Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 326 Fish in Vinegar Sauce with a Hidden Knife
On the shore of West Lake, in front of Leifeng Pagoda.

A gentle breeze rippled across the lake.

Looking at the Leifeng Pagoda with its eight sides and five stories, Lin Dao smiled and asked Zhu Sheng and the others who had followed him, "Do you know what is buried beneath this pagoda?"

The Leifeng Pagoda in front of us has actually been rebuilt.

More than two hundred years ago, when Emperor Huizong of Song was still emperor, this place was destroyed by war.

It wasn't until the Southern Song Dynasty that it was rebuilt.

"It has been passed down from the elders."

Zhu Sheng, who was older than Shi Nai'an, stroked his white beard and said, "There are gold hidden in the bricks under Leifeng Pagoda, so there must be a lot of gold and silver treasures."

“It is indeed a collection of scriptures,” Lin Dao shook his head. “But it’s not gold; it’s a collection of sutras.”

He pointed to Leifeng Pagoda and said, "Beneath this pagoda is the Ashoka Pagoda, which contains relics."

"And then there are those things in Buddhism, like the lifeblood of scriptures."

"They like to do these sneaky things and pretend to be good at creating surprises."

Turning away from Leifeng Pagoda, Lin Dao walked towards a restaurant not far away on the shore of West Lake. "I'm not going to dig it up. I'll just let them stay buried there forever!"

These days, life has been tough for Buddhist communities.

Master Zhang, serving as the leader of the All-Religious Association, strictly demanded that Buddhism contribute manpower and funds to assist the Ming King in his rebellion against the Yuan Dynasty.

Given the relationship between Buddhism and Taoism, the Buddhist sect originally thought that Master Zhang was just talking nonsense and ignored him completely.

The problem is that Master Zhang has the support of the Ming King.

He openly and honestly led his followers from various sects to smash up the mountain gate and dilapidated temple!
They started smashing and looting right away, and the bald guys all arrested them and sent them to a labor camp.

The temple on the mountain was demolished, and even the foundation was dug up.

"King Ming has an order!"

After Zhang Zhenren demolished the temple, he declared in a powerful voice, "From now on, no one may enclose mountains or rivers to build temples!"

"The mountains and rivers belong to all the people of the world. How can you bald monks be allowed to imprison them on your own!"

Beautiful scenic spots have all been fenced off.

You even have to buy a ticket to get in.

This is really going against the will of Heaven!

From then on, Master Zhang targeted temples in various places, putting immense pressure on the bald monks.

Outside the camp in the forest, more and more bald heads gradually appeared.

They meditated and chanted scriptures, requesting an audience with Lin Dao.

If you don't see them, they just keep chanting scriptures there, making a buzzing noise that gives people a headache.

Lin Dao understood what they meant; they had all come seeking death.

He wanted to use a tragic death to touch Lin Dao's heart of compassion.

If this leads him to study Buddhism, that would be even better.

Because he understood all this, Lin Dao chose to take a vacation and come to West Lake to relax and unwind.

The scenery of West Lake is best described as beautiful.

Apart from that, it has nothing to do with strangeness, danger, steepness, or magnificence.

Sitting in a chair by the window, Lin Dao gazed at West Lake and admired the beautiful natural scenery.

His entourage was much busier.

Zheng Chenggong and his men were busy setting up defensive lines outside the restaurant.

Lan Yu and the others followed Ma Xiuying to the kitchen to prepare the ingredients.

When traveling, King Ming would naturally not rely on others for his meals.

Ma Xiuying was efficient, and Lin Dao didn't care about delicacies, so it didn't take long to prepare everything.

She instructed Lan Yu, Li Wenzhong, and others to take all the dishes upstairs.

Meanwhile, he was busy washing his hands.

After finishing her work, she went upstairs to serve Lin Dao his meal.

"I didn't cook fish~"

Ma Xiuying was puzzled as she watched someone carrying a plate of West Lake Fish in Vinegar Sauce toward Prince Ming.

She knew that the King disliked this dish, and that's why he rarely cooked fish dishes.

"who are you?"

Looking at the boy holding the fish, Ma Xiuying felt only a sense of unfamiliarity.

She had never seen this person in the orphanage.

Realizing what was happening, Ma Xiuying suddenly cried out in alarm, "There's an assassin!"

Zheng Chenggong had already raised his hand and overturned the table.

The assassin, now exposed, reached under the West Lake Vinegar Fish and pulled out a gleaming dagger.

With resolute strides, he leaped over the overturned table and charged straight at King Ming with his sword drawn.

Then~
shocked.

The King of Light, who was sitting in a chair with chopsticks in his hand, has vanished without a trace.

The armored soldiers roared, drew their swords, and surged forward, hacking the assassin to pieces.

The next moment, Lin Dao reappeared, now wearing a heavy protective suit.

For Lin Dao, this was not the first time he had been assassinated, nor would it be the last.

After all, he doesn't care about blending in with the crowd or uniting with powerful forces; he only cares about his own enjoyment and becomes one of them.

Lin Dao prefers to stand on the side of the vast majority of common people who have nothing but numbers.

His murderous aura was too strong, and he offended too many people.

Such things are unavoidable.

"King Ming~"

Zheng Chenggong and his entourage hurriedly bowed and begged for forgiveness.

Lin Dao glanced at the young assassin, who was hacked to pieces and left a bloody mess, but he didn't feel any pity.

It's highly unlikely that you'll get anything out of these assassins.

“The owner, manager, and staff of this shop are subject to strict scrutiny.”

The outer defenses of the armored soldiers were very tight, making it impossible for them to sneak in from the outside. They could only have been placed in the restaurant in advance as waiters.

"Go back and lock down the city."

Once the threat was cleared, Lin Dao began removing his protective suit, saying, "Especially those who knew I was coming to Leifeng Pagoda today, I'll interrogate them thoroughly."

As for those who knew that they had returned to Leifeng Pagoda today, not many people did. With a thorough investigation, it wouldn't be difficult to find the traitor.

"Make this public."

Lin Dao continued to instruct, "Make sure everyone knows."

"Li Wenzhong, go find Master Zhang, tell him about this, and also tell him to be quick, accurate, and ruthless in his actions!"

"And all those monks outside the government office, arrest them all and send them to the labor camp."

"If you have the strength to chant scriptures and strike the wooden fish, you have the strength to build bridges, pave roads, and mine!"

"Lan Yu, go and deliver the military orders to Shi Nai'an's work team."

"tell them."

At this point, Lin Dao took a breath and said, "Incomplete land redistribution means no land redistribution at all."

"Go ahead and do the land redistribution with confidence!"

"Anyone who dares to stop us, just draw your knife and attack."

"I will kill gods if they stand in my way, and I will kill Buddhas if they stand in my way!"

Those who have the capability and motive to send assassins to kill you are none other than the Yuan court, the Buddhist sect, and the powerful clans of Jiangnan.

Lin Dao was too lazy to create any memorable crime-solving scenes.

Just wipe them all out!
The Red Turban Army in various places quickly sprang into action.

Zhang Zhenren's movements became even faster.

He invited relatives and friends from various temples to help clean up the Buddhist temples.

Upon learning the news, Shi Nai'an flew into a rage and lost his last shred of composure.

For the powerful and wealthy families in various counties and townships, a direct and forceful purge was carried out.

The news inevitably reached the army, and the generals leading troops in the field expressed their loyalty in various ways.

"You disobeyed military orders and left the camp without permission."

In the camp, Lin Dao looked at Chang Yuchun, who was pleading guilty, and said, "He deserves to be executed."

"To see the King is well," Chang Yuchun bowed, "I have no regrets even in death!"

Meeting Chang Yuchun's eyes, Lin Dao remained silent for a moment before saying, "Suspend your military post and go home to reflect on your actions."

"I accept the order!" Chang Yuchun did not hesitate at all, bowed, and prepared to leave.

Lin Dao then asked, "Did you make any arrangements before leaving?"

Chang Yuchun, bowing his head in greeting, replied, "This humble general has entrusted the troops in the army to Fu Youde for command."

"In that case, order Fu Youde to go south and recover Fujian Province."

"Tell Fu Youde that there are many Semu people in Fujian Province, including a lot of land squid, and they must be cleaned up."

"Leader!"

Having been suspended from his military post and stripped of his credit for seizing the provincial capital, Chang Yuchun arrived at the house where the Lan family lived and went straight to sleep.

When I woke up, the room smelled delicious with the aroma of food.

Lan Shi, who was busy warming the wine, saw him get up and hurriedly went to serve him.

Chang Yuchun didn't say anything, he just sat down and started eating and drinking.

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, it's time to sleep.

The next day, Lan helped him wash up and eat.

Only then did Chang Yuchun speak in a low voice, "I've been stripped of all my titles by the Ming King, and I'll have to rely on you to support me from now on."

"Master, please don't say such things." Madam Lan was not in a hurry at all.

“I already talked to Xiuying yesterday.”

She said, "If the King of Ming really angers you, then it won't just be a matter of suspending your military post."

She said that this was only temporary and that King Ming would definitely reuse her.

"You should rest well during this time."

Chang Yuchun's eating speed noticeably slowed down. "How is Xiuying doing now?"

"This is really something~" Lan Shi's eyes lit up with excitement as she spoke of this. "She usually seems very open and straightforward, but she managed to quietly get close to the Prince of Ming!"

"Nowadays, Xiuying is in charge of all the affairs in the camp and the residence."

"She's really capable, how come I never noticed before? Hey, what are you doing?"

After eating and drinking his fill, Chang Yuchun wiped his mouth, picked up Lan Shi, and carried her to the bed.

"Have a baby!"

Now that military affairs are over, let's busy ourselves with our own family matters.

Taking advantage of his own attack, Lin Dao carried out a brutal purge throughout Jiangnan.

The powerful and wealthy families from various regions who had previously escaped the calamity, as well as the wealthy merchants and scholarly families in the city, were almost all wiped out.

Master Zhang was even more ruthless, wiping out all 480 temples of the Southern Dynasty.

Temples do not engage in production, yet they consume a large amount of resources.

Its reputation has been declining ever since.

Now that they've been punished, they deserve it!

Lin Dao's departure from Suzhou and Hangzhou was prompted by a telegram sent by Xu Da.

The telegram informed the Tianwan regime in Qizhou that a fierce internal struggle had broken out.

Its emperor, Xu Shouhui, engaged in a fierce power struggle with the powerful minister Ni Wenjun, but was ultimately assassinated by his subordinate Chen Youliang, who seized power from the entire Tianwan regime.

"The end? We're doomed tomorrow?"

"What were they thinking, choosing such a name for their country?"

"Chen Youliang, I won't give you time to develop."

Lin Dao defeated the Yuan court's main field army, while Liu Futong and others in the north attracted the most attention from the Yuan court.

In this way, Tianwan lost external pressure.

They originated from dynamic local groups, each with their own members.

They are actually more like an alliance of gangs.

In the struggle for territory and benefits, internal strife is inevitable.

Lin Dao left behind a garrison force and led the main force back to Jinling City to carry out preliminary preparations for the campaign against Chen Youliang.

When passing through Lingzhou, Zhu Sheng, who had repeatedly revised the final version, offered his advice to Lin Dao.

"Our divine might must be displayed! The Northern Expedition must be swift, and our legitimacy must be established as soon as possible!"

(End of this chapter)