The winter rain is falling, and there are bursts of rain and mist in the Yuque City, which are ever-changing, turning the Yuque Mountain into a gray and dignified place, making the whole Yuque City vaguely blurred, looming in the smoke, like a fairyland.

Under the sound of raindrops piercing the stones, everything in the city seemed so quiet.

In five years, Yuque City has expanded a lot, becoming the largest city in Xuanyan Continent, and there is no one.

From the foot of the mountain to the top of the inner city, there are no grass huts and shacks now, and the buildings are all two- to three-story blue brick and tile buildings built against the mountain.

Between the murmuring of the stream, the green trees are green, and the eaves and corners loom in the mist, just like Qionglou Yuyu.

All the roads around the mountain have also been converted into avenues paved with large bluestone slabs, about a few feet wide, and eight horses can run side by side without feeling crowded.

At the foot of the hill, the outer city stretches out in all directions, and there are also high-rise mansions, and you can see deep mansion compounds made of huge stones everywhere and spectacular four-fold horse-head walls, standing on both sides of the criss-crossing street.

Five miles away from the foot of the mountain, a wide dozens of zhang, all made of granite tamping, showing an octagonal huge city wall rises from the ground, like a giant dragon crawling on the ground, stretching for hundreds of miles. Ring the entire Jade Que City in it.

Above the eight directions, there is an arched city gate full of brass door nails, and there are urn cities outside the door, and there are many stone towers up to dozens of zhang on the wall.

With the addition of the magic circle set up by the ancient gods in the Yuque Palace, the current Yuque City is indestructible.

At the bottom of the sinkhole, in the calm and atmospheric Yuque Palace, the ancient god sculptures on the eaves and tiles fly together in the Tianyang Palace, and the changes are not small.

In the middle of the main hall, a new square table with a diameter of two zhang and a total of 32 legs to support the heavy table top was installed, which took up one-third of the floor in the hall.

A huge sand table connected by mountains and rivers rises from the tabletop, presenting the landforms of the ten continents of the underworld vividly.

Around the table, there are sixteen nanmu chairs, two on the north side are painted with intricate carved patterns such as cloud dragons, painted with gold lacquer, and on the left and right armrests, the throne of the statue of Nuwa Fuxi is carved with her head held high. On the opposite side of the south side, there are two chairs on the back of the chair with a cloud cloud pattern as the shape, the cloud head Ganoderma lucidum pattern is carved inside, the central circle scene is inlaid with marble, and the round frame is equipped with a symmetrical cloud head Ganoderma lucidum Taishi chair.

There are six four-headed hat chairs with heads poking out of their heads and armrests on the left and right.

At this moment, the people sitting at this table are all important ministers beside Xiao Shizhu, and on the left and right are Lu Wu, Chunyun, Lin Cong and Yingzhao who came from Shuoyue Island, as well as Changya, Gonggong, Qinyuan and Hu Hui who rushed back from the southern border.

As for those sitting in the south, it was Wu Qiu Shou and the national teacher Yingying.

This is the Inner Dynasty Cabinet Department established by Xiao Shizhu five years ago, which is mainly responsible for handling all military operations in the DPRK and China, and the selection of ghosts.

In order to avoid the court's officials from interfering blindly in the use of foreign troops and judging the court. So that all the military operations of the Nine Shadows Kingdom can be carried out without hindrance.

Since then, every winter, the ministers of the Cabinet who have been scattered throughout the country gather here for a general meeting.

The generals and ministers sat around the table drinking tea, sometimes whispering about something, but Yingying was very unsociable, and had just bowed her head to taste tea, silently waiting for Xiao Shizhu's arrival.

After a long time, Xiao Shizhu and the ghost mother walked in with Qinglan and Chenruo.

The ministers got up one after another, and just as they were about to salute, they saw Xiao Shizhu waving his hand and said with a smile: "Okay, okay, those etiquettes will be waived." ”。

After he and the ghost mother reached the throne in the north, they looked around at the ghosts for a moment, then looked at the empty chairs on the left and right, and said, "Today we are going to join a member, the new Yuque City Mansion Yin. ”。

The ghosts who had already quieted down were in a commotion again, and they all whispered about who this capital city would be?

Xiao Shizhu gently stroked his palms twice and said, "Yin Jiang Ziwen of the Newcomer's Mansion was the King of Qin Guang of the Emperor of Xudu. ”。 After finishing speaking, the ghosts were stunned, and Jiang Ziwen slowly walked in from outside the palace.

"Sit down, don't be polite. Xiao Shizhu didn't wait for him to salute, so he invited him to take a seat first.

At the same time, Qinglan and Chen Ruo walked out of the hall, and after closing the door of the hall together, they guarded outside the hall with Fan Jinhong and the guards of the forbidden army.

When Jiang Ziwen took a seat, he saw Lin Cong opposite, and he was startled, and suspicion came to his eyes.

At the same time, Ying Zhao stood up, glared at him angrily, and said in a deep voice: "Big brother, this ghost is a loyal lackey of Emperor Xudu, how can he let him have such a solemn meeting in our country?".

As soon as this remark came out, it was immediately approved by most of the ghosts present, including the co-workers Lu Wu and Qin Yuan, as well as the co-workers, all of whom shouted for a while, which made Jiang Ziwen's face sink.

"Stop. Just as Jiang Ziwen was about to open his mouth to argue for himself, Xiao Shizhu scolded, and the ghosts immediately shut up.

"Do you know who has been conscientiously using false information to deceive Emperor Xudu in the past five years, and in exchange for military expenses for us, ghost slaves?" Xiao Shizhu looked at them, and his eyes finally fell on Yingzhao's face who shook his head suddenly, and then pointed at Jiang Ziwen and said sharply: "It is this King Qin Guang back then. ”。

"Ying Zhao, can't you trust him, can't you still trust your eldest brother?" The ghost mother took over and asked a rhetorical question, after Ling Ying Zhao was speechless, she said again: "Your eldest brother can arrange for him to be the Yin of Yuque City Mansion and enter the cabinet to participate in major domestic decisions, precisely because Jiang Ziwen is credible." ”。

Ying Zhao didn't say anything more, nodded, and said "No".

"Okay, let's not talk about the past. Xiao Shizhu smiled, and when he saw Jiang Ziwen looking at Lin Cong with a puzzled gaze, he explained: "Lin Cong, the secret agent I arranged in the Mo family is also your former subordinate. ”。

Later, he was recognized by Mo Zhai and escaped back, and now he is mainly responsible for my country's secret agent work. Now all the information of Du Ziren in the south comes from him. Xiao Shizhu made up a lie to confuse the past, and there was not much time to mention that Mo Zhai was dead.

I thought it was Jiang Ziwen who was mixed up in the Nine Shadows Kingdom, so I put away my suspicions, smiled at Lin Cong and bowed slightly, which was considered a salute. Lin Cong is the same, which can be regarded as a return gift.

"The first thing to do this is to discuss and solve the hidden dangers in the south. Xiao Shizhu got up with a slender bamboo stick, and after pointing to Du Ziren's territory on the sand table, he said excitedly: "We are going to war, the purpose is this southern soil emperor!"

"The King. As soon as his words landed, Wu Qiushou had already stood up and bowed his hand: "Five years ago, my country signed a ten-year peace treaty with Du Ziren, although there are often small frictions on the border between the two countries in recent years, but it is very inappropriate to tear up the treaty rashly and invade on a large scale!"

"I don't want to do that either. In the past five years, our country has been able to develop entirely by not having a large-scale war; Xiao Shizhu took out a note from his sleeve and handed it to him to circulate it, and continued: "The secret report from Xudu, if we don't do it again within half a year, Emperor Xudu will send troops to conscript our country on the charge of colluding with the anti-thieves. ”。

After the ghosts circulated it one by one, except for Yingying, who had always looked indifferent, they were all shocked.

In the past five years, Xiao Shizhu has disobeyed Beiyin and Chaoyang, while signing a peace treaty with Du Ziren to recuperate. On the one hand, he complained bitterly to the Emperor Xudu, saying that he had no money, and that he had no weapons and ghosts to form an offensive army.

Coupled with Jiang Ziwen's cooperation with his deception, not only was the tribute of the Nine Shadows Kingdom to the imperial court halved, but the Emperor Xudu also had to allocate some silver to him from time to time.

Xiao Shizhu didn't move even after taking the money, and occasionally sent a small force to attack Du Ziren's border fortress and make a show.

Instead, he took the opportunity to let Changya and Chunhan send troops to destroy the Republic of China and Jiao Yu, who were good at archery. It not only pacified the hidden dangers in the southwest, but also made the longbow, short bow and fast bow and other archery skills that the people and Jiao Yu were proud of flow into the armies of the Nine Shadows Kingdom, improving the combat effectiveness of the Nine Shadows Army.

Originally, Emperor Xudu didn't fully believe him, and began to secretly recruit troops five years ago, specifically recruiting human souls who were about to be reincarnated into pigs and dogs to form a new army, in order to deal with Xiao Shizhu. In addition, Xiao Shizhu's duplicity in the past five years completely angered Emperor Xudu.

But Xiao Shizhu did not fight after all, and the suspicious Emperor Xudu still had a glimmer of hope, hoping that he would not move for a long time, but he was afraid that he would lose too much by fighting Du Ziren.

Therefore, it was planned that if Xiao Shizhu did not do anything within half a year, Emperor Xudu would send troops to destroy him.

It's just that I never thought that when Wu Qiushou went to Xudu for the first time, he secretly developed a ghost around the Emperor Xudu into the inner line of the Nine Shadows Kingdom. In recent years, most of the secrets of Emperor Xudu have not escaped Xiao Shizhu's eyes.

"As far as I know, no matter whether we fight Du Ziren or not, Emperor Xudu will soon send troops to destroy our country and return Xuanyanzhou to the imperial court. Xiao Shizhu pondered for a moment, stared at the mountains and rivers on the sand table, and frowned slightly: "It is better to sit and wait for death, it is better to take the initiative to attack and solve the hidden dangers in the south before the plan of the Emperor Xudu, lest the Xudu army attack, Du Ziren will break the contract, and my country will fall into the danger of being attacked from both sides." ”。

He smiled as soon as he said the word "realm", and at the same time, a dark shadow flickered in the shadow on the beam of the main hall, and with a cold cold light, it hit him overhead.

"So, it's better to do this sooner rather than later. Xiao Shizhu said, in the astonishment of the other ghosts except for Yingying's ghost mother, he calmly raised his hand and raised his index finger and middle finger, accurately clamping the cold light that quickly attacked with the black shadow.

"Dang!" A crisp sound came from his fingertips, and at the same time, the black shadow was startled, and his body was stunned in mid-air, and a harrier turned over sideways, landing steadily on the edge of the sand table.

In his hand, he held a broken sword with a smooth fracture, and the missing tip of the sword was sandwiched between Xiao Shizhu's two fingers.

"Xiao Fuling!" The ghost mother stood up suddenly, raised her eyebrows and scolded sharply: "You are messing around again!"