Wen Su sensed that Zhao Chan had been avoiding her these past few days. She always tried to find Zhao Chan near the inner courtyard because she wanted to ask him what kind of thank-you gift he wanted. But every time Zhao Chan saw her, he would turn around and leave. She really couldn't understand why he was doing this.

Wen Su had a headache. She had lived in the Wen family since she was a child, protected by her grandfather, so she had never had to worry about food or clothing. Her grandfather also groomed her to be his heir. As the eldest daughter of the Wen family, she had dealt with many upper-class families, but she had never dealt with monks before.

Or how about donating ten thousand taels of silver as incense money? Or should we just donate a golden Buddha statue?

Because she hadn't seen Zhao Chan for several days, Wen Su felt a little disappointed. She wanted to repay this kindness to the Wen family as soon as possible. Her second uncle had framed her, and she had to go back and demand an explanation. Wen Su looked into the distance with a determined gaze.

Wen Su stayed in the temple for another five or six days. On this day, she finally found an opportunity to see Zhao Chan.

This day is the monthly meditation day in the temple, when every monk studies Buddhist scriptures in the inner courtyard, with the Buddhist disciple Zhaochan explaining the scriptures.

Wen Su came up with a good idea. On this day, just as dawn was breaking, Wen Su secretly went out.

"Where is she going?" Jing Xi asked suspiciously. She was sneaking out so early in the morning instead of sleeping.

"I don't know, let's follow them and see," Yan Wan suggested. This young lady from the Wen family is quite a character.

"Follow them!" Shangguan Wei'er excitedly took the lead and ran off.

Li Shang glanced at Ji Mohan with a hint of helplessness, then picked up her leg and chased after him. It was as if he was raising a child, needing to take care of her closely. If he left her under his nose, she would disappear somewhere in a moment if he wasn't paying attention. Sigh!

"Let's go too," Jiang Bai said gently.

Jing Xi nodded, then took Jiang Bai's hand and followed.

Yan Wan looked at Ji Mohan, who was standing to the side in a daze, and asked with concern, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Ji Mohan waved his hand and said, "It's nothing, it just feels unreal."

Ji Mohan really didn't quite understand. They were now in Gongsun Gua's or Wen Su's memories, but there was a question: how did they get in? Because everything was so real. Was it an illusion array, or did Gongsun Gua drug them, or was there something unexplored in this world?

Ji Mohan had some doubts about whether the world he lived in was real or fake. Yan Wan was very mysterious, and Miss Jing was also very mysterious. Their ideas and views were completely out of step with this world. Did they come from the same place?

Now, the situation set up by Gongsun Gua is similar; there are just too many fantastical things going on, and he's starting to have doubts.

Yan Wan stepped forward and took Ji Mohan's hand, saying firmly, "It's okay, no matter where we are, I will be with you."

Ji Mohan's Adam's apple bobbed. He really wanted to ask Yan Wan if she would really, really stay with him forever? In this life and for all eternity, would they never be separated?

But he was also afraid of hearing the answer he didn't want to hear. In this game of love, it seemed that Ji Mohan was in the dominant position, but in reality, he was most afraid that Yan Wan would abandon him. It was Yan Wan who firmly held the dominant position.

Ji Mohan didn't say what he wanted to say in the end, but only said, "Let's go over there soon."

After saying that, Ji Mohan pulled Yan Wan and walked in the direction Jing Xi and the others had gone. As Ji Mohan led her, Yan Wan turned her head to look at his expression. In fact, it was not hard to tell from his expression what he wanted to say, but Yan Wan did not dare to promise something she might not be able to do, afraid of giving him hope only to disappoint him.

Ji Mohan's life was already very bitter, and Yan Wan only hoped that her appearance could bring a glimmer of hope and a little sweetness to Ji Mohan's bitter and desolate life.

For Yan Wan, rather than staying with Ji Mohan forever, she hoped that her dearest Hanhan would have everything go well, all his wishes would come true, and he would live a long and healthy life, no longer suffering so much malice and pain. His life should not have been like this.

But Yan Wan didn't know that for Ji Mohan, Yan Wan was his light, his life, his salvation. He lived in a dirty, bitter, and dark abyss, and he had long been used to that kind of life. But one day, someone appeared and reached out to him, saying, "Come out and bask in the sun, I'll pull you up."

If he had never seen the sun, he wouldn't have longed for light so much. But now that he has seen the sun, he is unwilling to return to the abyss. He only wants to keep the sun by his side, belonging to him alone.

Wen Su slipped under the large table where Buddhist scriptures were being recited. A long tablecloth covered her, so no one could see her. She was such a clever little devil.

Seeing this scene, Jing Xi said with amusement, "This Miss Wen is indeed eccentric and bold." She thought of some indescribable things.

When Yan Wan walked over and heard Jing Xi's words, she nodded in agreement and said, "Perhaps it is precisely because of such a quirky, bright and generous woman that the Buddhist disciple who has no emotions and desires can step down from his altar."

Jiang Bai nodded in agreement. The woman who had given birth to a heartless person love, and who even left the Buddhist order to become a ghost doctor for her sake, must be very special. Jiang Bai smiled silently and looked at Jing Xi beside him with tender and affectionate eyes.

Time passed quickly. When Wen Su woke up again, Buddhist scriptures were already being recited outside. A clear and magnetic voice came from above her head. Wen Su moved her hands and feet and took out the paper and pen she had prepared. She had to find a way to talk to Zhao Chan.

Zhao Chan's clear, cold voice continued reciting the Heart Sutra. His voice slowly proclaimed: "When Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva was practicing the profound Prajnaparamita, he perceived that the five aggregates are all empty, and thus transcended all suffering and distress. Shariputra, form is not different from emptiness, emptiness is not different from form; form is emptiness, emptiness is form. Sensation, perception, volition, and consciousness are also like this. Shariputra, all dharmas are empty in nature; they are neither produced nor destroyed, neither defiled nor pure, neither increasing nor decreasing. Therefore, in emptiness there is no form, no sensation, perception, volition, or consciousness; no eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, or mind; no form, sound, smell, taste, touch, or dharma; no eye-consciousness, and so forth, up to no mind-consciousness. There is no ignorance, nor the cessation of ignorance, and so forth, up to no old age and death, nor the cessation of old age and death. There is no suffering, no origination, no cessation, no path; no wisdom, nor attainment. Because there is nothing to be attained, Bodhisattvas rely on Prajnaparamita."

Zhao Chan's voice continued, then suddenly he paused, because he saw a hand emerge from under the table in front of him. Then, the tablecloth was gently lifted, revealing a bright smiling face looking at him with a warm smile. Even many years later, this scene remained deeply imprinted in his mind.

At this moment, those below noticed his unusual behavior. The two young monks closest to him prepared to approach and inquire about the situation, but Zhao Chan, noticing this, calmly began reciting the Heart Sutra: "The mind is without hindrance; because there is no hindrance, there is no fear. Far removed from distorted views and dreams, one ultimately attains Nirvana. All Buddhas of the three times, relying on Prajnaparamita, attain Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi. Therefore, know that Prajnaparamita is the great divine mantra, the great bright mantra, the supreme mantra, the unequaled mantra, capable of removing all suffering, truly and without falsehood. Therefore, the Prajnaparamita mantra is recited, namely: Gate Gate Paragate Parasamgate Bodhi Svaha."

When Wen Su noticed that he had noticed her, she secretly handed him the note he had just written. Zhao Chan didn't want to pay attention to her, but Wen Su put her hands together and showed a pleading expression. Zhao Chan sighed, took the note without making a sound, and used his wide sleeves to cover it to see what she was up to.

"My benefactor, how do you want me to repay you? Would you rather have ten thousand taels of silver or a golden Buddha statue?"

Zhao Chan glanced at her helplessly. Money is just an external thing, and monks don't need such worldly things. He was just about to tell Wen Su that it wasn't necessary when the words "no need" slipped out. Zhao Chan was stunned for a moment, Wen Su was stunned for a moment, and the disciples listening to the Buddhist scriptures below were also stunned for a moment. It seemed that the Heart Sutra did not contain the words "no need". Did Brother Zhao Chan recite it wrong or read the wrong book?

Zhao Chan calmly said, "Don't get caught up in worldly affairs, just follow your heart."

The disciples below breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out that Brother Zhao Chan wanted to share his insights. They said, "How could Brother Zhao Chan be wrong? In all these years, Brother Zhao Chan has never made a mistake when expounding Buddhist scriptures."

Jing Xi laughed so hard her head almost fell off. She never expected that Gongsun Gua, who was a monk, would be so funny! Yan Wan and the others also smiled, their laughter triggered by the scene just now.

Zhao Chan simply recited Buddhist scriptures while writing, saying, "No need." After finishing, Zhao Chan slipped the writing to Wen Su when no one was looking.

Wen Su saw Zhao Chan's refusal and didn't know how to thank him. All she had was money, but he didn't want it. What was she going to do? She was so distressed.

Seeing Wen Su's disappointed expression, Zhao Chan thought she wouldn't cause any more trouble, so he felt relieved. Unexpectedly, Wen Su fell asleep inside again. Before falling asleep, Wen Su was thinking, "This Buddhist scripture is really hypnotic!"

She started to feel uncomfortable as she fell asleep, and her body, which was leaning against the back of the table, slowly slid down and fell forward.

Bang!

"Ugh~" Zhao Chan groaned in pain. Wen Su suddenly fell onto his lap, her chin hitting his thigh, causing Zhao Chan to frown in pain.

"Brother Zhaochan, what's wrong?" the little monk on the right asked.

"It's nothing, there was just a mosquito flying around." Zhao Chan subtly moved behind the table, afraid that others would discover Wen Su. If he were discovered, he would be unable to defend himself and would be more wronged than Dou E.

“Let’s continue,” Zhao Chan said.

He noticed that Wen Su was sleeping uncomfortably, so he reached out and adjusted her position.

The two young monks at the lower end of the table exchanged a glance. They felt that the Buddhist monk was acting strangely today, but they couldn't quite put their finger on what was wrong. In short, he was different from before.

Zhao Chan glanced at Wen Su, who was sleeping soundly, and resignedly continued explaining the Buddhist scriptures.

Soon, it was time to recite the Buddhist scriptures. Zhao Chan raised his hand and shook Wen Su awake. He couldn't possibly hide a living person perfectly all of a sudden. He needed the other party's cooperation to avoid being exposed.

After being shaken awake by Zhao Chan, Wen Su rubbed her sleepy eyes and smiled apologetically. She didn't really want to sleep, but firstly, she had gotten up too early, and secondly, the Buddhist scriptures were too hypnotic, so she couldn't help but fall asleep.

After Wen Suzang went inside, Zhao Chan waved to the little monk below him and said, "Have everyone else leave in a moment. I want to meditate here."

"Yes, disciple of Buddha," the young monk replied respectfully.

Afterwards, he left with the other disciples, leaving only Zhaochan behind.

When Wen Su heard that there were no more footsteps outside, she tentatively lifted a small corner of the window and peeked out.

"There's no one here, come out." Zhao Chan's voice came from above.

Wen Su simply crawled out, stretched her limbs, and said confidently and generously, "Master Zhaochan, I am Wen Su. We have met so many times, but you still don't know my name, do you?"

"Miss Wen, what are you trying to do by hiding under the table today?" Zhao Chan asked coldly.

“Because I want to see you!” Wen Su blurted out. As soon as she said this, both of them were stunned for a moment. Wen Su immediately explained, “Don’t misunderstand, I want to see you because I want to repay you.”

Zhao Chan breathed a sigh of relief and kindly reminded her, "Miss Wen, please don't speak so heavily next time."

Wen Su chuckled awkwardly, then said, "Master Zhaochan, just tell me how you want me to repay you. Gold, silver, jewels, calligraphy, porcelain—whatever you want, I can give you. Oh, I can even renovate the temple or gild a statue of Buddha." Wen Su said sincerely; her Wen family might not have much else, but they certainly had plenty of money.

Zhao Chan sighed helplessly and said, "Miss Wen, monks are compassionate. I saved you without asking for anything in return. Now that you're healed, go home quickly. I'm sure your family is getting impatient."

Wen Su felt that he couldn't give away the money. Monks are indeed incorruptible, regarding money as worldly things. Such a state of mind is beyond our reach.

Wen Su had no choice but to give up the idea of ​​repaying Zhao Chan with money. She decided to write to her grandfather to tell him about her recent situation, and then stay at Hanshan Temple for a while longer. Since Zhao Chan didn't want anything, she would give her Buddhist scriptures. What monk doesn't love scriptures?

She was waiting for Zhao Chan to collect all the scriptures and rare books from the Yin Kingdom, which would be a way of repaying his kindness.

She believed that she had to repay the kindness shown to her family, otherwise she would be tainted by karma. This was why she insisted on repaying Zhao Chan's kindness. She knew that repaying kindness would affect the family's prosperity and decline, which was the Wen family's biggest secret.

When the Celestial Master gave the Wen family a prophecy, the ancestor did not believe it. He happened to owe someone a favor and did not repay it in time. Later, strange things happened. The direct and even collateral branches of the Wen family collapsed inexplicably. Some Wen family members died and some were injured. The Wen family ancestor had no other choice but to find the person he owed the favor to, fulfill his wish, and repay the favor. Only then did the Wen family return to normal. From then on, all the Wen family members believed in this prophecy and passed it down from generation to generation.

Therefore, what the Wen family fears most is getting involved in karma, because they could be wiped out if they are not careful.

Author's note: See, there are always people who don't believe in superstition!