At this point, the Taoist priest paused, his voice drawn out.

The old lady asked, "What is it?"

The Taoist priest first looked at the old lady, but then at the second wife. “On my way here, I noticed that there were dark clouds shrouding the northwest of the Marquis’s residence. Looking at the old lady and this lady, their faces were dark. I’m afraid they are going to have some bad luck, and there may even be bloodshed.”

Hearing this, the old lady's heart skipped a beat, and the second wife's face turned even uglier.

Even if you know it's fake, it's still bad enough that the Taoist priest said such unlucky things in public.

This Taoist priest dares to take money and not do anything, and even brings bad luck upon her—does she really have no regard for her life?!

The second wife's eyes turned cold.

Shen Wan then asked, "Is there a way to resolve this?"

The Taoist priest said, "Since you've come to my residence and brought this up, I should naturally help resolve this."

The old lady, holding the Buddhist prayer beads in her hand, said, "Please speak."

The Taoist priest didn't say anything, but immediately cast another divination.

Then he said, "The old lady needs to fast for three days, copy one hundred Buddhist scriptures every day, offer them before the Buddha for seven days, take them back, burn them to ashes, and drink them with water."

As he spoke, the Taoist priest looked at the second wife again, "This lady's condition is more serious. She needs to fast for seven days and copy a hundred Buddhist scriptures every day. She must be sincere, otherwise it is hard to guarantee that her children will not suffer misfortune."

The second wife nearly ground her teeth to powder. If this Taoist priest hadn't been someone she had asked to come into the mansion, she would have exposed him as a fraud in public.

Shen Wan said, "Copying a hundred Buddhist scriptures every day would be exhausting, but it's better to be safe than sorry."

The old lady's face was very long.

Shen Jing looked at the Taoist priest and said, "Since we've troubled you, Taoist priest, let's go to the trouble a little more and ask you to calculate an auspicious day for my daughter and Prince Ling to get married."

The Taoist priest calculated very seriously and said, "The 18th of next month is an auspicious day. If you get married on that day, your life will be smooth sailing."

Shen Wan, “…!!!”

Didn't she specifically instruct Xie Jingyan to have the Taoist priest set their wedding date for six months from now? If things were settled by then, she wouldn't have to marry him, and it wouldn't count as her truly taking over his position as the Princess Consort of Ling.

Not only did he not do what she asked, but he also moved the wedding date forward. She'll get married on the 18th of next month, and she's already 22 today, which is less than a month away.

Deep in my heart, I send my heartfelt greetings.

At that moment, a certain lord in the Lingwang Mansion, far away, felt an itch in his nose and sneezed violently.

Shen Jing said, "Thank you very much, Daoist Master."

After finishing his work, the Taoist priest packed his things and took his leave.

Before leaving, he left behind two pieces of wisdom:

"Fortune and misfortune have no fixed gate; they are summoned by oneself."

"Holding evil thoughts will inevitably backfire."