But I won’t ask for this answer.
The abbot couldn't possibly tell me. He just pinched the corner of his cassock with his left hand and made a 'please' gesture with his right hand: "The boat is ready. Donors, please come with me to get the treasure!"
It turned out that there was a small wooden boat hidden alone in the reeds beside the cold pool.
Although it is not big, it can just accommodate the few of us.
After boarding the boat, Lao Jiang offered to row the boat, and the abbot thanked him. As a result, Lao Jiangshou threw the oar into my arms. He dared to be a good man and did it. The hard work was all done by his apprentice.
I gave him a fierce look, and Lao Jiang said to the abbot with a smile: "Look at my apprentice, although he looks ugly, has no ability, and loves to get into trouble, he knows how to be filial to his master."
How shameless!
I said angrily: "If you keep talking nonsense, I will take you to the middle of the lake and drown you."
Both Yin Ling'er and He Lanxue were amused, but I was the only one who laughed so hard that I took the oar and started paddling hard.
Fortunately, the pool was not that big, and soon we approached the moon-white little monk statue. The abbot saluted the statue respectfully: "Master, the person you were waiting for has finally arrived!"
Next, he made an unexpected move.
He took out a dark key and opened all the nine bronze chains at the feet of the statue!
Click!
As the copper lock fell off, the nine chains were dragged into the bottom of the pool by an unknown force.
The entire blue water cold pool seemed to have been released from the seal, and the sound began to rotate rapidly, and the speed became faster and faster, and finally formed a black vortex. The boat kept spinning with the whirlpool, and we were all so dizzy that we couldn't even stand still.
This moment reminded me of the allusion mentioned by the abbot. Isn’t the current scene like a giant dragon bound in a cold pool awakening?
At this moment, it is stirring the green water, declaring its territory to uninvited guests.
Just when I was surprised, a wave suddenly hit us like broken jade beads, making us all wet.
I lowered my head subconsciously and was horrified to find a huge black shadow appearing under the boat. The shadow was at least ten meters long and as thick as a bucket. It was obviously caused by the whirlpool just now.
It's just that it dived too deep, so I couldn't see clearly what it was...
"Master! Is there really a poisonous dragon under the water? Ling'er is so scared." Yin Ling'er grabbed He Lanxue's hand, like a frightened bird.
Lao Jiang's eyes were as bright as fire, and he suddenly put his hand on the handle of the knife and blocked it in front of me.
But the long black shadow under the water did not attack us, but quickly disappeared.
"Look! The legend is actually true..."
The abbot suddenly raised his hand and pointed, and we rushed to look over. With a roar, a big snake covered with black scales suddenly left the water. It just glanced at us with its blood-red lantern-like eyes, and then vomited a strange thing to the shore.
Then his body cut through the rolling white waves and dived into the cold pool again.
Its speed was so fast that we didn't see anything except that it was black, had two tumors on its head, and looked like a dragon or a snake!
Later, I learned from Lao Jiang that this monster was called a dragon, and it evolved from a giant python that had become a spirit for hundreds of years.
As the saying goes: a snake turns into a dragon, and a dragon turns into a dragon.
It's a pity that since the founder of Hantan Temple, no monks have come here to practice. Otherwise, if the python continues to listen to the Dharma, it may transform into a dragon...
The abbot clasped his hands together and silently recited Amitabha.
Then he saluted the statue and said to us, "Go back."
The scene that just happened was so fast and urgent that I almost didn't recover. Lao Jiang had a conscience for once and took the initiative to take the paddle from my hand and return to the way he came from.
When he returned to the shore, Lao Jiang bent down to pick up the thing spit out by the poisonous dragon.
Only then did I see clearly that it was an oil paper bag sealed in layers.
He Lanxue suddenly stopped him: "I'll do it!"
I saw that she put on a pair of silver gloves at some point, picked up the oil paper bag from the ground, and after opening the seventh or eighth layer, there was a clay statue the size of a palm inside.
The clay statue has a human body, tall and mighty, all white, but its head is like a dragon's head, and its eyes are blue, as if they have been quenched with poison, staring at us!
If you observe carefully, you will find that its arms are covered with a layer of golden scales, as if through the blessing of Buddhism, it has been equipped with an invincible golden armor.
Lao Jiang's eyes narrowed and he was overjoyed: "The dragons among the eight heavenly dragons are finally born!"
If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would never have imagined that this thing was spit out from the mouth of a poisonous dragon.
Even the abbot couldn't take his eyes away. He muttered leisurely: "At the beginning, the Patriarch came to Hantan and enlightened the poisonous dragon to practice meditation. The Patriarch did not know where he went, and the treasure was in the mouth of the poisonous dragon. Thanks to the blessings of several donors, the old monk If I have the chance to meet the poisonous dragon that accompanied my ancestor back then, it is considered a life worth living..."
"Anyway, without your help, we will never get this clay statue." Lao Jiang put a high hat on the abbot, but the abbot's eyes seemed to be glued to my body.
Shojue told me that he had something to say to me.
But after waiting for a long time, not a single word came out.
Lao Jiang knew what I was thinking and took the initiative to say: "Since we have obtained the things, without further delay, we will rush back to resume our lives..."
"Li Jinglan, help everyone say goodbye to the abbot. We will wait for you outside the temple."
Yin Ling'er didn't understand what Lao Jiang meant, so she said enthusiastically that we should send the abbot off together, right?
He Lanxue covered her mouth and told her to stop getting involved.
The abbot did not refuse. On the way back, I specifically asked him about the founder of Hantan Temple. The abbot said very little, and he knew what I wanted to ask, but he only answered superficial questions, which made me confused. I sent him to the meditation room but didn't get any useful information.
Seeing that this great opportunity was about to pass away, I made my words clear for the first time: "Abbot! I want to know, did your ancestor open his eyes after he was ten years old?"
I thought he must be from Lei Town, but the abbot just smiled slightly: "Everything in the world has its destiny. If the ancestor has the heavenly eye, it is the Bodhisattva who gives him an extra pair of eyes to see the suffering in the world. Without the heavenly eye, it is difficult. Transform him into a Buddhist dharma to overcome the sufferings in the world."
He said this in a confused way, as if he admitted that the person had a third eye, but at the same time he seemed not to admit it.
I wanted to continue asking, but the abbot only replied: "The secret must not be revealed."
After leaving Hantan Temple, we only stayed one more night in Shanghai and bought train tickets to Peking the next day.
Because there are three clay figures on us now, plus Warner’s shadow, Lao Jiang doesn’t dare to stay in Shanghai for a moment longer.
At this time, the weather in Peiping has turned warmer, and some willow branches on the road have sprouted new buds in the breeze. We didn't dare to stay, and we just rushed to the Qilin headquarters!
Once we had a panoramic view of the Black Building, we all breathed a sigh of relief.
Originally, Lao Jiang planned to report to his superiors first, but we were really hungry and it happened to be lunch time, so we headed to the cafeteria.
"Master, I want to eat big chicken drumsticks!" Yin Ling'er jumped all the way and started to pester He Lanxue when she arrived at the entrance of the cafeteria.
He Lanxue pursed her lips and smiled, and agreed: "Okay! For the sake of you not getting into trouble this time."
Lao Jiang was also smiling, thinking that he would drink a few bottles of good chrysanthemum liquor later, so he would be so happy. This time he had achieved great success!
However, when we came to the canteen and wanted to chat with the master chef, we found a familiar figure in red clothes and a hunched back. He was chatting with the master and asked him to make a special dish of boiled cabbage: "Choose Shandong cabbage." Only the most tender cabbage remains of the cabbage there! Of course, the soup base is the most important, and the broth needs to be made from hens, white ducks, ribs, abalone, and pigeons..."
"By the way, do you know how to make drunken lamb? Use the most authentic Xinjiang mutton slices, soak them in two ounces of white wine, add some wolfberry, jujube..."
Before the man could finish speaking, the master chef of the cafeteria waved his hand: "Do you think this is the emperor's royal dining room, where are you just taking orders? No, there is nothing."
The man was so angry that he pointed at the other person's nose and scolded: "How can you swallow these rotten vegetable leaves that are fed to pigs?"
The master chef in our canteen is also used to it. The first time he rolls up his sleeves, he will hit someone: "Do you dare to say that the food I cook is for pigs?"
Seeing that the two sides were about to clash, Lao Jiang immediately rushed over: "Brother Camel, wait a minute!"
"you know me?"
Yes, the person who ordered the food was a camel.
Luotuo wondered how Lao Jiang knew him. I quickly stepped forward to introduce him. When he saw me, Luotuo immediately shouted: "Isn't this the boy who touched the eldest lady's butt? What a coincidence."
Luotuo's voice is naturally loud, and this sound almost attracted all the Qilin members in the cafeteria who wanted to hear the gossip.
All the eyes in a radius of tens of meters were fixed on me, and in my ears there was a sinister chuckle from Yin Ling'er, gritting her teeth: "Hey, you can also touch people's butts?"
It's unfair, it's obvious that it was Lao Jiang who framed me.
I looked at Lao Jiang, wanting him to explain it to me, but Lao Jiang hid his face and was too shy to see anyone: "Master has told you not to use that method, but you insist on doing it. Alas, it's unfortunate for our master..."
Now everyone looked at me more and more deeply. I wanted to find a hole in the ground to crawl into!
