Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 275 Suspicion
Huo Cun then lowered his voice and said to Zhu Wen, "I've also heard an anecdote."

"Kid, tell me about it," Zhu Wen said, pressing Huo Cun's shoulder.

Huo Cunxu said, "Some people say that Dai Shou could have lived. But Mr. Pi Rixiu disliked him and suggested that Commander Huang execute him."

Zhu Wen was surprised: "Mr. Pi is a well-known gentleman, how could he do such a thing as settling personal scores and kicking someone when they're down?"

Pi Rixiu, a renowned scholar, was an old friend of Huang Chao in the literary world. He also relied on his Persian royal lineage to recruit two hundred armored warriors from the Persian remnants to join his rebel army, thus gaining Huang Chao's deep trust.

Huo Cun said matter-of-factly, “Mr. Pi claims to be a descendant of Han Yu and despises Buddhism and Taoism. Dai Shou, on the other hand, is a devout Buddhist layman who, as a military general, has long been a vegetarian and meditates. The two have argued about this many times, and Mr. Pi may have been tempted to kill him because of it.”

Han Yu, also known as Han Wengong, was famous for his opposition to Buddhism. He was demoted to Chaozhou in Lingnan because he opposed welcoming the Buddha's relics into the palace. He submitted a memorial to Emperor Xianzong entitled "Memorial Against Welcoming the Buddha's Relics". As a result, "He submitted a memorial to the emperor in the morning, and was demoted to Chaozhou, eight thousand li away, by evening".

Zhu Wen smiled dismissively. He thought, surely a man of such high moral character and talent as Pi Rixiu wouldn't harbor murderous intent over something like this. Even if Pi Rixiu did have such intentions, Huang Chao knew of the conflict between Pi Rixiu and Dai Shou; how could he be easily swayed by Pi Rixiu's advice?
But what happened next made Zhu Wen begin to doubt his own views.

From Guangzhou, letters were sent to various prefectures in Lingnan, requesting that statues of Han Yu, the Duke of Han, be erected in their capitals. Although Han Yu enjoyed high prestige in Lingnan, statues of him were originally only found in Chaozhou, where he had served as governor.

Another order was to demolish most of the Buddhist temples and force the monks and nuns to return to secular life and participate in labor.

Pi Rixiu would not want to kill Dai Shou because of personal grudges, and Huang Chao would not be easily influenced by advice based on personal grudges.

But what if the decision to execute Dai Shou was driven by political motives?
Zhu Wen thought that there weren't many temples in Lingnan, and the tax revenue and labor that could be obtained from abandoning temples were actually limited.

Moreover, many temples had provided assistance to the rebels during the previous battles. Doing so could easily earn them a reputation for being ungrateful and betraying their allies.

Zhu Wen felt increasingly uneasy as he thought about it, and suddenly a chill ran down his spine—could it be aimed at me?

Zhu Wen was certainly not a devout Buddhist, and he didn't even know much about Buddhism.

However, both of the events that caused discord between Huang Chao and Zhu Wen were related to the Buddhist concept of reincarnation.

One reason is that when Zhu Wen was in Fujian, in order to refute the rumor spread by Qian Liu that "Huang Chao killed eight million people and is doomed," he took the expedient measure of portraying Huang Chao as the reincarnation of the divine beast Di Ting under the seat of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. He claimed that the monk Mulian accidentally released eight million evil ghosts in order to save his mother from hell. These evil ghosts were reincarnated as aristocratic families, corrupt officials, arrogant soldiers and fierce generals who harmed the people, and it was time for the divine beast Di Ting to come out and subdue them.

Zhu Wen thought that Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was compassionate and could not kill people himself, so he used the story of Di Ting.

But even the most intelligent and powerful Di Ting was ultimately just a beast with fur and horns. If Huang Chao were to become emperor and establish a dynasty, would the people allow him to say that their founding emperor was a Di Ting descended to earth?

Back then, I was young and impetuous, not mature enough, and arrogant because I was spoiled, so I made a mistake.

Secondly, Li Tiao, a descendant of Li Jiancheng, claimed before his death that Zhu Wen's appearance was strikingly similar to the portrait of Li Jiancheng, suggesting that he was the reincarnation of the Crown Prince seeking revenge.

If used properly, this matter could be transformed into a political resource. Yu Di, the Flower King, believed that if Zhu Wen were to overthrow the Tang Dynasty in the future, he could use this rumor to give loyalists of the Tang Dynasty a way out; this was also one of the reasons why Yu Di wanted to curry favor with Zhu Wen.

But it was precisely because of this that it provoked both the Tang court's targeting and Huang Chao's suspicion.

Zhu Wen's thoughts drifted to this point, and he suddenly thought: Could it be that Master is suppressing Buddhism so much in order to deny the doctrine of reincarnation? Could it be that Dai Shou, a person with whom I had little relationship, died because of me?

Was Dai Shou's head merely a tool Huang Chao used to intimidate me, this fierce tiger?
Zhu Wen felt a chill rise up his spine, chilling him to the bone.

In chaotic times, such things should have been expected long ago.

Zhu Wen still felt a bone-chilling exhaustion and desolation, as if he had been submerged in ice water. The chill made goosebumps rise on his skin, and his calves trembled slightly.

The thought that Dai Shou might die because of him suddenly amplified the feeling of shared sorrow a thousandfold. He seemed to witness the execution firsthand, seeing blood gushing out and staining his entire field of vision an endless crimson.

Why is this happening? Zhu Wen wondered to himself—didn't he come to join Huang Chao's cause to rise above others?
The past three years have passed like fleeting images, flashing through my mind.

The generosity and magnanimity in gifting the sword at their first meeting, the gentle kindness after taking him as a disciple, the grief and courage in avenging Wang Xianzhi... In Zhu Wen's eyes, that figure in golden helmet and armor had long since become a towering figure.

Just like—a father.

Zhu Wen lost his father at a young age and was lonely and isolated from childhood. He needed someone to fill the void of paternal love.

Huang Chao, however, was a man of deep feelings. His affection for Zhu Wen over the years seemed so genuine and sincere, not feigned.

When Zhu Wen truly realized the terrifying nature of the mutual distrust between them, he suddenly felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave, and his hair stood on end in horror.

In the imperial family and powerful clans, those sons who turned against their fathers and faced the suffocating pressure of suspicion probably felt the same way.

The dense clouds in the sky seemed to be about to fly down and turn into clumps of cotton, blocking his mouth and nose, making it difficult for Zhu Wen to breathe.

Huo Cun also noticed that Zhu Wen was not feeling well: "Boss, what's wrong? You don't seem to be feeling well?"

"I must be a little tired after working so hard today," Zhu Wen said, trying to sound calm.

"Why don't you take a hot bath and get some rest?"

Zhu Wen nodded.

However, he summoned Lan Suting over that evening.

Those who achieve great things are inevitably suspicious. Being outwardly lenient but inwardly cautious is almost an essential quality for successful politicians. Being outwardly lenient allows one to embrace diverse perspectives and tolerate the occasional arrogance and overstepping of talented subordinates; being inwardly cautious allows one to recognize the limitations and dangers of these individuals and to make judgments based on the circumstances.

But when faced with suspicion, you should ultimately consult with someone you trust, rather than getting stuck on it alone.

Lan Suting was not only well-versed in Confucianism but also knowledgeable in Buddhist scriptures. He often chanted sutras to pray for the soldiers who died in battle or from illness.

Zhu Wen wanted to get her opinion.

The dim candlelight flickered in the room. Zhu Wen gazed at the flickering flames of the candle wick and slowly revealed his suspicions to Lan Suting.

Lan Suting's delicate eyebrows twitched slightly as she lowered her head in deep thought.

After a while, she gave her opinion: "Su Ting believes that the Salt Commissioner did indeed have the intention to suppress Buddhism, and the execution of Dai Shou was probably related to this. But it is absolutely not necessary to go to such lengths just to intimidate this person who does not understand Buddhism. His and Mr. Pi's real political intention is to inherit the ideas of Han Yu, promote the Confucian orthodoxy, and use it as a banner to confront the court."

"The Confucian tradition?" Zhu Wen heard this for the first time. He realized that although he had read some books, he was still far behind literary figures like Lan Suting. Indeed, many things are not suitable for one person to ponder alone.

"The influence of Confucianism was originally quite strong, but before Han Yu, no one had proposed the concept of a Confucian orthodoxy, so there was a lack of integration. It was only when Han Yu proposed that Confucius and Mencius be revered as two sages that this orthodoxy was integrated." Lan Suting's voice was soft, but her words were quite clear: "Han Yu believed that in order to establish the Confucian orthodoxy, it was necessary to suppress Buddhism and Taoism and introduce Confucianism to monks and Taoists. If one responded to them with Buddhist words and talk of immortals, it would be tantamount to surrendering to them."

"When Mr. Pi Rixiu served as an official in the court, he once submitted a memorial requesting that Han Yu be honored with a place in the Imperial Academy. He also submitted a memorial requesting that the teachings of Zhuangzi and Liezi be abolished in the Imperial Academy and the imperial examinations, and that Mencius be the primary text. Nowadays, the high-ranking families believe in either Buddhism or Taoism. The Salt Commissioner uses Mr. Pi's words and follows the words of Han Yu to show that the Confucian tradition lies with the poor scholars, not with the powerful families. The righteous army represents the poor scholars challenging the court which is controlled by the powerful families, so it is natural to suppress the teachings of Buddhism and Taoism."

Hearing this, Zhu Wen felt reassured and breathed a sigh of relief.

He was far from being psychologically prepared to turn against Huang Chao.

"Then, Zhizhen, what do you think of this plan?" Zhu Wen continued to ask.

Girls are soft-hearted and more likely to believe in Buddhism. Lan Suting often chanted sutras and prayed for blessings for the soldiers, so she was somewhat of a believer. But it was precisely because of this that her views were persuasive and did not seem to favor Confucianism.

(End of this chapter)