After learning that Li Hanlin, who had been the chief of crossbowmen in the upper reaches, had returned from the border, and since he was not in the prince's mansion, then this kid might be in the new Administrator's mansion in Lingzhou. Hsu Fengnian took a slight detour and entered Lingzhou, which was even more romantic than Liangzhou. In the past, every time Li Hanlin was the master of his own territory, he would entertain his friends who had grown up with him. Not once had he disappointed Hsu Fengnian. They would visit the best brothels, drink the most expensive wine, deal with the most domineering playboys, and flirt with the most beautiful women. Hsu Fengnian still remembered that other than Yan Chiji, that old-fashioned bookworm, Kong Wushi had his first time here. After the event, the courtesan had given him a very solid red packet, which made Kong Wushi so embarrassed that his face turned red. He was so moved that he almost wanted to marry the courtesan, who only knew a little about the ways of the world, in a sedan chair. Hsu Fengnian had to persuade this stupid ox not to do anything stupid.
Hsu Fengnian's hair had been dyed black by Blue Bird, and he rode on a horse.
When Hsu Fengnian first entered Beimang, he had paid attention to the post, the beacon, and farming. Xu Beizhi was the same. He only sighed, "Compared to Beimang, Beiliang is still too small. If its territory was a little bigger, for example, if it could swallow up Xishu and Nanzhao at lightning speed …"
Xu Beizhi did not continue speaking.
After Hsu Fengnian and his younger brother Huang Man'er met, they did not speak much. In these years, the two brothers had spent more time together than apart. They had said most of what they could say. Those who were truly close did not need those seemingly passionate words. If they met Li Hanlin, Hsu Fengnian could guarantee that this brother's first words would be, "Brother Feng, Tiger Hill House, let's go!" Huang Man'er had clearly grown up a lot. He smiled less and was more silent. Occasionally, there was a trace of determination between his brows. Speaking of which, it was strange. Ever since they were young, Huang Man 'er had never been close to their second sister, Xu Weixiong. One of them was extremely intelligent, as if she had a mind of her own, while the other was simple-minded, as if she had no mind of her own, so they couldn't get along. However, Huang Man' er and their eldest sister, Xu Zhihu, were only relatively close. Ever since they were young, Huang Man 'er's heart had always been in sync with her older brother, Xu Fengnian.
This time, when Huang Man'er came down from Mount Longhu, he actually knew to go to Shangyin Academy to visit his second sister. He even gave his beloved Tiger Kui to Xu Weixiong. This made Hsu Fengnian feel very surprised.
Before reaching the capital of Lingzhou, he found out from the conversations of the people in the teahouses and restaurants that Li Hanlin, the Great Calamity Li, had a change of heart after being trampled by a warhorse. He had really earned great military merits at the border. This time, when he returned to his hometown, he did not even go to the brothel. He did not stay at home for more than a few days before leaving with his fellow soldiers. This made the frightened people of Lingzhou sigh that they did not understand the ways of the world. Of the four young masters of Beiliang, other than His Royal Highness, who was still frivolous, Yan Chi, who was originally somewhat talented, had gathered the relatives of the Emperor. He had also benefited from Jin Lanting's resignation and became a noble Jin Lanting. Of course, this was only a small Huang family. The Great Huang family had a small Huang family with enough qualifications to replace Jin Lanting. Kong Wuchi had entered the Imperial Army. Now, even Li Hanlin, who was endlessly spoiled by the Administrator, had great accomplishments. The people of Lingzhou sighed with emotion and felt rather helpless. Could it be that in the future, they really had to let that useless Crown Prince become their King of Beiliang?
Since Li Hanlin was not at home, Hsu Fengnian did not go to the Administrator's residence to disturb Official Li, who had been promoted to a second-rank official. There was also Li Fuzhen, who looked at him coldly and disdainfully. It was fine if they did not meet, but if they did meet, it would be even more boring.
The Fish Dragon Gang was within Lingzhou and was not far away. However, Hsu Fengnian did not have the leisure to flaunt his status.
There were clearly many travel-worn foreign monks in Beiliang. Most of them could only stay in the various small temples. There were also quite a few who begged with alms bowls.
Hsu Fengnian and his group followed the spacious courier road that led to the capital of Beiliang. They walked slowly and hurriedly. Hsu Fengnian diverged from the courier road on the border of the two prefectures and stopped his horse at a famous Stop Horse Temple.
There was a rumor on the streets as to why the temple had such a strange name. Back when the Xu family entered Beiliang, Xu Xiao and Princess Consort had stopped their horse at this temple to burn incense.
It was not the first or fifteenth day of the month, and it was also noon, which was not a pleasant time. The sun was scorching hot, making it seem that there were more monks than pilgrims.
The buildings of Stop Horse Temple were sharp and tall, reaching into the clouds. The eaves were scattered, and when the wind blew, one could hear the clanking of iron horses.
Before entering the temple, Hsu Fengnian asked with a smile, "Do you believe in Buddhism?"
Xu Beizhi shook his head and said, "The monks in the temple are mostly infatuated men and women who boast that they have seen through the world of mortals. They are far from seeing through. This is especially true for this kind of large temple where the incense is at its peak. There are very few truly virtuous senior monks. I don't believe in Buddhism, but I don't believe in Buddhism either. I remember the Middle Agama Sutra said that there was a Venerable One who had not seen a woman for eighty years. I have also been to the Buddha Cave outside Dunhuang and saw many pictures of Buddhas cutting their flesh to feed tigers and sacrificing their lives to feed eagles. To me, it is really an unattainable realm. I have also been to the Daoist temple outside the Heaven's Gate of Dao De Sect to read the scriptures, but I did not feel too emotional. My grandfather said that old monks talk about Buddhism with their mouths full of alcohol, young prostitutes earn money to buy the Yellow Court, and children secretly apply rouge on their faces. This kind of freedom is precious. Among the three religions, Confucianism is relatively less restrictive, so I think it suits me more. "
Hsu Fengnian smiled and said, "Then are you going in to burn incense?"
Xu Beizhi said calmly, "It won't stop me from burning incense and praying to Buddha."
After entering, Xu Beizhi distanced himself from Hsu Fengnian and the others. He held incense and prayed in all directions alone.
When he lowered his head, the scholar's face was slightly sad.
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