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

Chapter 84 Using Feng Shui to Trade for Grain and Oil Supplies! [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

The staff at the Xiuchuan County Tax Bureau had only been on duty for a short time when they heard someone report tax evasion. The director on duty in the service hall rushed over.
"Which company do you want to report? Do you have detailed evidence and clues?"

Reporting tax evasion carries no legal responsibility, but fabricating facts to falsely accuse others may constitute the crime of "false accusation," which carries a maximum penalty of ten years imprisonment.

Fan Chengye only heard Zhao Wei's embellished account, without any concrete evidence.

He took out his phone and showed the photo Zhao Wei had sent him:

"There's a Hunyuan Palace on Yunwu Mountain in Yunwu Town. They use items wholesaled from Yiwu Small Commodities Market to impersonate peace charms, selling them for as much as 3,600 yuan. Many people have been deceived..."

Before he could finish speaking, the duty officer at the tax hall interrupted him with a remark:
"You should go to the police station. If he is really committing fraud, the police can arrest him."

Instead of going to the police, they went to the tax bureau for this kind of thing, which is a bit of a contradiction.

Fan Chengye was taken aback for a moment, and he also felt that he should go to the police station, but since he was already there, he couldn't let the tax bureau go either:
"He made so much money, he definitely didn't pay taxes. Our country has regulations that require temples to pay value-added tax on their goods... Hunyuan Palace is evading taxes, you should arrest him!"

The duty officer picked up a tax information brochure from the side and handed it to him:

"Your enthusiasm in reporting tax evasion is commendable, but we have procedures. Please go to window number three to process your case. We will open a case within half a month and investigate it thoroughly in three to six months. Now, please submit evidence of the other party's tax evasion. Without evidence, we cannot open a case for the time being."

Fan Chengye hadn't expected it to be so complicated, that he'd have to wait three to six months—so long, by which time the opportunity would be lost.

The duty manager added another reminder:
"Any report involving false accusations, framing, or retaliation, once verified, will result in imprisonment. Can you take responsibility for what you say?"

Fan Chengye was frightened by these words. He only wanted to make a quick buck on the project by taking advantage of Xie Yukun. It would not be worth it if he were sentenced to prison for it.

Moreover, the investigation period was three to six months, which was too long, so he decided to withdraw his report.

However, Fan Chengye was very unhappy with the attitude of the duty officer:

"I came here out of goodwill to report tax evasion, why are you being so sarcastic?"

The duty officer shrugged:

“Our bureau chief held a morning meeting this morning and specifically mentioned Hunyuan Palace’s tax declaration. He praised our tax publicity work for being so effective, even religious sites are voluntarily paying taxes… We just finished the meeting less than an hour ago and you’ve already come to report them without any evidence. What do you think I should do?”

Fan Chengye didn't believe it at all, but the facts were right in front of him, and he had no choice but to believe it.

After leaving the tax bureau, he immediately called Xie Yukun and gave him a full account of the incident:
"A Taoist priest would actually pay taxes voluntarily? Is that Taoist priest out of his mind?"

Xie Yukun was also somewhat surprised:

“I underestimated him. But this matter is not urgent. You go to the provincial capital for me first. I heard there is a blind fortune teller in People’s Park who is very accurate. You go and ask him if he would like to join the Yiyang City Feng Shui Folk Customs Association. If he agrees, I can make him a director of the association.”

Fan Chengye was somewhat confused by this arrangement:

"Chairman Xie, weren't we supposed to be taking over Yunwu Mountain? How did we get involved with the blind man from the provincial capital again?"

“That blind man is said to be very skilled, and many colleagues are paying attention to him. You go there on my behalf and make contact with him. Try to persuade him if you can, coax him if you can, and try to bring him to Yiyang. If you complete this task, you can choose any project from the highway project department.”

Upon hearing this, Fan Chengye immediately perked up and planned to find a place to have a bowl of mutton soup before heading to the provincial capital.
"Chairman Xie, what should we do about Yunwu Mountain?"

"It's not too late to deal with it when you get back. Anyway, that mountain won't grow legs and run away. When you get back, you can take a few brothers and sneak up the mountain in the dark to scare that Taoist priest. Once you scare him out of his wits, the rest will be easy."

"Alright, just you wait and see. In half a month at the latest, Cloud Mist Mountain will become our property!"

After hanging up the phone, Fan Chengye muttered:
"Hmph, once I get my hands on Cloud Mist Mountain, repair the Taoist temple, hire some beautiful women to dress up as female Taoists, wear black stockings to attract worshippers, and open a small casino, I'll definitely make a fortune!"

After saying that, he drove his Passat away from the tax bureau, his mind filled with thoughts of how to make a fortune after taking over the Hunyuan Palace...

On Yunwu Mountain, Zhou Yi had spent two hours transporting flour to the God of Wealth Temple to replace the incense and candles. Just as he was about to continue working, Jin Zhicai, who ran a grain and oil business in town, suddenly called:

"Xiao Yi, are you busy right now?" Zhou Yi asked.

"Not too busy, is there something you need, Uncle Zhicai?"

"Here's the thing, our shop is a bit small, and it's inconvenient to do grain and oil business. Recently, the shop across from the supermarket that sells electric scooters for the elderly moved away. I'd like to rent it, but I'm worried about the feng shui. I'd like you to take a look for me."

Zhou Yi never expected to be able to get a business deal at this hour.
"Okay, I'll be right down the mountain. Just wait for me at the entrance of the elderly mobility scooter shop."

He dusted himself off, washed his face, slung his cloth bag over his shoulder, and rode his motorcycle toward Cloud Mist Town.

Arriving at the entrance of the elderly mobility scooter shop, Zhou Yi met Jin Zhicai, a middle-aged man with a receding hairline and a thermos of goji berries, silently conveying the decline of a middle-aged man's strength.

Jin Zhicai chuckled twice as he saw Zhou Yi examining his thermos.
“I’m fine, it’s just that your aunt brought some black goji berries from her parents’ home and insisted that I soak them in water and drink them. I ended up with blisters all over my mouth.”

Zhouyi: "..."

Uncle, you'd better not explain anymore. The more you explain, the more guilty you'll seem.

Jin Zhicai handed Zhou Yi a thousand yuan, pushed open the shop door, and was about to give an introduction when Zhou Yi suddenly remembered Wu Meiniang's suggestion: when encountering merchants, exchange cash for goods. This would not only alleviate their financial pressure but also save them the trouble of purchasing goods.

Thinking of this, he pushed the thousand yuan back:
"Uncle, could you please replace all of this with cooking oil?"

Jin Zhicai put away the thermos and said seriously:

"Although cooking oil prices aren't high now, a thousand yuan for oil is still a bit much. You'll be using it for several years. Are you sure you want this oil?"

Zhou Yi nodded:

"I plan to use it for good deeds. Just give me the most ordinary soybean oil, the more the better."

Soybean oil is cheap and suitable for ancient times. When Wei Qing made fried noodles, he added some, and the body got the necessary fat.

Jin Zhicai took the money back:
"I'll send you a thousand yuan worth of soybean oil up the mountain later, I promise you won't lose out."

After saying that, he pushed open the shop door and led Zhou Yi inside for a stroll.

This shop has three large rooms and a spacious courtyard in the back. Even a semi-trailer can drive in. However, there is a large willow tree on one side of the courtyard, which blocks out the sun.

Zhou Yi took out his compass, surveyed the area inside and out, and finally said:
“Uncle Zhicai, the feng shui here is quite suitable for you, but the tree in the backyard needs to be dug up. A tree in the yard forms the character '困' (trapped), which will affect your career. The last shop that sold elderly mobility scooters might have been affected by this tree.”

Upon hearing this, Jin Zhicai decided to contact his landlord, Lao Luo, to see if the tree could be uprooted.

At the same time, in the world of Emperor Yuan of the Western Han Dynasty, in the Wensu region.

Chen Tang and Gan Yanshou led their army eastward, their next stop being Nancheng, a place later known as Aksu.

Compared to when they rested at Tianchi, the size of the army has shrunk considerably because the soldiers from the Western Regions that were conscripted have gradually returned home.

Once Chen Tang and Gan Yanshou have returned to Chang'an and finished reporting for duty, the imperial court will send envoys with imperial edicts and gifts to visit these small countries that have contributed troops and resources. They will say some nice things, praise them, and reward them with some flashy but impractical items. The matter of sending troops to assist in attacking Zhizhi Chanyu will then be considered successfully concluded.

Gan Yanshou, mounted on his horse, was munching on a wheat flour pancake.
"I never imagined that wheat would taste so good after the bran is removed... The South City is just ahead. The 'Beautiful Northwest' picture book that you gave me says that the apples here are particularly famous, called Aksu apples. Have you heard of them, my lord?"

Chen Tang said:

"Last time I went to the supermarket with my husband, I saw Aksu apples. I didn't expect they were grown here. Next time I'll bring back two boxes so everyone can try them."

Gan Yanshou nodded:
"Don't throw away the apple cores, let's bury them and see if apple trees can grow here sooner!"

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There are still three days until it goes on sale, so please be patient, brothers!
(End of this chapter)