Chapter 694: Xue Rengui's Death, Yama's Book of Life and Death
Xiao’s wonton shop.
After Di Renjie, who had been hungry for a long time, had a full meal, he suddenly asked with some concern: "Brother Kong, will the executioner be implicated by us?"
The deaths of Lai Junchen and Wu Sizong were not a pity, but they were both favored ministers of the Empress Dowager, and their sudden deaths would definitely cause a huge uproar.
In Di Renjie's eyes, Brother Kong would not be in danger as he was protected by His Royal Highness Prince Chen, but the executioner and even the common people who stood up for him today might be affected.
"Brother Di, others are about to chop off your head, but you are still thinking about him."
Li Daoxuan shook his head and sighed, then smiled and said, "Don't worry, they will be fine. The followers of the two thieves will be eliminated soon."
Wu Zetian was a smart person, she naturally knew what to do.
Di Renjie's pupils trembled, and he said, "Your Highness Prince Chen... forced the emperor to abdicate?"
Could such a big thing happen overnight?
Li Daoxuan waved his hand and said with a smile: "What are you thinking about? She is still recovering from her injuries."
Di Renjie secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and at the same time looked at Li Daoxuan with some surprise, "Brother Kong just met His Royal Highness the Prince of Chen, why does he look so familiar with him?"
"Nothing serious happened, I'm glad."
He murmured.
Li Daoxuan smiled slightly. Nothing big happened. The murderer of the heart-breaking case was found, the prestige of the Queen Mother was hit, and a king was killed.
Although Li Zhi did not die, he had now become a completely different person, and was no different from being dead.
"By the way, Brother Kong, since you didn't come back yesterday, I went to check Da Ci'en Temple first, and indeed I found something wrong!"
Di Renjie looked around and whispered, "Many monks in the temple were injured by the holy monk Xuanzang, but they all avoided vital points. It can be seen that the holy monk was sober at the time, and was not possessed by the devil as Your Highness said."
"In addition, I got a piece of news from a monk who was sweeping the temple for the holy monk."
His eyes were solemn, and it was obvious that this news was very important.
"In order to study the last Mahayana Sutra, the holy monk secluded himself for sixteen years and did not see anyone during that time. But on the night before he went mad, he suddenly met someone."
"Who is it?"
"The leader of the Plum Blossom Inner Guard, Ming Chongyan!"
Li Daoxuan narrowed his eyes slightly. Is this the person again?
He was the one who built the Wanxiang Temple and was in charge of the Lost Heart Case. His ultimate goal seemed to be to realize the plan of the Tibetan python swallowing the Tianlong and let Tubo annex the Tang Dynasty.
If Li Daoxuan had not come out, how would things have developed?
The technique of painting skin and cutting bones in "The Book of Man" can make Zhang Zongchang look like him, and then secretly poison Changle. Zhelong will naturally not give up, and a civil war is bound to break out between the Plum Blossom Guards and the Bad People.
Li Zhi, who has become the drought demon, will help Wu Zetian achieve victory, but the internal vitality of the Tang Dynasty will be severely damaged. Li Zhi will be affected by the corpse qi and become more cruel and bloodthirsty.
By then, how could the Tang Dynasty, which was severely damaged and had a corrupt emperor, resist the Tibetan army, which was blessed with great fortune?
He destroyed a country in a flash and led the world's situation without making a sound. Could someone with such means really be a spy from Tubo?
Li Daoxuan was very skeptical about this.
Even now, he couldn't quite understand Ming Chongyan's actions.
What kind of means did the other party use to make Xuanzang, who had been in seclusion for sixteen years, come out to meet them? After that, he almost became a demon and even injured Changle.
Why did Ming Chongyan do this?
At this moment, no matter whether it is the case of the lost heart or the matter of Xuanzang's possession of the devil, all the clues point to the same person.
Li Daoxuan sneered. If that was the case, things would be easy to handle.
Find Ming Chongyan and dig out the final truth.
In addition, Li Daoxuan was also somewhat curious about the so-called three books of heaven, earth, and man.
According to historical records, Ming Chongyan was originally just a Taoist priest who knew some medical skills. In the end, he was assassinated and his death was unclear and very aggrieved.
But in this world, divine thunder descended from the sky, splitting the huge rock and revealing three strange books, which brought about a tremendous change in Ming Chongyan.
interesting……
"Brother Kong, I think Ming Chongyan has some big plans. Let's report this to His Royal Highness Prince Chen first!"
Di Renjie suggested.
Ming Chongyan is the leader of the Plum Blossom Inner Guard. He holds a high position of power and is favored by the Empress Dowager. If one wants to investigate him, one must seek the help of Prince Chen.
Li Daoxuan shook his head and smiled: "This matter is not urgent, we have another more urgent matter to do."
"What is it?"
Li Daoxuan ate the last wonton, then took out something at random from his arms and threw it to Di Renjie.
Di Renjie took a closer look and was shocked. It turned out to be an imperial edict!
"The Tibetan army attacked again. Due to a meteorite falling from the sky, our army was defeated. Songzhou is about to fall. General Xue Rengui is missing. The emperor ordered you to serve as the governor of Songzhou. Go to take office immediately, command the army and the people, and defend the city."
Di Renjie was suddenly shocked. Songzhou was the throat to curb the attack of Tubo. Once it was lost, the enemy would have an easy route to attack the six states in the south of the Yangtze River!
By then, there will surely be another bloody storm!
"Brother Kong, why did you just tell us about this now? Songzhou is thousands of miles away. Even if we ride the dragon horses we rode before, it will take at least three to five days. Let's go!"
Di Renjie suddenly couldn't eat the delicious wontons anymore, so he pulled Li Daoxuan to rush to Songzhou to take up his post.
"Don't worry, close your eyes. You might feel a little dizzy in a moment, so be careful not to vomit."
Just when Di Renjie didn't know what was going on, ripples suddenly appeared in the void, the sky was spinning in front of his eyes, and everything around him was gradually fading away, becoming dark and chaotic.
It felt like suddenly falling into a bottomless pit, without light or sound, as if being exiled to another desolate world.
It was unknown how long it had passed before the darkness gradually faded away, the sun reappeared, and the voice rang in Di Renjie's ears again.
"I heard there's going to be a war, let's run!"
"Why are you running? With General Xue here, we will definitely win!"
"But I heard that General Xue seems to be missing..."
"It is said that the foreign soldiers have the help of the gods. A few days ago, a meteorite even fell. The whole Songzhou was shaken by the noise!"
Di Renjie retched a few times on the side of the road, and his dizziness gradually improved.
In a daze, he looked up and found that he was not in Chang'an, but under a city with three big and powerful characters on it.
Songzhou City!
The clouds and the moon of eight thousand miles are now just a stone's throw away.
…
There was panic in the Songzhou military camp.
Anyone who encountered a meteorite strike on the battlefield would probably be unable to sleep all night, feeling that the Tang Dynasty had been abandoned by the gods.
More importantly, General Xue, whom they regarded as the backbone of the camp, has not returned to the camp yet.
After Su Dingfang's death, Xue Rengui became the most shining general of the Tang Dynasty. Without the shame of the defeat at Dayechuan, he spent his entire life fighting for the Tang Dynasty and made great military achievements.
He annihilated the Western Turks, bravely conquered Liaodong, conquered Tianshan with three arrows, and shocked Goguryeo...
From a young general in a white robe to a first-rank general of cavalry and Duke Dingguo, he had reached the pinnacle of military generals. His life was perfect and he would be enshrined in the Temple of Martial Arts after his death.
But after hearing that the famous Tibetan general Qinling had led his army to harass the Tang Dynasty border many times, Xue Rengui, who was already in his seventies, asked for orders again and returned to the battlefield. He repelled Qinling's army several times and guarded the Tang Dynasty border like a door god.
If only the flying general were in Longcheng, the Hu horse would not be allowed to cross Yinshan Mountain.
Unfortunately, as the meteorite fell, Xue Rengui disappeared and his whereabouts are still unknown.
Just when the soldiers were worried, the soldiers on the city wall suddenly shouted loudly, extremely excited.
"Open the city gate quickly, General Xue is back!"
As soon as these words were spoken, the soldiers were immediately cheered.
In their hearts, Xue Rengui is the god of war of the Tang Dynasty. As long as General Xue is there, even if they suffer a temporary setback, they firmly believe that victory will eventually belong to the Tang Dynasty.
Xue Rengui did not disappoint them.
There were only three riders left beside him. Their white hair was dancing wildly. Although the martyr was in his old age, he was still heroic and full of ambition. He even held .
He was a fierce general under Qin Ling, skilled in using a nine-ring broadsword weighing 68 kilograms. He was extremely brave on the battlefield and had killed countless people. Qin Ling sent him to pursue the remnants of the Tang army, but he did not expect to be beheaded by the 78-year-old veteran Xue Rengui.
When Xue Rengui raised the head of the Tibetan general, the three armies cheered, and the originally low morale was instantly ignited and soared into the sky.
Xue Rengui stood on the city wall, his tiger eyes seemed to be burning with raging flames. That was his unyielding will and military spirit. Even though he was very old, he could still kill the invading enemies!
"Songzhou is the barrier of the southern part of the Tang Dynasty. If we lose it, the enemy's blades will be pointed at our friends, wives, children, and parents!"
His voice rang out, and although he was old, it was full of momentum, as if an iron hoof was crushing an ice river, which made people's blood boil.
"So, whether it's a meteorite or foreign soldiers, we can't retreat anymore."
"I am Xue Rengui, 78 years old this year. Before I left for the war, my grandson held my hand and refused to let go. My wife asked someone to tell my fortune and said it would be unlucky and I might never come back."
At this point, Xue Rengui suddenly laughed and said, "I think that this is the best omen, because for a general, is there any better fate than dying on the battlefield?"
A man wants to repay his country's kindness, and dying on the battlefield is a good end!
"Some people even advised me to withdraw, saying that there is the Great Wall in the north, but there is no natural barrier in the south. It would be better to retreat to the north of the Yangtze River and defend it."
Xue Rengui laughed again, but this time his laughter was filled with murderous intent.
"The person who said this has been killed by me!"
Xue Rengui suddenly raised the head in his hand, his eyes were fierce, his white hair was dancing wildly, and his heroic voice echoed between heaven and earth.
"Who says there is no natural barrier here? If the enemy comes, we will use their blood and corpses to build a natural barrier for our southern region. The soldiers of the Tang Dynasty are the Great Wall for the people of Songzhou!"
He drew his sword, his eyes widened with anger, and his voice was like the roar of a dragon or a tiger, shaking the sky.
"kill!!!"
The soldiers' faces were all red, they raised their arms and shouted, their blood was boiling, and they couldn't wait to meet the foreign soldiers with swords and guns and fight them in blood.
The three armies shouted loudly and their morale was high.
At the gate of the military camp, Di Renjie looked at this scene with great admiration in his heart. He couldn't help but sighed: "What a tiger general! Songzhou has General Xue here, so there is nothing to worry about!"
Beside him, Li Daoxuan shook his head and sighed softly.
"It's a pity that he didn't make it."
Di Renjie was stunned and was about to ask a question when he saw Xue Rengui on the city wall suddenly glaring with his eyes wide open, as if he had seen something horrible. However, there was no fear in his eyes, only deep unwillingness.
Xue Rengui roared towards the sky like a tiger, his white hair flying like a waterfall, as if he was fighting with the sky.
The little vitality that was already there drained away from his old body. When the last bit of vitality was completely gone, the sword in Xue Rengui's hand fell powerlessly, and he fell from the city wall.
"General!!!"
The soldiers were terrified, looking at the falling figure with a hint of despair in their eyes.
…
Three hundred miles away from Songzhou City, there is the Tubo military camp.
In the general's tent, Qinling, the middle-aged Tibetan military god, was reading a military book under candlelight.
His father was the famous Tubo Prime Minister Lu Dongzan. Under the influence of his father, he loved reading since he was a child, especially studying military books.
The Han people's military tactics were like a huge treasure house, which made him deeply intoxicated.
Under the candlelight, his handsome face was angular and slightly bearded, but it made him look even tougher, with a masculine temperament that came from iron and fire, worthy of a famous Tibetan general who had experienced many battles.
"General, Xue Rengui was defeated. Why don't you take advantage of the situation and capture Songzhou?"
A voice suddenly sounded, and a Taoist figure appeared in the general's tent. He was wearing an eight-diagram Taoist robe, holding a feather fan, and a star crown on his head. He had an elegant face and a graceful demeanor, just like Zhuge Liang in the opera.
Qin Ling seemed , and said calmly: "Master Ming, you don't know that Xue Rengui is indeed a famous general of the time. He actually beheaded the fierce general I sent to kill and returned to Songzhou City first."
"With this person here, the soldiers and civilians of Songzhou are united, their morale is high, and they are defending the city. Although we have the advantage in military strength, we should not advance rashly."
When talking about Xue Rengui, Qin Ling's eyes showed a hint of complexity.
He and Xue Rengui had fought many times over the years, but Xue Rengui had never gained any advantage. It was truly a case of two people meeting a worthy opponent.
This great victory was not actually due to any fault of war, but was achieved by the Taoist Ming Chongyan who set up a large formation to swallow up the luck of the Tang Dynasty and caused meteorites to fall from the sky, which enabled him to defeat Xue Rengui.
Honestly speaking, Qin Ling was actually somewhat disgusted by this unfair means of victory. He would rather fight Xue Rengui with real swords and guns and decide who was better on the battlefield.
But he also knew that Tubo's national strength was limited and it could hardly sustain a long period of foreign wars, while the Tang Dynasty was a giant dragon with vast territory, rich resources, and prosperous national strength, and could afford the consumption.
So he had to swallow his pride.
Ming Chongyan waved his feather fan, smiled slightly, and said, "General, don't worry, Xue Rengui will not survive tonight."
Qin Ling frowned and asked, "Why?"
"General, you may not know that Xue Rengui should have died nine years ago and returned to the underworld. However, he followed Li Daoxuan and took elixirs, which extended his life."
After a pause, Ming Chongyan smiled and said, "But this account is still clearly recorded in the Book of Life and Death in the underworld. Now that the King of Hell wants to settle this account, his life span will naturally come to an end."
Qin Ling was somewhat puzzled and asked, "I heard that the current Lord of the Netherworld, the Ghost Emperor of the Underworld, is Li Daoxuan's first wife, and the King of Hell is also under her jurisdiction. And Xue Rengui is friends with Li Daoxuan, so why would he care about such things?"
Ming Chongyan shook his head and smiled, saying, "General, you don't know that the Ghost Emperor Chen Ziyu only knows how to practice in seclusion and rarely manages things. In the underworld, the Three Realms Demon Subduing Marshal Guan Yu is too arrogant and murderous, and it is difficult for him to be the King of Hell."
Qin Ling's eyes flashed, and he asked, "What does the King of Hell think?"
If the King of Hell does this, he will definitely offend the Ghost Emperor, and he must have other intentions.
"General, I have a book of earth that can communicate with ghosts and gods. The King of Hell is my friend, and he asked me to tell you that after the matter is completed, please ask the Tibetan king to confer him as the guardian god of the country and spread incense."
Qin Ling was silent for a moment, and then asked: "Is Xue Rengui...really dead?"
“Death is certain!”
Ming Chongyan waved his feather fan and said confidently: "He must have been thrown into hell and is being tortured. Even if a great immortal came down to earth, he couldn't save him!"
