During the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty , it is said that there was a Guide Temple in Taiyuan Prefecture, Shanxi Province. There was an eminent monk in the temple whose name was Zhikong. This man was in his forties and had practiced many skills. He not only understood profound Buddhist teachings, but was also said to be extremely skilled in divination and fortune-telling. Whenever the local people come to Guide Temple to offer incense, they ask for a divination from the sky to seek good or bad luck.
There is a wealthy gentleman in Taiyuan Prefecture named Zhao Zhiwen. This man has been doing business for generations and has accumulated tens of thousands of wealth. Zhao Zhiwen's parents passed away seven years ago. Zhao Zhiwen was too greedy and wanted to monopolize the family property, so he started a fight with his eldest brother Zhao Zhizhong. Zhao Zhizhong suffered from heart disease since he was a child. When the two brothers quarreled, he fainted in anger and passed away after treatment failed.
Although Zhao Zhiwen got all the family property, he also left a reputation as a man who drove his brother to death. People often talked in private that Zhao Zhiwen would definitely receive retribution. Sure enough, in just five years, Zhao Huaiyi's retribution came. He had two sons and one daughter. The eldest son and the youngest daughter died in infancy, leaving only a second son who was still sick all year round.
Zhao Zhiwen was worried that his son Zhao Kuan would not be able to grow up, so he took a total of four concubines. Including his first wife, there were a total of five wives and concubines. He did this because he was worried that he would have no heirs and for the sake of his family. thriving. It's a pity that over the years, his wives and concubines have never given birth to a boy or a girl.
But what is gratifying is that although his son Zhao Kuan was sick, he miraculously lived to the age of eighteen, and his health began to gradually improve. On this day, Zhao Zhiwen came to Guide Temple to burn incense and make a wish. He had heard of Zhikong's name, so after burning the incense, he asked Zhikong to make a fortune for himself.
Zhikong looked at the noble man in front of him, put his hands together and said: "Does the donor ask for a signature or a divination? " Zhao Zhiwen thought for a moment and said: " Let's have a divination. " Zhikong nodded and said: " Please ask the donor to indicate your birth date! " Zhao Zhiwen wrote his birth date on the paper with a brush and handed it to Zhikong. Zhikong frowned and fell into thought.
said after a long time: " members have a peach blossom life, and have many wives and concubines !" Zhao Zhiwen nodded, and Zhikong said again: " It's a pity that only has blossomed but not ! And recently, there is a branch of red apricot in the house that has to be exposed. , It should be at midnight tonight. " Zhao Zhiwen came to hear Zhikong say that he only had flowers but no fruits, and he was somewhat impressed. After all, he only had one son.
But when Zhikong finished the second half of the sentence, he stood up suddenly and said doubtfully: " Hongxing cheated? Absolutely impossible! Although Zhao's family has many wives and concubines, they are all well-educated, virtuous and gentle women. It is absolutely impossible. He would do such despicable things! " Zhikong smiled and said: "If you don't believe it, you will know if you try it at midnight tonight. "
At this time, a peach petal happened to come from Zhao Zhiwen. Flying in front of him, Zhikong said again: " The peach blossom passes in front of me, when the phoenix leaves the Wuwu! " After hearing this, Zhao Zhiwen read it carefully again, with a shocked expression on his face, and said: " Master said Is it her? " The last concubine Zhao Zhiwen took was named Tao Feng. She was only in her twenties, and her name was taken from the first word of the two sentences.
Among the five wives and concubines, she is the only one who is outgoing and likes to go out and play. Zhikong said again: "If this matter comes to light, the members will be ruined in the future, and their wealth and people will be destroyed! If you want to stop her, you have to kill your son!"
As soon as these words came out, Zhao Zhiwen looked in disbelief. , asked: " Master, is my son and Tao Feng..." Zhikong said: "Amitabha, the secret of heaven must not be leaked! " On the way back, the more Zhao Zhiwen thought about it, the more likely it was that it was possible, because The ages of their sons Zhao Kuan and Tao Feng are not much different.
Besides, I have been busy with business these years and have no time to spend with my wives and concubines at home. If I don't protect them, they will have dissatisfaction. Even if this matter is true, he wouldn't kill his son to solve it, right? Zhao Zhiwen felt that Monk Zhikong was a bit alarmist and didn't take it to heart. He returned home in the evening and saw Tao Feng staying at home, but Zhao Kuan had not returned yet.
The moon was dark and the wind was high, and the night was quiet. Before I knew it, it was already three o'clock in the morning. I heard a "crunch" sound, and a dim light came out from the crack of the door, and then slowly enlarged until it reflected a whirling light. silhouette. The woman tiptoed and walked quietly in the courtyard, turning her head three times every step. After a moment, she gently opened the back door and slipped out.
As soon as the woman closed the door, Zhao Zhiwen stepped out, snorted coldly, and said angrily: " It turns out it's really Tao Feng! Could it be that she and Zhao Kuan made an appointment to meet outside? " Zhao Huaiyi's eyes widened in anger, and he followed Go up. Tao Feng ran all the way out of the Zhao Mansion, and after a long time walked into a ruined temple on the outskirts of the city.
Zhao Zhiwen ran over panting and hid outside the temple to eavesdrop. Listening carefully, there is indeed a man's voice in the temple, which is very similar to Zhao Kuan's voice. Zhao Zhiwen eavesdropped for a while and concluded that it was his son Zhao Kuan. For a moment, he felt angry and evil. He picked up a long and thick wooden stick on the ground, rushed into the temple, and headed towards the temple. Tao Feng swung it fiercely.
Tao Feng screamed and fell to the ground. Zhao Zhiwen turned around and was about to scold his son for being shameless, but saw Zhao Kuan running out and shouting: " killed someone, help! " The next day, Zhao Zhiwen was arrested and imprisoned for murder. After trial, he He confessed to the murder and was eventually sentenced to execution.
It was a certainty that Zhao Zhiwen was sentenced to death, so the person who inherited the Zhao family's property must be his son Zhao Kuan. However, Zhao Kuan never appeared again after that night, and seemed to have disappeared. But three days later, on the night before Zhao Zhiwen's execution, a monk suddenly came to the cell. He stared at Zhao Zhiwen, his face full of ridicule and ridicule.
Zhao Zhiwen turned around and saw Master Zhikong, but he was a little surprised and asked: "Master , why are you here? Are you here to see Zhao off on his last journey? It's a pity that I didn't listen to the master's advice. I regret it." It's too late! " After saying this, his face was filled with regret. Zhikong sneered and said: " evil people will have their own retribution! Zhao Zhiwen, your retribution has finally come! "
Zhao Zhiwen was suddenly startled, looked at Zhikong in disbelief, and said: "Master , you What does this mean? It sounds like he wants Zhao to end up like this. " Zhikong looked around and suddenly took off the clothes and beard on his face, revealing his true appearance. Zhao Zhiwen was stunned. He never expected that the person standing in front of him was his eldest brother Zhao Zhizhong.
Zhao Zhiwen asked tremblingly: " you...aren't you...already dead? " Zhao Zhizhong laughed and said: " At that time, I couldn't help but die! You I am determined to get the family property, and I am no match for you in terms of means and resourcefulness. If I stay at home, I will not be killed by you, but I will also be angered by you. It is better to pretend to be dead and walk away. "
Zhao Zhiwen has a look on his face. He smiled bitterly and said: " So, you arranged all this? Tao Feng was also the undercover agent you deliberately stayed with me? " Zhao Zhizhong laughed proudly and said: ", you are not confused! Now you are bound to die, and your son Zhao Kuan has disappeared. You have worked hard to earn countless wealth over the years, but in the end you made a wedding dress for me! ”
Zhao Zhizhong’s laughter was not loud, but he was full of excitement and pride. , and the feeling of release after suffering all these years of grievance. After a moment, his laughter stopped suddenly, and his face remained motionless like a frozen scene, because there were many official officials around him, as well as Tao Feng and Zhao Kuan.
An official opened the cell, and Zhao Zhiwen walked out of it, smiling: " Brother, how can you hide your little tricks from me? " Zhao Zhizhong's face turned red and he said angrily: " It turns out that you have known about intelligence for a long time. Am I pretending to be empty? "
Zhao Zhiwen said again: " I didn't know it was you, but you deliberately concealed your tone at Guide Temple, which made me feel strange when you weren't paying attention. Look at your ears, because there is a mole behind your ears that I remember vividly.Even though I found the mole, I still wasn't sure it was you. When I got home, I found Tao Feng and she finally told the truth under coercion and inducement. Then I co-acted a scene with Tao Feng and Zhao Kuan to lure you out! ”
Zhao Zhizhong glared at Tao Feng, but Tao Feng lowered her head in shame. Although she married Zhao Zhiwen with a mission, after all, the couple had a deep love for each other, and Zhao Zhiwen treated her well, not entirely because of interests. Betrayed Zhao Zhizhong. Zhao Zhizhong was so angry that he trembled and cursed: " Mr. Zhao, I admit defeat now that the matter has come to an end! The worst case scenario is death. Even if I become a ghost, I won't let you go! "
Zhao Zhiwen stepped forward, helped Zhao Zhizhong sit down, and said: "Brother , why are you so grand? No matter how great our hatred is, we are still brothers. Don't blame me for being selfish at the beginning. If you want to expand my Zhao family's business, the family must not be divided. To be fair, can you achieve great things with such a short temper?
You will definitely be dissatisfied when I am in charge, so I can only monopolize the property, which temporarily wrongs you. After the lintel is cleared, I will give you your share. Unfortunately, you were so angry that you suffered from heart disease. I thought you were dead at the time, and I could not forgive myself for many years. " After saying that, Zhao Zhiwen couldn't help but shed tears.
Zhao Zhizhong was very surprised after hearing these words. He never thought that his brother had such painstaking efforts. He hesitated and asked: " You are so Are those words true? " Zhao Zhiwen said: " In front of your nephew, in front of so many officials, can I deceive you? "
Zhao Zhizhong sighed first, then smiled: "Let's go home! " After that, the two brothers reconciled. Zhao Zhiwen handed over half of the family property to Zhao Zhizhong, but Zhao Zhizhong refused to separate the family. The two ran the Zhao family's business together, and it became a legend.
