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

Chapter 164 Disciple Zhao Xu pays respects to the Immortal Master! [Requesting monthly votes]

Inside the Hall of Longevity in the Hunyuan Palace, Zhao Xu felt as if he had been transported to an unfamiliar place in the blink of an eye. His ministers, his imperial brother, and the Osmanthus Fairy in her Taoist robes had all vanished without a trace.

He steadied himself, looked around, and muttered to himself in confusion:

"Could this be the Hunyuan Palace that the Osmanthus Fairy spoke of?"

Zhao Xu respectfully bowed to the statue of the Eternal Emperor, then noticed a guestbook on the altar. Curious, he opened it and saw the name of Emperor Shizong of Zhou, Chai Rong:

"The name of Emperor Shizong is actually here. Does the Immortal Master intend to invite Emperor Shizong to this place? But his name in life was Guo Rong. Did the Immortal Master write it wrong?"

Chai Rong was adopted by Guo Wei, so his surname was naturally Guo. It was only after Zhao Kuangyin ascended the throne that the surname of the Later Zhou royal family was changed back to Chai.

He did this to both enhance his own legitimacy and reduce Chai Rong's influence.

However, contrary to expectations, Song Dynasty officials liked to praise Chai Rong whenever they suffered setbacks. This not only did not diminish Chai Rong's influence, but also spread his achievements and regrets even more widely. He was even deified by the common people, and a belief in Chai Rong emerged.

Closing the guestbook, Zhao Xu looked around and recalled Li Qingzhao's introduction. He knew that Huo Qubing had also come from the Hall of Longevity and had made a wish when he bowed earlier, hoping to recreate the heroic feat of the Marquis of Champion sealing the wolf's lair.

Leaving the Hall of Longevity, he saw the tall streetlights, the power lines strung in the courtyard, and the Wuling Hongguang van parked in the distance.

After wandering around for a while, Zhao Xu found that no one was in Hunyuan Palace, so he started strolling around the courtyard alone.

At this moment, Zhou Yi was driving back to Hunyuan Palace. He and Gongsun Da Niang had finished eating at Zhao Wei's house, bought some fruit, and ordered more than ten catties of beef brisket.

Tomorrow is the day Wu Zetian will come to Hunyuan Palace. Chen Tang, Li Bai, Li Qingzhao and others will also come. We will pick some tomatoes from the vegetable garden, make sweet and sour tomato stewed beef brisket, and eat it with rice. It will be delicious.

In the passenger seat, Granny Gongsun patted her little belly and said:

"I've eaten too much again, Taoist priest. Will they laugh at me for eating so much, even though I'm from out of town?"

"No, in our area, the more food you eat when you visit someone's home, the more honored the host will be."

Upon hearing this, Granny Gongsun couldn't help but sigh:
"I should have ordered another half bowl of rice; I just can't get enough of the fish soup rice!"

Back at Hunyuan Palace, as soon as the car entered the gate, the two saw a red figure enter the main hall.

Gongsun Da Niang, who was terrified of ghosts by nature, subconsciously asked:
"In the middle of the day, could a ghost come knocking on our door?"

Zhou Yi chuckled:
"Do you really think these gods are all good-natured? Even the Buddhist sect has its wrathful Vajras, not to mention the Taoist sect's group of warmongers who are always ready to destroy mountains and temples."

However, Master Zhou's caution was ingrained in his bones. He honked the car horn, opened the door and got out, silently reciting the incantation for the lightning strike.

In case of any unexpected events, simply use the eighth-grade lightning strike technique to deal with the opponent.

Before anyone could even experience the power of the eighth-grade lightning strike technique, a thin man dressed in a scarlet official robe and wearing a tall crown walked out of the main hall and respectfully knelt down to pay his respects as soon as he stepped across the threshold.

"Disciple Zhao Xu pays respects to Immortal Master Yiyuan!"

Upon seeing that it wasn't a ghost, but Zhao Xu from the Song Dynasty, Granny Gongsun excitedly circled him twice.
"So you're the emperor from Sister Zhao'er's era? Where is Sister Zhao'er?"

Zhao Xu replied respectfully:
"Today I led all the officials to hold the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Yiyuan Palace. Who knew that after worshipping the gods, I would end up here? The Osmanthus Fairy is still at the ceremony site."

Looking at Zhao Xu, Zhou Yi felt that he was indeed quite weak. Not only was he thin, but his face was also pale. However, his attitude was very good, which showed that Li Qingzhao's publicity work was very effective.

He said to Zhao Xu:

"Get up. Have you eaten? If not, I'll get you something to eat first."

"I haven't eaten yet, thank you Master!"

He seized the opportunity and immediately called out "Master," which made Granny Gongsun curl her lip in disapproval.
“You emperors, every single one of you is shameless.”

This girl thought that Li Longji's shamelessness was an isolated case, but she didn't expect that Zhao Xu, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, also had this kind of personality. He immediately called him "Master" and didn't treat himself as an outsider at all.

The three arrived at the courtyard. Zhou Yi went to the kitchen to cook, while Aunt Gongsun took out her snacks to share with Zhao Xu and "inadvertently" showed off the whole process of slaying the dragon yesterday.

Zhao Xu was quite shocked. He hadn't expected the Pomegranate Fairy to be so amazing. He flattered her a few times, took a bite of the egg yolk pie, and thought it tasted fantastic.

"How much is this item? Is it expensive?"

Granny Gongsun took out a bunch of things from her treasure chest:
"They're sold in bulk at the supermarket, very cheap, just like the treacherous officials of your Great Song Dynasty, you can find them everywhere."

Zhao Xu was taken aback:
"Are there many treacherous officials in my Great Song Dynasty?"

Gongsun Da Niang nodded:

"Of course there are more. Didn't Sister Zhao'er already kill two of them?"

Zhao Xu suddenly felt that the egg yolk pie in his hand was no longer sweet: "The Osmanthus Fairy first used lightning to kill my brother Zhao Ji's attendant Gao Qiu, and the second time she killed the palace eunuch Liang Shicheng... These two were insignificant characters, how can they be called treacherous officials?"

Gongsun Da Niang said:

"You don't know this, do you? After you died, your younger brother Zhao Ji ascended the throne, appointing people based on nepotism. That Gao Qiu, who only knew how to play football, became the Grand Commandant, and Liang Shicheng proclaimed himself the Recluse Prime Minister, controlling the government. The entire court was in chaos, which led to the Jingkang Incident, where the Jin army besieged Kaifeng, and all the princesses and concubines of the royal family became prisoners of the Jin..."

Zhao Xu sat blankly in the chair, the egg yolk pie in his hand crumbly, but he was unaware of it, muttering to himself repeatedly:

"How could this be... how could this be..."

No wonder the Osmanthus Fairy never spoke of the future, and her expression was so complicated whenever she was asked about the fall of Western Xia.

Seeing Zhao Xu's blank expression, Gongsun Da Niang thought he didn't believe her, so she went to Zhou Yi's room and took all the traditional Chinese character books about Song Dynasty history from the bookshelf:
"These are all Song Dynasty histories, especially the things your brother did after he came to power... This book, 'Biographies of Traitorous Officials,' was compiled by the scholar-official class after the fall of the Song Dynasty. See if you can find anything new."

Zhao Xu patted the crumbs from the egg yolk pie in his hand, mechanically took the book, and began to flip through it.

Of course, seeing the names of the so-called treacherous officials made it even harder to hold back:

“Lu Huiqing is a pillar of our dynasty. He is currently fighting against the Western Xia and Tubo on the northwestern border, expanding our territory by thousands of miles. How could he be a treacherous minister?”

“Zhang Dun is my right-hand man. He expanded the southwestern territory, rectified the counties of Hunan and Hubei, and prevented the local people from causing trouble in the southwestern counties. He also rectified the court and stabilized the people’s hearts. Although there have been wars for years, he has not increased the corvée labor of the people. How could such a pillar of the state be called a treacherous minister?”

Aunt Gongsun tore open a bag of sandwich cookies and popped them into her mouth, crunching away.

“I know that. After your death, the Empress Dowager suggested that Zhao Ji become emperor. Zhang Dun objected, saying that Prince Duan was frivolous and unfit to rule the world… Just two days ago, the Immortal Master praised Zhang Dun for his accurate judgment of people. The Song Dynasty was indeed doomed when it came to Zhao Ji.”

Zhang Dun's statement, "Prince Duan is frivolous and unfit to rule the world," effectively offended the future emperor. As a result, not long after Zhao Ji ascended the throne, this pillar of the state was repeatedly demoted and eventually died far from home.

When Zhao Gou ascended the throne, he dragged Zhang Dun out and whipped his corpse, and even established a rule that "Zhang Dun's descendants shall not serve in the court," thus demoting this prime minister to the dust.

When Zhao Xu first arrived at Hunyuan Palace, he wanted to plead for his younger brother and let him cultivate immortality. However, after learning about this history, he wished he could tear Zhao Ji to pieces.

As they were chatting, Zhou Yi brought over a bowl of sour soup noodles with shredded pork, topped with two fried eggs:

"Eat up. After you finish eating, I'll take you to the Medicine King Temple to pray for good health. Next time you come, go to the health center for a blood test to see if you have excessive heavy metals in your body."

When the Song Dynasty built its imperial palace, it used a large amount of cinnabar, which led to the emperors not living long. It wasn't until the reign of Emperor Huizong that he built a separate residence and moved out of the palace. He was healthy and free from illness, and even when he was escorted to the Jin Dynasty, he lived for several more years.

Zhao Xu shoveled the noodles into his mouth, finding the celestial cuisine far more delicious than the dishes in the palace. The soup was fresh and flavorful, and he wanted to eat more after each bite.

Zhou Yi glanced at the books on the table and pushed them towards Zhao Xu:
"Take it back with you when you leave. Take a good look at the faces of the scholar-officials. After the fall of the Song Dynasty, the Mongols established the Yuan Dynasty. These scholar-officials suddenly became loyal ministers of the Yuan Dynasty. Later, when Zhu Yuanzhang raised an army to rebel against the Yuan Dynasty, they, as Han Chinese, resisted in various ways... The scholar-official class only thinks about themselves. Be careful when you use them. They are not the aristocratic families of the Han and Tang Dynasties. They have no sense of responsibility for the rise and fall of the country."

Zhao Xu agreed:
"Master, rest assured, I know what to do."

Zhou Yi then gave him another token, but it wasn't the stainless steel Hunyuan Palace Human Circumstances Token. Instead, it was a brass token with the two characters "Hunyuan" etched on it, and the back was etched with "Four Duty Officers Protect the Body".

This token is made of high-strength brass, which is extremely strong and hard. In ancient times, it would have been considered equivalent to celestial gold, making it a perfect symbol of the emperor's status.

Well, a few days ago, Zhou Yi felt that the emperor who came to Hunyuan Palace should be distinguished from those who walked in the human world, so he ordered a batch of high-strength brass tokens online. Unexpectedly, Zhao Xu arrived shortly after they arrived.

Gongsun Da Niang secretly urged:
“My sister Zhao’er and I can summon divine thunder. Your token looks more advanced, so it should be able to do that too. When we get back, you can randomly pick a minor traitor to try it out. It will help you build your authority.”

Zhao Xu felt it was a bit unreliable, but he still agreed.

After finishing her bowl of noodles, Aunt Gongsun went to clean up the kitchen. Zhao Xu followed Zhou Yi to the Medicine King Hall and knelt down in front of the statue of the Medicine King to pray for good health.

After the ceremony, Zhou Yi took out a high-level purple-gold talisman and handed it to Zhao Xu, telling him to keep it safe with him.

This is a talisman for curing illness and strengthening the body. It is very precious. Grandpa only left five of them. He gave the first one to Zhao Xu.

After tucking the talisman into his bosom, Zhao Xu felt warm all over, and his previous symptoms of photophobia and cold sensitivity were rapidly improving.

Considering that there were still officials waiting there, Zhou Yi did not let Zhao Xu stay long. He prepared some books and food for him and then sent him back.

At the foundation-laying ceremony next to the Imperial Academy during the reign of Emperor Zhezong of the Northern Song Dynasty, the court officials were still waiting under the scorching sun. Although Li Qingzhao appeared calm on the surface, she was inwardly anxious, fearing that Zhao Xu might not return, and that she would be unable to handle the situation.

Just then, Zhao Xu's figure suddenly appeared in front of the offering table. Upon seeing him, the officials were all filled with fear and trepidation, and immediately knelt down and shouted "Long live the Emperor!"

The Emperor was summoned away by the gods and then returned safely; this is truly a joyous occasion.

But Zhao Xu was not happy, especially when he saw Zhao Ji, he was furious:

"Brother, come here, I have a few words to say to you..."

(End of this chapter)