Ji Xiang in the Longde Hall must die, and this hall must be left unattended for the plan to proceed smoothly.
After all, that hall was originally established to worship the Great Emperor Zhenwu, and its original name was the Xuanji Treasure Hall.
Although the statue of Zhenwu is no longer in the hall, replaced by wooden figures and clay sculptures of the Three Pure Ones, the hall still possesses the ability to suppress chaotic spirits and ghosts. As long as someone offers sacrifices and cleans it, the hall can manifest divine wonders.
After all, this grand hall was the only place of worship established within the Forbidden City, an important facility built during the reign of Emperor Jiajing... Of course, Emperor Longqing later seemed to think this treasure hall served no purpose, and thus left it neglected.
The man in the purple robe gave Zhu Changluo his final assurance that this time, no matter what, the young Taoist would die.
Because tonight, the revered leader of the Fire Gods, whom Zhu Changluo first met, the Fire Lord, would appear in the Fire God Temple within the inner city.
Zhu Changluo looked surprised. "She will come?"
The man in the purple robe nodded. "For your great undertaking, how could our revered leader not come?"
Zhu Changluo looked at the man in the purple robe, his brow furrowed.
"The Fire God Temple is in the inner city. Although the Emperor has repaired it, the Fire God enshrined there is not your revered leader, is it?"
"You minor fire gods, fire spirits, and fire monsters... you all gained recognition and the ability to move freely within the Forbidden City by taking advantage of the Emperor's repair of the Fire God Temple and the sacrifices made to the various Fire Gods. You essentially occupied the nest and usurped their positions."
"But the main deity enshrined in the Shichahai Fire God Temple is, after all, the True Monarch of Fire Virtue. While it tolerates you minor fire gods stealing incense offerings and receiving sacrifices, would it allow your revered leader to snatch the incense and commit evil deeds?"
Zhu Changluo let out a strange laugh. "Although the gods are all wooden figures and clay sculptures, under the offerings of incense, they also possess spirituality. These merits and positions, without the recognition of the temple's main deity or matching strength, cannot replace the divine positions of these great gods; they can only be sealed."
"And if they could be replaced, it would only be if... she has already obtained the position of the True Monarch of Fire Virtue, legitimately."
"Can your revered leader accept the incense offerings of the common people? Even if she appears in the inner city, how will she enter the Imperial City, and how will she enter the Forbidden City?"
The man in the purple robe shook his head. "You should still remember the first time the revered leader met you. How did the revered leader enter then? Have you never thought about it?"
Zhu Changluo's gaze sharpened as he stared intently at the teacup before him. "At that time, I thought my sincere prayer had summoned her. I originally believed she was a righteous god, but I didn't expect she might not be."
The man in the purple robe smiled. "Actually, at that time, she was indeed a righteous god. Precisely because she was a righteous god, and a paramount righteous god among them, she could appear before you in the Forbidden City."
"The incense offerings of the common people, she is certainly worthy of accepting."
"It's just that at that time, there was no temple here to worship the Fire God. When the Fire Lord came here, she was like a rootless duckweed, unable to manifest here for long. She was summoned by your sacrifice, and this matter was purely coincidental."
"But perhaps, it was also destined by fate?"
"Within this Imperial City, there are many divine positions, but as you said, no one has stepped up to become a god. These positions, these divine merits, are here, but they are merely wooden carvings and clay sculptures. They may have some spirituality, but ultimately, they are not true gods."
"Inanimate objects act rigidly and inflexibly."
The man in the purple robe glanced towards the window. He had spoken at length with Zhu Changluo, and now the sun was gradually setting, and it was almost time to act.
"The Great Yin generates light, illuminating the sacred fire."
...
On the nineteenth day of the sixth month of the twenty-fifth year of Wanli, at the hour of Xu (7-9 PM), the first watch.
A night is divided into five watches, and each watch has five points. One point is equivalent to twenty-four minutes.
In the four cities of Shuntian Prefecture, countless "watchmen" appeared.
At this time, when the evening watch was struck (7 PM), also known as the rising watch, the watchmen in the city struck their copper gongs and lit their lanterns, their gong sounds slow and fast, struck three times.
"Dong! — Dong!"
Repeated three times like this, Shuntian Prefecture under the night sky was no longer a place where ordinary citizens could move about.
In the outer city, there were seventy-two red posts, each staffed by ten soldiers. During night patrols, there were a total of seventy-six copper bells.
In the inner city and Imperial City, there were forty red posts, each staffed by ten banner soldiers, guarding day and night, with a total of twenty-eight copper bells.
Each day, a Du Du (commander) would be on duty, accompanied by a Jinyiwei (Embroidered Uniform Guard) Qianhu (battalion commander) or Baihu (company commander) with a saber, carrying the token numbered "Shen 17," to stay overnight in the Imperial City and verify the guards at each gate.
The sky darkened rapidly.
Dong dong dong dong.... A drum sound, grander than the sound of gongs and drums, appeared.
All four cities of Shuntian Prefecture could hear it clearly.
This was the evening drum.
The sound of copper gongs and drums.
Then, a clear and eerie ringing of bells appeared.
"Ding ling ling....."
The strangely clear and bright sound of violently shaking copper bells caused the surrounding residents to close their doors and windows and lock their gates.
At this moment, whether it was eunuchs, officials, ladies, gentlemen, or prostitutes, respectable women, or beggars, merchants... or locals, actors, doctors, old apothecaries, scholars, or warriors.
They avoided if they could, left if they could, hid if they could. Even the establishments that were open for business, such as pleasure houses, closed their doors, but the lights inside remained bright.
Outside Zhengyang Gate, in the West Ward.
"The bell transmission has begun, quickly, everyone come inside, close the doors."
From this moment on, the vast four-tiered city of Shuntian Prefecture seemed to transform into an ancient fierce beast with bared teeth and claws. The stars in the sky suddenly twinkled, and ten thousand rays of starlight descended upon the Forbidden City.
"Why the rush?"
The innkeeper hurriedly ushered the arriving guests into the inn and then tightly shut the doors.
Some of these guests were merchants from remote areas, and some were people from small towns who had never experienced a curfew, as curfews were not enforced everywhere. The places where they were strictly enforced, apart from the capital, were only important border towns.
Many of the systems of the Great Ming Dynasty had now fallen into disuse.
The innkeeper smiled and said to the guests from outside, "It's the night curfew. The evening drum is struck at the first watch, prohibiting movement; only after the morning bell is struck at the fifth watch is passage permitted!"
"Those walking on the streets during the second, third, and fourth watches will be beaten with fifty strokes of the rod; those who violate the night curfew after the first watch and before the reopening at the fifth watch will be beaten with forty strokes!"
"Except for the critically ill, women in labor, and the deceased being carried out for burial, no one is allowed out during the night regulations!"
The guests immediately clicked their tongues. "Wow, is Shuntian this strict?"
Someone chimed in, "Those who go out after this watch are either looking for pleasure or going to steal."
"What is the bell transmission?"
Someone asked.
But the person answering had a non-standard accent in the official Mandarin of the Great Ming. Looking at his attire, he was actually a Korean.
"In the outer city, at the beginning of each watch, at the boundary between the inner and outer cities, which is Changan Right Gate, the first post transmits the bell. Soldiers carry one bell and shake it to the second post, exiting Zhengyang Gate, and so on, passing it along to the first post of Changan Left Gate. It circulates from northwest to southeast, around the outer perimeter of the inner city."
"Korean?"
"What's wrong with being Korean?"
This Korean wore red military attire, a hat with pheasant feathers, and had a handsome beard.
The innkeeper's laughter interrupted the guests' conversation. He said to the Korean, "Korean official, why are you out in military uniform? Shouldn't you be resting at the Ministry of Rites at night?"
The Korean smiled, his small mustache twitching. "I came to the inn specifically to wait for the bell transmission. If I slept soundly at the Ministry of Rites in the Imperial City, I wouldn't get to see this spectacle."