Sword from the Immortal Mountain

Chapter 85: The Spirit of Ancestors, the Light of Divine Law

The ancestral hall in Chenze Township is not big. In name, it worships the ancestors of the Chen family, but in fact it is not standardized and not perfect. Compared with the main families of the Chen family in the prefecture, it is simply a small witch compared to the big witch.

In the ancestral hall, there are not many ancestral tablets that are qualified to be placed on the altar, only about ten or so.

Living people are divided into classes and levels, and so are ghosts and gods.

Ordinary people could not build ancestral temples, so before an elderly person died, they would be carried to the ancestral hall so that their souls could return to the temple.

However, the space in the ancestral hall is limited, and it is impossible to set up a separate tablet for each deceased person. Most of the clan members and villagers just leave their names on the dragon wall.

Worse still, they don’t even have a name, dust to dust, earth to earth. No one will care, and no one will remember.

Without descendants, or if the descendants are unfilial, the deeds of the ancestors will all be forgotten, let alone offering incense and sacrifices to them.

For example, Chen Jin’s parents, including his grandfather’s generation, did not have a place for ancestral tablets.

But now that Chen Jin has passed the imperial examination and become a scholar, the village will definitely arrange a ancestral tablet for Chen's father.

If one can pass the imperial examination in the future, or even get a place on the list of successful candidates, and become a Jinshi, then his family tree will be opened separately, and three generations will be honored with titles.

This is going a bit far.

Having said that, the ancestral tablets currently placed on the altar are mostly of distant uncles and other generations.

As Chen Jin bowed, they seemed to be sensitive to the sound and fell down one after another, hitting the ground.

Chen Abu had never encountered such a situation before, and he was immediately panicked, not knowing what was going on.

Chen Jin said calmly: "Maybe they were blown down by the wind. Uncle, let's pick them up and put them in order again."

"Oh, alright."

Chen Abu responded hurriedly and came up to pick it up.

Fortunately, these ancestral tablets are made of solid materials and have solid workmanship, and they did not fall from a high place, so they were not broken or smashed.

Otherwise, I really don’t know how it would end.

After all, there were only two of them in the ancestral hall at the moment, and it was hard to explain what had happened.

As for his nephew's claim that he was blown down by the wind, Chen Abu did not believe it. There were walls on three sides of the ancestral hall, so how could the wind blow in?
There must be something fishy about this matter, and it may be related to ghosts and gods.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. He quickly burned the gold ingots and paper money, then left the ancestral hall with Chen Jin.

……

Next, Chenze Township became very lively, with lights and decorations, buffets set up, and people from all over the township enjoyed a feast.

Of all the expenses, half are from private sources and half from the public.

As a local clan, they have their own public treasury, and the usual expenses for road and bridge construction, clan school expenses, etc. are all paid from the treasury.

Now that two scholars have passed the imperial examination at the same time, it is a grand event for the whole village to celebrate. There is nothing wrong with the public treasury paying half of the money.

Moreover, if the money is used for work, eating and drinking, each villager will have a share, which is equivalent to returning it to the people.

The family of the village head Chen Jiande has always been highly respected, with extensive social connections and many relatives and friends. After hearing the news, they came one after another to visit and give gifts, and the house was crowded with people.

On the other hand, Chen Jin still lives on the hillside, but his home seems to be deserted.

Chen Liang felt a little guilty when he saw this, and was also worried that Chen Jin might feel resentful after the comparison, which would be bad.

But there is no way. Each family has different circumstances. Even if you want to be low-key, you can't just push people away when relatives and friends come to give you gifts.

Just when he was thinking about whether he should find a way to balance the situation, someone came from the county government office. It was none other than Ma Ben and Master Zhu.

This is a distinguished guest.

However, the other party did not enter the village, but went directly up the hillside. He came to give gifts and congratulations to Chen Jin at the instruction of the county magistrate, Lord Song.

After giving the gifts, he did not stay and went straight back to the city.

This operation left Chen Liang and others stunned.

Originally, when someone passed the imperial examination, he would hold a banquet and send out invitations to invite some important people to the banquet. This would be an opportunity to build relationships with each other and kill two birds with one stone.

Chen Liang's family was preparing for a banquet, and the invitations had been sent out. To show sincerity, for some important guests, the invitations would be sent not once, but twice, or even three times.

The government is of utmost importance.

Now, the time has not come yet, but people have come, and they are here to give gifts.

Have you ever heard of a county magistrate giving a gift to a newly promoted scholar?
He is not a descendant of a noble family...

After being surprised, Chen Liang became more and more certain that Chen Jin must have powerful connections.

As if to verify his guess, another group of people came to give gifts to Chen Jin.

It is Yunshan Temple.

The abbot did not show up, but all four disciples came.

There is nothing to say about this scene.

Chen Liang looked at his relatives and friends, and suddenly realized that he was the one who needed to find a balance.

It was a rare bustle in the small courtyard.

Yun Ning and others were secretly surprised that Chen Jin passed the test on the first try and took the first place, but they soon accepted it.

There are always some people with extraordinary talents who can take all aspects into consideration, and it is not surprising to hear stories about scholars seeking immortality and truth.

There were many kinds of gifts this time, including food, daily necessities and drinks, filling up an entire carriage.

Among them was a jar of peach blossom wine, which was exactly what Chen Jin loved to drink; there was also a piece of old peach wood, which was just right for carving ancestral tablets for his parents.

After presenting the gifts and chatting for a while, Taoist Yuncheng took his fellow disciples and left.

Everyone knows that Chen Jin likes quietness and doesn't like socializing.

In fact, most people who practice Taoism are like this. They have a calm temperament and are unwilling to waste their time in the hustle and bustle.

Two days later, the ceremony of placing the ancestral tablets of Chen Jin's father into the ancestral hall began.

This kind of ceremony should be performed by a regular Taoist priest, and it should be performed solemnly to be considered complete.

Given the relationship between Chen Jin and Yunshan Temple, it would be no problem to invite Yun Cheng to be the abbot as long as he opened his mouth, let alone invite those Taoist priests to join him.

But unexpectedly, Chen Jin said that everything should be kept simple and there would be no ritual. He would just write a eulogy, recite it, and then burn it.

This behavior goes against common sense, but strictly speaking, this is Chen Jin's own business and others should not say too much.

Besides, writing a memorial oration in one's own handwriting to comfort one's parents is also a manifestation of filial piety and is in line with the etiquette and rules of scholars.

As long as there are humanitarian ethics, it is justifiable not to use ghosts, gods or other Taoist methods.

On that day, Chen Jin was dressed neatly, holding the sacrificial text in his hand, and reciting it aloud in the ancestral hall.

When the last words were read, a cry of “Alas! Enjoy!”

Then he threw the sacrificial text into the incense burner and burned it.

Suddenly, a gust of cold wind blew and rolled up the burning sacrificial text, forming a vortex shape, which was very mysterious.

Seeing this, the village elders, led by the township head Chen Jiande, lined up in a row, shouted in unison, "May our ancestors have spirits," and then knelt on the ground in unison.

Chen Jin stood there, and in his field of vision, he could see a group of phantoms emerging.

Most of them are incomplete, blurred and difficult to distinguish clearly.

It is the ancestral god enshrined in the Chenze Township ancestral hall.

After these "ancestor gods" emerged, they faced the burning sacrificial texts like incense and holy objects, absorbing, cheering, and singing praises...

At the same time, the divine light covering their bodies was obviously blessed and began to show luster.

(End of this chapter)