Lin Rong asked: "What does this Xuanyin Wall mean? It takes 300,000 people and 20 years. Isn't it too labor-intensive?" After she asked, she immediately understood. She was afraid that her senior brother was also looking for his home. On the way, she suddenly became hopeful. She didn't know whether her senior brother had succeeded. What was the purpose of hollowing out this mountain?
The county magistrate replied: "In the past, Master Xuanmiao's divination said that there was a dragon vein pressing down under this mountain. Now the mountains and rivers are swaying. This is because the dragon vein is suppressed and cannot breathe. If half of the mountain is hollowed out and a Xuanyin Wall is built, within thirty years Someone must clean up the rivers and mountains and help the country. Unfortunately, three years after the completion of this wall, Pei Linggong fell ill and stayed in bed for several years, and no one came to clean up the rivers and mountains."
Lin Rong nodded and followed the corridor. She saw tall pines and cypresses beside the road. There were no gates, monuments, Minglou, underground palaces and other buildings. Instead, she saw a marching map embossed on a stone wall. The more she looked at it, the more familiar it became. For a long time, It suddenly dawned on me that the layout of this cemetery was exactly the same as the Martyrs Cemetery next to the old campus of the university.
Walking along the corridor, you will see pines and cypresses, luxuriant grass, and a large white marble monument in the middle, with three powerful characters on it - Zhonglie Temple.
The county magistrate explained beside Lin Rong: "This is not only the mausoleum of Pei Linggong, but also the Martyrs' Shrine for the soldiers who died in the Battle of Bomendu."
Lin Rong just nodded silently, and after a while, he asked someone to lead him to the steps of the Peiling Cemetery. From a distance, he saw that the tombstone occupied only three feet of space, and it was completely in the style of a modern cemetery.
It was surrounded by incense and flowers, and there were so many people coming and going to pay homage. Lin Rong and the others could hardly walk. They had no choice but to order soldiers to clear the way, and then they could go up the stairs. When they got closer, they saw six chi dragons surrounding the tombstone. , with ten big characters written on it - the stele of the founding fathers of Zhongxingzuo Mingding Kingdom. In the upper left corner of the single stele, there is a two-inch portrait engraved, which is clearly a senior brother with short hair.
Lin Rongli stood silent in front of the tombstone for a long time, with mixed feelings for a while, and murmured: "Everything will be different if we go through the Changmen again. What happened if we came together and returned differently..."
The county magistrate ordered people to arrange silk inscriptions, wine, food, sheep and other sacrifices at the present moment, burn incense, tea and wine to pray, and also presented three pillars of fragrance to Lin Rong: "Madam, please!"
Lin Rong took the fragrance and put it in the incense burner respectfully, saying silently in her heart: "Brother, no matter where you go, no matter whether you go back or not, I hope you can bless me to achieve my wish."
There was no resting place on Xuanyin Wall. After Lin Rong paid his respects, he excused himself from being tired and stopped at the foot of the mountain instead of going to Xuzhou. The deputy general tried to persuade him for several days, but Lin Rong didn't respond at all. Instead, he searched the Tiandai, Xuanyin Wall, and Yuntai Waterfall where his senior brother had been, but found nothing.
Lin Rong felt strange in his heart. His senior brother left so many clues. Why did he find nothing here? That day, after returning from a trip to Yan Lake, I just got off the boat and walked to the mountain corridor. I saw a seven-star lantern as high as a person lit at the end. I felt strange when I saw a monk walking over there.
One of the two held a Fuchen, and the other recited the Buddha's name. They talked as they walked: "Although Pei Linggong is not from outside the country, he has returned to the outside world. It can be seen that becoming a Buddha and becoming a saint is not something that only Buddhists and Taoists can achieve."
The Taoist priest shook his head: "No, no. When Pei Linggong was dying, he was lying in a boat under the waterfall. There was lightning and thunder that day. After a burst of clouds and mist, even the boat and the people were gone. Pei Linggong once said before his death that if he If he really disappeared, he must have gone back. If you look carefully at the word "go back", how can it mean becoming a Buddha or becoming a saint?"
The monk insisted on his opinion: "Pei Linggong is descending from the stars in the sky, and he said the word "go back", how can it not make sense?"
The Taoist priest shook his head and calculated with his fingers: "On the fifteenth day of next month, on the day when the moon is waxing, if there is another heavy rain, you and I can take a small boat and go under the waterfall, and we will see for ourselves when the time comes."
The monk recited a line from Amitabha: "The time and place are the same, but the people are different. I'm afraid it won't work either."
Lin Rong stood on the mountain corridor, facing the bone-chilling draft. He waved and told Jing Qin: "Take two guards and ask these two people what they were talking about just now."
When they reached the foot of the mountain, Jingqin followed him, and while helping Lin Rong get into the carriage, he reported back: "My Lord, I have inquired clearly. These two people have heard about the miracles performed by Pei Linggong before his death, and came to ask for help." Those who ascended. They are not the only ones. Half a year after Pei Linggong died, nearly a hundred people have come one after another, including Taoist monks and famous officials."
After getting on the carriage, he said in detail: "Pei Linggong received advice from an expert and arranged a man-high tower on the Yuntai Waterfall in the eight directions of Qian, Kan, Gen, Zhen, Xun, Li, Kun and Dui. The seven-star lantern jumped down from the waterfall at three o'clock in the afternoon. Strangely enough, after Pei Linggong jumped down, on a clear day, the entire Xuanyin Wall was shrouded in clouds and mist. There was a deep pool under the waterfall, and the servants looked for it. After several days, no body was found."
Lin Rong said: "We have been to that waterfall a few days ago. Logically speaking, even if you are dead, your body should float up."
Kingfisher nodded: "Under that waterfall, there is only one way for living water to go. How can we not find the body? This became more and more mysterious, and gradually there was a saying that Pei Linggong attained enlightenment at Yuntai Waterfall."
After hearing this, Lin Rong pondered for a long time, then invited the county magistrate Xu Youya over and asked him in detail.
Kingfisher was waiting outside the door, and the more he listened, the more frightened he became. After seeing Magistrate Xu off and opening the curtain to go in, he saw Lin Rong holding his chin and staring at the glass revolving lantern in a daze. He immediately knelt down and said, "I know this, the county magistrate." The Lord can’t forget what happened in the past and wants to jump off Qiandang Cliff again, right?”
Lin Rong didn't say anything, but this girl guessed clearly, but what she said about the past was different from what she was thinking.
Jing Qin sobbed: "My master once told me that you have figured it out and understood it, but now what are you going to do stupid things? The mention of the three words Qiandangya makes the county master lose his mind. You have eaten it." How much suffering, don’t you remember?”
Lin Rong sighed and rubbed a string of glass beads in his hand: "Don't worry, I'm not seeking death!"
Kingfisher didn't believe it at all: "Pei Linggong's enlightenment is just a rumor among the alchemists. How can it be taken seriously? If you jump from that waterfall, you will not die. How can the body of the county master withstand it? Besides, the vegetation under the waterfall is extremely lush. , there are cliffs on all sides, even if the county owner is lucky enough to survive, how can he come up from below?"
Lin Rong thought to herself, even if there is no such rumor, I still have to give it a try. She took a handkerchief and wiped the tears of the green bird, smiled and comforted: "Don't worry, such a small pool and waterfall can't drown me, your family County Lord, I’m famous for my good water skills.” In the middle of winter, I even asked the old man to grab me and go swimming in the winter!
Kingfisher's tears flowed even more fiercely, and he sobbed while saying intermittently: "Why do you need to do this, County Lord? What happened in the past is done with in the past. Now that the County Lord is married, why bother thinking about the past again?"
Lin Rong knew she had misunderstood, so he didn't answer her. Instead, he made mistakes, half talking about himself and half talking about Cui Shiniang: "Jingui Qin, if you don't let me give it a try, how can you give up?"
Give it a try? What to try? What can you get by jumping from the cliff of the waterfall? The kingfisher has no idea!
Chapter 45
Lin Rong made up his mind and decided to go to the cliff no matter what. Although there were still several days until October 15th, it was necessary to survey the terrain first.
Early the next morning, Lin Rong put the Kingfisher away: "I heard from Mr. Xu that day that there is a specialty in Bomen County, called plum and vegetable pancakes, which are quite flavorful. You can take a few little girls to buy some. Let’s come here and try something new.”
Kingfisher has been following Lin Rong since he noticed Lin Rong's intention. Hearing this, although he knew what Lin Rong wanted to do, he couldn't disobey his master's orders, so he called Feng Xiao over and told him: "The county master has been wronged. I'm not happy every day, I'm afraid she will do something stupid, so you have to follow me all the time and pay attention to everything, you know?"
Feng Xiao responded and murmured in her heart, "How can the county master be unhappy these days? Isn't it much happier than when he was in Xuanzhou?"
After sending away the kingfisher, Lin Rong led the girl and mother-in-law to the cloud platform on the waterfall. As expected, there were seven-star lanterns as high as one person standing in the Bagua direction. The guards had been called in advance to clear the place. At this time, the cloud platform was surrounded by Dozens of Taoist priests, monks, and scribes who came to seek miracles shouted loudly when they saw Lin Rong coming: "I don't know who you are, but I ordered people to guard this place and not allow people to come in or out. This is the mausoleum of Pei Linggong, not the residence of a noble family. "
Lin Rongli ignored him and waved his hand: "Just say that I want to worship Duke Pei Linggong here and ask these people to come down the mountain!"
The autumn floods are approaching, and the flowing water called waterfall in Yuntai Mountain is shallowly covered. Lin Rong waded onto the cloud platform and looked down the cliff. Sure enough, she saw the water flowing fast. She thought of going down to take a look first. She leaned slightly outside the railing and called Feng Xiao to hold her: "County Lord, be careful. , this place is covered with moss, fall down now!”
Lin Rong nodded and stroked Feng Xiao's hand away: "Don't worry, I'm just taking a look!" He followed the stone steps for another twenty steps and saw rugged rocks and steep cliffs. Jumping from here, even if I need to look for him immediately. I'm afraid it won't take him a day or two to reach the bottom of the cliff. Satisfied, she headed down the mountain, waiting for the arrival of the fifteenth day.
After taking a bath that evening, I dried my hair and asked Kingfisher to serve and cover the bed. I just squinted for a while when Kingfisher pushed the door open and came in and reported: "County Lord, General Zhao Menghuai has arrived and said it was an order from the king." I will take you to Qingzhou immediately, we are waiting outside now."
Zhao Menghuai, came so fast?
Lin Rong opened his eyes, looked at the tent ceiling for a while, and then ordered: "Tell him to come in, I have something to say!"
Kingfisher wanted to say it was against the rules, but swallowed it back, and replaced it with a thick marble screen with a red sandalwood frame. He stood outside and took a look, and saw that nothing was revealed. Then he invited Zhao Menghuai in: "General Zhao, Madam Please go in and talk."
How could Zhao Menghuai dare to go in? He just stood at the door and said, "I will pay my respects to my wife. I wonder if she is well? I have been ordered to take her to Qingzhou. I have also brought two famous doctors with me to diagnose her pulse."
Lin Rong coughed twice and looked weak: "Excuse me, General Zhao!" After saying that, Jade Qin and Feng Xiao hung up the curtain and served Lin Rong dressed neatly. He stretched out his wrist and asked the two doctors to take his pulse.
Only the wrist was covered with a piece of thick silk cloth, which the two doctors could not lift. It took a while before they noticed some faint pulse, but nothing else could be seen. He hesitated and said: " I wonder if I can lift the gauze curtain and take a look at Madam’s golden face?”
Lin Rong coughed a few more times, acting like he was short of breath, and he seemed to be out of breath when he spoke: "Of course, I still know after seeing, hearing and asking."
As she said that, the maid lifted up the gauze curtain, revealing a very pale face, which was green in the white and seemed to be from the next world. After all, this was Mrs. Junhou. The two doctors did not dare to take a second look. In just a moment or two, the gauze curtain was slowly lowered. The two looked at each other, picked up their pens, considered the prescription, and said: "Mrs. The pulse is large and tight, and the spleen pulse is large and the pulse is floating and tight. This is because the spleen and stomach are injured and the vitality does not return inward..."
Before they finished speaking, they heard a violent cough inside. The two doctors turned their heads and saw a splatter of blood on the pure-color gauze tent, snaking down along the folds. It was extremely shocking. Terrified, the girls exclaimed: "Master, what's wrong with you?"
Lin Rong coughed for a while, then stopped and said, "This is often the case these days. When I cough too much, I cough up blood. It's okay. Send two doctors out to prescribe a prescription. General Zhao?"
Zhao Menghuai had been waiting at the door. When he saw a large stain of blood on the gauze tent, he was also startled: "Madam?"
Lin Rong whispered: "I wanted to go to Xuzhou to serve my old lady, but it's a pity that my body is really not up to par. As soon as I arrived at Bomendu, I fell ill. I took care of myself for a long time, but it didn't work. Fortunately, you came and brought me with you. Doctor. Otherwise, I really don’t have anyone to make up my mind!”
After speaking, he coughed a few more times and took a long time to catch his breath. Then he continued: "It's okay. I know my own illness. No matter how much medicine I take, it won't be cured. I don't know... I still have it." How many days ago, I was in Xuanzhou when I first came here, and now that you have taken me back to Xuanzhou, it means that I have returned to my hometown."
In this era, there was a lack of medical treatment and medicine, and countless people died due to cold and cold. Zhao Menghuai had no doubts when he saw Lin Rong's sick appearance.
He didn't dare to make the decision without authorization. He was so ill that he rushed to Qingzhou. If something unexpected happened on the way, how could he go back to recover? "Madam, don't say anything depressing. These two doctors are famous doctors in Qingzhou. They can prescribe the right medicine and it will be effective." It won’t be too late to start our journey once Madam gets better.”
After saying that, he went out, asked about the pulse carefully, sighed, and complained in a low voice: "This is such a hard job!"
The two doctors used the remaining ink to write a memorial and handed it to them: "Hurry and submit to the Lord of Qingzhou!"
…
That night, Lu Shen finished approving the documents. It was already the third watch. He lay down for a while, but at the fourth watch, he couldn't sleep anymore. He simply got up and put on his clothes. He woke up the child and stood up against the corner, rubbing his eyes. He said vaguely: "Your Majesty, no military information from Xuanzhou has been sent today."
Lu Shen's face darkened, and he waved his hand, ordering him to retreat. Seeing the moonlight like water, I walked slowly in the courtyard. After walking aimlessly, I arrived at the bureaucracy's office. People were moving around inside, as if it were daytime, and they were very busy.
Lu Shen didn't like anyone. He walked over slowly and saw a bunch of documents scattered by the window. He picked up a piece of paper at random. It was a greeting card from Princess Ruyang. There was a white strip two fingers wide inside, which was already written by Lu Shen. tone, drafting a cold and distant reply.
He opened it and took a look, only to realize that although it was called a greeting card, it was actually a request for help. The Princess of Ruyang was a widowed woman. When she passed through Yuzhou, she was robbed by a group of deserters. Although she was fine, she lost a lot of gold and silver. She is the distant cousin of Lu Shen's mother. Although the relationship is not close, she wrote a letter and even if she could not recover the gold and silver, she could still have someone escort her back to Xuzhou safely.
He slowly read the letter, and a faint smile appeared on his gloomy face. At this time, a scribe was coming out. He suddenly saw Lu Shen under the bright corner lamp and exclaimed: "My lord?"
The clerk exclaimed, causing everyone inside to put down their things and bow their hands in salute: "My lord!"
Lu Shen held the greeting card in his hand and asked, "How do you think we should deal with the matter of Princess Ruyang?"
All the counselors were puzzled. Why had the lord ever cared about these trivial matters between relatives? However, as usual, he wrote a statement and one person came forward and said: "I have drafted a reply and ordered the Bomen County Magistrate to send someone to escort Ruyang." When the princess returns to Xuzhou, she will be given an additional hundred gold foils as usual in previous years. Is it appropriate?"
Lu Shen rubbed the greeting note in his hand: "How could the note written by Boda be inappropriate? It's just that I saw the letter and said that after the robbery, the small group of bandits actually fled to Bomen County. I decided to go to Jiangbei for the first time. How can we allow these remnant soldiers to be defeated and cause trouble?"
The man said: "My lord, do you mean to send soldiers to annihilate them?" After saying that, he immediately shook his head: "No, no, it's not something to be afraid of when these remnant soldiers are defeated, but Bomen County is a place surrounded by mountains. These are There are only one or two hundred people. If we disperse into the deep mountains and old forests, wouldn't it be like looking for a needle in a haystack? This is time-consuming and labor-intensive, but the benefits are negligible..."
Another person also said: "Just ask the Bomen County Magistrate to handle this matter. Calling our Yongzhou Army is not killing a chicken with a bull's-eye?"
After the two of them finished speaking, Lu Shen's face already looked a little ugly. Degong smiled and smoothed things over: "In my opinion, not only do we have to send troops to destroy it, but we also have to go there in person."
He stroked his beard, thought for a moment, and then came up with two reasons: "First, Princess Ruyang is a distant relative of the Lu family. She sits on the sidelines and is not a weapon of the emperor. Second... Second, Xu Youya, the magistrate of Bomen County, He is a civil servant, so he may not be qualified for the task of suppressing bandits."
These two reasons are really unconvincing. Although Princess Ruyang and the Lu family are distant relatives, they have no contact, and they are not the real royal family. Although Xu Youya, the magistrate of Bomen County, is a civil servant, he has also experienced battles, and is not Those sour scholars who don't know anything about military affairs.
Corporal Lu Shenlixian did not blame others for his words, so all his staff had a temper to say whatever they wanted. As soon as Degong finished speaking, they all shook their heads: "This is inappropriate, why don't you go there in person?" The truth?"
Unexpectedly, Lu Shen waved his hand to stop: "There is no need to discuss this matter anymore. I have been idle for a few days, so I just want to use these bandits to relieve my itching!"
Everyone looked at Lu Shen's retreating back with suspicion. Du Degong shook his feather fan and smiled: "Since I left Yongzhou in October last year, within one year, I went down to Xuanzhou and Qingzhou, and all the land in the north of the Yangtze River was included in my bag. It’s time to tell the Lord to relax!”
A counselor was puzzled and asked: "Those rogue bandits are hiding in the mountains and have no fixed location. The difficulty of suppressing the bandits is probably more difficult than attacking a city. How can such a thankless and drudgery be regarded as relaxation?" "
One person said: "Gong De should not have obeyed my lord for such a matter. Qingzhou has just been decided, and the important matter has not been finished yet. Why should he take care of the suppression of bandits?"
Duke De asked them to surround each other and not let them go. After talking for a long time, he said, "Let me ask you, what is the most important thing for us in Yongdi now?"
Everyone was silent. There were countless things, and there were several urgent ones. As for this top priority, it was hard to tell which one was higher for the moment?
Duke De sighed with a smile: "Maybe by this time next year, we in Yongdi will have a heir apparent."
Chapter 46
Duke De got rid of the group of chattering counselors around him, yawned, and walked out slowly. He saw hundreds of elite guards waiting at the gate of the Yamen, all holding torches and getting ready to go. Lu Shen, dressed in brown fur, got on his horse and said, "Sir, I will be back in ten days. During this time, the general affairs here have burdened you!"
Will you return in ten days? How can it be enough to annihilate the remnant troops in the deep mountains and old forests in just a few days?
Duke Virtue knew this well but could not make fun of him again: "Old minister, I have received the order, and I hope that the king will return soon."
Lu Shen rode fast all the way, and arrived at Xuanzhou in only three days. He abandoned his horse and changed boats at the ferry. In addition, it had rained for days and autumn floods were approaching, and he arrived at Bomendu in just one day and one night. It happened to be nightfall on October 14th.
Xu Youya, the magistrate of Bomen County, had already received a letter saying that it was because Princess Ruyang was robbed by the rebels. After hearing this, the prince was furious and wanted to personally lead the troops to annihilate her, which happened to be tomorrow. However, he was cautious and waited at the pier one day in advance until three quarters of Xu, when he saw a bright light upstream. When he took a closer look, he saw seven or eight military boats approaching rapidly.
The terrain here is narrow, sandwiched between two mountain streams. It is also the autumn flood season, so the river flow becomes more and more rapid. Those boats were so fast that they almost hit the stone wall when they docked.
The boatman was busy for a while before he stabilized the oar. Not long after, a young man in brown fur and brocade came out of the boat. Xu Youya had never seen Lu Shen before. He saw that the man had a jade-like face and a demeanor that looked like that of a noble man, but he couldn't tell that he was a white horse and a silver spear who had never lost a single victory on the battlefield. After hesitating for a moment, he saw that Zhao Menghuai had already stepped forward. , he followed up in two or two steps and knelt down: "Xu Youya, the magistrate of Bomen County, pays homage to the lord!"
Lu Shenlue glanced around and saw that apart from Xu Youya, there were Zhao Menghuai and Jiangzhou Sergeant. The woman was the only one missing. His face darkened for a moment, but it was hard to ask.
A group of people disembarked to the palace, and Xu Youya presented several documents: "The remnant soldiers who robbed Princess Ruyang were defeated. There were 245 people in total, and they were all scattered in the mountains. The leading lieutenant heard that The Lord's mighty name made me so frightened that I submitted a letter of apology yesterday, saying that I didn't know she was Princess Ruyang before, but she was willing to commit crimes, perform meritorious service, and kill the enemy on the battlefield."
Lu Shen curled his lips and mocked: "I, the Yongzhou Army, can't accept everyone."
Zhao Menghuai felt that he was a military general, and he should be more concerned about suppressing bandits. He pointed to the marching map on the wall and said: "My lord, please see, although Bomen County is surrounded by mountains and has many dangers, those remnant soldiers were defeated." Yong is short of food and clothing, so although he can hunt to satisfy his hunger, these people are used to wandering and will never stay in the mountains for a long time. At that time, I will set up a spy and follow the map to find out..."
Zhao Menghuai chattered for a long time, feeling that his words were still somewhat insightful. The master used to tell him to read more and think more, but now he is treated with admiration after three days apart.
