I became an immortal in the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 24 The County Magistrate Visits
After Zhang Zhenmei finally finished packing the boxes, she laboriously lifted them one by one onto the donkey cart. By the time she arrived at the Lu family's house, an hour had passed.

When Madam Lu saw the cartloads of her lost and recovered family wealth, her hands trembled, and she was quickly supported by the steward beside her.

She walked shakily to Jiang She, her lips trembling slightly. She seemed about to bow in respect.

"Thank you, sir!"

Jiang She avoided it; he wouldn't accept such courtesy from an old man.

The old lady paid her respects to the mountain god again, tears streaming down her wrinkled face.

The Lu family has a small Buddhist shrine containing the Three Pure Ones of Taoism and the Buddha of Buddhism, along with several other statues. Inside is an inconspicuous little deer god, whom I vaguely remember being a deity from the nearby Deer Gate Mountain.

The statue wasn't large, and it was burned crookedly. The servants had never heard of any deer god and wanted to throw it away. But the old lady felt it wouldn't be right to throw away such a mystical object, so she kept it and cleaned it once every ten days.

Who would have thought that it was this Deer Mountain God who saved the Lu family?

The old mountain god neither spoke nor avoided the spot, but stood with Mr. Jiang.

The one who made the promise with him back then is now just a skeleton in a tomb. The second generation he watched grow up, and the third generation of his children and grandchildren he personally witnessed being born, have also long since been buried.

Now, Madam Lu, the eldest daughter of the Lu family.

It has nothing to do with him anymore.

The old deer mountain god looked at them with the same gaze he gave to other mortals.

Several servants carried the heavy boxes off the donkey cart together. The fat steward, while holding the account book and listing the money, was also busy calculating with an abacus, his face beaming with joy.

Jiang She said, "If the property is returned to your family, the old lady's worries will be put to rest."

Seeing that the old lady was old and frail, he thought for a moment and then offered a word of advice: "Money can be swindled away once, and it can be swindled away a second time. It would be better for the old lady to make some plans."

"I understand, I understand..."

"There is one more thing I must tell you on behalf of the Dowager."

"What is it? Please tell me, sir."

Jiang She met the other man's gaze and sighed. After a pause, he asked, "I've heard that your household worshipped a deer god. Is that true?"

The Old Deer Mountain God raised his head.

"But is something wrong?" Madam Lu's heart tightened.

"It's not inappropriate."

Jiang She said, "This deer statue has some history. Back then, the ancestors of the Lu family formed a bond with the mountain god and made an agreement to have him take care of the Lu family's descendants."

The old lady listened carefully and learned that the Lu family had this ancestral connection, and that the Deer Mountain God had helped them in this crisis. She wanted to worship the Deer God again.

A force gently stopped them, preventing them from bending over.

“That was eight hundred years ago,” Jiang She said gently, speaking very softly.

"You mean..."

"Please return it."

The old lady was anxious and momentarily lost her temper. Not daring to offend this wise man, she could only cough silently and hurriedly asked, "Why... is it because we were disrespectful to the Deer God? Or were we not sincere enough?"

"That's not the case."

Jiang She spoke gently to the elderly Madam.

"The Lu family has done nothing wrong; it's just that their time has come."

"The mountain god should let go."

"The Lu family should also follow its own path."

“Do good deeds and maintain a virtuous family tradition; the local earth god and city god will surely protect you. Madam, please rest assured.”

Madam Lu looked lost and disappointed. The servants of the Lu family had never imagined that their master had such a connection. They all stared at Jiang She and the Old Deer Mountain God.

This man, with his white hair and beard, trembling unsteadily, was indeed very old.

If it were an ordinary person, they probably wouldn't dare let their family move in this state, and they wouldn't even let the wind blow into the house.

This is a deity who has protected the Lu family for many years...

A sense of bewilderment, like that of a kite with a broken string, arose within me.

Jiang She and the mountain god stood still and waited for a while. Half an hour later, a female servant came over with a piece of something wrapped in red cloth in both hands.

Jiang She handed it to the Old Deer Mountain God.

The old deer god bowed his head, opened the red cloth wrapping, and saw a crooked pottery statue. The craftsmanship was really not good. Even a young apprentice who had just learned the craft could probably sculpt it better. It could barely stand up, and even the antlers were crooked.

He watched quietly.

He vaguely recalled Lu Sheng's excited expression when he showed him the pottery statue. He couldn't remember what Lu Sheng looked like or what his features were.

He remained silent for a long while.

Finally, he put it into his sleeve.

"Thank you sir."

He looked at the Lu family and said, "Our fate is severed. I will part ways with the Lu family and go our separate ways from now on."

As soon as he finished speaking, a surge of azure energy swept across the ground, bursting forth and landing on everyone in the courtyard. Mortals could not see it, but they felt their bodies suddenly become much lighter and more comfortable.

The old lady's brows relaxed, and Lu Da felt a sudden lightness in his body, a sense of ease and comfort. His daughter beside him also raised her head.

The old deer mountain god withdrew his hand and stood quietly in the courtyard for a while.

After taking back the old items, Jiang She, Li Bai, and the Old Deer Mountain God left while everyone was still in a daze.

After they left, a loud commotion erupted in the Lu family courtyard, as servants and younger members of the Lu family began to discuss the matter.

Lu Pei never expected this. He abandoned his family fortune, wanting to seek immortality through Taoist practices.

However, his ancestors recognized a local mountain god and had made an agreement with his family to take care of their descendants for generations.

For a moment, listening to the discussions throughout the courtyard, I felt dizzy and confused.

……

……

The next day, the magistrate of Xiangyang County came to visit.

Cheng Zhi carried a set of writing implements, two catties of cured meat, and a simple map. He came alone without any attendants, appearing unassuming and simple. He asked his servants.

"Is the gentleman at home?"

Upon receiving a reply, he happily carried the gift inside.

The courtyard was quiet. He couldn't tell which room belonged to the expert, so he raised his voice: "Is Mr. Jiang here? I, Cheng, have arrived."

While waiting, he handed the gift to the servant.

Look around and observe where the immortals live.

This is a larger courtyard house with many trees planted in it. A table is placed flat under the trees for shade, books are open, a few withered leaves are on the paper, and a writing brush is placed to the side.

The courtyard was ordinary and simple, no different from other people's homes. But County Magistrate Cheng Zhi always felt particularly comfortable; it was quiet and cool, with only the sounds of birds chirping and insects humming in the woods, and the rustling of leaves in the wind.

For a moment, I forgot the mundane world.

It makes people feel relaxed.

This must be the place where Tao Yuanming once lived in seclusion.

Jiang She pushed open the door and saw him staring intently. He couldn't help but smile, then turned to the servants and instructed them to brew a pot of tea, but without salt or spices.

"Please have a seat, Your Excellency."

The two sat facing each other, bathed in the dappled sunlight filtering through the trees.

Jiang She casually gathered up what he had just finished writing, put it together with the open book, and asked someone to put it in his bedroom.

Cheng Zhi noticed the cover and, thinking of building a closer relationship, asked.

"Were you reading 'Biographies of Immortals' just now, sir?"

"Yes, let's read it and see what the fuss is about."

A mysterious and extraordinary person, or perhaps an immortal... was reading an ancient book, "Biographies of Immortals." The combination of these two events stirred a strange feeling within him. The magistrate secretly decided that he would go to a bookstore in Xiangzhou and buy a copy himself, hoping to absorb some of the immortal's aura.

He hadn't forgotten the reason for his visit, and smiled:

“I heard that you went to the Lu family yesterday and brought back the money that the swindler had cheated you out of. You are very righteous.”

He also brought news from the county government with him: "I sent someone with the case files to Dengzhou, where the other four households are located. I was surprised to find that the three of them had cheated four households in the same place. Lu Sheng is the first one to be cheated since we came to Xiangyang."

"Fortunately, the gentleman was there and exposed the three men as frauds; otherwise, the people of Xiangyang would have suffered."

"Thank you, sir."

As he spoke, Cheng Zhi took out the simple map from his pocket.

He had befriended Meng Haoran a few days ago and subtly inquired about him, gaining a deeper understanding of the man before him.

He said, "I know that you have come from afar, so I specially asked someone to draw a map of the Ten Circuits of my Great Tang Dynasty as a token of my gratitude."

"It's not from the military, it's just something the yamen uses for newly appointed officials, and it's better than what you can find in the market or bookstores. You can rest assured, sir."

During Emperor Taizong's reign, the country was divided into ten circuits, each containing several prefectures. Later, several emperors added more circuits, so although there were more than ten, this type of map is still commonly referred to as the "Ten Circuits Map." They are now located in the Shannan East Circuit, a truly precious land.

Jiang She accepted it.

"That's already very good, thank you, Your Excellency."

"This is exactly what Jiang needed."

Magistrate Cheng was quite a character. His visit gift was nothing more than ordinary writing materials and two catties of cured meat. But he ingeniously presented a map.

It suited Jiang She's taste perfectly.

These are the things he needs for his travels.

Although Prefect Cheng came because of matters concerning immortals and gods, he was considerate and thoughtful in his actions. His attention to detail earned him a good impression.

A servant brought tea, which Jiang She brought. It was tea from the mountain where he used to live, and he had also hired a skilled tea maker to process and dry it.

The taste wasn't exceptional, just unusually light and delicate.

Cheng Zhi picked up the teacup, smelled the aroma, and subconsciously felt that the tea tasted a bit weak.

I glanced down at the clear tea. It was brewed differently, without borneol or musk, and smelling it, it seemed salt wasn't added either.

Do connoisseurs like to drink this kind of tea?
"Sir, you have a truly interesting personality."

Cheng Zhi praised him, and decided to follow local customs.

Take a sip.

The moment the tea touched my lips, it was like drinking ice water on a scorching hot day—refreshing and invigorating. It felt as if my entire being was awakened, and my senses sharpened. The chirping of insects was exceptionally pleasant, and I could also hear the calls of vendors in the distance.

It vanished in an instant.

“This tea…”

Jiang She smiled and said, "The tea is simple, but it's somewhat useful for cooling off in the summer."

　Did you notice I wrote almost a thousand extra words? Please vote! =v=
　　
　
(End of this chapter)