Chapter 175 The Buddhist Invitation
Inside the tightly closed pavilion, a ray of sunlight shone through the crack in the door and hit the empress's fair face.
Xu Zhenguan sat cross-legged on the cushion, a ray of divine light flashed across his beautiful eyes.
Then, the invisible and intangible divine consciousness spread out in all directions with her as the center.
Enveloping the palace, trying to capture the location of the "Dragon Soul".
But the next second, the breath that suddenly appeared suddenly disappeared.
"Huh?" The empress was disappointed. When she withdrew her spiritual thoughts, the aura appeared again.
She swept her mind over again, but saw that the breath had disappeared again.
This time, Xu Zhenguan learned his lesson and always maintained divine consciousness coverage.
However, he only sensed that the dragon soul's aura had a regular pattern, appearing for a moment and then disappearing for a few breaths, repeating this process over and over again.
No matter how she searched, she couldn't lock onto the location.
Finally, it disappeared for the last time and did not appear again for a long time.
"What happened?" Xu Zhenguan withdrew his mind, frowned, and looked confused.
This was an experience she had never had before.
"Could it be related to the upcoming Ghost Festival?" Xu Zhenguan thought about it and could only barely make this connection.
The reason why we worship gods on the Ghost Festival is that the spiritual energy between heaven and earth is the most abundant on that day.
"Forget it," Xu Zhenguan sighed lightly. Since her spiritual thoughts had yielded nothing, there was no need for her to come out of seclusion.
Counting on my fingers, I realized I had been in seclusion for several days.
"I wonder how far the new policy has progressed in Xiuwenguan, and whether it has a clear direction."
Xu Zhenguan couldn't help but think that in her opinion, the planning of the new policy would inevitably be slow.
She was afraid that there would be no progress after a few days of leaving the border. She just hoped that there would be a plan to fill the national treasury, and she would be content.
As an emperor, she was not good at these things and could only hope that scholars like Han Zhou would work together to share her worries.
Putting aside all distracting thoughts, the empress closed her beautiful eyes and entered into meditation again.
From the beginning to the end, the new policy was never linked to a small imperial guard.
…
…
“Wow!”
Under the bridge, Zhao Duan emerged from the water, his wet hair sticking to his scalp.
He took a deep breath, using fresh oxygen to relieve the dizziness in his eyes from holding his breath for too long.
After climbing ashore, Zhao Duan hurriedly took out his clothes, put on a dry coat, and left quickly.
After they walked away, he let out a deep breath and frowned.
“I can’t open it…”
At the bottom of the lake, he tried again and again, but failed to activate the sealed formation.
"Is it because my cultivation is too low? Not enough to open it? Or is it because the way I open it is wrong?"
Zhao Duan was basically certain that the formation at the bottom of the lake was the entrance or exit of the "secret passage".
"Since it's a door, it should have a unique key."
Zhao Duan thought about it and decided to start with Old Xu.
There is no reason not to enter a treasure mountain. He always felt that since it existed in such a secretive way, it must be extraordinary.
"I can only leave temporarily and think of a solution."
Zhao Duan made a decision and left immediately, and decided not to come back until he found a way to open the door.
…
…
In the next few days, Zhao Duan's life became regular.
I practice visualization every day, using all kinds of dirty talk and indirect hints.
Trying to get more information about the "secret passage" from Lao Xu.
Whether there are dates or not, let’s give it a try first.
Old Xu ignored him and led him firmly towards the East China Sea, leaving the Mubei Forest farther and farther away.
During the day, he would punch in at the imperial yamen, occasionally go to the Baima Prison, and from time to time sneak into the Xiuwenguan to give advice.
Inside the museum, the new policy is being implemented at a terrifying speed.
Under normal circumstances, they should have argued with each other and discussed continuously for at least half a month, or even a month, before they could come up with a rough outline.
However, the "three strategies" proposed by Zhao Duan were too superior and perfect, so what a group of scholars had to do was to refine the existing mature plans.
The progress is naturally rapid.
at the same time.
For some unknown reason, some opinions began to gradually gain momentum among the scholar circles in Beijing.
At first, many scholars were envious and jealous of the first batch of scholars in Xiuwenguan, and the status of scholars headed by Han Zhou rose rapidly.
There were even quite a few scholars who took the initiative to seek refuge, and the threshold of Han Banshan's house was almost broken down.
Everyone understands that a group of young upstarts is about to emerge.
The so-called praise one and criticize another, as the reputation of Han Zhou and others began to grow rapidly.
During this period, Zhao Duan, who also became famous, was naturally compared.
As an object of criticism.
The scholars already hated and despised Zhao Duan, and the voices of cursing him never stopped.
After the Zhou Cheng case, Zhao Duan focused his energy on Xiuwenguan. Because of the confidentiality, he appeared particularly quiet in the eyes of outsiders.
His reputation was gradually surpassed by Han Zhou and others.
I don’t even know who lit the fire.
It is claimed that Your Majesty ultimately knows who is more important and who is less important, compared to Han Banshan, who may become the "Prime Minister" and the tailor of the Dayu Dynasty in the future.
Zhao Duan, the pretty boy under the empress's skirt and a vindictive villain, is made to look even more despicable.
"Zhao Duan? Ha, he's just a vicious dog raised by His Majesty, thrown into places like the Imperial Court, and released to bite people from time to time... How can he be compared to Han Banshan?"
"That's right, haha. Since His Majesty hasn't been attending court for a while, Zhao Duan has really tucked his tail between his legs. He's been quiet and hasn't bitten anyone. He's really just taking advantage of his master's power..."
"A cruel official is still a cruel official. I heard that Grand Tutor Dong also had some complaints about him and even wrote to Your Majesty, saying that you should be close to virtuous officials and stay away from villains...
I guess Zhao Gou must have heard the rumors... After the establishment of Xiuwen Academy, Grand Tutor Dong was in power. How could Zhao Gou dare to offend him? Wasn't he afraid of angering the Grand Tutor?
After tea and dinner, similar sounds can be heard wherever scholars gather.
"Sir, I heard that the scholars in the city have been scolding you recently. Aren't you angry?"
On this day, in the Pear Blossom Hall, the round-faced secretary Qian Kerou washed a basin of pears and handed them into the inner hall.
He asked Zhao Duan who was reading leisurely.
"Why are you angry?"
Zhao Duan sat carelessly on the armchair with his legs resting on the table.
He glanced at the pear and signaled the secretary to feed him:
"There are so many people who scold me in the world. If someone scolds me, I will get angry. What else can I do?"
After a pause, he said lazily:
"Besides, you have to understand. They are envious and jealous. They were suppressed by me before and dared not say anything. Now that the Xiuwen Academy has finally been established, it seems to have boosted their morale.
It’s interesting to think about it. Han Zhou’s group of scholars are very powerful, so what does it have to do with them?
Scholars always have this problem: they like to care about others and rarely care about themselves.
Qian Kerou peeled the pear with a knife and nodded seriously, sharing the same hatred and enemy:
"Your Excellency is right. Scholars are the most annoying."
After a pause, he continued:
“But that Han Zhou has become really famous recently.
It is said that the Xiuwenguan is planning a new policy, and it is based on something he proposed, called the "Ten Strategies", but outsiders do not know what they are specifically.
Zhao Duan smiled but said nothing.
As the new policy progresses, the outside world will inevitably learn some information.
It’s not that the scholars leaked the news, but in order to prepare for the new policy, Grand Tutor Dong had to make some arrangements with the six ministries and other government offices, retrieve some information, etc.
These actions cannot be hidden.
Although the new policy will be announced sooner or later, and at this rate, it will be basically completed and available in a few days.
But the Grand Tutor thought that it would always be good to hide for a while longer.
So, after conspiring with Zhao Duan, they worked together to release a smoke bomb outside.
The abandoned "Ten Strategies of Han Zhou" were introduced to mislead court officials.
Let outsiders think that the new policy is implemented in accordance with the ten strategies, and Han Zhou was also thrown out to attract the attention of outsiders.
This is to cover up Zhao Duan's "Three Golden Strategies".
Therefore, when Zhao Duan heard those scholars comparing Han Zhou with himself, praising one and criticizing the other, he wanted to laugh.
These days, his greatest pleasure is to go to Xiuwenguan every day, find Han Banshan, and tell him in person how people outside praise him.
Han Zhou was always so embarrassed that he wished he could use his thumb to carve out a three-bedroom apartment on the spot.
But Master Dong refused to let him clarify and only said two words:
Hold it in.
Zhao Duan was very happy.
"Well, is that so? It seems that those scholars are indeed quite capable."
Zhao Duan opened his mouth and took a bite of the peeled, white pear that the secretary attentively handed to him.
Take a sip and it’s full of juice.
Qian Kerou nodded and said:
"Yes, I don't know what's wrong with those scholars' brains, but you, sir, are no worse than any bachelor..."
"Haha, your flattery skills need to be improved,"
Zhao Duan smiled and changed the subject:
"By the way, the day after tomorrow is the Ghost Festival. When the government office is closed, how are you going to celebrate?"
Qian Kerou blurted out:
"Go to Shenlong Temple. During the Ghost Festival, they hold the Ullambana Festival, where many people go to worship their ancestors and pray for blessings. It's said that this year, Master Bianji, a disciple of Abbot Xuanyin, will be the abbot himself.
However, Master Bian Ji was in the "Zhaiyuan" opposite the Shenlong Temple.
Those who can enter the Zhai Garden are not ordinary officials like us, but invited dignitaries, scholars and celebrities...
Speaking of which, when the Xiuwen Academy convened this year, those scholars were definitely invited, and the Grand Tutor would definitely go, as well as Lord Yuan and the ministers of various ministries...
After all, it is a Buddhist ceremony, so we have to give them some face.
In previous years, His Majesty would even show up, but recently His Majesty has not attended court, so it must be Mo Zhaorong who attended on his behalf.
Others are scholars. Buddhism likes to invite scholars. Many students from the Hanlin Academy and even the Imperial College will make exceptions to be invited..."
Zhao Duan looked surprised.
He didn't understand all this. It seemed that this so-called Ullambana Festival was a place where important figures from the capital gathered.
Those people that you are familiar with, as well as those who scold you, will all be there.
"My lord, you are so popular this year, maybe you can be invited."
Qian Kerou suddenly said, then hesitated:
"But the monks at Shenlong Temple are very particular about Buddhist nature and their mindset... Your reputation isn't very good after all, sir..."
The implication is that given Zhao Duan's bad reputation, Shenlong Temple might not invite him.
"Does Shenlong Temple also consider reputation when inviting people?" Zhao Duan was curious.
"Well, anyway, our governor is not invited every year..." Qian Ke said weakly.
Zhao Duan: "..."
Okay.
It seems that monks do have tempers. I think I'm in big trouble if I say that.
As they were talking, Chen Juan walked in from outside the hall, holding a Buddhist letter in his hand:
"Sir, a monk from the Shenlong Temple has come and wants to invite you to attend the Yulanpen Festival."
(End of this chapter)
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