Chapter Nineteenth: The Radiant Ziwei Emperor Star

  The night gradually shrouded the capital of the Qin Empire, Xianyang, and the bustling city gradually fell into silence. In today's China, material life is very monotonous, even in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, there was no such thing as a night market. The Tang Dynasty had what was called "fangjin", where soldiers would lock the gates of the city at night, for two reasons: one was due to the poverty of material life, and the other was for safety.

  In the silent night of Xianyang, there was a surge of undercurrents. Previously, due to the rebellion of the people in Si River and other counties, Xianyang had already been restless, but this time Hu Hai's eastern tour to kill Zhao Gao and return, changed his previous image of being incompetent and weak-minded, scolding and intimidating the group of officials who came to welcome him outside the city of Xianyang, and by dawn it had spread throughout the court.

  The dozens of heads hanging high in the bustling market of Changan made everyone, whether peddlers or nobles, tremble with fear. Blood and slaughter were always the most direct means to sober people up.

  The countless undercurrents surging in the salty city of Yan had already dropped to freezing point, turning into a pool of dead water when Zhang Han led thousands of fierce and ferocious soldiers on a massive manhunt in the afternoon, and once again hung dozens of blood-soaked heads of so-called Zhao Gao's party members and clansmen in the vegetable market.

  Among the dozens of heads that were newly hung up, there was Yan Yue, whom Hu Hai had specially entrusted to Zhang Han! It can't be said that one report is still one report. The original history should have been that this brother and Zhao Cheng forced Hu Hai to death, and now they are already dead men.

  The surging undercurrents in Xianyang were suddenly stifled by Hu Hai's strong return and severe methods, but beneath the calm surface countless whirlpools were forming, more and greater undercurrents were stirring, waiting for the moment to burst out and create even bigger waves.

  ………

  In the countless mountains and forests north of Xianyang City, dozens of tall palaces and temples stood scattered among the giant trees. At this moment, in a high-rise Taoist temple, the spacious main hall was brightly lit.

  Inside the hall, at the top were two old men with white beards and hair sitting cross-legged on a soft couch. The rest, about a dozen or so people, sat on both sides of the hall, also seated on the floor, most of whom were over fifty years old.

  The old man sitting on the left side of the main hall wore a white robe and a high mountain crown, with a plump round face and a bright red garlic nose. His small eyes were always narrowed, looking gentle and pleasant. Only occasionally, when he opened his mouth, would he inadvertently reveal a few strands of wisdom, showing that this old man was not an easy-going person.

  An old man with a red nose and white hair, wearing a slightly faded brown Taoist robe, his hair tied up in a small bun with a long wooden pin, his face ruddy, a pair of wise eyes seeming to see through the vicissitudes of life, three strands of snow-white whiskers combed neatly down to his chest, together with his snow-white eyebrows, making him look like an immortal.

  The dozen or so old men in their fifties sitting on the ground on both sides were all wearing robes and coronets, with a majestic and awe-inspiring demeanor, clearly not ordinary people.

  "Zouzi, can our plan be successful?" The old man with a red nose and garlic head smiled at the bony old man Xianfeng.

  The many elderly people who were originally seated on both sides of the hall were all whispering to each other, but when they heard what the old man with a red nose said, they stopped talking and leaned in to listen to Zouzi's response, their faces solemn, their eyes filled with anticipation.

  The old man known as Zouzi stroked his three long whiskers, swept a glance around at the crowd leaning in to listen, and after a moment of deliberation said, "It cannot be done." After that, he closed his eyes and refused to say another word.

  As soon as Zouzi's words were heard, the faces of the people in the hall changed instantly, and they began to discuss and whisper to each other. The originally quiet hall suddenly became noisy.

  The old man with a red nose and garlic head was also shocked by Zou's words, his originally smiling face suddenly stiffened, and the small eyes looking at Zou shot out a sharp and intimidating light.

  As if feeling the gaze of the old man with a red nose, Zou Zi opened his eyes but didn't speak, only seriously nodded his head again to the old man and then closed his eyes, ignoring the murmurs of the rest of the people in the hall.

  The old man with a red nose, who was very familiar with Zouzi's character, got a definite answer again at this time. Suddenly, like a deflated balloon, the originally smiling face turned gloomy, and he let out a dejected sigh.

  The rest of the old men in the hall obviously respected the red-nosed old man and an old man named Zouzi, and had been paying attention to them.

  Many people saw the silent exchange between Zouzi and Old Red Nose. At this moment, they heard a sigh from Old Red Nose, and the crowd that had been arguing for half a day also stopped their dispute. A green-robed old man sitting below Old Red Nose stood up and bowed, saying: "I dare to ask Zouzi, why did you say it was possible a month ago, but now you have changed your mind? I hope Zouzi can dispel our doubts."

  He said, facing an elderly man named Zouzi, and made a deep bow. The other elderly men in the hall also stood up and bowed, saying: "We hope that Zouzi will enlighten us!"

  An old man named Zou Zi reluctantly opened his eyes and first glanced at the red-nosed old man sitting beside him. The red-nosed old man was also staring at Zou Zi with wide eyes, knowing his difficulties and unable to speak out to ask for clarification, but from his expression, Zou Zi knew that this old fellow must also be wondering about the reason.

  Zou Zi glared at the old man with a red nose and said helplessly, "Everyone please sit down. It's not that Hong couldn't speak clearly, it's just that recklessly revealing heavenly secrets would bring disaster to my family of Yin and Yang practitioners, so Hong didn't dare speak clearly before."

  Zou Zi paused and said, "But Hong has already accepted everyone's request, so he can't worry about much today. As for whether to take action or not, I hope you all will think carefully." The implication was that since they all wanted to know the reason, he would bear the calamity and tell them.

  Before you all invited me, I was also secretly observing the celestial phenomena. Since Qin Shi Huang's death and the succession of Er Shi, the Purple Star has been dim and without light, its brightness uncertain and obscure.

  A month ago, Zeta Puppis suddenly dimmed and reappeared a moment later, although it was not as dark as before, but the light was not bright.

  Ten days ago, you all invited me to observe the celestial phenomena and look at the fortunes of the Qin dynasty. I saw that there was something that could be done, so I gladly agreed. In these ten days, from Sishui and other counties, there have been people rising up in rebellion against Qin. I observed that the guest star's light is large and flourishing, while the imperial star Ziwu is again dim and obscure, and my heart has a lucky omen.

  Yesterday, Hong and others observed the celestial phenomena, the Purple Emperor Star suddenly shone brightly, like the sun and moon shining together, while the other guest stars were still shining brightly, but already had a tendency to be overshadowed by the Purple Emperor Star...

  At this moment, a loud "crack" was heard, and a crystal-clear lightning bolt as thick as an arm struck the roof of the main hall, interrupting Zouzi's words.

  Tiles flew off the wall, bricks and stones splashed everywhere. When the lightning disappeared, a hole as big as a bowl appeared on the top of the main hall. Through this hole, Zou Zi Ding looked at the starry sky outside the temple with a shocked expression and pale face.

  The crowd in the hall was stunned by this sudden thunder, and one by one they trembled with fear, their faces pale, and for a moment the entire hall was silent.

  Zouzi stared at the starry sky outside the hall for a long time, then bowed to the crowd in the hall and said: "Today, Hong has revealed the heavenly secret, disaster has already shown signs. He will surely suffer heavenly punishment in the future. But Hong has just observed the celestial phenomenon, the purple emperor star is shining brightly, and now the guest star is also shining brightly. Although the guest star can contend for a moment of glory, it will eventually be extinguished."

  "I, the master of Yin and Yang sect, will retreat from the world starting today and no longer interfere with worldly affairs. I hope you all will sympathize with my declining fortunes." Zou Zi's face turned pale as if he had aged several decades in an instant. After saying this, he bowed deeply to everyone again and turned to leave.

  "It's Heaven's will! Who can defy it?" Zouzi shouted loudly as he walked away, disappearing into the distance.

  Everyone in the hall, including Red Nose Old Man, heard Zou Zi's last sentence. After Zou Zi's figure disappeared into the night, they looked pale and gazed through the large hole at the full moon hanging high in the starry sky.

  Only a star as big as a dipper shone like the sun in the night sky, and a bowl-sized star beside it reflected its light. The light at this moment seemed to cover up the full moon that scattered endless light in the sky.

  To be honest, I didn't expect the book to be signed by a publisher so quickly before the nine continents. I felt that what I wrote was not outstanding. I didn't expect it to reach the top ten new books, although it's just historical category. So today, taking advantage of the weekend, I sorted out the draft and found that the more I looked at the nine continents, the more dissatisfied I became. Finally, with a trembling hand and a ruthless heart, I deleted the draft of over 50,000 words that I had worked on for over a month, and reorganized the outline and materials. So today, I can only update once.

  I just read the book review, although Jiuzhou's book review area has always been very quiet and even said to be dead, but Jiuzhou will still go to see the book review from time to time, hoping to get everyone's opinions, whether good or bad, because every opinion is equally important for Jiuzhou as a newcomer.

  Two comments from Ren Shen Da Da made Jiu Zhou extremely grateful. The first comment pointed out the shortcomings of Jiu Zhou, and Jiu Zhou has already responded, but I don't know if Ren Shen Da Da has seen it. Today's book review mentioned that Jiu Zhou's second life entered the top ten in history, and whether or not to add more updates. To be honest, being able to enter the top ten was unexpected for Jiu Zhou. However, today all stored drafts were deleted, and only one chapter can be written now. But Jiu Zhou will definitely make up for it later, not just for entering the top ten in history, but also for Ren Shen Da Da's urging and book reviews. Thank you very much.

  At the same time, this week is about to pass, can all of you big brothers and sisters wish me a better next week? Shamelessly asking for collection and clicks on recommendation!