History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 172 A Mind Full of Nuns

Then, she gazed at the Buddha statue she was offering to, and just looked into the Buddha's eyes. The passage of time could only be perceived through the light that streamed in through the window behind her.

The sky went from clear to dark.

Light rises from darkness to dawn.

The door was opened, and there was the kind-faced old nun, Sengzhi, who was carefully sweeping the fallen leaves in the courtyard. Hearing the noise, the young nun Linyin quickly came out of the side room and apologized: "Master, I overslept."

Monk Zhi: "I had something on my mind, so I got up early."

Lin Yin dared not sweep the floor in front of Sengzhi. She gently gathered the fallen leaves into a pile and, seeing that the monk still looked hesitant, asked, "What is troubling you, Master? Is there anything I can do to ease your worries?"

"Last night, Buddha appeared to me in a dream..."

"Huh?!" Lin Yin was shocked and full of admiration.

“In my dream, Buddha told me that my niece was still alive and pointed me in the direction to find her. After we finish reciting the morning prayers, you and Miaoguang will accompany me to pick up my niece.”

Monk Zhi appeared calm, but his heart was already insane!

She had been planning for many years to send her niece into the palace, and she would never give up! Otherwise, all her lifelong dedication to studying Buddhism and enduring the loneliness of the Buddhist hall day and night would become a joke!
Since her brother's family had vanished without a trace, she decided to go to the slave market to "recruit" a niece! A ten-year-old girl whose appearance changes every year—who dares to say that the girl Buddha guided her to was a fake Huwu?
If anyone dares to stand up and testify, then that person is the murderer who harmed the Hu family!

Zhenbao Nunnery was built by the monk Zhi, located in Zhongganli on the north bank of the Luo River. The nearest slave market was Sitongshi on the south bank of the Luo River. When the monk Zhi and his two disciples crossed the pontoon bridge and passed through the fish and turtle market, they brushed past Zongyin, who had just returned to Luoyang.

Zong Yin was handing money to the fishmonger when he couldn't help but chuckle.

The fishmonger, being an inquisitive fellow, asked, "Young man, what are you laughing at? Tell me so I can laugh too."

Zong Yin: "I laughed at myself for going on a long journey, thinking that I would be poor at home but rich on the road, so I brought several strings of coins with me. In the end... I traveled thousands of miles with coins jingling and clanging, but I still had to go back to my doorstep to spend them."

"Hmm, I've also heard that bartering isn't practiced outside the capital region. Young master, you're so young, where are you going?"

Zong Yin: "The old capital, Pingcheng."

The boy carried two fish across the floating bridge to go home. Before he even reached the courtyard gate, he heard the laughter and shouts of his younger siblings playing around. Zong Yin's family was considered moderately wealthy, but land in Luoyang was incredibly expensive, so the whole family had to squeeze into one courtyard.

Before his journey, Zong Yin disliked his younger siblings, finding their constant noise annoying his ears. But from today onward, he had to appease the little ones, get his siblings to speak on his behalf, and beg his parents to allow him to marry a woman from Pingcheng.

Of course, after marrying Miss Wei, he couldn't bear to let her squeeze into this place too.

Zongqian, the youngest child in the Zong family, suddenly shouted, "Mother, come quick! My brother is grinning like an idiot at the gate of the courtyard."

The location of Zong Yin's family is directly north of Xuanyang City Gate.

Xuanyang Gate leads straight north, directly towards the Taiji Hall of the Imperial Palace.

The morning court session ended early today. Prince Rencheng, Yuan Cheng, came out of the palace gate and quickened his pace down the steps, pretending not to hear Prince Pengcheng, Yuan Xie's, calls.

Fortunately, Liu Teng, the eunuch, left the palace and summoned Prince Pengcheng back in, allowing Prince Rencheng to finally breathe a sigh of relief. Yuan Cheng and Yuan Xie were both princes of the imperial clan; there was no question of one being afraid of the other, especially since Yuan Cheng was Yuan Xie's uncle in terms of seniority. The reason Yuan Cheng had been avoiding him was that in the Taiji Hall, he had preemptively reported the matter that Prince Pengcheng wanted to petition.

"Sigh." As Yuan Cheng walked out of the palace, he looked up at the sky and sighed deeply. Who could believe it? He had almost been implicated by an old nun he didn't even know!

The incident began yesterday afternoon when his fifth sister, Chuntuo, came to him to file a complaint. She accused Yuan Zhi, the governor of Hengzhou, of colluding with local powerful figures to murder the Wu Shibo family. Now, Hu Guozhen's family and more than a hundred servants and guards are all dead without a trace, and there is no evidence to prove their innocence!

Yuan Cheng hadn't heard of such a shocking tragedy in years. He first asked his fifth sister who she had heard it from. Yuan Chun Tuo then recounted in detail how the monk Zhi of Zhenbao Nunnery had pleaded with her, and how she had sent warriors to Hengzhou.

At that time, Yuan Cheng asked, "Sengzhi? I feel like I've heard that name somewhere before?"

Yuan Chun Tuo guessed and replied, "Probably in Pingcheng. The monk Sengzhi was well-versed in Buddhism and even visited Grand Tutor Feng's house when he was in Pingcheng."

His Majesty has always encouraged aristocratic families to move to Luoyang. The Hu family was murdered on the way, so of course we must take this seriously and investigate! Yuan Cheng promised his fifth sister that he would report this suspicious case to His Majesty as soon as possible.

This morning, while waiting to enter the Taiji Hall, Yuan Cheng saw the Prince of Pengcheng and asked in surprise, "Aren't you stationed in Fancheng anymore? When did you return?"

"I came back the day before yesterday and rested at home for a day."

"You should rest properly." As he spoke, he gestured with his chin toward the other man's tablet, which was covered with densely written memorials.

"Oh." Prince Pengcheng smiled and said in a low voice, "I finally got a day off, so I went to the south of the city yesterday and heard a lot of complaints from the people. The neighborhoods in the south of the city haven't been planned yet, but some officials, monks and nuns are taking advantage of this opportunity to forcibly buy and sell things, and even occupy private houses to turn them into Buddhist temples."

Yuan Cheng first responded angrily, "That's too much!" Then, he raised an eyebrow, his gaze drawn to the prominent characters "Sengzhi" on the other person's tablet, and asked, "Are there nuns too?"

"Yes, a nun named 'Sengzhi'! She forcibly bought the houses of her neighbors and built the Zhenbao Nunnery by combining them. If you have been in contact with nuns recently, take my advice and stay away from them. Soon, the Ministry of Justice will also be investigating the nun."

"Why?" Yuan Cheng's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Because the Divine Department rarely impeached anyone, but every time someone was impeached, it was a death sentence!
This time, the Prince of Pengcheng whispered to Yuan Cheng, "The matter of the nun Cao Can of the Divine Department is related to Grand Tutor Feng Xi. When Feng Xi was alive, a nun visited his residence. I can't go into details, but it's definitely related to curses and witchcraft. Remember, stay away from nuns recently."

Yuan Cheng was sweating profusely as he entered the Taiji Hall, his mind wandering. Lately, His Majesty had been constantly finding fault with him and scolding him. Could it be because of his fifth sister? Because his fifth sister often associated with nuns.

Just as he feared, Yuan Cheng, who was lost in thought, was called upon by His Majesty: "Do you have any state affairs to report?"

Yuan Cheng's mind was completely occupied by the word "nun," so he immediately replied, "I have important business to attend to. There's a nun in the south of the city..."

In order to clear himself of any connection with Sengzhi later, Prince Rencheng preemptively mentioned the matter that Prince Pengcheng was going to report, and he did not dare to mention a word about the injustice suffered by Wu Shibo's family.

At the slave market, Sengzhi bought a young girl. While choosing one who resembled her niece, Sengzhi suddenly realized that even she herself couldn't remember what her niece looked like.

She hurriedly returned to Zhenbao Nunnery with "Huwu House," completely unaware that the nunnery was about to perish.

In reality, the treacherous power struggles among princes, meritorious officials, and monks and nuns occurred daily in the great city of Luoyang. The intrigue and treacherous atmosphere here was far more terrifying than in Pingcheng!
September 19th.

Zhenbao Nunnery was investigated, and the monk Zhi was arrested and imprisoned in Luoyang County jail to await trial.

At this time, all the primary schools in Pingcheng had already started their autumn break, and football matches of all sizes had begun.

(End of this chapter)