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

Chapter 31 You Want to Become My Apprentice? [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

After leaving the room, Zhou Yi first went to check the kitchen and found that no one was inside.

However, the tap had been turned on, three or four peaches were missing from the refrigerator, and the pots and pans were not in their original positions, as if they had been rummaged through.

Fortunately, the gas stove was properly turned off and not turned on, otherwise the rumor that "Xiao Yi blew up the kitchen while refining pills" would have spread throughout Yunwu Town.

If it's not in the kitchen, then where should it be?
Zhou Yi wasn't afraid that Li Bai would hide and avoid him; rather, he was afraid that Li Bai would secretly go down the mountain and sneak into Yunwu Town.

A twelve or thirteen-year-old child, without an ID card or household registration, wearing Hanfu and with long hair, spouting nonsense, would definitely be sent to the town police station.

Leaving the kitchen, Zhou Yi began searching for traces of Li Bai.

The Great Buddha Hall was missing, the Sanqing Hall was missing, the Nuwa Hall was missing, the Changsheng Hall was missing, the Wucheng King Hall was missing, the Caishen Hall was missing... He passed through the many grand halls, and when he passed the Wenxuan King Hall, he found a boy sitting on the threshold, carefully reading the instruction manual for a fully automatic washing machine.

"Li Bai?"

Zhou Yi tentatively called out, and the boy instantly straightened up like a spring, leaning against the gate of the Wenxuan King's Palace, holding a short sword that matched his stature, his handsome face full of vigilance:

How do you know my name?

Zhou Yi, recalling Li Bai's lifelong entanglement with Taoism, how he would express his desire to become a Taoist priest whenever he was down on his luck, and how he would spend some time in the mountains only to yearn for fame and fortune again, then played a little joke on the poet with a whisk:
“I am a deity, and this is the abode of deities. I am naturally aware of your arrival.”

Upon hearing the word "immortal," Li Bai's clear eyes immediately lit up with intense interest:
"Are you the Daoist Master Yiyuan that I've always been thinking about?"

Zhou Yi nodded slightly:

"Yes, Yiyuan is my Taoist name."

He was just about to elaborate on his Daoist title, talking about the beginning of a new cycle and the renewal of all things, adding a mysterious aura to his name, when before he even started, Li Bai put down his sword, knelt down with a thud, and prostrated himself in a full-body prostration:
"I beg the gods to accept me as their disciple and teach me the art of becoming an immortal!"

The Book of Changes: ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
No, are you being so hasty in choosing an apprentice?

If you now become my disciple, what will you call Zhao Rui, the strategist, and Sima Chengzhen, the White Cloud Master, when you meet them in the future?
Zhou Yi felt he had taken the joke too far, so he bent down and helped Li Bai up.
"You are so young, you haven't even experienced life yet, how can you cultivate immortality? To become an immortal, you must first become a human."

How can one understand the joy of hiding in the mountains and lying down without experiencing the frustration and helplessness of hitting walls everywhere, being controlled by others, swallowing one's anger, being subservient to others, and being humble in society?
It's like some people who are solely focused on finding a partner, only to discover after experiencing major life events such as mortgage payments, car payments, marriage, and raising children:

"Damn, being single is so much fun!"

Twelve-year-old Li Bai clearly didn't understand these things. He blinked and asked:
"Master, I've heard people say that a virgin who maintains a pure yang body will find it easier to enter the gates of immortality. Why is what you say different from what they say?"

Zhou Yi flicked his whisk and asked calmly:
"Has the person who said this become an immortal?"

Li Bai shook his head:

"This person is merely a worshipped figure in my household; he has not become an immortal."

"If you're not a deity, how would you know about the affairs of deities? It's just hearsay. My Hunyuan Palace has no such claim."

Zhou Yi felt he had the potential to be a charlatan, able to lie without batting an eye... How wonderful it would be to have this mindset during his graduation defense!

To prevent a major turning point in the life of the poet Li Bai, the Book of Changes stated:

"I was just joking with you when I said you were a god. This is the place of the future. You will be a world-renowned poet in the future. Even I like your poems."

Upon hearing this, Li Bai was neither arrogant nor doubtful of the truth of the words. Instead, he bowed deeply and respectfully asked:
"May I ask, Immortal Master, have I fulfilled my childhood pursuit of 'exerting my intelligence to serve as an advisor, bringing peace to the world and unifying the land'? Has the nation been stable because of me? Has the world been at peace because of me?"

Zhouyi: "..."

If you hadn't asked that question, I would have forgotten that your goal is to become a great statesman like Guan Zhong or Fan Li.

The poems that later generations praised were merely the poet's complaints and sorrows about not being able to realize his ideals and ambitions; they were not his pursuits at all.

Just like Xin Qiji of the Song Dynasty, whose poems were magnificent and powerful, was it because he liked to write? No, he had the will to kill the enemy but lacked the power, so he could only express his inner distress through poetry.

Looking into Li Bai's sincere eyes, Zhou Yi truthfully told him:

"You have never achieved your ambitions in your entire life. You have traveled the world, made countless friends, and even married into families twice, all in an effort to gain fame and fortune. But after a lifetime of struggle, all you have achieved is a Hanlin scholar who writes poems to flatter the emperor."

There were three types of Hanlin scholars in the Tang Dynasty: one type was Hanlin scholars who cultivated future pillars of the state, another type was Hanlin scholars who drafted imperial edicts, and Li Bai's Hanlin scholar position was mainly responsible for writing poems to entertain the emperor, praising Emperor Xuanzong's awesomeness, Yang Guifei's beauty, the peaceful and prosperous era, and wishing the emperor a long life.

In short, this was merely a task to amuse Li Longji, far removed from his life's ideal of serving the country. After hearing this, Li Bai's youthful face was filled with a melancholy beyond his years.

He plopped down on the threshold of the Wenxuan King's Hall, and it took him a while to raise his head and look at Zhou Yi, asking:

"Immortal Master, I don't want to live this kind of life, is that alright?"

His voice carried a pain of disillusionment, which made Zhou Yi feel sorry for the child.
"You are in charge of your life. Whatever choice you make, I will support you."

Li Bai asked:

"Then...where should I begin?"

This question is a bit difficult to answer. While Zhou Yi was pondering it, Li Bai got up again and insisted on becoming his disciple:
"As the ancients said, 'A wise man is a teacher.' You, sir, have guided me through my confusion. I have no way to repay you, so I wish to become your master and serve you for the rest of my life!"

Zhouyi: "..."

It would certainly be prestigious to take the poet Li Bai as a disciple, but how should one teach him?

Let's start with a set of People's Education Press textbooks for primary and secondary school students to broaden our horizons, and then do a few sets of Olympiad math papers to increase the intensity?
The scene sounds pretty exciting, but I wonder if Li Bai will write a poem to criticize himself after such a series of attacks.

After all, writing poems to insult people is an old tradition of the "Poet Immortal," and he has a history of it.

After much deliberation, Zhou Yi was ultimately overcome by vanity and agreed to Li Bai's request:

"Alright, from now on you will be the eldest disciple of Hunyuan Palace. As for your Daoist title..."

After some thought, Zhou Yi ultimately returned the historical title to Li Bai:
"Let's call it Qinglian. Qinglianzi, Qinglian Zhenren, Qinglian Daozhang... use whichever you like."

Li Bai styled himself Qinglian Jushi, which means "recluse" or "layman" and refers to practicing Buddhism at home rather than becoming a monk.

However, while in a Taoist temple, one should not use the term "layperson," as that would make one a laughingstock.

Upon hearing his Daoist name, Li Bai's face lit up with joy, and he immediately asked:

"Did Master bestow this Taoist name upon his disciple in the hope that I, like a lotus, could cleanse the filth of the world and bloom into a sacred flower?"

The Book of Changes: ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
So the title "Azure Lotus" has this meaning? I've learned something new.

It was already evening. Zhou Yi looked at Li Bai and asked:

"How long have you been here?"

"Reporting to Master, it will take about two hours."

"are you hungry?"

There's really no need to ask this question. A half-grown boy can eat his father out of house and home. Li Bai is currently at the age where he's growing, and he'll feel hungry again within half an hour of putting down his chopsticks.

Zhou Yi led his newly accepted apprentice to the kitchen to prepare the food they had bought so that the two of them could have dinner together.

On the other side, Zhao Wei repaired the road to a platform halfway up the mountain where cars could pass each other. Seeing that it was getting late, he parked the excavator by the roadside, locked the car door, and strolled down the mountain.

Back home, he washed his hands and was about to eat when a fishing buddy suddenly called:

"Wei Zi, why didn't you go fishing today? Huangniwa was struck by lightning this afternoon, right where you usually fish. The reeds were burned to ashes. Strangely, those reeds smelled like burnt hair, which was very unpleasant."

Zhao Wei was somewhat surprised:

"I was perfectly fine when I was fishing this morning, how did I get struck by lightning? I hope no one was hurt?"

"No, no, there was a young man in a Taoist robe standing by those reeds, I don't know what he was doing. Luckily he wasn't struck by lightning, otherwise we'd all be at the police station giving statements right now..."

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Second update delivered, please vote with monthly tickets, brothers!

(End of this chapter)