Xuanxia

Chapter 383: Mingjian Pavilion (Part )
"I'm so tired, you're trying to torture me to death... My remaining soul can't stand your torture!"

The Smoker complained in Fu Qingzhou's mind: "I just helped you kill a few powerful assassins, and you asked me to leave a formation in the yard? No, you should ask Qiu Chan for this! She must have some magic weapon from the Purple Air Fairy Wind Temple!"

Fu Qingzhou laughed and said, "You are so capable, old ghost."

"Not big, not big at all." The smoker cursed, "I'm just a lonely ghost, I don't have any ability."

Fu Qingzhou blinked and said, "Ah, I'll get the Xuanxing Divine Iron in a few days and show it to you."

"Bah, I don't believe it!"

The smoker cursed, "How long have you been baiting me with this? Just show it to me once!"

The two of them were quarreling silently in Fu Qingzhou's mind.

The reason why Yan Gui was asked to leave the formation was naturally because of the bloody incident that happened on Songbai Street.

Fu Qingzhou said that he didn't care, but how could he really not care? Songbai Street was not far from Baishi Street. If an assassin found Zhu Mei and found him to be a madman who dared to kill people in the capital, it would be troublesome.

Therefore, before he went to Mingjian Pavilion, he asked the smoker to secretly leave some things in the yard, just in case.

"Mingjian Pavilion is next to the Imperial City, on the east side of the Imperial City... You have to walk in through an alley. There is a big tree at the entrance of the alley, and there is a stone tablet under the tree..."

Fu Qingzhou walked on the street, muttering the road Yuan Ziping pointed out.

Along the way, his only feeling was that the capital city was so fucking big!

The yard he rented now was at the entrance of Baishi Street, which was also the most prosperous street in the whole capital. It took him nearly half an hour just to stroll from one end to the other!
This is even before he went shopping!
After leaving Baishi Street, you will see Yanping Avenue, a nearly 30-mile-long avenue that runs through the center of the capital from north to south.

This avenue extends from the imperial city in the north to the south gate of the capital, dividing the entire capital into two parts, east and west.

And on this Yanping Avenue, almost every ten meters, you can see a long street on both sides that stretches out as far as the eye can see!

This is not to mention the countless winding paths in the neighborhoods and the rivers and streams that run through the capital.

The prosperity of the capital city far exceeded Fu Qingzhou's imagination.

After coming to this world, he has been to many prosperous cities, including Shudu, Yu'nan, and Luoyi. However, this capital city, Yanping, still exceeded his cognition.

Here, there is actually a "separation of people and vehicles"!
When he came here in the carriage, he didn't pay much attention to this point. It was not until he walked out of Baishi Street and measured this huge city with his own feet that he felt it for real.

On the long street, all the roads were divided into "sidewalks" and "driveways". On the driveways, horse-drawn carriages, ox-drawn carts, and donkey-drawn carts were moving one after another, just like in a traffic jam. The front moved a step, and the back followed a step, moving forward slowly until they reached the place they wanted to go. The driver would then wave a small flag to indicate the direction, and then the drivers in front and behind would leave a space for him so that he could turn around and go into the street.

The sidewalks were filled with people, shoulder to shoulder... and on the road, there were people holding wooden signs, who would stop cars every once in a while so that people could cross the road...

"What is this? What? Road? Traffic lights? Can a car use turn signals?"

Fu Qingzhou's eyes were blurry.

But this surprise only lasted for a short while.

There is only one reason why these things don’t appear in other big cities - they are not prosperous enough.

There aren't so many cars or people that the streets are jammed and people can't move, nor are there so many horse-drawn carriages or ox-drawn carts that people might be hit at any time.

But since the capital is so prosperous, corresponding management methods will naturally emerge, which has nothing to do with ancient or modern times.

Fu Qingzhou thought that if he continued to walk so slowly, he might not be able to reach Mingjian Pavilion before dark.

Therefore, he had to quicken his pace and temporarily stop looking at the bustling capital city.

Finally, when Fu Qingzhou stood at the entrance of the alley, half an hour had passed.

"People in the capital should have pretty good legs and feet. They have to run such a long distance every day to do things. Their legs must be broken... They'll have to travel by carriage in the future."

He looked at the big tree at the entrance of the alley, and then at the stone tablet under the tree. He was basically certain that if he walked towards the entrance of the alley, he would reach Mingjian Pavilion.

As he approached, the words on the stone tablet came into view.

"The bright sword stands in the pavilion, patrolling on behalf of the heaven; the eight swords control destiny, knowing the world and acting accordingly."

"One must act with reason, and not point fingers at the enemy without reason; one does not ask about wealth or status, but only judges right or wrong."

"The destiny of the country depends on my pavilion; the hearts of the people of heaven and earth are all in my sword." "Knowing the world and understanding it, the sword will prosper forever!"

These large characters were written with powerful strokes. Although the handwriting had been eroded by wind and frost, it was still extremely strong, as if it could penetrate the stone tablet, revealing a majesty that could not be ignored. Fu Qingzhou stared at it for a moment, and a sense of awe arose in his heart.

There was no one guarding the entrance of this alley, and it didn't look like the main gate of Mingjian Pavilion, but there was a stone tablet erected here...

It's a kind of deterrent, right?

Fu Qingzhou retracted his gaze and slowly walked into the alley.

The alley made of red bricks and green tiles is not long. After turning a corner, the originally narrow passage suddenly becomes wide.

At this moment, a tall pavilion suddenly came into view!
The attic towered into the clouds, with its spire pointing straight to the sky, as if competing with the heavens. The copper bells hanging on the eaves swayed gently in the breeze, making a distant and ethereal sound, like an ancient spell echoing in the air. The windows of the attic were closed, and the curtains fluttered gently in the wind, but not a single light could get through.

This... is Mingjian Pavilion.

The outer wall of Mingjian Pavilion is made of thick bluestone. Time has left mottled marks on its surface. The afterglow of the setting sun shines on the vermilion gate, reflecting a faint halo. The door is inlaid with a copper door knocker, and the door knocker is engraved with strange patterns. But there is no secret emissary guarding the door, only an old man dozing off in front of the door?
What’s interesting is that this is clearly a huge building, but Fu Qingzhou couldn’t even see the top of the tower before turning the corner of the alley. It was perfectly hidden among the brick walls, green tiles, and branches of trees. Only at this moment did it reveal its shape, like a dragon poking its head out of a deep pool.

He didn't rush forward, but stopped where he was and looked around.

In the open space in front of the pavilion, several towering ancient trees are scattered in an orderly manner, and the leaves sway gently in the breeze, which is particularly peaceful.

But he seemed to be able to hear countless dull footsteps and countless whispers in the dark tower ahead...

"call……"

Fu Qingzhou let out a light breath and walked forward.

The gate of Mingjian Pavilion was closed, but there was a rattan chair on the stone steps in front of the gate. A fat old man was lying on it, holding a palm-leaf fan in his hand and snoring loudly.

This is strange. Logically speaking, Mingjian Pavilion is very busy, with many secret envoys coming in and out every day. Why is the door still closed so tightly?
Fu Qingzhou tiptoed towards the old man and called out in a low voice, "Father-in-law? Father-in-law?"

"Huh...huh..."

The old man sitting on the rattan chair ignored him and continued to sleep soundly.

Fu Qingzhou scratched his head.

Anyone who can guard the gate of Mingjian Pavilion must have a very complicated identity and background. He might even be some hidden master. We must not offend him.

Moreover, he could not sense any spiritual energy from this old man at all. Could he really be a powerful person with an unfathomable realm?
But calling him won’t wake him up, what should I do?

Therefore, Fu Qingzhou could only raise his voice a little: "Father-in-law? Father-in-law?"

The fat old man still couldn't hear anything, and crystal liquid was dripping from the corners of his mouth as he slept.

Fu Qingzhou: “…”

Do you want to reach out and poke it?
Just as he was hesitating, a loud shout suddenly came from not far away!
"Damn you old man, I told you to buy groceries, but you came here to sleep!"

Fu Qingzhou was startled and turned his head to look, only to see a burly middle-aged woman who strode towards him with her hands on her hips, completely ignoring Fu Qingzhou and directly reaching out to grab the fat old man's ear!

The fat old man just let out a scream and was picked up by the aunt, begging for mercy loudly.

The old lady just dragged the fat old man and turned around and left...

Fu Qingzhou was shocked and said quickly: "Two seniors..."

The aunt turned around and gave him a puzzled look.

Fu Qingzhou cupped his hands and said, "May I ask, this Mingjian Pavilion..."

"Oh, not this door. This door has not been used for a long time."

The aunt waved her hand impatiently: "Take a detour and go the other way."

After saying that, she picked up the fat old man with hearing loss by his ear and strode away, leaving Fu Qingzhou alone, disheveled in the wind.

(End of this chapter)