Chapter 524: Ming Dynasty, Good Luck
Mo Zhan had just arrived at the post station.
Hearing the hurried sound of horse hooves, the postman on duty in the post station came out, and Mo Zhan jumped off the horse and said, "Prepare dry food and change horses!"
"Is there any document?" asked the postman.
Mo Zhan took out the sign, "Guardian of the Duke Wei's Mansion, on official business as ordered."
“But there is no document here…” The postman looked embarrassed.
"This matter is extremely urgent. Someone will come to contact us later." Mo Zhan pressed his hand on the hilt of the knife. "If anything goes wrong, it will be our fault!"
"No problem." With these words, the postman felt relieved.
"By the way." Mo Zhan asked, "Have you seen a Hu merchant caravan passing by in the past two days?"
The postman said, "Yes, the caravan has been gone for almost two days."
"Thank you."
After changing horses and taking some dry food, Mo Zhan and the others continued their pursuit.
……
Unlike the south where there is green all year round, in autumn in the north the leaves turn yellow, the grass withers, and everywhere you look, there is gray.
A caravan was traveling rapidly on the official road.
"drive!"
The whip cracked in the air, and the horse pulling the cart lowered its head and accelerated.
There were more than ten people riding horses on both sides, and they looked like grassland people.
"be quick!"
A man looked back where he came from.
"This matter is secret, why worry?" the companion whispered.
"My eyelids have been twitching." The man touched his eyelids.
"Which eye?"
"Left eye."
"The left eye is twitching for wealth." The companion said, "We have accomplished great things this time, and the reward will surely be generous. This is a good omen."
"I hope so, but the longer you wait, the more trouble you will have. Let them hurry up."
The companions went to find the merchant, who was unhappy when he heard it, "Whose responsibility is it to speed up the journey and waste horses and carts?"
"Who do you think is responsible for the Khan's affairs?" The companion said coldly, "Hurry up and get on with your journey. You will naturally benefit from it once you pass through the customs."
"Did you do something big?" The businessman knew the identities of these two people.
"Don't ask questions that you shouldn't ask, or you'll bring yourself trouble."
The businessman was startled and immediately ordered the convoy to speed up.
He went to find two secret agents and said, "We will be able to get out in half a day."
"Okay." After the businessman left, the two spies smiled at each other.
"According to Li Yi, the gunpowder is incredibly powerful. Once it explodes, it will be like thunder and lightning. Do you remember what happened to Jiang Qingzhi in the Absolute Valley?"
"It is said that a sudden thunderbolt broke down the cliff and buried the wolves."
"That must not be thunder, but gunpowder!"
"The cavalry under the Khan's command is invincible, but the Ming people have many ways to defend the city, and we are always helpless when facing a strong city. Once the gunpowder is prepared, the army will march south... and any strong city will be reduced to dust."
After half a day, several riders came galloping.
"quick!"
Mo Zhan urged his horse and showed anxiety for the first time.
The sun is gradually setting in the west.
The caravan has already seen the city.
According to the rules, they need to check the people accompanying them. If there are too many or too few, they will be detained.
Another thing is to check the goods to see if there are any prohibited items.
"Stop!"
In front of the chevaux de frise, several soldiers shouted lazily.
The caravan stopped, the merchant walked over with a smile, and with a slight shake of his hand, an ingot of silver landed in the hands of the flag officer leading the team.
Xiaoqi weighed the silver ingot and pointed at the goods. "Check."
Several soldiers came over and randomly lifted the tarpaulin or opened the boxes to look through them.
Someone came to check the number of people.
"Thirteen people entered the customs, and thirteen people left. Wang, dark-faced, slightly fat..."
After a short while, the inspection was completed.
The two spies were delighted, and felt as happy as if the sky was high for birds to fly and the sea was wide for fish to leap.
They walked through the city and bought some food along the way.
Just go out of the city gate in front and you will be out of the pass.
After getting out of the border, the two spies would be confident of escaping even if the defenders pursued them.
The merchant took out the document for inspection and handed it to a clerk at the city gate.
"Passed." The clerk stamped the document and said with a smile, "I can make some money again."
"It's all TOEFL, TOEFL!" The businessman smiled and calmly gave another small piece of silver.
This is the level...seemingly invisible, but crucial.
The sound of horse hooves was heard from behind, and the two spies turned around.
Seeing the two spies chasing them in a dusty manner, their faces changed drastically and they rode their horses to rush out.
"Stop them!"
Mo Zhan shouted.
The clerk was startled and subconsciously reached out to stop him.
There was a flash of knife, and the clerk was stabbed in the chest. He stumbled back, but kept his arms open.
Just like that, the soldiers in the city gate gained time to react.
The chevaux de frise was facing the outside of the city, and this was the city. The soldiers picked up their spears and shouted at the two riders, "Get off your horses!"
"Rush over!"
The two spies rushed over fearlessly.
One of the spies was the first to collide with the spear, and was thrown over by inertia. He threw down two soldiers, punched hard, and shouted, "Go!"
The other spy gritted his teeth and rushed through the passage he opened.
He swung his long sword to block the stabbing spear and saw that the city was just ahead.
The spy was overjoyed and turned back to look at his companions.
"careful!"
The spy looked back and saw a flash of a knife.
The knife flashed on the back of the horse under him. A flash of blood appeared, and the warhorse fell down with a loud neigh.
The spy fell off his horse and stood up with one hand. He was about to run out, but suddenly stopped, turned around and swung his knife.
But the pursuers behind him seemed to know that he would do this, and easily blocked the knife. Then he swung the long knife, and a huge force came. The spy's hand loosened, and the long knife in his hand was knocked away.
The knife flashed again, the spy closed his eyes, and the faces of his loved ones flashed before his eyes like lightning...
The long knife suddenly stopped and placed on his neck.
The spy opened his eyes, "Jin Yiwei!"
"Xin'an Lane Guard, Mo Zhan!"
In the setting sun, Mo Zhan held a knife with the corners of his mouth slightly raised.
he made it!
Just before the gunpowder formula was about to be sent out of the border, he successfully intercepted it.
……
At this moment, Jiang Qingzhi has already arrived at the Ming Tombs of later generations.
"This is it."
The father-in-law did not ask him what he was going to do, but took Jiang Qingzhi to inspect the tomb very professionally.
The dug tomb was now half full of water.
"If this coffin was soaked in it..." Jiang Qingzhi thought of the archaeological programs he watched in later generations, in which many tombs were excavated and the coffins were full of water.
"As time goes by, it will inevitably be buried in the coffin." The father-in-law whispered, "I just want peace of mind."
"Are the fruits from the tombs really good for future generations?" Jiang Qingzhi was very curious about this.
But there is still no news about my daughter's pregnancy... Li Huan glanced at him and said, "This thing... To be honest, if it really works, then why did Qin fall in the second generation?"
"Are you saying that Feng Shui is nonsense?" Jiang Qingzhi asked.
"Can these so-called Feng Shui help this person's descendants?" Li Huan said.
Jiang Qingzhi was stunned and thought, that’s right!
At this time, someone from the Imperial Observatory came to invite Jiang Qingzhi to go. After he left, the charlatan following Li Huan said, "Secretary, what Feng Shui said is true. I know of several cases."
"I know."
"Then you still..."
Then why are you still deceiving your own son-in-law?
Li Huan said softly, "Second Lady has been well-behaved since she was young, and never made me and her mother worry. I thought such a sensible child would have a smooth life, but who knew... she still has no children after marriage. How many people outside are mocking her, and how many people are waiting for the divorce letter."
He sighed, "She still has no children. If what I say about Feng Shui is true, it can benefit her children and grandchildren. What will Qingzhi think?"
The tomb was immediately filled in. According to the Imperial Astronomical Observatory, there was an evil spirit here, and a 9981-day ritual was performed to ward off disasters and avoid misfortunes.
Jiang Qingzhi saw an official from the Imperial Observatory, a charlatan from the Taichang Temple, and a Taoist priest quietly discussing something. As luck would have it, Sun Butong became curious and secretly eavesdropped.
"Master, the Taoist said that the benefits withheld during the ritual are 30% and 70% of the benefits."
What the hell... Jiang Qingzhi looked up at the sky speechlessly.
Jiang Qingzhi was physically in the Royal Cemetery, but his heart was with Mo Zhan.
That night, he couldn't fall asleep for a long time, so he simply put on his clothes and went out.
The Ming Tombs under the night sky… they cannot be called the Ming Tombs at this moment.
The royal cemetery looked quite solemn under the night sky. Jiang Qingzhi stood with his hands behind his back in the night breeze, looking at Changling in the distance.
That is the resting place of Emperor Chengzu.
Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang was buried in Nanjing. After Emperor Chengzu Zhu Di moved the capital to Beijing, the imperial tomb was also moved here.
Jiang Qingzhi thought of Emperor Chengzu’s life of military service and of Emperor Wanli whose tomb was dug up in later generations.
"My Lord, are you thinking about ancient times?" someone asked behind him.
"The descendants reap the land of their ancestors, what's the point of fighting between dragons and tigers!" Jiang Qingzhi turned around, and Xu Wei bowed, "My Lord, are you worried about Mo Zhan?"
Jiang Qingzhi nodded, "Actually, what I'm worried about is not Altan getting the formula for gunpowder."
It is the West that he is worried about.
At this moment, the development of Western firearms is in a stable period, and it will take decades to make a breakthrough.
Gunpowder is the basis of all firearms. The gunpowder Jiang Qingzhi mixed is more powerful than that of the West. If the formula spread to the West...
He didn't dare to think!
"It's a pity that the stone is not here." Jiang Qingzhi said with some regret.
If Sun Chonglou were here, with his aggressive temperament, he would be the most suitable person to hunt down spies.
The two of them whispered about some follow-up matters. At dawn, Jiang Qingzhi took Xu Wei and others to Changling.
After paying tribute to Emperor Chengzu, Jiang Qingzhi saw that it was almost noon, so he brought everyone back.
"How about right here?" The person from the Imperial Observatory decided on the location.
"Let's do some divination!" said the father-in-law.
The two charlatans began to tell fortunes.
"lucky!"
"Good luck!"
"Come again." Once bitten by a snake, Li Huan was afraid of ropes for ten years.
This time it’s better, good luck to both of you.
"Is there any other way?" Li Huan asked.
The two charlatans looked at each other and said, "Burn the tortoise shell."
What the hell is this?
Jiang Qingzhi was puzzled, and Xu Wei whispered, "In ancient times, whenever there was a battle or a major event, people would burn tortoise shells for divination. The word divination comes from the sound of burning tortoise shells. Sometimes, people would even burn a tortoise shell to divine whether a noble person could go out today."
How many turtles would have to be killed?
Yan San is here.
Jiang Qingzhi thought this guy was here to supervise, but he just pulled Jiang Qingzhi aside.
"Your Majesty is worried that the formula will be leaked out of the border, so I ordered our Yan cavalry to chase and kill him."
"When did you set off?"
"After you report to the palace."
You are telling me now. Are you worried that Jiang Qingzhi will be unhappy?
How come it's like coaxing a child... Jiang Qingzhi smiled, he was not that stingy.
"His Majesty has ordered that the formula must be recovered even if we have to chase him to the so-called royal court."
Jiang Qingzhi nodded, and Yan San asked about the tomb again.
"Burn turtle shells?" Yan San was stunned.
"Master!" A guard shouted from a distance, "Mo Zhan is back."
Jiang Qingzhi's heartbeat quickened. Mo Zhan dismounted from his horse in the distance and raised a piece of paper in his hand...
Behind me came the cheers of the charlatans, "Good luck! Good luck!"
Jiang Qingzhi closed his eyes and clasped his hands together.
"Da Ming, great luck!"
(End of this chapter)
