The sun had risen high in the sky, there was not a cloud in the sky, not a breath of wind on the ground, and the branches and leaves of the trees were hanging lazily. Only the cicadas on the branches were chirping vigorously, using all their strength to scream non-stop.
The dogs in Taicang were also lying under the shade of the trees, with their tongues hanging out, looking listlessly at the group of people who had broken into Taicang. After barking a few times, they became too lazy to bark anymore.
Zhu Ping'an and the people from the Imperial Observatory and the Eastern Depot had just arrived in Taicang when Taicang's warehouse manager, Mr. Zhang, and others came up to exchange pleasantries, and then people from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works arrived.
Before Zhu Ping'an could react, only people from the East Factory were left around him.
Zhang Siming of the Imperial Observatory led two supervisors of the five organs, and Zhang Guanku of Taicang led the people of Taicang, all of them bowed their hands and walked quickly to greet them.
What surprised Zhu Ping'an was that there were too many people coming. A lot of people came from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works, unexpectedly more. More than ten officials came from the Ministry of Revenue, including Sun Yingkui, an old official from the Ministry of Revenue, one Yuanwailang, one Langzhong, three heads of the Ministry of Revenue, and several Zhaomos and clerks.
There were more people coming from the Ministry of Works, led by Yan Shifan, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works. There were about seven or eight more Yuanwailang, Langzhong, Zhushi, etc. than those coming from the Ministry of Revenue.
In addition to the officials, there were even more runners, using three large yellow oxen to pull a special material cart with a special iron door on it. From the ruts that were more than an inch deep, you could tell how heavy the iron door was.
"Please come in, Master Yan."
"Please come in, Mr. Sun."
People from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works came together. Although Sun Yingkui, who wrote to the Ministry of Revenue, had a higher official rank than Yan Shifan, in this feudal society that emphasized hierarchy, Yan Shifan walked side by side with Sun Yingkui, talking and laughing as they walked in. When they entered the door, Sun Yingkui humbly gestured to Yan Shifan to go first. Yan Shifan smiled and gestured to Sun Yingkui to go first. After the two of them politely gestured to each other, they smiled and walked into the Taicang gate hand in hand.
As soon as the two men entered the door, officials from the Imperial Observatory and Taicang came to greet them, and one by one they crowded around to salute and exchange pleasantries.
Zhu Ping'an did not join in the fun, but bowed to Sun Yingkui, Yan Shifan and other superiors from the periphery.
Not long after the talents from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works arrived, Takumi, the co-director of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, came with several Embroidered Uniform Guards. Then came several censors from the Censorate, two directors from the Ministry of Rites, and several officials from the Honglu Temple.
Later, more officials arrived one after another.
For a time, the Taicang Silver Vault was almost overcrowded. The people of Taicang moved batches of chairs and placed them in an open space not far from the Taicang Silver Vault for the officials who came to sit and watch the ceremony.
Looking at so many officials coming, and then looking at the officials from Taicang, Zhu Ping'an always felt that there was a sense of conspiracy that was difficult to explain.
However, no matter how many people come, it will not affect the amount of gold and silver in the Taicang Silver Vault. It can't be that if more people come, the deficit in your vault will be made up, right? !
Zhu Ping'an couldn't figure it out, so he simply stopped thinking about it. As long as he held on to his principles, he would not care about the east, west, south, north, or any conspiracy. As long as he did what he was supposed to do, that was enough.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the ceremony of replacing the door of Taicang Silver Vault began.
First, Zhang Siming from the Imperial Astronomical Observatory brought two supervisors of the five sense organs to seriously calculate the geomancy and determine the location of the gate.
In fact, it was just a procedure. The original gate location was determined by the Imperial Observatory of the previous generation. If they changed the gate location, wouldn't it be a slap in the face of the Imperial Observatory? So Zhang Siming and the other three used compasses, chanted something, and so on, and finally decided on the original gate location.
"This is the position of Taotie. Taotie can swallow wind evil. There are no taboos in installing a door here. Pixiu represents wealth and can attract money from all directions without losing a single cent. It is a Feng Shui treasure land that is one in a million. Installing the warehouse door here can ensure long-term good fortune for Taicang." After Zhang Siming did some feng shui calculations and determined the location, he made his conclusion with a profound look on his face.
Then officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Honglu Temple cooperated with the Imperial Observatory to set up an incense table in the open space in front of the gate, offered tributes, lit incense and candles, and prayed for the gods to protect Taicang.
Then the two supervisors of the five sense organs of the Imperial Observatory burned talismans, sprinkled black dog blood, and performed a ritual.
After that, you can start construction.
Two craftsmen from the Ministry of Works came and drew a line for the gate with an ink line. Then, at the request of the officials from the Imperial Observatory, Sun Yingkui, a letter from the Ministry of Revenue, and Yan Shifan, the right vice-minister of the Ministry of Works, dug the first shovel of soil with a shovel. The rest was done by the servants under the command of the officials from the Imperial Observatory. They dug two deep pits on each side of the gate site, and buried the stone carvings of the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermillion Bird, and Black Tortoise brought by the Ministry of Works in the deep pits according to the directions, so that the mythical beasts would protect and guard the Taicang Silver Vault.
After burying the mythical beast, gold and silver coins were buried under the threshold.
Then, after all the officials present performed the ceremony of three bows and nine kowtows, Zhang Siming from the Imperial Observatory removed the seal on the old door of the Taicang Silver Vault.
Set off firecrackers, post red couplets, and hang red door decorations.
The craftsman officer of the Ministry of Works directed dozens of runners to take down the old door and install the new warehouse door under a simple wooden lifting frame while shouting orders.
When the iron gate of Taicang Silver Vault was installed, the gate of Baiyun Temple also welcomed a group of uninvited guests.
Hey, another group of pilgrims has come, and they have brought a lot of things. Good, good.
The smile on the face of the welcoming monk at the door only bloomed for a second, then it withered and turned into a sad face.
The monk at the door found that these uninvited guests were not only uncivilized but also had no manners at all. They started to smash things as soon as they arrived at the door. First, they pulled down the sign at the door that read "Zhu Ping'an and dogs are not allowed to enter" and put it away. Then they started to smash the door.
The door was replaced just before the Dharma Assembly, and in the blink of an eye, only the door frame was left.
So crazy!
They didn't even let go of the door frame. Rotten eggs, rotten vegetable leaves, rotten fruits, etc. flew over...
After smashing the rotten eggs and vegetable leaves, another person used a mop dipped in ink to write on the wall: "Buddha is born from the heart. If there is Buddha in the heart, everything you see is Buddha. If there is cow dung in the heart, everything you see will turn into cow dung." ...
After destroying the main gate, the criminals started to break into the temple. The two monks who welcomed guests were frightened and hurried to stop them, fearing that they would destroy things inside the temple. Fortunately, the unconventional guests did not destroy anything in the temple, nor did they harm any of the believers in the temple. They went straight to the main hall with a strong purpose.
Crackling and scribbling.
When the warrior monks from the temple arrived, they only saw a group of people walking away, and a graffiti on the door of the main hall:
The dragon in the niche goes away to the east, and the sun sets in the west.
Jingwen is no longer here, and the broken stones have melted into the quicksand.
"What does this mean? Who are they? They are committing a crime in broad daylight..."
"Yes, what does this poem mean?"
The monks and believers who rushed to the scene after hearing the news were puzzled when they saw the graffiti on the main hall.
The abbot of Baiyun Temple, who arrived late, looked at it for a while, shook his head and sighed, "This is a cryptic poem."
Hesi Gou (dog) died.
When a monk revealed the answer to the riddle, all the monks became furious and immediately thought of the sign that said "Zhu Ping'an and dogs are not allowed to enter". Combined with what the group of people said when they left, such as being disrespectful to their young master and making their young lady unhappy, they were certain that Zhu Ping'an was undoubtedly the culprit behind today's incident.
"Li Yushi of the Metropolitan Censorate is a good friend of our temple. Li Yushi will definitely make the decision for our temple. We cannot just let this happen today."
The deacons of Baiyun Temple were filled with indignation.