Chapter 1049: The Heavenly Lord Acts with Profound Intent
In Luoyang, a peculiar factory began its recruitment drive.
Inside the factory, two colossal bottles stood, towering over thirty meters tall.
Such enormous objects, placed within Luoyang City, were truly a sight to behold. From anywhere in Luoyang, one only needed to look up to spot these two immense glazed bottles.
Strange Chinese characters were inscribed on the bottles, though they seemed oddly simplified, missing strokes here and there.
For elders like Bai Yuan, one glance was enough to know these were divine objects from the heavens, inscribed with "Celestial Characters."
The greatest difference between these "Celestial Characters" and mortal script was their significantly fewer strokes, making them far easier to recognize.
For instance, where mortal script would write "seafood soy sauce, seafood salad dressing," the Celestial Characters rendered them with several strokes removed, giving them a much cleaner look.
This simplification made them more convenient for writing, carving, and printing alike.
Already, some in Gao Family Village had begun studying these Celestial Characters.
It was such a simple job, requiring no technical skill whatsoever; anyone could be put to work.
Refugees who had just arrived in Luoyang, fleeing famine, were most eager for such work.
At that time, Henan was still gripped by a severe drought. Large groups of peasants were displaced, while marauding rebels roamed unchecked throughout the province. The common people were suffering immensely, even resorting to exchanging children for food.
Fortunately, Luoyang still offered a glimmer of hope!
In Luoyang, the refugees could still find a way to survive.
Soon, throngs of refugees formed long queues before the recruitment tables.
Many, as they passed before Gao Yiye, couldn't help but offer her a deep bow. To find work and, moreover, to have the opportunity to glimpse the Saintess up close filled these humble, insignificant refugees with immense excitement.
However, a faint melancholy lingered on Gao Yiye's face. The death of Gao Yingxiang still weighed heavily on her heart.
Gao Jie, currently undergoing Labor Reform, slipped out from the side and bowed to her: "Saintess, what exactly is the Heavenly Lord's intention in bestowing upon us these two enormous bottles of peculiar soy sauce?"
Gao Yiye replied, "From what I understand of the Heavenly Lord, this likely holds no specific meaning."
"What?" Gao Jie gasped, clearly astonished. "The Heavenly Lord, venerable as he is, surely acts with foresight and profound purpose in every single move!"
Gao Yiye's sadness was somewhat alleviated by his words, and she let out a chuckle. "Don't overthink it. The Heavenly Lord sometimes acts on a whim, like the Heavenly Lord Sudden Whim Festival or the Heavenly Lord Hot Pot Festival. It wouldn't be strange for him to create a 'Soy Sauce Bottling Festival' this time."
Gao Jie let out a series of strange cries, clutching his head as he knelt. "No, impossible! The Heavenly Lord, venerable as he is, must have a profound intention! He must be planning to use this peculiar soy sauce to conquer the palates of people in all coastal cities, turning them into his devoted followers!"
Gao Yiye smiled. "The Heavenly Lord often indulges in earthly games; you simply haven't witnessed it. Stop speculating."
Fan Shangzheng, the Governor of Henan, walked over and pulled Gao Jie to his feet. "Come, let's go inside the factory and take a look."
The two men strode into the workshop together.
Inside, many small porcelain bottles were already neatly arranged. These bottles had been specially fired by the potters for this very task; all the kiln workers in the entire pottery village had taken on this significant project and made a small fortune.
Gao Jie seemed to finally grasp something. "I understand now! The Heavenly Lord deliberately provides this peculiar soy sauce for bottling to offer work to the kiln workers and pay them wages."
Fan Shangzheng chuckled. "It's not just the bottles. The funnels and ladles used to fill the bottles with soy sauce were also custom-made. The carpenters have earned a tidy sum as well."
"So that's it," Gao Jie said. "I knew it was impossible for two enormous soy sauce bottles, dozens of *zhang* tall, to just appear here for no reason. But speaking of which, how do we get the soy sauce out of these bottles?"
Fan Shangzheng corrected him, "Uncultured. We should say 'over thirty meters tall' now. That's the proper way."
Gao Jie gave an awkward laugh. "Old habits die hard."
Fan Shangzheng continued, "I was also wondering how to get the soy sauce out of these giant celestial bottles for packaging. I truly couldn't figure it out. We certainly can't climb that high."
No sooner had he spoken than a giant golden hand reached out from the sky, grasped one of the colossal soy sauce bottles, and gently poured a tiny amount into the large vats prepared below by the small figures. To the immense celestial bottle, it was truly just a mere trickle, yet the vats were filled to the brim, unable to hold another drop.
Gao Jie was startled once again by the giant golden hand. "So the Heavenly Lord himself is personally pouring out the soy sauce!"
Li Daoxuan's pour was witnessed by nearly everyone in Luoyang City. Both inside and outside the city walls, countless people fell to their knees in unison.
"Tens of thousands of vats won't be enough to contain the soy sauce from that colossal celestial bottle," Gao Jie remarked. "It seems the refugees will have work for a very long time."
Fan Shangzheng nodded. "It's always good to find ways to accommodate more refugees. I used to assign them to road construction, but as the rebels in Henan grew increasingly fierce, working outside became perilous. If a scout missed even a glance, the bandits could sneak closer, kill the construction workers, and seize their rations... Now, finding work for them within the city walls is truly ideal."
Considering the current situation in Henan, both men couldn't help but frown.
News of Chuǎng Wang's demise had long since reached Henan.
Yet, the rebels in Henan seemed utterly unaffected. They hadn't been acting under Chuǎng Wang's direct command to begin with! Chuǎng Wang was merely a figurehead; the true leader was the Dashing General.
The Dashing General, before his assembled followers, wept profusely and publicly bemoaned his profound grief to the heavens, vowing to avenge his elder brother Chuǎng Wang, overthrow the wicked imperial court, and carry on his legacy and so forth—basically a million redundant words.
Following this, the Dashing General formally assumed the title of Chuǎng Wang.
Thus, a new generation of Chuǎng Wang was born, emerging with the tide of fate.
Meanwhile, in the capital, Zhu Youjian was still celebrating, believing that with Chuǎng Wang's elimination, the Ming Dynasty's foundations were secure, and he could now turn the tide and rescue the empire from its peril.
Little did he know, under the new Chuǎng Wang, the rebels were even more invigorated than before. Like swarms of locusts, they dispersed and converged, plundering homes and looting everywhere.
Meanwhile, Lu Xiangheng's main army was no longer present, and Zuo Liangyu idled away his days, leaving only generals like Bai Yuan, Cao Wenzhao, He Renlong, and Gao Jie to frantically chase after the rebels.
Comments