Chapter 583: You will be a Tuosheng in the Central Plains in the next life
Lin Fucheng and Li Zhi completely underestimated the difficulty of this trip.
If it were not for the two hundred cavalry sent by Mr. Huang, the fifty-two people on their study tour would have been intercepted and killed as soon as they left the country, taken prisoner, and died in an unknown mountain stronghold.
There is no possibility of ransom, because these horse bandits are the targets of the Ming Dynasty's official army. Asking for ransom will expose their position.
“This is the disturbing current situation, so prairie people will look for a false other shore. Even if they know that this other shore is fake, they just want to find a place to rely on so as not to be in panic all day long.” Lin Fucheng looked at the quilt. The tied prisoner said sincerely.
These prisoners will be sent to Kaiping Guard Wang Rulong, who will interrogate them. Although the lair has been deserted, with clues about the horse bandits, it will be easier to suppress the bandits. There is only one end, and that is to pick off the bell and be sent to the mines to do hard labor until death. There is no other way out.
"Welcome to the grassland." Chen Mo dismounted and said to everyone with a smile on his face: "You guys here will definitely want to understand the question of whether human nature is inherently evil or human nature is good."
< br>Chen Mo firmly believes that human nature is inherently evil. Human nature without any restraint or restraint is the source of evil in the world. Only by putting the shackles of law, public order and good customs on human nature can people not do evil.
Humans themselves are also animals. The result of Jiejuyuan’s Jieju is that humans and rabbits have very similar physical signs.
“On the grassland, there is greed for sexual pleasure and misfortune, a lot of killing and fighting, and captives talking to themselves. It is a murderous place of words and a sea of right and wrong.” Chen Mo talked about the current situation of the grassland. It is a place of right and wrong. The biggest contradiction for people here is the threat to survival.
It is a murderous place of words, and if you disagree, you will draw your sword and fight to the death.
We set up camp at dusk and set out at sunrise. The 52-person study tour set off again. After walking for about half a day, the wind was still roaring, and it was carrying flying sand and rocks. It was difficult to see the road clearly, let alone identify the direction. At this time, Chen Mo made arrangements based on his rich experience in Duntai Yuanhou and found a place with leeward to hide.
On yellow wind days, there is usually heavy snow after strong winds.
"This wind will not stop until tomorrow. It is better to stop, otherwise you will get lost and it will take more than ten days to find the way. This is still a time when you have to carry a lot of things. Tomorrow morning, the wind will stop. Set off immediately." Chen Mo asked people to set up camp in the leeward area, set up sentries, and explained to Lin Fucheng why he had to stop.
Under the yellow wind in the grassland in winter, running around will only make you more and more lost. Getting lost is the life-long enemy of Air Force General Li Guang. It is very easy to get lost on the grassland, and after strong winds, there is often heavy snow. The grassland calls snow disasters white-haired wind, which means the wind blows the snow and makes it difficult to distinguish between east, west, north and south, and even up and down.
The time chosen by Lin Fucheng is the most difficult time for them. People in the grassland are all in winter, but it is also the most suitable time, because only in winter can the roots of the grassland be seen. face.
"Then what can we eat if we don't bring enough food and water? At that time, Chen Qianhu was fighting alone, how could he solve the problem of food and water?" Lin Fucheng was curious about the life of Chen Mo Dun Taiyuan Hou.
"Rat." Chen Mo said with a smile: "Dig out mouse holes and drink mouse blood. It would be nice if there are mice to eat. Sometimes they will chew the bark of trees. If people are hungry, they can do anything. Eat."
"Chen Mo, you said you were awesome. I didn't believe it at first, but now I believe it." Lin Fucheng praised him sincerely. The highest courtesy to a man is to say that you are awesome, and Lin Fucheng. The scholar said this to Wufu sincerely.
"Master Lin, there is a situation that I need you to take a look at." Yao Guangming walked over and said with a troubled expression.
Lin Fucheng walked over and saw a dirty little girl, whose cheeks were red from the cold, and a woman who was also wearing a sheepskin robe. She seemed to be frightened by seeing so many people and froze in place. Before she could get closer, Lin Fucheng The assistant smelled a strong smell of mutton. The little girl huddled behind the woman and looked at the stranger curiously. The woman had an anxious look on her face and was chattering something. The wind was strong. , making the words even more difficult to distinguish.
Lin Fucheng couldn’t understand.
“She asked us who we were and where we were going? Can we take them to Kaipingwei? She said that her husband was dead and she was taking her daughter to join her father. , but when they encountered Huang Feng on the road, they had no choice but to hide here. They were all afraid of jackals, tigers, leopards, and horse bandits." Chen Mo translated the woman's words expressionlessly.
After many years of being a marquis in Duntai, Chen Mo has long become hard-hearted. Everyone is an enemy once he enters the grassland. He is a bit ruthless. When facing women and children, Chen Mo actually has no gentleness. , his eyes were full of vigilance and indifference.
Chen Mo had suffered a loss. Lin Fucheng was curious about where the wound that penetrated his back came from. Chen Mo rarely talked about it to others. The scar was caused by his kindness on the grassland. Like now, a poor little girl and a seemingly desperate woman turned to him for help, and he helped, almost to the point of death.
In a completely disordered world, kindness is superfluous and useless.
"What should we do?" Lin Fucheng frowned. Lin Fucheng had heard the story of three attacks on the Bone Demon. He was a little embarrassed. Should he help or not?
Chen Mo shook his head and said: "Master Huang confesses that I am only responsible for your safety. You are on a study tour. No matter what decision you make, it is up to you."
"Li Zhi What do you think?" Lin Fucheng looked at Li Zhi and asked for his opinion.
Li Zhi thought for a while and said, "Take it with you."
Li Zhi couldn't bear to see this misery. When he saw this little daughter, he thought of his second and third daughters who starved to death. He knew that it might cause some trouble, but he still made a decision.
The final decision was to bring the mother and daughter along.
The reason why Li Zhi brought this mother and daughter with him was to recognize Chen Mo’s strength. These were the emperor’s personal guards, protecting His Majesty’s cavalry. Two hundred cavalry could defeat a thousand-man army. Tribe, more than enough.
The yellow wind was indeed raging as Chen Mo said. In the early morning of the next day, Chen Mo looked at the sky and asked everyone to move forward quickly. They must reach Kaipingwei within one day, otherwise the white-haired wind will come. .
Blizzards are the number one natural disaster on the grassland. Countless people freeze to death every year. Especially in this impassable place, it needs the protection of city walls.
In the early morning of the next day, when the study tour group entered Kaipingwei, snowflakes began to flutter in the sky, and soon turned into heavy snow. Under the strong wind, the snowflakes could not fall. Under the influence of the snow, snow filled the space between the sky and the earth, and everything as far as the eye could see was a vast expanse of white.
Wang Rulong had known for a long time that these people were coming to Kaiping Guard. After arriving, he did not give any extra preferential treatment. , I personally hunted two sentinel deer, which was regarded as receiving them.
Although the conditions were difficult, before leaving, the study tour group knew that this trip was not an outing, so they had no complaints.
Yao Guangming did not mind that the conditions were shabby. This was the best hospitality condition that Kaipingwei could offer. The mattresses were all new woolen quilts and the coals in the stove were burning red. Yao Guangming felt warm.
When they arrived at Kaiping, Yao Guangming and his party still enjoyed excellent treatment, much better than those of the border residents.
After everyone stayed, Wang Rulong found Chen Mo and said with a frown: "The mother and daughter you brought do not have a father who lives in Kaipingwei. Maybe you left too fast and they couldn't take care of them in time. The news was passed on; perhaps they saw Tiqi's firearms and did not dare to inform their comrades; perhaps they saw you and knew that the opportunity to get rid of the horse bandits was here, so they just followed you."
< br>"This mother and daughter were released by the horse bandits to find out about you. Chen Qianhu is also a veteran of the night, and he actually allowed such a person to join the team?"
"I never believed it. I only trust the guys in my hands." Chen Mo patted his musket and said with a smile: "Qi Shuai's flintlock musket is quite effective, otherwise he wouldn't be able to capture the boss of Heigen Village. "
Not putting yourself in danger is Tiqi's first principle.
Chen Mo did not stop him because he was confident in his strength. The Tiqi were well-trained and well-equipped. Let alone the horse bandits, even if Anda Khan was reincarnated and brought the Yin soldiers, there would be nothing he could do. Tiqi.
But all the dens of horse bandits with more than a thousand people were wiped out by Wang Rulong. During Wang Rulong's stay in Kaipingwei, it was not like he received the salary from the court in vain.
"I used to fight alone. It was really hard. It was like being in this white-haired wind and not knowing what the road ahead was." Chen Mo sighed with emotion. In the past, the hardships of Duntai Yuanhou were all gone. I know, but no one is doing anything to change it, and there is no support.
Now, standing behind Duntai Yuanhou is His Majesty. Only by standing behind Duntai Yuanhou can His Majesty protect himself and not be assassinated by young people. This is a mutual achievement. process.
Zhu Yijun relied on the protection of Dun Tai Yuan Hou Ye Bu Su, and Ye Bu Su also needed the support of the emperor.
"But I may have disappointed these opinionated people. Kaipingwei has no temple for them to see." Wang Rulong said with a troubled expression: "I hope they can stop talking nonsense."
"Aren't there twenty-seven temples from Kaipingwei to Yingchang?" Chen Mo said in surprise. The September newspaper also reported on these twenty-seven temples. How could there be no temples to see?
Wang Rulong said with a slight embarrassment: "They were suppressed by me. They gathered monks, soldiers and pilgrims to cause chaos and protected the horse bandits. I hurriedly uprooted the twenty-seven temples before winter. . ”
Chen Mo said indifferently: “It’s okay to go to the temple. Anyway, this is the first stop. The main thing is to go to Guihua City, there are many temples there.”
These opinion makers have nothing to do, so why are they doing a study tour? These lamasery temples are no better than the Heyi Congregation. The commentators have analyzed the nature of this religion so clearly, why do they need to come to the grassland to see it in person? They are all useless things that are inferior to pigs and dogs, so why bother looking at them?
Wang Rulong shook his head and said: "Can't see."
"Can't see?"
"Well, I burned them all..." Wang Rulong said with a complex expression: " They came here three months ago and could still see it, but now it's all in ruins. "Haha." Chen Mo was a little surprised and said with a smile, "Didn't Lin Fucheng and the others miss the mark?" "
In the early morning of the next day, under Wang Rulong's arrangement, the Limited Freedom Study Tour group went to the Da'an Temple, the lamasery closest to Pingwei.
Kaipingwei was the place where the capital of the Yuan Dynasty was located during the Hu Yuan Dynasty. After Li Wenzhong captured it, Kaiping Prefecture was established in the second year of Hongwu. In March of the ninth year of Xuande, Kaipingwei was abandoned and moved to Dushibao. , after the Kaiping Guard was abandoned, it became a gathering place for northern captives.
After a hundred years of vicissitudes, Yuan Shangdu, designed, built and planned by Guo Shoujing and Liu Bingzhong, lost its prosperity and became desolate. Without the maintenance of skilled craftsmen, the masonry walls turned into adobe, palaces and other buildings collapsed, and the moats were silted up and filled with sand. The surrounding fields have turned into grassland. In this desolation, less than twenty miles east of the city, there are eighteen lamaseries.
The largest of these eighteen lamasery temples is Da'an Temple. At its peak, there were more than 1,500 lamas.
When Shangdu in the Yuan Dynasty was at its most prosperous, there were 110,000 Ding and nearly 500,000 people. However, in the 11th year of Wanli, Kaipingwei had only more than 40,000 people.
It is these 40,000 people who support these eighteen lamasery temples. The locals call this place Zhao Naiman Sumu. It is a place where temples gather, a holy place for lamas, and a nightmare for poor coolies. Anyone who has some means would not come here to make a living.
Lin Fucheng and others were not in vain, because they saw the ruins of Da'an Temple. They were indeed ruins. There were ruins everywhere. At first glance, it seemed that they had been bombarded by Ming artillery and there were traces of fire. .
If it were a lowly Confucian, he would definitely say that Wang Rulong was interested in the wealth accumulated in the temple, so he broke into the temple so violently, and burned the corpses with fire to destroy all traces, but the lowly Confucian could not reach Kaipingwei , so no one criticized Wang Rulong. Wang Rulong was much more ruthless than Li Rusong. Li Rusong was threatening, and Wang Rulong beheaded all the lamas who had gathered to cause chaos, a total of 3,400, in public.
Of course no one would care. Even in the record, there is only one sentence: the lamas gathered to rebel again, and Yingchang general Wang Rulong led his troops to pacify it.
“Judging from the ruins alone, we can still imagine the original splendor. This thing is all made by the people. Such a large Buddha statue is still gilded. How many craftsmen are required to do it? If they don’t do other things, What about carving Buddha statues?" Lin Fucheng stood in front of the remains of the Buddha and sighed.
What he saw was not the Buddha statue, but the people’s anointing.
"Many Buddhist utensils need to be covered with gold foil, and the gold foil must be from Yingtian Mansion. I think these two masters know how expensive those things are than a martial artist like me." Chen Mo pointed to the remnants of the Buddha's body. Some of the golden positions said that with Chen Mo's treatment, he would not buy it. It's not that he couldn't afford it, but it was really useless.
The Golden Buddha and the Golden Buddha are not made of gold. How could they have the sincerity to move the Buddha?
Chen Mo agrees with Lin Fucheng’s point of view, it is all made up of the blood and sweat of the border people.
"Where are you from?" An old lama holding a broom asked in surprise when he saw the person coming.
“From the Ming Dynasty Jingtang.” Lin Fucheng frowned and looked at the lama and said, “You speak Chinese very well.”
The old lama put down his hand and saw that he was self-made. He put his hands on the broom, clasped his hands and bowed his head and said: "I used to be the lama of Da'an Temple. Later, a group of strongmen took over this place, so I ran away. I heard that the Ming Army defeated the Kaiping Guards. When I came back from the north, it was already full of ruins. ”
“Oh, luck has its way.”
Lin Fucheng wanted to move forward, but Chen Mo pulled Lin Fucheng and whispered, “It’s better to stay away.”
< br>Chen Mo didn’t want Lin Fucheng to die in the hands of a lama who seemed to have little practical ability, otherwise Chen Mo would not be able to communicate with the emperor when he returned to Beijing.
Lin Fucheng was ten steps away from the lama and started chatting.
As early as when Kaipingwei was still the capital of the Yuan Dynasty, temples began to be built here, and Buddhism had already flourished. Da'an Temple was originally built under the order of Kublai Khan, but it was destroyed by fire when the dynasties changed. This fire was not set by Li Wenzhong. , the news that Li Wenzhong had conquered Yuan Shangdu reached the temple. In order to compete for various belongings in the temple, the lamas started internal strife, and the fire completely destroyed the original Da'an Temple.
The Daxiong Hall of Da'an Temple was originally a giant pagoda with four levels of light and seven levels of darkness. It is 21 feet high and 18 feet wide. Its scale is approximately the same as the size of two Huangji Halls. It is so vast that it can be seen from dozens of miles away.
In order to compete for property, the lamas in the temple had internal strife, and eventually the Da'an Temple was burned to the ground. Later, after the Kaiping Guards moved inward in the Ming Dynasty, the scattered lamas returned here and built a new Da'an Temple.
The old lama did not care about the vigilance of the Ming Dynasty. He sat on the bluestone, holding his broom, and said with a yearning look on his face: "Twenty years ago, Da'an Temple was a small nunnery, with a total of seven rooms. There were fourteen monks living in the house, six of whom were Han Chinese. They cultivated a total of 120 acres of land, plus grazing, and exchanged livestock for salt, iron pots and other items, and they were able to live. Although they were poor at that time, they could still make a living. It’s safe.”
“Until it was occupied by strong men, this place changed from a pure place of Buddhism to a place of filth and evil. The number of temples here changed from one to eighteen. It is extremely prosperous, but we old monks can only escape."
"As for the Chinese language, it was all taught by the Han people."
The old lama sat on the bluestone, seeming to miss the past very much. The days of Qingdeng Ancient Buddha have passed and will never come back.
“In the past, the kind people here read scriptures and chanted Buddha’s name. In fact, they were counting on me to be reborn in the Central Plains in the next life.” The old lama looked at Lin Fucheng and Li Zhi with envy in his eyes. In the next life, he was reborn in the Central Plains. This is the utilitarian heart of these good-hearted lamas.
Being a Ming Dynasty person in the next life is the pursuit of worshiping the Buddha and the wish made to the Buddha.
Li Zhi felt that this statement was particularly novel. He raised his eyebrows and asked with a smile: "Why do you want to be reborn in my realm? Is the grassland bad? Or is my Buddha bad?"
The old lama looked at Li Zhi, took a look, shook his body and said leisurely: "No, the grassland is very good, and my Buddha is very good, but when I reach the Celestial Kingdom and the Central Plains, I will no longer believe in Buddhism."
"What do you mean by this?" When Lin Fucheng heard this, these lamas liked to be arrogant when talking, which made people confused. They were just pretending to be profound! But Lin Fucheng himself is also a master of pretending to be sophisticated, and he is always the last one to appear.
Lin Fucheng thought of a person, Legas. When he arrived in the Ming Dynasty, this guy betrayed his oath, got married and gave birth to two sons. It is said that his beauty from all over the world is pregnant again, and it is estimated that he will continue to have children. .
Taiwan is very good, but in the Ming Dynasty, you don’t have to believe in religion. The land in the Central Plains is not controlled by gods, but by people.
“There is no other way to become a monk.” The old lama talked about the past and why he became a monk because he could only be a monk. Only by being a monk can he live. Only by escaping from the world can he escape from those things. Get a moment of peace and relief from the suffering and chaos in the world.
"It is difficult for people in the Central Plains to understand that everything you do is wrong. It may not be you who are wrong, but the world is wrong. This feeling is rare in the Central Plains." The old lama felt People from the Central Plains might not understand this feeling that whatever they do is wrong, so they immediately explained.
Having no career and wandering around is a reflection of the life of the prairie people.
Lin Fucheng and Li Zhi looked at each other and understood their own theories more deeply. The grassland is indeed a good place. As soon as they arrived in Kaipingwei, they gained a lot. The lack of material and the instability of life were all. The reason for the spread of religion.
The old lama smiled and said: "Can't you understand? For example, it is wrong for me to even be a lama. If I am a good lama, I will be invaded by strong men. If I am a bad lama, I will be attacked and destroyed by the imperial court."< br>
"Are there any lamaseries around here?" Lin Fucheng asked a question he was concerned about. All the famous lamaseries in Kaipingwei were destroyed by Wang Rulong. He needed to find a lamasery to complete his study tour. Kaipingwei belongs to the left wing of the suzerain Khan, while Guihua City belongs to the right wing of Ada Khan. The lamaseries on the left and right wings are different.
"How can there be any lamasery on this grassland? They are all just dens of thieves and demons. Where are the Buddhas and demons?" The old lama picked up the broom and continued to sweep the floor, as if this ruin was not a ruin but the previous one. He scanned the splendid Buddhist hall into the distance, as if the whole world was within a few inches of his feet.
Li Zhi asked loudly: "Baimaofeng has come, don't you find a place to hide, old man?"
"There is a hole on the mountainside behind, I can just hide. ." The old lama waved his hand and continued to sweep the floor, gradually moving away.
The rise and fall of Da'an Temple and the persistence of the old lama made the group sigh.
Li Zhi frowned and said: "They are all dens of thieves. This is a very good saying! It is precisely because of the establishment of a strong personal dependence relationship that the Buddhist hall will become a den of thieves!"
The trip to Da'an Temple seemed fruitless, but in fact it was full of gains. The appearance of the old lama made everyone think about the process of alienation of people by religion.
The way back was not smooth. It was either horse bandits or wolves. It was snow that blocked the road. It took two hours of walking for twenty miles before we could walk back. This was still a car situation. .
"Did Chen Qianhu go deep into the prison camp in this kind of weather to explore the enemy's situation?" When Lin Fucheng saw the gate of Kaipingwei again, his eyes were wet. He never thought that one day , even walking is so difficult.
It’s too bitter, I’ll never come again.
Chen Mo shook his head and said: "That's not true. Northern barbarians also have to spend the winter, and they usually don't go out of the fortress. I'm just a human being. It's not easy for anyone to come in this damn weather."
< br>
"Uh, no, we seem to be trapped in Kaipingwei!" Li Zhi suddenly said in horror: "I originally planned to stay in Kaipingwei for half a month and then go to Guihua City, but now I can't go! The snow on the grassland will melt. "?"
"It will take a long time after spring begins," Chen Mo said with a smile on his face.
When making the travel plan, Chen Mo suggested that Lin Fucheng first go to Guihua City, wait until next spring and summer, and then go to Kaipingwei. The grassland is not as good as Guannai. Once it snows, it will be covered with white snow all winter. Lin Fucheng Do you think a little snow will delay the trip? Is it possible that caravans cannot trade in winter?
Lin Fucheng far overestimated the population of the grasslands. Human activities cannot make the roads smooth.
His Majesty the Emperor appointed Chen Mo, an experienced person, to help Lin Fucheng complete his study tour. Lin Fucheng was stubborn and now he was stunned by his own boomerang.
“You can actually leave.” Chen Mo looked at Lin Fucheng and said with a smile.
"How to go? Sledding?" Lin Fucheng had heard of dog sledding, and he asked eagerly.
"Go over and use two legs. It's a pity that you are not the elite soldiers of the Beijing camp." Chen Mo finally laughed after saying this. What he actually meant was that Bai Wuyi was a scholar. Faced with this situation, these scholars have no choice but to be blind.
When there were no cavalry camps, the Ming army had to wait until the heavy snow fell for its expedition outside the Great Wall. This was because of insufficient mobility, which put the enemy's mobility at the same level as its own. This was the only time that the Ming Dynasty went out to fight in the spring and summer, and Anda Khan was caught off guard.
“A sled pulls one person, requiring 6 to 12 dogs. They can only run up to ten miles a day. These dogs also have to eat, drink and litter. Look at our artillery. Look at our artillery. Those baggage items, are you sure Master Lin wants to go to Guihua City at this time?" Chen Mo explained why he didn't use a sled. Dogs are used to guard homes and are not suitable for towing. There are 6 to 12 dogs per person, so he has to bring them. How much baggage is it?
Li Zhi spread his hands and said with a smile: "I'm trapped here."
You can do learning anywhere. Kaipingwei's conditions are limited, but you can't starve to death or freeze. It's completely enough. Kaipingwei's surroundings Thirty-seven thousand people live in this small town of 14 miles. There are lamas who have returned to secular life, former believers, and ordinary border residents. They are all people who can be visited and inquired. To examine the alienation of people by religion, it is not necessary to be in In the lamasery.
Li Zhi touched his official waist badge. After wandering around for most of his life, he could finally study with peace of mind.
Not five days later, news came that the lama of Da'an Temple had passed away. On the day he met the study tour group, the old lama passed away in a cave in the back mountain. After falling leaves, he returned to his roots. He had been wandering outside for two years. After ten years, he finally returned to the last pure land in his heart and returned home.
No one remembers the old lama’s name, and the people on the grassland border no longer even have any impression of the old Da’an Temple.
A notebook filled with travel records is the only relic of this old lama.
"Perhaps the old lama found his other shore at the last moment of his life." Li Zhi said to Lin Fucheng with certainty.
(End of this chapter)