Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 279 Zhu Chongba? Ru Jing!

Miaoshan Mountain, Dingyuan County.

On the official road at the foot of the mountain, Cheli Buhua, with less than a hundred riders left, cursed loudly as he fled.

"Damn Southerners, I'll nail you all to a tree and let the crows eat you!"

"You just wait, I'll be back~~~"

On the official road, a dozen thick ropes suddenly taut.

The fleeing Mongol cavalry, riding at breakneck speed, were caught off guard and ended up falling over.

The sound of bones breaking, mixed with shouts of people and neighing of horses, was extremely jarring.

The Mongol cavalry behind them pulled their horses desperately, causing them to rear up, which resulted in even more people being thrown to the ground.

Chelibuhua, who fell off his horse, was dizzy and in excruciating pain.

Struggling to get up, he saw hundreds of people rushing out from the bushes and grass on both sides of the pipe, and from the ditch and pit behind the tree.

They brandished swords, spears, hoes, kitchen knives, and pitchforks, overwhelming the panicked Yuan army.

"elder brother!"

Young Feng Sheng ran over and held up the severed head for Feng Guoyong to see, saying, "I've beheaded a high-ranking official."

"Where are the tooth tags?"

"At this."

"Chelibuhua? And he's a general."

Feng Guoyong was overjoyed and immediately ordered his men, "Take all the horses back to the mountain stronghold, I'm going to find the Ming King."

He encountered Red Turban Army scouts on the way and took the initiative to signal for the heads he had captured.

Soon after, he received news that the Ming King wanted to see him.

Following the Red Turban Army, they arrived at the camp that had previously belonged to Chelibuhua.

"Your Majesty!"

Several Mongol soldiers, bound hand and foot, were brought to the trench outside the camp.

The Red Turban Army swiftly swung their swords, throwing men and their heads into the trenches.

The prisoners gathered from various places were quickly brought here and placed in this location.

Upon witnessing this scene, Feng Guoyong felt a chill run down his spine.

He was from Dingyuan and ran a mountain stronghold with his younger brother Feng Sheng in Miaoshan.

When Lin Dao recruited soldiers before, he wanted to join the army, but he was ashamed of his mountain stronghold background and did not dare to go.

This major battle happened to take place in Miaoshan, and Feng Guosheng led his men to ambush the fleeing Mongol troops on the way, unexpectedly catching a big fish.

Upon entering the camp, Feng Guoyong saw many tanned heads, all of which belonged to Han Chinese.

These were the common people that Chelibuhua used to kill innocent people and claim credit for their crimes.

Many abducted women, disheveled, gathered together, wailing.

Feng Guoyong understood what all of this meant.

He grabbed Che Libuhua's hair, lifted his head, and punched it several times.

The Red Turban Army soldiers around them glanced at the scene but did not interfere.

Coming down from the battlefield where life and death are at stake, people are in a state of high excitement, and all sorts of strange and unusual things happen.

Having fought so many wars, such things naturally become commonplace.

Even more bizarre and unusual ones are available.

"Li Shanchang, quickly inventory and store the captured supplies."

"~Shi Nai'an, distribute the soldiers' rewards immediately, and serve wine at dinner."

"Zheng Chenggong, strengthen night patrols and prevent anyone from causing trouble."

"Du Zun said, ask those women. If they want to go home, arrange for someone to send them back. If they have no home or don't want to go home, send them to the old camp."

The tent curtain was lifted.

The words kept coming from inside, and Feng Guosheng nodded to himself as he listened.

The arrangements were very reasonable, unlike the way bandits and outlaws simply indulged themselves.

The burly, armored soldiers outside the tent kept staring at the severed head in his hand, making him somewhat uneasy.

Upon entering the tent, Feng Guosheng immediately bowed deeply in respect.

"This humble citizen, Feng Guosheng, pays his respects to the Wise King!"

"Alright." Lin Dao gestured for him to stand up. "I heard you killed a Mongol general?"

"well done."

"If everyone in the world were like you, then the Mongol Yuan dynasty would not be far from its demise."

Lin Dao sat imposingly on a stool and asked, "Are you willing to serve me?"

"I am willing to die for the Wise King!"

"Great." Lin Dao slapped his thigh. "I heard you have several hundred men?"

"They are all villagers who built their own strongholds to protect themselves," Feng Guosheng hurriedly explained. "They went up the mountain to escape the tyranny of the Mongol Yuan dynasty."

He was worried about being mistaken for a bandit.

"That's it."

After a moment's hesitation, Lin Dao instructed, "You shall serve as the military commander."

"As for the people in the mountain stronghold, after selection, the strong will join the regular army, and the old and weak will join the old camp. What do you think?"

Give a stick a sweet date.

Since Lin Dao refused to join the mountain stronghold, his men would inevitably have to be scattered and divided into various units.

Thanks to his merit in killing Chelibuhua, Feng Guosheng was able to stay by Lin Dao's side as an advisor.

"I will follow the King's arrangements in everything."

Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately agreed.

He then put forward his own conditions: "My brother has practiced martial arts since childhood and is willing to serve the Ming King with utmost loyalty."

What's your brother's name?

"Feng Sheng."

"Alright, arrange for him to join the Imperial Guard."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Having defeated the invading Mongol army, Lin Dao was preparing to depart for Gaoyou Prefecture.

Before leaving Haozhou, he had one last important thing to do.

Huangjue Temple, also known as Longxing Temple, was a royal temple of the Ming Dynasty.

The temple was renamed after Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne; it was the place where he became a monk in his youth.

Its predecessor was first built during the Song Dynasty, but was later destroyed in war.

It was later rebuilt and became the largest temple in Fengyang.

The June sun blazes fiercely.

The monks in the temple also have to work hard under the scorching sun.

Zhu Chongba carried water buckets on his shoulders as he fetched water from the riverbank and returned to the temple.

Use a ladle to scoop water and sprinkle it on the ground. After sprinkling the water, take a broom and sweep the ground.

Not only him, but almost all the monks in the temple were assigned a designated area to clean.

“Ru Jing.” A fellow disciple came over to shirk his duties and complained, “You say we are a Buddhist sect, so why do we have to receive people from the Incense Sect with such formality?”

Zhu Chongba smiled as he worked, saying, "Just follow the abbot's orders."

In a temple, the most important person is undoubtedly the abbot.

In the temple, the abbot's orders are law.

"It's so hot."

The senior disciple, hiding in the shade of a tree, complained, "Cleaning from morning till night is exhausting. It's better to chant sutras."

Zhu Chongba, his monk's robes soaked with sweat, smiled without saying a word.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead and continued cleaning diligently.

"As pure as jade."

After Zhu Chongba finished cleaning, his senior brother called out to him, "Do me a favor and clean up my side too."

"also."

Zhu Chongba's smile remained unchanged. "However, when we eat vegetarian food, you have to give me half."

The temple was busy for two days.

The walls were repainted, the courtyard was swept clean, and the statues and shrines were bright and new.

On the morning of the third day, Abbot Gao Bin and everyone else waited at the mountain gate.

As the sun rose, everyone began to sweat.

The host, who was dressed in the most formal attire, even seemed a little unsteady on his feet.

Some people advised the abbot to go back and rest, but Monk Gao Bin shook his head and refused.

He knew very well that this was a chance encounter between him and the temple.

Since the host wasn't leaving, no one else could slack off; they had to carry the load.

It wasn't until nearly noon that the sound of horses' hooves could be heard outside the mountain gate.

Several dozen riders arrived first.

He nimbly entered the temple and looked around.

About fifteen minutes later, a procession of over a hundred riders arrived.

"I'm sorry to have kept you all waiting." Lin Dao dismounted and clasped his hands in a fist salute to Monk Gao Bin, saying, "I'm ashamed~ I'm ashamed~"

Monk Gao Bin chanted a Buddhist prayer and respectfully invited Lin Dao into the temple.

Zhu Chongba, among the monks, lowered his head slightly, but his gaze was fixed on the strong men who were filing in.

He watched with envy as he watched such a scene of being surrounded by a retinue.

To sum it up in one sentence.

'That's what a man should do! '

Upon arriving at the main hall, Lin Dao did not bow to the Buddha, but merely glanced at it.

As for offering incense, he had no interest in that.

Having seen too many so-called monks in the modern world driving BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes and riding around with girls, he has absolutely no fondness for temples.

Moreover, this trip wasn't for the temple.

This rendered all of Gao Bin's preparations, which had been extensive and included memorizing many Buddhist teachings, futile in his attempt to discuss the Dharma with Lin Dao.

"I have come here today to meet the masters of the temple."

"I would be grateful if the host could introduce me."

Gao Bin and Shang Ke weren't stupid; they quickly figured out that Lin Dao had come here to see someone.

As for who he's meeting...
After he went out, he gathered everyone in the temple, even the young monks.

One by one, the introductions to the hall were presented.

Lin Dao sat on a futon, fanning himself with a fan.

He watched quietly as the monks, young and old, came to pay their respects.

He remained silent, listening to Monk Gao Bin's dry-mouthed introduction.

Until~~~
"This is Rujing, a disciple of this temple, whose secular name is Zhu Chongba. He is from Gucun Village, Taiping Township, Zhongli County, Haozhou."

Zhu Chongba bowed his head and respectfully greeted the guests.

As per the previous procedure, Lin Dao remained silent, and Gao Bin and the monk would wait a while before leading people out and bringing in replacements.

But at this moment, Lin Dao spoke up.

"Zhu Chongba".

Why is it called that?

Monk Gao Bin's expression changed slightly; it turned out he was the one they were looking for.

Zhu Chongba kept his head down and said, "This humble monk is the fourth in my family and the eighth in my clan, hence the name Chongba."

"Are your family members alright?"

"My father, mother, eldest brother, third brother, and eldest sister have all passed away."

"I wonder how my second brother is doing."

Lin Dao, fanning himself, asked again, "Would you like to continue being a monk?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Chongba fell silent.

He didn't want to be a monk anymore.

But they were also unsure of Lin Dao's true thoughts and worried about saying the wrong thing.

As his thoughts raced, he noticed that the host, Gao Bin, was giving him a meaningful look.

Zhu Chongba's heart tightened immediately, and he put his hands together and said, "Buddha above, your disciple sincerely worships Buddha."

"it is good."

Lin Dao simply stood up and said, "Since you are so devoted to Buddhism, then you can practice peacefully in the temple from now on."

He looked at the monk Gao Bin and said with a smile, "This person has a connection with Buddhism and will likely become the abbot in the future."

“What the wise king says is absolutely right.”

Monk Gao Bin smiled and replied, "This humble monk also intends to pass on the robes and bowl of Rujing."

That's blatant lying.

But that's not important.

"it is good."

Lin Dao laughed and said, "In that case, I will allocate two hundred acres of land nearby to your temple."

"Another 100 shi of grain, 100 bolts of cloth, and 100 jin of oil will be given as a gift."

He pointed at Zhu Chongba and said, "Once he becomes the host, I will send you gifts again, every year."

After saying that, he glanced at Zhu Chongba again and walked away.

At that moment, Zhu Chongba felt a tightness in his heart.

It was as if something important had been lost to me.

He bent over in front of the Buddha statue, panting heavily.

"As pure as jade."

The monk Gao Bin, who had just seen the person off, greeted them.

"From this moment forward, you are my last disciple, my successor!"

(End of this chapter)