Temple Project

Chapter 7

"Little kid, no, no, I'm not a little kid."Li Changmeng shook his head and said mysteriously, "I am the Spiritual Boy under the seat of the great god who created the world—Mi Meng Wang Qing Taoist Lord. I follow Mi Meng Wang Qing Taoist Lord and spread His name throughout the world.""Mi Meng Wang Qing Taoist Lord? I've never heard of him."

These several women were the most gossipy in Mingguan Post Station. They knew many miscellaneous things, but they had never heard of this Mi Meng Wang Qing Taoist Lord.

"When my temple is built, you aunts can come and take a look. I'm going to plan this temple now, so I'll take my leave."Li Changmeng waved dismissively at the women, then channeled his spiritual power to boost his legs. Before they could react, he had already walked more than ten steps away.

"Eh? Did you see that clearly just now? How did he run so far all of a sudden?""No, that little kid is so fast.""Do you think he's really the Spiritual Boy under that Taoist Lord?"

While the women continued to wonder, Li Changmeng made his way to the home of the village head of Mingguan Post Station. In Xuanfeng Country, which was divided into three prefectures and ten counties, towns and villages fell below the county level. The village head managed all the land deeds; if one wanted to buy land, one naturally had to approach him. The village head of Mingguan Post Station was named Chen Lie, a gentle man in his thirties.

"You want to buy land in the village?! Little kid, where are your parents and where do you live? I'll send you back."Chen Lie sized up the child who had broken into his home, suspecting that some adult had not kept proper watch and had let the child run amok.

"I'm here to buy land. What's the point of all this nonsense? I want to choose a large enough piece to build a temple."As he spoke, Li Changmeng slapped a silver ingot onto the table.

Chen Lie's eyes widened. Such a large silver ingot! An ordinary family would have to farm without food or rest for at least ten years to save up that amount. Seeing the shining silver, Chen Lie no longer regarded Li Changmeng as a mere child—who could turn down money?

"Wait a moment. I'll go and fetch the remaining land deeds of the village for you to look over."Chen Lie turned and entered the inner room, soon returning with a locked box. He opened it and produced more than a dozen land deeds. "Take a look. Are there any that satisfy you?"

Although it was a bit odd dealing with an eight-year-old in this manner, Chen Lie presumed the child's parents might be nearby, and perhaps this was an effort to train their child. Since the parents were willing to part with such a large sum of silver to educate their child, they must be either rich or powerful—and not easily offended.

Li Changmeng examined the land deeds one by one. "I'll choose this piece. There are already existing houses on it, which saves some trouble."Chen Lie noted that this deed pertained to a plot near the end of the village—a plot that had become available due to a crime committed by its previous owners.

"You can keep the extra silver, Village Head. I may trouble you again in the future.""Well... don't worry. If you have any difficulties, just come to me."Chen Lie patted his chest, clearly pleased with the profit.

Holding the chosen land deed, Li Changmeng went to the site—a modest wooden house. As soon as he broke the seal and opened the door, the scent of aged wood greeted him. It had been at least five years since anyone had lived there. His move also attracted the attention of several neighboring households.

A child had entered the unsold land alone. Could it be that the child was merely playing around?Before anyone could become curious, they saw Li Changmeng turn around and exit again.

"Who can help me repair the house and make some simple arrangements? This silver ingot will go to that person."Holding up the silver ingot and the land deed, Li Changmeng amplified his voice using his spiritual power so that all the nearby households could clearly see. With an authentic land deed, this was not something that could be easily forged. This kid really had money.

There was a slight sound of swallowed saliva, and a man in his twenties wearing an open coat was the first to stand up."Leave it to me. I'll make sure you're satisfied."Like a stone thrown into water causing ripples, the man's words prompted many others to stand up."Leave it to me. I'm a carpenter.""I'm a bricklayer. Leave it to me."

After surveying them, Li Changmeng finally chose the man who had spoken first."Everything should follow the principle of first come, first served. Since you were the first to speak, naturally you'll do it. Here's this silver ingot for you. At least, make it possible for me to move in today."Li Changmeng tossed the silver ingot, and it landed precisely in the man's hand.

"Just... give it to me like this?"The man was stunned as he held the silver ingot. He had expected to earn a share of the money only after completing half the work. Instead, he was trusted enough that the silver was handed over outright. Wasn't this kid afraid of being cheated?It seemed that although the child's words and actions were quite mature for his age, his mindset still had room to grow.

"I, Yang Jian'an, will definitely make you satisfied. If you don't mind, would you like to come to my home and have a seat for a while?""Of course, I have no objection."

Li Changmeng readily accepted Yang Jian'an's invitation and went to his home. Once seated, Yang Jian'an became serious. Looking at Li Changmeng, he said,"You shouldn't flaunt your money like this. Even though your intelligence is no less than an adult's, those village ruffians and bullies will only see an eight-year-old child carrying gold through the market."Li Changmeng was a bit surprised; he hadn't expected Yang Jian'an to speak so eloquently—certainly not like an ordinary villager. As for his comment about a child carrying gold, of course, Li Changmeng had done it on purpose.

"Brother Yang, you're overthinking. I, Li Changmeng, am the Spiritual Boy under the seat of Mi Meng Wang Qing Taoist Lord. How can you view me as an ordinary child? If there are truly those who don't know what's best for themselves and cause trouble, I'll naturally send them to have a talk with Mi Meng Wang Qing Taoist Lord."Li Changmeng looked completely unconcerned, leaving Yang Jian'an a bit dazed. Was Mi Meng Wang Qing Taoist Lord some powerful immortal? Li Changmeng wore a Taoist robe—perhaps he really did possess some remarkable abilities. It seemed Yang Jian'an had been overthinking.

"I understand. Then, Taoist Priest, please wait at my home for a few hours. I'll start tidying up the house first so that you can move in."Yang Jian'an quietly updated his address, then left to find villagers to repair the house.

Li Changmeng also found a stool in the house and moved it outside, watching the bustling repair team not far away. His traveling bag was placed beside him, and the spiritual fetus inside was quietly cultivating. Even an efficiency of one percent was still cultivation, wasn't it?

While Li Changmeng was leisurely at work, two uninvited guests quietly climbed in from the side of Yang Jian'an's house. Li Changmeng, whose sensitive features had been honed by spiritual energy, quickly noticed them but pretended not to see. He knew that the fish he had been waiting for could no longer hold back and was finally about to take the bait.