Chapter 262
is finished. There are risks involved in worshipping gods; he has become her.
Chapter 262 is finished. There's a risk in worshipping gods; he's become her…
"You, you, just be a clerk, why bring up the Imperial Horse Administration? It's all unnecessary."
Just then, another child's voice rang out, but it was much calmer and more composed.
"Fellow Daoist, how have you been? What brings you to offer sacrifices to my brother and me this time?"
Seeing that the two immortals of harmony and union had recognized his identity at a glance, Lu Chen was amazed. He cupped his hands and said, "Greetings, two immortals. Given the amount of incense you two have offered, you shouldn't have noticed anything amiss with just a wisp of incense. How could you recognize this humble immortal at a glance?"
"What's so strange about that?" the composed celestial boy replied, "Since you have already entered the Heavenly Court's celestial register, the incense you offer is different from that of mortals. Mortals offer nothing more than ordinary incense, but the incense you offer contains a subtle, ethereal quality, a sign of attaining a higher rank. Although it is merely a nominal position in the Heavenly Palace, it is still different from that of mortals. We noticed the difference in the incense, so we descended to the mortal realm to investigate, and that's how we discovered it was you."
"I see, thank you for your guidance, Immortal."
Lu Chen suddenly realized, and then stopped beating around the bush and went straight to the point: "I have invited you two here today because I have a favor to ask of you."
"Oh? Didn't you just cause trouble at Nantianmen?"
"Indeed. To be able to escape from the Seven Treasures Pagoda of the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King with a mortal body, what could you possibly need our help with? Tell us."
The two immortals of harmony sang in unison.
Lu Chen said solemnly, "To be honest, I have a good friend who is currently caught in a love triangle. I want to resolve this calamity, so I have come to ask for your help."
A love tribulation?
Upon hearing this, the two immortals paused.
"This……"
"Immortal, is there a problem?"
“It’s more than just difficult,” the composed celestial boy sighed. “Do you know who is in charge of marriages in the Heavenly Court?”
"If I remember correctly, this should be the engagement hall under the Queen Mother of the West?"
"You do have some knowledge. The Queen Mother is indeed the head of the Engagement Hall, but the one who actually runs it is the Moon Goddess, and the Old Man of the Moon is the Moon Goddess's deputy. As for my brother and me, we are just His Highness's ministers, waiting for his orders."
“That’s right.” Another lively boy chimed in, “Although the Goddess of the Moon is in charge, the trivial matters of marriage are actually managed by the Old Man of the Moon. You want the two of us to break the love tribulation set up by our superior… According to human terms, this is tantamount to insubordination. How can we allow that?”
Seeing the two immortals refuse, Lu Chen quickly thought of a solution and said with a smile, "Since you two are immortals, I will not stand on ceremony. You two are in charge of marriage and family matters in the human world. Over the years, you must have supernatural powers to solve this problem. Rest assured, I will never let you do your work for nothing. If you need anything, I will do my best."
"Giggle-"
The two immortals laughed at the same time.
“Lu Dianbu, don’t misunderstand. My brother and I are not after any benefits. We just saw that you made a scene at Nantianmen and showed extraordinary courage. You are quite a character. If we are destined to befriend you, we would be happy to do so.”
"That's right. I really have no choice but to refuse because I am willing but unable to do so."
Seeing the two speak so frankly, Lu Chen frowned and said, "It was my rudeness, please forgive me."
"It's alright. Although we can't help today, if the opportunity arises in the future, please feel free to come and find us again. We will do our best to help."
"it is good!"
Lu Chen nodded and said, "Since you two are so straightforward and eager to make friends, I would like to offer my humble opinion: how about we take this opportunity to establish a good relationship today?"
Having said that, he flicked his sleeve, and a pot of fine wine and three jade cups appeared on the table.
The wine glasses filled themselves, releasing a delicate fragrance.
"Fellow Daoist, do you wish to become sworn brothers with my brother?"
"Would you two do me the honor of joining me?"
Lu Chen raised his glass with a smile.
The two immortals laughed, their voices clear and melodious like silver bells: "Very well, in that case, we won't refuse. Cheers!"
"Dry!"
Lu Chen tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp, and the other two cups of wine on the table were also emptied in an instant.
"My two elder brothers, please accept my bow!"
Lu Chen bowed deeply.
"Brother, no need for formalities. Now that we've become sworn brothers, we're family."
Lu Chen stood up and asked, "May I ask how you two brothers are addressed?"
"My old name from the mortal world is no longer worth mentioning. Now that I have ascended to the ranks of immortals, I should sever all worldly ties. If you wish to address me, my dear brother, simply call me 'He'an'."
“I’m a little younger than my elder brother, so just call me ‘He Ning’,” the boy with the more lively voice replied.
"Brother He'an, Brother He'ning."
"Brother Lu."
The three immortals greeted each other.
“Brother, now that we are brothers, I will speak frankly.” The composed He’an said, “There are only a few people in the Heavenly Court who are in charge of marriage. If you want to break the love tribulation set by the Old Man of the Moon, there is only one method that is the most reliable.”
The lively He Ning chimed in, "Go ask the Goddess of the Moon. The other immortals, including the God of Happiness, are all under the jurisdiction of the Betrothal Palace, so seeking them will be of no use."
“He Ning is right. You currently have no chance to see the Queen Mother of the West. After much thought, only the Goddess Taiyin can solve your problem. However…”
"Just what?" Lu Chen's heart tightened.
"The Goddess Taiyin is a deity worshipped exclusively by women. As a man, you probably cannot persuade her."
"That's true."
Lu Chen frowned: "Does that mean men cannot worship the Goddess Taiyin?"
"It's not entirely impossible, but... it's quite risky. I wonder if you, my worthy brother, would be willing to give it a try?"
"Brother He'an, please speak freely."
"Alright. The Moon Goddess is the mistress of the Moon Palace. If you wish to see her, it is absolutely impossible during the day. If you don't believe me, go to the Goddess's palace and you'll see that everyone coming and going is a woman. Only at night when the moon is bright might you have a chance."
Lu Chen was taken aback: "This... doesn't seem that difficult?" "Brother, let me finish what I have to say." He An's tone turned serious: "You are, after all, a man, and by right, you should not pay homage. The Goddess Taiyin is aloof and cold, and even in the Heavenly Court, few immortals dare to disturb her lightly. If the Goddess is displeased and punishes you... she might temporarily transform you into a woman."
"What?!" Lu Chen nearly jumped up, his voice rising several decibels: "You can change your sex by praying to a god?!"
"That's right. It could take a month or more, or even a lifetime, depending entirely on Your Majesty's mood."
"What you say is absolutely right, elder brother. Therefore, my dear brother, you must think this through carefully. The method is here, but so are the risks. Whether it succeeds or not, no one can predict."
Lu Chen pondered, "Since my two elder brothers can recognize me by the incense offerings, surely the Empress can too? Would she...?"
“Brother, you are overthinking it,” He’an said decisively. “Although you have a celestial status, you are ultimately just a clerk and a mortal. Even if the Empress discovers your origins, given her high status, she probably won’t care.”
understood.
My rank is too low to catch the Empress's eye.
"Then... do you two brothers know of any clever tricks?"
Lu Chen recalled that when he made offerings to the Kitchen God before, he not only built a stove, but also smeared the mouth of the Kitchen God's statue with honey, which finally moved the Kitchen God.
He immediately recounted the case.
The two immortals of harmony pondered for a moment.
"Well... I've heard that Your Majesty loves watching plays. But I'm afraid this method won't work."
Over the years, countless mortals have resorted to various tricks to seek blessings from the goddess, which she has long been accustomed to and mostly ignores.
In short, I haven't heard of the Empress descending to the mortal realm to manifest herself for any man in a long time. Even when it comes to women, she only bestows minor blessings and has never revealed her true face.
“That’s right! But you can still give it a try, my dear brother. There might be a chance for things to turn around. Just remember to keep things in check and don’t risk offending the Empress. The consequences would be unbearable. But then again, if you can get the Empress’s attention, you’ve already won half the battle. If she agrees, the Old Man of the Moon’s love tribulations will be nothing more than a trivial matter to him.”
Lu Chen bowed deeply: "Thank you both for your guidance!"
"You're too kind, my brother. We'll take our leave now."
After seeing off the two immortals of harmony, Lu Chen put away his cup and thought to himself.
"You love watching plays... Do you want me to sing 'The Fairy Couple'? But if I can think of that, others must have thought of it too. Your Majesty must be tired of it by now."
He rubbed his temples: "It seems I'll have to ask Sister Sun to come over again; perhaps she can break the ice."
Thinking of this, Lu Chen immediately dialed Sun Yourong's number.
"Sister Sun, come to the Wu Clan Temple in the south of the city. I'll be waiting for you."
From the other end of the phone, only one word came through, clear and crisp: "Okay!"
…………
North of the city, the Zhao family.
Zhao Wanliang was still wrapped up like a rice dumpling, lying on the bed.
Zhao Wuyai stood with his hands behind his back by the window, and the room was silent.
After a long silence, Zhao Wuyai sighed, "So, you've already asked the Old Man of the Moon to tie the red thread between you and Sun Yourong?"
“Exactly.” Zhao Wanliang couldn’t help but smile. “All these years of hard work have finally paid off. What’s wrong, Grandpa? Are you unhappy?”
Zhao Wuyai sneered: "Has your brain been damaged? At this critical moment, you can still laugh?"
"Don't worry. Even without that kid Lu Chen, the position of City God is still yours! Looking across the entire Jiang Province, tell me, which prefectural City God is your match?"
Zhao Wuyai closed his eyes and sighed, "Alright, just behave yourself for now. We'll talk about everything after the position of the prefecture is settled."
Having said that, his figure gradually faded and disappeared into the room.
"Old man!"
Zhao Wanliang sneered, "I'll kill you sooner or later!!!"
…………
East of the city, the Wu Clan Temple.
Lu Chen arrived instantly using the City God's decree.
"Lu, the head of the Lu family?!"
The temple's manager was entertaining a distinguished guest when he saw the newcomer. Startled, he immediately dropped the guest and staggered over.
"What brings you here?" he asked, his face beaming with a smile.
Lu Chen stood with his hands behind his back: "Where is Wu Jingzhi?"
"Uh... my patriarch is still recuperating in the hospital and has not yet been discharged."
"What about Old Master Wu?"
"The head of the family should be at home."
"Dial his number for me."
"This..." The person in charge's heart skipped a beat, and he forced a smile, "I wonder what business the Lu family head has with the old family head?"
Lu Chen raised an eyebrow and cursed, "You dare ask me what I'm doing here? I've come in person, of course I'm here to collect a debt! Stop talking nonsense, just make the call!"
"Yes, yes, yes! I'll make the call right away, I'll make the call right away!"
The person in charge was sweating profusely and inwardly groaned.
My lord, you've really outsmarted yourself this time. Of all people to mess with, you had to provoke this plague god.
Well, now you're getting your comeuppance!
Chapter Two will be later.
(End of this chapter)