Chapter 131 Qingxu Sect
Daqi has two naval forces. One was established by the previous dynasty and stationed in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas. After Song Yuzhu ascended the throne, he did not abolish it, but replaced several generals and it has remained until now. In recent years, it has been fighting against pirates and Japanese in coastal areas, and it is quite effective.
The other navy was formed by the unsuccessful selection of soldiers who were good at swimming in the military camp before Zhao Xiao went out to sea a few years ago.
These people were all good at sailing. When they failed the election, they were not allowed to return to the army. Instead, they stayed in Binzhou to form a new navy. The person in charge of staying here to lead the troops was An Feng.
After receiving the order, he immediately rushed straight to Beijing from Binzhou and returned in less than two days.
The king and his minister had not seen each other for four or five years, and they were both stunned when they met again.
An Feng knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you."
"Hurry up, what's wrong with your eyes?"
An Feng had an eyepatch on one of his eyes, and there was a hideous scar on his handsome face.
An Feng scratched his head in embarrassment: "At the end of last year, many Japanese bandits appeared in the Dongzhou Sea area. I led my troops to clear them out, but was accidentally slashed by the Japanese."
Song Yuzhu recalled that he had received several reports last year saying that Japanese bandits were spotted in the coastal areas of Dongzhou. He then sent the navy to suppress the bandits, but he did not expect that Anfeng had suffered such serious injuries.
"Are the Japanese bandits so rampant?"
"They were very strong last year, but we haven't seen many this year. I guess they are scared of us."
Japanese bandits have existed since the previous dynasty. They came from far away in small boats and lurked on the seashore. At first, they robbed fishing boats on the seashore. Later, they became more and more courageous and dared to go ashore to rob.
Moreover, those Japanese were very cunning. They would run away after robbing things. You wouldn't have time to chase them before they disappeared. They would come back again not long after. It was impossible to guard against them.
Song Yuzhu said: "I will find a way to completely resolve the Japanese invasion. Right now, I have something more important for you to do."
"Your Majesty, please speak."
Song Yuzhu took out a map of the sea from the table and handed it to him, saying, "There is a piece of land here. It is our Daqi land, called Johor State. But now it has been occupied by others. I need you to lead the troops to take it back."
An Feng put away the map and knelt down, saying, "I obey your orders!"
Although he was surprised at how the emperor could establish a state so far away from Daqi, he did not ask, because in his mind the emperor was the reincarnation of a real dragon, and nothing he did was surprising.
Song Yuzhu was not sure about the strength of the local people, but he thought that with the strong ships and powerful guns, the natives would be vulnerable.
A total of thirty warships and two thousand five hundred soldiers were deployed in this naval battle, ten of which were equipped with cannons.
The cannon improved by the Ministry of Military Industry is much more accurate than before, and can also be turned up, down, left, and right, making it easier to aim when attacking.
Jin Yan also adjusted the rate of gunpowder, and the power of the shells increased significantly.
All 30 warships were steam engines, and could reach a speed of 45 kilometers per hour. At this speed, if they set out in June, they would arrive in Johor in September.
While preparations for a naval battle were being made here, news came from Chai Rong.
After the few people who deliberately caused chaos at the last sports meeting were taken to the imperial prison for interrogation, they actually got some unusual clues.
A total of seven people were arrested that day, and judging from their accents, they were all from the southeastern coastal area.
After several days of severe torture, these people finally couldn't bear it anymore. One of them confessed that they were from an organization called "Qingxu Sect" and that creating chaos at the Jingxi Sports Games was a mission issued by the sect.
Song Yuzhu: "Qingxu Sect, sounds like Taoism."
Chai Rong shook his head and said, "It's not Taoism. The Qingxu Sect worships the Moon God Changxi. It has been very popular in the southern area in recent years. Many Moon God temples have been built. People go there to pray for wealth, children, and to ward off evil spirits."
"It sounds like a normal religion, why would they disrupt the sports event?"
"They don't know the specific reasons. These people are paid to do things. Someone sent them silver as beggars and told them to go to Jingxi Camp that day to create chaos. That's all."
Song Yuzhu knew how strict the imperial prison was. If he got out of here, he would be skinned alive if not dead. If he couldn't get any information out of her, it meant that she had confessed everything she needed to.
He turned the ring on his hand and said, "Let these people go."
"Released?" Chai Rong was a little surprised
"Yes, let it go and then send someone to follow it quietly to see if we can catch any big fish."
"I obey your command!"
After Chai Rong left, Heidao stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I think I heard Bai Xiu mention the Qingxu Sect that General Chai just mentioned."
"What did you say?"
"I can't remember clearly, but Bai Xiu must remember."
"Let's go find her!" Song Yuzhu hurried towards the harem with a black knife.
Bai Xiu was nominally the emperor's concubine and lived in Furui Palace, which was relatively remote and quiet. Only at night did she go to the emperor's bedroom as a concubine to serve him (and protect him).
When Song Yuzhu came, Bai Xiu was feeding birds in the yard. She raised two black and white mynah birds, which looked very cute.
"Oh, what brings you here?" Bai Xiu put down the bird food, walked over and bowed to greet Song Yuzhu.
Song Yuzhu said: "I want to ask you something. Do you know Qingxu Sect?"
"Why do you ask this, Your Majesty?"
"The chaos at the last sports meet was instigated by the Qingxu Sect."
Bai Xiu frowned and said, "This sect is extremely evil. I advise you not to get involved with it."
Song Yuzhu became interested and said, "What's so weird about it? Tell me about it."
"Oh, let me tell you this. I heard that anyone who joins that cult will give his or her soul to the Moon God Chang Xi, and his or her life and death will no longer be under his or her control."
Heidao couldn't help but ask, "Is it true? Why haven't I heard you say that before?"
Bai Xiu rolled his eyes: "What can I say to a fool like you?"
The mynah bird next to them was shouting like a duet: "Idiot, idiot, idiot..."
Heidao raised his knife and gestured: "If you make any more noise, I will stew you!"
"You dare?!"
Song Yuzhu interrupted their quarrel and said, "Let's continue talking about Qingxu Sect."
Bai Xiu walked to the stone pillar next to him and sat down and said, "The Qingxu Sect holds a moon worship ceremony on the 15th of every month when the moon is full. This moon worship ceremony is not kneeling to worship the moon, but... it is for men and women in the sect to gather together for promiscuity."
"After the adultery, a woman was chosen, washed and hung on a tree. The blood was drained from her ankles. When the blood was drained, she was burned with other sacrifices, pigs, sheep and chickens."
The more Song Yuzhu listened, the uglier her expression became. Isn't this a complete cult?
"This sect cannot be allowed to stay. They gather together for promiscuity and torture and kill women. I will eliminate the Qingxu Sect as soon as possible."
"Hey, Your Majesty, I haven't finished yet. The weird thing about this is that the chosen woman was willing to be sacrificed. She smiled as she was drained of her blood..."
Heidao rubbed the goose bumps on his arms: "How do you know so clearly?"
"I went to Jiangnan a few years ago and happened to see them worshiping the moon in a local temple. I hid in a tree and watched for a while. I was really scared at the time."
Even though Bai Xiu is a martial arts expert, he still feels scared when he thinks about this incident. Perhaps people are always full of fear of unknown things.
Coming out of Furui Palace, Song Yuzhu's face was gloomy. He didn't know that there was such a cult in Daqi. It sounded outrageous.
The most important point is that this group of people has begun to attack the imperial court.
Thinking back carefully, it was not his sister who went there that day, but himself. When chaos occurred, he had to go to maintain order. There were so many people down there at that time, if someone got mixed up in it and did something bad to him, it would be very easy for him to take action.
Song Yuzhu did not alert the enemy. He called Liu Yanzi and sent people from Xuanyi Tower to investigate the Qingxu Sect in Shangjing.
The army also continued to track the people who were released, and reported to him immediately if they had any clues.
*
Time flies and it is June. The weather in Shangjing is getting hotter day by day.
Binzhou's warships have already set off. Song Yuzhu looked at the map several times and found that the fleet has not yet left Daqi's territory. It seems that it will take a long time to reach Johor.
There has been no progress from the Qingxu Sect. Four of the people who were following them have left Shangjing, and the remaining three have not noticed anything unusual.
I thought I couldn't find out the truth, but I didn't expect that someone from Xuanyi Tower had accidentally sneaked into Qingxu Sect. This person was none other than the girl who participated in the relay race that day - Qingniang.
This story begins after the end of the sports meet. After the sports meet ended that day, the four people from Xuanyi Tower divided the prize money and left.
Qingniang, a little girl, left with several hundred taels of silver, which made many people jealous, including two men who followed her.
They didn't know who Qingniang was and thought she was just a little girl who could run fast, so they planned to rob her of her money and her body.
They followed Qingniang all the way to a remote alley, and saw that there was no road ahead. The two rubbed their hands excitedly and said, "Little girl, hand over the silver, and play with your brothers again, and we will let you go."
Qing Niang suppressed her laughter and asked in a trembling voice: "Play...what to play?"
"Hey, she asked me what I was playing?"
Another big man said with lustful look on his face: "Come here, brother will teach you!"
Just as Qingniang was about to deal with the two men, there was a sudden sound of rustling footsteps nearby, followed by a masked man rushing out from behind, slashing the necks of the two gangsters with a long knife in his hand.
In an instant, blood splattered all over the ground. Qingniang was frightened and turned around and wanted to slip away.
The man said, "Don't be afraid, young lady. I have already killed them both."
Qingniang was stunned. She didn't expect that she met such a good person. She turned around and pretended to be grateful and said, "I don't know your name, benefactor. I will set up a longevity tablet for you to thank you for saving my life."
The man looked at Qingniang and blushed: "No need. If you want to thank me, just worship the moon." Then he turned and left.
Qingniang thought it was strange but didn't take it seriously. Later, when Liu Yanzi mentioned the Qingxu Sect to everyone, Qingniang remembered the incident.
Not long after, Qingniang met this person again. The man probably liked Qingniang and took the initiative to ask her if she wanted to join the Qingxu Sect.
Qingniang rolled her eyes and said, "I have to go back and ask my father."
The man nodded and threw a sign to Qingniang: "If you have made up your mind, bring this to Xiangyun Tower to find me on the 15th night."
A palm-sized sign with a full moon and a laurel tree carved on it.
Liu Yanzi looked through the wooden sign, but couldn't see what was so special about it.
"Dad, should I go or not?" Qingniang held her cheek and looked at him with a smile.
Liu Yanzi's face was full of black lines. She tapped her forehead with a fan and said, "Don't shout. Since you have a clue, go there. I will protect you in the dark."
"Okay~" Qingniang took the wooden sign from him and put it around her waist.
(End of this chapter)
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