Chapter 151: Debating Scriptures

In the winter of the 31st year of Jianing, at Lu Hun Mountain Villa.

Wind and snow filled the sky, covering the land in silver.

The villa at dawn still had bright lights. The high gray walls and gray tiles with their overlapping ridges resembled a massive cruise ship, quietly sailing through the silver-white sea of snow.

From afar, passing pedestrians seemed to hear the sound of ice cracking, as if it were slowly breaking open the eternally frozen polar region.

Dong. A bell rang, its melodious sound spreading out.

In front of the Lu Hun Mountain Villa gate, two young novices stood guard, their hands tucked into their sleeves.

One of them heard the bell and turned his head towards the depths of the villa, softly saying, "Another person from the Dao Court has been defeated. How many is this now?"

"The eighth! Lose one more and there'll be no one left."

"The Dao Court is arrogant, but we came prepared."

One young novice tucked his sleeves in further and looked out at the wind and snow outside the gate, sighing, "The scripture debate has lasted for a day and a night, and it's finally coming to an end."

At this moment, the sound of horse hooves came from the wind and snow.

The young novice stood beneath the plaque of Lu Hun Mountain Villa, shielding his eyes with his hand and squinting into the wind and snow. He looked for a long time, only to see several gray figures gradually becoming clearer!

A young man walked with his head bowed low, leading three reins against the wind, treading through the snow with difficulty.

The gale wind flapped his clothes backward. The people on the three horses behind him were hunched over, resisting the cold wind.

The young novice said cautiously, "Who are you?"

The newcomers quickened their steps: "Asking for lodging."

"Asking for lodging?"

The young novice was doubtful. He waited for the newcomers to walk faster and faster, then suddenly shouted, "This place is a solemn treasure ground of the Buddha gate. Stop, newcomers!"

"Buddha gate?"

The newcomer raised his head, revealing a young man's face: "Isn't this the station at the foot of Lao Jun Shan Dao Ting? How did it become a treasure ground of the Buddha gate?"

The young novices exchanged glances and quickly explained, "Lao Jun Shan Dao Ting's chief disciple, Ma Yiming, lost the scripture debate to our senior brother. The Dao Ting has already lost this Lu Hun Mountain Villa to our Yuan Jue Si!"

The young man was stunned for a moment: "Playing so big?"

He raised his head to look at the door lintel of Lu Hun Mountain Villa. This villa occupied several hundred mu and was vast and boundless. The cost of construction alone was at least several tens of thousands of taels of silver.

This kind of villa, lost just like that!

The young novice said, "This was originally our Zen sect's property. The Dao Ting took it from us in the twelfth year of Ren De. Now, things have just returned to their original owner. Today there's an even bigger bet. If the Dao Ting loses all nine rounds, the nineteen Daoists participating in this literary gathering and scripture debate must shave their heads and leave home to ring the bell in our temple for the rest of their lives."

The young man's eyes widened in shock: "Which round is the debate in now?"

The young novice replied, "The eighth round just finished debating. Perhaps they will rest for half a shichen. If you are just passing by and asking for lodging, please go back. Today, Lu Hun Mountain Villa only receives guests of the literary gathering."

The young man turned his head to look behind him. A young lady on one of the horses was already slumped over, having fainted. He turned back and politely said to the young novice, "Among us are the heir and a county princess from Jing Wang Fu, as well as the second young lady from the magistrate's house in Luo Cheng. Please trouble yourselves to report it. We encountered mountain bandits on the way and lost our invitations."

The young novice was startled: "The heir and a county princess? You are..."

The young man said, "I'm just a young apprentice from the medical hall of Jing Wang Fu, Chen Ji!"

The young novice asked: "Do you have a fu token?"

Chen Ji shook his head: "No, but there are certainly people within this literary gathering who know the heir and the county princess."

"You wait a moment."

The young novice lifted the hem of his gray monk's robe and ran into the villa with small, quick steps to report.

Chen Ji turned back to the horses. He gently said to the county princess, "County princess, don't worry. With the Dao Ting and Buddha gate here, there will certainly be medicine to cure the wind chill."

The county princess had a piece of cloth wrapped around her head and was slumped on the horse, letting out a low "um" sound. Her body couldn't straighten up, and she didn't know if she had heard Chen Ji's words.

Chen Ji reached up to touch her forehead. It was burning hot!

The next moment, the young novice ran back hurriedly: "Sorry, benefactors, the heavy snow is blocking the road now. We cannot verify your identities. Please go back!"

Chen Ji frowned slightly: "Did you report who is here?"

The young novice said patiently, "Yes, but the senior brother said that since you didn't bring a token or an invitation, please go back."

Chen Ji suddenly realized that the Buddha gate was finding an excuse.

At this literary gathering in Lu Hun Mountain Villa, even an ordinary scholar could get an invitation as long as they were willing to come.

With such a low threshold, why couldn't he get in?

The other party certainly knew what happened at Long Wang Tun. Because they didn't want to get involved in the matters of the Liu family and Jing Wang Fu, they were unwilling to let them in.

What a good way to avoid entanglement in karma.

Zhang Xia, riding on the back of Zaodiao, asked: "What do we do now?"

Chen Ji reached out and grabbed the whale knife on the side of the county princess's horse saddle. The county princess weakly lifted her hand and pressed his hand back: "Don't do anything foolish."

He smiled, "Rest assured, I'm just checking if it's still there. I'm not foolish enough to go find the high officials of the Dao Ting and Buddha gate to die."

Chen Ji turned his head to look at the couplet under the Lu Hun Mountain Villa plaque. The upper line read: Matters are in human effort, don't say ten thousand kinds are all fate.

The lower line read: Circumstances are created by the heart, stepping back naturally broadens the view.

But.

This step, he could not retreat.

Chen Ji helped Bai Li wrap the cloth around her head more tightly to prevent the cold wind from blowing into her collar.

He turned around and walked back to the front of the Lu Hun Mountain Villa gate: "Is this a literary gathering?"

The young novice replied, "Yes!"

"And also debating scriptures?"

"Yes!"

Chen Ji asked: "What is the topic of the scripture debate between the Dao Ting and Buddha gate in this round?"

The young novice pursed his lips: "Why should I tell you?"

Chen Ji calmly said: "I also want to go in and debate scriptures!"

The young novice laughed and looked him up and down: "What scriptures do you debate?"

As he spoke, he saw Zhang Xia flip off her horse. Against the wind and snow, she led Zaodiao to the front of the gate, "Can it be that Yuan Jue Si is afraid that we will go in and debate you into defeat?"

The young novice leaned against the gray brick wall under the plaque and rolled his eyes: "Using provocation won't work either."

Zhang Xia said solemnly, "I am Zhang Xia, the niece of Xu Shu, the vice supervisor of Qin Tian Jian. If you don't go report it, I will go back to the capital and tell everyone that the monks of Yuan Jue Si are afraid of being debated into defeat, so they won't let us into Lu Hun Mountain Villa. Quickly go report it. You cannot afford this matter."

The young novice shrank his neck and turned around to go into the villa to report.

A moment later, he ran back, his shoulders covered in falling snow: "If you want to debate scriptures, you can, but you must answer the question we gave to the Dao Ting in this round."

Chen Ji looked at him: "Say it!"

The young novice asked: "Daoism says that the Dao gives birth to all things. Is this Dao with knowledge or without knowledge?"

Chen Ji was about to open his mouth to answer, but Zhang Xia lightly tugged his sleeve and said in a low voice, "Debating scriptures is not that simple. Every sentence the answerer says must consider where the scriptures come from. If there is a source, it is true scripture. If there is no source, it is false scripture..."

Chen Ji thought: "How about you come and debate with them?"

Zhang Xia's expression darkened: "No, they don't debate with women. You answer their question, and I will teach you how to answer!"

"Good!"

The wind and snow flowed between the two, and small whirlwinds swirled around their bodies.

Several breaths later, Chen Ji stepped forward: "The says, 'People follow the earth, the earth follows heaven, heaven follows the Dao, and the Dao follows nature.' The Dao is the law for heaven and earth, and the model for all things. Nature has knowledge."

The young novice took the answer and quickly took small, quick steps back to report.

A moment later, he returned with a new question: "My senior brother said, since the Dao has knowledge, then it should only give birth to good people. Why does it still give birth to evil people? Since the Dao does not distinguish between good and evil, it should be without knowledge. Since it is without knowledge, how can it give birth to all things, and how can it become the model for all things in heaven and earth to emulate?"

He then heard Zhang Xia slightly move her lips behind him, softly saying a few sentences.

Chen Ji looked at the young novice and replied: "The says, 'I am the meaning of Tathagata-garbha, all people have Buddha-nature, all people have the meaning of I.' The Buddha ancestor says that people are born with Buddha-nature. How can you decide who is born good and who is born evil?"

The young novice was stunned: "How do you understand the principles of our Buddha gate scriptures so well?"

Chen Ji said impatiently: "A human life is at stake, quickly go report."

The young novice again ran hurriedly into the mountain villa.

This time, the young novice did not return quickly. It seemed that the monk from Yuan Jue Si who had posed the question had fallen into deep thought.

He didn't know how long had passed. He only heard the sound of another melodious and grand bell strike ring out from inside the mountain villa.

Zhang Xia's eyes lit up: "The bell has rung. The other party has set aside this question, which is equivalent to admitting defeat."

"Chen Ji. Chen Ji?"

She turned her head to look, but saw Chen Ji with his head lowered, not knowing what he was thinking.

At this moment, Chen Ji discovered that the furnace fire inside his body had suddenly jumped for a moment the instant the bell rang, and then the faint red furnace fire brightened a little more.

Strange.

Was it because Zhang Xia had used his name to debate scriptures and won against the other party?

Earlier, he thought that the change in the furnace fire required him to do good deeds and gain people's hearts, but now it seemed that the reason for the change in the furnace fire's color might be more profound and broader.

Chen Ji looked at Zhang Xia.

Zhang Xia touched her cheek: "What are you looking at me for?"

Chen Ji shook his head: "Nothing, Second Young Lady Zhang is learned and knowledgeable, I admire you. No wonder you look down on unlearned people."

Zhang Xia was somewhat embarrassed: "I just win in memory."

As she spoke, the young novice ran back hurriedly. "You won this round, but..."

"But what?"

The young novice said troubled: "I'm sorry to disappoint the two of you. Our Buddha gate is pure and free, not bound by karma, and we are truly unwilling to get entangled in the mundane world. The two of you have secular matters on your bodies, your karma is not finished, and it is not suitable to enter this Lu Hun Mountain Villa. Please go back!"

Chen Ji calmly looked at the other party: "Can I beg for a pill of medicine?"

The young novice shook his head: "No. Please don't make things difficult for me, two benefactors. I am just a small novice."

Chen Ji immediately wanted to rush in, but Zhang Xia pulled his arm and silently shook her head: "You can't rush."

"Even if I can't rush, I must."

However, just at this moment, a singing voice floated over from outside in the wind and snow.

He saw a person sitting backward on the back of a green ox, humming as he flipped through a book: "If your heart has evil and perverseness, it is useless to burn incense. If your body is upright and grand, what harm is there in not bowing to me..."

The folk song voice rolled into the wind and snow, carried by the snowflakes far away.

He saw the green ox come to the front of the gate, and the young Daoist on the green ox lightly leaped off the ox's back.

He smiled and walked past Chen Ji and Zhang Xia to the front of the gate, then reached out and stroked the young novice's bald head: "I am Zhang Li, the chief disciple of Huang Shan Dao Ting, here to debate scriptures on behalf of my master, 'Apostle Son'. Little monk, quickly scram, otherwise be careful of Dao Ye hitting you!"

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