"Hey, hey, Miss, look! Quick, look!!"
Chu Chu stood at the top of the tall pagoda, holding an exquisite pair of binoculars in her hands. Without even turning her head, she waved at Beauty Yu, who was also holding an exquisite pair of binoculars. "Look, it seems like the Crown Prince is here?
Why is it the Crown Prince? "
This was a wooden pagoda that was over 30 meters tall. Around this wooden pagoda, there were also several tens of wooden pagodas of different heights, shapes, and carvings. They stood unevenly, forming a huge forest of pagodas. They were distributed on one side of Divine Light Street and Divine Radiance Street. As long as one climbed to the top of the pagoda, they would be able to see the beautiful scenery of the street below.
Among these pagodas, there was a long red banner hanging on one of the wooden pagodas. On it was written: Xu Ji Trading Company, 100 Years of Reputation. Some of the wooden pagodas were even more flashy. There was an extremely huge Kongming lantern floating in the air. This Kongming lantern had a bright rose pattern drawn on it. Below the Kongming lantern was a banner with the words: The most beautiful in the world, Rong Rouge.
Originally, this forest of pagodas had been built by the Great Qi Imperial Court in order to compete with the Divine Sect. The imperial court had also built a forest of royal pagodas to imitate the Divine Sect's pagodas. However, due to financial constraints, they had not been able to finish building it even after over ten years.
Seeing that the imperial court's project to save face was about to become an unfinished project, the Ministry of Revenue's Minister of Revenue's imagination went wild and he threw out an outrageous idea. He invited the various aristocrats and merchants to donate, and the one who offered the highest price would be able to climb the pagodas to watch the various grand ceremonies.
The various great clans and rich and powerful clans in the Divine Capital scoffed at this idea. However … it greatly stimulated the enthusiasm of the merchants. What merchants had was money, but what they lacked was social status and social recognition. Seeing that this was a very good opportunity for them to show their faces, this stretch of pagoda forest was built.
However, there would be a second time after the imperial court had tasted the sweetness of some things. Slowly, not only merchants, but all those who had money, including the Courtesan Leaders, had the right to stand here and watch the grand ceremonies.
As time passed, not only did this place become a place where all the major chambers of commerce competed to advertise, but it also became a place where all the top courtesans competed for beauty. Being able to buy the best and tallest wooden pagoda also proved the strength of the top courtesan!
As for the Top Courtesan and Head of Performance, they were like the top stars of this era. They had to show up in public from time to time and show their presence on important occasions. However, they could not show up in public. Otherwise, if everyone could see them, they would be worthless. Who would pay a sky-high price to go to their tea parties?
Therefore, it was impossible for them to squeeze through the streets like the commoners. Climbing the tree trunks and standing on the roofs to compete for the highest position in the Tower Forest was the perfect choice.
The telescope in Chuchu's hand was undoubtedly a fine product produced by the Puppet Country, and the telescope in Beauty Yu's hand was even more exquisite. It was so small that it was only half the size of her palm, and it even had an exquisite golden stand. She only needed to slightly raise her hand, and the stand would support the telescope in front of her eyes. Not only could it help her see the situation in the distance, it also made her look noble.
Beauty Yu naturally saw the situation below, and she could not help but gasp. "Seems like the rumors are true!"
Chuchu and Beauty Yu put down the telescope in their hands at the same time and exchanged a glance. Chuchu said in a low voice, "The Emperor is really going to abdicate?"
Beauty Yu was naturally someone who was well-read and had grown up in the Divine Capital, so she was naturally very sensitive to politics. She immediately realized that this was an important political signal released by the emperor — Zhao Bairen was indeed going to abdicate his throne!
It seemed that the Emperor was tired of the endless fight for the throne. In order to quell the court struggles and curb the internal strife, the Emperor had made his final choice. The Crown Prince's succession to the throne was already set in stone!
After this huge political decision was made, the Divine Light Street was only stunned for a short while before deafening cheers erupted.
How could the commoners at the foot of the Imperial City not understand when they saw this scene?
They all cheered loudly. They had been waiting for the stars and the moon, and the good news of the Crown Prince's succession had finally arrived!
The huge cheers were like waves, coming wave after wave. Even Beauty Yu and the others on the pagoda could feel the waves of cheers gushing toward them. The scene was shocking.
The Crown Prince's prestige had reached this level!
However, Chuchu pursed her lips and looked around before saying in a low voice, "Then it's going to be hard in the future …"
The Crown Prince's ruling policies were very obvious, and everyone knew about them. The most widely spread one was to reduce taxes, reduce corvee labor, increase taxes, and give corvee labor.
The former was targeted at the commoners, while the latter was targeted at the merchants and large clans.
Among them, the brothels were included in the list of increased taxes, and it was a heavy one at that!
Beauty Yu did not complain. She sighed softly and said, "Actually, it's a good thing. The commoners are living too hard now. Even our manor has started to have farmers come over to depend on us. It's just that our rent is slightly lower than other large clans.
"Now that the imperial court is fighting a war in the southeast, and the southwest is also too big to deal with. The various sects are expanding day by day, and more and more farmers are relying on the sects to make a living. The imperial court can't collect taxes, and there are continuous natural and man-made disasters. If this goes on, there will be a big problem!"
Beauty Yu sighed softly. "Only when the world is peaceful will we have a place to eat. If the world is in chaos, how will we be safe?"
Chuchu pursed her lips and said, "Even if the sky collapses, there'll still be someone high up to hold it up, right?"
Beauty Yu shook her head and said, "How can there be intact eggs when the nest is overturned?
I'd rather be a dog in peace than a person in chaos! "
Chuchu smiled embarrassedly and said, "Young Miss, aren't you being a little too alarmist?
Great Qi is so powerful, but why do you sound like it's going to be destroyed? "
Beauty Yu shook her head and said, "I started studying history when I was eight years old, and it's been 14 years since then. No matter how I read, I only have one understanding.
That is: any dynasty, its rise is prosperous, its fall is also prosperous!
"Once the world is in chaos, other than seeking refuge with Sister Liu and the Phoenix Hibiscus Pavilion, we won't have any other choice."
Chuchu said in astonishment, "Could it be that we can't stay in the Divine Capital anymore?"
Beauty Yu smiled coldly and said, "When the world is peaceful, the Divine Capital will naturally be peaceful. The people in the world will naturally abide by the rules. But when the world is in chaos, who will abide by the rules?
Prostitutes like you and I can only live in a peaceful garden. If we're placed in a violent storm, we'll definitely die! "
Chuchu seemed to be deep in thought. She nodded slightly and sighed softly, "I hope that this day will never come."
Beauty Yu looked at the Crown Prince and frowned. She shook her head slightly and said, "I'm afraid that the wind won't stop even when the tree desires peace!"
Outside, the Divine Light Street was bustling with activity. It was already extremely splendid and magnificent, but the two people in the tower were sighing as they faced each other. It was very inappropriate.
Just as they were sighing endlessly, the Divine Light Street had already reached a boiling point. Amidst the rain of flowers, Crown Prince Zhao Hanqing slowly walked up to the white jade platform that had been built long ago. He sat on the seat that only the Emperor could sit on all year round. Everyone below the platform knelt down and kowtowed, chanting 'Long live the Emperor!'. For a moment, there was no longer anyone left standing in Great Qi. Even Beauty Yu and Chuchu, who were in the tower, had knelt down.
Zhao Hanqing sat on the high seat and looked down. For a moment, he was in a daze. 'Is this the feeling of a sovereign descending upon the world?'
Zhao Hanqing raised his hand slightly, and everyone started chanting 'Long live the Emperor' again. They stood up in unison, and the two to three hundred thousand people let out a rumbling sound.
Just as everyone stood up, an explosive sound suddenly rang out in the distance, causing everyone to tremble. They subconsciously looked in the direction of the sound and were instantly dumbfounded.
At this moment, a hole exploded in the sky, and a beam of golden holy light descended from the sky, striking down at an angle. A person slowly walked out from the golden light, his feet treading on the waves, and he stepped into the void. This person was dressed in a long white robe and had a white hood on his head, covering his body and face. However, everyone instantly knew who this person was.
Imperial Preceptor Chang Yuan!
For a moment, regardless of whether it was the commoners in the vicinity of the Divine Light Street or the Divine Splendor Street who could see the grand scene, or the anxious commoners who could not squeeze in and could not see the grand scene inside, all of them raised their heads and were dumbfounded.
Everyone in the entire Divine Capital saw this beam of golden light and the Imperial Preceptor who was slowly walking down from the sky. For a moment, all living things were drowned out, and the world's color was taken away. Even the crying children forgot to cry as they looked in a daze at the Imperial Preceptor who was slowly descending from the sky.
The Divine Capital, which had been so noisy that one could hear a pin drop, seemed to have pressed the pause button. Everyone stood there in a daze, not moving at all. It was silent as they watched this person descend from the sky, steal their souls, and lose their souls.