Chapter 133 They were as close as mother and son, and he was displeased.

"Dad! Aunt Xinxin is here!" Tongtong was instantly overjoyed and could hardly sit still.

Butler Ning had a stern face.

Guess why she's not smiling.

She's so annoyed! She comes every few days, and every time she comes, she has to treat her like a VIP. She doesn't come as often as someone who's just trying to freeload!

"Um."

Xie Jinghuai remained calm, paused for a moment, and then instructed Butler Ning, "Go and greet Miss Lin."

Butler Ning was reluctant, but he had no choice but to reply, "Yes, young master."

"Brother Jinghuai." Lin Zhixin walked into the restaurant and smiled gently at the man.

Xie Jinghuai looked at her calmly with his phoenix eyes and nodded.

They got along very naturally.

It was as if she were the owner of Guanlan Garden all along.

"Aunt Xinxin!"

Tongtong immediately jumped off the chair, ran to Lin Zhixin, and hugged her slender waist affectionately, "Waaah... I missed you so much!"

Lin Zhixin gently stroked the top of the child's head, "Tongtong, Auntie misses you so much too."

Tongtong pouted and said coquettishly, "Aunt Xinxin, why haven't you come to our house lately? I thought you had a fight with my dad."

Xie Jinghuai raised an eyebrow. "Xie Junheng, you have no manners at all!"

Seeing her father's anxiety, Tongtong realized she had hit the nail on the head and glared at the man reproachfully:

“Dad, you know that Aunt Xinxin is not in good health, how can you still bear to be angry with her? What if you upset her and make her sick? You will be worried then.”

Xie Jinghuai's brows furrowed.

"Tongtong, you've misunderstood your father."

Lin Zhixin bent down, cupped the child's round face, and kissed his forehead. "Your aunt and dad aren't angry, they're doing great. I didn't come over a while ago because I wasn't feeling well, so don't overthink it."

Tongtong blushed deeply after being kissed by her beautiful aunt.

"Auntie, are you feeling better now?"

"Alright. With you caring for your aunt like this, how could your aunt not be happy?"

Xie Jinghuai watched them being as intimate as mother and son, and felt a strange tightness in his chest.

In his memory, it had been a very long time since he had seen Tongtong and Jiang Shiyuan interact so intimately.

He looked down on Jiang Shiyuan, and his impatience and indifference towards her at home were commonplace.

However, at some point, Tongtong was also subtly influenced and began to ignore his mother, even becoming annoyed and disregarding her.

The man secretly clenched his fist.

Xie Junheng, how could you do this?

Their relationship was cold because it lacked a foundation of love; their marriage was forced and filled with dissatisfaction.

But Jiang Shiyuan is his biological mother!

A son doesn't despise his mother for being ugly, and a dog doesn't despise his home for being poor. What right does he have to look down on Jiang Shiyuan?

Xie Jinghuai suppressed his rising resentment and asked in a low voice, "Zhixin, why didn't you take good care of yourself? Why did you come here?"

Lin Zhixin said in a soft voice, "Brother Jinghuai, I heard from Auntie that your family and Grandma are going to Putuo Temple to burn incense and pray for Mr. Xie today."

The man nodded. "Yes."

“I told Auntie that I also wanted to go and pray for Mr. Xie. Auntie was very happy and told me to come find you so that I could go with you and Tongtong.”

Xie Jinghuai's deep eyes remained silent.

"Brother Jinghuai... are you afraid that people will see me with you, and don't want me to go with you?"

Lin Zhixin's long eyelashes trembled slightly, and she lowered her eyes with a wronged expression. "I know that right now, I'm just a nuisance to you."

If you don't want me to follow you, then forget it...

"Let's go together." Xie Jinghuai looked at her haggard face and finally couldn't bear to refuse.

Lin Zhixin's eyes sparkled, and she smiled smugly to herself.

She knew that this man would agree to any request she made, no matter what.

"Yay! Aunt Xinxin can come too, that's great!" Tongtong said excitedly, holding her hand.

He started to look forward to what was originally a boring and dull trip because of Lin Zhixin's addition.

...

Putuo Temple.

Fragrant scents lingered, and the sounds of chanting filled the air.

On the way here, Jiang Shiyuan also asked Fu Chenzhou curiously how he knew she was at Xiyuan.

What I got was still that arrogant, nonsensical literary statement:

"I can find anyone I want, no matter how far away they are, whether they are in the mountains or the sea."

Fu Chenzhou also learned that Jiang Shiyuan would visit Putuo Temple to offer incense every year after paying respects to his mother at the cemetery, and this year was no exception.

Outside the main gate of Putuo Temple, there are rows of stone steps that wheelchairs cannot climb.

Fu Chenzhou's slender waist sank down, and he was about to pick Jiang Shiyuan up in his arms when she gently refused:

"Thank you for your kindness, but this is disrespectful and not devout enough. I will go up myself."

Fu Chenzhou's dark eyes deepened slightly. "Are you capable?"

Jiang Shiyuan gently smiled and said, "Okay."

"Alright then." Fu Chenzhou didn't insist any further, but instead extended his right hand to her.

As soon as Jiang Shiyuan touched his warm, dry palm, he suddenly closed his fingers and held her hand tightly.

She pursed her lips, used the man's hand as a fulcrum, and stood up.

Fu Chenzhou felt the heavy weight in his palm, and his starry eyes narrowed slightly.

This is a kind of silent trust.

Jiang Shiyuan climbed the steps one by one. The surroundings were quiet and secluded, and the sounds from the stone slabs were particularly clear.

Fu Chenzhou followed closely behind her, gazing at her stubborn back, seemingly protecting her silently.

At this moment, an elderly monk in simple clothes, holding prayer beads in his hand, walked down from the road. When he caught sight of Jiang Shiyuan, he was suddenly taken aback:

"Benefactor Jiang, is that you?"

Jiang Shiyuan looked up, her face lighting up with joy, "Master Huaikong!"

On the way into the temple, Jiang Shiyuan and Master Huaikong had a very pleasant conversation and seemed to be quite familiar with each other.

While Jiang Shiyuan went inside to offer incense, Fu Chenzhou stood outside the door and chatted with Master Huaikong:

"Master, how did you and Miss Jiang meet?"

"Ah... that was three years ago."

Huai Kong gazed at Jiang Shiyuan's slender and upright back, his eyes lost in memories. "It was three years ago, in the depths of winter, the whole city was covered in snow. I went out on an errand and happened to see Benefactor Jiang all alone, kneeling on the stone steps outside the temple, kowtowing one step at a time as she slowly made her way forward."

At first glance, she was almost completely buried by the heavy snow, making her nearly invisible.

Fu Chenzhou's starry eyes widened slightly. "Why would she do this?"

“That year, Ms. Jiang’s son was seriously ill. She told me that she would not be able to see her child, so she could only use this method to pray for her child and ask for divine protection.”

Huai Kong couldn't help but sigh, "Parents exhaust all their energy for their children; how pitiful are the hearts of parents everywhere."

Fu Chenzhou's eyes darkened. "What do you mean by not being able to see the child?"

"This, Benefactor Jiang didn't say."

Master Huaikong looked worried. “But I remember when I met Benefactor Jiang that year, she was in very poor health and spirits. I suggested that she go to the hospital for a check-up. I don’t know if she went or not.”

Fu Chenzhou lowered his eyelashes, remained silent, and clenched his fist loosely.

"May I ask, sir, are you related to Benefactor Jiang...?"

The man had a pale complexion. "An acquaintance."

Master Huai Kong squinted: "Oh..."

Before the Buddha, Jiang Shiyuan held up incense, closed his eyes, and recited his wish over and over again.

Amidst swirling smoke and withered leaves in the courtyard, he gazed at her lonely figure, a profound sense of desolation and bleakness rising in his heart.

I wonder if any of the compassionate gods and Buddhas in this room ever truly answered her prayers.

Fu Chenzhou stared at her and picked up his phone.

"Oh dear, sir, I'm sorry, this is a sacred Buddhist site, photography is prohibited." Huai Kong smiled and waved his hand, pointing to the sign next to him.

“I know, I don’t take pictures of Buddha statues or Guanyin statues.”

Fu Chenzhou clasped his hands together and smiled, "I beg the master for leniency."