Cyber Daming

When the first drop of cold winter rain fell from the sky, Chengdu Prefecture, located in the southwest of the Ming Empire, finally began to wake up.

The lights gradually brightened under the night sky, but they were no longer as dazzling as they were in the past.

In the sparse projections, the Taoist priest of Qingcheng Mountain, who was once as huge as a Dharma image, disappeared.

Even the advertisements put out by the Jiaofangsi were dressed properly, behaved dignifiedly, and had no charming expressions.

"The cost of night jasmine is 10,000 for native and 3,000 for bionic. A dream of yellow millet only requires 100 Ming treasure notes."

The slogan floating next to the new courtesan not only increased in price, but even the huge word "play" that impressed Li Jun the most in his memory became very small, and it was not clear at all if he didn't look carefully.

Chengdu Prefecture is still Chengdu Prefecture, but it has changed from heavy makeup to light and elegant.

On the street, dense umbrellas formed a flowing river. Li Jun was in it, looking up at the familiar yet unfamiliar scene in front of him.

Three days ago, after a long talk with Zhao Qingxia, Li Jun left the Eastern Branch in Shandong Prefecture after he was sure that he would not gain anything if he continued to retreat.

Zou Sijiu, who had been restless for a long time, insisted on going with him when he heard that he was going to Chengdu Prefecture, saying that he wanted to see the place where Li Gejun had started his career.

"Old Li, is this the Ji'e District you mentioned before? It's not as chaotic as you said."

Zou Sijiu looked around curiously, and saw a prosperous and peaceful scene. Fully armed Tianfu guards could be seen everywhere in the streets and alleys, holding guns and knives, and vigilantly scanning the passers-by.

"It was not like this when I was there."

Li Jun replied casually and walked ahead.

The three main streets in Ji'e District are still the "two horizontal and one vertical" pattern of the past, with Ghost Street as the vertical, and Sinner Street and Kowloon Street as the horizontal. In addition, there are many small side streets.

Li Jun led Zou Sijiu through the streets, gradually moving away from the orderly main road.

As the figures of the Tianfu guards disappeared, the familiar "bustle" of Li Jun finally reappeared.

Without the bright neon signs, the dim alleys were crowded with vendors, and the crowded crowd could almost be described as water could not be poured in.

However, this obviously did not cause any obstacles to Li Jun and Zou Sijiu. Wherever they went, the crowd naturally made way.

Zou Sijiu, who came to Ghost Street for the first time, kept looking at the various goods piled up on the ground, and his mouth made a sound of "tsk tsk".

Common contraband such as mechanical prostheses and brain machines naturally need not be said much. What really surprised him was the large number of wisdom roots and Tao foundations. Not only were the prices surprisingly cheap, but the quality was generally very good. It was obvious that they were not inferior goods that could be imitated by small temples and small temples.

In the past, this level of Tao foundation and wisdom roots would never appear in such places, and could only be seen in the hands of some powerful black market merchants.

Moreover, the entire transaction process will be very secretive, so as not to be discovered by the mountain gate and temple to which the "goods" belong, thereby causing unnecessary trouble. It will not be soaked in the jar casually like now, and be picked by people like cabbage.

In addition, Zou Sijiu also saw a lot of stacked six-art chips and military sequence mechanical hearts thrown in freezer boxes.

The quality of these things is slightly worse than that of Buddhism and Taoism, but the price is also far lower than Zou Sijiu's impression. They are no longer the scarce and expensive precious resources of the past. Ordinary people can get a good foundation for entering the sequence by gritting their teeth and taking out their savings for a few years.

This scene gave Zou Sijiu the feeling that the sequence in Chengdu Prefecture is no longer something high and untouchable, but ordinary people can touch and reach it by tiptoeing.

"Damn it, where did these dealers get so many good things?"

Unlike Zou Sijiu's surprise, Li Jun frowned and looked quite solemn.

As a muddy brother in Chengdu Prefecture, he naturally knew these things on the street very well.

In his eyes, these Dao Foundations, Wisdom Roots, Six Arts Chips, and Military Sequences and Mechanical Hearts on the street stalls were fresh corpses.

The fact that the black market prices could be pushed down to such a low point proved that many people in these sequences must have died during this period.

Moreover, what was in front of him was only the tip of the iceberg of the black market transactions in the entire southwest region. A single leaf could tell the coming of autumn. The conflicts in the entire empire were probably far more intense than he had imagined.

In addition, Li Jun also found something unusual. The desire to buy of the customers around him was not very strong.

The whole long alley was obviously crowded with people, but most of them seemed to just come to join in the fun. They squatted down to look through and pick up things, and got up and left before the stall owner quoted the price.

It seemed that in the eyes of these people, entering the sequence now was not a good thing.

"Boss, boss, please stay."

A vendor suddenly jumped up, ignoring Li Jun in a tight suit, and stood in front of Zou Sijiu in a suit and leather shoes. He bowed and smiled flatteringly: "If I am not mistaken, boss, this should be your first time to the chicken and goose area, right?"

Zou Sijiu glanced at Li Jun, cleared his throat and said: "How did you see that?"

"People who do business here rely on this pair of eyes. Although my eyesight is not good here, I am a famous honest man and blind, but I can't stand your extraordinary temperament, just like Haoyu in the fireflies, which is incompatible with the ghost street. I can't see it clearly."

"This mouth really speaks."

Zou Sijiu laughed and asked: "Then what do you mean by stopping me?

"Looking at your dress, boss, it's no surprise that you just came back from those barbarian lands, right?"

Zou Sijiu lowered his head and looked at his clothes, and said "hmm" in a neutral tone.

"Those places are a bit backward, but I heard that there is gold everywhere. When I see that you are one of those people who have connections and have made a lot of money from Fanzi, you are so noble, tsk tsk, it's really impressive. !”

The sly-eyed vendor continued to praise Zou Sijiu at all costs.

"What exactly do you want to say?"

"I want to say that although there are many opportunities to make money in Fanbang, after all, they are dangerous places where evil spirits are rampant, and it is not easy to make money."

The vendor said with a humble attitude: "Sir, if you are interested, the little man's stall has everything you need. It is absolutely high-quality and low-priced. I guarantee that every penny you spend will be worth it."

"So that's what you meant."

Zou Sijiu pretended to be stunned and raised his hand to point to the surrounding stalls: "But I think the things these people sell are pretty good and the prices are not expensive. Why should I buy them from you?"

"You don't know this. The things they sell would have been rare and sought-after goods a few years ago. But the world is different now. The things you see are only sold to flat heads. How can the rags of ordinary people be worthy of your status as a boss? "

"Is it just this or is it junk?"

Zou Sijiu blurted out in surprise, and the shock on his face was vividly interpreted.

"Sir, you must have just returned to the empire. It seems that you don't understand the current situation in the empire."

The vendor lowered his voice: "The current world is not peaceful. First, our empire's chief minister Zhang announced the numerous crimes committed in Longhu Mountain and asked the contemporary Zhang Tianshi to come to Beijing to plead guilty. As a result, this man turned around and declared that he was the great protector of the country and would uphold the legacy of the late emperor. , Qing Jun sided with the slanderous ministers. The two families were at odds with each other. They had been scolding each other for a while, and finally they had completely lost their skin and started to confront each other head on! "

"Isn't it normal for these two families to be noisy? I often heard about this kind of thing when I left the empire, but I didn't see any of them actually taking action?"

Zou Sijiu's eyes were full of innocence, pretending not to see the disdain and contempt flashing in the street vendor's eyes.

"Today is different from the past. This time we are serious about it."

The vendor explained: "You know Qingcheng Mountain in Chengdu Prefecture, right? It is a powerful Taoist force listed as 'Four Mountains and One Palace'. It dominates the southwestern part of the empire. Even officials from various prefectures and counties have to look at these Taoist masters." Face survives. But not long ago, Qingcheng Mountain suddenly announced that it would move the mountain gate and called on all its disciples and believers to go to Longhu Mountain. "

"Relocation? How is it possible?"

Zou Sijiu's heart moved, and he sneered on his face: "Qingcheng Mountain has been rooted in the southwest of the empire for hundreds of thousands of years. You don't want to give up the territory, and you still want to go to Longhu Mountain to make a living?"

"We don't believe it either, but it is the truth."

The vendor said: "And on the day of Qingcheng Mountain's move, the villain happened to be dreaming at home. Before he could take off his pants, he suddenly felt the ground shaking and quickly ran out the door using his hands and feet. You guess what happened? What?"

"The earth dragon turned over?"

"no."

The vendor said with fear in his eyes: "It was noon at that time, and the bright and sunny day suddenly turned into a dark sky. The stars were so bright that they were dazzling, and the thunder fell like rain, and they struck towards the boundary of Qingcheng Mountain. . It lasted for maybe two or three hours before the sky became bright again. "

"It is said that Qingcheng Mountain was besieged that day. Even the top of the mountain was shaved off several inches by lightning. Not to mention the dead people. They were spread all the way from the foot of the mountain to the top of the mountain. There were corpses everywhere. It was too horrible to see."

The vendor pointed vaguely at the goods on the stall next to him: "The things you see now are all ripped off from dead people. Otherwise, how could they be in such large quantities and at such low prices? It's just that they came from a wrong place and were unlucky. It’s very good. If you use it on yourself, you will have bad luck.”

Zou Sijiu curled his lips and covered his mouth and nose in disgust, as if he smelled the choking smell of blood.

"So I have the guts to stop you today because I can't bear to see you being cheated. You don't know, these dealers in the ghost street are all vicious and cruel, and they like to deceive wealthy bosses from other places like you who don't know the situation. I just want to It’s different. If you really want to buy it, I still have some good stuff at the bottom of the box. It’s absolutely clean and the price is good. I guarantee you’ll be satisfied.”

The vendor looked around cautiously and laughed in a low voice: "And it is convenient for the villain to settle here. It accepts the imperial court's treasure notes and the immortal yuan from Longhu Mountain. Even Honghu's Chu coupons are fine, but there is a small discount. The price difference is mainly based on your convenience, it doesn’t matter to you.”

Only then did Zou Sijiu's face show a belated warning: "Why should I trust you?"

"You are so sincere and blind, you can't deceive anyone at all."

The vendor quickly put on a sincere smile and blinked his eyes: "Look at how blind and innocent my eyes are. If my elders hadn't always taught villains to do business based on integrity, how could I possibly follow Sir, did you reveal so much information?”

"That's true."

Zou Sijiu and Li Jun looked at each other and continued to ask: "Then do you know who surrounded Qingcheng Mountain?"

"This little guy doesn't know."

The vendor rubbed his hands: "And this is not something we should care about. The key now is that you buy the goods sincerely and the villain sells the goods sincerely, don't you think so?"

"Ah, that's okay."

Zou Sijiu took out a crumpled treasure note from his trouser pocket and handed it to the other party.

"The news you're selling is good, take it."

"Boss, what do you mean?"

The smile on the corner of the vendor's mouth suddenly solidified, "What this villain is selling isn't news, and it's only for such a small amount of money."

"It's too little, but that's all I really have."

Zou Sijiu tilted his head and said with a smile: "Otherwise, how about I give you two nights of sweet dreams and we all get even?"

"Send Meng, who do you think you are, Duke Zhou?"

The vendor spat disdainfully, and the narrow looks from his colleagues around him made him feel even more shameless.

"I thought I was catching a fat sheep, but it turned out to be a fucking naked ass covered in barbarian skin. I was embarrassed in vain."

"I am so handsome that I am different. Your child is just a country bumpkin who only knows how to hammer."

Zou Sijiu's eyes squinted. He had stayed in Chongqing Mansion for several years, and he spoke with a standard Sichuan accent.

"Hey, I didn't expect him to be a local kid."

The vendor laughed angrily: "I'm telling you clearly that you will be in big trouble today. Either you give me all the money you have, or I will personally send you, a bastard, back to your poor place to live with those Kunlun people." Go pick cotton like a slave!”

"Old Li, you fellow countrymen are so dirty when you curse others."

Zou Sijiu turned to look at Li Jun, and the vendor also followed his gaze.

"Who are you?"

The vendor looked up and down Li Jun's clothes, "Xiao, do you know what kind of place this is? I advise you, you kid, it's best not to show off, and get out of here if you know how to do it!"

Li Jun glanced at the crowd gathered around him, his eyes full of nostalgia, and said with a faint smile: "It seems that the ghost street is still the same ghost street I am familiar with."

"You're pretending."

The vendor's eyes widened, and before he could finish his scolding words, he suddenly felt a terrifying aura like a scourge.

In an instant, the entire alleyway was filled with people kneeling with liver and gallbladder splitting.

Chengdu Prefecture, magistrate's office.

The square table that used to be placed in the courtyard was moved under the eaves. The rain hit the green tiles and water fell along the eaves.

The soup is boiling in a copper pot, and the aroma is overflowing.

Pei Xingjian, who was alone, sat on a bench, facing the open main entrance of the government office, with his hands in the sleeves of his robe, his eyes slightly closed, as if he was falling asleep.

"Eating hot pot again? Master Pei, aren't you tired of it?"

"It's good to have something to eat. You've only had a few good days, so you've chosen it now?"

Pei Xingjian slowly raised his head and looked at Li Jun and Zou Sijiu who were striding through the door. His eyes were calm, as if he was waiting for them.

Li Jun took his seat generously, and was not surprised at all that he had not contacted him in advance, but the other party seemed to have known about his arrival in the city for a long time.

If he didn't have this ability, then it wasn't Qingchengshan who moved, but Pei Xingjian.

"It's a rare time when I come back. Instead of coming directly to the government office to see me, why are you bullying those miserable black marketeers?"

"I didn't bully them. To be precise, we are the victims."

While the two were talking, Zou Sijiu was not polite, picked up his chopsticks, and began to eat happily.

Pei Xingjian glanced at the rapidly dwindling dishes on the table, frowned and said, "Should we eat first or talk first?"

"He eats and we talk."

Li Jun smiled and said: "But if Mr. Pei feels distressed, we can eat and talk later."

"Forget it, the host does as he pleases, you have the final say."

Pei Xingjian sighed, seemingly casually taking a plate of fresh tripe away from Zou Sijiu, and placed three wine cups in the vacated space.

"Li Jun, you took the initiative to come to our door this time. Is there anything you want to talk to me about?"

Li Jun got straight to the point: "I want to know what Zhang Shoufu is going to do next?"

Pei Xingjian's hand that was pouring wine suddenly paused, and a few drops spilled out of the cup along the sloping water line.

"It's rare that you actually take the initiative to care about such a thing?"

"It's impossible to stay out of the situation anyway, so instead of waiting to be dragged into the water, it's better to make plans in advance."

Li Jun picked up the wine cups and placed them in front of the three of them, while speaking.

"That's right, but you shouldn't ask me what you said. Zhang Fengyue and I have never dealt with each other. Don't you know?"

Li Jun picked up the wine cup and drank it all, "Of course I know. I thought the same thing before entering the city, so I originally planned to come here to have a meal and see if there is anything I can do to help Mr. Pei and repay my kindness. . But after hearing the news about the evacuation of Qingcheng Mountain, I suddenly didn’t feel that way.”

"What happened in Qingcheng Mountain has nothing to do with me. I'm a gentleman who studies etiquette, but I can't beat Liang Gongming's awesome nose."

"That's the truth, but in this case, Mr. Pei, it should be relevant if you can continue to be in charge of Chengdu Mansion."

Pei Xingjian looked at Li Jun sitting across from him and suddenly smiled: "When did you, a martial artist, start playing with your brain?"

"It's cooked, you have to eat this first."

Zou Sijiu's voice suddenly interrupted, and he picked up the pig brains from the bottom of the pot with a colander.

"Otherwise, it won't taste good if it gets cooked later."

The words suddenly stopped and Pei Xingjian looked at the two of them with interest.

"Wouldn't it be better to stay in the East Courtyard and watch the show? With your current strength, if you are really determined not to get involved, who can pull you?"

"Mr. Pei, you should know my style of doing things. I can't even eat if I don't get my revenge."

Li Jun smiled and said, "I came here this time just to know. Are you cooking a pot of pig brains, or are you really planning to eat dragon liver and tiger meat?"