Chapter 168 You Understand Buddhism

The monster blocking the road was very particular. It actually set up a small wooden pavilion and made a raised pole.

It was just like a toll station.

"Here~ This is the document issued by the Ministry of Industry, allowing us to collect fees at the Handan toll station." The speaker was a rabbit spirit. He held a document with red eyes and said to Zuo Qianhu. It seemed that he was not afraid that Zuo Qianhu was a Jinyiwei.

There was also a wild boar spirit and a pangolin spirit next to him.

Zuo Qianhu took the document with a blank face. The document clearly stated that a nest of mountain monsters in the south of Handan was allowed to set up a toll station, charging five taels of silver each time, and charging for thirty years.

Finally, there should be the seal of the Ministry of Industry.

"Sir, when the Beijing-Luoyang Railway was being built, it passed by us. Someone from the Ministry of Works came to ask us if we were willing to work. Food and lodging were provided, and there was also a salary. Of course we were willing! But after working for a few months, the railway was completed, and the Ministry of Works did not pay us, but instead asked us to collect tolls to offset it."

"We also want cash, but the Ministry of Works does not have it."

"We are local little monsters who abide by the law, and we can't get the Ministry of Works to do it, so we have to do it."

"Sir, do you think we should collect this money?"

The rabbit spirit explained the matter clearly with red eyes.

Left Captain really didn't know what to say. These officials in the court had so many tricks that they tricked monsters into doing hard labor.

After the work was done, they didn't even kill us, and let them collect tolls. It can only be said that the Ministry of Works still has integrity.

"Since there is a document from the Ministry of Works, this money should indeed be collected, and those on the railway should also pay it." Left Captain nodded and said, he had seen all kinds of monsters when he slew demons and exorcised monsters. I have seen those who are extremely vicious and murderous. I have also seen those who are as timid as mice and only want to live their own lives.

This is the first time I have seen someone working for the Ministry of Industry like this.

Why didn't I see him when I came here? Oh~ When I came here, it was not this route.

"But they charge too much. Five taels of silver each time." The conductor went to call the train conductor over, and the train conductor said: "There are several monsters charging fees behind this, and each one is like this. It's really unbearable!"

Damn, how many monsters did the Ministry of Industry fool when building the railway!

"You have bad intentions and lied to me that monsters blocked the road. Just for this matter, I can kill you! Don't be ungrateful!" Zuo Qianhu was used by others, and he was not a person without temper. He shouted at the train conductor and then returned to the train.

He didn't kill the train conductor for such a small matter.

"Oh~ This... Oh, it has to be this way." The train conductor also complained in his heart. He heard that Zuo Qianhu loved to kill demons and monsters, so he wanted to borrow a knife to kill him and let him kill these monsters blocking the road.

The boss of the Ministry of Industry was the same. The monsters were also killed and eradicated. Wouldn't it cause trouble for them on the railway if they stayed?

How much money did they lose in one go!

The railway also belonged to the Ministry of Industry in the Ming Dynasty, but it was a different subordinate department under the Ministry of Industry.

The farce ended just like that. Tang Yu and others also sighed that the people in the Ministry of Industry were too flexible. First, they made monsters out of nothing, and then wrote a blank check, but they could actually build the railway.

The train conductor paid the money, and the train continued to set off to the capital with a "clang clang". At night, the train conductor specially asked someone to arrange a few side dishes and brought wine to Zuo Qianhu to apologize.

There was no trouble along the way. After dawn, we arrived in the capital.

I have to say that with a train, it is indeed much more convenient.

The station is located in the east of the outer city of Beijing. You can see the city wall of Beijing as soon as you get off the train. The city wall of Beijing in the Ming Dynasty was very thick. Around the towering city wall, there were factories that were emitting black smoke. The factories were surrounded by dilapidated thatched houses and mud houses.

Coupled with the muddy and dirty roads, it felt like a slum.

Or, it was a slum.

Entering the South City from Guangning Gate, you can feel a completely different world from the outside world.

The clean and tidy streets and the cement-paved ground can allow all kinds of steam cars to run over. On both sides of the road, along with the steam boilers, there are all kinds of shop signs. What about tripods, ceramics, calligraphy and paintings, money shops, snacks, medicine shops, cloth shops, etc.

The pedestrians on the street are bustling, some are selecting goods and bargaining, some are chatting and strolling, and the mobile vendors carrying bags on their shoulders and hands are chasing tourists to sell goods.

There are also people performing on the street. On the east side, there is a female artist in a pink dress, holding a sanxian in her hand, playing and singing popular songs. To the west, there was a male artist, holding a drum in one hand and a clapboard in the other, rapping a legendary story.

The smell of fireworks and the sound of hawking came over, making Tang Yu and the other two dazzled.

This was an experience they had never had before. What they saw was a real world.

Zuo Qianhu was calm. For him, this was all normal.

Zhang Zichen also saw strange people selling alpacas with feather crowns. There was also an Asan wearing a headscarf, selling lions and elephants.

What was outrageous was not that they were selling, but that someone was asking how to raise this thing and whether it was easy to raise.

The capital was divided into the outer city and the inner city, the outer city was in the south and the inner city was in the north. The middle of the inner city was the imperial city. Zuo Qianhu, as a Jinyiwei, naturally lived in the inner city. He had a large yard and his family at home.

Along the way, Tang Yu saw many temples and Taoist temples, which had the flavor of "Inside and outside the capital, there are stars in the temples, and the dome temples are exquisite and blue, and there are them everywhere."

In general, there are more Taoist temples than Buddhist temples. There is no way around it, Jiajing just worships Taoism.

Tang Yu and his companions rejected the good intentions of Zuo Qianhu and stayed in a nearby temple. The main reason was that there was only one inn in the inner city, and it was full.

In addition to the main business of incense, these small temples mainly provide rooms to accommodate pilgrims to stay overnight.

In other words, it is also a kind of inn.

Food and accommodation naturally cost money, and the price is not cheap.

After all, those who can be called and deliver food to you are all monks.

Don't you have to pay extra?

Although the food is vegetarian, vegetarian food can wash away sins.

Don't you have to pay extra?

No money? Why do you come to the temple if you don't have money?

The temple where Tang Yu and his companions lived was very small, named Jizhai Temple, which was just four or five rooms.

They had a hot pot for dinner. The hot pot smelled so strong and there was meat, so naturally there were monks who came to ask about it.

They were full of disrespect for Buddha and disrespect for etiquette. How could they be so in a place with strict rules and regulations in the temple...

Then, Tang Yu added money.

One ingot of gold.

"Donor, aren't you making things difficult for me?"

Two ingots of gold.

"Donor, if you really want to eat, you might as well go to the backyard. There's no one there."

Three ingots of gold.

"Donor, you are a person who understands Buddhism."

Five ingots of gold.

"It is a great honor to see the Bodhisattva today. Please help yourself, Bodhisattva."

If the problem can be solved with money, then it is not a problem! Tang Yu's trick made several people eat hot pot without any scruples. The aroma of the hot pot drifted into the temple, causing the monks to swallow their saliva.

With a "creak", another wing room opened, and a kind-looking old monk came out.

He looked at the fragrant hot pot and said, "Is it lucky for me to have a share?"

Guess who this bald monk is?