Mixed in the heavens, merits and virtues become immortals

Chapter 371 shifts the topic, preparing for rebellion.
Lingyin Temple features flying eaves and carved tiles, and its mountain gate is majestic.

Gu Qing led Bai Suzhen along the steps and walked out until they reached the mountain gate. Only then did he turn around and bid farewell to Abbot Yuan Kong of Lingyin Temple.

“My behavior at Lingyin Temple today was reckless and caused a lot of trouble. Please forgive me, Master Yuankong.”

Gu Qing clasped his hands together and said, "After the summer solstice at Lingyin Temple, I will personally visit to apologize."

Gu Qing overturned the toilet at Lingyin Temple. Although he used his true energy to push the yellow and white substances back, traces remained and the smell lingered. Lingyin Temple would have to do a thorough cleaning.

Master Yuankong smiled and said, "It's just a little bit of excrement and urine; this old monk isn't that petty."

"We are grateful to Lingyin Temple for allowing us to settle our karmic debts here."

Guided by Guanyin Bodhisattva, Bai Suzhen developed a deep respect for Buddhism and sincerely thanked Master Yuankong.

"Amitabha."

Master Yuan Kong clasped his hands together and calmly said, "Buddhism divides the suffering in the world into the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination and the cause and effect of the three lifetimes. These Twelve Links of Dependent Origination never cease, and all sentient beings will be bound by shackles. Only by breaking through ignorance can one be free from the bondage of the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination."

“You have only defeated Fahai, but you have not eradicated ignorance.”

Master Yuankong looked at Gu Qing and said, "When Yu Ke asked Fa Hai what the Buddha was, it contained profound Buddhist principles, but Fa Hai was filled with anger and could not understand the truth."

In Buddhism, ignorance is the lack of knowledge in the mind, and it is also the root of all suffering.

"Will Fahai continue to cause trouble?"

Bai Suzhen spoke with surprise.

"Your karma has been resolved."

Master Yuankong said to Bai Suzhen, "From now on, as long as you follow your true nature, you will naturally ascend to heaven." Master Yuankong then examined Gu Qing and said, "It seems that the hermit will suffer a lot."

Fahai has taken a grudge against you.

Gu Qing smiled slightly: Well said. Say more, preferably make Bai Suzhen cry with emotion.

Bai Suzhen looked at Gu Qingyan with a calm smile, and her heart fluttered, her gaze softening with tenderness.

"The matter of Changming Temple has been settled today."

Gu Qing brought up the matter.

When the incident at Changming Temple occurred, Daoji found Gu Qing and made a deal with him. The Buddhist sect was unwilling to use its magical powers to help, and Gu Qing did not use the Taoist sect's abilities either. Instead, he used some gold and silver to bribe the third concubine of the magistrate of Qiantang County.

Although this third concubine appeared only briefly, she managed to manipulate Magistrate Yang, using money and emotional appeals to rescue all the monks of Changming Temple without Gu Qing using any magic.

"That's good, that's good."

Master Yuankong said, “Gu Yuke, at the end of April, the melons and eggplants in the garden are just beginning to grow, and their market price is quite high. If you can send ten baskets of melons and eggplants to Lingyin Temple, there may be a good response.”

After speaking, Master Yuankong turned the jade prayer beads given to him by Gu Qing and returned to the mountain gate of Lingyin Temple.

Ten-fold fruit eggplant.

Gu Qing looked at Bai Suzhen beside him. Bai Suzhen turned her head slightly away, not daring to look directly at Gu Qing.

“This Master Yuankong seems to have a deep understanding of Buddhist principles.”

Bai Suzhen said softly.

"Um……"

Gu Qing trailed off slightly, saying, "Legend has it that when Ji Gong was practicing at Lingyin Temple, the abbot of Lingyin Temple was a ninth-generation monk who immediately recognized that Ji Gong was an Arhat reincarnated. It is possible that Abbot Yuan Kong of Lingyin Temple possessed some divine insight."

The two followed the mountain path downhill, and before they had gone far, they saw Xiaoqing waiting there. Upon seeing them, she happily walked over, looked them over closely, and asked what was going on.

"It was Gu Qing who used the [Mixed Yuan Golden Bucket] to break Fahai's golden alms bowl."

Bai Suzhen said with a smile, "That's why I barely won my battle with Fahai."

Xiaoqing knew that the Hunyuan Golden Bucket was actually a toilet, and guessed Gu Qing's scheme. She gave him a light glare and said, "You always have so many tricks up your sleeve."

"We didn't tell you beforehand because we were afraid of leaking secrets."

Gu Qing said gently to Xiao Qing.

Xiaoqing nodded repeatedly and said, "I know, that wretched Fahai is watching us with his golden alms bowl!" At this point, Xiaoqing felt uncomfortable. Her feelings for Gu Qing had reached a certain point, and Xiaoqing had wanted to sleep with Gu Qing several times, but because Fahai was always watching, they could not have sex.

"Fahai also resented Gu Qing."

Bai Suzhen looked at Gu Qing with worry in her eyes.

"This this……"

After hearing this, Xiaoqing thought about it carefully and suddenly said, "This is too easy. Fahai will have to stay away from you. No matter how much he resents Gu Qing, as long as you stay with us, Fahai can't do anything to us."

Fahai should stay ninety miles away from Bai Suzhen.

Fahai wanted to target Gu Qing.

Therefore, Gu Qing and Bai Suzhen were bound together, leaving Fahai helpless and frustrated.

The logic is sound, but for some reason, Xiaoqing felt dizzy looking at Bai Suzhen's face.

Regardless, defeating Fahai was a great joy. Gu Qing, Bai Suzhen, and Xiaoqing were relieved and explored Hangzhou. At night, they rented small boats and cruised on West Lake, experiencing the charm of "pavilions emerging from the moonlight on the water, amidst the mist and haze. The sound of flutes and pipes fills the air, laughter echoes among the clouds, and one feels as if they are in Penglai."

Gu Qing, caught in the middle, played the role of the "central air conditioner," both joking and laughing with Xiao Qing and taking care of Bai Suzhen's feelings. After a night on the boat, Bai Suzhen's brows showed a touch more gentleness and a touch more sorrow.

"Dr. Gu, what are you doing here?"

As dawn approached, Gu Qing was returning the boat when he heard shouts. He looked up and saw a young man he didn't recognize. The young man seemed to know Gu Qing very well. He stepped forward, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "That's perfect. Ye Daming is dying. You have a compassionate heart, please go and save him."

Although Gu Qing did not recognize the young man, she sensed his sincerity. She nodded to Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing behind her, and the three of them followed the young man toward the dock.

This place should have been bustling, but the young man led them to a low thatched hut, narrow alleys, and muddy roads. After a few turns, they entered a thatched hut. Gu Qing peered inside and saw a middle-aged man lying under the dilapidated hut. He was emaciated, his eyes were lifeless, and he was waiting to die.

"This is bloody dysentery!"

Gu Qing stepped forward and, judging from the expression alone, diagnosed the illness. He then took the pulse and examined the patient, confirming the diagnosis. However, the patient had been ill for a long time and was almost beyond saving.

"So it was dysentery."

The young man said from the side, "How can we treat this kind of illness?"

Gu Qing raised an eyebrow slightly, glanced at the young man, then reached out and pressed Ye Daming down. He took out a refined pill from his pocket and asked Xiao Qing to dissolve it in water. Xiao Qing wandered around the courtyard, then went out to borrow water. She returned a moment later, holding a cup in her hand, the water in which was quite murky.

Dysentery is caused by unhealthy drinking water. Now that Gu Qing saw this water, he immediately understood the cause of Ye Daming's illness.

Bai Suzhen took the tea, lightly touched it with her fingertip, and the murky water immediately became clear. Then Gu Qingdan dissolved the medicine in the water and had Ye Daming drink it.

"It turns out they used magic tricks to save him."

The young man muttered to himself.

"I've come to see your well."

Gu Qing stood up and spoke to the young man.

The young man nodded and led Gu Qing over. He explained the situation here: most of the people who made a living at this dock had migrated from other places and had no land at home. They barely made ends meet in this place. Before they knew it, thatched huts stretched as far as the eye could see, and the number of people in this place was increasing.

The government's lax control over this area has led to the haphazard construction of thatched huts and a terrible state of sanitation. Gu Qing arrived at the well and saw several toilets not far away. It is said that every time there is heavy rain and flooding, the river overflows... Clean and hygienic indeed.

After looking around, Gu Qing wanted to call out a leader, but the people here were disorganized, so they looked to Xiao Qing. Xiao Qing turned her back, summoned the Five Ghosts, and had them go from house to house to call out to the people, so that Gu Qing could educate them about water safety.

“Those of you who are not using this place, come and raise the well opening, and leave a waterway outside.”

Gu Qing said, "I will prescribe some medicine later and put it in the well water for disinfection. When you use the water here, it is best to boil it first."

Gu Qing's words contained hidden true energy; though her voice was soft, it carried a deafening power.

The local people were lax in their management, but they were aware that every household was prone to illness. Seeing that Doctor Gu Qing was taking the lead in educating them about the dangers and organizing the construction, everyone was very enthusiastic and quickly gathered together to repair the well.

"Will this save the people here?"

The young man looked at Gu Qing and asked.

"Haven't you asked yet?"

Gu Qing noticed that the young man was simply dressed but had an impressive demeanor, and asked him a question.

"You can just call me Xiao Lü."

Xiao Lü said, "Please come this way with me."

Gu Qing followed Xiao Lü to another place, where they saw a family of three lying in a thatched hut, their bodies covered in sores, their voices mournful.

"Sores and ulcers."

Gu Qing examined the family of three and said, "I happen to have some snakebite ointment here. I can treat your wounds by cleaning them."

This illness was not a difficult problem for Gu Qing.

The family of three kowtowed repeatedly to thank Gu Qing, but Gu Qing frowned slightly. From what the family said, they usually lived on the boat in damp places, so getting sores was a common occurrence for them.

"Your place of residence needs to be changed."

Gu Qing said.

If you continue to live in this place, the illness will return.

Upon hearing this, the family of three shook their heads with wry smiles and said, "We have neither a roof over our heads nor a place to stand. It's already quite good that we can make do with living in this place."

They can't find a place to live.

"It seems you can save them for a while, but not forever."

Xiao Lü remarked with emotion.

Finding a place to live isn't difficult.

Gu Qing lowered his eyes and said calmly.

"Can you find a good place to live for one family? Can you find such a place for a hundred families or a thousand families?"

Xiao Lü countered with a question.

Gu Qing pursed her lips slightly and remained silent.

"There's another Wu San over there, he's about to die too."

Xiao Lü walked confidently through the area, with Gu Qing following behind. After passing through several alleys, they arrived at a house. Before even entering, Gu Qing heard a coughing sound.

"This is tuberculosis."

Gu Qing heard the sound and immediately diagnosed the illness. He rushed inside before Xiao Lü could. The family's condition was much better than that of the family of three with sores and Ye Daming, who had previously suffered from dysentery. There was also a clay pot with some medicinal residue on it.

"These scraps..."

Gu Qing pinched the crumbs and examined them carefully.

"All the medicines were obtained from Huimin Pharmacy."

Xiao Lü said frankly.

Gu Qing glanced at the residue, then at the coughing Wu San, and sighed softly. This man didn't have tuberculosis, but rather a disease of poverty, so he could only get medicine from the Huimin Pharmacy. However, the Huimin Pharmacy was an official pharmacy of the Song Dynasty that suppressed drug prices, and the medicines it sold were rotten.

This medicine has no curative effect whatsoever. Wu San drank it several times at home, but his condition only worsened.

"What should I do?"

Xiao Lü looked at Gu Qing and asked.

"Of course we should sue the authorities!"

Gu Qing looked Xiao Lü in the eye and said.

He was a little unsure what Xiao Lü was up to.

"Sue an official?"

Xiao Lü sneered and said, "That's perfect. The person in charge of this Huimin Pharmacy is none other than Doctor Shi, whom you humiliated at Baojiashan. Behind him is the current prime minister, Qin Hui. Now that you know who is harming the people, go and sue them."

Qin Hui...

Gu Qing sighed silently upon hearing the name.

In this world where destiny is at play, things are just so messed up. Gu Qing could easily deal with Zhao Gou and Qin Hui, turn the tide, and even launch a counterattack on the Central Plains if he just made a move, but Gu Qing just can't make a move.

"who are you?"

Gu Qing looked at Xiao Lü and asked seriously.

The patients that Xiao Lü took Gu Qing to see, and the things he said, didn't seem like those of an ordinary person.

"It doesn't matter who I am."

Xiao Lü retorted, "Who you are is what matters."

who am I?
Gu Qing calmly said, "I am just an ordinary doctor who has obtained Taoist talismans and has a little ability to heal people."

"Oh……"

Xiao Lü raised his voice and said, "Zhang Jiao is one of them too."

You're lovesick, aren't you?
Gu Qing looked at Xiao Lü, never expecting that Xiao Lü would bring up such a topic. The two of them were just discussing healing and saving lives, but suddenly the topic changed and they were about to rebel.

"Think about it carefully."

Xiao Lü walked up to Gu Qing, handed him a pill, and said, "This is an antidote powder made by Lü Dongbin. It can be used to counteract poisons that are incurable. However, this antidote is limited. Its medicinal power can only save one person, or one snake."

A person, a snake...

Gu Qing looked at Xiao Lü in front of him, opened his mouth slightly, and said, "Are you Lü Zu?"

Xiao Lü didn't answer. He turned around and walked into the alley, disappearing into the bustling world.

Gu Qing took the pills and stuffed them into his bosom, heading towards the direction where Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing were. Meeting Lü Dongbin after leaving Lingyin Temple was a rare and fortunate encounter for Gu Qing. However, before he reached Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing, he heard a cry of alarm coming from the other side. Gu Qing stepped forward and saw Xiao Qing lying unconscious on the ground, while Bai Suzhen clutched her chest, feeling dizzy and disoriented.

(End of this chapter)