Chapter 109 The 18th round of the construction of the altar Lu Mansion prayed for blessings and received the imperial decree and the second assistant died

Lu Tiaoyang's residence is located in Jing'er Hutong on the west side of Dongdan Pailou.Although the layout is not grand, it is also a triple courtyard, with screened walls, vines, wind eaves and sundials, it looks like a rich family at first glance.In the early morning of that day, a notice was hung on the gate of Lu Mansion: Set up an altar to pray, and no visitors will be seen before the time The notice aroused the curiosity of passers-by.Quite a few people wanted to stand on the sidelines and see what happened through the crack of the door, but the four soap servants on duty holding water and fire sticks at the gate of Lu's mansion did not allow people to stay: they chased people when they saw them, which added to people's all kinds of troubles. guess.

Lu Tiaoyang was ill and recuperated at home.It has been more than two months, and this is no news in Beijing.But in the past few days, not only has he been unable to drink water, but he has been in a state of coma most of the time every day.Don't talk about ordinary people, even his close friends, most of them don't know the inside story.His condition worsened this time because of the "Great Victory in Liaodong".It stands to reason that Lu Tiaoyang was not the main party involved in the "Liaodong Great Victory", but why was he so angry that he collapsed on the bed? If you want to know the reason, you have to start from the beginning.

But it is said that Lu Tiaoyang has three sons in total.Both the eldest son and the younger son passed the Jinshi examination, and now they are both released from office.Only the second son, Lu Yuanyou, is indeed not suitable for studying.He took three exams in a row and failed even the provincial exam. Now he is still in his twenties.Although married and married a daughter-in-law, he is a scholar in white with no fame.Every time Lu Tiaoyang came home from the cabinet, he couldn't help sighing long and short when he saw Lu Yuanyou mingling with the servants and talking nonsense.At the beginning of the year, at the great victory in Liaodong, the emperor rewarded him for his meritorious deeds. Lu Tiaoyang was promoted to the first rank and had a son.Lu Tiaoyang was not excited about advancing to the first rank, but he was relieved by Enyin.As a result, his ineffective son Lu Yuanyou became the Yaqing of the Taipu Temple, more or less a sixth-rank official.This relieved Lu Tiaoyang's heart disease for many years, so he was really happy for a while.Unexpectedly, the emperor suddenly issued an edict a few days ago, saying that the great victory in Liaodong was really an act of killing and surrendering, and the rewards that had been awarded to all the officials involved would be revoked.Lu Yuanyou's sixth-grade egret mended suit had been worn for less than four months before he took it off and returned it.That afternoon, Lu Yuanyou came back from the Yamen of the Taipu Temple, and ran to the study to find Lu Tiaoyang angrily. He grabbed the black gauze hat on his head and threw it on the ground, shouting:

"It's all a good thing you did!" In the morning Wang Guoguang came to visit Lu Mansion and told Lu Tiaoyang the inside story of the "Great Victory in Liaodong" and the cause and effect of being investigated, so he already knew that his son's favor would be revoked.Seeing his son losing his temper now, he had no choice but to swallow his anger, pointing to a stool and saying: "You'er, sit down and listen to me tell you." Where is Lu Yuanyou willing to sit? He ran back with a stomach full of anger, just to use the old man as a punching bag.I saw him stomping his feet and shouting:

"Listen to what you said, although you have the title of a second assistant, you are actually a wimp. People can estimate you as they want, so they can estimate you." The son's ruthless words pierced Lu Tiaoyang's heart like a knife, and his face changed when he saw him——Since May, Lu Tiaoyang seldom went to work in the cabinet. I wrote several papers requesting to be appointed, and the obvious reason was because of the torment of asthma. In fact, there was another reason that I couldn't say, that is, he was really tired of the kind of secondary assistant who followed the story-telling style.However, the son didn't open which pot and lifted which pot, and accused him face-to-face of being a wimp.You said he was not angry? When he was angry, he stuttered. He raised his skinny finger, pointed at his son and reprimanded:

"You, you, how, how can you say, say, say like this?" "How should I speak?" Lu Yuanyou suddenly laughed hysterically, and this laughter made people shudder.After laughing, Lu Yuanyou gritted his teeth and said, "Father, you have been tricked by Zhang Juzheng." "How, how did I get tricked by him?" "The great victory in Liaodong, the only person who resigned from the award was Zhang Juzheng. Now, he stood up again and told the emperor that the great victory in Liaodong was a big scandal of killing and taking meritorious deeds. If you think about it, this is the head of the monk." Is the lice on the bed obvious? Zhang Juzheng set up a big vicious trick, and got all of you nerds into it."

Although Lu Yuanyou is ignorant of reading, he is good at judging yin and yang by catching wind and shadows.In the capital, this kind of person is called "Kan Ye".Lu Tiaoyang was aware of his son's virtue, and he was usually wary of what he said, but he felt that there was some truth to his analysis just now.Lenovo has Zhang Juzheng's attitude towards him in the past six years since he entered the cabinet. Although he is polite and respectful on the surface, he is bossy and domineering on the inside, and does not take him seriously.Whenever there is a decision on major matters, he can only follow the shoufu's intentions, and if there is a slight disagreement, he will frequently get rolled up.As the saying goes, if the Tao is stored for a long time, its hair will be strong.At this time, Lu Tiaoyang felt a strong humiliation of being fooled.He only felt that there was fire gushing out of his throat. He wanted to shout, but he opened his mouth wide, but he couldn't utter a word.Seeing that his face was bruised from the suffocation and his lips were blackened, Lu Yuanzhan panicked and ran to help his father who was about to fall, shouting for help.All of a sudden, several servants came running in, beating their backs and pinching their waists, some of them were pinching others, some of them were grabbing a hot towel and applying it to their foreheads. He was suffocated to death, but since then he fell out of bed.The next day the imperial doctor heard the news and came to treat him. After taking the pulse, he took Lu Yuanyou aside and secretly ordered: "Prepare for the funeral!" Lu Yuanyou felt that his father's serious illness was caused by himself, and he felt guilty.Thinking that since Lang Zhong couldn't save his father's life, he had to invite monks to pray for blessings.

At this moment, in the front yard of Lu Mansion, there are about a dozen monks in cassocks busy nervously.They are all disciples of Monk Yiru of Zhaoning Temple. At the invitation of Lu Yuanyou, they came to Lu Mansion to hold a blessing ceremony.When Genggu from Qiaolou reported Yinshi, they came to Lu Mansion in the twilight of dawn under the leadership of Master Yi, and immediately set up a ceremony in the front yard. Since the first year of Wanli, the Empress Dowager Li went to Zhaoning Temple to offer incense and presented the statue of the rattan-shaped tide Guanyin collected by Ouchi, and the Zhaoning Temple became famous all of a sudden. People who came to burn incense every day to worship the Buddha's seal and fulfill their vows crowded the crowd. Threshold.The old monk Yi, who was originally an eminent monk and a great virtue, has become a figure that dignitaries and dignitaries scramble to support.But because the old monk Ru is very old, he usually lives in seclusion and refuses to see guests, and refuses all entertainment, so very few people can see him.As the old monk is familiar with the Dharma and carefully trains his disciples, the Dharma Assembly of Zhaoning Temple has become famous far and wide.There are many big families in the capital who want to do the ceremony, and the first thing that comes to mind when doing the ceremony is Zhaoning Temple.Therefore, the monks of Zhaoning Temple are very busy all year round.It is not easy to invite the monks from Zhaoning Temple to practice the meeting, but it is even more difficult to invite the old monk Yiru to host it himself.Today, at the age of 80, there are two monks, two monks, seventy and two old monks, Ru, who came here in person. This is probably because he has always admired Lu Tiaoyang's character and knowledge, and he also took into account his prominent position in the cabinet.

The method of arranging images and altars in the puja is very particular, and there is no mistake in the slightest. The first is the image method: The statue used in the prayer hall is Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, and the requirement is to use white sandalwood wood carvings as the statue, with a height of five inches or two and a half inches.It must be in the form of a celestial girl with a graceful and dignified face like a full moon.There are three eyes on the face, wearing a heavenly crown on the head, wearing colored clothes, with solemn tassels, and holding wish-fulfilling beads in both hands.After making this image, put it in a box made of pineapple wood, and then put the box in the kit.After the altar is completed, the kit will be placed in it.

Followed by the altar method: The Dharma altar should be square, with a limit of three feet, one foot for the inner city and two feet for the outer city.Before building an altar, the filth from the place where it is built must be removed. The so-called digging three feet refers to this matter.After the dirty soil was removed, the pure land was found to be filled.The condition of this pure land is that it is not polluted by feces and sewage, and it is usually dug in the wilderness in the outskirts.After the pure land is transported, it is sieved with a Luo sieve, so that it is fine and slag-free.Then find petals of various colors, mash them into a pulp, mix them with rice grains dyed in five colors, and build up layers of pure soil, limited to a height of three feet.In the middle of the inner city on the altar, three-inch-thick snow-white lotus petals should be spread, and the bag containing the image of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva should be placed facing east, and four thrones of heaven should be placed in the four corners of the inner city.In the east, west, north, south, and four directions of the outer city, a lamp with sesame oil is lit each.Corresponding to the Uranus seat at the four corners of the inner city, there are four willow branch banners inserted in the four corners of the outer city, and the names of the four heavenly kings are written.In the northwest corner is written "Vishamon Tianzuo", in the northeast corner is written "Taitouwuzhizuo", in the southeast corner is written "Piloulechazuo", and in the southwest corner is written "Viloubochazuo". .

Early this morning, as soon as the monks arrived at Lu Mansion, they were busy building altars according to the rules: as for the statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva, there is no need to worry, Zhaoning Temple usually has a lot of them.Yesterday, Lu Manor sent people to pick out the most expensive one and invited one back.In the middle of the day, the Dharma altar in the front yard of the Lu Mansion was finished, a young novice came into the living room, please sit there and monk Yiru, who was speaking with Lu Yuanshi, came out to check whether he was qualified. Just as the master went around the altar in the middle of the courtyard and inspected it carefully, and after the inspection was correct, he said to the disciples: "The altar can be opened." At this time, Lu Yuanhu, who was not far away, asked Master Yiru: "The old monk is teaching, can this prayer ceremony save our old father's life?" "Sincerity leads to spirit, Amitabha." Yi Ru clasped his hands together and replied: The answer was ambiguous, and Lu Yuan felt uneasy about it, and asked again: "I heard that the old monk prayed for people and often showed supernatural powers. I don't know if he can produce supernatural powers today." The petals are fragrant, this kind of thing is rare. "It's like telling the truth without telling lies. Seeing that Lu Yuanyou was a little disappointed, he added, "Prayer is the foundation for people to avoid disasters. If you do your best and cultivate your virtues, everything will come true."In ancient times, there was a man who prayed to Niqiu Mountain and gave birth to Confucius, and recently there was a man who prayed to Mount Tai and gave birth to Ni Yue.I don't know what doubts the donor has. " Lu Yuanyou heard that the old monk's words were not happy, and quickly apologized with a smile: "There is nothing suspicious, the old monk just opened the altar." Yirudao: "Opening the altar to pray requires the cooperation of your lord." "How to cooperate?" Lu Yuanyou shook his head in pain, and said, "Since the second half of the night yesterday, he has been in a coma until he doesn't know anything about him." Just like hearing this, he said "Amitabha", folded his palms together, and said to Lu Yuanyou, "Although your lord is still in a coma, you can move your hands!" "real?" Lu Yuanyou was skeptical, and wanted to run back to the inner courtyard to have a look, just like calling him to stop him, and said: "You don't have to look, I won't lie to you." He raised his hands, gestured and said, "I will teach you a photograph. Body seal, opening the altar later, not only you will do it, but your father will also do it. You can see clearly, use your middle finger, ring finger and little finger of your two hands to cross each other outwards, then put your palms together and press to the right, using the thumb of your right hand The thumb is kneading the back of the right palm, yes, that's it." Just as he taught Lu Yuanwei Zhan the fingering method of taking the body seal, and then asked him to go to the hospital bed in the inner courtyard to teach this fingering method to Lu Tiaoyang.After a while, Lu Yuanyou ran out of the inner courtyard happily and said excitedly: "It's amazing. Although my father is unconscious, he is very comfortable taking his hand and letting him make a body seal." "This is blessed by Buddha's power." As lightly said.Then he ordered Lu Yuanyou to kneel down on the futon in front of the Buddhist altar, and everyone in the family and others avoided him.Everything is in order, just like shaking the Dharma bell in your hand, the bells and drums rang together, and the Dharma conch sounded.Just like the master sitting opposite Lu Yuanyou across the dharma altar, I saw him holding the big samadhi seal in his hand, sitting in a vajra posture, calming his body and mind, and singing loudly: The Great Compassionate Lu Jiedi, Jishou, entered into samadhi from hearing, contemplating and cultivating, vibrating the sound of the ocean tide, responding to the world, whatever you wish for, you will get what you want. Although he looks like an old man, thin as a piece of firewood, his voice is like a bell when he speaks, which is very powerful.As soon as he stopped, all the novice monks shook their voices and chanted: Namo Master Sakyamuni Buddha Namo Master Amitabha Nanwu Baoyue Zhiyan Guangyin Freedom King Buddha Namo Great Compassionate Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva After chanting the solemn and precious name of the Buddha and Bodhisattva, just as the master's eyelids moved slightly, he glanced at the kit containing Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva enshrined on the altar, and took the lead to put the flame mouth: Nanwu Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva in white clothes.The front print and the back print are the demon heart prints.Printed in India, I am now reciting the mantra.I only hope that mercy will come and protect you. After saying these two sentences and three verses, all the novice monks closed their mouths together, and the courtyard suddenly fell silent.Just like the old monk Vajra sitting still, he is as stable as Mount Tai.In a blink of an eye, he replaced the big Samadhi seal with his left hand with the Vajra Fist seal with his left hand, twisted the Buddha beads with his right hand, and said the mantra in Sanskrit: Nanwu Drinking Luo Dana Duo Luo Ye Ye Nan Wu Aliye Lu Jiedi Shuo Bo Luo Ye Bodhi Satiki Po Ye Ma Ha Bu Ye Mahakalu Nicaya Yata, you too, he Cha Do La Duo Shua Duo Shua Duo Out of Dora Du Shua Sa Poha. It is really a great enjoyment to listen to the mantra chanting like an old monk alone.His voice seemed to be spit out directly from his chest instead of his mouth. The deep and round words were like piercing beads, like a breeze blowing on the face and extremely penetrating.Not only outsiders, but even his disciples usually find it extremely difficult to hear, and at this moment, everyone is obsessed with listening.Lu Yuanhu, who was kneeling on the futon, was even more admiring.Hearing the sound of spitting out lotus flowers, he had the feeling of ascending to immortality like spring breeze and heaven.While daydreaming, it sounded like raising a bell and sang three words leisurely: click - bite - chant Lu Yuanyou only thought it sounded good, but he didn't know what it meant.In fact, this is the three-character mantra of the Pure Dharma Realm.Reciting this mantra can remove all obstacles inside and outside people.This prayer ceremony was hosted by Yiru himself, so he did not "cut corners" at all.After reciting the Avalokitesvara mantra, they then recited the mantra of the pure dharma world. When all the monks saw the master’s long-pitched new mantra, they all hurriedly stretched out their hands to form the Zhunti seal. ,, the three words were sung seven to forty-nine times. After purifying the mantra of the Dharma Realm, he then chanted the six-syllable Da Ming mantra "Zha Ma Ne Ma Na Hong" one hundred and eight times.For a while, the sound of Sanskrit singing by the novice monks was melodious like geese passing through the frosty sky, and like big waves pushing sand at the berth.The hundreds of people in Lu's mansion, regardless of whether they are masters or servants, high or low, when they heard this verse full of mysteries, all of them lost their hearts and opened their doors.The Six-Syllable Da Ming Mantra ended with the high-pitched sound of bells and Lu.After singing the last time, all the novices followed the master and raised their hands over their heads to scatter their Zhundi mudra.When printing, Yiru recited the Zhunti mantra three times in Sanskrit: Nan Wuxi Duo Nan San Miao San Bodhi Ju Di murmur you also chirp At this point, the first round of the blessing ceremony has come to an end, and there will be a total of three rounds before it is completed.The Dharma meeting started at Chen hour, and it took more than half an hour before we knew it.Just as the master took the Vajra sitting, got up and walked a few steps in the yard to move his legs and feet.Taking advantage of this time, Lu Yuanyou got up from the futon, ran to the backyard to see his father, and then ran back and said to Yiru: "Old monk, my father is awake." "Oh, Amitabha." It's like putting your hands together. "The maid fed him a few mouthfuls of ginseng soup, and he has gained a little energy. It's thanks to you." "It's thanks to Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva." As the old monk said, he signaled Lu Yuanyou to kneel on the futon again, and he was about to start the second round of the blessing ceremony.At this moment, someone knocked on the closed door suddenly.Before Lu Yuanyou had time to open his mouth to ask, the doorman hurried up to him and said: "Young master, someone is visiting, and the sedan chair has arrived at the entrance of the alley." "No, isn't there a notice posted on the door?" Lu Yuanyou scolded. "I'm afraid I can't see this person." "Who is it?" "Master Zhang Juzheng, Chief Assistant of the Cabinet." "He, is he here?" Lu Yuanyou asked in surprise. "It's really him," replied the janitor, "the minister-in-charge of the cabinet came to report, and he's standing under the porch." "Since the chief assistant is here, this puja has to be temporarily suspended." Lu Yuanyou embarrassedly muttered to the old monk Yiru.Although Lu Yuanyou vented all his resentment on Zhang Juzheng for his favor being dismissed from the official position of Yaqing, the sixth-rank servant, but he heard that he took the initiative to visit his father, Lu Yuanyou still did not dare to neglect.After all, he holds a lot of power and is a person who cannot afford to offend? He ordered someone to arrange for his master and apprentice to go to the flower hall to rest and have tea, and he ran to the gate to greet him. The news that Lu Tiaoyang was seriously ill spread like wildfire in the capital.For several days in a row, there was an endless stream of people visiting Lu's mansion.Zhang Juzheng had heard the news a few days earlier, and he hadn't thought of coming to see him at that time. Yesterday, Shen Shixing, the assistant minister of the Xinren Pavilion, told him that Lu Tiaoyang was already out of water and might die at any time.Only then did he feel that the situation was serious, and instead of going to the cabinet in the morning, he invited Zhang Siwei to Jing'er Hutong directly. As soon as Lu Yuan Shizhan went out, he saw two large sedan chairs dropping down in front of the door, and there were three steps, one guard and five steps and one sentry in the alley, which was obviously under martial law.Zhang Juzheng came down from the first sedan chair, and Lu Yuanyou went up to greet him with a kowtow.Zhang Juzheng didn't know him, and was guessing, the cabinet officer who came with him introduced him: "This is Lu Yuanhu, the second son of Elder Lu Ge." "Ah, it turns out to be Nephew Yuanyou, get up." Zhang Juzheng said, then stepped forward to pull Lu Yuanshizhan up, and walked into the living room of Lu Mansion together.After sitting down, Zhang Juzheng asked with concern, "Is your father's illness better today?" As soon as he heard Zhang Juzheng calling his nephew, Lu Yuanyou felt endless grievances in his heart.Wiping away his tears, he replied: "He was still unconscious in the morning, but his two hands can still be lifted up to make a body posture." "What are you doing?" Zhang Juzheng was dumbfounded. "Photography Seal." Lu Yuanyou continued to explain, "This morning, we brought the old monk Yiru from Zhaoning Temple to do a prayer ceremony for my father. Only halfway through, the Lord Shoufu came." "It's a sin to rush to the blessing ceremony," Zhang Juzheng glanced at the cabinet officer sitting in the corner, "Lu Ge's hometown is going to have a ceremony today, did you know in advance?" "I know." The officer on duty bowed and replied. "I know why you didn't tell me. If I had known, I would have come two hours later with Zhang Ge." The duty officer was reprimanded for no reason, and stood there like a wooden stake, not daring to say a word.Zhang Siwei, who was sitting on the side, knew that this was the chief assistant's gesture of scolding Lu Yuanyou, so he changed the subject and said: "Just as the old monk seldom presided over the Dharma meetings, he personally recited scriptures to pray for Lu Ge, and there should be magical powers." "Supernatural powers have appeared." Lu Yuanyou replied excitedly. "Ah, what's the performance?" Zhang Juzheng asked. "Before the puja, my father didn't know about human affairs. After reciting the Avalokitesvara mantra, my father actually opened his eyes and drank a few sips of ginseng soup." "There is such a miracle!" Zhang Juzheng felt incredible, and said, "Mr. Lu Ge usually worships the gods and devotes himself to the Buddha. Therefore, in this critical moment, he can see Bodhi in person and understand the wonderful truth of Bodhisattva." "Can Mr. Lu Ge talk?" Zhang Siwei asked. "Yes, but the voice is weak." Lu Yuanyou replied. "Nephew Yuanyou, do you think we can go to the hospital bed and have a look?" "this……" Lu Yuanyou looked troubled.Because Lu Tiaoyang was very haggard after falling into bed, his face and facial features were deformed, and the smell in the ward was unpleasant, he was worried that Zhang Juzheng would feel disgusted after meeting Zhang Siwei.While hesitating, he suddenly heard the rustling of footsteps coming from the corridor leading to the backyard. When he looked up, he saw two servants walking towards him step by step, holding his father. But Lu Tiaoyang, who had been lying unconscious on the hospital bed in the backyard, heard the melodious and melodious mantras of the blessing ceremony, as if he had heard the call of heaven, and he became sober all of a sudden.Then he smelled a strange fragrance. When he closed his eyes and rested his mind, he heard that Zhang Juzheng and Zhang Siwei came to visit. He immediately ignored his wife's advice and insisted on getting up and getting out of bed. The official uniform that had not been worn for a long time came crookedly towards the living room in the front yard. "Ah, father is out." Lu Yuanyou exclaimed, and immediately rushed over to help him. Zhang Juzheng and Zhang Siwei also stood up to greet them.At this time, Lu Tiaoyang had already been helped to the back door of the living room, he just didn't have the strength to lift his foot to step over the half-foot-high threshold.It was Lu Yuanyou who stretched out his hands to hug his feet, carried them to the grand teacher's chair and sat down in a half-lying position.Fearing that he would not be able to sit still, the servant made a quilt to snuggle him up. "Brother Heqing, you are so sick, why do you have to struggle to get out of bed." Zhang Juzheng complained. "It's rare that brother uncle is still thinking about me, a dying man," Lu Tiaoyang took a sip of the ginseng tea handed over by the maid, and said pantingly, "And brother Ziwei, I'm still worried about seeing you again You guys are gone." As Lu Tiaoyang said, a few big muddy teardrops rolled down from the corners of his eyes.Zhang Juzheng felt very sad when he saw it, tears welled up in his eyes, and said: "Brother Heqing, don't think about it wildly. Although your illness is serious, it is not incurable. As long as you take time to recuperate with peace of mind, you will gradually get better." Lu Tiaoyang shook his head lightly, rolled his dull eyeballs a few times with difficulty, and replied: "Brother uncle, don't comfort me. As your chief assistant, you must follow the rules when traveling. If I am not a terminally ill patient, how could you come to see me!" Although Lu Tiaoyang's yang spirit has dissipated and seven souls have escaped from the door, but at this moment his mind is very clear.What he said made it difficult for Zhang Juzheng to answer.Because the imperial court has an unwritten rule: Anyone who is the chief assistant of the cabinet will not easily enter other people's private houses, and can only meet with guests and friends in the court room of the yamen.The meaning of this is that Li Xia in the melon field avoids suspicion.If the chief assistant went to a minister's house, something must have happened to the official.Either he was appointed as a marquis and paid homage to the prime minister, and the chief assistant came to congratulate him on behalf of the emperor; or for a dying person, the first assistant came to comfort him on behalf of the court.Therefore, it is not because of any personal affair that the chief assistant went to which official's family, but because of his duties and powers, he performed a kind of official duty.Just like when he came to Lu Mansion now, he wanted to ask Lu Tiaoyang face-to-face about any difficulties in his family that needed to be resolved by the court, and his personal opinions on the court situation that needed to be conveyed to the emperor.Lu Tiaoyang has been in the cabinet for a long time, so of course he understands the purpose of the first assistant. This is not only his own "treatment", but also shows that the imperial court is aware of his illness and is starting to arrange for him. Ever since Zhang Juzheng saw Lu Biyang's haggard and sick face, he knew that his time in the world could only be counted in days, so he just wanted to comfort him with good words.Unexpectedly, Lu Tiaoyang had exposed the words himself, Zhang Juzheng had no choice but to ask directly: "Brother Heqing, what do you think, you can tell everything now." Lu Tiaoyang adjusted his sitting posture with the help of his servants, and said in pain: "Dying person, what else can I say? I know that my illness will not recover, so after the Dragon Boat Festival in May, I wrote an excerpt to the emperor." I requested to be appointed as an official, and I wrote three things in a row, but the emperor just refused to approve, alas..." "Old Lu Ge, it's not that the emperor didn't approve, it's that the chief assistant insisted on keeping you." Zhang Siwei interjected: "Brother Uncle, what do you want to keep me as an old man?" Lu Tiaoyang looked at Zhang Juzheng who was close at hand.As if staring at a wall, he said sadly, "I am incompetent. I have been in the cabinet for six years, but I can't accomplish a major event. I have failed the emperor's love." "Brother Heqing, if you blame yourself like this, it's tantamount to taking a knife to pierce my Zhang Juzheng's heart. You are a model scholar, you neither fight for power nor pursue profit, and we have never had any quarrels in dealing with major political affairs:" "There is no quarrel because I am a wimp." This sentence came to Lu Tiaoyang's mind.But dare not speak out.He glanced at his son sitting next to him, and replied: "Uncle is a character of Ilu style, you are in charge of the government, I am a nerd, how dare I make a beak?" Hearing the bones in these words, Zhang Juzheng felt sullen in his heart, but he didn't show it, he only asked earnestly: "Brother Heqing, do you have any suggestions for the court?" Lu Tiaoyang remained silent, and replied after a long while: "Brother Uncle, there is something I've been keeping in my heart, if I don't say it today, I'm afraid I won't have a chance." "Please speak." Zhang Juzheng urged. "The handling of the great victory in Liaodong this time. Is it too hasty for the emperor to revoke all rewards?" Zhang Juzheng knew that Lu Tiaoyang would mention this matter, so he said: "The Emperor has other plans regarding the kindness of my nephew Yuanyou." Lu Tiaoyang shook his head, and replied: "Shou Fu said this, as if I, Lu Tiaoyang, said this out of selfishness. In fact, I am worried about you. If the official concerned does not say anything, I am afraid will blame you." "I thought about it, between justice and personal feelings, I can only choose justice." Zhang Juzheng replied. Zhang Siwei felt that he had to have an attitude at this time, so he said: "I support the first assistant's handling of the Liaodong killing and surrender. If you control the government and govern the court, you must keep your word and do it." Lu Tiaoyang was very disapproving of Zhang Siwei's statement. He raised his breath and retorted with a wry smile: "Confucius is a villain who must believe his words, and his deeds must be followed. Mencius said that he should not believe his words, but his deeds should not be followed by an adult. It can be seen that the words of the most holy and inferior saints are similar. It is true that a person's words and deeds should have faith and results, but blindly Pursuing faith and fruit will be harmful to Taoism. All political programs of the imperial court should be based on the best policy." Zhang Juzheng didn't want to provoke Lu Tiaoyang, but he couldn't bear it now, so he said seriously: "National Respect and Fame Festival, rewarding Tian and retreating, although it didn't work for a while, but when the adversity is in a hurry, it will always be used. For example, in the Anlu Mountain Rebellion in the Tang Dynasty, all the twenty-four counties in Hebei were defeated, and there was only one Yan Zhenqing who stood up to the bandits alone. Flame, this is the effect of honoring the name. We serve the emperor and help the country, and we can't feed the carbuncle with sorghum meat and let it collapse. What do you think, old Lu Ge?" Reasonable and eloquent, Lu Tiaoyang has never been Zhang Juzheng's opponent.But he didn't care.After thinking about it, he said: "I just mentioned the great victory in Liaodong casually. What I want to talk about today is another matter." "What's the matter?" Zhang Juzheng asked. Lu Tiaoyang signaled the servant to bring the ginseng soup, he took a sip, and said with difficulty: "I think you are too hasty in banning the academy, especially killing He Xinyin, which may leave a story for future generations." Lu Tiaoyang has always been an enthusiastic advocate of lectures, and a group of officials who talk about the metaphysics of mind and nature regard him as their ancestor, and the heads of many private academies also have a close relationship with him.Zhang Juzheng knew this a long time ago.When dealing with the case of Wuchang City, Lu Tiaoyang happened to be recuperating at home, so Zhang Juzheng had a reason not to ask for his opinion, and he arbitrarily asked the emperor for an order: after the matter was settled, he did not hear Lu Tiaoyang's private statement. Have any objections.Zhang Juzheng thought that he had lost all interest in government affairs because he had devoted himself to retiring to the mountains and forests. Unexpectedly, he had always buried his resentment in his heart.Normally, he would shoot up the case, but at this time he had to restrain himself, and only defended: "He Xinyin was strangled to death by a death row prisoner, so what does it have to do with me?" "Brother Uncle, this big lie is not very clever," Lu Tiaoyang thought to himself that he was going to die anyway.He had no scruples in his heart, so he said boldly, "He Xinyin is famous. And he hasn't been convicted yet. How could he be locked up with a death row prisoner? , how can there be national law and human feelings at all!" "You!', Zhang Juzheng stood up abruptly.In the six years since he became the chief assistant, no one has ever dared to accuse him like this in person.Seeing that his face was livid and angry, Zhang Siwei was afraid that both sides would be unable to get off the stage if the situation froze, so he intervened to mediate: "Old Lu Ge, don't blame the wrong person. The chief assistant has always been affectionate and righteous to you. Yesterday, in order to solve your second son's future, he wrote a special report to the emperor." Lu Yuanyou, who was pounding his father's back and listening to the conversation nervously, stopped his hands when he heard this, and asked eagerly, "What did Tiao Chen write?" "Yuer!" Lu Tiaoyang yelled, he felt that his son was too spineless, and wanted to stop him from asking, but because of a sudden burst of impatience, he immediately rolled his eyes, tilted his head, and fell into a coma on the grand master's chair again. "Brother He Qing!" Zhang Juzheng shouted hastily. "Old Lu Ge!" Zhang Siwei was so anxious that sweat broke out on his forehead. "Father, wake up. Father, wake up." Lu Yuanyou cried while shaking his father.The servants rushed up to rescue Lu Tiaoyang with ginseng soup in a panic. Just as the room was in a mess, another shout came from outside the door: "Holy—decree—arrived!" Before the words were finished, Zhang Hong, the eunuch of Bingbi, the supervisor of ceremonies, hurried into the living room.Seeing Zhang Juzheng and Zhang Siwei both standing in the room, and the messy scene in the living room, he was taken aback, and hurriedly bowed his head to greet the two ministers. "Eunuch Zhang, are you here to pass the decree?" Zhang Siwei asked. "Yes." Zhang Hong answered with a bow. Strange to say, Lu Tiaoyang, who had passed out, suddenly woke up when he heard the word "imperial decree". "Father, Eunuch Zhang is here to pass on the emperor's imperial decree to you!" Lu Yuanyou shouted in Lu Tiaoyang's ear.Lu Tiaoyang nodded, struggling to get off the ground. "Lie down and don't move!" As Zhang Juzheng said, he took two steps forward, trying to hold Lu Tiaoyang down.There was a sound of phlegm in Lu Tiaoyang's throat, but he broke Zhang Juzheng's hand with all his strength, and insisted on kneeling on the ground.He is a minister who follows the rules, even if he is still alive, he will never dare to act sloppily when encountering orders.The crowd couldn't resist, so they had to spread a quilt on the ground and let him kneel on it.At this time, how could he kneel down? The whole body was lying on the ground.Seeing this scene, Zhang Hong had no choice but to read out the edict quickly: Tell the cabinet assistant minister and Wenhuadian University scholar Lu Tiaoyang to know: I think you have served the Lord loyally and made contributions to the country. I issued a special decree to favor your son and restore Lu Yuanhu to the position of Yaqing in the Taipu Temple. I wrote to the Ministry of Officials Handle it, please. As soon as Zhang Hong finished reading, Lu Yuanyou also forgot to take care of his father, knelt down with a thud, and shouted loudly: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness!" "Help your father up quickly." Zhang Juzheng urged: Only then did Lu Yuanyou turn sideways, and together with the servants came to help his father who was lying on the ground, he caught water stains in his hand in a hurry, and looked down, his father's crotch was already hot and wet. "Oops, Dad peed." Lu Yuanyou screamed anxiously.When I turned my father over to have a look, I saw that he was foaming at the mouth, the pupils of his eyes had dilated, there was still a trace of air coming out of his nostrils, but there was no intake of air. "Father!" Immediately after Lu Yuanyou let out a tearing cry, he heard the sound of chanting like an ethereal acupoint coming from somewhere nearby: Nan Wuxi Duo Nan San Miao San Bodhi Ju Di murmur you too "Who is this?" Zhang Juzheng asked. "Probably like an old monk," Zhang Siwei replied in shock, "he is doing a blessing puja here, and he avoided us when we came." "Let's go, let monk Yiru complete the puja for Lu Ge." As Zhang Juzheng said, he bent down and touched Lu Tiaoyang's cheek that was getting cold, and covered his face with two hot tears.