A thousand-year-old family that began with the Battle of Makino

Chapter 325: People from the Bai Kingdom came to ask about the situation

Luoyang, north of the city, Daci Temple

Daci Temple was built by Master Zhichan, an eminent monk of Liuli Temple. Because it is located in the Buddhist land of Henan, it occupies a small area. It is only a temple covering an area of ​​two to three acres.

However, since Daci Temple is derived from Liuli Temple and its Buddhist teachings are in line with the concepts of the Han people, the number of incense and pilgrims in Daci Temple is much more than that of Baima Temple.

White Horse Temple has almost become a Buddhist temple specializing in the study of Buddhism, relying entirely on the support of the imperial court. However, it has translated many Buddhist scriptures. Even Master Flan, who passed away, has many references to the Buddhist scriptures translated by White Horse Temple.

Bai Zhi brought his wife and children to Daci Temple to offer incense.

Nowadays, Bai Zhi is still the minister, because the current Empress Dowager Deng is different from the Empress Dowager Dou in that she does not have such a strong desire to control power. In particular, her brother Deng Zhi, whom she relies on, is not as domineering as Dou Xian, but instead abides by etiquette. , was humble and loved Confucianism, and was praised by many ministers.

Therefore, now that the emperor is young and his relatives are in power, his relatives and courtiers get along harmoniously, and the bad governance that occurred in the previous two years has finally been dealt with.

However, I don't know whether they didn't pay attention or someone deliberately covered it up. I didn't see any of the memorials on the issue of tyrannical mergers submitted by the local governor.

Even Bai Zhi, who was the minister, was not aware of it at all.

Bai Zhi, as the head of the Bai family in Luoyang who inherited Bai Yan's identity, naturally became the head of the court. Even though he was only a minister of thousands of stones, he still did not dare to be looked down upon.

In order to win over the courtiers, Empress Dowager Deng and Deng Zhi did not remove Bai Zhi, who was promoted to a veteran of the previous dynasty, but continued to retain him. This also laid a good foundation for the current cooperation between relatives and courtiers.

"Master Zhikong!" Bai Zhi and his family saluted Master Zhikong.

Bai Zhi is already in his fifties this year. His temples are gray, with only a few black hairs on his head. The beard that he deliberately grew on makes him have the temperament of a hot-blooded man and young general in his earlier years. Instead, he has He cultivated official aura and noble aura.

Next to her, Ban Zhao was also dressed as a woman full of poetry. She was not as gorgeously dressed or heavily made up as other ladies, but instead was simple and elegant, making people feel like a spring breeze.

"Amitabha! Donor, someone has been waiting in the Zen room for a long time. Please go with the poor monk. Madam, please go with the disciples of the poor monk to offer incense in front of the Buddha." Master Zhikong is wearing a gray-white Zen robe, with white hair and beard. , obviously quite young, stood still and held the Buddha in his hand.

Bai Zhi nodded, then looked at Ban Zhao and said, "Madam, please go with this young master to offer incense to the Buddha and take a look at this Buddhist pure land. My husband will go with Master Zhikong to have a look."

Ban Zhao nodded slightly: "Go ahead, I will take care of the children."

Bai Zhi nodded, then touched the heads of several children, and followed Master Zhikong away.

Bai Zhi followed Zhikong and bypassed the crowded, noisy and smoky front hall to the backyard. As soon as he entered the backyard, the sounds in the front hall disappeared, but the faint sound of chanting Buddha and chanting sutras penetrated his ears.

"Donor Bai, please come this way!" Zhikong stood by a doorway and reminded Bai Zhi, who was slightly absent-minded.

"I'm very sorry!" Bai Zhi apologized slightly, and then followed Zhikong away.

"Senior Brother Zhiyuan, we have been brought here." Zhikong saluted to a monk who was sitting cross-legged on a futon. He was about the same age as him and dressed the same as Master Zhikong. He was meditating facing a big Zen character on the wall. road.

"Junior brother Lao Zhikong is here. Donor Bai, I will be the one to receive you. You can go and host the pilgrims in the temple."

Zhiyuan stood up and returned the greeting to Zhikong.

Zhikong didn't say much, bowed slightly, then turned around and left.

"Amitabha, is the donor Bai Zhi?" Zhiyuan saluted Bai Zhi.

"I am none other than Bai Zhi. I wonder who the mage is?" Because there is a divine seal between Zhiyuan's eyebrows, Bai Zhi has to treat him with caution.

"The poor monk Zhiyuan, the abbot of Liuli Temple, whose common name is Bai Zheng, is here today on behalf of Liuli Temple to exchange Buddhist teachings with Baima Temple. By the way, he has brought a donor who is inconvenient to show up. Please come with me, please."

Bai Zhi didn't dare to say anything and followed Zhiyuan respectfully towards the backyard.

Walking to a quiet courtyard in Daci Temple, it seemed to be incompatible with the environment of the entire temple, like a noble courtyard.

Zhiyuan did not take him in, but stood at the door and said to Bai Zhi: "I still have some things to do. The donor can go on his own, Amitabha."

Bai Zhi slightly bent his body and sent Zhiyuan away.

After all, Zhiyuan is not only an eminent Buddhist monk, but also one of the top people in Buddhism today. He is also a leader in Hebei Buddhism and has the same status as the Celestial Master of Tianshi Mansion.

Moreover, he is still a son of the Bai family, and he is the most noble person whether in Buddhism or among the people, even if he is the minister of the Han Dynasty and the head of the Yuzhen Bai family.

But he knew very well that all of this was due to the Hedong Bai clan (Bai clan of the Bai Kingdom, Hebei Bai clan). Without the support of the Hedong Bai clan, the Yuzhen Bai Mansion would only decline now. I heard the former head of the family Bai Yan say it before, but I didn't realize it. Now that I saw it with my own eyes, I realized that what he said was true. It was just an ordinary son of the Bai family, but he had such power and magnanimity. It was really a glimpse of the leopard.

The inheritance of the head of the Yuzhen Bai clan (Luoyang Bai clan) is different from that of the Hedong Bai clan and the Xiuwu Bai clan. The current head of the family is appointed by the previous generation, not necessarily his own descendant, but the one among the descendants or grandchildren who can best lead the Yuzhen clan. A person of the Mashiro family who has gained a foothold in the court, even if that person is not his own descendant, but the descendant of another brother.

Because there is no discernment and distinction between the eyebrows of the Hedong Bai clan, how to choose the most capable head of the family has become the Yuzhen Bai clan's primary problem.

In the end, the Bai family of Hedong had to give an opinion. The Bai family was different from other families in selecting talents instead of direct descendants. Because everyone comes from the same ancestor, the blood relationship with the Bai family is at least within three generations, which is the same.

Therefore, the head of the Yuzhenbai family is basically the person with the highest official position in the court today and is well versed in the ways of being an official. This person may not be the person to inherit the title of Marquis Wencheng, but he must have mobilized the resources of Yuzhenbai Mansion and Wencheng Marquis Mansion. , and even dozens of elite temple guards from the Xuanguo Gong Temple in the eastern suburbs of Luoyang.

As for how these dozens of soldiers who usually sweep the floor came here, they were probably taken in by the temple because they didn't have enough to eat. By the way, they also brought dozens of sets of armor and standard ordnance. According to the etiquette system, Duke Xuan Guo could have The limit is one hundred soldiers, so it is not considered a violation.

On the other hand, the Hedong Bai family has the strongest education system, the strongest security system, the best inheritance system, and a very strong restraint system in the world. Unless they are born with mental retardation, there will never be a child with dementia. Even if he is born with mental retardation, Bai also has a solution.

Therefore, the Bai family cannot choose talents. As long as the Bai family's son reaches adulthood, he can already be regarded as a one-in-a-hundred talent compared to most people in the world. There is no difference at all, and he can only choose his direct descendants.

As for the Xiuwu Bai family, this is not the case. They select martial arts and armies, which are still appointed by the family head of the previous generation, but not in terms of government affairs and strategy, but in terms of martial arts and military strategy. Moreover, there is an invisible condition, that is, only those who have been sent to the Bai Kingdom to study for more than six consecutive years are eligible to become the next Xiuwu Hou and Zhenbei General.

As for whether the imperial court recognizes it or not, you can try to see if the Xiuwu Marquis and Zhenbei General who were forcibly appointed by the imperial court can mobilize the resources of the Xiuwu Marquis Mansion and the soldiers of the Zhenbei General Mansion.

Bai Zhi slowly entered this elegant courtyard, and the elegant sound of the piano became clearer and clearer. After turning a stone path filled with green bamboo, a small pond half filled with lotus flowers came into view, and then a pavilion was located beside the pond.

There is an elegant middle-aged man in the pavilion, sitting aside and playing the piano. There is a follower in front of him who is making tea.

Bai Zhi did not interrupt rashly, but quietly sat aside and sipped tea under the guidance of his entourage.

When the sound of the piano stopped, Bai Zhi got rid of it.

Only then did Bai Zhi take the time to observe the noble young master in front of him. He was much younger than him. He looked to be in his thirties or forties. He was dressed in a light blue Confucian robe. His hair was tied on top of his head with a jade hairpin. He had a handsome face.

Due to his age, there were a few wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, but his eyes were clear and bright, as if he could see everything in the world. He sat upright in front of the xylophone, with his hands folded on his legs.

"You must be Bai Zhi, the head of the contemporary Yuzhen Bai clan!"

Bai Zhi bowed respectfully and said, "I am Bai Zhi, the current head of the Yuzhenfang family. I am blind, and I don't know which young master is above me. I would like to know my name so that I can have a clear mind."

"Master Bai, there is no need to be too polite. Your family and I are from the same family, but the division of responsibilities is different. There is no need to be like this. I am Bai Li. The master of the family does not think I am stupid, so he gave me the position of Gongsun."

Bai Li returned the greeting slightly and explained to Bai Zhi with a smile.

When Bai Zhi heard that it was Gongsun, his expression became even more submissive. This was the destined future King Bai, the head of the Bai family in the world, and the common head of all the people with the surname Bai.

"It turns out it's Gongsun now, please forgive Bai Zhi for being rude!"

Bai Zhi quickly stood up and saluted.

"Hey, I told you that you don't need to do this big salute. Get up quickly." Bai Li saw that he was bowing to him as soon as he heard his name again. He sighed helplessly, then raised his hand to signal, but his body remained motionless.

Bai Zhi then sat back down, ready to listen to his master's instructions.

Bai Li did not get into the topic directly, but first poured a cup of tea for Bai Zhi himself, and asked the entourage behind him to bring it to Bai Zhi. After tasting the tea that only the Bai family could taste, he said:

"Originally, there are some things that do not require me to come in person, just send a member of the clan, but the elders in the family generally think that this matter is not trivial. If I don't come in person, it is not enough to reflect the importance of the matter. The urgency of the matter is also for you. We, Yuzhenfang, are irresponsible.

You are the Shangshu Ling of the imperial court and are the hub of communication between the central and local governments. You should be very aware of the situation in various local counties. I wonder what you think of the current situation in the world?

In addition, the imperial court now has many foreign relatives, eunuchs are on the rise, and the internal and external situation is strange and changeable. Although my family has some understanding, I still want to hear your judgment as the person involved. "

Bai Li first said that what he said here was extremely important, and then asked Bai Zhi about his views on the political situation. This was preparing for future decisions, and even related to Bai's attitude and method towards the world in the future.

This feeling of great importance made Bai Zhi feel moved. This is the master's move not to treat the Yuzhen Bai family as an outsider.

And he had a feeling that he was standing at the corner of the times, a feeling that he could personally participate in historical events and decisions. This feeling made him tremble all over.

(End of this chapter)