Song Yaozhu swore that she only wanted to care about his health and had no other intentions.

"Your Highness, some illnesses are difficult to talk about, but you must never avoid seeking medical treatment because of them!"

Xie Liwei's forehead veins bulged. He suddenly realized he had been too good-tempered! He had actually tolerated this woman's insolence in front of him!

If it weren't for her face, she would have been fertilizer long ago!

Xie Liwei ignored her, his mind preoccupied with something. There were many temples around the capital, but the most popular was the royal Huangjue Temple. Song Yaozhu had chosen the furthest one, the Jokhang Temple, which was indeed famous for its fertility services.

She and Song Yaozhu hadn't even consummated their marriage, so what right did she have to ask for a child? She made her desire for a child public knowledge just to cover up her true purpose.

Thinking back on what she's been doing lately, I feel like I've forgotten something.

When the carriage arrived at Jokhang Temple, Song Yaozhu, as usual, went to each hall to pay her respects and donate money for incense. Xie Liwei did not believe in these things, but he still lit incense.

If there truly is a Buddha, may he bless his elder sister so that she may be free from illness, disaster, and hardship in her next life, meet a good man again, and live a smooth and fulfilling life.

Song Yaozhu noticed that his entire demeanor changed when he offered incense, becoming serious and solemn. She wondered what wish he had made. She tilted her head and waited for Xie Liwei to finish before leaving the main hall together.

"Your Highness, the Jokhang Temple is also very accurate in praying for marriage. Shall we go and pray together?"

Xie Liwei smiled and said, "Your Highness, why don't you pray to Bodhisattva Weituo more often?"

After saying that, he walked towards the side room.

Song Yaozhu glared at his retreating back. How dare he curse her with bad luck on her trip! Doesn't he know that cursing people in front of Buddha is useless? She'll just have to be merciful and forgive him!

Song Yaozhu was strolling around in the backyard when a young novice monk approached her and said, "Esteemed benefactor, our master has set up a chessboard in the backyard. Please come over and play a game."

Song Yaozhu readily agreed and followed the young novice monk. When they arrived at a small Buddhist shrine, she told Caijin and Caiyin to wait outside.

The doors of the small Buddhist hall were all open, and an elderly woman dressed in gray monk's robes sat under the Buddha statue. There was nothing improper about it, and Caijin and Caiyin were waiting at the door.

When the Empress Dowager saw her, she smiled warmly.

"You look well, have you gotten what you wanted?" The Empress Dowager placed her piece first.

Song Yaozhu smiled and shook her head, "Life is not always smooth sailing. But it's all up to us. I've done my best, and if I still don't get a good result, then I'll accept it."

Upon hearing this, the Dowager stared at her for a moment with her cloudy eyes and said, "You remind me of an old friend."

"Um?"

The Dowager Princess held her prayer beads in her hand, her eyes somewhat vacant, as if she were lost in memories.

"She's a good girl, it's a pity she followed the wrong person." The Empress Dowager simply sighed and said nothing more.

Song Yaozhu paused, her hand holding the chess piece still. She was certain that the Empress Dowager was referring to her. Did she mean that she knew all along that Yuwen Wuji would harm her?

Yuwen Wuji was an excellent actor; even she was fooled. How did the Empress Dowager know?

Song Yaozhu steadied herself, clenching her teeth tightly to prevent her face from turning ugly.

She hated Yuwen Wuji to the core—his betrayal, his ruthlessness, and her own poor judgment of character. Reborn, she appeared calm, but within her heart lay a desolate wasteland, like ruins left after a storm.

She wants Yuwen Wuji dead!

"The New Year is almost here," Song Yaozhu said with anticipation. "This will be my first New Year with a family."

The Dowager sighed, "Yes, the New Year is approaching."

The game wasn't finished in the end. Song Yaozhu said she hadn't learned how to break the deadlock and would continue next time. After Song Yaozhu left, the maidservant who served the Dowager Consort put away the chessboard and helped the Dowager Consort to rest.

"Your Highness, why are you getting so close to this young girl?"

"Don't you think she looks a lot like Xie Wanqing? She looks like her, and she speaks like her." The Dowager Consort leaned back on the couch and took a sip of tea. She then smiled and said, "The moment I saw her, I thought of Xie Wanqing."

The old woman was slightly taken aback, then heard the Dowager Princess say, "Bring me pen and ink, I want to write a letter to Dao'er."

After leaving the Dowager Consort's place, Song Yaozhu went straight to the main kitchen for lunch. She didn't want to see Xie Liwei right now, lest she lose her temper and start arguing with him again.

Many pilgrims ate in the canteen, most of them just having a bowl of vegetarian noodles and leaving. Song Yaozhu also ordered a bowl of vegetarian noodles, a bowl of clear soup noodles topped with mushrooms and gluten. It was extremely simple, but Song Yaozhu ate it with great relish.

When she's in a bad mood, she fills her stomach.

As she finished the last sip of her noodle soup, a sudden exclamation came from the doorway. She turned around and saw a young woman slumped to the ground, the hot soup spilled all over her, leaving her looking extremely disheveled.

There were many people here, both men and women. It was a cold time of year, and the young woman was wearing a lot of clothes. Although she wasn't embarrassed to have her clothes soaked and be seen by others, she was still quite disheveled.

The maidservant beside her was about to help her up when she was pushed to the ground by someone behind her. The maidservant fell right onto the broken pieces of a bowl, blood gushing out.

Everyone exclaimed in shock, "This is outrageous!"

What are you doing?!

"This is our family matter, mind your own business!" The maid who pushed the person stepped forward and shouted angrily at the crowd.

"Even if it's your family matter, you can't humiliate someone like this! Look at what you've done!" A kind-hearted woman helped the young woman up.

The young woman sobbed as she thanked her, "Thank you so much, ma'am. I didn't see you when I was walking. It's not your fault."

Seeing that the young woman was gaining the sympathy of passersby, the maid became even angrier and shouted, "Shameless! It was clearly you..."

Before she could finish speaking, the woman beside the maid said, "Enough! Have you no shame?"

Only then did everyone notice a beautiful woman behind the maid. The woman had red lips and white teeth, and possessed a dignified and elegant appearance. At this moment, her delicate eyebrows were furrowed, clearly indicating her displeasure.

"What grudge do you have against me that you would push someone onto broken pieces of a bowl? What if someone dies?!"

The crowd pointed and whispered, and Shen Qingyu's face turned ashen. The woman opposite her was used to such tricks to frame her; she had clearly seen the monk bring over the hot soup and pretended to fall to push her onto it. If the maid hadn't been quick-witted and pulled her away, she would be the one in the embarrassing situation now.

But she turned the tables and slandered herself.

She was truly exhausted and didn't want to fight with this woman anymore.

"Wait!" A voice so loud it startled everyone. Those who had been pointing and whispering about Shen Qingyu fell silent and looked over. A young maidservant walked gracefully towards them; she was well-dressed and clearly a servant from a wealthy family.

“I clearly saw that the woman in white was trying to push this lady, but luckily the lady’s maid was quick enough to pull her back and prevent her from falling. This woman has clearly brought this upon herself; you’ve all wronged her!” Caijin said aggressively, hands on her hips.