Chapter 27
Using a silver-tongued storyteller for promotion was a clever tactic.
But there were even better methods.
“Do you have any copper coins?”
Leaving the restaurant, Heng Yu turned to ask Liaowu.
Seeing him nod, she walked towards the north of the city. The residents of this area were mostly artisans who had come from the countryside to work in the city.
They were the poorest and most vulnerable people in the city.
Along the way, Heng Yu bought a map of Ping City.
The map was stored in a jade slip, allowing her to view it with her divine sense, which was very convenient.
After examining the map, Heng Yu handed the jade slip to Liaowu. “We need to find the busiest place in the north of the city.”
Liaowu didn’t know what she was planning.
However, since she had made the request, he patiently examined the map.
After a while, he put down the jade slip. “There’s an arched bridge in the north of the city. People returning home from work pass by there every day; and there’s a market nearby, so people from the north of the city also pass by there to buy groceries.”
Hearing this, Heng Yu clapped her hands. “That’s the place. Let’s go there.”
Entering the northern district, Heng Yu noticed the dilapidated houses. Houses with red tiles and white walls were rare; most were mud houses.
Many people were walking around, their clothes worn and patched.
“Amitabha,” Liaowu also noticed this.
He walked beside Heng Yu and looked at her gently. “Can Lord Luo tell me your plan now?”
Heng Yu said, “I want to spread Buddhist teachings through word of mouth among the common people.”
Her plan was to set up a stall by the arched bridge, where Liaowu and Liaonian would tell Buddhist stories to the people.
For each story they memorized, they would receive a copper coin.
“…We’ll use a memory stone to record their auras. Each person can receive a maximum of five copper coins.”
“The people in the north of the city live difficult lives. Five copper coins is a considerable sum for them. To earn more coins, they’ll have their families and children memorize the stories and come to us for the reward.”
Storytellers in restaurants only reached the restaurant’s customers.
But through word of mouth, they could reach the entire northern district, or even the whole of Ping City!
After explaining her plan, Heng Yu looked at Liaowu. “What do you think of this method?”
Liaowu thought for a moment and asked tentatively, “How about we replace the copper coins with something else?”
Heng Yu was puzzled. “Why?”
“If we use money to motivate them, will they truly believe in Buddhism?”
“Even if they do, will their faith be pure?” Liaowu asked.
In his view, true faith should come from the heart.
Heng Yu was stunned. “You’re right. I was being shortsighted. Spreading the stories isn’t the main goal; inspiring faith in Buddhism is what we should strive for.”
She seemed to have underestimated the weight of the word “faith.”
Remembering Liaowu giving candy to Man Xue’er, Heng Yu smiled. “Then how about candy? The people in the north of the city live difficult lives. Let’s give them a little sweetness.”
Liaowu turned his prayer beads and said softly, “That’s a good idea.”
The three of them arrived at the arched bridge.
Heng Yu took out a jade table and a large bag of milk candies from her storage ring. Then, she placed several copies of the printed Buddhist story booklets on the table.
After setting everything up, Heng Yu clapped her hands and said to Liaowu, “I’ll leave the rest to you.”
She was in charge of planning; Liaowu would be responsible for the actual preaching.
She wanted to see if this usually silent Buddha-son would become more talkative while spreading Buddhist teachings.
Liaowu joined his hands together. “Leave this to this poor monk and my junior brother.”
After speaking, he stood there and observed, not rushing to do anything.
Heng Yu sat on a stone stool, tilting her head and lazily watching him.
It was afternoon.
Occasionally, adults passed by the bridge, hurrying along, glancing at Liaowu and Heng Yu before quickly looking away.
Since the sun wasn’t too strong, many children, after waking up from their naps, came to play by the bridge.
A cleanly dressed little girl, her face smeared with dirt by her playmates, teared up.
Liaowu picked up a Buddhist storybook and walked towards her.
From Heng Yu’s angle, she could see him squatting down to look the little girl in the eye. He opened the book to a page, pointed at the illustration, and gently told her the story.
The gentle breeze carried their conversation to Heng Yu’s ears.
She heard Liaowu say, “The little monk who ate meat said, ‘Meat and wine pass through the intestines, but Buddha stays in the heart.’ This is a saying passed down by a virtuous Buddhist monk.”
The little girl repeated in a childish voice, “The little monk who ate meat said, ‘Meat and wine pass through the intestines, but Buddha stays in the heart’…”
Liaowu said, “The old abbot smiled helplessly and asked the little monk: ‘Do you know the second half of this poem?’”
The little girl repeated, “The old abbot smiled helplessly and asked… asked…”
After the little girl haltingly recited the story, Liaowu offered her a milk candy.
The little girl didn’t take the candy but looked up at him and asked seriously, “Monk Big Brother, can you feed me the candy? My older brother used to feed me like that.”
“He would also pat my head after feeding me.”
“But he’s been away at war for two years. I haven’t seen him for a long time.”
Hearing this, Liaowu lowered his gaze and unwrapped the candy for her. After feeding her the candy, he hesitated, then gently patted her neatly combed hair. “Alright, go play with your friends now.”
“Thank you, Monk Big Brother!” The little girl said with her mouth full of candy.
Seeing this scene, Heng Yu thought Liaowu was truly gentle.
At first glance, he seemed cold and aloof, like moonlight frost.
But after interacting with him, one could sense the extreme gentleness beneath his cold exterior.
The little girl skipped back to her friends, her eyes bright as she told them something.
The other children, after hearing her story, happily ran to Liaowu and surrounded him.
Liaowu was no stranger to such scenes. At the Undying Sect, he often went down the mountain to preach and had encountered similar situations.
Soon, he calmed the children down, and they stood quietly beside him, listening to his stories.
After they recited the stories, Liaowu gave each of them a candy.
Half an hour later, some of the smarter children had already memorized seven or eight Buddhist stories and received seven or eight milk candies. After eating one, they didn’t eat the rest immediately but clutched them tightly in their hands, savoring the sweetness.
“It’s time for you to go home,” Liaowu said.
“Monk Big Brother, can we come back tomorrow to listen to your stories?” one child asked.
“Will we get more candy if we memorize new stories?” another child asked.
Liaowu smiled and nodded.
After watching the children leave, Liaowu turned around.
His gaze met Heng Yu’s.
He nodded slightly at her, returned to their stall, and silently organized the Buddhist story booklets.
“Senior Brother Liaowu,” Heng Yu said seriously, “I also want you to feed me candy, like that little girl.”
“We’re closer than you and that little girl, right? Since we’re acquaintances, don’t be so formal. Come on.”
Hearing this, before Liaowu could react, Liaonian choked on his own saliva and coughed repeatedly.
Liaowu glanced at Liaonian and then turned to Heng Yu.
His lips seemed to curve upwards slightly. “Lord Luo is right. There’s no need to be formal between acquaintances.”
He grabbed a handful of candies from the table, walked over to Heng Yu, and placed them in her hand. “Please eat them directly.”
Heng Yu sighed softly.
“How about a compromise? If you don’t feed me the candy, you can pat my head instead.”
She said casually.
At the same time, Heng Yu unwrapped a candy and popped it into her mouth, chewing vigorously. Just as the sweetness spread through her mouth, she felt a warmth on her head.
But before she could react, the hand was gone.
“Although this poor monk doesn’t understand why Lord Luo made such a request,” Liaowu said, “Lord Luo has contributed greatly to this wager. It seems there’s no reason for this poor monk to refuse such a small request.”
Heng Yu unconsciously touched her head.
“Then pat it again?”
She hadn’t even realized it the first time!
Liaowu smiled and turned away.
Heng Yu curled her lip and ate another candy.
By the time she finished the candies, the setting sun cast a warm glow on the people returning home from work, crossing the arched bridge.
As they walked down the bridge, they passed by the small stall.
Liaonian naturally stepped forward to stop some curious passersby, inviting them to listen to Liaowu explain the Buddhist scriptures.
The two brothers worked together seamlessly, clearly having done this many times before.
As it grew dark, the three of them returned to the restaurant.
Just as they were about to enter, Heng Yu suddenly stopped and looked to her left.
But when she looked, there were only a few people passing by, nothing unusual.
“What’s wrong?” Liaowu asked softly, stopping as well.
“Nothing,” Heng Yu shook her head.
Just now, she had smelled a faint fragrance of Hehuan flowers, and the jade pendant in her storage ring had trembled slightly. Could there be a fellow disciple in Ping City?
Practicing swordsmanship in the restaurant wasn’t convenient.
After bathing, Heng Yu stood at the table and practiced calligraphy.
After finishing, she blew out the candle and sat cross-legged on the bed to cultivate.
The next morning, after breakfast, the three of them went to the arched bridge in the north of the city again.
They set up their stall as usual, but besides milk candies, they also had two boxes of pastries as rewards.
It was the time when people were busy going to work.
A tired-looking young woman passed by the stall, hesitated, and then walked towards them.
“Master, I heard from my daughter last night that if you can recite a Buddhist story, you can get a candy?”
She was a little embarrassed.
But thinking that her family couldn’t afford candy, and her daughter was at an age where she craved sweets, the woman asked anyway.
Liaowu nodded.
The woman sighed in relief and quickly recited the story of “Meat and wine pass through the intestines.”
Her daughter had told her the story last night, and she had memorized it.
Liaowu gave her a piece of osmanthus pastry.
After she took the pastry, Heng Yu, who had been observing her, suddenly said, “If you have time, you can recite another story.”
The woman calculated the time.
She had left home earlier today, so she had time to memorize another short story.
“Senior Brother Liaowu, tell this woman the story of Buddha-son Wule’s ‘Nirvana on the Seat’,” Heng Yu suggested.
The woman’s face was filled with misery and despair, as if she had lost all hope in life.
The story of “Nirvana on the Seat” described the paradise where Buddha resided, which could inspire hope and longing.
If the woman felt such longing, she might convert to Buddhism and regain her zest for life.
It was killing two birds with one stone.
Liaowu gently told the story of “Nirvana on the Seat.”
After listening a few times, the woman haltingly recited the story.
She didn’t fully grasp the meaning of the story, simply taking another pastry and hurrying away.
Liaowu watched her leave and then looked at Heng Yu.
Heng Yu smiled faintly. “I hope she can understand the true meaning of this story.”
“Amitabha,” Liaowu chanted softly.
He felt that Lord Luo was truly the most insightful person he had ever met.
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