After dinner, Feng Ye said goodbye to his family and then strolled over to Secretary Xiao's house.
He came up with a plan that might help expand the Mazu Temple, so he thought he would talk to the Mazu Temple Council about it.
The council of Baishidao Mazu Temple consists of eight members, with two fixed members from each village, elected by the villages themselves, while the chairman of the council rotates every year.
Coincidentally, Secretary Xiao is one of the two council members of Dongtou Village.
"Ah Ye, what brings you here? Come in and sit down."
Secretary Xiao had just finished eating, and the food hadn't been cleared away yet.
He called out and quickly got up to make tea.
His wife and daughter were busy tidying up the table.
Feng Ye walked into the house, found a chair and sat down. He took the tea that Secretary Xiao handed him, took a small sip, and then asked, "Are the people from the Cultural Relics Bureau staying at the village committee office, or have they left?"
"They've left. We arranged for a boat to take them to town."
"Oh." Feng Ye nodded, then straightened his expression. "Secretary Xiao, I've come to discuss something with you."
Secretary Xiao put down the teapot and asked curiously, "You look so serious, what's the matter?"
"I heard that your council is discussing the expansion of the Mazu Temple?"
"That's true. The Mazu Temple is too small. There's no place to enshrine the Mazu Goddess and the two generals that you and A-Can invited back. So it naturally needs to be expanded."
"It really needs to be expanded. What are the specific plans? Have they been discussed and agreed upon?"
"There are two options now. One is to expand a side hall and move the statues that were originally in the main hall to the expanded side hall, leaving the main hall for the three statues that were brought back."
"What's the other option?"
Feng Ye didn't comment, but simply shook his head and asked further.
“Build a new main hall and a side hall next to it, and use the original main hall as a side hall.”
Secretary Xiao replied with a troubled expression: "However, this second option requires more funding and involves a larger amount of work, so we are still discussing it."
Just as he finished speaking, as if remembering something, he continued, "Logically speaking, I should have asked for your opinion, but considering that you have been busy going to sea recently, I was in no hurry to discuss it with you."
Feng Ye smiled and said, "I originally had no objections, but after those people from the Cultural Relics Bureau left today, I had an idea."
"Oh, well, I'd like to hear that."
Secretary Xiao became interested, put down his teacup, leaned forward slightly, and gestured for Feng Ye to continue.
"Both of your current proposals are too petty."
Feng Ye cleared his throat and continued, "If you ask me, since we're already expanding, why not just make it the largest Mazu temple in the area, and change its name to Tianhou Palace as well?"
"This...this..."
Secretary Xiao was so shocked that he didn't know what to say.
He hadn't expected Feng Ye to be so ambitious.
It took him a while to come to his senses: "Ah Ye, your idea is no different from a fantasy. Even if everyone on White Stone Island tightened their belts and donated all their savings, it still wouldn't be enough to expand the Mazu Temple into the largest Mazu temple within a hundred miles."
Feng Ye smiled slightly; he had long anticipated that Secretary Xiao would react this way.
So, having prepared in advance, he said, "Secretary Xiao, I understand what you mean. But since I've said this, I'm sure I'm confident, and it won't require the people on the island to make too much of a sacrifice."
"Are you planning to raise funds in the town or even the county? But that probably wouldn't be enough, would it?"
Secretary Xiao frowned in confusion.
Feng Ye shook his head: "Although the influence of our Mazu Temple on the island has increased a lot in the past few months, and many people come to worship, no one knows how much money we can raise."
“Moreover, fundraising is time-consuming and laborious, and the desired results are not guaranteed in the end,” Feng Ye further stated. “I have a more direct and efficient method.”
"Oh? Do you have any good ideas?"
A hint of curiosity flashed in Secretary Xiao's eyes as he was drawn to Feng Ye's words.
As a resident of the island, he also hopes that the Mazu Temple can grow stronger and have greater influence.
"First, go find a few trustworthy people tonight, and make sure they have a boat. Remember, they must be trustworthy; they can't betray us in the end."
"That's no problem, I can still find people like that, but what's the point of finding them?"
"Aren't the people from the Cultural Relics Bureau coming tomorrow? They'll definitely ask me to take them to that sea area. Just have the person you found come along to watch the excitement."
At this point, Feng Ye glanced nervously outside and continued in a low voice, "After we all leave, we'll have them dive into the sea and retrieve some things. When they come back, we'll present them to Mazu in a grand manner."
"This...this won't break the law, will it?" Secretary Xiao asked with some concern.
Feng Ye rolled his eyes: "They didn't take it for themselves, so what law did they break?"
“That’s true, but…” Secretary Xiao still hesitated, “Is this really okay? What if the Cultural Relics Bureau finds out?”
Feng Ye smiled mysteriously and said, "What I want is for the people from the Cultural Relics Bureau to know."
"ah?"
Secretary Xiao was even more puzzled, staring wide-eyed at Feng Ye.
"The Cultural Heritage Bureau will definitely want to take these things back, and then it will be your council's turn to negotiate. Of course, it's best to have someone else take the lead; don't be the one to rush in."
Feng Ye paused, took a sip of tea, and continued, "At that time, we can propose some conditions, such as providing some construction funds; or, for example, helping us promote the expansion of the Mazu Temple."
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