Green Mountain

In the evening, it was the busiest time in Shangjing City, with silk lantern frames hung on the walls along the streets, waiting to compete in splendor tomorrow night.

Chen Ji carried Yuan Xing as he walked among the pedestrians on Vermilion Bird Street, with cow carts and mules passing by, jingling their copper bells.

An Imperial Guard followed far behind them, his gaze cautiously fixed on the two.

Chen Ji seemed oblivious.

He subtly lowered his voice and asked, "Which Medical Hall should we go to for treatment?"

Yuan Xing lay on Chen Ji’s back, pretending to be dead, his lips slightly moving: "Which Medical Hall can reconnect a tendon? They aren’t capable of that; if you want the tendon reconnected, you must go to the Yuanjue Temple to seek the monks there."

Chen Ji replied, "Then let’s not treat it."

Yuan Xing said gleefully, "Nephew, you just told the Imperial Guard that you would take your uncle for treatment, and now you’re saying you won’t go, wouldn’t they catch you right on the spot for questioning?"

Chen Ji casually replied, "Then I’ll report your name and let them chop you into bits first."

Yuan Xing hesitated for a moment, then through gritted teeth, squeezed out, "Uncle, save your nephew; without reconnecting the tendon, my life is over."

Suddenly, Chen Ji asked, "You believe in Buddha, don’t you? Have you ever burned incense at Yuanjue Temple, worshiped, or dedicated offerings? Would any monk recognize you?"

Yuan Xing denied it, "Don’t worry, unless the two dynasties go to war, the monks at Yuanjue Temple don’t meddle in worldly affairs."

Chen Ji calmly said, "The monks of Yuanjue Temple are so virtuous that you’d bet your life on them?"

Yuan Xing affirmed, "Exactly."

Chen Ji didn’t say more, "How do we get to Yuanjue Temple?"

"Turn right, pass two intersections, Tongshan Square."

Chen Ji turned right and passed two intersections, soon seeing a simple temple in the distance, without gilded decorations or grand gates, only blue bricks and gray tiles.

He was unsure, "Is this Yuanjue Temple?"

Yuan Xing sneered, "What else?"

Chen Ji looked up, seeing this temple, the ancestral court of the Zen sect from two dynasties, had three doors, one large and two small.

On the central main gate, the plaque didn’t write "Yuanjue Temple" but "Namo Amitabha Buddha."

The right small gate’s plaque was "Prajna Gate"; the left small gate’s plaque was "Liberation Gate."

Looking at the couplets, the upper right wrote "Sincere, pure, equal, right awakening, compassion," and the lower left wrote "See through, let go, be free, follow fate, recite Buddha."

Chen Ji took a deep breath and stepped over the ankle-high threshold with the worshipers, who held vegetables, eggs, and old clothes, placing them on the blue bricks to the left.

On the long table to the right were long incense sticks, with three wooden signs at the table’s edge, saying "Take three sticks."

Strangely, upon entering, Chen Ji saw no monks: "Where are the monks?"

Yuan Xing reverently answered, "Every August 15th, the monks of Yuanjue Temple leave with the Fang Zhang Chan Zhao to go on alms pilgrimage, traveling 3,600 miles, wearing patchwork robes, begging for food from a thousand houses, not riding in vehicles or lodging in temples... only a few stay to watch over the place."

Chen Ji heard his tone, "No wonder you answered a few questions on the Life Robbing Platform."

Speaking of the Life Robbing Platform, Yuan Xing became furious, "What’s the good of answering? Huh? Tell me, what’s the use of answering? Where did you find that monk, using such a sinister official gateway like the Life Robbing Platform, and that old rascal claimed his heart and words were united, I believed his deceit!"

Chen Ji didn’t respond to him, "Where can we find monks to treat you?"

Yuan Xing answered, "Go inside and find Master Ling Yi."

Chen Ji carried Yuan Xing through the Mountain Gate main hall, but only saw worshipers burning incense and kowtowing, with more than ten voluntarily sweeping the floor, and no monks.

He continued searching through to the back halls — Heavenly King Hall, Seven Buddha Hall... until he entered the Great Compassion Hall, where he saw a young monk sitting cross-legged on a meditation cushion, eyes closed, reciting scriptures.

Chen Ji approached and asked, "Excuse me, where is Master Ling Yi?"

The young monk continued reciting scriptures with his eyes closed.

Chen Ji, with no choice, continued further inside — Zen Hall, Vegetarian Hall... until he stopped before the Monk’s Quarters.

On a plot of Chinese cabbage, a middle-aged monk wielded a hoe, with white stubble on his head, wearing a patched robe, focused on tilling the soil.

Yuan Xing saw the monk and exclaimed excitedly, "Master Ling Yi! Save me!"

Master Ling Yi remained indifferent.

Chen Ji asked softly, "What should we do? He doesn’t want to engage, should we leave?"

Yuan Xing exclaimed anxiously, "Why hurry, let’s wait here."

When night finally fell, Master Ling Yi slowly straightened up and faced Chen Ji and Yuan Xing, pressing his hands together: "Amitabha, the two patrons, for incense and worship, you can go to the Heavenly King Hall or Seven Buddha Hall, there’s neither Buddha nor karma here."

Chen Ji froze; he had heard this voice before. When he infiltrated Duke Huang Mansion as Bai Wu, he heard this voice reciting the Ksitigarbha Sutra repetitively in his dreams until he awoke.

Upon waking, he had asked Wu Yun if she had heard, and Wu Yun said she hadn’t.

Chen Ji carefully observed Master Ling Yi, "Dare I ask, Master, have we met before?"

Master Lingyi clasped his hands together, resembling a Bodhisattva lowering his gaze: "Amitabha Buddha."

Chen Ji no longer hesitated, turned around and left: "Young nephew, he won’t save you."

Yuan Xing struggled to turn his head on Chen Ji’s back to look at Lingyi. While gesturing secretly to Chen Ji, he winked at Lingyi: "Master Lingyi, I have been harmed by villains, resulting in broken arms and severed foot tendons. I implore you, seeing my contributions to your temple, to uphold justice for me!"

Chen Ji remained expressionless: "Point at me again, and I’ll break your fingers too."

Yuan Xing hurriedly withdrew his hand, realizing he was getting farther from Lingyi. He became anxious immediately and patted Chen Ji’s shoulder: "Godfather, don’t leave! I have another private residence and can offer you ten more pieces of jade!"

Chen Ji retorted: "Why should I trust you?"

Yuan Xing held up three fingers: "I, Yuan Xing, swear before Buddha, witnessed by Master Lingyi, that if you help today, I will repay you handsomely. Should we face each other in battle one day, I will retreat without a fight!"

Chen Ji turned back and stood still before Master Lingyi: "May I ask, Master, if one’s mind and nature are Buddha, why say there is no Buddha here?"

Master Lingyi seemed somewhat surprised, then smiled: "Chen Ji, the word ’ignorance’ lingers in your heart, and Yuan Xing’s six senses are impure. How can there be mind and nature?"

Yuan Xing whispered: "So your name is Chen Ji? How does the Master know your name? Wait, you’re Chen Ji, the Viscount Wu Xiang of the Southern Dynasty!"

Master Lingyi frankly replied: "This humble monk was born with Heavenly Vision and has seen Chen Ji twice debating scripture with Wuzhai at Yuanjue Temple. Truly profound. The salvational ship has said, to this day I remain without resolution."

Chen Ji was thoughtful: "No wonder I asked if we’ve met before, yet you avoided answering. Can the Heavenly Vision see the ’ignorance’ within and hear the debates thousands of miles away?"

Master Lingyi softly replied: "The Heavenly Vision doesn’t see the past, but sees the future, the six paths of reincarnation, and all forms and colors."

Having said that, he suddenly pointed to the sky, then to Chen Ji’s head: "The head for ignorance."

Then pointed to Chen Ji’s liver: "The liver for anger."

Finally pointed to Chen Ji’s heart: "The heart for greed. You are not a perfect person; the word ’ignorance’ is unsolvable, out of touch with Buddha."

Chen Ji threw Yuan Xing to the ground, pondering as he retaliated: "Then what about the Master, are you not Buddha either?"

Master Lingyi smiled: "If I were Buddha, why would I still stay at the temple, observe fasting, and practice zen daily? It’s those who cannot become Buddha, who cannot let go of worldly karma, who need to remain in temples."

This time, it was Chen Ji’s turn to be unexpected: "For the sake of debating scripture, is the Master admitting he cannot become Buddha?"

Master Lingyi sincerely stated: "It is the truth, not for debating."

Chen Ji contemplated for a moment and then said: "Monks have compassion at heart, seeing the injured as a cause. Why is there ’no cause nor effect’ here?"

Master Lingyi softly replied: "Bodily suffering is the result of one’s karma, and suffering can alleviate their karma. There’s no need to intervene."

Chen Ji looked down at Yuan Xing: "The Master says it’s your doing, your consequence."

Yuan Xing, sitting crossed-legged, replied angrily: "I understand!"

Chen Ji pondered deeply before asking: "Master, how can we save him?"

Master Lingyi considered for two breaths: "The benefactor must agree to a request from this humble monk."

Chen Ji showed no emotion: "What request?"

Master Lingyi pointed to Chen Ji’s heart, sincerely said: "A few days ago, someone knelt before the Mountain Gate of Kujue Temple to pray for your blessing. If predestined in the future, keep a single kind thought."

Chen Ji remained silent for a long time.

Master Lingyi sat cross-legged opposite Yuan Xing, placed his hand on Yuan Xing’s knee, and softly recited the Ksitigarbha Sutra.

In the next moment, the scabs on Yuan Xing’s wounds naturally fell off, and the tendons beneath the skin of his ankle began to wriggle, as if the achilles tendon were regrowing and slowly connecting.

Yuan Xing showed a look of joy: "Master Lingyi is truly miraculous, I’ve heard of your ability to resurrect the dead and regenerate white bones. Now it turns out to be true!"

But his joy was short-lived, as Chen Ji interrupted Master Lingyi’s sutra chanting: "Master can stop now, let the rest heal on its own. He mustn’t recover just yet."

Yuan Xing’s face changed dramatically, seeing Master Lingyi really stop and retract his hand: "No? Master Lingyi, don’t listen to him, save me completely; you’ve started it!"

Chen Ji hoisted Yuan Xing up: "Enough nonsense, let’s go."

Yuan Xing staggered as Chen Ji dragged him out: "Wait, my tendon hasn’t healed well, I can’t walk smoothly!"

After taking more than ten steps, Chen Ji suddenly looked back at Master Lingyi, pointing to his own head: "May I ask, Master, how far can the Heavenly Vision see, can it see the sky?"

Master Lingyi smiled: "Benefactor, the Heavenly Vision is not omnipotent, it cannot clearly see the karma of life and death nearby, nor the boundless sea of suffering far away, no need to ask further."

Chen Ji contemplated: "Sea of suffering?"

Master Lingyi nodded: "Aren’t you in it, benefactor?"

Chen Ji retorted: "And the Master?"

Master Lingyi clasped his hands together: "Amitabha Buddha, this humble monk is also in it."

Chen Ji said no more and dragged Yuan Xing towards the exit. As they approached the crescent arch of the vegetarian quarters, they suddenly heard Master Lingyi say: "If you seek liberation, head east."

Chen Ji abruptly turned back to look, only to see Master Lingyi still standing quietly in the darkness, hands clasped together, eyes cast down.

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