Grinning from ear to ear

Zi Shou was enjoying a sound sleep in his bedchamber.

He had not gone to Shouxian Palace that day. His body could not quite take it.

Daji was a Thousand-Year White Fox, after all-a demon. Even in a human body, her constitution was far stronger than his.

After a night's rest, his aching back felt much better, and Zi Shou appreciated the system's importance more keenly than ever.

I have to earn more Foolishness Value and become an immortal or a Buddha. Being mortal is so hard!

Then several eunuchs attending the king came to report that Fei Zhong and You Hun sought an audience.

Disturbing someone's sweet dreams was a thoroughly irritating thing to do.

But upon hearing that it was those two lackeys, Fei Zhong and You Hun, Zi Shou forgave them, considering that they were the only ones who would obey him unconditionally.

"Minister Fei, Minister You, what brings you here?"

Fei Zhong had a nimble tongue and quickly recounted the rumors circulating in the streets and Yun Zhongzi's fortune-telling.

"Your Majesty, that is the gist of it."

"Grandee You and I believe that the Daoist will certainly make a move against Lady Su!"

Fei Zhong sounded terribly anxious.

Zi Shou's drowsiness vanished in an instant.

Could there really be such a wonderful thing?

He nearly forgot his dignity and laughed aloud in front of them. Was this not someone delivering a pillow just as he was nodding off?

Although he had long neglected morning court and lingered in Shouxian Palace every night, most of those who knew were ministers. The common people remained half-convinced at best.

Now Yun Zhongzi's antics had substantiated the rumors. People in this era believed in immortal magic; after all, immortals really did exist in this world.

They believed Yun Zhongzi's words without a shred of doubt. If the Daoist said there was a demon in the palace, then there certainly was!

This meant Zi Shou could rack up an even greater reputation for foolishness before the settlement. The calculation of Foolishness Value was intimately tied to what people truly thought!

The more people believed King Zhou was a foolish ruler, the more Foolishness Value he would receive at settlement!

If Yun Zhongzi could keep this up and settle permanently in Chaoge, even more people would believe he was a foolish king who favored demons and neglected state affairs. The rumors would continue spreading their influence, perhaps even heaping infamy upon his head. That would be...

Fantastic!

There was not much time left before the Foolishness Value settlement. His obsession with beauty, fooling the feudal lords with beacon fires, and these popular rumors might really earn him something decent. Even if he could not redeem the Pangu Axe, a Dongfeng-41 would be pretty good!

Zi Shou struggled to remain composed and keep himself from laughing aloud.

You Hun, however, took Zi Shou's silence as a sign that matters were even more serious. "Your Majesty, what should we do?"

Zi Shou covered his face slightly with his sleeve. He could barely hold it in anymore. Yun Zhongzi truly was an accomplished cultivator of the Dao!

Only after a long while did he calm his excitement and say slowly, "Be patient. Since matters have come to this, we might as well quietly watch how they develop."

Yes, there's no need to do anything. Just wait for the Foolishness Value settlement, ascend to immortality in broad daylight, and punch straight through the Heavenly Dao.

Fei Zhong left the palace weighed down by worries.

As he walked through the marketplace, rumors of King Zhou's foolishness and tyranny reached his ears.

More and more people believed that the reigning King Zhou had been blinded by a demonic consort.

Unlike the rather brainless You Hun, Fei Zhong possessed a little cleverness, so he thought more deeply. And the more he thought, the more uneasy he became.

Lady Huang of the Western Palace had reportedly gone to Shouxian Palace to remonstrate with him, only to fail to return to her own palace that night.

How outrageous was that?

His Majesty told me to quietly watch how things develop.

But...

Fei Zhong felt he had it far too hard. King Zhou could say he would quietly watch events unfold while deliberately continuing his nightly revelry, but Fei Zhong could not!

He was the one keeping all those court ministers outside!

The pressure was immense!

Amid the bustling market, Yun Zhongzi bore the air and bearing of an immortal.

He gently stroked his long beard and sent another old man on his way.

Mortals were so easily satisfied. Most asked about their prospects or wealth-all vulgar, lesser arts.

Yun Zhongzi was a disciple of a Sage. If he had not been trying to meet King Zhou, he would never have divined such things.

Still, this was a win-win arrangement. He could pressure King Zhou into letting him enter the palace to eliminate the demon while also expanding the Chan Sect's influence among the people of Great Shang.

Yun Zhongzi had already spent some time in Chaoge and had largely ascertained the situation. King Zhou was indeed highly capable. Apart from a few minor blemishes, he could be called an enlightened ruler of his age.

He had merely been bewitched by a demon and become foolish. That was understandable, too. How could a mortal without the strength to truss a chicken resist a demon?

But precisely because King Zhou had previously been an enlightened ruler, he would surely shed tears of gratitude once the demon was removed. Yun Zhongzi would then gain a share of Great Shang's fortune. He understood very well that, with King Zhou's grand talents and bold vision, the Investiture Calamity might truly change.

He might be the pivotal figure who transformed the Chan Sect's circumstances.

Yun Zhongzi spotted Fei Zhong walking toward him.

A few calculations on his fingers revealed Fei Zhong's identity. This was the very man who had blocked so many ministers from gaining an audience. Once he won him over, meeting King Zhou would be easy.

The pressure from the rumors was almost sufficient. Fei Zhong was the final key.

As long as Fei Zhong also believed in him without reservation and led him into the palace, he could then deliver charcoal in the snow, subduing demons and banishing evil...

Then the Chan Sect could sit securely on the fishing terrace throughout this great calamity.

Yun Zhongzi said, "Might you be Grandee Fei of the current court?"

Hearing Yun Zhongzi identify him at a glance, Fei Zhong could not help freezing in surprise.

He really is an immortal!

Yun Zhongzi was accustomed to reactions like Fei Zhong's. "I am Yun Zhongzi, a cultivator of Mount Zhongnan."

After composing himself, Fei Zhong studied Yun Zhongzi carefully.

His features were striking and refined, his bearing transcendent and untouched by worldly dust. Though he wore an ordinary Daoist robe, his speech was extraordinary. The difference between him and the blind fortune-tellers on street corners was like that between heaven and earth.

Seeing Fei Zhong's expression, Yun Zhongzi knew where he stood and went straight to the point.

People with a little cleverness were easier to fool than either utter idiots or the excessively shrewd.

Yun Zhongzi spoke to Fei Zhong in a calm, detached tone.

In short, there was a demon in the palace. Although Fei Zhong was obeying the king's orders by preventing ministers from gaining an audience, those orders had only been issued because the king had been bewitched by a demon.

If Fei Zhong brought him into the palace to meet the king and eliminate the demon, the king would come to his senses. Given the wisdom His Majesty had displayed before, he would not only refrain from blaming Fei Zhong but reward him as well.

Fei Zhong's eyes gradually brightened. He was tempted!

Yes! His Majesty used to be wise and mighty, devising strategies within his command tent. How could he stop attending morning court, refuse to see his ministers, and spend all day wallowing in the Imperial Harem?

Something was wrong!

Had it been You Hun instead of Fei Zhong, things would have been different. You Hun had little brains and would not think so much. Whatever King Zhou told him to do, he did. He listened only to King Zhou, so Yun Zhongzi would have had no way to hoodwink him.

But Fei Zhong possessed a little cleverness, so he thought one step further-and played right into Yun Zhongzi's hands.

Yun Zhongzi took in every detail of Fei Zhong's reaction. He knew his entry into the palace was now all but assured.

Next, he merely needed to wait quietly.

"Daoist, as a subject of Great Shang, I am duty-bound to purge the court of demons. However... this is a matter of grave importance, and we must proceed cautiously."

Fei Zhong knew that alone, he had little strength or influence. To secure Yun Zhongzi an audience with King Zhou, he would need to pool everyone's ideas and efforts.

Yun Zhongzi had been prepared for this. Once the gatekeeper barring the ministers changed sides, everything afterward would flow naturally, like water into a channel. He smiled. "Naturally."

Enough had been said. Saying too much would only make things worse.

Yun Zhongzi closed his eyes to rest, quietly awaiting his opportunity.

Fei Zhong was about to return to his residence to make plans. Before he had taken more than a couple of steps, he suddenly remembered something and hurriedly turned back to ask, "Daoist, may I ask how much pork will cost tomorrow?"

The Beacon Tower was under construction.

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