The Red Mansion

Chapter 161 Million Gold and Silver
Tiger Hill in Suzhou has been a place of continuous worship for two thousand years since King Helü of Wu buried his sword here during the Spring and Autumn Period.

During the Daqing era, it became an even more bustling place, with tourists gathering like ants and merchants flocking like clouds.

Although the mountain is not very high, it is exquisite and the springs and rocks are clear and unique; although the land is not very large, it hides Buddhist and Taoist traces, making it a famous scenic spot in Wuzhong.

Emperor Jingning once toured the south and came to this place. Seeing the misty mountains, he personally inscribed the three characters "Yunyan Temple" and hung them on a golden plaque in front of the temple gate.

Yunyan Temple, nestled on the mountainside, was first built during the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Having endured a thousand years of rise and fall, suffering several calamities and repeated reconstructions, it now boasts magnificent halls and resplendent gold decorations. The main hall enshrines the Three Buddhas, their countenances solemn and dignified; the Thousand Buddha Pavilion displays relics of eminent monks from past dynasties, amidst swirling incense smoke.

However, this ancient temple, with its thousand-year history, is where the head of the Luo Sect resides!
That afternoon, in a secluded courtyard called "Tingtao Hermitage" at Yunyan Temple, a middle-aged monk was sitting cross-legged on a futon. This man had a solemn appearance, with a dot of vermilion between his eyebrows, wore a brown kasaya, and held a string of ebony prayer beads in his hand. He was none other than Yao Jisheng, the leader of the Luo Sect, who was disguised as the visiting monk "Miaodi".

Suddenly, hurried footsteps were heard outside the courtyard. A disciple came in and reported to Yao Jisheng. Then, Liu Zhu, Shi Xiao's trusted servant, came in panting. Liu Zhu was thin and wiry, and was covered in sweat, clearly having rushed here.

"Master! Something terrible has happened!" Liu Zhu, disregarding the formalities, pulled a slip of paper from his robes. "My master ordered me to deliver this immediately!"

Yao Jisheng frowned slightly, his ebony prayer beads in his hand suddenly stopping. He took the note and saw the words "Move immediately" written hastily in messy handwriting. He immediately tensed up, but deliberately kept his expression unchanged, and asked, "What exactly happened?"

Liu Zhu said urgently, "This is terrible! The current emperor has sent an imperial envoy to the south to investigate and ban the Luo Sect. He has just arrived in Suzhou! As soon as he arrived, he ordered my master to mobilize troops. My master is so busy that he can't get away. He secretly ordered me to come and inform the Master immediately!"

A glint of light flashed in Yao Jisheng's eyes: "Do you know who that imperial envoy is?"

Liu Zhu wiped his sweat: "I heard he's an imperial bodyguard. He looks to be under twenty, but he's very imposing."

At this moment, the bamboo shadows outside the window swayed gently, and a gust of autumn wind blew by, making the bamboo leaves rustle throughout the courtyard, as if a thousand ghostly hands were clapping.

Yao Jisheng stared at the nearly burnt incense sticks in the incense burner when suddenly the smoke broke.

……

……

At the edge of Tiger Hill stands Puji Temple.

Compared to the magnificent and prosperous Yunyan Temple, Puji Temple appears shabby and dilapidated.

The gate of Puji Temple is mottled, and the halls are low. The four characters "Puji Temple" on the temple's lintel have lost their gold paint, leaving only mottled wood grain, as if gnawed by time. Two ancient cypress trees in front of the temple have gnarled branches that block out the sky, making the place even more gloomy and desolate.

Most ordinary pilgrims look down on Puji Temple.

Little did they know, this dilapidated Zen temple was actually the central secret cave of the Luo Sect! The three protectors of the Luo Sect—Heaven, Earth, and Man—often hid here, obeying the orders of the sect leader, Yao Jisheng, secretly directing the followers and strategizing.

Recently, only Murong Zheng, the Dharma Protector of the Human Sect who controls the financial resources and believers, has been stationed at Puji Temple.

Cheng Muqian, the Heavenly Sect Protector in charge of scriptures and doctrines, went to inspect the situation of scriptures and doctrines in Jiangnan—he has been captured by Jiang Nian. Yan Boheng, the Earthly Sect Protector in charge of water transport, went to Huai'an.

At this moment, Puji Temple was completely quiet.

Murong Zheng, a protector of the Human Sect, sat alone in his meditation room. He was in his early forties, with a fair complexion and a light beard. Dressed as a lay Buddhist, he held a string of sandalwood prayer beads in his hand. He appeared to be chanting scriptures with his eyes closed, but in reality, he was calculating the number of "incense offerings" to be made at various temples.

Just as they were pondering this, they suddenly heard hurried footsteps outside the door. A disciple rushed in and reported, "Master, the True Immortal has arrived!"

Murong Zheng was taken aback upon hearing this, and then hurriedly got up. Just as he stepped out of the meditation room, he saw Yao Jisheng rushing over, surrounded by a group of his confidants. Yao Jisheng had changed his clothes and was now dressed as an ordinary pilgrim in a blue cloth robe. The cinnabar mark between his eyebrows had also been wiped away.

"Hurry up and get into the underground palace!"

Yao Jisheng spoke softly to Murong Zheng, his voice carrying an undeniable authority.

The two hurried to the Medicine Master Hall, where there was a Buddhist shrine that looked ordinary but actually contained hidden mechanisms.

Pushing open the shrine revealed a dark cave entrance with stone steps spiraling down inside.

Murong Zheng took the Qi Si Feng Lantern as a guide and, together with Yao Jisheng, descended the steps into the underground palace.

The underground palace was exquisitely constructed, with all four walls made of blue bricks and the top sealed with glutinous rice mortar, making it watertight.

Inside are two secret rooms, one a treasury and the other a scripture repository. As the names suggest, the treasury contains gold and silver, while the scripture repository houses a large number of scriptures, including the "Five Books and Six Volumes of Scriptures".

Yao Jisheng and Murong Zheng entered the vault. Although the vault was not very spacious, it contained many large camphor wood chests, all with copper-wrapped corners.

Yao Jisheng casually lifted the lid of a chest, and instantly a dazzling golden light shone through—the chest was filled with gold ingots arranged densely, dazzling the eye under the lamplight. He lifted another lid, revealing a silver mountain made of snowflake-patterned silver. Inside the vault, the silver and gold gleamed in unison.

The gold and silver here together are worth more than a million taels of silver!
Yao Jisheng stroked the gold and silver ingots, his eyes filled with fascination. Suddenly, he composed himself and instructed Murong Zheng, "Immediately transport these gold and silver items to Baiyun Temple on Xuanmu Mountain. You must personally escort them!"

The saying goes, "A cunning rabbit has three burrows." Baiyun Temple on Xuanmu Mountain is another secret cave belonging to Yao Jisheng in Suzhou. Moreover, very few people know about this secret cave; even Cheng Muqian, the protector of the Heavenly Sect, and Yan Boheng, the protector of the Earthly Sect, are unaware of it.

Yao Jisheng guessed that the imperial envoy might already know about the central secret cave of Puji Temple, but he certainly wouldn't know about the secret cave of Baiyun Nunnery on Xuanmu Mountain.

Murong Zheng hesitated and asked, "What should we do with the scriptures in the adjacent scripture storehouse?"

Yao Jisheng decisively replied, "We can't worry about that now."

In his mind, gold and silver were far more important than scriptures.

After a few more private words, Yao Jisheng led a group of his confidants and hurriedly left.

Within this underground palace, there is a passageway leading directly to the Shantang River.

Yao Jisheng arrived at the Shantang River via the passageway.

Several covered boats were moored on the riverbank, along with a single-story building. Boatmen, often taught by Luo, would stay there so that they could set sail at any time in case of an emergency.

Puji Temple has served as the central secret cave of the Luo sect for many years. In recent years, Puji Temple has only encountered one sudden emergency, which occurred several years ago.

In recent years, Puji Temple has been peaceful and stable.

Unexpectedly, today we encountered an extremely urgent situation.

At this moment, several boatmen who were guarding the riverbank were gambling in a house. Suddenly, a disciple of Yao Jisheng burst in, shouting sternly, "The Master has arrived! He needs boats, so set sail immediately!" The boatmen were all startled upon hearing this. They forgot about their gambling and rushed out of the house. They saw their master, Yao Jisheng, standing outside, dressed differently from usual. He was wearing a blue cloth robe, like an ordinary pilgrim, and the red dot between his eyebrows was gone. The boatmen were all very surprised.

Immediately, Yao Jisheng and his group of confidants squeezed into two small boats and sailed into the Shantang River, heading towards the Grand Canal. However, Yao Jisheng did not intend to escape far away along the Grand Canal, but rather to flee to Baiyun Temple on Xuanmu Mountain.

Suddenly, the bell rang at Puji Temple, startling a flock of birds. The worshippers, hearing it, thought it was just an ordinary temple bell, unaware that the bell was actually a signal from the Luo sect's protector summoning his confidants!

……

……

Suzhou is a first-class prosperous place in Jiangnan. Inside and outside the Changmen Gate, merchants gather, waterways crisscross, and boats shuttle back and forth, truly a magnificent world.

In such a prosperous land, city defense was naturally of utmost importance. Although the Daqing court only appointed one guerrilla commander to lead the troops, he had a quota of eight hundred soldiers under his command. However, due to problems such as receiving salaries without working and impersonation, the Suzhou guerrilla commander Shi Xiao could actually only mobilize a little over six hundred soldiers.

Under Jiang Nian's orders, Shi Xiao mustered four hundred soldiers.

Previously, Jiang Nian had been very careful in interrogating Cheng Muqian, the protector of the Heavenly Sect. He learned that the sect leader, Yao Jisheng, resided at Yunyan Temple on Tiger Hill in Suzhou, that Puji Temple on Tiger Hill was a central secret cave, and even the underground palace of Puji Temple.

Jiang Nian led two personal guards, twenty elite cavalrymen from Jiangning, Shi Xiao, a guerrilla commander from Suzhou, and two hundred Suzhou soldiers, heading straight for Tiger Hill.

As they approached the gate of Puji Temple, Jiang Nian suddenly reined in his horse and turned to Shi Xiao beside him, saying, "Guerrilla Shi, I already know that Puji Temple is the central secret cave of the Luo Sect. You and I will split into two groups immediately. I will lead one group to besiege Puji Temple, while you will lead the other group to rush to Yunyan Temple to capture the sect leader Yao Jisheng and others."

After a pause, Jiang Nian said meaningfully, "If Yao Jisheng escapes, His Majesty will inevitably hold you accountable! But if you succeed, I will certainly report to His Majesty and request credit for you, at least guaranteeing your future as a military officer!"

Upon hearing this, Shi Xiao's heart sank, and he cried out inwardly, "Oh no!"

He had secretly sent someone to inform his master Yao Jisheng, and he figured that Yao Jisheng must have already escaped by now. So where was he supposed to find him?
After a moment's thought, Shi Xiao quickly clasped his hands and suggested to Jiang Nian, "Your Excellency, please forgive me! Since Yao Jisheng is the leader of the Luo Cult, capturing him would be the greatest achievement. I am too incompetent and fear I might squander such an opportunity. How about we switch roles? You go to Yunyan Temple personally, and I will lead the troops to besiege Puji Temple?"

Jiang Nian was astute. Seeing Shi Xiao's strange expression and hearing his words, she realized that Shi Xiao might be hiding something. Normally, Shi Xiao should have been excited and cherished this great opportunity to make a great contribution.

Jiang Nian didn't have time to investigate further, nor did she expose him. With a slight smile, she solemnly said, "General Shi, you are overthinking it. Puji Temple is a secret central location, of utmost importance. Moreover, it contains hidden mechanisms and passages, the details of which you are unaware of, which could lead to unforeseen circumstances. It is best to proceed according to my arrangements!"

Seeing that he couldn't refuse, Shi Xiao had no choice but to grit his teeth and reply, "Yes, sir!"

……

……

Immediately, Jiang Nian and Shi Xiao split their forces into two groups and each led their troops away.

Jiang Nian was distrustful of Shi Xiao, the Suzhou guerrilla commander, so he specially dispatched ten elite cavalrymen from Jiangning to accompany Shi Xiao to Yunyan Temple. Ostensibly, it was to provide assistance, but in reality, it was to act as military supervisors.

Jiang Nian led two personal guards, ten elite cavalrymen from Jiangning, and a hundred soldiers from Suzhou in a grand procession straight toward Puji Temple.

Upon arriving at the temple gate, they found it tightly closed, the incense burning stopped, and not a single pilgrim came or went.

Jiang Nian sneered and waved her sleeve, ordering, "Surround them!"

Upon receiving the order, the officers and soldiers immediately surrounded the temple like an iron barrel, leaving no room for escape.

Jiang Nian dismounted and went straight into the mountain gate, followed closely by his personal guards and soldiers. The glint of swords in the sunlight and the menacing presence of bows and crossbows created a chilling atmosphere.

Upon entering the temple, one finds the halls empty and deserted, the Buddha statues with downcast eyes, and a wisp of smoke still rising from the incense burner, as if there were unfinished words to say.

Jiang Nian barged into the Medicine Master Hall and ordered someone to push open the Buddhist shrine, revealing a dark, deep underground palace entrance with stone steps spiraling down into an unfathomable abyss.

Jiang Nian then ordered torches to be lit and personally led the group inside in single file.

Upon reaching the underground palace, one finds two chambers: the Treasury and the Scripture Treasury.

The vault door was wide open, but the inside was completely empty, without a single ounce of gold or silver. Upon further inspection of the scripture storeroom, the shelves were found piled high with Luo sect scriptures such as the "Five Books and Six Volumes of Scriptures," clearly indicating that it was a den of evil cults.

Just as they were investigating, a soldier rushed forward, clasped his hands, and reported, "Your Excellency! There are faint, chaotic footsteps coming from deep within the passage, as if some demon is lurking there!"

A cold glint flashed in Jiang Nian's eyes, and she shouted sharply, "Chase!"

He then led the crowd to travel swiftly along the passage.

The passage was winding and deep. The group walked quickly with torches in hand, the stone steps slippery underfoot, and a chilling wind blew in.

As we walked to the end, we suddenly heard the sound of flowing water, and the view opened up before us; we had arrived at the banks of the Shantang River!
Several small boats with black awnings were moored on the riverbank, with figures on board hurriedly unloading boxes and chests. On the bank, more than ten followers of the Luo sect were carrying or lifting heavy boxes of gold and silver onto the boats, all panting and sweating profusely.

The leader was a fair-skinned man with a light beard, dressed as a lay Buddhist. He was none other than Murong Zheng, the protector of the Luo Sect!
Murong Zheng was terrified when he suddenly saw government soldiers rushing out of the underground palace passage. He shouted, "Start the boat now!"

However, the gold and silver were too heavy, and the ship moved slowly, like a snail crawling, making it difficult to escape for a while.

Seeing this, Jiang Nian was not about to let him escape. She immediately ordered the archers to fire. The sound of arrows whistling through the air suddenly rose, and they rained down like locusts. Several Luo Cult followers were unable to dodge in time and fell to the ground, some into the river, others staining the riverbank with blood.

Seeing the situation was dire, Murong Zheng ordered his men to fight the government troops while simultaneously commanding the boatman on his awning boat to row quickly. However, the government troops were numerous and powerful, and possessed bows and crossbows; how could he possibly retreat?
Suddenly, with a "whoosh" sound, an arrow pierced the wind and struck Murong Zheng's thigh.

Murong Zheng groaned and staggered onto the boat, whereupon he was tightly bound by the soldiers and rendered unable to move.

The remaining people either died or surrendered.

The gold and silver on those boats were all seized by the government soldiers, and the boxes were carried back to shore and piled up like mountains.

Although Jiang Nian had seen large amounts of gold and silver treasures before, none could compare to this. After a rough count, she estimated it to be a staggering one million!

As the saying goes, people die for money and birds die for food.

Yao Jisheng, greedy for wealth, was reluctant to part with the million taels of gold and silver, and ordered Murong Zheng to personally escort it. However, the process of moving the million taels of gold and silver delayed the journey, resulting in the capture of Murong Zheng, the protector of the Human Sect, and the death or capture of more than twenty of his trusted confidants.

Millions of gold and silver may dazzle the eye, but they can all vanish in a single day!

(End of this chapter)