Chapter 356: Not a shred of true affection, only a desire for money

After eating and drinking their fill, the wine had gone around three times.

This time Tang An didn't drink, because Nezha couldn't easily water down the wine Kong Xuan brought.

She still had to find the three rhinoceros monsters after eating, so naturally, she couldn't drink and ruin things.

"Let's go, let's go stroll through the Lantern Festival here."

The Lantern Festival is said to be the Valentine's Day of ancient times.

The men and women who came out today were all dressed up. There were couples making appointments under the lanterns, and there were also those who wanted to use this good opportunity to find a good partner.

The lantern shadows set off the faces of the people, groups of three or five friends, and children playing together on the road. It could be said to be the vivid embodiment of the five words "human fireworks."

"For you." Two voices appeared almost simultaneously.

Tang An turned around and saw two lanterns in front of her.

One was a lotus lantern, and one was a peacock lantern.

"Wow~ are you guys even this competitive when buying lanterns?"

Nezha coughed dryly. "I saw everyone buying lanterns, lotus lanterns, they look good."

Kong Xuan lifted Tang An's wrist and then delivered the lantern into her hand.

"Peacock spreading its tail, the most beautiful color in the world, it suits you."

Nezha saw this, glanced at Kong Xuan unhappily, and hurriedly stuffed the lantern into Tang An's hand too.

"What do you two mean?"

"Just forcing them on me?"

"Who doesn't know how to force things?"

Tang An sized them both up and handed the peacock lantern to Nezha.

"Hold this."

Nezha obviously wished he could burn the peacock, unwilling to take it.

"Hmm?"

Alright, forced by some kind of pressure, he still took it over.

Tang An then looked at Kong Xuan and handed the lotus lantern to him too.

Kong Xuan naturally didn't look down on the lotus lantern either, but he was also forced by some kind of pressure and had to take it into his hand.

"Come, look here."

"Snap!"

Tang An stared at the photo in her hand with satisfaction. "Who said dual male leads aren't good? If this photo were leaked in modern times, who knows how many blush-inducing fanfictions would be written about it."

"Master, Master, come quickly." Sun Wukong called her from the front.

"Coming, coming." Tang An put away her phone, not caring what happened to them afterward.

After Tang An left, Nezha and Kong Xuan looked at each other, their eyes red with jealousy, sparks flying.

As their divine powers intertwined, the lanterns in their hands exploded, causing quite a stir in the surroundings.

"Oh my!"

"I only played matchmaker a little, are their sparks developing that fiercely?" Tang An turned back and was startled.

Turning back again, she was startled again.

Just because Nezha and Kong Xuan's looks were simply too eye-catching.

The commotion caused by the exploding lanterns had already led them to be surrounded by numerous women, surrounded so tightly that not even water could pass through.

"Wow, being handsome really makes a difference, huh?"

"If I were in modern times, I would definitely open an entertainment company myself and send them both to debut on the spot."

"One cold-faced dark-pleasure brother, one proud and flowery peacock."

"Tsk tsk tsk, two pillars, how much revenue would they bring in."

Just thinking about it, she could almost see the scene of gold coins falling from the sky.

Sun Wukong was amused by Tang An's golden-glowing eyes. She really had not a shred of emotion in her eyes, yet they were full of an incomparable desire for money.

"Master, don't worry about them, let's go to the front and take a look."

Tang An also smelled a fragrance, similar to sesame oil, but much more fragrant than sesame oil.

She had just eaten her fill, but smelling it made her crave it again.

"Where is Yang Jian?"

"Drinking with the God of Wealth, they aren't that interested in the lantern festival."

"Where is Jiuyue?"

"Jiuyue?" Sun Wukong looked around. "She must be having fun, she ran off to watch some excitement, once she's tired of playing, she should come back on her own."

"Master, don't worry, there is no demon aura here, Jiuyue is in no danger."

Tang An nodded, but still notified Yang Jian through the jade pendant, telling him and Zhao Gongming to keep a close eye and ensure Jiuyue's safety, so nothing would go wrong.

Yang Jian's voice came. "Don't worry, Master, I will go look for Jiuyue's whereabouts now."

After arranging things, Tang An then went with Sun Wukong toward the place where the fragrance came from.

Just as she came over, she bumped into the abbot of Ciyun Temple.

The abbot was hospitable, so he introduced the specialties of this place to Tang An.

What were the specialties? Naturally, those three large oil vats.

"That oil fragrance, it's lit with Suhe fragrant oil. Specifically used to worship the Buddha King."

"Princess, please look at that Golden Lamp Bridge. When the Buddha King comes, the lights on the Golden Lamp Bridge will all go out."

"And it only takes that moment for the oil in the three vats to dry up."

Tang An listened to the abbot's introduction without interrupting him. After all, it was following the plot, so some key information still had to be gone over.

But those three rhinoceros monsters, were they too capable of drinking? Weren't they greasy?

"They drank your fragrant oil, can they guarantee you favorable weather every year? A bumper harvest?"

The abbot sighed, wanting to speak but not daring to.

"What are you afraid of? This palace is the Princess of Great Tang. If I ask you, you tell me. Offend the rhinoceros monsters, and this palace will protect you. Offend this palace, and the rhinoceros monsters can't protect you."

The abbot seemed to have long-standing grievances, so he followed the slope and spoke his heart.

"Princess, do you know that pure Suhe fragrant oil is worth two taels of silver per tael, and thirty-two taels of silver per catty. Three lamps, each vat has five hundred catties, three vats total one thousand five hundred catties, forty-eight thousand taels of silver."

"If the oil dries up, it means the Buddha has collected the lamps, blessing Jinping Prefecture with favorable weather and a bumper harvest."

"But if the oil doesn't dry up, there will be unfavorable weather, or disasters of drought and flood."

"Precisely because of this, this oil must be offered every year to seek the Buddha's mercy to protect our Jinping Prefecture with favorable weather."

Tang An listened to what the abbot said and silently calculated an account.

But she didn't seem to calculate it very clearly, so she simply asked, "Then how much silver does every household that offers Suhe fragrant oil have to take out every year?"

The abbot sighed. "More than two hundred taels."

"More than two hundred taels?" Tang An was indeed not short of money, but that didn't mean she had no concept of money.

An ordinary family has to take out two hundred taels a year. Even if there is favorable weather and a bumper harvest, I'm afraid the family can't afford this expense, right?

"Quite greedy."

Before Tang An finished speaking, she felt a strong wind blowing in front of her.

The lights on the Golden Lamp Bridge went out. And above the pavilion where the Suhe fragrant oil was offered, golden mist appeared.

"They're here."

Tang An watched the common people hiding back, but she took the initiative to walk forward.

"Princess, Princess, don't go over, come back quickly."

"It's fine, this palace is looking for them."

At the same time, Sun Wukong, Yang Jian, Nezha, Kong Xuan, and Zhao Gongming all felt this demon wind.

Zhao Gongming snorted coldly and put down the wine flask.

"Daring to make a move against her? The monsters are really tired of living."

He stood up and was about to chase after them, but was stopped by Yang Jian.

"Uncle-Master, this is the Eighty-One Tribulations, you don't need to make a move."

Zhao Gongming threw Yang Jian's arm away. "Forget about the Eighty-One Tribulations, daring to touch my Zhao Gongming's little sister, that's just not happening!" ===== CHAPTER 357 =====