In the blink of an eye, the tenth day of the winter month has arrived.
It turns out that the Ministry of Rites had two sets of plans for the itinerary. If the journey was smooth and they could arrive several days early, they would go to Gaodu. However, no one thinks too much about this. After all, traveling in winter is not as convenient as in summer, and it is good enough to arrive on time.
Later, it turned out to be exactly what happened. We arrived in Gao County at noon on the ninth day of the winter month, which was just right for us to rest for most of the day and to pay homage the next day.
It was early in the morning, before daybreak.
The court civil and military officials, as well as the ladies of the imperial court and the imperial court, who had already fasted and bathed in advance, braved the cold wind and formed a long line according to the worship procedures and specific positions issued yesterday evening, and began to walk towards the majestic mountain tomb.
It was still dark and very cold that day. Su Ci walked forward while shrinking her neck and slightly tightening her cloak.
Yang Yanzong was not far in front of her, but she did not have time to look up for a second. It was too cold. The coldness in the mountains before dawn was so severe that it seemed to penetrate into one's bones.
Everyone was similar to her, trying to keep a low profile while maintaining etiquette and rules.
It wasn't until the sky brightened and the sun came out to dispel the fog that I felt better.
At this time, the large group of people who came to pay homage had already walked to the Tomb of Emperor Taizu, which was the center of the Eight Tombs of Gaodu!
It's really, really magnificent.
Taizu Mausoleum is built on the mountain. It is a huge cemetery with a golden hipped roof and bright red palace walls. It is shaded by evergreen trees and has a dark green color. The mountains are majestic and undulating, and the front is surrounded by mountains on three sides. When the sun rises, the first ray of golden sunlight shines on the highest point of the top of Taizu Mausoleum.
The place is full of dragons and tigers, with overlapping rocks like arches and screens, and it is majestic. Even Su Ci, who doesn't understand Feng Shui, couldn't understand it at first and couldn't say what's good about it, but she knew in her heart that it was indeed very powerful and amazing.
Facing this magnificent imperial mausoleum, one cannot help but hold their breath. Su Ci took one glance and dared not peek again, because one cannot look up here. Everyone lowered their heads with their hands down, with a solemn look on their faces.
There are four palace gates in front of Taizu Mausoleum. Next, civil and military officials, as well as ladies from both the inner and outer courts, entered through these four gates one after another according to their ranks, official positions, and zodiac signs. There were many people at the scene, but it was completely silent.
After entering the gate of the mausoleum area, we walked for a long distance and it was not until noon that we finally arrived at the right place for this visit, the Zun'en Hall of Taizu Mausoleum.
The Taizu Mausoleum is extremely large, and so is the Zun'en Hall. It is divided into seven halls, one main hall and six side halls. It is extremely magnificent. The largest main hall is nearly a thousand square meters, and huge golden pillars stand in the hall. The Lan'en Hall was built against the mountain. It is said that half of the hall was converted from natural caves, but in fact there is no trace of caves at all. All you can see are golden curtains, blue and green paintings, exquisite beams and towering golden pillars. It is the crystallization of human civilization architecture.
Sandalwood incense was curling inside and outside the hall. The young emperor led the Empress Dowager Kun and all the civil and military officials and women of honor to pay homage from the huge tripod in front of the Ling'en Hall. After three kneelings and nine kowtows, everyone knelt down. The ceremonial officer began to read the sacrificial text in a row of four and six. Only after the first sacrificial text was finished did the young emperor lead all the ministers and their families to stand up and formally enter the Ling'en Hall to pay homage.
With their heads bowed solemnly, they climbed the stairs step by step. Except for the little emperor, everyone else had to enter through the side door. Here, Su Ci and Yang Yanzong separated. Those who followed the little emperor to pay homage in the main hall were high-ranking officials and royal family members of the third rank or above.
Entering the main hall of Leng'en, Yang Yanzong looked around. It was very large and magnificent, but other than that, there was nothing special about it.
After all, it is a place where the dead rest. No matter how gorgeously and exquisitely it is decorated, there is always a cold and gloomy feeling. Many people shiver when they come in.
The hall was extremely solemn; at this point, no one could make any mistakes, so even if the elders shivered from the cold, they still followed the team with unsteady steps and quickly stood at their positions.
There was a long rosewood altar with Taizu's portrait hung in the middle. He sat upright with a stern look on his face, looking down at his descendants and ministers below.
The little emperor naturally sat in the most central position in front of the rosewood altar. Empress Dowager Kun was the only woman who could enter the main hall. She stood solemnly about ten feet away from the little emperor.
Three feet further back is where the ministers and clan members stand. The row on the left is the elders with the highest honorary titles in the clan, while the rows on the right and in the middle are the super-rank and first-rank officials with real power and rank.
Yang Yanzong and Ji Yuanhao stood in the leftmost column, side by side with Kun Xin and Kun Guojiu. In terms of power, Yang Yanzong and Ji Yuanhao are certainly not inferior to the latter, but one of them has the title of Duke of the State and the other has the title of Grand Tutor, and Yang Yanzong and Ji Yuanhao are currently marquises, so the Ministry of Rites arranged for the uncle and nephew of the Kun family to stand in the middle.
Yang Yanzong and Ji Yuanhao raised their eyelids and glanced at Kun Xin. The fifty-year-old man had white hair and wrinkled skin on his face. Since this was the first time they met Kun Xin, they did not find anything wrong.
Then, the formal worship began. The ceremonial officer stood beside the red sandalwood altar and sang loudly: "Kneel! Worship——"
"Kneel again, bow again—"
Three kneelings and nine kowtows, it was long and solemn. However, just when Yang Yanzong kowtowed for the second time, something unexpected happened! !
His six senses were extremely sharp, especially in such a very quiet environment. His earlobe moved slightly, and he suddenly caught a very slight "click" sound!
——As if it came from underground, and at the same time, he suddenly felt that the large bluestone ground under the futon seemed to tremble slightly!
Yang Yanzong was a man who had brushed shoulders with life and death countless times. His reaction was so quick and his sense of smell so sharp that almost at the same time, he suddenly stretched out his hand!
"rise--"
He shouted loudly, and suddenly jumped up into the air. At the same time, the ground made a "crack" sound, and several huge black holes suddenly appeared. The largest one was the one where he and Ji Yuanhao were standing, which was twenty feet in radius! With a "whoosh", several fine iron chains popped out from the bottom at the same time. Although they were rusty, they were still strong. The chains flew up and locked the ankles of Yang Yanzong and Ji Yuanhao where they were kneeling just now!
Fortunately, Yang Yanzong had already jumped up, and Ji Yuanhao's reaction was not slow either. He jumped up almost at the same time as Yang Yanzong!
But who would have thought that at the same time as the two jumped up, there was a "click" sound above their heads, and dozens of rusty iron quivers appeared. The first quiver was empty, but the second quiver was quickly turned out with a "click", and quivers shot out with a "whoosh"!
A corrupt and fishy smell. Obviously, the arrow was originally poisoned, but it was too old and the poison had deteriorated!
This kind of deteriorated poison usually either becomes ineffective or evolves into another more bizarre and deadly poison. Yang Yanzong and Ji Yuanhao's hearts trembled, and with a "clang" they pulled out the soft sword hidden in their belts. Their internal energy surged, and they swept the sword across!
"Ding ding dang dang", there was the sound of violent metal sharp objects colliding, and in an instant, a huge iron cover appeared on the top of the head, and covered it with a "bang"!
"master!"
"General—"
Back then, Uncle Quan was known as the most powerful man in the world. If Taizu wanted to set a trap for him, it must be foolproof, with one thing leading to another. No matter how powerful the man was, he would be trapped underground!
After being delayed for a moment by the poisonous arrow, Yang Yanzong had no way to escape from the big iron cover. He acted decisively, and when the black hole appeared under the cover, he shouted, "Get out!"
It is obvious that it cannot be covered by this iron cover! !
Several loyal subordinates and confidants who had rushed into the iron cover, as well as Ji Yuanhao's people, reacted immediately. They all rushed down with all their might, rolled on the ground, and barely rolled out before the last moment when the iron cover was about to close!
With a loud "clang"!
The iron cover was solid, the black hole was closed, in the dark tunnel, before Yang Yanzong could get up, several lightning-fast swords had already pierced his throat, heart, dantian and other vital parts. Yang Yanzong shouted loudly, and rolled with a "rip", blood splattered on the front of his lapel. He barely avoided the vital parts and struck with a sword in his backhand!
A fierce battle between the few and the many began immediately!
Ji Yuanhao said hatefully: "What a Kun family!!"
It’s dangerous, vicious and sudden!
…
When the accident happened, Su Ci was in another side hall.
The incident did not happen only in the main hall.
She is also part of the plan.
Since we have such a good foundation and environment, it is natural to seize it all at once.
"What's that sound?"
Su Ci had very good ears. When she knelt down and was about to kowtow, she suddenly heard a loud commotion coming from the main hall!
The sound was quite loud, and it was followed by a loud noise of panic and running.
"What are you doing?!"
Su Ci's heart skipped a beat. She suddenly looked up and glanced left and right. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a person standing behind a golden curtain seven or eight steps away. The person seemed to be reaching out to turn something on the golden pillar. !
——Of course it’s the mechanism that’s being pulled.
In fact, originally, the actions in the main hall and the side hall were carried out simultaneously, but unexpectedly, the mechanism in the side hall got stuck and there was no response after it was pulled. The man became anxious and pulled it twice in a row.
At this time, everyone heard a commotion in the main hall. The commotion was so sudden that the subtle "click" sound could not be heard. However, Su Ci had sharp eyes and she suddenly discovered that a crack suddenly appeared on the ground. After a click, the crack widened!
Oh shit!
"Oh no, there's a trap! Run--"
Su Ci shouted loudly and rolled over on the spot, quickly rolling out of the gap. She rolled directly to the side of the woman.
With a "click", a big black hole appeared where she had been kneeling. Su Ci looked up and met a pair of unusually calm and indifferent eyes.
——This woman was wearing the phoenix coronet and bridal robe of a third-rank lady, but her eyes betrayed the fact that she was definitely not a lady of the imperial court!
Su Ci's first thought was of course to run, but the problem was that she was of high rank and was standing very forward, which meant she was far away from the gate, and the woman had two other mechanisms at hand, and when she saw that one didn't work, she quickly reached out to turn the second one!
——With such a short period of time, there is no way Su Ci could escape.
In a flash, she gritted her teeth, and simply rolled over, slamming heavily into the opponent's feet! Then the heel of her boot hit her, and a sharp blade as long as a finger came out from the tip of her shoe. She pulled it out with her backhand. The woman's body was tilted by the violent impact of her. She pounced on her and stabbed her carotid artery hard!
In order to pull the second trigger, the woman was a moment slower and tilted her head sharply, causing the sharp blade to slash the side of her neck. Blood gushed out immediately, but the blade avoided her carotid artery. The two women immediately started fighting.
"Quick, quick, go help Er Niang!"
Ren recommended Ji Chengtan!
Ren was not standing with Su Ci. She was pregnant and her belly was very big. She didn't care about anything else and ran towards the door quickly. However, before she rushed out, there was a "bang" at the door! A rusty iron gate fell down, locking most of the women inside who had no time to escape. They were shocked and burst into tears.
At this time, Ji Chengtan led his men to rush over from the other side!
The three side halls on the left are connected by a passage. Ji Chengtan has a low official rank and cannot stand in the position with the mechanism, so he was simply abandoned. Standing with him are many of Ji Yuanhao's confidants, such as Qu Chengrong and others.
When the accident happened, Ji Chengtan rushed to his pregnant sister-in-law in the principle of proximity, "Mom!" Ji Zimu was still in shock and grabbed his mother's hand, but before the group could stand still, Ren shouted, "Hurry, go help Sister Aci!!"
But it was too late. Ji Chengtan took a quick look and was shocked. He quickly drew out his sword and ran over. But just as he took a step, his foot suddenly sank!
——Damn, this woman is so difficult to deal with!
This person must be a stubborn one. Su Ci realized this before she even had to fight with him. Because the opponent is really too strong, she is definitely not a woman who only knows how to use ordinary punches and kicks. She fought with the opponent for a while with her skills and wits. The opponent's strength was really amazing. Her wrist was bent and almost broken. Su Ci screamed in pain.
The latter shook her off his back, turned around and kicked her, and Su Ci quickly rolled away. The female assassin immediately pounced on the third mechanism. How could Su Ci dare to let her touch this? ! She really used all her skills, hooking, pouncing, twisting and turning, and almost got vomited by the hammer, but fortunately the strategy of making a feint to the east and attacking in the west worked. She gritted her teeth and poked hard, and with a "pop", she finally succeeded in stabbing the small sharp blade deeply into the opponent's neck.
Her hands were also cut and bleeding.
But Su Ci was overjoyed, because with this spine, she was doomed!
However, the tenacity of this female assassin was beyond her expectations. She paused and grabbed Su Ci's neck with her backhand. Her throat suddenly hurt and her breath was choked. Su Ci slapped her hand hard. The female assassin stood stiffly, dragging Su Ci, and was able to move two steps. With her other hand, she pulled the third mechanism with a "click".
Su Ci suddenly felt the ground tilt, and then she slid down with a whoosh as if she was taking out the garbage.
Finally, I saw the ground was shaking all over the place, and screams were heard everywhere. Almost half of the people had slipped down.
…
There was the sound of dripping water, and at the same time there were some very slight rustling sounds of footsteps in the dark tunnel.
Su Ci held her breath.
She had taken a look earlier because she wanted to see what was going on at Ren's place, but now she had no time to think about anything else.
After falling down like garbage, Su Ci rolled around in twists and turns. She guessed that she might have rolled down several floors, perhaps more than ten meters deep, and she was dizzy.
Finally, I rolled into a maze-like dark tunnel. It was very dark, with the sound of dripping groundwater. It was not dry, and there was some moss and a kind of moss that emitted green fluorescence growing on the stone walls.
The female assassin was already dead, but Su Ci immediately discovered that this tunnel might be the real killer move.
Because there have been assassins waiting inside for a long time, these should all be Kun's assassins.
They were all men, and their skills were completely different from the female assassins he had just fought with.
Su Ci couldn't even hear their breathing.
If the other party was not also unfamiliar with the place and occasionally stepped on something while searching, causing her to hear a rustling sound, Su Ci might not have been aware of the other party's presence.
But as soon as she noticed, she immediately discovered that there were a lot of people on the other side, and they were all masters!
Fortunately, she didn't fall at the original location, otherwise, she would probably be dead now.
Su Ci quickly broke free from the female assassin and did not bother to figure out what was going on. She randomly chose a direction and ran. During the run, she even stepped on a snake, which seemed to be a poisonous one. Her heart was pounding and she was scared to death, but she did not care anymore. She ran left and right, and the people behind were chasing her very fast. Finally, she accidentally found a small dark hole. She quickly hunched her chest and abdomen and stuck inside.
There was a snake with a triangular head, black and as thick as her wrist, hissing as it swam past her shoulder.
Almost face to face with her.
Su Ci was really scared. This was a pit viper, extremely poisonous. There would be no hope if bitten by it.
But she didn't dare move because she heard the rustling sound getting closer.
There were at least a dozen black-clad assassins in the group who had already searched over.
She tightened her hands covering her mouth and nose, and followed the breathing method Yang Yanzong had taught her before, trying to calm her pounding heart, empty her mind, and adjust her breathing rate, hoping to reach the state of "becoming one with the environment."
She couldn't even think about Yang Yanzong now. She just hoped that Kun's clan wouldn't send out too many masters to deal with her, a woman who wasn't important and whose kung fu wasn't very high...
I wonder how Ren is doing?
I wonder if it will be worse than hers, she’s a pregnant woman.
…
Let’s talk about Ren’s side.
Ren was much luckier than Su Ci.
Ji Chengtan, Qu Chengrong and others arrived just in time, otherwise Ren would have been in real trouble. Just one sudden fall and several consecutive tumblings. If it weren't for Ji Yuanhao and his trusted confidants protecting her with all their strength, I'm afraid she would have collapsed with her big belly. She wouldn't have died on her own without anyone killing her.
But fortunately, Ji Chengtan, Qu Chengrong and others were there. The process was very dangerous, but in the end they landed safely without any harm.
They also seemed to hear the sound of people walking, so they quickly turned around and ran away, but those people seemed to be chasing something and soon ran away.
Ren and his group stopped immediately.
They were very, very lucky, because the place where they fell was close to the edge, and this Bagua maze had been in disrepair for a long time. After they walked for a while, they actually found a gap that led directly to the outside!
"...Outside, it seems to be the imperial mausoleum."
Qu Chengrong observed for a while and turned back.
Ren was overjoyed: "Quick, go and support your husband! I don't know what's going on over there?!"
Qu Chengrong and the others were also very anxious, so they had no objection. After a few discussions, they finally divided the group into seven people, who quickly got out of the gap, identified the direction and ran away, and soon disappeared without a trace.
"I don't know what happened to Sister Ci?"
Ren looked outside for a while, then looked back. If nothing unexpected happened, those people were probably going to search for Su Ci.
Su Ci is probably in danger at this moment!
It would have been better if he hadn't said it. Once Ji Chengtan heard it, he was extremely anxious. He was worried about his brother, and even more worried about Su Ci, because he knew Ji Yuanhao's ability, and in his heart, his brother had always been like a pillar that supported the sky, indomitable. In comparison, Su Ci was much weaker.
He was so anxious, "Sister-in-law, I want to go find her!"
He couldn't help it after all.
Ren was surprised and pursed her lips. Yes, she was also worried about Su Ci and wanted to save her, but in such an environment, could she get out again after going in? !
But Ji Chengtan knelt down directly: "Sister-in-law, I beg you!!"
He was extremely anxious and worried, and couldn't help but have tears in his eyes. He even said, "If she dies, there's not much point in me living."
"Sister-in-law, I beg you!!"
Ren's lips trembled for a long time, "Do you really have to go?"
She was confused, but Ji Chengtan's eyes were firm, "Yes!"
The first time Ren saw such a look in his eyes was on the bank of Fengchuan River, when he plunged into the undercurrent and turbulent rapids without hesitation to chase the small boat. The young man that day was just like today, and she suddenly understood a little.
Ren's lips trembled for a long while, and finally: "...then go, take three people, no, four people!"
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