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

Chapter 323 Is Destiny Really in Huainan? Answer Me! [Requesting Monthly Tickets]

Making mercuric fulminate is actually not complicated. Mercury reacts with nitric acid to produce a mercuric nitrate solution. Then, the mercuric nitrate is poured into 50-degree ethanol, which will produce mercuric fulminate precipitate.

However, the process is not complicated, but that does not mean the technology is simple. The entire process of making mercuric fulminate requires two chemical reactions, each of which produces toxic gas, so gas masks are essential.

Nitric acid, mercuric nitrate, and mercuric fulminate are all corrosive, and the reaction must be carried out using equipment made of corrosion-resistant materials.

The generated mercuric fulminate is flammable and explosive, and becomes more sensitive the drier it is, so the produced mercuric fulminate must undergo a moisturizing treatment.

Higher moisture content results in greater stability, but this can affect the activation effect.

In general, mercuric fulminate was a good firing propellant, but it was not good enough, especially due to its corrosive properties on the barrel. It was quickly replaced by lead azide, which had a better firing performance.

In the spirit of scientific research, and with Emperor Zhao Xu's personal expedition imminent, Emperor Huizong (Zhao Ji) planned to use mercuric fulminate to urgently produce a batch of mortar ammunition, which would play a significant role in attacking the fortified villages.

Zhao Xu wrote down the items Zhao Ji needed, and would ask his master to help him purchase some when he arrived at Hunyuan Palace.

At the same time, inside the Hunyuan Palace, Li Qingzhao broke open a sesame seed cake, added a few slices of donkey meat and donkey intestines, along with some chopped green peppers and two pieces of braised donkey meat, took a bite, and her pretty face was full of surprise:
"It's so delicious! No wonder people in Hebei like to eat it this way. These ingredients are a perfect match when sandwiched in a pancake!"

Zhou Yi said with a smile:

"The best thing to eat is donkey intestines. People would rather give up their children and mothers than give up donkey intestines. This is the truest description of this delicacy."

The talented woman took another bite of the donkey meat sandwich and clicked her tongue, saying:
"You'd give up your wife for a bite to eat... Immortal Master, would you abandon us for treasures in the future?"

Zhou Yi shook his head:

"What treasures could compare to yours?"

Li Qingzhao disagreed and began to think outside the box:

"What if someone threatened you with me and Sister Xi Shi? What would you do?"

Before Zhou Yi could answer, Xi Shi said:

"I will commit suicide first, so as not to trouble the immortal."

Li Qingzhao praised:

"You're so decisive, aren't you afraid of dying in vain?"

Xi Shi took a bite of the sesame seed cake and said seriously:

“He won’t die in vain. I believe the Immortal Master will make the other party pay a heavy price… Sister Zhao’er, what will you do if someone uses you to threaten the Immortal Master?”

Li Qingzhao thought for a moment, then took out a fossil symbol she had drawn from her bosom:
"I will turn myself into a stone statue and wait for the immortal to come and save me on auspicious clouds of five colors."

Zhou Yi put down his chopsticks and flicked each of them on the forehead:
"There are immortals guarding this courtyard, how could anything happen to you two? Hurry up and eat, stop overthinking."

The next morning, Zhou Yi was cooking donkey meat soup when Wu Meiniang came out of the main hall with a backpack.

As soon as she stepped out of the palace gate, a gust of cold wind hit her, making Wu Meiniang feel as if she had been transported to another world... Last time she left, it was only thirty degrees Celsius, but now it felt like late autumn.

Upon arriving at the courtyard, she did not go directly to her room to change her clothes. Instead, she went straight into the kitchen and told Zhou Yi about killing Wu Yuanqing and Wu Yuanshuang... She felt that honesty was the most important thing when interacting with the immortal, and that she should report everything she did to the immortal.

The Book of Changes says:

"I already know, it's not your fault... Go back to your room and put on your thermal underwear, don't catch a cold. Xi Shi picked out the thermal underwear, it should fit you well."

Wu Meiniang felt a warmth in her heart, and the weight on her shoulders was finally lifted. She left the kitchen with light steps.

After breakfast, just as Zhou Yi was about to set off for Lushan County to perform a ritual for the statue of the deity, Wu Meiniang said:
"Your Majesty wishes to know about Li Ke's condition. Could the Immortal Master use the Bagua abacus to make a divination? Your Majesty will repay this favor with merit."

Zhou Yi discovered that Her Majesty the Empress was truly strategizing at all times, not only killing her two brothers but also turning Old Li into a money-printing machine.

The entire Tang Dynasty is working at full capacity to accumulate merit; perhaps one day it will truly be able to support the Hunyuan Palace.

Thinking about all these random thoughts, Zhou Yi led Wu Meiniang to the Sanqing Hall and took out the Bagua abacus from the cabinet under the offering table.

Ever since Li Ke left Chang'an with his men, there has been no news of this prince. Zhou Yi is quite curious to know what new tricks this man who most resembles Li Ke can pull in Southeast Asia.

The abacus was placed on the altar, and then Li Ke's name and the birth date and time provided by Li Shimin were written on it with a brush. After a divination, the result was quickly obtained.

The divination indicates great fortune, meaning Li Ke is safe and sound, and there is no need to worry about him.

I briefly interpreted the hexagrams using the I Ching, picked up the Bagua abacus, and was just about to put it back in the cabinet when some fragmented information suddenly appeared in my mind:
Li Ke had just left Tanzhou, which is modern-day Changsha. Along the way, he wiped out more than twenty bandit groups, large and small. Those who committed heinous crimes were beheaded on the spot, while those with lesser crimes were incorporated into his army. He expanded his forces as he traveled, and now his army has exceeded five thousand men.

After hearing Zhou Yi's retelling, Wu Zetian exclaimed:

"This man is truly the most like His Majesty. Give him a tiny number of men, and he's built an army in less than three months."

Li Ke employed only outlaws, and local officials couldn't find fault with him even with a magnifying glass. They even had to write to him to commend him, because this guy had indeed eliminated a scourge in the area.

At this rate, by the time he reaches southern Vietnam, he will be able to raise an army of at least eight thousand, or even more than ten thousand.

In the northern borderlands, an army of 10,000 might not cause much harm to foreign tribes, but for the Southeast Asian countries, 10,000 heavily armed soldiers would bring about their annihilation.

If the royal family of the Zhenla Kingdom, which occupied the Mekong Delta, didn't know their place, they might really be turned into candles by Li Ke.

Zhou Yi planned to prepare some nautical books, sextant, globe, equatorial mount, and other items for Li Ke, along with a global mineral distribution map, so that Li Ke would focus on developing ocean-going business.

The fertile fields of the Mekong River plain should still be cultivated, but the plundering of the Western Ocean should not be abandoned.

No matter how high the yield of farmland is, it's not as effective as outright robbery.

Once Li Ke has established himself in Southeast Asia, he can be granted a black iron token and then have Li Shimin officially recognize him as the King of Southeast Asia. Those islands and territories will then become part of China's ancient territory!

After deducing Li Ke's current situation, Zhou Yi drove Wu Meiniang and Xi Shi to Lushan County to consecrate the First-Rank Blessed Heavenly Official. Li Qingzhao, wearing cotton pajamas, continued to stay at Hunyuan Palace to guard the house.

On the other side, in the world of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty.

Huo Qubing led the troops of Runan Commandery in a blitzkrieg-style attack on Shouchun. By dawn, they had not only occupied all the major and minor roads in Shouchun, but An Guo Shao Ji and other guards had even stormed into the city... Liu An's rebellion was over before it even began.

Although it hadn't started yet, Liu An was very well prepared. The emperor's ceremonial robes, seals, carriages, and everything else were all ready. The date for his enthronement had also been chosen. There were even seals and ribbons for officials at all levels. For example, his eight ministers, except for Lei Bei who defected to Chang'an, were all given positions of the Nine Ministers or above.

The idiom "when one attains enlightenment, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven" originated from the legend of Liu An and his eight retainers. Unexpectedly, this story has actually come to life.

Even before becoming emperor, he had already managed his subordinates perfectly; he could be considered a good boss.

Liu An's cultivation of Taoism was mainly handled by eight disciples, so the mountain where he cultivated Taoism was called Bagong Mountain. During the cultivation process, he invented tofu, and Shouchun tofu is also known as Bagong Mountain tofu.

When Huo Qubing rode into the city, Liu An's entire family was tied up. His son, Liu Qian, was captured from his daughter Liu Ling's bed. An Guo Shao Ji, who was in charge of the capture, washed his hands with soap three times in less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, feeling as if he had been tainted with something disgusting.

Now that the evidence is irrefutable, it turns out that Liu Che originally chose to destroy the Huainan Kingdom simply to recoup some losses during the New Year's feast. No one expected that Liu An had actually been preparing for these things all these years.

However, as the saying goes, "a scholar's rebellion will not succeed even after ten years." Liu An and his men prepared everything, even rehearsing the enthronement ceremony several times, but they failed to prepare the most important component of a rebellion—the army.

Without any troops, he led a group of retainers and scholars in playing house for over a decade... To be fair, Liu An really had a knack for performance art.

Huo Qubing entered the Prince of Huainan's residence and saw Liu An, who was bound like a rice dumpling.

Liu An was extremely dissatisfied with the sneak attack from Chang'an. He angrily denounced Liu Che for disrespecting his imperial uncle and said that if the elders of the Liu family knew that this little pig had seized the throne, they would be very disappointed.

This guy still thinks that Liu Che and his son's ascension to the throne was a mistake, and that the throne should have belonged to him, Liu An.

During the Rebellion of the Seven States, he was eager to try his hand at military affairs and agreed to launch a joint attack. However, he was tricked out of his military power by the chancellor of Huainan with a few words. The chancellor then led his troops to directly respond to the imperial court's attack on the territory of the seven states. As a result, Liu An was spared and lived for several more decades.

After scolding Liu Che, Liu An then scolded Huo Qubing for being a greenhorn who dared to insult a king and nobleman, a heinous crime deserving of death.

Huo Qubing did not retaliate with insults, but slowly took out a token from his robes and asked Liu An:
"I've heard you've cultivated immortality for decades. Do you possess any immortal techniques?"

Liu An said sternly and righteously:
"I am about to master my divine skills, able to conjure soldiers from beans, and live as long as the heavens. In an instant, I can take the lives of everyone. You little brat, are you afraid?"

Huo Qubing scoffed:

"You've cultivated immortality for decades, yet you don't even have a decent immortal technique. You're truly a disgrace... Today, I'll show you what real immortal techniques are."

After saying that, he raised the token and summoned a divine thunderbolt, which turned Liu Qian, the crown prince appointed by Liu An, into charred remains.

This unexpected turn of events caused half of the eight captured men to wet their pants, while Liu An was completely deflated, like a wilted eggplant.

He cultivated immortality his whole life, but in the end, he was no better than a little child.

Liu An's dejection emboldened Huo Qubing, who immediately delivered a fatal blow to his morale:
"I've only been practicing for two months and I've already achieved such results. Do you want to learn? By the way, His Majesty can also summon lightning, but he only studied it for a month... Now tell me, is the Mandate of Heaven still in Huainan? Answer me!"

(End of this chapter)