Chapter 779: Oar Sounds and Lantern Shadows, the Romance of Qinhuai

Li Yan's brow was tightly locked, his mood solemn.

The imprisonment of Fatty Lin and the others, and the bizarre sudden death of Battalion Commander Tian, were like two giant stones pressing on his heart, not to mention the matter of the Yangzhou Tripod.

"Don't worry."

Wang Fu saw this and comforted him: "There is always a solution to everything. Besides, with such a big thing happening, the imperial court will inevitably send people."

Li Yan nodded, his gaze sharply sweeping across the empty, cold, and sparsely incensed main hall. His heart stirred, and he asked directly: "Senior Zhang, forgive my bluntness. Jin Ling is a critical town of Jiangnan, and the Chenghuangmiao is the hub for communicating with the yin and yang and coordinating local secular affairs. Now that Japanese pirates are spying, monsters are causing chaos, and undercurrents are surging in the city, why is this place... so deserted?"

"Is the temple's manpower... somewhat insufficient?"

Zhang Jingqing's face stiffened slightly, then turned into a trace of bitterness.

He did not answer immediately, but slowly picked up the teapot warming on the small stove and refilled the tea for Li Yan and the others, which had already turned slightly cold.

"Li Li Shaoxia's eyes are like torches..."

The old Daoist smiled bitterly: "Speaking of this matter, it is also because my Long Hu Mountain Celestial Master Mansion is out of luck, attacked from both front and back, so that such a large Chenghuangmiao in the Jiangnan capital has fallen into a predicament where there is no one to use."

He paused, seemingly organizing his language, before speaking: "I will not hide this from you all. Firstly, Jiangzhe and Jiangsu are the source of Daoist methods, and it is not just my Long Hu Mountain that dominates. The Maoshan Sect has deep foundations, its talismans and rituals are the best in the world; the Lushan Sect has wide influence among the people, especially skilled in driving away evil and curing baleful energy; the Humen Order Sect is famous for thunder methods and summoning generals; and the Jade Emperor Sect and other Dharma lineages also have many talented people, and their incense is flourishing."

"Each Dharma lineage has operated for many years, with deep roots, each having its own territory. The imperial court decreed that Long Hu Mountain should manage this Jin Ling Chenghuangmiao, but..."

Zhang Jingqing smiled bitterly: "Are the local powerful families so easily submissive?"

"Nominally they belong to us, but in reality, each has their own thoughts, and most are hypocritical. The core disciples who truly listen to orders and can do work are already scattered in various places, and manpower was already tight. Secondly..."

His voice lowered a few notches, carrying obvious helplessness and a trace of resentment, "It was just a while ago that the contemporary Celestial Master of my Celestial Master Mansion did a 'big thing' in the capital."

Everyone understood immediately upon hearing this.

At that time, True Lord Suilun entered the Temple of State, and the Heavenly Court simultaneously issued an edict. The leaders of each sect entered the capital, and Celestial Master Zhang charged at the very front, even fighting Huo Yin at the Qiankun Academy. They were all witnesses to this.

Although they reached an agreement later, how could the imperial family, having taken a step back, not be angry in their hearts?

"You all must know that the consequences of this move... are extremely heavy."

Zhang Jingqing sighed: "The Holy Heart is displeased, and the court is shaken. The various forces that were originally on good terms with my Celestial Master Mansion, or at least maintained superficial harmony, have all avoided suspicion, fearing to be tainted by our 'unwise' bad luck."

"The attitude of the Jin Ling government has also become ambiguous. Much of the support that was originally given to the Chenghuangmiao out of respect for the imperial decree and the Celestial Master Mansion has now been discounted, or even directly cut off. Some small Dharma lineages and folk sorcerers who relied on the City God system have also become restless and started looking for other backers."

"And this last point..."

A trace of wariness flashed in his eyes, "It is that Ganzhou is also not peaceful. The Meishan Dharma Sect has created several sharp 'Firearm Secret Arts,' and for a time, they were unrivaled. The main altar is under huge pressure and has had to withdraw elite manpower from everywhere to reinforce them. Here in Jin Ling... sigh, the elites who could be transferred have almost all been transferred back."

Zhang Jingqing spread his hands, pointing to the few young Daoist priests outside the hall who were sweeping fallen leaves and looked far inferior to practitioners of the Dao, and then pointed to the two middle-aged Daoist priests standing behind him with their hands down, their auras plain: "Now, in such a large Jin Ling Chenghuangmiao, apart from my old bones, there are only these secular disciples and a few apprentices with shallow Daoist practice who are not worth using."

"Let alone coordinating the defense of the city or tracking down monsters and evil, even the most basic registration, handling daily petitions, and maintaining temple affairs are already stretched thin, unable to attend to everything. In these few days, the refugees pouring into the city, the people seeking help due to panic, and the registration of the secret activities of various forces have already left us overwhelmed."

He looked at Li Yan, his eyes complex, both hopeful and probing: "Li Li Shaoxia, the name of the Twelve Yuan Chen is like thunder to the ears. This poor Daoist has also heard of your deeds in Yangzhou, Shu, and Ezhou; they are all heroic feats of upholding the righteous path and slaying monsters and evil."

"Now Jin Ling is tottering, with internal and external troubles, which is truly not something that can be dealt with by ordinary strength. This poor Daoist... on behalf of the Jin Ling Chenghuangmiao, earnestly requests the Twelve Yuan Chen to lend a helping hand and assist us! Maintain the yin and yang order of this city and protect the peace of the people!"

"This poor Daoist will do his best to provide convenience for all talismans, artifacts, and secular god edict permissions needed!"

Li Yan was silent for a moment, then said calmly: "Senior Zhang, you speak too seriously."

"We have just arrived, the situation is unclear, and we have important matters to attend to. The affairs of the Chenghuangmiao involve imperial regulations and local secular affairs, which are of great importance and not something that we, as Jianghu wanderers, can interfere with. This matter... allow us to consider it for a while before giving you an answer."

This old Daoist also had quite a few devious thoughts.

What upholding the righteous path? If the Jin Ling government dared to leave Long Hu Mountain out in the cold, naturally other Dharma lineages would take action. It was clearly that he was reluctant to give up the Chenghuangmiao's plate and wanted to pull them in as laborers.

A look of disappointment flashed in Zhang Jingqing's eyes, but he did not reveal any dissatisfaction, even squeezing out a smile: "Li Li Shaoxia is right; it was this poor Daoist who was abrupt. This matter is of great importance and indeed requires caution. You all have traveled far and are tired; please settle down and rest first."

"If there is anything you need from this poor Daoist, or if you need to consult some non-confidential files and archives, feel free to send someone to inform me."

He stood up while speaking, politely sending Li Yan and the others outside the temple gate.

Watching the backs of Li Yan and his party disappear around the corner of the long street, the smile on Zhang Jingqing's face slowly faded, becoming deep and unfathomable.

The Daoist apprentice who had just registered them couldn't help but lean forward and whisper: "Master, they refused. What should we do?"

Zhang Jingqing looked at the towering Jin Ling city wall in the distance with a distant gaze and hummed softly: "What do you know? It's better that they refused."

The apprentice was stunned: "Ah? Why?"

"A tall tree catches the wind."

Zhang Jingqing twisted his beard, his voice flat: "The Twelve Yuan Chen's reputation is too loud, so loud that in this Jiangnan territory, among those old foxes of Maoshan, Lushan, and the Humen Order, who doesn't guard against them a little?"

He paused, a flash of brilliance in his eyes: "What's more, they are tied too tightly to the Lin family. In the Jiangnan area, there are many forces that want the Lin family to fall so they can share this piece of fat meat!"

"When a wall is about to collapse, everyone pushes it. The Lin family ran into the knife's edge themselves this time. How could those people allow others to easily intervene and stir up the situation after waiting so long for this opportunity?"

The apprentice suddenly realized: "So Master, you are..."

"No hurry."

"They will find use for the 'legitimate' signboard of the Chenghuangmiao..."

It was already afternoon when they left the Chenghuangmiao.

The sky was covered with leaden clouds, and the autumn wind brushed their faces, carrying the damp cold unique to Jin Ling City.

Most of the doors and windows of the shops on both sides of the long street were tightly closed. Occasionally, there were pedestrians, but they were walking in a hurry with panicked expressions. Only the patrolling soldiers walked by, the sound of their armor and weapons colliding sounding particularly harsh in the silence.

"Tsk tsk, the Chenghuangmiao cannot be counted on."

Sha Lifei rubbed his hands and sneered in a low voice: "That Temple Master Zhang spoke politely, but in reality, he wanted to use us as guns without giving any real benefits."

"As expected." Li Yan's tone was flat, "Long Hu Mountain is already overwhelmed; it's good enough that Zhang Jingqing can guard the temple gate without it collapsing. Expecting him to help us save Fatty Lin is unrealistic. The top priority is to find a stable foothold and clear our thoughts."

"Go to the Jinzhou Chamber of Commerce?" Long Yan suggested, "We have quite a lot of cooperation with the Jin merchants in salt transport and medicinal materials, and our friendship is still okay. Their business firms are all over the north and south, and their news is also well-informed."

She liked cleanliness. Having traveled to so many places from south to north, the Chamber of Commerce was the most comfortable place to stay. With the Lin family in trouble, they couldn't go to Jiangzhe, so the Jinzhou Chamber of Commerce became the best choice. ===== CHAPTER 780 =====