truth?

Gu Yu was conflicted. Everything Xu Qiu did was forcing her to choose him, and he had also figured out her background.

She saw through Xu Qiu; he was a black-hearted person just like her, and wouldn't do anything that would only harm her.

She sighed.

It turns out that Xu Qiu was willing to go to such lengths for Xu Shanhai's orders; in a way, Xu Qiu is a person who values ​​relationships.

But he is only kind and loyal to a select few; those he doesn't care about will be treated like trash.

She looked away. "Don't worry about that. Reopening the imperial examinations is inevitable. Otherwise, the turmoil in the officialdom will cause a popular uprising. The national treasury is empty right now, and there's a war going on in the north. Emperor Shengyuan isn't such a clueless emperor."

“Then it seems I need to work even harder, Miss Gu.” Xu Qiu wasn’t in a hurry; he already knew the answer.

"However, I'm also a little curious. When did you buy those papers and ink? And where did you get Shen Xiuwen's jade thumb ring and handwritten letter?"

“Young Master Xu wants to know too much. I have no intention of solving the mystery for you.” She finished speaking and yawned.

The scheme she had set up for Shen Xiuwen had already begun, and even she couldn't stop now. She didn't know the final outcome, but she could make sure that what she was doing left no evidence against her.

"No, haven't you been watching me the whole time? You know perfectly well what I've done." Gu Yu said with a dark face, thinking of the Eastern Depot's spies.

"The day I returned from the mass grave, I withdrew all my men. Gu Jin is too perceptive; I don't want to provoke him."

Gu Yu nodded, reluctantly accepting the answer.

“This case is being investigated by Commander Li Shiqin,” Xu Qiu advised. “I will have the opportunity to meet with Li Shiqin. I will warn him to be careful of the Shen family. It’s not hard to guess what choice he will make: to save his life or to have a chance to be reinstated.”

He took it upon himself to conceal Shen Xiuwen's affair, which angered his adoptive father. He was no longer allowed to enter or leave the Eastern Depot and could only board Gu Yu's pirate ship to see if she could offer him a way to climb the ladder to success.

Gu Yu memorized Li Shiqin's name, glanced at the weak and pale Xu Qiu, and softened her tone.

"Young Master Xu, please take good care of your injuries. You are the only person in this world who knows my secret. If you die, I will be heartbroken."

Her voice was low, seemingly genuinely moved by his death, and unusually alluring.

At one point, Xu Qiu seemed to see her soft, lonely inner self, rather than her hypocritical and exquisite outer shell.

Gu Yu watched as Xu Qiu finished eating and got up to tidy up her things. Just then, she heard footsteps outside, which meant that Zhang Dacheng had returned after lunch.

"Young Master Xu, isn't it about time? I'll take you home." Zhang Dacheng's fawning voice came from outside the door.

"Alright, right away. I'll give this kid a few more instructions, after all, my frail and helpless mistress is still lying in bed." He tugged at Gu Yu's short sleeve.

He lowered his voice, "Where's the Ding Sheng Gao (a type of sweet rice cake)?"

"What is this? Dingsheng cake?" Gu Yu was a little confused. What did this have to do with Xu Qiu? Or was it some kind of code?

"No..." Xu Qiu suddenly felt a little dejected when she saw that she didn't understand at all. "I saw him eating Ding Sheng Gao (a type of rice cake), and when others asked him, he said it was a gift from his fiancée. You brought him some yesterday, why didn't you remember to bring me some today..."

Gu Yu looked at his aggrieved expression and was somewhat speechless, but still explained, "He is my fiancé, and you are..."

Her words caught in her throat. How should she define their relationship? Was it collusion, a den of snakes and rats, birds of a feather, or in cahoots? None of them were good words.

What am I?

Gu Yu stood, while Xu Qiu sat.

She reached out and lifted his chin, gazing into his unfathomable black eyes.

Xu Qiu followed her lead and looked up at her. Her eyes were cold and clear, her eyelashes trembled slightly, but she showed no desire.

Shen Changqing was separated from them by several stone walls, so there was absolutely no way he could know about the undercurrents between the two.

Gu Yu, however, sensed a strange sense of taboo in the quiet atmosphere.

Seriously, this is insane.

She smiled faintly—

"Peers".

She wanted him to be her slaying blade, and he wanted her to be his ladder to success.

Xu Qiu watched her walk away without a backward glance, carrying her things, and chuckled softly, muttering, "We really are the same kind of people..."

So, are Gu Yu's claims about caring about him credible?

It's obviously unbelievable; if he believed it, he would be a real fool.

All emotions and vulnerabilities are things that can be exploited; how can people like them have any genuine feelings?

*

The first thing Gu Yu did upon returning to the Marquis of Wu'an's residence was to send someone to inquire about Li Shiqin's wife.

Since she set this up herself, she can't just sit idly by and wait to die.

The beggar she sent out to keep an eye on the Shen family returned with the news that Shen Xiuwen had secretly gone to see Sun Gu.

She wasn't surprised that the two were related. If it weren't for Sun Gu's powerful backing, Shen Xiuwen wouldn't have dared to sell exam questions in Shengjing City. As for their profit sharing, Gu Yu didn't care.

Because this matter cannot shake Sun Gu's towering influence at all.

Then the other matter concerns Madam Li.

Madam Li is a Buddhist. Every month on the tenth day, she goes to Chengtian Temple to worship Buddha and stays for a few days.

What a coincidence! The original owner's grandmother usually prayed for the Gu family's father and brothers, and she also took the original owner to Chengtian Temple.

"Qiuju, bring me those Buddhist scriptures that Grandmother keeps in the Buddhist hall. I want to copy them and then go to Chengtian Temple for a short stay in a few days."

In order to familiarize herself with the environment of the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion, she had visited every courtyard and could roughly remember the few scriptures enshrined in front of her grandmother's Buddhist shrine.

She selected from Qiuju's selections and chose the Lotus Sutra, a Buddhist scripture that was quite popular among everyone from the powerful and wealthy to ordinary people.

"Put the rest back."

Qiuju nodded and left the room.

Gu Yu lazily got up from the small couch and opened the long-closed lattice window. The plum blossoms outside the window had fallen long ago, leaving only bare branches.

She began to recall the days leading up to the imperial examinations, each day incredibly busy. She didn't trust anyone, nor dared to entrust her work to others.

In the days following the receipt of the test questions, she claimed to be seriously ill. Only Qiuju knew that she was not in her room, and even Chunyue was unaware of the truth.

She was actually in Zhou Yiren's courtyard, folding paper dragonflies with her.

Because they dared not let others know, only the two of them did these things day and night.

Looking back now, those six days really were a nightmare.

In just six days, the two of them made an unknown number of paper dragonflies.

Gu Yu felt that was enough. As long as it existed, the more people who knew about it, the better. The number of people who knew about it wasn't necessarily that important.

Then, on the eve of the imperial examination, Zhou Yiren was asked to wait on a high mountain north of Shengjing, timing it perfectly so that the north wind would rise and she could scatter the folded paper dragonflies with the wind.

She then returned to Shengjing City to deliver Dingsheng cake to Shen Changqing.

Fortunately, the wind was strong enough that day, otherwise most of what she made would have gone to waste.

As long as the paper dragonflies don't get wet, they can fly around in gusts of wind, and eight or nine out of ten of them made it into the capital. The result was much better than she had expected.

Although I had a good rest for a while after that, I couldn't sleep well because I was thinking about things.

So the dark circles under her eyes haven't faded yet, and she can only cover them up with some rouge.

She picked up her brush and began copying the Lotus Sutra. There were still three days left until the tenth of the month. She had to copy the Lotus Sutra once before going to Chengtian Temple.

Since she became Gu Yu, she has been practicing calligraphy by imitating the original owner's handwriting, and now she has made great progress. Unless the original owner comes, no one can tell the difference between the two handwritings.

Outside the window, clouds drifted by and birds chirped, creating a rare sense of tranquility and peace. Inside, the calming scent of sandalwood burned.

The sandalwood incense wafted and dissipated in the air, leaving no trace.

Sunlight streamed through the window, bathing her in a golden glow, while the red mole between her brows added a touch of comical Buddhist sanctity to her appearance.

She copied quickly, skipping over some complex and difficult Zen principles, only picking what she liked.

Anyway, there are no gods or Buddhas in this world.

Otherwise, why can evil people roam freely in the world, while good people are mired in the mire and can hardly move an inch?

She didn't believe in any kind of Buddha statue—whether it was made of gold, wood, or clay; she only believed in herself.

"The three realms are without peace, like a burning house. They are filled with suffering, and are truly terrifying."

The Three Realms are not peaceful; they are like a house on fire, filled with all kinds of suffering, and are extremely terrifying.

"There was only one door, and it was narrow..."

There's only one door to escape the burning house, and it's extremely narrow...

She will find that door herself.

That was her only place to belong.

Even after copying the scriptures, the murderous intent in her eyes remained, and the resentment in her heart did not diminish; she was like a vengeful ghost that could not be saved from suffering.

With hatred still lingering and resentment hard to dispel, she could not bear to see any joy in the world.

She was suffering terribly in her own sea of ​​misery, only finding peace when her enemy was dragged down to the deepest hell with her...

On the tenth day of the third month, before leaving the mansion, Gu Yu received news that the two young masters of Wenxuan Residence had not returned for two days.

Gu Yu thought that it must have been Madam Shen who did it.

However, the Shen family dared not kill the candidates, since they already held official titles and the spring examinations were rife with scandals.

Gu Yu silently prayed for them at Chengtian Temple, hoping they would suffer less.

She wasn't worried about their lives and believed that Dongfang Hongyao was a smart man.

On this trip, she brought two highly skilled servants as bodyguards, as well as Chunyue and Qiuju. Although there weren't many people, it was enough for her needs.

"Let's go." She got into the carriage, with Qiuju and Chunyue sitting on either side of her, and two guards outside the carriage, taking turns driving.

Chengtian Temple is located outside Shengjing City, built on the mountainside of a high mountain. People call it Tianshan. Although it is not as steep as other mountains, it is indeed high and can be seen to reach the sky from a distance.

The carriage took an hour to reach the foot of the mountain, and then it took another hour to climb the mountain before the temple could be seen.

Fortunately, Gu Yu was the most relaxed, as she didn't have to carry anything. The other four carried their bundles and luggage, but she was weak and had to slow down after every few steps.

Gu Yu then realized that the original owner of this body truly loved her father and brothers. Otherwise, how could she have come to Chengtian Temple with her grandmother every month to pray for blessings in this body?

After her grandmother passed away, the original owner of this body never came here again.

However, this time she has quite a few people to pray for.

Gu's father, who was far away in the north and whom he had never met, his elder brother Gu Jin, Shen Changqing who was imprisoned, and Dongfang Hongyao, Wei Cong and others who were captured by Shen Xiuwen.

Hmm... let's reluctantly include Xu Qiu as well.

Since we're already here, it would be a waste not to pray for more people.

After about two hours of travel, Gu Yu arrived at the mountainside at noon, where she saw the magnificent main gate of Chengtian Temple.

After entering the main gate, you will find three halls arranged along a central axis: the Mountain Gate Hall, the Samantabhadra Hall, and the Heavenly King Hall, in order.

The warm spring sun swept across the mountains, across the streams, and across the many Bodhi trees lining the road, scattering its rays haphazardly across the stone path.

Passing through the three halls leads to the central hall of Chengtian Temple—the Mahavira Hall.

The golden-yellow tiled roof of the main hall shone directly into the sunlight, so bright it was blinding.

Despite her hunger, Gu Yu first entered the hall to offer incense and then placed her handwritten copy of the Lotus Sutra before the gods and Buddhas.

This ancient temple has a history of over two hundred years and attracts many worshippers. She saw many people as she climbed the bluestone steps.

Fortunately, she didn't run into any acquaintances who came up to greet her, otherwise she would have been completely bewildered and wouldn't have recognized a single person.

The main hall enshrines a statue of Shakyamuni Buddha at the time of his enlightenment. His left hand is placed horizontally on his left foot, while his right hand is stretched out and hanging down.

This Buddha statue, with its compassionate face, which is meant to relieve the suffering of all beings, has a sense of pity and compassion for humanity.

Gu Yu offered incense and donated money for the incense offerings before telling the monks standing to the side that she wanted to stay for a few days, just as previously arranged.

The monk clearly recognized her. "Amitabha, Benefactor Gu, please follow me."

The monk was handsome with delicate features. He wore a ceremonial robe, held prayer beads in his hand, and clasped his hands together, appearing very solemn and self-possessed.

She followed the monk to one side of the third hall, where there were rooms built for pilgrims to stay in; the left side was for men and the right side for women.

As Gu Yu approached, she saw some women talking in hushed tones. They also noticed Gu Yu. "Miss Gu, it's been a long time. It's been almost a year since Old Madam Gu passed away. Miss Gu is a filial daughter; she still thinks of the Old Madam."

Gu Yu gave a wry smile. "I'll go with this young master to settle our luggage first, and then I'll come back to talk to the ladies later."

"Alright, Miss Gu, please go ahead."

Gu Yu slowed her pace and asked Qiu Ju, "How many of these people do you recognize? I came with my grandmother earlier and didn't remember any of them."

Qiuju knew her young mistress's temperament; this was indeed something her mistress was capable of doing. "At the central table, sitting in the very middle is the wife of the Minister of Works. To her left is her daughter-in-law, and to her right is her granddaughter. She is a Buddhist and used to have the closest relationship with the old lady."

"The second one from the left is..."

"At the table in the far corner, the only person sitting there is Li Shiqin's wife. Although she is the wife of the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the wives and daughters of civil officials do not like to associate with her."

Gu Yu felt a little dizzy listening to the audio, and it took her a while to hear the answer she wanted.

She recalled Madam Li sitting in the corner, dressed in fine clothes, ostracized by everyone but not caring at all, her demeanor serene and gentle, seemingly mild-mannered.

Gu Yu arrived at the room the monk had assigned her. Chun Yue stayed in the room, directing the two of them to set things up. Gu Yu then led Qiu Ju back to the courtyard.

A few wooden tables and chairs were scattered around the courtyard, obviously brought in later. The women chatted and greeted each other while basking in the sun, with snacks on the tables, looking quite content.

The lady who had spoken to her at first saw her arrive and warmly invited her over.

She's really having a run of bad luck right now. The war in the north is raging, and her fiancé is in prison. She's just radiating bad luck from head to toe.

These ladies didn't look down on her; they talked to her a lot and even offered her some words of comfort.

Gu Yu's smile froze.

“Miss Gu, I feel like you’ve changed a bit,” a lady suddenly said.

Gu Yu's expression remained unchanged upon hearing this. "Having experienced so much, if you don't grow up a bit, I'm afraid you won't be able to live up to the surname Gu."

"That's good. If something really happens to that kid from the Shen family, why don't you take a look at my son? Although he's not as handsome as the Shen family's kid, he's also good at studying. He'll definitely be the top scholar in three years."

"Madam Sun, you're joking. Your son is only fifteen; isn't that a bit too hasty?" Madam Wang interjected. "Miss Gu, you shouldn't choose a young husband; older men are more likely to be caring. I have a nephew who's currently a secretary in the Ministry of War, and he's still unmarried..."

Gu Yu's head was buzzing from what the ladies were saying. "Thank you for your kindness, ladies, but I still have feelings for Shen Lang, and I cannot break my promise just because something happened to him."

Seeing her say this, the ladies finally changed the subject, and Gu Yu moved to sit in front of Madam Li.

She hesitated before speaking, "I've heard that you are the wife of Li Shiqin, the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. I would like to ask about Shen Lang."

Gu Yu saw that she looked troubled and clearly wanted to refuse.

“If Madam is willing to reveal even a little bit, my daughter will be extremely grateful. Please feel free to ask for anything you need.”

When Madam Li heard Gu Yu say this, she swallowed the refusal that was on the tip of her tongue. Just by doing a favor, she could gain the favor of the Marquis of Wu'an's family, which was indeed a worthwhile deal.

“Miss Gu, please don’t say that. I’m just a woman, and I have limited knowledge of my husband’s official duties. However…” She changed the subject, “I can tell you something: Lord Shen once helped my master’s nephew, and my master will certainly not make things difficult for Young Master Shen.”

Moreover, according to news from the master, Young Master Shen did indeed suffer an undeserved calamity…”

Gu Yu narrowed her eyes and smiled gently, "Is that so? I will sincerely pray before the Bodhisattva, hoping that Shen Lang will be released from prison soon."

The layout and furnishings of the side rooms in Chengtian Temple are very simple. Upon entering, you will find a Buddhist shrine inside, and in front of the shrine is an incense burner with three sticks of incense burning.

When no one is around, the silk cloth in front of the shrine is closed to prevent dust from settling in.

Turning right, you'll find the communal sleeping area for pilgrims. The communal sleeping area has neatly folded bedding that Gu Yu brought from home, and there's also a soft mattress underneath the communal sleeping area.

The Manjushri Bodhisattva enshrined on the shrine sits serenely on the back of a blue lion, his countenance solemn and compassionate. He wears a five-Buddha crown, his dark blue hair is styled in a high bun, and the crown is inlaid with a Mani jewel, radiating brilliance.

His face was like a full moon, pure and flawless, with white hair on his forehead like crystal.

Her eyebrows were slender and long, sloping towards her temples; her eyelids were slightly lowered, her gaze was downward; her nose was straight; and the corners of her lips were slightly upturned, as if she were smiling but not quite.

With his right hand raised high, he holds the "Sword of Wisdom," while his left hand forms a mudra in front of his chest, holding a blue lotus stem that extends up his arm, with the flower blooming on his shoulder.

Gu Yu stepped into the room, knelt down in front of the Buddha statue, her eyes filled with piety, and Qiu Ju handed her three sticks of freshly lit incense.