The eaves and tiles are covered with black color, and the wind lantern illuminates the night.
Carrying Cui Luo on his shoulders, he walked eastward for more than ten miles, then turned north and headed straight for Ludaofang.
Less than half an hour ago, Cui Luo insisted on walking after being drunk and vomiting. However, he was a bit drunk after all, and his steps were chaotic. After walking hundreds of steps, he fell and fell on the road. He just rolled into a puddle beside the road.
, covered with mud and soup.
So Cui Luo became more and more angry, and started drinking wine in the puddle and went crazy, crying, screaming, howling and cursing. When the bad guards nearby heard the sound and came, he scolded them and retreated, but no one dared to offend him.
Finally exhausted, with Cui Da's support, he returned to the chariot and returned to the dead silence of night.
When we returned to the main entrance of Cui Mansion, the sound of the gong at midnight could be heard in the distance. I saw two maids carrying wind lanterns and standing in front of the steps. Mistress Lu, wearing an embroidered gold silk scarf, was quietly sitting under the double eaves.
Wait.
Jianyu stopped, and Mrs. Lu quickly came up to greet him, scolding: "Cui Da! How did you take care of the master? You are so drunk! Isn't Yuan Mansion the family of your children? Why don't you stay in the master's guest room for the night?
?”
Cui Da didn't dare to reply, he just bowed his head and handed over his hands, accusing him repeatedly.
Cui Luo slowly raised his head and said in a waning mood: "Madam, this matter has nothing to do with Cui Da. I can't stand the slander of Yingchuan Bieye, so I want to come back..."
Mrs. Lu's eyes were slightly moist, and she said distressedly: "Mr. Lang, even if you are unhappy, why bother, why should you be so drunk... Where did you get this mud all over your body? Send me back to your room quickly!"
After a night of tossing, scrubbing, and incense, Mrs. Lu barely slept. At the fourth watch, she leaned in front of the couch and narrowed her eyes for a while.
When the morning drum first sounded, Cui Luo propped himself up and slowly sat up from the couch. He rubbed his still swollen head and sighed.
When Mrs. Lu heard the noise, she immediately woke up and said, "Mr. Lang! Yesterday, you went to the banquet in good order, how could you end up in such a mess? Could it be that Mrs. Yuan was rough with you?"
Cui Luo waved his hands and said dejectedly: "That Yuan Zai refused to give in, and was determined to welcome Wan'er through the door so that his third son Yuan Ji could renew his string. No matter what, I, as a father, can be considered as trying my best! But it is difficult to draw the bow.
If you have an arrow to turn back, if you make a mistake every step of the way, you will make mistakes every step of the way... Let’s speed up preparations for Wan’er’s marriage as usual!”
After hearing this, Mrs. Lu's face froze. She immediately turned away, took off her brocade handkerchief, and began to sob: "Wan'er! It's all my fault, my mother, for being so confused for a moment... Wuwuwu! I thought that Yuan Ji could do that.
What kind of talented person he is, but he turns out to be an ignorant and ignorant playboy... Now that the betrothal gift has arrived early and the wedding date has been set, it is really hard to get over it..."
Cui Luo knew that she seemed to blame herself, but in fact she complained that he was eager for quick success and used Wan'er as a bargaining chip to insist on clinging to the Yuan family. Now that she had been humiliated twice, Wan'er refused to obey. When she wanted to discuss breaking off the engagement with Yuan Zai, it was too late.
That’s it!
However, Lu's crying became louder and louder, which only made him upset. He finally couldn't bear it and shouted: "Stop crying! The most urgent thing is to find a safe way. Crying like you will not only make you sad, but also
What’s the benefit?!”
Lu immediately became silent. But she still waved her sleeves to wipe away tears and ignored him.
Cui Luo then calmed down the depression in his heart and whispered softly: "Madam, Cui's words were a bit harsh. Don't take it to heart. The Yuan family is so powerful that I, the Cui family, cannot be offended... It's nothing like this."
, Didn’t Madam have a long history with that Linji Temple? And I recently heard from Cui Da that the Master Tong Temple has been spreading word to people several times recently that he wants to take Wan’er back to Linji Temple for meditation. Madam, you might as well invite her to sit in the house, or
I might have some clever ideas."
Mrs. Lu turned around and nodded in agreement. But she thought of another person and immediately tried: "Wan'er's marriage is actually not without room for maneuver. My cousin Lu Qi is currently serving as the imperial censor in the palace and a member of the sixth department.
Although his official position is not high, he had a close personal relationship with Yuan Zai in the past. Perhaps he could act as a middleman and pay a visit..."
Cui Luo disagreed and said: "Is this Mr. Lu who 'does three hundred assassinations a day and never hesitates to call himself a patient'? He is a bit cunning, but his reputation in court is average. What can he do to help?
?”
Lu said: "Lang Jun, it has been several years since you moved from the Imperial Capital to the Divine Capital. Not to mention whether there is any hope of recovery, how much can you know about the current situation in the court? But my cousin has been in the court for a long time.
I don’t know if I have any real knowledge or insights under the influence of my ears and my eyes while running the business up and down.”
Cui Luo then perked up and said, "If that's the case, I'll trouble you to write a letter to convey my wishes to Mr. Cui..."
The wind is clear and the sun is bright, the sky is broad and the clouds are sparse.
At two o'clock in the morning that day, Prime Minister Yuan Zai and his wife Wang Yunxiu arrived at Chonghua Temple.
As soon as the car arrived in front of the mountain gate, Abbot Hui Ding of Chonghua Temple, together with the temple's central supervisor, monks and warrior monks came out to greet him.
After some greetings, Yuan Zai, Wang Yunxiu ordered the manager of the palace to hand two silver collars to the hands of the bhikkhu behind the prison. Immediately, he was led by two monks who knew the guests, walked through the lotus pond, and bypassed the seventh floor.
Pagoda, go straight to the front of the Buddha Hall.
Immediately after burning some incense, worshiping the World Honored One, and offering flowers, fruits, lamps, candles and other objects, everyone left the Buddhist hall. Because Wang Yunxiu wanted to worship Guanyin Bodhisattva again, he separated from Yuan Zai. In the presence of a group of servants and maids, Wu
Under the protection of the monks, they continued to bypass the main hall and went deeper into the temple.
Yuan Zai clasped his hands together, saluted Abbot Huiding and said, "Zen Master Huiding, I haven't seen you for a long time. How is the temple always?"
Abbot Huiding hurriedly returned the greeting and said: "Amitabha! Duo Meng Yuanxiang and all of you Tan Yue have made offerings of incense. Now everyone in the temple is studying the Buddhist scriptures, practicing hard, and practicing them personally. He helps the poor and suffers all over the world, and Pudu Cihang."
After saying that, he made another invitation gesture and said, "I have been meditating hard recently, and I have gained some enlightenment. I have specially prepared some Huzhou purple bamboo shoot tea, and I would like to invite the Prime Minister to come to the Zen room to talk about it. I can drink tea to cool off, watch bamboos and debate scriptures.
Be at ease in the world."
Yuan Zai smiled slightly: "Master Benlao will lead the way."
Abbot Huiding saluted again: "Easy to say, easy to say."
Walking through the corridor, around the pillars, and walking on the stone steps, we walked straight to the northwest. After a while, we passed through a moon gate and came to the Zen courtyard, which was several feet square.
The Zen courtyard has strong pines, green cypresses covering the eaves, and green bamboos in front of the Zen room. It occupies most of the Zen courtyard, echoing the bamboo branches outside the courtyard. It’s not like there are bamboos in the courtyard, but there is a courtyard in the bamboo. It is really a quiet place in the bustle.
the location of.
Abbot Huiding led Yuan Zai to the front of the Zen room, opened the bamboo curtain, and saw an old man with slightly white temples standing there early. When Yuan Zai arrived, he immediately crossed his hands and said:
"Well done, Prime Minister Yuan! Wang Jin, the lower official, has been waiting for you for a long time. The 'Huzhou Purple Bamboo Shoots' are already cooked. Please give Prime Minister Yuan a taste."
Yuan Zai snorted slightly, but did not answer. He immediately took off his official boots, sat down on his knees, and then said:
"Brother Xia Qing, you and I have known each other for many years, and we are ministers of the same dynasty. If you still insist on talking about 'superior and inferior', wouldn't it be alienation? You asked me to invite me here. What do you have to say? You might as well say it frankly."
Wang Jin pondered for a while, then took out a folded jute paper from his arms, handed it to Yuan Zai with both hands, and said in a difficult voice: "The day before yesterday, Eunuch Liu Zhongyi and Liu Eunuch came to Taiwei Palace and pronounced an oral edict on behalf of the saint... It's all on the paper.
Come on. Brother Yu has been living in Luoyang for six years, and everything has not been sorted out yet... I specially invite my dear brother Gong Fu to come here, hoping that I can give you some advice."
Yuan Zai frowned slightly and said nothing. He opened the jute paper and read it carefully. After reading it, his face looked as usual and he said: "Since the saint has an edict, Brother Xia Qing can just return to the capital. What worries do you have?"
Wang Jin had just divided the tea soup between the two of them, and was about to take a sip to relieve his anxiety. After listening to Yuan Zai's words, he immediately poured a cup of hot tea on his front and said hurriedly:
"My dear brother, help me! You have helped me all the way with everything in Luoyang. Now that everything has failed, I have been at odds with Sabao Mansion, which has caused a lot of troubles recently. If my dear brother just sits back and watches, it will be like a foolish brother returning to the capital."
You have fallen into a trap!"
Yuan Zai was like a bright mirror in his mind, especially the blocking of the Holy Maiden and the suppression of Zoroastrianism. He was probably the one who instigated or hinted at all parties. If Wang Jin returned to the imperial capital, he would really be bitten by those mad dogs at Yushitai
, if he was sent to prison and tortured again, he would inevitably be involved... So he quickly put on a smile and said:
"Brother Xia Qing has misunderstood me! It is the duty of a sage to retaliate against others in case something happens. I have also heard about what happened here. There are villains who are blocking things, and there are also evil spirits who are causing trouble. Everything is so different.
No, the root cause is all here! Since I came to the capital of the gods, I naturally want to do some things to deal with the aftermath, so as to prevent the Hu people from being deceived by others and causing trouble. When the time comes, don't you and I want to bear the eternal infamy?"
After hearing this, Yuan Zai's face softened a little, and then he crossed his hands and said, "I heard that the day before yesterday, the wise brother of Gongfu went to Tongyuan Canal to meet His Highness the Crown Prince, and ended up breaking up unhappy, but I don't know why?"
Yuan Zai's face darkened, and he suddenly gritted his teeth and said, "Why else?! That 'White Mountain Man' Li Changyuan and Henan Yin Xiaojing were colluding together, and they fed His Highness the Prince some kind of ecstasy soup, and he allowed himself to be manipulated in everything!
As an important minister, I couldn't get angry, so I argued with them, trying to persuade His Highness the Crown Prince to enshrine the "Sword Like Water" that was born in the world before the Holy One, in order to calm the hearts of the world.
Unexpectedly, His Highness the Crown Prince went his own way and insisted on giving the 'Rushui Sword' as a bonus to the person who came first in the 'Shendu Martial Arts Conference'! Later, the sword was hung on the screen wall in front of the Henan government office.
superior……"
After Wang Jin heard this, he suddenly smiled calmly and pulled a box wrapped in brocade from behind. Seeing Yuan Zai's surprised expression, he didn't say much and immediately removed the brocade, revealing a box made of yellow cypress wood.
Yuan Zai was immediately startled: "Brother Xia Qing! This, this...where did you get this sword box?! There are dozens of pairs of the 'Water Sword Box' hanging on the screen wall of Henan Mansion Office every day.
My eyes are fixed there, how can I let you take it away easily?!"
Wang Jin then added some tea soup to himself, drank it in one gulp, and said with a twist of his beard: "Brother Yu will tell you the origin of this sword box one by one later. And this 'Sword Like Water' in Brother Yu's hand"
, is the most important matter that needs to be discussed closely when inviting my dear brother over!
Brother Yu has to pack his bags in the past few days and return to the Imperial Capital early, but Brother Xian can stay in Luoyang for a little longer. Brother Yu thought if he could use this 'water sword' to write a magnificent article, it would be good there.
At the Shendu Martial Arts Conference, all the villains next to His Highness the Crown Prince failed in their plans?"
Yuan Zai finally lost his composure and took the initiative to grab the tea cup in front of him and drink it all in one gulp:
"Okay! Then follow Brother Xia Qing and make a good plan!"