The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 697: Motenji Temple

After passing through the devastated village, not far away, a mountain road branched off from the coastal road and led to the gate of Meneng Temple.

Everyone looked at the Meneng Temple hidden in the clouds halfway up the mountain. That was the destination of their trip. The Master Chunshen they had been thinking about was hiding in the clouds.

Jiang Liuer took the lead and walked at the front of the team to explore the way.

The mountain road under my feet became winding. The pine trees on both sides of the road were tall and upright. Some of the ancient trees looked at least hundreds of years old. The huge trunks pierced straight into the sky, and the pine needles were covered with dew. The cute squirrels squatted on the branches and stared at people blankly.

Suddenly, a black shadow flashed by, and the squirrels screamed in fright, squeaking and leaving the branches, running away in all directions.

"Panasonic has caught up,"

Jiang Liuer looked at the direction where the black shadow disappeared and muttered to himself.

There were no guards on the road at the foot of the mountain. Jiang Liuer knew that this was not a good sign. As he walked on the stone path, he always felt that there were eyes staring at him in the forest.

After walking forward for half an hour, a courtyard wall appeared at the end of the field of vision. It was not very high. Jiang Liuer jumped onto the top of the wall with the tip of his knife.

To his disappointment, behind the wall was not the Meneng Temple, but a wasteland.

As he continued to move forward, a thin layer of snow appeared on both sides of the stone path, which was obviously colder than the foot of the mountain.

After walking along the stone path for another half an hour, a suspension bridge appeared in front of us. Beside the bridge stood a stone tablet with the words "Honghuo" written on it. It might be the name of the place here.

After walking a short distance, we finally found the temple of Menengji in an open space halfway up the mountain.

Jiang Liuer quickly took out the paper and pen he carried with him and observed Master Chunshen's lair closely.

He hid behind a big rock, secretly stuck out half of his head, and began to survey the Meneng Temple.

~~~~
An hour later, Jiang Liuer returned to the foot of the mountain and unfolded a map in front of everyone, reporting in detail the situation around Meneng Temple:
"Please look, everyone. The temple is located in this triangular depression, sandwiched between Yaoziling and Xiaozhufeng. I guess that in the early days of Japan, the temple was originally a fortress, or the residence of the feudal lord..."

On the clearly marked map, there suddenly appeared an ancient building in the shape of a diamond with four sides. There were four rivers outside the four high walls. Eight side rooms were neatly built in the middle of the courtyard wall, four in the north and four in the south, distributed symmetrically.

Li Zicheng took several guards to guard the surroundings.

"This temple should be the residence of Chunshen's ancestor, the nameless warrior. Look carefully, there is a dry moat around the city wall, and this gate."

Jiang Liuer pointed at the only gate in and out of the temple and said solemnly:

"This door looks very thick. Judging from its height and thickness, it would take at least thirty people to break it open."

"Thirty people? We don't have thirty people. Besides, where can we find a battering ram?"

Wu Xiao looked at the map carefully, and in a trance he returned to the Liaoxi battlefield that year, following the army to attack Jinzhou City guarded by Zu Dashou.

"It's the people's hearts, not the city walls, that are indestructible. Only when there are people guarding the city can it be impregnable. We don't need to break down the door, we can use the grappling hook to climb the wall. Once we get in, that will be the end of Chunshen the old thief."

After listening to Wu Xiao's battle plan, Jiang Liuer felt a little relieved. It was good that it was not a forced attack, otherwise at least half of the people around would have died.

Jiang Liu'er pointed out the location of the kitchen on the map and continued, "I counted the number of young monks going in and out of the kitchen to eat. There are more than two hundred of them, and there are probably more. I saw these monks practicing after dinner, and they can break rocks and bricks with one punch. I wonder if they can kill people with one punch." Li Zicheng walked over and happened to hear this, and immediately interrupted:
"What the hell are you afraid of? They're just some fake street performers, fooling people every day. They're so used to it that even they believe it themselves."

Jiang Liuer is not as free and easy as Lao Li.

He also saw the archery range built in the temple and a medium-sized barracks. He wondered how many soldiers were stationed there.

"Brother Jiang, did you see the old thief Chunshen just now? How many heads and arms does he have..." a soldier asked with concern.

Jiang Liuer shook his head.

"For a whole half day, Chunshen the old thief didn't leave the house. I was too far away from the temple and didn't dare to go close. I didn't have enough time..."

Wu Xiao nodded silently, put the map away, and called Li Zicheng back.

"For Operation Dawn, divide the troops into three groups. I'll lead one group to set fire, Jiang Liuer will feint and attack the main gate, and Li Zicheng, you'll lead the troops to scale the city walls and break into the city. Is everything clear?"

Everyone nodded.

~~~~
Meneng Temple, the nunnery and meditation room.

Midwife Kei Onimaru took Oritoshi's daughter in, with her mother's Naomizu still on the baby's mouth and face.

With the dim light and morning glow, you can vaguely see tears in Zhimin's eyes.

The ice accumulated due to the snowfall five days ago has gradually melted away, the ice on the mountain road has disappeared, and the road from Meneng Temple to the foot of the mountain has finally been restored to normal.

According to the temple rules of Motenoji Temple, at noon today, Oritoshi's child, Iyou, will be sent down the mountain by the monks and sent to Edo as a "monk's gift" (the offspring of the monk Shiranui and a girl) to live in a wealthy family.

The people of Edo believe in Sakyamuni.

There were many infertile men and women in Edo Castle. When they saw these babies donated by temples, they knew that they were born as gifts from the monks, so they naturally cared for these children more.

Onimaru Hui smiled mysteriously, looked at the frail Zhimin, and said comfortingly:
"Donor, your child is living in Edo and being supported by a wealthy family. He is not separated from you by the Yin and Yang. There is no need to cry so sadly."

Zhimin would have been fine if she hadn't listened, but after hearing this, she cried even more sadly.

"Does the host really want to send Jingyou to Edo Castle?"

Onimaru Hui smiled awkwardly and repeated:
"As a goddess, if I don't give my most precious thing," Onimaru Hui said almost as if reciting from memory, "the rivers of the Shanhe Domain will dry up, the rice seedlings will die before they are planted, and the fishermen will not be able to catch a single eel..."

Zhimin's face was as pale as paper. She wiped away her tears and nodded helplessly.

After the midwife walked out of the door, the girl who was being offered sacrifices murmured a prayer towards the window.

"God, please come down to earth and save Jingyou."

An unusual little red dot suddenly appeared in the woman's tear-blurred vision.

(End of this chapter)