Chapter 39: Buddhist Cause and Effect

Born into a high-class family, Dan Si, who was not allowed to do anything, was destined to end in vain.

"An An, let's go." Mrs. Shen turned around and saw that she was still in a daze, so she called her.

Shen Anan responded, turned around and quickly caught up with Madam Shen.

Through the front hall is a backyard with a waterside pavilion and corridor. It is late autumn now and there are many fallen leaves floating on the water. The little monks are salvaging them.

Mrs. Shen's nanny asked one of the young monks for directions, "Little Master, is Master Wenyin in the temple?"

Wen Yin's predictions on the divination sticks have always been accurate, and Madam Shen came here today just for him.

The young monk tilted his head to look at Madam Yanchen and her group, put down the ladle in his hand, and bowed respectfully, "My benefactor, the master is here, but he has some pilgrims at the moment, so you will have to wait for a while."

The old lady turned around and looked at Madam Shen. Madam Shen smiled and said, "It's okay. We'll wait a while."

"Then please follow me." The little monk chanted a Buddhist name, turned around and led the way.

Several people followed him, walked around the corridor half a circle, and finally stopped at the door of a meditation room.

There is a large patch of lush green bamboo in the courtyard. When the wind blows, the bamboo rustles, giving people a sense of tranquility and elegance.

The door of the Zen room was tightly closed, and the sound of wooden fish could be heard from inside from time to time.

The young monk quickly walked up the steps and said something to the monk guarding the gate. The man looked at Madam Shen and her group, and after a moment he walked down the steps and over.

"Donor." He bowed and saluted. "My host has some visitors right now. Please wait for a moment."

Mrs. Shen thought she had arrived early enough and didn’t want anyone to arrive earlier than her.

Shen Anan glanced around the yard, and suddenly caught a glimpse of a green figure from the corner of his eye, hidden behind the green bamboo, seemingly squatting on the ground.

She was obviously dressed as a maid, but the maid's profile looked inexplicably familiar to her.

"Little Master." She called the monk who was turning to leave and asked casually, "Is the pilgrim inside a girl?"

The young monk nodded and said, "The girl came before dawn and waited at the gate for a long time to see our abbot."

“Well, thank you.” Shen Anan clasped his hands together and nodded. The little monk returned the greeting and went back to the steps of the corridor to guard the meditation room.

Madam Shen asked curiously, "An An, do you know who the girl inside is?"

Shen Anan shook her head and pointed at the back of a maid squatting behind a green bamboo not far away. "No, I just thought that the maid looked familiar and thought there must be a girl inside."

Madam Shen glanced at the maid for a few times and then looked away.

At this time of every month, many dignitaries go up the mountain to pray for peace.

If a girl comes alone, she is most likely looking for a marriage partner.

After Mrs. Shen asked, she no longer cared and talked to the nanny beside her, discussing the matters related to the betrothal.

Quarter of an hour later, the door of the Zen room finally opened, and a girl with a lavender figure walked out with her head lowered, quiet and seemingly worried about something.

At this time, Mrs. Shen also walked over with Shen Anan.

Hearing the footsteps, the girl looked up. There were faint traces of tears on her pretty face and her eyelids were slightly red and swollen, obviously she had just cried.

When the girl saw the people coming towards her, she was stunned for a moment, then she forced a smile.

"Miss Shen." She looked at the lady on Shen Anan's side again and called out "Mrs. Shen."

Mrs. Shen nodded at the pitiful girl, turned to look at Shen Anan, and waited for her introduction.

Shen Anan retracted her gaze from the woman and said calmly, “This is the second young lady of Duan Mansion.”

Madam Shen was a little surprised when she heard this, but Master Wen Yin's time was precious, so she didn't dare to delay and let Shen An'an stay outside to talk with Duan Yingying.

Shen Anan had no intention of going in. The strange things that happened to her were hard to explain, and she subconsciously didn't want to deal with Buddhism.

Shen Anan lowered her eyes and glanced at the fortune stick in Duan Yingying's hand. It was a prayer for marriage.

Calculating the time, if her ending was the same as in her previous life, she would have been abandoned by her family and would be married off soon.

"Miss Chen, can you walk with me?" Duan Yingying suppressed her hoarse voice and spoke as calmly as possible.

Shen Anan's eyes fixed on her empty and wooden face for a moment, then he nodded slowly.

"Thank you." Duan Yingying forced a smile.

The two of them left Master Wen Yin's yard and went to the secluded pavilion in the backyard.

Sitting in the pavilion, you can take in all the scenes in the courtyard. The temple is magnificent and gives people a sense of majesty and awe. For some reason, it makes Shen Anan very uncomfortable.

She tried her best to suppress the restlessness and uneasiness in her heart and not look at the Buddha statues scattered around the courtyard.

She knew that it was out of guilt.

At one point, she felt like a monster. Her seventeen-year-old body was just a disguise, and in the temple, her disguise would be easily torn apart.

“Miss Shen, what’s wrong with you?”

The little monk brought tea, and Duan Yingying poured her a cup personally and handed it to her, asking with concern.

Shen Anan came back to her senses and shook her head, "Nothing, Miss Duan Er came to see me, do you have anything to say?"

She looked at Duan Yingying's eyebrows carefully and felt that she didn't seem to know that the person who saved her on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival was her eldest brother.

Then why was she looking for her? The two of them were not as hostile as Duan Mengmeng, but they could not be considered friends either.

"I'm here to thank Miss Shen." Duan Yingying's pretty little face was no longer weak, pale and sad, and her clear eyes were filled with a hint of tenacity.

"Thank you Miss Shen for your advice that day at the Yongning Marquis' Mansion. Otherwise, I would have already..."

She didn't say the rest of the words, and only said, "Don't air your dirty laundry in public."

He sighed deeply, feeling helpless and powerless.

Shen Anan's heart moved, and he looked up at Duan Yingying's grateful face.

Could it be true that a person with weakness engraved in his bones could stand up and resist just because of a few words from her?

She said this, perhaps because the marriage far away in her previous life had already happened, and she had recognized Duan Mengmeng and changed.

She didn't ask directly, but politely replied, "It's just a small favor, Miss Duan Er, don't take it to heart."

Duan Yingying shook her head, "Miss Yu Chen's help was just a small effort, but for me it means a lifetime. You are all my benefactors."

"We?" Shen An'an smiled, with a wave of emotion in her eyes, "Did anyone else help Miss Duan Er?"

Duan Yingying's cheeks flushed, she lowered her head and whispered, "He is my benefactor."

It’s a pity that she doesn’t even know their identities and names, and she doesn’t know if she will be able to meet that young man again in her lifetime.

Shen Anan suppressed her smile and lowered her eyes to drink tea. When Duan Yingying was distracted and immersed in the emotions of being her savior, she suddenly spoke in a calm voice.

"Miss Duan Er seems to care a lot about her lifesaver."

Duan Yingying came back to her senses, smiled, nodded generously, and said "hmm".

A gentleman is like jade, bright and clear as the moon. That man may be unattainable in her life, just like the white snow on the top of a mountain.

Shen Anan lowered her eyes and said nothing more.

She didn't intend to tell Duan Yingying.

Selfishly speaking, she didn't want her elder brother to have anything to do with Duan Yingying. It wasn't that Duan Yingying was a bad person, but she was too weak. When facing the Duan family, she was like a piece of white dough that could be molded into any shape.

A girl who is cuddly, weak and unable to take care of herself can indeed arouse the desire to protect from a masculine man like the eldest brother, but she is far from qualified to be the mistress of the Shen family.

To put it bluntly, with such a personality, she is not suitable to be the wife of the head of a large family.

She is indeed kind, but when it comes to her closest relatives, her kindness is too biased. It is right to be kind to her own people, but one cannot confuse right and wrong.

But who can say for sure about fate? She just remained silent. If she and the eldest brother are destined to be together, they will always run towards each other.

The prerequisite is that she must be able to stand up first.

Seeing that Shen An'an was silent, Duan Yingying spoke softly, "Miss Shen, are you still bothered by the fact that I asked for your forgiveness on behalf of my third sister at the chrysanthemum banquet that day?"

Shen Anan spoke slowly and casually, "Miss Duan Er and Miss Duan San are from the same mother, so it's reasonable for her to speak for her. There's nothing to worry about."

"Anyway, you say yours, I listen to me, and I have the final say on what to do."

Duan Yingying was stunned for a moment by her straightforwardness, then raised her lips.

She really likes Shen Anan's personality very much. It would be great if she were her sister.

"Miss Shen is right. My request is not worth mentioning, but I am not incompetent. It was indeed my third sister who did something wrong that day. I reported it to the elders in my family after returning home."

Shen Anan raised his eyebrows.

"And then, did Miss Duan San get scolded, or is she still safe and sound?"

Duan Yingying looked a little embarrassed.

She said very honestly, "Grandmother didn't punish her, but my third sister knelt in the ancestral hall a few days ago. If Miss Shen is interested, I can tell you about it. It will make me feel better."

Duan Mengmeng kneeling in the ancestral hall?

Shen Anan was indeed a little surprised. The Duan family had always loved this talented daughter, so how could they be willing to punish her.

She suddenly remembered what Duan Yingying wanted to thank her for, and thought, "Is it the work of Miss Duan Er?"

Duan Yingying's eyelashes trembled, and she pursed her lips slightly, and her voice became much lower, "I just want to protect myself."

Shen Anan still didn't understand something, so she stopped talking. I was a little surprised at Duan Yingying's sudden growth in brain size.

Could it be that the appearance of Big Brother stimulated her?

"It's getting late. I should go now. I'll sit down and chat with Miss Shen next time we meet."

Shen Anan nodded, and when she stood up, her eyes fell on the divination stick in her hand.

"Miss Duan Er is here to seek marriage today, right?"

"Yeah." Duan Yingying subconsciously clenched her fingertips tightly, turning slightly white.

"What does the Master say?"

Duan Yingying lowered her head, her white fingertips carefully brushed across the divination sticks, her voice a little hoarse, "The master said that all the coincidences are fate, there will be opportunities, and the result is cause and effect."

She didn't understand what the master meant, but she knew that the master said that she and the young man would have a chance to meet again.

Shen Anan frowned, his heart slightly sank, and he said nothing.

Duan Yingying said goodbye and left the pavilion.

She finished her cup of tea and stood up, just in time, the nanny beside Madam Shen came over.

The two turned back again and went to Master Wen Yin's courtyard.

Mrs. Shen was standing in the corridor, seeming to be in a daze, holding the divination sticks and calculating the auspicious date.

"Mom, are you done?" Shen Anan walked over and asked.

Madam Shen put the things into her sleeves and nodded calmly.

Shen Anan thought of Duan Yingying's divination sign and asked Madam Shen, "What did Master Wen Yin say?"

Madam Shen opened her mouth and shook her head again, “Let’s talk about it when we get back. The master is waiting for you inside, so go in quickly.”

"What are you waiting for me to do?" Shen Anan subconsciously took a step back, feeling a chill rising from his back.

"Mother asked the master about your marriage destiny. Since you happened to be here, I took the opportunity to let the master take a look. He will give a more accurate prediction."

"I won't go." Shen Anan refused immediately, "Mom, I'm not in a hurry. I'll talk about mine after my eldest brother decides."

"Now that we're here." Madam Shen grabbed her arm, preventing her from retreating. "Master Wen Yin has never taken the initiative to ask to see anyone before. How can we not go at such a good opportunity?"

"mother."

"An An, be obedient. I'm just checking your face. Mom is waiting for you outside."

Madam Shen pushed Shen Anan directly in and closed the door immediately.

The Zen room is simply and elegantly furnished, with an incense table with a Buddha statue and several cushions.

Behind the yellow curtain, a blurry figure sat cross-legged on the ground, with the sound of a wooden fish.

The smell of wood mixed with incense swirled around the tip of the nose, a little pungent, making Shen Anan extremely uncomfortable.

She stood there, not moving for a moment.

"Donor, please come in and sit down." An old and deep voice came from behind the curtain.

Shen Anan still didn't move, his brows slightly knitted, "Master, your time is precious, I won't bother you. Doesn't Buddhism say that marriage is all about fate? My marriage hasn't arrived yet, which means the time is not right. I can just wait, no need to calculate."

After saying that, she turned around and opened the door.

The sound of beating the wooden fish suddenly stopped, and the old monk said solemnly, "Wait a minute, benefactor."

Shen Anan paused, her body stiffening involuntarily.

"Marriage is indeed a matter of fate, but it is also karma, a product of cause and effect. Husband and wife are destined to be together. They will not be together without fate. It is also destined in the previous life and they come together after the fate is fulfilled."

Shen Anan's heart sank, and the coldness slowly climbed up her back like a vine, and she could hardly suppress her panic.

Did that monk see something?

She turned to face the curtains and said calmly, "I only believe that success depends on human effort."

Hasn't she changed a lot of things since her rebirth? Everything else can be changed, and her marriage must be able to change as well.

The old monk chuckled, and the words he said made Shen Anan feel like she was falling into an ice cellar.

“It may seem different, but how do we know it is not just a blind spot? Sometimes the process is not important. As long as the result is right, the cause and effect are fulfilled. The only thing that changes is the state of mind.”

"What do you mean?" Shen Anan asked, clutching the hem of her sleeves with her fingers, trying to remain calm.

The old monk refused to say more. "It's getting late. You should leave now. I hope you can do good deeds and accumulate virtues. I hope you will have a peaceful life."

Shen Anan pursed her lips and left the Zen room without hesitation. For some reason, she felt uncomfortable all over whenever she was there. Even though she had never seen the master, she still felt like she was naked and seen through.

It was as if all pretense was gone.

"What did the master say?" Madam Shen quickly stepped forward and took Shen Anan's hand. After nodding to the monk guarding the gate, she left the courtyard.