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

Chapter 253 Li Shimin: A God? How many masters does a god have? [Requesting monthly votes]

The Great Tang Dynasty, Zhenguan era, Taiji Palace, Taiji Hall.

After the officials finished paying their respects, each department began to submit their reports in an orderly manner. They first discussed matters concerning people's livelihood, followed by military and national affairs, which basically involved reporting on Li Jing's location and logistical supply.

As the report was being given, Fang Xuanling, the Left Minister of Works, suddenly stepped forward to apologize, saying that he had failed to perform his duties and had offended His Majesty.

Fang Xuanling was now the second most important official in the Tang Dynasty, second only to Changsun Wuji, the head of all officials. When he came forward to apologize, a large number of officials from the Ministry of Personnel and the Secretariat immediately knelt down.

Li Shimin sat upright on the dragon throne and asked in a loud voice:

"What wrong have you done, my dear minister?"

He knew very well that Fang Xuanling's sudden plea for forgiveness was purely an attempt to disrupt the plans of the foreign officials and catch them off guard.

Wearing one's own ethnic costume to court is clearly a sign that one intends to cause trouble.

The best time, of course, would be when discussing matters of state and military affairs, but Fang Xuanling deliberately didn't give these people a chance to speak. He respectfully said:

"I was ordered to promote the Sinicization of officials, but I did not expect that someone would openly oppose it and even enter the court wearing foreign clothing. This act violates the laws of the Tang Dynasty."

From the time Li Shimin began his campaigns in the south and north, Fang Xuanling was his loyal advisor. The two had worked together for many years, and they could understand each other with just a glance.

For example, Fang Xuanling is ostensibly apologizing, but in reality, he is creating conditions for Li Shimin to execute people.

First, seize the moral high ground of the imperial law and point out that the other party is disrupting the court. Then, for the sake of the Tang Dynasty, Li Shimin can tearfully summon divine lightning to strike down a foreign official.

In this way, a reason is provided, face is saved, authority is maintained... In short, it's a good outcome for everyone.

As for those who were struck dead... what right do alien races have to experience the orthodox divine lightning of China? To be struck dead by divine lightning now is like their ancestral graves are emitting smoke, they've hit the jackpot.

This charade between the emperor and his minister puzzled Changsun Wuji, who then stepped forward and requested that those who had violated the law be severely punished to set an example for all officials.

The two high-ranking officials in the court spoke in succession, and several Turkic officials stepped forward, with Ashina Huoluo, the leader, crying out to Li Shimin for help:

"Your Majesty, we did not intend to offend the court, but the newly promulgated laws are too harsh. If we do not wear Turkic clothing, do not perform Turkic rituals, and do not keep Turkic hairstyles, who will know the etiquette of our Turkic nobles in the future?"

These words immediately amused the old ministers, who lowered their heads to suppress their laughter.

How could you say such a thing as mentioning your Turkic nobles in the Tang Dynasty court?

Li Shimin stopped smiling and asked in a loud voice:

"What, judging from your tone, you still want to restore your kingdom?"

Ashina Huoluo was about to continue speaking when his clansman next to him tugged at his clothes... What a fool! How could he give someone a handle to use against him?
To prevent Ashina Huoluo from using any more of his classic lines, the official continued:

“Recently, we have all received a dream from the gods, who said that our actions have betrayed the gods and requested Your Majesty to grant us permission to wear our own ethnic clothing and preserve our own ethnic customs.”

They were well aware that once they were fully Sinicized, after a few generations, there would be no one left in Chang'an who could speak Turkic, and traditions such as Turkic etiquette would be completely forgotten.

Based on their past understanding of Li Shimin, they believed that as long as they invoked the name of the gods, His Majesty would understand.

But today, Old Li acted differently than usual. He stroked the token in his hand and asked in a calm tone:
"A god? How many armies does he have?"

With the Heavenly Court's Thunder Department backing him up, Old Li's words became noticeably more assertive.

At this moment, Ashina She'er, the Left General of the Valiant Guard and Duke of Bi, stepped forward:
"Your Majesty, your subject Li She has a matter to report!"

Ashina She'er was originally a Turkic nobleman who was ordered to control the Xueyantuo and Tiele tribes. However, he was defeated by the Xueyantuo and his entire clan migrated to the Tang Dynasty. He made great contributions in the conquest of the Gaochang Kingdom and was enfeoffed as the Duke of Bi. Not long ago, Emperor Taizong of Tang bestowed upon him the surname Li and extracted the character "She" from his original name to form the Han Chinese name Li She.

Li She sported a Han Chinese hairstyle, wore an official robe, and even had a jade pendant hanging from his waist as a touch of elegance.

Many Turkic nobles secretly cursed him as a traitor who betrayed his master and disgraced his father, Chuluo Khan.

Li Shimin waved his hand at him:
"speak!"

Li She respectfully said:

"The court's move to treat all officials equally is a blessing for our Great Tang Dynasty. Officials at all levels should also change according to the regulations of the Great Tang Dynasty. However, the time is too short and many people cannot adapt. We implore Your Majesty to grant us more time."

He was very skilled at speaking. He first affirmed the accuracy of the Sinicization of the foreign people, then pointed out the difficulties faced by the foreign people, and hoped to have some time to spare.

This way of speaking was what Li Shimin used to like the most... This is the so-called Emperor Wen's method of governing the country with benevolence.

Unfortunately, the other ethnic groups didn't understand the intricacies of this matter. No sooner had Li She finished speaking than several Turkic officials muttered curses under their breath:
"traitor!"

"Selling out your master for personal gain, the gods will not forgive you!" "The proudest wolf of the grasslands has become a dog wagging its tail and begging for mercy."

"Bah! The shame of the Turks!"

"..."

These sounds weren't loud, but they were clearly audible to everyone.

This was exactly the effect Li Shimin wanted. He grabbed the token, slammed it on the imperial desk, and shouted:
"You eat the emperor's food, yet you do not do what is right. As officials of the Tang Dynasty, you still yearn for the old Turkic kingdom, and now you wantonly humiliate my beloved general. Even if I can spare you, the gods of the Thunder Department of China will not let you off!"

The name "Lei Lai" is too childish for Lao Li to say out loud.

However, once the emotions are right, it doesn't matter whether those two words are there or not... A thunderous roar came from the sky, followed by several bolts of lightning that turned the Turkic officials dressed in their traditional clothing into charred remains.

From the sound of thunder to the fall of lightning, only two breaths passed. All the officials were speechless. Several Tuyuhun officials who had originally wanted to join the riot saw that things were not going well and quickly put on their official robes, fearing that the thunder in the sky would launch a second attack.

Li Shimin rose, slowly strolled to the piles of freshly baked coke, and said leisurely:

"You have been using the grassland god to frighten me, and now you have angered the gods of China. The gods of the Thunder Department are watching from above. If the grassland god can hear your prayers, why not let him show himself? We, the gods of China, would like to have a chat with him."

When Li Shimin mentioned that the Heavenly Gods had several large armies, some of the foreign tribes were still somewhat resentful, and even the Han officials felt that His Majesty was being a bit arrogant today.

But after the divine thunder descended, everyone felt that His Majesty was still too conservative.

Since we have divine intervention backing us up, why bother with appeasement or persuasion? Wouldn't it be better to just go all out and slaughter everyone?

Several bolts of divine thunder terrified the foreign officials, but delighted the Han officials. Even the most conservative Confucian scholars were now filled with fighting spirit... The gods in heaven are watching, and perhaps their own ancestors are among them. Keep your spirits up, don't lose face!

Li She had hoped to ease tensions, but he hadn't expected his fellow Turks to be so unappreciative, nor had he anticipated that His Majesty would be so enraged by his humiliation. Overwhelmed with emotion, he knelt on the ground, touched his forehead to the earth, and respectfully said:

"Your subject Li She swears that from this day forward, for all eternity, he will be a subject of the Great Tang, and is willing to shed his last drop of blood for the stability of the Great Tang. If he breaks this oath, may he be struck by lightning and die without a burial place!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a muffled clap of thunder sounded overhead, startling the courtiers into thinking that divine thunder had struck again.

Li Shimin personally helped Li She up and comforted him, saying:
"Your oath has been recorded by the gods of the Thunder Department of China. From now on, you are a true citizen of China."

At this point, he gifted Li She a pair of binoculars:

"I am suffering from a stroke and am unable to inspect the border regions. I beg Minister Li to share my burden."

Ashina She'er in history destroyed Gaochang, conquered Goguryeo, destroyed Xueyantuo, and attacked Kucha, making great contributions to the Tang Dynasty. When Li Shimin passed away, he repeatedly requested to be buried in Zhaoling with him.

Yes, not only did he expand the territory of the Tang Dynasty, but he also sacrificed his life to be buried with Li Shimin... Just for this loyalty, he deserves to be given an important position.

With Li She taking the lead, all the officials had no choice but to kneel down and swear an oath.

As a result, divine lightning struck one after another from the sky, and a full ten officials of the fifth rank or above died in one court assembly, which was comparable to a major political purge.

Even Changsun Wuji was startled, and some of his little thoughts vanished without a trace amidst the thunder.

As soon as the court assembly ended, he took the initiative to request to donate 1,000 hectares of land in Guanzhong to resettle the refugees in Chang'an.

Li Shimin was very pleased that his brother-in-law was so sensible and rewarded him with a carbon pen and a high-end leather notebook... He exchanged these modern items worth a few dollars for 100,000 acres of fertile land, and made a profit.

Meanwhile, Zhou Yi finished his conversation with the blind man and rode his motorcycle back up the mountain.

When he opened the black notebook, he was completely stunned:
"The notes show that I've added one or two merits, but the total hasn't changed?"

After studying it for a long time, he discovered that in the Zhenguan world, ten foreign officials were killed by lightning, and each official was rewarded with one coin of merit, which offset the consumption of the protective divine lightning... It was a case of losing money to gain publicity.

Closing his notebook, Zhou Yi went to the God of Wealth Temple and began setting up scaffolding in preparation for the upcoming raising of the roof beam.

Raising the roof beams entirely by manpower presents a significant challenge due to the distance involved, especially since temple halls are much taller than ordinary dwellings, necessitating the construction of rest areas for passengers to rest and take turns carrying loads.

In the conception of the Book of Changes, as long as the main beam can be lifted into place in three stages, it is considered a victory.

Before the main beam is installed, several pillars need to be erected first, and then the main beam is placed on top. Then we can work on the roof... But these are not important. As long as the main beam can be installed, the rest of the work can be done slowly.

All the building materials for the roof have arrived, and the specific construction method is also clear to Zhou Yi. In addition, with the current accumulation of merit and power, the God of Wealth Temple will definitely be completed before autumn.

While Master Zhou was planning the construction schedule of the God of Wealth Temple, in the courtyard of the Military Equipment Bureau during the reign of Emperor Zhezong of the Northern Song Dynasty, Zhao Ji was holding a tablet computer, studying concrete mixing methods.

"Cement, sand, and gravel are mixed into a paste according to the specified ratio and poured into the formwork to be poured. During pouring, it also needs to be vibrated to remove air bubbles and allow the concrete to solidify completely... It doesn't seem complicated. Let's dig a pit first, determine the installation location of the wind turbine, then transport the base over and start pouring the concrete!"

(End of this chapter)