Tongchen was already over sixty years old, and the monks accompanying him were older. In front of everyone, he and Zhang Mo were just two children. Due to the large age difference, the two of them looked quite awkward walking among a group of old monks.

.

It stands to reason that when a guest comes to the door, Tongchen, as the host, should maintain a harmonious atmosphere, but Tongchen only leads the two of them forward slowly and does not take the initiative to talk to them.

Feeling that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, he turned to look at Zhang Mo, but Zhang Mo just looked back and had no intention of speaking.

I wanted to say something to break the deadlock, but I swallowed my words again. I came here to ask for help. If I acted too easy-going, I would easily be looked down upon by the Shaolin Temple.

The Main Hall is a place where the Buddha is enshrined, not a place to receive guests, while the Zen Room is a living place for monks, not a place to receive guests. Shaolin Temple also has a place dedicated to receiving distinguished guests, which is the East Hall located on the east side of the Main Hall.

Shaolin Temple is the ancestral home of Zen Buddhism and the largest temple in China. There are many palaces and monks' residences in the temple. Due to the age, many of the palaces and monks' residences are old and mottled. However, although the buildings in the temple are old, they do not appear dilapidated and are solemn.

There is a hint of solemnity, but there are also toads jumping and screaming in the temple, destroying the tranquility and solemnity that this Buddhist holy place should have.

On the way to the East Hall with the monk, I kept thinking about how I should talk to Tongchen next.

After half a stick of incense, the two of them were led by Tong Chen and others to the east hall. The guests and hosts took their seats. The accompanying old monks did not leave, but sat at the bottom of Tong Chen.

After sitting down, a young novice immediately brought tea. Tongchen raised his hand slightly and said, "Take some tea, please."

"Thank you so much, Master," he said, and then got straight to the point, "Although you are outsiders, you care about the country and the people's livelihood. You have previously suppressed rebellions and corrected deviations, causing many deaths and injuries among the monks in the temple. Your Majesty expresses gratitude to the Shaolin Temple.

I am grateful for the sacrifice of the Shaolin monks, so I sent the two of us to visit the masters and the monks in the temple."

All the old monks had expressionless faces at first.

Hearing the words, my heart felt warm and everyone's face showed relief.

"The Emperor is concerned about us. Although we are monks, our family and country are in trouble. Naturally, we cannot just sit back and watch," Tongchen said in a deep voice. "It's just that we are vulgar and clumsy, have no military skills, are not useful, and have let down the expectations of the Emperor and the people."

"Master's words are serious," he said. "Although Master took command to suppress the rebellion, although he suffered many setbacks, he set an example for monks and martial arts practitioners all over the world. Although the previous wars were not satisfactory, it was not that Master had no way of commanding his troops.

But the master and the monks are good-natured and virtuous, and are not as cunning and despicable as their opponents."

"Namo Amitabha." Tongchen clasped his hands and chanted the Buddha.

He said, "Master, the emperor asked me to say hello to you and all the masters on his behalf. Recently, there is a famine all over the country. The Shaolin monks are the heroes of the imperial court. The emperor is worried that the food and grass in the Shaolin Temple will not be sustainable, so he specially ordered the Ministry of Household Affairs to squeeze out 50,000 yuan of silver.

Two, fifty thousand dans of rice and grain are for the expenses of the masters and the monks in the temple."

As soon as these words came out, all the monks, including Tongchen, were moved and clasped their hands and chanted Buddha's name.

Monk practice strives to be empty of all four elements and have a mind as calm as water. They are not easily moved, but whether they are moved depends not only on their personal temperament, but also on what the other party has done. Fifty thousand taels of silver and fifty thousand dans of grain are very scary figures, especially in the

In the year of great disaster, it is particularly precious. No matter how many good words you say, it is not as touching as real money and silver.

As the saying goes, if you are not a family member, you do not know how valuable firewood and rice are. Although you are no longer in charge of the household department, you are still a family member. You know how much 50,000 taels of silver and 50,000 dans of grain are worth. There are two reasons why he is so generous. First,

Although the Tongchen commanders always suffered defeats, they cannot deny the huge sacrifices made by the Shaolin Temple in the process of revolting. They did try their best and suffered many casualties. Even if they were defeated, they should be treated well, otherwise they would be cold-blooded.

Heart.

Second, they had to ask the Shaolin Temple to come out and rush all the way to Gupo Mountain on Lingnan Road to fight against the Japanese pirates. This was a crucial battle. The Japanese pirates were bound to make a desperate move. This battle was very dangerous, and those who participated in the battle might not come back alive.

It's really unreasonable to ask people to sacrifice their lives if they don't show some sincerity.

Tongchen is not stupid. Hearing what he said, he immediately guessed that the imperial court had something to ask for, because everything has a degree. If it was just a simple condolence and visit, ten thousand loads of grain would already be a generous gift. Such a terrifying gift was beyond the limit.

the scope of visitation.

"Namo Amitabha," Tongchen announced the Buddha's name, then turned to speak calmly, "The emperor and prince are in your thoughts, and everyone in the Shaolin Temple is grateful. The monks meditate and recite the Buddha, do not work, and only eat one meal a day. It is already a lot of panic. The court

How can I be ashamed to accept such a generous gift?"

I didn’t know Tongchen well, but after hearing Tongchen’s words, I immediately thought highly of Tongchen. As the saying goes, he who knows others is wise, and he who knows himself is wise. Tongchen can clearly realize that monks don’t work.

You should not occupy too much rice. This alone shows that the person is of high moral character, upright and generous.

"Master's words are wrong," Zhengse said. "You and all the monks in Shaolin Temple who participated in countering the rebellion are heroes of the Tang Dynasty. The imperial court will never forget your efforts and sacrifices."

When smart people talk to each other, they never need to argue or bargain, because both parties know what they can do for each other and what the other party may need to pay for themselves.

"Although the Shaolin monks are outsiders, they are also citizens of the Tang Dynasty. When our family and country are in trouble, we should do our best," Tongchen said in a deep voice, "Since it is a gift from the emperor, the Shaolin Temple can only accept it shamelessly."

Seeing that Tongchen agreed to accept the money and rice, he felt very happy. Before that, the monks had given him the impression of being stubborn, pedantic and stubborn. He never thought that Tongchen could be so understanding of people. As the saying goes, eating the emperor's salary will serve the emperor.

To share the worries, since Tongchen decided to accept the money, rice and grain from the imperial court, he said

He will spare no effort to contribute to Datang in the future.

Zhang Mo on the side did not expect that he could reach a tacit understanding with Tongchen so easily and quickly. Thinking about it carefully, a large part of the reason why the two of them could reach a tacit understanding so quickly was because of their generous spending. In the year of great disaster, everyone's life was miserable.

It's not easy, and the Shaolin Temple is no exception. This amount of money, rice, and food is enough to ensure that the tens of thousands of monks in Shaolin will not go hungry.

Now that the tacit understanding has been reached, it is time for Tongchen to express his position, and the expression of his position is also knowledgeable. You cannot directly ask the court what the Shaolin Temple needs, otherwise it will appear that it is not a tacit understanding but a deal. Tongchen is so old, this is the truth

He naturally understood, and then he cleverly asked about the recent war situation, and seemingly unintentionally revealed what the Japanese pirates had done in Gupo Mountain, and the real reason why the Shaolin Temple was infested by the snake-worm plague.

No matter how profound their spiritual practice and easy-going temperaments are, the old monks including Tongchen can't stand being noisy by toads and crows day and night for seven or eight days. After learning that this incident was caused by Japanese pirates, Tongchen and all the old monks

After exchanging glances, the monk took the initiative to express his willingness to send Shaolin monks to expel the Japanese pirates and protect China.

Over a cup of tea, important matters were settled. There was no awkward pleading, no forcing others to make things difficult, just smooth flow and silent understanding.

"The Japanese pirates are cunning and ferocious. Going to Lingnan is very dangerous," he asked in a deep voice. "No one who is a master of purple energy is allowed to risk his life. May I ask, master, how many masters of purple energy are there in Shaolin Temple who can go on expeditions?"

After thinking for a while, Tongchen said, "Including Lao Na and all the uncles and uncles, there should be eighty-five people."

"Elders, please don't be alarmed," he said. "As the abbot, you cannot leave without permission."

"Sixty." Tongchen said.
Chapter completed!