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

Chapter 163 Li Qingzhao: If you dare to show your face in front of me again, I'll strike you dead with lightning! [Seeking monthly votes]

During the meal, Aunt Gongsun recounted what had happened the previous night and also gave a grand introduction to the Taoist temple's newest member, Dahei—the Leopard 8 that had just been acquired yesterday.

Less than five hours after picking it up, the car drove through nearly a meter of water, proving it withstood the test.

After the meal, Huo Qubing helped clear the dishes and chopsticks, then followed Zhou Yi to the Sanqing Hall, where he set out offerings, lit incense and candles, and finally took out the Bagua abacus that was locked in the cabinet.

"Qubing, kneel on the prayer mat and pay homage to the Three Pure Ones. Silently recite the location of the main force of the Xiongnu, and I will perform divination."

"As ordered!"

Huo Qubing knelt down and began to pray for the location of the main force of the Xiongnu. Zhou Yi laid the abacus flat and began to divine the specific location.

Soon, the results came out: the main force of the Xiongnu was located northeast of Huo Qubing's forces.

Zhou Yi took out a map of Bingzhou from the Western Han Dynasty and compared it with the directions shown by the hexagrams, thus determining that the main force of the Xiongnu was near the source of the Huanggan River, which is now southwest of Jining.

Upon seeing this location, Huo Qubing exclaimed in surprise:
According to Sima Qian, Li Guang wanted to go to the source of the Huanggan River to find the main force of the Xiongnu, but they wandered around for several days and lost their way. In the end, they did not find the Huanggan River and almost attacked us. Finally, they went to the northwest.

Zhou Yi felt that this matter was like Li Guang being ennobled. He pursued it his whole life, but ultimately missed it because of his own reasons... If he had put in more effort and not been so arrogant, he wouldn't have died without any achievements.

Historically, Sima Qian spared no effort in praising Li Guang, elevating him to an unbelievable height. If Wei Qing had found the main force of the Xiongnu at the source of the Huanggan River, Li Guang would most likely have impeached Sima Qian for revealing his battle plans when he returned to the capital.

He was the one who suggested going to the source of the Huanggan River, but because he couldn't find it, Wei Qing took the credit. Li Guang, with his personality, would never swallow this insult.

Then the Sima clan can test their skills against the Longxi Li clan and see who has the better ability to control public opinion and guide public sentiment... A united front between the two families is far less beneficial to the Han Dynasty than a confrontation between them.

Especially since the Sima family were officials who spoke out against wrongdoing, after a series of impeachments, it was uncertain how many members of the Li family would still be in power.

The vacant official positions will benefit the newly rich, led by Wei Qing and Huo Qubing. It's a good thing.

After confirming the location of the main Xiongnu force, Huo Qubing did not linger and was about to leave without saying a word. Zhou Yi said to him:
"Take another three thousand wild boar spearheads. That should be enough for this battle. We'll provide more when you launch the Hexi campaign."

The Battle of Dingxiang North broke out in 123 BC, and the Battle of Hexi broke out in 121 BC. There are still two years to prepare, and more aid supplies will be provided by then.

As for why no expedition was launched in 122 BC, it was because the rebellion of Liu An, the King of Huainan, broke out that year, and many officials in Chang'an were implicated. After Emperor Wu of Han quelled the rebellion, he also appointed a crown prince, which allowed him a year to recuperate.

After Liu An's death, his alchemists scattered and took the method of making tofu to various places... Of course, at this time, tofu was only a by-product of alchemy. The people of the Han Dynasty did not actually eat tofu until at least the Eastern Han Dynasty or even the Jin Dynasty.

Huo Qubing carried the boxes of wild boar spearheads to the entrance of the Hall of Longevity, bowed to Zhou Yi and Gongsun Da Niang, and returned to the world of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty.

After he left, Zhou Yi continued moving bricks, while Granny Gongsun carried a basin of water and carefully wiped down the Wuling and Leopard 8 vans, muttering to herself as she did so:

"Don't worry, Little White. We won't forget you even though we have Big Black. You'll still be needed for some important occasions... Big Black, you mustn't bully Little White. It has participated in several rituals and is famous throughout the Three Realms."

Zhou Yi was amused by this remark. Was he treating the car like a pet?
After wiping the car, Granny Gongsun heard that Zhou Yi had written his name at the Hall of Longevity, so she went over to take a look. Then, this girl had a wicked idea. She took a pen and quietly went to Little Penglai. On the offering table in the main hall of Little Penglai, she secretly wrote Xi Shi's name:

"Little Penglai is a place for dancing, so it's reasonable for me to invite a dance master over, right? I just don't know how old Xi Shi will be. I hope she's a little younger than me, so I can be her older sister!"

After secretly completing these tasks, the dragon-slaying girl arrived at the Temple of the God of Wealth and, looking at the busy Zhou Yi, asked:
"Taoist Master, when will the roof beam of the God of Wealth Temple be raised? Sister Meiniang said there will be candy to eat when the roof beam is raised. I haven't eaten any yet, and I want to experience it."

The Book of Changes says:

"We'll have to wait a bit longer. The main beam is too heavy; it would take a lot of manpower to lift it by hand."

Hunyuan Palace cannot gather a large number of ancient people in a short period of time, so it can only start with merit. When everyone's merit reaches more than one jin, the building materials will become light and airy, and perhaps the main beam can be placed in place by manpower alone.

After moving the bricks, Zhou Yi took Aunt Gongsun down the mountain to stroll around the town and also took her to Zhao Wei's house for a free meal.

When Zhao Wei saw Zhou Yi driving the Leopard 8, he immediately drove his own Leopard 5 over for comparison. Both vehicles were boxy, rugged off-road vehicles that looked very impressive.

Zhao Dengke, who came over from the pickle factory for dinner, looked around and decided to reward himself with a Leopard car at the end of the year. Whether it would be a Leopard 5 or a Leopard 8 depended on the factory's profits.

While this lively meal took place, it was near the Imperial Academy in the inner city of the Northern Song Dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Zhezong.

After several days of discussion, the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Yiyuan Palace was finally about to begin. Ever since Li Gefei proposed the construction of the Yiyuan Palace in court, the court officials had expressed some reservations, not so much because they opposed it, but mainly because they wanted to highlight their own importance in this matter.

They might have wanted to make their presence felt, or they might have wanted to leave a deep impression on Master Yiyuan. In any case, they started impeaching him in the manner of Song Dynasty civil officials, jumping around and making a fuss.

Well, although we didn't facilitate the construction of the Yiyuan Palace, we could have prevented it.

They impeached Zhao Xu from various angles, such as the waste of manpower and resources, the heavy taxes and levies, and the excessive corvée labor, in an attempt to stop the construction of the Yiyuan Palace. However, Zhao Xu had already prepared a countermeasure.

When the impeachment was held, Emperor Huizong of Song, who had not attended court for many years, suddenly stepped forward and donated his courtyard in the inner city, which was next to the Imperial Academy.

When impeached for wasting public funds, a group of princes voluntarily applied to reduce this year's expenditures, requesting that the money be used for the construction of the Yiyuan Palace, and that if it was not enough, they would borrow next year's funds in advance.

As for corvée labor, that was even simpler. Emperor Huizong simply threw money at it, paying 200 coins a day to those working at the Yiyuan Palace, and double that for skilled workers... Not to mention corvée labor, even the Imperial Guards were quite tempted by this reward.

Zhao Xu anticipated all the obstacles and even made arrangements in advance. It must be said that this emperor was really capable, as he understood the thoughts of his court officials very well.

After realizing they couldn't stop it, the ministers immediately turned their attention to donating money, goods, and servants, making the flood of memorials from the previous two days seem as if they were submitted by someone else.

This time, however, Zhao Xu did not grant their wishes. He declined the donations and gifts from the officials on the grounds that Immortal Master Yiyuan was a royal consort. The entire construction and maintenance of the Yiyuan Palace were paid for by the royal family.

The groundbreaking ceremony was a grand affair, attended by all the civil and military officials, and students from the neighboring Imperial College were also arranged to witness the ceremony.

Before Zhao Xu's imperial carriage arrived, the students were in a noisy and chaotic state. Li Qingzhao, holding a whisk, stood silently in front of the offering table for the foundation laying ceremony, waiting.

Just as she was feeling utterly bored, a young scholar approached Li Qingzhao and bowed respectfully.
"I am Zhao Mingcheng, may I have the honor of receiving the teachings of the Osmanthus Fairy?"

Before she transmigrated to the Hunyuan Palace, Li Qingzhao was quite susceptible to this kind of behavior, but now, looking at Zhao Mingcheng's glib and smooth-talking manner, she felt a sudden, inexplicable aversion.
"Get lost! If you dare to show your face in front of me again, I'll strike you dead with lightning!"

To prevent Zhao Mingcheng from knowingly venturing into dangerous territory, Li Qingzhao loudly called out to an official in the distance:
"Zhao Tingzhi, if you don't want your lineage to end, keep a close eye on your children. Otherwise, when Zhao Xu comes, your whole family will be exiled to Danzhou!"

In private, Li Qingzhao would naturally not address His Majesty by his given name, but today was different. Today she was representing the Immortal Master Yiyuan. Immortals don't care whether you are an emperor or not, so addressing him by his given name was already a great honor.

Moreover, Li Qingzhao had already seen through it all. Once you give these people a good face, they will ask for longevity, health, and official career... The gods owe you something, so why should they grant you whatever you ask for?

After shouting, Li Qingzhao took out her phone and started playing a matching game as if no one else was around. Zhao Tingzhi angrily walked out of the crowd, kicked and hit his son, pulled him aside, and gave him a severe scolding.

Seeing this, the other officials who were trying to curry favor with the father and son all took a step back and looked at the unfortunate pair with sympathetic eyes.

You started hitting on random people without considering the situation; now you're feeling good, aren't you?
Of course, some officials secretly noted that Li Qingzhao addressed His Majesty by his given name and planned to impeach Li Gefei at the court meeting tomorrow... The reason they didn't bring it up now was because they didn't want to become the third person to be struck by lightning.

Not long after, Zhao Xu arrived at the scene accompanied by Zhao Ji. He was very weak and almost fell after taking a few steps, panting heavily, but his spirits were still quite good. He was particularly intrigued to see Li Qingzhao playing on her phone and wanted to get to know her.

Upon arriving at the offering table, all the civil and military officials and students of the Imperial Academy stood in formation. Zhao Xu bowed to Li Qingzhao in a Taoist salute.
"I wonder if I, Zhao, will have the honor of receiving the teachings of Immortal Master Yiyuan."

Li Qingzhao said:
"There should be a chance. My immortal master has a good impression of you. He praised your ambition and even plans to help you cure your illness... If you arrive at Hunyuan Palace, don't be nervous. The immortal master is a very kind person and is good at cooking. We all like to eat his cooking."

Zhao Xu said with a longing look:
"I hope that Zhao can meet the immortal as soon as possible."

At this moment, the foundation laying ceremony officially began, and Zhao Xu led the civil and military officials to worship heaven and earth and all the gods.

Finally, Zhao Xu knelt down before the Tai Chi diagram on the offering table, kowtowing and paying respects as a Taoist disciple, praying for the fate of the Song Dynasty.

After kowtowing, Zhao Xu stood up and his figure disappeared from the sight of the officials.

Zhao Ji looked left and right, then asked anxiously:
"Where's my brother?"

Li Qingzhao never expected her words to be so eloquent, and she tried her best to maintain her fairy-like persona:

"His Majesty has been invited for tea by the Immortal Master. Please be patient, everyone. He will be back shortly!"

(End of this chapter)