After Chen Chang finished his worship, he looked up and gazed at the Guanyin statue in front of him.

This cast iron Guanyin stands quietly on an inverted lotus pedestal. Her body is in an "S" shape, with her hair in a high bun, plump cheeks and a voluptuous figure. She is slightly turned sideways, barefoot with exposed toes, with her head lowered and a charming smile. She looks introverted and saintly, with quite the characteristics of an oriental woman.

Cai Daye introduced gently: "Your Highness, there was originally an iron statue in this Iron Buddha Temple, with four large iron Buddhas: Sakyamuni, Guanyin, Boshu, and Puxian. After the war, only Sakyamuni and Guanyin are left."

"It's strange to say that the Western Wei Dynasty tried to melt these four iron Buddhas to make weapons. After three of the iron Buddhas were melted in the furnace, only the Iron Guanyin could not be broken or melted. Haha, this Sakyamuni statue was recast later..."

Chen Chang nodded as he listened, and then he remembered a couplet he had seen when he entered the main hall: "The iron Buddha was created with divine craftsmanship, and its benevolent appearance remained intact in the face of disasters; the craftsman created its shape with the skill of Samadhi, and readers will enjoy its artistic ingenuity."

At this time, hearing Cai Daye talk about this Iron Guanyin that cannot be broken even when smashed and cannot be melted even when refined, it fits the description very well.

I wonder if he can, like Tie Guanyin, go through hardships and turn danger into safety and remain indestructible when he returns to Jiankang this time.

Ning Jingrong, dressed in men's clothing, stood beside Chen Chang, lowering her brows and biting her red lips, as if she was in a trance.

In the main hall, the sound of Buddhist chants echoed and the scent of sandalwood lingered, creating an atmosphere that made one forget worldly worries.

Chen Chang took a deep breath and felt refreshed.

Hou Andu looked outside to see the sky, then stepped forward and said respectfully, "Your Highness, it's getting late, please..."

Although there are soldiers from the Later Liang Dynasty here, it is not as safe as in the post station, so it is better to go back early.

Chen Chang turned his head, touched his nose, and said, "Master Sikong, it's rare that I feel a little better. Could you please ask the masters to have some vegetarian food?"

Hou Andu said, "Your Highness, the monks in the temple are frugal and eat only porridge with aged pickled vegetables. I am afraid that Your Highness is not used to it."

In the past, Emperor Wu of Liang summoned all the monks to swear to give up alcohol and meat forever, and announced the law, and those who violated the law would be severely punished.

Due to the top-down promotion, as well as the fact that temples grew their own crops and fed themselves, and the vast estates provided a source of vegetarian food, this reform was extremely effective and vegetarianism became popular in Buddhism.

Chen Chang said, "Master Sikong, even if one gets tired of all the delicacies from land and sea, it would be better to cleanse the five internal organs. What do you think?"

Hou Andu looked embarrassed: "This..."

He was extremely unhappy in his heart, but he could not show it in front of Cai Daye, a foreign minister, so he had to agree.

Without waiting for his answer, Chen Chang asked Cai Daye, "Master Cai, I am sorry to trouble you with this temporary motion."

Cai Daye said hurriedly, "Your Highness, what are you talking about? It is a blessing for the Iron Buddha Temple that Your Highness is dining here."

The old monk with white eyebrows beside him, whose Buddhist name was Xuyun, was the abbot of the temple. He chanted a Buddhist name and said, "Master Cai is right. If Your Highness does not mind the simple food in the temple, I will arrange it now."

"Thank you, Master Lao!"

Cai Daye gave a few instructions to the old monk, who ordered someone to call the monk who was in charge of providing all the food for the banquet and asked him to prepare the meal carefully.

The monk in charge responded and went to instruct the rice, vegetable, fire and water staff to speed up preparations.

Hou Andu called Liu Ming and Zhou Hong to his side and told them to be on high alert.

Soon, cloud boards sounded, and all the monks put on their robes and entered the Wuguan Hall. They sat down in order and sang the "Offering Gāthā" together, offering to all the Buddhas of the ten directions and three times. They reminded themselves once again not to forget to seek the Buddha's path and to save all sentient beings, and to follow the ancient saints and sages.

“The three virtues and six flavors are offered to the Buddha and the monks… When eating, one should wish for all living beings to eat with the bliss of meditation and be filled with the joy of the Dharma…”

The room that Chen Chang used to stay in was clean and elegant, with only him, Ning Jingrong and Zhou Hong living in it.

Ever since the last assassination at Wutou Station, Zhou Hongji has been by his side all the time.

Today, Houliang has gone through wars and is in ruins, so this temple is not rich, and the food is quite simple, including Hu Bing, steamed cakes, white porridge, and a few kinds of plain dishes.

Chen Chang and the others knelt on the ground. He looked at the plain vegetarian meal, touched his nose, and said to Ning Jingrong beside him: "I'm afraid you will be wronged if I let you follow me today."

Ning Jingrong smiled sweetly but said nothing.

Chen Chang was in a rare good mood, he picked up a piece of bread with chopsticks and took a bite: "Try it, it tastes different from the ones outside.

"Really?" Ning Jingrong's eyes lit up with joy. He leaned forward, tore off a small piece of the biscuit, took a delicate bite, and savored it carefully.

Chen Chang looked at her graceful eating posture and a smile appeared on his face.

Seeing him staring at him, Ning Jingrong turned his head slightly to the side and glanced at the wisp of smoke outside the rear window. His dark eyes were wriggling with countless undercurrents.

Less than fifty steps behind the house was the temple's kitchen, where smoke was rising and the air was thick with fumes.

Two monks, one tall and one short, were whispering in a smoky kitchen...

…

In the manor, the river meanders around, and the bluestone banks are dotted with water marks.

The clear spring water reflects the white walls, black tiles, small bridges, and a huge camphor tree, winding and graceful, towering like a canopy, and lush. Although the ancient camphor tree is covered with moss, it cannot contain the vicissitudes of time.

One side of the tree was once burned by fire and struck by lightning, but it miraculously sprouted branches and grew back to support the tree, creating the interesting image of "grandfather carrying his grandson".

Jiao Mu was a tall and sturdy man, with his back against the red railings and colorful steps. The sun was at its brightest, scorching his body without any scruples, but he had no intention of avoiding it and just stood by the canal.

Zhang Fang and Zhao Xi stood there more than twenty steps away, with sweat dripping down their temples. To their left was the cool shade of a tree, but their feet seemed to be rooted to the ground and they stood there motionless.

Zhang Fang was calculating and found that Shao Jiao had been standing there for more than half an hour without changing his posture.

In recent years, Jiao Yu did a lot of things without telling his adoptive father, but the previous self-willed killing of Liang Yu and this time secretly ordering the assassination of Chen Chang were undoubtedly the two biggest things. If we have to make a comparison, the latter is even worse.

Jiao Li has a bad temper. There are only two people in the world who can make him submit, one is Changshan King Gao Yan, and the other is his adoptive father.

The decision to assassinate Chen Chang was a struggle for him. Even after the order had been issued and the men had been sent out, he was still struggling fiercely in his heart. Even when exposed to the scorching sun, he felt as if all the blood in his body was burning.

In front of him was the clear water of the river, and he was waiting, waiting for the exciting news.

When that time comes, he can jump into the river, let the cold water quickly cover his head, let all the sounds disappear in an instant, and let great joy surge from his heart...

Obviously, there was a great risk in assassinating Chen Chang, but he was more aware of what a successful assassination would mean to him.

When he gave that order, there was no turning back.

Although his adoptive father is old, he is in good health. He cannot live in his adoptive father's shadow forever.

"Godfather, this is not my fault!"

Jiao looked at the shadow in the river, and suddenly punched the red railing behind him. A strange smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he said slowly: "Foster father, I have followed you since I was a child, and you taught me all these skills. But now you are old and timid, and I don't know how many good opportunities you have missed. We could have accomplished more earth-shaking things."

"Eleven years ago, Emperor Sejong went to Yecheng to discuss the matter of Zen with his confidants. If you hadn't suggested that Sejong send most of his guards away to prevent the secret from being leaked, how could his chef Lan Jing have seized this opportunity and hacked Sejong to death?"

"Let's not talk about the distant past, let's just say eight years ago, that is, in the third year of Tianbao, our Northern Qi army reached the Yangtze River in the south, and then twice approached the city of Jiankang. If you hadn't been cautious and confirmed by many parties to delay the time, would our Northern Qi army have been repelled by Chen Baxian and separated from the Chen Dynasty by the Yangtze River?"

"Foster father, you are old, really old..."

Just as Jiao was lost in thought, a man dressed in fancy clothes suddenly came over in a hurry. Jiao heard the footsteps and turned his head sharply. Before the man could speak, he asked, "Have they entered the cage?"

The man nodded slightly.

Jiao Mu sighed long and his tense face gradually relaxed. The distance between the manor and the Iron Buddha Temple was less than 40 miles, but six teams of fast horses were arranged to report the news.

The man stepped forward and whispered into Jiao's ear: "Young Master, they are having a meal right now. After the meal, it will be their turn..."

Jiao Li let out a soft "oh", but for some reason, he didn't feel nervous anymore. He just felt extremely tired all over and even wanted to lie down on the spot.

The man continued in a low voice: "This time we have three people on the inside, and sixty-eight people outside, all of whom are strong and powerful. Most of these people are mountain bandits, pirates, and thieves. They are very capable and courageous."

"Among the ten, seven or eight of them have committed murder. If they are caught by the government, they will die. So, Your Highness, there is no need to worry about their rebellion..."

Jiao's eyes rolled around, and he felt a little uneasy. To be honest, he had been very good to these people over the years, feeding them with good food and drink, and giving each of them new identities. Naturally, they were grateful to him.

Although he recruited these people, no one had ever seen his true face and did not know his identity. Everything was done by his confidant in front of him.

However, for the sake of insurance, he did not let this confidant directly participate in the action, but let him command behind the scenes.

What he was worried about was that although these assassins were desperate criminals, they could attack them unexpectedly, but if they faced them head-on, they would not gain much advantage in front of those well-trained soldiers.

Seeing Jiao Mu's gloomy face, the confidant lowered his head hurriedly. After a while, he heard the young master coughing softly, so he raised his head and just saw two fierce lights in Jiao Mu's eyes, and then he heard the order given to him by the young master.

"After the success, no, whether it is success or failure, these people will..."

Jiao Li raised his palms into a fist, gently raised them in front of his neck, and then fiercely slammed them towards everything...