Chapter 127: Tempering the Heart in the Red Dust [Seeking monthly votes! ]

To the west of Longyuan City, there is a Songjian Temple.

Located in the most extensive forest near the capital of gods, surrounded by towering ancient trees, the temple's monks rarely leave the forest, because outside is the official road leading to the capital of gods, with a busy road and a line of people reaching the sky.

If you stand higher, you can see the extremely prosperous city.

This Songjian Temple is one of the earliest temples when Zen Buddhism was spreading to the north. It is older than many southern temples today. When some Zen disciples passed by Shendu, they would stay here.

Zhou Xuanci lived here.

As a son of an aristocratic family, he entered Buddhism and was not short of money. He stayed here to listen to the sutras and learn the Dharma at the order of his master.

When Liang Yue and Ling Yuanbao came to him, he was sweeping the floor in front of the mountain gate. This was the old rule.

It is our duty to eat other people's food, live other people's houses and help other people with their work.

He looked up from a distance, watching the two approaching, raised one palm, and chanted, "Amitabha."

"Master Xuanci." Liang Yue approached and said with a smile, "I am Liang Yue, the officer of the Evil Execution Division. This is Ling Yuanbao, the head of the Criminal Department."

The monk on the Young Scholars List was very young, only about eighteen or nineteen years old. He was slightly tall and thin. He wore a rather loose white monk's robe that looked a bit empty on him, and his hands were hidden in his sleeves.

He has a handsome appearance, gentle and handsome, with red lips and white teeth. In Longyuan City, he is definitely the most respected Zen master for chanting sutras by young girls and wives.

"You two must have come here for Princess Fuyang's case." Zhou Xuanci extended his hand, "Please take a seat."

He was pointing at a high white stone staircase that had just been swept clean. Liang Yue and the other man did not shy away and just sat down on the ground.

Wherever you look, you can see ancient trees and pine trees, which makes you feel relaxed and happy.

No wonder people choose to practice meditation here.

"When the clerk from the Zhuxie Division came to question you, you said that you stayed in the princess's mansion for a while that night and left after the banquet was over." Liang Yue repeated.

"That's right." Zhou Xuanci nodded in acknowledgement.

"But what I'm more curious about is, why are you going?" Liang Yue asked, with Ling Yuanbao's big, bright eyes visible behind his shoulder.

Both of them were extremely curious about this.

"I'm ashamed to say this." Zhou Xuanci chuckled and asked, "Do you two know why Songjian Temple was built near Longyuan City, but disciples are never allowed to enter the city?"

"Why?" Liang Yue asked.

Zhou Xuanci said, "That's because in order to refine one's mind in the mortal world, one must be close to temptation in order to resist it. Being near Longyuan City and seeing the prosperous scene is temptation. Cultivating the most peaceful state in the most prosperous place is to refine one's mind. If one has never been exposed to it, how can one resist it?"

"So the same principle also applies to your gatherings, Zen Master Xuanci?" Liang Yue suddenly realized.

"Yes." Zhou Xuanci said, "I come from a noble family and have met the prince consort once. He accidentally learned that I came to Longyuan City and invited me. I went there for the purpose of refining my mind. To refine one's mind in the mortal world, one must face temptations directly. Only by withstanding them can one make progress."

"But..." Ling Yuanbao asked curiously, "What if I can't bear it?"

"It's okay." Zhou Xuanci replied: "If you fail, just try again next time."

"Ha." Liang Yue couldn't help but chuckle.

Good guy.

Well, I have a friend named Chen, who likes this part of tempering his mind in the mundane world the most, but he has never succeeded.

And he fought again and again, never giving up.

He then asked, "Who did you interact with during this time?"

Zhou Xuanci was silent for a while, but finally answered: "After I entered the princess's mansion, the first person I saw was Du Jian from the Dragon and Tiger Hall."

He said slowly, "As a disciple of the Mianbi Temple, I have always had a grudge against the heretics of the Dragon and Tiger Hall. When we met that day, he spoke coldly to me and I fought back. Then I fought with him in Zen and was defeated."

It was somewhat difficult for him to say in person that he was defeated by his mortal enemy, a disciple of the Dragon and Tiger Hall.

There were no other witnesses to this Zen duel, and Du Jian was worried that Xuan Ci would not be willing to tell the truth, and the testimony would be very unfavorable to him.

Fortunately, Zhou Xuanci still has the cultivation that a Buddhist disciple should have.

It was not shameful for him to lose to Du Jian. Although he was on the Young Lin Ranking, he was not the first disciple of this generation of the Mianbi Temple. Du Jian was now older than him, but he was also a genius on the list back then.

It’s not shameful for a new prodigy to lose to an old prodigy.

"What happened next?" Liang Yue asked, "After you entered the hall, the itinerary was not explained clearly."

"I was delayed on the road, so I was a little late when I went in. There were only a few female donors present, and two of them wanted to talk to me alone. I thought that the more difficult it is to temper one's mind in the mortal world, the better, so I said to the two female donors... why don't we go together?" Zhou Xuanci replied.

When he said this, although his expression was calm, the nervousness in his eyes showed that he did not completely care.

"Master Zen is amazing." Liang Yue gave a thumbs up, "He challenged a difficult level right from the start."

"After arriving at the room, I meditated and practiced to calm my mind. The two female donors tried to tease me in every way, but ultimately failed. They were a little angry and asked me what I wanted to do when I entered the room but remained indifferent to them." Zhou Xuanci continued, "I answered that I hoped you would help me practice."

After a pause, he continued, "They insulted me in a very filthy way. I couldn't stand it and left the princess's mansion in a hurry."

The worldly life has tempered my heart. I resisted lust but not insults.

Still need to practice more.

After hearing this, Liang Yue silently complained in his heart, with only one word in his mind.

Yes.

……

"Why do I feel like none of these suspects are normal people?"

Walking out of the pine forest and riding back to the official road, Ling Yuanbao sighed sincerely. "Indeed." Liang Yue echoed.

Jiang Yan, whose fatherly love is as strong as a mountain, Du Jian, who retreats three steps, Zhou Xuanci, who refines his mind in the world of mortals...all of them are more or less outrageous.

This investigation didn't yield much, but it was a lot of fun.

He added: "Then I hope the last one is a normal person."

Going around the south of the city is an area that Liang Yue is quite familiar with.

Wei Kangnian usually lived in an inn in the south of the city. During the day, he set up a stall on the street to tell fortunes, and at night he went out to eat.

However, according to the intelligence from the spies, he did not go out today, but has been resting in the inn.

Liang Yue and his companions traveled to many places, and it was almost dusk when they arrived here. However, time was tight, so they still wanted to ask everyone as much as possible within one day.

Arriving at the inn, he said to the waiter in front as usual, "Is there a young master named Wei Kangnian in the inn who is taking the imperial examination? Please inform him and tell him that the Evil Punishment Bureau wants to question him."

"Hey, sir." The waiter said attentively, "The boy lives in the woodshed in the backyard. No need to inform him. I will take you there right away. Usually when we go to get sundries, we just push the door and go in. There is no need to inform him."

Liang Yue followed him and said with a smile: "I heard that this person is a famous poor man in Qingdu City, and it's true."

"Isn't it true?" the waiter said, "I heard that he went to the rich people's houses every night to eat a meal, and didn't eat during the day. Our boss felt sorry for him, and that morning he offered him two leftover steamed buns, but he refused to eat them! Guess what he said?"

"Don't accept charity?" Liang Yue guessed.

"What?" The waiter waved his hand. "The gentleman said, you can provide me with breakfast once, but can you provide me with breakfast for the rest of my life? I can't develop bad habits."

"Wow." Liang Yue and Ling Yuanbao exclaimed together.

This person is really poor beyond measure.

When they arrived at the woodshed in the backyard, the servant knocked on the door and soon a young man opened the door.

He was wearing a wide green robe with a white Confucian shirt underneath. He was dressed quite neatly, with regular features and a childish face.

But the room was too messy, with firewood and other miscellaneous items all over the floor, and no table, chair, or bed. It was unclear where he lived.

"You two are finally here." The man greeted them with a smile. It was Wei Kangnian, the candidate from Qingdu.

"You knew we were coming?" Liang Yue smiled back.

Wei Kangnian showed a few black ancient coins in his palm and said, "I am not very talented, but I know a little bit about divination. I tell my own fortune every day when I wake up."

Liang Yue noticed a faint scar on his palm. He took a quick glance and then looked away.

He walked into the room, looked around, and asked, "So, your divination today, is it good or bad?"

"The divination says that I will be doomed today. The only hope for survival is the help of a noble person." Wei Kangnian said with a smile, his expression frivolous and not serious. It was unknown whether what he said was true or false.

"So you are just waiting for someone to come?" Liang Yue thought this person was quite interesting.

"That's right." Wei Kangnian nodded.

"It is still unknown whether we are the former or the latter." Liang Yue smiled leisurely.

After a brief greeting and self-introduction, he asked, "I'm sure you know that the purpose of our visit is to investigate the Princess Fuyang case. What did you do at Princess Fuyang's mansion that night?"

"Eating, and secretly taking some away." Wei Kangnian replied, scratching his head.

"But why can't you think of someone who can testify for you?" Liang Yue asked.

"Because I ate outside." Wei Kangnian replied.

"Why?" Ling Yuanbao asked.

Wei Kangnian glanced at the two of them and said, "There was a kind of incense burning in all the rooms of the princess's mansion that day. It can make people excited and crazy, and it will be harmful to the body if it lasts for a long time. I don't want to smell it."

"Do you know Mi Luoxiang?" Liang Yue looked straight into his eyes.

Wei Kangnian did not dodge, but nodded and said: "I know, and my father died because of this."

"Oh?" This alerted the two people on the opposite side.

"That thing has been popular in Nanzhou for several years. More than half of the people who were fascinated by it at first either died or went crazy." Wei Kangnian said, "It is said that someone in Nanzhou wanted to submit a petition, but the petition could not leave Qingdu. It is normal for you people in Longyuan City not to know about it."

"Have you seen Princess Fuyang?" Liang Yue suddenly asked again.

"No." Wei Kangnian denied, "I am just a child from a poor family. How can I be qualified to know them? When the prince consort invited all the nobles of Nanzhou, he just brought me along."

"Then..." Liang Yue continued to ask: "Do you know that the Mi Luoxiang in Nanzhou was sold to Nanzhou by Princess Fuyang and her husband?"

Wei Kangnian's eyes suddenly became dim, as if he had hidden the brilliance in them.

Before he could say anything, there was a sound of breaking wind suddenly heard outside.

whoosh-

It was a short feather arrow engraved with runes.

The three people in the room were all very skilled and dodged at the same time. The feather arrows were nailed to the ground, followed by a burst of red light and a loud bang.

boom!
It exploded and the whole house was on fire.

After the explosion, a dense swarm of rune short-feather arrows like locusts shot into the house in an instant!

Boom boom boom boom!
In an instant, murderous intent arose!
　Good morning.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)