vstars Chapter 142: Stop pretending, let’s show off
Chapter 142: Stop pretending, let’s show off
Did Prince Zhao copy the Diamond Sutra 120 times? The answer is, of course, yes. Not only did he copy it, but Emperor Kangxi, who always doted on him, gave him an extra boost, increasing the number of times from 120 to 360.
The Diamond Sutra has a total of 5,320 characters. If it is copied 360 times, it will be close to 1.9 million characters. Yinzhuo felt that even if he turned into a crab and used all eight crab legs and two pincers to write, he would still have to copy it for a long time, let alone just his two hands. It seems that his father is really determined to teach him a lesson this time. He is definitely going to be ruthless.
Such a huge project would take forever to complete by himself. As the saying goes, "An army is raised for a thousand days to be used for one." See, this is where the advantage of having many brothers comes in. Based on the principle of "why not use them if they're not needed," Yinzhu specially chose a sunny day with a gentle breeze and invited all his brothers to his Enze Garden without exception!
When Yinqi and Yinreng were invited over by Yinzuo's men, they thought Yinzuo was bored again and wanted to invite the brothers over for a get-together. Little did they expect that as soon as they arrived, they would be led to Yinzuo's study, which he never used.
"Hey, Sixth Brother, what's this all about today? You invited us brothers here just so we could watch you copy scriptures?"
Yinzhu finished reading the scripture in his hand, put down his pen, and walked around from behind the desk to invite everyone. Although Yinti and the others didn't know what Yinzhu was up to, they still followed him to the small hall outside the study.
Yinzhu led everyone to the flower hall outside the study. After they all found their seats and settled down, he hurriedly had Dexi bring them tea and snacks. After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, he secretly pinched his thigh hard. Yinzhu didn't hold back this time, and as he pinched, tears immediately welled up in his eyes.
"Eldest brother, second brother, third brother... you must help me this time, otherwise I will hang myself right here in front of you. Father is really too much. Who would copy a sutra 360 times as a way of showing filial piety? The Diamond Sutra has more than 1.9 million words! If I want to finish copying it myself, you won't see me for the next year. But if I really copy it for a year, I won't be alive. Can you really bear to watch this budding flower wither away like this?"
Wow, so that's why I brought them to the study as soon as they arrived. It turns out they were waiting here all along! It wasn't that Yinti and the others were unwilling to help Yinzuo copy this scripture, but they had a question in their minds: would it really be okay to send something they had cobbled together like this to their father? You know, the last person to have the Ninth Prince copy it for them with such wishful thinking was that simpleton, the Tenth Prince. He and the Ninth Prince were punished terribly that time.
"Sixth Brother, it's not that your elder brother is unwilling to help you, but there's a precedent right there. Ninth Brother and Tenth Brother, you know how badly they were dealt with by Father Khan last time. If we brothers help you this time, wouldn't we all be dealt with by Father Khan together? You know, Father Khan will really check every single page."
Now that Yinzhuo had invited them here, he naturally couldn't let them escape. Hearing Yinti's words, he secretly slapped his thigh, and his tears flowed even more freely.
"But elder brother, even if I sit here in this study for months, I still can't finish copying it. If you don't help me, I'll have no way to survive. Elder brother, second brother, just help me copy the books to complete Father's task. If anything goes wrong, I'll take full responsibility and never implicate you. Besides, there's a saying, 'The law doesn't punish the masses.' Father can deal with me alone, and he can deal with the ninth and eleventh brothers. Does he think he can deal with all of us brothers at once?"
You know what, Yinzhuo's tearful appearance actually softened the hearts of Yinti and Yinreng. Everyone thought that Yinzhuo's words made a lot of sense: "The law does not punish the masses." Father could not possibly punish all of his dozen or so brothers because of this incident.
As the saying goes, "When brothers are of one mind, their strength can break metal." Almost all of Yinzhuo's brothers were outstanding individuals. When they worked together, they naturally achieved twice the result with half the effort. Even though they were trying to imitate Yinzhuo's handwriting, through everyone's joint efforts, they completed copying all 360 copies of the Diamond Sutra in just half a month.
Yinzhuo gathered the scriptures sent by his brothers and had Dexi count them to make sure the number was correct. Then he packed the scriptures into a box he had prepared in advance. He then called Akshang and Hatu to carry the box and go with him to Qingxi Study!
"Father, it's been over half a month since I last saw your precious son. Do you miss me?"
To be honest, Kangxi had really missed Yinzhuo a bit after not seeing him for more than half a month. But as soon as he thought about what the boy was going to do next, the little bit of longing that had just risen in Kangxi's heart vanished instantly!
What's in your box?
Yinzhuo glanced at Kangxi, who was asking a question he already knew the answer to, and without asking anyone else, he stepped forward and lifted the lid of the box himself. Then he pointed to the paper inside and said to Kangxi.
“Father, isn’t this the Diamond Sutra that you asked me to copy 360 times? I’m telling you, ever since you gave the order, I’ve been working day and night. Today I finally finished copying the Diamond Sutra that you asked me to copy. Would you like to come and check it?”
It must be said that Yinzhuo's mental fortitude was truly outstanding. He knew that his father would inevitably expose him if he came to inspect, but he didn't show any fear at all. If Kangxi hadn't known in advance that most of the scriptures were copied by Yinti and others with Yinzhuo's help, he might have been fooled by this kid.
"Yinzuo, I'll give you one more chance. Take this book back and clean out the impurities, fill in the missing parts, and then come back to me for inspection. I'm doing this all for your own good."
Yinzhuo had long known that his little tricks couldn't fool the old fox Kangxi, so he simply stopped pretending and confronted his father directly. He walked over to Kangxi, sat down, and grabbed Kangxi's arm, starting his usual trick—acting cute and shameless.
"Father, the watered-down version of this scripture is far too much. Even if all the water was removed, there would be nothing left. Father, please forgive me this time. I promise you, I will definitely keep my mouth shut from now on and will never talk nonsense again."