Chapter 1946 Alliance
The emperor's gaze fell on Zhou Man from afar, and he really wanted to unite with her, but unfortunately, he could not meet her little eyes.
The emperor became somewhat vague in his words.
Wei Zhi insisted that he define his superstitious behavior because it would involve the education of the people of the world.
What does it mean that if the superiors like something, the subordinates will like it even more?
The emperor repeatedly expressed his favor to Buddhist temples, which led to the rapid development of Buddhist temples in recent years. In order to please the emperor, some local officials even took the initiative to allocate land to Buddhist temples as farmland, which made Wei Zhi very dissatisfied.
He had impeached the emperor many times before, but the emperor pretended to be ignorant and admitted his mistakes quickly, and continued to do what he had to do. There were many major events in the world, and Wei Zhi really didn't have the energy to use this matter to confront the emperor.
He still had a sense of propriety. If he made the emperor unhappy because of such an incident and delayed other things, it would be a waste of time and effort.
It just so happened that there was nothing important happening recently, so he could have a good talk with the emperor about this matter, and the timing was also the best.
Wei Zhi asked the emperor to express his position on the spot and promise that he would no longer be obsessed with such illusory things as Buddhist temples and Taoist temples.
The emperor did not want to express his opinion because he believed in Buddhism from the bottom of his heart. He believed in it all, and it would be embarrassing if he was reluctant to leave some things when he occasionally visited a Buddhist temple.
Seeing him hesitant and looking around, Wei Zhi turned slightly to the side and asked loudly, "Editor Zhou, you share the same faith as Your Majesty. Why don't you talk to Your Majesty about this faith without delusion?"
Manbao: ...
Wei Zhi is now the prime minister and the head of all officials. Man Bao did not dare to refuse. After a moment of silence, he could only bite the bullet and stand up and step out.
She glanced up secretly and met the emperor's gaze.
The king and his minister looked at each other silently for a moment, both feeling a little pitiful.
When County Magistrate Tang looked up and saw this, he couldn't help but lower his head and laugh.
The ministers also felt that Zhou Man's expression was a bit pitiful, mainly because she was still young and a girl, almost the same age as her daughter, granddaughter, or sister at home, so everyone turned their heads to look at Wei Zhi.
Wei Zhixin was as hard as iron, but his tone softened a bit as he asked, "Does Editor Zhou always give money when he visits the Taoist temple?"
Man Bao said, "I give it to people when they are performing rituals or when they ask for amulets. I usually go up the mountain to worship and look at the scenery, and I don't give money."
Manbao paused. She also knew Wei Zhi's intention. Just as she was worried that the empress dowager was too obsessed with Buddhism and Taoism, he was also worried that the emperor would attach too much importance to Buddhism and Taoism.
So she still expressed her opinion under the emperor's gaze. As a believer herself, and having a mother who was obsessed with Tianzun, she knew the believers' psychology very well. They did so much just for the word "merit". With merit, it seemed that they could use it to exchange some things with gods and Buddhas.
For example, Qian would chant scriptures, burn incense three times a day in the morning and evening to worship the statue of Laozi, occasionally donate eggs and rice to the Taoist temple, and occasionally give copper coins if he was generous.
The purpose is to accumulate merits and pray for the health of the baby, a smooth life, and the safety and health of the family;
The emperor gave preferential treatment to the Huguo Temple from time to time, not only because the monks had helped him pacify the world and made contributions in his early years, but also because he had something in mind.
He would use the merits gained from the donation to wish the queen good health and a long life, and he would also wish his children peace and harmony.
Manbao pointed this out first, and the emperor nodded repeatedly, unable to help but agree, saying, "That's exactly what I mean. I'm also doing this for the sake of peace and prosperity for the country and the people."
Naturally, he also prayed for the Li Dynasty to last for thousands of years, but he knew that such a big wish was difficult to achieve, so he only chose the most important one.
Wei Zhi twitched his lips and glanced at Zhou Man. Based on his understanding of her, she would definitely not just praise but also suppress.
As expected, Manbao had just finished explaining the psychology of her and other believers before she turned and denied it, "But I, your servant, know that it is wrong to pin our hopes on the appearance of Laojun."
The emperor's face froze.
Manbao lowered his head and continued, "Since I was little, I've heard my mother say that my father burned incense to the Earth God, but the land still needed to be plowed, the weeds still needed to be removed, and the water still needed to be irrigated. You can't just burn incense and think that everything is fine. If that were the case, no one would farm anymore. Let's see if the gods can make the land grow food for us out of thin air."
emperor:……
The ministers nodded slightly. Although the words were a bit rough, the truth was real.
"So those taking exams should study hard, those doing business should strive to circulate, and those farming should work even harder, only in this way can they succeed. If this is the case, it's hard to say whether it's the gods and Buddhas who make people successful, or whether they make themselves successful," Man Bao said. "I believe that gods and Buddhas only exist in people's hearts. Buddhist principles and moral principles are the understanding of the world and life by ancient sages. There's not much difference between Buddhism and Taoism and the Confucianism and Legalism we use today. It's just that these two schools built Buddhist temples and Taoist temples and intercepted some of the scriptures to receive offerings from believers."
Even Wei Zhi couldn't help but look at Zhou Man in surprise and asked in disbelief, "Is this your understanding?"
Manbao said: "My teacher taught me."
Kong Jijiu immediately stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, Zhuang Xun is talented and should be employed."
The emperor nodded repeatedly and was about to change the subject when Wei Zhi brought it back, "Zhuang Xun is a very capable person. This is a very clear point. What do you think, Your Majesty?"
What else could the emperor say? He naturally nodded and continued trying to change the subject. "Okay, pass on the decree and promote Zhuang Xun to the sixth rank of Prince's tutor."
Very good, from ninth rank to sixth rank in one go. He was just waiting for Wei Zhi to object before arguing about it to kill time, but Wei Zhi ignored him and turned to Zhou Man, saying, "You continue."
The emperor's heart sank to the ground. He silently lowered his head and stared at Zhou Man, but Zhou Man did not look up. She only stared at her toes, so he only saw her black head.
"I believe that Buddhism and Taoism are all about spreading their teachings. As a believer, spreading their good teachings is the greatest merit. Money and other things are minor matters. Continuously promoting the good aspects and then developing even better teachings is all that matters. This is what it means to have faith without delusion."
Although Wei Zhi did not quite agree with Zhou Man's statement of "continuously promoting the good side", since they were now on a united front, he did not immediately raise questions. Instead, he continued to talk to the emperor and began to make a profound analysis of the impact brought about by his generous treatment of the Protector of the Country in recent years.
He had obviously done some preparatory work. Starting from the number of monks registered ten years ago, he compared the number of new monks added each year one by one and listed the proportion of the increase.
Two of these large-scale increases occurred in the second year after the emperor prayed for the empress.
Wei Zhi spoke harshly, demanding that the emperor take responsibility and promise to correct his behavior in the future.
As for rectifying the Buddhist temples, Wei Zhi could only think about it in his heart and did not want to force the emperor too much for the time being.
See you at 6pm
(End of this chapter)
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