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

Chapter 127 Heading to Golden Sun Shopping Mall! [Requesting Monthly Tickets]

After the consecration ceremony of the Tang Dynasty Kaiyuan World, Yiyuan Temple returned to tranquility.

The consecration ceremony was so low-key that many people didn't know there was a Yiyuan Temple in Daozhengfang, and the wealthy and powerful families who knew about the place didn't dare to come and offer incense.

With the current emperor having just quietly attended the consecration ceremony, who would dare to act recklessly?

Besides, the struggle between Princess Taiping and Li Longji has reached a fever pitch. If we rashly come to offer incense, wouldn't that give them ammunition to criticize us?

However, the Taoist temple was deserted, which suited Gongsun Da Niang and Li Bai's idea.

One of them was obsessed with eating, and the other was obsessed with becoming a deity; neither of them thought about properly managing the Taoist temple.

Li Ke stayed at the inn for a few days, but then, thinking about his family business, he decided to go back... His son was chatting and laughing with His Majesty, and the princes were all very respectful. Plus, with divine protection, he didn't need to worry about his son's safety.

Li Bai originally wanted his father to stay for another two or three months, but Li Ke couldn't stay idle. So, the father and son, along with their servants, went to the East Market and bought a lot of goods, both as a farewell party and as a purchase.

Li Ke is a businessman who wants to try any project that promises to make money.

Li Bai recalled the saying in the Book of Changes that salt was of paramount importance, and instructed:

“After Father goes back, he can buy some salt wells. Then I will ask my master to buy some salt-making equipment. Perhaps my Li family can hitch a ride on this and become officials and merchants.”

The so-called "official-merchant" refers to people who engage in business on the orders of the imperial court. They are considered to have a semi-official status and will not be subject to extortion or bribery in matters such as travel permits.

Li Ke recalled the salt that Li Bai had brought and was indeed somewhat tempted.

If we could produce snowflake salt, even if it was only supplied to the royal family, it would bring the Changlong Li family great prosperity.

The Li family of Changlong County was a large family. Only Li Ke's branch was responsible for business. Other family members, such as Li Bingyang, the uncle who saw Li Bai off at his deathbed, Li Ning, the cousin, and Li Shen, all served as officials.

Throughout Li Bai's life, he mentioned dozens of his cousins ​​and other relatives who held official positions, ranging from high-ranking governors and prefects to low-ranking county magistrates and clerks—a typical large family.

After listening to his son's words, Li Ke said:
"I will go back and buy a few salt wells to try. You should follow the immortal and cultivate diligently. Don't always bother him with trivial matters at home. If you are not busy in the future, remember to write home."

These words brought tears to Li Bai's eyes, and he almost shed a tear.

From childhood to adulthood, he had dreamed countless times of venturing out into the world, but when it came to actually parting with his father, he felt a little reluctant.

As the father and son strolled and chatted in the East Market, Gongsun Da Niang arrived at the Wude Hall of the Imperial Palace in a carriage and bluntly said to Li Longji:
"Give me a gold medal bestowed by the emperor; I need it urgently."

This question stumped Li Longji:
"What is an imperial gold medal? What is its purpose?"

Grandma Gongsun shrugged:

"Don't the royal family all have imperial gold medals? No matter where you are, just taking it out is like the emperor himself is there, and you can mobilize the surrounding troops at will. How impressive..."

Li Longji and Gao Lishi exchanged a glance. They had been in the palace for over twenty years and had never heard of such a thing.

Although there are similar items, such as tokens representing imperial envoys and tiger tallies used to dispatch large armies, they all have limitations. It is impossible to command everything simply by taking out a token.

Gao Lishi asked indirectly:

"Miss Gongsun, what do you want to do?"

As she ate her palace snacks, Aunt Gongsun spoke slowly:

“Li Bai’s brother’s father is leaving, and I think we should give him something that represents the imperial family. Otherwise, he will be extorted and harassed by many people along the way. Before Li Bai’s brother came to Chang’an, three batches of goods from his family were detained on the Shu Road. They wouldn’t let him pass unless he paid money to make way… This business environment is too bad. If the immortal master knew, he would be unhappy.”

Li Longji did not expect that she meant this:
"The merchants will reform. As for the elders of the Azure Lotus Immortal Venerable, I can issue an imperial edict and order the checkpoints along the way not to make things difficult... The Great Tang Dynasty is in dire need of reconstruction. Give me ten years, and I guarantee that such a thing will not happen again!"

He wrote an imperial edict on the spot, which Li Ke could carry with him, and officials along the way would provide him with convenience wherever he went.

Of course, the imperial edict wasn't given for nothing; Li Longji laid out his conditions:

“My sisters Jin Xian and Yu Zhen have both become nuns. One is at Jin Xian Temple in Fuxingfang, and the other is at Lingdu Temple in Wangwu Mountain. If Fairy Shiliu doesn’t mind, could you let them go to Yiyuan Temple to cultivate? That way, it would be easier for me to see my two sisters.”

Despite her seemingly carefree demeanor, Granny Gongsun wouldn't readily agree to something like this:

"This matter requires the approval of my master. Your Majesty, please write down the birth dates and times of the two princesses. After the master has made his calculations, their divine destiny will naturally manifest."

Upon hearing that things were looking promising, Li Longji quickly wrote it down and then hosted a banquet in her honor. Gongsun Da Niang didn't stand on ceremony and ate her fill before taking a carriage back to Yiyuan Temple.

Early the next morning, Li Ke, accompanied by his servants, carrying the goods he had purchased, and with the imperial edict that Gongsun Da Niang had obtained from Li Longji, left Chang'an and returned to Mianzhou along the Shu Road.

After seeing Li Ke and his party off, Gongsun Da Niang and Li Bai returned to Yiyuan Temple by carriage. On the way, the girl muttered:

"I haven't seen the Taoist priest for six or seven days. I wonder what he cooked today."

Li Bai knew exactly what the girl meant as soon as he heard it:
“Sister Gongsun, there’s nothing else to do at Yiyuan Temple right now. You can go to Hunyuan Palace first. I’ll meet you again tomorrow when the time comes. Master said he’ll make something delicious for Sister Li Qingzhao tomorrow. You can ask him to make a lot so there won’t be enough to eat.”

This is exactly what Granny Gongsun was waiting for:
"Since we're going to entertain such a talented woman, I have to make sure she's well-behaved. We can't let the Song Dynasty people say that our Hunyuan Palace is not providing adequate hospitality." Back at Yiyuan Temple, the girl packed her luggage, put the equipment that needed charging into her backpack, waved to Li Bai, and then disappeared from Yiyuan Temple, appearing in the main hall of Hunyuan Palace's Xiaopenglai.

"Huh? The Earth God has been taken away?"

Grandma Gongsun was surprised by Zhou Yi's quick action. Carrying a backpack and humming a popular song she'd heard on her phone, she cheerfully arrived at the courtyard and saw Zhou Yi watering the vegetables.
"Master, what are we having for lunch today? I've been starving over there for days, and I'm just waiting to eat your delicious food."

Zhou Yi was somewhat curious:

"They're not coming until tomorrow, why are you here today?"

"My time is up, it would be a shame not to come and get something to eat."

Zhou Yi hadn't originally planned to cook lunch today; it was too hot, and he'd break out in a sweat before even taking a bite. But since Aunt Gongsun was here, he decided to make a simple pot of sausage rice.

Fortunately, I had all the side dishes like carrots and green beans, and the sausage was also ready-made, so it was quite convenient to make.

Upon hearing that there was delicious food, Aunt Gongsun hummed a song as she took a bath, then changed into casual pants and a short-sleeved shirt, wearing cute little yellow duck slippers, looking like a high school student.

After watering the vegetables, Zhou Yi went to Zhongtian Temple to change the incense, then started washing the rice and vegetables. He also washed the Cantonese sausages he was going to use with hot water and cut them into diagonal sections.

With everything ready, he began to cook the braised rice.

At noon, urged by Aunt Gongsun, the two ate lunch early.

After the meal, Zhou Yi glanced at the time and felt that the long afternoon had been somewhat aimless. Plus, he hadn't driven down the mountain for several days, so he said to Granny Gongsun:
"You stay at Hunyuan Palace and change the incense in front of the statue of the Ziwei Emperor every two hours. I'm going to the city to do a small investigation to see if I can get rid of a harmful evil cultivator."

Although the blind man agreed to investigate the strange phenomena at the Golden Sun Mall, he was old and frail, and also disabled, so it was better to let a younger person do it.

Huo Qubing's merits are about to surpass mine, so I need to find a way to increase them and not diminish my master's authority.

Grandma Gongsun, holding her tablet, prepared to watch a drama in front of the statue of the Ziwei Emperor:

"Don't forget to bring me some good food, like fried chicken or other junk food, the more the better."

Zhou Yi gave an OK sign, went back to his room to change into casual clothes, slung a stylish crossbody bag sent by the tailor over his shoulder, packed all the magical artifacts into it, and then drove down the mountain, heading straight for Yiyang City.

Since buying the car, he only went to Yiyang City on the day he registered it. He registered the car at the vehicle management office before even entering the city center, and then headed back home without even exploring the city.

I finally got a chance to go into the city today, so I'm going to take a good look around.

The first-class provincial highway leading to the city was newly built and very fast. Zhou Yi arrived at the suburbs in less than an hour. Following the expressway to Jiefang Road, he could see the Golden Sun Shopping Mall from afar.

This old shopping mall is now somewhat dilapidated. The square apartment buildings and the mall below look like a stone monument standing on a pedestal.

From this perspective, the shopping mall had problems from the very beginning of its construction.

As for the eighteenth floor, it's closely related to the eighteen levels of hell. We'll have to go up and take a look later, and if there's any problem, we can deal with it along the way.

Good deeds wait for no one; when an opportunity arises, one must seize it.

Upon arriving at the entrance of the Golden Sun Shopping Mall, Zhou Yi followed the signs and drove his car into the underground mall.

As soon as he entered, he felt that the dimly lit underground parking lot was filled with a gloomy and uncomfortable negative energy. People who are sensitive to this kind of thing will unconsciously feel a strong sense of disgust.

Zhou Yi locked the car, took out his compass and tested it. The needle swung around, indicating that although there were no evil spirits here, yin energy had already been generated.

If this continues, underground parking garages will inevitably breed evil spirits.

After looking around, he took the elevator to the first floor and found that there were only a few people inside, and the staff looked listless with empty eyes.

“That’s not normal!”

Zhou Yi looked at the compass and saw that the needle was spinning. He tried tilting the compass, and the needle suddenly pointed directly upwards.

It's obvious there's something wrong in the apartment building, and a big problem at that, so much so that the pointer is defying the laws of physics by pointing directly upwards.

Zhou Yi silently put it away and walked up the stairs, trying to see if there was any layout in the mall.

If it were just a case of something dirty in the apartment building, the mall shouldn't be so deserted, and the shop assistants shouldn't look so listless, as if they lack vitality.

As he looked around, he suddenly noticed that there were two shops under renovation on opposite corners of the second and third floors.

In this type of shopping mall renovation, posters are used to block the main entrance. This does not affect the overall aesthetics of the mall, but at the same time, it can create momentum for the new store.

But the opening dates listed on the posters for these two stores are from the year before last... It's obviously very unusual that they haven't finished decorating after two years.

Or should we try to get in and take a look?

(End of this chapter)