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Volume 1: I want to be a rich playboy, but my destiny is not in the pool. Chapter 83: Painting cakes can satisfy hunger (1)

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    In the second year of Huangyou's reign (1050), there was a great famine in Wuzhong. On the road to Hangzhou, you could often see corpses of people starving to death on the roadside without being buried.

    A large number of disaster victims flocked to various states and counties, especially Hangzhou. Bandits gathered in various places and robbed passers-by.  By mid-April, the situation was gradually becoming chaotic.

    Chen Qi was transporting 6,500 shi of grain from Fujian to Hangzhou. Even though he was usually considered a secluded young man, he had never experienced the taste of hunger, but after all, he had been reading rituals, music, poetry and books since he was a child and he had a simple mind.  The student could not bear the sight of the tragic situation along the way. He almost stopped several times and asked people to give him some food, but Luo Liang had to hold him back until he stopped.

    Originally, Chen Qi had no personal experience of the disaster when he went there. He felt that he was already earning hundreds of dollars a month. He spent a lot of money on food and clothing, and even reserved more than a hundred dollars for the return trip.  Hu¨¡ was sold, and I started to regret it when I arrived at Zhexi Road, but it was no longer possible for people to go back to buy food.  In addition to the cost of grain and rice, people also need to be hired to escort them on the road. This amount of money is not even enough to send grain trucks to Hangzhou.

    According to Chen Yue's previous instructions, they stopped in a small mountain valley thirty miles outside Hangzhou City. While sending people to notify Chen Yue, they counted and sorted the grain. They waited for Chen Yue's order to sort out the grain and rice.  It was transported into the city at once.

    In the Zen room in Donghua Temple, Chen Yue held a cup of tea in his hand. The heat was flowing out, as if covered with a thin layer of white mist. The host Cang De sat opposite him calmly.

    The walls in the room are clean and white, without a trace of dirt or stains.  Hanging on the east side is a painting with the Chinese character "Zen" written by Fan Zhongyan himself. It was just brought into Donghua Temple by Chen Yue. Cang De hung it on the spot to show respect.

    Chen Yue took a sip of the tea in the cup, turned his eyes to the word "Zen" on the wall, and said casually: "Southerners don't have Buddha nature."

    Cang De was stunned.  He frowned, and saw in front of him was just a young man, although he was quite famous recently.  He also behaved fiercely and sternly in Donghua Temple last time, but when he received him, it was because of Fan Xiwen's calligraphy, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he came up with what the Fifth Patriarch of Zen Buddhism asked Huineng.  If he didn't respond, he would inevitably look careless. If he responded, he would definitely use Hui Neng's exact words, but he was just a head lower than the young man in front of him, which made people feel unhappy.

    Chen Yue saw his reaction in his eyes, paused for a moment and continued: "The Sixth Patriarch once said: 'People are divided into north and south, and Buddha nature is not divided into north and south.' But there are countless injustices in the world, and the Buddha nature of Buddhism  There is no distinction between north and south. It¡¯s just that people are born with different family backgrounds and circumstances, but it is inevitable that they will be distinguished from high and low.¡±

    The young man in front of him is the young master who was born with a golden key in his mouth.  But he brought the topic to the nobleness of people, whether he felt resentful after being inferior to the superior, or condescendingly talking about sorrow after being inferior to the inferior. Cang De didn't understand his purpose, but he was always able to bring Fan Zhongyan's calligraphy treasure.  We have something to discuss.  Not wanting to be too passive by talking casually now, he just raised his eyebrows and said: "Everything is governed by law and has its own cause and effect. Is the little donor worrying too much?"

    Chen Yue thought to himself that he was indeed an old fox. If he were an ordinary monk, he would show mercy to others, but he didn't expect that he would stop him by saying "cause and effect".  He shook his head and sighed: "It's not that I'm overly worried, but the disaster master in Wuzhong has also seen it. Now the number of victims in Guangsha Camp outside Hangzhou has reached 100,000. The rich are still singing and singing every day, and the poor farmers are still singing."  But there is no rice every other day, how can it be explained by a sentence of cause and effect?"

    Cang De thought that this was indeed the case. Fan Zhongyan had been recruiting wealthy households in the city to donate money in the past few days. The popular Xizi Tower in Hangzhou, which was favored by senior officials, had also spread the word that only the Laoshizi jade plaque would be distributed before the disaster was over.  The person who contributed the most to disaster relief has not reached out to the Buddhist temple yet, but for some reason the young man in front of him represented Fan Zhongyan.

    "Amitabha" Cang De declared the Buddha's name, "God has the virtue of good life. The monks in the temple have long been unable to bear this matter. These days, they have also opened a porridge shop to help the nearby victims."

    "It is said that saving one life is better than building a seven-level pagoda. Master's move has saved countless lives, so it is considered a meritorious deed. But do you want to join us and other aspiring people in doing another great meritorious deed?"

    Cangde thought that Chen Yue wanted him to make a donation. Knowing that Fan Zhongyan had personally inscribed the calligraphy treasure, it was inevitable that he would donate some money and materials this time. Now a young man came here and he had some initiative. If he refused, next time  The visitor may not be easy to deal with, so he asked tentatively: "How much did the donor donate?"

    This question was a bit rude, but there were only two people in the room, and Cang De relied on his elders, so he asked this question because Chen Yue, a younger generation, would not be able to donate much money, even if he doubled the amount.  Even if you donate ten times the amount and pawn it off, it won't hurt your muscles and bones, and you can still have a good reputation.

    Unexpectedly, Chen Yue replied lightly: "All the belongings."

    Cang Debaoxiang¡¯s solemn face couldn¡¯t help but twitch.After a slap, this young man is still as ruthless as last time. He is a little boy. How much money can he have no matter how much monthly money his family gives him?  But when people say that, can they still ask how much their entire wealth is?  The implication is that Donghua Temple should also donate all their belongings. This is to break Donghua Temple's bones and suck out its marrow!

    "Dear donor, you will definitely be blessed one day." Cang De pretended to praise. He didn't know whether the previous sentence meant Fan Zhongyan or Chen Yue. If it was Chen Yue's intention, it would be easier to deal with. If he has such a heavy status  If the prominent and prestige governor of Hangzhou wants to use Buddhist temples to decorate his political achievements, then his small Donghua Temple will definitely not be able to resist. "It's just that these hundreds of monks and the surrounding people all rely on the temple for life.  I also hope that the benefactor will go back and report to Duke Fan, because the temple has its own difficulties."

    Chen Yue heard that Cang De was testing and drank.  After making hot tea, he said: "Before I came here, I also told Mr. Fan about the difficulties of Donghua Temple. However, the people are suffering, and the Buddhists enjoy the incense of the people every day. It is time to 'reduce all sentient beings' now, right?"

    Cang De felt a little cold when he heard this. Chen Yue's meaning was very clear. Fan Zhongyan knew and approved of this matter. Donghua Temple was handed over to him for the seventh generation, although it is not as famous as Lingyin Temple and other ancient temples.  , but the advantage is that the location is good, and even though the scale is not large, the incense is very strong, and he is asked to donate it all.  He was unwilling to do so.

    Seeing that Cang De was silent, after waiting for a moment, Chen Yue asked with a smile: "Is the rice ready?"

    When Cang De saw that Chen Yue had used the words of the Fifth Patriarch to ask Huineng, he knew in his heart that he was using the power of the government to suppress him. After all, it was related to the livelihood of the temple. He knew that the current situation was stronger than that of others and that his side was indeed one step lower than the other side.  , but not as impatient as he was at the beginning.  Putting his hands together, his face returned to a solemn and precious look: "Although Donghua Temple is poor on weekdays, it is still willing to contribute two thousand dollars to the people."

    Chen Yue smiled and looked at Cang De without saying a word.

    "It's okay to be frugal in food and clothing, how about three thousand guans?"

    Chen Yue still shook his head and said nothing.

    Cang De gritted his teeth.  Said: "How about five thousand strings?"

    Chen Yue laughed loudly, put the cup in his hand on the low couch, and said: "Donghua Temple has been established for more than a hundred years. During the holidays, it can make hundreds of dollars every day. How can it only have a few thousand dollars for personal use?"  Ku? I am here today to send a great merit to the master. The master¡¯s words are untrue and I am afraid he will regret it later.¡±

    Cang De¡¯s expression changed, thinking that Chen Yue was still threatening him, but now he really had no choice, not to mention the pressure from the government.  Even if it is just revealed afterwards that Donghua Temple is stingy and unwilling to devote all its efforts to disaster relief, it will be a catastrophic blow to the reputation of Donghua Temple.

    "Eight thousand strings!" Cang De's lips trembled when he said this. The most wealthy households in Hangzhou could donate was this amount. Any more would have to sell their land and houses.

    Unexpectedly, Chen Yue still shook his head: "We agreed to give the master a great merit. Let's tell the truth. I would like to ask the master to contact various temples inside and outside Hangzhou and come up with a total of 50,000 yuan"

    "Don't go too far!" Cang De couldn't bear it anymore and interrupted Chen Yue's words. This was not enough to blackmail his family, but he was even asked to come forward to raise 50,000 yuan.  It was impossible not to donate even a penny less than the eight thousand guan that he had just reported. It would undoubtedly offend all the temples in the city. If he couldn't do it, he would still have nothing to gain. If he did, he would inevitably bear grudges for other temples.

    The smile on Chen Yue's face did not diminish, and he waved his hand, signaling Cangde to listen to his next words: "Hangzhou has built countless Buddhist temples since Wu Yue, and there are not a few that are still intact today. Lingyin Temple alone can have  There are more than 3,000 monks on the ninth floor, eighteen pavilions, and seventy-two halls. The officials of the current dynasty are charitable and have not followed the previous emperor Shizong's restrictions on destroying the ban. It is not difficult to collect 50,000 guan." Seeing Cang De, he wanted to speak again.  , stretched out his hand to signal to listen to him first, "But there are laws to follow when expanding the temple, and you can't build construction projects wantonly. This means that the money and food you take out does not need to go through the government. You only need to hire people to do the work, even to repair the roof tiles."  Okay, let¡¯s build another temple. The government should not interfere and just recruit civilians. All the people employed by the temple¡¯s employees will be counted as merit and will be rewarded by Duke Fan himself after the disaster."

    Cang De was stunned, and the expression on his face changed instantly. He was still a little surprised and confused, "Is this what Mr. Fan meant?"

    "It's absolutely true, but as the saying goes, rewards and punishments are clear. If a temple is unwilling to contribute, it will naturally be asked to donate the people's sesame oil money to 'save all sentient beings.'"

    "Then why not go to Lingyin Temple and come to a small temple like Donghua Temple?"

    "The scale of Lingyin Temple is already the largest in Hangzhou, so I don't want to try my best. Besides, Master Cangde's temple is not a small temple. No one would doubt that it is one of the top three temples in Hangzhou because of its strong popularity.  Yes, it¡¯s just that the courtyard is small and not as good as Lingyin. Master, don¡¯t you want Donghua Temple to reach a higher level in your hands?¡±

    Cang De took a breath, nodded and said:In this case, I accepted the assignment.  "

    If it is true as Chen Yue said, then this matter will be much easier to handle. Scale and grandeur are the only way to attract rivals. Originally, temples were not allowed to expand at will. Now that the government allows them to overhaul temples, as long as the news spreads, I am afraid that all the temples will be destroyed.  Not to mention that hiring civilian workers can be regarded as relieving the victims, it will also be of great benefit to his future status among the Buddhists in Hangzhou. This "great merit" is worthy of the name.

    After I felt a little calmer, I felt that the clothes on my back were soaked with cold sweat. I didn't know why this young boy who could be easily dealt with could put so much pressure on him.  But if it weren't for this, he wouldn't have paid much attention to this matter even though he was a young boy in front of him. However, this young man could use his power to push people to such an extent while talking and laughing. He would definitely not be a thing in the pond in the future. Here in the lane,  Couldn't help but look up at Chen Yue again.

    The door of the Zen room was gently pushed open. A servant walked in quickly and handed a note to Chen Yue. After reading it, Chen Yue only replied: "Ask Gong Fu to pick them up. I want to see them."  Load fifty thousand shi into the grain truck."!  ~!

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