Looking north towards the rivers and mountains

Chapter 226 Zen Temple

Since the Sui and Tang dynasties, Buddhist monks have devoted great effort to "socializing," making temples the preferred venues for scholars, officials, and wealthy people to gather and discuss matters by providing elegant meditation rooms and tea rooms.

Han Yuanshan was no exception to this custom.

As a prominent family in Bianliang, the Han family, whose ancestors were military officers and governors, are now known for their scholarly traditions, a far cry from their past.

After disembarking, the first thing he did was visit the Qianming Guangfu Zen Temple, which was originally built in the Southern Tang Dynasty.

Qianming Guangfu Temple is located near the Yangtze River and has a history of several hundred years. It has been rebuilt and destroyed many times since its construction, but today its halls are magnificent and its incense is quite prosperous.

At this time of year, the osmanthus blossoms are fading but not yet gone, and the last wisp of fragrance still lingers in the air, mingling with the sandalwood smoke rising from the incense burner, swirling among the yellow walls and black tiles.

In the afternoon, a procession of carriages stopped in front of the temple.

Han Yuanshan, the Imperial Censor of the Southern Terrace, was returning from Kunshan when he took a detour through Jiangyin, saying he wanted to visit the sutra pillars in the temple along the way.

The Darughachi of Jiangyin Prefecture, Korigisi, had received the news early on and had been waiting in front of the temple gate for half an hour with the prefect Zhang Yang and the assistant prefect Zhu Daocun.

Qorjis was a Mongolian, in his thirties, with a robust build, a round face and a slight beard, and a rough appearance, but in reality, he was meticulous.

He was dressed in a royal blue robe with a gold belt around his waist. When he saw Han Yuanshan's sedan chair stop, he strode forward, cupped his hands, and said with a smile, "Your Excellency, you must be tired from your journey. We have prepared some simple tea at the temple. Please rest for a while."

Han Yuanshan alighted from his sedan chair, nodded slightly, and glanced at the people present: "You are all too kind. I am merely passing by; there is no need for such a fuss."

The prefect Zhang Yang and the assistant prefect Zhu Daocun stepped forward together to pay their respects.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the four were led by the abbot of the temple to the mountain gate.

The layout of Qianming Guangfu Zen Temple is that of a front hall and a rear pavilion. Along the central axis are the Hall of Heavenly Kings, the Great Buddha Hall, the Sutra Repository, and the Vairocana Pavilion. On the east and west sides are the Arhat Hall, the Guanyin Hall, and the Ksitigarbha Hall, etc.

The temple is filled with ancient trees, the most eye-catching of which are the two ginkgo trees in front of the main hall. They are probably as thick as seven or eight people could hug, and their age is at least three hundred years. At this time, the leaves are yellow, and when the wind blows, they fall to the ground like a layer of broken gold.

Han Yuanshan paused under the ginkgo tree, looked up at it, said nothing, and continued walking forward.

Kuolijisi accompanied him on the left, introducing the temple's history as they walked. He said that the temple was originally named "Qianming" and later merged with "Guangfu". During the Southern Song Dynasty, a high-ranking monk once stayed here and received a kasaya bestowed by the emperor.

Han Yuanshan listened, nodding occasionally and asking a question or two, his attitude neither warm nor cold.

The group then entered the main hall. The hall was dimly lit, and the Buddha statues were solemn, their gilded faces flickering in the candlelight.

Han Yuanshan lit incense, bowed three times, and as he stood up, he suddenly asked, "I heard that recently, some bandits from the Huai River region have wandered into Jiangyin territory?"

Kolijis's eyes flickered, and he immediately smiled and said, "Your Excellency is well-informed. It is true. In late August, a group of bandits, about fifty in number, came from the direction of Changzhou. They burned, killed, and looted near Qinwang Mountain, but were later wiped out by the government troops."

"Sweeped away by government troops?" Han Yuanshan handed the incense to the young novice beside him, patting the ash off his hands. "I heard they hired salt merchants to do it?"

Koligis glanced at Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang understood, stepped forward, and asked in a calm and unhurried voice, "May I ask who you heard these words from, Your Excellency?"

Han Yuanshan's gaze fell on Zhang Yang's face, and he said, "There's no smoke without fire. You don't need to try to fool me. I'm not here to clean up the officialdom, but to investigate salt smugglers."

Zhang Yang paused for a moment, then said, "It's definitely a rumor."

Han Yuanshan glanced at Zhang Yang for a moment, then said "Oh," and casually, "I've heard of a salt merchant named Cao Luo in Jiangyin Prefecture, is that right?"

Koligis frowned, unsure whether he was dissatisfied with Cao Luo or Han Yuanshan.

Zhang Yang wasn't as confident as Darughachi. Facing the Second-Rank Imperial Censor who could control him, he could only vaguely say, "Your Excellency, you may not know this, but although Cao Luo is a salt merchant, he is relatively well-behaved in Jiangyin. He has some men under his command who travel all over the country and are skilled in martial arts. This man—is quite capable."

"It works." Han Yuanshan repeated these two words, his lips twitching slightly.

He didn't ask any further questions, stepped out of the main hall, and walked towards the Vairocana Pavilion behind it.

The Pilu Pavilion is the tallest building in the temple, with three stories and flying eaves. From the top, one can see the Yangtze River. In the courtyard in front of the pavilion, there is a stone sutra pillar with Dharani mantras engraved on all eight sides. The characters are somewhat obscure, but it is still a relic from the Five Dynasties period and is quite precious.

Han Yuanshan stood in front of the sutra pillar for a while, reached out and touched the inscription on the stone surface, and suddenly said: "Zhu Tongzhi".

Zhu Daocun was speaking quietly to the abbot behind him when he heard this, and replied, "Yes."

"I heard you're also in charge of criminal cases in the prefecture?" Han Yuanshan asked.

Zhu Daocun was startled and said, "Yes, after Judge Ma was injured, I will temporarily take charge of criminal cases."

"Has anyone filed a complaint against that Cao Luo recently?"

Zhu Daocun was taken aback and subconsciously glanced at Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang's expression remained unchanged as he shook his head slightly.

Zhu Daocun then said, "I've never heard of it."

"I've heard about it," Han Yuanshan turned around and said calmly, "A salt merchant who not only sells salt, but also robs the grain and cloth trade, and even runs a waterborne freight business, bullying and monopolizing the market. His reach is quite extensive."

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent.

Han Yuanshan looked at them, remained silent for a moment, and then softened his tone, saying, "Alright, I'm not here to interrogate you. You just said that Cao Luo had many powerful men—"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the crowd to the hazy horizon over the distant river, and said, "I'm investigating a major salt trafficking case in Jiangnan. The ringleader is nicknamed 'Red Forehead Band.' This man has committed numerous crimes in the Liangzhe Transport Office area, stealing thousands of taels of official salt, and has even attacked and killed government soldiers—"

As he spoke, he turned his gaze back to the group and asked, "Is this Cao Luo related to the red headband?"

Kuolijisi, Zhang Yang, and Zhu Daocun exchanged glances, and finally Zhang Yang replied, "There shouldn't be any."

Han Yuanshan remained silent for a long time.

He had already figured out a bit of the situation. The officials in Jiangyin Prefecture were deeply involved with Cao Luo, especially the officials below the prefect Zhang Yang—the Darughachi might not have had much contact with Cao Luo, but he must have benefited greatly from him.

Han Yuanshan was somewhat uncertain about this salt smuggler.

Even the prefect of Lianzhou spoke up for him, so was it still necessary to seize the salt fields? It seemed unnecessary.

With this kind of relationship, what can't you do to make money? Why would you have to rob a salt field? It doesn't make sense.

But this person has many suspicious points, and many things point to him, so he can't just ignore them. In short, he is very puzzled.

However, he no longer intended to ask anything further. It was obvious that the attitudes of officials from the Darughachi and the prefect down to the lowest ranks were highly suspicious, and he probably wouldn't get anything out of them; he would have to investigate the matter himself.

Compared to Cao Luo, progress in Taizhou seems to be going more smoothly.

Led by the censor Zhang Ci, a group of seven or eight people conducted an undercover investigation and have already uncovered quite a bit.

Fang Guozhen is indeed problematic. His involvement in smuggling salt is undeniable, but whether he robbed salt fields is still uncertain. Zhang Ci intends to secretly recruit Fang Guozhen's men to see if he can obtain more useful information.

Before his departure, Han Yuanshan received a letter from Zhang Ci, which approved his request. He also sent someone south to Taizhou with some money as a bribe.

Thinking of this, Han Yuanshan suddenly asked, "I'd like to see Cao Luo. Is that possible?"

Koligis then looked at Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang cupped his hands in greeting and said, "Your Excellency, these salt merchants are quite suspicious and may not be willing to come to see you."

"Is it not even allowed here at Qianming Guangfu Zen Temple?" Han Yuanshan asked.

Zhang Yang was about to speak again when Koligis quietly tugged at his sleeve.

He immediately understood and said, "I can send someone to look for Cao Luo, but I don't know how long the Grand Secretary will stay here."

"At most three days," Han Yuanshan said.

"I will do my best," Zhang Yang said, bowing again.

Han Yuanshan nodded slightly and said, "Then I will wait here. If you have nothing else, you may leave."

Koligis and the other two bowed and took their leave.

On the way out, none of the three took the initiative to speak.

As they approached the sedan chair, Korigis looked at Zhang and Zhu and said, "It seems that Vice Minister Han has discovered something. It appears that Cao Luo may be carrying other secrets."

Zhang Yang remained silent, but Zhu Daocun couldn't help but say, "Cao Luo has no household registration in Jiangyin. He seems to have appeared out of nowhere. Based on my speculation, this person is definitely not from Jiangyin. He may have another identity in other prefectures or counties. We should be careful."

Zhang Yang glanced at Zhu Daocun but didn't agree.

Was Zhu Daocun the only one who thought of this? Obviously not.

Given the current situation, Zhang Yang privately believes that before reorganizing the Patrol and Inspection Division's combat capabilities, it is best not to touch Cao Luo for the time being. It is better to maintain a situation where he can be requisitioned at any time, while also keeping a certain distance.

"We still need to investigate," said Darughachi Khorijs. "Even if he's not the Southern Censor, we should still have some understanding of Cao Luo's background. Let's leave this matter to him."

Koligis pointed at Zhu Daocun and said, "Go and check, don't miss anything."

"Yes," Zhu Daocun replied.

"Let's leave it at that for now." Korigis wiped non-existent sweat from his face and said, "Be careful when you investigate, and don't alert the enemy."

Zhang Yang nodded slightly.

Zhu Daocun bowed deeply and said, "I will know my limits."

Without another word, Korigis got into his sedan chair and returned to the state office.