Chapter 247
After a few days, the ship arrived in Yangzhou.
The master and disciple disembarked and discussed going to the market to buy two mounts for transportation. Just as they were about to go, they suddenly heard loud noises not far away.
This dock is shared by the Yangtze River and the canal. The Yangtze River flows from west to east, and the canal from south to north. There is a lot of boat traffic and people coming and going, so it is very lively. How many fights and scuffles break out every day?
Mie Jie did not want to get involved, so he was walking with his apprentice when he heard a piercing scream: 鈥淓vil monk! In broad daylight, you brazenly stole the remains of my wife and daughter. Where is the law? I will risk my life, but I will not let you go unpunished.鈥�
Mie Jie stopped in his tracks, surprised. 鈥淪tealing a woman’s family is one thing, but what is the deal with stealing their remains? Ye Guhong, let’s go take a look.鈥�
Ye Guhong was also curious, so he followed Mie Jie to go.
However, the noisy place was already surrounded by countless onlookers, and the weather was hot in the summer. From a distance, you could smell the sweat.
Mie Jie loved cleanliness, and stopped far away under a tree. He instructed his apprentice, 鈥淕uhong, go and see for yourself what the situation is, and report back to your master.鈥�
Ye Kuhong nodded, walked up to the crowd, and tried to push his way to the front, nearly taking a header from the sweat.
Looking at the dark, greasy bodies, he thought for a moment, then soared like a hawk, leaping two zhang into the air, where he twisted his waist in midair, performed a sharp turn, and landed in the arena.
When this display of light martial arts was revealed, the onlookers were momentarily stunned, and then they burst into applause, which in turn surprised the two groups of people arguing, and they all turned their heads to look.
Ye Guhong stood with his arms folded, and at a glance, he saw an official boat moored in the canal, and dozens of burly foreign monks carrying two coffins. The soil on the coffins was still wet, obviously having been unearthed not long ago.
In the middle, however, there were dozens of policemen blocking the road. The one in charge was an old man in his fifties, wearing a government official’s robe. His nose and tears were running down his beard.
The old official looked Ye Guhong in the eyes, ignored him, and continued shouting at the foreign monks, 鈥淚f you put down the remains of my wife and daughter, this matter will be settled. Otherwise, otherwise, you will go to court with me. I am not afraid of fighting this lawsuit with you until the imperial court.鈥�
Ye Guhong thought to himself, could it be that the coffin contained the wife and daughter of the official? It was not an exaggeration to say that they had a deadly grudge against him, as his family grave had been dug up and the coffin taken. He was willing to let it go if he could just get the coffin back, so this group of foreign monks must be no small potatoes.
One of the foreign monks, an exceptionally strong and healthy man, stepped forward two paces, grabbed the old official by the collar, lowered his voice and said, 鈥淥ld man, your dead wife and daughter were chosen by the national teacher, so your family is incredibly fortunate. From now on, you and the national teacher are considered brothers-in-law, and the national teacher will take care of you when you get promoted and become rich. If you don’t know what’s good for you, hmph, the national teacher can kill you like a dog, even though you are the prefect of Yangzhou.鈥�
The strong foreign monk spoke very quietly, but Ye Guhong had excellent hearing, so he heard everything clearly.
However, the clearer he heard, the more confused he became. He thought to himself, 鈥淭his monk is speaking Chinese, so why can’t I understand him?鈥� 鈥淲hy does the national teacher want to take two corpses? Why has it become a brother-in-law?
Then he heard the foreign monk shout, 鈥漈hink about it yourself. They’re just two dead people! If you don’t want to risk your life for two dead men, why not let Buddha help you?”
With that, he pushed the old official to the ground and told the other monks to get on the boat.
Unexpectedly, the old official had some backbone. Although he was scared and shaking, he made a leap like a fish and tightly embraced the strong monk’s calf, trembling and shouting, 鈥滸uards, arrest these evil monks with me! I don’t believe that in today’s world, evil spirits can truly run rampant.鈥�
Seeing the officials pounce, the Buddhist monk’s face revealed a ferocious expression. He swung his fists wildly, instantly knocking four or five officials to the ground. He kicked the old official so hard that he flew more than a yard into the air and landed face-first. He shouted, 鈥淵ou bunch of dogs, your lives are worth less than a donkey’s, so it doesn’t matter if you’re killed! Beat a path for me!鈥�
In the Yuan dynasty, people were divided into four classes. The upper class could kill the lower class and only had to pay compensation for the donkey.
When the foreign monk shouted these words, he angered the crowd. Many of the men watching the scene were members of gangs and had practiced some martial arts. They angrily said, 鈥淟u Tijiu is a well-known good official in Yangzhou. How can you foreign monks bully him like this?鈥�
The burly foreign monk did not look afraid, but instead sneered, 鈥淕ood, good. No wonder this Lu dares to disobey the order of the Imperial Preceptor. It turns out that he has long harboured treasonous thoughts. Lu colluded with the unruly people and intended to rebel! The Buddhas will kill today to quell the rebellion. Kill!鈥�
With a shout, except for the eight coffin bearers, the remaining twenty or thirty foreign monks simultaneously sprang up, each drawing a steel knife, bronze staff, or vajra, and shouting as they charged around, killing and injuring the front constables and the sailors and porters behind them in an instant.
One of the foreign monks had never paid any attention to chanting scriptures in his life, so the Bodhisattva did not protect him. He brandished his knife and charged straight at Ye Kuhong, hacking down with a fierce blow.
Ye Kuhong did not dodge or evade, but used the technique of fighting unarmed against a blade, snatching the knife from him and then swinging it back, cutting the foreign monk in half. He shouted, 鈥淚f you want to kill someone, come and kill me first!鈥�
Seeing their companion dead, the group of foreign monks were furious. Four or five of them roared as they charged, and Ye Kuhong met them with his sword. One step, one slash, one life. In an instant, he chopped down the four or five foreign monks and charged straight at the strong foreign monk leading the way.
The strong foreign monk saw Ye Kuhong killing like mowing the grass, and his expression changed slightly. He quickly drew a broad sword from his waist to fight back.
The two fought for three or five rounds, Ye Guhong knocking open the broad sword with the back of his knife, and with a spin of the blade, cutting off the foreign monk’s left arm.
The foreign monk screamed in pain, and when he saw Ye Guhong advancing with his knife, he hurriedly said, 鈥淚 am a disciple of the national teacher, if you kill me, you will be rebelling, and your entire family will be implicated.鈥�
Ye Guhong swung his knife out, and chopped off the foreign monk’s right hand with another swing, before asking, 鈥淲ho is this national teacher you speak of?鈥�
The foreign monk was in pain, his eyes were filled with stars and his face was covered in sweat. He was afraid that if he hesitated any longer, he would lose his life as well, so he struggled and said, 鈥淚t’s the new national teacher Yang Lianzhenjia. He, his venerable old age, loves me most. If you kill me…鈥�
Before he could finish speaking, Ye Guhong’s blade flashed several times, knocking over the foreign monks who had rushed up to rescue him. Then he shouted, 鈥淪o it turns out to be the corpse demon of the Tanguts! What does that guy mean by taking someone else’s wife and child’s corpse?鈥�
The Buddhist monk’s eyes flickered, and he mumbled, 鈥淭he Grand Master is omnipotent, and he has his own reasons…鈥�
The old official surnamed Lu, however, struggled to his knees and cried out, 鈥淵oung hero, young hero, listen to me. My wife and beloved daughter were both renowned for their beauty. Last month, they unfortunately caught the plague. Out of pity for the two of them, who loved beauty in life, I had them embalmed with mercury so that they would not decay after death. I don’t know how the national master learned about it and coveted the beauty of my wife and daughter, so he sent these foreign monks to beg for them from me. How could I agree to that animalistic desire of the national master? Unexpectedly, they even dug up the graves of my wife and daughter on their own to rob the bodies and offer them to the national master for his pleasure…”
Ye Gu Hong listened with goose bumps, thinking to himself that the Tangut corpse demon must have lost his mind, trained himself to become a zombie, and actually liked corpses. How is this not just an evil cult? It’s downright perverted!
The broken-armed foreign monk cried out, 鈥淟u, don’t you dare sully the national master’s reputation. The national master’s powers are boundless…鈥�
The old The old official was furious. He struggled to his feet, staggered over, and spat, spitting a mouthful of thick phlegm all over the monk’s face. He cursed, 鈥淗ow many people in the Jiangnan government don’t know? That evil monk digs up ancient tombs everywhere, and if he sees a corpse, he will definitely have sex with it. The emperors and empresses of the previous dynasty have all suffered this strange humiliation. How dare you defend the evil monk?鈥�
Upon hearing remarks, from afar, Mie Jie heard a retching sound and shouted, 鈥淵e Guhong, kill all these evil monks for me!鈥�
Ye Guhong nodded, and with a single slash, he severed the head of the monk with the broken arm. Then, his body moved like lightning, circling the field once, and the dozens of remaining heads of the foreign monks fell almost simultaneously.