Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 24 Mountain Temple

Xiejiazhuang is located at the foot of the lush and beautiful Fangxian Mountain. There is a small mountain god temple on the mountain. It was very popular in the early years, but in recent years it suddenly fell into decline and became a dilapidated temple with no one visiting.

Although the second young master of Xiejiazhuang sent a large number of craftsmen to quickly repair the dilapidated temple a few days ago, it is easy to repair the temple, but it is not something that can be done overnight to restore the incense.

"Oh my god, there are no pilgrims coming this whole morning." The civet cat was lying on the doorstep, basking in the sun, bored.

"Yeah, it's too miserable. They must dislike me, woo woo..." A Yao sat beside it, peeling pine nuts while saying to Ren Yuan who was also sitting on the doorstep: "Think of a solution quickly! A Yuan."

Ren Yuan was concentrating on reading the booklet given by his senior sister, copying the various spells on it, and said casually, "I'm thinking about it."

"You just know how to give me a perfunctory answer!" Senior Sister snorted angrily, stuffed all the peeled pine nuts into her mouth, and said vaguely: "I won't give you any."

"What a pity..." Ren Yuan perfunctorily replied to his senior sister while a golden snake flew away from his fingertips and he copied the runes on the book.

He has been studying hard these days, and with the blessing of the Immortal Pillow, he has made rapid progress in all aspects. But since the day before yesterday, the capacity of the Creation Furnace seems to have reached its limit. No matter how much he draws golden light into his body, the incandescent light ball does not change. So he can only temporarily shift his attention to "Transporting the Three Lights as a Talisman".

Then I heard Senior Sister smile slyly and said, "Ah Yuan, have you found that your practice has stagnated? Have you ever thought about why Wang Xiang Fang Liang and I are too lazy to use the Youxian Pillow anymore?"

"I was just about to ask Teacher Sister." Ren Yuan immediately changed his expression and acted as obedient as a squirrel.

"I was just about to ask my fellow disciple for help." A Yao also smiled with her eyes curved.

"You've got all your tricks on me." Ren Yuan was speechless, but he still gave her some advice: "It's actually very simple, just burn incense and send eggs, and I guarantee that the pilgrims will break down the door."

"Are they here to worship me or to get eggs?" A Yao pouted.

"In fact, there is no need to distinguish so clearly. As long as there are more pilgrims, we can produce devout believers." Ren Yuan smiled and said, "But Sister, you don't rely on incense to practice, so is it necessary to make our small temple look like a vegetable market for the sake of face?"

"That's really annoying. Not only is it noisy all day, but we don't have time to go out and play." The senior sister was worried, "But there are no pilgrims coming. How can we redeem ourselves?"

"Then we'll take the high-end route and specialize in treating difficult and complicated diseases..." Ren Yuan said.

"Here come the pilgrims." As he was speaking, the civet cat suddenly interrupted.

"Great!" Senior Sister jumped up from the threshold, stuffed a handful of freshly peeled pine nuts into Ren Yuan's mouth, patted his head and said, "Be sure to treat him well."

Without waiting for Ren Yuan to answer, she disappeared without a trace.

"I've never seen such a foolish god..." Ren Yuan secretly complained, put away the booklet, and raised the corners of his mouth with his fingers.

Then I saw a skinny scholar, supported by his servant, climbing the stairs breathlessly.

"My dear, are you here to burn incense?" Ren Yuan showed his eight teeth and smiled to welcome the first pilgrim of the day. "Please come in quickly!"

~~
The scholar took a deep breath and followed Ren Yuan into the temple.

The mountain god temple is not big, with only two small courtyards in front and back, and the main hall is inside the gate.

In the temple, a female mountain god is enshrined. She is wearing a stone orchid and a turban. She holds flowers in her hands and is accompanied by a civet cat and a red leopard. However, the construction period was too tight and the craftsmanship of the country craftsmen was limited. The statue looks a bit abstract and people can't feel the fairy's jade-like figure and mountain eyebrows and watery eyes.

Instead, I feel like a fool...

The scholar only glanced at the statue, then turned his attention to Ren Yuan and asked, "Where is the temple keeper?"

"It's me." Ren Yuan smiled and bowed.

Seeing that he had no hair on his lip and looked to be only seventeen or eighteen years old, the scholar couldn't help but frown, obviously feeling that he was unreliable.

Ren Yuan knew it well, and smiled faintly, "The believer came from the north, right?"

"That's right." The scholar nodded.

Then Ren Yuan asked, "Have you ever been to the Hebo Temple?" "Yes." The scholar's expression became serious.

"But what the believers ask for is too difficult, and the Hebo Temple can't do it, so they can only try their luck in the small temple, right?" Ren Yuan asked with a mysterious look on his face.

"To be honest, it is true." The contempt on the scholar's face disappeared, and he quickly bowed to Ren Yuan and said, "I was disrespectful just now, I hope you will forgive me."

As he said this, he asked his servant to present five offerings.

“Haha, believers must know that a mountain is not famous for its height, but for the immortals living there; a river is not famous for its depth, but for the dragons living there.” Ren Yuan said with a faint smile.

"A mountain is not famous for its height, but for the immortals living there; a river is not famous for its depth, but for the dragons living there." Upon hearing this, the scholar immediately said with admiration, "Young Master is truly a great talent!"

"Ah?" Ren Yuan was stunned for a moment before realizing that there was no Liu Yuxi in this era.

He didn't want to explain any further, so he just washed his hands and offered incense.

The scholar placed the five offerings he had brought, including flowers and fruits, on the altar, and then knelt on the cushion.

Ren Yuanxiang lit three incense sticks upside down, placed them in front of his chest, and bowed three times.

The scholar behind him kowtowed three times and prayed silently.

Ren Yuan then inserted the incense sticks into the incense burner one by one.

First insert a stick of incense in the middle and say: "One stick of incense shows piety, and the believers kneel upright in front of the table!"

Then insert another stick on the right side and pray: "Two sticks of incense to honor the goddess, praying that my mountain god will show his holiness!"

Then he inserted a stick on the left and said: "Three sticks of incense will penetrate the sky. If you are sincere, your wish will come true!"

The wisps of incense rising up added a sense of holiness to the silly statue.

~~
When the scholar finished offering incense and stood up, the temple keeper said to him, "The mountain god has heard your prayer. But there are too many pilgrims making wishes, so there must be a first come, first served system. Go home and wait."

The scholar looked at the deserted little temple suspiciously and swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

After Ren Yuan sent him away, he turned back and saw that his senior sister was already sitting on the altar, happily eating the fruits offered.

"Try it. The fruit is more delicious with the blessing of vows." The senior sister threw a fruit to Ren Yuan.

"A Yuan, A Yuan, how do you know that the scholar is from the north of the village? And has he been to the Hebo Temple?" asked the civet cat curiously.

Ren Yuan took the Su Nai and said with a smile, "It's very simple. He doesn't even know me, the second young master of Xiejiazhuang. He must be from the north of the village. The Hebo Temple in the north of the village is said to be very effective, but he chose to go far away. It's obvious that he hit a wall there, so he came to our little shabby temple to try his luck."

"I see." The cat raised its paw to give him a thumbs up, and then asked, "So what exactly is he asking for?"

"I'll have to ask my senior sister." Ren Yuan took a bite of the pineapple in his hand and almost lost his teeth. It seems that this thing not only looks like a green apple, but also tastes like one.

"The scholar's surname is Feng. He has been unable to forget his deceased wife to such an extent that he has become ill due to lovesickness. That is why he came to ask me to help him see his wife again." The senior sister replied.

"He's dreaming. Do you know what it means to be separated by the Yin and Yang?" The civet cat snorted and said with an understanding look: "You can't even offer a fish as a sacrifice, and you still want to meet your deceased wife?"

The senior sister laughed and said, "He is not stingy. He promised to give five strings of money, one stone of rice, and two bolts of cloth after the success!"

"Yes, he is a rich man, but he must be paid in copper coins." Ren Yuan nodded and asked, "The question is, can Senior Sister do it?"

"Of course I can!" Senior Sister said proudly, "Don't you know that the mountain god is also the spirit in charge of the dead?"

"Okay, okay, then I'll go there tomorrow." In order to get guidance from his senior sister, Ren Yuan had no choice but to pretend to be a wizard.

(End of this chapter)