The master comes down the mountain: I don’t want to be a son-in-law

On the Yedou Peak of Mount Wutai, there is a small temple, less than half an acre in area, with only three rooms.

At this time, a little monk came hurriedly and knocked on the closed door.

“Master! Master Huideng! Something happened in Qianfogou! Something happened to Master Xiankong…”

The door creaked open with a sound that carried a hint of antiquity and decay, as if the door had not been opened for a very long time.

The little monk suddenly became respectful, carefully lifted his legs and stepped over the not-so-high threshold.

He walked through the spotless hall and came to the Zen room in the middle.

But it was empty inside, with nothing but a cushion on the floor. The walls and floor were so clean that they looked as if they had just been polished with 7,000-grit sandpaper, and were covered with a layer of sacred light.

A voice came from the void behind him: "Go and call Xingkong. I'll wait for him by the Black Dragon Pond."

The little monk quickly turned around, said "yes" respectfully, and ran down the mountain.

……

There is no dragon in the Black Dragon Pond, it is just a small mountain spring.

It rained a lot some time ago and the spring water is very clear.

An old man with white hair and beard stood by the spring, looking at his reflection in the water, wondering what he was thinking about.

There were footsteps behind me.

"Master, you finally came out of seclusion!"

The tall monk bowed, put his palms together, and a hint of excitement appeared on his face.

"Xingkong, how long have I not had a haircut?" the white-haired old man said self-pityingly.

Xingkong was stunned, as if he felt that the old master's question had a profound meaning, but it was difficult to figure out. After thinking for a while, he said: "The growth of hair can tell the years, and the quiet spring can reflect the sky."

I thought this was a very good verse, but the old monk shook his head and said, "You, if you don't have Zen in your heart, don't try to meditate on it. I'm just asking you, how long has it been since I cut my hair?"

"This..." Xingkong was still feeling proud, but he didn't expect to be scolded by his master. He didn't dare to show off anymore, so he said honestly: "You haven't had your hair cut since you went into seclusion."

"Oh, that must be hundreds of years, right? I haven't gotten rid of my worries after hundreds of years, and they are still growing. Do you think my understanding is too low?"

"Master is the greatest Buddhist in the past five hundred years, how could his enlightenment be so low?"

"Hey, you can say this in Mount Wutai, but don't say it outside. Just a few years ago, I saw in Lingtai that the land south of the Yangtze River was filled with Buddha's light. There must be a great monk who has attained enlightenment. He saw the Tathagata before me, and his Buddha nature is better than mine. How dare I claim to be the greatest Buddhist in the past five hundred years?"

"Master, you are talking about Qiantang Zhiren, right?"

"Oh, you know him?"

"I met him once when I went to Qiantang many years ago. He was an expert at Zen meditation and wit. A few years ago, he suddenly passed away by the Qiantang Lake and turned into a rainbow. There are many stories about him circulating among the people."

"What's the story? Tell it to me." Master Huideng seemed very interested.

"Legend has it that he became a monk in Lingyin Temple 1,700 years ago and became entangled with the evil fate of the white snake..."

Venerable Xingkong told the story he had heard about Monk Zhiren again, and then said,

"There are many different versions of these stories among the people. They are far-fetched and hard to tell true from false. They are a hodgepodge of immortals and demons. I just laugh after listening to them."

"Oh, that's wrong!" said the old monk. "It's just folklore and can't be trusted, but the Buddha's light I saw was pure and peaceful, and it's hard to achieve without great merit."

“Master was willing to stop practicing, sit in meditation and respond to the spirits, guard the living prison for five hundred years, and prevent the ghost king from disturbing the human world. This kind of ‘If I don’t go to hell, who will?’ If we talk about merits, Master is no less than Ksitigarbha!”

"Okay, flattery is useless. Do you know why I called you here?"

"Please enlighten me, Master." Venerable Xingkong bowed again.

"Give me a haircut."

"what?"

Xingkong was stunned and looked up, seeing the old Master Huideng turning around, with his long snow-white hair hanging down like a waterfall, covering his face.

"A haircut?"

"Yeah, a haircut."

"You called your disciple here just to get a haircut?" Xingkong was very puzzled.

"Hmm... After so many years, you are still the same. You haven't made any progress in Buddhism! Come, help me cut my hair so that I can meet the visitors from outside the mountain later."

……

Lin Manqing walked into the gate of Xiantong Temple and saw the heavy ancient bell on the bell tower at a glance.

Li Axi and Wu Yuqi followed behind her.

Li Axi said, "Madam, I will go ask the monk about this."

Lin Manqing smiled and said, "When they came to the capital to cause trouble for the Li family, they were not so polite. I heard that the bell has always been rung by people in the temple and not by outsiders. Let them make an exception today. Ah Xi, go and ring the bell and see if the monk will come out to greet us."

Li Asi agreed, jumped lightly, and leaped onto the distant bell tower. He grabbed the bell stick and pushed it forward, and the bell rang with a sound.

The bell rings for a long time.

Lin Manqing listened to the sound of the bell, which seemed to be able to penetrate the yin and yang. The sound was so powerful that it penetrated into people's souls.

"It's really a good clock. There's something special about Mount Wutai!"

Wu Yuqi couldn't tell whether it was good or bad, he just felt that the sound of the bell was melodious and the lingering sound lasted a long time. But at the end of the lingering sound, goose bumps appeared all over his body, and he didn't know why.

Many people rushed out of the temple, including monks and security guards. A middle-aged monk, who was in the lead, loudly asked, "Who is ringing the bell?"

Li Axi jumped down and said, "It's me."

"Don't you know that you're not allowed to ring the bell here?"

"know."

"You still knock when you know it?"

"So what if I knocked?"

"Hey, so you're looking for trouble on purpose! Boy, do you think this is a place where you can cause trouble casually?"

He then ordered the security guards to catch him.

But they were no match for Li Axi. They fell to the ground before they could even touch the edge of Axi's clothes.

The leading monk's expression changed, and he finally realized that the other party was well prepared. He asked, "Who are you? What do you want to do?"

"Call Li Chengzhong out." Li Asi said coldly.

"Who? I don't know the person you are talking about." said the monk.

Wu Yuqi walked up to Li Asi and said, "Li Chengzhong's Buddhist name when he became a monk was Chengkong."

The monk was stunned after hearing this, and shook his head, saying, "Don't talk nonsense. Among the ancestors of the Kong generation, there are only two venerable masters left, Xiankong and Xingkong. There is no Chengkong as you said."

Lin Manqing only then realized that Li Chengzhong was of a high generation and was actually of the same generation as Xiankong.

"You are not of high enough rank. Since there are only two people of the Kong generation left, and Xiankong has already passed away in the Qianfo Valley of Yesanpo, then let Xingkong come out to speak."

The monk was surprised after hearing this, his face was uncertain, and he said, "Wait for me."

After saying that, he turned around and went inside to report the news.

Not long after, he came out accompanied by a majestic old monk wearing a brocade robe. Behind them were dozens of monks, each holding a purple stick that reached their eyebrows.

"Amitabha, I am Yuntong, the abbot of this temple. May I ask your name and why you are here?"

"My name is Lin Manqing, and I'm here to look for Li Chengzhong. Oh, his Dharma name is Chengkong."

"Master Chengkong left this temple many years ago, and I don't know where he is."

"Since you don't know, it's none of your business. Ask Xingkong to come out."

Yun Tong's face changed slightly, and he snorted coldly, saying, "Master Xingkong is of a high status, how can you just see him whenever you want? I want to ask you, how do you know that my Master Xiankong passed away in the Thousand Buddha Valley?"

"Because he had a fight with me, I watched him pass away in meditation," said Lin Manqing.

"What?" Yun Tong was furious. "You bold witch, you destroyed the Buddhist Demon Suppression Land and harmed my uncle Xiankong. You even dared to come to Mount Wutai. Come on, set up the formation and capture her for me!"