After tasting a delicious meal, everyone gathered around the stove and refused to move. After the small place was occupied by us, it actually seemed very crowded. Father Yang and Mother Yang were busy cleaning up in the kitchen. Only the elderly grandfather was chatting with us children. Rather than chatting, it was better to say that he was telling us stories. Although we had heard stories about Dragon Pool, we still listened carefully.
Grandpa Yang said that this was a story from a long time ago, and it could be traced back to the Tang Dynasty. In the fifth year of Huichang of Tang Dynasty, Li Yan, Emperor Wuzong of Tang Dynasty, believed in Taoism. Because of the flood of Buddhist temples, he adopted the suggestions of Taoist priests Zhao Guizhen and Li Deyu, demolished the temples and massacred Buddhist disciples wantonly. As a result, the Buddhist disciples fled everywhere and lived in hiding. One of the monks from Lanruo Temple, whose dharma name was Duzhen, fled here. Seeing that there was no one here, he settled down. He built a thatched hut as a shelter. When he was hungry, he ate wild vegetables. When he was thirsty, he drank mountain spring water. Usually, he would meditate or read the remaining scriptures all day long. His days were peaceful.
Because it was deep in the mountains and forests, there were usually no idle people who set foot there, and they had lived a few years of leisurely life. Until one day, when he was chopping wood, he vaguely heard someone shouting for help. However, when he listened again, he could not hear the cry for help. He thought he was hallucinating. When he was about to go home with Chai, he saw two men dressed like bandits chasing the young couple away. Only then did he confirm that someone had indeed called for help. He had also learned some Buddhist martial arts, so it was more than enough to deal with one or two people. Therefore, he stepped forward and saved the young couple.
This couple was originally in the business. They had a few shops and were well-off. They also had a cute son and lived a happy life. Unfortunately, the good times did not last long. He found the city center too noisy, so he bought a luxurious house in the suburbs and moved his family in. Not long after, the couple went out to purchase goods, leaving only orphans and children at home, but they did not expect to be targeted by robbers. On this day, a group of bandits rushed into the house. Not only was the house robbed, but these evil bandits actually cruelly killed the old parents and the young son who was only two years old.
By the time they returned, everything had changed. The couple hugged each other and cried bitterly before deciding to report it to the authorities. However, the magistrate had taken advantage of the bandits and accused them of false accusation. He wanted to execute them on a random charge. Fortunately, the heavens had blessed them with pity. A friend who worked in the yamen had leaked the news in advance, and they were able to survive. They had nowhere to go and were always thinking about revenge. However, they unknowingly walked to their former home and were seen by the bandits who were staring at them. They were hunted down again. They only cared about running for their lives and unknowingly walked into the deep mountains. They almost lost their lives in the hands of the evil disciples. Fortunately, they were saved by this master.
When their master asked them where they would go from here on out, they could only shake their heads helplessly. Their master suggested that they stay here and rebuild the forest to avoid the mortal world. The couple knew that Master Duzhen had also fled here and was also a lost person. In the end, they agreed, but they asked their master to help them punish the bandits. Master Duzhen did not agree immediately, but said that he would try his best to find a way, but he would not kill anyone. The couple knew that this was already difficult for monks, so they did not force it.
They built another thatched hut beside the pond, next to Master Duzhen's Lanruo Temple. They named this pond the Frost Jade Pond and this desolate place the Hushan Village. In the next ten years, he adopted many orphans one after another and brought them to the top of the lake and mountain. Then, he used some means to punish the bandits on the lake and mountain, and some victims were rescued here. More than ten years had passed, and this place had become lively. It was no longer desolate and uninhabited. Slowly, it had formed a medium-sized village.
Under Master Duzhen's lead, they worked from sunrise to sunset, working hard to exchange for survival supplies. After more than ten years, Hushan Village had also changed its appearance. Lanruo Temple was no longer a shabby straw shed. It had also been rebuilt. Of course, it was all built by the villagers to thank Master Duzhen. After Emperor Wuzong of the Tang Dynasty died, the imperial court's harm to Buddhism was relatively weaker. The policy was also relaxed, and Master Duzhen often went down the mountain. However, he was still the only one in Lanruo Temple. He would teach the children in the village to read and write. He would also chop some firewood to exchange for some silver to help those who needed help.
He had stayed in this village all his life and was often kind and charitable. He had a good reputation in this area. Decades later, he finally passed away at the age of 92. It was said that his compassion was earth-shattering. It was the sixth day of the year when he passed away, but it was snowing heavily. The villagers were ready to bury him, but his sarira turned into a golden light and soared into the sky. Only then did the villagers see clearly that it was a fire dragon. It circled in the air for a long time before finally rushing into the Frost Jade Pool reluctantly. From then on, only the villagers of Hushan Village occasionally saw the fire dragon appear. Every time it appeared, it was because there was a disaster in the village. The villagers were able to survive the disaster safely every time, so they knew that Master Du Zhen was protecting them. To commemorate Master Duzhen, the villagers decided to change the name of the Frost Jade Pool to Dragon Pool. There was an unwritten rule in the couple's family that Master Duzhen had saved: They would guard the Dragon Pool for generations and would not migrate for no reason.
After so many years, the protector clan had always remembered the teachings of their ancestors. They had always lived there and never moved, but their descendants had never seen the fire dragon appear again.
Grandpa Yang stopped here. His expression was very serious as he sighed softly. He looked at Yang Yang and said earnestly,"Child, you have to remember this too!"
We were all very curious. A few of us were talking at once, fighting to be the first to ask,"Grandpa, really? Was that family still living here? Is there really a fire dragon living in the Dragon Pool?" "Grandpa, have you seen a fire dragon?”"Grandpa, can you bring us to see that family?”"Grandpa, I heard that if a kind person makes a wish to the fire dragon, it will help us fulfill it, right?”……
Grandpa Yang looked at us with a smile and patted Yang Yang's head lovingly. He smiled and said,"Children, I don't know if it will come true. "However, this is a legend, and the legend is true. However, I have never seen a fire dragon. Not everyone has the chance to see such a divine item.”
"Oh, I see!" We were obviously very disappointed, but we still didn't give up. Su Xiao asked,"Grandpa, can you bring us to the family that we are guarding? We can go and ask them!”We all nodded in agreement.
Grandpa Yang was silent. He only smiled meaningfully and shook his head.
"Hmm, what does this mean?" We were all confused. At this moment, Yang Yang looked at our puzzled expressions and proudly raised her head. She said proudly,"Our family is the family that has been guarding the fire dragon for generations!”
"Ah! Really?" I said in disbelief.
" What do you mean?" Yang Yang said angrily." Of course it's true. If you don't believe me, you can ask Luofeng."”
We all looked anxiously at Luo Feng. Luo Feng received everyone's gaze and nodded, indicating that this was indeed the case. As such, I quickly apologized."Grandpa, Yang Yang, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to blaspheme your duties.”
Grandpa Yang quickly said to me,"Good child, it's okay. You don't know!"”Yang Yang's expression became better after hearing what Grandpa said. She looked at me and said slowly,"Forget it, I won't blame you."
After we finished discussing, everyone secretly decided that they would take a good look at the Dragon Pool tomorrow to see if there was a fire dragon. After all, Grandpa had never seen it before, so he couldn't be sure if there was one or not. He had to make a good wish tomorrow. Perhaps there really was a fire dragon!
After dinner, night fell. Apart from a few families, there were no lights in the mountains. It was lonely and dark all around. Fortunately, there was a bright moon in the night sky. The silver light sprinkled on the Dragon Pool, making it quiet again. The sky on the mountain seemed to be clearer than the one at the foot of the mountain, and the stars in the night sky could be seen more clearly. Because of the large temperature difference between day and night, it was very cold on the mountain at night. We didn't dare to go out, and because the deep mountains at night were very terrifying, we couldn't properly appreciate this wonderful scene.
Everyone sat around the fire and talked about many interesting things. When it came to Yang Yang's embarrassing childhood, Mother Yang seemed to remember it very clearly. She said it all in one go, making Yang Yang lose face and never be able to raise her head in front of us again. We all told each other our embarrassing stories before Yang Yang stopped.
Yang Yang's house couldn't accommodate so many people at night, so Mother Yang arranged for us to stay at the neighbor's house. " Su Xiao, Zhu Li together, Yang Yang, Luo Feng together, Yu Quanqing, Cao Guanggan together, and Xiran and Shanting together!" Mrs. Yang said.”
When she suddenly heard that I was actually with Shanting, she felt very awkward and unhappy. I believe Shanting is the same! However, Mother Yang obviously doesn't know about the subtle relationship between us, so she doesn't think there's anything wrong! Seeing that we were silent, Mother Yang asked,"Is there any problem?" Yang Yang, who was beside him, gently tugged at the corner of his mother's clothes. Unfortunately, Mother Yang did not know what was going on. She asked Yang Yang,"What do you think?"
Yang Yang smiled awkwardly and said,""I have no objections! No objections! I'm just afraid that they'll have objections!" After saying that, he glanced at Shanting and me. Only then did Mrs. Yang understand. However, since things had already come to this, she didn't know how to say it.
At this moment, Shan Ting suddenly said,"Auntie, I'll switch with Su Xiao. I'll sleep with Zhu Li."?”
Mother Yang was in a dilemma, not knowing what to do. Hearing Shan Ting's words, she looked at Su Xiao and Zhu Li. The two of them nodded to show that they had no objections, and then she was relieved. He turned around and said to us,"That's it then. Go to bed early!"”
Just as he finished speaking, Luo Feng spoke,""Uncle, Aunty, I'll bring Xiran to stay at Grandma's house so that we don't have to trouble her!”
Luo Feng's words entered my ears like a clap of thunder, causing me to be dumbstruck. Everyone was silent for a long time, and no one spoke. Clearly, I wasn't the only one who was shocked. Mother Yang was the first to recover from her shock. She said with some difficulty,"Is this okay?" He looked at me again, asking for my opinion. I was stunned. Just as I recovered from my shock, I heard Shan Ting snort at me and Luo Feng, expressing her dissatisfaction before walking away to warm herself up by the fire. However, Luo Feng obviously didn't care. Without waiting for my permission, he pulled me up and walked towards his grandmother's house. His grandmother's house was only a few minutes away from Yang Yang's house.
In the end, I followed him to his grandmother's house. Although the journey was short, it was really cold outside. Moreover, in this unfamiliar environment, it was dark outside. I was very afraid. He seemed to have sensed it and held my hand tightly, never letting go. Many years later, when he thought of this scene, he was touched.
That night, I couldn't sleep at all, and it was the same for Luofeng. I often heard him tossing and turning. Sigh, another sleepless night.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。