant."
.
Xiao Shizhu didn't believe that Du Ziren had any illegitimate children. But the token jade pendant in the other person's hand should be real.
It was easy for the Northern Yin Dynasty to obtain such a thing.
If Xiao Shizhu's guess is correct, the Beiyin Dynasty was behind this incident.
After obtaining the confession of the rebel leader and making it known to the world, Emperor Fengdu's face would definitely change color and become uglier than pig liver.
At that time, the fact that the Northern Yin Dynasty destroyed the peace will be placed in front of all the ghosts. As a result, the reputation of the Northern Yin Dynasty and Emperor Fengdu will decline, and the people's hearts will also be lost.
After Xiao Shizhu's reminder, the ghost mother also thought of this and immediately blurted out: "What a great idea."
"Hehe." Xiao Shizhu smiled, crossed his legs, and shouted to the outside of the pavilion: "Come here, the germ spreader."
Not long after the words were spoken, a fungus came in and stopped opposite Xiao Shizhu and the ghost mother. After bowing to the couple one by one, the fungus said respectfully to Xiao Shizhu: "My lord, please give me your orders."
.
"Send the order." Xiao Shizhu picked up his teapot and said sonorously to the fungus man: "Order Wu Xiaohui, if conditions permit, to capture the rebel leader alive and escort him to Beijing."...
..
While Xiao Shizhu was busy making various decisions, Qingqiu Fox King was very leisurely.
He sat in a large hall on the top of the mountain, idly looking at the dark clouds and violent storm outside the hall.
There is mist in the wind and mist in the rain, and misty clouds in the rain.
In a few days, he will set off from here and embark on a journey to the Nine Nether Country.
He wanted to see with his own eyes the prosperity of Jiuyou Kingdom. He also wanted to see with his own eyes that Xiao Shizhu was actually the Holy Lord and Mingjun. He still had a little comfort and naively thought that the world was peaceful and he could live in peace and contentment from now on. Foolish king.
If it is the latter, Qingqiu Fox King will not hesitate to start a war when he returns home, and will definitely monopolize Dongyingzhou.
Qingqiu Fox King, who was sitting on the throne, slowly withdrew his gaze, took the hot tea from the old palace slave beside him, gently scraped the tea powder with the lid of the cup, and asked the old fox ghost next to him. To: "Hu Qi, how long have you been with Gu?".
There were only two ghosts in this vast hall at this time. It was originally deserted. However, the continuous wind and rain outside the hall made the hall filled with the sound of wind and rain, making it very noisy.
This old fox ghost, whose back was slightly stooped and slightly curved, and whose eyebrows and beard were already silvery white, but whose long hair was as red as fire, was still very bright, silently counted the days, and said with a flattering smile: "Go back to your Majesty. , probably more than two hundred years ago?"
This time is not considered a long time for the ghosts in the underworld. The lifespan of ghosts is much longer than that of living creatures in the human world.
Time no longer flies in this world.
The fox ghost waiting next to the Qingqiu Fox King had a voice that was a bit sharp and crisp, but not as weak as an old one.
"That's it. Have you ever been abroad?" Qingqiu Fox King took a sip of tea and asked Hu Qi, an old fox ghost: "Before entering the palace, have you ever stepped out of our country?".
"Haha." The old fox ghost smiled, lowered his head slightly and returned: "Your Majesty, you are joking. Since and before entering the palace, the old slave has not had much money in his pocket. How can he have any spare money to wander around? Ah. Don’t talk about going abroad, even if you go out of the country’s capital, you don’t have that opportunity. The old slave can only daydream about such wonderful things as going abroad, amusing himself.”
"You are so pitiful, then I will give you a chance to make your dream come true." Qingqiu Fox King sneered, looking at Hu Qi, an old fox ghost and palace slave, with disdain in his eyes, and then showed his pity and In the posture of giving alms, he was sitting on the throne, looking down at the old fox ghost from above, and said: "Follow Gu Gu to the Nine Nether Kingdom."
The old fox ghost suddenly felt happy when he heard this, but he didn't say anything, let alone show it, letting the joy appear on his face. He simply responded: "No."
Hu Qi was just obeying the king's order, and the secret joy in his heart soon disappeared without a trace.
As for the Qingqiu Fox King, he would not care or notice Hu Qi's psychological changes.
Qingqiu Fox King put down his tea cup and continued to look outside the main hall leisurely.
At this time, a ghost official came in and stood in front of the Qingqiu Fox King. He knelt down and saluted according to the procedure, then stood up, took out a booklet from his sleeve, handed it to the Qingqiu Fox King, and said: " Your Majesty, the gift list listed by the ministers and others after discussion is a generous gift for you to bring to Jiuyou Kingdom."
Qingqiu Fox King took the gift list, unfolded it and looked at it carefully.
This gift list, which is as thin as a finger and has no human soul, is densely filled with the names and quantities of gifts. Most of them are given in pairs for good luck.
There are gold and silver utensils, textiles and embroidery, as well as calligraphy and painting, jade wares, lacquer wares and some treasures and ivory carvings.
They are all exquisitely made and made of expensive materials. Most of them are the royal family of the Qingqiu Fox King, who have harvested the wealth of the people over the years.
One of the most exquisite jade carvings is a bird facing a phoenix. It is carved from the red flame blood jade, a specialty of the Wangchuan River in the underworld, to create a five-foot-tall sycamore tree with tall, straight branches and leafy branches. Next to the tree,
The peonies are in bloom, and a flaming phoenix stands here, looking back at the peonies in full bloom.
This is a generous gift specially given to the ghost mother by Qingqiu Fox King in line with the principle of trying to please Xiao Shizhu and his wife first.