Chapter 618: Chen Xuanzang is just the forerunner of the king
However, it is said that after Tang Wang Li Shimin came back to life, in addition to offering amnesty to the world, releasing the palace maids, and holding a land and water conference, the first thing he did was to entertain Feng Zhou.
"I don't think my virtuous brother has great supernatural powers and is running rampant in the underworld. He is truly a hero." Li Shimin sighed repeatedly.
Feng Zhou smiled slightly: "This is my innate magical power. I don't know when I will possess magical power. Some people say that I am the reincarnation of the Heavenly Lord, and some people say that I am an old demon who has borrowed his corpse to resurrect his soul."
After saying that, the two laughed loudly.
During the dinner, Li Shimin himself took the initiative to upgrade the personnel exchange plan to several levels, and then said: "Brother, you and I have a great life-extending debt that will be unforgettable. In addition to Tang Ming's exchange and mutual integration, I also have a mutual understanding."
beg."
Feng Zhou said: "Brother, please tell me."
Li Shimin said: "I have a sister, who is the twelfth daughter of the late emperor. She is the eldest princess of Huainan, and her name is Chengxia. The country is beautiful and fragrant, and she is virtuous and virtuous. She can be the wife of a good brother. I wonder what my good brother wants?"
When Li Shimin sent a girl to his door, Feng Zhou naturally would not refuse, and said: "Since she is a princess, Feng Zhou would like to thank my brother for his consideration. I will definitely treat her as the Golden Saint Palace. The harem is full of Tang style, so the princess travels
If you see it, it will only be Tang culture."
Li Shimin felt happy after hearing this. Of course he understood that this was Feng Zhou showing him his determination to completely Chineseize the Ming Dynasty.
Being able to Chineseize a large foreign country, Li Shimin naturally felt a great sense of accomplishment.
So the two emperors quickly finalized the plan of intermarriage. To be precise, they made a marriage plan.
Once the marriage is finalized, cultural and personnel exchanges between the two countries will become more convenient.
Feng Zhou stayed in Chang'an for more than a month, and after finalizing the list and materials for the trip to the Ming Dynasty, he returned to the Ming Dynasty.
As for the Tang princess and her generous dowry, they were escorted by Li Daozong, the king of Jiangxia, and had to walk slowly behind.
Zhuzi City is 50,000 miles away from Yumen Pass. Fengzhou can reach it in a short time when he returns home, but his 500 guardsmen have to walk for more than three months. This is because Fengzhou used a large number of Tibetan prisoners of war to build Chidao.
for the sake of.
As for the escorting team commanded by Li Daozong, I'm afraid it will take a year to walk on Chidao Road.
In the thirteenth year of Zhenguan, at the end of the year, on the third day of Jiaxu in the ninth month, on the good day of Guimao, Buddhism was ordered to hold a water and land conference, and Chen Xuanzang was elected as the Great Master. Twelve hundred eminent monks gathered together and settled in Chang'an City.
The performance of various wonderful sutras began in the Sheng Temple. The emperor had finished his court early, and many civil and military officials rode in a phoenix chariot and a dragon chariot. They left the Jinluan Palace and went to the temple to burn incense.
Chen Xuanzang, the eminent and virtuous monk chosen by Buddhism, whose real name is Jiang Liu'er, came from a rough background. However, you are so profound in Buddhism that people don't know that you are the reincarnation of Luo Luo, the legitimate son of our Buddha, the World Honored One, in the form of a golden cicada, and you are the number one in the secret practice.
But when the Buddha came to earth, he only listened to his oral recitation of Buddhist scriptures and explanations, and his witty words were like flowers. All the court ministers were fascinated and intoxicated by the Buddhist teachings.
The teachings of the Dharma attracted everyone to praise them for their good teachings. Emperor Taizong, Li Shimin, and civil and military officials came to listen to the lectures every day, and Chen Xuanzang's reputation spread far and wide.
However, it is said that Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva in Putuo Mountain in the South China Sea received the Tathagata Buddha's decree and visited good people in Chang'an City to learn scriptures. It has been a long time since he met a truly virtuous person. Suddenly, he heard that Taizong preached good results, elected eminent monks, and opened a conference, and saw the Dharma Master Altar.
The Lord was the monk Jiangliu'er, the son of the Buddha who had descended from the bliss, and the elder whom he had originally led to reincarnation. The Bodhisattva was very happy, so Avalokitesvara and his disciple Hui'an Xingzhi transformed into two leprosy monks and held them in his arms.
She was selling the treasures along the way, and the price was extremely high. It happened that the Prime Minister of the Tang Dynasty was passing by. Seeing that she was delighted with the two treasures, he took her to see Taizong. This Bodhisattva was just trying to be mysterious. He knew clearly that the two treasures were for Xuanzang, so how could he ask for any money?
?After two or three sentences, he presented the two treasures to Xuanzang for free use.
Speaking of Xuanzang's sermon, the master was on the stage, reciting for a while the Sutra of Rebirth and Saving Death, talking about Anbang Tianbao Seal Script for a while, and proclaiming the Encourage to Practice Gong Scroll for a while. The scabies monk transformed by Guanyin suddenly became He came closer, patted the treasure platform and shouted loudly: "Monk, you can only talk about Hinayana teachings, but can you talk about Mahayana?"
When Xuanzang heard this, he was overjoyed. He jumped down from the stage and bowed to Guanyin and said, "Teacher, my disciple has lost his sight and committed many sins. The monks in front of me all taught Hinayana teachings, but they didn't know what Mahayana teachings were like." ."
Avalokitesvara said: "Your Hinayana teachings cannot save the dead, but can only lead them to earthliness and light. I have the Tripitaka of Mahayana Buddhism, which can transcend the dead and ascend to heaven, save difficult people from suffering, cultivate an infinite lifespan, and do countless things." There is no coming or going.”
In the middle of the lecture, the Sixiang Inspector hurriedly reported to Tang Wang Li Shimin: "The master was talking about the wonderful Dharma when he was pulled down by two scabies wandering monks and talked nonsense." After Taizong heard this, he invited the crowd to come out and watch. When I saw the two monks, I felt they looked familiar. I thought for a while, remembered them, and asked, "Are you the monk who gave me the cassocks the day before yesterday?"
When Guanyin saw the emperor, she did not bow down, but stood up and replied: "It's just a poor monk. What do you want to say, Your Majesty?"
The emperor said: "Since you came here to listen to the lecture, why did you talk nonsense with my Dharma Master, disturb the sutra hall, and interfere with my Buddhist services?"
The Bodhisattva said: "What your master teaches is Hinayana teachings, which can save the dead and ascend to heaven. I have the Tripitaka of Mahayana Buddhism, which can save death and escape suffering, and live a long life without deterioration."
Li Shimin asked seriously and happily: "Where is your Mahayana Buddhism?"
Avalokitesvara said: "In the Great Thunder Sound Temple in the Great Western Tianzhu Kingdom, I am the Buddha Tathagata. I can resolve hundreds of wrongs and eliminate all kinds of disasters."
Li Shimin asked: "Do you remember?" Guanyin nodded, and Li Shimin said with great joy: "Teacher, please lead me to the stage to give a lecture."
At this time, Guanyin and Muzha appeared in their original forms, riding on the auspicious clouds, and stood in the air. Li Shimin was so panicked that he bowed to the sky, and all the civil and military officials knelt down to burn incense. The temple was full of monks, nuns, laymen, scholars, and merchants, and no one did not pray. Guanyin He lightly opened his red lips and said: "For the information of the King of Tang, in the west, where my Buddha Tathagata comes, there is the Tripitaka of the Mahayana Sutra. The journey there is one hundred and eight thousand miles. If an eminent monk can go there and get it back, he can liberate ghosts and gods, and it will not be easy for him to live forever. Based on this foundation, you can obtain the golden body and achieve true results, and protect your country forever."
Li Shimin was overjoyed when he heard this. He looked around and said, "Who is willing to follow my will and go to the West to worship Buddha and seek scriptures?"
In fact, it’s not anyone else’s turn to do this.
Here Chen Xuanzang was in charge of lecturing on scriptures. Avalokitesvara appeared and preached the Mahayana Sutra. The emperor asked people to seek scriptures again, so Chen Xuanzang had to come out.
Of course, if he did not want to suffer the hardship of traveling to the west, he could have bowed his head and remained silent, but in the future his prestige in Buddhism and the court would plummet, and his reputation would be completely ruined.
Chen Xuanzang thought about this problem for a while, came out of the crowd, saluted in front of the emperor and said: "I am a poor monk but I am not talented. I am willing to do my best to obtain the true scriptures from your majesty and pray for the eternal stability of my king."
Li Shimin, the king of the Tang Dynasty, was overjoyed. His eyes flashed and he stepped forward to lift his hand up and said: "Master, if you can be so loyal and virtuous, and not afraid of long journeys and trekking through mountains and rivers, I would like to become your brother." Xuanzang nodded and thanked you. The king of the Tang Dynasty was indeed very virtuous, so he went to the Buddha in the temple and bowed four times to Xuanzang, calling him "the holy monk, my younger brother." Are you so favored by God? Once I leave, I will definitely sacrifice my life and work hard to reach the Western Heaven. If I don't reach the Western Heaven and don't get the true scriptures, I won't dare to return to my country even if I die, and I will fall into hell forever." I burned incense in front of the Buddha and took this oath. .
Li Shimin said: "My dear brother, I accidentally obtained the 'Northern Silk Road Landscape Map' and handed it over to you. You only need to follow the map and I think you will be able to reach the West in the shortest time and obtain the true scripture."
Xuanzang thanks you.
After Li Shimin drove back to the palace, Li Jing, Xu Maogong and others came to admonish him: "Your Majesty, the 'Northern Silk Road Landscape Map' is a map given to Your Majesty by the Emperor of Ming Dynasty. It describes the mountains and rivers geography of the Western Regions. How can it be easily
What about giving it to the Buddhist monk?"
Li Shimin laughed loudly: "That is just a simplified map that I ordered Yan Liben to trace. How can I hand over the real map to my imperial brother so easily? Generals, I plan to have your beloved princes lead the army three months after Xuanzang rises.
Expedition to the West, penetrate the Northern Silk Road, control the Western Regions, build the Anxi Protectorate, and promote the glory of the Tang Dynasty."
At this time, in front of the emperor were not only Li Jing and Xu Maogong, but also generals such as Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, Hou Junji, Su Dingfang, and ministers such as Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, and Wei Zheng. After hearing Li Shimin's plan, everyone suddenly realized
, understanding that Chen Xuanzang was just a pioneer for the king, they were immediately amazed by the emperor's foresight, and they all fell down in front of the emperor and shouted long live the emperor.
Not to mention the ambitions of the Tang Dynasty monarchs and ministers, after Feng Zhou returned to Zhuzi City, guards came to report: "A monk came from the west, with a big belly and a big smile. He talked about the scriptures and attracted countless people to listen.
Worship him as a holy monk."
"Oh?" Feng Zhou raised his eyebrows and said with a smile: "Since there is a holy monk here, I want to meet him."