Ink panel: Hunting the sun and surveying the sky from the bow.

Chapter 370: Kyoto's prosperity, what we saw

"Taiping County?" Lan Gongliang said calmly, "I've heard of it."

Shen Qing was very surprised. He asked in confusion: "Then why don't we go and destroy those demons? Isn't this our responsibility?"

"We have to suppress it." Lan Gongliang glanced at Shen Qing and said, "But the matter of demons is not a critical matter for the court at the moment. The important thing is the traitor Huang Tian. Besides, Taiping County is located in a remote area, where no birds sing and no flowers bloom. Even if such a small place is corrupted, it won't be too bad. It won't be a big deal. There's no rush to suppress the demons later."

Shen Qing's mind moved slightly, and he looked like he had learned something: "So that's how it is. Thank you for clearing up my confusion, sir."

Lan Gongliang waved his hand and didn't care.

He glanced at the sky. The sun was shining brightly, and it was noon.

"It's getting late now. Fortunately, no one is going out today. Let's have a feast together at noon."

"Yes, my lord."

The Bingmasi office was located in the center of the trouble in the capital, and the surrounding areas were extremely lively.

Coming out of the back door of the third courtyard is the gray street.

The street is paved with green stone bricks, each of which is the size of a washbasin, cut into squares and very flat.

People are coming and going on the street.

There were many young men dressed in fine clothes, laughing and having fun with their wives, without any reservations.

Soon, after walking a few steps, they arrived at the back door of a restaurant.

Shen Qing looked up and saw a black plaque hanging on the back door of the restaurant in front of him. In the middle, there were four large characters written in gold-plated style: "Ancient Charm and Fragrance of Wine".

"Master Lan, you are here! Come in quickly. The number one private room is reserved for you today." A servant was standing at the door. He came up to greet them with a smile, as if he knew that Lan Gongliang and his friends were coming.

Lan Gongliang put his hands behind his back and without saying anything, he took Shen Qing and others to the restaurant as if he was familiar with the place.

The restaurant is divided into two floors with a small pavilion in the middle, where an old man and a young boy are singing.

The old one was sitting on a chair, holding a pipa; the young girl was standing in green clothes, singing melodiously and beautifully, all the songs Shen Qing had never heard before.

Listening to the singing and lyrics, it seems to be telling the love story of a down-and-out man meeting a rich girl before he becomes successful, a bit similar to The Romance of the West Chamber.

The grandfather and granddaughter both had decent skills, they spoke the lyrics clearly and sang well. In addition, most of the people coming to Kyoto were from outside the city, so the story of the lower-class people's counterattack was relatively simple.

Shen Qing took a look and found that someone had thrown a lot of small change on the ground in front of them, and received a lot of rewards.

"The couple singing together today is quite good."

After Lan Gongliang entered the restaurant, he was led by the servant to a separate private room facing the pavilion in the middle of the restaurant, with an excellent view.

After he found an empty seat and sat down, he couldn't help but make a casual comment.

"If you like it, my lord, why don't I call them over and let the grandfather and grandson sing two pieces for you separately?" the servant said with a flattering look on his face.

Shen Qing, who was standing nearby, saw the entire scene.

It can be seen that Lan Gongliang is a big customer in this restaurant and holds a high status.

Lan Gongliang waved his hand and said, "I'm just coming over for a meal, no need to bother, let's go with the three dishes you have here."

"Okay." The waiter took off the towel draped over his shoulders, wiped the table quickly, and said with a smile, "Please wait for me, dear guest."

Lan Gongliang pointed to the empty seats and said, "You can all sit wherever you like."

This private room adopts the system of separate dining, with each person having a separate table.

The few of them didn't stick to their guns and each found an empty seat to sit down.

No consideration or attention was paid to the location.

However, Shen Qing was still cautious and sat at the last seat.

Just after they sat down, five beautiful women and one handsome man walked into the private room.

After they bowed respectfully, the five girls walked behind Shen Qing and others, and the only handsome man stood behind Zhao Lengyan.

'This is……'

It was the first time Shen Qing saw such a scene and he was a little confused.

But he was tactful enough not to ask any more questions and just observed quietly.

Just when Shen Qing was still confused, the young woman standing behind Shen Qing knelt down and rubbed his shoulders and back.

"Sir, is this strength okay?" The woman standing behind Shen Qing was 29 years old, graceful and elegant, and her voice was as sweet as orchid in Shen Qing's ear.

It was not until this moment that Shen Qing realized that this was a health-care program.

As it happened, he was very familiar with this matter in his previous life.

Shen Qing sat upright and said, "It's OK."

"If the strength is not appropriate, you can tell me at any time."

Shen Qing closed his eyes slightly, said nothing more, and began to quietly enjoy the tenderness between his fingers.

"Hmm~" Shen Qing said with a nasal sound.

This capital city is different. There are so many ways to do even a meal.

Shen Qing quietly glanced at Zhao Lengyan and the others, and found that they were all used to it.

Zeng Weifeng, the chief of the Northern Division, had even quietly placed his hands on the other's buttocks and was kneading them hard.

The maid still greeted him with a smile.

After waiting for about a cup of tea, a table full of food and wine was soon placed on the pure mahogany table.

The maid behind him consciously poured wine and distributed food to Shen Qing and others.

Speaking of which, Shen Qing has never enjoyed such treatment since he started practicing martial arts. This is the first time in his life.

Lan Gongliang raised his glass and said, "This is the Lihuabai wine from the restaurant here. It is brewed with the essence of pear blossoms when they are in full bloom. The wine is as white as snow and tastes pure. You can't get such good wine outside. Today is a good day. With Mr. Shen joining us, we can drink a glass of this good wine. It's all thanks to Mr. Shen."

Shen Qing said hurriedly: "I dare not."

"Let's drink, hahaha."

Shen Qing raised the Lihuabai and drank it in one gulp.

The rich floral fragrance and crisp taste, with a hint of sweetness, made Shen Qing's eyes light up.

It turns out there are such good things in this world.

Today he had broadened his horizons to see the prosperity and extravagance of Kyoto.

Shen Qing even thought that it would be nice if he could live this kind of corrupt life every day in the future.

However, this idea was quickly suppressed by him.

Although this world is prosperous, it is still a cannibalistic world where human life is worthless.

I'm afraid that many places will be like Taiping County, left to fend for themselves.

No one can guarantee that this capital city will not become like Taiping County and become a hell on earth.

Thinking of this, Shen Qing's eyes quickly regained clarity, and he couldn't help but look at Lan Gongliang who was sitting on the main seat. From the beginning when the two met, Lan Gongliang treated him very well and tried to win him over.

I don’t know if there are other reasons.

As the saying goes, you must not have the intention to harm others, and you must not have the intention to guard against others.

Shen Qing suddenly became more alert and decided to be more careful in the future.

Lan Gongliang picked up the chopsticks and said, "Don't be polite, just listen to the music and eat the food."

After Lan Gongliang started to eat, Shen Qing and others also picked up their chopsticks one after another, picking up food and drinking wine.

From time to time, he would take a bite of the shrimps and crabs peeled by the maid, and the roasted meat that had been portioned out.

"This plate is jade deer meat, a mountain delicacy that can strengthen qi and blood. It is worth more than ten taels of silver outside, but here it is just an appetizer." Shen Qing looked at the plate of meat in front of him and muttered to himself.

Being a hunter by birth, he was very familiar with this kind of wild delicacies and recognized it at a glance.

Everything he encountered during today's meal constantly refreshed his cognition.

Shen Qing picked up a piece of jade deer meat and put it in his mouth. It melted in his mouth and was extremely delicious.

After eating, his whole body soon felt hot. The venison turned into pure energy, replenishing his body's vitality.

No wonder.

People born in the capital city have high cultivation.

If it were him, he would eat such delicacies every now and then. Even if he didn't practice, just eating them would make his qi and blood perfect.

How can anyone outside of Kyoto compare?

After three rounds of drinks, the atmosphere became much more lively and everyone chatted about each other's experiences.

Shen Qing didn't talk much. He only occasionally mentioned a few of his hunting experiences when he was a child living in the mountains, and passed it off perfunctorily.

His relationship with these people is still shallow, so he shouldn't talk too much, so as not to cause trouble for himself in the future.

After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, the servants in the private room removed the food from the table, replaced it with a new set of teacups, and made some tea before leaving one after another.

At this time, Shen Qing took the initiative to ask: "My Lords, I would like to ask, are there many demons and rebels in the capital? Will we be busy with official duties in the future?"

Zeng Weifeng, the chief envoy of the Northern Region, said: "It's not many. After all, there are many experts in the capital. Even if they sneak in, they won't dare to act recklessly."

"In that case, wouldn't our chief officers in various departments have a lot of free time?"

"That's not the case." Wei Chengye, the chief envoy of the Central Region, said, "There aren't many in the capital, but that doesn't mean there aren't any. Besides, we not only have to manage the capital, but we also have to spend some time and effort to arrange the relevant personnel in other cities."

"Besides, the most troublesome people in Kyoto are not the demons and rebels, but the people living in Changlefang and Yongxingfang. You will know it later." Yang Henshan, the chief envoy of the East, said.

Seeing that the others didn't want to say more, Shen Qing stopped asking further questions.

"It's almost done, let's go now, don't delay the work."

Lan Gongliang stood up first, followed by others.

As soon as Shen Qing stood up, he saw Lan Gongliang passing by him. He suddenly stopped, turned his head and leaned towards Shen Qing and whispered, "The war in Danzhou is almost over. Xue Zhao will probably come back. He won't give up so easily. You should think of a solution as soon as possible."

After saying this, Lan Gongliang said no more and left the restaurant.

Shen Qing stood there secretly pondering Lan Gongliang's intentions. He had no idea what this powerful person in the Sky Traveling Realm was up to, which made him a little confused.

After returning to the government office, Lan Gongliang called Wei Chengye, the chief envoy of the Central Department, and asked him to take Shen Qing to familiarize himself with the official duties.

Wei Chengye naturally would not refuse, and agreed on the spot: "Boss Shen, what we are going to do is not troublesome, you will know if you walk with me tomorrow."

Shen Qing bowed and said, "I'll have to trouble you later, Mr. Wei."

"It's all as I should. Today, you should sort out the personnel relations in the government office and your subordinates first, and take your time."

Shen Qing walked out of the third courtyard and found Yu Haibei.

Wei Chengye learned from several other chief officers that Yu Haibei was an officer under his command, and daily patrol and other chores were done by him and several other officers, along with their captains and servants.

When Shen Qing found Yu Haibei, Yu Haibei was practicing in the second courtyard.

Judging from his cultivation level, he should be at the Jade Meridian Realm, and his bone age should not exceed 25 years old.

From Shen Qing's perspective, such cultivation level is already very impressive, but unfortunately in Kyoto, such cultivation level can only be considered average.

Yu Haibei immediately stopped practicing when he saw Shen Qing, carrying a bunch of packages and said, "Sir Shen, these are your official uniform and casual clothes. I have brought them to you. Please check if the sizes fit you."

Shen Qing took the package and said with a smile: "Thank you for your hard work. Who else do I have under me besides you?"

"Your Excellency, besides me, you have 18 officers, 108 chief officers, and 1,532 servants under your command."

"so much……"

Shen Qing was surprised when he heard this number.

Counting this way, the entire Kyoto Military Department has a size of nearly four to five thousand people.

Moreover, they are all martial artists, and they have basically reached the Qi Nourishing Stage.

Such a scale made Shen Qing secretly stunned and opened his eyes.

Yu Haibei continued, "Do you need us to call other officials to come and meet the Lord?"

So many people have seen it all, it would take too much time, Shen Qing shook his head and said, "Let's talk about it later when we have time."

"Yes, my lord."

"You go ahead and do your work. I'll just walk around on my own."

After sending Yu Haibei away, Shen Qing released all his spiritual awareness and imprinted the layout and rooms of the Bingmasi Yamen in his mind.

Then he walked out of the Bingmasi Yamen alone, practicing the Great Void Movement Technique and moving through the streets.

At the same time, he released his spiritual consciousness and continued to perceive while walking.

It only took him half an hour to have a quick tour of the entire Kyoto. With his photographic memory, he had a clear understanding of the layout of the city.

Before he knew it, Shen Qing walked to the door of the Shanhaisi government office.

As one of the three officials of the Great Zhou State, he had also heard about it.

The Shanhaisi is an office dedicated to collecting military information and spiritual essence for the current emperor and monitoring all officials. It is a bit similar to the Jinyiwei in the previous life and has considerable power.

Some time ago, Huangfu Rou came to the Shanhai Division, and like him, she achieved success overnight.

Shen Qing walked towards the gate of Shanhesi without hesitation.

The two gate guards held their spears horizontally and stood in front of Shen Qing: "Who is coming?"

Shen Qing shook his sleeves, summoned the Qiwen Cuiying Order and said calmly, "The Southern Military Command has sent Shen Qing to meet with Lord Huangfu for important matters. Please inform him."

Upon hearing this, the two guards quickly exchanged glances and quickly withdrew their scrutinizing gazes.

They quickly clasped their hands together, leaned forward slightly and said, "It turns out that Mr. Shen has sent someone to come. We are sorry for not coming to greet you. Please wait a moment, we will inform Mr. Huangfu right away."

After saying that, one of them turned around quickly, revealing a hint of urgency in his movements. It was obvious that he did not dare to neglect Shen Qing, the chief envoy from the southern region.

(End of this chapter)