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

Chapter 212 Li Qingzhao's Black Iron Token Plan! [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

Upon hearing that it had been purified by immortals, Uncle Ming immediately wanted to buy it:

"That house must be in high demand, right? Will I be able to beat them? I should have brought more money..."

Zhou Yi coughed lightly:
"Don't get excited, don't get excited. The homeowner just died recently, nobody wants it."

Uncle Ming now understood what it meant for the Ziwei Emperor and Wang Lingguan to join forces in purification:

"The house of a heretical cultivator?"

"Yes, I just sent it away not long ago. That villa is in Mr. Fang's neighborhood. Once I'm done here, Mr. Fang can take you to see it."

The most important thing now is to move the statue of Houtu Niangniang upstairs before the mall opens, so as to avoid being surrounded by onlookers.

The truck door opened, revealing a statue over three meters tall, wrapped in silk cloth, with plenty of foam padding underneath to prevent damage during transport.

Fang Hongyan called a team of security guards to help. Zhou Yi asked each person's birthday and picked out those whose birth charts matched those of Houtu, and had them responsible for transporting the statues.

The statue was placed in the office area, and the location had been arranged in advance. After it was transported upstairs, everyone carefully straightened the statue.

At this time, Zhou Yi brought over the five-colored soil that had been offered. He first laid yellow soil around the base of the statue, and then evenly spread the five-colored soil according to the directions of east green, south red, west white, and north black.

After completing these steps, the prepared fresh flowers, fruits, and offerings were laid out, and everyone lined up to begin the consecration ceremony.

The whole process is somewhat similar to the consecration ceremony of the God of Fortune, but there are also differences. After all, Houtu Niangniang is one of the Four Emperors of Taoism and the Mother of the Earth, so each process requires the highest level.

Zhou Yi first recited the mantras for purifying the body, mind, and mouth, also known as the Three Purifications Mantra. Then he began to recite the Mantra for Cleansing Impurities, purifying everything here so that it would be convenient for the Empress Houtu to descend.

While chanting the sutra, Zhou Yi untied the silk cloth tied to the base of the statue, circled around the statue in the opposite direction, and tore the silk cloth off layer by layer.

Wu Zetian struck the wooden fish to keep time for Zhou Yi.

The wooden fish is a ritual instrument used by both Buddhism and Taoism. During religious ceremonies, it serves as a metronome and also purifies the minds of participants with its sound, preventing their minds from wandering.

Uncle Ming also participated today, taking charge of striking the bell... Participating in such things brings merit and good fortune; when Zhou Yi was chanting the sutra, Uncle Ming's complexion noticeably improved.

The Fang Hongyan family, dressed in formal attire with gold ribbons around their necks, stood solemnly before the statue.

When Zhou Yi removed all the silk from the statue, the kind-faced and benevolent statue of Houtu Niangniang was fully revealed to everyone. Everyone felt as if they were being cared for by a mother, and their tension, anxiety, and panic all subsided.

Next, Zhou Yi began the ritual of inviting the gods. He would invite the Goddess Houtu down to the mortal realm and attach a wisp of her divine consciousness to the statue. Only then would the consecration ceremony be considered complete.

Above Wan Ke Lai, white clouds drifted by one after another, and a gentle breeze gradually blew around the statue.

This is the messenger of the Goddess Houtu. Only after confirming that there is no filth or impurity around the statue will the goddess descend to the mortal realm.

Soon, a peaceful and warm current began to waft through the entire hall, and the statue seemed to come alive, gazing at everyone with benevolent eyes.

Zhou Yi began reciting the "Precious Proclamation of the Goddess Houtu" around the statue, flicking his whisk after each recitation to prevent worldly troubles and sorrows from disturbing the Goddess Houtu.

Then, he took the bronze mirror, went to the window, and used the sunlight to reflect onto Houtu Niangniang, showing her entire body.

After all this was done, everyone, regardless of age or gender, felt a mother's caress—warm, comfortable, and peaceful—and all negative emotions in their hearts vanished without a trace.

An hour later, the consecration ceremony ended, and Wan Ke Lai opened for business.

A bustling crowd of customers walked in and began selecting their favorite items. They felt that the mall was a little different today, but they couldn't quite put their finger on why. They just felt that everything was very comfortable, and that the mall's decorations and the displayed goods were just right, without anything out of place.

Zhou Yi put away his whisk and said to Fang Hongyan:
"Alright, the ceremony is over. I will come back at this time in the next two days to offer sacrifices twice more, and then the Goddess Houtu will reside here permanently."

As Wu Zetian helped put away the magical artifacts, she murmured to herself:
"This feeling of maternal love is so comforting. It was like this when Houtu descended. What if Nuwa descended? Would the feeling of maternal love be even stronger?"

Zhou Yi imagined the scene and said with a smile:

"I guess everyone will turn into a little kid. It's a pity that Goddess Nuwa is a special case. It's rare for a ritual to invite her to descend to the mortal world. If there's a chance in the future, I'll take you to experience it."

After the ceremony, there was still some time. Zhou Yi said to Fang Hongyan:

"Mr. Fang, we're going to look at apartments in your complex right now, you can continue with your work..."

Having witnessed Zhou Yi's abilities once again, Fang Hongyan quickly said:

“I’m not busy either, let’s go together. I’ve been looking forward to having more new neighbors, this is a good thing.”

The group took the elevator downstairs and then rode in Fang Hongyan's van to see the villa.

Meanwhile, in the world of Emperor Zhezong of the Northern Song Dynasty, in the interrogation room of the Ministry of Justice prison, Li Gefei looked at the corpse before him, his voice tinged with regret:

"Yang Jian is dead already? The experiment wasn't even finished yet. I should have given him ginseng soup to keep him alive first."

Such treacherous villains who brought disaster to the country and its people throughout history should be tortured more thoroughly, subjected to all the cruel tortures described in books before they die; only then will their deaths be worthy of their names. A subordinate asked:
What will happen to his family?

"According to the Song Code, if someone is to be confiscated, they should be confiscated; if someone is to be exiled, they should be exiled. There is no need for special treatment, so as not to cause gossip."

After leaving the interrogation room, Li Gefei looked at the sun overhead and went to the front hall of the Ministry of Justice, where he met Cai Jing, who was there on official business.

Cai Jing brought the proposed punishment for Li Gefei to review, and casually mentioned the matter of the two families celebrating the Lotus Viewing Festival together. This time, Li Gefei did not refuse, and said with a smile:
"Zhao'er brought a bottle of immortal wine from the immortal master; you can try it then."

Cai Jing was now an isolated official, not associating with anyone, so he had no choice but to shamelessly approach Li Gefei. Upon hearing that his cousin-in-law had agreed, he quickly stood up and bowed.
"I'll take care of everything for the holiday."

Li Gefei glanced at the punishment results and discovered that Empress Dowager Xiang's younger brother was also involved. He picked up his pen and circled the name:

"This person needs to be consulted with His Majesty; the matter should not be made public for the time being."

By not revealing the names of the Xiang family members, Zhao Xu could still pursue a benevolent path; once the names were made public, he could only maintain his absolute power.

It doesn't matter while I'm alive, but my reputation after death probably won't be good.

Just like Emperor Wu of Han, who was almost synonymous with tyrant in ancient times, but in the eyes of modern people, he is an emperor who expanded the territory and laid the foundation for the Chinese nation.

While the two were chatting, Li Qingzhao was busy writing and painting at home.

Li Hang walked in, saw the drawing on the paper, and asked in confusion:

"Sis, what are you drawing? It's neither square nor round, is it a black sesame shortbread?"

Li Qingzhao tapped her stinky younger brother on the head with the pen:
"All you think about all day is food. I'm drawing tokens... The court officials who were supposed to be offended by me have all been offended by my father. I want to ask the immortal to help me make a batch of black iron tokens. I don't need to go to the Hunyuan Palace. I just need some protection so that the officials in various worlds can protect themselves."

Li Hang said as if suddenly enlightened:

"This idea is perfect, with black iron, fine steel, brass... a strict hierarchy, but why did you draw the token as a cookie?"

Li Qingzhao blushed:
"Nonsense, this is clearly a token, not a pastry!"

Just then, a maid came in to pour tea, and Li Qingzhao, holding the painting, asked her:
"Xin'er, what do you think of this portrait?"

The maid glanced at it and said:

"Like the Huizhou ink pastry sold at that pastry shop on Caoshi Street, it's black, sweet, and very delicious... Miss, would you like some? Should I ask the doorman to buy two jin?"

Li Qingzhao looked at her painting, then thought about what Huizhou ink pastry looked like, and thought it really... really did look a bit like it.

Am I, the most talented woman, really that bad at painting? No, it must be that these two idiots lack appreciation skills. If it were an immortal, they certainly wouldn't say that.

Li Hang and Xin'er kept mentioning the pastries, which aroused the cravings of the talented Li woman:

"Just buy one pound, and some cloud cakes from next door. You pay, little brother. I know you have at least one string of copper coins in the box by your bedside."

Li Hang: ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

No, if you draw badly, how does it become that I have to pay for it?
While the talented Li used her bloodline to suppress her younger brother, Zhao Xu did the complete opposite, sitting opposite Zhao Ji, who was dressed in a Taoist robe, and discussing the upcoming arrangements:

“Brother, since you have chosen the path of cultivation, then walk it well. The Immortal Master cares most about the people, so you should help them solve their problems.”

Zhao Ji nodded, indicating that he had remembered it. He relaxed his body and looked at Zhao Xu, asking:

"Brother, did I do a lot of ridiculous things in the future, so you often beat and kicked me after you came back from the immortal's place?"

Zhao Xu took a sip of tea and said leisurely:

"According to the course of history, I should have died of illness a few months later. You were supported by Empress Dowager Xiang to become emperor, did many absurd things, and became the ruler of a fallen country."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ji finally understood why Li Qingzhao always looked at him with disdain, and why her brother had also given him a cold shoulder after his return.

He sighed deeply, rose, and bowed to Zhao Xu.
"Please take care of your health, brother. The Song Dynasty can do without Zhao Ji, but it cannot do without you. Once the Yiyuan Palace is completed, I will travel around the world to atone for the absurd things I have done."

By this point, he had already learned the cause of Empress Dowager Xiang's death.

It's no wonder the elder brother harbored such deep hatred for supporting a deposed monarch to the throne.

Just as Zhao Ji was about to leave, Zhao Xu suddenly called out to him:
"Brother, are you interested in forming a caravan? I need a trustworthy person to be in charge of trade."

Zhao Ji was taken aback:
"Does my elder brother intend to compete with the people for profit?"

Zhao Xu gently shook his head:

"No, I'm prepared to destroy the Liao Kingdom and reclaim the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun!"

(End of this chapter)