I don't know when it began, the residents of the royal city of Khotan had a tradition of going to the suburbs to worship Buddha.

The time is in the early spring of each year, the poplar forests on the outskirts of the city have been dressed in a layer of goose-yellow spring clothes, and the ice and snow melt water of the Kunlun Mountains has once again changed from a gurgling stream to a rushing river.

The hard-working farmers and herders in the oasis stepped out of their felt bags or grass huts and began a new round of cultivation and labor.

In this season of revival and vitality, the entire royal city, from the king and queen to the peddlers and pawns, will help the old and the young to pour out of the nest.

There is a rugged ancient road leading to the southwest Kushan Kingdom and the countries of the Western Regions south of the Green Ridge from the south gate of the royal city.

It was along this dangerous path of tigers and wolves, plague and bandits that the messengers of the Buddha spread the Hinayana and Mahayana Buddhism to Khotan, and took root here.

On the day of the Buddha worship, people will stand on both sides of the ancient road, forming two long dragons that cannot be seen from front to back.

They face the Western Paradise reverently, fold their hands, bow their heads, or bow down for a long time.

Then, the abbot of Zanmo Monastery rode an elephant dressed in red and green, slowly walked out of the south gate and walked along the ancient road to the west.

He silently recited the scriptures all the way, praying for the deceased, praying for the blessings of the living, and praying for the harmony of the world and the peace of the country and the people.

At this time, he was supreme, and even the kings and ministers had to bow their noble heads and bow their respects in front of him.

Behind the master, the monks of Zanmo Monastery carried the Buddha statue of the Bodhisattva, played solemn Buddha music, chanted the compassion of the Buddhas, and slowly passed by the ancient road.

Sentient beings will also follow the procession of the monks, from the south gate to the grassland of Tallinn of Tsammo Monastery dozens of miles away.

The altar for preaching and preaching has been set up, and the presiding monk of Tsama Monastery or the eminent monks who have traveled from abroad will take turns to preach the Dharma for three days and three nights for sentient beings.

The devotees sat cross-legged around the altar, which stretched from the high platform of the altar to the Khotanese River, a few miles away.

There are very few devotees who can hear the voice of a high monk, and people are more likely to use this ritual to practice their own self and wash their eyes blinded by worldly desires.

The Buddhist pujas in the royal city of Khotan are famous all over the world.

In addition to their own subjects, there were also countless believers and merchants from Qiuzi, Wusun, Shule, and even further afield, such as Rouran and Kushan.

Therefore, this time of year is also the most lively time in Khotan.

The government is on holiday, the business is closed, and the people are bathing and changing clothes, cleaning the courtyard, sprinkling water and dusting, and happily welcoming visitors from all over the world.

After the solemn Buddha ceremony, the next few days are a carnival with the people.

The streets and alleys and grasslands inside and outside the royal city are full of joyful people day and night.

The hell on earth in Middle-earth, the iron rider and wolf smoke west of the Green Ridge, seems to have nothing to do with this place.

At this time, this country of projectiles under the protection of the Kunlun Mountains and the Huanglong Sand Sea has become the real Elysium mentioned in the Buddhist scriptures.

The sheer number of shows during the carnival is simply dizzying.

Jiu-Jitsu in Capricorn, snake dance in Sassanid artists, magic in the western kingdom of Yunhai, Kunlun slaves brought by merchants in Kushan, fire-breathing by the native Tocharians, horse racing in Wusun, and of course, Keju and dragon boat racing by the Han people in Middle-earth, etc.

Master Murong Qiu's whole family are devout Buddhists, and his family is not only a great donor of charity every year, but also participates in the whole process.

Like other merchants, Master Murong Qiu would give a few days off to the guys in Chang'anfang and Murong Villa at this time of year, give them a month's salary in advance, and let these guys have fun on their own.

Of course, this year will be no exception.

The day before the festival, Master Murong Qiu came to Murong Villa early and brought two horses along the way.

The black brocade-like fur, the bowl-sized iron horse, and the long howl that sometimes snorts in the sky make it a rare horse.

Grandpa has always been a horse lover, looking at the horse in front of him couldn't help but come forward, took the reins in the hands of the guy and turned over on the horse, in a burst of uncontrollable neighing and struggling all the way away, and soon disappeared from everyone's sight.

"Lu Yu, the old garden will be fine, right?"

The first time Master Murong Qiu saw my grandfather riding a horse, he asked very uneasily.

"Don't worry, sir, my young master was born with the ability to train horses! When we were hunting on the Qinwang River, he once caught a wild head horse with his bare hands and domesticated this wild horse in half a day. Later, this wild horse became his mount, and we gave it the nickname "Booming"! Oh, it's a pity! Such a divine horse is dying of thirst in the sea of sand in front of him! ”

Speaking of this, Lu Yu's mood suddenly became heavy.

After a stick of incense, there was a sound of horses' hooves outside the door, and grandpa came back.

Grandpa and Wusun Shenju under his crotch were sweating profusely, and after dismounting, he happily patted Shenko's back to show encouragement, and Shenju responded by meekly snorting a few times next to Grandpa.

There is no doubt that it has been thoroughly tamed by Grandpa.

"Good horse! Good horse! Master Murong, you wouldn't be used to pull a cart like this, would you? That's a terrible thing! ”

"Where, where, I bought these two black horses for a lot of money! The Han people call this kind of good horse a sweat and blood horse, thinking that during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, among the tributes of the countries of the Western Regions, the most valuable is such a Wusun horse! ”

Master Murong Qiu laughed and gently tapped the reins of the divine horse with his cane.

"Virtuous nephew, that's what happened! In two days, it will be the Buddha Festival, and in previous years, our merchants and officials in the Han region of China would organize groups or send envoys to participate in such a grand event every time to show the demeanor of our Heavenly Empire. But since the Wuhu Disaster, it is difficult to see the Han family during the annual Buddha Ritual Festival, hey! ”

Murong Qiu sighed, then smiled and said, "I heard that you and Lu Yu's kung fu skills are good, and their skills are extraordinary. So the old man had an idea, after the puja, the king will issue an edict to organize some horse races, riding and archery competitions, and I want you both to sign up. Hehe, let's give us a publicity in Chang'anfang. In addition, it also supports the face of those of us Han people from Middle-earth, don't let these foreign barbarians feel that after the Han and Jin Dynasties, our Middle-earth will be in a state of collapse from now on! ”

"Sir, don't worry! Guaranteed to get you back with a jackpot! Back then, in Jincheng County's hometown, the villain was named the champion Hou! Now that there is this magic horse again, in this small royal city, winning the jackpot is not a problem at all! ”

Speaking of horse racing, his grandfather, who has always been low-key since entering the Kingdom of Khotan, can't help but be arrogant, revealing his original true temperament.

"Good! Good! All I want is you, the champion! Ha ha! After I go back, I will ask the little girls to embroider a pennant of Chang'anfang, and when the time comes, you will play this flag, so that the people of the world can take a good look, how handsome our Han family has been since ancient times! Ha ha! Master Murong Qiu stroked his palms happily and laughed.

"Sir, give these two horses a name!" At some point, Lu Yu had already stepped on another horse, looking eager to try.

"Good! Virtuous nephew, your Wusun BMW is still screaming! Lu Yu, the mount under your crotch is called Rolling Sky Thunder! What do you think? ”

"Boom! Roll the thunder! Color! Lu Yu bowed his hand and praised.

"The two virtuous nephews should not be taken lightly, the Western Regions are not as good as the Middle Earth, and the main business is agriculture. The people here have always been nomadic herders, and there are many first-class horsemen and knights, so you also need to train more! ”

After resting for a while in the villa, the accompanying men had already loaded the selected jade materials into the carriage, and Master Murong Qiu hurriedly went on the road, while patiently instructing the grandfather and Lu Yu who saw them off.

"The villain understands! Lu Yu and I must have practiced hard in the past few days, and we will definitely not embarrass you! ”

Grandpa helped Master Murong Qiu into the carriage and replied confidently.

"Let's go back! Let's all go back! Master Murong Qiu waved goodbye to the carriage, and the guy who drove the carriage waved his horsewhip lightly and shouted.

The carriage left the enclosure of the lodge and galloped off the official road in the distance.

"Two offspring, my lord has taken a fancy to you two! Your hard days are coming to an end! Hehe! ”

On the way back to the village, the old housekeeper walked behind with a half-hunched back, and smiled at his grandfather and Lu Yu.

"My lord has a crush on us? Uncle Ming, what do you mean by that? "Grandpa was a little confused.

Uncle Ming, the housekeeper, came to Chang'anfang when he was more than ten years old, and it is said that he was a beggar who was taken in by a caravan from Rouran Kingdom to Chang'an.

When the Rouran caravan returned from Chang'an, the leader of the caravan was afraid of bringing a Han baby back to trouble, so he gave him to Murong Qiu's father.

In the blink of an eye, Uncle Ming has been living in Chang'anfang for more than 60 years.

From the young man who carried water and swept the floor at the beginning, he has become a dying old man in charge of Murong Villa today.

For decades, he has served two generations of heads of the Murong family, and he is loyal to this family and deeply loved by his family.

So what kind of calculation does Master Murong Qiu have in his heart, Uncle Ming can generally guess eight or nine.

"Don't divulge it! Don't divulge either! Hehe, it's a great thing for the two of you anyway, hehe! ”

Uncle Ming played haha, but he still refused to tell the truth, which made Grandpa and Lu Yu confused.