In the afternoon.
At the Wuyi Mountains scenic area.
After buying their tickets, they boarded the sightseeing bus. A group of eight people entered the picturesque mountain trail and began to enjoy the scenery as tourists.
The scenery was extremely beautiful.
There were also many tourists walking around.
"Eh!"
"Look at that person on the bus!"
"Damn, isn't that Zhang Ye!"
"Is that Zhang Ye?"
"It's him! It can't be wrong! "
"Wow, Teacher Zhang! I can see Teacher Zhang! "
"That's a big star we're talking about!"
"Teacher Zhang, when are you going to make a variety show?"
With Da Hong Pao on his mind, Zhang Ye had forgotten to wear his sunglasses today. As a result, he was recognized by quite a few tourists. They all waved at the fully seated sightseeing bus.
Zhang Ye also smiled and waved back at them.
Little Wang clapped and said, "Our Director Zhang still has so many fans!"
Huang Dandan echoed, "That's true, that's true."
"Come on." Zhang Ye said, "It's just an empty reputation."
After playing for about an hour, the sightseeing bus suddenly came to a fork in the road. One of the roads was heading to the right and was uphill. It led to another famous scenic area in Wuyi Mountains, while the other road was smaller. There were no road signs or signs, and from afar, not a single tourist could be seen.
Just as the bus was about to turn right.
Zhang Ye immediately called for it to stop. "Stop, driver."
When the bus stopped, the driver turned around. "Teacher Zhang? What's the matter? "
The driver knew Zhang Ye and gave them the green light. Other than the film crew, no other tourists were allowed to board the bus. It was as good as renting the bus for Zhang Ye and the others.
Zhang Ye pointed to the left. "Let's go this way."
The driver looked in that direction and said, "Here? There's no scenic area here. "
Zhang Ye smiled and said, "It's fine, I just want to go and have a look."
The driver suggested, "There's really nothing to see. It's quite desolate over there, and there's only a temple that doesn't even have a name. Even the staff of the scenic area don't usually go there, much less the tourists. The scenic area is very big, and if you want to go there, you won't be able to finish touring it in four or five days.
But Zhang Ye insisted, "Just drive, thank you very much."
"Alright then." The driver could not dissuade him. He turned the steering wheel and drove the bus to the left. "If we go any further, we won't be able to go any further. There's no paved road over there, so the bus can't drive."
Zhang Ye nodded. "Alright, then we'll walk together later."
If he did not remember wrongly, Zhang Ye knew that at the end of this road was the Da Hong Pao scenic area. However, it was completely different from the Da Hong Pao scenic area in his previous world. The roads here had not even been repaired, so there was no need to mention any Da Hong Pao scenic area signage. Indeed, the history of Da Hong Pao in this world had deviated a little at some point. Hopefully, those trees were still there.
The road had come to an end.
Zhang Ye and company got out of the car and walked through the forest.
Ha Qiqi asked, "Director Zhang, this is?"
Zhang Ye smiled and said, "I'm just looking around. There's actually nothing much to see at those scenic spots."
They were already used to Zhang Ye going wherever he wanted to go, so they all followed him.
After walking for about half an hour, the area in front of them suddenly widened up quite a bit. A small hill appeared in front of them. Then Ha Qiqi and the others were surprised to discover that Director Zhang had actually quickened his pace. He did not even greet them and just hurriedly walked forward as though he was looking for something.
Everyone looked at each other and jogged up as well.
"Director Zhang."
"Watch your step."
"Aiya, wait for us."
"Where are you going?"
Zhang Ye could no longer be bothered to answer them. He could only see this fellow standing at the foot of the hill and looking excitedly at a small raised platform halfway up the hill. There were several small trees that were not very tall and whose trunks could not be seen sticking out of the hillside!
He found them!
They were really still around!
Da Hong Pao was still around!
Little Wang looked over. "What's that?"
Tong Fu was confused. "Shrubs? What's there to see? "
"What's the matter, Director Zhang?" Wu Yi said nervously, "Why are you so excited?"
Huang Dandan said, "I don't know. Aren't they just a few small trees?"
Zhang Ye thought to himself, 'How are these just a few small trees? They're gold trees, money trees. They're some of the most valuable trees in the world so far. Just a few tea leaves can be sold for a sky-high price!'
Without another word, Zhang Ye climbed up and stared at those inconspicuous trees from a relatively close distance. It was already past the picking season, so there weren't any leaves that could be used to make tea for him to pick. This was the legendary Da Hong Pao parent tree. In Zhang Ye's previous world, the surrounding area had been cordoned off by the country for protection. It was already forbidden to pick tea leaves and had to be maintained. It was even more impossible for tourists to get so close to the Da Hong Pao trees. But now, Zhang Ye was standing at the foot of the hill where the parent tree was located. It would be a piece of cake for him to climb up. Moreover, he also noticed that the ancient inscription of "Da Hong Pao" on the hillside beside the Da Hong Pao parent tree was nowhere to be seen. It was as though it had never appeared before!
No wonder. History might have gone astray here! The Da Hong Pao trees that should have been famous in ancient times had not been discovered by anyone, nor was there an inscription or a name left behind. That was why this place had become a nameless tree that no one knew about. It had been forgotten by the people of this world and no one paid any attention to them.
Eh? There were signs that the parent tree had been picked and pruned?
Someone had picked the tea leaves?
Who? Who did it?
Zhang Ye was taken aback. He looked around and his gaze fell on a temple not far from here. It was not a big temple and was located at the foot of a hill. There was no temple sign on the door, so it was really a nameless temple. He remembered that in Zhang Ye's previous world, there didn't seem to be any temples here.
Zhang Ye immediately led his group over to the temple. He wanted to find out more about these trees and see if he could rent them. Yes, it would be best if he could buy them. He wondered who was in charge of the parent tree.
…
Inside the nameless temple.
In the backyard. Two monks were talking.
One of the younger abbot said with a smile, "Senior Bro, how long are you planning to stay here to recuperate after coming from Beijing?"
The other older abbot smiled and said, "We'll leave it to fate."
The younger abbot shook his head. "You've really changed. You've changed a lot."
"Yeah." The older abbot had a calm look in his eyes. "My Qingshan Monastery might not be as beautiful as yours, but it's quite lively with people coming and going. I've met a lot of people over the years and encountered a lot of interesting things. Did you receive those gathas I sent you last year?"
The younger abbot exclaimed, "Yes, I received them. Every word of his is a gem."
The older abbot said, "With his guidance, I've benefited a lot over the past year. My Buddhist teachings have also improved a lot. That's why I left the mountain to travel around and come to your quiet and elegant place to enjoy myself. I was afraid that I would disturb your peace."
The younger abbot said, "Senior Bro, what are you saying? You can stay here for as long as you want. I don't see anyone here all year round. The tourists at the scenic spots are never …"
As they were talking, a young monk came in. "Abbot, we have a guest."
The younger abbot was taken aback. "What guest?"
The young monk scratched his head. "I think it's a tourist who wants to meet our leader."
"Leader?" The younger abbot didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He looked to the side and said, "Senior Bro, I'll go take a look then."
"I've been sitting here for too long. It's a good chance for me to get some exercise. Let's go together." The older abbot stood up and said.
The two of them went out to welcome the guest.
Outside, Zhang Ye also led his group into the front yard of the temple.
The two groups of people very quickly came face to face with each other. But this time, both sides were stunned!
Zhang Ye was startled. "Abbot?"
The older abbot was also startled. "Almsgiver Zhang?"
"Aiyo, what are you doing here?" Zhang Ye was amused.
The older abbot said, "This old monk left the mountain to travel around and came to visit my junior bro."
Zhang Ye slapped his thigh. "What a coincidence! Why don't we say that we're fated to meet!"
The older abbot also laughed. "Yeah, my junior bro and I were just talking about Almsgiver Zhang. I didn't expect to meet him here. If this isn't fate, then what is?"
The younger abbot was slightly surprised. "Senior Bro, he's the one you mentioned?"
The older abbot nodded.
The younger abbot immediately looked at Zhang Ye and pressed his palms together. "Amitabha, it's an honor to meet you."
Zhang Ye quickly returned the gesture. "I'm ashamed."
Ha Qiqi, Tong Fu, and the others were dumbfounded. Damn, Director Zhang's reputation was really too big. He even knew someone from deep in the mountains? He even knew a monk? And he even looked quite familiar?
Zhang Ye introduced him to them. "This is the abbot of Beijing's Qingshan Monastery. In the past, the two of us … uh, forget it, let's not talk about it."
The older abbot smiled and said on his behalf, "It's true that no discord, no concord."
Ha Qiqi exclaimed, "Discord?"
Zhang Ye coughed softly and said, "When we were filming last year, they wouldn't let us up the mountain. I beat up a few of their monks, but that's all old news now."
Ha Qiqi, Little Wang, and the others were all convinced!
Beat up monks? I'm gonna faint! So Director Zhang was already this fierce in the past!
The female members of the film crew were extremely curious and kept asking, "Director Zhang, quickly tell us about it!" They loved to hear about Zhang Ye's wicked deeds.
Zhang Ye said in a speechless manner, "Why are you all mentioning it?"
The older abbot laughed heartily. "There's nothing that can't be mentioned. Come on, Almsgivers, please come inside. It's not a good place to talk outside. Let's have some tea while we chat. I'll tell you all about it."
Inside the room, everyone sat down.
The abbot started talking about what happened at Qingshan Monastery years ago.
When he talked about Zhang Ye's fight with the monks, Ha Qiqi and the others were already very excited. When they heard the story of Zhang Ye and the abbot's Zen battle, everyone was even more excited. Even the abbot's junior brother and the young monks of the nameless temple were secretly listening in and were extremely engrossed in the story.
The abbot smiled and said, "Finally, Almsgiver Zhang saw a Zen verse that I carved on the stele. 'The body is a bodhi tree, the heart is a mirror. Wipe it frequently, lest dust gathers."
Ha Qiqi praised, "What a great Zen verse!"
Wu Yi also said, "Master, you have a great state of mind!"
Everyone was also praising it.
Several of the young monks of the nameless temple nodded and looked at the older abbot in admiration.
Little Wang hurriedly asked, "What did Director Zhang say? Who won in the end? "
Tong Fu said, "Yeah, who won?"
The story was too fascinating!
The abbot said, "Almsgiver Zhang won, of course."
"Ah?" a young monk said in surprise.
Another young monk also said in disbelief, "Why?"
The abbot smiled and said, "Because Almsgiver Zhang replied with a gatha: 'There is no bodhi tree, nor is there a mirror. There is nothing, so where does dust gathers?'"
When everyone heard this, they were all astonished!
The way the young monks looked at Zhang Ye also changed!
Even Zhang Ye felt a little embarrassed at this moment. "Ahem, I'm ashamed."
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