Xie Ming

Lingyin Temple.

The famous ancient temple in Hangzhou was first built in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It became a popular place of worship in the early Ming Dynasty and was even funded by the government. It was repaired many times during the Jiajing period and was especially active in its revival during the Wanli period.

Scholars and pilgrims flocked to the site, their names recorded in history, and it was said that the incense offerings were so abundant that they did not leave Tiantai Mountain.

It was one of the gathering centers of Buddhist temples in Jiangnan during the late Ming Dynasty.

This temple is located southwest of West Lake, in the suburbs of the city.

To make it more convenient for worshippers and benefactors, the business expanded into the city and a separate residence was built.

It occupies a small area, with only a dozen or so dining rooms on all sides, housing fifty or sixty Buddhist monks and novices, located in the southwest corner of the city.

It was around 3 AM on the 15th day of the eighth month of the second year of the Hongguang reign.

The events were dramatic, and the political landscape in Hangzhou was constantly shifting.

The undercover agent at the herbal medicine shop in Pigou Lane, disregarding everything, rushed closer on a black-clad, black-horse-riding messenger with a message.

A withered monk sits cross-legged for a long time, his mind illuminated by the ancient well.

My body is like a rock on a cliff, and the pool remains calm when the wind passes.

At this time, Yao Zuyin, unaware of the turbulent storms outside, was meditating in a meditation room in the southwest of the city.

A wisp of fragrance wafts from the table, drifting gently away.

He plucked a string of prayer beads with his hand and silently recited scriptures with his lips.

Can!
Just then, a crow cawed loudly from the window frame.

As soon as Kuroba flapped his fan, he let out a hoarse cry.

Caught off guard, Yao Zuyin was truly startled by this beast.

With the slightest movement of his body, his mental power in his hands also became unsteady.

Before you know it, after wearing them for a long time, the string of the 108 prayer beads you always carry with you suddenly snapped.

crackling sounds—

Instantly, a shower of pearls scattered across the ground.

The old monk Hongren was blind. At this moment, when he moved his finger, this strange thing happened. He felt that the ominous sign was even more ominous.

Or perhaps disaster is brewing!
Unable to calm his mind, Yao Zuyin was momentarily stunned, unable to regain his composure and calm his emotions, and a fine sheen of sweat appeared on his forehead.

as predicted.

He didn't even have a moment to spare before leaving.

Dengdengdeng-

Suddenly, there was a sound of footsteps outside the window.

His steps were hurried and disordered.

The old monk had amazing hearing; based on the sound alone, he deduced that it was his own young novice attendant.

Thinking about how dry his feet were, I suspected something serious must have happened.

Before anyone could enter, they greeted him loudly.

"Huineng, is that you?"

"What's the rush?" Yao Zuyin asked slowly and mysteriously.

However, it was clear that the young novice monk Huineng was no longer able to care about such things.

Unsteady on his feet and losing his composure, he became impatient and stumbled, falling right in front of the door.

"Ouch!"

With a loud bang, the door was slammed shut, and the novice monk was in a state of agitation and restlessness.

The old monk, who was sitting in a seated position, heard the commotion and, fearing something bad was about to happen, spread his legs and groped his way down to the ground.

"Hey, slow down, slow down."

"What exactly happened?"

"There are some beads I just scattered on the ground. I hope you haven't twisted your ankle again," Yao Zuyin kindly reminded him.

While worrying about his disciple, he himself took a risk and impatiently stepped forward.

Seeing this, the young novice monk Huineng gritted his teeth, clutched his knees, and struggled to his feet, staggering as he took his master's hands.

Once the two sides met, they opened their mouths and began to speak.

"Master, something terrible has happened."

"Just now, a spy from Pigou Lane reported that the Emperor has passed away and Young Master Qiu has been imprisoned. They're telling us to escape quickly!"

Huineng made a startling remark, directly revealing the intelligence he had gathered.

Upon hearing this, Yao Zuyin swayed, greatly shocked, his face showing astonishment and horror, and he immediately began to inquire in detail.

"Wha, what?!"

The old monk stared in astonishment, his expression shifting several times.

“Master, and this news, according to the messenger, was delivered by Brother Lu Wen.”

"The tip was delivered quickly, and it was said that the whole city was under martial law."

"At this point, it's probably impossible to escape from any of the city gates in the east, west, south, or north."

"The patrol team is arresting people all over the city again, so we can't rely on Young Master Qiu."

"Oh dear, what should we do?!"

The young novice monk Huineng, sensing the urgency of the situation, was filled with regret and sighed repeatedly. He was also genuinely distressed upon hearing the bad news, so he stubbornly turned his head away in a huff to express his annoyance.

It should be noted that Yao Luwen's storyline has always been kept very well hidden.

Yao Luwen was originally the garrison commander of the Shangyuan Gate outside Nanjing City, belonging to the Imperial Guard. His military service record was clean.

If it weren't for the fact that he was related to Yao Zuyin and involved in a major incident, he wouldn't have been noticed by Zhizhong, joined forces with him, and become a covert agent.

Given his own development, it is quite reasonable and appropriate for him to have reached the position of Captain of the Imperial Guard today.

As a last resort, Qiu Zhizhong, usually mindful of Yao Lao, rarely bothered to investigate any information.

Given the current situation, if it weren't for the dire circumstances, Yao Luwen would certainly not have risked getting involved for no reason.

The old monk Hongren pondered the critical moment, carefully deducing the possible scenarios, but he also frowned in distress.

"Ugh"

"This is terrible! The situation is very bad!"

“Lu Wen’s line of work has never been asked to do anything before.”

"Him, well, I know that guy well; he's straightforward."

“If it weren’t truly a critical moment, he would never have taken such a risk, risking exposure to deliver this message to me.”

At this point, Yao Zuyin's expression became complicated. He sighed and his face showed even more signs of vicissitude.

After pausing for a long time, the person, who was sorting out his private affairs, suddenly changed his tone and changed his words.

"Hey!"

"Young friend Qiu is also one of them."

"Before the operation at the Chen residence, I told him that he didn't need to come back after the mission was accomplished."

"It would be best to head north to Nanjing and meet up with Xiao Chuan."

"Can"

"Alas, it seems he still didn't heed my advice," the old monk sighed.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Huineng also complained.

"Yes, Master."

"If I had known this would happen, why would I have taken the risk to come back?"

"Zhenzhen is just being presumptuous."

"That's great, isn't it?!"

"When someone is imprisoned, the Imperial Guards wipe out the entire Embroidered Uniform Guard."

"There's not much we can do to help anyway."

Clearly, Huineng had some reservations about Zhizhong's cleverness and arrogance in the past.

After all, planning is up to people. No matter what the matter is, once there are many participants, it is difficult to reach a complete consensus.

Over time, with mutual compromise and discussion, minor disagreements and grudges inevitably arise.

At this moment, the old monk Yao Zuyin, though blind, still sensed something was wrong from his disciple's tone.

Therefore, prioritizing the important matter, he had no choice but to offer all possible reassurances.

"Alright, alright!"

"To be honest, we both have our shortcomings."

"Fellow foals in the same trough, comrades on the same boat, let's not be people who fight and quarrel among ourselves."

"Now that things have come to this, what's the point of saying anything more?"

Let's plan for a successor.

He advised Yao Zuyin to correct his speech, and as he spoke, his disciple Huineng carefully helped him sit back down in a chair at the table.

The old monk continued speaking without stopping, and then went on to tell the story.

"Okay, that's fine."

"Huineng, think about it."

"Now that the Third Prince is dead, and Emperor Hongguang has received the news from the palace, it seems he has not escaped it either."

"I did not completely fail to anticipate this when it was first initiated."

"But I never expected that the leaders of the Southern Party, Qiu Weizhen and Ma Shiying, would act so quickly."

"Those two scoundrels, Liu Wenbing and Gong Yonggu, on the Imperial Guard side are surprisingly cooperative."

"It's because our plans weren't done well enough."

"The original plan was to ask Qiu Xiaoyou to mediate and try to win military power in Hangzhou. I was still somewhat confident about that."

"But looking at it now, it's all just a pipe dream."

"Qiu Xiaoyou was immediately detained and imprisoned."

"It seems that the Southern Party had also planned and schemed for this long ago."

"Ugh--"

The old monk let out another long sigh, then gritted his teeth and rallied his spirits.

"Great changes are imminent. Who else but me can handle the affairs of the world?!"

"Neng'er, in the current situation, success or failure is just around the corner."

"If we can't rely on the Embroidered Uniform Guard, then we'll have to take matters into our own hands."

"Are you scared?!"

(End of this chapter)