Oh no! Seven kids at the start, all yellow and skinny.

Chapter 217 The Birthday of Taiyi Jiuku Tianzun

The next day, after breakfast, Yunyi and Hongyi checked out of the inn and parted ways.

Hong Yi went to exchange the jewelry for silver notes, while Yun Yi went directly to Tianyi Temple.

"Young Miss, I'm your maid. Are you really going to act all by yourself like this?" Hong pouted, looking quite helpless.

"Two people working separately are more efficient."

"But what if you're in danger? What if..."

"There aren't that many 'what ifs'." Yunyi was exasperated. "Before you came along, I was living a perfectly fine life, wasn't I?"

“Even so, no... no, I have to go with you. Let’s exchange the silver notes first, and then go to Tianyi Temple together.” Hong Yi himself rejected his previous decision.

"But……"

"It's settled then. I can't be separated from you. I'm your personal maid. Even if you have other maids in the future, I'll still be number one. No, I'll be number two. He Miao is number one, but she's about to become a mother, so she's out of the running. Therefore, if things continue, I'll still be number one."

Yunyi chuckled: "Alright, my number one girl."

Kang'an County has two pawnshops of similar size. It is said that one is run by a local, while the other is owned by a nobleman from the capital.

Hong Yi pulled Yun Yi directly to the Seven Star Pawnshop.

"Why did you come here?" Yunyi nudged Hongyi. "Are you familiar with this place?"

“Although I’m not familiar with it, I’ve heard that Seven Star Pawnshop is quite honest and offers high prices.” Hong Yi lowered her voice. “Anyway, the two shops aren’t far apart. We can go over there and ask later, and then compare the prices.”

"Alright." Yunyi nodded. Anyway, she wasn't familiar with it, and besides, those things weren't hers anyway, so it was all free money.

Who wouldn't want to make money for free?

Hong Yi used a jade bracelet to test it, proving that what she said was true.

The owner of the Seven Star Pawnshop was a small old man with a goatee who called himself Xue Da. He had a smiling face, but he had a discerning eye. He could tell the craftsmanship and materials of any item just by looking at it, and he could even tell which shop it came from. He always offered good prices.

Yunyi was worried about attracting attention and thought she should pawn the items in several installments, but Hongyi handed them all over at once.

In the end, he pawned twelve thousand taels of silver notes, all of which were forfeited.

“This price…” Yunyi frowned slightly.

“Miss, this price is not bad. If you go to the one across the street, it will only be nine thousand at most.”

"It's because I've done it too many times that I feel there's a problem."

"What's the problem?" Hong Yi was taken aback, then exclaimed, "Of course, the more silver you offer as collateral, the better. How come having too much silver is considered a problem?"

"I was just saying." Yun Yi glanced at Hong Yi, then at the Seven Star Pawnshop, said nothing more, and turned to leave.

Hong Yi breathed a sigh of relief. The young lady was too clever. She had been careless just now. She hurriedly followed, but she didn't forget to wave to the pawnshop manager.

Manager Xue wiped away a bead of sweat; he had almost given himself away too. But he couldn't worry about that now. He quickly packed up his things, wrote a letter, and handed it to his trusted confidant, who then ran off in a flash.

Tianyi Temple is located in the southwestern part of Kang'an County. Actually, when you come from Liyu Town, there is a north-south road before entering the city. If you go south for about four or five miles, you will see it.

However, to Yunyi's surprise, there were quite a few people on the road.

Hong Yi pulled someone aside to ask, then looked at Yun Yi with a troubled expression: "Miss, that old lady said today is the birthday of Taiyi Jiuku Tianzun, what kind of deity is that?"

Yunyi frowned slightly: "What's the date today?"

Today is the eleventh day of the eleventh lunar month.

The eleventh month of the lunar calendar is called the winter month. In this era, there was no concept of the solar calendar. The eleventh day of the eleventh month of the lunar calendar is the birthday of Taiyi Jiuku Tianzun in Taoism.

This Taiyi Jiuku Tianzun is said to be the embodiment of the essence of the Nine Yangs of Yuanshi Tianzun. He descends to earth every month on the 3rd and 9th days to save all living beings. Moreover, after people die, they are guided by him to the Eastern Pure Land of Eternal Bliss.

This celestial deity also has another name: Qingxuan Shangdi.

"Isn't the abbot of Tianyi Temple named Qingxuanzi?" Hongyi couldn't help but sneer. "Is he planning to acknowledge this Taiyi Jiuku Tianzun as his father? But would he even consider her?"

"Don't talk nonsense." Yunyi's lips twitched. "Let's go." Anyway, there's definitely something wrong with this Taoist temple. After all... right, Du Rumei also practiced her cultivation here back then.

Given Du Rumei's character, if she stayed in a place like this for three years... to put it bluntly, I'm worried that all the roosters in this Taoist temple might have been defiled.

Tianyi Temple is built on the mountain. It is said that there are ninety-nine steps from the foot of the mountain to the mountain gate, which symbolizes the return to oneness. Entering the mountain gate is like ascending to heaven.

The Great Zhou Dynasty was quite good; it didn't particularly support any particular religious sect, so Taoism and Buddhism developed in a balanced way.

The people there are both Buddhists and Taoists, so there are quite a few believers at Tianyi Temple.

After leaving the horses at the foot of the mountain, Yunyi and Hongyi took a step up the mountain.

Because the jewelry pawning had caused a slight delay, the Dharma assembly at the mountaintop had already begun. Those who were coming up the mountain now were all latecomers like them, and there were quite a few of them.

Although there were quite a few steps (99 in total), the mountain was not very steep, so climbing it wasn't too strenuous. Qinren and Yunyi weren't there to attend the Dharma assembly, so they weren't in a hurry.

It took about ten minutes to reach the mountain gate, where we saw two young Taoist nuns and two young Taoist priests greeting guests.

Each believer who enters receives a gift, a purse embroidered with a lotus pattern; the women's purse is pink and white, while the men's is pink and blue.

However, the lotus flowers on them are all embroidered red lotuses.

Inside each one was a small amulet.

"It smells quite nice." Hongyi played with the purse. "It's just that I don't know much about fragrances, so I don't know what it is."

"The fragrance of lotus blossoms." Yunyi's lips curled up slightly. "It seems that Tianyi Temple has quite a few good things."

"I only know sandalwood, patchouli, and rosin. This is the first time I've heard of cold lotus fragrance."

"It comes from an ancient incense recipe. It's a bit difficult to make, but it has the effects of refreshing the mind and beautifying the skin. If you like it, I can make some for you in the future."

"The young lady is too kind to me." Hongyi was happy.

Yunyi's eyes widened in surprise. This cold lotus fragrance was indeed a good thing, but if it were to be combined with sandalwood and tea, it could become a harmful substance.