The Tiantong Temple in the Southeast Buddhist Kingdom is going to hold a Dharma conference, and it will be hosted by Master Hongwu. Ningbo and nearby cities are causing a sensation, and countless good men and women are rejoicing.
This Dharma conference was held on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, which coincided with the enlightenment day of Sakyamuni Tathagata. It was consecrated and the Buddha was blessed. At the same time, there was also a lecture by Master Hongwu on how to get rid of attachments.
Therefore, not only ordinary people are looking forward to it, but the surrounding temples also attach great importance to it and are ready to send their own abbots and masters there. The monks of Mount Putuo are no exception.
Tongsuo and Shen Dongxin were dumbfounded. They were working as thieves all over Putuo Mountain. Now the monks were busy with the Dharma assembly, and even Tongsuo was no exception. He was caught by the prison guard.
This kid has a sharp mind and is most suitable to serve the masters in their daily life. The supervisor is also known to know people and make good use of them, and he was given emergency training to avoid losing face.
Now Tongsuo is followed by several masters when he goes to the toilet, correcting his movements, sitting and lying, and accompanying him with various lectures. Let alone becoming a thief now, it is difficult for people in the intelligence department to see him.
Without Tongsuo's professional skills, the Intelligence Department and Shen Dongxin would not be able to act at all. Once the monks discovered that a thief was wandering around the temple, it would be easy to alert them.
When Gu Qi received the news, he immediately found Zuo Zhong and said anxiously: "Section Chief, Tiantong Temple has ruined our operations by doing this. Do you want to negotiate?"
"No, Lao Gu, please be patient." Zuo Zhong smiled and explained: "This is a ritual meeting arranged by me. The purpose is to find the spy. Half of Putuo Mountain's manpower will be divided to work in Tiantong Temple."
Gu Qi was stunned and quickly asked: "Section Chief, what does this Dharma conference have to do with the operation? Is Tiantong Temple willing to let us in? It is a Buddhist holy place. We must be careful."
He is half a Buddhist and has long heard of the name of Tiantong Temple. Many dignitaries often go there to offer incense and worship Buddha. If the Intelligence Department stokes this hornet's nest, there will definitely be a big fuss.
Zuo Zhong looked outside the study room and told the arrangement: "Don't worry, Master Hongwu, the abbot of Tiantong Temple, has agreed. Construction workers are needed for the renovation before the ceremony and the construction of the altar.
You just enter in the name of workers. When the time comes, the master will ask someone to cooperate with you. You should keep a low profile when you act, and you must not disturb the daily life of the monks, you know. "
Hearing this, Gu Qi's heart dropped. Just discuss it and nodded: "I know the section chief, I will tell the brothers, but what will we do after we go in? Is there a spy in Tiantong Temple?"
Zuo Zhong pondered: "The spy is not in Tiantong Temple, I can only say this much, Lao Gu, it's not that I don't believe you, the specific plan cannot be disclosed.
After you go there, you will become familiar with the terrain of Tiantong Temple, set up surveillance points, and keep an eye on the foreign monks in the Dharma assembly. The focus is still on the visitors from Putuo Mountain Temple.
In order to facilitate our movement, Master Hongwu promised me to place their residences together. You can see if you can monitor them, but don't force it. "
Gu Qi didn't have many ideas after hearing this. Intelligence work is so special. Keeping secrets has nothing to do with trust, just like he would not reveal his work to his family.
For monitoring, the monitoring equipment currently used by the Secret Service is a German-made wire recorder and a small extended microphone. It is very large and is mostly used in fixed places.
He recalled the equipment he brought and shook his head: "I guess not. Our equipment is too conspicuous and needs power support. Tentou Temple is not powered on yet, right?"
There was nothing we could do. Tiantong Temple was so far away from the city. How could there be electricity? The monks didn't know how to use expensive generators to generate electricity. It seemed that there was no hope of monitoring.
Zuo Zhong finally decided: "Then keep an eye on the person. After Tongsuo arrives at Tiantong Temple, let him find an opportunity to get to know more of his fellow disciples from Mount Putuo, so that it will be easier for him to move after he returns."
Gu Qi received the order and left. The surveillance focus of the urban spies was also adjusted to docks and stations to monitor passengers coming and going and track and investigate all suspicious persons.
This is a bit like casting a net for fishing, but it has been some time since the fake monk jumped into the sea and committed suicide. The possibility that the other party may have gone to other temples cannot be ignored.
On the seventh day of the twelfth lunar month, Zuo Zhong personally went to a surveillance point and looked at the dock in the distance with a telescope. He saw a group of bald heads walking off the ship in the sun, which was a bit dazzling.
Gu Qi was also accompanying them, and he became energetic when he saw this group of people: "This group of monks are from Putuo Mountain. The ones walking in the front are the abbot of Guanyin Temple and the masters from other temples."
After saying that, he stretched out his hand and said with a smile: "Section chief, look, it's that boy Tongsuo." "
Zuo Zhong looked along his hand and saw a little bald man in the crowd, wearing a monk's robe and holding a wooden fish in his hand. His face was pious, but he still had the cunning and slippery look of the past.
"Pfft." Gui Youguang laughed out loud, thinking it was so funny.
Zuo Zhong glared at him: "What are you laughing at? Tongsuo is going deep into the tiger's den. Without his skills, we would all have to waste our time on Mount Putuo now. I'll let you go next time."
Gui Youguang quickly shut his mouth. He had read the intelligence and knew what kind of life Tongsuo lived every day. If he was asked to chant sutras and chant Buddha every day and could only eat vegetarian food, it would be better to kill him.
"Have the tea stalls along the way been arranged?" Zuo Zhong put down his telescope and asked Gu Qi.
"It's been arranged. We have people at three or four tea stalls along the way. The guy in charge of reception is the guy from Zuojia Restaurant. He has a local accent. They just think it's your family doing good deeds." Gu Qi replied immediately.
When a monk goes to attend a Dharma assembly, he will naturally not take other means of transportation. He will walk to Tiantong Temple on one pair of legs. It is not a short journey of dozens of miles, so he always needs to add some hot water or take a rest. This is a good opportunity to observe.
Zuo Zhong was very satisfied with this arrangement. He turned around and said, "One cannot always be tense and relax after exhaustion. Maybe we can find some clues. Let's find a place to wait for these masters."
Gu Qi also meant the same thing. He wouldn't feel at ease if he didn't go to the scene to see him. There were many outsiders during the ceremony, and his and Gui Youguang's accents were not a flaw. Besides, there was a local coward like the section chief.
But there was no rush. The masters still had to walk for a while. The three of them found a restaurant to worship the Five Internal Organs Temple. After drinking and eating, they drove a car to catch up with the monks from Putuo Mountain. At this time, they were still half way from Tiantong Temple. distance.
There was a tea stall not far ahead. Zuo Zhong and the others got out of the car and walked in. The waiter at the tea stall had never seen Shaodong's family before, so he just thought he was a devotee who came to offer incense and hurriedly greeted him: "Hello everyone, this is a special place The one who provides tea to the monks attending the ceremony is not a business, I wonder who are you?"
Zuo Zhong smiled and replied in Ningbo dialect: "It doesn't matter, we are also going to Tiantong Temple to offer incense, and take a look at the scenery of Taibai Mountain. You can just go and do your thing." After that, he handed him a banknote.
The waiter looked at the money in his hand and thought that since the other party was going to Tendo Temple, it wouldn't be a big deal to come in and sit there. He was going to let the new out-of-town waiter serve them some hot tea and snacks.
Gu Qi whispered: "Section Chief, you have to take care of these guys at home."
Zuo Zhong didn't care at all: "If the water is clear, there will be no fish. As long as they have no problem with others, look, this is what happened."
An intelligence department agent carefully brought tea and snacks and divided them between the two section chiefs and a unit chief. This was the first time he had close contact with Zuo Zhong, and his eyes unconsciously glanced at them.
Gu Qi noticed this scene and put the tea bowl in his hand heavily on the table. The agent was so frightened that he quickly bowed and left. Zuo Zhong watched without saying a word. The little agent should have warned him.
Any unnecessary actions during the intelligence operation will arouse suspicion. If the Japanese spy was nearby, he would definitely be curious about Zuo Zhong and the others, which might sabotage the operation.
Gui Youguang was very familiar with the low-level spies. After all, he hung out in the training ground all day long. He also taught some of the spies' operational skills. When he saw Zuo Zhong getting angry, he quickly begged for mercy in a low voice: "Section Chief, Corey is here. Many new people, many of whom have seen you from afar, are inevitably curious."
After previous operations, the Intelligence Section has gradually added some new people. They admire Zuo Zhong, the legendary section chief, but this is not a reason to violate operational disciplines.
Zuo Zhong lowered his voice and reprimanded: "If you are curious and do unnecessary actions, then just get a book and let me sign it. We are at work now, and anything should be done after action."
After saying that, Zuo Zhong looked outside the tea stall, seemingly admiring the scenery, because the team of Mount Putuo masters was approaching, and the exhausted monks saw the tea stall speed up.
The one who walked in the front was the abbot of Guanyin Temple, who was much older than Master Hongwu. He had suffered a lot along the way and was out of breath from exhaustion. Fortunately, there was a young novice at his side to help him.
Walking to the tea stall, the young novice helped the abbot of Guanyin Temple sit down on his seat, and bowed to the waiter: "This donor, I wonder if you can prepare some tea for us. Thank you."
The waiter smiled broadly: "That's natural. This tea shop was specially prepared by our Zuo family for the masters. I immediately asked someone to serve tea and cakes. Don't worry, they are made by a vegetarian shop in the city."
The masters had encountered Zuo's tea shop before and couldn't help but sigh that Zuo's family was really a good family. It seemed that they could go to his house to try alms in the future. The abbot of Guanyin Temple also recited a Buddhist name.
"Amitabha, thank you so much for your master. If you have the opportunity, you can ask your master to go to the Guanyin Temple on Putuo Mountain. The entire temple will definitely welcome you."
The waiter smiled naively, how could he be the master of the house? He quickly called for others to serve hot tea to the masters, and plates of exquisite snacks were brought out from the food box.
The masters ate vegetarian snacks and drank hot tea. The fatigue on the road was swept away. Their previously dull eyes came to life, their bodies moved, and their faces showed joy.
Zuo Zhong sat with a faint smile on his face, looking at the little novice who was rubbing his back and shoulders for the abbot, and thought to himself that he was such a clever little kid, no wonder he was brought to participate in the Dharma ceremony.
Tongsuo devoted himself to serving the old monk, and in his heart he cursed Zuo Zhong beside him bloody.
