Chapter 458

Replying to Your Highness, our sect cultivates both life and fate; first we cultivate mind and nature, then life. I, a poor Daoist, focus more on medicine and am not skilled in talismans to exorcise evil.

The Great King, from the time he hung out with him and Zhang Tonghe, had already guessed roughly; hearing this, he was not surprised.

But he felt great regret: 'This King is still quite interested in catching ghosts; if you know a Daoist skilled in this, you can introduce him to This King.'

Qingxu felt his social circle had no opportunities; meeting the Great King was also a precious chance, so he immediately brought up the matter of the couplet at the city gate.

Xie Yuan and company had never heard before that there was a couplet at the city gate; when they went out to welcome the Great King, they always rushed by in carriages and truly hadn't noticed.

'Purple aura comes from the east thirty thousand miles, auspicious clouds gather from the west nine thousand springs?' This King thinks changing it to nine thousand springs would be great—four thousand years more than five thousand springs! Nine is the greatest yang number, representing supreme ultimate yang; wouldn't that be even better?

Qingxu moved his mouth but held it back; he wanted to say, 'If you say it like that, using the character "nine" wouldn't that be overstepping?' After thinking, he realized that person was originally a rebel king, already a rebel king.

Seems there's nothing wrong with it?

But he has a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder; he always feels that altering the couplet and hanging it there will cause misleading guidance, and just thinking about it makes him feel uncomfortable all over.

He said: 'According to Your Highness, the central position of the five-in-one trigram symbolizes balance and authority, far more suitable than the ultimate number nine for hanging on the city gate.' His meaning was that nine is too full. What he didn't say was, really liking to hang it at the prince's mansion would mean few people could see it.

The Great King made a thoughtful expression: 'What do Sir and the Grand Tutor think?'

The two gentlemen who first learned of this unanimously stood with Qingxu; both believed that excess leads to overflow, and making such a high-profile display at the city gate was unnecessary—Chang'an even thought they wanted to challenge them!

Better not misunderstand; the Great King really wanted to challenge them directly, no need for all this.

The two learned scholars took turns citing classics to argue to the Great King that five thousand springs was better, occasionally bringing in Lu Tong. One was the Grand Tutor of the King, plus two former Chiefs of the Academy from the top academies of Great Jin; they took turns speaking, and the Great King felt as if he were still attending class in the dead of night, a hard fate.

He silently put down his apple juice; it was no longer fragrant, bitter and unpleasant!

When they were about to wear out their lips talking, the Great King made a regretful expression: 'Like this! Originally, because This King's lucky number is twenty-seven, I changed it to nine—three times nine is twenty-seven! You all think five is good, so let's change it back to five thousand springs.'

Qingxu: ……

No, he thought they'd still have to debate a while, but you just accepted it?! What is this lucky number thing anyway?!

Xie Tu, holding a pen in the back to take meeting minutes: ……

Does he need to record this kind of thing?

Everyone else also had a face like they'd been struck by lightning, a question mark, feeling powerless like punching cotton.

Only Lu Tong let out a sigh of relief, finding the familiar feeling—here it comes, here it comes, this is the normal performance of the unreasonable Bai Li Jing!

The Great King, seated at the head, looked extremely happy; recalling today's topic was discussing the Dao, he actively prompted the next step: 'Daoist Priest, what do you think the Dao is?'

Qingxu said the Dao is the source of all things and the law of their operation; its movement lies in reversal.

Xie Yuan esteemed Confucianism; he said the Dao is self-cultivation, family harmony, state governance, and world peace. From investigating things to extending knowledge, he spoke of governing the country and pacifying the world.

Lu Tong said, 'What Heaven mandates is nature; to follow one's nature is the Dao.'

Obviously the people below are not from the same family; this time they truly began discussing the Dao, with different positions and viewpoints, nobody could convince anyone else, and their voices grew louder and louder.

The king was like the grub in a melon field; Xie Tu felt that three big characters were written on the king's face: 'Fight!'

He was probably too happy and forgot to conceal it; Lu Tong first noticed the king's attitude of watching a show. 'We've said enough; why not let His Highness act as judge?' He actually wanted to see what astonishing words this child could still utter.

Man follows earth, earth follows heaven, heaven follows Dao, Dao follows nature? As a ruler, do you agree with this saying, Your Highness? This kind of thought is not good for the ruling class; if you understand it, you just smirk foolishly.

When the king saw the war flames reaching him, he hurriedly began to manage his expression.

"…whether it's Laozi, Confucius, Zhuangzi, or Sunzi, and also Buddhism, which we rarely see here, I, the king, feel they each have their own merits and valuable aspects. Daoism has wuwei; Confucianism also has the doctrine of the mean, right? I, the king, feel that a truly strong dynasty is one that embraces everything, encompasses everything." He had often listened to Bai Yang talk about the former Tang prosperity on this same land, where Chang'an's West Market simultaneously hosted several religions from home and abroad, with temples and Daoist observatories as well as churches. Their map once spanned 13 million square kilometers, from the Persian Gulf to the Ryukyu Islands, with 128 foreign monarchs bowing in submission. Every time the king heard Bai Ge boast, he listened with a serious expression and took notes. Today finally he had a chance, and at last it was his turn to boast!

Xie Yuan and the other big shots had already been subdued by the king's grand words!

So, don't ask me whether fish or meat tastes better; I eat both!

Everyone: ……

The Grand Tutor looked helpless; the reasoning is just that, the king actually speaks quite well, so why did he end up with such a crude conclusion?!

The king obviously didn't understand the Grand Tutor's conflicted feelings; after letting out his grand words, he kept glancing backward, waiting to see a faint white moving slowly, and then he felt relieved.

Lord Bai Ze slowly walked up to the viewing platform; Qing Xu was seeing a divine beast for the first time, and as a Daoist practitioner he found it hard to believe that this unicorn was an ordinary beast.

Lord Bai Ze also lived up to his expectations; as soon as he arrived he complained about everyone, including him.

There's a saying: empty talk ruins the country; you must not mislead Bai Li Jing. When will the common folk of your Great Jin and the northern borders be able to eat their fill? Only then should you discuss which doctrine suits this land best! The tone is full of contempt, but that doesn't matter.

Lu Tong, Qing Xu, and Zhang Tonghe, who had been pretending to be a quail, all began to feel dazed upon hearing the divine beast speak for the first time. Specific symptoms: slapping their ears, gulping water, pinching themselves.

No, it seems to be speaking human language?!

How can Xie Yuan be so calm?

How can the king still be patting someone's head?!

The king calmly looked at Qing Xu and said, 'Daoist, have you read the Auspicious Omens Record?'

Qing Xu shook his head, dazed. The king continued: 'Then you must have heard the famous name of the auspicious beast Bai Ze. The Auspicious Omens Record notes that Bai Ze once lectured the Yellow Emperor by the Eastern Sea. Coincidentally, when I was young I also picked one up by the Eastern Sea. This is the auspicious beast Bai Ze, capable of speech, understanding all things in heaven and earth, and communicating with spirits.'

Qing Xu had been knocked dizzy by the huge amount of information, yet the king still earnestly asked him: 'They say Bai Ze only appears in an era of peace and prosperity; this time it came early—what do you think, Daoist?'

Xie Yuan couldn't bear to watch.

The king's words were not a hint but an outright declaration. The two gentlemen then again lowered their heads to drink tea.

Qing Xu is not a fool; he is the next successor of their sect. A sect of considerable size would not choose a blockhead as its heir. He took a deep breath and said, 'Then… I, your humble Daoist, wish to congratulate Your Highness; a prosperous age is approaching.'

Lu Tong: …… This bushy-eyed, dead Daoist is even more uninhibited than he is!