Couplets can also save people
Zhou Yuhuang of the Qing Dynasty was from Qingyan, Guizhou. He was very knowledgeable and was recognized as a talented person at that time.
One year, in the spring when flowers were blooming, Zhou Yuhuang went to the Ten Buddha Temple for a visit and stayed in the temple at night. Not long after he fell asleep, he suddenly heard a faint voice coming from the next room. After listening carefully, he found that someone was reciting the first line of a couplet over and over again: "Ten thousand tiles, thousands of bricks, and hundreds of craftsmen built a ten-Buddha temple."
Zhou Yuhuang became interested, so he got up and asked the monks in the temple: "Who lives next door?"
The monk replied: "It is a scholar named Huang. He came up with this first line when he visited the temple a few days ago, but he couldn't think of the second line. After a few days, he forgot to eat and sleep, and pondered hard. Now he is dying!"
Zhou Yuhuang asked: "Is there no one who can help him come up with the second line?"
The monk replied: "There are four numbers in this first line: ten thousand, thousand, hundred, and ten, and these four numbers decrease by 10 times. It is very difficult to come up with the second line. Many people have tried, but no one has been able to come up with it yet."
After returning from the monk, Zhou Yuhuang thought for a long time, but couldn't come up with the second line.
The next day, Zhou Yuhuang left the Ten Buddha Temple by boat with regret. On the way, he passed a bridge with the words "Eight Immortals Bridge" engraved on it. This scene made him suddenly enlightened, so he told the boatman to turn the boat around quickly and return to the Ten Buddha Temple.
Although Huang Shusheng in the temple had been bedridden for several days, he was still weakly and intermittently reciting the first couplet: "Ten thousand tiles - thousands of bricks - built by hundreds of craftsmen - Ten Buddha Temples."
Zhou Yuhuang stood outside the door and responded loudly and rhythmically: "One boat, two oars, four people rowed across the Eight Immortals Bridge."
When Huang Shusheng heard it, his eyes suddenly lit up and his spirits were greatly lifted. He exclaimed: "Wonderful couplet! There are also four numbers in this second couplet: one, two, four, and eight, increasing by two times. Wonderful! It's really wonderful!"
Huang Shusheng's "heart disease" was eliminated, and after his body recovered, he traveled with Zhou Yuhuang to enjoy the beautiful scenery together!
