Tang Dynasty Prison Administration

097: The Birth of a New Buddha

At this point, a soldier said, "His family has a particularly strange Buddha statue, extremely obscene. There's a naked woman embracing the Buddha. We even joked with him, saying he already has a son and a daughter, and he still believes in this kind of Buddha!"

Upon hearing this, Su Wen frowned and asked, "You've met before?"

Several soldiers nodded and said, "We've all seen them. And I remember a few days ago, on my day off, I went to the outer city to watch the Hu women dance, and I saw people promoting something about a new Buddha's incarnation. But I'm not a Buddhist, so I didn't ask any questions. But judging from the crowd, there were quite a few people gathered!"

Upon hearing this, Su Wen immediately asked, "Where?"

After thinking for a moment, the soldier replied, "It's near the Zuixianglou in Qingyuefang outside the city, but they're rarely there during the day. They usually only spread the word there at night, around 9 PM!"

Su Wen looked at Xu Ge and said, "Xu Ge, remember this place. We'll go check it out tonight!"

Just then, a soldier rushed over and said, "It's terrible, General! Imperial Envoy, Hu San is dead!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yi was shocked: "Dead?"

Upon hearing this, Su Wen frowned and said, "Take me there quickly!"

Led by the soldiers, the group soon arrived at a tent. Lifting the curtain, Su Wen saw a huge, blood-red lotus pattern on the ground!

The cook named Hu San was kneeling in the middle of the lotus flower, with a knife stuck in his chest.

Upon seeing this, Cui Lingyu quickly pressed her head against Su Wen's chest.

Su Wen gently patted Cui Lingyu, then walked to Hu San's body and examined it carefully. Hu San had a wound on his right wrist, indicating that he had cut his wrist first and used his blood to draw this huge lotus flower.

A dagger was stuck in his chest, cutting a deep gash. There was blood on his left hand. It seemed that Hu San, like Xu Ran, wanted to cut open his chest and take out his heart with his hand.

The deduction itself is terrifying.

Zhang Yi said, "How could Hu San be killed in our camp? Could he be the only spy in the camp?"

After Zhang Yi finished speaking, he turned and glanced at a soldier watching outside the tent, saying, "Order everyone to assemble at the training ground. Anyone who is not there within fifteen minutes will be dealt with according to military law!"

The soldier responded, and Su Wen said, "Don't regroup! Hu San wasn't murdered; he committed suicide!"

Zhang Yi said, "Suicide? But Hu San has a family, a wife and children, and is usually a kind and honest person. Why would he want to commit suicide?"

Su Wen replied, "He's offering himself as a sacrifice!"

Xu Ge looked at Su Wen and exclaimed in surprise, "Master, if he sacrificed himself, what about his wife, children, and elderly parents?"

Upon hearing this, Su Wen frowned and exclaimed, "This is bad!"

Su Wen hurriedly walked out of the military camp and said, "If his wife, children, and elderly parents are also dead, then the entire Dunhuang County will be in turmoil right now!"

The group hurriedly left the military camp. After mounting their horses, Su Wen looked at Zhang Yi and said, "Zhang Yi, convey my order: starting today, a curfew will be imposed throughout Dunhuang County. Also, immediately send someone to the Grand Commander's camp in Shazhou and order him to immediately dispatch several thousand troops to Dunhuang County. Furthermore, order all scouts to be dispatched immediately to closely investigate any movements in the direction of the Tibetans!"

"Furthermore, order the entire army to be on high alert. Starting today, no more drinking is permitted. I fear the Tibetans will take action soon!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yi immediately replied, "This subordinate obeys!"

After Su Wen finished speaking, he pulled on the reins, shouted loudly, and headed straight for Ping'anfang.

Before long, when everyone arrived at Ping'anfang, the streets were crowded with people, and Su Wen knew that something was wrong!

Xu Ge shouted loudly, "Everyone, make way! The imperial envoy has arrived!"

Upon hearing this, the people quickly moved to the sides, making way for the middle.

Many of the women, seeing Cui Lingyu nestled in Su Wen's arms, smiled and whispered among themselves.

Cui Lingyu didn't care about any of that; there was a hint of joy on her face.

Arriving in front of a house, Su Wen saw that the constables were standing around, surrounding the place and not allowing anyone to get close. However, the surrounding discussions made Su Wen feel a sense of fear.

Because many of them were discussing what the Buddha had said.

After dismounting, Su Wen went straight to the house. Qin Zhan and Zhang Xizhou, who were standing at the door, immediately came over and bowed, saying, "Imperial Envoy Su, the entire Hu family of four has died under mysterious circumstances!"

Su Wen replied, "I understand!"

Upon entering the room, one sees two people lying in the main hall, a middle-aged woman and an old woman. In the right-hand wing, a boy lies on a bed, while his daughter lies on the floor, each with a lotus flower drawn in blood beneath them.

The woman's eyes were gouged out, and her death was extremely peaceful. The boy's heart was removed, his abdomen was cut open, and his internal organs were washed clean with water and then put back in.

There were several buckets and basins next to the bed.

Su Wen checked the room and found no other traces. There was food on the table. Su Wen picked up the food and smelled it, but couldn't really smell anything.

Su Wen looked at Xu Ge and said, "Xu Ge, search the room and see if there's any strange powder!"

Zhang Xizhou asked, "Imperial Envoy Su, several people have died in recent days, and the manner of their deaths is so bizarre. Could it be...?"

Su Wen looked at Zhang Xizhou and asked, "Could it be something?"

Zhang Xizhou said, "Previously, there were strange rumors circulating that the old Buddha was muddle-headed, unable to distinguish right from wrong, and did not understand the suffering of the people. Now that the new Buddha has been born, he will first execute those who have committed the ten sins to restore justice to the world. Moreover, the new Buddha will lead the poor people out of the sea of ​​suffering and to the Pure Land as soon as possible!"

"Today, Commandant Renyong Peng Yu was killed, and all ten of the guilty have been executed. Now, the deaths of this family of four are so bizarre that rumors are circulating that they were voluntarily sacrificed to cleanse their sins, so that they can ascend to the Pure Land and become Bodhisattvas, Arhats, or Vajras after death!"

Zhang Xizhou paused here, then slowly said, "Could it be... that a new Buddha has been born?"

Su Wen frowned and looked at Zhang Xizhou, saying, "Nonsense! There are no gods or Buddhas in this world, only people who pretend to be gods and ghosts. As the Prefect of Shazhou, how can you believe such heretical and misleading words?"

At this moment, Cui Lingyu spoke up: "Chief Secretary Zhang, what do you mean by 'the old Buddha is muddleheaded'? What do you mean by 'the new Buddha has appeared'? Are these words a dig at the current sage?"

As she spoke, Cui Lingyu said, "Our Great Tang is now in a golden age, with all nations paying tribute. Our sage is wise and enlightened, and he has appointed Prime Minister Yao Chong to implement reforms. The people are living in peace and prosperity. How can we tolerate these heretical doctrines?"

Cui Lingyu said, "Pass down the order to post notices throughout the city, stating that the rumored emergence of a new Buddha is a heretical cult attempting to overthrow our Great Tang Dynasty. Everyone is forbidden from joining this cult, and those who disobey will be punished for treason!"

Upon hearing this, Su Wen was quite shocked and even subconsciously swallowed.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xizhou bowed with both hands and said, "Yes, this humble official understands!"

With that, Zhang Xizhou left the room, and Su Wen stared at him with a furrowed brow.