"Oh, those!" Tu Jia said. "Those aren't eyes, but eye patterns. The guardian deity Indra has a thousand-eyed aspect, and those patterns depict Lord Indra's divine form."
"So that's what they are?" Qu Zan said.
Qu Zan still vaguely felt that the statue was somewhat sinister and frightening.
Then again, there didn't seem to be anywhere in Mìdì that wasn't sinister.
Qu Zan walked out of the hall and asked, "Where is that Thangka of Indra now? Don't worry, I just want to take a look at it myself."
Tu Jia said, "At the home of a herding family called Taba. Previously, the villagers kept arguing over the Thangka's disappearances and reappearances. To settle the disputes, everyone agreed that from now on, the Thangka would be moved to a different household every month. Every household would get a turn, rich or poor, for one month each."
"And the lords in your village agreed to that?"
Generally speaking, those who truly ruled the villages of Mìdì were the wealthy households and petty nobles of each village. They owned almost all the land.
If this Thangka really was something good, why would a lord share it with the villagers?
"Lord Cai Xiangdangzhi, the wealthiest man in Liduo Village, is a famous philanthropist. He has always treated others kindly, and he had no objections to this either," Tu Jia said with a smile.
It looks like there's nothing wrong with this village. The villagers seem quite harmonious. That was what Qu Zan thought, but he couldn't be sure whether this was merely the old monk's one-sided account.
"Let's take a look at that Thangka first," Qu Zan said.
"All right!"
As they spoke, the two walked out of the little temple. Just as they reached a corner, a dark figure came rushing into