Allure of a Country Maiden

The days passed quietly, and it had been a few days since Shen Chengyao came back, and he brought back some bad news. The family moved away three years ago, saying that they were going to live with relatives far away, and sold all their properties and fields. No one in the village knew where they had gone.

At first, Shen Chengyao only suspected that Yun'er's abduction was related to them, but now he felt that it was most likely related to them. At the same time, he vaguely gave himself an excuse, attributing Yun'er's abduction to their revenge. The food sold in the grocery store poisoned their daughter, and it had nothing to do with Dafang's family. He remembered that when he was a child, his eldest brother still loved his brothers very much. If there were children in the village who bullied him, he would help him out, and there would be delicious food. He would be given a share. He felt that such a big brother should not be able to do such a thing. But what he didn't expect was that people's hearts can change. The outside world is so wonderful. There are often many people, many things, and many experiences that can make a person change. How many people in the world can remain unchanged and never forget their original aspirations.

When a person is tired, he wants to rest. When he is in trouble, he wants to get help. When he is afraid of poverty, he will think of ways to make money. After suffering, he will no longer be willing to give up the sweetness he has now. In the same way, if he is used to taking shortcuts, he will not be willing to pay more. Much effort. Who can guarantee that everyone in this world will not change? We can only see whether it is getting better or worse.

Xiaoer still asked Shen Chengyao to report to the Yamen that he suspected that the family had taken away Yun'er. After all, the Yamen had more ways to handle things if they had clues than they did.

The fifteenth day finally arrived, and Shen Chengyao took his family and his fourth aunt Jingjie to the Five Temples.

The Five Gods Temple is built on the mountainside of the Five Gods Peak, the highest mountain in the Five Gods Mountains. There is an official road that goes directly to the Five Gods Peak. There is a wide and flat place at the foot of the mountain for pilgrims to park their carriages and horses. There is a carriage and horse storage place, and you need to pay five cents to keep it for one morning.

Legend has it that five gods once lived in the Wushen Mountains, and they protected the villagers near the Wushen Mountains for hundreds of years. After the five gods passed away, the entire county finally suffered a severe drought and locust plague. At that time, many people starved to death. Everyone It is said that the disaster came because the Five Gods passed away and the county had no protector god. Some people thought of building a Five Gods Temple on the Five Gods Mountain, and invited the Five Gods to come down and sit on the Five Gods Mountain to ensure that the people in that area had good weather and good weather. Many people recognized it, so the five temples were built, with funding from the court and voluntary contributions from the people.

The road up to Wushen Mountain is paved with rocks. It is very spacious, about 1.5 meters tall. There is a platform after every 100 steps, for a total of 500 steps. Usually on the first and fifteenth day of the Lunar New Year, there are many people on the Baibu Ladder selling things on the platform. Those who don’t have a place on the platform will hang a rectangular tray around their neck to sell, but today is the Centenary Temple of Wushen Mountain. On Christmas Day, there are huge crowds of people. There are officers and soldiers near the foot of Wushen Mountain to stop people who want to do business today, fearing that it will hinder the pilgrims from going up and down the mountain and cause accidents.

Xiaoer originally wanted to bring those silk flowers and small dolls to sell, but Ms. Liu said that one year during the temple festival, there were so many people doing business that it blocked the way for many pilgrims to go up the mountain. Later, there was a quarrel and a fight, and several lives were lost. , the government strictly ordered that no business could be done near the Five Gods Mountain during major festivals and temple festivals. Violators would have all their goods confiscated and be imprisoned for one year.

When Xiaoer and the others arrived at the foot of the mountain, there were crowds of people both at the foot of the mountain and on the Hundred-step Staircase. In the past, people went up and down the mountain on the Hundred-step Staircase, but the incense in Wushen Mountain was so prosperous that there would be stampede accidents every temple festival. The government They also funded the construction of a special road for going down the mountain. Of course, it is much smaller than the hundred-step ladder and can only accommodate two people going down the mountain side by side. This is also designed in consideration of the fact that some children need to be pulled by their parents to walk.

Shen Chengyao was carrying two food boxes containing some sacrifices. Xiaoer and the three brothers followed behind him, and Mrs. Liu walked at the back holding her younger sister and Mrs. Lu. It is not easy to walk up the five-hundred-step staircase. Just think about it. Calculated based on the twenty-step staircase per floor, the five-hundred-step staircase is equivalent to the 25th floor. They rested several times along the way, and some wealthy girls walked for a while. The servants used a soft bridge to carry them up in small sections, but there were almost no rich ladies who could persist up there. Of course, there are also some ladies who want something that is so important that they insist on it in order to highlight their piety. Human perseverance is actually unimaginable.

Although several children were almost dead from exhaustion, they did not cry for hugs like other children. Lu saw that Jing Jie was really tired so she carried them for a while, but they could not carry them far and they were tired even from walking. Finally arrived, even Xiaoer was sweating from exhaustion.

The five temples have lasted for hundreds of years, except for the main temple on the mountainside. There are also some small temples built around it, including the Temple of the Empress Dowager, the Temple of Wealth, the Temple of Wenquxing, etc. But no matter what you mainly come to pray for, you must first worship the five gods in the main hall before worshiping the others. This is a tradition that has been passed down for many years, and no one does not follow it.

In front of the main hall, there is a flat open space, half an acre in size, which is paved with rocks. There is a large incense burner in the middle. There is a large tribute table in front of the incense burner. Mrs. Liu handed the little girl to the After being held by Shen Chengyao, they started to arrange the tributes, tea and wine, and light the incense candles. Except for the little sister, who each had a stick of incense, they all had to light the incense themselves. None of their children were tall enough, so Shen Chengyao held them all. .

After finishing the incense, he knelt down and kowtowed three times before he was done. Then Mrs. Liu took everyone into the hall and added money for incense oil. Ms. Liu added 10 taels, Ms. Lu added one tael, and then several people picked up the incense. The lotus tube asked for another sign.

Mrs. Liu asked for the top sign, Jing Rui and Jing Hao both asked for the sign, but Shen Chengyao didn't ask for it. He said he wanted the same thing as Mr. Liu and didn't ask for it.

Mrs. Lu also asked for the top pick, and Xiaoer got the top pick, which made her whole family smile like flowers. It made the people next to her who were not satisfied with the request jealous and resentful, and the people behind her were even more eager to try.

"There is also the top lottery in this lotus tube? How come you haven't heard of it before?" A pilgrim felt strange and asked.

The monk in the temple heard that someone had asked for the best lot, but the rest of the family had actually asked for a good lot. He couldn't help but take a closer look before explaining: "Master Yunfa just happened to come back yesterday, and he specially added the best lot last night. There was only one, and I didn’t expect that the little benefactor was so lucky to get it. Master Yunfa, the little benefactor, said that whoever gets this lot can come to him in the backyard for approval.

Everyone was in a state of excitement after hearing this. They looked at Xiaoer with extremely eager eyes. Who is this little girl? How could she be so lucky to get the best lottery?

Master Yunfa is the highest mage in the Minze Dynasty, and his orders are always accurate. In the past few years, he has stopped giving orders, saying that the secrets of heaven should not be revealed too much.

Xiaoer didn't want to go, so the top sign read: Bless the world. She thinks she is not that tall!

Shen Chengyao and Mr. Liu were very excited. They felt that they were lucky to have come, and they really needed to come to repay the gods, so they hurriedly urged Xiaoer to follow the little monk.

Seeing Xiao'er's hesitation, the little monk said, "The little benefactor is Shang Xiao. Who are the little benefactor's parents? One of you can follow her."

There was a sea of ​​people here, and Shen Chengyao was worried that no man would be there when he left. Mrs. Liu and the others couldn't stand the few children, so they asked Ms. Liu to follow her with her little sister in her arms.

What people didn't expect was that when they reached the backyard, Master Yunfa actually came out of the Zen room to greet them. He bowed forward slightly and said, "Several donors, please come in."