The Great Wei Music Bureau

Chapter 36: Strategies for Managing Monks (Part )

Last time we talked about Shiyu finding the note and letter left by Li Yi before he left. After reading them, she set off for Junzi Pavilion. Let us see how Shuide Jushi will act.

It is said that Shi Yu came to Junzi Pavilion with the letter. The current Junzi Pavilion is very different from the past. Scholars from the capital city rushed to visit here, and Tao Zhongwen also gave lectures. In the morning, he talked about the Five Constant Virtues of a Gentleman, and in the afternoon, he talked about the Confucian Weird Way. Apparently, the Confucian Weird Way showed signs of revival.

Shiyu came to the door, looked at the couplet on the door, reached out and touched it, strengthened her faith, and stepped in. The former clerk, now a concierge, saw such a beautiful woman coming in and hurriedly asked: "Miss, do you have an appointment to come to Junzi Pavilion?"

Shiyu shook her head and said, "No." The concierge said in embarrassment, "Miss, you don't know that my master only gives two lectures a day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. He is teaching in the pavilion now. If you don't have an appointment, I dare not let you in. Please don't embarrass me."

Shi Yu bowed and said, "My dear, I have a handwritten letter from Li Yi and Li Xiuyuan. Please help pass it to Master Shuide. It is urgent. My son Li is in trouble. I would like to ask Master Shuide to help."

"Li Yi? Li Xiuyuan? Mr. Li?" Shiyu nodded. The doorman took the letter, turned around and went upstairs. Shiyu waited in the hall. After a while, Shuide Jushi came down quickly. When he saw that it was Shiyu, he had a hint of doubt in his heart. He looked at the letter in his hand and walked up to Shiyu.

Shiyu bowed and said, "I am Wan Shiyu from the Exiled Immortal Tower, and I am honored to meet Mr. Shuide." Tao Zhongwen looked at Shiyu and asked, "You said Li Yi is in trouble?" "That's right, Li Lang is now imprisoned in the temple by those monks, and those monks want to force Li Lang to become a monk!" Tao Zhongwen was surprised and said, "Are you serious?" Shiyu nodded and said, "Mr. Dugu Yu and Mr. Nangong Qi just went to Xishan Temple this morning and saw it with their own eyes. They wanted to bring Li Lang back, but they were driven down the mountain by the monks. This is what Nangong Qi told me himself." "Please help, teacher, and save Li Lang."

Tao Zhongwen glared at Shiyu and scolded, "Teacher? Who is your teacher?"

Shiyu bowed and apologized, "I was in a hurry and said something wrong. I thought that all scholars in the world could call you teacher, but I forgot that I was born in a humble family and do not have this qualification."

Tao Zhongwen said seriously: "Since you are Xiuyuan's bedmate, I will not bother with you. However, the word teacher is not a casual title. If you dare to talk nonsense again next time, don't blame me for being rude." Shiyu nodded in agreement.

Tao Zhongwen regained his composure, came to the main seat under the plaque "Shangshan Ruoshui" in the hall and sat down calmly, then gestured to Shiyu to sit down as well. Shiyu took small steps to the chair below, half-sitting on the chair, straightening her upper body, lowering her head and clasping her hands tightly in front of her.

Tao Zhongwen said, "Look, tea!" The concierge immediately brought two cups of tea and placed them on the tea table between the two of them. Tao Zhongwen didn't drink it, and neither did Shiyu. Tao Zhongwen opened the envelope and began to read the letter. As he read, his eyes began to light up, and his smile grew thicker. He put the letter away and looked at Shiyu and said softly, "Ah, Shiyu, I think you should have a reputation to show off by Xiuyuan's side. How about this, from today on, you will be my first female disciple. If you have nothing to do in the future, you can come to the Gentleman's Pavilion to listen to my lectures."

Shi Yu was surprised and asked, "Is what you said true, sir?"

"How can a gentleman go back on his word?" Shi Yu immediately stood up and bowed to his teacher, saying, "Teacher, please accept my disciple's greetings!"

Tao Zhongwen accepted it with a smile, stroked his beard and thought: "You don't have a calligraphy yet, right? Xiuyuan's calligraphy was given by me, so I will give you one today too!"

"It's up to the teacher."

"Okay, then I will give you the character 'Xi Jun'. Cherish this relationship!"

"Xijun, Wanxijun, thank you teacher for the calligraphy."

Shi Yu bowed deeply again, and then asked, "Teacher, what about Li Lang's matter?"

Tao Zhongwen said with a smile on his face: "You can go back and rest assured. I promise you that Xiuyuan will be back to you soon." When Shiyu heard this, the huge stone in her heart finally fell to the ground. She stood up, bowed and left.

Tao Zhongwen was very pleased to see her back, and then returned to the pavilion to continue teaching. On that day, a memorial was delivered to Emperor Xuanwen of the Northern Wei Dynasty, titled "A Strategy for Treating Monks". After reading it, Emperor Xuanwen Tuoba Jun laughed and said, "This Li Xiuyuan is really interesting. He can solve a problem for me by giving me a casual gift!"

……

The next day, Li Yi was also abruptly awakened from his sweet dream by the wake-up call of Monk Zhengjue, and then he was pulled to sit in the main hall. Before he could open his mouth to speak, he heard a thunderous voice from the sky, "Where is the abbot of Xishan Temple?"

When Li Yi heard this, he realized that it was the voice of Tao Zhongwen, a lay Buddhist of Shuide, and wondered what the old man was going to do. Suddenly, he remembered the note he had left for Shiyu before he left, and instantly realized that his strategy for governing monks must have been adopted by Emperor Xuanwen.

All the monks of Xishan Temple came outside the hall and looked up at the sky. They heard the voice in the sky asking, "Master Zhengyuan, the abbot of Xishan Temple, please come forward and answer the question!"

Monk Zhengjue said solemnly to the sky: "Amitabha, benefactor, my brother is not in the temple due to some matters. May I ask if you are Lay Buddhist Shuide?"

"Yes, it's me."

"What does Mr. Shuide want to see my brother about? I can tell you that I will visit you at Junzi Pavilion when you return."

"Oh, if that's the case, then please send my friend Li Yi to the Gentleman's Pavilion. I haven't seen him for a long time and I miss him." "Master Shuide, I'm sorry that I can't do that! Xiuyuan is a distinguished guest of our temple, and he has a predestined relationship with Buddha. In the future, he will enter our Buddhist sect and cultivate to become a golden body. I hope you won't ruin our Buddhist opportunity."

The sky was suddenly covered with dark clouds. Thunder roared from the clouds, rumbling like a thunder chariot stopped above Xishan Temple. Tao Zhongwen's voice sounded again: "Humph! Buddhist opportunities, are all your Buddhist opportunities obtained by force and robbery? Li Xiuyuan is originally a Confucianist and Taoist, and now he is a sixth-rank gentleman. How could he become your Buddhist disciple! What a joke! It's obviously you who want to snatch the good seedlings of my Confucianism and Taoism!"

"Mr. Shuide is wrong! Buddhism has never asked Xiuyuan to give up Confucianism and Taoism. We just want him to join our Buddhism. This does not affect his dual cultivation of Buddhism and Confucianism."

"What a joke, practicing Buddhism and Confucianism together? I have only heard of practicing Confucianism and Taoism together, and practicing civil and martial arts together, but I have never heard of practicing Buddhism and Confucianism together! After entering your Buddhist sect, I only respect the Buddha and not the imperial power. How can you Buddhists coexist with my Confucianists? My Confucian etiquette states that we must respect the heaven, earth, the emperor, parents and teachers, while you Buddhists emphasize the emptiness of the four elements and the purity of the six senses. Where do you put my Great Wei Emperor in your eyes, and how much respect do you have for my Great Wei court?"

Zhengjue understood now that Tao Zhongwen was using the incident of Li Yi as an excuse to attack him. Now that his senior brother was not around, there was no one in charge, and he did not know how to respond to avoid this disaster. However, just as he was hesitating, a golden light suddenly appeared in the main hall of Xishan Temple, and the statue of Guangsheng Bodhisattva emitted a dazzling Buddha light, illuminating the sky and directly dispersing the dark clouds. The voice of Guangsheng Bodhisattva rang out in the air: "Amitabha, donor Tao Zhongwen, I have come to uphold justice for Xishan Temple. I wonder if there is anything wrong with the donor's attack on our Buddhist sect?"

The originally clear sky suddenly appeared with fish-scale purple clouds, extending from the east to the top of Xishan Temple. Tao Zhongwen's voice sounded again: "Oh? Bodhisattva Guangsheng actually showed up to uphold justice for Xishan Temple. That's even better. Today, I will tell the Bodhisattva about the good things you Buddhists have done in my Great Wei over the years. It's a good opportunity to see how the Bodhisattva upholds justice!"

"From what Mr. Tao said, it seems that he is dissatisfied with our Buddhist sect. Since our Buddhist sect came to Jiuzhou, we have always advised people to be kind and act cautiously. I wonder how we have offended Mr. Shuide?" "Offended me? Let me ask the Bodhisattva, how did the Buddhist sect develop and grow so much and how did it recruit so many disciples?"

Bodhisattva Guangsheng naturally knew that Tao Zhongwen was talking about Li Yi, and said, "My Buddhist sect accepts disciples willingly, and at the same time, it is important to have a relationship with the Buddha. Those who have a relationship with the Buddha should enter my Buddhist sect."

"What a joke! Li Yi is my descendant of Confucianism and Taoism, and he will be a key minister of the Great Wei in the future. You force him to join the Buddhist sect. Do you want to ruin the fortune of the Great Wei? Do you want to turn the Great Wei into your Western Province Nalanda Buddhist Kingdom? You call me the royal family of the Great Wei, how can the Great Wei court deal with it?"

"Amitabha, I'm afraid that Mr. Tao has some misunderstanding. We Buddhists have never thought of turning Wei into a Buddhist country."

Li Yi was amused when he heard these words: It seems that this Guangsheng Bodhisattva is only good at exorcism and fighting, and is not good at verbal debate. He was led by the old silver coin after just a few words. Alas, no wonder that was the old silver coin! "Xiuyuan, what does the old silver coin mean?" A familiar voice suddenly sounded and scared Li Yi so much that he almost fell down! He put his palms together and quickly closed his eyes to purify his mind, thinking in his heart: "I said Bodhisattva, didn't I tell you last time, don't show up like this suddenly, at least give me some hints, if this goes on, I will have psychological trauma!"

"Amitabha, next time I will greet you first, Xiuyuan, please explain to me the story behind the old silver coin."

Li Yi wanted to complain, but considering the magical powers of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, he resisted the urge to complain and said, "Bodhisattva means a person who is very cunning, thoughtful, and good at setting traps." "Oh, so Brother Guangsheng has been tricked by the old silver coin? Xiuyuan, how do you think of me?" "Li Yi has never commented on you, Bodhisattva, behind your back. I hope you won't joke. But then again, Bodhisattva, why don't you take action in this situation? You now know that Bodhisattva Guangsheng has been tricked."

"My senior brother has already stepped forward, so I cannot do anything else. Moreover, a Confucian of the third rank is not worthy of our two Bodhisattvas. That would only boost the Confucian arrogance." "Bodhisattva, there is no sense of emptiness in what you said."

Li Yi heard the laughter of the Bodhisattva in his heart, "Li Yi, don't say anything, the Buddha is a human being, let alone a poor monk. I am also a human being, so I naturally have my own considerations." "Oh, so, Guanyin Bodhisattva also has selfish desires?"

"Li Yi, don't force your argument. I am only speaking from the perspective of Buddhism. But as for you, I always feel that Tao Zhongwen's coming to Xishan Temple to cause trouble has a direct relationship with you."

"Bodhisattva, what you said is just what Shuide said. This matter was caused by Li Yi. Mr. Tao is just here to ask for revenge."

"Li Yi, I am different from Senior Brother Guangsheng. I can see more things. Please don't play tricks on me."

"Li Yi wouldn't dare!"

At this time, the conversation in the air continued. Tao Zhongwen said, "I never thought of turning my Great Wei into a Buddhist country, but your Buddhist sect has always done this. Let me ask you, when Xishan Temple was first built, it was just a small temple covering less than ten acres, but now it has occupied the entire Upper Xishan Mountain. Other Buddhist temples in the Great Wei have similar situations. May I ask Bodhisattva Guangsheng, Buddhism emphasizes the emptiness of the four elements, so what is the purpose of needing so much land?"

"With the increase in the number of monks, the food, clothing, shelter and transportation, as well as the expansion of the temple, are all funded by believers. Our Buddhist sect has never forced anyone to do anything. We have actively asked believers to donate money and materials. It is all because believers are devoted to Buddhism and are kind and generous. There is nothing wrong with that. As for occupying the mountain, it is nonsense. Xishan Temple has never occupied the mountain or enclosed land."

"Oh? Then why did the hunters, fruit farmers, and people who made a living by collecting herbs move away from Upper West Mountain? Now there is only your West Mountain Temple in the mountain? Although the West Mountain Temple did not occupy any land, it was actually closed off. How do you explain this?"

Bodhisattva Guangsheng was speechless for a moment. When Xishan Temple was first built, there were indeed a few hunters and fruit farmers on Xishan Mountain. They often sent daily necessities to the temple, and the monks would often meet them when they came to fetch water and beg for alms. They would greet them warmly and help them carry firewood and bring water. They got along very well with each other, but these people moved away one after another.

Guanyin Bodhisattva asked Li Yi, "Do you know why this happened?" Li Yi thought to himself, "Bodhisattva, Buddhists in a quiet place naturally don't like others to disturb their quiet meditation. Maybe those people moved away for this reason."