Chapter 312: Immortal Fate, Wealth, and Disunity
There was a panic at the altar, and the prefect had to come out to take charge of the situation and order the prefect to be sent down for treatment.
The sacrifice ended hastily, leaving a huge gap in people's hearts.
The prefect was sent to the county government office. His confidants hurried to fetch the doctor, but he slowly opened his eyes, waved his hand, and said, "No need to go."
The confidant hurriedly asked, "Is the governor okay?"
Zhang Taishou stood up, his face showing fatigue, and said, "What can I do?"
The confidant hesitated and asked, "What about the Tongpan?"
Zhang Taishou closed his eyes and said, "Let him handle it himself. Don't bother with him."
How could Governor Zhang not know that this difficult situation was a huge blow to him, but he had no other choice but to pretend to be dead and leave the mess to the judge to deal with.
He was burning with anger and said, "Butler! Butler! Quickly prepare gifts for me. I want to go to Wujiang in person."
The housekeeper is an old man in the mansion. He has served three generations of Magistrate Zhang. He knows everything about the mansion and also knows about the affairs of Miss Hua Yin.
The housekeeper prepared a gift and went to invite Zhang Taishou, saying, "Master, the drought continues, and now the water god of Wujiang River refuses to rain. If you go to Wujiang, you must persuade her with kind words and not make things difficult for the young lady."
Zhang Taishou complained, "He's my brother-in-law, and we agreed that I would preside over the sacrifices, and he would receive the incense tax, but now he's changed his mind. Hua Yin is truly despicable! If she had spoken for me, how could the Water God have changed his mind? She's in the Dragon Palace, favored by the Water God, yet she refuses to serve me wholeheartedly."
The housekeeper felt helpless and said, "The girl left home at a young age and has few relatives. If she is disheartened, it would be even worse."
Zhang Taishou snorted coldly and said, "I am her brother. It was originally my turn to cultivate in Jinyun Mountain. She stole my chance to become an immortal. I asked her to help me with something, but she keeps shirking her responsibilities..."
The old housekeeper stammered, but could only sigh and said, "Even if the master doesn't consider the young lady, he should at least think about the old lady."
Zhang Taishou's throat rolled over, and he snorted coldly, saying, "Don't use my mother to pressure me. I know what I'm doing."
Seeing that he was angry, the old housekeeper didn't dare to offend him again.
Although he watched Zhang Taishou grow up, he was only a steward after all and had no control over Zhang Taishou.
Zhang Taishou exhaled and said, "Prepare the carriage and go to Wujiang tonight."
The old butler lowered his head in agreement and left the room.
Just as he came out of the prefect's room, the old housekeeper walked through the yard and saw an extraordinarily handsome young man with a jade face looking at him on the rockery.
The old butler had never seen this person before and was a little confused for a moment. Before he could ask, he saw the handsome man with a jade face smiling at him.
He couldn't help but feel a sense of intimacy, and instead of questioning, he blurted out a welcome: "Young man, why are you here in the prefectural governor's mansion?"
Gong Mengbi bowed and said, "I am Shuiyue, an aide to the Water Palace. I have come to investigate on the orders of the Water God."
The old housekeeper looked around, took him into his room, and asked, "Are you a fairy from the water? I wonder if the water god has any wishes?"
Gong Mengbi sighed and said, "The drought continues, and the water level of the Wujiang River is gradually falling. The water god doesn't want any more rain, so he ordered me to stop the prefect from performing the sacrifice."
The old steward finally understood the whole story and became anxious. He said, "If the water god doesn't want it to rain, what will the people do?"
Gong Mengbi showed a worried look and said, "I don't know what the people will do. In fact, the Wujiang River can still hold on for a while, but the water god doesn't know when the drought will end. He is worried and wants to conserve water for his own protection, not for the benefit of the people."
The old housekeeper was anxious and said, "Then isn't it futile for my master to visit the water god?"
Gong Mengbi said, "I don't know either. Perhaps Madam Hua Yin can persuade the Water God?"
The old housekeeper shook his head and said, "If my daughter knew about this, she would be so angry that she would die."
This is exactly what Gong Mengbi wanted to know. He put on an expression as if he was listening attentively, and for some reason the old butler felt a strong desire to talk.
As he told the story, Gong Mengbi learned about the prefect's family affairs.
When the prefect was young, he and Madam Huayin once saved an old Taoist priest. The old Taoist priest was Xuanxu Zhenren from the Xiandu Sect of Jinyun Mountain, who had experienced many tribulations in the human world.
Xuanxu Zhenren saved them and predicted their fate, saying that one of them had a destiny to become an immortal and would be able to seek immortals and ask for the way, and the other was destined to be rich and noble and would enjoy wealth and glory.
The prefect wanted to seek the truth, but his parents were still alive and would never agree to let him go out to study Taoism, which would cut off the family line. He was also afraid that the prefect was a liar who wanted to kill him and ruin his money.
The prefect was hesitant, but Madam Huayin had courage that no one else had. She packed her bag and rushed to Jinyun Mountain overnight and never came back.
Her family didn't know whether she was alive or dead, and had long suspected she was dead.
Only the prefect still had some vague thoughts, thinking that maybe she was cultivating immortality.
It was not until Madam Huayin returned from Jinyun Mountain that the prefect's thoughts were confirmed.
What caused even more discord between him and Madam Huayin was that she was the one who took away his immortal fate.
Zhenren Xuanxu wanted Madam Huayin to come down the mountain because her worldly ties were not yet over, and he wanted her to live out her life before he allowed her to return to the mountain to practice.
Madam Huayin had contributed greatly to Zhang Taishou's current position. Given his temperament and talent, he was not capable of achieving the position of prefect. It was Madam Huayin who, through her Taoist magic, altered his fate, borrowing a bit of dragon energy from the Wujiang River God, allowing him to achieve this.
Although he relied a lot on his sister, Zhang Taishou did not like her in his heart. Instead, he became more jealous of her and believed that she had taken away his chance to become an immortal.
Gong Mengbi sighed: "There is actually such a thing."
The old housekeeper frowned, "They've been fighting fiercely since they were little, but the girl is a girl, so she always loses. She only won this one thing, but the relationship between the two siblings has faded."
"The young lady is a Taoist practitioner. She repeatedly advised the master to cultivate his moral character, but the master refused to listen. This angered the young lady so much that she went to the Water Palace to practice Taoism and never returned."
"This time the master and the water god are in collusion. I'm not sure if the young lady knows about this. If she does, I'm afraid she'll become even more disunited with him."
Gong Mengbi comforted her, "We are siblings, there should be some affection between us."
The old butler just shook his head.
Gong Mengbi sighed, "The governor is using the incense tax as an excuse to extort money from the people. If Madam Huayin knew, she would be furious."
The old housekeeper sighed, "I can't persuade him. The old lady can't control him either. Now he just eats vegetarian food and chants Buddhist scriptures, and doesn't ask about him anymore. I only take care of his housework now. I haven't been involved in his affairs outside for a long time, and I have no right to interfere."
Gong Mengbi said, "Just serve the old lady well."
The old housekeeper said, "Yes, I don't have many years left to live. When the old lady passes away, I will return to my hometown."
The old housekeeper looked at Gong Mengbi with a dull look on his face. Gradually, he understood what was going on and asked, "Shuiyue Immortal, why are you asking about this?"
Gong Mengbi smiled and said, "It's to accumulate merits and virtues for your governor and the water god of Wujiang River."
The old butler was confused, but Gong Mengbi had already disappeared from the room.
He stood there in a daze, and after a while he came to his senses, "Why did I come back? What do I want to get?"
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