Mysterious Martial Arts: The Record of the Swordsman

Chapter 205

The winding ancient mountain road is mottled under the fallen leaves, and the bluestones that have been stepped on by countless people can be clearly seen. Just a turn around the peak, you can see the grand palace built along the mountain, vaguely buried in the shadows of the trees that line the road.

The sound of bells and chimes was extremely quiet, and in the deep and winding corridors of the ancient temple, there was a sudden sound of footsteps, rustling and spreading to the depths of the meditation room.

The disturbance of small footsteps made the breeze in the empty corridor of the temple suddenly noisy, as if a drop of spring water had fallen into a calm deep pool, and opened the eyes of an old monk who had entered meditation—he saw the embers on the curling incense sticks Falling suddenly, he couldn't help but let out a deep sigh.

"Amitabha. Where did your practice go in such a hurry?"

The old monk got up and pushed the house out. Yu Guang saw the young monk walking in a hurry, sang a Buddha's name in a low voice to call him, and then said earnestly.

"Pin Zhao, the host asked you to serve as a guest monk as soon as you entered the temple, just to polish your frizzy temper. When the anger subsides, Bodhi will appear, do you understand?"

"Yes, yes... Uncle Dajing."

The sweaty little monk was dark-skinned. He was suddenly stopped from behind and was stunned for a while. He wiped his scalp with green stubble, and looked a little at a loss.

It wasn't until the old monk pointed behind him that the young monk turned his head and realized that because he stepped on the garden by taking a shortcut, he had left a string of black shoe prints at the door of the monk's house.

The little monk smiled embarrassedly, and then remembered that he should clasp his hands in respect, and hurriedly walked to the edge of the corridor to wipe off the dust on the soles of Arhat's shoes, and then said hastily to hide his guilty conscience, but his accent was a bit jerky.

"It's this kind of uncle. I was helping the senior brother at the gate to sweep the mountain gate. I suddenly saw two people coming from outside the temple. I was eager to report to Abbot Hongbian, so..."

Before he finished speaking, the old monk lowered his eyelids and said, "It's okay, you don't know anything when you are new to this monastery. Monk Yunshui came to place the order, just take it to Liaoyuan of Yunshuitang branch. Now the abbot is practicing hard. Jie, why bother Abbot Fanxing?"

The old monk Dajing couldn't bear it anymore, saying that some trivial matters were not worth mentioning, and he was about to turn around after waving the returned photo, but the young monk hesitated for a moment, and stood still, hesitatingly defending.

"But... two distinguished guests came at the door..."

Monk Dajing was unmoved when he heard the sound, and he didn't even turn his head back: "Don't say too much, there is no need to talk about the difference between high and low in front of the Buddha, even if the abbot of another temple is visiting. Practice is not enough."

Seeing that the other party opened and closed his mouth, he was practicing. The young monk couldn't help but slander him. He only entered the temple for a month, so he didn't practice.In desperation, he even grabbed the opponent's monk's robe, sweating profusely, and said something that shocked the old monk's figure.

"But the two who came... are a man and a woman..."

The old monk suddenly turned his head when he heard the words.

…………

The two tall and straight pines and cypresses at the gate of the temple are lush and shaded, and the scorching sun at noon shines on the huge plaque inscribed with the name of the temple "Zhuguo Xitan Temple".

The temperature is rising with the noon, but the wide-reaching gate cannot be closed tightly. You can only see white lines spreading at the bottom of the low wall on the left side of the temple gate, and some vines are using their indomitable vitality to grow thousands of times. Wrapped and twisted against hard stones, boasting their victories to the years.

"We've been waiting at the gate of the temple for so long, and they haven't even opened the door yet. Should we continue to wait?"

Luo Shuang'er was still dressed in white, and she looked beautiful without any makeup on. Although she was a little young, her eyes were full of demure and gentle luster. She was standing with Jiang Wen under the plum tree outside the temple gate.

"Sister Shuang, don't worry, you see that this temple is so magnificent, but when the doors of other houses are open, it closes the mountain door unexpectedly, and it is as quiet as ruins. It must have a unique confidence. It must be the real Buddha here The place where the practice of Yun Zen meditation..."

Jiang Wen, with one arm hanging, looked extremely determined, and he had no pressure to be commensurate with Luo Shuang'er's brother and sister. According to him, he had to be thorough in his acting. If he didn't call him natural, he would definitely be seen as flawed at critical times. .

"Besides, I have already inquired about the details of dozens of temples on Jizu Mountain. After much deliberation, only the Xitan Temple in front of me is the most suitable. Just now the young monk ran to report, so we might as well wait for him. "

After the voice, there was another wait. No one would have imagined that such a magnificent temple would be hidden in this dense mountain forest, like a gold ingot sunken in a deep pool, shining brightly and conspicuously, attracting others to stop and marvel.If the traveler hadn't bumped into it in broad daylight, he would definitely think that he was in the Qionglou Yunge in the fairyland, or stepped into the illusion of some fox goblin with malicious intentions.

The two of them will come here, naturally they have special intentions.

You must know that there are many temples on Jizu Mountain, such as Jiulian Temple, Fangguang Temple, Jinying Temple, and Shizhong Temple. The old ones are even worse than that, but after Jiang Wen thought about it, he decided to come here.

First of all, his and Luo Shuang'er's fundamental goal is to get close to various dignitaries and dignitaries, and then use their light to turn back to Guangzhou. Ordinary temples with a lot of incense are often favored by merchants. Even if these people appear to be rich, they may not really be able to help them. Own.

And this Xitan Temple was built in Jizu Mountain by Mu Zeng, the local magistrate of Lijiang, during the Dingsi period of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty. Xiu, the plaque hanging high above the gate was even written by Emperor Tianqi, and it is the only royal temple on the mountain today.

Even though the dynasty has changed now, Binchuan is still under the control of the Mu family. As long as the Mu family in Lijiang survives for a day, Xitan Temple will be the only official temple in Jizu Mountain. Temples are even more expensive.

Secondly, Jiang Wen and Luo Shuang'er are penniless now, and they planned to eat, drink, and play the autumn wind. Naturally, they also wanted to find a monastery that was more decent and not bad at money. Ten days and a half months like this Here, at least you can eat and drink better, and you can avoid the temple asking you to charge yourself to reveal your secrets.

From this point of view, it took more than ten thousand taels of silver to build this Xitan Temple. It is not only the family temple of Dali Tusi Mu's family, but also their face. He must have lived a life of great wealth and wealth on weekdays.I am only two people, if I can get into the pilgrims team of this Zen temple, it is nothing more than adding a pair of bowls and chopsticks, so it will be more difficult for people to notice.

In the end, Jiang Wen chose Xitan Temple, and he also took a fancy to the Mu family standing behind him, the local magistrate of Lijiang.The father of this family, Mu Zeng, claimed to be a loyal minister of the Ming court, but now his son Mu Yi is in charge.Although he had surrendered to the Qing Dynasty in the 16th year of Shunzhi last year, he had many conflicts with Wu Sangui who wanted to control Yunnan. He could only maintain the superficial superiority and inferiority.

The relationship between the Mu family and Wu Sangui is not harmonious, which means that Xitan Temple and the Xiwang lineage will not have any contacts. Hiding here with Luo Shuanger will naturally avoid many troubles caused by the Qing court, and the possibility of identity exposure will be greatly reduced. , This operation can be said to kill three birds with one stone. Every time he thinks about it, Jiang Wen can't help but be proud of his clever trick.

Not long after, the heavy temple door was pushed open a crack, and the sun shone on the little monk's head and face, shining beads of sweat, and he was out of breath from running even when he was talking.

"Two benefactors, follow me, follow me in..."

Jiang Wen glanced at Luo Shuang'er, showing an expression that everything was under control, and stepped into this Zen temple built on the mountain.

The scale of Xitan Temple is huge, and the road can be called hundreds of turns. The three of them passed by the Longevity Hall behind the mountain gate, looked at Shigu Peak all the way northward, and passed many vermilion lacquer halls and high and low walls. The group is getting farther and farther away—Jiang Wen knows that this is to separate the monks from the lay people. After all, some high-ranking officials and nobles will come to offer incense with their family members.

The three of them walked around like this, and came to a very quiet and elegant courtyard located in the middle of the bamboo forest.Jiang Wen followed the little monk and looked around. His eyesight was extraordinary, so he could see that there were three guest rooms in the north, south, east, west, and north of this quiet courtyard, all of which were strictly closed, and it didn't look like a shadow was shaking.

"Two benefactors, you will live here for the first few days. There will be people offering utensils for meals every day. If you need Tang Mu, you can also tell the little monk. If you want to burn incense and worship, you can ask the little monk's brother who burns incense to guide you."

Pinzhao took out the key from his pocket, and opened the two side-by-side doors. He saw that the flat and tidy guest room was fully furnished with tables, chairs and bedding. It shows the unique manners of the temple.

Jiang Wen understood at this moment that this little novice was probably the guest monk of Xitan Temple. He usually worked for the living room and the confidants, taking care of monks and lay guests, cleaning the guest room, etc., but this living room was too luxurious. He and Luo Shuang'er were only two people, yet they could monopolize such a large courtyard.

Jiang Wen and Luo Shuang'er looked at each other, put their palms together and said to the little monk: "Thank you, little master, but I don't know why this living room is so empty? If there is room, we don't mind squeezing in with other pilgrims."

Squeeze, of course you have to squeeze.

Although this living room is quiet, it's too remote, and when it gets dark, you can't even see a ghost.Ordinarily, with the size of Xitan Temple, there would be [-] to [-] people staying overnight on weekdays. The two of them came here to meet people. If they were arranged to stay here alone for ten days and a half months, wouldn't it be a waste of time?

It can be seen that sometimes favors may not be a good thing.

But Jiang Wen never expected that the little monk in front of him would show a flustered expression after listening carefully to the end, and his voice that had just calmed down would falter again.

"Shi, benefactor, the monk has no right to decide this matter. Why don't you go and ask Abbot Hongbian later..."

Jiang Wen looked at him with some surprise, he dared to blame Abbot for such a trivial matter, what is the identity of this little monk?
"Little master, what does this mean?"

The little monk Pinzhao also looked at him with big eyes and small eyes. After a while, he patted his forehead and said in a slightly weird accent: "Oh, it's all my fault that I forgot to say it. Abbot Hongbian has something to say to him. When the two of you meet, if everything is ready, let's go with the little monk..."

Jiang Luo and Luo didn't bring any luggage when they went out this time, so it's a kind of courtesy to pack it up. The most important thing is that the abbot wants to see them. Jiang Wen was stunned for a moment. The abbot will suddenly want to meet himself.

Luo Shuang'er glanced at Jiang Wen slightly, as if asking him what was going on, and whether he had made some secret arrangements again.

"I'm sorry, little master. It's better to hit the sun than to choose a date. Since the abbot invites you, let's go there now."

Jiang Wen agreed with his usual expression.

He naturally didn't know why the other party treated him so solemnly, but instead of guessing here and there, it's better to ask him face to face - in the end, he is just a monk leader, so he won't put down a lot of food in front of him. In the formation of eight bronze men, five hundred monks with knives and axes are placed inside the wall under the name of throwing cups, and they will be chopped into meat in an instant.

Pinzhao seemed to be relieved, and a smile appeared on his dark face: "That's great, you two benefactors, let's go with the little monk!"

Just like that, the two people who hadn’t sat down on the chairs got up again, and followed the young monk around the building complex of Xitan Temple. At this time, the weather was hot at noon, and the scorching sun relentlessly shone down on the mountains and forests. , The smoked wind also has the smell of grass juice, which unknowingly makes people more stuffy.

The temples built on the mountain are covered with various steps. The dark-skinned Pinzhao does not seem to be a Han Chinese. His legs are already strong, but unfortunately he is still tired and sweaty.

But if you say that Pinzhao is sweating hot, then Jiang Wen is sweating cold——Walking all the way in Xitan Temple, the more he looked at it, the more he was afraid, the more he thought about it, the more nervous he was, and he always felt that there was something wrong. Shadowy rumors and records also emerged in my mind.

In the huge Xitan Temple, the doors and windows of the main halls that run through each other are closed, and no scriptures are heard.It stands to reason that it is time to rest now, and there was not even a single monk in the temple. The three of them walked through it, as if they were in a magnificent and huge ruin, or to be more precise, lying on the ground. In a pair of exquisite yellow intestines!
"Little master, little master, can you take a step to speak..."

It's so wrong, there are neither pilgrims nor monks in such a big temple, and the gate is still closed during the day, so there shouldn't be anything tricky inside, right? !
Jiang Wen got more and more wrong as he walked, he quickly stopped the young monk who was leading the way, and stopped at the end of a corridor, refusing to move forward, "Why can't anyone see in the temple? Is there something wrong?"

Pinzhao looked around for a while, and finally slapped his head again as if suddenly enlightened.

"Benefactor, you're asking this, it's all because the little monk didn't speak clearly..."

Immediately, Pinzhao spoke with a slightly blunt accent, moved his steps slowly, and stubbornly wanted to lead them forward, while explaining the whole story.

As the family temple of the Mu family in Dali, Xitan Temple, in addition to the usual ten fasting days, also has to fast and pray for the Mu family, which is naturally a practice internally.

The so-called fasting corrects the body and mind, and prevents distractions. Therefore, during the period of fasting, Buddhist disciples must restrain the "three karmas" of body, speech, and mind externally, and control the "three poisons" of greed, anger, and ignorance internally. To the real "hold fast".

One of the ways in which the precepts appear on the outside is not to eat untimely food, such as not to eat famous fasts after noon.

This time, the abbot, Master Hongbian, has very strict requirements. Every day after eating in the temple, all the people in the temple meditate in the monk’s dormitory. Since the monk’s duty is strictly controlled, no one in the temple will go out without permission after the meal time. action.

Jiang Wen listened suspiciously, and secretly looked into the window paper of a meditation room. Sure enough, in the dimness, he saw an old monk squatting with both feet, with his eyes slightly downcast in trance, and his ears did not hear the outside world. .

He looked to the side again, and sure enough, he saw many ordinary monks meditating in the room, and they rarely moved around in the room, and they were surprisingly self-disciplined.

"Little master, why don't you go to meditate?"

Jiang Wen asked curiously.

A bit embarrassed about this photo, he said: "It's ashamed to say that the young monk has been a monk for less than half a month. After sitting for a long time, his legs are numb and his nature is restless, so he was brought out by the ward to do things..."

After such an explanation, and after verifying it with what he saw before him, Jiang Wen gradually believed the little monk's statement, and by the way, temporarily drove out those temple legends that forced people to shave their heads and sit in a vat.

"Both benefactors, the room of Abbot Hongbian is right in front, and the little monk sent it here."

A meditation room that was no different from ordinary people appeared in front of him. After pushing the door open, Pinzhao put his hands together and left, leaving only Jiang Wen and Luo Shuang'er lingering at the door of the meditation room, advancing or retreating for a while.

"You two benefactors, where did you come from?"

The old voice sounded long and loud, but it was faintly transmitted to the ears of the two through the door. They obviously did not praise the holy name, but it seemed that people could hear the Sanskrit singing from the tone.With this voice alone, Jiang Wen could picture a dignified eminent monk sitting cross-legged in the room, smiling and greeting the two of them.

Before Jiang Wen stepped into the door, he said loudly with a little effort.

"Abbot Hongbian, my servant..."

Just as Jiang Wen was about to report his pre-identified name and origin, intending to bluff the other party first, a slow and melodious answer suddenly came from the room.

"Needless to say."

Master Hongbian interrupted Jiang Wen's speech, and said to Jiang Wen in a tortuous and euphemistic voice, "The karma and retribution in the world are different, as big as the universe, as small as a dust, how can I hear it. Today is just I want to know where you come from..."

Jiang Wen was caught off guard by this answer, and felt that the words were quite mysterious, so he replied loudly: "That's right, Abbot Hongbian, we two brothers and sisters came to Jizu Mountain from Chong'an County, Fujian Province to worship the Buddha, and we were separated by bandits and servants on the way." , so I came here to stay for a few days..."

After pondering for a while in the meditation room, there was no sound. Jiang Wen realized that the other party seemed to have no other problems, but he couldn't turn around and leave when he came here, so he planned to go in and say something face-to-face, so he hurried back to study what was going on.

Jiang Wen stepped into the plainly furnished meditation room, and he saw an old monk with a strange appearance meditating. He was already grizzled, but his eyes were clear and unusually looking at him, as if a mountain spring was engulfing it, full of wisdom and understanding .

Looking at it this way, Abbot Hongbian's appearance was indeed different from what he had imagined in his mind. Even if he didn't get up to greet him, it would not make people feel rude. He was indeed an eminent monk who practiced Taoism.

It's just that this complexion is quite different from Jiang Wen's imagination... Why does the old monk look so complex?
"Two benefactors, I am sorry that I am still fasting and practicing, so I can't welcome you from far away today. I will definitely invite distinguished guests to discuss with you someday."

Abbot Hongbian seemed to cherish his words like gold. He said that, and Jiang Wen felt a little more relieved. It is indeed a bit reluctant to practice fast, and it seems understandable that asceticism caused such a bad complexion.

"Then we will not disturb the abbot's practice, and we will leave."

Jiang Wen felt that the greeting was over, so he left Master Hongbian's meditation room with doubts.

The two ended their meeting anticlimactically, and returned to the guest house by the bamboo forest. Everything in the temple seemed to slow down calmly, until Kelou came to Shenshi unknowingly, and the monk from the kitchen of Xitan Temple knocked on the door to send Asr food for the two of them was delivered to the house.

In anticipation of the food in the famous temple, Jiang Wen welcomed him in very politely, and watched the monk in the kitchen take out food from the food box.

At this time, on the wooden tray was his dinner. Jiang Wen looked at the two pitifully small wild vegetable balls and the bowl of rice soup that could be seen in a mirror, and then at the person who came to deliver the meal. The kitchen monk, who was so hungry that he looked pale, fell silent in an instant.

After the kitchen monk had left for a long time, Jiang Wen recovered from the shock, and suddenly guessed that the old monk, the abbot, was just too hungry to speak or stand up before, right?

Standing up and facing the empty guest house with flying bamboo leaves, Jiang Wen only had one thought in his mind at this moment——

The monks in this temple must not be hungry until midnight and eat people, right?

(End of this chapter)