Temple Completion and Choosing Temple Attendants

Zhang San's little temple was a single-courtyard siheyuan facing south, covering roughly three hundred square meters. Built in a Chinese style, it had red walls, dark tiles, high walls, and deep courtyards.

To echo Hogwarts Castle from afar, the Taoist priests had creatively incorporated Western elements—the stone lions before the temple gate were shaped like Gryffindor lions. It was a prime example of applying Western learning to Chinese use, learning the barbarians' strengths to control the barbarians.

The vermilion courtyard gates were fitted with raven-shaped door knockers, while an oak plaque hung high above the lintel, engraved in both Chinese and foreign script: "Hogwarts Guardian Deity Temple, Stationed by the Celestial Masters' Mansion of Mount Longhu." The Chinese was written in seal script, while the foreign language used runes. Any less educated wizard would have no idea what it said.

The gatehouse on the left side of the rear-facing rooms served as both a reception desk and a place to buy incense and candles. Worshippers had to obtain their incense there before going to the main hall to burn it and pray for blessings.

The gatehouse on the right was the fasting hall, which occasionally offered Eastern-style tea and snacks. As for exactly when they would be available, that depended on Zhang San's mood. He was the deity enshrined in the temple and held the ultimate authority over its operations.

The west wing was the Forbidden Forest Mountain God Hall, where Mountain God Zhang San was enshrined. The statue had been carved from wood felled in the Forbidden Forest. The Taoist priest wielding the carving knife was exceptionally skilled, making the statue lifelike. The divine robe on the Mountain God statue was brocade woven from unicorn hair, glittering brilliantly in the sunlight.

The east wing was the Black Lake Water Earl Hall, where Water Earl Zhang San was enshrined. The statue had been made by digging up mud from the bottom of the Black Lake, shaping it, and firing it in a kiln. Thanks to its glazed and painted finish, the statue shone with an ever-changing array of colors.

Most absurdly, the Taoist priest digging mud from the lake had wanted to casually scoop up a couple of Grindylows to guard the entrance to the Water Earl Hall. Zhang San thought the things were too ugly and ruined the view, so he had threatened them with having their souls scattered before the priest finally released the two unlucky creatures.

The main hall in the center enshrined Earth God Zhang San. This statue had been cast from a huge lump of gold. There were no fancy embellishments—it was simply expensive. Gold was also a precious material in the wizarding world; even Galleons were not made of one hundred percent gold.

All three statues had been consecrated by masters, and each one could properly support Zhang San's soul form. No matter which deity the worshippers prayed to, the power of their incense offerings would gather upon Zhang San.

For Zhang San, having a temple meant having roots. He was no longer a squatter stubbornly lingering in the human world, but the officially ordained Guardian Deity of Hogwarts.

In the future, Hogwarts could even develop a new version of the Patronus Charm—Summon Zhang San. Any student who had sincerely worshipped him could use this spell. In his soul form, Zhang San was unrestricted by space and could answer the spell's summons at any time, appearing beside whoever needed him.

The flowerbeds in the courtyard had been divided into four sections, planted according to the styles of the different Houses: Gryffindor red roses, Slytherin silver reeds, Ravenclaw blue hydrangeas, and Hufflepuff green daffodils.

Worshippers could pick any flowers they liked and take them away. As the saying went, giving roses left a lingering fragrance on one's hands. Letting worshippers leave with fresh flowers would effectively increase the odds of them returning. Besides, with the Earth God watching over the flowerbeds before his temple, the flowers grew even better than weeds.

Once the temple opened, Zhang San himself would have to drum up all its incense offerings. Hogwarts had never had a tradition of burning incense or worshipping gods. If the students did not come to burn incense, Zhang San would have no way to cultivate his path to becoming a god through incense offerings.

If only Hogwarts were full of old men and old women. Then Zhang San could raise a flock of hens specifically to lay eggs. Once the chicken-butt bank had saved up enough, he could use a loudspeaker to call the uncles and aunties over to line up—burn incense and get free eggs. The incense offerings would definitely flourish!

After the little temple had been built, Zhang San's range of activity expanded from Hogwarts Castle to an area encompassing the Forbidden Forest, the Black Lake, and several hills around the castle.

He still could not go too far, but it was enough for Zhang San. He had had enough of life at Hogwarts without electrical appliances. It was clearly already the 1990s, yet Hogwarts was still living like it was the Middle Ages.

Zhang San had long had plans for managing incense offerings. He had specifically asked the Taoist priests to leave him plenty of underground space during construction. On the surface, the little temple was only a bit over three hundred square meters, but once the empty underground space was included, the total area became much larger.

On the morning of September 4, 1991, the delegation from China that had come to offer condolences boarded a chartered plane back to China. Zhang San, whose first seven days after death had not even passed, was promptly hauled back to class by Professor McGonagall.

Although Zhang San was biologically dead, he was still alive in a special state that conformed to mysticism. Therefore, Professor McGonagall believed that he still needed to complete his studies at Hogwarts and finish the seven-year magic curriculum alongside his classmates.

"And so, I came back to class with you guys." Zhang San sat properly between Harry and Ron, pretending to listen attentively as Professor Binns—one of his own kind and practically a living fossil of Hogwarts—lectured on that long, stale History of Magic.

As a proper Chinese citizen, Zhang San had spent his previous life grinding through the high school entrance exam, then the college entrance exam, then the civil service exam... After finally passing the civil service exam, earning his superiors' favor, and becoming the office's chief ghostwriter, he had died young from staying up late to write documents. He did have some skill in literary appreciation, and one glance was enough for him to see that this lousy textbook was no good.

He silently gave its author a bad review. The entire textbook was nothing but dry text. Who was it even written for? Where were the illustrations? The pictures? Such an expensive textbook did not even include a single moving image. Even ripping people off had limits.

Granted, Bathilda Bagshot, the author of A History of Magic and Hogwarts: A History, was a highly respected historian of magic, but had she never considered the feelings of young readers when writing her books?

The people who chose textbooks for Hogwarts had holes in their heads too. How had they come up with the brilliant idea of making eleven- and twelve-year-old boys and girls chew through massive tomes?

In any case, apart from one top student girl who continued listening with shining eyes, everyone else enjoyed some exquisite sleep.

Harry and Ron were not sleepy, though. They had been crowding around Zhang San, eagerly asking about what he had experienced over the past few days.

Zhang San did not hide anything. He told them everything at once: how he had called people over from his hometown to help retrieve him after his death, negotiated with Dumbledore to be officially ordained as a deity, and built a temple on the open ground outside the castle.

He also enthusiastically invited the two of them to become his temple attendants. Before he cultivated to a certain level, Zhang San could not interfere with reality in his soul form. He still needed living people to handle and manage many things for him.

Harry Potter and Ron Weasley were both warmhearted and full of energy. They were certainly excellent laborers—strike that... assistants. Unfortunately, they were not very familiar with Hermione Granger yet. Otherwise, they could have tricked the top student girl into working at the temple too.

"Temple attendants? That's so cool!" Ron happily agreed. This was the first time anyone had asked him to do something. The feeling of being trusted and relied upon was something Ron had dreamed of.

Harry Potter asked, "What do temple attendants need to do? We might not have much time..."

"The Hogwarts house-elves will help clean the temple. Normally, temple attendants only need to take a stroll around the place now and then." Zhang San spoke mysteriously. "The most important task of temple attendants is actually helping me keep watch over the place... I have a connection in Japan, and international deliveries will be sent to Hogwarts when the time comes. Once my little temple has its grand opening, I'll be counting on you two brothers. Remember, remember—make sure you learn the Levitation Charm well. There'll be lots of things to move."

Harry and Ron immediately turned serious. "Don't worry. Leave it to us!"

Hermione, sitting in the row behind them, shot an unfriendly glance at the two boys and one floating ghost who were not paying attention in class. Curling her lips, she muttered disdainfully, "Hmph, boys!"