Chapter 30 Unexpectedly, he is a master

Gao Taifu and his entourage continued northward along Pengcheng, passing through Tengzhou, Zoucheng, and Qufu counties. When passing through Qufu, it was natural to visit the "Three Confucius Places" of Confucius Temple, Confucius Mansion, and Confucius Forest, and to pay homage to the most holy teacher.

Confucius, the saint of Confucius.

When visiting the Confucius Forest, Mr. Gao repeated his old trick and asked everyone a question: Why are there no crows on the "Holy Forest" and no snakes and insects below? But there are swarms of crows in the Confucius Temple?

Everyone said they didn't know. Mr. Gao looked at Feng Jiuxiao specifically to ask if Feng Jiuxiao knew. Feng Jiuxiao shook his head and said: "I haven't heard of any allusions, but I would like to hear the details." He really didn't know this allusion.

Mr. Gao laughed, "Since you don't know, I'll tell you!"

Feng Jiuxiao couldn't help but feel happy in her heart: Haha, "Educated people are not happy until they vomit." If a person knows too many things, sometimes he will inevitably become a teacher. Although Feng Jiuxiao thought so in her heart, she did not dare to show any disrespect on her face.

Come on. You can make jokes, but you must pay attention to the different situations and the different characters. Otherwise, you will fall behind.

Mr. Gao said: "It is said that one day Confucius and several disciples went to Fangshan Mountain to worship their parents. After worshiping, on the way back, they saw a hunter shooting at a group of crows with a bow and arrow. The hunter's archery skills were excellent and he hit the target on the spot.

A crow screamed and fell to the ground. The hunter picked up the crow and prepared to leave. However, a large group of crows followed him closely and blocked his way. They circled at low altitude and kept pecking at him. This

In the end, the hunter had no choice but to throw the crow away. After the hunter left, the crows mourned and cried around the dead crow. After Confucius saw it, he found a place nearby, dug a small hole and dug the crow into the ground.

Buried. The group of crows actually nodded to Confucius to thank him! Then they flew away together. Confucius was quite emotional when he saw this, saying that crows are the most kind of birds, like gentlemen among men." Everyone said: "I have learned the lesson."

Mr. Gao was very interested and acted as a guide again, explaining various allusions and cultural relics to everyone.

There are four pairs of stone carvings beside the corridor of Xiangdian Hall, named Huabiao, Wenbao, Jiaoduan, and Wengzhong. Huabiao is also called Wangzhu; Wenbao, whose image is like a leopard, spitting fire from its armpits, is docile and kind, and is used to guard the tomb; Jiaoduan

, is a legendary mythical beast like the Wenbao. It is said that it can travel 18,000 miles in a day, is proficient in the languages ​​​​of the four directions, and can tell things far away; Weng Zhong, a stone statue, is said to be a brave general in the Qin Dynasty, powerful in the frontier fortress, and later

In the past dynasties, for the sake of symmetry, two statues of civil and military figures, both called Weng Zhong, were specially carved to guard the tomb.

Feng Jiuxiao admired Mr. Gao from the bottom of her heart. Ever since she met Mr. Ji, it seemed that there was nothing in the world that Mr. Gao didn't know!

Along the way, I kept learning more and more, and I felt like "listening to your words is worth ten years of reading."

After passing Qufu, you will reach Tai'an County.

Tai'an is a famous historical city with many scenic spots and historic sites. The most famous mountain among them is Mount Tai, the most famous among the five mountains.

There are too many famous people in history, including Bao Shuya, Zuo Qiuming, Liu Xiahui, etc.

The legend about Bixia Yuanjun is even more beautiful and touching.

Although everyone yearned for places of interest such as "Angtou Tianwai", "Eighteen Pans" and Bixia Yuanjun's Palace, time was tight and Taishan and his party were unable to do so. If you wanted to visit every corner of Mount Tai, it would take at least four days!

After passing Tai'an, you will reach Jinan County.

The Qin Dynasty called it Jibei, and the Han Dynasty called it Jinan.

There are prefects and generals in Jinan. Because Jinan faces the capital in the north, Jiangsu and Zhejiang in the south, Shanxi and Hebei in the west, and Langya in the east, it is the place where the four battles are fought, so generals are set up to oversee the four directions.

Although General Jinan has a residence in Jinan City, he always lives in a camp on the outskirts of the city. He often says that he should share the joys and sorrows with all the soldiers, which is quite the style of famous generals in the Spring and Autumn Period.

General Jinan was originally controlled by General Wei, but unfortunately General Wei was killed in an attack. The position of the new general is now fiercely contested by all parties in the court.

Although there was a lot of fighting in the court, the local officers were surprisingly calm. They knew that only those children of big families with deep backgrounds and long-term connections could have the chance to serve as generals. They like them could only accumulate military merit little by little by fighting on the battlefield.

Anyone who can become a brigade marshal is lucky enough. Although everyone has ambitions, reality is reality after all.

The brigade commander can command 300 troops, and the general can command 1,000 troops. As for the general, he can command 100,000 troops. The company general is specially allowed to command 300,000 troops because he has been fighting all year round! He became the pinnacle of power among the millions of armies of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

For people, ambition alone is not enough.

When they heard that Mr. Gao was about to arrive in Jinan County, Jinan General Li Wei and Prefect Liu Bingqiao were dispatched together to wait outside the city.

When Wei Qiansui was chatting with Feng Jiuxiao on the road, he mentioned that the various forces within the imperial court are now intertwined, competing with each other, and scheming. Although there are countless large and small forces, they are generally divided into three major groups: the civil servant group, the general group, and the eunuch group.

.

Mr. Gao is naturally one of the representatives of the civil service group, the military commanders are of course headed by General Lien, and the eunuch group is headed by Wang Gonggong, the emperor's personal steward.

However, of course, there are many mountains within each group. The relationship between the groups is not clear-cut. There are mutual conflicts and mutual compromises. The key depends on whether the interests of both parties are consistent!

In a sentence: There are no permanent friends and no permanent enemies, only eternal interests.

When our interests are aligned, you help me and I will help you.

When there is a conflict of interest, you step on me and I will step on you.

From governance concepts to personnel changes, struggles and compromises are everywhere and never stop.

When you are at the bottom, the struggle is how to climb to a high position and how to gain greater power. Only with greater power can you have the opportunity to gain more fame and fortune.

But when you reach a high position, fame and fortune have long been like dirt. What you are fighting for now is the right to speak! What you are fighting for is dominance! What you are fighting for is a name that will go down in history, not a temporary glory!

When she saw Jinan General Li Wei and Prefect Liu Bingqiao leading a group of civil servants and military generals waiting in front of the city gate, Feng Jiuxiao could see that Sun Wei did not take Liu Bingqiao seriously.

Usually the prefect is the highest military and political administrator of a county, but the situation in Jinan is special. The level of troops and horses stationed in Jinan is much higher than that of the local prefect. They not only prevent and control the Qi, Lu, Yan and Zhao lands, but are also responsible for guarding the capital! Therefore, Jinan's troops and horses are not subject to the city's

The prefect is restrained. Perhaps this is the main reason why Sun Wei looks down on Liu Bingqiao. In addition, I heard that Liu Taishou has only been in office for less than a few months, so Li Wei looks down on Liu Bingqiao and this is probably the reason why.

Like stars holding the moon, Mr. Gao was welcomed to the Quancheng Inn, the highest standard.

Although Liu and Li seem to be very different from each other, in front of Taifu Gao, they are a model of mutual humility and complement each other! Mr. Gao is very satisfied!

The reception banquet in the evening is arranged at Qianfo Mountain!

The evening breeze blows and the night is as cool as water.

Feng Jiuxiao wandered alone in Jinan under the moon.

Drinking with high-ranking officials is the most troublesome. There are too many etiquette rules and red tape. Except for Mr. Gao, the distinguished guest, and the prefect and general who are hosting, who at the table dares to talk casually? Who dares to pick up the dishes casually? Your boss has not spoken to you yet.

What are you talking about? Why should you use your chopsticks before your boss has done so? The entire banquet was purely a personal performance time for the prefect and the general, and also a time for Mr. Gao’s comments. The rest of the people were just foils. So Feng Jiuxiao would rather hang out alone.

Do not participate in the banquet.

Jinan is also called Spring City because there are 72 famous springs.

There are many places of interest in Jinan, but where to go shopping at night? Feng Jiuxiao wandered aimlessly along Zhonggong Road, looking at the houses on both sides from time to time, and saw that some houses were still brightly lit, with smoke curling from their kitchens. Feng Jiuxiao

An imaginary picture comes to mind: a peasant woman waits at home for her husband to return, boils a pot of old wine, and stir-fries a few dishes to go with the wine. The happiness of the gods is nothing more than this!

The bright moon in the sky was as bright as jade, and occasionally a few stars twinkled. Feng Jiuxiao unknowingly came to the bank of a large lake. There was a huge stone tablet beside the lake, with three huge red ancient seal characters "Da Ming Lake" engraved on it.

Feng Jiuxiao's internal strength had reached the peak of the Glazed Realm at this time, and her vision at night was the same as during the day, and the situation on the entire lake was clear.

There are endless lotus leaves on the lake. In several places, the water on the lake surface boils like boiling water because springs bubble out from the bottom of the lake.

Seeing no one around, Feng Jiuxiao thought that since she had nothing to do, she just wanted to practice her various martial arts. She flew up onto the lotus leaf in the lake and swayed slightly with the dance of the lotus leaf. Her left hand flew in the air and continuously grabbed several lotus leaves.

In an instant, they were cut off from the roots as if cut off by a sharp blade, and then flew high into the air!

Prick it with one finger, and the Prajna Vajra finger will pierce a round hole in a lotus leaf.

With his parallel fingers like a sword, he split a lotus leaf in half with one move of the Zhenwu Demon-Slaying Sword Technique.

Then came the Seven Styles of Two-Sleeved Green Dragon, Liuhe Green Dragon, Rolling Dragon Sword, Spring and Autumn Brush, and Blood Sword, taking turns to try their hands!

Lotus leaves broke in the air and fell to the lake like rain.

Finally, he silently recited the Thunder Technique and grasped the sky with both hands. Immediately, electric snakes lingered on his palms, making a sizzling sound, and the sky quickly condensed into a cloud. When he pointed at the center of the lake, a bolt of lightning struck from the clouds and stirred up the center of the lake.

The waves were several feet high! Fortunately, there was no one around, otherwise it would have been shocking!

All actions from beginning to end are like flowing clouds and flowing water, done in one go and in the blink of an eye.

After trying out the One Move and Five Thunder Method, Feng Jiuxiao flew back to the shore and continued to wander along the lake. After walking for several miles, seeing the same scenery, she had no intention of wandering anymore, so she walked towards the center of the city.

Although Jinan is a big city in the north, it is much more conservative than in the south. Jinan is surprisingly quiet at night. Almost all shops are closed.

If it weren't for the lanterns hanging all over the city, it would still be brightly lit, otherwise one would almost mistake it for a dead city!

The long street was almost deserted, and even the watchman was hard to find. Occasionally, I found a few yellow dogs looking for food, which actually added a lot of vitality.

Almost all the long streets and alleys are paved with bluestone slabs, and some places are made of blue bricks, which are stronger than the dirt roads in some cities in the south. Therefore, the entire Jinan city looks very neat, especially after the rain, the streets and alleys look even cleaner.

As I was walking, I suddenly heard someone's voice in the distance. The sound was not loud, but it was very obvious in this silent night. After walking for several dozen feet, the sound gradually became clearer, and it seemed to be in an alley. Walking over, I found that

Several large lanterns read "Yellow River Gambling House".

Feng Jiuxiao thought that since there was nothing going on, it was better to go in and see the excitement. It seemed that things were similar in the north and south, and everyone was addicted to gambling.

There were two gatekeepers outside the gate. They were very strong and they were sitting on either side of the gate chatting. When Feng Jiuxiao came to him, one of them stood up and said, "Young master, you want to play a few games too? Please come in!"

Feng Jiuxiao followed him into the courtyard.

There is only one big room in the courtyard. The room is brightly lit and crowded, with dozens of tables filled with gamblers shouting and drinking. No matter you are dressed gorgeously or shabby, you have only one identity here - a gambler.

Feng Jiuxiao once heard that there was a well-known master named Li Yiguang who was addicted to gambling all his life. His gambling products were very good and he was willing to accept defeat. However, his gambling luck was so bad that he always lost every time he gambled. The more he lost, the more he wanted to win.

The more he gambled, the more he lost, so he always lost everything. Fortunately, he was a master of martial arts. It was said that he didn't know where he came from. Anyway, the money came in quickly, and soon he went gambling with his money bag. Then he lost again.

Feng Jiuxiao knows that nine out of ten bets are cheats. Everyone loses except the banker. Even if you win at the beginning, you will lose in the end. The previous wins are also traps set by others.

Obviously the truth is very simple, but people in the world are like moths rushing to the flame, rushing forward one after another, regardless of everything. It seems that this is human nature, deep in the bone marrow and difficult to change.

Gambling is everywhere.

It's just that some people bet big and some bet small.

Some people bet on gold, silver and jewelry, while others bet on their wealth and lives.

Others are betting on people's hearts.

The place is very big. There are people who gamble on Pai Gow and some who gamble on dice. The most popular people are betting on dice.

Feng Jiuxiao came to a gambling table with more than ten people. The dealer was a one-eyed old man wearing a black eyepatch. He was very thin, but the remaining one eye was particularly energetic. His hands were covered with veins and

Calluses, you can tell at a glance that he has great palm skills.
To be continued...