I became an immortal in the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 83 Cui Jiutang
The people of Prince Qi's residence breathed a sigh of relief when they heard the emperor's question. They bowed and explained, "This is a rare treasure found by Prince Qi. It was originally a paper cutout, but it turns into a donkey when touched."

Li Longji examined it carefully.

He had never raised a donkey, but he had seen horses. This donkey had its head hanging down naturally, a short mane, and was grayish-brown overall. It brayed loudly.

It looks real no matter how you look at it.

The emperor slightly raised his eyes.

Gao Lishi stepped forward and carefully touched the donkey. The donkey shook its head irritably, stomped its front hooves, and snorted, but thankfully it didn't bite.

"It's a live donkey."

Cui Jiu stared intently for a long while before saying:

"What a wonderful method! It's a pity that Master Ye has passed away, otherwise we could ask him what happened and how it could be so miraculous."

Master Ye was Ye Fashan, the son of a prefect. His family had been practicing Taoism for generations, inheriting the Taoist lineage. Legend has it that when he was seven years old, he fell into the river and did not return for three years. His parents asked him why.

Ye Fashan said:

“The green boy led me with cloud nectar, so I lingered a little longer.”

He claimed that he was taken by a celestial child to see Laozi and drank celestial wine made from clouds and mist.

From then on, Ye Fashan exhibited various miraculous behaviors. After reaching adulthood, he grew to be nine feet tall, and it was rumored that he traveled to Penglai Immortal Island for seven days. He devoted himself to Taoist cultivation during the reign of Emperor Gaozu, and served through seven emperors. The emperors bestowed upon him the titles of Grand Master of the Palace, Minister of State Ceremonies, Duke of Yue, and Abbot of Jinglong Temple.

He was 107 years old and passed away three years ago.

The donkey brayed incessantly, and the servants of the Zichen Palace stared at it with utter astonishment.

The emperor also sized up the donkey for a long time.

The people in the Prince Qi's mansion still remembered the warning, reminding them: "If this donkey's origin is revealed, it will turn back into paper."

Cui Jiu tried it several times with amusement.

Seeing the donkey and paper constantly changing, he was completely convinced.

"It really is made of paper!"

After listening to the donkey's braying for a while, the emperor felt a sudden release of the pent-up anger that had been building up since taking the elixir and seeing the piece of paper. He felt relaxed and refreshed.

He laughed heartily and said, "Fourth brother is very thoughtful."

Then I remembered that Prince Qi was unwell.

With a wave of his hand, the emperor bestowed upon the emperor a large amount of gold and silver utensils, silk fabrics, a luxurious mansion in Chang'an, and exotic wines and delicacies.

They bestowed gold and silk upon him, showering him with joy and reward, to demonstrate their brotherly affection.

……

……

During his month off, Cui Jiu hosted a banquet for his guests.

When guests arrived at dusk, carriages and horses kept coming to Cui Jiu’s residence. The carriages, horses, and entourages of these guests were crowded together, almost filling the courtyard.

Inside, hundreds of candles were lit, making the room as bright as day.

The pipa played incessantly, the dancers were dressed in magnificent attire, and the singing and dancing never stopped, the music filling the air. A servant brought over a bottle of wine that was priceless, and without hesitation, poured it into a white jade cup, the wine spilling out.

This glass is full, but there's always another one to refill it.

Candlelight illuminated the clear wine, and the room was filled with delicacies. Host and guests laughed and chatted, the atmosphere extremely lavish.

The guests were all dressed in brocade and adorned with jade pendants.

Let us not stray from the pursuit of pleasure and joy, nor should we ever cease our toasts and greetings. Heaven and earth are vast and enduring, and the white rabbit and the red crow will forever follow each other.

Golden ingots, white jade bottles—do not begrudge their preciousness, but drink to your heart's content. A hundred cups of wine are drunk in vain, for the rules forbid even a slight mention of them. I sit there until dawn, completely drunk and utterly oblivious.

The drinking got lively.

Some people, hearing the music, tapped on the table and sang, and then asked:

"Cui Jiulang, what brings you here today? You've specially invited us for this gathering."

Beside Cui Jiu stood a noble-looking young man in a purple robe, who smiled and said:

"My father has come across a rare and precious treasure and has specially invited you all here to have a look."

The guests were all curious.

Cui Jiu was born into the Cui clan, the grandson of Prime Minister Cui Renshi, and was of noble birth. He was also on good terms with the emperor and received constant rewards from him. He had always had high standards, and ordinary silks, satins, gold and jade utensils were just mundane things that he could see every day.

What can be called a rare treasure?

The guests started urging them to hurry.

Among the guests, Wang Wei, who was sitting at a distance, also looked up and exchanged a glance with Pei Di.

Pei Di, holding his wine cup, asked curiously, "What could be so highly praised by Supervisor Cui?"

"I don't know either."

Cui Jiu, slightly drunk, clapped his hands, and a beautiful maidservant came out carrying a box, smiling as she said to the guests, "This is a treasure I borrowed. Please take a look!"

The guests all looked up and stared.

It was a very small box, about the size of two palms, and could hold very little.

The Wang family's son guessed, "Is it a pearl from the sea?"

Zheng Langjun was also thinking about it.

"Eastern pearls aren't necessarily that rare, so they can't really be called exotic treasures. Could it be calligraphy or paintings?"

"If it's for calligraphy and paintings, the box is too small."

For someone like Cui Jiu, ivory is easy to obtain, gold is vulgar, and jade, which is often used to describe the virtues of a gentleman, is also plentiful. He would spend a fortune just to get drunk.

They really couldn't think of anything that Secretary Cui would praise so highly, and that he would specially invite guests to see it.

Cui Jiu smiled.

He opened the box, asking the guests not to touch it, and showed it to them one by one.

The guests were filled with doubt.

"This is……"

"A paper cutting?"

"Is this a horse or a donkey? Why is one of its legs a bit short?"

The guests speculated, and some wondered if the paper was some kind of rare paper, but upon closer inspection, it was just ordinary paper for practicing calligraphy, and the cut-out pieces were also quite rough.

Knowing that Cui Jiu was always good at joking...

Surely they weren't just played for a fool?

When the box was passed to Wang Wei and Pei Di, the two examined it closely but found nothing unusual or strange about it.

"That's really strange..."

The box was passed around in front of the guests. When it reached the back, one guest forgot the instruction not to touch the paper and ran his little finger across it.

Suddenly, the braying of a donkey came from the hall.

"Uu uh uh——"

The guest was horrified and quickly stepped back, only managing to stand firm by holding onto the table. He stared intently at the donkey that had suddenly appeared.

He hurriedly asked the host.

"What is this?"

The guests inside heard a commotion, like dishes shattering on the floor and animals barking. They all looked over and saw something in the luxurious hall—

A live donkey, its hooves treading on the luxurious lichen of the Western Regions.

It impatiently flicked its tail.

Someone who had just witnessed the whole thing exclaimed in surprise:
"This donkey is a transformation of that piece of paper!"

Hearing the noise, Cui Jiu's son smiled and led the donkey over, all the way to the open space in front of the host's seat, a place where all the guests in the flower hall could see it.

It was as if he had played it many times.

He smiled and said to the guests in the room, "This is it."

The guests were extremely surprised.

"donkey?"

As everyone had seen the live donkey clearly, Cui Jiu, sitting at the host's table, listened to their speculations with a smile, put down his cup, and softly called out:
"Paper donkey".

The donkey was no longer seen in front of everyone.

On the beautiful lichen, there was only a light, fluttering piece of paper.

In an instant, the entire hall erupted in uproar.

The guests kept discussing it.

"Such an extraordinary method actually exists in the world?!"

"Wonderful! It's almost comparable to the previous Master Ye!"

“It really is a rare treasure!”

Cui Jiu listened to the discussions with a smile. Many people guessed that it was powerful magic or a Taoist master. He drank his wine in large gulps amidst the bright lights.

He laughed and said, "This is an item belonging to a sage, only destined for the imperial family. I merely borrowed it to present to you all!"

【Ask for monthly ticket】

　Ancient people were more superstitious than I imagined. If you're interested, you can search for the Ye Shanfa family.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)