Nu Yalang of Tang Dynasty

Pang Gong and Li Mao talked for a while, then he claimed that he was old and weak, asked Zhou Jun to accompany him, and went back to the courtyard to rest first.

Zhou Jun saw that Li Hao was fascinated by the landscape of Bachuan, so he proposed to take a boat and go boating among the pavilions.

Li Hao readily agreed.

The stern boat is a common small boat for fishermen. It is only more than five meters in length. It is also covered with a canopy and can only accommodate five people.

Li Hao brought a military guard and a servant who knew how to swim, plus Zhou Jun and the boatman, there were exactly five people.

The other guards took another boat and followed from a distance.

The boat slowly moved forward from Jinghu Lake in the inner garden, exited the ferry at the garden wall, and then followed the pavilion stream to the east.

The four ends of Bachuan River are connected by meandering streams; Jiangzhou Island is densely dotted with stars.

The boat followed the gurgling water and swam between heaven and earth.

The breeze blows, the lake water sparkles; the reeds blow, and the water birds spread their wings to fly.

Li Mao looked at the scenery of Bachuan and said with emotion: "When I was a child, I once traveled to Bachuan with my mother. I saw the vast smoke and heard the sound of herons flying over the river, but I thought it was a blessed place in the immortal world."

"In the first year of Kaiyuan, he brought his family with him. The harp and harp were singing in harmony, and the music and drums were clanking. He didn't think about the emperor and his ministers, but only envied his family members."

"Today... Bachuan is still Bachuan, but the person is no longer there..."

Zhou Jun was silent for a while after hearing this.

He understood that the absent "people" in King Shou's words were Concubine Wu Hui and Yang Yuhuan.

Li Hao closed his eyes, sighed softly, and asked: "Mr. Zhou, I ask you, is there a previous life in this world? Is there an afterlife?"

Zhou Jun thought for a moment and replied: "Yes."

Isn't this nonsense?

The man standing in front of King Shou was a living example, but Zhou Jun did not dare to say it clearly.

Li Hao turned around, looked at Zhou Jun and asked, "Why are you so sure?"

Zhou Jun thought about it again, raised his hands and said, "I heard something."

"If you want to do something, go to the mountain to worship the Buddha."

"When I met the abbot, I asked, where can I see the Buddha in this world?"

"The abbot didn't say a word. He just took him into a small room and said that the Buddha was in the room."

"The man entered the house and couldn't see the windows or light. Suddenly the door was closed again and he couldn't see his fingers."

"The people were so anxious that they shouted: "Where is the Buddha in this house? The monks are trying to trick someone!"

Having said this, Zhou Jun paused for a moment.

Li Hao listened interestingly and asked: "What happened next?"

Zhou Jun: "The abbot opened the door, entered the room, lit the candlestick, and the fire came on, illuminating the room."

"Then Juren saw that the four walls of the room were covered with Buddha statues."

"The abbot said to that person that the world is difficult and suffering, and people in the world only think that there is no Buddha, but they don't know that when they close their eyes, the Buddha will be by their side."

After hearing this story, Li Hao froze at the bow of the boat and looked at Zhou Jun with a bit of surprise in his eyes.

After thinking for a while, Li Hao asked softly: "Is the world suffering for a while? Or is it for a lifetime?"

Zhou Jun looked into the distance, and his words were full of the vicissitudes of life in his two lives: "Life after life, endless."

Li Hao's body trembled and he repeated Zhou Jun's words: "Life after life, endlessly..."

One prince, one slave Yalang.

The two stood side by side, thinking about the past, and fell into silence for a while, without speaking for a long time.

After a long time, Li Hao looked at Zhou Jun and said with a sincere expression: "When it comes to the word bitterness, others always tell me that I must be patient and considerate."

"I have never been as outspoken as Zhou Lang."

Zhou Jun sighed lightly: "Don't persuade others to be good until you have experienced their suffering."

When Li Hao heard this sentence, he was stunned at first, then nodded and said: "Yes, that's it."

Then, he raised his head and looked at the sky, his words sad: "Who can understand the difficulties that a certain person encounters? Why does everyone in the world think it is so?"

Zhou Jun glanced at Li Hao and saw that he had a look of concern and excitement on his face.

After he calmed down, Zhou Jun said: "There is another story here. I wonder if King Shou wants to hear it?"

Li Hao nodded and said, "Erlang, come quickly."

Zhou Jun: "There is a farmer who lives in a poor family with only three acres of thin farmland. Fortunately, his wife is virtuous and his children are smart, so he lives a happy life."

"One day, a peasant boy passed by a wealthy man's house and saw that there were many slaves and maidservants in the wealthy gentleman's house. They had no worries about food and clothing. He remembered that his family was poor and food was scarce. He couldn't help but feel sorry for himself and said that his life was miserable."

"At this time, the head of the wealthy family happened to go out. He saw the magistrate's ceremonial guard from a distance, and he dodged to the left and right. He also remembered that he was powerless. He was bullied by the evil officials of the government a few days ago. He was beaten and refused to say anything in return.

In the name of taxes, a lot of money has been extorted, and in the end I can only say that my life is miserable."

"And the county magistrate sitting in the sedan chair opened the curtains and couldn't help but sigh when he saw the peasants singing slang songs on the ridges of the fields."

"Although he is an official, he has to be urged by his superiors to complete the county tax before the end of the year. At the same time, he has to exploit the people under clever pretexts and bear the curse of his rulers."

"If I had known this, why not give up this official robe and live in seclusion in the mountains, with a pool of clear water, land in the fields, and be free, wouldn't it be happy?"

"Who would have known that during these ten years of hardship, I didn't get any comfort, but instead I became the most miserable person in the world."

After Zhou Jun finished telling this story, he just looked at Li Hao.

The latter stood there blankly, his lips moving slightly, and his eyes looking at Zhou Jun showed not only surprise, but also some enlightenment.

Zhou Jun: "If the other sufferings are just a treat, how can this suffering be relieved?"

Li Hao: "Bitterness arises in the heart and has no symptoms or disease."

Zhou Jun cupped his hands, smiled at Li Hao and said, "But King Shou has realized it."

Li Hao laughed.

In that laughter, there was a sigh of relief from the past, and there was also the relief of letting go of obsessions.

I only heard Li Hao say: "My mother worshiped Buddhism and once said that there are eight sufferings for human beings: the suffering of birth, the suffering of old age, the suffering of illness, the suffering of death, the suffering of love and separation, the suffering of resentment and hatred, the suffering of not getting what you want, and the suffering of the five yin beings."

"After listening to Zhou Lang's words today, it turns out that these eight sufferings can be boiled down to four words, which are nothing more than 'something in the heart'."

Zhou Jun: "One thought of heaven, one thought of hell."

"Read it, it's not easy to pick it up, and it's even harder to put it down."

"But with all the things in the world, apart from desires, there is also peace of mind."

Li Hao clapped his hands and said with a smile: "What a peace of mind!"

"Mao is lucky enough to hear Zhou Lang's words today, but he knows the suffering in the world, and his thoughts in life, but he has a home to rectify his name!"

"Having received this good news today is better than hearing the sound of it. It should be understood clearly!"

Amid the sounds of talking, laughing and crowing cranes, the boat broke through the ripples on the lake and sailed towards the Bachuan Villa.

When the boat was docked, Pang Gong, who had been waiting on the shore for a long time, saw Li Hao getting off the boat with a relieved smile on his face, and he couldn't help but be surprised.

Li Hao walked up to Pang Gong, first cupped his hands, and then said with a smile: "My uncle is very good at judging people. This Zhou Lang is really a wonderful person!"

Pang Gong looked at Zhou Jun again, who just bowed and saluted, his face was calm and there was no trace of sadness or joy.