With that said, he strode off to the left.

Seeing him elated, Li Yan smiled and shook his head, following closely behind.

Boom!

In the distance, the sound of firecrackers erupted again.

Thus, as the night descended upon Chengdu Prefecture, the wind and snow howled, the green tiles blanketed in snow, icicles hanging from the eaves, yet they could not suppress the festive air of the last day of the twelfth lunar month.

The two treaded on the creaking snow, weaving through the streets and alleys, and shortly arrived outside a large mansion.

This place clearly housed a wealthy family.

Bamboo stood planted before the door, red lanterns illuminated the courtyard gate amidst the snow.

The two leapt, landing silently upon the courtyard wall.

It was a three-tiered courtyard, where red lanterns were placed all around, servant girls and maids coming and going, busy preparing a feast.

Various dishes filled three large tables.

The host was prosperous, and at this moment, everyone had gathered in the front hall to worship their ancestors, the tribute on the offering table piled up like a mountain.

The plaque for Immortal Master Erlang was prominently among them.

Leading the ceremony was a plump old man clad in a fox fur.

While lighting incense and adding oil, he turned his head and sighed: "Years ago during the Shu pandemic, on this day I nearly starved to death. I stole the offerings meant for the Immortal Master to eat, surviving through it, so every year on this day I offer tribute."

"Remember, even if I am gone, this tradition must be upheld!"

"Yes, Father!"

"Yes, Grandfather!"

The descendants below nodded in agreement promptly.

Li Yan observed this, chuckling quietly: "Quite devout, did the predecessor help him?"

To his surprise, Yang Chenghua merely glanced indifferently, "Devotion is worthless, the clay idol Erlang ignores them, and so do I."

While Li Yan was still pondering, the old man below continued to burn incense and pray: "Immortal Master above, bless me with a threefold increase in salt introduction come spring..."

Turns out he was a salt merchant.

Upon hearing this, Li Yan instantly understood the scenario.

The salt merchants of Chengdu Prefecture were no benevolent folk.

Li Yan heard upon entering the city that they not only habitually short-changed weights but also pawned off subpar goods, fostering toxic industry practices despised by Chengdu's populace.

Were it not for this, the Salt Gang's recent actions would not have won public acclaim, it's said some salt merchants even orchestrated a group to impersonate, and bought cheaply from the public.

Greedy beyond measure, even the Salt Gang couldn't stand it.

This family, living in luxury, must have sucked the lifeblood out of many.

Perhaps tired of the plump old man's voice, Yang Chenghua frowned, took another gulp of wine, then cast a mantra with a sudden spray.

Whoosh~

An alcohol mist billowed out, causing the entire family along with those maids and servants, to collapse onto the ground as if intoxicated.

Seemed like a spell, mixed with incense fire divine power...

Li Yan was still analyzing the technique when Yang Chenghua leapt down, directly heading to those feast tables, laughing heartily: "He ate my offerings, so I'll eat from his feast. Come, cheers!"

With that, he uncorked a jug of wine, taking all the braised lamb from the tables to eat and drink heartily.

"Cheers!"

Li Yan also picked up a wine jug, drinking a large mouthful.

The two drank and feasted, wasting no words.

On this night of the last day of the twelfth lunar month, acting brashly and unrestrained, strangely infused with a sense of exhilaration.

Unconsciously, the ground soon became littered with empty jugs.

Not to mention Yang Chenghua who had already drunk quite a lot, but even Li Yan was seven or eight points drunk, his collar loosened, a hint of unrestrained spirit in his brows.

The two staggered, seeking out brush and ink.

Yang Chenghua, with a broad smile, wrote on the face of the plump old man: "Offerings back from Grandson today."

Li Yan then wrote on the screen by the front door:

Worshiping gods is less than worshiping one's heart, seeking wealth is less than seeking virtue.

Only after causing some mischief did they depart in satisfaction.

Fueled by their drunkenness, they wandered freely through the city.

In Wenshu Temple Lane, they saw beneath the pharmacy's eaves, hanging a hurricane lamp, amidst the wind and snow, a woman wrapped in a blue headscarf kneeling at the door, wailing and imploring: "Doctor Li, please save my child's life..."

"What a time, crying sorrow on New Year's!"

The assistant, face blushed with drunkenness, pushed the door open, cursing:

"Can't it wait until tomorrow?"

"My child has been coughing all day."

"Fine, but the fee will double."

"I... I don't have enough money."

"No money, no treatment for sickness!"

The assistant, enraged, slammed the door shut.

Before the woman could say more, a fierce wind roared around.

When she opened her eyes again, there was already a pill in her hand, along with a piece of silver, and a voice came to her ear, "Go back, don't tell anyone, just take the pill with hot soup."

"Thank you, Immortal!"

The old woman was full of joy and hurriedly left.

Watching her figure disappear into the wind and snow, Li Yan smiled and said, "Senior is really generous, that must have been a Spiritual Medicine for lung cough."

"There's a rogue Taoist who wanted to kill me, I took it from him."

Yang Chenghua waved his hand without care.

This person seemed to be completely drunk, listening to the voices of believers in his mind and wandering everywhere in Chengdu Prefecture.

They pretend to be spirits to scare off malicious evildoers.

When they encounter kind-hearted people, they help as much as they can.

That night, strange events frequently occurred in Chengdu Prefecture.

Unknowingly, two hours had passed, and they had drunk quite a bit, muddle-headedly running outside the city, arriving at the riverside.

There was also a small temple here, which also paid tribute to the Erlang God.

The temple wasn't big, and usually no one watched over it, so it appeared somewhat dilapidated, but on this New Year's Eve, it was lit with candlelight.

Just then, a dozen poorly dressed men were stamping their feet in the snow, then carrying sticky rice cakes and cheap wine, they respectfully offered sacrifices and prayed.

The old man at the front said with a trembling voice, "Grandpa Erlang, if I pull the fiber over the Ghostly Fears Shoal safely in the spring, I will offer you three pounds of lamb's head meat!"

"Hahaha!"

The men behind immediately burst into laughter.

One person said gleefully, "Chief Wang, the lamb leg you promised last year hasn't been paid off yet, and now you're making another promise?"

"Go, go, go."

The old man waved his hand and said, "Grandpa Erlang knows my intentions and won't mind my poverty. One day, this old man will pay it back."

After worship, the crowd left, laughing and chatting.

Yang Chenghua was amused, "These people, if you say they're devout, they never perform incense rituals properly; if you say they're not respectful, they never miss a year."

"What do you think, what god are they worshipping?"

"Incense is not something to buy or sell."

Li Yan, already slightly drunk, shook his head and said, "Ordinary folks worship when they have nowhere else to turn, to hope for survival in desperate situations."

"In this short life, people desire much; often praying to gods is just for peace of mind, just going through the motions..."

He then took a swig of wine, recalling everything he saw and heard along the way, shaking his head, "Some say, better to rely on oneself than on gods, but where in the world is there so much turning back from desperation?"

"Most are just ordinary folks, turning their tenacity into clay idols, then passing this spirit down through incense, generation after generation..."

After hearing this, Yang Chenghua also fell into silence.

After a while, he spoke, "By your account, clay idols have their use, so what does it matter if I take this thousand-year-old incense?"

"I don't know."

Li Yan scratched his head, "Why think so much? If your story lasts for hundreds or thousands of years and people still have faith, it's enough."

"Is that all?"

"It should be... just that."

"Then this cultivation of yours, what's it for?"

"I don't know, just keep going. In a lifetime, who knows what they're truly seeking until the end..."

The end of the Jiachen Year, the beginning of the Yisi Year.

One person and one god at the riverside temple, drinking with the snow until dawn...

...

The fifth hour drum sounds, doors open across thousands of households.

A new year has arrived.

In the Divine Land, customs on the first day vary from place to place.

If in some wealthy households in Chang'an, a child in red robes will hold a peach charm, standing on the step, while an old woman in the family uses a cypress branch to dip Tusu Wine and sprinkle it on the doorframe.

After hearing the sound of firecrackers, they will loudly proclaim:

"On New Year's Day, receive a hundred blessings, and the Evil Spirits retreat three houses away."

This is the ancient method of Chang'an, known as "Cypress Wine exorcising evil spirits."

While in Chengdu Prefecture, there is something more important than New Year's visits.

On this day, the people often determine the direction of the Joy God and the auspicious hour according to the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, then go to Wuhou Temple to pay homage.

It is called "Joy God wandering."

According to past customs, various theater troupes in the city would be invited to lead the way with gongs and drums, performing "Chao Tianzi" as they proceeded.

Behind them are people dressed as civil servants and military officers, Liu, Guan, Zhang and Zhuge Marquis patrolling along the streets, with the people holding incense, accompanying to Wuhou Temple.

This is the custom in Chengdu, and also the first income for theater troupes coming from afar at the start of the year.

If they encounter generous and wealthy families, there are bound to be rewards.

As the people of Chengdu Prefecture worried whether this event would be held on schedule this year, the gates of Chengdu Prefecture had already opened with a loud rumble.

The Prince Mansion Guards rode through the streets on horseback, loudly announcing:

"This year's Joy God wandering, the Prince himself leads the way!"

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