The Moon Over Tang Dynasty

Chapter 200 The Buddhas Appear without Punishment (includes 300 pink extras)

The morning in Xizhou came extremely early. Before Mao hour, the east was burning blood red. Also blood red were the two drag marks along the way from the steps of the south gate of Xizhou City to the gate of the Duhu Mansion and the two people kneeling in front of the door. . Their haphazardly wrapped middle coats and monk's robes were covered in bloodstains. Although there were not many bruises on their raised faces, there was no trace of human color at all.

The women of Xizhou who went to fetch water from the river valley every morning as soon as the city gate opened forgot to fetch water and gathered around the gate of the government office to stare. Then among those who got up early, someone suddenly shouted, "This is not yesterday." The woman who complained and the monk from the Great Buddha Temple? This is..."

The palace soldier guarding behind the two men had a look of contempt on his face, "The adulterer and adulteress were caught by our prince!"

The crowd was silent at first, and then started talking loudly. Everyone felt it was inconceivable. How could there be such a sly-hearted woman in the world, and how could there be a monk who behaved like this? But the messy clothes on the two men's bodies and the shameful expressions on their faces clearly told everyone that what the Fu Bing said was true. The angry idler spat out a mouthful of spittle, which immediately turned into countless spittles, mixed with hateful yells, "Nothing better than a pig or a dog!"

The few soldiers who were guarding behind the two men quickly took a step back, but did not stop everyone. It was not until someone came up to kick them a few times that they shouted, "The prince and the chief minister have their own arrangements, you can't take action!" Seeing that! The two people wanted to lower their heads to avoid it, but then said coldly, "Raise your heads!"

Naturally, more and more people gathered in front of the mansion gate, and the curses became louder and louder. Seeing that the situation was a bit uncontrollable, the mansion soldiers hurriedly dragged the two people behind the gate of the mansion gate, but there was a loud noise behind them. A calm voice said, "No need to drag me in!"

The Xizhou people in front of the mansion suddenly shouted, "Pei Changshi, Crown Prince, chop up these adulterers and adulterers!" "Kill them up!"

Pei Xingjian waved his hand, turned around and ordered, "Go out with three more teams of officers. One team will guard the prisoners, and two teams will go outside to disperse the crowd. No old, weak, women or children can stay at the door!"

Qu Chongyu, who was standing side by side with him, raised his eyebrows, "It's a Bodhisattva's heart to keep the promise. Are you still afraid that people will hurt those beasts?" He had already changed out of the blood-stained crimson robe and wore it casually. Wearing an ordinary jade-colored round-necked robe, his eyes were still bloodshot because he hadn't slept all night, but his brows were actually a bit refreshed than before.

Pei Xingjian stood there calmly with his hands behind his hands, his demeanor so solemn that no one would notice that his green robe was slightly wrinkled and there was still some dust on the corners of the robe. His eyes fell on the two embarrassed figures outside, and his voice was calm, "Your Majesty, although it is not a pity for these two to die, according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, they can only be sentenced to the crime of adultery, and there is no reason to die. As disciples One and a half years.”

Qu Chongyu was startled, and a sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth, "Chang Shi really abides by the law! He talks about the laws of the Tang Dynasty to such two beasts, but if I want to hit them with a hundred sticks first, Chang Shi will not stop me. Bar?"

Pei Xingjian shook his head, "There is also a way to execute a punishment. As long as two people confess their crimes, there is no reason to increase the punishment. If they die with a stick, according to the law, the person will be sentenced to one year of apprenticeship. Why should the prince give someone to someone like this? With handle?"

Qu Chongyu couldn't help but suffocate, but the bad breath that had already been released from his chest couldn't help but surge again. He glanced at the two people outside the door and narrowed his eyes slightly, "How are Chang Shi going to deal with these two people?"

Pei Xingjian looked at the dispersed crowd outside and said calmly, "Wait."

On the road outside the Duhu Mansion, the police officers drove away the crowd like ducks, and the old, young, women and children were pushed away. However, those idle men who were strong and agile could not be easily pushed away. In the blink of an eye, they were gone. They gathered at the door again, and the guards didn't bother to care about them. After doing this again and again, the idlers became even more angry. Because they couldn't get past it, some people found clods of earth and stones from the street and threw them at the two people kneeling at the door. Some people couldn't find anything to throw away. , simply took off his shoes. At the gate of the Duhu Mansion, shoe soles and stones suddenly flew into the air, and people's faces were all the same color as yellow earth. Some of the government soldiers and officers who were affected couldn't help but cursed loudly, making the scene even more noisy than before.

Qu Chongyu frowned, what are you waiting for? Wait for everyone to smash these two to death with their shoes? Just as he was impatient, he saw an exclamation from the north side of the road, and then he saw the crowd faintly parting, and a coffin was being carried towards the Protectorate.

There seemed to be a magical power wherever the dark coffin passed. The crowd gradually became quiet. The clerk in the coffin shop was startled when he saw the posture at the door. Just as he didn't know what to do, Pei Xingjian said loudly, "Who ordered this coffin?"

Lingshi trembled and raised his face, which was already covered with yellow soil and bruises. He was stunned when he recognized that it was the thin-skinned coffin that he had bought with joy yesterday. Seeing that the person inquiring was Pei Xingjian, the delivery boy at the coffin shop hurriedly bowed respectfully and replied, "Tell Chang Shi, this coffin was bought by a woman named Ling yesterday, saying it was her son and daughter-in-law. If you are disobedient and unfilial, the coffin will be delivered to the gate of the Governor's Mansion early in the morning."

Pei Xingjian nodded, "When you have something to do, just leave it at the door."

Yesterday, when Pei Xingjian ordered Lingshi to buy a coffin, not many people paid attention to his words. But at this moment, when he asked and answered the question, everyone still didn't understand - this woman was so eager to kill her son and daughter-in-law! Seeing the dark coffin falling down, making the two embarrassed figures more and more eye-catching, I don't know who roared first, "Kill these bitches!" The crowd, which had already suppressed their anger, looked like There was a roaring response as if being ignited, and they rushed forward one after another.

Pei Xingjian shouted in a deep voice, "All government soldiers, come back! Close the door!"

The officers and soldiers were a little frightened, but upon hearing this sound, they hurriedly retreated into the door and closed the door with a bang. Without their obstruction, the angry crowd drowned the two kneeling figures in an instant. At first, a few sharp screams could be heard, but gradually there was only a chaotic noise.

Qu Chongyu stared blankly, his brows unknowingly unfurling little by little, but Pei Xingjian's stern voice came to his ears, "You guys go out from the back door immediately and turn to the avenue. Two teams patrol to maintain order. Two teams Dispel the crowd from behind!”

Qu Chongyu came back to his senses. What happened yesterday suddenly flashed through his mind. His mind, which had just been relaxed, could not help but feel a chill. Seeing the guards and soldiers running all the way to the back door, he hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help it. He lowered his voice and said, "It turned out that Pei Changshi planned today's game with just a few words from yesterday. The so-called punishment is not punishable, and it is indeed too high! I'm afraid that this matter of the Ling family is something that Chang Shi has already calculated. Did you expect that?”

Pei Xingjian turned around with a very calm look on his face, "Your Majesty, I am very prudent. I am cautious by nature. When I received the petition, I sent someone to investigate the matter and knew the inside story. I just thought that this matter was just a romantic affair." I didn't want to get involved, but I didn't expect that Lingshi would become so mad."

Qu Chongyu smiled softly, but he still had some doubts in his heart. He just remembered that he heard the monk say yesterday that he didn't know that Lingshi would accuse his daughter-in-law of disobedience. It is indeed impossible to say that Pei Xingjian had expected this to happen. What's even more strange is that he is not very familiar with the laws of the Tang Dynasty, and just now he wanted to kill these two people with a stick in a rage. Pei Xingjian knew clearly that this would leave a clue in his hands, so why did he stop him?

He was about to ask another question when he saw several officials from the Protectorate's Office walking quickly from behind. They probably came in through the back door because the road to the Yamen was blocked by the crowd.

Among the people, Zhu Canjun was the most impatient. He rushed over a few steps, bowed casually and asked, "Why is it so noisy outside? The official also heard that the woman and the monk were adulterers yesterday?" "

Pei Xingjian said calmly, "Exactly. The prince has a sharp eye. He personally led people to investigate the case last night, caught them, and brought them back to the palace to show the public. He never thought that this matter was too contrary to human ethics and aroused the anger of the people. The soldiers of the palace The guards and officers couldn't resist, so they had to retreat, and I asked them to go out the back door to disperse the crowd. "

Zhu Que was startled, pointed outside and said, "That's, that's..."

Qu Chongyu felt even more uncomfortable when he heard that Pei Xingjian attributed all the credit to himself. He said coldly, "I'm afraid this case doesn't need to be retried. I'd like to trouble Zhu Canjun to deal with the aftermath. Anyway, Ling's family paid for the coffin himself. Well, there is no need for the Great Buddhist Temple to spend any more money, just let them be buried together in the coffin!" He said and walked away.

Pei Xingjian's face also showed a hint of tiredness, "I'm ready to join the army. I followed the prince all night long last night, and now I have to go back and rest for a while. If anything happens to me, I will send someone to Qushuifang to look for me." After finishing speaking, He also turned around and left.

Zhu Que stood there blankly, his mind still a little confused for a moment, when he heard a colleague next to him exclaim. It turned out that the police officer who went out from the back door had dispersed the crowd, revealing two people lying on the ground like mud. Bloody Man - This case is indeed the case, and there is no need to retry it.

On this day, Xizhou City became extremely lively. In the streets and alleys, there are people everywhere talking about their feats of punching adulterers and kicking adulterers. If it is true as they say, about ten more pairs will not be enough for the idle men of Xizhou to take action. When the officers of the Duhufu carried the heavy coffin out of the city, countless people followed happily.

Even the drugstores in each village were extremely busy. Some people were stepped on their insteps in the crowd, some were punched in the back in the chaos, and some had their arms swollen by guards hitting them with sticks. Therefore, in the afternoon, word suddenly spread on the street that the newly opened medicine shop "Songbai Tang" in Qushuifang was offering free ointment for bruises today. Immediately, more than 20 idlers who had suffered minor injuries but were reluctant to receive treatment rushed in. In the past, no one cared that the doctor sitting in the hall was the veterinarian Han Si. Everyone stretched out their arms and legs to administer medicine.

On the second day, these idle men found that the swelling and pain subsided much faster than usual. Some people rolled their eyes and went to the Songbai Hall again. They asked Han Si to change the plaster first, then turned around and said with a smile, "I forgot today." Bring the coins and I’ll pay you back tomorrow!”

Han Si raised his head and looked at the idle man with an expressionless face. The idle man patted his shoulder with a smile, "Why are you staring at me like that? It's your duty to say that I steal chickens and you steal cattle." Help each other!" Just as he was about to turn around and leave, he was tapped on the shoulder with such force that he almost staggered to the ground.

Someone laughed and said, "What's the big deal if you forget to bring money? I can just pay you twice as much tomorrow."

Xianhan screamed inwardly when he heard this voice. When he turned around and saw Bai Sanlang standing behind him with a smile on his face, he trembled in fright. These idle men are not afraid of heaven and earth, but if they encounter a more ruthless and rogue police officer than them, they have to be afraid. What's more, Bai San is the overlord among the Xizhou police officers. Whenever he is given any orders, even the idle men will The most arrogant man in the house didn't dare to say a word.

At that moment, he didn't care about the pain in his shoulder, and said with a bitter face, "I met Sanlang, and Sanlang was joking. Please forgive me for my bad memory. I have some coppers with me!" After that, he started to leave. Take money out of your pocket.

Bai San held his shoulder, smiled and shook his head, "Why did you bring money again? It turns out that I'm not joking, you are deliberately entertaining people!"

The idle man was so frightened that he begged for mercy again and again, "I don't dare to do it. I have no eyesight. Sanlang will forgive me."

Bai Sanzhi glanced at him with a sinister smile, and Han Si's face showed no expression at all. The idle man looked at this and that, feeling that his calves were about to get cramped, and he just hated himself for going out. I didn't look at the calendar, how could I attract such a bad star? Bai San didn't know what to do, but he looked at Han Si, "Doctor Han, what do you think we should do?" Han Si didn't even raise his eyebrows, "The plaster is changed every three days, twenty dollars."

The idle man couldn't help but be stunned. The price was really not expensive, and Bai San smiled and said, "Seeing as Dr. Han doesn't care about you, if you pay the money, I will spare you this life!"

The idle man's breath was completely relieved. Looking at Han Si's wooden face, he felt extremely friendly and pleasing to the eye. He hurriedly counted twenty copper coins and put them on the table. He smiled and said, "Thank you Han." Doctor." He turned back to Bai San and smiled, "Thank you, Sanlang."

 Bai San waved his hands impatiently, "It's Dr. Han who is willing to spare you, so what does it have to do with so and so. It's just..." He prolonged his voice and stopped talking.

The idle man couldn't help but feel excited again, and said hurriedly, "San Lang has given orders, and Xiao Ding must obey them."

Bai San then laughed and said, "You have tried Dr. Han's methods. If you use them well, don't forget to talk to others. It's better than those places that charge high prices and don't work."

Xian Han immediately laughed, "This is natural! Talking about such things to others is also a small merit!"

Seeing the idle man walking away with a smile, Han Si raised his head and looked at Bai Sanlang, his expression still dull, "Thank you for sending me another one, but... there is no need to ask them to do those things."

Bai San glanced at him lazily, "Since you are a capable person, don't you want to help a few more people treat their illnesses and injuries? If no one helps you publicize it, how will others know your methods? Besides, this matter is originally It was what Saburo Anjia ordered me to do, and you thought that I had nothing to do, so I came to help you? "

Han Si was not good at words, so he was choked by this and couldn't speak. He had to lower his head again, took out an old medical book from the case, and silently read it.

On this day, Bai Sanlang sent away three or four idle men in Songbai Hall who wanted to take advantage. I don't know if the news spread by the idle men had an effect. Within two days, he came to Songbai Hall to see a doctor and get medicine. There were actually more people. That cattle-stealing Han Sizhi was good at bruises, and his ointment was cheaper than others. It gradually became a well-known thing in Xizhou. On the Dragon Boat Festival, people from Xizhou came to the drug store to buy realgar and other products in an endless stream, and Anzaburo was so happy that he rubbed his hands.

After the Dragon Boat Festival, Xizhou has entered the midsummer season. The sun shines brightly on the earthen walls of Xizhou City. Around noon, even the entrance to the city square has become rare. There are only occasional people on the central avenue in the city. Pedestrians passing by slipped into the shadow of the wall.

Liuli was quite happy with this hot and dry weather. Pei Xingjian went to the government office again before the Dragon Boat Festival. She also went to the workshop twice in the past few days, and the cotton thread dial she asked Master Li to try to make has been completed. Come out, this is a simple tool for lengthening yarn, which is very useful for current workshops. Some broken thin yarns can also be lengthened for weaving, but spinning this thin yarn is still labor-intensive. It took a lot of time, and Liuli had a headache for several days, but there was nothing she could do.

 The second thing that makes Liuli somewhat difficult to understand is Qu Chongyu. When she went to the workshop for the second time, Liuli met the prince. His peacock appearance had not changed, but his attitude toward Liuli changed drastically. He saw that she could not think of a solution to the problem of the yarn being easy to break. , was not sarcastic at all, but was polite and a little distant, which was completely the style of a noble young master.

Liuli was puzzled, so she turned around and asked Pei Xingjian, why was this person's mood so good again? Pei Xingjian just smiled and said, he didn't know the specific reason, it was probably because he had lost some of his previous sullenness. Liuli shook her head and put the matter behind her.

The weather was getting hotter and hotter that day, and before noon, Xiao Tan was clamoring for two bowls of Xizhou’s summer-relieving sour porridge. Liuli asked her to go to the kitchen and tell the cook, and she took out a thin white fold she brought back from the workshop, intending to make two summer coats for Pei Xingjian. But before the cutting was started, I heard Ayan coming to report that Kang was here.

Liuli hurriedly put down the scissors and went out, and saw Kang quickly walking into the inner courtyard, his face flushed and his forehead covered with sweat. Liuli couldn't help being surprised, and hurriedly asked Xiaotan to fetch water, and asked Ayan to fetch the buttermilk soaked in well water.

Kang hurriedly waved his hands and said, "Don't be busy. I wonder if Jiulang is at home."

Liuli smiled and said, "He has gone to the government office. If my sister-in-law is in a hurry, I will send someone to the government office to look for him. If it is not urgent, I will have a rest tomorrow."

Kang's face suddenly showed a hesitant look, and after a while he said, "If I say anxious, I'm not very anxious..." He took Liuli's hand and whispered, "Auntie, I can only ask you about this, I don't know. Does Jiulang have a bad impression of the Great Buddha Temple? "

Liuli didn't expect that she would suddenly ask this question. She was startled and then said, "I keep my promise and don't talk about strange things that disturb the gods. I only mentioned to me that the inverted murals in the Great Buddha Temple are quite impressive."

Kang frowned and said nothing. An Sanlang told her that Pei Xingjian didn't like that she took Liuli to the Buddhist temple all day long. The two recent cases were both handled by him. Although he was not particularly harsh, he was not lawless at all. The intention of showing kindness shows that this long history official mostly disapproved of the belief in Buddhism, let alone the Great Buddhist Temple, which had troubles one after another.

Seeing Mrs. Kang's serious expression, Liuli understood her worries to a certain extent, and said with a smile, "Sister-in-law, don't think too much about it. That's the nature of keeping promises. Although she doesn't have any special respect for the Great Buddha Temple, she doesn't want to be disrespectful on purpose. "After the disobedience case was settled, she also asked Pei Xingjian if he had known about the dirty things. Pei Xingjian did not deny it, but when he sent someone to investigate privately, he saw that Kong Dalang had discovered the matter and decided to cancel the lease. When I moved, I just wanted to give him a little help, but I didn't expect that it would lead to such trouble.

Kang's face relaxed slightly when he heard the words "I won't be disrespectful on purpose" and sighed, "Madam, you don't know yet, but the bronze Buddha in the Great Buddha Temple shed tears and sweated again today!"

Liuli said "ah", it was really unbelievable: this Buddha statue really had feelings and appeared again? Is it just the reason why Mr. Kang went out of his way to do this? "Does Sister-in-law want to inform this matter to keep the promise?"

The look of hesitation on Mr. Kang's face became even thicker, "Auntie, you don't know something. It is said that the appearance of a Buddha statue is an extremely rare sacred relic. In previous years, the Great Buddha Temple would have been breached long ago, but this time, for some reason, it has never been seen before. So far in the morning, not many believers have come to the door. Only when I and several aunts from the An family came out of the temple did I hear that many people were saying that the Buddha statues appeared in the past because of their compassion for the people, but today they only appeared. Afraid of being angry at the immorality of the monks at the Great Buddha Temple, some people said that the monk who was beaten to death was the great monk of the Great Buddha Temple after all. Pei Changshi and Prince Qu did not even know about the Great Buddha Temple and ordered the monks and women to be separated. People are buried in the same coffin, which shows how dissatisfied they are with the Great Buddha Temple. If everyone goes to the Great Buddha Temple to donate merit, I am afraid that they will not only misunderstand the Buddha, but also offend the government. "

Liuli suddenly nodded. The front door of the Great Buddha Temple was now deserted. She had naturally heard about it for a long time. It turned out that the people of Xizhou were not only disappointed with the moral character of the monks in the Great Buddha Temple, but were also afraid of offending Qu Chongyu and Pei Xingjian. However, this kind of thing was not hers. If she could intervene, she couldn't persuade Pei Xingjian to speak out in person to eliminate the negative impact of the disobedience case, right?

She looked at Mr. Kang in embarrassment and said, "I understand what Sister-in-law means. I will inform him of the matter as soon as I return from the appointment."

Kang couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. Liuli obviously didn't want to persuade her anymore. She was a little unwilling in her heart. She thought for a while and said, "I also know that Chang Shi doesn't believe in Buddhism. He just shows Buddha statues. This is a big deal. The Great Buddha Temple was originally If a family has a great business and one or two scoundrels occasionally appear, it is despicable, but it is inevitable. But if the world disrespects the Buddha because of this, how ridiculous it would be! The last sentence or two to dispel those people’s confused thoughts is also a matter of immeasurable merit.”

Liuli could only smile and said, "What my sister-in-law said is true. When I come back as promised, I will definitely convey my sister-in-law's words to him."

Kang knew that this was the only way he could talk about the matter. He nodded and smiled, "Then I'll wait for your good news." After saying that, he described how the last two appearances of Buddha statues caused a sensation, even hundreds of miles away. She described the grand occasion where believers from Yizhou, Tingzhou and many small countries in the Western Regions and Turkic tribes came one after another. Liuli understood her intention, listened with a smile, and kept nodding. Kang talked for a long time, then stood up to leave, and gave her instructions again before leaving.

Liuli looked at Kang's back and couldn't help but sigh. She knew when she was in Chang'an that the female family members of the An family were very pious, but she and Pei Xingjian didn't believe it at all. Asking Pei Xingjian to speak for the Great Buddha Temple, this matter I'm afraid it's a little difficult.

In the afternoon, when Pei Xingjian returned home, Liuli hesitated and said to him, "Sister-in-law is here today."

Pei Xingjian smiled faintly, "But because of the appearance of the Bronze Buddha in the Great Buddha Temple? I heard about it too."

Liuli nodded, "She said that because of the disobedience case a few days ago, people in Xizhou were saying that the Buddha's appearance was because he was angry at the monks at the Great Buddha Temple for being immoral. She also said that the government was also very dissatisfied with the Great Buddha Temple, so many people were afraid to go there. "What I mean is that I hope you can come forward and say a few words for the Great Buddha Temple to dispel these rumors..." Seeing Pei Xingjian looking over with a smile, he hurriedly said, "I also know that this is an embarrassing matter and I have never agreed." "

Pei Xingjian's smile deepened, "What's the problem? Tomorrow morning, you will accompany me to the Great Buddha Temple to burn incense!"

I was two minutes late, mainly because I only saw the pink votes in the afternoon. My head was pounding, and I said with tears in my eyes, everyone is so awesome, so I have to work harder and hurry up. If you continue to want to see more updates tomorrow, just use pink to urge me. If pink reaches 400 tomorrow, there will be an additional update at 8pm.

 (End of this chapter)