Luo Bu stood by the zither player's side and listened for a while, then suddenly began to sing along with the zither.
The zither player was playing an obscure song, but the lyrics he was singing were extremely famous in the world.
Moreover, his voice was extremely coarse and bold. Compared to the willows and snow of Wenshui City, it had a different flavor, instantly attracting the attention of many people.
… …
… …
"My sword comes from the west
Your clothes flutter in the wind
So small and lovely
Flowing through the courtyard
I copy scriptures in the temple
And tomorrow I must practice the fist and change muscles …
Spring Mountain loves to smile
Tomorrow my road is even further
The horse's hooves become butterflies
Bending the bow and shooting arrows, walking through the green forest
I am that scholar who goes to the capital to take the exam but does not study
I have come to Luoyang to see your reflection
The final brush in the water, the remains in the light of day
Sever your small thinness
A ladle of your small fullness … "
(Note: Wen Ruian, the Yellow River)
… …
… …
The blind zither player played for a very long time, and Luo Bu sang for a very long time. More and more people gathered around the riverbank, and the pile of copper coins and silver fragments in front of the zither player grew larger and larger, glimmering with a delightful luster in the last glimmer of twilight.
The twilight deepened until it became night. The shops and inns along the banks of the Wenshui began to light up, the lights falling into the water like stars.
Suddenly, the crowd began to gasp in shock. Everyone's gazes left the blind zither player and Luo Bu and looked to the other shore.
That was the rear garden of the Daoist church.
Luo Bu arched his brows and turned to look.
The Daoist church was glowing with light, the clouds slowly circling over its roof. They had already reached the highest point, and the elegant and dignified ceremonial music slowly began to play.
This was a declaration.
The Pope had come to Wenshui.
The people on the riverbank once more stopped and quietly stood where they were, just like what had happened on the main street during the day.
The seven peddlers stopped yelling, the six government laborers lowered the chains in their hands, the three fortune-tellers opened their eyes, the two sesame-candy-selling elders used to wrap the candy in their hands to lightly tremble in the wind, and the face of the girl who bought cosmetics was snow-white as if she had already applied five layers of it.
"I didn't expect it to be a smart person."
As he gazed at the boundless light on the other shore and listened to the ceremonial music from the church, Luo Bu thought, "Perhaps you have a smart person at your side."
… …
… …
Wenshui City had an incomparably long history, and the Tang clan had an even longer history than the Chen Imperial clan and the Liang clan.
As the head of the Four Great Clans, the wealthiest clan in the world, the Wenshui Tangs controlled countless industries: transportation, armaments, foodstuffs, mines. As long as it was a truly important industry, one could always see the Tang clan's low-key figure that could not be ignored, and this established the Tang clan's position in the entire continent.
Up until now, no one knew exactly what kind of power the Tang Clan possessed, because up until now, no power had been able to force the Tang Clan to use all of its power. So, when it came to the Tang Clan, people could only use the most vague way to describe it, and that was their foundation.
The resources were at the bottom, just like those uncountable water plants at the bottom of the Wenshui. The common people only knew that they were there, but they had never seen them with their own eyes. They could only imagine and guess, so the Tang clan became more and more mysterious, more and more terrifying.
But there would always be some indirect proof. For instance, no one had ever dared to swim or fish in the Wenshui. For instance, whether it was Emperor Taizong or the later Tianhai Divine Empress with her monstrous power, they had always treated the Tang clan with a gentle and conciliatory attitude, because it was easy to drown in the Wenshui, and moving against the Tang clan would inevitably bring chaos to the world.
Chen Changsheng was the current Pope, the most revered individual on the continent, but not even he could do anything to the Tang clan.
If he had revealed his identity after leaving the Mount Song Army headquarters and wanted to come to Wenshui City, the Tang clan could have thought of countless ways to politely keep him out of the city. Thus, he could only conceal his identity and come to Wenshui City like an ordinary traveler, even if Wenshui City had long since known of his arrival.
But now that he had entered Wenshui City, if he still wanted to act like he did a few days ago and attempt to secretly rescue Tang Thirty-Six from the ancestral hall, the Tang clan really might have made him disappear into the darkness of the Wenshui — because this was Wenshui.
Thus, the Daoist church exploded with light and clouds streamed into the sky.
He directly revealed his identity to all of Wenshui City.
No matter how deep and serene the Wenshui was, no matter how terrifying the water grass at the bottom of the river, would they dare to do anything to him?
This was a very simple and direct declaration, but in the view of Luo Bu and many people, including the Tang clan, it was brimming with wisdom.
But in reality, this decision had little to do with Chen Changsheng. He was just acting according to the instructions in the letter.
The reason the Daoist church had been so quiet for half a day was not because he was discussing matters with the others, but because he had other important matters to attend to.
Lush green trees covered the entire place. In this cold winter, it was obvious that some sort of array within the Daoist church was constantly providing heat to the earth. Even in the capital's Li Palace, this was an excessively extravagant act. Only in Wenshui City did it seem very ordinary, because this city was truly far too wealthy.
A quiet and winding stone path ran through the forest. Starting from noon, a bishop stood on either side of the stone path, spaced several zhang apart, their expressions humble and solemn.
The deeper one went, the higher the rank of the bishops on either side of the stone path. By the time they reached the holy gate of the rear hall, there were even four cardinals standing there.
A pear blossom was planted in the holy gate, and beneath the pear blossom was the gate to the rear hall. The Archbishop of Wenshui stood outside the gate.
Several years ago, Chen Changsheng had come to Wenshui and lived in the rear hall. At the time, he had already been appointed Principal of the Orthodox Academy by the Pope, and the entire continent knew that he would be the future Pope. The archbishop naturally received him with great hospitality, but it had never been like today.
To the Li Palace, Wenshui City was naturally the most important place, and the position of archbishop was assuredly a cushy job. The Orthodoxy had not been stable in the last few years, and for this archbishop to have served here for so many years, he was naturally no ordinary person. Yet he quietly waited outside the gate. Even as time passed, he did not reveal the slightest hint of impatience. He did not even move his feet. He seemed exceptionally humble, so humble that he was about to sink into the dust.
Because Chen Changsheng was already the Pope.
Although they clearly understood this fact, the cardinals did not dare to silently criticize the archbishop when they saw that he was being deliberately ignored. They could not help but feel somewhat uncomfortable.
What comforted them a little was that Zhexiu and Guan Feibai had also been barred from entering the rear hall and were currently in a daze in the forest.
The Wolf tribe's Zhexiu and Mount Li's Guan Feibai were naturally famous people, and their relationship with the Pope was also known to the entire world.
If even they could not enter the hall, then there was no one else.
Starting from noon, the gate to the rear hall had not been opened, and no sound came from within. No one knew what Chen Changsheng was doing inside.
Only when the twilight was at its thickest did the forest by the river and the roof of the hall seem to simultaneously burn, and then a real heat was emitted.
This was heat produced by real fire, not from the array beneath the Daoist church. The green leaves on the pear tree slightly curled up.
The archbishop finally raised his head and gazed at the tightly shut gate, a nervous expression on his face.
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
