Murder and Prison Break

Xiangquan resolutely said, "Let's escape quickly before the Qing army arrives in large numbers!" Choujiao said, "Sister, you lead the way first, I'll cover the rear! Then we'll meet at the Red Flower Society's Yangzhou liaison office!" Seeing her brother's sincerity, Xiangquan felt a surge of warmth in her heart and excitedly said, "No, let's all ride away quickly! It'll be too late if we wait any longer, the Qing army will arrive soon!" Seeing her sister's insistence, Choujiao had no choice but to agree. She quickly snapped her fingers and whistled. The herd of horses outside the city gate, which were grazing and drinking by the river in the distance, heard the whistle and cleverly raised their heads one by one. Led by a tall horse, they galloped over with a neigh, and the heroes leaped onto their backs and sped away from the city. Before leaving, Choujiao did not forget to take the corpses of her beloved servant, Heartbroken Blade, and Penglai Shadowless Flute, with her horses, and had them guarded by Split in Half and Tornado respectively. After everyone had left, he mounted his horse, glanced back at the devastated Wulin Sect, sighed, and then gave a sharp tug on the reins, sending his steed galloping away.

Daming Temple, located on the central peak of Shugang Hill in the northwestern suburbs of YZ City, JS Province, was named after its initial construction during the Daming era of Emperor Xiaowu of the Southern Song Dynasty. Over 1500 years, the temple's name underwent several changes, such as "Qiling Temple" and "West Temple" during the Sui Dynasty, and "Chengping" at the end of the Tang Dynasty. During the Qing Dynasty, due to the taboo against using the characters "Daming," the name "Qiling Temple" was temporarily retained. During the 30th year of the Qianlong Emperor's reign, the emperor personally inscribed "Imperial Edict for Fajing Temple." It wasn't until 1980 that the original name "Daming Temple" was restored. In the first year of the Renshou era of the Sui Dynasty (601 AD), Emperor Yang Jian, to celebrate his birthday, ordered the construction of 30 pagodas throughout the country to enshrine the Buddha's relics. The temple built the "Qiling Pagoda," a magnificent nine-story structure hailed as "one of the most outstanding in China," hence the temple was also known as "Qiling Temple." During the Tang Dynasty, the monk Jianzhen served as the abbot of Daming Temple, making it an important ancient temple in the history of Sino-Japanese Buddhist cultural relics relations. Daming Temple was one of the eight famous temples in Yangzhou during the Qing Dynasty.

The mountain gate has three bays, a single-eaved gable roof, and the inscription "The First Temple East of Huai" written by Jiang Heng is carved on the east wall. Passing through the gate and walking up the corridor, one arrives at the Mahavira Hall. Xiang Quan and Chou Jiao led their group into the hall, where the abbot of Daming Temple and the monks warmly received them. The abbot was a man with a ruddy complexion! It turns out that Pingshan Hall is located west of the Mahavira Hall. It was founded in 1048 (the eighth year of the Qingli era of the Northern Song Dynasty) by the great writer Ouyang Xiu when he served as the prefect of Yangzhou. Due to the turbulent times, the temple's incense offerings were not plentiful, and Pingshan Hall remained idle, with no high-ranking officials or nobles residing there to listen to the chanting of scriptures.

The house was quickly cleaned, and two monks ushered the heroes into Pingshan Hall. The abbot then ordered vegetarian food to be brought in. Inside the hall, the heroes ate and chatted, one saying in a row, "That dog, Wuyingjian, hasn't been behaving himself the whole way, muttering and grumbling like a cicada in summer, it's fucking annoying! Chief, let's starve him for a day, and tomorrow we'll find a place to bury Fifth Brother and Thirteenth Brother, so that Wuyingjian can be buried with them!" Choujiaomian, deep in thought for a moment, suddenly turned to Tiesuanpan and asked, "Second Brother, there's an empty courtyard behind Gulin Hall, it seems a famous painter is buried there. What was his name again?"

"Shi Tao! A famous painter of the early Qing Dynasty, and also a high-ranking Zen monk, one of the four monks of the early Qing Dynasty among the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou. He lived in Daming Temple and later passed away here. To commemorate this learned master, the abbot of the temple specially ordered the construction of Shi Tao's tomb behind Gulin Hall." Iron Abacus, as expected of the strategist of the Red Flower Society, knew the temple's famous sites and anecdotes like the back of his hand and spoke eloquently. Stinky Feet glanced outside and said, "If we bury Fifth Brother and Thirteenth Brother near Shi Tao's tomb, will the abbot agree?" Iron Abacus said, "The Buddhist teachings say: 'The Buddha's teachings are boundless, illuminating all sentient beings.' If they are fortunate enough to be buried near a temple, they can certainly gain immortality and be reborn sooner. Although Abbot Huiming is beyond the Three Realms and not subject to the Five Elements, he is clear about right and wrong, prioritizes righteousness, and has always respected the Red Flower Society, often giving us free help. If we make some excessive requests during this critical period of evading capture, I'm sure he won't refuse." Stinky Feet paused to catch his breath and said, "Second Brother, please go to the abbot's room and explain this to him." Iron Abacus clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Please rest assured, Chief, leave this to me." After finishing his meal, he went to the abbot's room.

Stinky Feet said to Fragrant Fist, "Sister, for convenience, why don't you heroes of the Southern Fist Sect stay in the Valley Forest Hall in the backyard? The Valley Forest Hall was originally built by Su Shi, a great literary figure and famous poet of the Song Dynasty. It is said that he built this Valley Forest Hall behind Pingshan Hall to commemorate his master, Ouyang Xiu. Su Shi took two characters from his poem 'Deep valleys are graceful, tall forests are lush' and named it 'Valley Forest Hall'." Fragrant Fist laughed, "That's the eccentric genius Su Dongpo, right? His poems are bold and unrestrained, fresh and unconventional. He is one of the Eight Great Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties. He was a leader of the literary world in the mid-Northern Song Dynasty and achieved great success in poetry, prose, calligraphy and painting. Being able to stay in the room of a great literary figure is like being influenced by his style. Okay, that's settled." Then she led the Southern Fist Sect members to part ways with the heroes of the Red Flower Society and walked out. But the flowers and trees in front of the hall are lush and the courtyard is quiet. Looking out from the railing at the mountains of Jiangnan, they are level with the eye. Only then did I realize that "the distant mountains are level with this hall". No wonder Ouyang Xiu called this place "Pingshan Hall".

Before long, the group arrived at Gulin Hall, only to find the buildings low and simply decorated, hidden behind Pingshan Hall, as unassuming as could be. Su Shi was more famous than Ouyang Xiu, yet Gulin Hall was far less well-known than Pingshan Hall. It is said that Pingshan Hall was famous throughout the land, while Gulin Hall was virtually unknown even to the people of Yangzhou. What does this signify? It shows that Su Shi was magnanimous, upright, and deeply respected his mentor, Ouyang Xiu! With his mentor above him, how could he dare to overstep his bounds! Su Shi visited Yangzhou ten times throughout his life, and each time he first visited Pingshan Hall at Daming Temple to pay homage to his mentor, Ouyang Xiu. Out of respect, he composed a poem on his third visit to Pingshan Hall:

I visited Pingshan Hall three times.

Half a lifetime in the blink of an eye.

It has been ten years since I last saw the old immortal.

Dragons and snakes danced on the wall.

To mourn the death of Prefect Wen Zhang,

Still singing in the spring breeze and willows.

Don't say that everything turns to nothing in the end.

Before turning around, it's all a dream.

—Tune: West River Moon - Pingshan Hall

Hung Kuen said somewhat indignantly, "Master, the Red Flower Society is bullying us! At Ping Shan Hall, ancient vines intertwine, banana trees are lush and green, and from the railing one can see the mountains of Jiangnan stretching out before us. The trees seem almost within reach, their verdant green shoots seemingly leaping at our eyebrows, level with the hall itself. Truly, the river flows beyond the heavens and earth, the mountains appear and disappear in the mist. It's like a breathtaking painting unfolding before our eyes. The scenery is so beautiful! And look at us here, it's just an ordinary house! Is this a place for humans to live?!" Before Xiang Kuen could say anything, Wing Chun smiled sweetly and said, "Sister Hung Kuen, you don't know this, but this is precisely the Red Flower Society's Grand Master's deep concern for us!" Hung Kuen glared and roared, "Don't talk like that, it's easy for you to say! Who are you trying to fool?!" Wing Chun said seriously, "We must never forget our current status! We're not here for sightseeing." "Those playing in the water are here to escape the government's pursuers, to avoid disaster! The Red Flower Society has arranged for us to be in this relatively secluded and inconspicuous place, while they are in a conspicuous spot in public. Please put yourselves in their shoes and think about what noble sentiments they have! Helping others and sacrificing oneself for others—isn't that precisely the embodiment of the Red Flower Society? If we continue to make wild guesses about them, wouldn't it cause trouble and disappoint them if they found out?!" Hong Quan wanted to say something more, but Xiang Quan waved her hand to stop her, saying, "Wing Chun is right. This is actually the Red Flower Society's good intention. I hope everyone won't misunderstand them! From now on, the situation will become very complicated. We, the Southern Fist School, must be like one family with the Red Flower Society, without distinction of 'you' and 'me,' working together to resist the Qing Dynasty!" The members of the Southern Fist School responded in unison, "Yes!"

Just then, a monk came to inform Xiang Quan: "Sect Leader Xiang, please come to Ping Shan Hall immediately! The Grand Master has important matters to discuss!" Seeing his serious expression, the monk knew something serious had happened and hurriedly asked, "What happened? Why is it so urgent?" The monk glanced around and saw that besides the six famous boxers, there were over a hundred Southern Fist disciples in the hall, all staring at him with anticipation and tension in their eyes. Reluctant to refuse, he said, "I heard from the Eighth Leader of the Red Flower Society that Eagle Claw Sun Wuyingjian has committed murder and escaped from prison!" Everyone was greatly shocked, and a thought simultaneously welled up in their minds: "Ah! Our whereabouts have been exposed; we can't stay here any longer!"