A Tale of Encounters with Immortals: A Peach Blossom Temple in the Martial World

You can meet many people in the Imperial Garden.

You might even meet a princess.

The princess was a little girl, about the same age as Lu Xiaohua.

According to the settings in the TV dramas and novels that Zhang Zhengdao saw on Earth, princesses are always spoiled and willful. But in the end, spoiled and willful princesses always win the heart of the male lead.

The little girl standing there with her hands on her hips, pointing at herself, is the princess. She doesn't look... much like the emperor!

Suddenly, some indescribable secrets about the royal family popped into Zhang Zhengdao's mind.

Suddenly, I realized that the hat on the emperor's head was not a crown, but the green of the grassland.

The princess called on Eunuch Liu.

Those who were named were all unlucky.

Liu Gonggong's face immediately wrinkled up as if his wife had died.

"Princess, this gentleman was invited by the Emperor..."

The princess retorted angrily, "I was born to the Emperor..."

Liu Gonggong shrank back, and had no choice but to steel himself and walk to Zhang Zhengdao's side. The eunuchs around Zhang Zhengdao scattered in a flurry and quickly left.

If there's anything in the palace that involves infighting, you should disperse immediately and not get involved.

Preserving your life is the most important thing.

Old Liu is having a bad day. Should we go to his grave tomorrow, pour a cup of wine, and burn a beautiful woman as a offering?

Burning beautiful women won't do any good.

"A real person..."

Liu Gonggong said to Zhang Zhengdao with a forced smile.

Zhang Zhengdao pointed to the gold medal hanging around his neck, and Eunuch Liu dared not speak.

Zhang Zhengdao beckoned to the princess with his finger.

The princess put her hands on her hips, stomped her feet, and glared.

She's just a little girl!

Zhang Zhengdao pointed to the gold medal: "Can't read? As if I were here in person, come here..."

The princess felt she might have met her match today, and turned to leave.

Zhang Zhengdao originally intended to cast his fishing rod and catch the princess. But then he thought, "Why bother arguing with a little girl?" After some consideration, he decided against it and would just bring her over.

With a flick of his finger, the princess, who had just turned around, was thrown into the air and landed right in front of Zhang Zhengdao. She turned pale with fright.

"Big...bold..."

Zhang Zhengdao asked, "What's your name?"

Princess: "How dare you..."

"Your name is Bold?"

The princess panicked: "My name is Zhu Xiyan."

"Why did you say you were going to arrest me?"

The princess turned and ran, but Zhang Zhengdao ignored her. She ran for a long time, circling around in circles, only to see Zhang Zhengdao's face again. She kept running, circling around in circles once more, but still could see Zhang Zhengdao's face.

Each time, it runs a circle back to the starting point.

He couldn't run anymore, so he supported himself on his knees with both hands, panting.

Liu Gonggong was frightened and bowed deeply to Zhang Zhengdao, saying, "Master, please don't take offense at the princess's behavior."

Zhang Zhengdao laughed and said, "I won't make things difficult for you. If you need anything, just come to me. If I do make things difficult for you, I'll make her run a few more laps."

The princess was afraid and dared not speak out against her anger.

Finally, the princess left, surrounded by Eunuch Liu and others. Along the way, Eunuch Liu could still be heard speaking cautiously to her. The young girl left with great speed and unstoppable momentum, as if nine oxen couldn't pull her back.

A short while later, a young eunuch came over and said that His Majesty invited him to the Imperial Kitchen.

Being invited to dinner by the emperor was equivalent to a state banquet, something one could boast about for a long time afterward.

Zhang Zhengdao dared to guarantee that not a single person in Linbin Town had ever been able to attend a state banquet.

When Zhang Zhengdao entered, the emperor and the imperial advisor were already waiting. They hadn't even started eating yet; when Zhang Zhengdao arrived, they actually stood up to greet him.

"Please sit down, Mr. Zhen. I've specially prepared some local specialties from Lingzhou today. See if they suit your taste."

Zhang Zhengdao: ...

I'm from Lingzhou, and you actually serve me Lingzhou cuisine when I come to the palace? Am I not worthy of eating specialties from other places? Tell me, is the emperor being considerate of me, or not?

However, when Zhang Zhengdao picked up his chopsticks and tasted the local specialty of Lingzhou, Lingzhou rice flour steamed pork, he realized how shallow he had been.

The dishes are the same, and the taste is the same, but this one tastes much better.

The Imperial Advisor acted as a guide: "This steamed pork with rice flour uses carefully selected glutinous rice. Even the smallest grain, if not fully ground, is ground again. Only fine rice flour can produce a delicate flavor. The pork is tribute-grade, made from carefully selected pork belly, specifically the upper part near the foreleg, with even fat and lean meat, and a pinkish color..."

Zhang Zhengdao nodded approvingly.

Recalling the extravagant life I enjoyed at the Imperial Preceptor's residence, it seems the Imperial Preceptor was truly a glutton.

Emperor: "Eat as much as you like, there's more!"

Good food needs good wine.

Since the emperor has suggested it, let's all drink a cup of imperial wine together.

So everyone really did drink one cup after another.

Considering the emperor's poor health, the three of them only drank about ten catties of wine. Everyone was a little tipsy, and since no one else was brought in to serve them, their conversation became somewhat incoherent.

The Imperial Advisor: "Master, what do you think of my aptitude?"

Zhang Zhengdao shook his head: "How old are you? Still concerned about aptitude? And you're planning to have a son?"

Imperial Master: ...

That's not what we're looking for, is it? I'm talking about cultivating immortality.

The emperor smoothed things over, asking, "My lord, how is my seventh son?"

Zhang Zhengdao was taken aback, then understood and looked at the emperor: "She's really good-looking, a little beauty in the making."

The Emperor chuckled: "I heard... you two had a very pleasant conversation in the Imperial Garden... My seventh son came to see me, saying he greatly admires your esteemed presence..."

Zhang Zhengdao: ...

Did the emperor have some misunderstanding?

No, I only met her once. Are you trying to treat me like your son-in-law right off the bat? I'm just a Taoist practitioner. Is it really necessary to act like this? You want to give away your daughter after meeting me? Do you want to be my father-in-law?

Did I cultivate some kind of heretical path?

Can you tell I'm a lecherous person just by looking at me?

Zhang Zhengdao: "Your Majesty, is there some misunderstanding? I'm not the kind of person who... "

"I wish for Xiao Qi to become a disciple of the Master."

Zhang Zhengdao: ? ? ?

I was quite disappointed. It turned out I had misunderstood. I didn't want to marry off a princess; I wanted to send my daughter to my Peach Blossom Temple to become a disciple.

The emperor then said, "From now on, Peach Blossom Temple will receive a special allocation to cover Xiao Qi's expenses."

Zhang Zhengdao took a breath but did not speak.

Those who have been fooled will inevitably learn from their mistakes.

If you take the initiative to speak up, you will lose the initiative in negotiating the price, especially since you are now the emperor here and have plenty of money.

He remained unmoved, focusing only on eating and drinking.

The emperor considered for a moment and then asked, "Would 20,000 taels of silver a year be enough?"

Zhang Zhengdao glanced at the emperor, inwardly excited but outwardly composed. In his mind, he secretly did some calculations. Those who had previously become his disciples were all one-off deals; once they entered the sect, they wouldn't receive any more money.

That's only 20,000 a year, and the floodwaters keep flowing.

No one would refuse such a good opportunity. Is it really just for the sake of becoming an apprentice? That seems unreal!

The Emperor continued, “Master, there is no need to hesitate. I ask nothing more of you, Master, except that Xiao Qi can follow you in cultivation, to refine her character and inner strength. If she can receive even a fraction of your true teachings, it would be a great blessing for her. If not, it is her fate, and we cannot force it. You can rest assured.”

This is a layman's statement: I'll pay the tuition. Whether the child learns it or not is none of my concern. If the child learns well, it's because you taught well; if the child doesn't learn well, it's because the child is not smart.

What wonderful parents!

Zhang Zhengdao was about to agree immediately, but he hesitated and said, "Let's see how things go."

Even though we've been drinking, there are some things we shouldn't easily agree to, even after drinking.

He was quite drunk, then took his leave and was led by a eunuch to a side palace to stay in.

After Zhang Zhengdao left, the emperor looked at the Grand Preceptor and asked, "Is this... alright? If the Master discovers this, what should I do?"

The Imperial Preceptor said, "The True Master has also taken in many disciples. After the Peach Blossom Temple expands, taking in disciples will definitely be a top priority, otherwise no one will manage such a large Taoist temple. Taking in the Seventh Princess is entirely beneficial to the True Master. Even if His Majesty notices, it is because of His Majesty's sincere intentions, and he will not blame him."

The emperor nodded and sighed, "It's Xiao Qi. She just came to me complaining that the Master had played a trick on her. But then she handed her over to the Master as his apprentice. I'm afraid she'll blame me."

The Imperial Advisor smiled and said, "Your Majesty has given her an incredible opportunity. She will understand in the future and will naturally be grateful for Your Majesty's actions today."

The emperor nodded with satisfaction.

The Imperial Advisor stared blankly outside, not daring to suggest leaving. The two sat in silence for a while before the Emperor said, "Imperial Advisor, go ahead and do it."

The Imperial Advisor nodded and asked, "Did His Majesty give the talisman to the Seventh Princess?"

The emperor said, "I've given you two. Would you like a few more?"

The Imperial Advisor said, "No need. But for anyone His Majesty feels uneasy about, you can send them a card."

The emperor nodded: "Thank you for your trouble, Imperial Preceptor."

Night slowly fell, and the palace began to be lit. The lights came on one by one, illuminating the vast palace with twinkling lights, like stars scattered across the sky.

Zhang Zhengdao was drinking tea and reading in the side hall's sleeping quarters.

There were many Taoist scriptures in the palace, but even more miscellaneous books. After reading for a while, I vaguely heard a little girl's voice beside me.

Zhang Zhengdao put down his book, looked out the window, and could see the brightly lit palace.

But within this magnificent palace, who knows how many people will suffer tonight? Palace intrigue, bloodshed and turmoil, has always been cruel.