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

Chapter 35 What evil intentions could the Empress possibly have?! [Requesting monthly votes]

Closing the notebook, Zhou Yi suddenly became curious about other emperors:

"I wonder if the territory area will also be displayed on the page when they come over."

Compared to powerful figures like Li Shimin and Zhu Yuanzhang, whose territories exceeded ten million square kilometers, Wu Zetian's territory of 0.014 square kilometers seemed rather insignificant.

Most importantly, this is merely a land conferred by imperial decree in the realm of metaphysics; in reality, the ownership of that land still belongs to Haitang Bay Wetland Park.

Stepping out of the room, I saw two beautiful women eating a red velvet cake that had been brought from the foot of the mountain.

Wu Zetian said:
"This cake is delicious. When I go back tomorrow, may I bring one for Li Mingda?"

Thinking of the 1299 he had just received, Zhou Yi said generously:

"OK, no problem."

He calculated the cash he had and planned to buy a Wuling Hongguang when he went to the county town the day after tomorrow.

With a car, going out will be much more convenient. We should take some time to go to the county's night market together, try out the high-tech and amazing food at the snack street, and have some team building.

Just then, Zhao Wei called:

"Xiao Yi, a tattered coffin suddenly floated out of Huangniwa. Do you know what happened?"

The Book of Changes is full of nonsense:
"I don't know, when did this happen? Is it an ancient tomb?"

Upon hearing that Zhou Yi didn't know about this, Zhao Wei became excited:

"Those airmen were fishing. When they heard the noise, they thought someone had caught a big fish weighing forty or fifty pounds. But instead, a coffin floated up. People from the police station and the cultural relics bureau went there. Everything inside had turned into mud, and even the coffin was ruined beyond recognition. They had no choice but to find an open space to bury it."

After saying that, Zhao Wei lowered his voice and asked:
"This coffin floated out of the ditch I dug. Will it come back to haunt me?"

The oracle has already been consulted. If you go fishing again that day, you'll most likely drown... Zhou Yi said:
"Don't overthink it, nothing's wrong with you."

The more he said this, the more uncertain Zhao Wei felt.
"Why don't you get me something to ward off evil spirits? I'll hang it on the excavator to get rid of bad luck and prevent any unclean things from following me to my house and scaring my son."

Zhou Yi initially intended to say it wasn't necessary, but then he thought about it again. This guy occasionally unearths graves while operating an excavator, and having a sign would indeed save a lot of trouble, so he said:

"I'll get you a large, all-purpose safety badge in the next couple of days. You can hang it in the cab of the excavator... But think it over carefully, this thing isn't cheap."

Fellow villagers may be fellow villagers, but prices cannot be compromised.

Zhao Wei has been acting suspiciously these past few days, and with his two excavators constantly busy, he nonchalantly said:
"As long as it works, I don't care how much it costs!"

The personal amulet is priced at 1299, while the amulet worn on large equipment like excavators is larger, and the I Ching recommends a number of 3699.

Without saying a word, Zhao Wei transferred the money and kept asking if he wanted to perform a ritual to exorcise the excavator, but Zhou Yi refused.

Yesterday, we drove the excavator into the Taoist temple. If there were any evil spirits, they would have been cleansed away by the gods in the temple. There was no need to go through any more trouble with exorcism rituals.

After hanging up the phone, Zhou Yi went to the ritual artifacts room, opened a box labeled "Small Leaf Sandalwood," and took out a "Peace and Safety Amulet" wrapped in silk cloth.

The plaque that grants freedom from all taboos needs to be enshrined in the Zhongtian Hall, where the Ziwei Emperor resides. This is because the Ziwei Emperor is also known as the First-Rank Heavenly Official of the Upper Yuan, who bestows blessings that can eliminate all calamities. Therefore, there is a saying in Taoism and among the common people: "The Heavenly Official bestows blessings, and all taboos are eliminated."

When Zhou Yi went to make offerings, Granny Gongsun, adhering to the principle that more courtesy is better than no offense to the gods, followed him. She placed her snacks on the offering table, then knelt on the prayer mat and began to ramble on, begging the Ziwei Emperor to bless her journey with a smooth one:
"Avoid mountain bandits, avoid outlaws, avoid rioters, avoid thugs, avoid shady inns, and avoid overpriced food..."

Zhou Yi was speechless for a moment:
"You've stayed at official Tang Dynasty post stations all the way, so it's all free."

Upon hearing this, Granny Gongsun immediately added a clause:
"The food at the inn must be delicious enough, it can't be too bad..."

After she finished speaking, Zhou Yi smiled sheepishly at the statue of the Ziwei Emperor and began to offer the peace talisman, which had no taboos, while reciting the "Heavenly Official's Blessing Secret Mantra".

After finishing all that, Zhou Yi started moving bricks.

After the merit increased to five qian, the brick became lighter, but in terms of weight, it still felt like over 100 jin, which was far from the 60 or 70 jin that Chen Tang had mentioned.

After moving the bricks, he rested for a while, then took his sickle and went outside Hunyuan Palace. He found the hunting spot his grandfather had mentioned and cut some wild chives.

I'm not busy this afternoon, so I'll make some steamed dumplings at the Taoist temple. They'll be absolutely delicious dipped in chili oil.

While he was busy, Wu Meiniang sat in front of the computer, diligently studying modern knowledge.

Grandma Gongsun, holding her tablet, also wanted to learn, but soon felt the Connect-the-Dots game was tempting her. Adhering to the principle of eliminating karma, she enthusiastically started playing Connect-the-Dots, declaring she wanted to settle this karmic debt. In the evening, Zhou Yi fried the marinated fish, made sweet and sour pork ribs, cooked a shrimp and loofah soup, steamed three plates of wild leek dumplings, and fried some chili oil.

"Wow, it smells so good!"

Aunt Gongsun went into the kitchen and smelled the delicious aroma wafting from inside. Suddenly, the tablet computer didn't seem so appealing anymore.

She obediently brought the dishes to the table, reminiscing about the crayfish she had eaten in the county town last time:

"Master, when are we going to the county town again? I still want to eat crayfish. The broth is spicy and slightly sweet, and it's so delicious with noodles."

The Book of Changes says:

"I'm going to the county town the day after tomorrow to deliver a peace plaque. If you want to eat crayfish, I'll take you with me."

Sun Chenglin's lobster restaurant has been open for almost a week. I wonder how business is going. It's time to do a follow-up visit, eat and drink to my heart's content, and then buy a Wuling minivan to provide a car for Hunyuan Palace.

Originally, I was a little short of money to buy a car, but with two Ping An license plates, buying a Wuling car outright is no longer a problem.

When Wu Zetian heard about buying a carriage, she wanted to go and take a look, but unfortunately she had to go back the next morning.

"His Majesty intends to send Li Maogong to lead the army to attack Goguryeo. He would like to hear your instructions."

My instructions?

Old Li really thinks highly of me. If I knew this, would I need to be a Taoist priest?
However, he couldn't show weakness at this moment. Zhou Yi dipped a steamed dumpling in chili oil and said:

"Tell him that at the beginning of the war, the focus should be on eliminating enemy manpower, and not on the gains or losses of a single city or territory... Strategically despise the enemy, but tactically take them seriously..."

He quoted some famous sayings from history textbooks, wanting to offer some specific advice, but was worried that it might cause negative consequences.

Historically, Li Ji's campaign against Goguryeo was not very successful, which is why he had the idea of ​​personally leading an expedition to teach the Goguryeo king a lesson.

As I pondered these things, the details of the Goguryeo Wars in the history books gradually became clearer.

Zhou Yi remembered that Zhang Liang, who was in charge of the navy, was slow to react, incompetent in managing the army, and a devout believer in sorcerers. Not long after he returned, he was beheaded by Lao Li on charges of treason.

Or should I just mention it and have Zhang Liang go sell mala tang ahead of time?

Forget it, it's not appropriate to make these kinds of jokes about historical figures; they wouldn't be able to get them.

The Book of Changes says:

"Isn't Li Jing feeling a little better now? Let him decide who goes on the expedition, and also give Su Dingfang some opportunities to prove himself."

After capturing Jieli Khan alive, Su Dingfang was sidelined until Li Zhi ascended the throne, at which point this famous Tang general was reinstated.

History has changed now. In order to prevent Su Dingfang's heroic deeds from being forgotten, it would be better to give this pioneering war god a chance to serve sooner rather than later.

Wu Meiniang wrote everything down, intending to report it to Li Shimin when she returned there.

The next day, after breakfast, Wu Meiniang, carrying a red velvet cake, bid farewell to Zhou Yi and Gongsun Da Niang, left Hunyuan Palace, and appeared in the Yiyuan Hall of Taiji Palace.

As soon as she appeared, a young girl who was dozing off on a futon opened her eyes:
"Sister Meiniang, you're back!"

Wu Zetian quickly put her hand to her mouth and shushed:
"What did I tell you yesterday? Don't shout like that in public."

The little girl quickly covered her mouth, looked left and right, and only after finding no one around did she whisper:

"From now on, I will only call you 'elder sister' in private, and 'Consort Wu' in public. Elder sister, you mustn't say that Si Zi is rude... What are you carrying in your hand?"

Wu Zetian displayed the red velvet cake around the room:
"The immortal master really liked the jade pendant you gave him. This is a return gift he prepared... He ate two meals of black cornbread mixed with chaff for this gift, and he couldn't even bear to eat white steamed buns. Tell me, isn't that good to you?"

Upon hearing this, the little girl felt extremely distressed.

"The immortal is so pitiful. No, I'm going to steal my father's treasured copy of the 'Preface to the Orchid Pavilion' and give it to the immortal so he can exchange it for white steamed buns..."

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(End of this chapter)