Chapter 79 Little Monk

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"There are four hundred and eighty temples in the Southern Dynasties, and many towers are in the mist."

In the Six Dynasties, there were still 480 temples, but now, there are more than 4,800 temples.

Just say that there are more than a dozen famous temples in the Jinling City in front of you, and the small courtyard temples are even more numerous and cannot be counted in detail.

Looking at the dim sky and closed doors, Qin Hao joked: I didn't expect to have to sleep on the streets after entering the city. It would be better to be outside the city, where there is a shack for shelter.

Zhuge Xuan sneered. The houses near the city gate were all small and small, and merchants and restaurants would definitely not do business here.

There is no market management system in the Ming Dynasty. Merchants can open their shops wherever they want. It’s up to you. Small merchants and hawkers will choose to set up their stalls in places with high flow of people like the city gate, but those big merchants will not. Most of them will They still gathered in the most prosperous street of Jinling City, forming a market scale.

However, they had just arrived and didn't know where they were. Jinling City was so big that they couldn't find it for a while.

When asked about Chen Hu, he shook his head and didn't know. A dozen people stood still on the street in a daze.

At this moment, he happened to meet the soldiers who had just guarded the gate. The leading guard took one look at the few people and knew that they had not found a place to stay.

He didn't know what happened today, so out of kindness he shouted to them: "Go to Jiming Temple and take a look. They take in the guests there." After that, he pointed out the direction.

Zhuge Xuan was worried and went up to ask carefully. When he came back, he acted as a guide and started leading the way.

Jiming Temple is located on the eastern foot of Jilong Mountain in Jinling City. It was built in the first year of Yongkang in the Western Jin Dynasty and has a history of more than 1,300 years. It is one of the oldest Buddhist temples and royal temples in Jinling, and its incense has always been strong. , has been known as "the first temple in the Southern Dynasties" and the first among the "four hundred and eighty temples in the Southern Dynasties" since ancient times.

After climbing the quiet mountain road for half an hour, we finally arrived at the so-called Jiming Temple.

This temple is really majestic and towering. At a glance, there are dozens of temples, large and small, arranged in rows.

The cold dew on both sides of the mountain road gradually rose with the moonlight. It was not a good idea to stand outside the door blowing the cold wind, so Qin Hao asked Zhao Chang to knock on the door.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

After knocking on the door for half a cup of tea, no one responded at the door.

There is no one in this huge temple.

Just when he was doubting, a scolding voice suddenly came from behind him.

"Stop knocking. If you break your finger, no one will open the door."

Qin Hao looked back and saw that he was a young man, not very old, about 12 or 3 years old. He was wearing a gray-blue rough coat and had a shaved head.

He is a young novice monk.

"Are you from this temple?" Qin Hao asked.

"Yes." The little novice monk responded and took a few steps closer with the oil lamp.

At this time, the little novice monk also saw Qin Hao and others clearly, and he suddenly panicked. His little heart was so frightened that his voice was trembling and no longer as high-spirited as before.

"Who are you and what are you doing?"

Jiming Temple is one of the largest temples in Jinling City. Pedestrians and benefactors stay here every day. His duty is to welcome them and arrange their accommodation.

I thought the person knocking on the door was a passerby who was staying overnight, so I came to take a look. Unexpectedly, I met a group of "strong men".

Just when he was about to go back and report to the abbot, he found that his feet were in the air.

"Little master, we don't mean any harm. We just want to stay for one night. I don't know if it's okay."

"No!" The little novice monk refused.

This large group of dozens of people all carried knives. Even if they said they were not bad people, no one would believe them.

Qin Hao signaled Zhao Chang to put him down. After the little novice monk landed on the ground, he said, "We are really not bad people. We are government servants. We passed by here and saw that it was too late, so we went up the mountain to seek shelter."

Qin Hao didn't want to get entangled, so he lied and asked Chen Hu to show him the sword order. As he expected that he was a young novice who couldn't read, he said it was a case order sent from above.

"Is it really an official passing by?" The little novice monk took the case order with hesitation and thought about showing it to the abbot, but seeing that it was getting so late, the abbot might have fallen asleep.

"Little master, we are really bad officials." Zhuge Xuan also stepped forward to smooth things over.

The little novice monk looked at Qin Hao, then at Zhuge Xuan, and murmured to himself: These two seem to be kind-hearted, why don't you let them stay for one night?

After thinking for a moment, he relaxed and said, "Come with me."

With these words, they can be considered as having a place to stay tonight.

"The place where you knocked on the door before was the main hall. It is open every day until Shen time, so that people who go up the mountain can burn incense and worship Buddha. However, our temple is different from other places. It is very accurate to seek marriage. Generally, most of the people who come up the mountain are young men and female guests. . I think the two young masters are well-born, and I’m not afraid of finding a good marriage.”

Along the way, the little novice monk felt relieved and began to introduce Jiming Temple with Qin Hao and Zhuge Xuan.

"I think the young master will also have a good marriage in the future." When someone said something nice, he couldn't stay silent, so he replied like this.

The young novice also smiled and continued to lead the way.

This was not to mock the young master, but because Qin Hao saw that he had no scars on his head, he was probably a half-way monk who would eventually return to secular life.

If a wealthy family in the private sector has few heirs or is experiencing many disasters, they will send their children to serve as monks in temples for a few years to pray for peace and no disaster at home. This was most popular in the Ming Dynasty.

After all, who told Zhu Yuanzhang to have been a monk in his early years? There is no shortage of star power in any era.

After passing a few small paths, we arrived at the back mountain, which is the place for overnight stay in the temple. There are many side rooms, about 40 to 50, and some of them are already occupied.

"You can live in this area. There are beddings in the rooms. If you need anything, come to me. I live in the third room in a row." The little monk enthusiastically arranged accommodation for everyone.

"If it's okay, I'll leave first."

He still has to worship early tomorrow. If he sleeps late, he will probably doze off during the morning worship and get scolded.

"Thank you!" Qin Hao thanked him and waited for the little monk to leave before entering the house.

The 12 of them were divided into three side rooms. Qin Hao, Zhuge Xuan, Zhao Chang, and Chen Hu lived in one room, and the other guards lived in the other two rooms, not far apart, all within a hundred steps.

After lighting two oil lamps, the room was still not bright, with only a faint light, and people's faces could be seen clearly.

"What do you say tomorrow?" Qin Hao asked.

According to the planned plan, they should have found a big merchant in Jinling to sell goods, but now that they have a new target, this plan is naturally scrapped.

This Yingtian Prefecture Governor Ruan Dacheng must be discussed, but Qin Hao himself does not want to go.

Although the Ming Dynasty does not have the kneeling ceremony of the Qing Dynasty, there are still many red tapes, and the visiting card and the bowing ceremony are also indispensable.

Moreover, Qin Hao thinks that he is not a good talker, and if he goes to see Ruan Dacheng, he may fight.

"Sir, let Chen Hu take me to see Ruan Dacheng tomorrow, and I will discuss with him." Zhuge Xuan volunteered. He also knew his master's temper and was not suitable for dealing with such official disputes.

"Okay!" Since someone is going, Qin Hao is naturally happy, "I feel relieved with you here."

Zhuge Xuan is definitely the most suitable candidate. He is eloquent and good at understanding people's hearts. There are few problems in government affairs that he cannot solve. He has to deal with Ruan Dacheng, a veteran official.

The main task of their coming to Jiangnan is this, so in this way, most of it is solved.

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