No taboos

Chapter 538: Cephalopod (eight thousand)

Zhao Beichen was writing a memorial with utmost respect in his room.

At noon, Xu Yuan and his party were taken off the ship to meet with officials from Guizhou Province, which was, of course, arranged by the Emperor.

Given Zhao Beichen's personality, he wouldn't be so flamboyant.

Even if we needed to dock for supplies, there was no need to ask Xu Yuan to disembark.

But Zhao Beichen not only brought Xu Yuan off the ship, but also introduced Xu Yuan to the people of Guizhou Province in a very solemn manner, saying that he was a "benefactor" with a promising future.

During that half hour at noon, even Zhou Leizi received special treatment, so one can imagine how enthusiastic the officials in Guizhou Province would be towards Xu Yuan.

Zhao Beichen noted down Xu Yuan's various reactions to being treated like a star.

Xu Yuan also remembered what he said to Zhou Leizi afterwards.

He remained faithfully a reporter, without incorporating any of his own subjective feelings.

The investigation into the case of Consort Yi—a result of compromise among all parties—was led by Xu Yuan.

However, the Emperor would not completely believe what others said.

The Emperor actually wanted to send someone to Champa first to test Xu Yuan's abilities.

However, there was no time to spare, so they arranged for Zhao Beichen to test Xu Yuan along the way.

The first test will be held at noon today.

There will be a second and a third test.

If the result does not satisfy the Emperor, it doesn't matter what kind of candidate is "acceptable to all parties". If the Emperor does not accept it, then it is naturally invalid.

As for Xu Yuan, he should go back to where he came from.

Such a minor character, if not involved in the case of Consort Yi, would never have caught the Emperor's eye.

Within the Guizhou and Yunnan provinces, the drop in elevation increases and the current becomes rapid, causing fast boats to become noticeably bumpy.

"Dreams come true" is right on the deck.

But the Imperial Guards on this ship no longer had the mentality of "watching the joke".

This craftsman is at least a fourth-rate craftsman, and it is extremely intelligent. It must be confident that it will stay on the deck and not actually be thrown into the river.

When Xu Yuan woke up today, he already felt the effect of "making progress step by step every day," which improved his own strength.

It seemed that because I felt the pressure, the effect of this destiny was slightly enhanced.

The river roared, and the pilong tumbled and rolled freely in the water.

There are many evil spirits in the river, and Pi Long can also use Xu Yuan's "bait" to devour these evil spirits and refine them.

However, this kind of cultivation cannot improve the fourth-rate "Dragon Transformation Technique".

Therefore, Pilong had no appetite for these evil spirits and only wanted to play with them.

On the ship, Mao Qi approached his commander with a grave expression: "Sir, could we be being watched by something?"

Zhao Beichen: "What did you hear?"

Mao Qi was a low-level practitioner, but his magic allowed him to hear some special sounds.

“There’s always some great evil spirit lurking around here!” Mao Qi said.

Last night, that big demon, even though it had already seen the dragon flag, still couldn't suppress its bloodlust and almost crashed into the ship.

"During the day today, there was a huge thing underwater that kept following us!"

Zhao Beichen's heart tightened: "Go to the warehouse and listen carefully! If there's anything unusual about that thing, immediately inform this commander!"

"Yes!"

Mao Qi went immediately.

Zhao Beichen then summoned Qi Baihu and solemnly said, "Go to the stern and prepare the anchor and cannons!"

Qi Baihu was taken aback: "Sir, what did Mao Qi hear?"

"It's not certain yet, but you should be prepared." Zhao Beichen took a deep breath: "This time we're working for the Emperor. The fact that the Emperor has chosen us is an immense favor, and we absolutely cannot afford to make any mistakes!"

"Yes!" Commander Qi went immediately.

……

Through Pi Long's eyes, Xu Yuan suddenly saw a huge black shadow in the murky river water.

Round and plump.

It wasn't fast, but it lurked in the water, sometimes moving quickly and getting right under the fast ship, and sometimes moving slowly and falling behind.

But the furthest it will go is no more than five miles away from the fast steamer.

They followed for dozens of miles.

Xu Yuan urged Pi Long to get closer.

Pilos are agile and swift in the water, so even if you get close, you don't have to worry too much about being entangled by your opponent.

"It's... a giant softshell turtle?"

Once he got closer, Piron could see clearly.

This thing is at least five zhang in size.

It resembles a giant softshell turtle because it carries a huge shell on its back.

But it wasn't a giant softshell turtle, because it had no head or feet, yet dozens of strange, aquatic-like vines sprouted from its body.

At the foot of each vine hung a human head.

The vines swayed, stirring the water to propel it forward.

On its back shell, however, some strange runes naturally grew.

"What is this thing?" Xu Yuan was not familiar with the evil spirits in the river.

I recalled the records of evil spirits in the Exorcism Bureau's files, but there were no relevant records.

In this strange era, all sorts of things can undergo bizarre changes, resulting in all sorts of strange occurrences. Even the internal records of the Exorcism Bureau could not possibly contain them all.

Each of those heads was the size of a stone mill, with its eyes closed and its mouth full of fangs.

If a large fish or a small evil spirit passes by, they will leap out like a venomous snake hunting, bite it, and swallow it whole!
As Pilong approached, seven or eight heads suddenly floated up, baring their teeth in a show of defiance towards him.

Pilong nimbly swam and dodged in the water—but suddenly all those heads opened their eyes at the same time!
Its eyes were a dull yellow, like the pupils of a beast!
The water around the leather dragon suddenly coiled around it, like countless tough threads, trying to trap it!

Xu Yuan was secretly surprised. Pi Long swung its tail with all its might, unleashing the full power of its fourth-rate "Dragon Transformation Technique," which barely shattered the water flow before it suddenly fled.

"Why is this thing following us?" Xu Yuan wondered, then got up and went outside.

Once on the deck, Xu Yuan seemed to have just come out for some fresh air, walking around and moving about.

Upon seeing Xu Yuan, she was overjoyed and started shaking her head.

A clear and pleasant melody drifted from inside the carriage.

This music is completely different from the style of the Ming Dynasty. If there were any blue-eyed barbarians present, they would be able to tell that it was music played by the Western Barbarian "music box".

Xu Yuan walked ahead, while "Dream Come True" followed slowly behind.

Xu Yuan turned around and sat on the carriage, gently rubbing a spot on the carriage door with his hand.

Secretly, they were communicating with "Dreams Come True".

The Imperial City Guard had eight captains, each on duty at a different position on the deck.

There is a tall lookout post in the center forward position of the fast ship.

There was also a captain standing on top.

From this vantage point, one can look down upon the river.

These "lookouts" are all practitioners of the Fa, and their Fa specializes in improving their eyesight.

Xu Yuan and "Dreams Come True" arrived at the stern of the ship. Xu Yuan looked back and opened "Looking Forward to Fate".

In the water, the pilong kept harassing them.

To test the extent of this evil spirit's ability to control water.

Evil spirits are never calm.

Not to mention Piron's constant provocations.

Finally, the evil spirit once again used water to entangle the dragon—this time it used ten human heads.

The water flow became even more resilient, but the dragon suddenly opened its mouth and spat out a string of colorful silk threads, instantly shredding the water flow before escaping again!

The evil spirit was furious!

Pilong, however, continued to jump around repeatedly.

Xu Yuan dared to let Pi Long do this because he had already secretly sent the sword pellet over.

Even if the leather dragon were truly entangled by the water flow, the sword pellet could still shred it.

The evil spirits were unknowingly lured to the vicinity of the river by the skin dragon.

Two giant beasts thrashed about in the water, creating huge whirlpools on the surface of the river.

Xu Yuan seemed to be drawn by the unusual movement in the river, let out a soft "Eh," and then looked towards the back of the boat.

The strange creature had reached the vicinity of the river surface, and although it hadn't actually surfaced yet, "Wangming" could already see it.

A third-rate evil spirit's fate!
Xu Yuan immediately ordered Pi Long to flee far away.

Then he rushed into the cabin, shouting, "I want to see Commander Zhao!"

Zhao Beichen was uneasy and kept waiting for news from Mao Qi.

The captain brought Xu Yuan over, and Xu Yuan got straight to the point: "Commander Zhao, there's a third-rate evil spirit behind us!"

"Third-rate?!" Zhao Beichen was taken aback.

There are no third-rate people on this ship!
He, Zhao Beichen, is also a fourth-rate person.

"How did you know..." Zhao Beichen stopped mid-sentence, remembering that Xu Yuan was a Destiny Cultivator: "Destiny Gazing?" Xu Yuan nodded: "That thing floated up for some reason, and I just happened to see it."

"Go and see."

Zhao Beichen strode out and the group arrived at the stern of the ship.

All that could be seen was the surging waves on the river surface.

The evil spirit is already sinking.

Zhao Beichen stared intently at the water, but the river was so murky that he couldn't see anything clearly.

With a stern face, he ordered his captain, "Go down there and call Mao Qi up."

The captain responded and quickly ran down to the warehouse, his hand on his waist knife.

Not long after, Mao Qi came up, his face pale.

His hearing was not at a high level, and he had been maintaining that level of hearing for a long time, so the burden was naturally very heavy.

Once on the deck and at the stern, Mao Qi, without waiting for Commander Qianhu to ask, said, "Two evil spirits are fighting in the water, and one of them was defeated and fled."

Zhao Beichen frowned: "What about the other one?"

"It's still following us... No!" He listened intently into the river again: "That thing is rapidly approaching us!"

"We can't wait any longer!" Zhao Beichen made a decisive decision: "Send the order to have Commander Qi fire the anchor guns!"

"Yes!"

Xu Yuan suddenly interjected: "Crossbows?"

Zhao Beichen beckoned to Xu Yuan: "I'll take you to see it."

As he walked down, he explained to Xu Yuan, "The ship is equipped with an anchor cannon, which is a large-scale artifact. Even a third-rate evil spirit cannot withstand a single shot."

"This kind of large-scale artifact was used in naval battles; its power..."

Xu Yuan interrupted him: "Commander, I just saw that the thing was a kind of evil spirit similar to a turtle, with a thick shell. I wonder if the anchor cannon can penetrate it?"

Zhao Beichen paused noticeably, cold sweat pouring down his face. He then rushed out like a gust of wind, shouting, "Old Qi, don't move!"

The anchor cannons were installed in the bottom hold at the stern of the fast ship.

The launch port is below the waterline.

The cannonballs fired were actually the anchors of the fast steamship, weighing 400 pounds!
A long iron chain trailed behind it.

The anchor actually hides a deadly weapon; upon hitting a target, it can launch thirty-two blades!
However, this thing is fine for dealing with ordinary third-rate evil spirits—but only flesh-and-blood evil spirits; it won't work for ghosts or objects.

But since Xu Yuan said that the evil spirit following behind resembled a giant tortoise, then it was no ordinary evil spirit.

This anchor cannon may not be able to penetrate the enemy's shell.

If you can't break through their defenses and instead anger them, causing them to rush at you recklessly, then you'll be in real trouble.

Generally speaking, turtles are known for their amazing defense against evil spirits and their immense strength, but their speed is their weakness.

But that's compared to other aquatic evil spirits.

Even though the fast steamship is the fastest ship ever built by humankind, it cannot outrun these evil spirits in the water.

Just now, Zhao Beichen decisively ordered Commander Qi to fire the cannons, and his men have already gone to relay the order.

There's nothing wrong with the command itself.

Knowing that evil spirit is right behind us, are we going to wait until it attacks before we retaliate?

Why should we talk to evil spirits about "I will not offend others unless they offend me"?
The Imperial City Guard always takes the initiative.

But that was when dealing with ordinary, third-rate evil spirits.

But that won't work now. If the other party is just following behind, then let it follow. After all, there's a dragon flag flying on the ship.

But if this cannon is actually fired and fails to harm the enemy, the entire ship full of people will likely be sunk to the bottom of the river!

Zhao Beichen broke out in a cold sweat. Luckily, Xu Yuan saw through the evil spirit's true form!
Otherwise, he would make a grave mistake.

My own death is a small matter; what's a big deal is ruining the Emperor's mission!
Zhao Beichen rushed down like a gust of wind.

……

Qi Baihu sat alone in a narrow cabin, which was not actually part of the fast steamship, but rather part of the anchor cannon.

Qi Baihu wasn't tall, but he could barely turn around here.

The captain outside came to deliver the order, and Qi Baihu immediately began searching for the target in the water.

This anchor has its own nose.

It was made by hunting down a terrible evil spirit in the sea and refining its materials.

The evil spirits have an incredibly keen sense of smell in the water.

The anchor gun quickly found its target, and Qi Baihu's hand was already gripping the steel-clad hardwood boom. With a pull, the anchor would fly off.

In the blink of an eye, it can hit the evil spirit behind it.

Boom!
The hatch was suddenly slammed shut with such force that even Qi Baihu inside was jolted awake, his head hitting something.

"Ouch……"

Qi Baihu subconsciously let go of his hand and rubbed his forehead.

"Old Qi, whatever you do, don't do it!"

Zhao Beichen's tense voice rang out from outside the door.

The jolt he just experienced was from rushing down at top speed and not being able to stop in time, causing him to crash directly into the door.

Qi Baihu opened the door, bewildered: "Qianhu..."

Zhao Beichen pulled him out.

"Eh eh eh..." Qi Baihu was completely baffled.

Zhao Beichen finally breathed a sigh of relief and told Qi Baihu about the evil spirit. The latter was also filled with lingering fear.

On this fast ship, the two highest-ranking officers of the Imperial City Guard sat side by side on the narrow steps outside the cabin door, completely disregarding their image.

Qi Baihu: "But this thing has been following us the whole time, it's obviously up to no good."

Zhao Beichen didn't say anything, but rubbed his arm.

I rushed down and crashed into the door. The door is made of iron, and it's deeply dented.

But Zhao Beichen was also in pain, as he was badly hurt from the impact.

Now that he had calmed down again, Zhao Beichen thought to himself:
At least for now, that thing is just following behind without making a move.

There were no third-rate ships on board, but the ship was very fast. It had already passed the border of Hunan Province and would reach the wharf of Hanyang Prefecture, the capital of Jiangxi Province, in no more than two hours.

There must be three kinds of people in Hanyang Prefecture!

Now it's just a matter of whether we can survive these two hours!

Zhao Beichen stood up and returned to the deck: "Mao Qi!"

"My subordinate is here."

How far away is that evil spirit from us now?

Mao Qi had been listening intently: "It's just fifteen zhang below our boat!"

His face grew even paler.

It was due to the continuous depletion of the Dharma, and also due to tension.

Zhao Beichen sensed something was wrong; the evil spirit could launch an attack at any moment.

Qi Baihu followed, puzzled: "We're flying the dragon flag, so why is this thing staring at us so intently?"

Zhao Beichen couldn't understand it either.

The dragon flag can suppress all evil spirits on the river. Any evil spirit that dares to attack a boat bearing the dragon flag will ultimately face the punishment of the canal dragon king.

But this dragon flag is similar to, yet different from, the door gods.

The door gods were destroyed on the spot, but the Dragon Flag will be punished by the Old Dragon King.

Zhao Beichen looked at Xu Yuan, a thought flashing through his mind, and asked, "What are your thoughts, Lord Xu?"

Xu Yuan certainly had a way.

Xu Yuan has several ways to deal with the third-rate evil spirit in the water.

Putting aside other things, it can handle both sword pellets and sorrowful water.

But Xu Yuan didn't want to expose these methods.

He didn't want the people of Beidu to know that although he was only a fourth-rate person, he had the means to kill third-rate people before he even entered Beidu.

But this thing has been following us with clearly ill intentions.

Xu Yuan countered, "Does Commander Qianhu have a solution?"

Zhao Beichen then said directly, "Let's go at full speed. We can reach Hanyang Prefecture in two hours. Once we get there, we won't be afraid of this beast anymore."

Xu Yuan's heart stirred; perhaps it was possible...

Xu Yuan said, "So that means we need to hold out for at least two hours?"

"Indeed," Zhao Beichen said. "I'm at a loss. Does Lord Xu have a solution?"

Xu Yuan hesitated and said, "Yes, there are, but..." Xu Yuan looked at Qi Baihu and Mao Qi, "These two will have to make do a little."

Qi Baihu and Mao Qi were confused: "Us?"

Xu Yuan pointed to "Dreams Come True" and looked somewhat ashamed: "If you apologize to it, I can make it take action and restrain this evil spirit."

Qi Baihu and Mao Qi were dumbfounded: We're supposed to apologize to a mere craftsman?!

Xu Yuan blushed: "My craftsmanship is a bit different. Well, how should I put it? It's a bit arrogant."

You offended it yesterday…

Qi Baihu and Mao Qi couldn't help but purse their lips.

The people from the Imperial City Guard around them, including Zhao Beichen, all understood: what they meant by "arrogance" was that you couldn't completely control your craftsmen.

But Qi Baihu and his men thought it was quite reasonable!
This craftsman is very skilled; Xu Yuan is only a fourth-rate craftsman, so it's normal that he can't completely control it.

But the two of them felt very awkward.

They just apologized to Lang Xiaoba and Zhou Leizi yesterday.

The faces of those two idiots were extremely unpleasant.

So today I have to apologize to a craftsman?
Among these people in the Champa government, wouldn't I become a laughing stock?

Zhao Beichen coldly said, "Do as Lord Xu says!"

If "dreams come true" can really subdue a third-rate evil spirit, then this is truly a third-rate craftsmanship.

This is of great significance for assessing Xu Yuan's true strength.

His Majesty must be very curious.

Qi Baihu and Mao Qi gritted their teeth and slowly made their way to the front of "Dreams Come True," then couldn't help but turn back and look at their own commander with a pleading expression.

Zhao Beichen glared fiercely.

The two men bowed with clasped hands in resignation: "Your Excellency, we were wrong yesterday. Please forgive us this once."

Xu Yuan stepped forward, rubbed the car door, and said like he was coaxing a child, "Alright, alright, they've already apologized, aren't you angry anymore?"

Then music started playing inside the carriage.

It's light and cheerful, and it sounds like it's full of smugness.

Not only the people from the Champa Bureau, but also the other people from the Imperial City Guard turned their heads and covered their mouths to laugh.

Qi Baihu and Mao Qi have lost face big time.

He gritted his teeth and retreated to the back.

Mao Qi noticed that several captains beside him were covering their mouths and trembling, which angered him so much that he raised his hand to slap them. The captains ran away like rabbits.

"Can we get to work now?" Xu Yuan asked again.

The door of the "Dream Come True" car opened, and a little yellow bird flew out. It circled twice above the speedboat, chirped a few times, and then plunged into the river.

Zhao Beichen noticed that the bird entered the water without splashing a single drop.

It was as if they had passed directly through the water.

The yellow-bodied warbler restrained the evil spirit underwater, while the fast ship sailed at full speed.

Mao Qi was still listening intently, ready to report to Zhao Beichen at any moment: "Sir, that thing is slowing down."

"Sir, that thing landed about thirty feet behind us..."

"Fifty feet..."

"One hundred zhang!"

Finally, the evil spirit stabilized at this distance, following at a leisurely pace.

For the first half hour, everyone was still very uneasy, worried that the little yellow bird would fail and that the third-rate evil spirits would catch up again.

But after half an hour, the situation was very stable, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Mao Qi, however, fell to the ground on the deck with a thud and immediately lost consciousness.

His skill level was insufficient; he maintained that method for so long that he eventually couldn't hold on any longer and fainted.

The Imperial City Guards frantically tried to treat Mao Qi.

However, this is somewhat troublesome, because such a situation is bound to be accompanied by serious infection.

The probability of Mao Qi's strange behavior tonight has greatly increased.

When they were still fifty li away from Hanyang Prefecture, the evil spirit stopped following them.

It sank to the bottom of the river and swam backward.

The yellow-bodied warbler then flew out from the water.

Everyone on the boat breathed a sigh of relief.

However, Zhao Beichen still felt it was not safe, so he still steered the boat into the Hanyang Prefecture dock and invited a third-rate person to board the boat.

This third-rate official was Wen Xiu, the Deputy Provincial Surveillance Commissioner of Jiangxi Province.

After boarding the ship, he exchanged a few polite words with Zhao Beichen, but avoided all contact with Xu Yuan and locked himself in the cabin.

He would escort the ship through the night, and the ship would dock at Anyang Prefecture the next day. He would then disembark and return to Hanyang Prefecture alone.

Jiangxi Province is not far from Beijing.

The Vice Provincial Surveillance Commissioner already knew some of the news.

Although he was a third-rate person, he knew a little about what the case of Consort Yi meant.

He really didn't want to be associated with Xu Yuan.

In fact, several third-rate people from Jiangxi Province were passing the buck and no one was willing to take on this escort mission.

In the end, we had to draw lots.

The deputy inspector was rather unlucky...

However, the Deputy Inspector strongly suspected that the others either used trickery during the lottery or secretly used items designed to increase their luck.

The Deputy Inspector-General certainly also possessed such craftsmanship, but it was not as powerful as that of others.

He didn't want to see Xu Yuan, and Xu Yuan didn't want to see him either.

Lord Xu should also avoid suspicion.

He hid in his cabin, and Lang Xiaoba brought him his dinner.

Along the way, the more people you come into contact with, the more "suspicious" the fairness of the case's conclusion will become.

While in Qianyang Prefecture, it was fine in public, but now that we're on the same boat, we really have to be careful.

Neither Zhao Beichen nor the Deputy Inspector slept that night. They stayed in the same room, constantly on guard against the thing making a comeback.

Both of them couldn't understand it: how dare a third-rate evil spirit challenge the Dragon Flag?!
Fortunately, nothing happened that night, and Xu Yuan didn't open the window again, sleeping peacefully in the cabin all night.

Because Xu Yuan is the most reliable.

Pilong stayed in the water and knew that the thing hadn't come.

Xu Yuan was also wondering: Who was driving this evil spirit to test him?
Money can make the impossible possible.

The next day, the first thing everyone on the ship did was to check the Chinese almanac.

Today's ban:
Climbing high, performing opera, painting, pointing to the sun.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

What they feared most was the "ban on approaching the river".

Even if it's flying a dragon flag, it still has to obediently dock.

Everyone got ashore and stayed away from the riverbank.

Why did the Ming Dynasty's merchant ships always have to dock at the pier before dark?
The costs at docks in various places are not low.

After the boat is moored at the dock, everyone goes ashore to stay overnight at a hotel.

The fear was that the next day there would be a sudden "ban on going near the river".

Or something more direct like "banning boating".

The ship's owners and managers, who were qualified or had the money, could stay in regular hotels.

Ordinary boatmen, however, could only squeeze into large dormitory-style rooms.

But this time, when Xu Yuan was to be brought to the capital, the Emperor issued an imperial edict: as soon as possible.

Then let's not stop along the way.

They traveled through the night, carrying dragon flags.

Zhao Beichen came to inform Xu Yuan early in the morning: "Lord Xu, we will dock at Anyang Prefecture Wharf at noon."

Xu Yuan asked in surprise, "Do we have to stop again? We didn't resupply at the Hanyangfu dock yesterday?"

Zhao Beichen said, "Our fast ship is different from the ordinary ones. It runs on petroleum, so we need to prepare in advance. We don't have any in Hanyang Prefecture."

The purpose of this voyage is to replenish oil supplies; I had preparations made in Anyang Prefecture beforehand.

Xu Yuan nodded. He knew about "petroleum"; it was recorded in the records of the Purification Bureau.

The Exorcism Bureau once promoted the use of this item to start a fire and burn down large groups of evil spirits.

This substance was called stone lacquer or stone oil water in ancient times. During the Song Dynasty, Shen Kuo first named it "petroleum".

Zhao Beichen was talking to Xu Yuan when he suddenly twitched his nose twice: "It smells so good..."

How could it not smell delicious? Liu Hu had caught a few fish and was now on the deck at the bow of the boat, cooking fish soup on a stove.

When the wind blows at the bow, the whole boat is filled with fragrance.

Moreover, Liu Hu was treated with great courtesy by high-ranking officials of Guizhou Province yesterday noon in Qianyang Prefecture, which triggered his "Noble Bamboo" destiny. Last night, his "Ghost Banquet Method" was promoted to the eighth class!

Liu Hu, at this level, has acquired a new skill: cooking tricks!

He can deal with evil spirits of the lowest rank and take the edible parts from their bodies to cook them into delicacies.

Consuming it will aid in spiritual practice!

Simply put, this is like eating pills!

The fish we caught today are all evil spirits from the lowest ranks of society.

Liu Hu is currently "cooking up a ghost".

Since boarding the ship, the members of the Exorcism Division and the Champa Bureau have been cooking for themselves.

Last night, several leaders of the Imperial City Guard, led by Zhao Beichen, came to the Champa Administration for a free meal.

Only Qi Baihu and Mao Qi were exceptions.

The two of them were still conflicted.

"Let's go, let's go eat first."

Zhao Beichen is an exceptionally serious person.

Therefore, he was deeply trusted by the emperor.

He had no other hobbies, no interest in gambling, womanizing, or anything like that.

But he loves food and can eat a lot.

Without thinking about anything else, he grabbed Xu Yuan and headed to the bow of the boat.

A lookout stood on the bow deck.

Although he was standing facing the river, his eyes kept glancing at the pot Liu Hu was cooking behind him.

Climbing to high places is prohibited today, so he can't climb the lookout pole either.

Zhao Beichen arrived with Xu Yuan, and Liu Hu chuckled, "You two have come at just the right time, the food is ready!"

The deputy inspector hid in his cabin, tightly closing the doors and windows, but the enticing aroma still kept wafting into his nostrils.

He is hungry.

The cultivators of the Seven Great Sects are completely different from the Taoist cultivators of history.

No matter how high one's level becomes, one still retains the seven emotions and six desires of an ordinary person.

They also lack the ability to fast.

At most, their level is higher; they can live much longer than ordinary people even without water or food.

It's very difficult to starve to death.

But I was really hungry.

The Vice Commissioner of the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner, who usually lives a life of luxury, ate the Imperial City Guard's meal last night.

It has a bland taste and is too coarse to swallow.

He wasn't full.

I woke up early this morning and was starving when suddenly this delicious aroma wafted over!
He asked the captain of the Imperial City Guard, but could only sigh in regret and then go back to lock the door.

He then gave a severe scolding to the colleagues who had drawn lots with him.

By noon, the fast ship finally entered the dock of Anyang Prefecture.

They received the same treatment as when they were in Qianyang Prefecture, and there was no need to queue.

The deputy inspector was the first to rush off the boat and leave without looking back.

Zhao Beichen thought he was avoiding suspicion and didn't want to disembark with Xu Yuan.

Little did they know that the Deputy Inspector was thinking: Let's go quickly!

If we don't leave soon, it'll be lunchtime again...

Zhao Beichen asked Xu Yuan, "Lord Xu, would you like to get off the ship for some fresh air?"

Xu Yuan looked outside and saw no officials waiting to greet him on the dock.

Clearly, the people of Anyang Prefecture were better informed than those of Qianyang Prefecture, and they didn't want to get involved in Xu Yuan's karma.

Xu Yuan waved his hand and said, "No need."

When they were in Qianyang Prefecture, it was actually Zhao Beichen who warmly invited him to disembark, and that's why he followed him off the boat.

This time, Zhao Beichen didn't force him: "Alright, I'll go by myself."

Zhao Beichen seemed to have other matters to attend to, and after disembarking, he was led away by people from the local canal administration.

Qi Baihu and several other leaders of the Imperial City Guard were also with him.

Only some ordinary captains from the Imperial City Guard and members of the Champa government remained on the ship.

Suddenly, a commotion arose from the dock.

Xu Yuan opened the window and looked out. He saw that the yamen runners from the Grand Canal Administration were trying to stop them, but a group of people were rudely pushed to the side of the boat.

The leader, a man over ten feet tall and as strong as a bear, kicked a constable so hard that he flew into the canal with a thud.

The man was dressed in the official robes of a third-rank military officer, with a jade belt around his waist, and a heavy iron whip draped over his shoulder in one hand.

He didn't use the bridge planks; instead, he leaped across several meters and landed with a thud on the deck of the fast ship.

The whole boat rocked.

The military officer roared, "Xu Yuan, get the hell out here!"

Xu Yuan frowned but did not move.

These matters should theoretically be handled by Zhao Beichen.

He wasn't there, so several captains from the Imperial City Guard rushed forward, flashing their badges: "Imperial City Guard..."

But then the general waved his hand, and several people were swept away and rolled all over the ground.

The military officer shouted nonchalantly, "Your Imperial City Guard can scare others, but you can't scare my uncle!"

"Xu Yuan, if you don't come out soon, I'm going to break in!"

He brought his iron whip down, and with a crack, it shattered a railing on the ship.

(End of this chapter)