Chapter 1003 Extra [Tang Ning VS Xiao Yan (Part 3)]
In fact, Xiao Yan rarely mentioned what happened before he came to the capital. After Tang Ning was with him, she only knew that he had a difficult life after the death of Prince Li. The Xiao family almost sacrificed the entire clan to protect him. After Xiao Yan escaped, he was seriously injured and only a few loyal people were left by his side. He narrowly escaped death several times in order to plan to return to the capital to clear the name of the Eastern Palace.
His face and body were almost completely replaced, and the poison in his body was not completely eliminated until he ascended the throne.
It was rare for him to talk about the past now, and Tang Ning couldn't help but be attracted by it.
"And then?" she asked.
Xiao Yan turned the rabbit over and said, "Then I ate my barbecue in the cave, while the old man Xin Deng chanted the sutra for salvation beside me."
He still remembered that when the Heart Lamp appeared, he not only "killed" and "ate meat", breaking the precepts of Lingyun Temple, but also happened to be planning to go back to the capital to do some things in those days. When he found clues about the fire in the East Palace, he chased after it and was almost captured. After escaping, he was hit by an arrow.
There are many martial monks in Lingyun Temple, and any blood in the Buddhist temple will alarm others. With such injuries, he didn't dare to go back to the temple, so he hid in the back mountain. When he met Xindeng, killing and barbecuing were secondary. He was covered in blood, and there were crossbow arrows that had just been pulled out on the ground.
The crossbows used by the government were extraordinary and their depth could be seen at a glance. His first reaction at that time was that his identity was exposed and he wanted to kill Xin Deng to silence him, but who knew that the old monk was not afraid at all. He walked into the cave with the sharp knife in his hand and gave him medicine for his wounds.
Xiao Yan chuckled softly, "That old monk is quite strange. Even though it was our first meeting, he claimed we were destined to be together. He also said that the intersection of my fate lines seemed to indicate a connection with him. He said I had the fate of Pojun Tiansha, and that my thoughts and actions would bring about a mixture of merit and destruction. He also said that I owed him a karma."
At that time, Xiao Yan thought that the old monk was just a charlatan and didn't bother to pay attention to him. It was not until Xin Deng said that his imperial star was setting and there was a sign of chaos that Xiao Yan realized that his supernatural words were not nonsense.
At least that old monk was the only one he had never dealt with since returning to Beijing who saw through his identity at a glance.
Xiao Yan was extremely alert at the time and had murderous thoughts several times, but the old monk was very calm. Not only did he heal his wounds and suppress the poison running rampant in his body, he also told him that if his long-cherished wish ever came true, he should come back to the temple to see him. Perhaps after he returned to the throne, he would be able to see through the entanglement between the two.
At that time, Xiao Yan was full of resentment and hatred, and his hands were stained with blood for revenge, and many people died at his hands. With the ability of Xin Deng, it was impossible for him not to see it, but Xin Deng did not persuade him to be good, did not let him put down his butcher knife, and even did not question the meat hanging on the grill in the cave.
He ate his meat, and the monk chanted his own sutras.
Later, Xiao Yan lost too much blood and was extremely tired. He actually fell asleep for the first time to the sound of chanting to liberate the souls of the dead. When he woke up, he was wearing the old monk's robe, but the heart lamp was gone.
Tang Ning was surprised when she heard Xiao Yan's words, but after being surprised, she felt that this was indeed the temperament of Master Xindeng. She whispered, "Actually, I have met Master Xindeng before."
Xiao Yan was a little surprised: "When?"
Tang Ning said, "Back when you first received the Dragon Jade Order and headed for the Northwest Zhen'an Army, do you still remember how the Empress and her son, along with the Zhao family, used Princess Leyang to frame me in Lingyun Temple. Their innocence was ruined, but I managed to kill several birds with one stone?"
"Master Xindeng was there when the incident happened. He saw through it immediately. I thought he might reprimand me, saying I was disturbing the tranquility of the temple, but he said nothing. He also didn't have the compassion that other monks have who can't stand seeing evil deeds."
Tang Ning still remembers the indifference to human life shown by the Heart Lamp when it told her, "All beings are equal in the eyes of Buddha, and those who commit evil deeds are responsible for their own life and death."
and……
"He seemed to know what had happened to me."
Xiao Yan raised his eyebrows, and after a moment of confusion, he realized what Tang Ning meant, and a serious look appeared on his face.
He turned around and looked around. Jinyun and the others had already retreated far away. Xiao Yan then approached Tang Ning and asked, "What did he say?"
Tang Ning whispered, "Master Xin Deng said that I was destined to die, that I had strayed from my original destiny, and that he saw a chaotic world in me, a person who was supposed to be dead. He also said that the intersection of my fate lines seemed to indicate rebellion, and that I was tainted with the merits of breaking the sky and the sins of killing."
Similar words made Xiao Yan frown: "What else did he say?"
"there is none left."
Tang Ning shook his head. "That time I met him, it was a rush. He just said that he and I seemed to have a problem and he was curious about what happened to me, but he didn't find the answer and didn't force anything. He gave me a few Buddhist scriptures and left. Later, I wanted to come and look for him, but he had been traveling abroad a few years ago and has been in seclusion for the past few years."
Xin Deng was a rare eminent monk in the world, and his followers were not limited to Wei. Tang Ning was a little afraid of his abilities, so she did not force him to stay in seclusion and not see anyone.
Tang Ning didn't know that Xiao Yan and Xin Deng had such a "past". After she finished speaking, she looked at Xiao Yan, and both of them had vague guesses.
The so-called entanglement may not be between her and him, but between the two of them.
Xiao Yan's eyes darkened a little: "Have you ever seen me in your previous life?"
Tang Ning hesitated and nodded.
Xiao Yan's voice became lower: "Am I not good to you?"
It was not a question, but a straightforward affirmation, as if he had seen everything with his own eyes. Even though Tang Ning didn't say anything, Xiao Yan already understood that in that life that he didn't know about, he treated his little Haitang badly. He didn't protect her, and he might not even have recognized her, otherwise Xin Deng wouldn't have said the words "a dead person".
She died once before she met him again, but when she met him, she was still as pure as a child.
Xiao Yan didn't think that her hatred and resentment towards the Song and Lu families was something a girl who had never experienced anything would have. But if she had suffered torture and betrayal and died after going through a disaster, she would definitely not be so naive and without any scheming.
Unless she died before she had time to grow up.
Unless she suffered and died without ever having the chance to retaliate.
Xiao Yan had long known that Tang Ning had suffered a lot in the life he had not participated in, but since she did not want to mention it, he never asked. But at this moment, he realized that his little Haitang had suffered a lot in that unknown life.
He felt as if a big hand was tightly gripping his heart, making it painful for him to breathe.
Xiao Yan suddenly reached out and hugged Tang Ning tightly: "I'm sorry."
In that life, he didn't take good care of her and didn't find her early.
Tang Ning sensed the trembling in his voice, and her eyes were a little sour, but more of a relief. She put her arms around Xiao Yan and patted his back gently: "Don't be sad, I'm fine now."
She has never forgotten the nightmare-like past, but now she is no longer confused and in pain because of the light shining in.
Her light warmed her, taught her to grow, and allowed her to transform and bloom. She could look back on those painful years with peace of mind, soothe her once lonely soul, then raise her head and stride forward to embrace the joy of the rest of her life.
So he never had to apologize to her.
Xiao Yan listened to her words but did not respond, he just hugged her tighter.
The sound of wind in the forest gradually rose, the flames licked the bottom of the pot, the fish soup in the pot began to boil and the aroma of roasted rabbit on the fire also spread.
Tang Ning nudged Xiao Yan: "I'm hungry."
Xiao Yan calmed down and recovered when he let her go: "Wait a minute, let me see if it's done."
…
After a hearty meal in the woods, the moon was already high in the sky when Xiao Yan brought Tang Ning back to the temple. He rarely bothered her. He just washed up and hugged her to sleep. When he felt the breath of the person in his arms become steady and long, he carefully let her go, tucked in the quilt for her, and got up to leave the yard.
"Your Majesty." Jinyun and Yuejian hurried forward.
Xiao Yan turned his head and instructed Yue Jian, "Take good care of the Queen."
Lingyun Temple is located halfway up the mountain and is very quiet after dark. Except for the bright lights in the Baoming Hall and the eternally burning lights in the Buddhist hall at the back of the temple, other places are pitch black, making the shadows of the forest in the mountains appear hazy under the moonlight.
Jin Yun followed Xiao Yan and saw him walking straight towards the quiet room in the temple. He couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty, Master Xin Deng has gone into seclusion. I'm afraid you won't be able to see him if you go there now..."
"What about the death barrier? It's not like you're going to die."
Xiao Yan had too many doubts in his heart, and what he said with Tang Ning tonight made him have too many things to ask the old monk. He didn't force Xin Deng to come out of seclusion before because he felt that it didn't matter whether he saw him or not, but now he wanted to see him, and the excuse of seclusion alone couldn't stop him.
Jinyun saw that his Majesty's face looked bad, and he was full of doubts but he did not ask any more questions. The king and his minister walked all the way to the quiet room, and saw from a distance someone holding a lantern standing outside the quiet room waiting.
Only when he got closer did Xiao Yan see the man's face clearly.
"Enlightenment?"
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
Liaowu was wearing a monk's robe, and his face, which was over sixty years old, showed signs of old age.
Xiao Yan was a little surprised. He still remembered that when he just returned to the capital, Xin Deng rarely appeared in public to preach. At that time, the abbot of Lingyun Temple was Liao Wu. Later, when he entered the palace and gained power, Xin Deng almost never appeared in public except for state affairs. Most of the affairs in the temple were handled by Liao Wu.
In the second year of his reign, Liaowu passed the position of abbot to Huifang because of his old age, and then he went into seclusion with Xindeng. After Ayao was born, he wanted to come and see Xindeng, but Liaowu stopped him outside the quiet room, saying that Xindeng was in seclusion and would not see anyone.
Xiao Yan came here tonight, originally planning to force his way in if Xin Deng didn't see him. However, he didn't expect Wu to know what he was going to do. He put his hands together and said to him:
"Master is already waiting for Your Majesty inside."
Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes slightly: "He knew I was coming?"
Liao Wu said calmly, "There are traces of things in the world." He bowed, "Your Majesty, please."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan didn't say much and just walked inside. Jin Yun behind him hurriedly wanted to catch up, but was stopped by Luo Wu.
"Uncle Master only saw His Majesty."
Xiao Yan said to Jin Yun, "Wait outside."
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