Chapter 327: Three Buddhas Offering Treasures

Chapter 327: Three Buddhas Offering Treasures

Chapter 327: Three Buddhas Offering Treasures
An agent of the Kuangfu Society?
Zhao Duan was really surprised when he heard the middle-aged man introduce himself.

After Zhuang Xiaocheng left, two branch leaders were defeated one after another. According to the information obtained by the imperial court, there is no leader of the rebels in the capital now.

It is only managed by senior members in the city... Is this the one in front of me?

An agent who does not have the title of helmsman but actually holds the real power?
The evil Taoist master actually sent a big fish of this level directly in front of him... His behavior was just as Zhenbao said, perverse and flamboyant... Well, if the middle-aged man was not lying.

Many thoughts flashed through my mind.

A sneer appeared on Zhao Duan's face:
"Listen to you? As far as I know, that evil Taoist is best at using words to deceive others. Do you think I will fall for it? Why not just capture you? Throw you into the imperial prison and interrogate you slowly?"

The shopkeeper of the clothing store smiled and said:

"Because the Imperial Master knows that with your ability, you will not be afraid of so-called words and miss the opportunity to talk to us. Moreover, it is only me sitting here, not the Imperial Master, so how can I be tempted?"

Zhao Duan's gaze stopped on the man's bloodshot eyes.

Although he looks kind, the smile on his face always has a bit of evil in it...obviously not normal!
This situation was not mentioned at the small court meeting.

Obviously, the abilities possessed by that demon were far richer than what the imperial court knew.

"Oh, your master guessed it right. I really want to hear what you wanted to say when you came here," Zhao Duan suddenly smiled, and then abruptly said indifferently:
"Stop talking nonsense. Tell me, what did the demon ask you to do?"

The middle-aged man said sincerely: "The Imperial Master would like to ask you to abandon the dark and join the light, so that we can work together for the great cause."

Zhao Duan was stunned, and his first reaction was that he had heard it wrong.

But when I saw the other person's serious and sincere look, a sense of absurdity came over me.

He groaned, couldn't help but changed his sitting position, and laughed:

"Is it that demon who's crazy, or is it Zhuang Xiaocheng who's crazy? Or are all of you traitors crazy?"

Persuade?

Abandon darkness and embrace light?

Let him join the Kuangfu Society?
Zhao Duan was so angry that he laughed. At this time, the copper hot pot in front of him was bubbling with water.

He picked up the long chopsticks, picked up two pieces of jade cabbage leaves from the plate and put them into the pot. His expression became very natural:

"Why do you think I should join you? Just because the imperial court is growing stronger while you are declining?"

The middle-aged clothing store owner did not smile. He leaned forward slightly, his expression still serious:
"Your Excellency finds this ridiculous?"

"Isn't it ridiculous?" Zhao Duan asked back.

The middle-aged rebel shook his head and sighed:

"It seems that you are just like the vegetables in this pot, you only feel the water temperature, but you don't know it. In the end, you will be eaten by others and served on their plates."

After a pause, he continued:
"Perhaps in your eyes, you have been very successful recently, your power in the court has been rising steadily, you have repeatedly worked for the false emperor, overthrown political enemies one after another, and killed two Tiangang of my Kuangfu Society. You are expected to be a prime minister in the future... But, you are blinded by a leaf, and you are deeply trapped in the situation without knowing it."

These words sound a bit like the threatening words of a street fortune teller.

Zhao Duan wouldn't have cared at first, but for some reason, he felt a little bit of anticipation.

Zhao Duan held the chopsticks, squinted his eyes, and asked with a smile:
"Situation? What situation am I in? Can you tell me?"

His expression looks like he is watching your performance.

The middle-aged man seemed not to care at all, and asked with a smile: "Have you read "Leaving the Buddhist Country"?"

"Leaving the Buddhist Country" is a very old book in this world, which records many stories about Buddhist gods and Buddhas from thousands of years ago.

It can be regarded as a myth of this world. Its earliest origin is difficult to verify, but it has been widely circulated and adapted into opera. It is also a classic story told by storytellers in teahouses.

Zhao Duan had not read the original, but had heard some scattered storytellings and had a rough understanding of it, so he nodded.

The middle-aged man said:
"In the Record of Leaving the Buddha's Country, there was a story about how there were many Buddhas in the Buddha's Country, and the Supreme World Honored One ruled over all the Buddhas like an emperor on earth. Among all the Buddhas, there were three great Buddhas who were the most powerful, because they each controlled a powerful Dharma instrument."

"The King Buddha holds the prayer wheel in his hand. When the axis moves, the Buddhist scriptures inside it emit great light, which can reverse time and interfere with reincarnation."

"The Buddha of Precious Light holds the green lamp, and the little flame within it can burn the three realms."

"The Medicine Buddha holds the seven-colored conch shell, and when he blows it, billions of living beings become intoxicated and submit to him."

He continued:

"The three great Buddhas relied on the instruments in their hands to gain more and more power in the Buddha's kingdom, stirring up storms and even the Buddha was helpless. The Buddha wanted to take back the three instruments, but was worried that the three great Buddhas would not agree.

If they demanded it by force, they might take the instruments and turn to the evil spirits, or leave the Buddhaland to set up their own sects. The Buddha was distressed and set up a plan to take back the instruments. "He slept in seclusion, but secretly found a practitioner named Mara in the mortal world, taught him supreme magic, and guided Mara to kill his way into the Buddhaland.

Mara was a rebellious person. After he rushed into the Buddhist kingdom, he tore up the scriptures in the prayer wheel, blew out the flames on the green lamps, and blocked the seven-colored conch shells with sand, making them unable to make any sound... causing chaos in the Buddhist kingdom.

Wait... this story sounds familiar... some alien version of "Havoc in Heaven"?
...Zhao Duan gradually became absorbed in the conversation and did not interrupt.

The middle-aged shopkeeper continued:

"The Mara walker caused chaos in the entire Buddhist kingdom, and the three great Buddhas were also troubled. At the critical moment, the Buddha came out of retreat, furious, and suppressed Mara with great magic power, restoring peace to the Buddhist kingdom.

He also repainted the scriptures, repaired the prayer wheels, went south to the Flame Heaven, borrowed the divine fire to relight the green lanterns, and used the East Sea to clear the seven-colored conch shells...

The three great Buddhas, Zunwang, Baoguang and Yaoshi, were grateful, and the Buddha also took advantage of this opportunity to retrieve the three great instruments without any hindrance. "

After a pause, he said seriously:
"The game set up by the Buddha was the 'Three Buddhas Presenting Treasures Game', and the strategy set by the Buddha was the orthodox strategy of overt conspiracy. Many people in later generations also imitated it."

"In the past, the general who was in charge of the Western Expedition led an army and was short of food. In order to prevent the army from becoming unstable, he deliberately asked the grain distributor to use small measures to distribute food to the soldiers. The soldiers were furious. When the general was outraged, he beheaded the grain distributor in public and announced that the rice had been embezzled by this pest. The anger of the soldiers was immediately dissipated."

"Going back further, Emperor Ling of the previous dynasty divided the fiefdoms. In order to prevent the princes of the royal family from becoming too powerful, he issued an edict to extend favors, ordering the princes and heirs of the princes to share the fiefdoms equally. The struggle between the princes and the emperor was originally a struggle between the princes and their descendants..."

"All of this is no different from the 'Three Buddhas' Treasure Offering Bureau'."

The middle-aged man said all this in one breath.

He leaned forward, supported himself on the corner of the table with both hands, stared at Zhao Duan, who looked thoughtful, with his bloodshot eyes, and raised his voice:

"Your Excellency, what do you think is the difference between your current situation and the situation where the three Buddhas presented their treasures?"

There was an invisible force of temptation in his voice:
“Now, the false emperor is in power and is the enemy of the Eight Princes, but in the final analysis, the fight between the false emperor and the Eight Princes is still an internal fight among the children of the royal family.

Do you think that if the false emperor becomes more powerful and secures his throne, he will really kill all the eight kings? No! She won't!
She would not commit such a heinous crime. She is now claiming that the Second Prince killed his brother and father, slaughtered his sisters, and ascended the throne in the name of justice. So why would she slaughter her uncle's family? Bearing the infamy for all eternity? "

“But… the struggle with the Eight Kings is inevitable. So, if the false emperor is the ‘World Honored One’ and the Eight Kings are the ‘Three Buddhas’, then the false emperor also needs to find a ‘Walker Mara’ and have him cause trouble.

On the surface, she would appeal to the Eighth Prince's feelings, respect him as an uncle, and address the Crown Prince and the Princess as sisters. She would appear to be friendly on the surface, but secretly she would send ministers like you to fight and struggle...

It's fine for now, but if she waits until she has secured her position, the Eighth Prince will stop resisting, and the Xu royal family will make peace.

At that time... guess, will the false emperor kill you publicly, saying that you privately targeted the princes, or that you instigated them? To maintain the warmth of the royal family? ! "

The middle-aged shopkeeper spoke faster and faster, and his eyes became redder and redder.

Deep in the pupils, there were two whirlpool-like dark eyes that sparkled and radiated an invisible force.

Zhao Duan, who was sitting opposite and listening, had to be convinced, believe, and think about this possibility.

"Gurgling..."

The copper pot on the table began to boil again, with huge bubbles forming.

The white soup was filled with tofu, vegetables, and overcooked, blanched lamb rolls.

Zhao Duan was in a daze and woke up from listening, as if he had a dream. He looked across the copper pot.

The middle-aged shopkeeper had sat up straight again, holding the melon-shaped hat in both hands, like a gentleman with a gentle smile on his face.

"Crack...crack...crack..."

In the private room, the sound of Zhao Duan's gentle applause suddenly rang out.

He clapped his hands lightly, a look of admiration appeared on his face, and he said meaningfully:
"What a great three-Buddha treasure offering, what a great way to deceive the national teacher, what a heart-piercing argument. So, these words were given to you by the demon so that you could tell them to me in order to deceive me into defecting to the enemy?"

The middle-aged man shook his head and said, "Your Excellency has misunderstood. In fact, the Imperial Master would never deceive others."

"Oh?" Zhao Duan was really surprised.

I only heard the middle-aged man explain seriously:

"The Imperial Master never deceives others. He only draws out and arouses the desires and fears that people already have. We know that some people in the court say that the Second Prince Jianwen was deceived by the Imperial Master when he launched the coup."

He sneered, as if he was sneering at this statement, and shook his head:
"What a good excuse to shirk responsibility. But in fact, if the Second Prince has no intention of seizing power through a coup, the Imperial Master cannot bewitched him. To bewitched, you need to have that thought in your mind first. If you don't have the desire in your heart, you can't bewitched."

“People will resist what they don’t like to hear, and they will only listen to what they want to hear.”

"So the old emperor wanted to live forever, and hoped to hear that there was a magic method that could help him live forever. The imperial master said he could help him, and the old emperor believed it. That's all."

"So, you are also afraid of being abandoned by the false emperor. I am just helping you to express it. How can it be considered as bewitching?"

(End of this chapter)