Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 144 Hundred Coin Cliffside Statues
Why are you working so hard today?

In the evening, Zhang said he was going home after get off work and came to Jicui Building to check the homework. He found Zhang Dai hunched over his desk copying articles. There were also many scrolls on the desk, all of which were famous essays that had emerged from the recent prefectural and provincial examinations.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai blushed. He had been constantly on the go lately, and the time he had actually spent studying and preparing for the exams was indeed very limited. Even today, when he was copying these miscellaneous articles, his main purpose wasn't to review, but rather to get some printed and published material.

It would be a real waste to use the woodblock printing production line at Changshou Temple only for printing Buddhist verses and images. Since the technology and materials have reached the required standards, it's only natural to print more content to realize its full value.

From the beginning of autumn this year until the provincial examination next year, it is the election season of the Tang Dynasty.

Although the imperial examination system of today is not as mature and influential as it is in later generations, there are still at least several thousand students in various examinations and those who have passed the provincial examinations. Therefore, Zhang Dai plans to first compile a set of "Selected Essays on Examinations" to test the waters and see how well the public accepts these printed materials.

He didn't explain his intentions to his grandfather in detail, but simply stood up and replied, "My relatives and friends all have high hopes for me in next year's provincial examination, so of course I dare not slack off, lest I disappoint them!"

"It's good that you have such ambition. The situation at court may change again next year. You are not an ordinary scholar. Only by working hard and making thorough preparations can you avoid being affected as much as possible."

Upon hearing this, Zhang nodded in agreement.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai immediately became interested and stepped closer to ask, "Is there going to be another major personnel reshuffle in the court?"

Zhang Shuo simply sighed slightly but didn't say much. He handed the scroll of paper in his hand to Zhang Dai and then said, "This is your homework. I will check it after I return from Ruzhou. I know you are full of good ideas, but right now, preparing for the imperial examinations is the most important thing. Don't neglect the essentials for the trivial."

After saying this, Zhang Shuo turned and left. Zhang Dai noticed that he looked somewhat dejected, and he could empathize with him to some extent. He had worked hard to level up a character to the maximum level, only to have it abandoned and left to languish, watching others fight happily on stage. Of course, he couldn't help but feel lost and disappointed.

Therefore, Zhang Dai never saw himself as a respectful and virtuous minister who would completely submit to the control of the current emperor. While out of office, he used his wisdom and hard work to acquire more social resources and accumulate strength so that he could eventually be promoted to an official position. While fulfilling his duties, he was always ready to take shortcuts and overtake others.

He returned to his desk to continue copying poems and essays, since he had such a database at home, which saved him the trouble of searching for information everywhere.

Yan Tingzhi, the Assistant Minister of Personnel who will preside over the provincial examination next year, was also an examiner for this year's provincial examination. His essays, written by those who passed this year's examination, reveal their literary preferences. If these collected essays could be printed around the Spring Festival, they would certainly have some reference value.

At the same time, once these essays written for the examinations were widely disseminated, public opinion could also play a certain supervisory and critical role. If the essays written by the scholars were truly vulgar and unbearable, they would naturally be criticized and ridiculed by the common people, thus questioning the fairness of the selection process and playing a certain role in curbing the trend of seeking favors and connections.

Zhang Dai had many other ideas about printing technology. Printing books was just the most basic application. To gain a greater social influence, nothing was more important than starting a newspaper.

The term "Kaiyuan Miscellaneous Reports" came into being in later generations, referring to a type of handwritten text that appeared during the Kaiyuan period. These handwritten texts mainly recorded events such as court ceremonies and rituals. Although they had a certain timeliness, they were not valuable political reports.

In addition, there were official gazettes that were copied and distributed by the government to convey news from above and below, as well as changes in government orders and personnel matters. However, these gazettes were less effective at penetrating the public.

From the late Kaiyuan period to the Tianbao era, a major social ill was the obstruction of the flow of information between the upper and lower levels of society. This was mainly manifested in the methods and ineffective measures implemented by Li Linfu to block channels of communication.

While Emperor Xuanzong himself was indeed lazy in governing, and might not have paid much attention to the people's suffering, it would undoubtedly have a positive effect if there were a channel to make all levels of society aware of the brewing crisis.

However, given the current efficiency of woodblock printing, there will inevitably be some lag in timeliness. Forget about daily newspapers; it would be good enough if it could be made into a monthly publication.

If, in the future, a mature movable type printing technique could be developed based on woodblock printing, then efficiency would naturally be greatly improved. What was said in the Hall of Eternal Life on the seventh day of the seventh month, when no one was around, during a private conversation? The next morning's newspaper gave him a big headline.

Of course, this is just an example. If they really dared to publish something like this, they might as well just publish a "Proclamation Against Li San".

Things always need to be done step by step. In any case, Zhang Dai included this matter in his to-do list. He could first carry out some initial preparations, and then launch it when he had the time and opportunity. For example, when the "Dayan Calendar" compiled by the monk Yi Xing is officially announced for use in the future, this calendar can be printed as the inaugural issue, along with some other agricultural and sericulture techniques, and marketed throughout the world. This would undoubtedly achieve excellent marketing results.

Before becoming a media and publishing tycoon, Zhang Dai's path as an insurance mogul had already begun.

The day after the emperor led his officials and entourage away from Luoyang to Guangchengtang in Ruzhou, Gao Chengxin, as the merit envoy of Changxia Street East, immediately led the Jinwu Guard soldiers to surround Changshou Temple. The monks in the temple were all wiped out and captured.

This move naturally caused an uproar throughout the city. Changshou Temple had been established in Luoyang for more than 30 years, and its fortunes had certainly fluctuated during that time, but this was the first time it had encountered such a near-annihilation.

Although Gao Chengxin was a directly supervised official, his radical methods aroused dissatisfaction among many. Moreover, Changshou Temple itself had many powerful and influential followers in Luoyang, and some people called this incident the "Changshou Persecution," and went in droves to rescue the monks who were forcibly detained.

Even Zheng, who was already struggling to make ends meet, left home by carriage upon learning of the cruel blow suffered by Changshou Temple, heading to Jiashanfang, where the temple was located, to offer her support.

Although Gao Chengxin was not good at making suggestions, he was good at execution.

After confiscating all the personnel of Changshou Temple, he immediately ordered that all the answer sheets of the monks of Changshou Temple who had recently participated in the Buddhist scripture examination be posted outside the walls of Changshou Temple, so that these believers who had come here in a fierce manner to support and protest could see how low the level of Buddhist theory of the high monks they worshipped and offered sincere offerings to was.

At the same time, other monks escorted the eminent monks from other temples in Luoxia to Changshou Temple in full view of the crowd. Then, a novice monk stood in front of the temple gate and announced to the crowd that the eminent monks had entered the temple to propagate the Dharma.

Although the various schools of Buddhism have different lineages and are clearly distinct, most believers are unable or unwilling to carefully distinguish between them. What truly attracts their attention is the reputation of the temples and the eminent monks themselves. Therefore, many believers often linger between multiple temples and are eager to listen to eminent monks preach and expound the Dharma.

While Changshou Temple was indeed very influential, there were other temples and eminent monks in Luoyang whose fame and influence were no less than its.

Seeing the arrival of several eminent monks in the temple, and glancing at the clumsy and poorly written examination papers of the monks of Changshou Temple, the anger in the hearts of these believers who were originally indignant vanished.

Some even clapped and exclaimed in the street, "This is not a persecution of the Dharma, but a great opportunity for Buddhism! With so many eminent monks entering the temple to propagate the Dharma, Changshou Temple will surely see great prosperity in Buddhism in the future. The merits of this act are truly powerful!"

Seeing that the atmosphere outside had improved, Gao Chengxin, who had been hiding in the temple observing the situation, breathed a sigh of relief. He strode forward and shouted to the believers who had been indignant before but were now all smiles: "The monks of Changshou Temple have desecrated the Buddha's teachings and been disrespectful to the Buddha, failing to live up to the sincere offerings of the believers in the city. Their sins are truly grave!"
"I have been appointed to oversee the charitable activities on the east side of Changxiamen Street, and I am obligated to rectify temple affairs and tolerate no evil! We have now invited eminent monks from the capital to enter the temple to propagate the Dharma. From now until the winter solstice, there will be a series of Buddhist ceremonies and Dharma gatherings. All believers in the capital are welcome to enter the temple to worship and make offerings!"

Upon hearing this, the crowd in the street cheered again. Although some believers were still reluctant to part with the monks, their slight reluctance and loss naturally went unnoticed in the overall atmosphere of cheering.

As the monks moved in, Zhang Dai's monastery was also separated and officially renamed Pure Land Monastery. He did not invite any monks to move in, but simply arranged for Ding Cang to reside there and manage personnel.

Although the courtyard was not small, it housed more than two hundred men, women, and children. With the accumulation of various raw materials and tools, it was not only extremely crowded but also posed a great safety hazard.

Zhang Dai first arranged for people to move all kinds of miscellaneous items from the monastery, including woodblocks, paper, ink, etc., to the farm south of the city for storage. Some of the core craftsmen also went to the farm to settle down, leaving only their wives, children and family members to stay in the temple in the city.

At the same time, he carried out a major renovation of the monastery's layout, demolishing all the messy buildings and keeping only the side rooms and monks' quarters for living. However, these rooms also needed to be renovated gradually, both to improve the living environment and for aesthetic purposes.

He also planned to dig a large pond in the vacant courtyard, introduce the Yi River into it, and then purchase and cultivate famous lotus varieties from around Luoyang, transforming this Pure Land Courtyard into a renowned lotus-themed garden in the capital.

While other Buddhist sects in Changshou Temple were busy holding sermons, water and land ceremonies, and other activities to spread the Dharma and attract believers, the relatively low-key Pure Land Temple also launched its own flagship product: the Hundred Coin Cliff Carving activity!

(End of this chapter)