NFBE Chapter 112 A mother worries about her son's journey; a plague breaks out in Gancaobao.
Chapter 112 A mother worries about her son's journey; a plague breaks out in Gancaobao.
Beside the official road outside Gancaobao, on the branches of a tree twenty-two feet high, three Plum Blossom spies dressed in black and wearing plum blossom masks stood or squatted, secretly protecting Zhou Qingfeng all the way.
Although it was called protection, Qiu Chengde had clearly issued an order.
This is a personal trial for Zhou Qingfeng. No matter what predicament Zhou Qingfeng is in or how terrifying the enemy he faces, they are only allowed to observe and not interfere. Otherwise, this trial would lose its meaning of tempering.
They could only save Zhou Qingfeng if he was critically injured and on the verge of death.
"Captain, this kid is slippery as an eel."
"Who can argue with that? If I didn't have a secret method to track them over a thousand miles, we probably would have really lost them."
Two secret agents from the Plum Blossom Clan squatted on a tree trunk, watching Zhou Qingfeng, who was queuing to enter the fortress, through the dense forest.
"Stop talking nonsense. You almost lost a single person, and you still have the nerve to talk." The spy captain crossed his arms and said coldly, "Reporting to Commander Qiu, the winter of November 6th, 1081, during the reign of Emperor Gengshi..."
Steward Qiu, far away in Sword Tower City, received the latest intelligence from Plum Blossom's spies via the 'Thousand Mile Mirror' magic artifact. He immediately wrote it down and then rushed to the inner courtyard's warm pavilion to pay his respects to the First Lady: "Madam, Plum Blossom's secret report."
The First Lady reclines on her throne, now holding a copy of "The Mirror of Flowers".
This book is also an erotic novel, but the novelist who wrote it is a woman.
The book's content is even more explosive and exciting than "Flying Flowers and Beautiful Thoughts," making it very popular among women in their boudoirs.
Because this erotic book is about forbidden love among men, the so-called "flower appreciation" is actually about male flowers.
The book describes the illicit affairs of the royal family and nobles, depicting their extremely ugly behavior and perverted psychology, and even claims that the current ruler of the Python Sparrow Empire, the "Emperor Gengshi," is a homosexual.
For women confined to their boudoirs, this kind of BL (Boys' Love) novel is incredibly stimulating.
As a result, it became very popular in boudoirs and had such a great influence that many handsome and dashing nobles and royal children inexplicably became gay, seriously damaging the reputation of the upper-class male elites.
This book unsurprisingly became a banned book.
The First Lady reluctantly folded a corner of the book to close it, looked up and said, "Let me see it."
Qiu Chengde stepped forward quickly and presented the secret report with both hands.
The First Lady reached out and picked up the secret report, calmly reading it word by word. After finishing reading all the information in the report, a smile involuntarily appeared on her lips: "That fourth son of mine is truly exceptionally intelligent."
Qiu Chengde clasped his hands in a fist and smiled slightly: "Is Madam relieved?"
Upon hearing this, the First Lady chuckled, casually placed the secret report on the table, slowly rose, walked barefoot to the door with her hands behind her back, and looked at the heavy snow outside, a hint of worry appearing on her beautiful face.
A mother worries when her son travels a thousand miles.
Don't worry, how can I not worry?
"Boss Ma, can you rest assured now?" At Jianmen Pass, the canyon was awash in blood, with severed limbs scattered all over the ground. Sima Yan held a telescope and showed Ma Dalang the horrific scene.
Ma Dalang said coldly, "These scoundrels deserve to die. Where is my brother?"
Sima Yan shook his head and said, "I don't know, because all nine delegations were fake."
"Huh?" Ma Dalang exclaimed in surprise, "It's all fake? Then where did my brother go?"
Sima Yan said quietly, "According to my guess, he has already disguised himself and sneaked out of the country. Me and the others were just decoys he put out. You not only fooled the enemy, but you also fooled us."
Upon hearing this, Ma Dalang couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement: "I don't know how Fourth Brother's brain works, it's damn smart! How does he come up with so many schemes? If he could be used by me, tsk..."
The more Ma Dalang thought about it, the more itching he became. It was like there was a stunningly beautiful woman hidden behind a thin veil, clearly visible and tangible, but just out of reach. It was driving him crazy!
Sima Yan rolled his eyes: "Boss Ma, stop dreaming. It's no use dreaming anymore."
"How dare you! You're the boss, and I'm the boss?"
"Alright, alright, you're the boss, you pay me so you're the master. Now, master, you can assign me the task. Should I go to the treasure site as planned and wait for you, brother, or what? Give me a straight answer."
"Do as my brother says."
"receive."
Two flowers bloom, each telling its own story. Zhou Qingfeng and his group handed over the travel documents and bribed the gatekeepers with eight hundred coins, thus successfully entering Gancaobao before nightfall.
"Cough cough cough..." The guards coughed occasionally and waved their hands to urge, "Go in, go in, hurry up."
Before entering the city, Zhou Qingfeng glanced at them and found it strange. These soldiers from Gancaobao were, after all, cultivators of the Food Turbidity Realm, possessing supernatural abilities and techniques. How could they have caught a cold and coughed because of the cold weather?
Following the cobblestone path, Zhou Qingfeng arrived at an inn. With his keen observation skills, he noticed that many of the soldiers and civilians inside the castle were unconsciously coughing.
Every now and then, soldiers would carry corpses covered with white sheets past them.
Standing outside the inn, Jin Wei sensed something was wrong and cupped his hands, saying, "Young Master Lu, it seems there is a disease spreading here. It is not advisable to stay any longer. In my opinion, we should turn back and leave the city to find another place to stay."
"No rush, let me think about it." In a flash, Zhou Qingfeng guessed that there was probably some kind of typhoid-like infectious disease spreading in the castle, but it wouldn't affect him. He was immune to all poisons because he had the Three Calamities Convergence.
Infectious diseases don't harm you at all; what's scary is when an infectious disease is not ordinary.
If we were to turn back and leave the city now to find another place to stay, there wouldn't be enough time. It was already close to dusk, and it would probably be dark in another half hour. If we left the city now, we would have to sleep in the open.
Sleeping outdoors in the wild will inevitably lead to attacks by demons and monsters, without a doubt.
Because at night, demons and monsters come out to hunt for food, making it ten or even a hundred times more dangerous than during the day. One must be on guard against attacks that may occur at any time, so it is probably safer than being in Gancaobao.
Traveling overnight is no less dangerous than sleeping in the wild, and may even be more so.
Concerned for his own safety, Zhou Qingfeng immediately summoned the mysterious divination bucket in his mind and silently recited a mantra.
Draw lots!
Three divination sticks flew out of the divination bucket, wobbling precariously.
[A very bad omen; staying overnight in the wild is inauspicious.]
[A very bad omen; traveling overnight is extremely unlucky.]
[Neutral draw, overnight stay in Gancaobao, neutral]
Follow the basic principle of choosing auspicious options if they are available, and choosing neutral options if they are not.
Without further hesitation, Zhou Qingfeng immediately ordered, "Let's stay at Gancaobao tonight."
Upon entering the Gancao Inn, the innkeeper stepped out from behind the counter and gestured to stop them, saying, "Esteemed guests, our inn is closed. If you wish to eat, please find another place. We have run out of food."
As he spoke, the innkeeper couldn't stop coughing, coughing so hard it felt like his lungs were about to come out.
Seeing this, Zhou Qingfeng frowned slightly: "We only stay overnight, we don't eat."
Upon hearing this, the innkeeper took a deep breath before saying, "If it's just for one night, then that's fine."
Zhou Qingfeng said, "Judging from what you're saying, shopkeeper, there's a food shortage here?"
Upon hearing this, the innkeeper clenched his fists and exclaimed excitedly, "It's not just a food shortage, there's a damn plague! I advise you to stay one night and leave tomorrow!"