in2ebook Chapter 505 Middlemen make the difference
Chapter 505 Middlemen make the difference
When Ma Longtu heard that Wang Meng actually wanted all his fortune, he couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Brother, I, Ma Longtu, have been in Luoyang for so long, and I have never heard of anyone daring to take all my wealth. No matter who they are, I can say a few words to them.
Whether it's the Central Army or the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, even if they are the Japanese, we have people on our side!
So, I advise you to quit while you are ahead! Don't try to steal a chicken and end up losing the rice!"
Wang Meng and Monk Wei looked at each other, then couldn't help laughing so hard that tears were almost coming out of their eyes.
"Monk, did you hear that? He said he has people above him, including those from the Central Army, the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, and the Japanese?"
"I heard it, Boss Wang. He definitely doesn't know that we beat up these three gangs!"
When Ma Longtu heard what Monk Wei said, he was shocked at first, but then he shook his head.
"Brother, you are not afraid of your tongue being blown away by the strong wind. Have you ever fought against these three groups of people? Be careful not to brag too much!"
Wang Meng wiped his tears and looked at Ma Longtu, who had "proposed the wrong person", with pity in his eyes.
"Well, since you even have dealings with the Japs, don't blame me for raising the stakes. Not only do I want all your wealth, I want your life, too!"
Seeing that Ma Longtu seemed to tremble but did not give in, Wang Meng waved his hand and asked Monk Wei to teach the militiamen he brought with him a lesson first.
Continuous screams were heard from the cave, and the huge echo made Wang Meng dig his ears.
In less than three minutes, the loud screams turned into soft groans, and the militiamen were rolling on the ground.
"Monk, are there any who have committed serious crimes? I'd like to kill two of them to help cheer you up."
"Well, I just asked around and it seems like he's the one who committed the most heinous crime!"
Monk Wei pointed his finger at Ma Longtu.
Ma Longtu shuddered, and when he saw Monk Wei walking towards him with a gun in his hand, he felt a chill in his heart. This group of people did not look like bandits. Could they be guerrillas or the Eighth Route Army?
"Good man, good man, be patient! We can discuss anything. Isn't it just my entire fortune? I'll give it all to you! Just think of it as making friends!"
Wang Meng waved his hand, and the Wei monks stopped, then pulled out all the militiamen lying on the ground.
"Ma Longtu, do you know why I want to meet you in this cave?"
"Good man, do you also want to do business with this grotto? If you really have this idea, let's cooperate. You are responsible for protecting the delivery, and I will find the buyer!"
"That's great! How about you tell me how to run this cave business?"
Ma Longtu became excited when he talked about this. Although he was extremely reluctant to reveal the secret of his wealth, compared with his own life, this semi-public wealth was nothing.
The destruction of the Longmen Grottoes can be traced back to the destruction of Buddhism by the "Three Wars and One Sect".
Buddhism was once very prosperous in history. Monks not only had a very high social status and were even guests of honor of emperors, but also the temples had enormous power and wealth.
The temple economy was extremely prosperous, and the temple owned a large amount of land, slaves and wealth.
Moreover, monks and nuns did not pay taxes or serve in the military, which caused a series of social problems and ultimately affected the interests of the rulers.
What will happen if the people of the world do not recognize me as the emperor, but recognize you as the abbot of this world's temple?
Eventually, it led to the historical "Three Wars and One Zong" incident of destroying Buddhism.
The Northern Wei Emperor Taiwu Tuoba Tao's destruction of Buddhism took place before the construction of the Longmen Grottoes, so the Longmen Grottoes experienced the last three anti-Buddhist incidents.
The first anti-Buddhist event occurred in the third year of Jiande in the Northern Zhou Dynasty (574 AD), when Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Yuwen Yong, issued an edict:
"All scriptures and statues were destroyed, and the monks and Taoists were dismissed and ordered to return to secular life."
This anti-Buddhist movement mainly targeted the scriptures and statues in the temples. The monks were forced to return to secular life and the carving of statues was prohibited. The damage to the Longmen Grottoes was not that great.
The second anti-Buddhist incident occurred during the reign of Emperor Wuzong of Tang. At that time, "Buddhism accounted for 70% to 80% of the world's wealth."
Therefore, under the persuasion of Taoist Zhao Guizhen, Emperor Wuzong of Tang began to restrict Buddhism. This started in the second year of Huichang (842 AD) and ended in the sixth year of Huichang (846 AD) when Emperor Wuzong of Tang, Li Yan, passed away. In this campaign to destroy Buddhism, Longmen Grottoes were not spared.
During this anti-Buddhist movement, one-tenth to one-twelfth of the Buddha statues in the Longmen Grottoes were destroyed.
The third anti-Buddhist incident occurred in the second year of Xiande of the Later Zhou Dynasty (955 AD). At that time, dynasties changed frequently and government policies were not implemented smoothly.
Many monks opened temples at will, melted copper coins to cast Buddha statues, and took in many deserters and criminals who shaved their heads, entered the temples and pretended to be monks to avoid responsibility.
In addition, monks were exempt from taxes and military service, which greatly affected the taxation and conscription of the Later Zhou Dynasty.
As a result, Zhou Shizong Chai Rong announced to the world that "all temples not granted by imperial decree shall be abolished", and began a series of policies to exclude Buddhism. It is unknown how long this anti-Buddhist movement lasted.
Although these three anti-Buddhist activities caused some damage to the Longmen Grottoes, what really destroyed the Longmen Grottoes completely was the looting and destruction from 1918 to 1932. Almost all the Buddha heads that could be chiseled off were chiseled off and sold to foreign antiquities dealers.
Not only the Buddha heads, but also the Buddha statues, murals, and inscriptions on steles were sold and scattered around the world.
The first foreigner to introduce Longmen Grottoes to the world was Japanese scholar Okakura Tenshin. He visited Longmen Grottoes in 1893 and was shocked and took many photos. After his publicity, many people abroad became interested in Longmen Grottoes.
Afterwards, many scholars from France, the United States, Japan and other countries came to Longmen Grottoes. It is undeniable that some people came simply to observe and learn about historical relics, while more people were antique dealers and cultural relic dealers who came for profit.
Of course, some people were originally pure researchers, but eventually they developed the desire to steal.
In 1909, a French sinologist published an "Archaeological Atlas of North China", which included a series of exquisite photos of the Longmen Grottoes, which directly stimulated the large-scale plunder of the Longmen Grottoes by foreigners.
They will even place an open order on the market if they are interested in something and contact their agents in China to carry out the theft.
To put it simply, overseas collectors observe those photos, and if they like any of them, they directly pay money to foreign antiquities dealers.
Overseas antiquities dealers contact Chinese antiquities dealers, offer a price, and ask them to make the sale.
The Chinese cultural relics dealers contacted the local antique dealers in Longmen or thieves to chisel them directly inside the Longmen Grottoes.
Then, all the chiseled Buddha heads, stone tablets or murals that have become fragments are transported to the border and handed over to overseas antiquities dealers.
At the end of this whole process is Hu Dadao, followed by the local antique dealer Ma Longtu from Luoyang!
"Haha, after hearing what you said, are you still feeling wronged?"
"That's not really the case. Anyway, I got two thousand dollars!"
"Then how much did you give Hu Dadao?"
"Five hundred oceans!"
"The middleman makes a profit from the price difference?"