It was precisely because of the excellence of his old friend that the seeds of hatred sprouted in his heart, and from that moment on he vowed to surpass Ye Jinyu, to take control of the Chen family, and to create his own empire.
The conflict with the Ye family was inevitable, which led to Ye Jinyu's death in the Western Region twenty years ago.
The incident caused a sensation throughout the court and the public...
Everything is over. Just as he said, these three blows wiped away the grudges between him and Ye Jinyu. If they could meet again in the afterlife, they would still be brothers.
However, at that moment, a figure flashed and a nun dressed in a gray robe slowly approached.
The nun carried a bag on her back and held prayer beads in her hand, looking like she had traveled a long way. However, even though she was dressed simply and had cut off her long black hair, she still could not hide her inherent beauty.
But it was Bai Yingyun who arrived.
"Why are you here?" Ye Xingchen asked in surprise.
He watched with his own eyes as Bai Yingyun shaved her head and became a nun, severing all worldly ties. If nothing unexpected happened, she should be practicing in that temple. Why is she here?
"Aunt Bai is practicing asceticism, traveling thousands of miles, enduring wind and dew, and exchanging suffering for faith and pursuit."
Su Ruochu followed her in: "As for her and Chen Zhengyi, they are destined to still have a trace of fate. But after seeing him today, that fate is severed. From now on, she will sever her worldly ties and have nothing to do with the secular world anymore."
"Let's go out and give them some time." Ye Xingchen looked at Bai Yingyun and Chen Zhengyi, sighed slightly, and walked out with Xia Hanyue and Su Ruochu.
Bai Yingyun knelt down and gently helped Chen Zhengyi up, letting his head rest in her arms.
"You...have come?" Chen Zhengyi's voice was weak, but when he saw Bai Yingyun, a glimmer of clarity appeared in his eyes, and he tightly grasped Bai Yingyun's hand.
"I have a lingering worldly bond with you, and I have come to see you one last time today." Bai Yingyun smiled faintly: "After today, our marriage will end here, and we will be separated by life and death. From now on, we will never meet again in the nine heavens and ten earths."
"Thank you... for coming to see me off." Chen Zhengyi smiled slightly. "I'm sorry, I ruined your life..."
“The Buddha said, ‘If one’s thoughts stray from the truth, all is delusion.’” Bai Yingyun always had a faint smile on her face: “Let go of that obsession, and you will be at peace. And I have already let go.”
"You've suffered so much." Looking at her gaunt face, Chen Zhengyi was filled with endless regret. In his final moments, he realized that the person he had wronged the most was the woman in front of him.
He didn't particularly like her, but his intense desire to conquer her led him to tightly bind her hand with shackles, and just recently, he even wanted to kill her.
"It's not so much suffering as cultivating a crane-like form, like clouds in the blue sky and water in a bottle. My achievements today are a great stroke of luck. Forgetting both mind and body is letting go." Bai Yingyun gazed at him and said slowly, "You've carried too many obsessions in your life. Now, shouldn't you let them go?"
“I’ve let go, I’m relieved.” Chen Zhengyi’s face showed an unprecedented sense of ease: “Now there’s nothing to regret. It’s so good to be able to see you before I die.”
He convulsed violently, and blood flowed down his body, staining Bai Yingyun's robes red.
"I... am cold."
Bai Yingyun reached out and hugged him tightly.
"If only I could start over in this life, how wonderful that would be?" Chen Zhengyi felt a warmth in her arms.
He slowly raised his hand and stroked her cheek: "If there is an afterlife, I will definitely... not let you down."
Suddenly, his hand fell limply to his side, he stopped breathing, and his body gradually grew cold.
"If there is an afterlife, I never want to see you again." Bai Yingyun sighed softly. She gently laid Chen Zhengyi down on the ground, then knelt in front of him and took out a string of Buddhist prayer beads.
She softly recited the Yan Hua Sutra, praying for Chen Zhengyi's soul to be delivered from suffering...
Everything seemed to be over.
After Bai Yingyun finished performing the ritual for Chen Zhengyi, she slowly walked out.
"What are your plans for the future?" Ye Xingchen asked, looking at her.
"Travel ten thousand miles." Bai Yingyun simply uttered these four words.
"That's good." Ye Xingchen nodded: "Being detached from the world is not necessarily a bad thing."
“Yes, it’s not easy to be detached from worldly affairs in this life.” Bai Yingyun smiled slightly: “Are you going to the Western Regions next?”
"Yes, there are some things that need to be resolved." Ye Xingchen nodded slowly.
"I have a few words to say to you, and I also have a favor to ask of you, though I'm not sure if I should say them." Bai Yingyun gazed at Ye Xingchen and sighed softly.
"Go ahead and say it," Ye Xingchen nodded.
"I have no more worldly attachments, only my two children in this mortal world." Bai Yingyun said slowly, "Chen Hao is already a cripple, and will no longer be your enemy. You can rest assured about that."
"Anything else?" Ye Xingchen asked.
“Roujin was hurt when she was young, and it’s all my fault,” Bai Yingyun said. “Now that she’s gone astray, she’ll probably seek revenge on you in the future.”
"I hope you... can spare her life."
"What if she remains obstinate and refuses to repent?" Ye Xingchen asked.
"Then kill her." Bai Yingyun said calmly, "I will not allow my daughter to die without knowing how to change and to bring disaster to the world."
"I understand. Do you have any advice for me?" Ye Xingchen asked again.
"Your journey to the Western Frontier is fraught with danger and bloodshed. I urge you to be extremely careful," Bai Yingyun said softly.
"I will, thank you for reminding me." Ye Xingchen nodded.
"That's good." Bai Yingyun smiled and turned to Su Ruochu: "Miss Su, have you entered the path of Zen?"
“When my grandmother passed away, she bestowed upon me her entire body of Qi and Zen principles, and I have gained some understanding of them, and have indeed entered the path of Zen,” Su Ruochu said softly.
"Miss Su, are you aware that you are facing a tribulation of inner demons?" Bai Yingyun asked.
“This…” Su Ruochu was slightly taken aback, then smiled and said, “If it’s there, then it is. It’s up to fate.”
"If Miss Su ever falls into demonic calamity and cannot extricate herself, please be sure to come to Sanxian Mountain to find me," Bai Yingyun said.
"Okay, I will." Su Ruochu felt a chill run down her spine and remembered those words.
"Observe the Dharma as if it were a transformation, samadhi is always tranquil, when the mind forgets, the environment is empty, when the environment is empty, the mind is extinguished."
With a Buddhist chant, Bai Yingyun's figure disappeared into the darkness, and everything around her seemed to fall silent.
The following night, at the Chen family residence.
Chen Wanning seemed to have aged more than ten years overnight. Now his hair was white and his former aura of authority had vanished.
Having lost two sons in a row, he now resembles an old man in his twilight years.
The saddest thing in the world is for a parent to outlive their child. In the mourning hall, looking at his son's portrait, he couldn't help but shed tears.
With his son dead, the collateral branches of the Chen family began to stir, and he increasingly felt powerless to change the situation.
Chen Liang brought Chen Hao over, and Chen Hao has suffered a lot of torment from Chen Liang these past few days.
His face was still bruised, and he didn't know what had happened. When he shakily raised his head and saw his father's portrait, he was completely stunned.
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