Jing Zhe followed the group of running scholars for several more miles until they saw Peach Blossom Mountain.
Peach Blossom Mountain is not high, but Peach Blossom Temple is built against the mountain, on the mountainside.
Stone steps paved with bluestone slabs extend down from the top of the mountain.
The stone steps were not steep, but they were very long. It took Jing Zhe about fifteen minutes to walk half of them before he reached the entrance of Peach Blossom Temple.
Taohua Temple is not an isolated temple. In fact, the entire mountain, from the halfway point to the summit, belongs to Taohua Temple, including the surrounding endless peach blossom forest.
Jing Zhe had encountered quite a few temples.
When he was in Jingzhou and Ruzhou, he had seen Zhu Xinning and Zhou Ziqiong go to the temples outside the city to burn incense. Moreover, every festival was the day when the temples outside the city held temple fairs.
At this time of year, believers from all directions flock to the mountain to worship. Scholars offer incense and pray for success in the imperial examinations the following year, hoping to have their statues of Buddha made golden. Young ladies hope to find their ideal husbands soon, and newlyweds often visit the Guanyin Bodhisattva who grants children.
Thinking back to when I first met Zhang Xiaoyu, it was in that fake "Qingyun Temple" on the outskirts of Jingzhou. It's quite a sad memory.
However, this was the first time Jing Zhe had ever seen a poetry gathering held in a temple.
As they walked up the steps, the air felt much fresher, and there was a faint fragrance in the air. Jing Zhe noticed that many peach trees were planted on both sides of the mountain path. These past two days had been the peak of their blooming season, and almost every young lady had a peach in her hand. The stone steps were covered with petals. After walking a few steps, Jing Zhe even saw a scholar pick a peach blossom and put it in his hair, which drew cheers from the people around him.
Perhaps in their own eyes, they had the air of scholars, but Jing Zhe thought they were gay and effeminate.
What Jing Zhe found even more annoying was that the peach blossoms that were blooming beautifully on the mountain had been broken into pieces, and they actually regarded it as an elegant thing to do. Several guys with flowers in their hair, who called themselves talented people, were reciting poems to a bare peach tree, which was really a killjoy.
The young ladies strolled through the peach grove in groups, their soft laughter and gentle murmurs emanating from the trees. Some scholars stood beneath the trees, while others spread out a plain cloth, laid out their wine jugs and snacks, sat cross-legged, raised their cups, and recited poems, thoroughly enjoying themselves.
As you ascend closer to Peach Blossom Mountain Temple, the number of tourists and scholars increases, making the already narrow bluestone steps increasingly crowded.
When they arrived at the entrance of Peach Blossom Temple, it was packed with people. Jing Zhe saw many monks in robes outside the temple, who had set up a small stall with a lot of incense and candles. Many passersby would buy some to burn incense and worship Buddha when they entered the temple.
The abbot of Peach Blossom Temple is quite shrewd in business. This grove of peach blossoms in full bloom is sure to attract countless talented men and beautiful women. After admiring the peach blossoms, they can visit the temple to worship the Bodhisattvas and Buddhas, and naturally offer incense. After a poetry gathering, Peach Blossom Temple will probably make a fortune.
...
Jing Zhe stood outside the gate, watching people constantly emerge from the foot of the mountain or the nearby peach blossom grove, heading into the temple in twos and threes.
However, when entering the temple, the monk would take out some short incense sticks. The scholar was used to this, so he would take out a few dozen coins to pay for them and then enter the temple with the incense sticks.
Seeing this, Jing Zhe did not linger outside and strode inside.
They stopped in front of the incense stall set up by the monks. Two monks, one fat and one thin, stood by the stall. The fatter monk habitually handed over a short bundle of incense. Jing Zhe was about to reach out to take it when the thinner monk next to him stopped him.
"What's wrong?"
Jing Zhe glanced at him and asked in confusion.
The fat monk's hand was still in mid-air as he looked at his companion with the same curiosity, while the thin monk rummaged under the incense stall and then took out a bundle of incense sticks that was half a person's height.
The thin monk handed the long incense stick to Jing Zhe, squinted and looked Jing Zhe up and down, then smiled and said, "Young master, you have an imposing presence and an extraordinary appearance. Today you have come to participate in the Peach Blossom Festival held by Peach Blossom Temple. If you can offer a long incense stick, it will surely bring you good luck! You might even win first place in the Peach Blossom Poetry Competition!"
Jing Zhe glanced at him and said calmly, "Thank you, venerable monk, but I came here just to listen to other talented men write lyrics and compose poems. I don't intend to seek any ranking, so buying a stick of incense is enough."
The thin monk sneered after hearing this: "Young master, you're mistaken. When people go to a temple to offer incense, they always have something in mind. Even if you're not seeking a ranking, you should at least be asking for something else. When praying to gods and Buddhas, sincerity is key. How can you show your sincerity by only buying a short stick of incense?"
"Oh? According to the high monk, offering a short incense stick means one is not sincere, while offering a long incense stick means one is sincere?"
"You're smart!"
The thin monk sneered, "Since you're so sensible, then buy a stick of incense! Judging from your clothes and appearance, you're not short of money. Buying one stick of incense is the same as buying two or three, so you might as well buy a few more to show your sincerity!"
Jing Zhe finally understood. The thin monk had judged him by his fine clothes and figured he was wealthy, so he wanted to extort more money from him. Moreover, judging by his skillful methods, he was probably a repeat offender who had extorted money from countless people.
However, his attempt to extort money from Jing Zhe was a miscalculation.
"What the high monk said is absolutely right. However, according to the high monk, those who buy short incense are not sincere, so no matter what they ask for, it won't be answered, right?"
Many passersby had already seen Jing Zhe lingering at the door, especially some women, since Jing Zhe was so handsome. So when Jing Zhe shouted, everyone around stopped to watch. After hearing about "insincere heart" and "efficaciousness," some people started asking what had happened.
The thin monk sensed something was wrong and cursed Jing Zhe in his heart. At the same time, he gave the fat monk a wink. The fat monk understood and immediately grabbed a short incense stick and shouted, "Everyone, hurry up and buy incense to enter the temple! If we wait any longer, there will be even more people, and we might not be able to get a good spot!"
Sure enough, after he shouted that, the crowd that had just been watching Jing Zhe immediately rushed towards the fat monk and rushed to buy incense sticks.
"Give me a short stick of incense!"
"Give me a stick of incense too!"
"Don't push! I was here first!"
"..."
Almost everyone crowded over to buy incense sticks, but a few people who liked to watch the excitement were still looking at Jing Zhe and the thin monk, wanting to see what the two of them were talking about.
Seeing this, the thin monk took a long stick of incense and pulled Jing Zhe aside.
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