Denghuaxiao

Chapter 43 Night Rain

Thousands of thunders were heard, and the rain was like thousands of peaks. The entire Wan'en Temple was enveloped in mist and rain.

In the Chenjing Garden of Wan'en Temple, the bells are gurgling.

Due to the large number of pilgrims, Wan'en Temple renovated many accommodations, some costing a little money, some costing a lot of money. Only the Chenjing Garden located on the mountain behind the temple gate could not be bought with any amount of money.

This place only receives relatives of the emperor or nobles from the scholarly world.

In the Xiaguang Hall, the sound of chanting scriptures can be faintly heard, and there is the scent of Sanskrit incense lingering around the main hall. The Qingdeng Ancient Temple, on a rainy night, looks like a secluded place in the world.

 In the drizzle, a figure gradually appeared, interrupting the tranquility.

This man came in the rain, crossed the bamboo bridge, and walked to the front of the temple.

He was a beautiful young man with a golden crown and tied hair. His body was slightly wet from the rain. He had just walked to the front of the temple when another tall man in green clothes walked out of the temple. He wore a long sword at his waist and had a stern look on his face.

Pei Yunying brushed off the raindrops on his body and was about to walk in when he was stopped by Xiao Zhufeng.

Xiao Zhufeng said: "Your Highness is debating scriptures with Master Jingchen."

Pei Yunying sighed: "It's been an hour, haven't you finished your argument yet?"

Xiao Zhufeng frowned and said, "The Buddhist scriptures are obscure, the Dharma is solemn, and His Royal Highness Prince Ning has great virtues and good deeds..."

"Forget it, Xiao Er," Pei Yunying interrupted her friend's words unceremoniously and sneered: "Good deeds are easy to fail, and good people are often slandered. Come to me and say this too."

Xiao Zhufeng was silent for a moment, and then lowered his voice: "The Queen Mother has been ill recently, and Your Highness offered his own blood and asked to copy scriptures to pray for the Queen Mother..."

Pei Yunying said "Oh": "I see." He glanced at the palace door again and sighed: "It's not easy to be the emperor's brother."

The two of them stood in front of the palace gate. The eaves were pockmarked by the rain and rustled sadly. At a glance, they looked like two black stones standing in front of the palace.

Pei Yunying looked at the rain for a while and suddenly said: "Tomorrow's Qinglian Dharma Ceremony, will you go and light the lamps?"

“I will go down the mountain with His Royal Highness Prince Ning early tomorrow morning.”

Pei Yunying just stared at the rain curtain: "I thought you would light a lamp to pray for her."

Hearing this, Xiao Zhufeng's expression changed slightly, and he spoke after a moment: "I heard that you went to see her last night. Is she okay?"

Pei Yunying was silent. After a moment, he sighed and said seriously: "Xiao Er, why don't you kill Mu Sheng. In this case, you might have a chance to be my brother-in-law in this life."

 Xiao Zhufeng said calmly: "She won't be happy."

"Same." After Pei Yunying finished speaking, he was silent again. After a while, he smiled, reached out and patted his friend on the shoulder without saying anything.

 Only lonely nights with endless rain.

 …

 The temple always looks a bit desolate when it rains at night.

But bleak is better than weird.

In a house in Wuhuaiyuan, Ke Chengxing touched his shoulder and felt a little cold. He stood up and closed the window.

The young man, Wanfu, was squatting on the ground, arranging the scriptures he had copied.

I don’t know whether it’s because of carelessness or because it’s really a miraculous effect. Since Ke Chengxing came to Wan’en Temple, he really hasn’t encountered Lu’s ghost again.

In fact, from the day he planned to come to the Qinglian Festival, Lu's ghost seemed to be very familiar to him. It was not as rampant as before, and he did not fall asleep every night like before. He rarely slept for two whole nights.

 Therefore, Ke Chengxing regarded Wan'en Temple as a life-saving straw.

Even the most ferocious ghosts are like mice seeing cats when they see gods and Buddhas. Ke Chengxing sat down at the table. The monk had already served exquisite vegetarian dishes. He had been anxious for a few days and had lost a lot of weight. Now his heart became more relaxed. His long-lost appetite reappeared, so he took out bowls and chopsticks and started to eat happily.

As he was eating, Ke Chengxing thought of Mr. Lu. Ever since Lu's ghost appeared, he had forced himself not to remember his deceased wife. Those nightmares were scary enough, but Ke Chengxing didn't want to ask for trouble. But now that he was in the ancient temple, blessed by Bodhisattva, in such a solemn and pure place, he finally dared to recall Lu's appearance in his mind openly.

Ke Chengxing fell in love with Mr. Lu at first sight.

He went to the county to collect old debts from the porcelain kiln when his father was still alive. On the way, he encountered bandits and the carriage was robbed. The coachman died of serious injuries while trying to save him. After escaping for several miles, he suddenly found himself in a strange wilderness. , there is no way to ask for help.

　　It was almost evening at that time, and no one was passing around. Wild beasts eating people often happened in the wilderness. Just when Ke Chengxing was feeling desperate, Lu Qian, who was returning home from a study tour at the academy, passed by in a car. Seeing that he was in trouble, he helped him and took him back to Changwu County with him.

 Ke Chengxing met Lu Rou at that time.

Lu Qian took him back to the Lu family. The Lu family saw that he was pitiful because his money had been robbed and he was penniless, so they took him in. Ke Chengxing wrote a letter to Shengjing, asking his mother to send someone to pick him up. During the days when they were waiting for the arrival of the Ke family, Ke Chengxing and the Lu family were getting along happily.

Ke Chengxing still remembers the day he first met Lu Rou.

 He had just escaped from death and was covered in mud and in a miserable state. Lu Qian helped him to a house. He looked at the door of the simple house in front of him and frowned.

The county town is not big, and the houses facing the street look really shabby. The roofs made of mud and hay are not bad when it rains, but if it rains, they will inevitably leak.

Just as he was thinking about it, Lu Qian had already shouted through the door: "Father, mother, sister!"

A clear female voice came from inside, and then, a young woman walked out of the dark room.

This woman wears her hair in a bun, with only a carved wooden hairpin inserted in her hair. She wears a lotus-colored cotton flowered shirt and skirt. She has long eyebrows and a slight look. Even though the hairpin skirt is covered with cloth, it can't hide its beauty. The dilapidated hut became brighter because of this beauty.

Ke Chengxing was so stunned by Lu Rou that he was speechless.

 I never expected that there would be such beauties in such a small town.

 He fell in love with Lu Rou at first sight, and he always paid attention to this woman when he was at the Lu family. Lu's father is a teacher and has only one son and one daughter in the family. Lu Rou's younger brother Lu Qian is studying in the academy and will take the national examination in two years. Although Lu Rou was a girl, Lu's father taught his daughter like other families would teach their sons. She was able to read and write, and her poetry and calligraphy etiquette were no worse than the students in Shengjing.

Ke Chengxing became more and more interested. After someone from the Ke family took him back to Shengjing, he told Mrs. Ke that he wanted to marry Lu Rou. Mrs. Ke did not agree at first, thinking that the Lu family had a poor background and was not worthy of the Ke family.

At that time, Ke Chengxing knelt in front of Mrs. Ke and insisted: "Mother, although the Lu family is poor now, the second son of the Lu family, Lu Qian, is currently studying in college. I heard that he has achieved great success in his studies. He is very likely to pass the national examination in the future. Once he succeeds, the Lu family can be considered an official."

"It's not easy for us merchants to get married with officials. If we hire a girl with a better family background, most of her family will pamper her. I stayed in the Lu family for more than half a month. The Lu family's daughter is gentle and considerate, thoughtful, and well-educated. Yes, you know how decent you are. Once you enter the house, you will definitely not make trouble unreasonably, and because your family background is low, you will inevitably be in awe of us. Isn’t it great?"

Mrs. Ke heard what he said and it made sense, and she felt a little moved in her heart. So he sent people to Changwu County to inquire about the Lu family's character, and got a statement that the Lu family's character was upright. But he couldn't resist his son's insistence, so he asked Bingren to go to the Lu family to talk things over.

 The marriage was settled smoothly.

Although Ke Chengxing was born in a merchant family, he was born handsome, elegant and attractive. Judging from his appearance alone, it is not an exaggeration to say that he was an official son. During those days in the Lu family, he tried his best to be gentle and courteous in front of the Lu family, and he was a gentleman and modest. The Lu family had a good impression of him.

 And the fourteen dowry gifts were enough to express the sincerity of the Ke family.

 In short, Lu Rou successfully entered the Ke family.

Ke Chengxing has such a lovely wife, what's wrong with it? Moreover, Lu Rou was not only beautiful, but also knew how to advance and retreat. Behind her back, the children of the clan secretly envied him for marrying such a virtuous wife.

 Until that day in Fengle Tower...

The strong wind outside the window made the window snap loudly, waking him up from his thoughts.

 The night is silent in the distance, and the mountain temple looks like a huge beast crouching in the sound of rain.

Ke Chengxing raised his head, shuddered, and asked Wanfu who was cleaning up at the side: "What time is it now?"

Wanfu looked at the window in the room and replied, "It's almost midnight."

"So fast?"

Ke Chengxing looked serious and stood up: "Get your things, let's set off right away."

 (End of this chapter)