kvmb Chapter 221 Mars Illuminates the Heavenly Path: The Imperial Prophecy Locked by the Astrological Cha
Chapter 221 Mars Illuminates the Heavenly Path: The Imperial Prophecy Locked by the Astrological Cha
In this life, Sanlang Zian became the King of Linzi, a strategic location in Qilu. His residence was situated on the main street, which resembled the Big Dipper, straddling the intersection of the hills of central Shandong and the plains of northern Shandong.
This street, paved with bluestone, connects the majestic passes of Haidai to the east and the fertile plains of Heji to the west. On the first and fifteenth of each lunar month, imperial carriages and palanquins lined the streets like dragons, truly a place brimming with royal aura, comparable to an ancient CBD. Back then, a geomancer spent three days and three nights circling the street with his compass, finally slapping his thigh and exclaiming, "Isn't this the Tian Shu star fallen to earth?!"
Even Xiao Si, upon arriving at this street, exclaimed in admiration: "This bluestone road is bordered by a formidable pass at the level of the General Administration of Customs at its eastern end, and to the west lies a plain that feels like a granary plus. On the first and fifteenth of each lunar month, it's like a carnival of luxury cars—carriages with vermilion rims and gold trim line up like a snake. In the future, they would definitely charge a congestion fee!"
Xiao Si originally came to find Jiang Jiao, who was a descendant of a prominent family in Langya, whose members often studied divination and prophecy.
In this land brimming with imperial aura, the great master Xiao Si was born. She discovered that her ancestors were the ones who used metaphysics to help the Jiang family rise to power. It is said that her great-grandfather had calculated an auspicious day for Qin Shi Huang to relocate his household registration.
That day, Master Si was on duty at the observatory, munching on a pancake with scallions, when he suddenly noticed Mars drifting around the Purple Palace Enclosure. He immediately threw the pancake three zhang away: "Holy crap! This is a real dragon about to emerge!" He then pulled out his ancestral ancient silicone... no, to be conservative, he used a tortoise shell for divination. The divination pointed directly to the direction of the Prince of Linzi's residence. He discovered that from the Qianxiang Observatory, he had observed the unusual phenomenon of Mars guarding the heart of the sky. Furthermore, the Grand Astrologer, using the Liuren divination method, also indicated that "the dragon is lurking in the abyss, awaiting a wise ruler." When he went to observe the qi at Jimen, he saw the Prince of Linzi's residence shrouded in purple qi, with five-colored auspicious clouds faintly visible.
When Jiang Jiao finally met the Prince of Linzi, he saw that the prince's eyebrows resembled mountains and rivers, and his eyes held the stars. As he walked, his movements subtly corresponded to the positions of the Twenty-Eight Mansions. Jiang Jiao suddenly felt his mind clear and realized that the "Taiyi Linyuan" image shown in the previous three divination charts was basically just a different way of touching his forehead to the ground and performing the three kneelings and nine kowtows in his heart. From then on, he treated the prince with the respect due to a disciple, his piety as reverent as the morning stars bowing to the North Star.
It must be said that Lord Jiang's execution ability is also top-notch. When he went to apply for a job with gifts, he happened to run into the Prince of Linzi practicing Tai Chi in the courtyard.
"Good heavens! The prince stepped on a Horned Wood Dragon, waved his hand to brush away a Heart Moon Fox, and then turned around and actually walked out of the Big Dipper Formation..."
Ever since Lord Jiang worshipped this true god, the Jiang family has become a silent ATM. The prince stared at his teacup a few more times, then immediately sent men to Jingdezhen to contract a kiln; the prince glanced at the stables and muttered, "The delivery's been a bit slow lately..." The next day, the Jiang family's horse farm held a massive clearance sale, with dozens of Akhal-Teke horses, adorned with bow ties, lined up to report for duty. The steward, looking at the empty money box, was almost in tears, while Lord Jiang, legs crossed, ate melon seeds with Little Rhino: "What do servants know! This is called angel investment. When the prince goes public, we'll be the original shareholders!"
But what no one knew was that behind this seemingly simple relationship lay a hidden reason.
At that time, Xiao Si was raising tiger bones at the Jiang family's residence. These tiger bones were said to possess extraordinary effects, perhaps strengthening the body, or perhaps other mysterious properties. Because few knew of Qiu Xiaoyin's affair, it somehow reached the ears of the Prince of Linzi, becoming the real reason he treated the Jiang family with special favor. However, everyone was kept in the dark at the time, only seeing Jiang Jiao's attentiveness to the Prince of Linzi and the Prince's occasional favors towards the Jiang family.
Time flies by so fast! Before we knew it, Zi'an had traveled back in time to become the Prince of Linzi and was about to leave Luzhou.
As soon as the news spread, good heavens! Civil and military officials, as if by prior arrangement, rushed to see him off, and relatives and friends also came to bid him farewell with tears in their eyes. Sanlang Zian stood there, his eyes scanning the crowd like a scanner, wondering to himself, "Huh? Where is my super fan Jiang Jiao?" His smile faded, replaced by a look of absent-mindedness. He was incredibly disappointed, like eating meat without garlic, or dumplings without vinegar—something just felt missing.
But who could have imagined that when Sanlang Zian strolled along and reached the north bank of the Wei River, a huge surprise awaited him. Hey! Jiang Jiao, with an air of grandeur, appeared out of nowhere, having set up a super luxurious tent by the roadside. The scene was definitely a meticulously planned and painstakingly staged show.
Jiang Jiao stood there with a big smile on her face. Sanlang Zian understood immediately when he saw this: Xiao Si loved to make such grand occasions.
The gloom on Sanlang Zi'an's face vanished instantly, like the sun breaking through the rain, and his heart immediately lit up. His earlier slight disappointment had long since been forgotten. The two chatted and laughed, happily discussing Xiao Si's recent situation before saying their goodbyes. After all this commotion, everyone thought Lord Jiang was truly shrewd; he had miraculously forged a bond between ruler and subject through this very act, unaware that they were actually bound together by an invisible thread—Xiao Si…
As everyone knows, Jiang Jiao's life took a dramatic turn for the better. She became incredibly wealthy and lived a life of luxury that inspired envy and resentment. However, it's unclear why a man named Qiu Rongmu later pulled a tiger skeleton from Zhi Xu's sleeve…
Meanwhile, in the distant northern foothills of the Yin Mountains, a thrilling war is unfolding.
The wind, carrying the stench of blood, whipped at Yu Zhanmo's tattered cloak. He knelt amidst the corpses, his fingertips touching half a piece of cold iron armor—the inner wall of which was etched with the "Hu Fu Qi She Tu" (a painting of a nomadic woman dressed in nomadic attire and cavalry archery) by the former empress. Suddenly, the military tally in his bosom trembled violently, its nine bronze rings clanging together in the moonlight, spontaneously forming a crane-wing formation.
"General Yu! The Turkic wolf cavalry are charging again!" the lieutenant roared, his face covered in blood.
Yu Zhanmo grabbed the blood-soaked battle formation diagram, looking up to see the blood moon bathed in the halo cast by the Empress's military talisman. "Crane Wing Formation!" he commanded hoarsely. "Put the armor of our fallen brothers inside out!"
The remaining eight thousand soldiers staggered into battle, and as the first rays of dawn pierced the clouds, a miracle occurred—a fluorescent blue light seeped from the gaps in the armor worn inside out by the fallen soldiers, transforming into countless arrows of light that pierced the eyes of the Turkic warhorses. The frenzied mounts flung their riders into the Yellow River, and countless wolf-head patterned iron armor floated on the turbid waves.
Inside the East Turkestan camp, the situation was equally volatile. The old wolf king of East Turkestan kicked over a gilded brazier, staring at the purple robe twisting in the firelight. For twenty years, this humiliating Tang-style official robe had remained a venomous snake coiling around him. Suddenly, the Western Turkic incantations on the hem of the robe began to move, casting a terrifying shadow on the tent curtains.
"Khan, the person has been brought." The guards escorted a young girl wearing a multi-layered, flowing scarlet pomegranate-red dress.
The old wolf king grinned maliciously and tore open the girl's clothes, only to see a Mohe bronze mirror from the era of the Empress wrapped around her waist. "Mei Xiaosi?" His pupils shrank sharply, and the mirror reflected his back—countless blood-stained threads crawled out from the collar of his purple robe, strangling the necks of the twelve generals.
"Does Your Majesty recognize this?" Xiao Si chuckled, and pearls from her hair fell in a flurry, forming a map of the ancient Yinshan Road on the ground.
Suddenly, the mournful neighing of warhorses echoed outside the tent. The horses, plundered from the Great Cage Kingdom, their eyes gleaming blue, were digging at the frozen prophetic stone pillar with their hooves. Unexpectedly, this Qiu Rongmu was none other than the key figure from before, now transformed into the new Wolf King of the Turks. The reason for this was unknown to anyone except Xiao Si.
The instant the Yellow River ice shattered, Qiu Rongmu's arrow pierced the old wolf king's heart. The dying wolf king witnessed an unbelievable sight—seven or eight cities on the opposite bank collapsed with a deafening roar, their bricks and stones reforming in the smoke into blood-red characters a hundred meters high: "Those who perish in a woman's clothes are not ordained by Heaven, but bring it upon themselves!"
Suddenly, Sanlang Zian, standing atop Chang'an city wall, felt a pang of anxiety. The "Twelve Strategies of Yinshan" in his hand moved on its own without any wind. A wisp of silver thread drifted down from the yellowed pages—it was the bowstring that had snapped when Xiao Si shot the arrow.
A deafening explosion echoed from the cellar of the Honglu Temple, and the long-sealed Tangli Secret Treasury was suddenly opened. The phantom of the former empress stepped on the scattered fragments of luminous pearls and pressed the blood-stained compass into the "Picture of Feudal Ministers Paying Tribute".
"Your Majesty, news of victory from the northern desert!" The eunuch's shrill voice pierced the dawn. Sanlang Zian looked towards the northern horizon, where shooting stars were falling like tears—at that very moment, the afterimage of the Wolf King tearing up the marriage edict was reflected in the burning brazier.
As the smoke of battle dissipated, Qiu Rongmu trod across the battlefield, frozen with blood, the bronze mirror at his waist still scorching hot. In the mirror appeared the silhouette of Xiao Si, brush in hand, painting a picture of rainbow-colored garments. In the distance, surviving shepherds began to sing new songs, their melody intricately echoing the war songs sung during the Empress's conquests.
The Shu brocade that had been plundered by Xiadan turned into fiery butterflies in the ashes, chasing the direction in which the remnants of the East Turkestan army fled, burning the sky into a scarlet wedding gown...
And the little ox, who had been carefully raised by the Jiang family to raise tiger bones, seemed to have its fate subtly intertwined with all of this amidst the changing times, though it remained to be seen where its future would lead...