Since the Tang Dynasty recognized Laozi as their ancestor, many Taoist temples were built in Chang'an.

The Youxian Temple on the Shaoling Plateau is one of them.

It's not big, but it's not small either. There are more than a dozen Taoist priests, old, middle and young.

Bai Gui and the blue-robed Taoist priest walked out of the back courtyard, and when they arrived at the front courtyard, they saw the palace maids and eunuchs. The guards had surrounded the Doumu Hall of Youxian Temple. The place was quiet, and their graceful back could be seen through the gap. This woman

The crown is currently performing a ritual ceremony, which should be a Qing ritual. There is a jade leaf crown hanging on the bun, covered with purple gauze, and a green and blue Taoist robe underneath. The willow waist is tied with a yellow silk ribbon, and the one kneeling next to the buttocks is raw hemp.

shoe.

"Jiao" is a sacrificial offering, and Taoist Jiao has its rituals. It is divided into Qing Jiao and You Jiao. Qing Jiao is used to pray for blessings and gratitude, to cure illness and prolong life, to wish the country good luck, to relieve disasters, to celebrate birthdays, etc. It is a ritual ritual of Taiping Jiao. You Jiao is a ritual ceremony.

They include summoning the souls of the dead, bathing in bridges, breaking prisons and lakes, refining souls and giving food, etc. They are rituals such as praying for the dead and praying for the dead.

"Mage."

The two of them gave a Taoist bowing ceremony to the old Taoist priest standing at the door of the Taoist temple, holding a whisk in his hand, with a respectful attitude.

Taoist priests who are proficient in scriptures and precepts, preside over fasting rituals, and teach people to enter Taoism, and who set an example for others, are called Dharma Masters.

This old Taoist priest with fair hair and childish face has an air of immortality and Taoism. He is one of the temple owners of the lower temple of Louguan Taoism. Youxian Temple is the lower temple of Louguan Taoist temple, similar to the branch temple.

His surname was Chen, and people at that time called him Master Chen.

"Miwa, Changji, you two are here."

"After Master Dongxuan prays for your father and brother later, you will serve in front of Master Dongxuan and explain the scriptures to Master Dongxuan. You must be polite and thorough, and don't let the princess harm our Taoist temple."

Master Chen raised his fly whisk, placed it on the crook of his left elbow lying across his chest, and spoke softly.

The Changji in front of him is his disciple. Although he is a bit clumsy on weekdays, he has a pure and honest nature, which is the best character for cultivating Taoism.

On the other side, Bai Gui unfortunately suffered a serious illness a few years ago, so his family sent him to a Taoist temple to practice. Every year, there is no shortage of money for incense. He is smart, well-read, and his way of dealing with others makes people feel like the spring breeze is blowing on his face.

There is no youthful arrogance, which makes him very satisfied.

Unfortunately, he had no intention of saying that he wanted to become a disciple of Taoist Master Guanshi Hou of Zongsheng Temple. He was the master of Xiaguan Temple and could not get ahead of him, so he was not allowed to become a disciple.

However, he has already reported it to Master Hou of Zongshenguan, who also plans to recruit disciples.

If a young man has great ambitions, this is not a very lofty ambition.

However, because Hou Shaowei, the Taoist priest, is now the governor of the Zongsheng Temple and the master of the Haotian Temple, he has a prominent status and cannot accept disciples hastily, so this matter has been put aside for the time being.

Haotian Temple is the former residence of Li Zhi, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty.

"Yes, Master."

Bai Gui and Changji nodded.

Lean less.

Princess Jinxian finished her ritual ceremony at Doumu Hall and walked outside the hall.

When she saw two young Taoist priests next to Master Chen in front of the temple, she immediately understood that in the past, after going to various Taoist temples to offer religious offerings, there would be such cases, which was regarded as a relatively obscure introduction from Taoist temples.

The three of them talked about mystery.

In the Sui Dynasty, there was the Chongxuan Office, which was an official office dedicated to the management of Taoist monks and nuns. The emperor of the Tang Dynasty respected Taoism, so the Chongxuan Office was renamed Zongzheng Temple, and the monks and nuns belonged to the Shangshu Temple. Generally speaking, Zongzheng, as one of the Nine Ministers, was in charge of

Affairs of the royal family.

This shows that the royal family of Li and Tang Dynasties studied Taoism intensively.

"This Taoist priest has extraordinary conversational skills, and he speaks of all the Confucian and Taoist scriptures."

"I don't know where you come from?"

Princess Jinxian asked with her beautiful eyes moving.

She has developed a love for talents and has a good sense of Youxian Temple, so she asked a few questions. In addition, it is the second year of Jingyun. After experiencing the Shenlong Transformation and the Tang Long Transformation, the Tang Dynasty Hundreds

After being deposed and waiting for prosperity, her father and brother Tang Ruizong Li Dan, Prince Li Longji, and Princess Taiping were in charge. Although she said she practiced Taoism and practiced metaphysics, in fact, she occasionally recommended talents to her father and brother.

"My surname is Bai Minggui, and I was born in the Bai family of Jinyang. My ancestor was Wu'an Jun of the Qin Dynasty. The first emperor recognized my ancestors' merits and granted him the title of son in Jinyang. My seventh generation ancestor was the prefect of Jinyang in the Yuan and Wei Dynasties. My great-grandfather made great contributions to Gao Qi and granted him land in Hancheng.

Currently living in Xiagui, Huazhou..."

"Brother Baihuang is a lieutenant of Ruicheng County and travels abroad." (Baihuang, Bai Juyi's grandfather.)

Bai Gui cupped his hands and replied.

He dreamed of Huang Liang from Bailu Village to this time during the Jingyun period of the Tang Dynasty. His body was still his original body, but his bone age returned to sixteen years old. But during this period, he really had this life for sixteen years.

The memory was like a movie, replaying frame by frame in his mind.

He didn't understand the mystery of this, but he vaguely sensed in the Kunlun Mirror that this matter was only good for him, not bad.

As for Bai Xiuzhu, maybe she was reincarnated too late, and there is no news yet.

I guess it will take quite a while.

"It turns out that the commander-in-chief is in Jinyang."

Princess Jinxian nodded lightly.

During the Qin Dynasty, Lord Wu'an was also surnamed Bai. Needless to say, he was Bai Qi. The First Emperor of Qin once recognized Bai Qi's contribution, so he named his son Baizhong in Jinyang.

Although the Bai family in Jinyang is not as good as the Wang family in Jinyang, one of the five surnames and seven looks, it is still a famous big family. However, even for a big family, there are big houses, two houses, and three houses, and each house enjoys different benefits.

are different.

For example, Li Zhi, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty, once issued an edict prohibiting marriage among ten families of seven surnames. Among them, the Wang family of Jinyang, the descendants of Wang Qiong, the former prefect of Jinyang in the Northern Wei Dynasty, namely the first, second, third and fourth houses of Jinyang were included in the prohibition.

Marriage family, but other houses do not have this treatment.

Therefore, Princess Jinxian knew as soon as she heard that, although Bai Gui had a family background, today, he was already classified as a poor family.

A poor family is not a poor family that can be called a poor family by ordinary people, but a small landowner from the common people. Only a low-ranking noble family can be called a poor family.

"The historian is in need of a fairy boy."

"You can follow me to the mansion. I will recommend you to the historian one day. What do you think?"

Princess Jinxian smiled and said.

If she wants to recommend someone, she can't just send a letter of greeting to her father and brother. She has to find an occasion and an opportunity. So the fairy boy who made Bai Gui her master is just a temporary sinecure.

It’s similar to being a housekeeper, wait until the right opportunity comes and then recommend it.

At the same time, he entered her family for a long time, which was equivalent to being branded as a princess in her palace.

Fairy boy, generally underage Taoist priests can be given the title of fairy boy.

But just this honor is not something that ordinary people can get. For example, Changji was ignored by Princess Jinxian.

"Princess's kindness, I accept it with my heart."

Hearing this, a trace of disappointment flashed through Bai Gui's heart, but it was not shown on his face. He smiled freely and said:

"I have already applied for Jinshi and Martial Arts in November last year. In a few days, I will be admitted to Chang'an for reference. I only need to take fame, fame and wealth immediately, and win them with my pen. No recommendation from nobles is needed..."

Although by flattering the royal family members such as Princess Jinxian, one can obtain the qualifications for advancement, this is like a rootless duckweed. It can stand for a while, but in the long run, it will definitely lead to disaster.

The Shi Chongxuan mentioned by Princess Jinxian was a disciple of Princess Taiping. He came from a poor family and was now the minister of Honglu. However, in the following year, after Princess Taiping and Li Longji failed in their struggle for power, Shi Chongxuan would also be executed.

In the Tang Dynasty, if you wanted to get ahead, there were three ways to get ahead. One was the family shadow, which was suitable for the eldest son of a prominent family and was a true generational hairpin. The second was the imperial examination, which was suitable for people with talents and a certain family background.

The third is the recommendation system, in which the sons of powerful men recommend wise men to the court.

Among the three, the recommendation system is the lowest. Once the powerful official falls, his skin will be gone, and how will his hair be attached to him?

The imperial examination is based on the imperial court. It doesn't matter who is in power or the emperor. The imperial examination is based on the powerful families. After clinging to the powerful and entering the vanity fair, the first thing is to fight for the power of the officials.

, those who are good at swimming drown in the water.

Counting the prime ministers of the early Tang Dynasty, Pei Yan was born in Ming Dynasty; Zhang Jianzhi was born in Jinshi; Zong Chuke was born in Jinshi; Cui Riyong was born in Jinshi; Liu Youqiu was born in Jinshi; Zhang Jiuling was born in Jinshi; Zhang Jiazhen was born in Jinshi.

Graduated from Ming Jing Ke...

"History of the Tang Dynasty" says: "The Jinshi Department began in the great cause of the Sui Dynasty and flourished during the Zhenguan Yonghui period. Although the Jin gentry was in a very popular position, those who could not be Jinshi would not be beautiful in the end."

If Bai Gui wants to practice Taoism in this world, just like in Xunqing, he must first have an identity.

Once you have an identity, no matter what you do, others will look high on you, and no matter what you do, others will listen patiently and carefully.

He has already tasted the benefits of this.

And since he had fought his way out of the imperial examination in the late Qing Dynasty, he had learned both Chinese and Western knowledge, so there was no reason why he should be weaker than the literati at that time and could not seek any fame.

With fame, the road will be easy to follow.

"Oh, you want to take the imperial examination? Or the Jinshi examination?"

"By the way, I registered in November last year. As usual, the exam will start in February or March of the first month."

Princess Jinxian looked surprised and took a good look at Bai Gui, her expression still disbelieving.

Thirty-year-old Ming Jing, fifty-year-old Jinshi.

At first glance, this young Taoist priest is about the same age as her. How dare he dream of taking the imperial examination?!

The Jinshi subject only takes 20 to 30 people per subject, which is only one-tenth of the Ming Jing subject. It is the most noble among all the subjects in the imperial examination and is the first in each subject. Those who pass the Jinshi are also called "Jinshi" by the people of the time.
To be continued...