Chapter 254: Ling Xiaobao comes up and looks at...
Ling Xiaobao watched on the big screen as the four masters and apprentices returned safely to the Tang Dynasty and appeased Emperor Tang II. Emperor Tang II then bestowed upon them the "Big Wild Goose Pagoda" to be used for translating Buddhist scriptures and spreading Buddhism. The other dangerous beings breathed a sigh of relief. It was as if, like Xuanzang and his apprentices, they had accomplished a great cause.
Fu Li waved at the magic mirror, and the mirror slowly shrank to a suitable size and flew back into her hands.
The immortals suddenly came back to their senses and heard Fu Li say with a relaxed smile, "Well, the Dharma's eastward spread has concluded successfully. Everyone can go back to their respective tasks."
All the immortals bowed and took their leave with a smile. Master Xuandu and Emperor Donghua stayed until the end and thanked Fu Li again and again for giving their disciples a chance to achieve enlightenment.
Fu Li smiled and said, "You two don't have to be so. As your disciples, what's missing from this one positive result? If it weren't for their strong will and dedication along the way, this journey to the West wouldn't have been so smooth."
Everyone carried the fancy sedan chair. Fuli praised Bajie and Wujing, while Xuandu and Donghua praised Wukong. The three of them exchanged praises for a while.
Nezha saw that it was almost over, so he interrupted with a smile, "Alright, alright, all three of you stop bragging. Everyone knows we're close. You praising my disciples, I praising yours, is no different than praising yourselves? Be careful, or someone will hear and laugh at you."
The three of them laughed when they heard this.
After laughing, Emperor Donghua said, "I've been relaxing here for half a month. I'm afraid I have a lot of government affairs piled up. Great Celestial Venerable, Marshal, and Master Xuandu, I will take my leave now."
Seeing this, Xuan Du also said goodbye.
Fu Li watched them leave and immediately took out the mirror to contact Ying Zheng.
Emperor Fu Li: I have something important to discuss with you, come quickly!
Nezha thought that now that everyone had left, it was time for them to be alone together. However, he didn't expect Fu Li to not rest for a moment and wanted to call Ying Zheng back, which made him unhappy.
He wasn't the type to keep things bottled up. If he was unhappy, he had to speak out. He pouted and said sarcastically, "Sister is closer to her apprentice after all. She misses me so much every time she's not around. If I were to keep showing up every day, I'd probably be annoying her."
Fu Li raised her eyebrows slightly: "It seems that you are not happy with me calling Zheng'er back? Otherwise, I will listen to you and send him another message to tell him not to come back for the time being?"
Nezha listened, and it was clear that there was something else behind the words. He quickly changed his expression and said with a smile, "Oh, how could that be? Sister, you know that I support your career the most."
As he said this, he patted his chest and tried hard to open his eyes to show his "sincerity".
Fu Li sneered and said angrily, "You're so unruly all the time!"
Ying Zheng responded quickly, and in less than a quarter of an hour, someone rushed over.
"Disciple greets Master, and Uncle Master. I wonder why Master summoned Zheng here?"
Seeing him in such a hurry, from his tone, it seemed that he wanted to get down to business as soon as he arrived, and wanted to leave as soon as he was done. Fu Li frowned, feigning dissatisfaction: "Why, can't I ask you to come over if there's nothing wrong?"
"That's right, that's right. Sister misses you, so why don't I ask you to come and see her?" It's rare to see Fu Li teasing Ying Zheng, so of course Nezha has to help out.
Ying Zheng was stunned, feeling helpless, but he forced a smile on his face. "How could that be? Even if Master doesn't miss me, I still think of him. It's just that the Journey to the West that Master entrusted me with is still to be completed, and I'm afraid if anything goes wrong, so I'm anxious to go back and keep an eye on it."
Fu Li laughed. "I didn't say anything to you, but you've replied with a bunch of nonsense. Now, let me ask you, have Ying Yan and Ying Che made any progress in governing Northern Juluzhou?"
Ying Yan arrived over thirty years later than Ying Zheng, and her cultivation had already reached the Golden Immortal stage. The reason she kept claiming she was still in seclusion was because Fu Li had given her a mission she wasn't sure she could complete: to control the evil spirits and resentment in Northern Juluzhou.
This is a job that requires great patience. In order to prevent her from being influenced by the outside world, it was not publicized to the outside world.
As for Ying Che, although he also used the golden lotus incarnation, it is not known whether it was innate, and his aptitude in cultivating immortals is really limited.
After two hundred years of cultivation, he barely achieved immortality. After consulting Fu Li, Ying Zheng offered him two options: one, diligently cultivate on Penglai Island, honing his skills through painstaking effort, and eventually achieving perfect merit; the other, hide his identity and travel to Northern Juluzhou to help Ying Yan. If he could accomplish this, he would receive a tenth of the proceeds, which would be enough for him to become an immortal.
After hearing this, Ying Che chose the second path without thinking.
Although neither can be achieved quickly, sitting there practicing all day is too boring. It is better to go to Uttarakuru. No matter when the results come, at least there will always be something to do and someone to talk to and play with.
Ying Zheng thought: "Master should know better than me whether they have achieved any results over there. Now that he's asking me, he must have a new plan for them, and this plan involves me."
He continued his thoughts without stopping, saying, "Thanks to the master's advance advice, they followed his lead and, after arriving in Northern Julu Continent, delved deep into areas of resentment. They spent ten years carefully searching and comparing, finally identifying three plants that could purify resentment. They put in years of hard work cultivating and propagating those three plants, and they could have been cultivated on a large scale fifty years ago."
At this point, Ying Zheng remembered something else: "Oh, Master. When you suppressed the rebellion, didn't you send all the surrendered heavenly soldiers and generals to Northern Juluzhou?"
"Yes, that's what happened." Fu Li nodded, suddenly realizing, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten. Back then, I promised them that they would only stay there for five hundred years. When the five hundred years were up, I would dispatch other heavenly soldiers to replace them."
Ying Zheng laughed and said, "I'm afraid Master's work will be in vain."
"Oh?" Fu Li and Nezha exchanged a glance and urged, "Don't keep us in suspense. Just say what you want to say."
Ying Zheng said, "Yan'er and Che'er are governing Northern Juluzhou thanks to their help. Many heavenly soldiers have witnessed Northern Juluzhou gradually improve and have developed a deep affection for it. Many of them have told Yan'er and Che'er that they don't want to return to Heaven."
Fu Li listened, but remained silent for a long moment, staring at him with a half-smile. Nezha raised an eyebrow, but remained silent, his expression gradually darkening.
Ying Zheng was annoyed by them, but fortunately he was very shrewd and no matter what he felt in his heart, he did not show it on his face and looked back at them with an innocent face.
After a long while, Fu Li shook her head and said with a smile: "How could I forget that you are shameless."
Ying Zheng said solemnly: "Zheng is a loyal and honest man."
Nezha sneered and said sarcastically, "Loyalty, honesty, and sincerity—I almost don't recognize these four words anymore."
Ying Zheng ignored him and pretended not to hear anything. Fu Li had to come out to smooth things over.
After calming them down, Fu Li looked at Ying Zheng with a half-smile. "I called you back today because of something important. The two Star Gods, Zuo Fu and You Bi, who were originally in Ziwei Palace, have been transferred to Lingxiao Palace. Let me ask you again, are those soldiers and generals from Northern Juluzhou really unwilling to return?"
Ying Zheng was silent for a moment before he chuckled, "Master, nothing can be hidden from you. It was those two kids who were behind this. I only discovered it later. They kept pulling me from both sides and begging me. I couldn't deny it, so I finally agreed to cover it up for them."
It turned out that after Ying Yan and Ying Che went to Uttarakuru one after another, they led the heavenly soldiers and generals there to find ways to govern while trying to win over the hearts of the people.
These two were masters at manipulating people's hearts in the mortal world. Now they have gone deep into the grassroots level and interacted closely with the heavenly soldiers and generals. There are not many people who can withstand them.
Unknowingly, over the years, they each have a group of loyal fans.
The reason why Ying Zheng said that was because he didn't know that Fu Li intended to transfer them both back. For the purpose of covering up, he had to say that those heavenly soldiers and generals had developed feelings for the Northern Continent, which they personally governed.
In fact, this was not a lie. Those people saw with their own eyes that the resentment in Northern Julu Continent was decreasing day by day, and the spiritual energy was increasing day by day. Moreover, these changes were all created by their own hands.
Many people will be intoxicated by that sense of accomplishment and satisfaction.
In this case, if the Heavenly Court does not mention transferring them back, many people will be confused and turn a blind eye to it and continue to live there, and there will be no risk of mutiny on the Heavenly Court side.
However, the hearts of those heavenly soldiers and generals will also be completely directed towards Ying Yan and Ying Che.
Ying Zheng was taught by Fu Li. No matter how cunning he was, Fu Li could see through his tricks at a glance.
She shook her head and sighed, pointing at him and said, "Ying Zheng, Ying Zheng, you've been so smart your whole life, how could you be so foolish for just one moment? Don't you think about it? You're a little immortal with no foundation, just became a Golden Immortal, and you've become the Purple Star Lord without any achievements. This is a risk for your master. You don't really think that just because of the status of master and disciple, it's worth it for me to take this risk, right?"
Ying Zheng lowered his head and was speechless for a long time.
As an emperor, especially an emperor who has truly held real power, the desire for power is engraved in his bones and will not be eliminated just because he becomes an immortal.
Ying Zheng was willing to cover up for Ying Yan and Ying Che, perhaps with the intention of profiting from it.
Before Fu Li pointed it out, he could still pretend that nothing had happened. But now that it was pointed out to him in person, the shame in his heart surged up and his face turned red.
Seeing him like this, Fu Li was furious and waved her hand, saying, "Go back and think about it carefully. Don't throw away the cantaloupe for sesame seeds."
Ying Zheng was startled and subconsciously shouted: "Master, Zheng..."
"Okay, go back first." Fu Li waved her sleeve and pushed him out. "Don't come to see me if you can't figure it out."
Ying Zheng stood outside the hall for a long time. Seeing that Fu Li was determined not to see him again, he had to leave dejectedly.
After sensing that he had left, Fu Li spread her hands to Nezha and said, "I originally wanted to capture a strong man so that we could go out and play for a few days. Now it seems we have to find someone else. If we really hand him over, I'm afraid we won't have any home when we return."
Normally, Nezha likes to tease the younger generations, but in fact, he is just making jokes and helping both sides out of trouble.
But after Fu Li revealed Ying Zheng's thoughts, he frowned and said nothing, leaving Ying Zheng in embarrassment.
Although he also loves Ying Zheng very much, but in his heart, Fu Li is the most important. Ying Zheng affects Fu Li's interests, how can Nezha treat him well?
After hearing Fu Li's self-deprecating words, Nezha hugged her distressedly and suggested softly, "Why not call back Zi Ya and Junior Brother Shen Gong?"
——Although Ying Zheng is unreliable, don’t be discouraged, sister. Jiang Ziya and Shen Gongbao are both good kids.
Fu Li tried to comfort him, "I'm not really angry with Zheng'er. It's not the first day I've known he's a man content to be inferior to others. Just call Shen Gongbao back. Ziya has many followers in the mortal world, and he's already busy enough."
She thought for a moment, then added, "A few days ago, Junior Brother Kong Xuan recommended two Phoenix Clan disciples to me: one Daluo Jinxian (Golden Immortal) and one Taiyi Jinxian (Golden Immortal). It's said the Daluo Jinxian is called Feng Ling, and her true form is a swan. She's quite adept at government affairs, so let her work alongside Zhuge Liang as Shen Gongbao's deputy."
Although Zhuge Liang was a minister of Qin 14th Emperor Ying Chuo, he was of noble character. After receiving the title from Fu Li, he would never do anything that would go against his will.
Besides, Shen Gongbao was no pushover. Although he wasn't good at military affairs, he was on par with Jiang Ziya in government affairs.
At this moment, Fu Li suddenly sensed the change of dragon energy in the mortal world. After a little thought, he knew that it was Li Shimin, the second emperor of the Tang Dynasty, who had passed away.
An idea struck her, and she said to Nezha, "We have some free time right now, so why don't we go to the mortal world ourselves and bring Li Shimin back."
Seeing her like this, Nezha knew that she had an idea in her mind, so he nodded and went with her.
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