Taoist Master, wishing for a sacrifice-based system

Qin Du paused for a moment when he was holding the water ladle.

"How was it verified?"

"A friend of mine works in social news at the Yunzhou Evening News and helped me get information about the drunk driving accident on Chaoyang Road."

Su Nian's tone was flat, but there was something in her eyes that she hadn't seen before.

"Name, age, floral shirt, time of the wish, time of the incident—everything matches up."

"He has been formally arrested, and the prosecutor's office has initially recommended a sentence of twelve to fifteen years."

"Meals and accommodation included. A secure job."

She looked at Qin Du.

"Exactly the same."

Qin Du put the water ladle back into the water vat.

He glanced at Su Nian, showing neither smugness nor emotion.

He simply gave a flat "hmm".

Su Nian was clearly not satisfied with just an "um".

"I also verified the first two."

"Liu Haizhu's traffic violation records can be found on 12123. Zhao Wei's traffic accident compensation has been publicly announced by the court's civil mediation document."

"All three things are true; there is absolutely no possibility of them being fabricated."

She took a deep breath.

"Qin Du, I'm the kind of person who has to verify everything myself before I believe it."

"I've been doing site visits and temple reviews for two years, and I've been to dozens of temples and Taoist monasteries across the country that claim to be the 'most efficacious,' but none of them are true."

"But here you are—"

She paused for a moment.

"I can't find any false evidence."

Qin Du leaned against a crooked tree, his arms crossed over his chest.

"So you've come to tell me you believe it?"

"It's not really a belief," Su Nian shook her head. "I just haven't found a reason to refute it yet."

"So, what brings you here this time is—"

"There's something I'd like to discuss with you."

Su Nian took something out of her backpack.

A mirrorless camera with a lens hood.

"I'd like to do a long-term filming project at your Taoist temple."

Qin Du raised an eyebrow.

Su Nian spoke faster than last time, as if she had prepared her lines in advance.

"It's not the kind of candid filming or stalking. It's formal, planned documentary filming. It's about documenting your Taoist temple, you, and the worshippers who come to make wishes."

"The entire process is transparent, and you have the right to review the content before it is published. I can delete anything you deem inappropriate."

"I will turn it into a series—'Qingyun Temple Chronicle'."

She looked into Qin Du's eyes.

"If this place is really as I see it—then it deserves to be known by more people."

"If it's fake—I'll tell you the truth, of course I'm not getting it for free, I'm willing to pay. I think your Taoist temple is probably short of money for repairs, right? It's a win-win situation!"

Qin Du did not answer immediately.

He stared at Su Nian for a few seconds.

At that very moment—

The art of observing qi.

The newly unlocked feature automatically activated the moment he looked at Su Nian.

A faint halo appeared in his field of vision.

Everyone has an aura appearing above their head—this is the effect of the aura-gazing technique.

Su Nian's luck at the top of his head—

It is a very rare color.

It's not the grayish-white that ordinary people usually see, nor is it the dull color of an unlucky person.

Instead, it was a warm, pale gold.

Not strong.

But it's very clean.

Like the first ray of sunlight piercing through the thin mist on a winter morning.

He looked away.

"Can."

Su Nian visibly relaxed: "Really?"

"But there's one more condition."

"you say."

Qin Du pointed to the bamboo broom in the yard that was about to fall apart.

"Help me sweep the yard every day."

"...That's it?"

"That's it."

Su Nian glared at him for two seconds, then couldn't help but laugh.

"Okay. Deal."

She reached out her hand.

Qin Du looked at her hand, then at his own hand that he had just used to water the algae, wiped it on his Taoist robe a couple of times, and then took her hand.

"Welcome to Qingyun Temple."

"Temporary worker."

"..."

Su Nian rolled her eyes, but didn't pull her hand back.

"When do I start?"

"Now is fine." Qin Du pointed to the fallen leaves scattered on the ground at the entrance of the main hall. "They haven't been swept up yet today."

Su Nian looked down at the fallen leaves on the ground, then at her white canvas shoes.

Two seconds later, she silently walked over and picked up the bamboo broom.

Qin Du sat back down in his chair, crossed his legs, and watched Su Nian clumsily sweeping fallen leaves in the yard.

She wasn't very good at holding a broom; she swept it horizontally a couple of times and ended up scattering leaves all over her face.

"Haven't you swept the floor before?" Qin Du shouted.

"Shut up."

Bullet comments—

No, I didn't do a live stream today.

No one saw this.

But Qin Du felt that if the people in the live stream saw it—

The comments section will probably be flooded with:

"The Taoist master took in a sweeping maid."

He didn't say it.

But the corner of his mouth curled up slightly.

Qingyun Temple.

Finally, he wasn't alone anymore.

The shadow of the crooked tree slowly grew longer in the yard.

Su Nian swept the floor, while Qin Du leaned back in his chair; neither of them spoke.

But that eerily quiet desolation—

It seems a little bland.

The system panel was quietly displayed in the corner of the field of vision:

Current incense offering value: 100

[Taoist Temple Rating: Dilapidated (On the verge of abandonment) → Dilapidated (Popular)]

…………

On the third day after Su Nian officially "joined" Qingyun Temple.

She has learned the correct sweeping technique. The bamboo broom should be held at an angle and pushed in one direction, not swung back and forth horizontally, otherwise more dust will be kicked up than swept away.

Qin Du taught me this skill step by step.

During the lesson, Qin Du said something like, "The way you hold the broom is like you're holding a selfie stick."

Su Nian almost hit him with a broom.

Today is a sunny day.

At 10 a.m., Su Nian set up the tripod of her mirrorless camera in the courtyard and was adjusting the angle. She planned to shoot a series of establishing shots of Qingyun Temple as material for a subsequent video series.

Qin Du sat on the steps at the entrance of the main hall, basking in the sun, with a glass of water beside him.

The live stream hasn't started yet.

Just then—

Sounds came from the path in the distance.

It wasn't footsteps.

It was the sound of wheels.

And—the sound of a cane tapping the ground.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The pace was slow and steady.

A taxi stopped in the open space in front of the Taoist temple.

The car door opened.

A man slowly got out of the back seat.

His left leg was in a cast, wrapped from his ankle all the way to his knee.

His right wrist was wrapped in a bandage for support.

There were still bruises on her face that hadn't completely faded, and a suture line that had scabbed over could be seen on her brow bone.

But he stood firm.

Leaning on an aluminum alloy cane, he still looked somewhat weak, but his eyes were completely different from when he last came.

The last time I came, those eyes were gray.

It was ashen, like the color of death.

It's lit up now.

The person who arrived was Zhao Wei.

He took two things out of the trunk of the car.

A silk banner.

Red background with gold lettering, stacked neatly.

There was also a kraft paper envelope.

It's bulging and puffy.

Su Nian saw him first and instinctively raised her camera. Then she put it down.

Not every scene is suitable for shooting.

Some scenes are enough to see with your own eyes.