Chapter 133 132. Heaven Official’s Blessing + Looking for a Wife (Two in One, to make up for yesterday’s)
The Emperor of Heaven, dressed in brocade and with a powdered face, is three meters tall, handsome, and walks with his head held high and his dignity imposing. Every step he takes shows the grace of the emperor.
After them followed the stern-faced Nuqing Zhenren in green clothes and colorful ribbons, the Mingluo Zhenjun wearing a jade crown and a jade balance, the barefoot immortal with kind eyes and barefoot strides, the solemn-faced immortal official in charge of disasters with green pens and jade books, and the immortal official of the Qionglin Treasure House in a dazzling array of gold and jade clothes.
There are also immortal officials in charge of blessings and fortune, immortal officials in charge, immortal officials in charge of treasury, immortal officials in charge of affairs, city gods and land gods, immortal officials in charge of transmitting reports, immortal officials on duty, and so on.
Majestic lions, tigers, unicorns and other auspicious beasts followed closely on both sides of the Emperor of Heaven, sometimes rolling and flying, sometimes with eyes wide open, and sometimes circling the emperor affectionately.
All the powerful celestial beings from the Three Palaces and Nine Palaces will follow you.
In addition, there are many smiling ladies and gentlemen in colorful clothes, and mountain ghosts with green faces and fangs, who are sometimes far away and sometimes near. These are strange monsters that are rarely seen by the people on earth who worship the Emperor and live in the mountains on weekdays.
"Xuandu Yuanyang, in Ziwei Palace.
The department has thirty-six divisions and a total of ninety million people.
Examine within the greater thousand worlds and record the lands in the ten directions.
Blessings are bestowed upon all spirits, and he is the master of the good and evil records of all living beings.
His grace is bestowed upon the three realms, causing the rise and fall of all the immortals.
..."
This is the immortal official who is in charge of the Great Emperor's mission, loudly warning all parties with the Great Emperor's edict, so that the disasters will retreat and the Great Emperor's believers can come to him after hearing his name and receive his blessings.
The people who retreated to both sides like a tide followed the emperor's gaze, some recited skillfully, some clasped their hands together in worship, some looked up with longing, and some talked eagerly.
Some people even climbed up trees and on the roofs of street restaurants. Some wealthy families had booked the upper floors of restaurants early and were leisurely sipping tea and eating cakes to watch.
Lei Li and Zhou Yi had witnessed such a grand spectacle once last year, and they were still excited to see it again this year, although Lei Li still didn't quite understand the emperor's edict.
"This means that the Great Emperor and his men investigated all living beings, recorded them in the system, bestowed blessings and graces, and eliminated disasters, thus gaining a great deal of trust."
"Why is it so difficult to say?"
Lei Li really didn't understand. The noise of the drums and gongs was too loud. He leaned close to Zhou Yi's ear and asked,
"I don't even understand what he's saying. How do we know the Heavenly Emperor is coming? Could it be that he's not speaking to us, but only to the ghosts?"
"It's impossible that ghosts are more cultured than living people."
“Maybe it’s more noble.”
Zhou Yi thought for a moment and said, "Ghosts are transformed from dead people. Spirits are slow to learn and haven't learned much, so they probably don't understand. However, this is a ritual. Even if people don't understand it, it still feels very powerful."
“It’s really impressive.”
Lei Li nodded in agreement. "I can't remember something so difficult to pronounce... What do you mean by 'tall and grand'? Tall and big, making people look up?"
"no."
Zhou Yi shook his head. "It means high-end, classy, and classy. It's quite profound, grand, and not cheap. It makes people feel very impressive and want to praise it at first glance."
"oh……"
Lei Li probably understood and was about to say something when he was interrupted by the baby.
“Ahhh!”
It was the first time for the baby in Zhou Yi's arms to see the Heavenly Official coming to bless him. His black eyes were unblinking at first, but he was soon attracted by the dancing lions and tigers. He babbled and waved his little hands, wanting to touch and crawl around.
“Ahhh!”
Big dog!
"Oh!"
want to!
Xiaohua was completely stunned by the scene, staring blankly at the immortal officials with longing. If Liu Ye'er hadn't seen it and pulled her aside, she would have been nearly knocked down by a man in green clothes.
"The Emperor is so majestic!"
Sister Huaer was very happy. She was held on her father's neck and looked over many people, waving her hands and giggling.
Little Liumu was also on Grandpa's neck, grinning as he was being led by his sister.
Zhang Daqiang was very strong and lifted Xiaobao up. Seeing that Xiaobao was scared, he put him back on his shoulders and smiled at his husband A Miao.
"Xiaobao is quite timid, haha!"
Miao Fulang glared at him, but held his clothes tightly in his hands, afraid that they would be swept away by the crowd.
Other children were also carried up by their families. They didn't quite understand the Emperor yet and looked at him and the immortal officials behind him with curiosity.
"Daddy, that beautiful sister is so tall and fierce..."
"That's Nv Qing Zhenren, but she's the immortal official who governs the ghost laws of Xuandu Central Palace, the imperial edicts of heavenly laws, and suppresses evil spirits. You can't call an immortal official evil..."
"Grandpa, which one is the Qilin?"
"The emperor will come next year. My brother and I want to follow him. Can you comb our hair, mother?"
"Then you have to do a lot of good things. The emperor likes people who do a lot of good things..."
"What if I become a priest?"
"Being a priest requires even more effort. It's not an easy job..."
Among the immortals who followed the Heavenly Emperor, the immortals who understood music played music, and in the tall buildings on both sides of the long street in the human world, there were also long and lingering songs and music.
The soft and quiet sheng, the loud and deep drum, the crisp and bright flute, the long and sentimental xiao...
Many musical instruments accompany it.
The drums and gongs were deafening.
The atmosphere was filled with music and singing.
The clashing of hundreds of musical instruments and the people's joy could not drown out the loud voice of the immortal official who was in charge of the procession:
"Abolish unexpected disasters and resolve past misfortunes.
Escape from the cycle of life and death, and save yourself from suffering.
All living things are dependent on you, and all living things will be healthy if they move.
Great compassion, great vows, great saint, great mercy.
The nine qi of Shangyuan bless the heavenly officials.
..."
Amidst this loud sound, people surged in the tide, following the emperor's troops slowly forward, with only the sounds of stringed instruments, drums and gongs lingering in their ears.
Lei Li, Zhou Yi and others did not follow the emperor forward, but waited until the crowd dispersed a little and continued to visit the Shangyuan Festival. There were many people around them who did not follow them like them.
"Daddy."
When Sister Huaer saw the excitement was over, she suddenly remembered to ask, "The Emperor of Heaven is so tall, is he a real god? And what about Nv Qing, Ming Luo Zhenjun, and Da Jiao Daxian behind him?"
"Of course not."
Liu Guo said with some amusement, "If it really was the Heavenly Official Emperor, there would be no need for the Immortal Official You to support us from below. However, the spirit of the Heavenly Official Emperor will descend here and bring the immortal officials to look after us common people."
Except for the female believers following behind the Emperor of Heaven and the immortal officials, and the mountain-walking ghosts wearing various hideous masks, none of them are played by real people.
"Also, that's not Bigfoot."
Liu Guo smiled and corrected Sister Huaer, "That's the Barefoot Immortal, a very powerful immortal official. Don't call the Immortal by the wrong name next time. The Immortal loves to come down and play. If the Immortal hears you call him by the wrong name, he'll laugh at you."
"ah!"
Sister Huaer covered her mouth, and the dog glanced furtively at the immortal officials who were going away, and breathed a sigh of relief thinking that the immortal would not know.
Then he wondered, "But the barefoot immortal's feet are really big, so why isn't he called the bigfoot immortal?"
"Because the Barefoot Immortal never wears shoes."
Lei Li continued what Sister Huaer said and teased her, "The immortal's feet are so big because he never wears shoes. If Sister Huaer never wears shoes, you might also develop big feet like the immortal."
Xiaobao also became curious, "Can Bigfoot run very fast?"
"Will it?"
Lei Li didn't know either. He looked at Zhou Yi. Zhou Yi had read so many books, so he must know more than him.
Zhou Yi thought about the legend about the barefoot immortal. It didn't seem to mention how fast he ran, so he said, "The immortal doesn't need to run. He has magical powers that allow him to ride on clouds and mist. In a short while, he flew a long way."
"How far is it?"
Xiao Liumu asked.
Zhou Yi recalled that the Monkey King Sun Wukong could travel 108,000 miles with one somersault cloud, so he smiled and said, "Maybe it's also 108,000 miles away."
Unfortunately, there was no Monkey King in the Dayou Dynasty, so everyone didn't know this interesting point. They just thought that the barefoot immortal was very powerful. It was only a dozen miles from Sanlihe Village to the county town, but the immortal felt like he had traveled a long distance in an instant.
"What are these wandering priests they were talking about?"
Xiaohua also asked questions.
She grew up in a town and later went to work and study in the chili garden in Sanlihe Village. Unlike the children in the county town who were used to seeing the parade of gods, she didn't know what the parade official was.
"The Wandering God Official is the one who manipulates the actions of the Great Emperor and the Immortal Officials."
Lei Li, having learned all this in advance, replied, "The 'bodies' of the Great Emperor and the Immortal Officials are made of the finest hardwood and silk brocade, dotted with cinnabar, and crafted by the best craftsmen. All the wealthy families in the county and the county government jointly funded it."
The people of the Dayou Dynasty believed that the Heavenly Emperor would descend into this cloth body, look after his believers, bestow blessings, and wipe away unnecessary disasters and sins.
This is the people's yearning and wish for a better life.
"Some scholars even call them 'divine bodies,' saying they are the bodies of gods who have descended. Our Sichuan restaurant also pays for these 'divine bodies.'"
"Do we also contribute money?"
When Sister Huaer heard Lei Li nod and say yes, she suddenly became excited and proud, "My cousin is so amazing! My cousin's wife is also amazing! Our family made clothes and shoes for the immortal official!"
"When we get back to the village, I'm going to tell Alan and Zhuge'er!"
Everyone laughed.
My uncle remembered a funny story and said with a smile, "Aren't these divine beings very large? The Great Emperor is three meters tall, and the shorter immortal officials are over two meters tall. It takes several people to control their movements."
"They think, since Nvqing Zhenren and Mingluo Zhenjun work for the Great Emperor, they are immortal officials. So, are they also working for the Great Emperor when they travel with the gods? Even if they can't be considered immortal officials, they are still officials, right?"
"Of course it counts."
Liu Ye'er had heard this story several times from her brother, so she smiled and said, "So everyone thought about it and gave them the elegant name of You Shenguan."
"So the Heavenly Emperor brought the immortal officials with him to parade through the streets, which was called the Heavenly Official's Blessing or the God Parade. The Lantern Festival God Parade was also called the God Parade or the God Temple Parade."
"Because there are many lanterns and fireworks, it is also called the Spring Lantern Festival and Lantern Street."
"It doesn't matter whether it's unmarried boys and girls who can't go out often, or children and adults, everyone can dress up beautifully and have a great time on this day."
Grandma laughed as she listened, and jokingly said, "Many boys and girls find their true love on this day. Xiaohua, take a look around more often, you might find a guy you like."
"I'm in no hurry to get married."
Xiaohua's face was a little red, but because she was familiar with everyone, she spoke more boldly and intimately than before.
"Grandma, stop teasing me. I want to be like Brother Li and find a good-looking man to marry into my family! I don't want to get married and be tortured by others to have children!"
"It's not early yet."
Lei Li patted Xiaohua's head gently, not disturbing her hair or silver jewelry. "If you meet a good man who suits your eyes, I'll pay you to marry him. You can have a baby in two or three years."
"Let your husband take care of you at home, and our Xiaohua will go out to earn money to support your husband's baby. When you come home, there will be a cute little baby for you to hold, and hot meals to eat. How wonderful."
Xiaohua originally didn't want to get married so early. Brother Li got married at the age of 20, so if she waited two or three years longer, she would only be 18 or 19 years old.
But when she heard what Li Age said, she thought about it again and felt that it was very beautiful. No wonder her Age liked to make money. She immediately agreed with a smile on her face.
"Thank you, brother!"
"What are you thanking me for? We are all family."
Lei Li patted the quirky Huaer sister again and said with a smile, "If Huaer sister also likes that stinky boy, cousin uncle will go and propose marriage and settle him down early, so that the seedlings of a good husband will not be poached by others."
"My cousin is so nice!"
Sister Huaer jumped up with joy, threw herself on Lei Li's legs, made him bend over, kissed him hard on the face, and grinned happily.
Still not forgetting his younger brother, he asked, "What about our Xiaomu? Did Xiaomu also find a wife early?"
"That won't do. That won't do."
Liu Qishu repeatedly tried to stop his outspoken daughter, feeling both amused and helpless. "Xiaomu is only a few years old, yet she dares to marry someone else's boy or girl. Isn't she afraid of being beaten out by their father with a broom?"
"You are just a brat. You are so young and you are already thinking about finding a husband. You don't act like a girl at all. Look at Xiaobao, she is not as noisy as you."
Just now, Xiaobao was held up on Zhang Daqiang's shoulders to watch the parade. He was still there and hadn't come down. When he was suddenly called upon, he felt a little confused and shy.
Xiaobao blushed, but his eyes sparkled as he whispered, "I, I don't want to leave Daddy and get married. Xiaobao wants to stay with Daddy for a long, long time."
Miao Fulang felt warm in his heart and took Xiaobao from Zhang Daqiang's shoulder. Xiaobao then snuggled up to his father's neck obediently.
Seeing that no one asked him, the baby seemed to be anxious and started to babble. Lei Li raised his eyebrows slightly and teased his child.
"You little brat, you want to find a wife too?"
“Ahhh!”
The little baby smiled and danced, as if he agreed with his father's words. Everyone was amused and smiled kindly.
We chatted and walked around until we were a little tired, so we found a teahouse to have some tea and snacks.
Today is the Lantern Festival, which is also the birthday of the Emperor of Heaven. Many things related to the Emperor are hung in the teahouse.
There are hanging paintings of blessings from the Heavenly Official, long scrolls of immortal officials displaying their magical powers, and revolving lanterns with drawings by the Emperor. Guests who come for tea and cakes today will also receive a small colorful silk ribbon.
Although it was not as exquisite and beautiful as the ones made by Grandma, Liu Ye'er and Liu Guo, it was still thoughtful. Everyone who got the Lei Li net was much happier.
There are a wide variety of snacks served with tea, including traditional Beijing Eight Pieces, Zhongchuan Cakes, etc., as well as various dried fruits, cakes, candied fruits, and dried meats from all over the country.
As the saying goes, "sweet goes with green, light goes with white, and melon seeds go with oolong."
The more classic and appropriate tea snack combinations are sweet tea snacks with green tea, sour and sweet tea snacks with black tea, salty and fragrant tea snacks with oolong tea, and oily tea snacks with black tea.
Lei Li's drinking of tea was like a cow chewing on a peony, and he couldn't understand what it meant. However, he loved desserts, so he listened to the waiter and ordered a bowl of Longjing tea with pea yellow and osmanthus cake.
Zhou Yi likes black tea, which warms the stomach, so he ordered Zhengshan Xiaozhong with winter melon pastry, and also asked for a bowl of warm goat's milk for his baby to taste.
The baby is only four months old now and cannot eat too much complementary food. He can only be given some goat milk to drink. I will take him to the wet nurse when I get home.
The rest of the people also ordered their favorites, including green tea, black tea, yellow tea, and oolong tea. They were thinking that when the snacks came, you would try mine and I would try yours to see what the different teas tasted like.
"If you ask me to try, I definitely can't sing out one, two, three, four, five."
Liu Qishu jokingly said to himself, "I usually drink a bowl of coarse tea for a couple of coins, and never have any snacks with it. Without the waiter's advice, I would just randomly order and end up making a fool of myself."
"There's no fixed formula for what kind of tea goes with what kind of snack."
Lei Li didn't take it seriously and smiled carefreely, "We have money. It's not like we don't pay for tea and snacks. Shouldn't we just eat what we like?"
"It's just white tea with plums and melon seeds. If you sit here and chat all night, you can pay enough money, and the shopkeeper will even praise us for our good eating skills."
"That's right."
Liu Qishu laughed heartily.
It's quite lively today, and the shops outside the street are all bustling. Otherwise, Liu Qishu, who is used to laughing loudly here, would be disliked by other customers.
Drink tea, listen to music and enjoy stringed instruments.
This is what the rich kids and self-proclaimed elegant scholars in the county like to do most.
Especially when you see a beautiful girl and her husband playing the pipa and singing a sad tune, and then writing a stylish and elegant poem for the beautiful woman, for people to read and pass on.
Many students have had this fantasy: it would be great if they could develop a passionate love affair, pass the imperial examination and achieve an enviable degree, and marry a beautiful woman.
"It's just a daydream for a mediocre-looking nerd who's read too many novels and stories."
Lei Li glanced at the scholars sitting in the corner of the teahouse and curled his lips, obviously not optimistic about them.
Those scholars were dressed in ordinary, even old clothes, with dignified faces, as if they were modest gentlemen. You asked me to compose poems for the lively Lantern Festival today, and then praise and comment on each other, and the atmosphere was very harmonious.
"If you really want to pass the imperial examinations, you should stay home and study hard."
Lei Li scoffed, "Even if he's neglecting his sleep and food, he wouldn't be so poor as to come to a teahouse to drink tea and listen to music. These teas cost at least one or two taels of silver per pot, which is enough for an average family to spend for several months."
"Most of these self-righteous nerds don't work to earn money. They rely entirely on their parents, wives and children at home for support. They only eat and don't make any money. They're no more useful than raising a pig."
My grandfather and his family were originally a little nervous and uneasy because they were just farmers from the country, could not read or write, and had no idea about poetry and elegance, yet they entered a teahouse that was only open to scholars and noble people.
After hearing what Lei Li said and thinking about it again, they earned all their money by themselves, and brought their families here to eat and drink, so how could they not be better than those who eat for free and take things from their families?
The big guy straightened his back immediately.
The children didn't quite understand the change in the adults, but seeing that they became more confident and proud, they also learned to hold their heads high.
Especially Sister Huaer, who looked so proud of winning the fight that she amused the adults. However, Sister Huaer was confused by their laughter and started laughing too without knowing what was going on.
After a while, the waiter brought up the tea and snacks that Lei Li and his friends had ordered. After receiving Lei Li's tip, he smiled and said,
"We have a new tea maker here. Our boss invited him from Zhongchuan. He's incredibly skilled at making tea. He can even paint landscapes, flowers, birds, fish, and insects. Would you like to see this tea show?"
"This is very popular in Nakagawa Kyoto Prefecture. You can tell at a glance that you are a wealthy and high-ranking official. It's a rare occasion that you have some free time during the Lantern Festival, so you should take a look at it with your family and have some fun."
Lei Li also became interested after hearing this.
This was the first time he had heard of this Cha Cha Bai Xi. It was a popular fun in both Nakagawa Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture, so there was no reason for him not to take a look.
He has money anyway.
——Lei Li hadn’t realized that during the time Youxi was being raised and cared for lavishly by Zhou Yi, he had been led astray and started squandering money as well.
"That works."
Lei Li pulled out an embroidered purse from his waist and threw it on the table with a bold gesture. He said with great interest, "Let's ask these tea craftsmen to demonstrate this tea show for us and see if it's as good as I told you."
"Okay! I'll go and invite you right away!"
The waiter went downstairs quickly, and soon came back with a young girl with a slender figure and beautiful face.
The girl had her hair combed into a bun and was wearing a light green dress. She bowed to the Lei Li people and sat down in the middle of the teahouse with ease.
That was originally the place where the musicians played, but now there were utensils needed for making tea, including tea stove, tea mortar, tea grinder, tea sieve, tea bottle, tea cup, tea whisk, tea basket, tea spoon, water pot, etc.
The tea-making craftsman remained calm and demonstrated his tea-making skills without any rush.
For roasted tea, broken tea, Luo tea, and 熁杯, when pouring tea into a 熁杯, you cannot pour the tea too high. You need to pour the tea slowly along the wall of the cup and then pour out the tea in the cup.
Then measure the tea, scoop an appropriate amount of tea leaves into the cup, then stir gently seven times and slowly pour in the tea soup. Only when you see the milky mist rising from the cup will you stop.
"What pattern would you like to draw, sir?"
“Paint a fish, and you will have plenty every year.”
Lei Li spoke up.
The tea maker followed his instructions and gently drew a carp with a curved door under it, which looked like a carp leaping over the dragon gate. It was extremely exquisite.
Lei Li thought that this whole process was very smooth and beautiful, but he was more concerned about whether the tea made in this way would taste better.
Zhou Yi had seen coffee latte art in modern times, and also knew how to make tea and perform tea arts, so although he was impressed, he still took it in stride.
The Lei and Liu families and everyone else in the teahouse were stunned by this move. They had never imagined that such clear tea would eventually turn into a beautiful picture.
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