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

Chapter 178 Meiniang, from now on you are the head steward of Hunyuan Palace! [Seeking monthly votes]

After the meal, everyone gathered the stallions that were frolicking on the back hill, and Zhao Xu led thirty of them to the Northern Song World.

He originally intended to take all fifty horses with him, but the square frame at the entrance of the Hall of Longevity was too small to accommodate them all, so he had to leave twenty horses for Li Qingzhao to take back with her when she left.

Zhao Xu suddenly appeared in the palace with thirty horses, startling the surrounding eunuchs and imperial guards.

"This is a stallion bestowed by the gods. Send it to the Imperial Stables to be well cared for. I will make other arrangements for it later."

After giving these instructions, Zhao Xu sent someone to Li Gefei's house to inform him that Li Qingzhao would be bringing back twenty horses, and to have the Li family clear out the yard in advance to avoid being ravaged by the horses.

Upon receiving the notification, Li Gefei immediately arranged for people to move the carefully planted flowers and plants in the yard, while also feeling quite anxious.

Luckily, my daughter went to Hunyuan Palace from the courtyard. If she had gone from her boudoir, twenty horses would have torn the whole house down!
Inside Hunyuan Palace, Li Qingzhao put the lid on the remaining white wine and prepared to put it in the refrigerator... She had a couple of drinks at noon and felt great, so she decided to have two more in the evening.

Ever since her last bout of intoxication, she has started limiting her alcohol intake.

First, drink only low-alcohol beverages. Second, limit yourself to no more than three drinks per meal; a small sip to get slightly tipsy is fine, but don't overindulge.

Even now, she still suspects that her ramblings while hugging the immortal's neck were fabricated by Granny Gongsun, but she has no evidence, so she can only be careful and not get drunk again.

Upon opening the refrigerator door, Li Qingzhao saw the soybean jelly inside. She broke off a piece, put it in her mouth, and tasted it. Her eyes immediately lit up.
"Such a delicious taste, perfect for a little drink... I was trying to quit drinking, but this is just too delicious... It's all the immortal's fault!"

She closed the refrigerator door and went outside. At that moment, Li Bai and Gongsun Da Niang were teaching Chen Tang and Huo Qubing how to use a Polaroid camera and a portable laminator, so she went over and started learning from them.

In the next room, Zhou Yi and Wu Meiniang sat facing each other, discussing the candidates to be sent by Prince Wu Cheng:
"Meiniang, do you think we should decide on the people who are coming, or leave everything to fate?"

He mentioned writing Zhao Xu's name in the Hall of Longevity. Zhao Xu had arrived, but Chai Rong was nowhere to be seen, so they discussed whether or not to intervene.

Based on the information she had gathered, Wu Zetian said:

"You swept the cobwebs off the Four Heavenly Kings, and General Zigong arrived; you arranged the prayer cushions in Little Penglai, and Sister Gongsun arrived; you cleaned the Hall of King Wenxuan, and Brother Li Bai arrived; you asked Li Bai to sweep the leaves, and Marquis Huo Qubing arrived; we cleaned the Hall of King Wenxuan together, and Sister Zhao'er arrived; you wrote Emperor Zhezong's name, and Zhao Xu arrived..."

Hearing this, Zhou Yi asked curiously:

"Then what is the reason you came here? I was busy with my grandfather's funeral, so I didn't wipe any Buddha statues or anything, and I didn't even go into the main hall."

Wu Zetian frowned slightly as she recalled her first visit to Hunyuan Palace:
"I have been here for more than two hours, and I have searched the entire Hunyuan Palace from front to back before I finally got to see you. Where were you for the three or four hours before you entered the Hunyuan Palace?"

Zhou Yi took a sip of tea, thought for a moment, and said:
"At that time, I should have been at the Religious Affairs Bureau handling the transfer of ownership of the Taoist temple. My grandfather had arranged everything before he left, so the process went smoothly. After that, I took the rural bus back to Yunwu Town..."

At this point, Zhou Yi looked at the breathtakingly beautiful Wu Meiniang:

"So, you're the one I just got here after completing the formalities? In gaming terms, you're my... newbie gift pack?"

After saying that, he realized it wasn't appropriate and was about to change his words when Wu Meiniang picked up the teapot, filled it with tea, and said with a smile:
"To be a gift from the immortal is a blessing I have accumulated over a hundred lifetimes. May I refer to myself as Wu Meiniang of Hunyuan Palace from now on?"

Zhou Yi thought about it and changed the name:
"You should remain the head steward of Hunyuan Palace. From now on, you will be in charge of all the minor matters in the temple, and I will only handle the major matters."

Wu Zetian put the teapot down, unsure of the boundaries between what she was doing:

What constitutes a major event?

"Slaying evil cultivators, suppressing demons, purifying evil spirits, and exorcising evil gods... I'll take care of everything within the scope of metaphysics. As for living arrangements, you can handle that. I only care about accumulating merit; I don't care about anything else."

Upon hearing this, Wu Meiniang rose and solemnly bowed to Zhou Yishen. Remembering Zhao Xu's mention of Cai Jing's oath, she took out her token and swore an oath to heaven:
"From this day forward, I swear to respect the Immortal Master above all else. If I ever do anything to offend the Immortal Master, may I be struck by lightning and annihilated, body and soul!"

The sound had barely faded when a muffled clap of thunder sounded outside, startling several ancient people practicing taking photos and even making Zhou Yi, who was about to drink his tea, tremble.

"It's like we're family, you're being too formal by making such a solemn oath."

He put down his teacup, surprised that the token had such an effect. He felt that what he had made casually actually had some potential for development.

Wu Zetian took out a tissue, wiped up the spilled tea on the table, and said with a smile:

"You may not listen, but you still have to make the vow. After all, my reputation is not good. If I implicate your path to immortality, my sins will be unforgivable even if I die a hundred times."

Zhou Yi waved his hand:

"Alright, alright, stop saying things like that, it's making the atmosphere so tense... Do you think I should intervene in the Wu Cheng King's Hall? Bring Xin Qiji over?"

Wu Zetian thought for a moment and said:

"I think we should bring him here. As for the others, we can discuss them later... When Xin Qiji was young, he was behind enemy lines. Although he couldn't raise a large army to resist the Jin, he still had a lot of room to maneuver. I am not very capable, but I am willing to command him to give it a try." Oh dear, Her Majesty the Empress is going to participate in work behind enemy lines?
To be honest, Zhou Yi is actually quite looking forward to it:
“Let’s go clean up the Wu Cheng Wang Hall, then write Xin Qiji’s name in the guestbook and see if we can bring this iron-blooded man over.”

The two left the room and went to the Wu Cheng Wang Hall together. They first cleaned the room, and then solemnly wrote Xin Qiji's name in the guestbook.

After doing all that, the two went to the Hall of Longevity to take a look. Zhao Xu's name was no longer in the guestbook, but Emperor Shizong of Zhou, Chai Rong's name was still there, unchanged.

In the afternoon, Huo Qubing and Chen Tang mastered how to use the camera. Zhou Yi bought two sets of solar panels for them and printed out maps of Liangzhou and the Western Regions of the Western Han Dynasty in town. After laminating them, he had Chen Tang take them back to Xin Qingji.

In addition, Xin Qingji was also provided with a considerable amount of telescopes, compasses, tactical watches, and so on.

In the Yuan Emperor's world, the Han Dynasty was already weak and exhausted, and it was estimated that it was unable to send troops to support the Western Regions. Therefore, the Hunyuan Palace had to provide more supplies so that Xin Qingji would not be in dire straits in the Western Regions.

In addition to these supplies, Zhou Yi also prepared information on various small kingdoms in the Western Regions. The information found online was not comprehensive, but it was enough for Xin Qingji to refer to.

With nothing else to do, Chen Tang picked up his phone and recorded Huo Qubing saying something encouraging to Xin Qingji.

Wu Zetian said:
Historical records say that Xin Qingji lived a simple life, but he liked luxurious carriages. If he can pacify the Western Regions, I will send him a carriage of the Tang Dynasty royal family in the name of the gods.

Although both the Han and Tang dynasties were extremely powerful, their styles were different.

The Han Dynasty was simple and unpretentious, emphasizing restraint and modesty, while the Tang Dynasty was more flamboyant. Even the armor was polished to a shine and called "bright armor," and the carriages were decorated in a magnificent and luxurious manner.

If you give Xin Qingji a Tang Dynasty carriage, he'll be so happy he'll sleep in it.

Thus, although Xin Qingji's transfer order was still far from being finalized, Hunyuan Palace had already prepared everything, including supplies and rewards.

After preparing the supplies, Chen Tang carried the entire woven bag of onions that Zhou Yi had prepared for him and excitedly returned to the world of Emperor Yuan of the Western Han Dynasty without even having dinner.

As soon as he appeared, Gan Yanshou and Xin Qingji, who were waiting nearby, came to greet him:
"General Zigong, you've worked hard. Does the immortal like those sheep?"

Chen Tang put down the onions he was carrying on his shoulder and said casually:

"It's alright. The immortal prefers to eat sheep from other tribes. The sheep raised in Han areas don't smell as good as those from other tribes."

These words instantly ignited Xin Qingji's fighting spirit:

"Since the Immortal Master is pleased, then I will conquer more alien races so that the Immortal Master will have an endless supply of alien sheep to eat every day!"

Gan Yanshou rummaged through the bag of onions and asked curiously:
"Why are you using so many onions? Are you planning to suffocate the officials along the way with just one breath?"

Chen Tang said:

“This thing can be grown. Since Brother Qingji can’t go to the Western Regions for the time being, you can arrange for someone to bury it in the soil, and collect it when it flowers and bears seeds to keep as seeds.”

After introducing the onion, Chen Tang took out his phone and played a video of Huo Qubing. Xin Qingji was thrilled and wished he could go outside the city and slaughter a few Qiang people to satisfy his craving.

Inside Hunyuan Palace, Zhou Yi sliced ​​some soybean jelly for a cold salad, cooked some mutton for a boiled dish, and also made tomato scrambled eggs and cumin mutton, which were Wu Zetian's favorite dishes.

As Aunt Gongsun sipped her sweet wine, she muttered to herself:

"I really hope that a fairy younger than me will come to Hunyuan Palace, so that I can be the older sister."

Her intention was to bring up the topic of Xi Shi, but Wu Zetian brought up Li Mingda instead:
"Li Mingda is currently learning elementary school knowledge. When she has learned enough, I will find a way to bring Mingda here. Then you can be her confidante and big sister."

Gongsun Da Niang: ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Goodness, it's not enough for Sister Meiniang to do it herself, she even has to abduct Li Shimin's own daughter... She truly deserves to be my most respected and beloved sister, she's so cool!

Li Qingzhao looked at her and asked:
"Why are you in such a hurry to increase the population of Hunyuan Palace?"

Grandma Gongsun showed off a bite of mutton and gave her reason:

"There are too few women, not even enough for a game of mahjong. Hunyuan Palace is so big, there should be enough fairies for at least three mahjong tables, right?"

Li Qingzhao was immediately delighted:
"Are you planning to set off a firecracker in front of the Three Pure Ones and Buddha?"

The talented woman has recently been researching offline mahjong on her phone and finds it quite interesting. She plans to learn it properly so that this national treasure of mahjong can appear in the Song Dynasty ahead of schedule.

Just then, a strange man's voice came from outside:

"Excuse me, is the host here? I am from Licheng, Qizhou. I don't know how I ended up here. Please forgive me for disturbing you!"

(End of this chapter)