Chapter 385 Inner Altar Ceremony
Shang Ruyi took a few more deep breaths, still keeping her head down, and asked softly, "Who is the person behind him?"
"..."
Although his doubts deepened, Yuwen Ye glanced at her but didn't ask any questions. He simply looked up at the others and said, "Grand Master of Ceremonies, Director of the Imperial Academy, Commandant of the Vanguard..."
Shang Ruyi hurriedly asked, "Are there any women?"
"woman?"
Yuwen Ye examined them more closely and said in a low voice, "There are no women. These men's families must not have been officially appointed, so they did not bring their wives."
No?
Shang Ruyi was taken aback and hurriedly looked up in that direction. Sure enough, besides Dong Bizheng and Yu Dingxing, there were several other officials there, but she did not see the woman.
And the feeling that had almost made my soul leave my body had vanished completely.
Could it be that I just saw the figure that flashed by?
At this moment, Shang Ruyi had completely calmed down. Although she was still covered in cold sweat, her complexion had improved considerably, and she even let out a long sigh. Seeing her somewhat absent-minded appearance, Yuwen Ye's expression became even more serious, and he said softly, "What's wrong? You seemed to be feeling very unwell just now."
"..."
Shang Ruyi shook her head and did not respond to that, but glanced at Yu Dingxing again and said softly, "So he is Yu Dingxing."
"yes,"
Yuwen Ye also looked at the man, a complex emotion floating in his eyes: "So he is Yu Dingxing."
Hearing this, Shang Ruyi was taken aback and turned to look at him: "Haven't you seen him before?"
"The first time I met him."
"Then, how did you know it was him?"
"Last night, when I asked someone about him, I heard about his appearance—and it was just as he described."
"—!"
Upon hearing the words "last night," Shang Ruyi's heart sank again. As for who he asked about it, it was self-evident.
At this moment, Yuwen Yuan had also stopped and looked around. Seeing that all the civil and military officials had arrived, he nodded with great satisfaction and asked the person next to him, "Why aren't you going in yet? Isn't the Dharma assembly about to begin?"
Upon hearing this, Dong Bizheng and the others immediately stepped forward, seemingly wanting to say something to him.
Just then, a clear Buddhist chant came from ahead—
"Amitabha."
The sound was deep and resonant, like a morning bell in a silent forest, clearly reaching everyone's ears. Though not deafening, it stirred the soul.
Everyone hurriedly looked up and saw a group of monks wearing kasaya robes walking out from inside the mountain gate.
Walking in the very center is Abbot Xinzheng of Dayan Temple.
Upon seeing him, Shang Ruyi felt a surge of emotion.
In fact, she spent her childhood in Daxing City. When she was young, her parents would bring her to Dayan Temple to worship Buddha. Therefore, she was not unfamiliar with the appearance of this Master Xinzheng.
When I was a child, he was a robust middle-aged man with a beard, always smiling at everyone, somewhat like Maitreya Buddha. Now, when I see him again, he is a hunched old man with a short beard, but his eyebrows are very long, and his white eyebrows are almost drooping down to his cheeks. Under his curved eyebrows are a pair of curved, almost expressionless smiling eyes.
Those smiling eyes clearly revealed scheming and calculation.
Compared to the quiet and ascetic monks he had met in Yanyue City, this Master Xinzheng was the abbot of a royal temple, and was naturally extremely wealthy. Moreover, because he had been mingling with high-ranking officials for many years, he did not have the austere air of a Buddhist monk, but was full of the air of an official who had experienced the ups and downs of officialdom.
At this moment, he led the monks out, and upon seeing Yuwen Yuan, he immediately stepped forward with a smile and bowed: "Greetings, Your Excellency the Prime Minister."
Yuwen Yuan simply nodded and said, "Master Xinzheng, why aren't you letting everyone in? Are you abandoning this Water and Land Dharma Assembly?"
Master Xinzheng hurriedly smiled apologetically and said, "How could I dare? It's just that something unexpected happened."
"Accident?"
Yuwen Yuan frowned slightly: "What unexpected event?"
The monk Xinzheng leaned close to him and whispered, "The Empress Dowager has arrived."
"What?!"
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Yuan was immediately startled.
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi's breathing immediately became heavy.
But Yuwen Yuan remained calm. After a moment's thought, he said in a deep voice, "Didn't the Empress Dowager already make it clear that if she didn't come, His Majesty wouldn't come either?"
Master Xinzheng smiled wryly and said, "That was the original arrangement, so our temple did not make any preparations. Who knew that the Empress Dowager would arrive so suddenly this morning, which almost threw this humble monk into a panic."
Why did the Empress Dowager suddenly change her mind?
"This, this humble monk does not know."
"..."
Yuwen Yuan didn't speak again, but after a long silence, he turned his head and glanced at the crowd behind him again.
Shang Ruyi was somewhat unsure whether she had seen Yuwen Ye. However, when Yuwen Yuan withdrew his gaze and continued talking to Master Xinzheng, she gently looked up at Yuwen Ye beside her.
His gaze and expression remained calm.
Despite her best efforts to suppress it, Shang Ruyi couldn't help but whisper, "Is it you?"
"..."
Yuwen Ye glanced down at her but didn't say anything.
Yuwen Yuan, now serious and composed, asked in a deep voice, "Where is the Empress Dowager now?"
Master Xinzheng said, "The Empress Dowager is currently inside the main hall."
Just as Yuwen Yuan was about to step inside, Master Xinzheng immediately said, "However, the Empress Dowager has already sent word that no one will be seen at this time; we will only listen to the Dharma in the hall."
"oh?"
Yuwen Yuan frowned and glanced back at the crowd behind him.
This time, Shang Ruyi clearly felt his gaze fall on her, but it was only a fleeting glance before she looked at Master Xinzheng again and said in a deep voice, "Not to see anyone?"
"yes."
"..."
After pondering for a while, Yuwen Yuan finally said, "Very well, then everything will proceed as usual, and the Dharma assembly will begin as planned."
"yes."
With everything settled, Master Xinzheng seemed to have a weight lifted from his heart. Shang Ruyi clearly saw him turn to the side, raise his hand to respectfully invite Yuwen Yuan and the other civil and military officials into Dayan Temple. His curved eyebrows twitched as he smiled, and even his smiling eyes shone with a faint light.
When Shang Ruyi followed Yuwen Ye through the mountain gate, she also walked past him.
The monk Xinzheng suddenly stepped forward and said softly, "Second Young Master, Young Madam."
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Ye stopped in his tracks, and Shang Ruyi also stood still. The two of them bowed to him, and the monk Xinzheng also smiled and bowed to the two of them, then said, "I heard that the Second Young Master and the Young Madam brought back my disciple Congzhen with them on their return to the city. This old monk has come to express my gratitude to you both."
"...!"
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi asked with some surprise, "We only arrived last night, and Shan—Congzhen—also stayed outside the city. The abbot already knew?"
Master Xinzheng smiled and said, "Young Madam is too modest."
"oh?"
"Not to mention your return to the city last night, ever since you passed through Tongguan, countless eyes in Daxing City have been watching you."
"...!"
Shang Ruyi's heart skipped a beat.
Master Xinzheng smiled and raised his hand, saying, "Please enter the mountain gate, both of you."
Yuwen Ye didn't say anything, and stepped inside. Shang Ruyi followed him silently.
As you walk along, you see prayer flags hanging on both sides of the road, fluttering in the wind. The wind carries not only the sound of the flags waving but also the sound of chanting coming from somewhere inside the temple. Although the chanting is continuous, it doesn't feel noisy. Instead, it soothes and calms you down in some places deep inside.
A short while later, they passed through a door, and in front of them was the main hall.
Shang Ruyi immediately sensed that Yuwen Ye looked up at the main hall in front of him, and his breathing seemed to quicken.
However, it doesn't seem like now is the time for him to go back.
Moreover, before reaching the Mahavira Hall, one must pass through a vast square that seems to stretch to the horizon. At this moment, the square is surrounded on three sides by prayer flags, and every three steps there is a prayer mat, densely covering the entire square, which is set up for monks and laypeople who come to participate in the Dharma assembly to listen to the sutras.
A rough estimate suggests that this place can accommodate at least a thousand people.
Shang Ruyi said softly, "So many?"
Upon hearing her words, Master Xinzheng turned around and said with a smile, "Young Madam, this is only a part of it."
"What?"
“Our temple has set up such listening halls in various places such as the Hall of Heavenly Kings, the Hall of Sangharama, and the Hall of Arhats, but even so, it is not enough to accommodate people from all over the country who come to participate in the Dharma assembly.”
Shang Ruyi sighed softly.
Previously in Tongguan, when they heard Chu Zhengfei say that countless monks from various prefectures and counties had come to this place to participate in the Dharma assembly, they thought the number of people should be quite large, but they did not expect there to be so many!
At this moment, Yuwen Ye also turned his gaze away from the main hall.
He looked around, then turned to Master Xinzheng and asked, "Where is my brother?"
Shang Ruyi immediately looked up at him.
Master Xinzheng was taken aback, then immediately smiled obsequiously and said, "The eldest young master is at the inner altar for a Dharma assembly."
"Inner altar ceremony? What does that mean?"
"Second Young Master, you may not know this, but the Water and Land Dharma Assembly is divided into inner and outer altars. The outer altar is where these lecture halls are located, welcoming monks from all over to give lectures and listen to Zen teachings. It is also for the deceased, to recite scriptures and offer prayers, to eliminate karmic obstacles, accumulate immeasurable merit, and help them be reborn in the Western Pure Land. Young Master, Young Madam, and all the civil and military officials are participating in the outer altar assembly."
The word "deceased" stirred something within Shang Ruyi.
She understood, of course, that the "deceased" Master Xinzheng was referring to was none other than Chu Yang.
This is also the main purpose of this Dharma assembly.
However, this was the first time she had heard that the Dharma assembly was divided into the inner altar assembly and the outer altar assembly. Since the outer altar assembly was for chanting sutras to help Chu Yang pass on, what was the purpose of the inner altar assembly?
Sure enough, Yuwen Ye asked the same question.
Master Xinzheng glanced at them and smiled, "The inner altar Dharma assembly in the lecture hall was set up by the eldest son himself, for the purpose of accumulating merit for liberation."
"The merit of liberation?"
Although Yuwen Ye didn't believe in gods or Buddhas, he didn't seem to be completely ignorant of Buddhist matters. Upon hearing these four words, his brows furrowed immediately, and he said, "Liberation merit, doesn't it require taking refuge? Does he mean—"
"No,"
Master Xinzheng smiled and said, "From then on, he completely broke away from Buddhism."
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