Li Shimin slowly opened his eyes, looking a little dazed.
He walked forward slowly. This was not a Buddhist temple, nor was it Luoyang... It was not like any other place in the Tang Dynasty!
The sky was gray and the surroundings were surrounded by fog, making it difficult to see clearly.
"This...where am I?"
Li Shimin walked forward in confusion.
Suddenly, a black dog appeared at the fork in the road ahead. The dog stuck out its red tongue and pounced on him!
"Li Shimin, give me back my life!"
"Li Shimin, you feel so comfortable being the emperor! You feel so comfortable!"
The dark wind came in waves, but I saw a man with disheveled hair following the black dog, walking towards him with his teeth and claws open, his hands stretched out, about to strangle his neck!
Li Shimin panicked, and when he saw the appearance of the person coming, he felt like he was dying!
"Wang...Wang Shichong?! You...are you a human or a ghost?!"
"Go away, go away!"
His mind was so shaken that he ran away! A life-threatening run!
Running wildly all the way, before the shock settled down, there was another fork in the road ahead.
At that fork in the road, there were two black shadows shaking.
"Li Shimin, I've been waiting for you for a long time, a long time..."
"You are finally here, you are finally here...haha, hahaha..."
Two black shadows rushed towards Li Shimin!
Li Er: "!!!"
The appearance, posture, and voices of these two people... he was very familiar with them!
When the two of them got closer, Li Shimin was finally sure.
Of these two, one is Dou Jiande and the other is Liu Wuzhou!
They are all the people he killed before! Now...they are coming to claim their lives!
Have you... gone to hell?
"Get away, everyone get away!"
If he was commanding soldiers and horses to fight, he would not be afraid of these people at all. After all, they were all defeated by him.
But in this strange place, he was already uneasy. In addition, these three people brought a dog that was attacking and biting him. How could he resist in the panic in his heart?
The only way is to run!
Boom, boom, boom!
Li Shimin broke free from the restraints of several people and ran forward crazily!
This time, he really put all his effort into sucking the milk. He was so tired that he was out of breath, like a pug, sticking out his tongue and panting heavily!
But just when he thought he had gotten rid of the people behind him, there was another fork in the road ahead!
There were two people standing at the intersection.
One has only a body and no head.
One has a head, but there is a big hole in the heart.
Li Shimin opened his eyes wide, and an unspeakable fear rose in his heart.
These two, these two are...
"Second brother, you feel so at ease. You are going to Mount Tai to become a Buddhist monk...hehehe...eldest brother is so envious of you..."
"You are the emperor. You can do anything. Can you help me get my head back?"
The headless man didn't know what to say. As he spoke, he walked towards Li Shimin.
Li Shimin: "!!!"
"Second brother, you are so majestic! You are going to Mount Tai to be enshrined...hehehe...fourth brother is so envious of you..."
"Fourth brother, if I don't ask you for anything else, please help me, second brother, to get my heart back, hehehe..."
The black figure with a big hole in his chest was also walking towards Li Shimin.
Two people, one is Li Jiancheng and the other is Li Yuanji!
When he met Dou Jiande and Liu Wuzhou just now, he still had the intention of running away, but when the fairy saw these two brothers, he felt endless fear, shame, and guilt in his heart... and even his legs went weak.
"You guys, don't come over here!"
"Don't come here!"
"I don't know, I don't know! Get away!"
He yelled and wanted to scare them away, but after hearing his words, the two black figures seemed to be angry and accelerated towards him!
"Li Shimin! Give me my head back, give me my head back!"
"Li Shimin! Give me back my heart, give me back my heart!"
The two turned into ferocious hungry ghosts and pounced on Li Shimin!
At the same time, the three people behind also caught up, crying:
"Li Shimin, give me back my life! Give me back my life!"
"Li Shimin! Give me back my life..."
The five people completely blocked Li Shimin's road and howled wildly, which made Li Shimin's liver and gallbladder split and his whole body trembled violently.
"no, do not want!"
"Don't! I...I!"
boom!
Just when he was about to be swallowed by the evil ghost, he suddenly felt a pain on his face.
Then, the whole world seemed to be turned upside down!
The evil ghost disappeared, and the strange and terrifying world disappeared!
He opened his eyes suddenly and breathed in the fresh air!
In front of him was a familiar face.
fine!
Not Li Jiancheng, Li Yuanji, nor Dou Jiande, Liu Wuzhou.
It's Xu Fenglei.
Surrounding him is a quiet Zen room, where he rests...
"Uh, uh..."
Li Shimin covered his heart and groaned softly.
"Your Majesty, what's wrong with you?"
Xu Fenglei said doubtfully,
"Just now your whole body was trembling, as if you were going to have epilepsy!"
"I was afraid that something would happen to you, so I gave you a slap... Are you okay?"
Li Shimin took deep breaths several times in succession before he calmed down his uneasy heart.
"Huh-thanks to that slap of yours."
He said with lingering fear,
"Otherwise, I will be bitten to death by evil spirits. I just encountered a nightmare... Damn, I have never had such a terrifying dream. I am so scared!"
Li Er couldn't help but uttered a curse word.
He has never had such a dream!
"Ah, do you also dream about evil spirits in the Zen room of White Horse Temple?"
Xu Fenglei smiled and said,
"Logically speaking, this place of Buddhism is guarded by Vajra and Buddha. No evil spirits would dare to come, right?"
Li Shimin shook his head.
"It's not an evil ghost, it's not an evil ghost... it's an old enemy."
He straightened up slightly and said softly,
"In the final analysis, it was my evil heart that caused them to die..."
"Come... have a cigarette."
At times like this, nothing can calm the mind more than a cigarette.
Xu Fenglei quickly took one out of his arms and lit it for Li Shimin.
After taking a puff of smoke, Li Shimin's face looked better... He looked so pale just now!
It's like being fished out of water.
"It's Jiancheng and Yuanji, they're here to claim their lives."
Li Shimin murmured,
"They know that I am going to Mount Tai to become a Buddhist monk, but they feel that I am not worthy of going!"
"All of them are asking for their lives..."
Xu Fenglei was startled.
ah? Jiancheng, Yuanji?
Will this be transferred into the plot of Journey to the West? But Xuanzang has already traveled to the West!
"what did they say?"
Xu Fenglei asked repeatedly.
"Jian Jiancheng said... he wanted me to return his head to him, and Yuanji said he wanted me to return his heart."
Li Shimin held the cigarette between his fingers and said with a wry smile,
"And Liu Wuzhou, Dou Jiande and others want my life back."
"I wasn't afraid of them. I would have run away if the worst happened. But as soon as Jiancheng and Yuanji surrounded me, my legs became weak and I couldn't run. They were tightly surrounding me."
"If it hadn't been for your slap, I would have been eaten up by them!"
When Xu Fenglei heard this, he couldn't help but laugh.
"It seems that this slap has done a great job!"
He joked,
"Would you like me to do it again? The left and right sides must be symmetrical!"
Li Shimin glared.
"Get out of here!" he spat.
With this fuss, the fear just now dissipated a lot.
"To be honest, I don't remember... have the heads that were originally built put back?"
Li Shimin lowered his voice and said,
"And Yuanji's heart? It's all put in, right? I didn't have to worry too much about burying them."
Xu Fenglei was a little confused.
"I don't know!" He spread his hands.
After everything is done, everyone celebrates it. Who cares about it anymore?
"What's the use of you!"
Li Shimin raised his eyebrows and scolded.
"Hey... An should have gone back, right?"
Xu Fenglei touched his chin and said with some uncertainty,
"I just feel that the built head was carried by Jingde to scare the Emperor. The effect was achieved, but the head was buried so hard that it was no longer in shape..."
"As for Yuanji's heart...here, his heart was broken with one arrow. Where can I put it in place?"
"It happened many years ago...I don't remember exactly how it was done."
Li Shimin's face darkened.
"That's right! Everything has an effect and a reason, whether it's them really coming to claim their lives, or it's the nightmare deep in my heart."
He said in a deep voice,
"Now that I have remembered this matter, I must get it sorted out, otherwise I will feel uneasy and will not be able to go to Mount Tai to become a Buddhist monk."
"I will issue a decree and have someone go back to open the coffin and conduct an autopsy. How about it?"
Xu Fenglei nodded slightly.
"It's okay...but what if it's really mutilated?"
He looked at Li Shimin and couldn't help but said,
"Then this is a horror story for Your Majesty!"
If it is really mutilated, is there some possibility...are they really the ones who saw that Li Shimin was so proud that he went to become a Zen monk, and their resentment became even worse, so much so that they came to ask for their lives?
Although it's only possible... but it's also quite scary.
Especially for Li Er...
Li Shimin held his forehead, obviously having a headache.
"If it is really incomplete, then I can only deal with the matter."
He gritted his teeth and said,
"Do you know how to do it?"
Xu Fenglei pondered for a moment and said:
"If we follow the Buddhist approach, of course we have to save them, save their innocent souls, and let them die in peace and not bother you."
"Or you can follow the tougher approach in the Taoist sect and open an altar to annihilate them! If you dare to make trouble even after they are dead, kill them all! Kill them all! Make their souls fly away!"
"Or give them a head and a heart out of clay... as a substitute. This is a folk method. It's the same as when Zhuge Liang used steamed buns instead of human heads for sacrifice. It's almost enough. If you can make do with it, it's still a good idea. It’s their heads and their hearts.”
Li Shimin was shocked.
"Don't, don't let them drive you crazy..."
He said hurriedly,
"After all, they are my brothers. I have already killed them once, and I cannot kill them again."
"Let's follow the first way and the third way. Let's do it together and let them live in peace. Just don't bother me again..."
To be honest, Li Shimin felt guilty and ashamed towards his two brothers.
This mentality becomes stronger and stronger as time goes by.
Because people always instinctively forget the bad things between the two parties and think of the good times earlier.
He often thought of the brothers playing together when he was a child, how friendly they were...
But the more he thought about it, the stronger his shame became, and the more he felt that killing his brother was nothing.
Maybe...the nightmare was born from this.
"Okay, whatever His Majesty says, we will do it."
Xu Fenglei agreed,
"No one can tell whether it will be useful or not, but we just want peace of mind."
Li Shimin nodded.
…
In the White Horse Temple, there is the Main Hall.
"Master Kong Yuan, please do what I just said."
Li Shimin bowed to Kong Yuan with his hands clasped together, and said seriously,
"The Great Waterway Dharma Ceremony is held according to the highest standards. All of them must be saved. All you have to do is ask the court for all the expenses!"
Kong Yuan bowed towards Li Shimin.
"Your Majesty, don't worry, the old monk will do it properly."
He said seriously,
"As for the cost, Your Majesty has already given away ten thousand taels of silver. How dare the old monk be so shameless as to ask for it again?"
"Amitabha."
Xu Fenglei smiled.
"This is a bit like an eminent monk." He said cheerfully.
"Well, prepare early and do it early."
Li Shimin instructed,
"Before I arrive at Mount Tai, all these rituals must be completed."
He wanted to climb Mount Tai in a relaxed manner, and not to be uneasy and pretentious.
"According to the order."
Monk Kongyuan responded,
"The old monk gave your majesty and empress each a copy of the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra. You can read it in your spare time."
"What I said just now, 'There is no worry, so there is no fear' comes from the Heart Sutra. If you can understand it, your Majesty and your empress will be at peace and will no longer be disturbed by external objects."
Changsun Wugou took the scripture and opened it gently.
Li Shimin smiled bitterly.
"Although I am the emperor, I still have many worries of ordinary people! How easy is it to be free from worries?"
He raised his hand and said,
"I can only do as many things as possible to make my heart feel more at ease."
"However, thank you very much, Master. I will take a look at it when I get back. I'll say goodbye."
After saying that, Li Shimin turned around and left.
"Amitabha, I would like to send you to Your Majesty."
The monks at White Horse Temple all bent over and chanted the Buddha's name, watching Li Shimin leave.
"Chi Hing."
Kong Yuan caressed his beard and said,
"Go quickly and prepare all the expenses for the Waterway Conference."
"I want to personally save His Majesty's two brothers."
…
Outside the temple.
"Er Feng, I also like this pure place of Buddhism."
Changsun Wugou followed Li Shimin and said softly,
"When I return to Chang'an, I will also find a temple and practice some cleansing. Maybe my health will be better."
"Actually, when I was thinking wildly before, I would also think of Jiancheng, Yuanji and the others, as well as all kinds of imaginary people who were killed by you, coming to trouble me."
"Now that I have saved my life for them, I can feel a little more at ease... But actually, it has to be said in the Heart Sutra. If there are no worries, there will be no fear. I... I am just bothering myself."
Li Shimin's expression tightened.
It turns out that Guanyin Maid also thinks of these things...
"Don't think about it! The evil I have done has nothing to do with you..."
