"Prime Minister, congratulations! Not only do you have a daughter of unparalleled beauty and virtue, but also a son-in-law favored by His Majesty with the position of Inspector of the Third Rank. Truly a joyous occasion!"
"Not at all, not at all. I, Yin, am merely an insignificant prime minister. Without His Majesty's grace and the blessings of heaven, how could I have such fortune? You gentlemen of the Lingyan Pavilion are the true pillars of our nation."
"Come, come, my son-in-law, my daughter, quickly toast the esteemed lords of the Lingyan Pavilion, Lord Changsun, and others. If you have any questions in your future work, you must seek their guidance."
"These lords are the meritorious officials who founded our Great Tang Empire. Their achievements are immense, and their abilities outstanding, far beyond what I, an unknown prime minister, can compare to."
In the officialdom, status is secondary, merit is the least important, and seniority reigns supreme.
Even though Yin Kaishan was celebrating a double blessing today and receiving unprecedented grand treatment, he dared not forget that he was merely ranked thirteenth among the twenty-four meritorious officials in the Lingyan Pavilion.
Thus.
Before others could continue their flattery, Yin Kaishan, with the cunning of an old fox, humbly and cautiously, led Chen Guangrui.
They then toasted and engaged in various pleasantries with other meritorious officials, such as the Duke of Zhao, Changsun Wuji, and the Duke of Zheng, Wei Zheng.
He presented himself as the greatest father-in-law in the Great Tang!
Alas.
Little did Yin Kaishan know at this moment that his good son-in-law and daughter were already entangled in the karma of Journey to the West. Whether it was the original or the replacement, they would soon fall into misfortune!
Such is time, such is fate.
Such is the will of heaven!
...
Here, all the officials were praising Chen Guangrui for his youthful promise and boundless future.
Over there, Li Shimin, who had temporarily left the banquet under the guise of an excuse, was no ordinary person. Besides his cultivation of the Great Perfection of Earth Immortal, which extended his lifespan, he was in the Earth Immortal Realm.
Even more so, after exiting this palace and returning to his study, without a word, he pressed a mechanism on the stone wall behind him.
He walked in.
He respectfully met two Daoists, whom even he, the Human Emperor, treated with courtesy!
"Daoist Li, Daoist Yuan, Shimin pays his respects!"
"As you two Daoists instructed previously, Shimin has bestowed this marriage upon the Yin family in his capacity as Human Emperor. Everything is as you predicted. However, I wonder if the matter you mentioned last time has yielded results?"
"You two claim to be direct disciples of Taibai Jinxing, the Chief Civil Official below the Jade Emperor of the Heavenly Court. I implore you to impart some wisdom."
"Although Shimin is merely a Human Emperor without actual power, I dare not ask for too much. I only wish to live another five hundred years, to usher in an even more prosperous era for our Great Tang."
"This small request should not anger you two, nor anger Taibai Jinxing, nor the Heavenly Dao, should it?"
In front of others, Li Shimin styled himself as the Human Emperor, but behind closed doors, facing two Daoists who claimed to be direct disciples of Taibai Jinxing, he immediately became respectful.
This was not entirely due to his low cultivation, which would force him to die at five hundred years old and reincarnate, thus losing the prosperity of Emperor Taizong of Tang.
More importantly, these two individuals indeed had extraordinary origins.
The one on the left, younger and more impulsive, was Taibai Jinxing's second direct disciple, Yuan Tiangang!
The one on the right, older and more stable, was Taibai Jinxing's eldest direct disciple, Li Chunfeng!
These two were, of course, no ordinary individuals.
They were the authors of the "Tuibei Tu" (Pushing the Cup to Foretell the Future) in the Blue Star timeline.
The difference was that Li Chunfeng calculated the operation of the Heavenly Dao from the perspective of an astronomer, while Yuan Tiangang used his peerless physiognomy to deduce human affairs.
One calculated heaven.
The other calculated humanity.
Although their specialties differed, due to their status as disciples of Taibai Jinxing, they were specifically sent to assist Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, which commanded his utmost respect!
Hearing Li Shimin's lingering doubts, Li Chunfeng and Yuan Tiangang exchanged glances and smiled.
"Your Majesty need not worry. Even saints find it difficult to fathom matters of the Heavenly Dao, let alone us. However, the Heavenly Dao is just and fair; it never acts without reason."
"And it never treats a wise ruler like Your Majesty too harshly."
"As for Your Majesty's plea, we brothers will certainly not neglect it. Now that Your Majesty has completed this matter, we only need to await subsequent events and gain merit from the Journey to the West."
"At that time, we brothers will have the opportunity to return to the Heavenly Court and report to our master, Taibai Jinxing. Once our master reports to the Jade Emperor, with the Emperor of Heaven and the Human Emperor working together, the Heavenly Dao will grant some face."
"Let alone just five hundred years, even if more benefits are sought, I believe the Jade Emperor will not object."
"However, Your Majesty must pay attention to one matter: ever since Primordial Lord of Heaven descended upon the Heavenly Court five hundred years ago, our Heavenly Court lineage has had karma with the Chan Sect."
"It is right for Your Majesty to favor our brothers, but you must absolutely not favor any person from the Chan Sect in the future, lest you incur trouble and we are unable to help."
Due to differing stances, Li Chunfeng and Yuan Tiangang spoke words that sounded like falsehoods to Sun Wukong, deceiving Li Shimin into believing in the Heavenly Court.
At the same time, they warned Li Shimin in advance: besides themselves and other insignificant minor deities, minor immortals, and minor sects in the Earth Immortal Realm, he was not to associate with anyone from the Chan Sect.
This showed that the Jade Emperor had been greatly intimidated by Primordial Lord of Heaven back then and was still on guard everywhere!
Hearing this, Li Shimin did not dare to delay. He repeatedly agreed, stating that although he also revered the Daoist school, within the Great Tang Empire, besides the Heavenly Court's Jade Emperor and the Human Sect's Laozi, there were no other Daoist branches.
Upon hearing this, Li Chunfeng and Yuan Tiangang were quite satisfied. They repeatedly praised Li Shimin as a wise ruler, and that in the future, he would likely have his lifespan extended by five hundred years.
Of course.
These were all pleasantries spoken in public.
After Li Shimin left happily, the two brothers, when no one else was around, revealed expressions of disdain and disgust!
"Eldest Brother, do you truly think so highly of this Li Shimin, that you plan to ask Master to help him?"
"Don't forget, it's not just that bastard Primordial Lord who has enmity with the Heavenly Court, but also Laozi. Before Laozi sealed his doors, he sent away Taishang Laojun."
"It seems he has no confidence in us."
Yuan Tiangang said indignantly.
"Second Brother, why be so serious? This Li Shimin is merely a Human Emperor without actual power. I am just deceiving him, making him help our Heavenly Court with matters. I never intended to truly help him."
"Moreover, Master said that this Journey to the West tribulation is extraordinary and has many variables. Li Shimin will have various karma related to the Journey to the West later, and might even die."
"As for Taishang Laojun, he is at least Laozi's good corpse. Do not speak nonsense. As long as Laozi remains neutral, our Heavenly Court still has hope."
Compared to the impulsive and easily angered Yuan Tiangang, Li Chunfeng was more experienced. With a chuckle, he immediately made Yuan Tiangang completely compliant.
The brothers believed no one could hear their hushed conversation.
Yet, they did not realize.
On the New Flower-Fruit Mountain.
Sun Wukong "heard" it!
Not only did he hear it.
Furthermore, after activating the "Wuhou Seven Star Array," he calculated a celestial number that made even Sun Wukong burst into laughter!