bullyxtreme Chapter 4 Heading straight to the capital, before the Emperor's gate
Chapter 4 Heading straight to the capital, before the Emperor's gate
The mountain wind howled.
Three thousand armored soldiers from the Beijing Garrison knelt down in a dense, dark mass.
No one dared to look up, and no one dared to move.
Before them stood an elderly man with white hair, wielding a longsword inscribed with "Made by Imperial Order of Yongle," who seemed like a mountain that had stepped out of history, pressing down on everyone and making it hard for them to breathe.
Zhu Di's gaze swept over the kneeling soldiers and finally landed on Zhao Ping, who was lying on the ground.
"stand up."
His voice was not loud, but it carried an undeniable authority.
Zhao Ping trembled.
"Issue my decree." Zhu Di's voice was as cold as ice in the twelfth lunar month. "You, take your men and immediately seal off Wudang Mountain. Within a radius of fifty li, not a single bird is allowed to fly out. Tell the outside world that the immortal is in seclusion and no one is allowed to disturb him."
Zhao Ping was stunned for a moment, then looked up abruptly, his face full of confusion.
Let's not talk about your... your resurrection.
"Don't you understand?" Zhu Di's eyebrows furrowed.
"Understood! Understood!" Zhao Ping jumped in fright. "Your subordinate obeys! Your subordinate will immediately lead men to seal off the mountain! I guarantee not even a fly will be able to get out!"
He understood. The ancestor was planning to enter the capital quietly, before causing chaos throughout the land.
"And another thing." Zhu Di's gaze turned towards the back mountain, where 120 Imperial Guards remained in various stiff postures, like lifelike human ice sculptures. "Those foreign guards, let them continue standing there. After twelve hours, they will be able to move on their own."
Zhu Zaiyi added from the side, "After you make a move, have them come to the foot of the mountain to find you. Tell them you didn't manage to seize the immortal technique, and the immortal has vanished without a trace. Tell them to go back to the capital and report the truth."
This is what creates an information gap.
This led Jiajing to believe that both groups he had sent out had failed, but he didn't know how catastrophic the failures were. This would buy them the most crucial time.
Zhao Ping nodded repeatedly: "This subordinate understands! I will definitely handle it well!"
Zhu Di stopped looking at him and turned to Zhu Zairi, saying, "Let's go."
Zhu Zaiyi nodded and gestured with one hand.
A powerful current of air appeared out of nowhere, slowly lifting him and Zhu Di's bodies up.
Amidst the horrified gazes of the three thousand soldiers of the Beijing Garrison and Zhao Ping, the two men rose from the ground, soared over the treetops, and transformed into two black dots, flying northward.
Only after the two black dots completely disappeared into the clouds did Zhao Ping dare to get up from the ground. He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
He glanced back at the three thousand soldiers kneeling behind him, many of whom were still looking up at the sky with their mouths agape, wide enough to fit an egg.
"Get up, all of you!" Zhao Ping roared with all his might. "Pass down the order! The entire army shall set up camp on the spot and seal off all entrances and exits of Wudang! Anyone who dares to divulge even a single word of what happened today will be subject to military law and the extermination of their entire family!"
……
High in the sky.
The spiritual energy shield set up by Zhu Zai Rui kept out the biting cold wind, making the small space where the two of them were warm as spring.
Beneath their feet, the mountains and rivers receded rapidly.
Zhu Di spent his life on the battlefield, traveling to the northernmost Mongolia and the southernmost Jiaozhi, but he never saw the empire he had conquered and protected from this perspective.
The earth is like a giant painting.
The landscape is like a painting.
The Grand Canal, which runs through the north and south, resembles a long, silver serpent, winding and crawling under the winter sun.
"Rui'er." Zhu Di's voice was a little hoarse.
"Your Majesty, please speak."
"I built this canal back then to transport grain from the south to the north, and to facilitate troop deployment. Now... what is it transporting?"
Zhu Zai Rui's gaze followed Zhu Di's line of sight.
The canal is dotted with sails. But most of them are not grain transport boats; even during the day, one can see singing and dancing on board.
Zhu Zaiyi did not answer.
Some things don't need an answer.
Zhu Di's expression grew increasingly grim. He saw vast stretches of barren fields, clearly uncultivated even in winter. He saw many villages, utterly lifeless.
In stark contrast are the grand mansions and courtyards in the prefectural and county towns.
He remained silent for a long time, so long that Zhu Zai Rui thought he would never speak again.
"Does the national treasury... still have money?"
Zhu Zaiyi replied softly, "The Ministry of Revenue's accounts have been in deficit for years. It is said that Yan Song and his son have embezzled more than 20 million taels of silver."
Zhu Di's knuckles turned white from gripping the sword hilt so tightly.
Twenty million taels!
The total annual fiscal revenue of the Yongle reign barely exceeded ten million taels. One official embezzled more than twice the annual revenue of the entire court.
Zhu Di closed his eyes.
He was afraid that if he kept watching, he wouldn't be able to resist turning back right now and beheading that Yan Song.
Another hour passed.
Ahead, the outline of a magnificent city appeared on the horizon.
Beijing, the most magnificent city under heaven.
Even from dozens of miles away, the majestic city walls and towering gate towers still exuded a tremendous sense of oppression. This was the capital city personally built by Zhu Di, the place where he, as emperor, guarded the nation's gates.
"Go down right here," Zhu Di said in a deep voice.
Zhu Zaiyi controlled the wind, and the two landed silently in a grove of trees on the southern outskirts of the capital.
"Grand Ancestor, how do we get in?" Zhu Zai Rui asked.
"Go inside."
Zhu Di, carrying his sword, strode towards the official road.
The two men, one old and one young, one with white hair yet a tall and upright figure, the other young and inexperienced yet with a composed demeanor, attracted the attention of many passersby as they walked along the official road leading to Yongding Gate.
At the foot of Yongdingmen Gate, a squad of Imperial Guards was checking passersby.
The leader was a military officer of the third rank, who was leaning against the city gate with a bored expression, watching his subordinates scold the people who wanted to enter the city.
"Halt! What are you doing?" Two soldiers stopped Zhu Di and Zhu Zaiyi.
Zhu Di didn't speak, he just looked at them.
What kind of look was that?
It wasn't anger, nor was it intimidation; rather, it was a kind of... gaze as one looks at the flowers, plants, and trees in their own yard. Calm, matter-of-fact, yet carrying an innate scrutiny.
The two soldiers felt uneasy under his gaze, and their hands unconsciously went to the hilts of their swords.
"What are you looking at! Old man, I'm asking you a question!"
Zhu Di finally spoke. He did not answer the soldier's question, but looked at the deputy commander leaning against the wall.
"Chen Heng?"
The deputy commander was startled, as if pricked by a needle, and abruptly turned his head.
His name is Chen Heng, that's correct. But... who is this old man? How does he know me?
Chen Heng frowned as he stepped forward, looking Zhu Di up and down.
Upon that glance, his heart began to race uncontrollably.
This face...
That square, dignified face, those imposing, tiger-like eyes, that high-bridged nose, and those tightly pursed lips…
Chen Heng would go to the Imperial Ancestral Temple to offer sacrifices every year. As a high-ranking general guarding the capital, he was more familiar with the portraits hanging in the Imperial Ancestral Temple than anyone else.
His mind went blank with a "buzz".
impossible.
It is absolutely impossible.
That person has been dead for 138 years.
"You...you..." Chen Heng's lips began to tremble, and he pointed at Zhu Di, but he couldn't utter a single word.
Zhu Di ignored his shock and handed him the long sword, hilt facing him.
Chen Heng instinctively reached out to take it.
His gaze fell on the sword.
The four engraved characters seemed to radiate a scorching heat under the winter sun.
Made by Emperor Yongle.
"Clang!"
The longsword fell to the ground.
Chen Heng's legs went weak, and he knelt down with a thud.
His forehead slammed heavily against the cold bluestone slab, the dull thud startling everyone around him.
"Your subject... Your subject! Chen Heng, son of the Left Commander of the Imperial Guard, and Vice Commander-in-Chief... pays his respects... pays his respects..."
He wanted to call out that title, but found that his throat was being tightly gripped by an invisible hand, and he could only make a "hoarse" gasping sound.
Because that title represents a taboo that mortals cannot understand.
The soldiers and civilians around were all dumbfounded.
A general of the third rank, a big shot in the capital whose every move shakes the earth, actually knelt down to some unknown old man? And even kowtowed until his head bled?
Zhu Di bent down, picked up the long sword from the ground, and didn't even look at Chen Heng kneeling on the ground.
He strode forward and walked straight into the gate of Yongdingmen.
Zhu Zaiyi followed behind him.
Behind them, there was a deathly silence.
Only after their figures disappeared into the shadows of the city gate did a soldier dare to approach Chen Heng and whisper, "General...that old man is...?"
Chen Heng did not answer.
He raised his head, his face indistinguishable from blood and tears, staring blankly in the direction where the two had disappeared, repeating himself over and over again.
"The Imperial Ancestral Temple... the Imperial Ancestral Temple..."