Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 773: The situation is not optimistic.

When Xia Lin alighted outside Luoyang, Her Majesty the Empress lifted the curtain of her imperial carriage and said to him, "Don't linger too long, hurry to Chang'an. I have already sent someone to fetch your two young ladies to Chang'an, so that your family can be reunited. Now that you have no worries, you won't favor one over the other, will you?"

"Understood, don't worry."

After watching the convoy leave, Xia Lin turned and headed towards Luoyang.

Returning to Luoyang brought a different experience. Back then, he was a poor boy who had left with Old Zhang in his destitution. In his youth, he felt that the world was his to command, but nearly twenty years had passed since then.

Fortunately, Luoyang has not changed much. Although the former capital is not exactly dilapidated, it is somewhat old-fashioned.

Of course, this was also the last stronghold of aristocratic families. After being rejected in Chang'an and Jinling, they gradually gathered here.

Although they had gathered here, these people were much more restrained than before. And this time, Xia Lin's return to Luoyang naturally wouldn't escape their watchful eyes.

Therefore, the moment Xia Lin's feet landed in Luoyang, he was already being watched by countless eyes. If he were acting alone, he would definitely be met with wave after wave of battles.

But he was a man who was afraid of death. After he left Li Tang's forces, the garrison in Luoyang immediately mobilized and came to the city gate to wait for Xia Lin's arrival.

"Commander."

These soldiers didn't care whether Xia Lin held an official position or whether the new army was directly under Jinling's command. Their loyalty was always to Xia Lin. Even if the emperor ordered them to turn their attention to Xia Lin, they would never carry out the order unless they killed the emperor on the spot.

The general in charge of the Luoyang garrison was named Gu Siwei, originally named Gu Sijing, but changed his name to Siwei to avoid using the emperor's name. He was a graduate of the third class of the literature department of Fuliang Academy, and was the third-ranked scholar in the imperial examination six years ago. He later abandoned his studies to join the army and served as a senior ideological instructor in the Polu Army. Due to personnel transfer, he came here to serve as the garrison commander of Luoyang.

It can be said that he is the most direct descendant of Xia Lin.

"Kid, you've matured a lot now." Xia Lin patted his shoulder and smiled with satisfaction. "When I first met you, you were just a greenhorn."

"Without the commander-in-chief, there would be no Siwei today."

That's true, because this kid's family used to be so poor that they couldn't even afford to eat. When they heard that he had been admitted to the academy, they even planned to sell his only sister to raise money for his studies. Later, Xia Lin found out about this and went to his house to scold his parents. In addition, this kid was excellent in both character and academics at the academy and received scholarships every year. He also worked part-time during holidays. During those years of studying, he not only didn't spend any money but also managed to contribute to his family's household expenses.

That's why they say gold always shines. At the age of twenty-six, he became a high-ranking official guarding a region. Such a person had already shown his perseverance in his youth.

Xia Lin wasn't much older than him, but in his heart he had long regarded Xia Lin as a father or older brother, so he was extremely excited when he saw Xia Lin again.

They prepared a horse for Xia Lin, and the two entered Luoyang City under the protection of soldiers. On the way, Xia Lin asked, "How is your sister?"

"My younger sister also graduated from the academy last year and is now studying medicine under Master Sun."

"That's good." Xia Lin smiled and asked, "What about your childhood sweetheart?"

"My lord, we've been married for many years. But her family didn't approve, so we didn't have a wedding. We just cooked a few dishes at home, and we were too embarrassed to invite you..."

"You're so immature," Xia Lin shook her head and said, "If you just asked me to come over, the marriage would be settled!"

Gu Siwei smiled shyly, while Xia Lin continued, "And now? Her parents still don't agree?"

"They agreed a long time ago." Gu Siwei's face was full of pride as she said this: "Now they tell everyone how lucky their daughter is."

Back then, his wife's family were local merchants who were suppliers to Tang Bao'er's family, so they were considered quite well-off. At that time, Gu Siwei was a poor scholar working part-time at the academy, and apart from being good-looking, he was practically useless.

But who would have thought that in less than ten years, he would transform from a poor scholar into a fourth-rank general guarding a region, a height that many people could never reach in their entire lives.

"By the way, how did you rise so quickly?"

Xia Lin asked curiously, "You're only twenty-six this year, right?"

"General, the imperial court has preferential treatment for graduates of academies. Those who graduate from the three major academies are guaranteed a starting rank of seventh grade in the army. Later, I achieved the third-highest rank in the imperial examination and served as a political commissar in the capital for two years. During this time, I also wrote a book called 'On Military Discipline and Combat Efficiency,' which was later included in the Ministry of War's collection. I was then transferred to the Privy Council. In the Privy Council, I led seventeen campaigns to suppress bandits and twenty-two disaster relief efforts. Then, it was the General who initiated..."

He paused here, originally intending to say "dog-slaughtering festival" but feeling it was too vulgar, so he reorganized his words: "The Taiping Rebellion broke out, and all twelve of my superiors were implicated. I was promoted in order of rank and was exceptionally promoted to the fifth rank. After that, officials from the north and south were transferred, and I came to Luoyang. I took over the original garrison position and became a fourth-rank garrison commander."

"You're really something, kid."

"Commander, I only benefited from your influence and some luck."

"Stop being so modest! Seventeen bandit suppressions and twenty-two disaster relief efforts—that's not something an ordinary person can do. It shows your abilities are quite outstanding. You can call the Ministry of War a scoundrel, incompetent, but you have to admit their eye for talent is truly exceptional." Many people along the way came to watch the spectacle. They naturally knew who this was—it was none other than Xia Daosheng, the proud commander of Luoyang. The government offices along the route also spontaneously came out to welcome him; the scene was quite grand.

There were sometimes loud and excited shouts from the crowd, and the hoarse noises often made Xia Lin's heart skip a beat. You have to know that at this time, his spider senses were fully activated. If he made any mistakes and was killed by someone's sneak attack, it would be too much of a loss.

"I'm here mainly to pay respects to my ancestors, so you don't need to worry about it too much. Just follow the normal procedures."

"No, General. The imperial edict says to treat him with the regalia of an emperor. If you are alright here, you will not pass the Ministry of Rites' examination."

“That guy…” Xia Lin shook his head helplessly: “Fine, I won’t make things difficult for you.”

After a day of rest, Xia Lin returned to the small village from years ago. The former neighbors were nowhere to be seen; the entire area had been transformed into a temple, and in front of it stood a statue of Xia Lin…

“My lord, this is the Temple of Master Xia. It was built by the people of Luoyang who donated money and resources on their own.” The local magistrate was accompanying Xia Lin at this moment. He bowed slightly throughout, showing great respect: “The people are grateful for everything you have done for Luoyang, and that is why this temple exists.”

Xia Lin entered the temple with a mix of amusement and exasperation. Because he was traveling incognito, there was no one else there except the local magistrate and a few skilled guards. Upon entering the temple, he found several women kneeling on prayer cushions in the main hall, praying for children. Xia Lin felt his head buzzing.

"I wish for a child... I wish for a child."

Xia Lin stood in front of his own golden statue and saw that the statue did not resemble him at all. It held a ferocious dragon in its hand and stepped on a fierce tiger with glaring eyes, just like a demon.

"Ladies, is this place effective for praying for a child?"

Xia Lin stood to the side, watching the women whispering amongst themselves, and said with amusement, "I've heard that this Master Xia himself doesn't have any children."

The women immediately became agitated upon hearing this. One of them, a woman with a fiery temper, stood up abruptly, put her hands on her hips, and shouted like a fighting rooster, "You are extremely rude! How dare you slander Xia Tianzun? Do you believe I can summon Xia Tianzun right here and now to kill you for your nonsense?"

"Ah...ah, this..." Xia Lin took a step back and glanced at the county magistrate behind him: "This is not a good idea."

"Young master, you should quickly kowtow to the Heavenly Venerable and admit your mistake, otherwise you'll be in trouble if the Heavenly Venerable blames you. The Xia Fuzi Temple is very effective; you can get wind if you pray for it, and you can get a child if you pray for it. There was a man in our village who was thirty-seven or thirty-eight years old and had no children, but he got one after just one visit."

Xia Lin clasped her hands together and waved towards her own statue: "I'm sorry, I misspoke!"

After speaking, he silently left the main hall and looked back at the magistrate. At this moment, the magistrate's forehead was covered with beads of sweat, and his smile was extremely stiff.

"Magistrate Wu, can you really summon the Heavenly Venerable to descend?"

"This... sir... there must be some misunderstanding here."

Xia Lin frowned: "It seems the situation here is not optimistic. I've been breaking superstitions for so many years, and in the end, I've become a superstitious person myself."

"My lord, it was my oversight that caused this. Please punish me."

Xia Lin sighed: "There's no need for punishment. The people have stopped worshipping Buddha, so they need something to do. But it's heaven and earth, not me. You have to handle this matter properly, or I'll punish you."

"This subordinate understands..."

As Xia Lin continued his explorations, he discovered that Xia Lin worship had become a belief system in Luoyang, with small shrines everywhere, where Xia Lin was not worshipped as a demon or deity.

Many families even enshrine Xia Lin's longevity tablet, and he has become an undisputed supreme being here.

Is this a good thing? It's obvious that someone deliberately orchestrated this.

After returning to his resting place that night, he sat there deep in thought until midnight, pondering how to dismantle this broken belief without destroying the beautiful fantasies in the hearts of the people.

So early the next morning, he led a group of officials and soldiers to the Xia Fuzi Temple in his own name, Xia Lin.

He stood at the temple gate for a long time, arms crossed, looking at the magnificent gate. He snorted coldly, turned to the officials of Luoyang and said, "You all see this, don't you? I spent my whole life destroying Buddhism, but now I have become a Buddha."

Those below lowered their heads, not daring to utter a word.

"Do not dwell on my memory, but learn from me, emulate me, and surpass me; only then will you truly comfort me." After saying this, Xia Lin took a deep breath: "Tear it down!"

(End of this chapter)