Chapter 105 Guanyin Temple
Prefect Song was panting heavily through his nostrils, clearly unwilling to accept defeat.
The registrar and the yamen runners probably wouldn't dare to lie to him, and the results of the examination, which were reviewed under the personal supervision of the Ministry of Rites officials, were even less likely to be false. Therefore, Meng Guanqi truly passed the examination based on his own abilities.
A fifteen-year-old scholar who achieved ninth place in the imperial examinations—it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him a genius.
If he hadn't been sick that day, he might have done even better and perhaps even made it into the top three.
Tang Xuezheng was naturally angry that such a promising student had become Gu Henian's student. It was understandable that he would take his anger out on Prefect Song, since every additional successful candidate in the imperial examinations was an achievement for the prefectural school. Such an outstanding genius had been handed over to Gu Henian because of Lu Weifu.
After passing the imperial examination, not only would Gu Henian refuse to let him go, but even Meng Guanqi would not give up Wanshan Academy to study at the prefectural school. If he passed the imperial examination three years later, he would be an eighteen-year-old genius, and many people would fight tooth and nail for him.
On the contrary, he is also very good-looking. You know, the current emperor likes good-looking new scholars the most. If he can rank a little higher in the examination, it is not impossible for him to be specially selected as the third-ranked scholar.
With this young genius, the Meng family will likely prosper for the next twenty years.
Prefect Song was filled with resentment, regretting that he hadn't slapped Lu Weifu to death back then. Now he was being dragged down with him. With Meng Ying's personality, it was impossible for her to be loving and affectionate with him.
Although Magistrate Meng said that since the person had returned, Liu only needed to wait at the mansion for the messenger to bring good news, Liu still secretly sent Steward Zhao to Lin'an Prefecture a day in advance to wait for the announcement.
There was no other way; Xiumei had just given birth to a baby girl, and Zhao Jian had to stay home to take care of her. The other newly purchased servants were illiterate, otherwise, Zhao Jian wouldn't have needed to personally take care of her.
When Magistrate Meng returned from his office and found that Steward Zhao was not at home, he learned that Zhao had secretly gone to Lin'an Prefecture without his knowledge.
That old scoundrel.
If he didn't want to go, as a steward, he would naturally have had many ways to refuse Liu, but he left without even saying goodbye. It seems that he was also very anxious and wanted to know as soon as possible whether Meng Guanqi had passed the imperial examination.
Magistrate Meng shook his head: "They're all so impatient!"
Li Xiaoxiao only found out the next day that Steward Zhao had secretly gone to Lin'an Prefecture without her knowledge. She said angrily, "Steward Zhao is so inconsiderate! Why didn't you take me with you to see the list?! He's old, what if he got hurt in the crowd?"
In fact, Steward Zhao is only in his early forties this year, so how could he look that old? A year ago, he traveled a thousand miles alone to help Magistrate Meng deliver a letter. He didn't even care about Lin'an Prefecture, which was only a little over a hundred miles away.
She said this because Meng Guanqi was studying at home but didn't allow her to go out and wander around. Instead, she was told to pick up her books again and study.
Even if one can't be a scholar of vast learning, one can't write a letter incompletely, right? So Li Xiaoxiao resumed her previous miserable study life and hasn't been able to leave the house for many days.
The happiest person was Asheng. He had been forced to memorize many books and learn many characters at Wanshan Academy, and his level had far surpassed that of Li Xiaoxiao, so he could laugh at her to his heart's content.
Li Xiaoxiao couldn't compete with Asheng in academics, so she resorted to punching him until he was bruised and battered.
After chasing Ah Sheng around the yard twice, Meng Guanqi's voice, as if calling out to a ghost, came from the study again: "Xiaoxiao, have you finished memorizing all the books you were supposed to? Come here and recite them for me."
Li Xiaoxiao really wanted to imitate those three-year-old children, sitting down on the ground and then rolling around.
But how old is she? Although she really wanted to do it, she didn't have the face to do it.
She had no choice but to return to her study dejectedly and recite her lessons to Meng Guanqi.
When chatting, he is an amiable young master, a little darling, a great beauty, someone you can tease and speak without restraint. But when it comes to schoolwork, he is the strictest teacher. He won't tolerate her missing a single stroke, and he'll pick up a bamboo stick to hit her hand without any mercy.
Li Xiaoxiao recited the homework assigned by Meng Guanqi as if she had lost her parents. Finally, she saw the old man nod reluctantly and breathed a sigh of relief. Today's task was finally completed!
She couldn't help but ask curiously, "Young master, are you really that calm? Don't you want to go see the results?"
Meng Guanqi slowly picked up his teacup and took a sip: "The outcome is already decided. What difference does it make whether we see it sooner or later?"
Li Xiaoxiao said with dissatisfaction, "The difference is huge, so we should be happy as soon as possible."
After she finished speaking, she remembered that Butler Zhao had secretly gone to check the list. She had clearly said that she really wanted to go, but he hadn't taken her. She angrily added, "If you hadn't given me one more article yesterday, I could have left two hours earlier. Maybe then I could have caught Butler Zhao leaving and gone with him!"
Meng Guanqi stood up helplessly: "Fine, I know you can't stay home, okay? I'll take you shopping, alright?"
Li Xiaoxiao's complaints vanished as she immediately forgot about Butler Zhao's unfair behavior and asked happily, "Really? Really? Are we really going shopping?"
Meng Guanqi smiled and asked, "Are you coming or not?"
Li Xiaoxiao immediately grabbed his hand and pulled him outside: "Come on, let's go! Let's go for a walk!"
Meng Guanqi was pulled along by her with a smile, shaking his head as he walked, just like a monkey, never still for a moment, always thinking about running away.
However, the streets of Biyang County are so short that she has walked through them hundreds of times. Li Xiaoxiao's favorite place to visit is the barbecue stall. There is nothing else to enjoy.
Meng Guanqi looked into the distance and thought that since he was already out, he might as well walk a bit further away.
Hearing that they could go even further, Li Xiaoxiao suddenly suggested, "Why don't we go to the Guanyin Temple on Zimu Peak? Madam goes there once a month, and I'm quite familiar with the old monk there." She completely forgot that today was the day Meng Guanqi released his exam results.
Meng Guanqi hadn't gone hiking for a while since returning home, so when he heard about hiking, he couldn't help but feel interested: "Let's go then, what are we waiting for?"
Li Xiaoxiao cheered and immediately led Meng Guanqi toward the direction of Zimu Peak.
Biyang County was very poor, and the Guanyin Temple was built rather hastily. Moreover, it was built halfway up the mountain rather than at the top, mainly because it was difficult to transport timber to the top. Even the mountain road leading to the Guanyin Temple was full of potholes and clods of dirt. When the two of them climbed halfway up the mountain, they were covered in dirt.
But where there seems to be no end to the mountains and rivers, there is always breathtaking scenery. The two stood on a boulder halfway up the mountain, enjoying the mountain breeze and admiring the lush scenery below. The terraced fields, layer upon layer, were planted with crops. Looking down from above, it was a masterpiece of nature. These terraced fields, which had caused farmers so much hardship, had now become a stunning landscape, making it hard to leave.
The two had come to climb the mountain on a whim, without preparing incense or offerings. When they arrived at the temple and wanted to burn some incense, the old monk squinted and said, "No incense, no offerings."
The two were dumbfounded: "Huh? The temple didn't prepare any?" They had planned to donate some money for incense and then burn a few sticks of incense for free, but they didn't expect that the temple was so poor that it couldn't even afford to buy incense.
The old monk, his legs covered in mud, clearly had just come back from the fields. He said casually, "Many people farm nearby. They come here to drink water when they're thirsty, and to cool off when they're hot. They burn all the incense they see. Where would there be any left? You two don't come here often, so you don't know the rules here."
Seeing that Meng Guanqi's trousers and shirt were covered in mud, Li Xiaoxiao couldn't bear to see him climb the mountain for so long only to be unable to even light an incense stick. She took out a string of coins and said, "I'll give you some money for incense oil. Take out a few sticks of incense you've been hiding and burn them for my young master."
That string of coins looked to be forty or fifty coins, enough to buy a lot of incense. The old monk smiled and said, "Wait here, I'll go in and get it."
The farmers who were resting in the shade at the foot of the Guanyin Temple spat and said, "You damned bald monk, you lied to us that there was no incense. Turns out you hid it all."
"Exactly, I knew it! How could such a big temple be without incense? He must have hidden it all."
Some, however, felt indignant: "Forget it, this old bald monk has to farm to make a living guarding this temple. He'd be starving if he relied on donations long ago!"
Before the gossip could linger for long, the old monk came out with six incense sticks, handing three to Meng Guanqi and three to Li Xiaoxiao each.
Li Xiaoxiao's eyes widened: "You heartless monk, your incense costs nearly ten coins a stick? I gave you that much money, which could buy several bundles of incense down the mountain, and you only gave me a few sticks!"
The old monk shrugged: "There really aren't any left. There's one here that's a bit shorter; I kept it on purpose."
When Li Xiaoxiao looked at the incense stick in her hand, she noticed that one of the sticks was indeed shorter than the last one, probably because someone else had burned it halfway and then snapped it off.
She sighed. There was nothing she could do; he was poor. She had to forgive him.
This Guanyin Temple has existed in Biyang County for decades. Only this old monk lives in the temple. He usually sweeps the floor and wipes the offering table. He only buys incense for the Bodhisattva when he has extra money.
Fortunately, this was the only dilapidated temple in the entire Biyang County. On the first and fifteenth of each lunar month, people would still come to burn incense and worship Guanyin. The offerings would be kept for a day or two before the old monk would take them away and eat them.
However, the common people were poor and couldn't offer any good offerings. Sometimes it was a handful of rice, sometimes a few wild fruits. Offering a piece of rice cake was considered very generous. The wealthy families in the county obviously looked down on such a dilapidated temple and rarely came. Only the Liu family, being unfamiliar with the area and unable to find any better temples, and finding this Guanyin temple to be rather low, would come to worship every month.
If the old monk were skilled in interpreting divination slips or writing amulets, he might be able to swindle some money, but he is illiterate, he doesn't know any of the skills a monk should have, and he doesn't have the brains to make up stories.
He lives here as if the temple is his own home, because the temple is sparsely visited by worshippers, and he has to rely on farming to make a living.
Almost every month, Li Xiaoxiao would come to burn incense with Liu Shi. The first time she came, she said, "This dilapidated temple probably isn't effective, right?" Liu Shi and Granny Qi teamed up to beat her up. Liu Shi even lit two extra sticks of incense for the Bodhisattva, praying that the Bodhisattva wouldn't blame Li Xiaoxiao for her innocent words.
Each time they left, they would donate fifty coins as incense money, which made the old monk so happy he couldn't stop smiling.
Later, Li Xiaoxiao became familiar with the old monk and often went to the backyard to help him water the vegetables.
She and Meng Guanqi burned incense for Guanyin together, and then the two went around to the backyard of the temple to see the land planted by the old monk. Li Xiaoxiao reached out and pinched a handful of soil: "This soil is not good, the crops will not grow."
The old monk was also worried: "That's right, we can only grow soybeans and black beans. The soil is not good, and it's colder on the mountain than on the plain, so rice and wheat don't grow well."
Li smiled and asked, "So what are you going to eat now?"
Despite the old monk's poverty, he took in two boys, one four years old and the other eight. The four-year-old had twelve fingers, while the eight-year-old was born with legs of different lengths.
Both children were abandoned. The old monk couldn't bear to see them starve to death, so he picked them up from the roadside and raised them until they were this old.
The four-year-old boy is named A-Yun, and the eight-year-old boy is named A-Fu.
Despite suffering the pain of being abandoned by their parents, the old monk still named them Fuyun (meaning "good fortune").
The old monk said excitedly, "In recent months, Manager Guo of Jinxiu Pavilion has been collecting turmeric. Although my mountain is barren, it is quite good at growing turmeric. It's just that it's all yellow clay and hard to dig. After Afu recognized turmeric, he took Ayun to dig it every day. If the three of us are lucky, we can sell it for seven or eight hundred coins a month, which is enough to buy grain."
Just then, a limping boy led a three- or four-year-old boy into the temple. The older boy carried a small basket on his back, and the younger boy held a small tree root in his hand, his fingers stained a bright yellow, undoubtedly turmeric.
The old monk walked over and said, "A-Fu, why did you let A-Yun play with turmeric? You know you can sell this for money."
Afu said, "He won't leave unless we let him play with it, so let's just leave it at that small piece."
Ah Yun is still young and likes brightly colored things.
The old monk drew water from the well and carefully washed A-Yun's hands.
Ah Yun obediently stretched out her little hand for him to wash, her twelve fingers clearly visible.
Because of these hands, Ah Yun, a perfectly healthy child, was abandoned. In this era, extra fingers were considered unlucky, and even though Ah Yun was a boy, he could not escape the fate of being abandoned.
The old monk was right to name him A-Yun. He was indeed very lucky to have survived and been raised by the old monk to adulthood.
Li Xiaoxiao stepped forward, took A Yun's little hand in her hand, and looked at it carefully.
Ah Yun was a little shy and uneasy, and he tucked his little finger in, clearly aware that he knew his finger was not good.
His extra finger is his little finger, which grows alone on its own and is much shorter than a normal little finger.
Because of poor nutrition, he is four years old, but still looks like a two-year-old, with soft little hands and small bones.
This child looks very well-behaved and sensible. Li Xiaoxiao suddenly asked, "Old monk, do you have five taels of silver?"
The old monk instinctively clutched his money pouch and exclaimed, "I'm just a poor monk with two children to support. Where would I get five taels of silver?"
Li Xiaoxiao said, "When I went to Lin'an this time, I learned about a medicine called Datura. It has hallucinogenic and numbing effects. If you have five taels of silver, I will take you to Lin'an Prefecture to find a doctor named Ni and ask him to cut off A-Yun's little finger. He is young and it will grow back in two months. After that, he will be a normal person and will never be discriminated against again."
Meng Guanqi was taken aback and subconsciously looked at Li Xiaoxiao. He didn't expect her to mention datura. The three of them almost fell ill because of this medicine. How could she think of using this medicine to cut off the little monk's extra finger?
Afu, who had been keeping his head down and not looking at anyone, suddenly raised his head and his eyes lit up when he heard those words.
Five taels of silver, just five pieces of meat silver, and my brother's hand can be healed. Is that true?
He became somewhat agitated, took two steps forward, and asked in a trembling voice, "Miss Li, are you telling the truth?"
Li smiled and said, "It's true."
Afu asked, "After my brother took that medicine, will it stop hurting when he cuts his finger?"
Li smiled and said, "After taking the medicine, he fell asleep. He didn't feel any pain when it was being cut. Of course, he would feel a little pain when he woke up, but the doctor would prescribe medicine for him, and he would recover quickly."
Afu ran back to his room quickly and came out a short while later with a money bag.
The money bag was heavy, probably weighing several pounds. He placed the entire money bag in Li Xiaoxiao's hands: "Miss Li, this is the money we earned from selling turmeric. Can you count it for me? Is it enough for five taels of silver?"
Li Xiaoxiao didn't refuse, but instead taught him to count them one by one in a serious manner.
The old monk couldn't read, so it was even less likely that Afu and Asheng could. They couldn't even calculate numbers above fifty. Li Xiaoxiao asked him to bring some hemp rope so he could count the coins. Ten copper coins were divided into small piles. Once there were ten piles, the coins were strung together with hemp rope. Each string of coins was one hundred coins, and ten strings of coins were one tael of silver.
Ah Fu carefully counted the coins one by one, piling them up in small heaps and then stringing them into strings. After half an hour, he finally counted them all. He had strung together a total of thirty-two strings of coins, plus sixteen loose coins.
He said dejectedly, "Thirty-two strings of cash and sixteen coins, does that only amount to three taels of silver?"
Li smiled and said, "It's three taels of silver and two hundred coins, which is one tael and eight hundred coins away from five taels of silver."
Afu counted on his fingers, if he could earn 800 coins a month by digging turmeric, it would take several months to earn 800 coins per tael.
Li smiled and said, "It will take two and a half months."
Afu's eyes lit up: "Then, Miss Li, could you wait for me? I'll take my brother to dig for turmeric for another two and a half months, and then you can take us to Lin'an to have my brother's hand checked, okay?"
Li smiled and said, "Okay! Once you've saved enough, just call me at the yamen. If I'm not there, just talk to Constable Shi, you know him, right? The biggest Constable Shi in the yamen, he'll tell me."
Afu nodded emphatically and said earnestly, "I will come to find you soon. You have to wait for me."
Li Xiaoxiao patted his head: "Even if we're going to dig for turmeric, you're taking your younger brother with you, and your legs aren't very strong, so you can't go to dangerous places to dig. If I find out you dare to go to the edge of a cliff, I won't take you there."
A hint of disappointment flashed in Afu's eyes. He had found a clump of turmeric on the edge of a cliff and was planning to dig it up, but it was a bit dangerous there. His master wouldn't let him go, and now even Li Xiaoniangzi wouldn't allow it...
He dared not go, fearing that if Li Xiaoxiao really found out he went to the cliff to dig for turmeric, she would really not take his younger brother with her.
Meng Guanqi looked at his stubborn yet eager gaze, hesitant to speak. It was only a little over an ounce of silver short; he could—
As if she knew what he was thinking, Li Xiaoxiao gently shook her head, indicating that they could talk after he left.
After the two left, Afu hugged Ayun tightly, his eyes shining with joy: "Ayun, did you hear that? Miss Li is going to take you to Lin'an Prefecture to see a doctor. The doctor can cure your hand, and no one will look at you strangely anymore."
Ah Yun was still a little confused. When he saw his brother smiling happily, he grinned too, revealing two deep dimples on his cheeks.
Afu hugged her younger brother tightly, tears streaming down her face.
That's great! My little brother's hand is healed. He'll be a normal person now. When they come back from Lin'an, maybe a lady will see how cute he is and take him home to raise. He won't have to go hungry and hungry in this dilapidated temple with his master. He's four years old but looks like a two-year-old...
A large hand gently touched the top of his head. Afu looked up and wiped away his tears shyly: "Master, I didn't cry. I'm happy because my brother's hand can be saved."
The old monk handed him the money bag, and Afu was taken aback: "Master?"
The old monk sat down beside him: "This is my personal savings, it should be more than two taels. Take it and go catch up with Miss Li, ask her to take A-Yun to Lin'an Prefecture for treatment."
This was his hidden stash of money. He wouldn't normally tell Afu he had it. He saved it to secretly buy wine when he went down the mountain to buy grain. But knowing that Ayun's hand could be healed, he took it out without hesitation.
Afu firmly pushed the silver back: "No, Master, our temple doesn't have much food left. You need to save your money to buy food for this winter and wine. As for Ayun's hand, I can dig up turmeric to treat it. It's only a little over a tael of silver short. Lady Li said that in just over two months, I can save enough money and then take Ayun to see Lady Li."
The old monk wanted to say something, but when he met Afu's resolute gaze, he swallowed his words.
Well, it's a good thing that Afu is responsible and knows how to care for Ayun. The brothers can discuss things together, so they won't be lonely in the future.
As soon as Meng Guanqi and Li Xiaoxiao left the mountain gate, they couldn't help but ask, "How did you come up with the idea of using datura to treat A-Yun's hand?"
Li Xiaoxiao said, "It was Dr. Ni from Yanghetang who told me that datura has hallucinogenic and numbing effects. It is usually used in clinics to treat people with external injuries to relieve their pain. Since it can relieve pain, then A-Yun will suffer much less when his finger is cut off. Besides, extra fingers are not a serious illness. It can be removed as long as it is cut off."
Meng Guanqi's expression was complicated: "Zhang Li used datura to harm you, yet you still managed to think of using it to save someone..."
Li Xiaoxiao shook her head and said, "Young master, have you ever heard the saying, 'When others throw mud at me, I use the mud to grow lotus flowers'? Isn't that similar to our current situation?"
When others throw mud at me, I use the mud to plant lotus flowers...
Meng Guanqi read the sentence carefully twice. It meant repaying evil with good, and it also implied the Buddhist principle of having a broad and open mind. Isn't that exactly what she was doing?
He smiled slightly, his eyes filled with affection: "Since that's the case, Afu is only a little over one tael of silver short, why don't you let me help him pay it?"
Li smiled and said, "Because Afu's eyes told me that he doesn't need to; he can earn money by watching his brother's hands."
Meng Guanqi was taken aback. Afu was only seven or eight years old this year. Could his eyes convey such a message to Li Xiaoxiao?
Li smiled and said, "Some children have a strong sense of self-esteem. They don't want to attract sympathy and charity from others because of their physical defects. They would rather be treated as ordinary people. Afu is such a child. He is very stubborn. If I offer to help him with money, he will feel that I look down on him."
She walked down the mountain with light steps: "Since Afu can earn more than three taels of silver, he can earn five taels. Don't worry, it's just a matter of waiting one or two more months. He will definitely save enough money to come to me. Then I will take them to Lin'an Prefecture to have Doctor Ni examine their hands."
She sighed again: "It's a pity. A-Yun's fingers are easy to treat, but A-Fu's legs are not."
Even in later generations, there is no way to solve the problem of congenital leg length discrepancy. For mild cases, the only solution is to make shoes with different heights to help maintain balance and walk more steadily. For more severe cases, crutches are needed. Afu's case is of moderate severity, with his left leg being four or five centimeters shorter than his right leg. However, he is still young, and it is unknown whether it will become more serious as he grows up. Li Xiaoxiao is unable to find a doctor to treat this condition for him.
As the two descended the mountain, they encountered many local farmers who were cultivating the land nearby. Their land was not far from the Guanyin Temple, and they all wanted to stop by the temple to rest, have a drink of water, and also pay their respects to Guanyin.
It really was just a simple prayer with hands clasped together, without incense, candles, offerings, or money for incense oil. It was mainly for peace of mind. Unexpectedly, they encountered Li Xiaoxiao on the road with a young man with fair skin coming down from the mountain. Everyone stared at Meng Guanqi as if he were a rare sight.
Meng Guanqi felt uneasy under their blatant gazes and clung tightly to Li Xiaoxiao. Li Xiaoxiao, on the other hand, was much more poised and confident: "Oh, Aunt Nian, Grandma Mu, it's you!"
The woman called Aunt Nian greeted her with a smile: "So it's Miss Li, what a coincidence! And who is this?"
Li Xiaoxiao said naturally, "This is my young master. He was bored with studying, so we came out for a hike and also to visit the Guanyin Temple."
"Oh, so you're the magistrate's son! He's so fair-skinned!"
"Scholars are just different; I thought they were celestial beings descended to earth!"
They showered Meng Guanqi with compliments, making him blush. Feeling awkward, he turned away and squeezed to the side of the road, pretending to admire the scenery.
Such blatant praise made him shy, and he didn't know how to respond.
Fortunately, these simple and honest people seemed to know that he was shy. Apart from giving him a straightforward compliment when they first saw him, they started chatting with Li Xiaoxiao. They talked about everything from tilling the land to sowing seeds, from sowing seeds to applying fertilizer, and then about how to harvest rice flowers. In the end, they even wanted to take Li Xiaoxiao to their fields to see how the rice harvested from her seeds was going.
Li Xiaoxiao sighed, "You aunties and grandmas really overestimate me. I only planted it for one season; how could I possibly compare to you experienced farmers?"
As they chatted about the crop harvest, it was as if she knew everyone, leaving Meng Guanqi dumbfounded: "How do you know everyone?"
Li Xiaoxiao retorted, "I don't know everyone!"
Meng Guanqi said, "You greeted everyone and even chatted with them for a bit."
Li smiled and said, "Even if we don't know each other, we can still say hello and chat for a bit~"
She seemed to have acquired a new skill, which left Meng Guanqi in awe, and he admitted that he was inferior to her.
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