The ox cart drove through the creek at the western foot of Beigu Mountain and continued northward, and a bag of cigarettes arrived at the open ground below the dilapidated Taoist temple, and Zhu Daolin, who was reclining on the cart board, slowly sat up, and suddenly found that the Ziyang Temple, which was located between two beautiful hills with its back against the Shogunate Mountain, was not only in an excellent location, but also far exceeded his own estimates.

Zhu Daolin did not pay attention to the overall layout of the tattered Taoist temple before, and now he found that the area of the Taoist temple is not small, from the steps at the end of the bottom hundred acres of valley, until the highest half of the collapsed apse close to the mountain, the pedestal covered by dense decaying grass is obviously divided into three layers, the vertical height between the three layers is about 20 meters, the width of the first floor pedestal is more than 120 meters, the whole building from the first floor of the pedestal to the deepest collapsed apse, the depth of the front and back is as high as more than 100 meters.

Zhu Daolin roughly calculated, the construction area of Ziyang Temple is not less than 20 acres, and the total area covers a total area of at least 150 acres, which shows the prosperity and glory of Ziyang Temple in the past, no wonder Uncle Xuanqing has worked hard for more than ten years in order to rebuild Ziyang Temple.

As the understanding deepened, the resentment in Zhu Daolin's heart towards Uncle Xuanqing, who was sanctimonious and immortal but loved his talents, also disappeared.

"Dao Chief, do you need me to go up and help?" The wrinkled middle-aged driver is very attentive.

Zhu Daolin was willing to let others go up, but his face was very peaceful: "You always wait here for a while, it's just a few dozen steps, I'll go up and get something and come down." ”

"Oops!" The coachman's heart was extremely comfortable, and his affection for the generous and talkative Zhu Daolin soared, and he nodded and watched Zhu Daolin climb the cracked steps.

When Zhu Daolin entered the gate of the Taoist Temple, the Xuanqing Daoist who had just finished drinking two large bowls of gruel was changing his robe, Zhu Daolin immediately went to the wall to open the outermost wooden box, flipped a few times and pulled out four kraft paper bags, and quickly came to the old Taoist to open them one by one:

"Uncle Shi, when you went into the city to sell a Western bell worth 100,000 taels of silver, you were wearing a patched and shabby Taoist robe, and people who don't know the inside story still think you stole it...... Take it off, when I was waiting for the news of the red-haired boat in Shanghai County, Songjiang Prefecture, I specially asked the master to make a new set of robes according to your figure, as well as this pair of high-waisted satin boots with mille-feuille bottoms and this Huayang crown, which were also bought in Shanghai County, and I guess it is suitable for you...... Don't be stunned, come, I'll help you put it on, the carriage is still waiting underneath. ”

Xuanqing Daoist stared blankly at the royal blue dark pattern satin robe draped on his body, and couldn't help but stretch out his hand and caress it lovingly, the dark silver white clouds and crane patterns on the brocade fabric were extremely elegant and luxurious, and unconsciously his eyes were red, tears were shining, and he was at the mercy of the sharp Zhu Daolin.

"Okay, the hat is just right, you have to wear your own boots, your feet stink."

Zhu Daolin said that he took two steps back, carefully admired the new image of his uncle, and was very satisfied with his aesthetic ability and the accuracy of visual inspection.

Xuan Qing turned around and pretended to go to the couch to find something, and quietly wiped away the tears that overflowed his eyes: "It's not early, quickly put the erected Western bell into the box, so as not to bump and break on the road." ”

"Pack one or take the rest with you?" Zhu Daolin asked thoughtfully.

Daoist Xuanqing hesitated for a moment: "Load all four of them, and transport them to Chaotian Palace together, as long as the news spreads, at least hundreds of rich men will rush into Chaotian Palace with silver tickets to find me." ”

As soon as Zhu Daolin heard the music, he quickly wrapped the big grandfather clock placed outside, put it into the original big wooden box, and covered it tightly, and thought about it and felt that he would have to move it up and down when he arrived at Chaotian Palace, so he simply didn't put on the new robe in the box, and carried the big wooden box out of the house after a little tidying.

After Zhu Daolin left, Lao Dao, who had changed into new boots, immediately ran to the well-lit door, looked up and down his new clothes with wide eyes, looked at it while touching, sighed in his mouth, and finally took off the Huayang crown on his head woven with fine royal blue silk thread and black ponytail, looked and looked, touched and touched, and his saliva almost flowed out.

Zhu Daolin and the coachman waited below for a full quarter of an hour, and the new old road came with a whisk of dust and square steps.

Seeing Zhu Daolin sitting on the wheel with a smile, Lao Dao coughed lightly and ordered loudly: "You stay at home, at least two days, at most three days, I will definitely come back, you have nothing to do at home to practice more energy, play the piano, don't run around, you must pay more attention when cooking, don't burn the house, remember!" ”

Zhu Daolin never expected this result, the surging resentment instantly filled his chest, and he was red-faced, but he couldn't scold a word, watching Lao Dao jump on the ox cart and gradually move away.

"Holy! The striped unloader kills the donkey—"

Zhu Daolin gritted his teeth and scolded bitterly, took a big stride and quickly returned to the broken Taoist temple on the inside of the second-floor pedestal, kicked open the door of the void, rushed to the wooden box and opened it while scolding, found a paper bag containing a full set of military clothing and threw it on the couch, and then turned out dark brown American Zhongbang tactical shoes, Navy SEAL tactical belts and green thickened line socks, Alpha 65 windbreaker, quickly took off all the clothes and pants of the whole body and put on new ones, and finally took the Yunguang 62 type telescope from another box and hung it around his neck. grabbed the 6,000 yuan Tang knife bought back from the original factory in Longquan, and went straight to the small hill on the west side of the Yangtze River.

In less than 10 minutes, Zhu Daolin, who was heavily armed, climbed to the top of the hill, took out his binoculars and began to carefully observe the mountains, river sections, roads, villages, pedestrians, land, rivers, and small and low hills within 10 miles.

After noon, Zhu Daolin hurriedly returned to the Taoist temple, put the iron pot containing most of the cold gruel on the stove with unextinguished charcoal ash, and took out half a bowl of sauerkraut from the black jar on the bowl rack, then took off the untimely clothes, pants and shoes of the whole body, picked up the crumpled Taoist robe on the mat and put it on, squatted by the stove full of gruel, and drank three bowls of sauerkraut in a row, then he stood up contentedly, slightly sorted out the crooked Huayang crown on his head, picked up the Tang knife on the couch, and covered the door. Walk straight towards the two families on the edge of the wide quarry by the river.

When Zhu Daolin was fifty steps away from the two families by the river, two skinny earth dogs rushed out of the corner and barked wildly.

"Who?"

A thinly dressed middle-aged couple and three children between the ages of eight and twelve ran out one after another.

Zhu Daolin stopped, clasped his hands together according to the old way, and politely announced loudly: "Disturb my brother!" Below is the nephew of the head of the Shogunate Mountain, the Ziyang Temple, and the nephew of the Xuanqing Daoist, who is not familiar with the surrounding villages when he first arrives, so he takes the liberty to visit. ”

The middle-aged man with a stocky figure and a simple face hurriedly returned the salute, turned his head and quietly told his woman to boil water and make tea quickly, and then invited Zhu Daolin to rest in the house with confidence.

Half an hour later, when the hot tea was served, Zhu Daolin took the rough sea bowl, drank it beautifully without disgust, and continued to ask after the topic just now: "So, for five years, the elder brother's family and the eldest brother next door have been staying in this place to make a living by beating stones?" ”

The stonemason surnamed Xie sighed, put down the tea bowl and said carefully: "Yes! In the past few years, some three-foot-long stone strips can be punched, these two years are gone, this place is a five-mile radius of Xuande period for the repair of the Jinling city wall opened a quarry, intermittent mining for nearly a hundred years, until the forty-fifth year of Wanli, because to protect the feng shui of the shogunate mountain to stop. ”

"For generations, our ancestors only had the skills of stonemasonry, and we had no land, no land, and no place to go, so we could only continue to stay here and pick up the remaining stones and knock them out for some money. Five years ago, there were more than 50 families along the riverside, and in the past few years, they have moved to the city one after another to work as coolies in order to make a living. ”

"So, how many miles around are the commons of the county government?" Zhu Daolin asked kindly.

The stonemason nodded: "It's all commons, but it's all wasted, and I've never seen anyone from the yamen look at it for so many years." ”

Zhu Daolin asked again: "Isn't there anyone who buys these lands?" ”

The stonemason looked at Zhu Daolin in surprise, like looking at an idiot: "This barren mountain and wild ridge is full of large and small gravel, potholes and hills are connected, and the sun is out to dry the dead, after the rain is full of pools of water, the mud is buried under the gravel more than a foot thick, and it is impossible to grow food at all, and it is far away from the city, who is crazy to spend money to buy land here?" ”

Zhu Daolin smiled, not a little embarrassed: "Brother, if I am willing to pay for this place, how much silver will it cost?" ”

"The Taoist chief won't be idle and have nothing to do, and he deliberately came to entertain me, right?" The stonemason turned his head sideways and looked at Zhu Daolin dissatisfied.

Zhu Daolin hurriedly explained: "No, no! Don't get me wrong, the reason why I came here to ask my brother for advice is because my uncle Xuanqing Daoist will soon be able to raise hundreds of thousands of taels of silver to rebuild the Ziyang Temple, so I walked around this Taoist temple and found that this place by the river can be built a house, and if the silver is rich, it can also build a wharf on the riverbank that is more than 500 steps long and more than 300 steps wide, and it can be operated well without growing food. ”

"Oh my God...... Is it true to rebuild the Ziyang Temple? The stonemason's eyes widened.

Zhu Daolin nodded: "It's true, my uncle will send a message in a few days, and the construction will start by the middle of next month at the latest." ”

The stonemason stood up excitedly: "Chief, look, can you give me a job?" I don't dare to say anything else, I have been working as a stonemason for twenty years, and I have the strength, which can definitely satisfy the Taoist, and if you don't do it well, you don't have to pay for it. ”

Zhu Daolin hurriedly stood up: "Don't worry, brother, I agreed to this!" But you haven't answered what I just said, if I buy this place, how much money will it cost? ”

The stonemason immediately counted with his fingers: "It is about three miles long from the foot of the shogunate mountain downstream to the mouth of the Chahe River upstream, and from the river bank in the west to the string of small hills in the east, it is almost two miles, and after removing a few small rivers and the 1,000 acres of land on the north bank of the Cha River, it is about 2,500 acres, because this place cannot grow grain, and the government will sell it for two taels of silver per acre, and in total, five thousand taels of silver is enough." ”

"Excellent! Thank you, brother, wait patiently for my news, in less than ten days, I will definitely buy this place, and then ask my brother to build a house and repair the dock for me. After Zhu Daolin finished speaking, he stood up and was about to leave.

The overjoyed stonemason hurriedly thanked him, and respectfully sent Zhu Daolin out of the country: "Dao Chief, can I invite a few more old fellows from the past to work for you?" ”

Zhu Daolin stopped: "As long as you have the strength, honesty and diligence, it will not be a problem to come to five hundred, as for the specific remuneration, I will discuss it after I buy this place, do you think it is good to arrange it like this?" ”

"Good! Taoist chief Chrysostom said, I will definitely obey. ”

"Brother, are you afraid that I will talk nonsense and quietly take me into the army, right? Ha ha! It doesn't matter, you can put 10,000 hearts, I should be the landlord! ”