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

Chapter 165 The First Talented Woman's Drinking Capacity, Is That All? [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

Zhao Xu dragged Zhao Ji into a nearby dark room and immediately began to beat him, leaving Zhao Ji completely bewildered and having no idea what was happening.

"Brother, brother, what's wrong? What did I do to offend you? Why are you so energetic today?"

Only after he said that did Zhao Xu realize that since he had worshipped the Medicine King and carried the purple-gold talisman bestowed by the immortal, his health had actually improved considerably.

In the past, let alone beating someone like this, you couldn't even stand walking a little faster.

But today, when I beat up my little brother, it's so satisfying, even more so than drinking an iced drink on a summer day.

Unable to explain why he hit his brother, Zhao Xu calmed himself down and tossed his younger brother two packs of sandwich cookies and a box of chocolate bars:
"I hit you for your own good. When you have time, take a gift and go to thank the Osmanthus Fairy in person for sparing your life. Work hard to build the Yiyuan Palace and don't be lazy. This is your last chance."

Zhao Ji was somewhat bewildered, but he nodded nonetheless and helped Zhao Xu out to complete the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Yiyuan Palace.

Afterwards, Zhao Xu did not return to the palace, but instead showed Li Qingzhao his brass token:

“From now on, I will be able to go to Master’s place every five days to listen to his teachings.”

Li Qingzhao was very happy:
"Welcome. I'm going to Hunyuan Palace tomorrow and might stay for a couple more days. If you need anything, just let me know and I'll bring it to you... The Marquis of Champion and the others have started using telescopes, so I'll bring you some too."

Zhao Xu bowed and thanked him.

"Thank you, Osmanthus Fairy. My master just made me a bowl of sour soup noodles. It was very appetizing and delicious. The fairy also put a lot of wine in the refrigerator... I think that's called a refrigerator?"

Upon hearing the word "alcohol," Li Duidui, who had always maintained a cool and aloof fairy-like persona, instantly broke down:
"Really? That's great! I bought those wines last time, but he promised I could only drink them after I saw you. Now that you've become a disciple of Hunyuan Palace, I've exceeded my expectations. I'll go tomorrow and have a couple more drinks."

After Zhao Xu returned to the palace, Li Qingzhao also strolled home. On the way, she bought some fried dough sticks, two jugs of Tu Mi wine, and some meat sauce to accompany the wine for Li Hang.

As soon as I arrived home, Li Hang came out to greet me:
"Sis, I heard you were really impressive at the groundbreaking ceremony. Can you take me there next time?"

Li Qingzhao stuffed the fried dough twist wrapped in lotus leaves into her younger brother's arms and said:
"You're just a kid, don't just play! Studying hard and getting into a good family is the right thing to do... The Immortal Master has a lot of advanced experiences that benefit the country and the people. I'm worried that others won't implement them well, so I'll have to rely on you then."

Li Qingzhao and Li Gefei had agreed that in two years they would invite a general from the Privy Council to teach Li Hang some military knowledge. They didn't expect the boy to be both literate and skilled in martial arts, but at least he would understand the structure of the army and know the rules of its operation, so that he wouldn't become a prime minister who knew nothing about military affairs in the future.

Back at Hunyuan Palace, Zhou Yi rode the police station's motorcycle back and picked up two grass carp weighing about ten pounds each.

The girl who slayed the dragon felt that she hadn't had enough of the stewed fish at noon, so Zhou Yi planned to clean the two grass carp, chop them into large pieces, fry them in oil, and then stew them in a clay pot for half an hour.

This method makes the fish pieces more delicious, and the soup is also more suitable for soaking rice.

A small casserole is enough for two people. We can eat the remaining fish pieces tomorrow. The talented lady wants to drink, so this will be a perfect appetizer.

When Aunt Gongsun saw that there would be a delicious meal that evening, she happily ran over to help:
"Immortal Master, is it because Sister Meiniang and Sister Zhao'er are coming tomorrow that you've prepared so much delicious food?"

Zhou Yi laughed:

"Have I made you suffer these past two days?"

Yesterday it was pork bone hot pot, today I went to Zhao Wei's house for lunch, and tonight it was fish stew and dry pot fish offal. All good food and dishes. This girl even made some veiled remarks.

Gongsun Da Niang shrugged:

"I also long to be cared for by you... By the way, Immortal Master, if Xi Shi were to come one day, how would you treat her?"

Zhou Yi tapped the fish's head with the back of the cleaver, then used the tip to cut across the fish's chin between its gills, bleeding it as he spoke:
"Just like you, she can help the Yue Kingdom if she wants to, or stay here as a cultivator if she doesn't."

Historically, Xi Shi was a key figure in Fan Li's strategy to help Goujian implement his "beauty trap." Through Xi Shi's talent for singing and dancing, Fan Li gradually corrupted King Fuchai, enabling Goujian to achieve his revenge.

However, Xi Shi's fate was not good. Some versions say she escaped with Fan Li, some say she was killed, and another version says that Goujian was also infatuated with her, but under the persuasion of his subordinates, he reluctantly killed Xi Shi.

Regardless of the version, it's unfair to Xi Shi.

Furthermore, Goujian's successful revenge was largely due to the assistance of the State of Chu, as the high-ranking officials of Yue, including Fan Li and Wen Zhong, were all from Chu.

After destroying the state of Wu, Goujian became so arrogant that he wanted to attack the state of Chu. His Chu followers immediately fled and scattered, and the once-famous state of Yue collapsed as a result, never to recover.

Zhou Yi had no intention of getting involved in the Wu-Yue War. He would simply admire Xi Shi's beautiful dance and had no intention of disrupting the course of history for the time being.

But just because he doesn't disrupt the course of history doesn't mean that the course of history won't change... The wheels of history, if they deviate even slightly, can have immeasurable consequences.

After cleaning and gutting the fish, Zhou Yi washed it, chopped it into large pieces, and sprinkled it with seasonings to marinate it.

Grandma Gongsun huddled to one side, constantly craving fried peanuts and fried vegetarian meatballs; her conversations revolved entirely around food.

In the evening, the casserole fish chunks and dry pot fish offal were finally ready. The two sat in the courtyard, enjoying the cool breeze and the delicious dishes, feeling very comfortable.

The night passed, and Zhou Yi was brushing his teeth after getting up when he suddenly saw Wu Meiniang rushing over from the main hall in a great hurry. He thought something important had happened: "What's wrong? Has Xiao Sizi had another attack?"

Seeing that Zhou Yi was safe and sound, Wu Meiniang breathed a sigh of relief.
"Li Mingda is safe and sound, but what about you the other day? I was so worried. If anything happened here, I... I wouldn't want to live either."

The second half of the sentence was spoken very softly, and Zhou Yi could barely hear it. He spat out the foam in his mouth and said:
"Don't worry, with these gods protecting me, I'll be fine."

Just then, Aunt Gongsun came running over wearing dinosaur pajamas:
"Sister, the other day I slew a wicked dragon, and the Taoist priest gave me the nickname 'Dragon-Slaying Girl,' which is not ladylike at all. What kind of girl has such a name!"

The Book of Changes: ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Good grief, you even changed your WeChat signature to "Dragon-Slaying Girl," and you're still trying to turn the tables on me.

Wu Zetian said with a smile:

"This name is good, unique, and fits the unconventional characteristics of women in our Tang Dynasty... Wait, did you really kill a dragon?"

Zhou Yi, fearing that the greedy girl would bring up the Wei Long spicy strips again, preemptively said:
"It can only be considered a Jiao, not yet a dragon. I don't know the specifics, and I don't plan to investigate further."

The blind man's eyes are related to dragons. Whether he observed dragons or something else, it indicates that this is a very dangerous creature... Since it is dangerous, then don't provoke it.

It's quite remarkable that the blind man survived for several years while being hunted by mythical creatures. An ordinary person would probably have died several times over by now.

As we were chatting, Li Qingzhao arrived, carrying several scrolls of paintings, clearly the very valuable kind.
"My father asked me to bring my master's calligraphy of 'Jiang Cheng Zi: Hunting in Mizhou' and a letter of tribute. Emperor Huizong of Song also came to thank me yesterday for sparing his life and presented me with two paintings and a letter of tribute."

Zhou Yi said with a smile:

"If this continues, Hunyuan Palace could hold a special exhibition on Song Dynasty art."

Li Qingzhao made a small request:
“My father hopes that Your Majesty can transfer my master back from Danzhou, even if he can just live in the vicinity of Bianliang and not enter the city.”

Zhou Yi nodded:

"Next time I see Zhao Xu, I'll tell him to let your father meet Su Shi as soon as possible."

Soon, Li Bai and Chen Tang arrived, and Zhou Yi then learned that everyone had been praying for themselves during the torrential rain the day before.

Two Han Dynasty generals, two Tang Dynasty princesses, two culturally renowned figures, an empress chanting sutras for blessings, and the support of the people of Cloud Mist Town... all these combined, along with the Dragon-Slaying Sword passed down from my grandfather, would be more than enough to deal with a scourge that brings floods; even a real dragon could be slain from the clouds.

Chen Tang didn't come empty-handed; he bought two sheep from the foreign tribes who had submitted to Dunhuang County and brought them over. Zhou Yi liked his habit of bringing his own ingredients.

However, we won't be having lamb for lunch today; instead, we've prepared braised beef brisket with tomatoes and fish in a casserole.

After breakfast, Zhou Yi cut the beef brisket, which had been soaked to remove blood, into large chunks and began to stew it.

While stir-frying the ingredients, he was worried that the tomatoes wouldn't taste good enough, so he added some tomato paste, melted it in hot oil, added star anise, put in the blanched beef brisket, and simmered it on the stove over low heat.

At noon, everyone sat around the dining table, enjoying the air conditioning and preparing for lunch.

Zhou Yi took out the strong beer that Li Qingzhao had been longing for, opened it, and filled everyone's glasses. Little Li Bai was drinking kvass, which could be pretended to be beer.

As the dense foam was poured into the cup, Li Qingzhao's mind kept flashing back to the advertisement she had seen last time.

The Book of Changes reminds us:
"This beer has an alcohol content of over 20%, so be careful not to get drunk."

Smelling the pleasant aroma of hops, Li Qingzhao shamelessly declared:
"Don't even mention a cup, this whole jar isn't enough for me to drink alone. Let's have a contest if you don't believe me!"

As she spoke, she picked up the mug of beer with both hands, brought it to her lips, took a sip, and her eyes sparkled with delight:

"It tastes bitter at first, but upon closer tasting, it has many layers of flavor, and with the added texture of the foam, I like this kind of wine."

After saying that, she tilted her head back and gulped down half of the wine in her glass. She had just put it down and hadn't even had time to reflect when she slumped over and passed out drunk.

The Book of Changes: ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

With such a limited capacity, you dare to call yourself a connoisseur of fine wine?
Wu Meiniang wanted to take her to her room, but Li Qingzhao was like a limp rag and couldn't be helped at all. Zhou Yi put down his wine cup, picked up the charming little drunkard by the waist, and put her on the bed in Wu Meiniang and Gongsun Da Niang's room.

Just as she put her head down, Li Qingzhao, reeking of alcohol, suddenly raised her slender, lotus-root-like arms and wrapped them around Zhou Yi's neck, mumbling incoherently:

“Yesterday, Zhao Mingcheng tried to flirt with me, and I chased him away with my words… Immortal Master, can I remain unmarried for the rest of my life and stay in Hunyuan Palace forever?”

Zhou Yi nodded:

"Sure, Hunyuan Palace will always be your home!"

Hearing this promise, the female drunkard let go of her hand with relief and fell into a deep sleep on the bed.

Zhou Yi covered her with a blanket, adjusted the air conditioning, and was about to go out, but then he thought again and took out his phone to take a drunken and ugly picture of the first talented woman... She got drunk like this after only half a glass of beer. In the future, she should sit at the table with the kids when she goes out to eat!
(End of this chapter)