togophonebook Chapter 730: Grassy Fox
Chapter 730: Grassy Fox
Chapter 730: Grassy Fox
Upon hearing this, the fox was a little shy and looked around to see if there was anyone willing to be the first to step forward.
But there are really some people who are willing to be the first to take action.
A fox wearing a round-necked green robe and wrapped in a scarf stood up, looking heroic and carrying the aura of a ghost.
Some familiar foxes from Wuning County were already shouting “Oh! Oh!” and joining in the fun.
The fox bowed to Gong Mengbi and called out, "Master."
Then he turned to the fox, his eyes sharp, and said: "Some of my classmates recognize me, some don't. My name is Li Tayun, and I am currently serving as the fox inspector in the Wuning County City God Inspection Office. I can barely be considered a ninth-rank official."
"Back then, there was some unrest in Wuning County, and the new city god took office. He was short of soldiers and horses, so the master advised me to join him, and I have been in office until now."
Several foxes around Li Taoyun also stood up and said, "Back then, we went to work under the City God with Brother Li, but we don't have Brother Li's ability. Now, there is only one person from the ninth rank, and the others are not of rank and can only be regarded as minor officials."
Even so, the other foxes were already envious.
Kang Wen followed Li Taoyun and said with a smile: "My name is Kang Wen. I am the same age as Li Taoyun. After I finished my apprenticeship, I was valued by the master and was admitted to the Sky Fox Academy. Now I stay in the Fox Academy."
Li Tayun pouted at her. This competitive woman always liked to outdo him in various things.
Among the foxes in Jinhua County, Xiaoniang also stepped out and said, "My name is Liu Xiao, you can just call me Xiaoniang. Before I became your disciple, I lived in the red-light district of Jinhua City. Later, I was enlightened by your guidance, and I broke through the barriers and started over. I was admitted to the Heavenly Fox Academy, and now I am working in the Fox Academy of Lanyin Temple."
Once someone takes the lead, others will be eager to try.
A heroic fox girl said, "My name is Chen Hao, and I am also a student of the Heavenly Fox Academy. I am now a shaman in Shangnan Village in Jinhua County, offering sacrifices to the Goddess of Mount Tai. Although I don't have an official position, I have learned a few simple Taoist techniques and can barely drive away evil spirits in the mountains and cure minor illnesses. I have earned some incense and am respected by the villagers."
"I am not as good as my senior brothers and sisters. I have failed the Tianhu Academy entrance exam for three years and am now preparing for the fourth year. I am now working as an assistant to the community god of Meizi Village in Wuning County, communicating with the gods and barely making a living."
"I am even worse. I only practice in seclusion in the ancestral tomb of the landlord to the east of Huagangzi Village. I eat the fruits offered to me, and go hunting if there are no fruits. If I see someone possessed by evil spirits or ghosts, I go to save them. It is worth my education."
"I stayed in the library of an old man in my county whose ancestors were officials. I helped to repair the books. I recited poems and played chess with him on weekdays, and I also learned some literary skills."
"You all have a livelihood? Why don't I have one?"
"You still have to have the ability. If you don't have the ability, you can only starve in a dry grave."
Once they started talking, they couldn't stop. The foxes asked questions about everything and inquired about each other.
The one who has done the best is Li Taoyun. After all, he has squeezed into the orthodox Shinto. Even if he has no chance of promotion, the fact that he is a priest makes him much better than others.
The second is those who stay in Fox Court. Although they are not true gods, with the support of the Master, it is also an excellent place to go.
Secondly, you can serve as a deputy to assist the gods in the village and community, and also get some incense.
The second is to be a sorcerer on your own, relying entirely on your own management, with no long-term security and no decent reputation.
Secondly, those who live among landlords and bureaucrats never have to worry about food and drink.
Secondly, if you treat yourself as a fox god or a fox fairy and receive worship from people, it is considered an obscene worship and may be destroyed, driven away or even subdued.
Secondly, you need to have a job to make a living, whether it is farming, hunting or anything else, and you can support yourself.
Secondly, when you live with others, you cannot make your own decisions and may even have to earn money to support others.
The worst situation is that you live alone in a cemetery, with no means of making a living, and whether you can have enough to eat depends entirely on the weather.
This is the ranking from Hu Zi's perspective, but it is slightly different from Gong Mengbi's perspective.
Staying in the Fox Courtyard is considered the first class. As long as you practice diligently, you can always move up through the Heavenly Fox Courtyard. When Gong Mengbi has paved a path, those who come after him will never lose their way by following his path.
Climbing into the Shinto is considered the second rank, and climbing up the Shinto is more difficult than climbing up the Sky Fox Court. Even if Li Tayun can outlast the current City God until he leaves office, he will not be able to be promoted to the eighth rank when the next City God comes.
The third category is those who serve as shamans, worshipping the Goddess of Mount Tai and praying for her to manifest spiritual responses. As long as they do not act out of line and bless the people around them, they will always be able to accumulate incense and good deeds for use in their spiritual practice.
The fourth type is the auxiliary gods between villages and communities. Although they can do things, the credit does not belong to me. They must be able to endure the hardship and suffering.
The ones that come after are pretty much the same.
Gong Mengbi raised his hand and pressed it down, and the foxes who were always paying attention to him immediately lowered their voices and focused their attention on him.
Gong Mengbi asked, "When I built Fox Court, I said that Fox Court has three destinations. If you seek the best, you can seek immortality and Taoism; if you seek the middle, you can mingle in the temple and the underworld; if you are the worst, you can become a fox ghost."
"Those who can seek the best do not need me to elaborate."
"As long as you seek harmony among the above, there are many ways to do it. You are gathered in my temple now, and it may seem crowded, but if you pour it into the human world, not even a splash of water can be made."
"I am now pointing out a way for you. Whether you can seize the opportunity depends on you."
"The city god protects the city, but when it comes to the village, only the community god can take care of it. If the sacrifice is rich, the community god can still show his response. If the sacrifice is shallow, it can only rely on the protection of the household god."
"Disasters are frequent, and evil spirits are everywhere. The city god can protect a city, and the community god can barely protect a village. But what about those people in the countryside who don't have the protection of the community god?"
"I heard that there is a god of five powers who specializes in inciting people to believe in evil ghosts and demons and steal the incense and merits. He was punished by the sky not long ago. The god of five powers is rampant in the countryside, defrauding the incense and merits from the common people and robbing them of their merits."
"It's not that the City God doesn't want to manage, but that he can't. Demons are easy to kill, but human hearts are hard to get rid of. The emperor offers sacrifices to the gods of heaven, and officials offer sacrifices to the City God and other gods. The common people have no way to offer sacrifices, and can only offer sacrifices to community gods and household gods. If there is no community god, the household gods are separated by yin and yang and have no response, then only the wild gods can be offered sacrifices to seek peace."
"In this chaotic situation, besides one Five-Power God, there will be more Five-Power Gods emerging. We are born as wild foxes, and we are originally ordinary people. I wonder if you have such ambition to return to the grass and fill this vacancy before more Five-Power Gods emerge."
"Just like Hagi, she is worshipped as a god, both a witch and a messenger of the gods."
"If you have other ambitions, you can naturally strive for them. If you don't have other ambitions, why not return to the countryside and go to where you are needed."
(End of this chapter)