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Volume One One Hundred and Seventy-One Sacrifice to Souls

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    One hundred and seventy-one Sacrifice to the Soul

    "Sir, the waiters and cashiers all said that they saw Shentu Jue in the pawn shop."

    Meng Ju had expected this news, and he was not surprised: "Well, what should I say?"

    "We showed them Shentu Jue's portrait. Everyone said that this man often went to Yuelai Inn. They didn't know his identity or name, but he looked quite fierce. They had never dealt with him - others  Yes, they can¡¯t say anything. The only one who knows the inside story is Zheng Liu.¡±

    "Have you found out Zheng Liu's origin and identity? He is so arrogant, he must have someone to rely on, right?"

    "We are investigating. He is probably a secret agent planted in Jing'an. However, Yuelai Pawnshop has been an old shop for many years. Zheng Liu is also a well-known businessman in Jing'an. Why did he end up working there?  It¡¯s a hidden thread, which is strange.¡±

    Meng Ju thought to himself that this was normal. How could an ordinary businessman dare to be so arrogant?  The General of the Six Towns was famous in northern Xinjiang. Zheng Liu leaned against this big tree. He must have felt that there was no more fear in the world, and he did not take the local Dongling Guards seriously.  Unfortunately, he met himself - he even dared to lose face to Tuoba Xiong, and it was even easier to deal with such a profiteer and dishonest person like a shrimp.

    Because he still had to attend the memorial ceremony, Meng Ju stood up and said, "Okay, let's lock him up first and ask questions later to see if Tuoba Xiong has any other secrets here. You guys, all come with me to attend the memorial ceremony."  Bar."

    When Meng Ju walked out of the courtyard where he lived, the sky was covered with dark clouds and dense light snow fell continuously.

    Ouyang Hui and several officers from the provincial department were already waiting outside the courtyard gate.  The officers are all dressed in the same uniform, with pure black uniforms and cloaks, and white cloth belts on their arms.

    Seeing Meng Ju wearing a black military uniform, Ouyang Hui silently handed him a white paper flower, and Meng Ju took it and put it on his chest.  There were only a dozen or so officers scattered around, and everyone looked a little heavy. In the desolate snow, the atmosphere was solemn, and several carriages were parked outside the gate of the mausoleum.

    In this kind of situation, there is no need to say too much. Meng Ju nodded to everyone: "Let's go."

    Everyone got on the bus one after another, and the motorcade drove all the way out of the city.

    The military tomb area is located in the western suburbs of Jingan City. It is a stretch of rolling hills covered with white snow, with neatly arranged tombs one after another as far as the eye can see.  A few dead trees with fallen leaves stood alone in the vast cemetery, and a flock of flying crows made a harsh cry of "yaaaa".

    Meng Ju walked around the tomb area. Most of the tombs were just simple stone tablets with names and dates of death written on them. Many of the tombs did not even have tombstones, and the soldiers who died in the battle did not even leave their names.  , among the yellow sand and grass, many graves have been abandoned by weeds.

    Those buried here are all soldiers who died in the war in Dongping Province over the past hundreds of years.  Although from a standpoint, they were officers and soldiers of the Northern Wei Dynasty, and he was a Chinese officer of the Southern Dynasty, they were enemies on opposite sides.  But thinking about these hundreds of years, in order to resist the invasion of the northern barbarians and defend their homeland, I don¡¯t know how many passionate men were buried here, and there were even more people who wrapped their bodies in vests and threw their bones into the wilderness.  Standing on the edge of the endless cemetery, Meng Ju couldn't help but feel emotional.

    Officers from the Provincial Department and Jing'an Department were already waiting in line in front of the cemetery. People from Jing'an officials and the military also came, including Yuan Yikang, the governor of Dongping, and Ma Zhiren, the prefect of Jing'an.  Many families of fallen officers and soldiers came. A group of old men and women held their children and cried, their cries revealing desolation.

    Meng Ju walked over and said hello to Yuan Yikang.  Because of the special occasion, neither party said a word, just nodded.

    It's three o'clock in the morning, and the time has come.  Meng Ju walked up to the temporary high platform and read out the memorial speech to the officers and people in the audience as the governor of Dongling Guard. Meng Ju originally wanted to make a passionate and touching speech, and there were countless model essays in later generations.  available for him to plagiarize.  He spent a full two hours writing an emotional speech that was both impassioned and tear-jerking. He felt perfect.  But when he read it to everyone, although Ouyang Hui and others were also very moved, everyone felt that this memorial text was not good.

    "Sir, we can all understand the memorial text you wrote! Doesn't this seem a little wrong?"

    Meng Ju is very confused. Isn¡¯t it the right thing for everyone to understand the speech?

    The officers shook their heads repeatedly. They said that offering sacrifices was a very mysterious and unpredictable activity.  We have attended many funerals and funeral ceremonies, and we have never been able to understand the memorial text. Every time we listened to the memorial text, we could fall asleep while standing - that is a truly learned article!  Governor Meng, this article of yours is very touching and inspiring, but it is all in vernacular. If you tell it, people will probably laugh at us, Dongling Guards, for our lack of knowledge, right?

    Everybody knows that Meng Ju was a scholar.Although I was young, seeing him writing such vernacular articles, I thought that the governor's reputation as a scholar was probably bought.  The subordinates did not dare to speak directly, but just said vaguely: "My lord, you have many things to do every day, and there are so many big things to worry about. It is better to leave this small matter to the master, and your lord can take care of it."

    So now, Governor Meng is standing on the high platform, reading the memorial text compiled by his master. The memorial text begins: "In the ninth year of Wei Taichang, in the first month of the year, so-and-so would like to use the ritual of virtuous birds and wine to pay tribute to  Sacrifice to the spirits of the ancestors, I say: Alas" The article was eloquent, and Meng Ju read it for a full quarter of an hour, and his mouth went dry before he came to the end: "Fu Wei is still enjoying it." - As for the article  What was the content about? Although Governor Meng¡¯s reputation as a scholar was not bought, he really didn¡¯t understand. He didn¡¯t even know whether he had read the rare words in the article correctly - but he looked at the blank expressions of his subordinates.  , it is estimated that not many people understand it.

    After putting down the memorial text, Meng Ju briefly talked a few words, saying that we are gathered here today just to commemorate our comrades and companions.  In the battle of Jing'an, 821 officers and soldiers of the Dongling Guards died. They were all good men, husbands of their wives at home, children of their parents, and our good brothers.  In order to defend Jing'an and defend this city, they fought bravely and died heroically. We will miss them forever.

    For the families of our fallen brothers, we must carry forward our comradeship and help and take care of them.  The pension subsidy from the Mausoleum Office has been approved. No one will be allowed to withhold or embezzle this subsidy. Anyone who dares to withhold it midway will have his head taken away by the Provincial Office.  Aventurine Guards will not abandon loyal warriors, nor will they let their families starve.  If any of the bereaved family members have any difficulties in their lives, you can also raise them with the Mausoleum Office, and the Tomb Office will try its best to solve them. Please rest assured.

    When Meng Ju spoke, the venue where nearly Qianling Guards officers and soldiers gathered was silent, and countless shining eyes stared at him.

    In the eyes of the lower-level Ling Guard officers and soldiers, whoever becomes the town governor is the same to them. No matter the town governor¡¯s surname is Huo, Ye or Meng, everyone¡¯s salary is the same.  Therefore, everyone had a very indifferent attitude towards Meng Ju's arrival.

    But now it seems that the new Governor Meng is really a little different!

    When the previous governor took office, he always talked about the kindness of the emperor and the court - who cares about what happened to the emperor and the court?  Although Meng Ju's words were superficial and contained little academic knowledge, they were all on point and everyone listened attentively.

    It has always been the custom at the border that the lives of low-level soldiers are almost like consumables.  It was common for soldiers to die in battle and their pensions to be withheld by officers.  It¡¯s not that the higher-ups don¡¯t know about this kind of thing, but it¡¯s a common phenomenon to withhold military pay. It¡¯s not just one or two officers who do it, but almost all officers do it. It¡¯s become an unspoken rule. There¡¯s no point in offending the entire army for a dead man.  class.

    Unexpectedly, the new town governor mentioned this matter as soon as he arrived.  The officers and soldiers all felt that Governor Meng was quite good.  Regardless of whether he can do it or not, at least he can see these injustices and speak for the brothers below, which is very rare.  Unknowingly, in the eyes of the soldiers, Governor Meng's image became more friendly.

    After Meng Ju finished reciting the sacrificial words, everyone went to Ye Jianan's tomb to lay flowers and offer sacrifices.  Led by Meng Ju, the officers of the Dongping Mausoleum Office present knelt down towards Ye Canan's tomb and vowed to avenge Governor Ye.

    Yuan Yikang and several officers from the governor's office also came over as representatives of the Dongping military and bowed to Ye Canan's tomb.

    There was nothing else to do next. Ouyang Hui invited a group of monks from Huade Temple outside the city to perform rituals in front of the cemetery to liberate the spirits.  Meng Ju originally thought that monks should solemnly recite the Ksitigarbha Sutra or the Diamond Sutra when practicing salvation. Unexpectedly, this group of skinny monks did not burn incense or recite sutras. They took out gongs and suonas, played and set off firecrackers.  There were also people performing juggling and chest-breaking stunts of boulders. The gongs and drums were so noisy that they scared away the crows in the distance. If it weren't for the scars on their bald heads, Meng Ju would have thought they were a vaudeville troupe.  .

    Amid the roaring din of gongs and drums, the atmosphere became much more relaxed. The officers began to chat in low voices, and the provincial inspectors all gathered around Meng Ju to chat and flatter him.

    The officers praised: "Masters, you really worked hard today, it was even more lively than the last time the Wang family did nothing!"

    "That's natural. We are Lingwei. No matter how rich the Wang family is, how can they compare with us? The mayor has already come forward in person, so the master of Huade Temple will naturally show off his real skills - look, that shirtless one  The master is about to breathe fire, it¡¯s very powerful!¡±

    Listening to everyone¡¯s discussion, Meng Ju really couldn¡¯t laugh or cry.  At this time, an officer squeezed into the crowd, handed Meng Ju a sealed official letter, and breathed heavily and reported: "Sir, I just received the urgent order of 200 miles from the General Administration. Please check it."

    ?Meng Ju opened the document and read it hastily. Then, he looked at the officer thoughtfully. Ouyang Hui quickly said: "This is the officer on duty who stayed behind today - Sir, what did the General Administration say?"

    "There's nothing wrong with us." Meng Ju shook his head.  Looking at the hustle and bustle in front of him, his eyes were a little confused: "The General Administration said that the army of the Southern Tang Dynasty has begun the Northern Expedition."
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