Early the next morning, Li Ye left this temple under the send-off of the master and a group of Taoist priests.

Seeing the young Taoist priest standing next to the Guan Master he asked yesterday, Li Ye couldn't help but continue to persuade, "Qingyang Dao Chief, with your talent, it is really a waste of talent to stay in this view, why don't you go down the mountain with this king, this king can help you realize your dream of alchemy and provide you with what you need for alchemy."

Qingcheng Mountain is a quiet place, where alchemy affects the cultivation of other Taoist leaders, why not go down the mountain with this king. ”

"Your Highness doesn't need to persuade you, Qingyangzi has no intention of being red dust." The Taoist priest known as Qingyangzi shook his head, still refusing the persuasion of the prince in front of him.

Since yesterday, the other party has been asking who can do alchemy, and after learning that he can do alchemy, the other party has been pestering himself, hoping that he will help him do alchemy. He had already politely refused yesterday, but he didn't expect to still persevere, although it made him a little moved, but when he thought of the purpose of his viewing, he shook his head.

"Qingyang Taoist is too persistent, as the saying goes, 'the Taoist priest in the troubled times goes down the mountain, and the monks in the prosperous times collect money', and now it coincides with the troubled times, why should the Taoist be obsessed with the original oath. This king still has to go to the Shangqing Palace, at least tomorrow will go down the mountain, this king does not force the Taoist, if the Taoist changes his mind, he only needs to send someone to notify him. ”

Seeing that the other party was still very stubborn, Li Ye did not persuade him again, there are also Taoist priests of alchemy in the Shangqing Palace on the mountain, so there is no need to hang himself on a tree. The reason why he is very interested in this Qingyangzi is mainly because the other party has extraordinary conversations and some talents, as for why the other party is a Taoist priest, he doesn't know.

After Li Ye and his party left, the white-haired Guan Zhu waved the dust in his hand, said to Qingyangzi, and said kindly, "Qingyangzi, in fact, you can go down the mountain with this Shouwang." ”

"Lord, don't you teach us to ignore all mundane things?" Qingyangzi was a little surprised, "And this Shouwang doesn't really want to refine the elixir, Qingyangzi has other plans to serve him." ”

"Even if there are other plans, what does it matter?" Looking at Li Ye who was far away, the viewer brushed the beard on his chin, looking like a virtuous person, "His Royal Highness King Shou is right. 'The Taoist priest in the troubled times went down the mountain, and the monks in the prosperous times collected money', now the world will be chaotic, and we and other Taoist priests cannot ignore it. And I think this Shouwang is rich and noble, and it is very likely to ascend to the position of the Ninety-Five Supreme in the future, and more importantly, he has no good impression of Buddhism.

Now Buddhism is powerful, and although my Taoism is the state religion, it is still suppressed. Since King Shou is interested in you, you should seize this opportunity to strengthen my Daomen. In addition to alchemy, aren't you also learning the science of governing the country, aren't you just waiting for the day when you can apply what you have learned? ”

"Spectator?" As soon as the old master said this, Qingyangzi, who had a firm Taoist heart, was shaken.

"Think about it yourself, don't miss the opportunity, and the time will never come."

As he spoke, the Guan Zhu stretched his sleeves, then turned around and walked towards the Guannei, and the other Taoists hurriedly followed, leaving Qingyangzi there thoughtfully.

Due to the good scenery near the Shangqing Palace, Li Ye stayed on the top of Qingcheng Mountain for two nights and only went down the mountain on the third day. Unlike the frustration of inviting people at the Zhangren Temple, Li Ye went very smoothly in the Shangqing Palace and several other Taoist temples, and when he went down the mountain, there were seven more Taoist priests.

However, to Li Ye's surprise, he met Qingyangzi when he went down the mountain, and the other party promised to accept his invitation and go down the mountain to save the world. As for whether he really saved the world, Li Ye didn't know, but he knew that he had gained a lot from this trip. Qingyangzi is not alone, and there are two Taoist children accompanying him, so there are ten Taoist priests who go down the mountain with him.

These ten Taoist priests basically have experience in alchemy, and among them, Li Ye attaches more importance to the two people in the Shangqing Palace. Because these two people are the survivors of the alchemy explosion in the Shangqing Palace not long ago, and they still remember the formula of alchemy. Several other people were also familiar with alchemy, and although there had never been an explosion, the experience was there.

Although Li Ye went up the mountain to find ten Taoist priests to go down the mountain, as the county commander of Qingcheng County, the county commander surnamed Shi took the initiative to invite Li Ye to live in Qingcheng County for two days, so as to fulfill the friendship of the landlord.

In the evening of the same day, Shi County Commander prepared a relatively sumptuous dinner at the county office. This abundance is for ordinary people, and it is not rich for Li Ye and others, but after all, the county order is only a county order, and it is impossible for people to make delicious dishes like the palace or even the palace.

Qingcheng County is Shang County, with more than 8,000 households, that is, more than 50,000 people. The population of the county seat is not large, only more than 10,000 people, so the whole county does not feel big, just like a slightly larger town in later generations. However, the economy of Qingcheng County is good, because the Dujiangyan Water Conservancy Project is on the side, the land is fertile, and it is rich in tea.

Qingcheng tea is the representative, after Mengding mountain tea could not be shipped out due to rebellion, tea from Qingcheng, Pengzhou and other places became the main source of tea for Li's Tea House and He's Tea House.

After taking a sip of the wine in front of him, Li Ye put down the wine glass in his hand and asked the Qingcheng County Order, "Shi County Order, has this Qingcheng been attacked by the Tubo people in recent years?" ”

"Back to His Royal Highness, although Qingcheng is close to Tubo, the nearby Tubo people have not invaded for a long time, but there are many Tubo people who have come to exchange things for life. According to the news heard by the lower officials, Tubo is now divided and has no ability to attack our Tang Dynasty, and the terrain west of Qingcheng is complicated, and it is difficult for the cavalry of the Tubo people to march. "Shi County Commander has been in Qingcheng for more than 20 years, although he has encountered attacks by breakthrough people, but the scale is very small, Qingcheng and Daojiang have military towns, so naturally there is no need to worry about the small-scale attacks of the Tubo people.

Li Ye nodded, "Tubo is weak now, if I can seize this opportunity and conquer Tubo in one fell swoop, my Datang will have one less confidant." ”

The Tang Dynasty fought a war with Tubo for hundreds of years, and before the Anshi Rebellion, the Tang Dynasty occupied the Hexi Corridor, coupled with its strong national strength, it has always been in an advantageous position. However, after the outbreak of the Anshi Rebellion, in order to quell the rebellion, the troops of Hexi, Longyou and other places were transferred back to the Central Plains to quell the rebellion, and Tubo took the opportunity to occupy the Hexi and Longyou regions, and then captured Beiting, Anxi and other places, and the Tang Dynasty no longer had the land of the Western Regions.

In addition, the Tang Dynasty after the Anshi Rebellion has been internally unstable, and the forces of the feudal towns have rebelled from time to time, and the Tang Dynasty can no longer concentrate its troops to deal with the nomadic peoples such as the Tibetans.

However, 40 years ago, the internal political power of Tibet led to the collapse of Tibet, and since then there has been no unified political power on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. If Tibet is attacked at this time, each of them can be defeated, and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau can be completely unified and incorporated into the territory of the Tang Dynasty. After unifying the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the Tang Dynasty had no worries about whether it was westward into the Western Regions or the nomads in the north.

"What His Highness said is very true, but now the court is in decline. There are rebels and feudal towns in the country, and if you don't solve the internal problems, you won't be able to deal with the foreign enemy with all your might. Shi County Decree echoed.

"It seems that Shi County's order has a very thorough view of the current situation!" Li Ye looked at the county order and couldn't help but glance at the other party.

Shi Xian Ling hurriedly explained, "Your Highness has an overreputation. Xia Guan is just standing on the outside, so he can see clearly. ”

Li Ye nodded, this is the so-called 'the authorities are confused, and the bystanders are clear'. Although Qingcheng is located on the border, it is not desolate, and it is far from the war, even the rebellion of Qianneng has not affected Qingcheng. The other party is like a spectator standing outside the chessboard, and can naturally see the situation on the entire chessboard. However, even if the other party can see the situation clearly, he is just a small county order, and being able to see the situation clearly does not mean that he can change the situation, this is the helplessness of the little people.

"Speaking of this, this king remembered the two sentences of "Chu Ci", 'The whole world is turbid, I am alone, everyone is drunk, and I am sober'." Li Ye said with a smile.

"Your Highness has an overreputation, how can the lower officials compare with Qu Yuan." Shi Xianling hurriedly shook his head, Li Ye's hat was a little high for him.

"Your Highness is always talented, why bother quoting the poems of your predecessors." Pei Rong on the side said with a smile.

Li Ye was stunned for a moment, glanced at Pei Rong, and quickly understood the other party's intentions, so he said with a smile, "Pei Sima, do you want to see this king make a fool of himself?" But today's interest is just right, just play on the spot, if it's not good, you don't have to laugh. ”