More than twenty miles northeast of Guangzhou Prefecture, Zhang Yanling and his party arrived at the foot of Baiyun Mountain at the end of the day.
Walking along the winding mountain road into the mountains, you will see beautiful mountains and green mountains. Although Baiyun Mountain is not high in altitude, the highest point is only three to four hundred meters. The radius of the mountain range is only more than ten miles. But the scenery here is really beautiful.
The group went up the mountain from the southwest path and arrived at Ciyun Temple on the southwest side of the mountain at sunset. The temple abbot learned that Zhang Yanling was a distinguished guest from the capital, and Zhang Yanling rewarded them with more than 100 yuan.
He was very attentive in exchange for two coins of incense oil. When Zhang Yanling asked to stay in the temple for one night so that he could get up early tomorrow to see the scenery, the temple abbot was busy asking the novice monks to clean the backyard Zen room and invite Zhang Yanling and his party to stay.
Although Ciyun Temple is not big, its terrain is very good. The stone pagoda in the backyard is directly opposite the Mingchun Valley in the northeast. Before the sun set, Zhang Yanling and others climbed up the stone pagoda to enjoy the view at the suggestion of the temple host.
Standing on the stone tower, you can see the setting sun shining on the green valley on the north side. The undulating hills, light and shadow, really make you open-minded and refreshing.
"I didn't expect that this place in the south of the Five Ridges would have such magnificent scenery of mountains and rivers. It's amazing. But I don't know why that valley is called Spring Valley? Is there any significance to it?" Zhang Yanling.
The accompanying temple abbot smiled mysteriously, clasped his hands and said: "Master Hou, we will know later. The scene that Master Hou is seeing now is the 'Baiyun Wangwan', one of the most beautiful scenes in our Baiyun Mountain." Master Hou looked at the white clouds in the sky,
When the mountains are illuminated at night, and the green light and shade appear, does it give you the Zen feeling of 'walking to a waterless place and sitting down to watch the clouds rise'?"
Zhang Yanling nodded and said: "Don't tell me, when the host said this, I really feel like this."
The host smiled and said: "There will be a grand scene later. Lord Marquis, let's enjoy the scene of white clouds looking at the evening. This kind of scene is fleeting."
Zhang Yanling nodded slightly, stood on the stone tower with his hands behind his hands, and looked at the scenery below. As the sun set little by little, the sky darkened little by little, and the shadows in the valley lengthened, gradually becoming dark and obscure. Almost in an instant,
Lost the beauty before.
"Sure enough, beautiful scenery is like a person's youth, fleeting. Short-lived and beautiful." Zhang Yanling sighed in a low voice.
The abbot of the temple recited the Buddha's name and said with a smile: "Young Master Hou is so young, but he has such a sigh. Mr. Hou is a man of wisdom. If you join our Buddhist sect, you will definitely become a great monk of the generation."
Chen Shiyi laughed at the side and said: "You old monk, my Marquis is in a high position and has a house full of wives and concubines, so he has a son. You actually persuaded my Marquis to enter Buddhism. It's simply ridiculous."
The host said hurriedly: "The poor monk just said this, not to persuade the Marquis to enter Buddhism. Lord Marquis, please take a look, the grand scene in Mingchun Valley is about to appear."
Zhang Yanling looked intently and saw countless birds flying into the valley from all directions in the sky. Countless black spots were flying in the sky, accompanied by the noisy chirping of birds. It was a distance from Mingchun.
The valley is at least three or four miles away, but you can still hear the birdsong clearly.
"What's going on?" Chen Shiyi asked in surprise.
Zhang Yanling chuckled and said: "That valley is the habitat of birds. When the sun goes down, the birds return to their nests. Thousands of birds come back and sing in the valley. This is probably the origin of the name Mingchun Valley.
.”
The old host nodded repeatedly and praised the Marquis for his extreme intelligence. This Mingchun Valley indeed got its name from this. In the early morning and at dusk, countless birds came out of the valley to look for food and returned to their nests to roost. The birds sang in the valley, hence the name.
"If you listen carefully, Lord Marquis, you can hear the chirping of hundreds of birds, which has its own rhythm. The echoes of the valley harmonize and complement each other," the old host said.
Zhang Yanling nodded, calmed down and listened carefully. Sure enough, the sound of birdsong seemed noisy, but after careful analysis, it was indeed a hundred birds singing together, each with its own rhythm. It was like a symphony, with distinct layers. Unconsciously
I was secretly amazed.
While everyone was listening to the chirping of birds quietly, Chen Shiyi suddenly said: "The valley must be full of bird droppings and the smell is terrible."
This time, the scenery was greatly disturbed. Everyone looked at each other in astonishment, not knowing what to say.
…
At the second watch, a figure followed two personal guards into Zhang Yanling's residence in the backyard of Ciyun Temple.
Zhang Yanling sat under the lamp and read a Diamond Sutra, which he borrowed from an old monk to pass the long night.
"Master Marquis, Master Wang is here." The guard reported in a low voice at the door.
Zhang Yanling stood up and looked towards the door.
"Please!"
The personal guards lifted the bamboo curtain for the visitor, who bowed into the house and knelt down to kowtow.
"Your Majesty, Wang Hong, comes to see Lord Zhang."
Zhang Yanling approached quickly, supported him with both hands, and said with a smile: "Master Wang, please get up quickly, no need to be polite."
The visitor is Wang Hong, the official of the Guangdong Procuratorate. He is about forty years old, of medium height, and has a dignified appearance. He has traveled dozens of miles and is sweating profusely, but he is in good spirits.
"Master Wang, I am really sorry for inviting you from Dongguan, which is dozens of miles away, to the mountain temple here and making you tired from traveling around." Zhang Yanling said with a smile.
Wang Hong said in a deep voice: "What did the Marquis say? I didn't believe it was the Marquis who called me, and I almost had a misunderstanding. I didn't expect that it was actually the Marquis of Jianchang who came to Guangdong in person. It's really unexpected."
Zhang Yanling laughed and said: "Yes, I didn't expect to come here. I didn't expect to meet Master Wang in the temple in the middle of the night. I don't want to do this, but I can only do this.
.I hope Mr. Wang can understand."
"Master Zhang, you and your subordinates all understand. It is inconvenient to go anywhere else, so Zhang Hou can only meet your subordinates here." Wang Hong said in a deep voice.
Zhang Yanling nodded and said: "It seems that Mr. Wang is very clear in his heart. Then you must know what I want to do when I come to you."
Wang Hong said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty wants to know the situation here and inquire about the invasion and occupation of Tuen Mun by the people of Guangzhou. Is it the emperor who sent Mr. Hou here to find out the matter?"
?”
Zhang Yanling smiled and shook his head and said: "That's right, that's not the case. I am indeed here on purpose, but I am not here to investigate the invasion and occupation of Tuen Mun by the Fo Langji Kingdom."
Wang Hong's eyes showed disappointment, and he said in a deep voice: "Then, what is the purpose of Mr. Zhang's invitation to this official? I thought Mr. Zhang was here to find out the matter."
Zhang Yanling said with a smile: "Master Wang, do you still need to investigate this matter? Isn't it clearly written in your master's booklet? The Folangji people invaded Tuenmen, and the Guangzhou government failed to drive them away. These things are all true.
Isn’t it?”
Wang Hong was surprised and said: "It turns out that Lord Marquis knows about this. I guarantee with my head on my neck that this is the truth."
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "Because you got this deal, you were transferred from the Guangzhou Prefecture's Chasi Yamen and are now working as a sea channel patrol in Dongguan County, right? You are only allowed to patrol sea channels in Dongguan County. Isn't that right?"
Wang Hong smiled bitterly and said: "It turns out that Mr. Hou even knows these things."
Zhang Yanling said: "Of course I know. Mr. Wang, I have been in Guangzhou for many days and have investigated everything. I know what you know. I am afraid I also know what you don't know. Hey, I didn't expect it.
It's so dark here
.It sucks. Mr. Wang, I invited you here today to ask you to do me a favor. I want to clean up the corrupt officials here, crack down on smuggling, and even expel and arrest the evil businessmen of the Flemish Country on Tuen Mun Island.
To bring clarity to this place. Are you willing to help me?"
Wang Hong stood up, bowed his hands in salute, and said happily: "It turns out that the Marquis is here to do such a big thing. The official has long been looking forward to the court sending someone to rectify this matter. The official has been here since he came to the throne.
After that memorial, any memorial
They can no longer be handed over. All the memorials have been thrown into the sea. The lower officials have lost hope. Unexpectedly, the imperial court has seen it and made up its mind to clean up. This is great. What should the lower official do?
It’s obligatory.”
Zhang Yanling shook his head and said: "Master Wang, the imperial court has not seen your memorial. Only one of your memorials has been delivered to the emperor, and the rest have not reached the emperor's hands. This time, I came here to investigate other matters, and I found out that
This is a secret. This is my decision, not the decision of the imperial court."
Wang Hong looked at Zhang Yanling in shock.
Zhang Yanling continued: "I came here with only a dozen followers incognito. I didn't know that I was going to do such a big thing. So, I need help. After thinking about it, I don't know many officials here.
, there is only one person that I can trust, Master Wang. So, I can only ask you to help me. Do you dare?"
Wang Hong took a breath and said in a deep voice: "Master Hou, I will go through fire and water, even if I die."
Zhang Yanling clapped her hands and said in a deep voice: "Okay. You are indeed brave. It seems that I did not misjudge the person."
Wang Hong asked: "But Lord Marquis, you only brought a dozen of your men here, how are you going to act? Is there a large army of soldiers and horses coming?"
Zhang Yanling smiled and said: "There is no big army of soldiers and horses, it's just you and me. I don't have many people at hand, so you should have soldiers and horses under you. How many people do you have?"
Wang Hong was stunned for a long time and said blankly: "Xiaguan... In the Dongguan government office, I only have about fifty patrol officers and one boat."
Zhang Yanling looked at Wang Hong in astonishment and was speechless for a long time.