This kind of opportunity must be seized, Monk Huitong glanced at the woman in front of him and spoke in a voice as calm as possible.
"Princess, an old friend of mine has come from afar and needs to meet him. I hope you can help me."
The woman in pink clothes sat up straight, subconsciously turned her head to look in the direction of the door, and then looked at Hui Tong.
"Since it is an old friend who has come, Ru Yan will not disturb the master."
The woman stood up and bowed politely to Monk Huitong who also stood up.
"Good be to the Great Ming King Buddha!"
Hui Tong returned the Buddhist greeting and walked towards the door with the eldest princess. When they opened the door, the capable female official was standing at the door, and the monk who came to report was waiting not far away.
The eldest princess smiled and said to the female official.
"Let's go to the temple and then go back to the villa."
When the princess said this, Hui Tong winked at the monk over there, and the latter understood and left quickly to inform the guests who were still waiting outside.
Ji Yuan waited at the archway of the inner courtyard for less than half a quarter of an hour, and then he saw the monk who had left in a hurry before coming back in a hurry.
"Good be to the Great Ming King Buddha, Benefactor Ji, my uncle asked me to invite you over, this way please!"
After the monk chanted the Buddhist name, he extended his hand to invite Ji Yuan to come. Ji Yuan returned the greeting, said "thank you" and followed.
It was only separated by an unclosed archway, but after passing through it, I felt that the noise outside the Daliang Temple was suddenly much quieter, and inside I really felt like a quiet Buddhist place.
"Please come this way, benefactor!"
Whenever they reach a point where they need to turn, the monk will go ahead.
When they turned a corner, Ji Yuan and the monk happened to see a capable female official walking slowly towards them with a woman dressed in pink clothes.
In Ji Yuan's eyes, the female official moved skillfully and breathed slowly. In addition, she had vigorous blood and energy, and a small but solid official aura. She must be a master holding an important position.
The peach-colored woman had a graceful and elegant figure, with a faint royal aura. She must be a member of the royal family. Combined with previous rumors, her identity was obvious.
While Ji Yuan was observing the other person, the eldest princess and the female officials around her were also looking at Ji Yuan.
Seeing Ji Yuan walking leisurely, there was a sense of calmness and ease. Even when his eyes swept over him, there was no sense of aggression. It was as if he was quietly enjoying the scenery and looking at the mountain flowers. And after taking a few glances, he looked away and didn't look at him any more. He was quite gentlemanly. The key was that he had a deep face and was actually not bad looking.
In this society, appearance is still everything. If Ji Yuan had a pockmarked face and a garlic nose, no matter how graceful his actions were, he would probably be laughed at behind his back.
The two sides passed each other without any verbal exchange. Only the monk who led the way quickly stepped forward and saluted with his hands clasped together when the two women approached, while Ji Yuan did not even stop.
After Ji Yuan left, the two women subconsciously turned around to look at his back, but when they saw that he didn't even turn around to look back.
"Is this Master Huitong's old friend? He is indeed a man of extraordinary bearing!"
The female official was used to seeing wealthy and powerful people with high positions and salaries, but when she saw Ji Yuan, she still praised him sincerely, and the eldest princess on the side also smiled.
"A visitor who could surprise Master Hui Tong so much is definitely not an ordinary person."
The two men chatted for a while and then slowly left. After a while, Ji Yuan arrived at a separate monastery. Monk Hui Tong, who was still young and handsome, was standing there. When he saw Ji Yuan coming, he immediately came up to him and greeted him with Buddhist salutes.
"Good be to the Great Ming Wang Buddha, Mr. Ji has really arrived!"
"Master Huitong, how are you?"
Ji Yuan bowed in return, and they smiled at each other and exchanged a brief greeting, knowing that both of them were doing well.
Hui Tong pushed the monk next to him.
"Zhixing, you go down first."
"Yes, Uncle Master!"
After the monk left, Ji Yuan finally said out loud the words he had been holding back in a slightly teasing tone.
"Master Huitong, there are many infatuated women who are devoted to you. Dealing with them is more tiring than chanting sutras, right?"
"Ah... more than that, it's even harder than climbing over mountains and crossing rivers and praying for the souls of the dead! Please come in, sir."
The two of them sat down in the monks' hall. The desk was still the same, even the snacks and tea hadn't changed, but the people sitting there were different.
After communicating with each other for a while, Ji Yuan also learned about Hui Tong's situation over the years.
"So, although Tianbao Kingdom is not overrun with demons, it also has internal and external troubles, showing signs of an unstable dynasty?"
"good."
Monk Huitong nodded.
"I first traveled around my Tingliang Kingdom, returned to Daliang Temple and stayed there for a while before heading north to Tianbao Kingdom. In just forty years or so, the situation there is much different from when I first went there. I mentioned this in detail in the letter I wrote to you, but it seems you didn't receive it."
Monk Huitong's letter was delivered to the foot of Tingqiu Mountain, where he asked the mountain god to pass it on to Dazhen, and then to Dazhen's post office for delivery.
Ji Yuan hadn't been in Ning'an County in these years. It was not clear whether the letter was lost on the way, or it was sent but was kept in the government office because he was not there. The last time Lu Shanjun changed his form, Ji Yuan did not go to Ning'an County either.
"If the current situation and the morale are not good, thirty or forty years is enough for some people to damage a country to pieces. The Tianbao Dynasty has been established for four hundred years, right?"
Ji Yuan asked with a sigh.
"Well, it's been a long time. I once went to Tianbao Country with my master. I thought everything there was good and wonderful. But my master said at that time that people who couldn't recognize a few words could become prefects and county magistrates. Sometimes glory is just an appearance. I was still young at that time and didn't quite understand it. Now I think my master had seen through it at that time."
"All that glitters is rotten inside!"
Ji Yuan murmured, and asked more out of curiosity.
"I wonder if your master is in the temple?"
Monk Huitong chanted the Buddha's name.
"Good be to the Great Ming Wang Buddha. My master's Dharma name was Fu Du. He passed away thirty years ago at the age of eighty-six!"
Ji Yuan frowned.
"This eminent monk only has a life span of eighty-six years? The Buddha's Ming Wang does not pass on the Dharma of Wisdom?"
"Life and death are determined by fate. Our Daliang Temple is not a true Buddhist temple, and even the incarnation of the Ming King has not yet appeared. Although there are some of our Buddha Ming King's wisdom and Dharma, unless there is the help of elixirs and magic medicines, not everyone can cultivate it. Master's Buddhist teachings are profound, but they are still no match for fate, but I believe that his soul will return to the throne of the Ming King."
To put it bluntly, those who are well versed in Buddhism will naturally have a noble state of mind, but their spiritual energy cannot produce miraculous Dharma, and their physical functions cannot withstand the test of time.
Ji Yuan shook his head. Perhaps his soul could return to the throne of the Ming King
Buddhism does not have a complete system for guiding the soul to the underworld. When an ordinary old monk passes away, unless there is an incarnation of the Vajra King or the Vajra King himself, or a high-level Buddhist practitioner to guide the soul away, there is a high probability that his soul will enter the underworld.
But Huitong now possesses the true Dharma, so he understands this issue to some extent, so I will not explain the cause and effect in detail.
"By the way, Master, what is the relationship between you and the eldest princess?"
"Oh, Mr. Ji, please don't mention it. You must have seen the eldest princess when you came here, right? Don't look at her as weak and gentle. She is actually very thoughtful. She is also the elder sister of the current emperor. No one in the whole Tingliang Kingdom dares to offend her. I don't know why she fell in love with a monk like me. It's tiring to deal with her!"
Now that all the important matters had been discussed, Monk Huitong began to complain.
Hui Tong could only talk to Ji Yuan about such complaints. Due to his special status in Daliang Temple, there was not many people he could confide in. Although many monks said to others that they shaved off their worries when they were ordained, monks themselves also have worries.
"Haha, I see that the princess is young, elegant, and graceful, and her appearance must be good. Master, have you ever thought about returning to secular life? I see that although you have a deep understanding of Buddhism, your Buddha nature is not that of a meditative old monk. You can think about it!"
"Sir, please don't make such jokes. It would be disastrous if the princess heard it."
After listening to Ji Yuan's words, most of Monk Hui Tong's aura of a great monk disappeared. Even though he knew there was no one outside, he still looked at the door carefully, and then said with a somewhat amused look.
"The current emperor actually issued an order specifically for his own sister, asking me to teach the eldest princess the classics alone, but she is not here to learn the classics..."
Ji Yuan smiled.
"Hahaha, is she greedy for your body?"
"Well… "
Hui Tong's face froze for a moment. Although Mr. Ji's words sounded extremely awkward, he couldn't say anything to refute.
Daliang Temple was the national temple of Tingliang State, and was actually quite deeply involved with the court of Tingliang State. Even if Huitong was a monk with real Buddhist teachings, he could only cover up after the emperor issued an edict.
"Let's not talk about it anymore. This peach blossom calamity is up to you. Oh, speaking of calamity, I remembered something. Master, have you ever mentioned a man named Zhao Long in Dazhen? His Buddhist name was Jueming after he became a monk?"
Hui Tong frowned and thought about it, then shook his head.
"I don't remember this happening."
"Oh, that's the other monk with the same Buddhist name..."
"Same as my monk's name?"
Hui Tong was puzzled and pondered, although "Hui" was indeed used a lot in the temple.
"Master, don't worry too much."
Ji Yuan smiled and looked in one direction with his Dharma Eyes, as if he could see through the wooden wall of the room and looked towards the largest Mingwang Hall in Daliang Temple.
The place is filled with incense and Buddhist aura, and the faint sound of chanting lingers in the air.
"I remember your main deity is Buddha Seal Vajra King?"
"Yes, it is the Buddha Seal King. What did you see, Mr. Ji?"
Monk Huitong knew very well that the person in front of him was a master of great Taoism and would not attack without a purpose.
"You, Daliang Temple, have worked so hard for so long. The Buddha statues in the temple listen to sutras every day and are soaked in the power of incense and prayers. The incarnation of the Ming King has finally taken shape. It is said that when the Ming King separates his incarnations, the real body of the Ming King will descend in person. I wonder if this is true?"
Ji Yuan withdrew his gaze and looked at Hui Tong.
"Well, my cultivation and knowledge are shallow, so I can't answer your question."
Once Daliang Temple has the incarnation of Mingwang, no matter how much Buddha power this incarnation has, Daliang Temple will no longer be an ordinary Buddhist temple, but a real Buddhist venue, equivalent to a newly emerged place for practice.