As soon as the words fell, Su Jiu's figure standing in the talisman shop flashed and disappeared, following Xu Dao.
When Chen Wan and the two Taoist boys in the store heard Xu Dao's words clearly, they finally recovered from their daze, and the expressions on their faces were even more shocked.
Especially Chen Wan. He looked at Xu Dao's back and hurriedly walked outside the store door. He bowed and shouted in an excited voice: "Master, walk slowly!"
Xu Dao waved his hand and did not reply. When Su Jiu rushed to his side, the two of them flashed and disappeared from the eyes of Chen Wan and others in an instant.
But after leaving the Talisman Shop, Xu Dao did not rush straight to East Street, but first rushed to the Demon Dance Hall on North Street.
He was cautious. Although he put down the harsh words, he was not in a hurry to take action immediately. At least he should first go and have a few chats with the people in the demon sect that he had made friends with to confirm what spells the demon envoy could use and what methods he had.
It’s better to have some confidence in your mind so as not to overturn the boat in the gutter.
The two masters and servants came to the Dang Yao Beitang. When entering, Xu Dao took out the certificate and swung it in front of the two stone lions at the gate. The deacon in the Bu Lao Hall entertained him.
, and walked out quickly.
"Hey! Rare guest, rare guest!" A white monk in a green Taoist robe came out from the back of the hall. He recognized Xu Dao's appearance and said with a surprised smile on his face:
"The two stone lions at the door said that a distinguished guest was coming to the door, but I didn't expect it to be Fellow Daoist Lu! I've seen it before, but the reception was not good enough. Come in quickly!"
Xu Dao looked at Bai Chongfeng up and down, and found that after not seeing him for more than a year, the aura on him was a little deeper, and he should have improved his cultivation.
So he beat his head and called out: "I haven't seen you for a year, and the power of worship has greatly increased!"
Hearing this, the smile on Bai Gongfang's face became even brighter. He stroked his goatee and said politely: "No, no, it's just that I've been practicing for a few more days, and my true energy has become stronger."
This person has just made a breakthrough recently, and is now beaming with flattery from Xu Dao.
The other party raised his eyes towards Xu Dao and found that Xu Dao's temperament was green and his complexion was crystal clear. After thinking about it for a while, he realized that Xu Dao's mana had increased a lot compared to how he saw Xu Dao a year ago.
Bai Gongfeng sighed: "My fellow Taoist has been in seclusion for so long, and it seems that his gains are much greater than those of a poor Taoist!"
Xu Dao did not cover up the progress in the immortal way, but directly exposed it to deceive others. He politely replied: "It's too much to pay tribute."
"Come, fellow Taoist Lu, please, you and I can come in and talk in detail for a long time."
After some courtesy and greetings, Xu Dao and Bai Chongfeng sat opposite each other in the inner courtyard of Dangyao Beitang. Su Jiu and a deacon stood beside them, acting as maids and servants.
After Xu Dao spoke a few words, he intentionally or unintentionally turned his attention to the demon envoy stationed in Jiangzhou. However, before he could ask what the other party's methods were, Bai Gongfeng's expression suddenly changed.
The other party had a thoughtful and tangled look on his face, but he hesitated to speak. Xu Dao saw this, raised his eyebrows slightly, and said tentatively: "Fellow Taoist, do you have something to say that is inconvenient to say?"
Bai Gongfeng sighed softly, put the tea cup in his hand on the table, and said: "In a few days, even if your Taoist friends don't come to see me, I will still visit you and disturb your Taoist monks' retreat."
"Since my fellow Taoist has left seclusion today, I will simply tell you."
When Xu Dao heard this, he felt even more confused. He held up his hands with a smile on his face and said, "If you have anything to say, Bai Chongfeng can just say it."
Bai Gongfeng raised the tea cup in his hand, raised it to the east, and said: "The demon envoy came to Jiangzhou. He first paid homage to the top of the mountain secretly and obtained the endorsement of the five Taoist priests. Last time, he invited all the heroes. In the later period of the city,
The Taoist disciples have not arrived except for their Taoist friends, which annoyed the demon envoy, and I thought that my Taoist friends might know something about it."
Xu Dao listened, took a sip of tea, nodded slightly, and returned calmly: "Pindao came here today, and he wanted to ask for some advice."
"Really?" Hearing this, Bai Gongfeng was startled. He clapped his hands and said with a sigh of relief: "In this case, there is still room for discussion."
"As the saying goes, the first thing a new official does when he takes office is that since he came to Jiangzhou, the first thing he did was change the rules of the demon hall in the city and step up the cleanup of nearby monsters and monsters. For more than a year,
In this time, it gave the people of Jiangcheng a sense of stability."
"The second priority is to rectify the business in the four ghost streets. We have established a lot of new rules and made the ghost market more lively."
At this point, Bai Gongfeng asked aloud: "What do fellow Taoists think of these two things?"
Xu Dao paused and then said: "Good thing. The first one is to stabilize the people and kill demons, which is a great merit. The second one is to stabilize the monks and combat the cunning and cunning, which is also a merit."
Bai Gongfeng listened, shook his head and said, "But the third thing may not be a good thing in the eyes of fellow Taoists."
"May I ask what the third item is?" Xu Dao raised his hand and asked for advice.
"Now the third fire is that the demon envoys want to collect taxes in the ghost market. All the shops in the four streets of east, west, north and south, in addition to the monthly rent, the monthly revenue should also be paid to the demon temple in a certain proportion.
, it’s called the ‘city fee’ and is used to reward the small and large servants in the Demon Dang Hall.”
Before Xu Dao could say anything, the other party continued.
"According to the instructions of the demon envoy, this is the customary practice of the ghost market in Wu State. Jiangcheng ghost market is remote and this practice has not been implemented in the past. Those who have not paid taxes in the past can forget it. They only need to make up for it since mid-July last year.
, that’s more than the last year’s taxes.”
"And the first shop designated by the Dang Yaosi to make up the money belongs to fellow Taoist."
A strange look appeared on Xu Daofu's face, and he chuckled and said: "What a coincidence, mid-July last year was the day when Pindaofu shop opened."
Bai Gongfeng heard this and took a deep look at Xu Dao.
Seeing the other party's expression, Xu Dao's chuckle turned into a sneer, and he said bluntly: "So it seems that the demon envoy is deliberately targeting Pindao by doing this?"
He sipped the tea and sighed: "It's true that his background is not small, but his temperament is small."
Bai Gongfeng coughed softly: "Yes or no, tax collection is indeed a common practice. The specific collection method is too complicated, so I won't explain it to Fellow Daoist Lu one by one."
Xu Dao snorted coldly: "There is a saying among mortals, 'The county magistrate who destroys the family, the magistrate who destroys the family', it is a rule, but if it falls on Pin Dao, I am afraid that Pin Dao will not be able to make up for the tax even if he sells the shop, and
If we don't make up for it, then the demon envoy will kill the poor man to scare the monkeys."
Seeing Xu Dao talking like this, Bai Chongfeng changed the subject and said, "It's not that there is no solution."
"As long as fellow Taoist Daoist admits his mistake to the Demon Envoy, the hall is currently short of manpower, and fellow Taoists take the initiative to join the hall. I think the Demon Dang Envoy will treat him lightly."
But when Xu Dao listened, the ridicule in his heart became even more intense.
In addition to leaving a mark of zhenqi when joining the Dang Yao Hall, naturally you can no longer take on tasks if you want to, and don't take on tasks if you don't want to. Instead, you have to obey the orders of the hall. From time to time, there will be
Mandatory tasks are issued and everyone in the hall is required to complete them.
If Xu Dao joins it, he will be the subordinate of the other party, not to mention whether the other party will directly trap him in the future, or make him exhausted, or arrange a dangerous task for him and force him to complete it.
If you disobey orders, the other party can order everyone in the hall to fight together without any impact.
If you become the subordinate of the other party, it is naturally your duty as a subordinate to be filial to your superior, and it is not impossible to entrust your wife and daughter to you.
In such a trap, if Xu Dao didn't have a trump card, he would only join in if he lost his mind.
But Xu Dao looked at the appearance of Bai Zong in front of him, his face remained calm, and he did not express his likes and dislikes in his heart.
If his guess is correct, after more than a year, the demon envoy should have almost controlled the forces in the hall, and his interests are intertwined, and he has become the person who truly controls the demon demon hall in Jiangcheng.
"First start by sending people to eliminate demons and drive the Taoists in the city, then start with the ghost market, control the Taoists in the city, provide rewards and punishments, and then you can reap the benefits and thoroughly implement the majesty."
"These three fires are pretty good tricks, not very subtle, but the key is that this person has perfected his Qi refining. If he can burn the first two fires, he must be very strong."
Just as Xu Dao was thinking silently, Bai Gongfeng, who was opposite him, began to persuade him: "How about you, fellow Taoist, come here and I will be the servant of Beitang? We will be our own people by then. If you don't mind, call me brother."
That’s it.”
"Brother will definitely help you turn things around, and maybe you can even get a reward from the demon slayer."
Upon hearing this, Xu Dao knew that Bai Gongfeng in front of him had obviously succumbed to the demon envoy and had benefited from him.
He also understood that it was no wonder that this man was exhausted, old and frail, and usually busy with chores and pleasures. Why could he improve his cultivation a lot in the past year? It turned out to be benefits from others.
But Xu Dao disagreed with Bai Gongfeng's statement that he would gain benefits by taking refuge in the other party.
The demon envoy who came from the capital might really have a panacea in his hands. In order to win people's hearts in the early stage, he probably spent a lot of money. But when the other party completely takes control of the situation, he will definitely start to earn benefits and squeeze the place.
If Xu Dao joins the others, there is no way he will be able to escape being exploited given the other party's magnanimity. If he has to sacrifice his wife and daughter, endure hardship for a period of time, and try his best to please others, then he can join the party and eat the other party's soup.
Although he was ridiculing in his heart, Xu Dao couldn't show it on his face. Instead, he raised an eyebrow: "Seriously?"
"Who is the name of the demon envoy? What treasure is in his hand?"
Seeing Xu Dao's move, Bai Gongfeng smiled and tugged at his beard: "Don't worry, fellow Daoist Lu, the demon envoy is different from you and me. He comes from a wealthy family, has a good track record, and keeps his word."
"The demon slayer's surname is Lei and his given name is Liangxiao. He is a member of the Sixth Edict of the Wu Kingdom. He is a member of the Lei Edict. He has pure Taoism and is good at using thunder and fire martial arts."
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"Lei Zhao?" Hearing this word, Xu Dao raised his eyebrows slightly and was suddenly surprised.
If he remembers correctly, his Thunder Fire Body Refining Technique is derived from the fundamental method of Lei Zhao, "The Yin Thunder Technique of Tanzhong Palm"