Confucian and Taoist scholar

The captain of the guard led Lu Zheng and his group around the bustling area to a quiet courtyard behind the Garan Temple.

Upon hearing the news, Yuan Tao, beaming with joy, went out to greet them and invited them to a quiet room.

Yuan Tao said happily, "I thought you wouldn't come to the Unobstructed Assembly, and I was even thinking of sending someone to the Northern Region to invite you..."

When Yuan Tao returned to Wei with the scriptures, he was full of confidence, believing that he could easily accomplish something great.

However, after these busy days of trying to reach out to and win over various forces, he felt that regulating Buddhism was much more difficult than he had anticipated.

Looking at Yuan Tao, who appeared more haggard and thinner than before, Lu Zheng couldn't help but ask, "It seems things aren't going very smoothly?"

Yuan Tao sighed softly, "It's a long story..."

Yuan Tao dismissed his other subordinates and went to guard the surroundings before recounting his experience to Lu Zheng and the others.

“I showed the true scriptures to my father, and he also intends to establish the orthodoxy of Buddhism to restrain the various Buddhist sects of today. However, he is unwilling to do so personally… Therefore, he made me the crown prince and gave me some power. This time, at the Unobstructed Assembly, I will represent the royal family…”

Yuan Tao paused, then said solemnly, "I have made up my mind: if I fail, I will die trying!"

Although he has not yet publicly stated his intention to establish Mahayana Buddhism as the orthodox Buddhist tradition, he has privately made contact with many eminent Buddhist monks and powerful figures.

Moreover, in the old capital of Pingcheng, King Huaiyang was allowed to tentatively promote Mahayana Buddhism.

Now that the arrow has been released, there's no turning back; we can only go all the way.

Qingwan smiled and gave a thumbs up, "You've been studying with us for a while, so you're practically one of us. Not bad, not bad. You have such awareness when it comes to matters of principle. You haven't let us down!"

Yuan Tao was stunned for a moment, and a sense of satisfaction at being recognized arose in his heart.

He didn't actually have much contact with Qingwan, but he had previously learned that even Gongyang Ming had gone through this person's final interview before being able to join the group, so these words must still carry a lot of weight.

Yuan Tao took out several stacks of files and handed them to Lu Zheng and the others to look through.

"I've been in contact with quite a few people lately, and I've even shown them copies of the true scriptures..."

“Those eminent Buddhist monks all acknowledge the scriptures, but when I talk about propagating Mahayana Buddhism and establishing orthodoxy within Buddhism, they don’t really agree…”

“Even those who are close to our Great Wei royal family oppose me doing this, saying that doing such a thing would easily offend too many people and would be detrimental to me. They say that I have only just been established as the crown prince and it is not appropriate for me to govern in such a grand manner, as this would be self-destructive.”

Yuan Tao's expression turned grim, and he recounted in a deep voice the results of his exchanges with certain influential figures.

"Some people wanted to see the original scriptures and comprehend the profound truths within. However, I did not give them to them. They had to acknowledge Mahayana Buddhism at the Unobstructed Assembly in front of all the major Buddhist sects and believers, and cooperate with me in regulating Buddhism... But few people immediately agreed; they were all still observing the situation."

Yuan Tao then pulled out a jade box covered in seals. "I'm worried that someone might dare to defy convention and try to steal the true scriptures. That's why I said the original scriptures are still with my father. Now, the Unobstructed Assembly is the perfect opportunity to promote the orthodoxy of Buddhism. If the original scriptures aren't revealed, those Buddhists and believers won't believe it..."

“This sutra was written by Mr. Lu, and I think it is safer to return it to him for the time being than to keep it with me.”

These days, Yuan Tao has been keeping the true scriptures with him, and he can't have a moment's peace, fearing that someone might steal them. He has to be extremely vigilant.

Qingwan clicked her tongue and said, "They still dare to come here to rob us?"

Yuan Tao smiled helplessly, "This is the only true scripture in Buddhism that carries the Buddha's will. I'm afraid that those who covet it are not just people in Buddhism."

Let alone someone trying to steal the scriptures, if someone were truly certain that the scriptures were in his possession, it wouldn't be impossible for them to kill the newly appointed crown prince and seize the treasure.

Upon seeing this, Lu Zheng reached out, took the box, and put it away, placing it directly into the literary palace within his small world, concealing it with various mysterious artifacts.

In this way, even if the most skilled Buddhist figures are adept at deducing heavenly secrets, they probably wouldn't be able to foresee that the true scriptures are in his hands.

Yuan Tao immediately felt much more at ease. His intuition told him that it was much safer to keep the true scripture with Lu Zheng than with him.

However, he still felt a little apologetic and said in a low voice, "I didn't want to involve Mr. Lu, but given the current situation, I find it hard to trust anyone else."

The closer they got to the crucial moment, the greater the pressure Yuan Tao felt, fearing that even the slightest mishap would cause them to lose the original scripture.

Now, in the area of ​​Garan Temple, masters from all Buddhist sects have gathered.

Even some reclusive Buddhist monks who were not very involved in worldly affairs and had never attended such conferences before came to the Garan Temple to participate in this year's Wuzhe Conference because they heard about the true scriptures.

Some people wanted to visit him, but Yuan Tao was afraid that some powerful monks would see through him, so he kept making excuses and didn't see many people.

Even when representatives from Buddhist sects came to pay their respects to him according to etiquette, Yuan Tao only met with people he was familiar with, and did not have individual meetings with them.

Lu Zheng smiled faintly and said, "It's just a small matter."

Seeing Lu Zheng's calm and collected demeanor, Yuan Tao thought to himself that he was indeed a young man who could travel the world and do great things for the people. He was clearly younger than him, yet he could remain calm in the face of important matters.

Lu Zheng then asked, "If Your Highness has any other matters that require our assistance, please speak up without reservation. We act for the sake of the people and will not avoid them for personal gain or loss."

Moved, Yuan Tao clasped his hands together in a respectful bow and solemnly declared, "I, Yuan Tao, have sworn an oath before the Buddha that if I ascend to the throne in the future, I will surely bring blessings to the people of Great Wei, forge friendly relations with all nations and the Northern Regions, and together create a prosperous era for the world..."

As he spoke, Yuan Tao clearly felt his vow merge into the vast universe.

As the Crown Prince of Wei, a figure whose fate is closely intertwined with that of the Wei state, some oaths cannot be made lightly.

If you fail to do so, you could very well face retribution.

Seeing Yuan Tao's stance and the solemn oath he had made, Lu Zheng and the others naturally had no questions.

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "Where there's a will, there's a way. But that's a matter for later. Let's talk about the important things now."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Tao said in a low voice, "I was thinking that if there are too many people who oppose it, could Mr. Lu ask the Buddha to manifest his true will again... Don't worry, I will have someone coordinate the arrangements and try my best not to cause you any trouble."

Lu Zheng thought for a moment and said, "It's not impossible for me to step in directly. After all, if it really comes to that point, Your Highness, when you want to suppress Buddhism, they will probably be too busy to care about themselves. They won't have the time or energy to come looking for me."

Yuan Tao said, "I'm mainly worried that it will damage your reputation and make you a target for unscrupulous people in the future."

Lu Zheng said calmly, "What good is fame to me? It's just that I can't guarantee that I can still invite Buddha."

Yuan Tao said, "If we can't invite the Buddha, we can invite other ancient Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. The monastery is a sacred Buddhist site, so it shouldn't be a big problem..."

Even as he said this, Yuan Tao seemed somewhat uncertain.

After all, during so many grand gatherings of the Buddha, no divine manifestation was seen; at most, the newly established incense offerings of their Great Wei were invited to be made.

The first path that ancient humans cultivated was the path of divinity.

At that time, humans worshipped all sorts of gods, and when necessary, they could draw upon the power of the gods to deal with situations. Later, some of the great principles established by humans also drew inspiration from the divine way.

Ancient sages opened up the Great Way, and after their deaths, a portion of their thoughts and ideas merged into the Great Way. Later generations cultivate this Way and worship sages and saints so that the sacred thoughts may endure, and thus they can ask sages, saints, immortals, and gods to reveal their intentions or bless them.

In truth, those thoughts can no longer be considered the original intentions of the sages, but due to their special nature, everyone still recognizes them as the true intentions of the sages.

Moreover, the will of the sages and immortals existing in the world is not so easily invoked.

Firstly, one must have the ability to communicate with those ideas and gain their approval.

Secondly, those thoughts diminish with each use, and recovery is very slow.

Some ideas, once they are no longer offered sacrifices, easily disappear.

The various deities worshipped by the Chu state's pantheon are not actually ancient deities, but rather names taken by the current Chu state deities.

Of course, only deities dare to claim the title; no one dares to claim the incense offerings of Buddha.

No one thinks that the Buddha's intention in establishing the Buddhist path no longer exists; they simply think that the way they invited the Buddha was wrong, hence they cannot see the Buddha.

After all, the ancient sages of Confucianism have been worshipped without interruption, but not everyone can see the sages reveal their intentions.

Yuan Tao felt that if Lu Zheng could request the Buddha's true intention to manifest in the Northern Region, it would certainly be easier for him to do so in a place like the Garan Temple.

Yuan Tao said, "How about this, I'll take you to the main hall of the Garan Temple first, where the Buddha and other ancient Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are enshrined. Mr. Lu, go and see if there's anything... that needs to be arranged."

Yuan Tao originally wanted to say to check if there were any problems with the Buddhist temple, but he felt that the wording was not very good, so he changed his words.

Lu Zheng nodded and said, "Okay."

Yuan Tao hurriedly got up excitedly and went to instruct people to make some arrangements in the main hall to prevent others from approaching or spying.

After some time had passed, the group set off, and after avoiding the eyes and ears of many Buddhist monks in the mountains, they successfully arrived at the main hall.

The main hall of the temple covers a vast area and is decorated in a magnificent and splendid manner, with glittering jewels and dazzling brilliance.

In the center of the Buddhist hall, a Buddha statue several tens of feet tall sat cross-legged on a tall refining platform.

The Buddha statues are made primarily of gold and silver, and are decorated with various treasures, giving them an aura of Buddhist solemnity and making them appear incredibly sacred.

To the left and right of the Buddha statue stand other Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, each with an extraordinary bearing and lifelike appearance.

Lu Zheng tilted his head slightly, looking at the radiant Buddha statues before him.

Despite the layers of light, he did not sense anything special.

These golden statues gave him a feeling of emptiness, all show and no substance.

Beside her, Qingwan stood with her hands behind her back, taking small steps to look around.

"Tsk tsk tsk... These are all solid? If we melted them down and sold them for money, how many people could we distribute them to?"

Looking at these huge piles of human-shaped treasures, Qingwan's eyes shone brightly.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Tao's smile froze for a moment, but he didn't show any anger.

He knew that, given their personalities, these men were truly capable of doing such a thing.

He had personally witnessed such a thing in the Northern Region.

At the time, Yuan Tao had advised Lu Zheng that such actions might anger the saints of Buddhism and Taoism, but he received a response that was impossible to refute.

Lu Zheng once said that if the Buddha statue had no intention of protecting sentient beings, then it was just an empty shell used by bad people to deceive others, and it was useless to keep it.

If any Buddhas or Bodhisattvas were to become enraged by this and punish him, then he would not be considered a true Buddha, so what harm would there be in destroying him?

Yuan Tao also asked what would happen if Confucian sages were used as tools for evil.
Lu Zheng gave the same answer: even if the descendants of Confucius and Mencius committed evil deeds in their name, their ancestral temples should be smashed and the sages Confucius and Mencius rescued.

These words truly shocked Yuan Tao beyond measure.

However, those who utter such seemingly treasonous words are able to cultivate a strong sense of righteousness...

Previously, the Buddha's true intentions were revealed, and a Buddhist temple was destroyed...

Upon careful consideration, Yuan Tao realized that his past perceptions might have been wrong.

Yuan Tao suddenly had an idea and couldn't help but whisper, "If we're going to demolish it, we should wait until the time is right. If we do it now, we might not be able to leave the Garan Temple..."

The thought of demolishing the temples and Buddha statues here and facing hundreds of thousands of Buddhist believers outside was something Yuan Tao couldn't even imagine.

Gongyang Ming, who was standing to the side, glanced at him and thought to himself, "Even the Crown Prince of the Great Wei has been influenced by the ideas of these young people? He actually dares to say such things here. His audacity is growing!"

Qingwan smiled and offered her suggestion, "From now on, replace all the Buddha statues here with stone ones. Use all this gold and silver jewelry for construction and to distribute to the poor. The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas will be happy too. Not bad, not bad. With such awareness, the Buddha will surely bless you!"

Qingwan, hands on her hips, said again, "Look at the mess you've made of this Buddhist temple, it's simply outrageous! It's normal that you can't invite the Buddha... Who are you trying to impress with this show? You should do more good deeds and accumulate merit!"

“Let me tell you, those charlatans who pretend to be gods and ghosts and deceive people are the ones who like to have these treasures offered to them. You’re giving these to Buddha, but he doesn’t need them…”

"One must be sincere and put the words and deeds of sages into practice in order to gain their approval. Such superficial work is unacceptable and is merely self-deception."

Yuan Tao listened with a forced smile, but couldn't find a single point to refute.

He felt uneasy being instructed on how to repair a Buddha statue by a girl who had demolished countless temples.

While Qingwan was educating the future emperor of the Great Wei Dynasty, Lu Zheng leisurely observed these Buddha statues.

There are quite a few statues enshrined here, including some Buddhas and Bodhisattvas from ancient legends and records, as well as some well-known figures from later generations.

He even saw that several bodhisattvas who had been conferred titles by the Wei Kingdom had incense offerings, but there were not many of them.

However, none of the statues in this main hall retained any remaining consciousness, and even though Lu Zheng possessed the Buddha's mark, he did not sense anything.

It seems there really is something wrong here.

Lu Zheng thought for a moment, then found a meditation cushion and sat cross-legged before the Buddha statue, concentrating his mind and trying to sense this place. (End of Chapter)