Chapter 650: On the Brink of Helping or Not Helping
On the first day of the first lunar month, the Tianla Sacrifice Ceremony was carried out for more than an hour, and it ended at dawn.
Zhang Guanzhu wore a bright yellow cassock embroidered with gold and silver, a crown inlaid with gems on his head, and held a golden whisk. He supported his elder brother Jia De'an, who was over eighty years old and had gray hair, as he walked out of the hall. Behind him were the mountain chief and three senior brothers.
Shang Zheng, followed by Yue Anyan, Zhao Zhuer, and finally Lu Zijin, as well as the deacons of various halls.
More than 110 disciples on the left and right stood in silence, holding their hands in greeting.
The first three batches of official disciples originally had a total of 147 people. After so many years, some died in battle in border towns, some died in accidents while out on adventures, and some were kicked out of the mountain for bad conduct. Currently, there are still 100 officially registered disciples.
Thirty-seven people, excluding the disciples who have not returned from their mission and who are guarding various shops, are all here.
More than 200 Taoist apprentices from the fourth batch of Taoist temples are not qualified to participate in the ceremony, so they can enjoy family happiness at home.
"Alas, it has been more than twenty years, and my Jia family has not even produced a qualified apprentice. Is it because I, Jia De'an, have bad moral character and damaged my moral integrity, or is it because the Jia family's fortune is bad?"
Walking in the empty bluestone square outside the new temple, Jia Dean looked lonely and a little sad, muttering to himself in a low voice.
Even if he can't cultivate immortality, he has been chanting sutras and practicing for many years, but he knows that his body is not strong enough, and his days are numbered and he won't be able to hold on to it for long. This may be the last time he attends the Tianla Sacrifice Ceremony at Xianling Temple.
Zhang Wenfeng patted the senior brother's withered left hand covered with age spots and comforted softly: "Practice is in your body, let nature take its course. Senior brother, don't worry about the affairs of the younger generations. If possible, choose a young Jia family who can endure hardships to come to the mountain gate to do some cooking.
, the external chores in the dining hall are full of incense."
Jia Dean nodded gratefully to the still young-looking viewer: "Thank you so much, visitor!"
The disciples of the Foreign Affairs Hall of Xianling Temple have a generous salary. It is said that one pound of spiritual rice is distributed every year. The most important thing is that they can be tainted with the incense of the Taoist temple, and it is convenient for the descendants of the Jia family to be close to the water.
The Guanzhu thought of incense and affection and took care of him, and he felt relieved.
After having a vegetarian meal in the morning, Zhang Wenfeng said hello to the mountain chief after seeing off his two senior brothers, and walked quietly by the stream alone.
I heard that Uncle Lame's family rushed to Zhangjiazhuang before dawn to participate in this year's ancestor worship. Even Xiao Ni'er went to join in the fun.
Yang Shuilan, Lezi, and Xiao Nier are not Taoist priests. Whether they participate in the sacrificial rituals depends on their own wishes. For example, Lu Zijin is not a Taoist priest but a sect monk. In recent years, they have participated in the New Year Festival.
After walking for a while, when they arrived at the foot of Xianling Mountain, Zhang Wenfeng waved to his apprentice who was following him a hundred feet away.
Zhuang Yu trotted forward with a shy smile on her face, raised her hands and bowed in salute: "For disturbing the master's peace, I would like to greet the master on behalf of the senior sister, and wish the master a smooth journey to the celestial world and all the best!"
"Okay, okay, get up. Should I give you two red envelopes or one? You are being naughty again."
Zhang Wenfeng smiled and took out a red paper bag and handed it to the apprentice who was paying New Year greetings.
Zhuang Yu pinched the red envelope containing a spiritual energy stone and said with a smile: "Master, please reward me with your senior sister's share. I can collect it on your behalf."
"Can you still receive the red envelope on your behalf? You are thinking of good things."
Zhang Wenfeng walked up the mountain and saw Zhuang Yu following him all the way. He said with a smile: "It's New Year's greetings. Do you have anything important to talk about during the New Year?"
As soon as Zhuang Yu met his master's eyes, he quickly lowered his head and saw his master's long sleeves fluttering as he moved forward. He hesitated and quickly followed, saying in a low voice: "Apprentice should not have talked about things on this day, but here we are.
The matter is serious, and the disciple cannot and dare not delay it any longer, so I ask the master to punish me!"
"Oh, what's the matter? Tell me about it? Don't just blame and punish me if you're celebrating the Chinese New Year."
Zhang Wenfeng didn't stop, climbed up the steps, and said as if he was joking.
Zhuang Yu fell two steps behind and said in a low voice: "Zhuang Mi and Zhou Shun, disciples of Xianling Temple, took advantage of the convenience of having jurisdiction over the Xianling Trading Shop in Nanjiangzhoufang City to collude with each other to make false accounts and embezzled more than 31,000 spiritual stones.
, there are some crystal stones, the evidence is conclusive, please tell me how to deal with them?"
He took out two booklets and held them with both hands to the viewer who stopped in his tracks.
Zhang Wenfeng looked as usual, took the booklet, and continued
He walked up the mountain and said, "You and Zhuang Mi are cousins who have not yet entered the third level of service. Didn't you notice that he was stupid enough to do such a wrong thing?"
Zhuang Yu no longer dared to hide anything. Master knew about this in advance and had been waiting for him to take the initiative to report. He whispered: "Disciple is ashamed. He was busy with wiring and overseas wars and neglected internal supervision. Last autumn,
, I discovered the problem and arranged for verification. The apprentice did not do things well and failed the master's trust."
Zhang Wenfeng raised his palms to stop him and said, "Can you tell me how to deal with Zhuang Mi and Zhou Shun?"
Sweat dripped from Zhuang Yu's forehead, and he said with a dry mouth: "The amount of corruption committed by the two of them is huge. According to the sect's laws, their corruption gains should be confiscated, their cultivation should be abolished, and they should be interrogated by the Daolu Yuan and sentenced to imprisonment.
.”
Confined to confinement, it is almost impossible for prisoners who have lost their cultivation to walk out of prison alive.
Zhang Wenfeng stopped, looked at the pale apprentice, and said, "If you find a problem and delay reporting it, you will disappoint me. Today is the first day of the new year, so it is not too late. I will delegate this matter to you and the commander."
You and Wei Jingjie will handle it together with the Law Hall. You and Wei Jingjie will handle it within the Xianling Temple. Then the results will be made known to the whole sect and all the disciples will take a warning, so there is no need to trouble the Zhoucheng Daolu Branch."
Zhuang Yu was overjoyed and hurriedly bowed and saluted: "Thank you Master for your kindness!"
Abolition of cultivation, expulsion from the school, being able to survive and become a rich man is the best ending.
He understood that the master was lenient because of his merit and hard work.
His uncle's family only had one child, and he couldn't bear to let the white-haired person give away the black-haired person, and even cut off the descendants of the incense. He was secretly glad in his heart that he resisted the idea of erasing the evidence for his cousin, and did not make a fool of himself.
point.
Zhang Wenfeng shook his head and continued walking up, saying: "They disappoint me so much. The future of the road is lost to a mere spirit stone. The sect has not lacked their cultivation resources. I had originally planned to let him and Zhang Xuandong withdraw this year.
, I will take a group of disciples to practice in a secret place in the middle of this year. They are on the list, and their contributions will not be forgotten by the sect."
There are many temptations on the path of spiritual practice, and he is very sad that the disciples he taught have gone astray.
Zhuang Yu bowed to see him off on the bluestone steps of the mountain road.
Walking up to the top of the mountain, Zhang Wenfeng looked into the distance and saw that there would be no circle without rules. He gave his apprentice a chance.
Fortunately, Zhuang Yu didn't let him down by being confused.
It is easy to talk about destroying relatives for the sake of justice, but when they face it in real life, especially when Zhuang Yu and Zhuang Mi have a close relationship and have grown up, it is difficult not to help cover up. With Zhuang Yu's intelligence, there are many ways to help relatives.
He didn't help and picked it out himself.
He took out the yellow talisman, recited a few words silently, raised his hand and sent it out.