The First National Preceptor of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 9

This was the only possible answer; I couldn't very well say I knew nothing.

"Oh, can it really turn stones into gold?" Li Su became interested, and the people around him also stared at him curiously.

"Turning stone into gold hasn't been successfully achieved yet, but turning stone into copper is possible. However, it's extremely difficult, requiring specific stones and many other specialized substances, so the amount of copper produced is very small," Xu Tian explained.

In reality, turning stone into copper is something he can't do right now; he lacks many materials, and the necessary technology hasn't been replicated yet.

But he couldn't be too timid at this point. What if Li Su thought he was incompetent and worried that the Kongming lantern would be leaked, and someone killed him with a single word? That would be a real injustice.

"Then what else are you good at?" Li Su lost interest when he heard that he could only turn stones into copper, and in small quantities, and did not ask any further questions.

“I have studied the study of things since I was a child, so I have also gained some knowledge in this field. My specialty is creation. This Kongming lantern is a reconstruction of a simple description from an ancient book.”

"Hmm, besides these, what other creations are there?"

"Reporting to the Governor, in the past two months, I felt that there was a lack of entertainment among the people, so I created two kinds of board games that can be played. One is called chess, and the other is called playing cards, or some people call them number cards."

Both of these card games are very popular among the local people of Dingxiang City and are widely played. Xu Tian steered the conversation in this direction.

"Chess and card games?" Li Su had only been in Dingxiang City for a short time and held a high position, so naturally he wouldn't pay attention to such trivial matters as chess and card games among the common people, nor would his subordinates bother him with such a thing.

"Your Excellency, I do know a little about these two kinds of chess and card games," said the official next to Huang Fu, the advisor to Huang Sima.

Seeing that everyone was looking at him, and Li Su didn't say anything, he continued, "In Dingxiang City, two kinds of chess and card games have indeed become popular in the past two months. One of them is called Xiangqi (Chinese chess), which is different from the traditional chess in appearance and rules."

However, the strategies for attacking and conquering are similar, much like the Chu-Han Contention. Another type is called number cards, which is simple to learn and has many variations. The most popular one is called "Three Kingdoms," named after the three kingdoms of Wei, Shu, and Wu.

After the official finished explaining, he added, "These two types of chess and cards were previously known to have originated in Dingxiang City, but no one knew who created them. Today we know that they came from Master Xu."

Hearing the official's words, Li Su did not ask any further questions. He turned to Xu Tian and said, "It seems you do have some talent and are good at thinking, but playing chess and cards is a minor skill. You should not make any more Kongming lanterns in the future, and you should not pass them on to others."

Xu Tian nodded in agreement, secretly delighted. Since he had said so, he had probably escaped a disaster.

Li Su then said to Huang Sima and the others, "Counselor Huangfu, you must record the method of using the Kongming Lantern in detail. I have other matters to attend to, so I will be leaving now."

Then, just as he was about to turn around, he hesitated for a moment, glanced at Xu Tian again, and said, "Today, Taoist Xu has presented the method of Kongming Lantern, allowing the long-lost creation of Zhuge Liang to reappear in the world. This is a good thing."

In addition, chess and cards are two forms of entertainment for the common people, and those who have contributed to this deserve a reward. You should all think about giving Master Xu some money as a reward.” After saying this, he turned and left.

As everyone watched Li Su leave, the atmosphere relaxed somewhat.

Huang Sima then said, “Counselor Huangfu, you are skilled in writing, so I will trouble you to record this lamp-making method in detail, with the assistance of Taoist Xu and craftsmen.”

Huangfu, the advisor, sighed reluctantly before saying, "Commander Li has already given the order, so I will do my best."

Huang Sima then said to the official next to him, "Wu County Magistrate, you heard it too. The governor said he wanted to reward Xu Daoren. So let's do it this way: the prefecture and the county will each contribute ten strings of cash, making a total of twenty strings to reward him."

The money will be temporarily covered by the prefecture. When you return, inform Magistrate Zhou of this matter.

County Magistrate Wu nodded in agreement; being the lowest-ranking official, he naturally wouldn't refuse.

Xu Tian was naturally very happy to hear that he had not only escaped danger but also received a reward.

The government was indeed wealthy and powerful, showering twenty strings of cash upon them, but they couldn't show it on their faces and had to pretend to be nonchalant.

Huang Sima and Wu County Magistrate then left one after another. Xu Tian first assisted Huangfu Counselor in writing down the detailed method of making Kongming lanterns, pointing out the precautions one by one. He naturally did his best to pay for it.

Then, he got his bamboo tube back from Chen Lushi, along with twenty strings of cash in flying tickets.

Finally, he left the government compound with Chen Lushi seeing him off.

Standing outside the high walls, Xu Tian looked back at the gate. His joy had faded, and he felt a pang of emotion.

Although I escaped danger today and even received a reward of twenty strings of cash, there was a lot of luck involved, but also my own hard work.

Ultimately, this matter stems from my own carelessness and lack of consideration. If I had been more careful when releasing the sky lanterns, I wouldn't have been discovered and reported to the authorities, and this situation wouldn't have occurred today.

He had escaped by sheer luck, but the feeling of having his fate in someone else's hands was truly unsettling. He was trembling with fear, as if walking on thin ice. He had never experienced anything like this before.

Hopefully, this situation will be avoided in the future, and ideally, it should never happen again.

However, after today's incident, he also realized that the Taoist's identity was more important than he had originally thought.

Think about it, if he hadn't revealed his identity as a Taoist priest in time, the officials' attitude towards him would probably not have been exactly the same as before, at least not as polite.

In this era, Taoists represented something unknown and mysterious. In interpersonal interactions, they could sometimes play a role in transcending social classes, at least preventing people from looking down on them.

Of course, first of all, he must be able to prove himself.

After leaving the government office, Xu Tian did not go directly back to Hua Zi Lou, but instead went to Du Ji's place on the way.

Du Bo was standing at the counter with a serious expression, but his furrowed brows relaxed when he saw him come in.

“Xu Tian, ​​now that you’re here, today’s matter should be over, right? Some time ago, your sworn brother Wang Anping came in a hurry and told me about how you were taken away by the government because of the flying lantern. I was also very worried and was thinking about how to find a solution.”

"Yes, I narrowly escaped. I came straight here as soon as I came out."

"Now that this matter is settled, I will send someone to inform your sworn brother, so that he doesn't worry unnecessarily." Uncle Du was very thoughtful.

"Yes, thank you, Uncle Du."

Later, in the backyard.

"Sigh, before I knew it, you made another Kongming lantern. What am I supposed to say?"

These past few days, I've also heard about the flying lanterns. Some say it was first seen by people in the south of the city. When I heard that, for some reason, I thought of you, Xu Tian, ​​and it turns out it was true.