Old things in the south

Chapter 34
I haven't thought about Peking for a long time, because the taste of memories is sometimes very bitter.But my friend Qi Jun said: "If I don't ask me to recall, I would rather put down this pen!" Therefore, Mr. Editor took advantage of the year to rob and recruit people to write memoirs.She knew that when I lived in Peiping, I would ride a donkey to visit Baiyun Temple every new year, so she asked me to write about Baiyun Temple based on this topic.

In fact, there is nothing to visit in Baiyun Temple. The main purpose of my visit every year is to experience the addiction of riding a donkey.Among the common animals in the north, the little donkey and camel are the ones that I like the most.Country people in the north, both men and women, will ride a donkey, because it is the main means of transportation.The husband of my younger brother's nurse came to my house on a donkey every year, and brought us drunk dates, a famous product from his country, in return for the nurse's wages for the year.My younger brother grew up year by year under the care of the nanny, but the nanny lost her own son and daughter successively in these years.She was finally taken back to the countryside by her husband on a little donkey, so when I think of the little donkey, I always think of those old friends who have no news.

Riding a donkey to the Baiyun Temple may be a more interesting memory. Let me first talk about what the Baiyun Temple is.

Baiyun Temple is a Taoist temple, located twenty miles outside the Xibian Gate of Beiping.The building of Baiyun Temple is said to have existed in the era of Emperor Taizu of the Yuan Dynasty. It was called Taiji Palace at that time, and was later renamed Changchun Palace. There was a statue of Qiu Zhenren in it, and his name was Changchunzi.This real person is said to be very good, whether it is related to politics or daily life, he has given Yuan Taizu a lot of good advice.At that time, Yuan Taizu was conquering the west and fighting every day. He told Yuan Taizu that if he wanted to unify the world, he could not use killing as a means.Yuan Taizu asked him how to govern the country, and he said that it should be based on respecting the sky and loving the people.He also asked him the method of longevity, and he said that the most important thing is to have a pure heart and few desires.Emperor Taizu of the Yuan Dynasty was very happy when he heard this, so he bestowed the title of "immortal" and named him "Taizongshi", and asked him to live in the Taiji Palace and take charge of Taoism in the world.It is said that he lived to be 80 years old before becoming a fairy.In Baiyun Temple, Qiu Zhenren looks fair and beardless.

Now let’s talk about how I ride a donkey around Baiyun Temple.

You can go to Baiyun Temple at any time, but no one will go to catch up with the excitement until the New Year's Eve.In the first month of the lunar year, many country folks driving donkeys gathered in the face of Xuanwu Gate in Beiping.The donkey also celebrated the New Year at this time, and its owner dressed it up with a string of bells around its neck, colorful decorations on its ears, thick mats on its back, and stirrups.Customers with good skills only pick the naughty little donkey, which is exciting enough to run.Although I also like a little excitement, but my riding skills are not good, so I always choose honest riding.At the same time, I refused to let the donkey run away, but asked the donkey driver to follow me closely.No matter how honest the little donkey was, it still had a competitive heart. Seeing its companions running away, it refused to lag behind, so it began to run quickly behind.I was still pulling the slow rope at first, yelling "dedede" for a while, as if I was very proud.Gradually, he became restless in the saddle and couldn't help crying.Although the driver comforted me and said: "Don't worry, it can't run more steadily." But he still had to help pull the donkey.Even the donkey driver felt disgraced when he met a guest like me, because he lost the opportunity to perform as a fast donkey.

When we arrived at Baiyun Temple, we paid the donkey driver's money and followed the crowds of people visiting the temple.Baiyun Temple may have been prosperous in the past, but hundreds of years later in the Republic of China, although it has a great reputation, the building is already very old, and it is no longer majestic and magnificent.On the stone wall of the gate, there is a little monkey engraved. Visitors who enter must touch the stone monkey with their hands. It is said that it is auspicious for Xinzheng.That stone monkey has been touched by tens of thousands of people. It is black and dirty and shiny. I don't know how many bacteria it has hidden. It is really disgusting!
Entering the courtyard of the gate, you have to pass a small stone bridge. The essence of Baiyun Temple is all in the hole of this stone bridge.It turned out that there was an old Taoist sitting cross-legged in the bridge hole below, with a large coin several feet in diameter hanging in front of him, and a copper bell hanging in the middle of the square hole of the coin.Tourists throw the copper coins that were commonly used at that time at the copper bell, saying that if they hit it, it will bring good luck. This is called "money eye".But your chances of hitting are too little, too little.So I only heard Tong Zier Ding Ding Dangdang falling to the bottom of the bridge one after another.This old-fashioned method of collecting money is really ingenious.

After playing money eye, go inside again, there are all kinds of stalls in the yard, the most is "rings", this game is like playing money eye, throwing rattan rings one by one, nothing can be caught , Waste of money.The most affordable is to go to the food stalls to eat something.Enema and camellia oil are all hot food. After riding a donkey, I inhale the cool breeze, and it is most comfortable to eat some hot food.

Finally, I went to visit the old people's hall in the small courtyard at the back. On the kang in several rooms, there were several senior Taoists in their 84s and 96s sitting cross-legged.Next to it, there are veterans who seem to be "tour guides" in today's tourism terms, reporting their ages, [-], [-], and [-]. Tourists are awe-inspiring when they hear this, and some take out their old-age gold on the spot.This seems to tell tourists that if they believe in Taoism, they will live forever, but seeing them dying makes people feel dull.

After the Baiyun Temple Fair is over on the eighteenth day of the first lunar month, we will see you next year. How can a "fairy" know how to do it? Because I have only ridden a donkey but never a god, so I have no way to talk about it!

(End of this chapter)