stand back, let me come

Chapter 1266: One Battle to Decide the Southwest (Part 1266) [Seeking a Monthly Ticket]

Qingshui Temple was built on the hillside in the suburbs.

At first, it was just an abandoned nunnery hidden in the forest. Later, it was bought and renovated by the old lady Cui, who used it for religious practice and to adopt homeless women, children and abandoned babies. Some scoundrels once thought that Qingshui Nunnery was a wild nunnery where people worshipped Buddha devoutly during the day and talked about love affairs at night. They regarded the nuns in the nunnery as wild nuns who engaged in love affairs and actually went up the mountain to harass them in the middle of the night.

In order to allow his mother-in-law to practice with peace of mind, Cui Zhi sent someone to look after her.

But he soon realized that he was doing nothing.

His vegetarian and Buddhist mother-in-law has many drastic measures.

The scoundrels who tried to climb over the wall and flirt with the nuns were caught and tortured until they were disabled and thrown out of the nunnery. The traces of time carved on the mother-in-law's facial features did not make her look kinder. She glanced at the people on the ground as if she was looking at a few pieces of rotten meat that could breathe: "You should be thankful that you met this poor nun now. If it were 10 or 20 years earlier, I would have had you torn into pieces by five horses and tortured into 36,000 pieces!"

After a few times, everyone in Tianqing County knew that there was a nunnery ruled by a Rakshasa here. Desperate women from nearby areas would come here for refuge, and their husbands' and parents' families would also think twice about whether to offend them. No one would dare to disturb the nuns' meditation anymore.

Kiyomizu-an rarely accepts male guests.

The reason why I say almost is that when Cui Mi and Cui Xiong were young, they would visit their grandmother and stay for a few days. However, when they grew up to be teenagers, they stopped going there. Every time they came, they would meet their grandmother at the small house at the foot of the mountain and spend time with their family.

Even Cui Zhi, the son-in-law, had only gone up the mountain three times, and each time he waited at the pilgrim teahouse a mile outside Qingshui Temple. The fourth time he set out on the mountain, a man who could not lose his composure even if the sky and the earth collapsed, now lost his strength.

The mountain path was littered with footprints, and all I could see were dead branches and fallen leaves.

Continue walking up the mountain along the mountain road.

The only way was blocked and crude chevaux de frise were used to block the way.

Cui Zhi keenly noticed the arrows pointed at his vital points in the dark. He raised his hand and ordered his followers to stop: "Cui Zhishan, please come out and see us. We have no ill intentions. We are here to take the women who are practicing in the mountains down the mountain and take them home. Please be lenient."

When the word "Cui" was heard, there was a commotion in the distance.

Soon, more than a dozen heads popped out from the ground, behind trees, and beside rocks. They carefully observed and confirmed that Cui Zhi did not overstep his authority to attack before sending the chief to negotiate with Cui Zhi. The chief looked at Cui Zhi hesitantly and asked tentatively, "Are you... my son-in-law?"

Coincidentally, the person in charge was the manager of Cui Zhi's brother-in-law's household.

Because Cui Zhi seldom appeared in public, the steward had only seen him a few times.

Not sure, look again carefully.

Cui Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.

Since it was my brother-in-law's men who were guarding this place, my mother-in-law on the mountain should be safe. The steward also put his heart at ease and turned back to ask others to move the barricades away. Cui Zhi asked half of his followers to stay where they were to help defend, and took the rest up the mountain.

On the way, I asked the manager about the situation.

He was mainly scolding his brother-in-law.

Didn't I tell him to act according to circumstances, and to take his family to me or the Cui family mansion if anything went wrong? No matter how turbulent the outside world was, I could always protect them. Cui Zhi rarely spoke harshly to outsiders, let alone his own family.

It can be seen that he was really angry this time!

The manager couldn't help but speak up for his own parents.

It’s not that I don’t want to leave, but I really can’t leave.

The government sent people to guard the main roads, and no one could leave. The parents had to go through the government, but before the results came out, the new women in the nunnery suddenly fell ill. They carried the disease and infected several people. More than a dozen people fell ill in just two days, and the remaining nuns were also panicked.

It is only a matter of time before the disease breaks out.

If they ignore it now, they will die.

"How come so many people are infected with the plague?"

The steward lowered his voice and said, "The situation was bad at the beginning of the year. Many families could not even have one meal a day. The abbot of the nunnery asked people to donate vegetarian food for two months. After that, the nunnery ran out of food and had to stop. However, the common people threw all their belongings here."

There were many people in the nunnery and the plague sneaked in at that time.

Given the abbot's temper, it is impossible for him to abandon these people.

Although many people were infected with the plague, the nunnery had a lot of medicinal herbs in stock, so they could barely hold on. Just when the situation had improved, some evil cultists rioted down the mountain, burning, killing and looting everywhere. The manager said with lingering fear: "I heard that the government office was also smashed by them."

Cui Zhi then asked about his brother-in-law's family.

"Send the mistress and all the young men and ladies to a safe place. The head of the family is worried about the old lady, so he brought people back to guard the nunnery..." The steward's tired and old voice was choked with a barely noticeable sob. Thinking of the arrangements at the foot of the mountain, Cui Zhi tightened the reins involuntarily. An ominous premonition lingered in his heart like a ghost.

"How is the abbot?"

"He passed away four days ago."

The news hit him like a bolt from the blue.

There was a constant buzzing in his ears, and he almost didn't hear the steward saying that Cui Hui rushed to see the abbot for the last time. As he spoke, the desolate Qingshui Temple appeared in his sight, and the side hall was decorated as a simple mourning hall. Cui Zhi staggered and almost tripped over the threshold, and he held on to the door frame to stand firm. Cui Hui didn't expect to see someone who shouldn't be here, and surprise appeared in his numb eyes.

"Kewu..."

His lips moved and he uttered two words.

Cui Hui wore mourning clothes and kept vigil for his biological mother.

She had calmed down a lot in the past few days, and even when Cui Zhi knelt beside her, she did not stop him: "Why did you run here?"

"I received news that Tianqing County was under siege. I'm worried about you and your mother... Why did your mother pass away? Was it because of the plague?" Cui Zhi couldn't help but ask about the cause of his mother-in-law's death. He just asked the steward, but the other party was also vague, so Cui Zhi could only ask Cui Hui.

He imagined many possibilities.

Maybe he died of illness, or maybe his time had come...

"My mother was murdered by a villain."

Cui Zhi looked over suddenly.

"Where is the villain?"

Cui Hui's lifeless eyes welled up with crystal tears: "The thugs heard that the nunnery had been giving out vegetarian meals for two months and taking in many refugees, so they thought that the nunnery had surplus food. Some bandits who took advantage of the situation also targeted the women who were taken in by the nunnery and brought people to rob them."

As the abbot, the mother would naturally not sit idly by.

After searching the nunnery, they only found a little food. They were so angry that they wanted to kill someone to vent their anger. My mother tried to stop them. The bandit leader was surprised that this old nun had such good skills. After several rounds, he still couldn't kill her. In addition, some people around him had received a meal from Qingshui Nunnery. He was worried that killing people would anger everyone, so he thought of a compromise: [I have never been to school and can't recognize a few words, but I have heard you bald asses talking about Buddha cutting flesh to feed eagles... Hehehe, how about this, if you commit suicide here, I will let everyone here go...]

The abbot naturally would not agree.

The two sides clashed, and the abbot was injured in a vital part while trying to protect his disciples.

The disciples of the nunnery saw that the abbot was injured and fought hard until the villagers who had been cared for by the nunnery came to help. These bandits were originally a mob, relying on their numbers to bully others, and they retreated after seeing this.

The abbot was seriously injured and had to wait for two days until Cui Hui arrived.

He hurriedly left his last words.

Before dying, he did not forget to comfort his daughter, saying that this was a happy funeral: [… Your grandfather and his two generations were all robbing and pillaging, and I, your mother, have shed blood that I shouldn’t have stained. This life should have been taken away by God long ago… To be able to live to this age, with children and grandchildren around you and enjoy the happiness of family life… Hehehe, that’s also because God is blind…]

Bandits are bandits.

  There is no such thing as justice or injustice. She grew up in a bandit camp, how could she know what is good and what is bad?

When she was young, she followed her father and killed many people, some of whom were innocent, some of whom were not. She didn't think much of it at the time, but when she retired and had a family and children, those seemingly ordinary scenes became nightmares that haunted her at midnight. On the one hand, she was lucky that she would be an exception, and on the other hand, she was worried that there would be retribution in the dark. Time passed quickly until her daughter grew up. When she almost forgot her fear, the bandit camp was burned down and her children followed her into exile.

It's retribution.

People like her shouldn't have a good ending.

When she hated Cui Xiao for deceiving and killing the whole village, wasn't she evading her own responsibility? Her daughter's misfortune and the death of the uncles and aunts in the village were not retribution for the killings that year? She should die to atone for her sins, but she couldn't let go of her two children.

As she watched her children get married and her grandchildren were born, the long-lost fear invaded her every nightmare. She tried her best to eat vegetarian food, chant Buddhist scriptures, and do good deeds, hoping to offset even a little bit of her sins so that her children and grandchildren could live a smooth and peaceful life. Seeing her daughter and son-in-law divorced and her daughter wandering alone, she felt even more regretful.

She couldn't get rid of this thought.

It was the bad karma she created in the past that brought misfortune to her descendants.

Cui Hui didn't expect that his mother had such deep resentment in her heart and had never let it go for so many years. No, at least she let it go before she died.

Although there were casualties in the nunnery, she fought to the death to save most of them. The herbs Cui Hui brought could save more lives, which more or less helped her to forgive the blood debt she had incurred. Cui Hui also whispered in her mother's ear again and again: "It's enough. This is definitely enough to cleanse our family's sins. If it's not enough, I will save enough in my lifetime... If my generation is not enough, we still have grandchildren and great-grandchildren in the future... My descendants will always be able to pay it back."

Cui Hui said this just because he wanted his mother to feel more at ease.

"Zhishan, this batch of medicinal herbs you..."

"Keep it. Why are you saying these things in front of your mother's spirit?"

Cui Hui pursed her lips tightly.

It was not a small matter for her to transfer the medicinal materials, and it was normal for Cui Zhi to quarrel with her. But now he remained silent, which made her feel at a loss. Cui Zhi ordered someone to bring writing materials and mourning clothes for her son-in-law: "Besides these, did mother have any other instructions before she died?"

Cui Hui said: "There are also some instructions."

It's nothing more than some blessings for peace and safety.

Almost everyone was taken care of.

Including her father.

After a whole day of vigil, Cui Hui asked Cui Zhi to eat something. The couple sat outside the side hall door and looked at each other in silence. Cui Hui had many things in mind, but in the end, only two dry sentences remained: "The war is urgent. As a senior official of the state, how can you stay outside? You can leave some people here. I will watch over here... If you delay for too long, it will not be good for you and the Cui family..."

Cui Zhi burned the copied scriptures one by one.

"If it's not good, then it's not good."

These words made Cui Hui suspect that the man next to him was fake.

She never dreamed that these were words Cui Zhi said in person.

Cui Zhi seemed not to see the surprise on her face: "When I heard the news, I was worried that something might happen to you. If the herbs are gone, they are gone. We can always raise more if we have a big family... If you are gone, can I still ask my father-in-law and mother-in-law for another one?"

Cui Hui looked as if he had seen a ghost: "Cui Zhishan?"

Could it be that someone is pretending to be someone else and deceiving her?

Cui Zhi looked at the book and scriptures burning quietly in the charcoal basin, and seemed to be mumbling, or as if saying to Cui Hui: "Let it be."

"What's going on?" Cui Hui was puzzled.

Cui Zhi did not explain to her.

The next day, Cui Zhi showed no intention of leaving.

From time to time, thugs tried to approach the mountain, but they were all repelled by Cui Zhi's private troops. The mountain gained long-lost peace.

On the morning of the third day, more than 2,000 people gathered at the foot of the mountain.

And there is a growing trend.

After inquiring about the news, it turned out that the Eternal Life Cult had joined forces to break into Tianqing County. The plague in Tianqing County spread to a large number of Eternal Life Cult members. These people heard that a large number of herbs were sent to the mountain a few days ago, so they sent people to borrow the herbs. Cui Zhi couldn't help but sneer.

"Borrow? What kind of borrowing is this?"

Cui Hui brought the herbs here with the intention of rushing to Tianqing County to help control the plague. It would be fine if the herbs could be used on ordinary people. She was afraid that these cultists would take them for themselves. She looked at Cui Zhi, who was full of anger, and advised: "There are not many people on the mountain who can fight. They are numerous and powerful. If you provoke them, I'm afraid..."

If you can negotiate, try to negotiate.

Cui Zhi looked at his followers: "What did they say?"

These cultists were quite polite and sent people to negotiate. Cui Zhi suppressed his anger and decided to meet them first.

"Let them surrender their weapons and go up the mountain."

Those who go up the mountain cannot be brave warriors.

It doesn't matter whether a Wudan warrior surrenders his weapons or not.

In less than half an hour, the cult's messenger was invited up the mountain.

“Anyone who comes from afar is a guest.”

Cui Zhi met the other party at the teahouse outside Qingshui Temple. The visitor was also a scholar, but judging from his appearance, he was not a treacherous person. At first glance, he could be classified as a "good-looking and honest person". His aura was calm and upright, and there was no disgust. He didn't look like a fool, so how could he believe in the Eternal Life Church? Cui Zhi raised his hand and motioned for the other party to sit down.

"A thin cup of tea, please don't despise it, sir."

The scribe sat down.

The opening was a simple greeting: "May I know your name?"

"Cui."

The scholar said, "What a coincidence! My last name is also Cui."

Cui Zhi curled his lips inwardly, thinking that the other party was just trying to win him over in a cliché way. "Let's not talk too much. I do have some medicinal herbs in my hands. After discussing with my wife, I plan to use them to treat the plague in the country. I won't agree to your request for herbs, but if there are patients who need medicine, you can send them here. I will definitely treat everyone equally!"

You can treat the disease, but don't borrow the medicinal materials.

God knows what these people do with the things.

The scholar did not expect Cui Zhi to be so easy to talk to. His attitude softened a bit: "Mr. Cui is kind and righteous. I thank you on behalf of all the soldiers in the army."

As he spoke, his eyes fell on the mourning clothes on Cui Zhi.

"Is there a funeral at home?"

"My mother-in-law just passed away."

The scholar sighed and said, "My condolences. I don't know where your father-in-law's body is kept. If it is convenient, I will go and burn some incense to show my condolences."

Cui Zhi did not object.

  (ノ Д Ｔ)

Who swallowed my manuscript?