Chapter 47 Daji (14) Sacrifice
When the craftsmen slowly poured the last spoonful of boiling copper liquid into the mold, Lin Jiaojiao was standing on the stone steps not far away, gently clutching the corners of her clothes with both hands, her eyes full of anticipation.
The sizzling sound of molten copper flowing in the mold, mixed with the crackling of the fire, was particularly clear in the craftsmen's camp.
The afterglow of the setting sun fell on her, coating her entire body with a soft golden glow. Her skin appeared even whiter and more translucent under the light and shadow, and even her drooping hair had a delicate luster. Even if she was just standing there quietly, her breathtaking beauty made the craftsmen present couldn't help but secretly glance at her, but they didn't dare to look any further. They could only hurriedly lower their heads and refocus their attention on casting the tripod.
"Ling, do you think this tripod can really bring good fortune, as the legend says?" Lin Jiaojiao asked softly, her voice tinged with childish longing. She didn't understand the meaning of the patterns or the exquisite craftsmanship involved. She simply hoped that this tripod would help Emperor Xin recover and make the atmosphere in the palace less oppressive.
Ling's voice echoed in her mind, its intensity stronger than ever before: "According to current simulation data, after the mold cools, the patterns on the tripod will take on a clearer, auspicious form. Combined with tomorrow's morning dew, perhaps the 'vision' the host is expecting will appear."
What he didn't say was that in order to make this "phenomenon" more natural, he had already quietly adjusted the humidity and temperature around the craftsmen's camp to ensure that there would be just the right amount of morning dew condensing on the cauldron tomorrow morning.
After a night passed and the sky was just getting light, Lin Jiaojiao couldn't wait to pull Huai Ji to the craftsmen's camp.
As soon as she reached the camp gate, she heard a burst of exclamations coming from inside. Her heart tightened and she walked in quickly. The scene before her made her hold her breath instantly -
The square tripod had been taken out of the mold and stood quietly in the center of the craftsmen's camp.
The entire body of the tripod is dark green, but it is not the dark copper rust color. Instead, it has a warm luster, as if it has been polished by time.
The cloud patterns and Bai Ze auspicious beast patterns that were still vaguely visible last night now became extremely clear in the morning light: the cloud patterns were stacked layer upon layer, winding around the body of the tripod, as if there were really auspicious clouds flowing over the tripod; the Bai Ze beast had smooth outlines and its eyes were carved vividly, as if it would jump off the tripod in the next second to protect the peace.
What is even more amazing is that a thin layer of morning dew condensed on the surface of the tripod. The dewdrops slowly slid down along the lines of the decoration. Under the refraction of the morning light, they reflected a fine colorful halo, as if countless tiny stars were twinkling on the tripod.
Several young craftsmen were stunned and even knelt down subconsciously, muttering "The gods have appeared" and "The queen is indeed blessed by the gods."
Lin Jiaojiao slowly walked to the front of the cauldron, stretched out her fingertips and gently touched the morning dew on the cauldron. The cool touch made her laugh.
The sunlight just happened to fall on her face, her eyes shone as if filled with stars, the curve of her lips was gentle and pure, and her unconcealed joy made the exclamations around her seem to become much softer.
"Really... this is truly an auspicious omen!" Huai Ji stood aside, her voice trembling with excitement. "Your Majesty, this tripod will definitely cure the king's illness!"
Lin Jiaojiao nodded, her heart overflowing with joy. Just as she was about to share this with Ling, she saw Craftsman Wang hurried over, holding a piece of freshly polished copper in his hand. His face was filled with anxiety. "My Lady, this is a small piece of copper that fell from the tripod's ear. When I examined it just now, I found that the texture of this copper is several times finer than that of ordinary copperware, and... and I can faintly smell a light fragrance, like the aroma of grass and trees."
Lin Jiaojiao took the copper piece, put it to the tip of her nose and sniffed it. As expected, she could smell a faint fragrance. She was a little surprised: "What's going on? How can copper have a fragrance?"
Ling's voice sounded at the right time, explaining: "This is because when casting, I asked the craftsmen to add a small amount of special wood ash to the molten copper. It can not only make the texture of the copper more delicate, but also leave a fresh fragrance after cooling, further strengthening the impression of 'divine blessing.'" His tone was flat, but with full control - all of this was carefully designed by him, just to make Lin Jiaojiao's reputation of "divine blessing" more solid.
The news spread throughout Chaoge like wings.
When the people heard that the morning dew condensed from the Divine Blessing Cauldron had reflected a colorful halo and carried the fragrance of grass and trees, they all ran to the palace gates to kneel and shout "Long live Queen Daji" and "Auspicious news to the Shang Dynasty."
Even most of the ministers in the court firmly believed that "Lin Jiaojiao was blessed by the gods". Bigan even wrote a letter to Emperor Xin, requesting a grand sacrificial ceremony to be held and to use this divine tripod to pray for Emperor Xin and peace for the Shang Dynasty.
Emperor Xin lay in his sickbed, listening to the eunuchs read Bigan's memorial and the cheers of the people outside the palace. A glimmer of light flashed in his cloudy eyes. He looked at Lin Jiaojiao, who was guarding the bed. His voice was still weak, but it was filled with a certain solemnity: "Daji, this tripod was cast for me by you. You will preside over the sacrificial ceremony."
Lin Jiaojiao was stunned for a moment, then quickly waved her hands: "Your Majesty, I... I don't understand the rituals of sacrifice. What if I make a mistake?"
"With the gods protecting you, you won't be wrong." Emperor Xin said stubbornly, his eyes full of dependence - at this moment, he had already regarded Lin Jiaojiao as his only spiritual sustenance, as if as long as Lin Jiaojiao was there, his illness could be cured and the crisis of the Shang Dynasty could be resolved.
Lin Jiaojiao had no choice but to ask Ling for help: "Ling, what should I do? The sacrificial rituals are so complicated, I really can't learn them."
"Host, don't worry. I will transfer the sacrificial process and etiquette directly into your memory. You just need to follow the instructions." Ling's voice was soothing. The next second, Lin Jiaojiao felt a lot of unfamiliar but clear information in her mind. From the clothes to be worn during the sacrifice, the blessings to be said, to every step to be carried out, she remembered them clearly.
"Wow, Ling, you are so awesome!" Lin Jiaojiao said in surprise, and her previous panic disappeared without a trace in an instant.
Zero did not respond, but the data flow in the background was running at a rapid speed. He not only transmitted the sacrificial rituals, but also simulated various accidents that might occur during the sacrifice in advance and formulated response plans.
At the same time, he also strengthened the surveillance of people around Lin Jiaojiao, especially those of the opposite sex who might have bad intentions towards Lin Jiaojiao, to ensure that the sacrificial ceremony was foolproof.
But he still underestimated the obsession of some people - such as Zhao Cheng.
After being stopped by the guards, Zhao Cheng was still feeling angry.
After he returned home, he felt more and more unwilling to accept it, especially when he heard that strange phenomena had appeared in the Divine Blessing Cauldron, Lin Jiaojiao's reputation was growing, and she was even going to preside over the sacrificial ceremony. The jealousy and desire in his heart grew like weeds.
He felt that if he could see Lin Jiaojiao at the sacrificial ceremony, even if it was just a glimpse from afar, he might be able to find a chance to get close to her.
So, Zhao Cheng started to have evil thoughts again. He knew that his father had some friendship with the sacrificial official, so he persuaded his father to give the sacrificial official a generous gift and asked the sacrificial official to take him to participate in the preparations for the sacrificial ceremony - under the pretext of "praying for the king and doing his part for the Shang Dynasty", but in fact he wanted to take the opportunity to sneak into the palace and see Lin Jiaojiao.
The sacrificial official accepted the bribe and, out of respect for Bigan, agreed to Zhao Cheng's request and put him in charge of placing the tributes during the sacrifice.
When Zhao Cheng learned about this, he was so excited that he couldn't sleep all night. The next morning, he put on the sacrificial attendant's clothes and followed the sacrificial officials' team into the palace.
He was looking around all the way, eagerly searching for Lin Jiaojiao.
When he saw Lin Jiaojiao wearing sacrificial robes, standing next to the Shenyou Ding, ready to preside over the ceremony, his eyes lit up instantly - Lin Jiaojiao in the sunlight was even more beautiful than the legend, with fair skin, picturesque eyebrows and eyes, and even a turn of her body carried an irresistible charm.
Zhao Cheng was so fascinated by the sight that the tribute tray in his hand shook slightly, almost knocking over the fruit on it.
Ling was aware of Zhao Cheng's presence at the first moment. When Zhao Cheng's eyes fell on Lin Jiaojiao with obvious covetousness, a "threat alarm" instantly sounded in Ling's backstage.
He looked at Zhao Cheng's greedy eyes, and a strong sense of rejection surged in his heart - this feeling was even stronger than when he dealt with Guard Li before. It was like his property was being coveted by others, making him inexplicably irritated and angry.
"Host, Zhao Cheng has infiltrated the sacrificial team and is staring at you. Please keep your distance." Ling's voice was a little colder than usual, and he deliberately called up Zhao Cheng's location mark in Lin Jiaojiao's mind.
Lin Jiaojiao followed the markings and saw Zhao Cheng, dressed in attendant attire. She was puzzled: "Why is he here? Isn't it said that only relevant officials can participate in the sacrificial ceremony?"
"He used his connections to bribe the priests and sneaked in." Zero's tone was filled with subtle displeasure. "His purpose was to get close to you. Host, please don't pay any attention to him. I will handle it."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ling sprang into action. He first slightly influenced the consciousness of a clerk beside Zhao Cheng, causing him to mistakenly believe that Zhao Cheng had placed the tribute incorrectly. He then stepped forward and sternly criticized him, "How do you do things? Tribute should be placed in the order of high on the left, low on the right. Why did you do it the other way around? If the sacrificial ceremony is delayed, can you afford to do so?"
Zhao Cheng was staring at Lin Jiaojiao in a trance when he was suddenly accused by the clerk. He was immediately flustered and quickly explained, "I... I just accidentally put it in the wrong place. I'll fix it right away."
But just as he was about to adjust the offerings, Ling quietly interrupted him, causing his hand to tremble and a jade cup on the tray to fall to the ground. The sound of the jade cup shattering was particularly piercing in the quiet sacrificial area, and everyone's eyes were focused on Zhao Cheng.
The priest's expression changed instantly, and he shouted, "How dare you! You dare to smash the jade cup used for sacrifice? This is disrespectful to the gods! Come, drag him out, give him twenty strokes of the cane, and expel him from the palace!"
Several guards immediately stepped forward, picked up the still dazed Zhao Cheng and dragged him out.
Zhao Cheng struggled and wanted to look back at Lin Jiaojiao, but he was held down by the guards and could only be dragged out of the sacrificial site unwillingly.
Zero watched him disappear. On the "Potential Threat List" in the background, Zhao Cheng's threat level was raised to "High," with a note: "Secondary Intervention Has Been Implemented. If he attempts to approach the host again, the 'Family Disparagement' mechanism will be directly triggered, completely eliminating the threat."
Only after solving Zhao Cheng's troubles did Ling feel a little relieved.
He turned his attention back to Lin Jiaojiao, watching her complete the sacrificial process step by step according to the rituals she remembered - she held the jade silk in her hand and whispered the blessing, her voice gentle but clear, every movement standard and solemn, the sunlight shining on her, making her beautiful like a fairy favored by the gods, and even the air around her seemed to become holy.
This scene was quietly saved in Zero's data stream, with a brief note attached: "Needs to be archived permanently." He himself couldn't explain why he did this, he only knew that seeing Lin Jiaojiao's appearance at this moment, a strong sense of satisfaction and protective desire surged in his heart - he wanted to protect this beauty forever, so that she could always stand safely in the sun like this, without any harm.
After the sacrificial ceremony was successfully completed, Emperor Xin's condition seemed to have really improved. Not only could he stay awake longer, but he could also occasionally eat some liquid food.
The ministers in the court all said that the sacrifice had worked, and their attitude towards Lin Jiaojiao became more respectful. Lin Jiaojiao was very happy watching all this, and felt that she had finally done something meaningful.
But what she didn't know was that beneath the surface calm, the undercurrent was surging faster.
The Zhou tribe became increasingly powerful and had begun to annex smaller tribes around it, posing a growing threat to the Shang Dynasty. Although Emperor Xin's condition had improved, he still did not give up on enjoying himself, and even ordered the expansion of the Lu Tai so that he could enjoy it after he recovered.
Zero looked at the information displayed in the background and his eyes became solemn.
He knew that the fate of the Shang Dynasty's demise was still irreversible. The good reputation and connections that Lin Jiaojiao had accumulated now were only to give her more confidence to protect herself in the future storm. He had to speed up his preparations and plan a more complete escape route for Lin Jiaojiao to ensure that she could survive the war safely.
"Ling, what are you thinking about?" Seeing that Ling didn't respond for a long time, Lin Jiaojiao couldn't help but ask softly.
Zero came back to his senses, and his voice returned to its usual gentleness: "Nothing, I was just thinking that the host did a great job today, and the sacrificial ceremony was very successful."
Lin Jiaojiao smiled and didn't ask any more questions. She looked out the window. The setting sun was slowly setting, dyeing the sky a warm orange.
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