Chapter 646: 546. Master of Taking Over

546. Master of Taking Over

Ouyang Rong stood up from behind the desk and prepared to leave.

Yan Liulang, who had finished reporting, remembered something and suddenly said:

"By the way, Mingfu, there is one more thing."

"What?"

"The host of Donglin Temple, Chan Master Venerable Shan Dao, has brought his disciples to Xunyang."

Ouyang Rong was slightly surprised:

"Where are they?"

Yan Liulang scratched his head:

"They got off the boat under Shuangfeng Peak and are at the Xunyang Grotto, not yet entered the city."

Ouyang Rong looked outside the hall.

"Sorry to trouble Mingfu to come and accompany this old monk."

"Master is too polite."

Shuangfeng Peak, left bank of Xunyang Grotto.

Chan Master Venerable Shan Dao, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, was still the same, wearing the protective high monk cassock rewarded by the Sage when he went to the capital, looking solemn and immortal, walking on the road.

Ouyang Rong wasn't wearing his official uniform, but a Confucian robe, walking in front.

The Xunyang Grotto was somewhat lonely. The bloody smell of that day had long been blown away by the river wind, and like the fish that had tasted flesh, it had forgotten its memory.

The main grotto was empty.

It was missing a Buddha statue that should have been moved in.

Chan Master Venerable Shan Dao found that the young Cishi was somewhat absent-minded, his steps quite fast, walking in the very front.

Chan Master Venerable Shan Dao quickened his steps to catch up with the young man:

"Mingfu need not worry. The Buddha statue matter is not your fault. Before this old monk came, I went to the county office and discussed it with County Magistrate Diao. This old monk has already submitted a memorial through the Ministry of Rites' monk official channel to speak directly for Mingfu."

Ouyang Rong shook his head and didn't speak.

After walking for a while, he suddenly asked:

"Besides this, what is the Master here for?" After a pause, he said again: "The budget invested by the Master and Donglin Temple will be returned by the government after the autumn tax is collected, or it can be offset by the temple tax collected by the Long City County Office. Master need not worry."

Chan Master Venerable Shan Dao smiled and said:

"This old monk came here not to settle accounts."

"Then what for?"

Chan Master Venerable Shan Dao looked around at the empty Xunyang Grotto and said with a kind smile: 【646

"Magistrate, there is no need for the government to repay the expenses previously invested by this temple. Could this main grotto be gifted to our temple so we may build some Buddha statues?"

Ouyang Rong frowned slightly and asked:

"This is the place originally intended for the Donglin Great Buddha. Although the land belongs to the government, some merchants who participated in the construction of the grotto have usage rights. However, if you want it, it can be given to you; we just need to settle the accounts."

"That is good. How about we do it this way, Magistrate?"

Ouyang Rong could not help but ask:

"What does Venerable Shan Dao intend to do? I am asking because the location of the main grotto is excellent, right at the Xun River fork, where passing merchant ships can all see it. But is your Donglin Temple planning to build the Great Buddha yourselves?"

"Not necessarily."

Venerable Shan Dao replied truthfully:

"If the temple becomes wealthy in the future, we could consider building it, but in the short term, our temple will only set up incense here and carve some murals. Magistrate, you should know that our Lotus Sect's mural techniques are excellent; it is not impossible that we might carve this place into a second Pure Land Underground Palace."

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips.

Venerable Shan Dao asked again:

"Magistrate, what do you think?"

Ouyang Rong looked at the accompanying novice monks, including Xiufa, who were looking around.

Regarding the brand-new main grotto without a Buddha, their eyes seemed filled with curiosity and interest.

Ouyang Rong turned back to look at Venerable Shan Dao.

The old monk smiled and met his gaze.

Ouyang Rong suddenly nodded:

"That is possible. However, the Xunyang Grotto has shares held by some Jiang Nan grain merchants and Yangzhou salt merchants. There are some among them whom you know, Master. The transfer of the main grotto must go through a procedure. As for the government transfer, I can nod in agreement, but you must talk to them; perhaps you will need to pay a sum of silver, but rest assured, they will not gouge you."

Venerable Shan Dao waved his hand: "No matter, no matter, we can talk to them."

Ouyang Rong's mouth twitched.

He looked at Venerable Shan Dao, whose cassock was luxurious, and shook his head.

As expected of a high monk who protects the nation; he is indeed wealthy and bold.

Ouyang Rong suppressed the urge to take advantage of the situation. Under his governance over the past two years, the Jiangzhou government's finances were healthy, and the excavation of Twin Peaks Peak and the construction of the Xunyang Grotto and Donglin Great Buddha had not hindered the livelihood of the people in Xunyang.

It was not like when he first took over the mess in Longcheng County, where he was stretched thin.

Otherwise, he would have had to make the high monk pay up to bail out the country.

"There is one thing I would like to privately request of you, Master."

"Magistrate..." Venerable Shan Dao changed his tone, also speaking in a private capacity: "Please speak, benefactor."

Ouyang Rong pointed to the lotus stone carving on the dome of the main grotto and asked earnestly:

"Could you leave this inscription and not erase it?"

Venerable Shan Dao took a look, nodded, and read aloud:

"'Inspector... Female Historian... respectfully built a niche for the statue...' This is a truthful account; it should indeed be left. That is fine."

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips.

A short while later, the group turned and left, preparing to bid farewell.

At the ferry, the novice monks, including Xiufa, could not help but look at the Buddha's head and hair bun exposed on the great river.

A soft-hearted novice monk pressed his palms together and silently recited 'Amitabha'.

Arriving at the south bank, before parting, Ouyang Rong suddenly turned back:

"Master, I have one thing I do not understand. When the Donglin Great Buddha was being built, why did you not come, repeatedly delaying it? Now that the Great Buddha is destroyed, you have come instead, and you even want to take over the empty main grotto? Is this not putting the cart before the horse?"

Upon hearing this, Venerable Shan Dao's back paused.

The setting sun fell behind him, leaving a faint, shimmering glow on his bald head.

It was both comical and sacred.

"Amitabha."

Venerable Shan Dao turned around, chanted the name, and said with a smile:

"Inspector, because at that time, the grotto had no Buddha, and now, the grotto has a Buddha, so naturally, this old monk has come."

He looked around at his disciples, as if speaking to them, and delivered a Zen riddle:

"We monks come when there is a Buddha, and leave when there is no Buddha."

Ouyang Rong countered instantly:

"If you come and go as you please, do you not save people?"

Venerable Shan Dao's smile grew wider.

He turned his head back, performed a solemn salute, and replied:

"Saving oneself is saving others, and saving others is saving oneself. How can you say, Magistrate, that I save myself but not others?"

Ouyang Rong asked: "Saving oneself is saving all living beings?"

Venerable Shan Dao nodded:

"Self-nature saves itself; saving oneself is saving all living beings!"

Ouyang Rong was silent and did not turn back.

Behind him, on the opposite bank, the main grotto was empty; the severed head had sunk into the river, dim and rusted.

Yet the Master said there was a Buddha.

The next day.

A shopkeeper surnamed Shi, left in Xunyang by Wang Caozhi, came to find him.

Shopkeeper Shi reported on the matter regarding Venerable Shan Dao.

The main grotto had been settled, and Donglin Temple was quite generous; the price offered made Shopkeeper Shi quite satisfied, or rather, he felt relieved.

In this world, between people and between money, what is the greatest respect?

It is not trust, not face, and certainly not "wiping out the competition."

It is the price.

A master is a master; he did not haggle.

Now that the Donglin Great Buddha had been destroyed, the prospects for the Xunyang Grotto were temporarily dim. It could not cater to the preferences of the Sage, and the twenty thousand strings of cash the Sage had invested had gone down the drain. The subsequent level of support from the imperial court was unclear, and no one knew what would become of the Xunyang Grotto.

Moreover, with the benchmark of the Donglin Great Buddha in the main grotto gone, other secondary locations in the Xunyang Grotto were also difficult to sell.

Now that someone was willing to take over, it was already 'Amitabha'; how could the manager hope for a high price?

This logic was the same as goods that were expected to sell at a high price being temporarily piled up in a warehouse. Although it was not too difficult to slowly recover the capital, the original broad expectations were gone, and it was difficult to sell in the off-season. Now that someone had come to the door and offered a price that might have been rejected before, why not sell it in a hurry?

Furthermore, the price offered by Venerable Shan Dao fully reflected his respect for a certain young Inspector:

The manager finished his respectful report.

After listening, Ouyang Rong nodded gently.

As long as the investments from Wang Caozhi and Pei Pei Shisan Niang did not lose money, it was fine. It was just that the scale of their investment was huge, and the return of capital was slower, and it was far less profitable than the windfall projects Pei Pei Shisan Niang had originally engaged in, such as speculating on land in Xingzi Ward.

However, this was a solid, tangible asset that would always make money; it just had a long cycle. The most shrewd merchants loved to chase profit. If it weren't for a noble person like Ouyang Rong pressing them, they would not like to do such slow-return business.

It was somewhat similar to the construction of low-rent housing in Xingzi Ward that Ouyang Rong had promoted after "reforming" Pei Pei Shisan Niang.

Thinking of these things, Ouyang Rong coughed.

Speaking of which, ever since Wang Caozhi and Pei Pei Shisan Niang followed him, it seemed they had only been doing good deeds. Although it was a matter of course in Ouyang Rong's eyes, in the eyes of fellow merchants, these were great good deeds. Apart from the blessing of connections and backers, they did not seem to have made any windfall profits from him, their good brother-in-law and good young master.

Wait, that group of grain merchants under Wang Caozhi had made quite a bit from the Zhe Yi Canal, but that was an exception. At that time, Ouyang Rong was still serving as the Magistrate of Longcheng County, and he was still a bit "soft-hearted" in this regard.

While Ouyang Rong was lost in thought, the manager remained where he was, his expression seemingly hesitant.

The young Inspector saw this and asked directly:

"Is there anything else?"

The manager asked in a low voice:

"Magistrate, besides the main grotto, we have also built many small grottoes, some of which are not much smaller in scale than the main grotto. How does the Magistrate intend to handle these grottoes?"

Ouyang Rong thought for a moment:

"They can be handled the same way as the deal with Donglin Temple this time. If there are Buddhist temples willing to take them over, everything can be discussed, and the government side is easy to talk to. However, there is one requirement: apart from art pieces like stone carvings and murals, other businesses, such as commerce or opening shops, are not allowed. Only Daoist temples and Buddhist temples are permitted to move in.

"After all, this is a place designated by the Sage and the imperial court for creating statues, and it needs to maintain its original intention. It can also be considered as Xunyang culture supported by the Jiangzhou government."

"Yes, Magistrate."

The manager withdrew, but Ouyang Rong saw that he looked somewhat worried.

He was probably also distressed about who would come to take over so many grottoes.

Ouyang Rong raised an eyebrow.

If Wang Caozhi were here, he would have to pat his cheap brother-in-law on the shoulder and say earnestly: In this life, perfection is hard to come by. Everyone is here to take over; if you don't take over, who will? Moreover, if you don't take over this time, there will always be a 'takeover' suitable for you that will fall on your head, either big or small. Be more cheerful...

After Venerable Shan Dao and his group left, Ouyang Rong returned to his previous routine.

Apart from going to work every day, when he was free after work, he would go to live in those three courtyards.

More than half a month passed.

Nearly two months had passed since that memorial was submitted.

There was still no movement from Luoyang. Luoyang and Xunyang were thousands of miles apart, and even if news of the aftermath in Luoyang were to arrive, it would take a month or two.

During this period, Ouyang Rong had been waiting for news from Zhang Shixiu.

As for Yan Liulang, he had already mobilized all the connections and power of the Jiangzhou government, but there was still no harvest.

No one knew the specific location of the Yunmeng Sword Marsh, and those sent to search on the ground had all returned empty-handed; some even got lost within the vast Yunmeng Marsh...

And the Celestial Master Mansion of Long Hushan could also be considered a hidden sect; it was the most low-key among the Three Pure Daoist sects.

Perhaps they knew the location of the Yunmeng Sword Marsh.

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips.

This evening, he pushed open the door and walked into the quiet small courtyard.

It was the place where Xiuniang had originally lived.

The courtyard was as tidy as before.

A swing was drifting in the wind.

Ouyang Rong walked silently to the front of the main hall and sat directly on the threshold.

Having returned from work, he had forgotten to change his crimson official uniform, and his posture was somewhat unconcerned with his image.

Ouyang Rong was quiet for a while, took out a pipa, and lowered his head to pluck the strings.

The sound of the pipa was sobbing, appearing somewhat lonely in the empty courtyard.

This was the pipa left to him by the old musician.

At that time, the old musician had also given Rong Zhen a wooden zither.

Ouyang Rong lowered his head, with average interest, studying the pipa.

This was something he had recently learned.

Ouyang Rong's talent was passable.

The pipa piece he played was also adapted by him.

It was adapted from the zither piece taught to him by Rong Zhen.

Ouyang Rong had not been idle since he returned; he had been striving to comprehend the "Emperor Wen" sword art, studying the zither piece thoroughly and adapting it into a pipa piece, which was also his recent conception.

He did it as soon as he thought of it.

It was just that there was no progress in comprehending the true meaning of 【Emperor Wen】.

It seemed he had fallen into the "attachment" that the old musician had once mentioned to Rong Zhen.

Ouyang Rong thought of the message left by the old musician before he left again.

For some reason, he always felt that the hint left by the old musician was not that simple; it was not just a simple "harmony of zither and lute."

Since the zither he left behind could represent the sword art and zither piece, was the pipa he left behind an extra hint of another kind?

According to Ouyang Rong's understanding, the old musician was the type who was serious on the surface, occasionally acted in a way that seemed not serious, but was actually very serious inside, and indeed very serious upon later reflection.

Was leaving a pipa and a wooden zither also like this?

Ouyang Rong frowned slightly.

Just as Ouyang Rong was lost in thought, a burst of hurried footsteps came from outside.

"Magistrate!"

Yan Liulang burst in.

Ouyang Rong was not panicked and stood up slowly:

"What is it?"

He thought there was news from Zhang Shixiu, but Yan Liulang, who had run over, said to him with an excited face:

"Magistrate, someone has come from Luoyang!"

Cicadas chirped incessantly.

Where the vermilion corridors curved, a expanse of pomegranate red bloomed.

The palace maids of the Shangyang Palace had already changed into thin gauze.

They hurried past beneath the glazed eaves.

The afternoon sunlight flowed into honey color on the nine-layered yellow bricks, and the female officials trailed light silk of lotus root color as they walked through the fretwork railings, their skirts brushing against the newly opened jade hairpin flowers in front of the steps.

The red brick and yellow tile palace walls of the Shangyang Palace were exceptionally bright and beautiful in color today.

They had been newly painted with pigment by craftsmen.

The entire Shangyang Palace had been successively changing to new wall surfaces over these past few days.

The pigment was a mixture of pig blood and cinnabar; besides being bright and beautiful, it also had the meaning of warding off evil.

This was because the Sage, who had come to recuperate and take a walk, had suddenly woken up late the night before, seemingly startled by a dream.

The female officials and palace servants of the entire Shangyang Palace became busy.

The next day, the wall surfaces of the entire palace were changed once.

Mugwort that stung the nose was placed on the door plaques everywhere.

Ever since that inexplicable loud noise that resounded through the entire city in Luoyang, the Sage had moved to this Shangyang Palace in the suburbs of the Luoyang capital and had not returned to the Imperial City for a long time. Every ten-day morning assembly and imperial meeting was held here at the Shangyang Palace.

Some people rumored that the Heavenly Pivot had collapsed, and on the day the Wei clan's twin princes were built, it had suffered a heavenly tribulation.

The Sage was furious; the Wei clan's twin princes were temporarily confined to their prince's mansion, and the officials involved were also successively thrown into prison.

During these days, the court and the public were silent; there were many who gloated or were happy to see it, and many people were secretly speculating about the subsequent direction.

The entire city of Luoyang had spent this spring in undercurrents.

The Sage had even moved directly to the Shangyang Palace, presumably to avoid seeing it and to avoid worry.