Chapter 173 The Lady of the Lake, the Crazy Husband on the Island

After dinner, when Zhao Duan arrived at Xiuwenguan, the sun had already risen high in the sky.

He was not at all panicked. As an "extra-staff bachelor", he positioned himself as an "advisor" of the new policy.

So, he even took the time to go to Lihua Hall first, go through the motions, and then rush over.

I entered the hall without any obstruction, and when I pushed open the door, I saw that the huge government office was already bustling with activity.

Each scholar was either processing memorials and official documents from various ministries, or refining the "Three Golden Strategies".

"Mr. Zhao..."

"Mr. Zhao, are you here?"

"Hello, Lord Zhao."

The scholars all took the initiative to greet him, and the treatment he received was completely different from yesterday morning.

However, perhaps it was still difficult to accept that a warrior had become a colleague, so many people used other names for him.

Lord Zhao Duan is magnanimous and does not bother with a group of scholars.

Glancing around, he saw the "Female Prime Minister" who was also in the room, occupying a table.

"Where's the Grand Tutor? Why can't I see him?"

Zhao Duan strolled over, pulled over a chair and sat down as usual.

"..." Mo Zhaorong was not willing to pay attention to him and replied with a stern face:

"The Grand Tutor has taken Han Zhou out. With your three strategies, there's a lot that needs to be done..."

After a brief explanation, he said:

"You've come just in time. The Grand Tutor said this morning that there's something he wants you to look after."

"What's the matter?" Zhao Duan asked curiously.

"Yellow Book Library," Mo Chou spat out three words and explained:

"When Taizu founded Dayu, he spent twenty years trying to understand the number of people and land in each region of the world. He recorded the people in the world and measured the land...

Since the imperial court collected taxes based on the number of people, this Yellow Book, which was related to taxation, could not be sloppy and was required to be revised every ten years.

That is, once the book is completed, it will be divided into four copies, one of which will be submitted to the Ministry of Revenue, and the other three will be kept by the provincial government, prefecture, and county governments respectively."

Hmm...Dayu version of the census...

Therefore, the Yellow Book Library is the largest archive room in the world... Zhao Duan thought.

According to Mo Chou, the Yellow Book Library has existed for too long.

Because of the poll tax, the local government developed a lot of counterfeiting methods, hiding the population and tampering with the content...

In short, the data recorded in the Yellow Book is seriously erroneous.

"The Grand Tutor wants to ask you what you think about the Yellow Book Library," said Mochou.

view?

Are you asking me if I have any ideas to solve the problem of data falsification? Zhao Duan heard the hidden meaning, thought for a moment, and asked:

"Where is that warehouse? I need to see the situation in person."

Mo Chou was not surprised and said:

"It's in the Houhu Lake in the north of the city. It's not far. If you ride a horse, you can get there quickly."

Zhao Duan had nothing to do and was quite curious about Dayu's largest archive, so he nodded happily.

…

The two men agreed not to take a carriage, but to ride out of the north gate of the capital on horseback.

After walking a short distance, we saw green mountains rising from the ground in front of us, forming a circle around us, which was magnificent.

The lake, which is forty miles in radius, is located between the mountains. It has beautiful scenery and is like a gem embedded in the earth.

“Da da da…”

Zhao Duan grasped the whip, spurred his horse forward, and looking out at the lake ahead, he asked curiously:

"I heard that this is the royal garden, guarded by the army, and no one is allowed to approach. I've never been here before, but I didn't know that the so-called Yellow Book Library is hidden here?"

When Mo Chou came out, she changed out of her official robes and took off her black veil.

Now she is just an ordinary androgynous woman dressed with her black hair draped behind her head.

The whole person's cold and elegant temperament was diluted and softened a lot.

If we ignore the majesty of power in her eyes and eyebrows, it would not be out of place to say that she is a young lady from a scholarly family.

This will say lightly:

"The Yellow Book of the World is compiled every ten years. Six hundred years have passed, and although the old books have been destroyed, there are still millions of them left.

Because it concerns the country, it must be placed near the capital for easy access. Where can we find such a large vacant space in the city?

In the Houhu Lake, silt from the riverbed once formed five 'islands', known as the 'Five Continents'. They were named Huan, Ying, Ling, Liang, and Cui respectively.

Due to the natural geographical barriers, the Yellow Book Library is placed on the island, which can avoid fire hazards and is safe enough, making it the most suitable place.

The only problem is moisture and insects on the island, but that can be solved by having people dry the trees, ventilate them, and supervise them in summer and autumn."

Millions of copies?

Zhao Duan was amazed.

Considering the volume of books in feudal dynasties, generally speaking, a library with tens of thousands of volumes was already rare.

What's more, the warehouse of millions of books...

As they were talking, the two had already arrived near Houhu Lake.

Mo Zhaorong took out her badge and the soldiers guarding nearby respectfully let her pass.

Afterwards, the two arrived at the dock, only to see that all the ships in the dock were sealed.

An official came out from the shore and learned that it was Mo Zhaorong who was ordered to check the files, so he did not dare to delay.

A boat was immediately released and an official personally manned the boat to take the two men to the island.

Zhao Duan stood on the boat and felt the gentle breeze that swept away the heat.

The scenery of lakes and mountains before my eyes is breathtakingly beautiful.

In summer, large lotus flowers bloom in the lake, and boats travel on the extremely quiet lake, with countless dark green lotus leaves and bright red lotus flowers swaying on both sides.

"With a scene like this, if it weren't for the Imperial Guards guarding it, I'm afraid it would have been packed with people."

Zhao Duan exclaimed in admiration, and then looked down at the lotus flowers on both sides of the ship and said:

"I heard this morning that Shenlong Temple was selling lotus flowers. I took a look, but they're nowhere near as good as the ones here."

Mo Chou smiled slightly and walked side by side with him. Her eyes reflected the scenery of the lake and mountains. She was in a good mood and said proudly:

"Although the lotus pond at Shenlong Temple is beautiful, only the lotuses in the inner courtyard of the temple are blessed by the Buddha's light. Ordinary people can hardly find them. As for the lotuses sold to the people, they are just ordinary lotuses from the outer courtyard, which are naturally not worth mentioning."

Zhao Duan said he had learned something, and something in his mind moved:

"I heard that the monks at the Shenlong Temple will hold a ceremony to worship the gods during the Ghost Festival some time soon?"

Mo Chou glanced at him:

"Yes. Every year during the Zhongyuan Festival, they send at least a monk from the 'worldly' realm to preside over the ceremony. Shenlong Temple is very enthusiastic about this and invites many dignitaries to participate every year. Haha, it's more like a way to make money than to worship the gods.

The Tianshi Mansion only holds sacrifices within the mansion and does not invite outsiders...

Why, you want to go and have a look?

Oh, with the reputation you've built up over the past few months, you might actually be invited... provided the great Buddhist monk is willing to extend an olive branch to someone as notorious and infamous as you."

I feel like you are mocking me, but I have no evidence... Zhao Duan shook his head.

He was not interested in any kind of worship, but was very interested in the Shenlong Temple.

After all, it is a cultivation force that is on par with the Tianshi Mansion.

The abbot Xuanyin in the temple is one of the strongest people in the world and has competed with Zhang Tianshi.

He had never dealt with the monks of Shenlong Temple since he traveled through time, so he was inevitably curious.

While I was thinking, suddenly, the boat shook slightly.

It seemed as if there was some unusual movement beneath the water, disturbing the lake.

Zhao Duan's martial arts warning was immediately triggered.

His pupils suddenly narrowed, and his right hand subconsciously grasped the Golden Crow Flying Knife hidden in his sleeve.

His muscles tensed as he stared intently at the turbulent, rippling dark green water.

Just like a hunter who senses danger in the primeval forest.

It seemed like there was an extreme danger approaching the ship from underwater!

"Don't be nervous," Mo Chou's face changed slightly, but she managed to remain calm.

"Don't worry, nothing at the bottom of the lake can come up."

As if to confirm her words.

The next moment, the strange turbulence disappeared and Zhao Duan lost his target in an instant.

He still didn't dare to let his guard down and asked:

"That thing at the bottom of the lake? What is it?"

"I don't know," Mochou answered confidently:

"Anyway, it's a very powerful thing. You can think of it as the 'Lake God' guarding Houhu Lake. If any cultivator sneaks in and tries to approach the Yellow Book Library, the Lake God will strike and kill them."

After a pause, she said with a strange look:

"I have also asked His Majesty. The Yellow Book Library is so important that it is difficult for mortals to reach the island. But what if a cultivator takes action? His Majesty said that there are two guards in Houhu, one at the bottom of the lake and the other on the island. One is a prisoner, and the other is also a prisoner."

Is the empress’s family surname Lu... Zhao Duan complained, thinking that it was worthy of being an important royal place, with unfathomable background.

In addition to the strong ones in public, there are countless others hiding in the dark.

But the word "prisoner" seems to imply that the masters here are not guarding here voluntarily.

The boat slowly sailed away from the lotus pond.

No one noticed that huge bubbles suddenly appeared on the water surface among the dark green lotus flowers.

Then, a bloodless face of a young woman with pale eyes slowly floated up.

The long hair slowly floated underwater like a bunch of water grass.

The woman was dressed in red, but her hands and feet were shackled with black shackles. The long chains seemed to have no end, extending all the way to the bottom of the lake.

The white-eyed woman at the bottom of the lake slowly poked her head out and floated on the water.

Quietly watching the ships going away.

The pupilless eyes stared at the handsome young man on the boat.

After a long time, it slowly sank to the bottom of the lake.

…

The other side.

The boat Zhao Duan was on also arrived at "Huanzhou Island", one of the five islands in Houhu Lake.

As soon as we got off the boat, we saw several houses standing on the island.

The layout is similar to that of a government office, and it is obviously the residence of the officials who guard here.

In addition, there is a single pavilion not far away, but its location is unknown and it looks quite out of place.

"I am the Director of the Yellow Book Library. I am honored to meet Miss Mo."

An official who was about fifty years old came out of the duty room on the island and bowed hurriedly.

He looked at Zhao Duan again, his face hesitant.

Mo Chou said calmly:

"This is Lord Zhao. He's here to check on the yellow books in the warehouse."

The old warehouse manager may have been stationed on the island for many years and was cut off from the news.

I didn't guess Zhao Duan's identity immediately, but I didn't think much about it.

No matter which government office the leader belongs to, you can't afford to offend him.

Immediately greeted with a smile:

"Please both of you sign the agreement first and go through the formalities. I will then take you to the warehouse."

There is nothing wrong with both of them.

After signing and stamping the document, Zhao Duan pointed to the small building in the distance and asked curiously,

"What is that place? I see there's only one building here."

The old warehouse manager's face changed slightly when he heard this, and he said in a low voice:

"Sir, please don't go over there. There's a madman living in that building. He was exiled to the island during the reign of the previous emperor and he rarely comes out.

Your Majesty only asks us to deliver food and wine regularly.

He said that if there was any danger on the lake, this madman would come to protect.

I think he is a master of cultivation."

Another prisoner?

Zhao Duan raised his eyebrows, vaguely realizing that the madman on the island and the "lake god" in the lake might be in a mutually restraining relationship.

At this moment, as if sensing someone was watching, the window on the second floor of the small building opened a crack.

Dozens of feet away, Zhao Duan suddenly felt as if he had fallen into an icy cave, and was being stared at by some terrifying beast.

…

Update in a hurry, update first and then layout

(End of this chapter)