The prince is more stable

Chapter 587: Sacrifice and Worship
After coming to this world, Zhao Xiaoqian had seen the spring sowing ceremony to worship the God of Agriculture, but he had never seen the ceremony to worship the Dragon King, and he was very interested in it.

The villagers who entertained him were very warm, especially after Zhao Xiaoqian gave him a silver ingot weighing ten taels. The villagers were extremely enthusiastic. This ingot of silver could probably provide food and drink for his whole family for a year, which was really a windfall for him.

After bringing Zhao Xiaoqian, Chen Shou and others home, the villagers were busy arranging food and lodging for more than a dozen people. Zhao Xiaoqian followed behind them and chatted with them.

"There is not much snow this year, but there will be an insect plague next year? Where did this rumor come from?" Zhao Xiaoqian asked curiously.

The villagers said, "That's not without reason. If the snow isn't heavy, it won't freeze the insect eggs. Then, when spring comes and the flowers bloom, the eggs will become a climate in the soil, and the crops will be destroyed."

"So, before spring planting, we should hold a ceremony to worship the Dragon King, praying for more rain and snow to kill off the insect eggs?"

"That's right, the villagers are very worried, and today's sacrifices are very pious..." The villager said, suddenly stopped what he was doing, knelt on his knees facing the direction of Taiping River, kowtowed three times respectfully, and then stood up and continued to busy himself with his own business.

Zhao Xiaoqian was stunned. This guy kowtowed as if he had gathered together fragmented time. He kowtowed whenever he remembered. This couldn't be called piety. Instead, he was treating the Dragon King as a mercenary, wasn't he?
I spent money, effort, and kowtowed in the ceremony, so Lord Dragon King, you must do it for me, otherwise it would be dishonest and would ruin the reputation of the gods' honest business.

Well, this has been the style of Chinese deity worship since ancient times. It's all about pragmatism. China doesn't keep idle gods. What's the point of keeping gods who can't meet their KPIs? The temples will be demolished.

"Let's not rush to eat. Let's go and see how you worship the Dragon King." Zhao Xiaoqian said excitedly.

The villagers led Zhao Xiaoqian to the north end of the village, where people gathered.

The sound of gongs and drums could be heard from a long distance away. Several Taoists in gorgeous robes were performing rituals, stepping on the Tiangang steps and muttering to themselves. If nothing unexpected happened, they should be making a video call to the Dragon King, but the Dragon King was still sleeping and too lazy to answer the call.

Hundreds of villagers gathered around, and most of the people in the village came. They knelt on the ground very devoutly and kowtowed towards the Taiping River.

In the center of the altar is a tablet of the Dragon King, which is being worshipped with incense.

The villagers pulled Zhao Xiaoqian and gestured respectfully for him to kneel down as well.

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled. He did not believe in ghosts and gods, but he respected other people's beliefs. So he squatted in the distance, looking as if he was kneeling down.

The tablet of the Dragon King was surrounded by sacrificial offerings of three kinds of animals, and the smoke from incense was so strong that it hurt people's eyes.

"The ceremony is over, what should we do with the sacrifices?" Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly asked curiously.

The villager was clearly confused by this rather abrupt question, and after a moment's pause, he finally replied, "Of course the offering is sunk into the river, to be offered to the Dragon King."

Zhao Xiaoqian was about to say that it was a waste of food, but seeing the villagers' pious faces, he finally held back his words. He was unfamiliar with the place and if he aroused public anger, he would be beaten up.

"It must cost a lot of money to hold this ritual? Did the villagers collect the money?" Zhao Xiaoqian asked again.

"That's right. The village pooled together one hundred taels of silver, and the village head and landlords contributed a little more, making it more than two hundred taels in total. We invited the Taoist priest from the nearby Xuanqing Temple. It is said that he is very effective and has been a famous temple for decades." The villagers enthusiastically helped promote Xuanqing Temple on a voluntary basis.

Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly realized that this decades-old store was obviously very popular in the neighborhood.

"What if the ritual doesn't work after the ceremony? There are still two months before spring. If it still doesn't snow, will the Taoist return the money?" Zhao Xiaoqian's questions were always tricky.

The villagers looked startled, looked around cautiously, and lowered their voices, saying, "Sir, please be careful with your words. I dare not say that. If the Dragon King still doesn't send rain or snow after the ritual, it's because we mortals are not pious enough. It's a blessing that the Taoist priests don't scold us. How dare we ask them to return our money?"

Zhao Xiaoqian was so jealous that his eyes turned red. It was a business that made huge profits with no investment. They didn't even take care of after-sales service. He wanted to ask Xuanqing Temple to invest in it and get a round B financing.

This money is too easy to make. It doesn't matter whether the ritual is effective or not. If there is a problem, it means the villagers are not sincere. In any case, the money cannot be refunded.

Zhao Xiaoqian couldn't help but reflect on his methods of making money over the years, and finally realized that he was not thick-skinned enough and was too shy.

With the intention of watching the fun, Zhao Xiaoqian watched the sacrificial ceremony with great interest.

After receiving the money, several Taoist priests were still very dedicated. At least they did enough exercise and seemed sincere in taking the money and doing the work.

He walked around in circles with the Tiangang Steps, chanting scriptures without stopping, and from time to time he picked up a piece of yellow paper with a talisman drawn on it and burned it, which really cost him manpower and material resources.

The villagers obediently followed the Taoist's instructions and stood up, kneeled, and kowtowed.

Bow again and again, never get tired of it.

At the end of the ritual, the Taoist priest suddenly threw a piece of talisman paper into the sky and shouted loudly. The talisman paper spontaneously combusted in mid-air without any fire. The gorgeous show of skill reached its peak, and the villagers became more and more awed.

Under the villagers' adoring gazes, the Taoist priest retracted his magical powers, nodded with satisfaction, and then ordered the villagers to carry the three sacrificial animals and the tablet of the Dragon King, and march towards the Taiping River bank in a mighty procession. Naturally, they still beat drums and gongs and knelt down as usual along the way.

Zhao Xiaoqian certainly wouldn't give up until the fun was over, and he followed the villagers towards the river.

He didn't know why he insisted on watching this lively scene to the end. Perhaps he was just too bored.

It’s like when your college roommate says “Are we going to leave or not?” and everyone in the dormitory goes out together. Except for the person who made the call, no one knows why they are following out, but they still follow out firmly. There is no other reason, just boredom and trust.

A group of more than a hundred people came to the Taiping River, hammering and banging.

Zhao Xiaoqian mingled with the group, like a dazed zombie in a doomsday world. He simply followed along. Chen Shou and Jia Shi, who had been accompanying him to protect him, yawned. They were both bored and couldn't understand why the prince had the heart to do such a boring thing.

When they arrived at the river, they placed the Dragon King's tablet and offerings, and several Taoists sang and danced rap again. They were probably still insisting on video-calling the Dragon King, but the Dragon King still didn't answer.

In front of the villagers, the Taoist priest naturally would not admit that he lacked face. He pretended that the Dragon King had received his greeting message, his expression suddenly brightened, and he began to chatter again.

Finally, in front of the villagers, an old Taoist priest who looked highly respected announced the completion of the ceremony and threw the talisman paper in his hand into the air.

What happened next was a little confusing. The talisman paper did not spontaneously combust in mid-air, but fell to the ground intact.

The old Taoist's face changed, he muttered something, picked up another piece of talisman paper and threw it, but the talisman paper still did not burn. After several Taoists looked at each other, their faces were already ashen.

Now the villagers also realized that something was wrong and began to whisper to each other.

An old man who looked like a village head came forward and respectfully asked the old Taoist priest what had happened.

The old Taoist priest had an immortal look. He stroked his beard and pondered silently for a long time without answering.

Finally, the old Taoist priest suddenly sighed: "The Dragon King does not accept courtesy. This is troublesome."

The head of the village was shocked and asked the reason.

The old Taoist priest's face darkened. He looked around at the panicked villagers and slowly asked, "I have a question. Has anyone in this village done anything evil this year that is against the will of Heaven?"

The village head shook his head: "The villagers are all simple and honest. No one has ever done anything evil, let alone harm others."

The old Taoist said flatly, "Impossible! Someone must have disobeyed the will of Heaven, and Heaven has sent down divine punishment. The lack of rain and snow is just as true, and the Dragon King's refusal to accept respect is just as true. Village head, think again. There are gods above us, and we cannot deceive Heaven. Otherwise, I cannot help you."

These words immediately created panic. The villagers were frightened and the discussions became more intense.

In the cold winter, the head of the village was so anxious that he was sweating profusely. He thought hard for a long time but could not figure out what evil things the villagers had done.

At this time, a young villager in the panicked crowd said weakly, "This summer, a few refugees came to the village. They seemed to be passing through. When they passed by the Dragon King Temple at the west end of the village, they stole the offerings and seemed to have urinated behind the Dragon King Temple..."

"Does this... count as doing something evil?"

The village head was shocked and angry. He glared at the villagers and asked, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? Where are those refugees?"

The villager said weakly, "Didn't I just say that they were just passing by and didn't enter the village. They stayed in the Dragon King Temple for one night and then left. I was herding cattle when they stole the offerings. I stepped forward and scolded them. They wanted to beat me, but I didn't dare to get involved and just ran away..."

The village head stamped his feet in anger, cursed a few times, turned to look at the old Taoist priest and said hesitantly: "Master, how do you see this matter..."

The old Taoist stroked his beard and sighed, "This is probably what happened. What a sin!"

The village head said with a grim expression, "This was done by refugees. The villagers are innocent and meant no offense. Could the Dragon King show some mercy?"

The old Taoist said in a deep voice, "The Dragon King Temple in your village has been desecrated, so naturally you are to blame. The Dragon King deity is probably not accepting respect for this matter, and he is blaming the villagers. Next year will definitely be a year of disaster. I'm sorry, I can't do anything about it."

After saying this, the old Taoist priest told the other Taoist priests to pack up their magic tools and prepare to leave.

Zhao Xiaoqian, who was mixed in the crowd, sneered secretly. The villagers were in panic, but he could see it clearly.

To be honest, I have heard this routine too many times in my previous life.

The hustle and bustle, the profit-making, in the final analysis, it’s just a routine to make money.

Next, the Taoist priest would give a hint, suggesting that the villagers should chip in more money. What’s there to worry about if the Dragon King blames you? He would solve the problem immediately.

It's all just business.

Sure enough, as soon as the Taoists started to clean up, the village head and villagers panicked and rushed forward to plead for mercy.

The old Taoist priest had a sullen face and said nothing, just kept shaking his head in refusal.

After packing up the ritual implements, the Taoists said goodbye and left, and as expected, they did not mention returning the money before leaving.

The head of the village chased after him and chatted with the old Taoist priest in a panic. After a long time, the head of the village came back with a sad face.

The villagers gathered around and chatted with the headman in a flurry. It seemed that the conversation was not very pleasant. Many of them blushed and some even had red eyes.

Zhao Xiaoqian's heart skipped a beat. It looked like this wasn't as simple as just adding money.

(End of this chapter)