Chapter 348 (1/2)
Chapter 348: The Invitation from Lanke Temple
The young monk was about 25 or 26. He was handsome and looked kind. His skin was slightly tanned and his thin monk robes fluttered in the wind, making him look rather ethereal. However, it was still mid-winter, and it was a wonder that he wasn't cold.
Ning Que grew slightly wary, but it did not show on his face. His smiled slightly and asked, ”Does this master know me?”
The monk smiled and said, ”This monk guessed.”
Ning Que asked in surprise, ”You can guess something like that?”
The monk calmly said, ”That's because I have met the Calligraphy Addict before, that's why I guessed that you are Mr. Thirteen.”
Ning Que thought about the rumors floating about lately and could not help but smile bitterly.
Mo Shanshan looked at the young monk. Her usually lazy gaze focused gradually as she thought about her previous meeting with him years ago. She said, slightly surprised, ”It's Senior Brother Guan Hai. How have you been? What are you doing in Chang'an?”
Mo Shanshan introduced the monk, and Ning Que found out that he was a disciple of the Elder at Lanke Temple called Guan Hai. A strange expression crossed his face.
This world was different from the world that Ning Que had once lived in. Not every housewife was highly skilled in both Buddhism and Taoism. As compared to Haotian Taoism, the Buddhism Sect's influence was definitely weaker, and Buddhism was not as popular.
However, the Lanke Temple was very well-renowned, especially to the regular folk. n.o.body knew about the Xuankong Temple, but they all knew about the Lanke Temple. As for cultivators, the Lanke Temple's standing was higher than the White Tower Temple of the Yuelun Kingdom. Even Ning Que, who did not understand anything about the Buddhism Sect had heard of the Lanke Temple and was very impressed by it.
Many stories have played out in the thousand-year-old temple. Master Lotus had become world renowned after his debate with the Elder from the Lanke Temple. After that, he had cultivated in the temple in seclusion for many years. That bloodshed incident that had resulted in the destruction of the Devil's Doctrine and changed the cultivation world had also begun at the Lanke Temple.
Ning Que first heard of the Lanke Temple when Prince Long Qing had entered Chang'an. Long Qing had become famous at
the debate at Lanke Temple. Now that he thought about it, he could not help but think that perhaps all cultivators who want to be famous had to go to the Lanke Temple and enter a debate session.
Lanke Temple had a very special place in the cultivation world precisely because of these stories. The Elders who lived in seclusion at the back of the mountain were ranked high in seniority. The young monk was a disciple of an Elder at the Lanke Temple, and would rank higher than the legendary seven disciples of the Buddhism Sect.
According to Ning Que's character, he should be trying to get close to the young monk named Guan Hai. However, in recent days, due to the entering of the human realm by the Academy, he had been cautious about meeting those from other sects who had come forth to challenge him. He couldn't help but feel a little uneasy when he saw someone from the Lanke Temple appearing in Chang'an.
”So, you're a Bhadanta from the Lanke Temple. I wonder why I have never met you in the palace, Senior Brother.” He smiled and said.
The young monk uttered that he did not dare and said respectfully, ”This monk wouldn't dare to call himself a Bhadanta. Furthermore, my teacher is a disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. How would I dare to be called that by Senior Brother, Mr. Thirteen? As for the incident in the Wilderness, the temple had received an edict from the Divine Hall. It was just that the disciples of the Buddhism Sect values penance and not interfering with the mortal world, so I did not go.”
When he heard that, Ning Que thought to himself, that if he really did not interfere with the mortal world, he would not desire fame, and as such, would not seek to give Ning Que trouble. He felt a little relieved. Furthermore, the monk looked at him with admiration and that felt very nice indeed. He asked with a warm expression, ”I wonder what tasks Senior Brother has to carry out in Chang'an?”
It takes two to clap, so even though the monk did not acknowledge that he was a Senior Brother out of humility, Ning Que insisted on addressing him as so. We could see that Eldest Brother was right, that being flexible when dealing with things and the ability to improvise was a skill. He was indeed the prime candidate of the back of the mountain of the Academy.
Guan Hai pulled out a letter from a yellow cloth pouch and said, ”I have retrieved a doc.u.ment from the Ministry of Rites from the Tang Empire and am about to head to the Academy. I did not expect to meet Mr. Thirteen, so I will leave this invitation with you so that I need not make the journey there.”
”An invitation for the Academy?”
Ning Que opened the yellow cloth to discover that the letter was not sealed. He took out a sheet of thin letter paper from the inside. The contents of the letter were simple and clear. The Elder of Lanke Temple had invited the Academy to send someone to partic.i.p.ate in the Yue laan hungry ghost festival next year.
After the conversation with Eldest Brother, he knew that he would have to deal with all issues to do with the secular world on behalf of the Academy in the future. So he had to partic.i.p.ate in Lanke Temple's Yue laan hungry ghost festival. It was lucky that it was still a year away, and he could prepare himself for it. He could rest easy now that he could be certain that the Lanke Temple had sent someone to send an invitation.
He smiled at Guan Hai and said, ”Senior Brother had journeyed far from the Lanke Temple. I should play host, but I have already agreed to tour with the Hill Master. Shall we meet for tea and a chat at night?”
Monk Guan Hai replied respectfully, ”Mr. Thirteen, you are kind, but I have followed instructions pa.s.sed unto me by my teacher to come to Chang'an and have fallen behind on my school work. Since I have already pa.s.sed the invitation to you, I shall return to the temple shortly.”
”Go on, go on. You have to go home eventually.” Ning Que thought to himself happily. However, he kept an enthusiastic expression on his face and tried to get the young monk to stay. He even pretended to be angry like how the men of Hebei do.
Monk Guan Hai refused repeatedly, saying, ”I really can't afford to fall behind on my school work anymore. It is just that this is a rare visit to Chang'an for me, and that I have met Mr. Thirteen in person, I would like to ask you for some advice as I have met with some difficulties in cultivation.”
”That's no problem at all. I will order a vegetarian feast at the Building of Pines and Cranes tonight along with two bottles of wine. We can drink and talk, or drink some tea. And we can a.n.a.lyze... er, what did I just say?”