Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 799 Wake Up Here Sleep Here
Shazhou, Dunhuang, Crescent Lake.

The scorching sun shines on the clear crescent-shaped lake, and bursts of "woooo" sounds come to my ears, which is the unique sound of Mingsha Mountain not far away.

In the middle of the crescent-shaped lake, there is a row of temples, including the Goddess Hall, Dragon King Palace, Bodhisattva Hall, Medicine King Cave, etc. Compared with the past, it seems that there are many more incense sticks.

There was also a granary here, but it had been looted by the Tibetans.

All the people in the Crescent Lake stronghold fled to Luocheng, Shazhou. When Fang Chongyong and his party arrived here, they didn't see even a ghost.

"Sir, the grotto should be nearby."

Da Congming saluted Fang Zhongyong and said.

"You don't need to tell me. I was in charge of the excavation of the grottoes as a doctor of the Ministry of Rites. I know the situation here better than you do!"

Fang Zhongyong waved his hand gently, signaling the other party not to say anything more. How could he not know where that place was!

Strictly speaking, supervising the excavation of the caves was his first serious job, so it was naturally very impressive.

Looking at the sparkling and crystal clear Crescent Lake, Fang Chongyong suddenly recalled the scene when Wang Yunxiu came to see him.

It was a beautiful moonlit night. Two young girls and he were playing in the water together. They were not wearing any clothes and had no distractions. They were just being shameless and licentious.

Primitive and cheerful, with a clear stupidity! Who says that being so wanton is not the result of youthful recklessness, and not the result of being in ecstasy?

Of course, this matter is very private, and no outsider knows about it. It is really not worth boasting about the youthful filthiness.

Fang Zhongyong instructed Da Congming, "Send someone to guard outside the cave and don't let anyone in."

"Please rest assured, I will do my best to handle this matter."

Da Congming bowed and said.

He seemed to see a hint of frivolity on Fang Chongyong's face just now. That kind of obscene expression flashed by and rarely appeared on the face of this official Fang, making people think that it was just an illusion.

After riding for less than ten miles, the group arrived at a large cave. The cave was as high as five or six stories. There were torches lit at the entrance, and it was very deep inside.

The guards deployed here and used ropes to set up a cordon, not allowing anyone to enter or leave. Outside the cordon, there was also a cavalry unit ready to respond to any emergency.

Fang Chongyong dismounted and slowly walked into the huge rock cave which was famous in later generations. Including Da Congming, everyone else waited outside and were not allowed to move rashly.

Yesterday Fang Chongyong went to Shazhou City and saw many familiar faces from his past. Even Yan Chao, his little follower back then, has now become a general commanding troops.

There was nothing much to say about these, except that Fang Chongyong later heard a shocking piece of news: Fang Youde actually lived in seclusion here, and had been leading the Shazhou troops to resist the Tibetans! He had won many battles! After the Tibetans retreated, Fang Youde moved his residence into this cave, and no one could persuade him!

Only Fang Chongyong knew why Fang Youde came here. This Marshal Fang probably didn't plan to live anymore and wanted to die here quietly.

According to Fang Youde, he was in this cave when he was conscious, when he was just a child who had just learned to walk. Born here, died here, and completed a reincarnation, this is a choice that is in line with human nature.

Soon, Fang Chongyong came to a huge stone chamber. There was a huge sleeping Buddha lying on the ground, and there were many small Buddha statues standing around it.

Fang Youde, with a straight back, sat in the room in cloth. If you didn't look closely, you wouldn't be able to tell that he was a living person! His figure blended perfectly into the room.

Under the light of the oil lamp on the wall, Fang Youde had a calm expression and his eyes were closed. It was unclear whether he was dead or alive.

"Is my father waiting for me here?"

Fang Zhongyong asked.

The atmosphere in the stone chamber was quiet and a little weird. The furnishings here had an indescribable sense of mystery, especially the huge sleeping Buddha, which seemed to be squinting its eyes and leisurely watching the joke of the cheap father and son.

"Yes, I am indeed waiting for you."

Fang Youde opened his eyes, looked at Fang Zhongyong who was only one step away from him, and sighed deeply.

"If I'm not mistaken, when you return to the capital, you will usurp the throne and force the emperor to abdicate.

This day is coming later than I thought, but it is finally coming.”

Fang Youde continued speaking in a calm tone.

"If you think so, then so be it."

Fang Chongyong did not admit it, but he did not deny it either.

"Do you know that your mother is Princess Jincheng?"

Fang Youde asked, with a hint of concern in his tone.

"I didn't know it before, but I know it now. Trisong Detsen wrote me a letter not long ago and mentioned it."

Fang Chongyong nodded and admitted it generously.

“Trisong Detsen, when you were young, you often played with him. Huangfu Weiming told me this. Of course, that wasn’t you. My son was stupid, so Tubo was willing to release him. They probably didn’t expect that they would release a monster. Haha, hahahahahaha!”

Fang Youde sat on the ground and laughed so hard that tears came out.

"What's the point of saying this now?"

Fang Zhongyong sighed.

Everything in the past has gone with the wind. The future is a new dynasty and an unpredictable path.

"Of course it's interesting!"

At this moment, Fang Youde's face froze, and he suddenly raised his right hand and shot the arrow hidden in his sleeve directly at Fang Chongyong!

In a flash, perhaps a gust of wind suddenly blew in the stone chamber and deflected the arrow, or perhaps Fang Zhongyong's head happened to tilt slightly at this moment, or perhaps Fang Youde was not good at this.

Of course, it is not ruled out that he was so hungry that his hands shook and he missed the target.

In short, after the blink of an eye, a "ding dong" sound was heard, and the arrow hit the wall behind Fang Zhongyong. Due to insufficient force, it could not penetrate the wall, leaving only a shallow scratch on the wall, and then fell to the ground.

The arrow flew past Fang Zhongyong's left cheek. He could even feel the airflow from the arrow breaking through the air and the slight stinging pain from rubbing against his face.

But there were no scratches.

This type of sleeve arrow is very small and has no continuous firing function. If it misses the target, it needs to be re-strung.

But looking at Fang Youde's face, he had become depressed, and it seemed that he no longer had the energy to shoot again.

"Father, I came here to greet you today. Why are you shooting me with a crossbow?"

Fang Zhongyong asked back with a straight face.

That just now almost made him pee! He was still pretending to be calm.

However, after years of training in martial arts and fighting on the battlefield, he was still sure that he could definitely beat Fang Youde, who now had gray hair.

"The Tang Dynasty is almost gone, what's the point of me keeping you?

Are you going to let me watch you usurp the throne?

You evil beast! Your mother is Princess Jincheng, how can you usurp the throne! "

Fang Youde asked with a sob, tears streaming down his face.

For him, the saddest thing was that the white moonlight in his heart, the prosperous Tang Dynasty, fell from the sky, shattered into pieces, and then was picked up again by an ambitious person.

Isn't this a kind of NTR? "Father, you are joking. Are there any kings, dukes, generals or ministers of different species? If the Li family can be the emperor, then naturally others can be too."

Fang Chongyong said with no expression of sadness or joy on his face, and uttered those eight words that shocked the world.

"You are from the Li family, how can you usurp the throne! That is the foundation of your mother's family!
Why do not you go to hell! "

Fang Youde had a ferocious look on his face as he roared at his only son!

At this moment, there is no invincible war god of the Tang Dynasty, no famous general who assisted Brother Ji in creating the Kaiyuan Prosperity. There is only a poor old man who has been busy all his life and found that he cannot escape the cycle of cause and effect.

"Father, if I die, the world will be in chaos again. By then, the world will be torn apart and people will suffer. I don't know how many people will be left alone. Is that what you want to see?"

Fang Zhongyong asked coldly, and he was a little angry at the moment.

"I don't care how many people die, I just want the Tang Dynasty! Give the prosperous Tang Dynasty back to me!"

Fang Youde knelt on the ground, crying.

The three sufferings in the world are meeting with those we hate, separation from those we love, and failure to obtain what we desire.

Fang Youde has experienced all of them. He has let go of the other two, but the last one is the one he couldn't get, which made him unable to let go.

"Father, people will die, the Tang Dynasty will die, and I will die too. Nothing in the world is immortal.

Why can't we let go of something that's already dead?"

Fang Zhongyong sighed deeply and looked at the cheap and scumbag father in front of him with pity, not knowing how to comfort him.

This is a pitiful man, but he does not deserve pity.

Fang Chongyong was the supervisor here, but he was actually on vacation. He played whenever he wanted, acted cool whenever he wanted, and even had a threesome with his current wife and concubine at Crescent Moon Lake.

I don't know how happy and carefree my life is.

Fang Chongyong had never expected that one day, he and his cheap father would discuss such a heavy topic in this place full of "Buddhist spirit". They even fell out and spoke ill of each other.

"Go away and take care of your great cause. Don't come here again."

Fang Youde closed his eyes and swallowed a pill in his hand.

"Father, won't you come back to Bianzhou with me?"

Fang Chongyong asked doubtfully.

"You can't go back. I'll be waiting for you in the underworld... Then you can tell me what kind of prosperous world you have created.

If you can't beat Li Longji, I will break your legs!"

Fang Youde had a sad smile on his face, with a streak of black blood oozing from the corner of his mouth. He leaned against the wall, his body drooping.

"Father!"

Fang Chongyong hurried forward and supported Fang Youde.

This scumbag father, this cheap father, never gave him any family warmth. It was not until the moment of his death that he showed a little hope for his offspring.

"Back then, your mother wanted to support you in seizing the throne of the Tibetan king, but she was too naive.

Li, even if the Li family ascends to the throne of the Zamp, they will only become the new Zamp. I pretended to cooperate with her, but in fact I had other plans.

I was the one who leaked the fact that you were not a descendant of the Zamp. Tubo took this opportunity to turn against the Tang Dynasty, and Tride Zuzan poisoned Princess Jincheng. Later, the Tang Dynasty successfully captured Shibao City and drove Tubo back to the plateau.

All of this was my plan. I never considered Princess Jincheng as my woman, nor did I consider you as my child.

I have to pay the penalty for Princess Jincheng's crime when I go to the underworld. What a pity, what a pity, what a pity... I hate it so much."

Fang Youde spoke intermittently, his breath was weak, and his body finally stopped moving completely.

Fang Zhongyong sighed and didn't speak for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, he stood up, looked at the huge sleeping Buddha, and asked himself, "Great Buddha, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is now humid, and Tubo is strong. They will continue to invade our borders. Do you have any good ideas to teach me?"

The stone chamber was so quiet that Fang Zhongyong could even hear his own heartbeat.

"After the establishment of the new dynasty, the new powerful will surely feast on the feast. Those who are suffering now will suffer even more in the future. The Tianlong people in Guanzhong may not be able to act tyrannically, and a new batch of Tianlong people in Bianzhou will be born.

Everything will change, but nothing will change, people will still eat each other. Do you have any good ideas to teach me?"

Fang Chongyong asked again.

"In the future, more and more people will participate in politics, and the power of the great nobles will be delegated to the level of gentry and landlords. However, land will still be annexed, exploitation and oppression will not decrease at all, and feudal ethics will still devour people.

The cyclical law will also reincarnate and renew itself again and again, like a tight hoop around your head.

Do you have any good ideas to teach me?"

Fang Chongyong asked again.

No one answered his question, and the Buddha was unable to give an answer.

“Look, you just need to sleep here and wait for the incense, but I have a lot of things to consider, don’t I?
I don't want to be the emperor, so how about letting you be the emperor?"

Fang Zhongyong let out a long sigh. He glanced at Fang Youde who was lying in front of the Buddha statue and shook his head helplessly.

Waking up here and sleeping here is what I want.

"not good!"

He turned and walked away, when he suddenly heard a very faint voice behind him, as if it came from the depths of his soul.

Fang Zhongyong turned around, his face horrified. He carefully examined the sleeping Buddha, but found nothing. It seemed as if he had just heard the words. He felt scared and fled from the stone chamber.

When they arrived outside the cave, Da Congming had been waiting for a long time. Seeing that Fang Chongyong looked unhappy, he hurried forward to salute, not daring to be negligent.

"Please prepare a good coffin to contain my father's body.

Wait until the body is transported back to Bianzhou and then buried properly."

Fang Zhongyong waved his hand tiredly, not wanting to say anything more.

"Yes, I'll do my humble job now."

Da Congming didn't dare to say much and immediately took the order and left.

Fang Chongyong covered his forehead with his hands; the scorching sun in the sky made him feel a little dizzy.

“The prosperity of the Tang Dynasty only needs to live on in the hearts of future generations.

If there is no Buddha in one's heart, what is the point of building so many grand temples?
The past cannot be changed, but the future can still be pursued. Lao Fang, Lao Fang, you are insane. "

Fang Zhongyong couldn't help but shake his head and sigh, talking to himself.

The huge cave is silent, standing solemnly and quietly in the desert, staring at the passing of time.

(End of this chapter)