Chapter 1004: Extra [Cause and Effect in Previous Life (I)]
There are many quiet rooms in Lingyun Temple, most of which are used by monks and distinguished guests in the temple to discuss Zen and meditate. However, almost all of the quiet rooms are built together and are open to everyone. Only the quiet room for Xindeng meditation is separated from all other places. Not only is it in a remote place in the temple, but outsiders are not allowed to set foot in the surrounding area.
In the past, some people tried to go there, but they were always stopped by nearby monks before they could get close. However, Xiao Yan was able to pass through unhindered tonight, which obviously showed that someone had expected him to come.
Xiao Yan walked inside in the dim light and saw a monk wearing a dark blue robe sitting on a cushion.
He closed his eyes slightly, tapping the wooden fish in his hand. The sound from the wooden fish engraved with intricate Buddhist verses echoed throughout the quiet room, and the sound of the sandalwood incense rising from the table soothed people's worries.
As if hearing footsteps, Xin Deng raised his eyes with a kind look: "You are here."
"you…"
Xiao Yan walked to the opposite side of Xin Deng with some hesitation, and couldn't help being surprised when his eyes fell on his face.
"How did you become like this?"
The person sitting on the cushion opposite had wrinkles all over his face, his body was a little hunched as he sat cross-legged, his eyebrows were frosted white, and even the hand holding Jianzhi looked as if the skin had been dried by the wind, revealing the blue veins inside.
Xiao Yan remembered that the last time he saw Xin Deng, he looked full of energy, wearing monk's robes and talking and laughing. Although he looked old, he had a calm aura. He was over eighty years old but looked only sixty.
But now, after only six or seven years of not seeing him, he seemed to have been drained of his energy and spirit. He looked like a frail old man, with not only a turbid and weak breath, but even his appearance had aged by dozens of years.
It was as if one's foot had stepped into the soil and could die at any moment, even leaving spots on the face.
Xin Deng looked at Xiao Yan with astonishment, put down the sword in his hand, and smiled: "It's just skin and skin. As time goes by, it will become old. I am also just an ordinary person, how can I be an exception?"
"Your Majesty, you look different than you did a few years ago. Your bad luck has been resolved, and you have now achieved perfection. Why are you still looking for me?"
Xiao Yan stared intently: "I am confused."
He used "朕" instead of "我".
His eyes fell on Xin Deng, and he made it clear in one word that the question he asked tonight must be answered.
Xin Deng looked at the young emperor opposite him. He was no longer as murderous as he was in the cave. He was much calmer now, but the majesty of an emperor was undoubtedly revealed in his words.
Xin Deng sighed softly and pointed to the cushion beside him: "Your Majesty, please sit down."
Xiao Yan walked over and sat down.
Xin Deng pushed the wooden fish aside, took the teapot, poured tea, and handed it to Xiao Yan before saying, "Your Majesty, what is there to be confused about?"
Xiao Yan said, "I have two questions for you. First, do you know anything about the strange phenomenon that has befallen the Queen?"
Xin Deng nodded: "I know."
Xiao Yan pressed on, "Is it related to you?"
Xin Deng said, "Maybe."
Xiao Yan's eyes darkened when he heard this: "What do you mean by maybe?"
Xin Deng looked at him calmly: "What I mean is that I'm not sure either."
Seeing Xiao Yan's doubts, he said:
"When I first met Young Donor Rong, I did sense a hint of conflicting willpower in her. She also had the aura of both a troubled time and the rebellion of someone who should have died."
"Before that day, I had never seen her, nor had I ever had any contact with her. However, her fate's reversal seemed to be related to me, and I was also involved, but I couldn't figure out the reason. So after that, I secluded myself and continued to explore until today."
Xiao Yan frowned: "So, have you ever found the truth?"
Xin Deng looked at him and said, "I didn't understand before, but after meeting His Majesty today, I understand a little bit."
Xiao Yan's heart skipped a beat, and some guesses emerged in his mind, but he couldn't bring himself to say them. He just stared at the person opposite him with a serious look.
"Your Majesty, do you still remember what I said to you the day we first met after you returned to the capital?"
Xin Deng raised his eyes, his eyes cloudy. "When I saw you giving me medicine that day, it was because I was friends with Emperor Taizu when we were young. I couldn't bear to see his bloodline damaged, nor could I bear to see the Emperor's star fall and the country in turmoil. But after seeing you, I discovered that you have the fate of Pojun Tiansha. You can rule the world with Ziwei, but because of your heavy sins of killing, you are destined to have no relatives or heirs, and you are destined to die young in your thirties."
"After your death, the world was in turmoil for decades, and countless souls died in vain. I wanted to resolve the crisis for you in exchange for an opportunity, but I discovered that you already had a glimmer of hope, and there was a karmic connection between you and me."
He was puzzled at the time and didn't know the origin of this cause and effect. He also suspected that this cause and effect was because of the deceased Emperor Taizu. It was not until he met the girl from the Rong family and saw her strange fate that he vaguely realized that this cause and effect might not be Xiao Yan.
After that day, he went into seclusion to meditate, hoping to see through the secrets, but as soon as he vaguely touched the edge, it was as if he had peeped into something he shouldn't have, and his body quickly aged.
When the news came that Xiao Yan had a son, he suffered a backlash and became emaciated overnight.
At that time, Xin Deng understood that this cause and effect was related to the emperor and empress, and he might have violated a taboo without knowing it.
When he saw Xiao Yan again today, Xin Deng discovered that his fate had indeed changed. He was no longer destined to die early, and he had the merits of an emperor. He also caught a glimpse of the truth that he had been unable to see in the past few years.
"Her vision was born of you."
"Because of me?"
Even though Xiao Yan had guessed it long ago, his heart still trembled. Tang Ning had clearly said that he was not good to her in that life and even failed to protect her well, but Xin Deng said that her chance to start over was because of him.
Xiao Yan said in a deep voice: "I want to know the specific reason."
Xin Deng shook his head: "How can the secrets of heaven be revealed casually? Otherwise, I wouldn't have to remain in seclusion for so many years. Now I can only guess a little. The specific reason is probably only known to Your Majesty yourself."
He took out a string of Buddhist beads from his sleeve and handed it to Xiao Yan:
"This string of Buddhist beads has been nurtured by me for many years, and it has long been stained by my karma. Your Majesty, spilling blood on it may be a sign of karma, but prying into the secrets of heaven will consume your Majesty's merits from past lives..."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan reached out and took the Buddhist beads without hesitation: "What should I do?"
Heart Lamp: "Your Majesty, please only take the blood from your finger and smear it on the Buddhist beads. But Your Majesty must remember that you can only observe the cause and effect, and you cannot interfere."
Xiao Yan nodded, opened his clothes, took the blood from his heart and smeared it on the Buddhist beads.
"Close your eyes and concentrate."
"Wear these beads on your wrist and never take them off."
Xiao Yan sat cross-legged on the ground with his eyes closed. There was a faint scent of sandalwood beside him, as if it was mixed with something else. He felt empty for a moment, and then he heard the sound of the hammer hitting the wooden fish again.
The scene in front of me gradually became clear, and I could hear the soft voice of a girl.
"Mother, why do you think Brother Lu doesn't like me? Even Brother Lu favors others. Am I really that bad?"
The little girl was adding fuel to the eternal lamp while whispering with red eyes.
"Am I really unlovable?"
When the sound of wooden fish came from the front hall, she secretly wiped away her tears and hung her head, looking extremely dejected.
"Tang Ning..."
When Xiao Yan saw Tang Ning, who looked like a young girl, he subconsciously wanted to walk over, but found that he passed her head-on. The little girl walked past him and went to the lamp stand where the eternal lamp was placed at the back, but the hand he stretched out was empty.
He instantly realized that everything before him was like an illusion and he could not touch her.
The little girl was not as resentful as she was when he first met her. Even when she was wronged, her eyes were red and she looked very spoiled.
Holding the eternal lamp, she whispered to her deceased mother and complained about her elder brother's partiality and Lu Zhinian's cold treatment of her. She didn't like the new concubine in the mansion and didn't like her gradually encroaching on what should have belonged to her.
She carefully put away the eternal lamp filled with oil. She was clearly complaining and felt extremely aggrieved, but in the end she still prayed obediently.
"I know my brothers didn't do it on purpose, so I won't bother with them."
"Mother, please bless my brother with a successful career and bless Brother Lu with safety and health..."
Xiao Yan looked at the surroundings and listened to his little Haitang praying for others. He vaguely guessed what time it was. It was the anniversary of the death of Second Madam Song, and it was also the day he met Tang Ning in the mountains. In other words, something would happen to Tang Ning next.
Sure enough, not long after, he saw the Song family's concubine's daughter walking in from the outer room.
Song Shulan looked gentle and kind, but she could irritate the simple-minded Tang Ning with just a few words. She deliberately used Song Jinxiu and others to provoke the young Tang Ning, and knocked over the eternal lamp of Madam Song II with her own hands. Tang Ning could no longer bear it and slapped Song Shulan in the face.
Xiao Yan's heart skipped a beat, and the next moment he heard Song Jinxiu's furious voice.
"Song Tangning, what are you doing?!"
Witnessing the slapping with her own eyes, Song Shulan endured the tears with scheming. She said, "It's not my sister's fault, I shouldn't have returned to the capital," which made Tang Ning, who was full of "quibbling" and refused to apologize, lose the upper hand.
The little girl's crying turned into unreasonable behavior, and all her excuses became unrepentant.
Xiao Yan watched with his own eyes as Lu Zhinian and the other man took Song Shulan away, leaving the terrified little girl in the snowy forest. He watched her crying out "Brother" and being dragged into the deep forest by a mad horse in panic, and he felt a surge of violence.
He told himself that it was okay, he would be able to see Tang Ning soon, and as long as he recognized Xiao Haitang, he would protect her.
But it was not until Tang Ning was thrown off the horse's back, watching her tumbling all the way down the cliff, and seeing her fall into the snow pit with her face cut and covered in blood, that he could not help but scream.
“Aning!!”
Xiao Yan struggled to rush over, but passed through Tang Ning's body. He watched her bleed and cry in pain, but he was powerless to do anything. But at this moment, he faintly heard a familiar voice.
"The sound just now seemed to be from this side. Hey, there's a horse here... Master, do you want to go take a look?"
"Seeing a dead person?"
"...Yes, if someone fell from such a high place, they would have died a long time ago..."
Canglang!
Xiao Yan suddenly raised his head with a look of surprise on his face, and his figure rose and landed on the cliff. He reached out and grabbed Cang Lang and said hurriedly:
"There's someone down there, help them..."
"Save Tang Ning!!"
His hand suddenly missed and Xiao Yan, who had pounced on him, didn't catch anything. He staggered and fell to the ground.
Canglang touched his neck and shuddered: "The wind in this mountain is really creepy. It makes me feel very cold."
The people in the carriage were indifferent: "Stop talking nonsense, go down the mountain and return to Beijing."
"don't want!"
Xiao Yan had never imagined that he hadn't saved Tang Ning in this life. He hadn't even seen her on the mountain. The mountain road was remote, and the place where Tang Ning fell was even less visited. Now she was unconscious and couldn't even call for help. If they left, what would happen to Tang Ning?!
Xiao Yan screamed and tried to stop him, but Canglang passed through him and returned to the shaft of the cart.
He grumbled to the people in the carriage with some complaints about the grain tax, the troubles they had encountered this time, and that after returning to Beijing, he would definitely deal with the people who attacked and killed them on their way back. The "he" in the carriage listened indifferently from beginning to end without ever lifting the curtain.
The carriage left, taking away Tang Ning's hope of survival. What made Xiao Yan even more panicked was that he was also pulled away from the cliff.
He could only watch the carriage go farther and farther away, the wind whistling in the forest, and he could no longer hear any sound from the bottom of the cliff.
…
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