xuan yuan shuang yao lu

Volume 1, Chapter 2: Disaster Is Coming

Liuyun Immortal City gradually became lively.

After the city gate opened at Mao hour, merchants and traveling farmers rushed in and out of the city gate.

The cargo of the boat that arrived yesterday was unloaded at the dock and was brought into the city at this time. There was a lot of noise and bustle among the carriages and horses.

From the east side of Liuyun Immortal City, you can go down the Cangming Spirit River and go to the sea to Japan, Ryukyu and other places in Southeast Asia. Therefore, Liuyun Immortal City has become one of the most important transfer stations for foreign countries in the country, busier and more tense than any other city.

However, the atmosphere today is a bit strange. There are a large number of guards in the city and outside the city, and the inspections for passing the customs are much stricter. There are long queues. However, although everyone was anxious, no one dared to complain, because anyone who was used to the cultivation world could see that there were many big men in official uniforms among the local guards. No one would dare to offend the most tyrannical guards from the capital unless they risked their lives.

There are five markets in the city, of which the South Gate Market facing the Cangming Spirit River is the most prosperous. There are at least dozens of stalls offering various types of food in various sizes. It is an ideal place for travelers who are going to take a boat ride on the Cangming Spirit River to have a morning meal.

In addition to being a transportation hub, Liuyun Immortal City has also been famous as a fireworks destination in Kyushu since ancient times. Regardless of whether it is a rich businessman with a fortune, a famous person who claims to be a literary and elegant person, or a swinger who is a fencing knight, if he does not visit here, he is not considered a hero in the romantic field.

Therefore, the situation is prosperous and we can meet each other.

Among the food stalls at Nanmen, Lao Feng's vegetable and meat buns are the most famous. In addition, Yun Niang, the concubine of Lao Feng who specializes in selling steamed buns, has a beautiful face and has become a living sign to attract business.

When Lao Feng entered the kitchen from the inside and handed a steaming plate of vegetable and meat buns to the front of the shop for Yun Niang to sell, the impatient customers rushed to hand over their money.

Yun Niang was so busy that she was dripping with sweat, when suddenly a young man emerged from the crowd and said with a wide smile: "Eight vegetable and meat buns, hello, Yun Niang!"

This boy was none other than Luo Xuanyuan. Because he was afraid of being seen by Old Feng, he deliberately hunched over and was half shorter than the others. His appearance made people laugh.

Fortunately, his appearance is very lovable, with long and elegant eyes, a high nose, broad forehead, and a sunny smile hanging from the corner of his mouth. If it weren't for his greasy face, ragged clothes, and the fact that his face was bruised and his lips were swollen after being beaten by Tu Wukui, he would have looked really good. Now! It makes people not dare to compliment me.

When Yun Niang saw him, she looked back worriedly at Old Feng and the evil doctor who were busy in the kitchen. She was relieved when she saw that they couldn't see what was going on here.

While dealing with other customers, she pretended to be coquettish and said: "If you don't have money, what kind of buns can you buy like others?"

Luo Xuanyuan squeezed out a smile and responded: "Nothing is owed, I will pay you back tomorrow."

Yun Niang used the fastest technique to hold four buns. After a moment of hesitation, she took two more, wrapped them in paper, stuffed them into his hands, and cursed in a low voice: "This is the last trip, alas! Let's see how you are beaten."

Luo Xuanyuan cheered and stepped out of the crowd. He straightened his waist and immediately became more energetic.

It turns out that although he is young, he is already as tall as an adult man, with broad shoulders and narrow waist, but he is thinner due to malnutrition.

After squeezing through a row of fruit and vegetable stalls, Hengli Ling Xinghe grabbed it out, grabbed a bun, stuffed it into his mouth, and said vaguely: "Is this the last trip again?"

Ling Xinghe was one year older than him, but half an inch shorter, with broad shoulders and thick arms, making him quite stout.

Although he owes Luo Xuanyuan's handsomeness, he has a big face and ears, and a strong and masculine profile. He has an indifferent expression that is very attractive. His eyes are deep and agile, and they are not inferior to Luo Xuanyuan's, making people feel that this boy will definitely not be a thing in the pool.

However, his clothes were patched here and there, making him filthier than Luo Xuanyuan, and not much better than a little beggar.

Luo Xuanyuan was already eating his third bun and frowned: "Don't talk about Yun Niang's appearance, okay? How many kind-hearted people like her are there in Liuyun Immortal City now? It's a pity that her family owes money, and her father regards wealth as his life, so he sold her to Lao Feng as a concubine. God must be blind."

The two of them walked out of the market and onto the street, squeezing in the flow of people leaving the city and walking towards the south gate.

Ling Xinghe filled his stomach, put his head on Luo Xuanyuan's shoulder and looked around: "There are so many fat sheep today, it's best to find an old man who is a little older, has gorgeous clothes, is single, and is full of worries, and doesn't know if he has lost his money bag."

Luo Xuanyuan gave a wry smile and said: "That time, you bastard wanted to attack the old man. Later, when he saw someone snatching him, he pretended to have found the money bag and returned it to him. I was so tired that I gave him a good beating."

Ling Xinghe said: "Don't forget that I was only going to pay back half of the money to the old man. It was you who wanted to please the old man and insisted that I pay back everything intact, and now you are talking about me. Hey! But we thieves have their own ways, and we are the real good guys. Ha! Look!"

Luo Xuanyuan followed his gaze and happened to catch a glimpse of an old Confucian scholar in his fifties, walking towards the city gate.

This gentleman is dressed gorgeously, has a hurried expression, and walks quickly with his head lowered. He completely meets all the conditions proposed by Ling Xinghe.

What a coincidence.

Both of them were stunned, their eyes slowly pressed towards the slight bulge of clothes on his back. Of course, he had hidden his money bag in his lower back.

Ling Xinghe leaned close to Luo Xuanyuan's ear and said, "Whether we can have good luck depends on whether this guy is just showing up."

Luo Xuanyuan said anxiously: "I must pay back Yun Niang's money first."

As the two men were chasing after them, suddenly a group of guards came towards them. They were startled, turned around, and rushed to the other end of the cross alley, where there was another parallel street in the south of Yucheng.

The two sat down slumped against the wall.

Ling Xinghe sighed for a while and then had a strange idea: "What if we try to apply for the imperial examination? Although our materials are obtained by eavesdropping on Master Rong Xuan's lectures, at least they are better than those useless people who paid enough silver to listen to the lectures. If we get a name on the list, we will not have to pay for it or risk traveling long distances, and we can become a high official."

Luo Xuanyuan said angrily: "You said you were going to join the alliance and now you changed your mind to take the imperial examination. You said it was as easy as going to peek at the girls in Chunfeng Yuan taking a bath. After all..."

Ling Xinghe punched him in the ribs and winked.

Luo Xuanyuan looked at the way he came and saw the old Confucian scholar walking in a hurry like them, turning a blind eye to them and running towards the street.

The two of them were overjoyed, jumped up, and chased the old Confucian scholar.

The time for action has come.

The old Confucian scholar hurried on, unaware that there was a c***k in his clothes behind him.

Just now, he was heading out of the city through the south gate, but was so frightened by the tight security that he shrank back. He knew that it was not appropriate to go out at this time, and he did not dare to return home. He was even more afraid of disturbing others when looking for friends. He was wandering in his heart, and a figure flashed, and someone blocked his way.

When the old Confucian scholar was horrified and shocked, he was already being held hostage by people from left to right, unable to move.

The person blocking the road was Tantai Hanchuan and a group of his subordinates. The master of the Tantai Immortal Clan came to the old Confucian scholar with a smile. After looking him up and down for a few times, he said calmly: "Isn't this Teacher Tian Wen who is famous for his poetry and prose at Linyuandu? ? I heard that the teacher is a close friend of Master Mu Xuanya. Just now, we took the liberty to visit Master Tian in your mansion, but we accidentally fished out Master Mu’s body from the bottom of the well. Now, Master Tian is in a hurry and doesn’t know what’s going on? "

Tian Wen's expression changed drastically, but he could still speak.

At that moment, passers-by noticed something was wrong. Among the people surrounding Tian Wen, they saw that there were senior guards from the city. Who dared to intervene.

The hands of the two big men holding Tian Wen were not idle. They searched Tian Wen's body, but they couldn't find the book that should be on him.

Qi Wangji personally took action, and after a while he found that the clothes on Tian Wen's back were cut with a sharp weapon, and his expression changed: "No! The book was taken away."

Tantai Hanchuan's eyes flashed with cold light, and his voice was low: "Chen Shoubei!"

Chen Shoubei, who was usually domineering, stepped forward hurriedly, and when he met Tantai Hanchuan's eyes, his legs immediately became weak, he knelt down and said in a trembling voice: "I'm here!"

Tantai Hanchuan said coldly: "Immediately seal the city gate, and at the same time catch all the thieves and ruffians. If they cannot hand over what the emperor wants, they will never be alive again."

Luo Xuanyuan and Ling Xinghe sat side by side in a quiet alley in the east of the city, staring blankly at the open book.

Luo Xuanyuan said disappointedly: "Next time you pick up something, don't meet these people who look like teachers. This mysterious ancient scripture is even more difficult to understand than the heavenly book. Don't you, Mr. Xinghe, often boast that you are rich in knowledge? Tell me what is written on it?"

Ling Xinghe said proudly: "How can I be as ignorant as you? This must be a martial arts secret book from the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. As long as you master it, you will be invincible in all nine states. Even Master Mu will be defeated. Just looking at these humanoid images, you can tell that it is the secret of meridians and qi. Ha! I have found a treasure this time. Look! Have you ever seen this kind of strange paper?"

Luo Xuanyuan laughed and said: "Stop boasting, read two words to me and see how you learn and master them."

Ling Xinghe was old-fashioned and said with bright eyes: "As long as someone can write it, there will be someone who can read it. Let's find the most knowledgeable old scholar and ask him to translate these strange words, while our Twin Dragons of Liuyun Immortal Citys are dedicated to practicing. This is called division of labor and cooperation. Everyone has his own place. Do you understand?"

Luo Xuanyuan said dejectedly: "Do you think you are the general manager of Liuyun Immortal City? Who is willing to obey our instructions so obediently? Now that our two snakes in Liuyun Immortal City have trouble shaking one meal in a row, it seems that it is more practical to take out the hidden money and exchange it for two steamed buns to fill our stomachs."

Ling Xinghe laughed, stood up, covered the book with his clothes, and stretched: "I, Mr. Xinghe, will be in charge of lunch, come on! Let's go home first, collect the silver, go to the pier outside the city, and do two really damn no-money transactions, and then run away immediately, otherwise it will be terrible if the stinky boss finds out that we are pregnant with treasures."

Luo Xuanyuan still felt frightened when he thought of yesterday's severe beating. He jumped up and followed Ling Xinghe sneakily to his "home" in the abandoned garden.

Tantai Hanchuan was sitting in the lobby of the General Manager's Mansion, drinking hot tea. Accompanying him was Yuchi Sheng, the General Manager of Liuyun Immortal City.

Not only are the two acquainted, but their relationship is also extraordinary.

Before Ji Daoshuo established the Great Xuanyin Dynasty, he was a minister of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. Later, after Emperor Xuan of Zhou Dynasty Yuwen Yun died of illness, Ji Daoshuo colluded with Zheng Yi, the internal history official, and Liu Fang, the imperial official. A year later, Ji Daoshuo forced Emperor Jing to abdicate and proclaimed himself emperor.

The Jiuzhou surname of Tantai in the Northern Zhou Dynasty was replaced by the surname Yang.

However, due to the deep-rooted power of the Tantai surname, even though Ji Daoshuo became the God King, he still failed to uproot the Yuwen fighting clan. When his son Ji Xuanyao became the God King, the Tantai surname became powerful again.

Strictly speaking, although Tantai seemed to serve the Sui Dynasty loyally, in fact he only buried hatred deep in his heart.

After Ji Daoshuo seized the position, three ministers who supported the Tantai lineage of the Northern Zhou Dynasty rebelled. They were Wei Chizhou, the general manager of Xiangzhou, Sima Xiaonan, the general manager of Zhengzhou, and Wang Qian, the general manager of Yizhou. These people were either related to the Tantai lineage or were loyal to the royal family of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. Among them, Yuchi Zhou is Yuchi Sheng's cousin, which shows the close relationship between the two.

Therefore, the two of them talked about secrets without any scruples.

Tantai Hanchuan sighed softly and said in a deep tone: "This book is really of great importance. I have prepared experts. As soon as I get the treasure book, I will immediately pretend to have successfully deciphered it and give it to the faint king to practice. I guarantee that he will be trained to death within three months. How can I get what I should have at my fingertips, but there are twists and turns. The disadvantage is that I can't even try to fake another copy."

Yuchi Sheng snorted coldly: "Even if there is no treasure book, I'm afraid the Ji family will still be unable to protect their throne. God bless the Great Zhou. Since this faint king came to the throne, he has imposed violent levies and built a large-scale construction project at home; he has been aggressive externally, and has conquered the Haidong Spiritual Domain. He has been defeated in three battles. Now there are rebels everywhere. As long as we seize the opportunity, we will be able to repeat the glorious days of the Great Zhou."

Tantai Hanchuan's eyes flashed with cold light, and he spoke in a low voice: "Ji Xuanyao's days are numbered. The only thing we can worry about is the other three surnamed fighting clans. Among them, the Xiao clan is the most important. Xiao Yuanheng, the clan leader, is the nephew of Empress Dowager Dugu. Therefore, he is deeply trusted by the Ji family, especially those of my Tantai lineage. If we fail to quell the three surnamed fighting clans in one day, our restoration of the Great Zhou Dynasty will inevitably encounter great resistance."

After a pause, he continued: "As for foreigners, Shuofeng Demon Court is really the biggest scourge. Now the rebellious people have joined Shuofeng Demon Court in the north and relied on their power, which has made Shuofeng Demon Court even more powerful. And the four masters of Shuofeng Demon Court are so superb in their magic that it makes people worry just thinking about it."

Yuchi Sheng said: "I don't think you need to worry too much about the Xiao family. Although Xiao Yuanheng is Ji Xuanyao's cousin, he is deeply jealous of Ji Xuanyao simply because he shows kindness and befriends heroes. Xiao Yuanheng has no time to protect himself now. As long as we can lay out a clever plan to deepen Ji Xuanyao's suspicion of Xiao Yuanheng, we may be able to kill people with a borrowed knife, allowing us to reap the benefits of others."

There was a smile in Tantai Hanchuan's eyes and when he nodded in approval, Qi Wangji came in and reported, "You have some clues!"

Tantai Hanchuan and Yuchi were overjoyed to win.

Qi Wangji said: "According to Tian Wen's confession, before he was arrested, he was hit by two young hooligans aged fifteen or six. It seems that these two boys stole the treasure book."

Tantai Hanchuan said happily: "Shihe must have found out who these two laughing hooligans are, and that's why they came to announce the good news."

Qi Wangji smiled and said: "That's right. One of these two people is called Ling Xinghe and the other is Luo Xuanyuan. They are the most famous pickpockets in Liuyun Immortal City. Their boss is named Yan Kuan. Now they have been escorted to find Na."

Yuchi Sheng laughed and said: "This is easy to handle. Unless they can grow wings from their ribs, they will never escape our grasp as long as they are still in the city."

Tantai Hanchuan breathed a sigh of relief and leaned on the back of the chair, as if the treasure book had been in his hands.

Before the two of them had a chance to collect more than ten strings of five-baht coins, Luo Xuanyuan, who was in charge of the lookout, saw Tu Wukui, who was dejected, walking towards the ruined garden, being escorted by more than a dozen big men.

The people of Luo Xuanyuan were extremely elves, and even though they were shocked, they still knew how to quietly rush to meet Yu Ling Xinghe, and together they went to another broken house with only three rotten walls, and hid in a cave specially dug to avoid the evil leader Tu.

The sound of "bang bang bang pound" rummaging through boxes and boxes kept coming from their little den.

After a while, Tu Eukui's howl was heard, which sounded like he was being beaten severely.

Although they wished someone would beat Tu Erkui to death, they still couldn't bear it when they heard his current situation.

I felt terrified again, not knowing what had happened.

Tu Wukui was finally a well-known figure in Liuyun Immortal City. He had more than twenty brothers under his command. He had recently become the grandson of the leader of the Zhuhua g**g, Chang Ci, but in front of these big men, he was not as good as a pig or a dog.

A gloomy voice sounded over there: "Search for me!"

As soon as these words came out, the two dragons in Liuyun Immortal City immediately changed from hazy to snakes, curled up in a pile, and did not dare to breathe out.

Tu Erkui's trembling voice came: "Masters, please give me a little more time, I will definitely get the book back, I can guarantee it with your head... Yeah!" It was obvious that he was either punched or kicked.

Footsteps sounded next to the crypt, and someone called out: "Can't find anyone yet?"

Tu Wukui's hoarse and painful voice begged for mercy: "Please give me one more chance. These two damn boys must have come to the Mu Xuanya Dojo to peek at the people practicing kung fu in the dojo, ah!"

The gloomy voice said: "Mu Xuanya's dojo was closed to us this morning, what else is there to see?"

After a pause, he said: "You four stay here for me and let them come back. You ruffian, take us to all the places where this kid goes to look for them one by one. Quick, drag him up!"

The footsteps gradually faded away.

Ling Xinghe and Luo Xuanyuan in the crypt looked at each other, both seeing the other being frightened and turning pale.

At the same time, the two of them thought of the culvert next to the east gate that led to the outside of the city.

That's their only hope now.