Chapter 307: If a person does not save himself, even Buddha cannot protect him The next day, still at night, the middle-aged man, dressed in a new outfit, came to Weilian Ancient Temple again. Ruyi, who was in charge of receiving the middle-aged man, looked him up and down and felt more and more strange. The other party seemed to be particularly fond of gold items. Gold rings, gold necklaces, gold bracelets and even the zippers on clothes were all woven with pure gold. Moreover, the gold ornaments he was wearing were also different from last night, so they must have been a new batch. Is he afraid that others don’t know that he is rich? No wonder he has so many black-clad bodyguards with him. "Master Ruyi, I really want to donate money to rebuild the golden body of the Buddha. Please allow me to contribute a little bit of kindness for this." The middle-aged man still had an anxious tone. Ruyi comforted him softly, "Our temple is deeply grateful for your kindness, but we do not have any plans to rebuild the Buddha's golden body at the moment." Inside the Weilian Ancient Temple, there is only one statue of Vairocana Buddha, and no other Buddhas or Bodhisattvas are enshrined. Guru Padmasambhava had already given instructions that the statue of Vairocana Buddha must not be moved, and there is no need to reshape its golden body. "Then I will fund the construction of a new Buddhist temple to worship all the Buddhas in the sky. I wonder if Master Ruyi will agree to it?"
"This..." Ruyi hesitated, then smiled and said, "I'd better ask Master Liansheng to come and discuss this matter with the donor." “Ah, Master Liansheng!” The middle-aged man's face became more and more troubled, and he moved uneasily. When Ruyi turned around and wanted to go to the side hall to invite Pinggong Qianye, the middle-aged man left in a hurry. "..." Ruyi stopped and watched the middle-aged man leave. He clearly said that he admired Master Padmasambhava's Buddhism, but when he heard that he was going to meet Master Padmasambhava, he turned around and left. Are you afraid of meeting Master Liansheng? This guy is really weird. On the third day, the strange middle-aged man came again. This time, Ruyi did not come, and the one who stayed in the hall to receive him was Pinggong Qianye. "Who are you? Where is Master Ruyi?" When the middle-aged man saw that Pinggong Qianye was the only one here, he was obviously stunned and looked around. Seeing that the other party did not recognize him, Pinggong Qianye did not reveal it, but just smiled and said: "I am here to pay homage to the Great Sun Tathagata." "Oh, I'll come to worship too." The middle-aged man followed Pinggong Qianye's actions and worshiped Vairocana Tathagata. After paying homage to Mahavairocana, the middle-aged man asked quietly, "Are you here to ask for help from Master Liansheng as well?" “Only those who save themselves can be saved by Buddha. If people do not save themselves, Buddha will not be able to protect them. Master Liansheng is just a Buddhist monk. If he does not have the heart to save himself, Master Liansheng may not be able to help.” "This..." The middle-aged man's expression became conflicted again, as if he was having trouble deciding the direction at some important juncture. "You are rich, but your money is not earned properly. The more wealth you have, the more fear you have." Pinggong Qianye stared into the middle-aged man's eyes, "You want to ask Master Liansheng for help, but you are afraid that after asking for help, you will lose your hard-earned rich life."
"You, how could you..." The middle-aged man took a step back, sweat broke out on his temples, and fear flashed in his eyes. "Your fear stems from a fear far greater than death." "..." The middle-aged man lowered his head in silence, sighed, and then raised his head. All the hesitation and entanglement in his eyes were gone. He faced Pinggong Qianye and bowed respectfully. "Master Liansheng is indeed very insightful." Pinggong Qianye was not surprised to see that the middle-aged man had guessed his identity. Anyone who can accumulate such a huge fortune, no matter how he made it, is not a simple person. "People say that Master Liansheng is so young that it's hard to believe. Now that I've seen him, I know it's true." The middle-aged man smiled bitterly and said, "You look about the same age as my daughter, who is also a high school student." Pinggong Qianye did not respond, but waited for the middle-aged man to explain his purpose. His practice of fate-seeing often allowed him to see some interesting past and future inadvertently. When the middle-aged man in front of him first came to Weilian Ancient Temple and sensed the strong smell of money on him, his destiny sense responded. The middle-aged man first asked his black-clad bodyguards to leave the hall and guard outside before he explained his purpose. Hiromasa Yamaguchi was born in Fukushima. His family originally ran a bamboo craft business. Since many shrines ordered bamboo products from his family, he lived a good life. When Yamaguchi Hiromasa grew up, he felt that the income from bamboo craft was too hard and he should engage in some business with greater profits. He likes gold products and thinks it is a better business than bamboo products. Moreover, gold products have a wide audience and gold can maintain and increase its value, so it is definitely a profitable business. When he was 24, he left home to start his own business, but suffered a miserable failure and lost all the savings that his parents had accumulated over the years. In the end, even the bamboo shop that had been passed down in the family for many years was bought out, and his parents died of depression because of it. He had given up on himself, but when he was 28 years old, he heard from others that deep in the bamboo forest of Nagano, there was a powerful deity who would fulfill all the wishes of anyone who was lucky enough to see him. Bursting into debt, Hiromasa Yamaguchi headed to the deep bamboo forests of Nagano to try his luck. At that time, he was thinking that if he failed, he would choose to die in the bamboo forest, which would be a way to put an end to his failed life. He went deep into the bamboo forest and searched for more than a month. He drank spring water when he was thirsty and ate wild fruits and vegetables when he was hungry, but he still could not find the legendary god. When he was disheartened and ready to commit suicide by jumping into the pond, the god appeared. He walked out of the bamboo forest, surrounded by a light that was more attractive and dazzling than gold. I can't see His appearance clearly, but I can vaguely feel that He is sacred and inviolable. Yamaguchi Hiromasa knelt on the ground, bowed his head, and prayed devoutly, hoping that the gods would have mercy on him and change his poor life. After his repeated requests, the gods reached a condition with him. The gods can fulfill his desire for wealth and glory, but the price he needs to pay is to give up his most precious thing after 20 years.
Yamaguchi Hiromasa happily agreed to this deal, which allowed him to receive an advance payment and then pay the price 20 years later. After leaving the Nagano Bamboo Grove, his luck seemed to have been on a roll, and basically everything he wished for came true. In less than three years, he became the richest man in Fukushima and opened his own gold shops all over Japan. He got married at the age of 30. His wife was a female teacher who taught in the countryside. At that time, he made too much money and knew the principle that more blessings bring more wealth, so he went to many places to do good deeds. He met his wife when he was building a school in the countryside. They fell in love at first sight, and then they got married and had children. After his marriage, he had only one daughter. At first, Yamaguchi Hiromasa was immersed in the happiness of a successful career and a happy family, but as his daughter grew up, he began to panic. Because he discovered that the most precious thing to him now might no longer be his wealth or his career, but his beloved daughter who called him dad. As I get older, this feeling becomes stronger. Although he forced himself to treat his wealth and career as his most precious things, and thus dedicate them to the god who blessed him with a smooth life before the 20-year agreed deadline. He even stayed away from his own daughter and didn't dare to get too close to her. There is only one month left before the 20-year deadline. Although in the eyes of others he is a big profiteer and tycoon who values wealth and career above all else and loves money like his life. But deep down in his heart, he felt that his daughter was his most inseparable concern. He didn't know that he could deceive the gods and make them take only his wealth. But he was really afraid in his heart, afraid that the gods would ask him to sacrifice his daughter. When he heard that there was a Master Padmasambhava in Tokyo, who had profound Buddhist knowledge and great supernatural powers, he had an idea in his mind. Taking advantage of this trip to Tokyo to discuss business, he came to Weilian Ancient Temple to try to seek help, but he was always hesitant, which led to these three visits. (End of this chapter)