In 540 AD, it was late autumn in Chang'an, the capital of Wei.
It started to rain in the afternoon. It was light rain at first and turned to heavy rain in the evening. There were few pedestrians on the road.
Although it was not yet time to turn on the lights, because the sky was too dark, the light of candles gradually appeared in the city. The light was mainly concentrated in the dozen or so miles of the east city, where the imperial city was located and where wealthy people lived.
Most of the people living in Xicheng are civilians, and there are not many people who hold lamps. However, there is a light in the northwest of Xicheng. This light is much brighter than ordinary candles. The light is swaying and shaking.
The place where the light shines is a small temple. This temple is very dilapidated. The courtyard wall and the east and west wings have collapsed. At this time, only the main hall where the statue of the god was originally worshiped is left.
There is a statue of a god sitting on the altar in the main hall. Since there is no temple priest to take care of and maintain it, the statue is seriously damaged. The paint is peeled off and the mud is exposed. It is no longer possible to tell which deity it belongs to.
There is a bonfire in the middle of the hall, and around the bonfire are a few beggars in ragged clothes. These beggars are not very old, the oldest is only thirteen or fourteen years old, and the youngest is only eight or nine years old.
The oldest one, with a slightly bulging chest, must be a woman. She was holding a bowl of potion and talking to her companion who was lying in front of the statue.
The beggar lying on the straw was about twelve or thirteen years old. He was a boy. He was very thin. For some reason, he did not take the medicine bowl when his companion handed him the medicine bowl. He just stared straight at the girl, no matter what the girl tried to persuade him. , just refused to take the potion.
In addition to these two people, there are two other people in the temple. A boy is cooking. The so-called cooking is just sorting the food from begging, and then pouring it into two clay pots hanging on the fire. Although this man is also a beggar , but he is not as thin as his companions, he is very white and fat.
The other is a girl who is chopping firewood. This person has big eyes and has never spoken. She only uses gestures to communicate with others. She must be mute.
The girl who was giving the medicine became a little anxious when she saw that her companion was stubbornly refusing to take the medicine. However, she did not get angry, but asked softly why.
The boy didn't look at the girl, tilted his head and didn't answer.
The girl persuaded a few words and delivered it again. The boy suddenly turned over and sat up, raised his hand and knocked over the bowl of potion, and then stared at the girl angrily.
The girl eagerly picked up the medicine bowl. The bowl was not broken, but all the medicine had been spilled.
The boy tilted his head and looked at the girl. The anger in his eyes gradually faded and was replaced by deep sadness. After a while, he raised his sleeves to wipe away his tears, turned over and lay down, and said no more.
The girl glanced helplessly at the boy lying on the ground, walked over and handed the medicine bowl to the fat man who was cooking. She looked worriedly at the heavier rain falling outside, "Do you know where Lu Pingchuan and Mo Li are going?" Already?"
"I don't see, why doesn't Changle take medicine?" the fat man asked.
The girl shook her head, "Where's Nanfeng? Have you seen Nanfeng?"
The fat man shook his head again, "Boss Chu, I'll go find them."
"I'd better go." The girl named Chu waved her hand.
While the two were talking, there were rapid footsteps outside the door. The footsteps came from far to near. After a while, two beggars, one big and one small, rushed in from outside. The elder of the two was thirteen or fourteen years old, shirtless and bare-backed. . The youngest one is eight or nine years old, with a shabby gown covering his head.
As soon as the two of them entered the door, a thin black boy wearing single clothes ran in from outside the door and said, "My ancestors were soaked to death."
"Nan Feng, what are you hiding in your arms?" the fat man who was cooking asked.
"What do you think?" The thin black boy smiled evilly.
"Okay, everyone is here, let's eat." Lu Pingchuan said to the fat man next to the bonfire. After saying this, he waved to the girl named Chu, "Huairou, come here, I have something to discuss with you."
Chu Huairou nodded and walked to the side with Lu Pingchuan to talk in a low voice. The fat man distributed the food in the earthen jar to everyone.
While the fat man was sharing the meal, Nanfeng walked up to the statue, took out a wine flask from his arms and secretly gave it to Chang Le. "Here, good stuff."
The fat man divided the food in the earthen pot into six portions, and in the end only some soup was left. He combined the soup from the two pots and drank the soup directly from the pot.
Chu Huairou and Lu Pingchuan seemed to be discussing something very important. Both of them had serious expressions. They looked back at the others who were eating from time to time while talking. They didn't know whether they were afraid that everyone would hear what they were discussing, or whether the matter they were discussing was related to everyone.
Nanfeng and Changle took turns drinking the remaining wine in the flask. Nanfeng seemed to be asking something, but Changle just shook his head and did not answer.
There were rats in the ruined temple. A rat smelled the smell of food and ran out of the darkness. It came close to the mute. The mute didn't beat it, but instead pinched the food and fed it.
"Sister Chu, Nanfeng stole wine for Changle to drink again." Mo Li complained.
Chu Huairou turned his head when he heard the sound and waved his hand to Mo Li, "Chang Le has a cold syndrome. He drinks to ward off the cold."
After a while, Lu Pingchuan and Chu Huairou left the corner and walked towards the fire.
Lu Pingchuan walked to the fire, picked up the rice bowl, and gave a piece of bone to Mo Li. Lu Pingchuan didn't eat the rest of the food, but poured it into the earthen pot held by the fat man.
Similar things may have happened often before, and the two of them did not refuse. They thanked him and ate in silence.
"Go ahead." Lu Pingchuan looked at Chu Huairou.
Chu Huairou shook her head, "You better say it."
Seeing the difference in their tone of voice, everyone tilted their heads to look at the two of them, including the mute girl who had been eating silently. Mute is usually deaf.
"Okay, let me tell you," Lu Pingchuan thought for a while, "A big event happened in Chang'an yesterday. You should have heard about it."
"Brother, are you talking about the Dharma Conference in Dongcheng?" Fatty answered.
Lu Pingchuan nodded.
"I heard that the Dharma gathering was about some scriptures." The fat man said.
Lu Pingchuan nodded, "This Dharma Assembly will be hosted by the Protector of the Country himself. It will gather talented people. The winner of the competition will not only be granted an official position, but will also be able to study the remaining volumes of the Book of Heaven with the Protector of the Country. Many sects have sent masters here. , I think we should go to Dongcheng to try our luck, maybe there will be a sect willing to accept us, even if we can't become disciples, being a handyman is better than staying here."
After Lu Pingchuan finished speaking, no one answered.
Lu Pingchuan added, "It's not an option for us to stay here. We have to find a way out. This kind of opportunity doesn't come around often, so we can't miss it."
Seeing that no one expressed their opinions, Chu Huairou on the side spoke, "It's decided, we will go to Dongcheng tomorrow."
Lu Pingchuan looked around at everyone and said, "We are about to part ways. I want to marry you all. I wonder if you are willing?"
Everyone nodded blankly.
"Mo Li, wash your bowl," Lu Pingchuan pulled out a dagger from his waist, "Nanfeng, bring the wine."
"Brother, I heard that robbers drink blood wine only when they are sworn sworn friends. It seems that good people drink blood wine only when they are sworn friends." The fat man said.
"It's all about your heart, no matter what the rules are." Lu Pingchuan waved his hand and said.
At this time, Li Li had already taken his rice bowl and walked to the door to wash it. As soon as he reached the door, he turned around in panic and said, "Brother, someone is coming."
After hearing this, everyone came to the door and saw a figure appearing in the rain, slowly walking towards the ruined temple.
When they got closer, everyone saw clearly the dress of the person who came. He must be in his early fifties, wearing a shabby blue robe, holding a faded yellow cloth flag in his left hand, and holding a wooden staff in his right hand. , the wooden stick tapped the ground frequently while walking.
Everyone was wandering around the market, and they were familiar with this person's outfit. This was a blind fortune teller...