Martial Cultivator

Entering Bailu Prefecture again, Chen Chao did not intend to delay his journey on the road, but went straight to Luming Temple.

Currently, there are only three famous Fangwai sects that have good relations with Daliang. Wantian Palace, the leader of the Taiping Dao lineage, Luming Temple, which has always maintained a friendly relationship with Daliang because of the black-clad national master, Finally, it was only a few days ago that many swordsmiths came to the Sword Qi Mountain in the Divine Capital.

Speaking of Jianqi Mountain, the swordsmiths who quietly went to the divine capital during this period have long taken root in the Ministry of Industry. Not only have they taught many craftsmen, but they have also got on the right track in the manufacture of ordnance. It is said that the Ministry of Industry is now working on Forge brand new frontier army ordnance. Once the Ministry of Industry has completed manufacturing and tested it with good results, it will be immediately delivered for mass production. It is foreseeable that before long, the level of ordnance of the Liang Dynasty will suddenly increase by several levels. In this way , and if we face the demon tribe in the north, fewer soldiers will die.

However, the cost of building new ordnance will also rise. The Ministry of Revenue has been very busy for a long time. Everyone is reaching out to the Ministry of Revenue to ask for money, especially the Ministry of Industry, which just asked for a sum of money to repair the imperial city a few days ago.

But compared with now, that little money seems insignificant.

It is said that the Minister of the Ministry of Finance has been sighing these days. Every day in the Yamen of the Ministry of Finance, when he hears the officials from the Ministry of Works coming, he wants to hide under the table.

But having said that, everyone in the government and the public knows very well that His Majesty has always had great ambitions, and it has been made clear in running the north in recent years. Now that the city of God has just experienced such a big change, His Majesty’s will is now Almost no one dared to disobey it. In the past, regardless of whether it was useful or not, some courtiers would always choose to gather to give advice. But now that the news has been spread for so long, no one can be seen outside the imperial city. The figure of the courtier...

When that day comes and His Majesty's decree comes down, the Ministry of Revenue will have to take out the money no matter how difficult it is.

After the unsuccessful attempt to force the emperor to conceive, only one voice from the Liang Dynasty gradually remained. Even if the remaining people were unwilling, now was not the time to speak out.

Thinking about this matter, he also had a share of credit, Chen Chao still felt good in his heart. If he could do something to save the lives of the soldiers in the north, it would probably be considered worthy of his grandfather, whom he had never met? 🄲

Chen Chao was deep in thought as he walked. He had no idea that the sky was clear just now, but now it was covered with dark clouds.

In the sea of ​​clouds in the distance, there were bursts of thunder, like dragons roiling in the sea of ​​clouds.

Chen Chao came back to his senses, looked up a few times, and sighed. The weather was not kind and it had to rain heavily. What could he do?

look around

Right and left, although this place is not really in the wilderness, it is probably not too close to nearby counties, towns and the like.

Chen Chao, who was already prepared to be soaked in the rain, suddenly discovered that there was a small temple at the foot of the mountain in the distance.

So he walked a few steps quickly and finally arrived at the small temple before the first drop of rain fell. When he came under the eaves at the entrance of the temple, Chen Chao took a look at the plaque at the entrance of the small temple and wrote three big words.

Wu'en Temple.

It is written in regular regular script and is quite satisfactory.

However, looking at the power of the writing, I am afraid that the person who wrote the inscription is also a scholar with considerable research in calligraphy. However, this kind of thing is actually not uncommon in Bailu Prefecture. After all, there is a saying in Daliang that the best scholar in the world is Bailu.

It is not difficult to hire a scholar with good writing skills to write inscriptions, not to mention that scholars have always been so elegant. Similar things can be found everywhere in Bailu, regardless of big or small temples.

Chen Chao, who had no intention of entering the temple, stood under the eaves and planned to wait until the rain subsided before continuing on his way. However, after standing there for only a moment, a middle-aged monk walked out of the temple and came to the door. When he saw Chen Chao, She smiled at him, clasped her hands together, and said softly, "Since the donor is here, why don't you come in?"

Chen Chao chuckled lightly, "I really don't want to disturb the quiet place of Buddhism, and I'm afraid of disturbing the masters' spiritual practice. It's just that the rain is too heavy, so I can just use the eaves of your temple to take shelter from the rain for a while."

The middle-aged monk shook his head and said, "The benefactor's words have really damaged the merits of us monks. The Buddha is compassionate and saves all living beings. Although there is nothing to entertain the benefactor in the temple, there is still a cup of hot tea."

Hearing what the monk said, Chen Chao couldn't refuse. He nodded with a smile and said, "In that case, I won't bother you."

Walking into Wu'en Temple, it was not much different from Chen Chao's imagination. Wu'en Temple didn't look big from the outside, and the buildings didn't look very luxurious. Once inside, the buildings looked more ordinary. The one in front of the Main Hall The paint on the pillars has fallen off badly, and from a distance, you can still see many traces of insect infestations. If this continues, it is estimated that this majestic palace will collapse in a few years.

Anyway, at a glance, this Wu'en Temple should have been built a long time ago, and it has not been repaired during the period. This also proves that this Wu'en Temple has been very popular over the years.

Also, when Chen Chao walked in and looked around, he really didn’t see anything in this temple.

Even if there is only one pilgrim, it stands to reason that even on a heavy rainy day, if the incense is strong, there should be many people.

When Chen Chao came to the Main Hall, the middle-aged monk resigned and left, saying that he wanted to make a pot of good tea. However, an old monk was walking out of the Main Hall. The old monk was skinny and kind-hearted. He only wore a cassock with patches on top of each other. It is the real Bai Nie Yi.

This should be the abbot of the temple.

Chen Chao bowed his hands in greeting and before he could say anything, the old monk smiled and said, "The donor is so sincere and willing to form a good relationship for my Buddha. On behalf of all the monks in the temple, I thanked the donor."

Chen Chao was startled, then watched the old abbot step aside, and a merit box with paint peeling off appeared right in front of Chen Chao's eyes.

Chen Chao frowned and said, "I went out in a hurry, and I didn't bring any money with me."

The old abbot smiled and said, "It doesn't matter, it would be great if the donor has something elegant."

"I don't have anything like this on my body." Chen Chao looked at the old abbot and shook his head.

"That's it...it would be nice if the donor could leave an IOU..."

The old abbot seemed to have no regard for face, but he always looked at Chen Chao with a smile.

Chen Chao said with a straight face, "Master, aren't you afraid of insulting Buddhism by doing this?"

The old abbot was still not annoyed, he just stretched out his sleeves and sighed, "If the Buddha had a spirit, I'm afraid he would be open to the poor monks. If you practice Buddhism and cultivate your mind, you can practice it over and over again, and your stomach will be empty. No matter how much you know, I’m afraid I don’t have the energy to teach the Dharma to the world.”

After hearing these words, Chen Chao actually laughed, reached out and took out the money bag from his arms, and said with a smile, "I have the incense money, but I want to listen to the master's Dharma first."

The old abbot frowned and said, "What the donor said is really too tacky."

Chen Chao said oh and thought to himself, "Then just listen to the master's Dharma for nothing. I guess the master doesn't care about the incense money."

As soon as he said this, the old abbot became even more frowning, "The donor looks young, but why does he act like he has been exposed to a lot of wind and frost, and does not have any youthfulness?"

Chen Chao saw the tricks and said with a smile, "Just think of it as a compliment from the master."

The old abbot sighed and was about to speak when his stomach growled unsatisfactorily.

The old abbot didn't feel any embarrassment, but his old eyes looked at Chen Chao, and there seemed to be a thousand words in them.

Chen Chao was finally defeated, so he took out a few coins and threw them in.

The empty sound of money falling into the merit box can also prove that the merit box is empty. I don't know how long it has been since money dropped into the box.

Seeing Chen Chao's generosity, the old abbot beamed with joy and said, "Come, come, come, the donor will follow the poor monk into the hall, and the poor monk will explain the Dharma to the donor!"

Chen Chao looked at the smile on the old abbot's face and felt an inexplicable coldness on his back. He waved his hand and said, "There is no need to enter the main hall. It's the same at the door."

Hearing this, a flash of disappointment flashed in the old abbot's eyes. If Chen Chao were allowed to enter the main hall and see the horrible golden body of the Buddha, he might be able to get Chen Chao to donate more incense money.

However, the old abbot was not a greedy person. He quickly dragged out two benches and placed them in front of the Main Hall. At this moment, the middle-aged monk also came here carrying tea.

Chen Chao took a closer look and found that there were very few tea leaves in the tea, and it was not considered good tea at all.

The old abbot smiled and said, "Huisi, stop working so hard. Take out the remaining rice in the temple and make a pot of porridge. I am not as strong as you. If you don't drink porridge, I'm afraid I will pass away."

The middle-aged monk named Huisi was startled and said angrily, "Master, the bottom of this rice vat can be seen. Is this a meal? Isn't it too late?"

The old abbot chuckled, shook the merit box, and then reached out and took out a piece of heavenly money. "After cooking the porridge, I will buy some rice and noodles nearby. I will use the rest to make new cassocks for my master..."

The middle-aged monk took the heavenly money and asked in a low voice, "Master, is it time for this disciple to change his robe?"

The old abbot looked at the middle-aged monk and said with a serious look on his face, "Huisi, how many times have I told you, Master, that as a Buddhist disciple, the most important thing is to cultivate one's moral character. If you don't practice hard, how can you understand the true meaning of Buddhism?"

The middle-aged monk muttered, "I have been practicing hard for so many years, but I still haven't really realized anything..."

The old abbot frowned and was about to scold him twice when the middle-aged monk quickly turned around and said, "Master, this disciple is going to make porridge!"

It doesn't matter whether you make new clothes or not. Anyway, if you have money, you won't be hungry for a long time in the future. This is a rare good thing for the few remaining monks in the temple.

When you are hungry, nothing in the world is more important than having a full stomach.

It is difficult for a middle-aged monk to understand this truth.

Watching the middle-aged monk leave, the old abbot clasped his hands and whispered, "It is a sin to get angry in front of the Buddha!"

Chen Chao looked at this scene and couldn't laugh or cry.