National Division

Chapter 24 Thunder Fire

On August [-], the prince got married.

Because she is the crown prince of the country, the various procedures of the wedding are so cumbersome and meticulous that it can make people tired and paralyzed. There are quite a few palace people discussing in private, saying that the crown princess is fortunately the daughter of a military commander's family and has a strong body, otherwise she would not be able to withstand the salute , not to mention marrying the prince.

Even Qi Jun was a little tired after entering the new house in the East Palace. The palace servants brought up the wedding scale wrapped in red silk on a gold plate. Provoked the golden hijab embroidered with dragons and phoenixes on the princess's head.

Unexpectedly, after the hijab was lifted, Qi Jun was almost taken aback.The makeup of the newcomers in the Sheng Dynasty imitated the previous dynasty, with thick powder and thick red, which even covered the appearance of the newcomers. The white powder was painted like wall plaster, and the two cherry red spots on the lips were particularly dazzling.The corners of Qi Jun's lips twitched involuntarily, and he coughed lightly and said, "The princess has had a hard day too, let's change her clothes, clean her face and relax." Facing such a face, it is really a little scary.Although the idea is a bit disrespectful, if the empress had also dressed like this when she married into the palace, Emperor Jing'an might not be able to like it.On the contrary, the concubines and concubines took advantage of it, so they didn't have to paint themselves like everyone else.

The middleman and female officer who were in charge of praise were stunned for a moment, and quickly said: "Your Highness, I haven't drunk the Hebei wine yet." You have to drink the Hebei wine first, and eat the offspring's cakes before the bride can go to change clothes and wash her face.

The acacia wine is made of a pair of acacia cups carved from white jade, tied together with a red thread, implying that the husband and wife are connected by the red thread and will never leave.Since the cups are connected together, it is natural for a new couple to have a hard time drinking together.Qi Jun leaned over, and smelled a strong fragrance of sweet-scented osmanthus, emanating from between Zhao Yue's temples.Qi Jun never liked to use incense, especially the sweet and greasy smell of sweet-scented osmanthus, mixed with the burning incense in the house, it rushed straight into his chest and made him feel nauseated, so he tried his best to drink the wine in the Acacia cup, Hastily retreated a little to the side, coughed lightly and said: "Remove the incense."

Feng Enli was standing at the door, and upon hearing the words, he hurried over to move the censer, but was stopped by the female officer who praised him, and said with a smile: "Your Highness, this is the lily incense from the Queen's Empress—" it burns a spice that is secretly made in the palace to help taste , What's the use if you withdraw.

Qi Jun frowned secretly.Because of her previous illness, the Empress also liked to use incense to cover up the smell of medicine in the room, and it was a good intention to send this lily incense. He couldn't bear to ignore his mother's wishes, and was about to say something when he heard a dull loud noise outside , as if there was a dull thunder in the sky.This sudden sound startled everyone in the room. After all, according to Qin Tianjian's calculations, these few days are sunny days, how could there be a sudden thunder?If it rains, it will be a bit of a disappointment.

The person in the salute turned his mind quickly, and immediately smiled and said: "Rain is the sign of grace, and rain moistens all things, so that there will be vegetation and trees. This is—" He wanted to say it was a good omen, but after the thunder rang There was no more movement, and there was no sound of rain falling. Instead, there was some chaotic shouting outside.The female officer felt that something was wrong, so she hurriedly opened the window a little bit, and heard a shout from a distance: "The Zhaoming Palace was struck by lightning and flooded!"

Qi Jun stood up with a cry.The Zhaoming Hall is the place where the portraits of the ancestors are enshrined. He has only visited the Crown Princess tonight, and its importance in the palace is no less than that of the Ancestral Temple that he will visit tomorrow morning.With a flash of thought, Qi Jun walked out: "You wait to serve the princess and rest first, and Feng En will follow!" Zhaoming Hall is guarded by middlemen, because there are only portraits enshrined inside, and they are most afraid of fire, especially in autumn. If things are dry, it is necessary to inspect them carefully, and never let the water go casually.Now not only is the water gone, but what are those middle-aged people shouting?Being struck by lightning and walking into the water!The weather was fine and there were no clouds. Where did the thunder come from?It also hit Zhaoming Palace!You don't have to wait until tomorrow morning, the news of the ominous omen will spread throughout the harem, and even spread throughout the capital and even outside the capital.And why did Lei attack Zhaoming Hall?Today, only he and the Crown Princess have visited... Qi Jun felt a fire in his heart, striding like stars on his feet, without even using a chariot, he walked straight to Zhaoming Hall.

Zhaoming Hall is the place where ancestors are worshipped, death is like life, especially when serving ancestors must be more respectful, so the area of ​​Zhaoming Hall is larger than Taiji Hall where the emperor governs and Xingqing Hall where the emperor lives, in which the portraits of ancestors are enshrined The palace only takes up a small half, and the other half is a garden full of pines and cypresses, a square where guards of honor are accommodated during grand ceremonies, and servants who are in charge of cleaning.Qi Jun saw it from a distance, the place where the fire started was in the garden, but the pines and cypresses were already flammable, and it was autumn again, the fire was blown by the night wind and spread towards the Zhaoming Hall.Although the middlemen and guards shouted loudly and ran back and forth carrying buckets, judging by the momentum, not to mention a drop in the bucket, they couldn't stop the flames.

"How could the water be gone!" Emperor Jing'an had already gone to bed, and was startled by the report from the people in the middle. He hurried over on his imperial chariot, and seeing the fire that almost burned half of the sky, his expression changed drastically.A man in the middle knelt and climbed up timidly: "Your Majesty, just now, a sudden thunder struck just now, and the garden suddenly caught fire. This, this day's fire—servants are really..."

Skyfire!Thunder strikes!Qi Jun clenched his fists tightly, wishing he could kick the man to death.If he was still a little uncertain when he rushed over just now, he can already conclude that there must be something strange about this lightning strike on Zhaoming Palace!

But this is not the time to pursue the matter, Qi Jun stepped forward and kicked the man: "You dare to deceive the crowd in front of His Majesty! Hurry up and put out the fire, if the Zhaoming Palace burns down, you will all die!"

The man in the middle suffered severe pain in his sternum from the kick, and he didn't dare to say anything, so he ran away in a hurry.Standing here, Emperor Jing'an felt the heat blowing against his face, he couldn't help being anxious, stomped his feet and said: "What kind of celestial phenomenon is this? Quickly send it to Qin Tianjian! Please invite the national teacher and immortal teacher to come!"

"Your Majesty—the national teacher is here!" The little man ran back after running a few steps away.Behind him, Ma Mingzi walked quickly with two little Taoist boys, with a heavy expression on his face.Emperor Jing'an didn't wait for him to see the ceremony, he hurriedly asked: "Master, what is the sign of the thunder strike?"

Qi Jun's heart sank immediately.Zhen Mingzi's Taoist temple is a little farther away from the Zhaoming Hall than the Star Observatory, but he arrived so quickly. If it is not a conspiracy, he will never believe it.

"Your Majesty—" Ma Mingzi frowned, "Maybe it's because the candles in Zhaoming Palace fell down?"

Emperor Jing'an paused and said: "What does the lightning strike in the pine and cypress garden have anything to do with the candle?" The more Zhen Mingzi said this, the more he believed in the saying that the thunder struck, not to mention the muffled sound, he was in the concubine's palace. I heard it all.

"Father, firefighting is the most important thing at this time." Qi Zhang, who rushed over after him, looked anxious.

Zhen Mingzi glanced at him: "Second Highness, if it is really a disaster of heaven and fire, I am afraid that ordinary water will be difficult to solve."

"What did the national teacher say about Tianhuo?" Someone suddenly asked in the shadows on the other side, Zhibai walked out with his hands behind his back, looking at his appearance, it seems that he is not here to see the fire, but to come Watching a play.

Zhen Mingzi's eyes flickered slightly, but his expression remained still: "The immortal teacher came at the right time. When the thunder strikes, does the immortal teacher know whether it is good or bad?"

"Thunder strikes?" Zhibai tilted his head to look at the fire over there, casually, "Thunder strikes are commonplace, and they are ruthless things, so what is good or bad?"

Qi Zhang smiled beside him: "Since the immortal master said so, why didn't the thunder hit other places, but hit Zhaoming Palace instead?"

Zhibai also laughed: "Since it is a ruthless thing, it is unpredictable where it will hit, and it is also unknown where it may hit Yanying Temple next time."

Yanying Hall is Qizhang's residence, Zhibai's words are quite rascal, Qizhang couldn't help but change his face, but he didn't dare to get angry because Emperor Jing'an was beside him, he rolled his eyes and said: "Father, just now the national teacher said This is the calamity of the fire of the sky, and it is difficult to solve with ordinary water, if according to the immortal master, it is just a common thing, then this fire can be saved and extinguished, so there is no need to worry, father."

In fact, this is simply nonsense.Whether the fire can be extinguished depends entirely on the size of the fire, and it has nothing to do with whether it is a sky fire or a sky fire. Judging from the fire in front of us, it is not finished if it does not burn down the Zhaoming Palace, and it is not bad if it does not spread to the surrounding palaces.Emperor Jing'an could still see this, and hurriedly asked Zhibai: "Is there any way for the immortal master?" The portraits of ancestors were enshrined in Zhaoming Hall, if they were burned, at least he would have to punish himself.

Before Zhibai could speak, Qi Zhang smiled and said, "Of course the immortal master has a solution."

Zhibai took a look at him, didn't answer his words, turned to Ma Mingzi and said with a smile: "Can the national teacher have a solution?"

The muscles in the corners of Zhen Mingzi's eyes twitched involuntarily, and he said with anger: "From the point of view of the poor, this is the calamity of heaven and fire, and there is nothing the poor can do. Since the immortal master said that this is an ordinary thing, there must be a way "Although Zhibai claims that he has five or six hundred years of lifespan, he is just returning to the basics and rejuvenating his old age, but Zhen Mingzi knows in his heart that this kid is just as liar as he boasted that he can refine the elixir of longevity!It is a shame to be questioned by a liar who is old enough to be his grandson, and to admit that he is powerless in front of Emperor Jing'an.Fortunately, the fire is so big, let's see how Zhibai can put it out!

Zhibai smiled slowly: "Your Majesty, please send someone to bring a bowl of clean water."

Isn't it easy to have a bowl of water? Without Emperor Jing'an's words, Wang Jin has already rushed to fetch a bowl of clean water.Zhibai took it in his hand, and took a sip.Everyone was staring at him, but he opened his mouth and sprayed water out with a puff.Qi Zhang was standing in front of him, and the sip of water was not wasted, it was all sprayed on Qi Zhang's face.

If it wasn't for Emperor Jing'an, and the Zhaoming Hall in front was full of flames, and there was obviously a conspiracy waiting for him, Qi Jun would almost have laughed out loud.Even under the dim light of the palace lantern, Qi Zhang's face could be seen to have turned livid. He slowly raised his hand to wipe his face, and was about to speak when a large drop of water fell from the air, dripping on his face. Raise the back of the hand.Qi Zhang didn't notice it in his anger, and said sharply: "What is the meaning of the fairy master!"

Zhibai smiled at him, wiped his mouth slowly, and in the time between breaths, Feng En suddenly shouted: "It's raining!"

Indeed, from when Qizhang was sprayed with water to when the rain fell from the sky, there was only one sentence in between.Everyone looked up. Today is the twelfth day of the eighth month. A full moon is hanging in the sky. It is not even covered by the clouds, but the raindrops the size of soybeans are actually crackling. It fell down, and it even hurt a little when it landed on the face.

"This—the Immortal Master..." Not only Emperor Jing'an, but everyone at this time had to associate the sudden heavy rain with the saliva that they just realized was in vain.The rain was pouring, and the flames in the pine and cypress garden that were about to lick the corners of the Zhaoming Palace were immediately suppressed by the raindrops.The guards and middlemen who were rushing back and forth with buckets stopped in a daze, and they knelt down one by one, kowtowing in the direction of Zhaoming Hall, without knowing who was leading them.

Only then did Zhibai turn his head and smile at Emperor Jing'an: "Zhaoming Hall is full of dragon energy, and the poor are just using the dragon energy to make a rain."

"But", "That's all", at this moment, no one will really take Zhibai's humble words seriously.Isn't it?If you think this is nothing, how about you also come to make a rain?

Qi Jun's eyes swept across the faces of Qi Zhang and Zhen Mingzi without any trace.In the rain, even Emperor Jing'an was drenched, but only Qi Zhang and Zhen Mingzi had a livid face and a gray face, which was completely different from the excitement mixed with awe from the rest of the people. Jun watched it with great joy.

The heavy rain lasted for a long time, and the fire in the pine and cypress garden was suppressed abruptly. The little middle-aged man ran to report, drenched all over his body, "Only the right corner of the Zhaoming Hall was slightly burned, and the place where the portrait of the late emperor was enshrined was not at all burnt." It has never been affected." God, the Immortal Master is really a living Bodhisattva who rescues the suffering, if the Zhaoming Palace is really burned down, all the palace servants working in the Zhaoming Palace will die!

"The Immortal Master is really—" Emperor Jing'an felt a little indescribable, and his language suddenly became a little lacking, "The mana is powerful!"

Zhibai bowed humbly: "It's all thanks to the great blessings of His Majesty and the past emperors."

"Father——" Qi Jun interjected in a timely manner, "My son, go and have a look. It's almost the end of the year. Although only one corner of the temple is burned, it must be repaired as soon as possible."

"Exactly." Emperor Jing'an nodded repeatedly, "This is the place where the remnants of the late emperors are enshrined. Today is such a disturbing event, I also want to offer a stick of incense to apologize to the ancestors of the past generations."

The pine and cypress garden was completely burned, and there was a large charred pit on the ground, which was still filled with the smell of sulfur.Qi Jun bent down and picked up a handful of wet mud, and put it into his sleeves calmly. The guards beside him had already dragged up a corpse: "Your Majesty, this person died in the garden, it seems——was killed by lightning."

Emperor Jing'an frowned and turned his gaze away: "Jun'er, go and have a look."

The little man's body was simply unbearable to look at: half of his face and an arm were gone, and even that half of his body was only charred and black, and there seemed to be a little bit of water vapor from the rain pouring on it.The eunuch in charge of Zhaoming Palace wiped the liquid from his face, whether it was rain or sweat, and carefully explained: "It's the little man who is in charge of fertilizing the garden. Last night, he should..."

Flowers and trees can't grow well without fertilizers. Even the flowers and trees in the palace can be bathed in the royal aura at close range, which is no exception.However, the manure has a foul smell, which cannot be smelled by the nobles. Therefore, the flowers and trees in the palace are fertilized at night. The palace people take out the manure one by one, bury it in the roots of the flowers and trees, and then cover it with soil to prevent the smell from spreading. .This little man was suddenly struck by lightning while fertilizing, which seemed to be a matter of course.But—is it like this when struck by lightning?

"I remember that two years ago, Shandong reported that a person was struck by lightning. His whole body was scorched black, his joints were loose and curled up into a ball, but he had all his hands and feet. It seemed that he was different from the deceased." Qi Jun seemed unintentional, but his eyes were tight He stared at Makiko.He knew that gunpowder could be made by mixing charcoal, saltpeter and sulfur. There were all kinds of charcoal in the palace, and saltpeter and sulfur—these things Ma Mingzi had used in alchemy!

Emperor Jing'an couldn't remember that there was such a memorial, and subconsciously glanced at the corpse of the little man, and was immediately disgusted again, turned his head and waved: "Hurry up and drag it down!" I have to spit it out, "Go and offer incense to the late emperor first."

Qi Jun had no choice but to put aside this topic for the time being, and followed Emperor Jing'an into the inner hall, Feng En caught his eyes, and retreated quietly knowingly, and called two middlemen to drag the corpse away.

The smoke from the wind could still be smelled in the inner hall, but after all, it was not affected, and everything looked very quiet.Emperor Jing'an heaved a sigh of relief, and led his two sons to respectfully burn three sticks of incense before leaving.The prince got married today, he had been busy for a day as a father and emperor, and he was called up from the side of the new young concubine. He really didn't want to do anything else at this time, so he ordered Qi Jun to issue an order to the Ministry of Internal Affairs tomorrow. After repairing Zhaoming Hall, he went straight back to Xingqing Hall.

As soon as Emperor Jing'an left, the respectful smiles of Qi Jun and Qi Zhang disappeared. The two brothers stared at each other like two wolves, and then walked away.

Qi Zhang's face was livid, he had wiped his face several times with a handkerchief, but he still felt that Zhibai's saliva was still on his face.This is simply a great shame!He calmed down for a long time, but still felt a pain in his chest, he didn't care about walking on the road, he gritted his teeth and said, "National Teacher!"

Knowing what he was going to say, Ma Mingzi sighed and said, "Don't worry, Your Highness."

This means that there will be no tails left for people to find out, but the bureau that has been set up with great effort is easily cracked, and Zhibai spits on his face. How can Jiao Qizhang feel at ease?

"Is it so helpless?"

Zhen Mingzi lowered his head, thought for a while, and said, "Your Highness, I know that this person is nothing to be afraid of. Only Your Majesty is the one who decides the position. Your Highness already has the upper hand in the hunt on Mount Tai, so why—" If he was asked to blow the wind in front of Emperor Jing'an and belittle Qi Jun overtly and secretly, he would be very willing to do it, but things like burning the Zhaoming Palace - listening to what Qi Jun said just now, maybe he has already seen something. ——If he is found out, Hugh said that he is just a national teacher, and even an earth immortal cannot escape the crime of treason, which is really too dangerous.

"How can this be possible!" Qi Zhang said impatiently, "Since this demon entered the palace, Qi Jun has gained the upper hand in every way! Now that he has the help of the Yue family, who knows where he will go step by step in the future. Dote on me, but the matter of this position is not so simple." Changing the crown prince would shake the foundation of the country, and even Ye's faction would not dare to mention it casually, even if he overwhelmed Qi Jun, unless Qi Jun himself was not worthy to do it. This crown prince!

Ma Akiko lowered her head, muttered a few vague words, but didn't answer.Qi Zhang also realized that what he said was too straightforward. After all, he was not in the Hall of Liangyi at this time, so he closed his mouth and walked with his head down. There was a strong sense of depression between the two of them...