Demoness, where are you Fleeing to?
Chapter 202 - 183: All Given to Him_1

Chapter 202: Chapter 183: All Given to Him_1

At the same time, over by the rear mountain of Beigu Mountain, Jiang Hanyun with her beautiful face taut, stood outside the closed doors of Ganlu Temple.

"Liudao Division Fumo Xiaowei Jiang Hanyun has come to pay a visit. I humbly request Master Faxing to meet with me!"

But the broad temple gate remained tightly shut without a hint of any sound or movement inside. It was as still as death.

Having waited for a moment, Jiang Hanyun’s pupil filled with an even more intense gloom, "Master, I know you can hear me! The fact that Lin Ziyang has colluded with the Demon Tribe to stir up trouble is already established. As a highly respected temple, the Ganlu Temple has no less than three hundred thousand worshippers in Zhenjiang and Changzhou. Do you really intend to turn a blind eye and let Lin Ziyang lead the beasts to feast on people, sweeping his forces down the canal, causing a bloody massacre?"

"Madam Xiaowei, please return."

From within the gate came the sigh of a young monk, "This is a dispute among you worldly people. What does it have to do with us who live beyond this world? Moreover, all your statements are merely your conjectures. Lin Ziyang has already sent a letter to our temple, stating that you attacked Tieweng City unreasonably, injuring his soldiers and harboring ulterior motives. Furthermore, whether Lin Zongbing is planning a rebellion, the court has not come to a conclusion."

Jiang Hanyun flew into a rage at once, her Gang Qi bursting forth, shattering the surrounding rocks.

"Are those Demon Tigers and Bear Demons false then? Can’t you see those Mountain Spirits? Where did he get an army of thirty thousand from? Where did he get all those siege weapons from? Are the people of Ganlu Temple all blind?"

This time, within the gate, there was complete silence for a full moment.

Jiang Hanyun’s pair of jade hands began to creak. Perhaps sensing her anger, the whole of Ganlu Temple was covered in a pale golden glow, as if a giant golden bell covered the area above.

"Don’t you understand the principle of ’when a nest is overturned, no egg remains intact’? Jiang Hanyun was helpless. She could only topple the incense burner at the door with a kick, "You bald monks, it’s a disgrace to the hundreds of thousands of devout worshippers in Zhenjiang!"

The incense burner, which weighed thousands of pounds, was surprisingly kicked down the mountain by her foot. After that, she turned around and huffed off towards Tieweng City.

Having not walked far, she heard Luo Yan’s voice from behind, "Madam Xiaowei?"

Looking back, Jiang Hanyun saw Luo Yan, Peng Fulai, Zhang Yue, and Yue Qianqian emerge from the dense forest, with her Xiaowei, Ma Chenggong, among them.

She was taken aback. "How come you all are here?"

"It was an idea Zhang Yue and I had." Peng Fulai responded. "The evidence and culprits from Yizheng’s side have been turned in, and they’re being watched over by Duwei Leng. We were a bit worried about Li Xuan hence we came over to take a look."

He then pointed to the west, "Several directions to the west have been blocked by our troops. So we could only come from the direction of the river mouth."

Ma Chenggong scratched his head in annoyance, "I was afraid something might happen to them."

Facing these children of rich and powerful families, he was quite troubled. Even though they were handy to use on usual days, once they met with any mishap, it would be tough to explain to their parents.

Especially in this past month; although this group of people had achieved several merits, he was terrified and hesitant all along. He felt like he was going to lose all his hair due to stress.

Jiang Hanyun thought to herself that the timing of their arrival was not impeccable. But since they had already come up the mountain, it was too late for her to say anything.

"Let it be! You all follow me. There is a shortage of people at Tieweng City. Since Lin Ziyang is colluding with the Demon Tribe to instigate rebellion, we of the Liudao Division have an obligation to act. But let me make something clear. The battle today carries an immense risk. In particular, your cultivations are shallow, and it is possible that you will lose your lives here."

"We understood the risks when we came up the mountain."

At this moment, Luo Yan, deep in thought, was looking down at the copper incense burner lodged between two huge trees. The footprint print of Jiang Hanyun was clearly visible.

"Madam Xiaowei seemed unable to restrain her anger just now. Was it due to this Ganlu Temple?"

"Naturally it’s because of these bald monks in Ganlu Temple!"

Jiang Hanyun glanced coldly at Ganlu Temple again, "Under the threat of imminent war, the grand areas of Zhenjiang and Changzhou will soon suffer. These bald monks, however, plan to ignore it all and close up their gate to defend themselves."

"Ha!" Luo Yan couldn’t help but laugh, his tone full of sarcasm, "Madam Xiaowei unexpectedly sought help from these monks of Ganlu Temple who are not pure in spirit? Isn’t this like daydreaming or looking for fish in a tree?

These Hinayana monks are keen on occupying the farmland and duping the common people. On ordinary days, when they capture a demon or deliver a spirit, they also require a hefty fee. Without money, one cannot go to the Western Pure Land. But if you want them to risk their lives and fight the Zhenjiang Army, leaving behind their luxurious lives and thousands of acres of good farmland, that would be a joke."

"I didn’t think that far." Jiang Hanyun frowned, "If Ganlu Temple was just an ordinary temple, I wouldn’t have tried to force anyone to risk their lives with us against the Zhenjiang army. But Ganlu Temple is a national temple, granted by Emperor Taizong himself, and given the quota of three hundred monk soldiers. They bear the duty of protecting the region and eliminating evil spirits. For hundreds of years, they have enjoyed the offerings of people from all over Zhenjiang; why do the people worship and pray? Isn’t it because they want peace and to be free from the harassment of evil spirits?"

"So, when there’s real trouble, these fat, bald monks who live off the donations of common people decide to turn a blind eye and wash their hands of the situation, is that it?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Yan chuckled, then his expression became solemn.

At this moment, under Beigu Mountain, a panoramic painting of the war is gradually unfolding before his eyes.

※※※※

Jiang Hanyun doesn’t know that at this moment, inside the Ganlu Temple, a robed monk, cloaked in crimson, gazes out through the windows of a tightly shut pavilion, his eyes trained towards Jiang Hanyun and his party.

The middle-aged monk behind him, however, looks anxious: "Abbot, it’s not that I don’t support your closure of the temple. I just worry about how we will explain this to the court afterwards. What Li Shoubei said is not without merit; Shaobao Yu has always stood firm in his beliefs, and he is not one to tolerate this sort of thing. Over the past few years, the Jin dynasty’s power has been growing. Even if Lin Ziyang manages to take advantage of the situation for now, it’s unlikely to last."

"At this time, are we still concerned about what Shaobao Yu will do?" Master Faxing laughed coldly, "With the situation falling apart in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, as the Minister of War, he should first be apologizing to the court and cleaning up the mess. How would he have time to come after us?"

He sighed slightly, "If the Princely Heir, Earl Chengyi, had a thirty or fifty percent chance of success, I wouldn’t hesitate to risk my life for the cause. The problem is that they have no chance of winning. Even with all the monks of our temple, we have less than a ten percent chance to hold Beigu Mountain. Am I really supposed to risk the destruction of the whole temple to follow them into danger? That’s not how it works."

The middle-aged monk behind him can’t help but glance out the window, "Lin Ziyang has connived with the Maitreya Teaching and monsters, clearly showing his ambition to rebel. I fear once they broke Tieweng City, their greed will extend to our temple’s wealth."

"Indeed, we need to consider this."

As Master Faxing continues to speak, his expression changes as he looks behind him. A slightly corpulent middle-aged monk in his forties is rapidly climbing the stairs.

"Master! Master! I have secured Lin Ziyang’s oath! He promises that, provided that we of Ganlu temple stand aside in today’s battle, he will ensure our temple remains untouched afterwards."

The portly monk, his face flushed with success, presents a proclamation filled with characters to Master Faxing, "Look, not only does he guarantee the safety of Ganlu Temple, but also the properties we own off the mountain and within the city. He won’t take a single thing from us."

Master Faxing glances at the text on the paper, then clasps his hands together, "Buddha of Infinite Life, good, good. Shineng, this oath of yours has certainly earned boundless merit."

"However, he does have conditions." The plump monk carefully looks at Master Faxing, "We need to supply his massive army with ten thousand bushels of fine grains, twenty thousand bushels of coarse grains, and a hundred thousand taels of Gold and Silver. Also, he hopes our temple can help him seize the two sons of Earl Chengyi. We need not act directly, just assist in secret."

Master Faxing frowns, once again looking out the window at the Mountain Spirits hurling gigantic rocks below, and the nearly completed Huihui Cannons.

His face twitches, he then grits his teeth, "Give him all! But remember, you must be careful not to leave any vulnerabilities. You two handle this matter personally, do not get anyone else involved!"

※※※※

At the same time, in Nanjing City, inside the grand hall of the headquarters of the Five Army Dudu, the atmosphere is tense.

The second prince, Yu Jianji, pale-faced, sits atop the Dais. Beside him are the Mingyu Qin, the Eunuch who guards Nanjing, the Minister of War, as well as many other Dudu and Dudu Tongzhi, including Duke Xuguo and Duke Huaiguo.

The faces of everyone are as cold as ice.

At the top, Qin Mingyu’s lips are blue, " People from Liudao Division have reported that Li Xuan of Fumo Youjiao, acting on the order of the second prince, investigated the case of stolen military supplies from yesterday. He found Lin Ziyang’s massive amount of military resources inside Tieweng City, so he borrowed eight hundred men from the naval troops of Zhenjiang to temporarily station in Tieweng City. Less than an hour later, Lin Ziyang rose overnight and surrounded the base of Beigu Mountain with tens of thousands of troops——"

"Isn’t this absurd?" The man who spoke was beneath the dukes, a man dressed in the attire of the 3rd-rank official, who said furrowed, "With their actions, even if Lin Ziyang had no intent to rebel, they are pushing him to!"

The words of this Servant of the Ministry of War had just fallen when Duke Huaiguo sitting in the meeting coldly retorted, "Exactly! Even if they found out that Lin Ziyang was intending to rebel, they should have responded calmly."

Qin Mingyu glanced at those few people, surprisingly showing no agreement or approval, "Lin Ziyang has been found to command an army of thirty thousand, well-armed and well-equipped. Additionally, he has thirty flanged cannons, fifty Huihui Cannons, over a hundred crossbows, and seven hundred demon soldiers, fifty of which are mature Mountain Spirits."

As his words fell, the gathering hall turned gradually silent, their expressions reflecting disbelief.

At this moment, Qin Mingyu’s voice dropped several shades lower, "The report from the Liudao Division was only surface-level information. The inner Jishi Bureau informed me, Fumo Youjiao Li Xuan actually gathered the evidence of Lin Ziyang’s treachery and captured many living persons within the territory of Yizheng County last night. His elder brother, Li Yan, even set fire last evening, burning the warships and some of the military resources collected by Lin Ziyang, beheading Shen Yuanhui, the Qianzong of the Zhenjiang naval forces, and had a significant battle with Lin Ziyang near Zhenjiang."

At the top, the second prince, Yu Jianji, could not help showing some emotion, "Eunuch Qin, does that mean Lin Ziyang was certainly going to rebel last night?"

"I cannot confirm that." Qin Mingyu wipes the cold sweat from his forehead, "However, the fact that Lin Ziyang privately amassed weapons, joined forces with Maitreya Teaching, and the Demon Tribe, is indeed a clear indication of rebellion."

Upon hearing these words, the second prince, Yu Jianji, slightly nodded, "In other words, Li Xuan and his brother’s decision to station troops in Tieweng City overnight is to seize the strategic location and prevent Lin Ziyang from sweeping across the canal?"

As he laid out the speculation, a number of people in the hall looked at Yu Jianji in surprise.

Quan Dingtian, the Imperial Tutor from Guozi Bureau, seated behind Yu Jianji, revealed an unconcealed look of praise in his eyes. By pre-emptively framing the narrative around Li Xuan’s actions before the discussion, he demonstrated the breadth of the second prince’s wisdom.