Seeing Chu Hong’s sullen face, Zhang Shixun sneered in his heart. What was there to be arrogant about when a man took a eunuch as his godfather?
No conversation along the way.
When they arrived at Liang's house, Chu Hong led the way and led him to the living room.
In the living room, Zhao Ji and a white-haired old man were chatting.
Liang Shicheng, Wang Fu, Li Bangyan and others sat aside and watched quietly.
After hearing Chu Hong's report, Zhao Ji grabbed a handful of chess pieces and threw them onto the chessboard. He said with a smile, "Yuan Chang, I heard that your chess style is always light and elegant. Why is it that when you meet me, you become so cautious and thick-skinned?"
"Haha! Your Majesty's chess moves are magnificent, majestic, and unrestrained. Under your dragon claws, I can only survive in humiliation, otherwise I will end up in complete defeat."
"Yuan Chang, you are too modest." Zhao Ji laughed and seemed very proud.
Wang Fu, beside him, clicked his tongue and sighed, "The official's chess skills are magnificent and thrilling. He is truly a master!"
Li Bangyan said: "When the officials play chess, it can be said that they are like a heavy sword without a sharp edge, but with great force and heavy power."
"Yeah! Strong and powerful, yet firm yet gentle." Liang Shicheng also said.
Flattery came out one after another from everyone's mouth. Although Zhao Ji knew that they were flattering him, he was still delighted to hear them.
Zhang Shixun felt his scalp tingle when he heard this and shook his head secretly. What a bunch of flatterers, so shameless!
Zhao Ji raised his head and looked at Zhang Shixun, saying, "Zhang Shixun, you've kept us waiting for a long time."
"Greetings, Your Majesty, and all the gentlemen." Zhang Shixun stepped forward, bowed, and explained with a smile, "As soon as I heard the Your Majesty wanted to see me, I came immediately. However, my legs were not convenient, so I came in a sedan chair."
"Forget it!" Zhao Ji waved his hand and pointed at the white-haired old man, saying, "You haven't met Cai Jing and Cai Yuanchang yet, right? Come over and pay your respects to them."
It turns out that this old man is the famous traitor Cai Jing.
"Greetings to Grand Tutor Cai." Zhang Shixun saluted Cai Jing while looking at him carefully.
Cai Jing twirled his beard and smiled, "Haha! Shixun's name has been heard everywhere lately."
"I am just an unknown person, how can I be so famous?" Zhang Shixun was respectful and did not dare to be careless.
Among these people, all are cunning and treacherous, especially Cai Jing, who is definitely not a good person and must be guarded against.
You can never be too careful.
"Fan Lou saved the emperor, which is a great achievement." Cai Jing praised.
"Grand Tutor Cai is so kind. I just happened to be in this position and I have no choice but to accept the offer." Zhang Shixun answered with energy.
After Zhang Shixun and Cai Jing exchanged greetings, they saluted Liang Shicheng and others present.
Having to keep bowing is so annoying.
Zhao Ji waited until he had finished his greetings before getting straight to the point: "Shixun, Kai'er told me that you once met two immortals?"
"Your Highness, it is true."
Wang Fu rebuked him, "Zhang Shixun is so audacious! He dares to claim to have seen a deity before the emperor. He deserves death!"
Before Zhang Shixun could speak, Zhao Ji glared at Wang Fu and said, "Don't say any more. Whether what he said is true or not, you will know after you hear him finish his words."
After that, he continued to ask Zhang Shixun: "Don't be afraid. If you see something magical, tell us about it."
"Speaking of this, it's a long topic. If you have the patience, I will tell you."
Zhao Ji quickly ordered Chu Hong, who was standing by, "Quick! Bring a stool for Zhang Shixun."
After Chu Hong brought over a stool, Zhang Shixun sat down. Seeing Zhao Ji and the others staring at him eagerly, he began to tell the story, "That happened when I was on my way back to the Song Dynasty by boat... Your Majesty, those who have never been on a sea ship cannot understand the loneliness and hardship of sea travel. Drifting on the vast ocean for months on end can drive a person crazy."
"Well! Talk about the immortals, don't talk about those unimportant things." Wang Fu couldn't help but interrupt him.
One day, I was bored in my cabin, so I went out on deck. Lying on the side of the ship, I looked out at the sea. Suddenly, I saw a small island in the distance, appearing and disappearing. At first, I thought it was a mirage and didn't pay much attention to it. But as the ship sailed for a while and got closer and closer, I realized that the island was real. I jumped up with joy and told the boatman to sail towards it.
"Are there any gods on the island?" Zhao Ji asked nervously.
"Don't worry, sir. We'll soon be talking about the gods... The ship was getting closer and closer to the island. I stood on the deck and looked towards it. I saw lush trees and abundant flowers. Seabirds circled over the island, and I even saw butterflies fluttering among the flowers. As soon as the ship touched the shore, I couldn't wait to jump onto the island. The boatman and sailors also dropped anchor and jumped down with joy."
"Where are the gods? Where are the gods?" Zhao Ji asked. This was what he cared about most.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will explain it to you slowly." The more Zhao Ji wanted to know, the less anxious Zhang Shixun became. "This island isn't very big. A rough estimate is about five or six miles in circumference. I circled the island in less than an hour. Just as I was about to look at the center of the island, I saw the boatman and sailors crawling out of the woods, their faces pale and terrified..."
"What happened?" Zhao Ji asked.
"I was also puzzled at the time, so I asked the boatman what was going on. The boatman told me breathlessly that they had discovered a manor in the middle of the island, with a pond in front of it. The boatman and his companions cheered when they saw that there was actually a house there, and wanted to run over to the manor to take a look and get some fruits, vegetables, and other things, which are most needed by sailors. However, they searched for a long time but couldn't find the way to the manor. They were standing by the pond, stunned, when suddenly a black monster jumped out of the water, opened its bloody mouth, bit a man's waist and dragged him into the water. The man screamed and shouted for help. The boatman and his companions were terrified and watched the man being dragged into the water by the monster..."
"What kind of monster is that?" Zhao Ji asked nervously.
"It wasn't until the man disappeared into the water that everyone woke up from their dream. They stood there, calling out his name in vain. After just a few shouts, they saw many monsters rapidly gathering in the water. Seeing this, everyone turned around and ran away in fear."
"I don't understand, since there is a manor there, why is there no road?" Cai Jing also became interested and asked.
Zhang Shixun spread his hands and said, "At that time, I thought the same as you. It doesn't make sense to have a manor but no road leading to it, unless the person who built this manor is a fool."
"Well, go on." Zhao Ji urged.
"After listening to the boatman's description, I ignored their advice and headed towards the island. After about a cup of tea, I saw a manor, appearing and disappearing in the mist. When I got closer, I saw a large pond stretching across the manor, just as the boatman had described. I looked around, but there was no road leading to the manor."
Zhao Ji asked nervously, "Did you see the monster in the water?"
"Of course I did."
"What kind of monster is this?"
"To put it bluntly, it's not worth mentioning. The water is full of crocodiles, or earth dragons."
"So that's what it is. There are quite a few of them in Lingnan." Cai Jing suddenly realized and said, "Those boatmen make a living on the water. How could they not recognize the earth dragon?"
"These earth dragons have strange shapes and are much larger than those in Lingnan." Zhang Shixun gestured, "They're as long as two people."
"I see."
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