"The carriages were rolling, the horses were rustling, and the pedestrians were carrying their bows and arrows. The mother and the wife were walking to see each other off, and the Xianyang Bridge was nowhere to be seen..."
On the bumpy official road, a group of carriages and horses walked slowly, as if they were traveling through mountains and rivers. Walking along the river. There were nearly a hundred people in this group of guards alone, and most of them were dressed in bright clothes and wearing long swords on their waists. You could tell at a glance that they were the guards of a wealthy family. There were also seven or eight carriages, almost filling the official road. Pedestrians on the official road knew at a glance that the noble man in the car was not easy to mess with, so they kept out of the way. Fortunately, this noble man is also benevolent. He only cares about his own business and does not disturb the people.
"Amitabha, although Your Highness's song "War Chariots" has quite an ancient meaning, it is a pity that it does not suit the occasion."
In a carriage in the middle, a coachman dressed in black heard the poems recited by the people in the carriage and turned sideways and said to the inside of the carriage. Pedestrians couldn't help but look at him from a distance when they heard him pronouncing the Buddha's name, but they saw that his head was shining brightly. He actually looked like a monk. It's just that it's really rare for a monk to be a coach driver, so some people couldn't help but take a few more glances.
"It's okay not to miss the occasion. It's just that it's rare to get out of Beijing. When I saw this beautiful river and mountains, I wanted to recite a few poems to express my feelings. When I opened the curtain, I saw Brother Chang with a bow and arrow on his waist. I only thought of this poem for a moment."
The monk acting as the coachman on the shaft of the carriage is undoubtedly Yao Guangxiao, and the so-called nobleman in the carriage is undoubtedly Zhu Su. He casually recited a poem and used the wrong code, naturally because Zhu Su only had so much ink. Fortunately, he was quite thick-skinned. Even when Yao Guangxiao pointed it out, he didn't blush. He just found an excuse and got over it.
"You're such a ignorant monk. It's rare for Your Highness to recite a poem for me, but you're here to talk."
"I think this poem is good. It's both a 'war chariot' and a 'bow and arrow'. It's hundreds of times better than those sour poems."
"His Highness's poetic talent is extremely famous in Yingtian! Those girls in Fule Yuan are nymphomaniacs who recite the phrase 'look at the clouds at dawn' every day. Your Highness, please don't listen to this monk and continue to work for us. Lao Chang has finished composing this poem, so that those sisters can also talk about our Lao Chang’s stupidity!”
A military attache wearing a blue robe and carrying a bow and arrow came to Zhu Su's car. He first scolded Yao Guangxiao, and then said loudly to Zhu Su who opened the car curtain. This man has a rough face and a bold tone, which seems quite incompatible with the expensive robes on his body. However, he is one of the few Dukes in the Ming Dynasty. It was Chang Yuchun's eldest son, Chang Mao, who had now assumed the dukedom of Zheng.
Zhu Biao's wife is Chang Yuchun's daughter and Chang Mao's sister. Chang Mao is naturally a natural prince. Earlier, Lao Zhu asked Zhu Biao to send people to guard Zhu Su's left and right sides, in order to show to the court officials the closeness between the two brothers.
Zhu Su originally thought that Zhu Biao could at most send a team of prince guards to Suzhou with him, but he did not expect that Zhu Biao actually persuaded the dignified Zheng Guogong Chang Mao to lead hundreds of soldiers trained by Chang Yuchun himself. The elite soldiers served as Zhu Su's bodyguards at a reduced price.
Maybe he heard a lot of good things from his own sister, or maybe it was Zhu Biao's special request, but Zhu Su Changmao, who had a bad reputation among the nobles because he killed Zhu Xian, was extremely warm to him. Zhu Sucheng was afraid of calling him the Duke of the country, but he said that considering their birth status, the two of them began to refer to each other as brothers starting from the generation of Lao Zhu. Although Chang Mao held a high position, he was as careless as an ordinary rough man. He couldn't bear to ride in a carriage, so he only rode around Zhu Su himself to protect him. Zhu Su was moved and treated him sincerely. .
"Brother Chang, this poem was not written by me." After hearing what Chang Mao said, Zhu Su could only explain. "This poem was written by Du Fu and Du Gongbu, the sages of the Tang Dynasty. It talks about the tragic situation of the people who were displaced during the war."
"Now our Ming Dynasty is prosperous, and everything is in ruins, but it doesn't match the tragic situation in the poem. That's why Monk Yao said that my recitation of this poem was not suitable for the occasion. He was also afraid that I would use allusions randomly and be laughed at."
"Poems from the Tang Dynasty?" Chang Mao didn't feel dissatisfied. "No matter when the poem comes from His Highness' mouth, we will treat it as yours, Your Highness."
"It's just a pity that the one surnamed Du chanted it first. I guess there is no way it can be sung like that Xiao Kan or something. Otherwise, today we will always be able to get the glory of His Highness and be in the mouths of those sisters. It’s easy to talk about it several times!”
Seeing that he was still thinking about his sister from Fule Yuan, Zhu Su couldn't help but feel funny. He stopped answering this topic and just turned his head to look into the distance. I saw a round sun in the sky that was already red, and the red clouds in the sky were reflected on the rolling Yangtze River. Di Meng, who was ahead, turned his horse around and came to the carriage and said, "Your Highness, it's getting late."
"I'm afraid I won't be able to enter the city today. Please tell me where to camp, Your Highness."
"Oh?" Zhu Su raised an eyebrow. According to the original itinerary, there was no need to camp outdoors. It was just because I was greedy for the beautiful scenery on the road that I made the team take a detour. Thinking like this, there was a bit of self-blame on his face: "But it was my poor thinking just now. It caused the brothers and Brother Chang to sleep in the wilderness together..."
"Brother Chang has been fighting for a long time, and I should rely on you when I go out. Tell me, where should we stay tonight?"
Chang Mao was delighted to see Zhu Su attaching such importance to him. He always endured hardships with his father, Chang Yuchun, so how could he be so particular about sleeping in the open when he went out? Hearing this, he smiled boldly and said: "Your Highness, you don't have to blame yourself. They have to live in a military camp when they enter the city. The military camp is simple and rough, which is the same as sleeping in the wilderness. But you can still have some wild fun by finding a place to camp by yourself." "
"I remember that there is a temple on the mountain in front, and there is a water source. If we don't camp outside the temple, Your Highness, you can find a room in the temple to spend the night. It is better than crowding in the camp with the rough guys in the army. It's okay. How about it?"
His arrangement couldn't be more appropriate, and he took great care of Zhu Su. How could Zhu Su have any reason to refuse? He immediately nodded in agreement. So while it was still dark, a large group of carriages and horses headed towards the temple that Chang Mao was talking about.
When we arrived at the temple gate, it was already dark. This temple is not very big and looks quite dilapidated. It is different from the Bifeng Temple, which has a rich temple property at first glance. Moreover, there are only two monks inside, an abbot and a novice monk. Tan Ma, who had gone ahead, informed the abbot of the temple in advance, and the abbot was waiting for Zhu Su's arrival at the roadside.
"Old man, I accidentally missed the time when I entered the city, so I'm annoying you." Zhu Su said kindly when he saw that the old man had a kind face and a good place to stay.
"The noble man is here, the temple is in full bloom! There is no need to complain!" The old abbot clasped his hands together. Seeing that Zhu Su also brought the monk Yao Guangxiao with him, he thought that this young noble man was also a Buddhist worshiper. It looks solemn and precious.
A large number of people made a fire and stationed themselves outside the temple. Zhu Su took Di Meng and Chang Mao and others into the temple. Seeing that the old abbot only had a young novice with him, Zhu Su couldn't help but wonder: "Old man, is it possible that you are the only one taking care of this huge temple?"
"You are old now, isn't it hard for you?"
"Thank you for your mercy, noble man. In the past, the Northern Yuan Dynasty was raging in the mountains and rivers. Except for Lao Na, the rest of the monks either starved to death or were revolted by the war. It is a blessing for the old monk to still have his life to serve the Buddha. "
"Besides, I still have this little apprentice, and a wandering monk who stays here to help with mundane tasks from time to time. It's not too hard."
(End of chapter)
