Chen Daxu looked at the cedar forest and said seriously: "I will do as you say. It depends on how you pretend."
Budai monk and Chen Daxu came to the valley woods. God knows what happened, but the big logs that were far thicker and longer than the cloth bag were actually put into the cloth bag by Budai monk! Moreover, after all the big trees Chen Daxu felled were put in, the bag did not bulge at all. It seems that even if you cut down all the big trees all over the mountains and plains, you won't be able to fill this magical bag!
Chen Daxu was surprised and heartbroken. He put his head in his hands and squatted on the ground without saying a word.
Budai monk said: "Chen Chen, do you regret it?"
Chen Daxu did not say whether he regretted it or not, but asked: "Master Butai, how much wood do you need?"
Budai monk said: "No more, no less, one hundred and eight beams and columns."
Chen Daxu took a breath as if he had a toothache: "God, there are so many! Then chop down all the big trees in my house."
But the Budai monk said: "It's good to be bare, it's good to be bare, it doesn't have to worry about anymore. Thieves can't steal it, floods can't wash it away, it's clean and there's no worries."
"No worries, but still troubles!" Chen Daxu said with a sad face: "These mountains and forests are the main property of my family. My son is counting on these woods to marry his wife, to treat his old mother before she dies."
Budai monk said: "Don't worry, after you give alms widely, your merits will be immeasurable. My old mother will live a long and healthy life, with no illness or disaster, and less pain and less worry. Your children are still young and will not be able to use these wood for a while." These big trees are old and have reached the limit of their life. If they are not cut down, they will die of disease, old age, decay, insect infestation, or be knocked down by lightning. Look, aren't some of them already dry and dead?"
Of course Chen Daxu saw the dead trees, but he still said with worry: "All the big trees have been chopped down. After twenty years, what will I be able to do to build houses and start families for my children?"
Budai monk laughed and said: "So, you are worried about this! As the saying goes, if you don't cut the big ones, they won't grow the small ones."
Chen Daxu shook his head. He smiled bitterly and said, "You are a monk. You don't know how difficult it is to plant a fir tree! Even if you sow hundreds of seeds, you may not be able to grow a single seedling."
Budai monk said: "Put your heart in your stomach. Don't you still believe what I say?"
Chen Daxu, who was still doubtful, remembered the mystery of Budai monk and had no choice but to agree to continue cutting down the trees.
"Come down the mountain—"
The cry of logging resounded throughout the valley, and tall fir trees suddenly fell down...
Finally, the 108 thick beams needed for the new Buddhist temple in Yuelin Temple were collected.
The Budai monk gathered the tips of the pruned branches, picked out the branches with buds, and then chopped them into pieces more than a foot long, and put them into his cloth bag. I don’t know what kind of spell he muttered. After waiting for a while, he took out the branches from the bag and inserted them one by one into the clearing in the forest.
As he inserted the branches, he hummed and sang: "Pick up the flower branches and let everyone see, Kasyapa's face is ruined for no reason. From then on, the spring light leaks out, and the world is filled with red peaches and white plums."
Chen Daxu knew that Budai monk sang the koan of Buddha holding flowers and Kasyapa smiling, from which Zen Buddhism was born and flourished.
He was thoughtful, savoring the Zen meaning...
Perhaps the Budai monk was so happy that he even planted fir branches on the mountain ridges and in the cracks between rocks that were barren.
Strangely enough, all the branches planted by Budai monk came alive and grew extremely fast.
Even the small saplings on the mountain ridges and in the cracks of the rocks have gradually grown into towering trees. From then on, the fir trees in Wuyi Mountain could not only grow in fertile soil, but also take root in rock crevices.
They give the sky a touch of fresh green and the rocks a cool shade. The bare peaks now have a soul, and the dry rocks show a bit of elegance.
From that time on, people in Wuyi Mountain no longer used seeds to plant fir trees, but used cuttings from small branches. Not only did they have a high survival rate, but they also grew very quickly...
Looking at the wood piled up into a hill, Chen Daxu couldn't help but worry about Budai monk: Each of these thick beams weighs tens of thousands of kilograms, and they cannot be carried by people or pulled by trucks. How can they be transported there? What about Fenghua, thousands of miles away?
Butai Monk looks like a carefree and optimistic person. He asked helpers to roll the wood into Chongyang Creek.
However, the water in Chongyang Creek is too shallow to float these heavy timbers up and down.
The helpers said jokingly: "Big-bellied monk, don't you monks say that Guanyin Bodhisattva answers all requests? Then you can ask Guanyin Bodhisattva to make a heavy rain and help you float the wood downstream and send it into the Min River."
Unexpectedly, Budai monk actually nodded and said, "Okay, then I'll invite Guanyin Bodhisattva."
The helpers were stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing like an explosion - this big-bellied monk is not afraid of blowing his belly when he brags!
People laughed enough and joked: "Budai monk, where is the Guanyin Bodhisattva you invited?!"
The Budai monk turned around, pointed to a peak on the east bank of Chongyang River, and said, "Look, that's not Guanyin Bodhisattva!"
Sure enough, people were surprised to see that the high mountain peak resembled Guanyin Bodhisattva (from then on, this mountain peak was called "Great Guanyin"). Until now, the first mountain that everyone who visits Wuyi Mountain sees when entering the scenic spot The mountain peak is Guanyin!)!
People saw in a trance that the mountain peak seemed to come alive and truly transformed into Guanyin Bodhisattva. She was holding a purification bottle in one hand and waving willow branches in the other... The flowing white clouds under her feet seemed to turn into rolling waves, and a dragon appeared in it. Swallowing clouds and spitting mist, spraying water and spreading rain...
Then, something incredible happened: Clouds and mist immediately filled Guanyin Peak, and became thicker and thicker, spreading faster and faster, gradually covering the entire sky...
A bolt of lightning pierced the sky;
There was a thunderous explosion;
A heavy rain fell...
The water in Chongyang Creek rose, the waves rolled, and the spray flew. Then, those thick timbers were like dragons, running down the river and galloping away...
The 108 pillars of Budai monk flowed southward. After reaching Jian'ou, several streams converged into a mighty river with wide water and surging waves. He tied these thick logs into rafts, connected them in a string, and put them into the sea along the Minjiang River.
Fenghua in eastern Zhejiang is north-east of Wuyi Mountain, while Chongyang River flows south, merges into the Minjiang River, and then flows southeast. Isn't it going in the opposite direction and getting further and further away from the destination?
It turns out that at that time, the two-wheeled carriage, the vehicle for land transportation, had a limited load capacity and could not carry huge timber over long distances. Therefore, Budai monk had to transport it by sea to Xiangshan Port in eastern Zhejiang, which was only 80 miles away from Yuelin Temple. It's relatively easy.
Budai monk put rafts of wood to the Fuzhou harbor, then went around for alms and hired ships. After he transported the wood to Xiangshan Port two thousand miles away, he immediately rushed back to Yuelin Temple overnight and asked Zen Master Xiankuang to organize people and vehicles. , came to unload the ship, load the truck, and transfer it back to the temple.
Unexpectedly, the old monk said: "The monks in the temple are all working on the infrastructure construction of the main hall, and there is no manpower to help him transport the wood."
Budai said, "Just hire someone from outside."
Zen Master Xiankuang seemed to be deliberately cheating and said: "I don't have the money to hire a large number of vehicles and manpower at all. You help others to the end, send the Buddha to the west, and find a way to get that large amount of wood back to Yuelin Temple."
The Budai monk had no choice but to mutter quietly, "You will be a thief until you die." and walked towards the abbot's door.
Who would have known that Zen Master Xiankuang is not deaf at all times and can hear things very clearly. The old man was faster than a civet, and he jumped over like lightning, grabbed the big fleshy ears of the Budai monk, and shouted: "You kid bullied me for being deaf and blind, how dare you scold me behind my back, don't you see if I don't pull you off?" ears!"
The Budai monk screamed in pain and was pulled around Xiankuang three times in a row. He had to beg for mercy repeatedly before Xiankuang let him go.
Finally, the old monk pushed the abbot outside and said: "The foundation of the main hall has been completed, and the stone piers for the twenty-four pillars are also in place. The pillars will be erected the day after tomorrow. In order to ensure the construction period, you must Transport the wood back tomorrow! So, don’t bother me here and go figure it out.”
