452: Chapter 452 The First Person in History

Seven days had passed since the Worlds Number One Wine Festival.

Yet, the influence of the festival continued to heat up.

First and foremost, Xinghua Village, this "Immortal's Cave Abode," became world-famous.

Too many people claimed to have seen the "Sword Immortal," and even those who did not believe it at first were forced to do so.

Coupled with the "Immortal's Verses" that spread, countless scholars and literati bowed in worship.

Lincang Prefecture in the North became a pilgrimage site that every famous person and refined scholar in the world had to visit in their lifetime.

And the Prince of Zhenbei's few poems cemented his reputation as being peerless in both literature and martial arts, unmatched in the world!

A single "Bring in the Wine" even caused Meng Sansi, the Libationer of the Imperial Academy, to publicly declare to his students:

"The Prince of Zhenbei is the greatest poetic talent of all time!"

One must know that as Libationer, Meng Sansi was risking dismissal by expressing his respect so publicly.

He dared to say this because he was convinced that no one could refute this statement, not even the Emperor!

The significance of this was self-evident!

Secondly, "flying fairy" became famous everywhere, and the common people of all Great Gan knew there was such a liquor that rivaled the nectar of the immortals.

Northern Baijiu became an instant hit; as long as the liquor carried the name "Xinghua Village," regardless of the alcohol content, it was in short supply.

Consequently, some of the clothing and apparel from the Northern Trade Alliance also began to circulate within noble circles.

Noble ladies were shy on one hand, yet they made frantic purchases on the other.

For a time, the number of cargo ships on the Cang River more than doubled compared to before!

And on the sixth day, another explosive piece of news spread everywhere!

Master Li Jingyi and Master Xu Huaian, powerful figures from the Academy, had actually joined forces with the Prince of Zhenbei's New Northern Academy to co-run a school, under the leadership of Doctor Zhu Ming!

The new institution was directly named "Northern University," abbreviated as "Beida"!

The Prince of Zhenbei, Master Li Jingyi, and Zhu Ming served as honorary deans.

The unique feature of Beida was that as long as one could complete the two-year curriculum and pass the examinations, one did not need to take the imperial examinations and could directly enter officialdom in the North.

This was undoubtedly of huge appeal, so it sparked heated discussions among scholars.

However, Beida's educational philosophy was touted as "going to the mountains and countryside, rooting in the grassroots."

If one could not complete the various tasks assigned by the university within two years, one could not graduate.

This approach made many conservative scholars very resentful.

In terms of public opinion, most loftily stated that doing such rough work and eating and living with farmers just to become an official was an insult to scholars.

But upon hearing that Beida's first batch would only admit one hundred people, the spots were filled up within two days...

In the end, hundreds of people from academies in various prefectures wanted to go to "Beida," and waves of opposition arose, cursing the upper management for corruption.

With no other choice, the academy had to announce that a "screening" was required.

Everyone who met the criteria would go to Beida for a one-month "trial study," and those who could persevere would then officially enroll.

This realistic outcome made many conservatives within the academies a laughingstock.

In short, with the successful hosting of the Worlds Number One Wine Festival, the North faintly became the de facto "core" of Great Gan.

The noble families in the capital all began to scramble for ways to send their descendants to the North to study and develop.

Even the threshold of Marquis of Linyuan Xie Shang's residence was worn down, as various noble lords who hadn't been in contact for years brought their children to pay a visit.

And while the North was thriving, other parts of Great Gan were not peaceful.

In Baiyue and Nanling, following the sudden attack by the Moon Worship Cult, a large amount of evidence emerged showing that many Great Gan officials had been bribed and were exploiting the people's lifeblood!

This evidence was either traceable account books or human witnesses from the Moon Worship Cult.

Almost every day, in various prefectures of the two regions, many propaganda leaflets that appeared from nowhere would emerge.

These papers detailed the numerous crimes of local officials, and many even pointed directly at the Prince of Nanling and the Prince of Wu.

A few days later, the "Northern Daily" even began to publish these accusations.

Some contemporary intellectuals wrote articles to criticize the local officials, sparking wave after wave of protests.

The imperial court was forced to arrest a few of the most heinous ones, hoping to quell public anger.

But the influence of the Moon Worship Cult was too great; they kept exposing new corrupt officials, and they could never be arrested all.

Once the imperial court tried to send troops to suppress them, the Moon Worship Cult would intervene to help those arrested commoners escape.

These Moon Worship Cult "members" were well-trained, and ordinary government soldiers were simply no match for them.

For a time, corrupt officials in Nanling and Baiyue were in a state of panic, while the common people felt that with the Cult Leader of the Moon Worship Cult upholding justice, they became even bolder!

While the south was sweeping away evil, the northeast was engulfed in the flames of war!

In Qizhou of the Yan Region, the Khitan and the Yan Army had been fighting for over ten days.

With Mu Wanying and Zhao Caiwei leading the Zhenbei Army to provide support, both sides fell into a tug-of-war.

Baishui City, Prince's Mansion.

In the study, Lin Xiao looked at the battle reports sent back, lost in thought.

This battle seemed more troublesome than he had imagined.

According to the two women, the Khitan Army liked to attack at night and stretch the front line very long, causing them to struggle to deal a heavy blow to the opponent, even though they had the advantage in numbers.

Moreover, it seemed that many experts had emerged among the Khitan, causing significant losses to the generals of the Zhenbei Army and the Yan Army.

Seeing the man frowning, Xiao Qingxuan sighed, "Husband, why don't I go to the front line and see what Marshal Suhe's attitude really is?"

She had thought that once the Zhenbei Army arrived, Marshal Suhe would immediately defect.

But she didn't expect the Northern Barbarian Army and the Khitan Army to fight with such tacit understanding, causing the Central Plains army to suffer quite a bit.

Could this Marshal Suhe have changed his mind and betrayed them again?

"Wife, don't you find it strange?"

Lin Xiao muttered, "If our Zhenbei Army didn't go, it would be understandable for the Khitan to come and raid. But we have all gone, and they still won't withdraw their troops. Is it worth dying for such small gains?"

Xiao Qingxuan thought carefully and nodded, "Indeed, the border supplies and common people have basically been moved to the rear."

"They can't grab anything, nor can they take any cities. Given the current casualties, it is simply not worth it for them to keep fighting like this."

The woman had a flash of inspiration, "Husband, you mean... they are deliberately trying to divert our attention?"

Lin Xiao was also momentarily without a clue, "I suspect that Marshal Suhe hasn't contacted us because he must have encountered something tricky."

"No matter. Once I deal with that fake Emperor, I will personally make a trip to Qizhou."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Qingxuan smiled, "Speaking of that fake Emperor, he is quite stubborn and still refuses to divulge any clues about The Tomb Guardian."

"The more you don't kill him and instead torture him, the more he believes in his own judgment."

Lin Xiao smiled playfully, "It's about time. Tonight, I will go and have a chat with him..."

At nightfall, Baishui City dungeon.

After seven days of torture, Emperor Hong had become skin and bones.

Most of his days were spent hanging on the torture rack, wishing he were dead.

But the more this happened, the more Emperor Hong was convinced that the Old Ancestor was still alive. Otherwise, why would that scoundrel Lin Xiao torture him so much to ask about "accomplices"?

It must be that the Old Ancestor's strength was formidable, making Lin Xiao feel threatened, which was why he went to such great lengths to pry information out of his mouth.

Suddenly, outside the cell, several prison guards who were dozing off fainted directly!

Emperor Hong looked up and saw a black-robed figure, who had appeared at the cell door without him knowing how!

"Old... Old Ancestor!"

Emperor Hong was overjoyed; his dry lips trembled constantly, and a glimmer of light appeared in his dull eyes once again!

"You have finally come! Lin Xiao has been trying to find you, but your grandson hasn't said a word, just hoping you would take me out of here!"

But just at this moment, the sentence the "Old Ancestor" spoke made him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave!

"You cannot leave. The Prince of Zhenbei's martial arts are too high; if I take you with me, I cannot escape."

Emperor Hong's eyes were full of unwillingness, "Old Ancestor... is there really... no way..."

Before he could say anything more, the "Old Ancestor's" next sentence made his entire head buzz, and he was completely stunned!

"Things have come to this, Li Sixun. Return your throne to your older brother."