Legend of Zhan Zhao

Chapter 98 Giving a Temporary Buddhist Name
"Alright! Brother Zhan, wait for the robe I'm sewing for you!"

Lian Caiyun took the measurements and had already designed a monk's robe in her mind.

She really liked the crimson official robes that Brother Zhan wore when he was temporarily acting as the Divine Constable.

Fortunately, wearing monk's robes now also meets aesthetic standards.

After consulting her fifth senior sister, Lin Yuxian, about her needlework skills, she longed to sew that outfit herself.

"Thank you, sister!"

Zhan Zhao could sense the other person's feelings; he was naturally happy that someone was so thoughtful towards him.

However, seeing that Gu Lin was not there, he had a question to ask, and whispered, "Have the Qingcheng Sect, Canglang Fortress, and Iron Sword Sect replied?"

Even Caiyun glanced around and, not seeing her senior brother, quickly lowered her voice and replied, "No."

"Not even a single sect?"

"not a single one."

Zhan Zhao was not surprised by this answer: "Ha! Is it a rare moment of feigned ignorance?"

There are still some loose ends in the case of the Zhong Kui painting.

For example, Jiang Heming once said that besides the four participants, there was one other person who knew what happened back then.

It wasn't a "ghost" from within the Six Doors; it was a fabrication by Han Zhaoye to disrupt the Six Doors.

The final fate of the four missing persons, and the reaction of the sects behind them, are what followed.

Gu Lin took a total of six people.

Jiang Heming, Yu Xuzi, Helian Jue, Ye Canglang, Li Wuxing, and Su Wuqing.

But he separated the guards.

The first four people were locked up in one place.

The two people behind were locked up together.

Su Wuqing was the mastermind behind the scheme, so she had prepared countermeasures in advance. She and Li Wuxing escaped safely, but they were unable to find the whereabouts of the other four people.

Pei Handeng did not tell Su Wuqing this.

They clearly believed that the four people didn't need to be saved at all.

Gu Lin didn't even lift a finger; he simply revealed his true face and quietly watched Jiang Heming go from disbelief to hysterical cursing, and finally to humble pleading.

Gu Lin remained silent throughout, only doing one last thing before leaving—

He opened the cell door next door and sent Yu Xuzi and the other two, who had been imprisoned for many days and were like walking corpses, into Jiang Heming's cell.

As the iron gate slowly closed, the last rays of light illuminated the silhouettes of three withered bodies suddenly leaping up and pounced on the gate like hungry ghosts.

Ghosts, too, can kill each other.

Madam Gu didn't even glance at the burial sites of the four men. After sending Gu Lin to the Daxiangguo Temple, she returned to the Gu family mansion, only informing the Six Doors of the location.

The Six Doors finished up the matter, organized the case files, and wrote letters on the parts that could be published, which were then sent to the Qingcheng Sect, Canglang Fortress, and Iron Sword Sect.

Three months have now passed.

The Qingcheng Sect, Canglang Fortress, and Tiejian Sect did not even reply.

This means that they don't even want to claim the remains.

As for what this group of people did back then, I don't want to go into details.

"Pity!"

Zhan Zhao sighed.

The crimes committed by Yu Xuzi and the other two in assisting Jiang Heming have been investigated, but it is also necessary to investigate how Jiang Heming repaid them and what he did in the local sects.

However, Gu Lin was misled by Han Zhaoye at the time and only cared about who the "ghost" was inside the Six Doors, without properly digging into the secrets of Yu Xuzi and the other two.

This also involves the entire "Ten Directions of Ghosts".

What exactly this force did back then, and how it was suddenly destroyed overnight, remains a mystery.

The truth has long since vanished amidst the bloodshed and carnage.

Perhaps this old story will forever be buried beneath the river of time, never to reappear in the world.

Or perhaps—

On some unexpected morning, it will knock on the door of the Jianghu (江湖, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry) again, thanks to new causes and effects.

Withdrawing his thoughts, Zhan Zhao saw Lian Caiyun off, then turned back and called out, "Senior Brother Jiewen!"

He had sensed his senior brother outside just now.

It seems there are still significant emotional fluctuations.

However, due to his vow against killing and his connection to the karmic burden of monks, he didn't think much of it and assumed that the other party was concerned about this matter.

"Junior Brother Zhan!"

Even though Jiewen couldn't directly tell you to stay away from women, he said after showing himself, "We still need you to communicate with Constable Su. The Six Doors are the most knowledgeable about Bai Xiaofeng's past crimes."

"it is good."

Zhan Zhao nodded and relayed the information he had received the previous night: "I have a lead, the authenticity of which cannot be confirmed yet, but it concerns a monk burdened with karmic debts..."

"what?"

Upon hearing this, Jiewen's expression immediately changed: "How could Luo Shijun possibly recruit monks with bad karma? Which faction are they from? And who is the monk Yunban who is in contact with them?"

Zhan Zhao said, "The Luo family has hidden him very well. It is said that Luo Shijun arranged for him to be placed in Tianxiang Tower. Only a few of his most loyal confidants are allowed to come and go, so it is impossible to determine whether he is a monk with bad karma."

"Tianxianglou?"

Jie Wen's expression turned serious: "That place is not suitable for nighttime exploration!"

Clearly, not only Zhan Zhao, but even this portly monk had just considered sneaking into the Luo residence at night. They only gave up the idea when they heard the location was Tianxiang Tower.

What exactly is Tianxiang Tower?

Zhan Zhao did not ask Pang Lingyi about this, but took the opportunity to inquire.

Jie Wen explained, "Luo Shijun has a villa in the suburbs, where the 'Tianxiang Tower' is located. It is full of secret passages and mechanisms. It is open for one night each season to invite distinguished guests to come in and have the 'Twelve Beauties of Tianxiang' specially selected by the Luo family serve them in bed."

The senior monk didn't mince words, stating quite frankly: "It may seem like just a place of pleasure, but it's not."

"Before entering, each of those guests received an identity plaque, from which Luo Shijun would draw one and visit them at night."

"As long as you meet Luo Shijun's distinguished guest that evening, you can make one request. If it is within Luo Shijun's power, we will spare no effort to fulfill it!"

Zhan Zhao raised an eyebrow.

Isn't this just like opening a blind box?
The grand prize is Luo Shijun's promise;
The small prize is a beautiful concubine to serve you in bed.

It certainly attracts a lot of people.

I really underestimated this "Golden-Faced Yama" before.

He was able to quickly arrange the Luo family's birthday banquet because of Pang Lingyi, which made the other party back down.

Otherwise, during the investigation, the interference from this local tyrant in the capital would probably have caused the Six Doors a lot of trouble.

Jie Wen then realized that Luo Shijun was not someone to be trifled with.

This man, born into a declining military family and full of江湖气 (jianghu spirit), was able to marry his sister to Pang Ji as a second wife, a feat that most people would not do.

After that, he became even more successful, becoming a local tyrant in the capital, with influence over both the legitimate and criminal worlds. He was not someone to be trifled with.
It's hard to say what such a person could offer to win people's hearts; it's not entirely impossible that he might recruit monks with bad karma.

But which one is it?

It shouldn't be that Yunban Monk was with him.

Is that one of the three monks with negative karma that Dingguan and the other two were responsible for?

Seeing that his expression was strange, Zhan Zhao reminded him, "Senior brother, you should trust those you employ and not employ those you don't trust. Since the temple has chosen monks who have committed sins, you must not make wild doubts because of the controversy over the precept against killing. Doing so will only make you fall into the trap of the villains."

"Amitabha! Good! Good!"

Jiewen was immediately awakened, and put his hands together in prayer: "Junior brother is right to remind me not to doubt the precepts. This humble monk was attached to appearances!"

Zhan Zhao sensed that although his senior brother usually had a smiling face like Maitreya Buddha, he was actually under a lot of pressure.

Having learned from his previous actions, Jie Wen had acted without hesitation. Now that something was really going on, he analyzed, "Luo Shijun suffered a great loss at his previous birthday banquet, losing all face. In order to regain his prestige, he must do something big."

"This may be why he was willing to take the risk even though he knew that bribing monks with bad karma would offend the Great Xiangguo Temple."

“We can investigate this.”

Jie Wen nodded slowly, but then looked troubled: "But how do we investigate this?"

"Luo Shijun's affairs may be kept from others, but not from his brother-in-law Pang Ji..."

Considering that the other party was still portrayed as a virtuous minister, Zhan Zhao did not directly say that this person was Luo Shijun's real backer, but simply said: "Luo Shijun will reveal his secrets to Pang Ji."

Jie Wen understood: "Junior Brother, do you mean to start with the Pang family?"

Zhan Zhao said, "Madam Pang's birthday is coming up soon, and Luo Shijun will also be attending the banquet. If we can make a breakthrough on that day, we might be able to find out the identity of the expert that Luo Shijun has recruited."

"This is indeed a good opportunity."

Jie Wen frowned again: "But our Great Xiangguo Temple can't possibly investigate the Pang family..."

Luo Shijun was a figure from the martial arts world, while Pang Ji was a member of the imperial court.

The Jiewen Society would secretly infiltrate the residences of martial arts figures at night; this was the style of martial arts people.

But if it were the Pang family, he wouldn't have had this thought. As a royal temple, the Great Xiangguo Temple has its own rules.

Zhan Zhao said, "There's no need to spy. The birthday banquet will also invite eminent monks, and there will be people in the mansion to meet them."

The warning was clear.

Who else could be the one to provide backup?

It's the young lady from the Pang family!

Pang Ji was a wise minister with three sons and only one daughter, whom he cherished dearly. He wondered how she ended up with his junior brother…

But after looking at his junior brother's appearance and considering his abilities, Jiewen understood.

Unfortunately, nothing is more intense than lust, and lust is boundless.

Reaching the state of seeing beauty as nothing, and regarding female beauty as nothing, is a great test.

Especially for young men.

As for those sutras of pleasure, they are not entirely without reason in theory, but in practice, they require a true level of spiritual cultivation and often degenerate into lewd acts and fallacies.

Because ordinary monks simply cannot reach that level, and those who do reach that level do not practice that method.

Those who claim to have attained something before they have, and who presumptuously talk about dual cultivation, will inevitably fall into the Avici Hell.

Therefore, those who are born with wisdom, like the junior brother, can only achieve great wisdom and great composure if they can overcome the obstacle of lust for women!
The future is limitless!

Zhan Zhao continued, "The problem now is that it's not appropriate for a true high monk to gather information. I would like to go to the Pang residence in person, but how can I make them think I'm a high monk?"

Jiewen immediately said, "What people see as a high monk is nothing more than a robe and a shell, but they do not know that you, my junior brother, possess wisdom within yourself, only lacking the karmic conditions for ordination..."

Seeing Zhan Zhao frown slightly, she added, "A Buddhist name is also acceptable; both names and incantations are wonderful methods."

Zhan Zhao immediately became alert: "Oh?"

Jie Wen thought for a moment and said, "Just as Junior Brother is temporarily assuming the position of Divine Constable, why not give him a temporary Dharma name?"

Zhan Zhao was taken aback: "A Buddhist name can be given on the spot?"

Jiewen clasped his hands and smiled: "Excellent, excellent! The Dharma name Benkong appears in response to conditions!"

(End of this chapter)