Xia Houlin's illness went back and forth, good and bad, often when Shen Jue's court meeting was over, and just as he stepped out of the threshold of the west court room, he saw Shen Wenxing hurried over and told him that Xia Houlin had vomited blood again. Those imperial doctors were useless. Shen Jue ordered the East Factory to search for famous doctors from all over the world, but they couldn't catch up with them for the time being. All the people in Beijing and Tianjin were taken into the capital by Fanzi Kuiye to diagnose and treat Xiahou Rin.
The doctor came and went like running water, the threshold was stepped on almost to the point of indentation, and the kitchen was filled with the bitter smell of medicine, and the window could not be dissipated. He watched as Xia Houlin poured down bowls of bitter medicine, and at the end he seemed to lose his sense of taste, and the bitter medicine could be drunk in the blink of an eye. Every time Lang Zhong promises or promises with trembling trembling, this time the medicine introduction will definitely work, but as soon as Lang Zhong left his front foot, Xia Houlin started to get sick. .
Shen Jue gradually lost confidence in these quack doctors, and he moved the ancient books in the library to read in the palm print duty room. There are too many papers to be approved, and I often have time to read books late at night. "Golden Mirror Record", "Bo Ji Fang", "Zhongzhou Chronicle", "Baiyue Chronicle"... He turned over them one by one.
In the imperial city where the starry night sank in the darkness, only the corner of the supervisor of li was lit with lights that would not go out all night. One of the candles was about to burn out again, and the china plate was dripping with tears. Shen Wenxing carefully replaced it with new wax, and used a silver tick to pick the lanterns. The dim light was like a twilight, reflecting Shen Jue's lowered eyebrows. The hard work in the past few days has made him feel a lot less, and there are thin edges on his cheeks.
Shen Wenxing took out a cup of hot soup from the small black lacquer tray, quietly pushed it on the case, and said softly, "Dad, drink some soup. It's too late to watch today, the chickens will croak in another hour. , why don't you lie down on the couch for a while?"
"Don't be noisy." Shen Jue frowned.
Shen Wenxing said bitterly: "I said, Dad, you have to keep your body tight. Lord Xiahou is not thin, you should become a bamboo pole first."
Shen Jue stopped paying attention to him, Shen Wenxing had no choice but to leave him alone. When it was almost dawn, Shen Jue was finally willing to rest, but after sleeping for less than a stick of incense, he got up to wash up and prepare to go to court. Looking at myself in the mirror, I seem to be quite haggard. I combed my hair and combed a lot of hair, turned it over and looked at it. The white hair was interspersed in the blue silk, and the silver was dazzling.
He didn't have time to take care of this, so he went back early to see Xia Houlin, who was sitting under the porch making kites for the children in the house. He has a good craft, and the kids love to play with him. Li Miaozhen, whom he rescued before, is the closest to him. The girl has been raised in the house for a few months, and is not as shy as when she first came. Shen Jue asked that girl to take care of his food and daily life, but she took good care of him.
After ten days, Lang Zhong from Jiangsu and Zhejiang also arrived. The same goes in like running water, and comes out like running water. The more the prescription is opened, the more biased he is. Some of him dare not use it. Doctors from Jiangsu and Zhejiang came from Guangdong and Guangxi, and from Guangdong and Guangxi came from the northwest. He later heard that there was a very high-ranking doctor in Lushan. He had stayed in Miaojiang in his early years. He personally welcomed him into the palace, patiently listened to his scolding, and listened to him talk about mysterious and mysterious medical principles. The old doctor took Xia Houlin's pulse for a long time, rolled his eyelids, looked at the tongue coating, and then checked the blood he vomited over the past few days. Finally, he walked outside and said to Shen Jue: "Life has a constant, manpower cannot be violated, condolences. change."
That sentence seemed to be a blow to the head, and Shen Jue heard the sound of the sky falling.
He has never believed in fate. He has worked hard for more than ten years and has reached the glory that he is today, relying on killing decisively step by step, not resignation. But at this moment, he seemed to have to believe it. It turned out that the power to cover the sky with only one hand could not change a person's life.
He turned around and looked at Xiahou Lin in the house through the window. He sat at the table of the Eight Immortals and drank the medicine. He had to drink five bowls of such dark concoction a day. In fact, it only had the effect of clearing away heat and detoxifying, but he always felt that drinking it would make him feel better. He first looked at the medicine bowl and was worried, Miaozhen encouraged him, "Drink it quickly, Uncle Xiahou, the governor will be back in a while."
Xia Houlin took up the medicine bowl and drank it as if he was very determined, baring his teeth in bitterness. Miaozhen smiled and gave him a caramel, and then put the medicine bowl into the tray. Shen Jue felt astringent in her heart. It turns out that Xia Houlin has always been afraid of hardship, but he always looks relaxed when he drinks medicine in front of him.
Shen Jue continued to read medical books, and many people came to offer him famous doctors and remedies. Director Li of the Imperial Horse Supervisor said that there was a qigong master in Zhongnan Mountain who was very good at curing diseases. It was as if he was pregnant in October, and he went to Zhongnan Mountain to be infused with Qi for a long time by the master, and by the evening he returned to his original state. Shen Jue dispatched five stalls to invite him quickly. Xia Houlin wanted to say that this was a lie, but he saw many people like this when he was in Jianghu. It can be seen that Shen Jue insisted, but he still compromised. The master gave Xia Houlin three days of qi. During these three days, Shen Jue served delicious food and drink, and the feast at the house was full of delicious food. The master wanted to see the clever tricks of the actors in Beijing, so Shen Jue entered the mansion for the first time and entered the house.
On the third day, just as he was filling his breath, Xia Houlin fell ill again. He lay unconscious in the green gauze tent, Shen Wenxing quietly walked in and told Shen Jue that Fanzi found that the master was Director Li's distant nephew.
Shen Jue didn't say anything, just let Shen Wenxing go out. He lifted the tent and sat beside Xia Houlin's bed, leaning down to listen to his quiet heartbeat. Shen Jue burst into tears for some reason, and the tears wetted Xia Houlin's clothes, leaving a faint trace. He thought that this was indeed retribution, that he had done too much evil, and God wanted to punish him and send Xia Houlin back to him, but he wanted him to watch Xia Houlin die, like the gravel in his palm, the tighter he held it. Lose faster.
He tucked away his tears and stood up straight, just in time to see the Bodhi child on Xiahou Rin's wrist. He rubbed the cold string of beads, thinking of the sun and moon that he had been waiting for in the palace. He used to look forward to reuniting with Xia Houlin with hope, and counted Bodhizi over and over again to pray for Xia Houlin's safe return from the killing field. If the Buddha could grant his prayers in the past, can you give him another chance now
He told the little emperor to leave and drove to the ancient road of Lutan. All the way, the fragrant dust is fine, and the trees are dense. Shen Wenxing thought that Shen Jue was going to give incense at Guangling Temple, and was planning to let Changwei go down to clear the way. Shen Jue stopped him and said, "If the road is cleared, will the Buddha feel that I am not sincere enough?"
Shen Wenxing was stunned for a moment, then touched his forehead and said, "No way..."
Shen Jue was silent for a while without speaking, and got out of the car. Shen Wenxing wanted to say that he had just arrived at the Gudaokou, and it was still several miles away from Guangling Temple. Before he had time to say the words, he saw Shen Jue standing alone in the sky, facing the direction of Guangling Temple, and knelt down with his robes up.
There were not many chariots and horses on the ancient road, and they passed by Shen Jue, and no one noticed this person who worshipped and kowtowed three times. Shen Wenxing stared blankly at Shen Jue, even forgetting to stop him. The lonely shadow crawls in the dust, kowtows three times one step at a time, and moves towards the sound of the Buddha in the misty dust.
"Father, what are you doing?" Shen Wenxing finally woke up, jumped out of the car and knelt beside Shen Jue and begged, "You said you are... if this is seen by others..."
Shen Jue didn't say a word, kowtowed three times firmly, and continued on. Shen Wenxing knelt on the spot and watched him walk forward slowly, the net towel loosened a little when he kowtowed, and a few strands of hair hung down and stuck to his pale cheeks. In the cold sky, there was neither sadness nor joy on his face.
Shen Wenxing finally understood that this person could not be stopped. He was going to go all the way to Guangling Temple, begging the Buddha to save the seriously ill man. Shen Wenxing sighed, turned back to the car, took out the oil-paper umbrella, and propped it on top of Shen Jue's head. The factory guards followed silently, no one said a word or persuaded him. On the long ancient road, they were like a line of slowly moving ants, moving silently in the dust and frost.
The sun was rising, and more and more people were entering the incense. Some people saw Shen Jue, stopped the carriage and stretched out their necks to look at it. The swaying of the factory guard and the cold scabbard could not drive them away, and more and more people were watching. There were traders on foot, there were princes and nobles, and some people recognized Shen Jue and let out an exclamation.
The whispers came and went like cicadas, and the news of Shen Lian's serious illness was quietly passed on. Shen Jue turned a deaf ear and kowtowed. His forehead knocked on the ground with a dull sound, and his face was stained with mud and dust, and the dust that was always clean was also stained. Knocked to an unknown number, his forehead was finally broken, and the blood printed a dazzling red mark on the ground. The red seal stretched out with his steps, like a blooming red lotus, carrying endless sorrow. People subconsciously moved away from the bloodstain, and no one stepped on it, so a line was drawn from the crowd, and Shen Jue pulled the line forward.
Everything was blurry under the light of the sky, and he knelt down again and again and kowtowed again and again. His hands and feet hurt, and eventually they became numb, the pain seemed to be separated by a layer, and he lost the ability to feel. He recited Xia Houlin's name silently in his heart, as if there was power hidden in these three words, which made him tireless.
The Sanskrit sound was approaching, and it was murmured from the distant sky. Shen Jue finally knocked to the foot of the mountain steps, and there was a burst of cheers from the crowd, "It's here! It's here!"
But unexpectedly, Shen Jue did not stop. He knelt down again and knelt on the steps with his forehead. A red lotus bloomed on the moss-covered stone steps. The crowd finally fell silent, and they silently watched the man climb the stone steps step by step and head towards the sky. People looked at his back, followed him slowly, and suddenly felt that he was no longer the superintendent of the Dongchang factory in normal times, but a humble mortal, just like all living beings.
The sun was sinking in the west, the distant mountains melted into dusk, and the twilight shrouded the shoulders of the crowd. Shen Jue's face was terribly pale, and her hands and feet were shaking. He leaned on the mountain steps and gasped, looked up, and the layers of stone steps stretched upwards, disappearing into a glow. Someone couldn't help shouting: "Chang Gong, don't kneel, enough! Buddha can see it."
"Yeah, forget it. Maybe Mr. Shen is already healed, you can go home and take a look!"
Shen Jue didn't listen and continued to move forward. He no longer stood up, but kowtowed on his knees and climbed the steps on his knees. A little girl held a water bag and shouted across the factory guard's wall: "Chang Gong, drink water!"
Shen Wenxing hurriedly took out the water bag he brought with him, "Dad, drink some, and kneel after a while."
Shen Jue closed her eyes, shook her head, and bowed her head.
Time passed bit by bit, and each moment seemed endless. When the last rays of the setting sun disappeared, Shen Jue finally reached the top of the mountain, and Shen Xiong's Brahma voice came from the treasure hall, resounding in his ears like thunder. Trembling across the threshold, the room was full of lights, and he was prostrate at the feet of the gods and Buddhas.
"The gods and the Buddhas are above, the sinner Xie Jinglan came here to kowtow. I made a great vow to be a vegetarian all my life, to do three thousand good deeds, in exchange for Xiahou Lin's health as before. Burning the heart lamp as a proof, all the Buddhas fulfilled their vows, and I vowed not to violate them. "
He crouched in the icy gaze of the Great Buddha, like a bleak dead leaf. No one answered him in the slow voice of Brahma, and he heard his teardrops hitting the floor tiles with a crisp sound. He remembered Xia Houlin's warm eyes under the moonlight, and his deep voice, like a trickle, poured into his desolate heart, which was the last consolation in his barren life. In an instant, the endless sorrow drowned him like an icy tide, and he pressed his head against the floor tiles and closed his eyes.
"Father, please, the sin is mine, the retribution is mine, punish me, don't punish him."
"Please, give him back to me."