fairy family

Chapter 178 Recommendation Letter from the Imperial Academy and Order of Commendation for Military Merit
Upon receiving the message, Yu Que's face lit up with joy. He immediately rushed out, not even having time to change his robes, and went out in a loose-fitting home Taoist robe.

Upon arriving at the old leader's quiet room, the door was wide open, unlike when Yu Que had visited before.

Once inside, he realized the reason.

It turned out that guests had arrived at the old leader's place quite early. The room was filled with a pleasant fragrance, and the two of them were sitting in the quiet room drinking tea.

Yu Que slowed his pace and stepped forward to greet them one by one:
"Yu Que greets the leader and the general."

The person who has come to visit the old leader's quiet room today is none other than Jun Baifeng, the female general of Huangshan.

Upon hearing Yu Que's greeting, Jun Baifeng didn't turn her head, continuing to gaze at the tea in her cup, and said calmly:
"You no longer address me as your humble servant. It seems Fellow Daoist Yu Que is determined to break free from my command of Huangshan County soldiers."

Upon hearing this, Yu Que had no choice but to quickly reply:

"No, no. General, you have misunderstood me."

He said righteously, "Once a soldier under the general, always a soldier under the general. I only came to the county town to study hard and prepare for next year's examination because the examination is approaching."

The old leader immediately smoothed things over, smiling and saying:

“Feng girl, it’s rare for you to come to the city. Hmm, this is the first time you’ve come to see this old man. Why bother getting angry with this kid?”

Besides, what he said makes some sense. Preparing for the exam in the city would certainly be more convenient.

With the elder council leader mediating, Jun Baifeng's complexion improved considerably.

Yu Que's eyes flickered slightly. He did not rush forward to speak, but stood quietly to the side, acting as a servant boy, making tea and pouring water for the two of them.

Immediately, Jun Baifeng seemed to have truly put Yu Que's matter out of her mind. She simply drank tea while talking to the old leader.

The two talked about a wide variety of things, including matters from meetings and the military, with one asking questions and the other answering, as well as reminiscing about the past. Their relationship seemed unusual, with a sense of elder and junior.

Finally, in front of Yu Que, the elder leader directly inquired about the secret cave realm and asked:
"Feng girl, in your opinion, has the spiritual energy of this world been revived?"

Jun Baifeng's expression remained unchanged. After pondering for a moment, he nodded, but then shook his head.

"In my opinion, the day when spiritual energy will revive is not far off. It will surely flourish within a hundred years, or it may have already begun."

The woman sighed softly, "But the revival will happen at different times. Even a hundred years from now, the concentration of spiritual energy in the world will vary from place to place."

I do not know whether spiritual energy is surging or not, but I do know that if it is, the spiritual veins of the major mountains and rivers will be the first to surge, and all kinds of spiritual energy will be confined for their use and will not be directly poured into the world.

If it hasn't yet blossomed, the various secret realms of the Daoist palaces across the land must already be constructing spiritual gardens, plotting grand schemes.

Upon hearing this, the old leader pondered for a moment and then slowly nodded.

The two were speechless for a moment.

Suddenly, the old leader raised his head, smiled at Yu Que beside him, and said:

"In that case, this kid should work even harder to get into the Dao Palace. The Huangshan Dao Palace is a wonderful place, with many spiritual gardens, secret realms, and ancient cave dwellings."

It would be a real waste if only those powerful and wealthy families could enjoy it.

Upon hearing this, Jun Baifeng frowned immediately.

Seeing that the woman remained silent, the old leader immediately said, "I will take this as your consent. This boy will follow me and take up a minor official position in the Alchemist Guild. He can focus on preparing for the exam."

As he spoke, he took out a document from his sleeve. The handwriting on it was exquisite, glowing with spiritual light, and surrounded by wisps of incense smoke. It was an official document for transferring those with missing or vacant records.

Yu Que secretly glanced at it a few times and found that the document already had the official seal of the Alchemist Guild and the signature of the old guild leader. All the reasons were written down, and it only needed Jun Baifeng's signature and seal to take effect immediately.

Yu Que's mind was immediately slightly agitated.

This old leader is truly a man of action; he even prepared this.

However, Jun Baifeng frowned and did not accept the document.

A cold smile appeared on her face as she spoke:
"Entering the Taoist temple, who knows whether it brings fortune or misfortune."

In my opinion, the best course of action for this young man is to remain peacefully in the army, where he will be under my protection. Now that he has returned to the county town, and with his eighth-rank cultivation exposed, he will be the target of everyone's jealousy, and may very well perish in the examinations.”

These words made the old leader hesitate, and he immediately looked at Yu Que himself.

Yu Que's expression was resolute, and he continued to look at the old leader with hopeful eyes.

The old leader sighed softly, then said, "You don't know this, but this boy has a master. To protect his path to immortality, his master has been locked up on a mountain."

If he hadn't passed the imperial examination and entered the Daoist palace, his master would probably have been imprisoned until his death.

Yu Que also bowed deeply to Jun Baifeng at the opportune moment: "Please grant my request, General."

Upon hearing the inside story, Jun Baifeng's expression softened slightly, and her gaze towards Yu Que improved somewhat.

However, the woman narrowed her eyes and still did not immediately give in.

She examined Yu Que closely, then suddenly laughed and spoke:
“Fellow Daoist Yu Que, I once said that if you lend me a hand, I will repay you. Now that you have helped me, I should fulfill my promise.”

With a whoosh, the woman also pulled a document from her sleeve and spread it on the table.

The incense smoke emanating from this document was even stronger, faintly forming the image of tigers and wolves, clearly written by someone in the military. At the top of the document were three large characters: "Letter of Recommendation".

Upon closer inspection of the specific content, both the old leader and Yu Que were taken aback.

Jun Baifeng calmly replied:
"This is a letter of recommendation written by me, which can recommend Dao Cai to enter the Imperial Academy for cultivation."

You two must both know what the Imperial Academy is. Although having my recommendation letter doesn't guarantee admission, as the commander of a celestial city, my rank is sufficient.

"It all depends on whether Fellow Daoist Yu Que can live up to your expectations."

For a moment, the quiet room became somewhat quiet.

After a few moments, the old leader picked up Jun Baifeng's letter of recommendation, clicked his tongue as he glanced at it, and then spoke:
"The Imperial Academy is a great place, much better than our lousy guild. Right now, the nation is in dire need of talent. Yu Que, if you go there, you'll most likely be accepted."

Hey, it's up to you to choose.

Yu Que stared blankly at the letter of recommendation, his face showing hesitation for a moment.

The imperial examination system, in its essence, was to select talented individuals for the nation. However, as it has evolved, it has been manipulated by various local Taoist temples, thus becoming a means for them to select talented individuals. In addition to the imperial examination system, the nation naturally has other methods for selecting talent, such as bestowing titles upon descendants and special recruitment into the court.

Just like the county students who were admitted to the county school without examination, there were many students admitted through special connections and special admissions in the Imperial Academy. Moreover, the Imperial Academy was nominally the most prestigious institution of learning in the country and a model for all schools in the country.

This place is the main gathering place for those who offer protection and those who are specially recruited.

Even in terms of status, the inner disciples of the various major sects are still inferior to the students of the Imperial Academy.

Jun Baifeng's recommendation of Yu Que to join the Imperial Academy should be considered a significant opportunity for Yu Que.

Although in name, immortals throughout the world can go to any Taoist temple to take the exam, and the Imperial Academy is no exception, having a recommendation and not having one are two completely different things.

Especially since Yu Que's cultivation level is already at the eighth rank and he is also a Heavenly Temple Dao Seed, with Jun Baifeng's recommendation letter, it should be a sure thing for him to be specially recruited into the Imperial Academy.

For a moment, Yu Que's thoughts raced through his mind:

"If I choose to study at the Imperial Academy, it seems I can escape the turmoil at Huangshan and have a future to look forward to. For me right now, this is the best choice?"

For some reason, he hesitated quite a bit about this sudden opportunity.

Jun Baifeng and the old leader sat in the quiet room, neither urging Yu Que, letting him think it over carefully on his own.

A few breaths passed.

Yu Que's expression hardened. He gritted his teeth and cupped his hands towards Jun Baifeng:
"Reporting to the general, this book is good, but it is not what I want."

Yu Que thanks the general for his kindness.

Jun Baifeng raised an eyebrow and said calmly:

"Really? This letter of recommendation is not one of those cheap tricks out of people. I will only have one chance to be recommended during my term as an official in Huangshan."

Yu Que thanked him again, but did not retract his polite refusal.

Jun Baifeng stared intently at Yu Que, and after a long while sighed, "So be it. You have a good teacher locked up on the mountain, so it is indeed inconvenient for you to enroll in the Imperial Academy. Otherwise, it would be unpleasant to end up in a situation where 'I did not kill you, but you died because of me.'"

"Thank you for your kindness, General." Yu Que returned the greeting respectfully.

The reason he chose to decline the opportunity to attend the Imperial Academy, aside from Huang Guishan, was also because he considered several other factors.

Firstly, if Yu Que truly only wanted to be admitted through special recruitment, he could have simply agreed to it on Mount Huang. However, in doing so, he would have lost the opportunity to compete for the true teachings.

Secondly, although the Huangshan region was quite turbulent, putting him in a dilemma at one point, he had managed to survive until now and even achieved the eighth rank.

Once you enter the Imperial Academy, who knows if there won't be other troubles, or even bigger ones?
Moreover, if he were to travel alone to the capital, Huang Guishan, the old leader, the old monkey, and even Jun Baifeng himself would all be far away in Huangshan. If Yu Que were to encounter any trouble, he would have no one to consult with, let alone anyone to protect him.

"Furthermore, studying at the Imperial Academy truly leaves a mark of the dynasty's influence, and even one's fortune may be connected to the dynasty."

"Looking at this dynasty, though outwardly prosperous and splendid, I always feel that its days are numbered, and I fear that its downfall is imminent."

He thought to himself.

Although Yu Que has joined the army and stood on the side of the pro-establishment dynasty, it does not mean that he will actually become a defender of the dynasty.

Strictly speaking, Huangshan Taoist Palace was a Taoist palace officially designated by the imperial court, and it was itself a part of the dynasty. By joining Huangshan Taoist Palace, one was still serving the dynasty and would not be regarded as an enemy by the dynasty.

On the contrary, once he enters the Imperial Academy, he will most likely be regarded as an outcast by the Huangshan lineage.

Yu Que also secretly suspected that, apart from the Shi family and the master-disciple lineage, the influence of the imperial court within the Huangshan Taoist Palace was certainly not to be underestimated.

Otherwise, there would never be any independent county troops around Huangshan, and even if there were, Jun Baifeng would never be able to hold the position of Huangshan's main general.

In the quiet room, Jun Baifeng saw that Yu Que's expression was becoming more and more resolute, showing no sign of backing down.

She sighed deeply in her heart.

"Considering that you have encountered some difficulties and are a person of great loyalty and righteousness, I will give you another reward."

As Jun Baifeng spoke, he lightly trembled his hand, turning the letter of recommendation from the Imperial Academy into dust. He then pulled out a token from his sleeve.
"This item is a commendation token that I have exchanged for my military merits. With this token, you can directly exchange it for a lower-level official position in the imperial court, or even an eighth-rank household deity."

Among them, a low-grade household deity can be exchanged for three heads, a medium-grade deity can only be exchanged for two heads, and a high-grade deity can only be exchanged for one head.

Besides these, you can try exchanging for any treasures available in local county governments or military camps. If the local treasures in Huangshan don't meet your standards, other immortal cities and capitals are also acceptable, although the travel time and expenses will be considerable.

After giving a brief introduction, Jun Baifeng tossed the token in her hand toward Yu Que.

"If there's anything you still don't understand, just ask him. I'll take my leave now."

The woman stood up, uttered a final thought, bowed to the old leader, and then, with a flicker, left the quiet room.

The old leader stammered, "This...this girl...is still so energetic."

The old leader chuckled and turned to Yu Que, saying:
"Since you've helped her, just accept it. And remember this favor, if I remember correctly."

Exchanging military merits for commendation orders that can be used by outsiders is quite costly; a major merit can only be exchanged for a medium merit, and a medium merit can only be exchanged for a minor merit.

Furthermore, she redeemed this item a long time ago, so she should give it to you no matter what you choose.

Upon hearing this, Yu Que nodded solemnly.

Although this woman was quite domineering and unkind to him, she was still a person of her word. Moreover, after the two of them had a dual cultivation on the hanging coffin, she did not cause any trouble afterwards, which should mean that she intended to let the matter go, and may even have tacitly approved of Yu Que's behavior.

Even so, Yu Que has no intention of returning to the army.

If he insists on revisiting this place, let's wait until he becomes a true disciple of the Dao Palace.

He silently tucked the commendation order into his sleeve, and then immediately asked the old leader for advice on using it.

Soon, Yu Que discovered that if he used this token to exchange for a household god, he wouldn't need to go to the county government or the county soldiers to exchange for it at all. The Alchemist Guild itself could provide the option to exchange for a household god.

Moreover, according to the old leader's boast, the household gods of the county government and the county soldiers were all sourced from the Alchemist Guild.

The really good stuff is all kept within the guild.

Upon hearing this, Yu Que's heart skipped a beat, and he was filled with anticipation.

(End of this chapter)