Chapter 102 Pure Zen

The five-year-long, cruel serial killer was finally caught. Since the Huang Caiwei case four years ago, Jingzhao Prefecture has not been so prosperous for a long time. In the past few days, there has been a constant stream of carriages and horses in front of Jingzhao Prefecture, and visitors have been constantly coming and going. The Dali Temple, the Ministry of Justice, and the Yushitai have all sent people to Jingzhao Prefecture, and even the empress has sent her female officials to Jingzhao Prefecture to learn about the details of the case.

Recently, even the bailiffs sweeping the grounds in Jingzhao Prefecture are holding their heads high, and the officials handling cases are even more arrogant. The Jingzhao Yin has distinguished guests from morning to night and is really busy as hell.

While Jingzhao Prefecture was bustling with activity, caravans from all over the country also arrived in Chang'an. Teahouses and taverns were full of discussions about this murder case. A bandit pretended to be a monk and killed a rich lady. The name alone was enough to scare people. In the teahouses, storytellers made up a story about this case, telling the story of how the fake monk disguised himself and killed people.

The hall was packed with people of all ages and genders, all fascinated by the story. Ming Huashang sat in a private room, listening to the storyteller below: "Continuing from the last episode, the fake monk deceived the government detectives and then quietly read the sutras for four years. But he became greedy again and set his eyes on a famous prostitute who came to burn incense! This woman is good at singing and dancing, and is extremely beautiful. A simple pipa tune can attract countless young men to fight for her. How can a monk like him win the favor of a beautiful woman and lure her into his trap step by step..."

Ming Huashang put down her snacks and said, "Zhaocai, let's go."

Zhaocai was listening intently, and although she was afraid, she couldn't help but continue listening. When she heard Ming Huashang's words, she was at a loss for a moment and asked, "Madam, we are just talking about the key point, why are you leaving?"

Ming Huashang put down the copper coins and stood up, straightening the white rabbit fur on her sleeves and whispering inaudibly, "It's all knitted, what's there to listen to?"

Ming Huashang put on her cloak and quickly went downstairs. Zhaocai followed her from behind, holding a hand warmer, and asked, "Madam, where are you going next? I heard that Xiulifang has received a batch of new materials. They are colorful under the lights and have different colors from every angle. They are specially made for the Lantern Festival. Do you want to go and have a look?"

After the serial killer was caught, the women finally dared to go out. Business in both the East and West Markets became lively. Now all the clothing stores and jewelry stores have launched new styles and are busy preparing New Year and Lantern Festival clothing. Ming Huashang stood on the street and looked around, and suddenly said, "Let's not go yet. This place is not far from Qingchan Temple. Let's go to Qingchan Temple and take a look."

Qingchan Temple was the temple where the abbot of Pudu Temple stayed when he came to Chang'an to preach that day. Unfortunately, the people of Chang'an had long forgotten these details. Zhaocai called the driver and told him to go to Qingchan Temple. While helping Ming Huashang get on the car, she muttered, "My wife has never believed in Buddhism. Why did you think of going to Qingchan Temple today?"

Yes, a group of young girls, why would they go to temples so often instead of looking at clothes and jewelry in their free time? Ming Huashang seemed to be thinking about something, and said in a dissembling way, "Just going to take a look."

The fake monk murder is the hottest topic in Chang'an now. The explanation given by Jingzhao Prefecture is reasonable and completely feasible in terms of timing, but no one has explained why the murderer dug up bones.

Maybe they were in such a hurry to solve the case that they didn't think of these details, or maybe they did think of them but didn't care at all.

Just catch the murderer, no matter why he kills people. Who cares what a psychopath thinks?

However, Ming Huashang could not accept this result. Jingzhao Yin had already made a decision, and Ming Huashang could not rely on the power of the government, so she could only investigate in her own way. These days, she has been walking in Chang'an, going to the places that Cheng Siyue and Huang Caiwei liked to go most when they were alive, trying to find clues.

Ming Huachang originally planned to visit Cheng Siyue's favorite clothing store today, but after hearing a story in the teahouse, she changed her mind and decided to go to Qingchan Temple.

Digging bones must be an important part of the murderer's fantasy. If she doesn't solve this doubt, she won't be able to draw a portrait that can convince herself. A few days ago, Ming Huazhang said that Buddhist treasures made of human bones were found in Pudu Temple, but when Cen Hu fell off the cliff, all the bones were broken into pieces and could no longer be identified.

Ming Huashang had some vague thoughts in her mind. Maybe she should go to the Buddhist temple and maybe she could find the answer.

As the New Year approaches, the temples are also booming. When Ming Huashang arrived at Qingchan Temple, it was bustling with people. Ming Huashang took Zhaocai to the main hall. In front of the Buddha statue, many women knelt devoutly, wishing for good weather and good family safety in the coming year. There was a long queue in front of the fortune-telling booth.

Zhaocai looked anxious: "Madam, the amulets are running out, let's go and queue up."

Not every lot that is shaken out is necessarily a good one. After the lots are interpreted, many pilgrims will inevitably be dissatisfied. At this time, the Buddhist temple will considerately offer amulets, luck-changing amulets, travel amulets, etc. to help pilgrims turn misfortune into good fortune and make their wishes come true.

Ming Huashang glanced at the very popular fortune-telling booth and said, "No hurry. Let's take a look in the main hall first."

Ming Huashang remembered Ming Huazhang saying that when the abbot of Pudu Temple came to Qingchan Temple, the sutra lecture was held in the main hall of Qingchan Temple. Ming Huashang walked slowly around the main hall, trying to compare the records in the file in his mind.

According to the records in the files, on the day of the Dharma Assembly, the abbot of Pudu Temple gave a sermon in front of the Buddha, and ordinary pilgrims sat on mats to listen, while more particular pilgrims listened in the private rooms on the sides. Ming Huashang walked to the sides of the main hall and indeed saw small incense rooms separated by wooden boards.

Ming Huashang stopped a passing novice monk and asked, "Young Master, I want to find a place to rest my feet. Can I enter these compartments casually?"

The novice monk put his hands together, chanted a Buddhist phrase to Ming Huachang, and said, "Buddha is merciful. Of course it is possible. Please, donor."

After thanking him, Ming Huashang went into the single room to check. The layout inside was the same as described in the file. What disappointed Ming Huashang the most was that all the compartments had no windows. Once people entered, it was impossible to leave unless they had the ability to pass through walls.

It seems that Ming Huazhang's conclusion was correct. If he had not conducted an on-site investigation and confirmed that it was impossible to leave secretly, he would not have been able to directly rule out the suspect who best fit Ming Huashang's portrait.

Zhaocai followed in, very puzzled: "Madam, are you tired? If you are tired, let's go back home. It's cold here, and the place is small. It's so uncomfortable to sit here."

Of course, they didn't come here to worship Buddha just for the sake of comfort. Ming Huashang knelt on the mat and even patted the side, signaling Zhaocai to come along: "Since you're here, feel it and sit down."

Zhaocai raised his eyebrows and sat down reluctantly. There was a ginger-yellow gauze hanging in front of the compartment. Sitting inside and looking outside was like looking at flowers in the mist, blurry and vague, or like contemplating Buddha in a dream, not knowing what was real or what was illusory.

Ming Huashang looked up at the huge Buddha standing tall in front of him, and at the people coming and going in the temple, busy doing something else. He said to himself, "From this perspective, the Buddha is so huge, and people are so small."

Zhaocai said in his heart that it was incredible, and joked: "My lady, you have become more and more enlightened recently. First, you took the initiative to practice painting for the first time, and now you are reading Buddhist scriptures and talking about Zen. Are you going to become a talented woman?"

Ming Huashang rolled her eyes at her and said with a smile, "Be careful, you poor fellow! I will make a wish to the Buddha and sacrifice you to make my remaining years a success and a life of great wealth."

Zhaocai was used to Ming Huashang being disliked all the time, so he just smiled and said, "If you can give up my life and change you into a new person, I will be more than happy. But I am afraid that the Buddha will not be willing to do such a loss-making thing."

Ming Huashang was so angry that she reached out to hit her, but Zhaocai dodged with a smile. The two quarreled for a while, and the atmosphere of meditation was gone. Ming Huashang could no longer find the transcendent feeling she had just felt when she looked at the Buddha statue, so she simply stood up and said to Zhaocai, "You sit here first, I'll go outside to take a look."

Ming Huashang originally came out to observe the angle to see if there was a blind spot, so as to perform a visual trick that could deceive everyone, just like what Yuqiong did in Tianxianglou. But not long after she walked, a cold wind blew in from outside. There was no fire in the Buddhist temple, and the door was wide open, making it even colder. Ming Huashang was so cold that she couldn't stand up. She planned to go back to Zhaocai to ask for a hand stove. She turned around and took two steps, then stopped strangely.

She looked carefully again and made sure that there was nothing wrong with her eyes, then she quickly ran back to the compartment. Zhaocai was rubbing his hands inside when he suddenly saw Ming Huashang coming back. He asked in surprise, "Madam, what's wrong?"

Ming Huashang lifted the veil, then put it down again, looked back and forth several times, and then said: "I am not mistaken, you are wearing a red dress today, but why do you look like you are wearing orange when you put down this layer of veil?"

Zhaocai saw Ming Huashang repeatedly twisting her silk as if she had taken the wrong medicine, and stood up silently: "Madam, what's wrong with you?"

In a Buddhist temple, there shouldn't be anything dirty that could get into your head, right? Why did she feel that Second Lady was even more abnormal?

Ming Huashang shook her head. She suddenly thought of something and said to Zhaocai, "Zhaocai, go out and see what color my clothes are."

Zhaocai was very worried about Ming Huashang's mental condition, but she still went out. She looked at it for a while and said, "It's still the same outfit, but the color of the jacket is a little brighter, it looks like red."

Ming Huashang lowered her head and looked at the magenta wide-sleeved jacket on her body, and a light suddenly flashed through her mind.

It turns out that yellow gauze looks orange when it is layered with red, and looks like magenta when it is layered with yellow gauze. The color you see from the outside is not necessarily the true color of the clothes.

She remembered Ming Huazhang saying that of the two suspects who fitted the portrait, Xu Ji was seen sleeping in a brothel on October 22, and Lu Du was listening to sutras at Qingchan Temple. Many people saw him when he arrived, and Lu Du's figure could always be seen clearly during subsequent ceremonies, so Jingzhao Prefecture ruled out Lu Du's suspicion.

However, with this layer of gauze, only the outline of the face can be vaguely seen, and the color of the clothes is also off. How can we be sure that the person in the compartment is Lu Du?

Zhaocai felt that Qingchan Temple was a bit cold. Since they were not going to draw lots, there was no point in staying here. She was about to persuade Ming Huashang to leave when she suddenly saw Ming Huashang rush out of the compartment, grab a novice monk and ask, "Young Master, will your temple hold a ceremony on October 22?"

The little nun was startled by Ming Huashang, and nodded in shock: "Yes. Our abbot is very good friends with the headmaster of Pudu Temple outside the city, and he invited him to come to the city to give a lecture that day."

"Then do you remember if there was a pilgrim named Lu Du among the pilgrims who came to listen to the sutra? He was about this tall, well-mannered, and a very talented person. He is now a doctor at the Imperial College."

The little nun said "oh" and looked at Ming Huashang with a look of understanding: "The female donor is also here to see donor Lu?"

"Also?" Ming Huashang raised an eyebrow and asked, "Has anyone asked him before?"

The young nun looked helpless and said, "Donor Lu comes from a famous family, is elegant and graceful, and is well versed in Buddhism. He is very famous in this area. Young ladies often come to the temple to peek at him under the pretext of worshipping Buddha. Donor lady, Buddhism is a quiet place. If Donor Lu has no interest in worldly affairs, it will be useless even if you meet him many times. I hope you can see through your inner demons and let them go as soon as possible."

The little nun had a look of seeing through everything, which showed that similar things had happened many times before. Ming Huashang acted like a young girl in love, smiled awkwardly and unconvincedly, and asked, "Has Dr. Lu been to Qingchan Temple recently?"

"Now that you mention it, it's been a long time since Donor Lu came here. Maybe he's been busy lately and can't spare the time."

Ming Huashang then asked, "Did Dr. Lu come only on October 22? What was he wearing that day?"

The novice monk was helpless. This young lady was so persistent. The other girls in the past would have been too embarrassed to ask after hearing this, but this young lady was so persistent that she even wanted to know about the clothes of Mr. Lu.

The novice monk was embarrassed and said, "Donor, it happened almost two months ago, how can I remember it?"

Ming Huashang was a little disappointed, but still refused to give up and asked, "Did he bring any followers with him that day?"

Ming Huashang had originally given up hope, but she didn't expect the little nun to be so sure about this. Without much hesitation, she said, "With the status of Patriarch Lu, it's natural for him to bring followers with him when he goes out."

Ming Huashang exclaimed, and asked suspiciously, "You don't even remember what he was wearing, so how do you remember that he brought an entourage?"

The novice monk said helplessly, "Because Donor Lu has a good relationship with the abbot, there is a special Zen room in the temple. That day Donor Lu didn't want to squeeze with the people outside, so he drove the carriage directly into the yard. Later, when Donor Lu left, I helped Donor Lu lead the horse, so I have a deep impression. Speaking of which, this was originally Donor Lu's house, which was donated to the Buddha four years ago, and then Qingchan Temple was established."

Ming Huashang's eyelids twitched, and her heart was so excited that it almost jumped out. She immediately took out Cheng Siyue's portrait from her sleeve and asked, "Have you seen this person?"

When Sha Mi saw the portrait, she frowned slightly and looked at Ming Huashang with suspicion in her eyes.

Ming Huazhang must have sent someone here before, and since someone died some time ago, I'm afraid Shami is suspicious of her. Ming Huachang immediately acted arrogantly and said, "She is my love rival. I heard that she often secretly came to see Dr. Lu. Have you really never seen her?"

This is the reason. The monk looked at Ming Huashang with an increasingly speechless look. He shook his head and said, "There are so many female guests in Qingchan Temple every day. I can't remember them all."

That's right. Lu Du was a frequent visitor to Qingchan Temple. He had no impression of this novice monk, let alone a stranger. Ming Huashang was not discouraged. She put away the portrait and said proudly, "I don't believe it. Take me to the meditation room where Dr. Lu stayed that day. I want to see it in person."

"This..." The monk looked embarrassed. Ming Huashang said, "You clearly said that the Buddha saves all living beings and treats them equally. Why can't I see the rooms in the temple?"

These were clearly two different things. The monk had no idea what to do with this spoiled and willful young lady. He could only clasp his hands together in greeting and say, "Amitabha, may the Buddha have mercy on me. Please follow me, benefactor."

The monk was quite Buddhist, and she was not angry when she encountered nonsense, but led the way calmly. Zhaocai ran over and looked at Ming Huashang in surprise: "Madam, what are you doing?"

Ming Huashang stared at Zhaocai calmly and said in a low voice: "No matter what happens later, don't say anything. I will take care of it."

Ming Huashang followed behind the lady with a fierce look as if she was catching an adulterer. When they reached a courtyard, Ming Huashang saw the gleaming copper lock on it and her expression became a little unhappy: "Why is it locked?"

The novice monk chanted Amitabha and said, "I only said I would bring you here to see the temple, but I didn't say I would bring you in."

Ming Huachang took a deep breath, held it in, and then asked, "When Lu Du came that day, did he stay here?"

"yes."

"Has any woman been in there?"

Ming Huachang's questions became more and more outrageous. The monk lowered his head and clasped his hands together, but did not answer. Ming Huachang curled his lips and asked, "After he came to Qingchan Temple that day, did he go out during the trip?"

"No. Donor Lu was resting in the meditation room. When the Dharma Assembly started, he went to the Great Hall to listen to the sutras. After the assembly ended, he got on the car and left. He never left."

Jingzhao Prefecture must have asked similar questions, but Ming Huazhang couldn't get the answer, and Ming Huashang had no hope. She turned around and left unwillingly. After two steps, she suddenly stopped, turned around and asked, "What about his servants? Have they left?"

The monk was stunned for a moment and said helplessly, "How could we notice a servant? Benefactor, I still have a lot of homework to do. If you have nothing else to do, I will leave first."

Ming Huashang knew that in Sha Mi's eyes, she must be a shrewd, willful and stingy idiot, and he would definitely not be bothered to receive her. Ming Huashang pretended to be a love-minded rich girl, ignoring the outside world and staring at her lover's yard. After Sha Mi left, the affection in Ming Huashang's eyes disappeared like the ebb tide, leaving only coldness.

Zhaocai endured for a long time, but finally couldn't help asking, "Madam, are you interested in Dr. Lu? Dr. Lu is from the Fanyang Lu family, which is indeed a good place to go, but I heard that he is already in his twenties this year, isn't he a little old?"

Ming Huashang tapped Zhaocai on the forehead in annoyance and said, "Don't talk nonsense. How can he compare to my second brother? How can I look up to him? Remember, don't say these things to my second brother when you go back!"

Zhaocai didn't know whether to be disappointed or relieved, and sighed, "I know. Madam, I'm not saying anything, but it's time for you to get married, so you can't compare yourself to Erlang in everything. According to me, the prince of Jiang'an Marquis's mansion was quite good some time ago."

Ming Huachang seemed to have heard a ghost story: "Who are you talking about?"

"Prince Jiang is handsome and has an excellent family background, how great! I was worried that he would not like you! If you do not even like Prince Jiang and insist on finding someone who is similar to Erlang, then you can only choose Master Xie of Xie Jichuan. He is from the Xie family of Chen County and has a higher standard. Madam, although you are a great person, you should also be more realistic."

Zhaocai was implicitly telling her that she was a useless person and that she should not be so ambitious. Ming Huashang snorted and said unconvincedly, "Who said no? I want to find someone like my second brother."