Chapter 107: Evil Causes Bear Evil Fruits

At the break of dawn the next day, Zhaoning Temple, located at the end of Chongwen Gate street, was silent and grim, with all sounds hushed.

Suddenly, fifty mounted guards came trampling through the snow, shattering the silence.

The man in the lead was none other than Han San, wearing a round hat and a lapel-robe, with a long saber at his waist and black boots on his feet. Behind the cavalry followed a hundred or so soldiers carrying sabers and spears.

Upon reaching the temple gate, Han San rolled off his horse and charged inside with a dark face. Two martial monks at the gate blocked Han San's chest and shouted, "This is a sacred place of Buddhism; we will not allow you all to act wantonly."

"Move!" Han San shot a sidelong glance at the martial monk and roared viciously.

Where had the martial monks ever seen such a fierce character?

Overwhelmed by his momentum for a moment, they unconsciously loosened their grip, pressed their palms together, and chanted "Amitabha." Their tone also softened: "Benefactor, this is a sacred place of Buddhism. You all carry too heavy a scent of blood; it would be better not to enter, lest you offend the Buddha."

"Do you recognize the clothes I'm wearing?" Han San bared his teeth and pointed at his chest as he asked.

"I recognize them; they are the attire of the Embroidered Uniform Guard," the monk on the left said softly.

"Since you recognize them, why not move aside? Must you force me to take action myself?" Han San widened his eyes, shouted sternly, and strode inside.

The martial monks inside the temple also heard the commotion, and over fifty burly monks armed with staves rushed out in a "swish, swish, swish."

The Embroidered Uniform Guards behind Han San also drew their steel sabers and closed in, the atmosphere instantly turning icy cold.

"Good, very good. You monks are truly formidable, daring to obstruct this official in the execution of his duties. Today, I am going into this temple no matter what!" Han San gave a grim smile and called out to those behind him, "I am acting under imperial orders. Men, anyone who dares to obstruct us, kill them without mercy!"

Having said that, he charged inside like a wild bull.

A martial monk grabbed Han San's shoulder, glared with wide eyes, and shouted, "This is a sacred place of Buddhism. Benefactor, you have already offended the Buddha. If you turn back now, this poor monk can still beg the Buddha to forgive you."

"Under the vast heaven, there is no land that is not the King's. I ask you, is your Buddha greater, or is the Emperor greater?!" Han San asked in a cold, sharp voice.

"This... this cannot be compared. The Buddha governs the affairs of the heavens, while the Emperor governs the affairs of the human world." The martial monk knew this question was tricky, so he thought for a long time before trembling as he spoke these words.

"Yo, so you do know the Emperor can govern the affairs of the human world? I thought you monks were all beings who didn't eat the five grains, each one an immortal who had ascended to the heavens. Move aside for me now; if you delay my official business, I will not spare you."

"Han San, why are you wasting your breath on these bald donkeys? Just let me fight my way in!" Zhao Dazhuang was naturally hot-tempered; seeing the group dawdling for so long, he instantly flared up.

He was seen clenching his arms, hunching his head, and charging inside, causing the martial monks' formation to scatter instantly.

"Charge in and search! Remember, you are not allowed to destroy the Buddha statues. Keep your eyes peeled, all of you!" Han San took the opportunity to shout, and the accompanying soldiers swarmed in.

In the blink of an eye, the soldiers poured into every corner of the temple like mercury spilling onto the ground.

Han San personally set up a makeshift court in one part of the temple. He sat upright at a desk as several soldiers escorted a monk in his thirties with a fat head and big ears inside.

This monk was Huixin, who had been on intimate terms with the deceased monk Huineng.

"You are the monk Huixin?" Han San asked with a cold face.

"This poor monk is indeed he." Although he tried his best to suppress it, Huixin's voice could not stop trembling.

"What are you afraid of?" Han San narrowed his eyes and suddenly shouted sternly.

"This poor monk... this poor monk has been contemplating Buddhist scripture and has never seen soldiers like you, so I am a bit flustered," Huixin replied.

"Yo, don't you have the Buddha's protection? Are you still afraid of us mortal beings who eat the five grains and have seven emotions and six desires? Monk, it seems your Buddhist practice is not yet refined." Han San leaned against his stool and said with a hint of mockery.

Huixin gave an awkward smile, lowered his head, and did not answer.

"Bang."

With a heavy slap on the table, Han San leaned forward and asked coldly, "Monk, let me ask you: you were on intimate terms with that monk Huineng. Tell me, how did that fellow molest decent women!"

"The official is joking, right? We are all monks who have severed the seven emotions and six desires; how could we molest decent women?" Huixin shook his head and directly brought out a great mountain: "Empress Dowager Li is also a person of the Buddhist faith. She is devoutly Buddhist, and it is precisely because she is in the Buddhist faith that our Wanli reign is prosperous in Buddhism and Daoism, and the people live in peace and contentment. This is a merit for all generations."

"Benefactor, I observe that you are covered in a murderous aura; you must have many lives on your hands. Why not convert to our Buddhist faith? Let this poor monk wash away this blood-aura for you, so that you may ascend to the Buddhist kingdom sooner."

"Look, look." Han San's face bunched up in a smile; he pointed at the monk Huixin and teased his subordinates: "They all say the tongues of fortune-tellers are sharp, but only now do I see clearly that this monk's mouth-work is also incredibly formidable."

"Hahaha."

The surrounding soldiers burst into laughter.

Huixin continued, "Benefactor, this is not this poor monk spouting nonsense; it is because you have a Buddhist affinity."

"Forget it. In this life, I only think about drinking wine, eating meat, and sleeping with women. Your place is too cold, too cold." Han San first waved his hand with a smile, then suddenly narrowed his eyes and sneered, "Since you claim I have a Buddhist affinity, then tell me about yourself."

"Myself?" The monk Huixin was stunned.

"Your Buddhist school always speaks of 'cause and effect.' Then, for you to face this disaster today, you must have planted an 'evil cause'." Han San spoke with great animation, becoming more enthusiastic as he went on. "That monk Huineng being beaten to death is also the 'evil fruit' that grew from planting an 'evil cause'."

"If he hadn't planted an evil cause and suddenly met with disaster, then is your Buddha blind? Hmm?!"

At this, the monk Huixin had nothing to say.

"If you won't say it, I'll say it for you. Before I came, I visited many families in the capital. This is not the first time your Zhaoning Temple has had an instance of monks molesting female benefactors. These young women were afraid of ruining their reputations and kept their mouths shut."

"It's just that this time, that monk Huineng ran into a wall, and that is why he met this retribution. Is it or is it not?!"

Under this shout, the monk Huixin's forehead was covered in beads of sweat the size of beans.

He squeezed his eyes shut and twisted the prayer beads in his hand to calm his heart.

Han San, in his high seat, was overjoyed.

According to his many years of interrogation experience, he had guessed correctly.

This Zhaoning Temple was indeed not clean.

He struck while the iron was hot and shouted coldly, "You lecherous monk, why don't you confess the truth quickly."

"What does the benefactor want me to say?" The monk Huixin opened his eyes and asked. "Where exactly have you hidden the woman that the monk Huineng intended to rape?"

"This poor monk does not know."

"You don't know?" Han San gave a knowing smile and pointed to the scribe beside him, instructing, "Write it down, write it down: the monk Huixin says the woman the monk Huineng wanted to rape is missing."

"You! When did this poor monk say that?" Huixin only then realized he had fallen into a trap.

"The monk Huixin knows his scheme is exposed, is too terrified to speak, and is insulting a court official." Han San became more and more excited as he spoke.

"You..."

The monk Huixin was so angry his face turned purple, but upon seeing Han San's blade-like face,

he instantly softened. Han San gave a cold chuckle and continued his interrogation: "Speak, where exactly have you hidden that woman?"

"This poor monk does not know... there is no such woman at all; it is all just you spouting nonsense," Huixin replied solemnly.

Han San did not speak; he tilted his head and gave a look to a guard, who understood and pulled a packet of white medicinal powder from his bosom, poured it into a teacup, and added cold water to mix it.

"Since you know we are Brocade Guards, you naturally know the methods of us Brocade Guards."

"This medicine is called 'Danchang San'; after taking it, if there is no antidote, one will die from their liver and intestines being severed within seven days at most," Han San said, picking up the teacup and walking forward, introducing it as he went.

Huixin shivered and stepped backward.

The soldiers on both sides swarmed up; two held his shoulders, and one pried open his chin. Poor Huixin, a fat monk, how could he be a match for these soldiers? He could only let out "woo-woo-woo" sounds of pleading in his mouth, shaking his body frantically.

Han San took a few steps forward, pinched his cheeks, and poured all the medicinal water from the bowl into his mouth.

"Gurgle."

One could see Huixin's Adam's apple bob a few times, and in a short while, the ceramic bowl was instantly empty.

Han San waved his hand, signaling the soldiers to let go of the monk Huixin. With no support, the monk Huixin "thumped" and knelt to the ground.

"Cough, cough... you, you bunch of executioners, even if I become a ghost... even if I become a ghost, I won't let you off!" Huixin reached his finger into his throat, spat out two mouthfuls of clear water, and then suddenly looked up at Han San and shouted sharply.

"I am the Impermanence sent by the King of Hell to claim lives, why would I fear a little ghost like you?"

Han San waved his hand and led his subordinates out of the small room, leaving only one sentence echoing in the room: "Think it over well; if there is no antidote, see if your Buddha can save you."

"Clack."

After he finished speaking, the wooden door was clacked shut, and the room instantly turned dark.

Huixin sat alone in a daze, his whole body unable to stop trembling.

He and Huineng were both once two dissolute youths from Hebei; because they could not make a living in their hometown, they spent some silver to buy a spot to become monks.

As the saying goes, after eating and drinking one's fill, one thinks of lust; the two had come here opportunistically to begin with.

In this Buddhist gate, they were thinking of women until they were going crazy.

Every night when they went to sleep, they would almost poke a hole in their pillows; in the past, the two of them would at most just take advantage of people.

At most, just touch them.

This time, that fellow Huineng played too big and even wanted to finish the deed with someone, and as a result, he stirred up such a mess.

"Hiss... this damn medicine is so fast, wasn't it supposed to be seven days? Why has the medicinal effect started to take hold in less than half an hour?" Just as he was thinking this, the pain coming from his abdomen pulled Huixin back to reality.

He felt the pain in his abdomen coming in waves, hurting so much that cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

I won't really die, will I?

No, no, that bastard did the dirty deed, why should I have to help him shoulder the consequences?

Having figured this out, the monk Huixin held his stomach and walked to the door, trembling with every step, and shouted: "Officer, officer, I'll talk, I'll talk, ouch, it's killing me, it's killing me."

Han San smiled, walked in with his arms crossed, and teased: "It seems your Buddha cannot withstand our 'Danchang San' after all."

"I... I'll talk." The monk Huixin had a pained expression.

"Someone, bring Master Huixin paper and a brush, let him write it down himself." Han San was triumphant at this moment.

A clerk threw down paper and a brush; Huixin picked them up, lowered his head to write on it, and finally pressed his handprint.

When it was done, Han San took it, scanned it roughly, and tucked it into his bosom as if he had obtained a precious treasure.

"Hey, officer, what about my antidote?" the monk Huixin asked with an eager expression.

"Wait, wait; once I'm done, I'll give you the antidote. If the medicinal effect acts up, just take deep breaths and drink more hot water; that can reduce some of the pain." Han San covered his mouth and smiled, then walked quickly out of the room.

After leaving the room, having walked only a few steps, Zhao Dazhuang came to meet him with a dark face, shaking his head and saying: "I've searched everywhere; let alone a woman, I didn't even find a female dog."

"I, on the other hand, had a harvest; look at this." Han San smiled and took out the monk Huixin's confession.

Zhao Dazhuang's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed: "He spilled it so fast? You forgot, the Young Master said we are not allowed to use corporal punishment to extract confessions; don't tell me you beat him to death."

"Beat him? I just gave him some dirty stuff to drink, and he confessed immediately."

Han San was quite proud.

"Good lad, I could tell before that you weren't a good person." Zhao Dazhuang understood and pointed at Han San, joking.

"I'll just take that as a compliment."

Han San smiled, gathered the soldiers, and withdrew from Zhaoning Temple.

(End of this chapter)