In Chinese folk religion and Chinese mythology, the Kitchen God Zao Jun is the most important of a plethora of Chinese domestic gods that protect the hearth and family. It is believed that on the twenty third day of the twelfth lunar month, just before Chinese New Year he returns to Heaven to report the activities of every household over the past year to Yu Huang, the Jade Emperor. The Jade Emperor, emperor of the heavens, either rewards or punishes a family based on this yearly report. Zao Jun is celebrated in Vietnamese culture as Tao Quan.