Inheriting a Taoist temple, the story begins with Wu Zetian offering incense.

Chapter 115 The Blind Man's Paper Bird Message! [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

Since Buddha is serious, then this fairy must go and start a fire… Granny Gongsun, holding a large bowl of cold tomato salad, said to the postmaster:
"Quickly prepare the carriage, I need to go to the palace to see His Majesty!"

Upon hearing this, the postmaster immediately prepared a carriage and sent someone to deliver the message to the palace as quickly as possible.

The divine envoy has taken the initiative to request an audience with His Majesty, so there must be something very important to discuss. If this is delayed, no one can bear the responsibility.

Soon, the postmaster himself drove a two-horse carriage, speeding towards the imperial city.

Grandma Gongsun didn't even bother eating the cold tomato salad anymore. She simply put the lid on the box and let her eldest grandson try some later... After receiving so much filial piety from him, we, as elders, should also show our appreciation.

Only by giving him incentives can the eldest grandson better build up the Tang Dynasty!
Soon, they arrived at the palace. Gao Lishi stood at the entrance of Chang Le Gate, and upon seeing the carriage, he jogged over to greet it, asking through the curtain:

"Does the fairy have something to instruct you on?"

Lady Gongsun had come today to claim credit, so instead of answering the question, she asked in return:
"Old Gao, are you aware of the changes that have occurred in the Western Paradise?"

With just a few words, Gao Lishi's curiosity soared to the heavens. But at this moment, there were not only the postmaster of the post station but also the palace gate guards at the palace gate, making it a crowded and confusing place.

He suppressed his curiosity, respectfully lifted the carriage curtain, and invited Granny Gongsun to alight.

"His Majesty is having a meal. If the fairy would do him the honor, His Majesty would be very happy."

The postmaster who was driving the carriage was shocked to hear this. He never imagined that the Pomegranate Fairy held such a high position in His Majesty's heart.

Being invited to dinner when someone comes to the palace is considered an immense favor, something to be grateful for for many days.

The Pomegranate Fairy came to the palace, and it was actually her honor to eat His Majesty's food that required the Emperor to be trembling with fear and gratitude... This is the opposite of what is expected of the Heavenly Generals!

Aunt Gongsun jumped off the carriage, patted the sealed box in her hand, and said:

"I brought some food for you and His Majesty to try. It was made by the Immortal Master himself, and it's hard to find such food over there."

Gao Lishi: "!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Here it comes! We've finally seen the so-called celestial delicacies... May our ancestors bless us, for this unworthy descendant is about to taste the delicacies of the immortals!

Once inside Chang Le Gate, Gao Lishi lowered his voice and asked:
"Around noon today, several eminent monks in Chang'an died suddenly one after another. The Dali Temple's investigation revealed that they were all close associates of Huifan. The abbots of other temples also received divine revelation and expressed their intention to return the encroached farmland and reduce the number of monks... Fairy, could this be related to the Western Paradise?"

Grandma Gongsun raised her head and said with a smile:

"After lunch today, the Immortal Master and I went to the Great Hall of Hunyuan Palace to give the Buddha a few words of advice, and that's how the current situation came about."

Gao Lishi tried hard to remain calm, but his distorted expression betrayed his inner turmoil:

"A few words of advice were so effective? Fairy Gongsun, the problem of the monks has been keeping His Majesty up at night, but I never expected that you and the Immortal Master would solve it so easily. Please accept my bow!"

He wasn't just being polite; he genuinely wanted to thank Aunt Gongsun.

After Wu Zetian's Buddhist movement, the status of monks was greatly elevated, to the point that it was an honor to be a monk throughout the Tang Dynasty. Most monks even called on the people to donate money and goods, and even donated their land to the temples, with their whole families becoming servants of the temples.

Good farmland, which used to be used to pay rent to the imperial court, was now used to pay rent to temples, while the temples paid nothing to the imperial court and pocketed the money.

Li Longji sensed this crisis early in his reign. As soon as he became emperor, he personally edited and annotated the Tao Te Ching, greatly elevating the status of Taoism in order to counterbalance Buddhism.

Unexpectedly, before the plan could be implemented, it was resolved by Granny Gongsun with just a few words.

What does it mean to have connections with immortals? This is it!

Upon arriving at the Wude Hall, Gao Lishi jogged inside to report, and soon Li Longji himself came to the door to greet him, making a grand gesture.

Gongsun Da Niang liked Li Longji very much at this time. He was humble, polite, and capable, possessing all the qualities of a great emperor.

Unfortunately, he died twenty years too late, turning from a great emperor of all time into a half-emperor of all time... forcefully dropping himself to a lower level.

Aunt Gongsun said with a smile:

"No need to be so polite. I only said a few words casually. Who knew that Buddha would be so understanding? Next time I go, I'll bring him some more snacks."

Upon entering the hall, Gongsun Da Niang saw various high-oil and high-sugar foods laid out on the table. Just as she was about to offer some advice, she suddenly remembered that Li Longji was known for his longevity among emperors, so she remained silent.

Despite his reckless behavior, he lived to be 78 and earned the title of "Eternal Half-Emperor." If he had learned to maintain his health and lived to be 100, his status as an "Eternal Half-Emperor" would likely have been further diminished.

She opened the transparent, sealed box and handed it to Gao Lishi:
"Here, you and His Majesty can share this. This was made by the Immortal Master himself. Wash the box and give it back to me. Next time I'll bring you some small cones or cream pudding."

Gao Lishi thanked him, carefully took the box, and exclaimed in surprise:
"It's ice?"

"These are tomatoes. Cut them into chunks, sprinkle with white sugar, mix well, and refrigerate. They taste amazing... Oh, by the way, next time I come, I'll bring some tomato seeds. You can plant them in the palace. If they bear fruit, don't forget to treat me to some cold tomato salad." After saying that, the girl picked up a plate of hibiscus cake and began to eat it with relish.

Gao Lishi poured the tomatoes from the box into a white jade plate, tasted one first, and was about to take out a silver needle to test for poison when Li Longji waved his hand and refused.
"If you, fairy, wanted to harm me, you wouldn't need to go to such lengths."

After saying that, he picked up a piece of tomato, put it in his mouth, and showed the same surprised expression as Gao Lishi:

"This thing is sweet and sour, truly delicious. Judging from its color, it looks quite like the fire crystal persimmon from Guanzhong. Its name contains the character 'Xi' (西), could it be that this thing comes from the West?"

Grandma Gongsun's mouth opened into an "O" shape:
"Your Majesty is truly wise. This item did indeed originate from the West and was originally supposed to arrive in China by sea during the Ming Dynasty, more than a thousand years later. But now, with me, you can enjoy it more than a thousand years earlier."

Li Longji took a couple of bites and then focused his attention on the management of the temple:
"The decree stipulates that each ward in Chang'an City may have a maximum of one Buddhist temple, with an area not exceeding thirty mu, a number of people not exceeding fifty, and a number of servants not exceeding one hundred. All temples in the city are to begin self-examination. Ten days later, the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Censorate will conduct a joint review. All those who are not temples shall be forced to return to secular life. If they do not own any property or land, they shall be sent to the Imperial Household Department to be responsible for the production of military equipment and supplies."

Now that Buddha has set an example, if we don't seize this opportunity to weaken Buddhism, who knows when the next opportunity will come?

Gao Lishi picked up his pen and wrote these words down on a piece of paper, then looked up and asked:

"Your Majesty, regarding Taoism..."

Li Longji said:
"There are very few Taoist temples in Chang'an with more than fifty people. But I should mention that since Buddhism has been suppressed, some Taoist temples should also be reminded that any surplus Taoist priests should be transferred to the Imperial Medical Academy or the Ministry of Works."

Taoist priests are skilled in medicine, engineering, and music; they need to be placed in suitable positions.

Li Longji originally wanted to mention the music hall, but worried that it would leave an impression of being pleasure-seeking in the eyes of the gods, so he wisely refrained from doing so.

After discussing these matters, he stood up and bowed to Granny Gongsun:
"When you return next time, Fairy, could you bring back some books from later generations, such as those on advanced methods like land reclamation, mining, and iron smelting? I am willing to exchange them for treasures from my imperial treasury!"

Gongsun Da Niang's eyes lit up:
"Great! Other worlds are already offering gifts to Hunyuan Palace, but our Kaiyuan World hasn't done so yet. When you send something, remember to write a gift certificate saying it's for Hunyuan Palace and stamp it with your seal. This is very important!"

Li Longji readily agreed and began to think about the gift he wanted to give.

Meanwhile, inside the Hunyuan Palace, as dusk fell, Zhou Yi changed into a black Taoist robe and finalized a statue of the Ziwei Emperor with Uncle Ming.

He sat at his desk, about to examine the leaf given to him by the Buddha, when a bird folded from white paper suddenly flew in from the window and landed steadily on the desk.

Zhou Yi stared in astonishment at the lifelike paper bird, realizing he had encountered the legendary secret method of communication—paper bird message delivery.

Grandpa once said that when help is needed in the deep mountains and forests, fold a piece of paper into a bird shape, add a message talisman, and the bird will spread its wings and fly to find the designated helper.

However, with the development of technology, these kinds of secret methods have gradually fallen out of use.

Cell phones, walkie-talkies, satellite phones... It's the 21st century, and there are many ways to communicate. Who still uses bird messengers with their notoriously high failure rate?

He was quite surprised to see him today.

To be on the safe side, Zhou Yi first divined the outcome to confirm that there were no problems, and then carefully unfolded the paper bird, on which was written a sentence:

"Would you like to participate in the live stake training tomorrow night?"

No, why are you joining in the fun?

Stealing monsters, huh?
Although no name was written on the paper, nor was it specified who would be buried in the "living stake," the confident tone immediately reminded Zhou Yi of the blind old man. As for the person to be buried in the "living stake," it was naturally Xie Yukun, whose birth chart matched the "living stake."

The name Xie Yukun can be broken down into three characters: "身立土" (shēn lì tǔ), which means "standing on the earth." It can only be said that he has a naturally endowed physique, and it would be hard to find such a perfect player even with a lantern.

After reading Zhou Yi, he flicked the paper lightly, and it instantly burst into flames.

He thought for a moment, then got up and went to the next room, where he spoke to Wu Meiniang, who was studying:
"Tomorrow night, I'm going to send that Chairman Xie who covets Yunwu Mountain on his way. I'll drive him into the foundation pile to make him a living pile. You can go back before then, so I won't worry about this place."

Although the blind man appeared kind, he was not trustworthy. If he was using a diversionary tactic, Wu Meiniang, who remained in Hunyuan Palace, would be in danger.

To be on the safe side, it's best to let her go back, so that Zhou Yi can make many arrangements in the courtyard.

As long as someone comes over, they're guaranteed an unforgettable night.

Wu Zetian shook her head and rejected the suggestion:

“I wasn’t there when the last attack happened. If I leave again this time, how will I protect my home? Tomorrow night I will go to the Sanqing Hall to pray for the Immortal Master. If any villains come, I will ask the gods for help and will never let the Immortal Master be in trouble.”

Her attitude was resolute. Zhou Yi thought for a moment, then took the Bagua jade pendant passed down from his grandfather from around his neck and handed it to Wu Meiniang:

"I can't feel at ease without wearing this."

(End of this chapter)