Chapter 10: Taoist Master's Evaluation

As if sensing someone coming from outside, the door of the ancestral hall opened from the inside and a hunchbacked old slave walked out.

The old slave's hair and beard were all white, dry and yellow, he had a hooked nose, thin lips, very large eyes but deep eye sockets, his face was covered with dense wrinkles like water waves, and his body was as thin as a mummy.

"Dumb old man."

Zhou Tieyi took the initiative to greet him. In his memory, the mute old man looked like this when he first met him during the ancestor worship ceremony. He looked as if half of his body was buried in the ground. Now, more than ten years have passed, and he still looks like this.

When Zhou Tieyi greeted the mute old man, he tried hard to force a smile on his face. In the night, he looked like a laughing owl, and was particularly creepy.

After Zhou Tieyi took the initiative to greet Old Mute, Zhou's mother said, "I brought Tieyi here to choose a technique."

The mute old man nodded and led the two of them in silently.

There were perpetual lamps lit in the ancestral hall, and spirit tablets were placed in the front. The Zhou family had been passed down to Zhou Tieyi, the fourth generation. There were four rows of spirit tablets in total. Zhou Tieyi even saw his own name on the bottom layer. This was the longevity tablet.

Apart from the spirit tablet and the eternal lamp, the entire first floor only has two rows of stands on the left side, with weapons hanging on them. These were the weapons that Zhou family ancestors used to carry with them.

There is a small ladder on the right that leads to the second floor, but Zhou Tieyi has never been there.

Zhou Tieyi burned incense to his ancestors.

The original owner wanted to learn martial arts. If he had known that the Zhou family's practice method was hidden in the ancestral temple, he would have succeeded long ago.

Mother Zhou looked at the second row of memorial tablets, found the tablet in the middle with the name "Zhou Guangxia of the Zhou Family" written on it, and then she used telekinesis to drop the tablet into her hands.

Zhou Tieyi stared at the spirit tablet in his mother's hand. This Zhou Guangxia was the father of Zhou Qinlong, and also his own grandfather. Twenty-five years ago, there was a great change at Sunset Pass, and he died in the battle between the north and Yuanmeng.

Zhou's mother handed the tablet to Zhou Tieyi. The moment Zhou Tieyi touched the tablet, a powerful spirit emerged from the tablet.

In a trance, Zhou Tieyi saw a man wearing silver armor with a lion-like beast stepping on clouds, holding a golden spear with tiger patterns. Behind him, the solemn army of 50,000 was like an extended blood-red cloak, sweeping across the entire battlefield.

Then the scene changed, and Zhou Tieyi saw a young man who looked similar to himself, practicing martial arts in the bamboo forest.

Military tactics, martial arts, strategies, and a large amount of knowledge appeared in front of Zhou Tieyi like a real movie, as if Zhou Guangxia's life was condensed in this small tablet.

Seeing her son Zhou Tieyi falling into a trance, Zhou's mother nodded to the mute old man, then left the ancestral temple alone.

Gongshu Sheng was still guarding outside.

Seeing Gongshu Sheng, Zhou's mother suddenly asked, "In the past few years, Tieyi has been unruly. How much have you covered for him?"

Part of the subjective reason why Zhou Tieyi played with women was that he could not practice martial arts and gave up on himself, and part of the objective reason was that Gongshu Sheng, the steward of the Zhou family, secretly supported him.

No matter how strict Zhou's mother was, as long as Gongshu Sheng, the manager, was a little more indulgent, Zhou Tieyi would naturally be able to play around with other women.

"Do you think that as long as Tieyi enters Taoism through martial arts, and I love my son dearly, I will definitely help Tieyi control Taiyi Temple and let Taiyi Temple fall into the hands of the Zhou family? And become a pawn of the Zhou family?"

Zhou's mother had no grudge against her son entering Taiyi Temple, but she was afraid.

The Zhou family is a family of military merit, and they are destined to be unable to live in contentment with poverty. Once the Zhou family takes control of Taiyi Temple, the sect will no longer be peaceful. How can he face his master?

Gongshu Sheng's eyebrows hidden under the mask moved slightly, but he did not answer.

Because it is a fact, although the Zhou family has great power, it is still one level away from being the top family of Daxia. If Taiyi Temple is used as external aid, by then the two sons of the Zhou family, one will be a third-rank military general, and the other a third-rank Taoist master, then they will be the pillars of the country!

"You don't want to answer? Well, let me ask you again, twenty-three years ago, when I went down the mountain to experience disasters, was it your plan to meet Zhou Qinlong?" Zhou's mother's voice suddenly became stern.

She has had this knot in her heart for so many years.

As a Taoist nun who was expected to enter the third rank directly, she met Zhou Qinlong when she should not have fallen in love, and then stopped there, feeling ashamed of her master's teachings.

Zhou's mother no longer wanted to talk about what happened in the past, but what she could not tolerate was that Gongshu Sheng was actually using tricks on her son again!
"What does it matter if it's a calculation or not?"

Gongshu Sheng sneered and asked, "Let me ask you, my brother Zhou Qinlong is as fierce as a tiger and is about to ascend to the third rank. Is he worthy of you, the heir of Taiyi Temple?"

Zhou's mother did not answer. As a third-rank military strategist, she was naturally worthy of being the direct descendant of Taiyi Temple.

"Brother, you haven't taken a concubine in these years. Are you ashamed of your infatuation with you in the past?"

Zhou's mother did not answer. As a general, Zhou Qinlong did not marry a beautiful concubine, which even made him a laughing stock among his military achievements. He really lived up to his original infatuation.

"You are now the mistress of the General's Mansion, with two filial sons, both of whom are of high caliber. Can they compare to the simple meals in your Taoist temple?"

"Besides, you know better than me that even if Tieyi studies Confucianism and works hard, the chance of becoming a great Confucian is less than 10%, because we have no foundation in Confucianism!"

"But what if he practices Taoism? With your support and the Zhou family's, he will take the position of the abbot of Taiyi Temple and there will be no obstacles for him to ascend to the third rank."

"Why have you watched me indulge Tie Yi all these years? It's just that you know this in your heart. It's just that you are thinking about your beloved son and feeling guilty towards your master, so you are hesitant."

"The calculation you mentioned is just an excuse for why you couldn't get through the love tribulation back then. The so-called tribulation is not about how others calculate, but whether you know how to make choices. Zhou Yulong, you have been practicing Taoism for so many years, but you have always been in the mountains and have never really come down from the mountains. That's why you are still so naive and want everything. You don't even understand this principle. No wonder you couldn't get through the love tribulation back then!"

Gongshu Sheng directly revealed Zhou Yulong's wound. Only in this way could he break Zhou Yulong's fantasy and make her wholeheartedly help the Zhou family seize Taiyi Temple.

Mother Zhou closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Every word Gongshu Sheng said made sense, and she was unable to refute it for a moment.

But Zhou's mother had never been scolded by others in these years. Now that she had a falling out with Gongshu Sheng, she had no scruples and retorted, "I, Zhou Yulong, am naive and don't know how to choose. But you, a member of the Gongshu family, are so calculating. Will there be a good result?"

"Did you know what the Heavenly Master of Xuandu Mountain said about Gongshujia and Mohism at the Taoist Luotian Conference?"

The Heavenly Master of Xuandu Mountain is the best in Taoism today and the best in the world.

Every word and action may affect the world situation.

"How do you rate it?"

Although Gongshu Sheng's mask had no expression, his fists were slightly clenched.

Zhou's mother sneered, "Both the Gongshu School and the Mohist School are good at mechanical arts, but for so many years, you have always been suppressed by the Mohist School. It is because the people of your Gongshu School are too calculating and only care about their own gains and losses, not the justice of the world."

"What a joke. Since ancient times, there have only been winners and losers. There is no such thing as justice in the world."

Gongshu Sheng retorted unconvinced.

"Why not? The righteousness of the world is in the hearts of the people. Success is achieved and failure is a matter of time. The great doctrine must be passed down for hundreds of generations. That's why you Gongshu family has not been able to produce a first-class person for so many years!"

Gongshu Sheng clenched his fists, unable to refute.

(End of this chapter)