The Entire Army is Information

(4, 0); Some say that good has no distinction of size, and so does evil, because both great and small acts of kindness accumulate merit, while great and small acts of evil create karmic obstacles. The Bodhisattva, upon hearing this, became anxious, saying, "How can good and evil not be divided into size? One is one, two is two, and there are three, four, five, six, and seven." (5,0); The Bodhisattva isn't good at reasoning, because he is a different kind of Bodhisattva. He said that good and evil, large and small, are roughly: The greatness of good is, in essence, knowing the warmth and coldness of others, and saving all living beings. The greatness of evil is, in essence, the suffering of sentient beings, and the harm caused by words. (5,0); What the Bodhisattva says is always right; no one doubts it. The Bodhisattva resides in Nanshan Village, and everyone in the entire Yunzhou, in all 281 counties, knows him. Even a three-year-old child can name him. It is said that there are thirty-six places like Yunzhou in the world; it is unknown whether there are similar Bodhisattvas in the other thirty-five prefectures. (5,0); When the Bodhisattva was present, no one came seeking help. Instead, people would frequently come, drop off some things, and leave without even entering the door. To read the latest novel content, please visit STO ⓹ ⓹． COM Every day, new gifts would appear at the Bodhisattva's door: firewood, rice, oil, salt, and silk. (5,0); The poor would leave eggs, the rich would leave gold and silver. The Bodhisattva didn't want anything, but fearing the things would spoil, he even built a rain shelter. If anyone urgently needed something, they would come to this shelter to take it. No need to say anything, the Bodhisattva said, "The things in this shelter are all good; at most, it's just a place to keep good things." (5,0); Whether the good things are borrowed or returned, they are not truly good; they belong to all sentient beings. People got used to it. If someone needed three feet of cloth, they would come to the shelter to buy some. If someone needed oil or salt, they would come here to take it. (5,0); Someday, a family lacked gold and silver, and took as much as they needed. But alas, after so long, the shed not only remained empty, but grew larger day by day. So, a very large warehouse appeared outside the Bodhisattva's house. People from all around came, bringing their own food, and built it for thirty-two days, then left. (5,0); The Bodhisattva said it was to protect virtuous people, and the people thought, then let this warehouse be the warehouse of virtuous protection. No one thought about what the world would be like without the Bodhisattva. That day, the Bodhisattva was gone. (5,0); In the fields, farmers were working hard, their backs bent, when someone ran past on a country path, shouting in a hoarse voice. "The Bodhisattva is gone! The Bodhisattva is gone!" The farmers were stunned, then silently put down their hoes and went home. (5,0); In the county town, the streets were deserted, shops lined the streets, and someone ran past a shop, shouting, "The Bodhisattva is gone! The Bodhisattva is gone!" All the pedestrians stopped at the sound, all the merchants froze, then the pedestrians went home, and the shops closed. (5,0); In the county government office, the magistrate sat in the main seat, with the plaintiff and defendant kneeling below. The two groups had been fighting over who should water the wheat in the irrigation ditch first, and were now bruised and battered. The magistrate glared at them, about to speak, when he heard someone outside the county government hall shout, "The Bodhisattva is gone! The Bodhisattva is gone!" (5,0); The magistrate sat there for a long while, forgetting what he wanted to say, his face pale. The kneeling people looked at each other, then helped each other up. The plaintiff helped the defendant, and the defendant helped the plaintiff. Both groups hurriedly left the county government office and rushed home. (5,0); Upon hearing the news of the Bodhisattva's passing, the first thing those people did was rush home. They wanted to go home to change their clothes. The people of Wuwei County all knew that the Bodhisattva was a pure being, even though he had been bedridden for some time, unable to even turn over. His clothes were never soiled, his hair never strayed. To bid farewell to the Bodhisattva, everyone changed into mourning clothes they had prepared long ago, because they had heard from the doctors long ago that the Bodhisattva might not live much longer. Every household prepared mourning clothes for the Bodhisattva, but no one found it strange. The Bodhisattva would eventually return to heaven, so when earthly doctors couldn't cure the Bodhisattva's illness, no one blamed the doctors. In other places, if you said the Bodhisattva had an age, you would be laughed at. But in Wuwei County, if you asked the Bodhisattva how old he was, anyone except a child would tell you that the Bodhisattva was seventy-six years old. Wuwei County has 127 villages, some far apart, so the time it took for them to receive the news varied. From the first day to the fifth day, a total of 380,000 people came from Nanshan Village. Everywhere you look, people are dressed in white, all dressed as filial sons. (5,0); But alas, only that young man, just fourteen years old this year, can carry the Bodhisattva's funeral urn in one hand and the mourning banner in the other. Everyone cares for this youngest son, because he is the Bodhisattva's youngest. The Bodhisattva has adopted hundreds of children throughout her life, starting fourteen years ago, when her hair was just beginning to turn white. (5,0); That year, the Bodhisattva's four sons died one after another on the battlefield. The eldest son became a fourth-rank general, commanding 1,200 men, each one a cut above the rest. The second son was a captain in the Fearless Battalion, a unit with no cowards, each one a top scout. (5,0); The third son didn't know martial arts, but he studied medicine and was known in the army as the "Mr. Death-Snatcher," a man who fought against the King of Hell. As for status, the fourth son was the least successful, because he only lived to twenty-one, becoming a platoon leader. That day, he single-handedly covered the retreat, killing sixty-nine enemies. (5,0); The general personally led three hundred men out of the camp to form a suicide squad and rescued him. Among them, one hundred and sixty-one arrowheads were gouged out. The Bodhisattva's children were all gone; the Bodhisattva died on that day. Yunzhou was a frontier region, a frontier rife with war and many orphans. (5,0); The Bodhisattva was already sixty-two that year and began traveling to distant lands. When she found orphans with no way to survive, she would take them back. Her husband had died beyond the Great Wall before her four sons died in battle. The Bodhisattva had just erected a tomb for her husband and then built graves for her four sons. (5,0); Many people said the Bodhisattva suffered too much, so Heaven blessed her, allowing her to live to seventy-six. Only a few said the Bodhisattva saved too many people, vying with Yama for her life. Yama was very angry, so she was punished with fourteen more years of life, day and night, tormented by the thought of her loved ones. (5,0); More than two years ago, the Bodhisattva said she couldn't raise all the children, only one more. And so, this year, she was given a chance to live. On the day of the funeral, Nian walked before the coffin, head bowed, tears streaming down her face, not even a hint of grief. (5,0); Some whispered in the crowd, saying, "How can she be so heartless?" Nian heard them, but didn't argue, just walked silently. He had chosen the grave location long ago; it wasn't difficult at all—next to the Bodhisattva's husband's burial mound. (5,0); The grave pit had been dug, and strong men carried the coffin down. Nian knelt and kowtowed, one kowtow after another, until his forehead was red, but still no tears fell. After the funeral, someone finally stood up and accused Nian of not being filial enough. (5,0); At first, Nian remained silent, but as more people criticized him, he, being young, couldn't resist Nian's temper. "You know she's been bedridden for two and a half years, but do you know how she's been curled up in pain day and night, unable to even relax for massage work?" (5,0); "You say that good deeds and accumulating merit lead to a long life, that it's a blessing, but do you know that in the last few years, she always said she saw her husband and four sons by her bedside?" The crowd fell silent. They all knew the Bodhisattva was clean; even after being bedridden for so long, her hair hadn't been soiled, and her clothes hadn't been dirty. (5,0); But they didn't know that it was because of this year's daily care that the Bodhisattva slept so soundly every day, her pain feeling like insects gnawing at her, and this year's care made her sleep even more. This year's caregiver said, "I'm not a Bodhisattva, I never was, just a person with a tragic fate. If I could bring myself to do it, I really would have killed her. I tried, but I couldn't even get past the thought in my heart." (5,0); The crowd remained silent. The magistrate was in the crowd. He walked up to this year's caregiver and patted her on the shoulder. "The Bodhisattva is gone, will you still be the guardian of the treasury?" (5,0); Nian shook his head: "No, guarding the treasury has nothing to do with me, only with me." Then someone started cursing again, saying he had forgotten his roots. The magistrate turned and glanced at the cursing man, asking, "Why don't you go and guard it?" (5,0); The man immediately shut up, not out of respect, but simply because it was the magistrate. The magistrate said, "Go. Don't make a scene, it's disrespectful." Nian let out a heavy sigh, then knelt down and kowtowed to the crowd: "Thank you for coming to see me off." (5,0); The crowd gradually dispersed, some still grumbling, thinking Nian was truly despicable; the Bodhisattva had guarded the treasury for so many years, and he didn't even want to guard it anymore. Nian, watching the dispersing crowd, shouted, "Please remember, the Bodhisattva is not Granny Liu. Even if everyone in Yunzhou knows Granny Liu, it's still wrong. Before she married, Granny Liu's surname was Lin. Remember, she was Granny Lin." (5,0); The people walking away turned to look at Nian, their eyes filled with anger. Everyone in Yunzhou knows the Bodhisattva Granny Liu, but you say her surname is Lin and she's surnamed Lin? The county magistrate was the last to leave. He sat beside Nian for a long time, and Nian knelt before the grave for a long time. (5,0); The magistrate asked, "Where are you going?" Nian didn't answer directly, but said, "My mother-in-law once asked me if the Shoushan Treasury was big. I said it was, that there were countless things in the Shoushan Treasury." He looked at the magistrate: "My mother-in-law said the Shoushan Treasury is indeed big; this old woman can't even straighten her back, and she can't even rest because everyone is watching. She has to keep going." (5,0); "My mother-in-law said the Shoushan Treasury isn't big. If you were locked in this treasury, you'd never be able to leave this small area in your entire life." "My mother-in-law also said, 'I'm tired, always tired, so don't tire yourself out like this. Go and seek fame and fortune, do good deeds, pursue wealth and glory. Some say doing good deeds accumulates merit, and accumulating merit brings blessings. I don't want any of that; you can have it all.'" (5,0); The magistrate remained silent, head bowed, fingers tapping on his hair. After a long silence, the magistrate said, "I'll write you a letter of recommendation. Go to Yunzhou City. If this letter is of any use, you can at least work as a scribe under that official." (5,0); He asked Nian, "Can you read? Can you write?" Nian nodded, "Yes, but..." But he didn't finish the sentence because the magistrate stopped him. (5,0); The magistrate gently patted the grave: "He certainly never told you, but I also raised him. That year I fell ill, and if it weren't for my mother-in-law saving my life and caring for me for a year, I wouldn't be here today. But she never wanted to say much." Nian was stunned. (5,0); Actually, the magistrate knew, because his mother-in-law had sent him a letter not long ago. His mother-in-law said, "In these fourteen years, I've raised hundreds of children, big and small, but I only kept this youngest son. It wasn't for me to raise him, but for him to raise me." (5,0); The old woman said, "My youngest son suffered for three years. He should be given several hundred portions to you all. He bore it all himself. You can decide what to do next." The magistrate said, "I said it's all yours, so it's all yours. He raised several hundred children; several hundred blessings have been bestowed upon him. If you can take it, it's all yours. No one can doubt my words." (5,0); Nian no longer refused, because looking into the magistrate's eyes, he couldn't bring himself to refuse. The magistrate stood up and patted Nian's shoulder again: "If I could bring myself to do it, I would want to kill him myself. I've tried; the thought of it tore at my heart. I lost to the pain of a broken heart." (5,0); Nian nodded: "I believe you." Only the children you raise know how much suffering there is. They're always so clean because, as the saying goes, "I have to look presentable." You can't let people say, "Look, those who do good deeds are slovenly and don't look like human beings at all." (5,0); He also said, how could someone who does good deeds and accumulates virtue not have a presentable appearance? The magistrate was about to write a letter of recommendation at this grave; he even brought paper and pen, clearly having planned it all out beforehand. But before he could put pen to paper, he paused, turning his head to ask, "Old lady, what will you use as your name from now on?" (5,0); Nian was also stunned, because he suddenly remembered that a year ago, his grandmother had just recovered from labor pains, and she lay weakly in bed, looking truly unsightly. Perhaps knowing she looked unsightly, she wanted to find a topic to avoid mentioning it. (5,0); She said, "I am a Bodhisattva, won't you listen to me?" Nian nodded: "Even if you're not a Bodhisattva, I'll listen to you." His grandmother laughed, surprisingly still able to laugh, saying, "Only you have never treated me like a Bodhisattva." (5,0); Nian originally thought Ye Fuyao was a leaf, but the Bodhisattva said that leaves are inherently light, and a gust of wind can make them rise, which is actually not good. So they changed Nian's name, saying, "You should change your name to Ye Zhiluo. When it's time to fall, you should know when to fall, what do you say?" (5,0); Nian said, "Actually, it's not that the name is bad, it's mainly that 'Ye' (*) is bad, so it's better to change my surname." The Bodhisattva said, "Changing your surname is forgetting your roots, it's disrespectful, it's unfilial." Nian said, "I only said to change my surname, I didn't say I didn't want 'Ye' anymore. Keep 'Ye' as my name, I'll be Lin Ye." (5,0); People had never thought about what the world would be like without Bodhisattvas. The Bodhisattvas were gone. In the first month, someone came to guard the Treasury of Goodness, took things, and returned them. (5,0); In the second month, someone came to guard the Treasury of Goodness, took things, and didn't return them. In the third month, everyone came to guard the Treasury of Goodness and took things, not by robbery, and so the Treasury of Goodness disappeared. This is what it's like without Bodhisattvas.