Chapter 691 [A Poor Scholar] Settles in Peach Blossom Spring, Sword Formation Encircles North and South [Seeking Monthly Tickets!]
Xuezhongzhu and the others used the same method they had previously used to confirm their junior sister's safety. After confirming something with the Queen's Palace, they realized that although something had happened in Xunyang City, their junior sister's safety should be fine, probably because she hadn't been affected. Otherwise, if Yue Chuzi had been captured, the Jiangzhou government wouldn't have been able to keep it a secret.
However, despite this, she still lost contact with her junior sister. The second junior sister originally planned to stay in Xunyang to look for her junior sister, but she encountered a very urgent matter and returned first.
Before leaving in the morning, my second junior sister said that this sudden discovery needed to be verified in detail, so she left in a hurry and went to Xunyang...
Suddenly, the candle in the snow spoke up and asked:
"Alright, let's get down to business. What do you think of the news Second Junior Sister brought back?"
"What is it?" Zhang Shixiu asked curiously, but then heard Wei Shaoqi stroke his beard and say:
"Jiangzhou Hall suddenly issued a notice saying that there is a risk of flooding during the plum rain season, and the whole city will be under martial law for ten days to rescue the flood. The key facility to be rescued is Shuangfengjian... Interesting."
Du Shuqing suddenly reminded him: "Xunyang Grottoes are also located at Shuangfengjian."
Zhang Shixiu asked earnestly, "I understand. But what about the Donglin Buddha?"
"Work also stopped. The Jiangzhou government and Governor Ouyang Lianghan announced that the Buddha statue construction would be suspended for ten days so that workers could focus on flood control."
"I've been to that Twin Peaks area. It was a perfectly good waterproofing project. Why is it no longer working? Is it because of another major flood?"
"I don't know. The announcement said that the construction of the Xunyang Grottoes used too many rocks, which damaged the water conservancy system, so the floods recurred this year."
Du Shuqing pointed to the Xunyang Grottoes on the map and asked:
"Have any of our people seen the current state of the Xunyang Grottoes? Are you sure construction has stopped? Or is it a fake?"
Xuezhong Zhu nodded:
"Before my second junior sister returned, she sent someone to take a look from afar. It seems that the construction of the Buddha statue has indeed been suspended for several days, and there are no people climbing or working on it... However, recently there has been a thick fog over the Xunyang River, which has shrouded the twin peaks, making it difficult to see clearly. But due to the flood control efforts, the area is heavily guarded, making it difficult to get close and observe."
Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged glances.
"Oh."
Wei Shaoqi suddenly chuckled.
Everyone looked over and saw that his face was filled with emotion:
"That's an interesting move."
A cold voice asked from the snow-covered candle:
"Mr. Wei means that the so-called flood in Xunyang City that delayed the Buddha statue was intentional and all fake, right?"
Wei Shaoqi nodded, then shook his head:
"Truth and falsehood intertwined, isn't this exactly the effect the imperial court wants to achieve?"
Zhang Shixiu noticed that the blonde queen looked thoughtful, while Du Shuqing nodded in agreement.
"Mr. Wei is right. In a battle between two sides, this is a move that is often used as a feint. It combines feints and real attacks. The advantage is that it can disrupt the enemy's rhythm and thus gain the initiative."
"They're doing the same thing to us now... The Xunyang Grottoes issued a notice to stop construction, which makes people wonder if they're deliberately giving us away, reserving a battlefield, waiting for us to come to us, and controlling the location of the final conflict to be in and around the Xunyang Grottoes."
"That's right."
Wei Shaoqi sighed with emotion:
"Luring the enemy to a predetermined battlefield and making the conflict occur at a predetermined time is itself an artificial creation of favorable timing and location... This possibility is not small."
"Secondly, I know Ouyang Lianghan. I have personally witnessed his construction of the Shuangfengjian Water Conservancy Project. He was also in charge of building the Buddha statue at Xunyang Grottoes. It is highly unlikely that he and his people would overdraw the stone resources in the mountains to build the Buddha statue, thus causing renewed flooding. Such a poor strategy would be too crude and reckless."
"If this had happened to any other local official in the Great Zhou, I could believe it, but it's very illogical for him, especially since there's almost no opposition to him in Xunyang City. With no one to restrain him, how could he have made such a foolish move?"
Zhang Shixiu suddenly spoke up:
"But if a flood really comes, Shuangfengjian will be unable to release floodwaters and control the flood because of the construction of Xunyang Grottoes. Jiangzhou will really have to temporarily stop flood control and disaster relief. What should we do? Wouldn't that be a waste of an opportunity to take action?"
"That's not how it's calculated."
Du Shuqing shook her head and glanced at Zhang Shixiu again:
"Like right now, we've been hesitant to take action, while the Xunyang Grottoes are on high alert every day. Over time, they've naturally become complacent."
"Only a sword that is not drawn is the most intimidating; once the sword is drawn and falls, it does not fall to the ground."
"That's right."
Wei Shaoqi stroked his beard in agreement.
Xuezhongzhu glanced at the two of them again, and said indifferently:
"My opinion is similar to that of my second junior sister."
When will the two ladies return?
"Just focus on your own affairs and don't ask too many questions. We don't need to worry about Second Sister."
"good."
Wei Shaoqi was not annoyed.
Suddenly, Xuezhongzhu stepped forward.
Zhang Shixiu saw her come to the huge sand table.
The sand table appears to have been made by that young man in the felt hat surnamed Du; it is remarkably realistic with detailed specifications.
For example, on the sand table where the Xunyang Grottoes are located, there is a wooden sculpture of a headless Buddha.
The young man in the felt hat gave Xue Zhongzhu a wooden stick to make it easier to give directions, but the latter ignored it.
In front of everyone, Xue Zhongzhu picked up the headless Buddha statue and gently stroked it, seemingly lost in thought.
Zhang Shixiu glanced at the map, which marked Shuangfengjian with many heavily armed guards.
"So how will we get close to the Buddha statue? How will we get to the Xunyang Grottoes?"
He suddenly asked.
Xuezhongzhu and Wei Shaoqi exchanged glances but did not reply.
Holding a wooden carving, a candle in the snow suddenly asked:
"Mr. Wei, how is your digestion of the sword technique going?"
Sword Technique?
Zhang Shixiu was momentarily stunned, but found that Wei Shaoqi, Du Shuqing and others reacted normally.
"Thank you for your help, Your Majesty."
Wei Shaoqi spoke with an unusually serious expression.
The candle in the snow was getting impatient.
"I'm asking how your digestion is going."
Wei Shaoqi unconsciously lowered his voice, which Zhang Shixiu also heard:
"Two articles, I've already grasped one, there's one left."
Xuezhongzhu looked somewhat surprised.
Wei Shaoqi smiled.
"Is it time to draw the sword?"
"Um."
Wei Shaoqi nodded, then, while smiling, coughed violently again and covered his mouth with a white cloth.
Seeing the smile on his lips, Xue Zhongzhu sneered:
"Hmph, crooked and evil ways."
Wei Shaoqi seemed to mistakenly think she was referring to the former, and remarked with emotion:
"It's not exactly a crooked or heretical path. Master Tao is exceptionally talented. If he hadn't opened up this path, how could ordinary people or ordinary Qi cultivators like us have come into contact with such a mythical object and wield such mythical power?"
“You types of ‘semi-sword wielders’ still have some talent and opportunities. Although you are not on the most orthodox path of sword wielders, and your upper limit is directly locked, you are still considered to be people with the spirit of the sword, and you are not ordinary people.”
It's rare for Xuezhongzhu to offer even a small compliment, but she simply waved her hand dismissively:
"However, I still maintain that Tao Qian and his ilk are nothing but petty thieves. To be convinced by them is simply a sign of your ignorance and lack of knowledge about Qi cultivators."
Wei Shaoqi nodded:
"That's true. Judging from what the Great Lady said, the path opened up by Tao Yuanming was based on and imitated a certain Qi cultivation technique of your sect. The Great Lady is indeed qualified to say that."
The candle in the snow frowned:
"However, there is one thing I don't understand. Since he cares so much about the Southern people and the Southern Song Dynasty, why didn't he take the 'Humble Scholar' out and hand him over to the Liu Song imperial family or the heroes of the subsequent Six Dynasties? Why did he choose to live in seclusion in Yunmeng and leave the 'Humble Scholar' in that Peach Blossom Spring?"
Du Shuqing suddenly said, "It's probably a mixture of expectation and disappointment."
Xuezhongzhu glanced sideways: "What do you mean?"
Zhang Shixiu noticed a hint of melancholy on Du Shuqing's usually somewhat wooden face, perhaps because she was lost in thought about something.
He whispered his guess:
"He held high hopes for the Southern people and the Southern Song Dynasty, but after years of navigating the treacherous waters of the court, he had long seen through their true nature. He knew what a bunch of incompetent fools the Liu Song imperial family and powerful clans who controlled the Southern court in Jiankang were back then. He knew that his expectations were somewhat unrealistic, but..."
"What if, in the future, someone really stands up and continues the Northern Expedition, just like Emperor Wu of Song whom he had seen, with his golden armor and iron horses, his spirit sweeping across thousands of miles like a tiger... If that happens, what a sight it would be if we added another [Humble Scholar] to help us this time."
As Xuezhongzhu listened, his initially indifferent and disdainful expression softened slightly.
"That's right."
Wei Shaoqi then spoke.
Upon seeing this, Zhang Shixiu took out a bronze scroll painting from his sleeve with emotion, gently stroking it as he said:
"So three hundred years ago, Tao Gong left the 'Humble Scholar' in the ethereal Peach Blossom Spring. With the help of your clan's blood bronze and special Qi refining techniques, he constructed an array and created a scroll, which he left in Jiankang City. It was nominally the manuscript of 'Peach Blossom Spring,' but in fact, it was the core of the array."
"This formation is exquisite, with the 'Humble Scholar' from Peach Blossom Spring at its core, using mysterious blood bronze for suppression, and the manuscript of 'Peach Blossom Spring' as the token to activate its core..."
"Wherever the manuscript of 'The Peach Blossom Spring' went, the sword of the poor scholar could sweep it away."
"However, if it were only that, the manuscript of 'Peach Blossom Spring' would be no different from the 'poor scholar' himself. The interesting part is another point, which is what Mr. Wu discovered back then."
Wei Shaoqi sighed with awe:
"This grand formation, constructed from the mythical cauldron and sword and the Peach Blossom Spring, requires no spiritual energy maintenance from any Qi cultivators. Instead, it operates almost continuously, fueled by Tao Gong's literary energy, much like firewood for a stove."
"Therefore, the manuscript of 'Peach Blossom Spring' could only be used south of the Yangtze River. At that time, the north and south were separated. As a famous scholar, Tao Yuanming's poems were only sung in the south, and his literary spirit filled the Jiangnan region. In other words, once the manuscript of 'Peach Blossom Spring' was carried across the Yangtze River and headed north, it would lose the literary spirit of Tao Gong and would naturally be unable to be used. Once it fell into the north, it would be no different from a piece of waste paper."
Du Shuqing pursed her lips and couldn't help but interject:
"From this, we can better understand Tao Gong's thoughts at that time. He probably foresaw that one day the manuscript would be lost in the north."
Wei Shaoqi nodded in agreement and said to Xue Zhongzhu:
"That's why I said that the scholar surnamed Cui from the Northern Wei Dynasty was remarkable. He recognized the manuscript of 'The Peach Blossom Spring,' sparred with Tao Yuanming, disassembled the manuscript, and placed each of the 320 characters into the 320 Buddhist temples that remained after Emperor Taiwu of the Northern Wei Dynasty suppressed Buddhism. Moreover, these temples were scattered throughout the north, and each temple could serve as a sub-array point to mobilize the sword formation..."
"Thus, the Peach Blossom Spring Sword Formation, which originally required the Qi of Tao Gongwen as fuel, was transformed into a new formation that used the incense Qi of Buddhism as fuel. The core of the new sword formation is still the [Humble Scholar], which is suppressed in the Peach Blossom Spring that no one can find."
"However, it has changed from being as worthless as a piece of paper once it left the South, to being permanently stationed in the North, unable to return south..."
Du Shuqing remembered something and spoke:
"Just like, an orange grown south of the Huai River is an orange, but grown north of the Huai River it becomes a trifoliate orange."
Wei Shaoqi coughed as he nodded, his face showing a mixture of longing and admiration.
"Well, in short, the sword formation system that Tao Gong first created has been cracked, or rather... it has been improved by Cui Hao of the Cui family of Qinghe. The sword formation system is more complete and is the culmination of the knowledge of two top scholars from the North and South... However, very few people know this. Most people think it came from the Northern Wei royal family, but they don't know that it is the result of the two people mentioned above."
"And this sword formation that Cui Haohua used to suppress the fortune of the Northern Wei Dynasty has influenced countless major events in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and is the source of many confusing historical records."
"In Mr. Wu's words that day, from the moment Cui Hao stole this map and transformed the Southern Formation into the Northern Formation, the Southern Dynasty's fortune had already begun to be suppressed by the Northern Dynasty. A certain balance had already tilted, it was only a matter of time."
Suddenly, the candle in the snow said:
"Actually, what Mr. Wei was talking about was just one of the 'struggles' of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, which can be considered a covert move."
Wei Shaoqi was taken aback. He looked her over and found that the blonde queen in front of him did not show any surprise or astonishment, but rather... she seemed quite normal.
"What do you mean? Are there other factors that could determine the outcome?"
She squinted and said:
"There are still some overt and covert tricks, but the past is the past, there's no need to bring it up again."
Xuezhongzhu glanced at the "Peach Blossom Spring" painting in Wei Shaoqi's hand and nodded slightly:
"Regarding what you've said, neither I nor the Queen Mother were previously aware of it. But these two are interesting. As for Cui Hao, I think there's a record of him in the Queen Mother's secret archives; his name is mentioned..."
At this point, Xue Zhongzhu stopped and shook his head.
Wei Shaoqi continued with a laugh:
"However, Mr. Wu has been searching for many old Buddhist temples from the Northern Wei Dynasty in Chang'an and Luoyang for ten years... The manuscript of 'Peach Blossom Spring' has finally been restored."
Zhang Shixiu, who was listening in, became increasingly silent.
After a while, Wei Shaoqi and Xue Zhongzhu and the others started chatting again.
Zhang Shixiu, his eyes fixed on the sand table in front of him, interrupted:
"Your Majesty, Mr. Wei, Young Master Du, how should we handle the current flood and Buddha incident? Are we about to take action?"
"What if the Xunyang Grottoes were prepared beforehand? But if we don't take action, this is just a smokescreen. If the Buddha statue falls to the ground during this time, that would be absolutely unacceptable..."
The crowd fell silent, all eyes turning to the tall, blonde oriental woman.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
