Because they got up too early and planned to "accidentally" meet Mrs. Xiang in the temple, Shiyi Niang sent two maids to ask Jining for a clean and secluded room yesterday afternoon. After breakfast, the group went to the room. Jining still had morning lessons to do, so she stayed with him for a few words and then got up to leave.

Eleventh Lady waited for the lady to rest.

The second wife pointed to the big kang by the window in the outer room and said, "You've worked hard, Fourth Brother's wife. Take a rest! I'll go for a walk outside."

The kang is quite big, and it is no problem for two people to sleep on it. She said this because she didn't want to sleep on the same bed with me. And Shiyi Niang didn't have the habit of sharing a bed with strangers. She smiled and said, "Second sister-in-law got up early today, so let her rest!" She added, "I just want to ask Jining nun for some amulets for me."

The Second Lady knew that two of the Luo family's concubines had become nuns here, so she smiled and stopped being polite, and Jiexiang helped her get on the kang. Eleventh Lady took Mother Song and Amber out of the house.

"Madam, do you really want to ask Master Jining for a peace amulet?" Amber asked hesitantly.

"Well!" Eleventh Lady laughed, "He spent almost two hours talking to me about 'One should not dwell on anything and give rise to the mind' the other day. We should at least have some reaction!" Then she asked Mother Song to invite Jining over, "... We can't just run around the temple like this!"

After hearing this, Mother Song's expression visibly relaxed.

She was really afraid that the Fourth Lady would suggest going out for a walk. It would be troublesome if she ran into those lechers who always went to the temple - if the news got out, it would always damage the reputation of women.

As if she was afraid that Shiyi Niang would change her mind, she quickly replied "yes" and turned to leave the courtyard.

Amber couldn't bring up the matter of the concubine. She asked Eleventh Lady in a low voice, "Are you tired, Madam? Or, should we ask for another wing room? I'll send a little maid to watch over here, and report to you if there's any movement."

"No need." Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "We'll go back home after lunch. You can take a nap in the car then, which is better than sleeping restlessly like this."

Amber no longer insisted and saw a small pavilion behind the wing room. She said, "How about I accompany Madam to sit over there?"

Getting up so early makes people feel full of energy. The air is fresh, and there are occasional chirping sounds of birds in the woods. Eleventh Lady also becomes interested.

"Okay! Let's go sit in that pavilion!"

Amber agreed, and asked the maid to bring cushions, tea sets and other things, and accompanied Eleventh Lady to the pavilion in the mountains.

Sitting on the beauty railing of the pavilion and looking down, you can just see the release pond of Ciyuen Temple.

Although it was morning and not the first or fifteenth day of the lunar month, the pond was gradually becoming as lively as a market. There were old ladies in ragged clothes, young women in gorgeous clothes, and a few children surrounded by servants...

Eleventh Lady took the initiative to mention the two concubines: "Since you have become a nun, you should put aside all worldly affairs! Let's not bother them!"

Amber nodded and served hot tea to Shiyi Niang.

Eleventh Lady stood up suddenly: "Amber, look! Is that person Lu Yonggui?"

Amber was startled and looked in the direction that Shiyi Niang pointed. She saw a middle-aged man in a lilac Taoist robe. He was of medium build and had a very calm demeanor. He stood out among the group of women. But they were too far away, so she couldn't be sure.

Eleventh Lady's expression became serious, and she ordered her: "Call a servant to accompany you to take a look!"

Amber didn't dare to delay and left immediately.

Eleventh Lady sat down slowly.

Both concubines entered the mansion at a very young age and knew nothing about the outside world. But they chose to come to Yanjing... People usually feel inexplicably close to a city because of familiar people in a strange city!

Thinking of this, she became a little restless.

Is that person Lu Yonggui? If so, why did he come to Ciyuan Temple where the two concubines practiced? Is it a coincidence? Or... Lu Yonggui is Yuanniang's most trusted companion, who manages Zhun Ge's property, while the two concubines are at odds with the first wife. Is there a secret between them?

Shiyi Niang was a little worried. Thinking back to the lies the two concubines had told her, the death of Concubine Yang, and Shi Niang's suicide on her wedding day... her fingers holding the teacup turned slightly pale.

Lu Yun gently reminded Shiyi Niang: "Fourth Madam, Master Jining is here!"

Eleventh Lady said "Oh", calmed down, and stood up with a smile.

Mother Song accompanied Jining, who was breathing slightly, into the small pavilion.

"Fourth Madam really knows how to choose a place." Jining bowed and said with a smile, "This small pavilion is called the Viewing Pavilion. It is the best pavilion in our Ciyuan Temple." Then he pointed to the pond for releasing animals at the foot of the mountain, "Not only can you see the pond," he pointed to a forest on the right, "you can also see plum blossoms all over the mountain. It's a pity that Fourth Madam came a little late. If she had come two months earlier, she would have heated a pot of wine and sat here to enjoy the snow and plum blossoms, which would have been a great thing."

Eleventh Lady was thinking about that figure and exchanged a few words with Jining.

Seeing that Shiyi Niang was not in the mood to talk, Jining tactfully welcomed her to a small Buddhist temple not far from the wing room, burned incense to Guanyin Bodhisattva, wrote a peace amulet, folded it into a triangle and placed it in a dark blue brocade purse embroidered with white lotus flowers.

Eleventh Lady lost twenty taels of incense money.

Jining sent Shiyi Niang back to the courtyard. On the way, he told her about the two concubines: "...the two concubines never stepped out of the front door or the back door, and they have been practicing diligently!"

In a flash, Eleventh Lady changed her mind.

She smiled and said, "Since I'm here, I have to go meet the two aunts!"

Jining is not afraid that Shiyi Niang needs her, but is afraid that Shiyi Niang does not need her.

With a smile on her face, she led Eleventh Lady to a courtyard with three entrances behind the small Buddhist temple.

The yard is kept clean and tidy, with bluestone bricks on the ground and Xiangfei bamboo planted there, which is very elegant.

The two concubines lived in the back of the courtyard, in two suites, one bright and one dark. On the long table in the central hall of the bright room was a statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva, and in front of the statue were two straw buns. There was nothing else in the room. The two concubines were wearing green silk and black clothes, with their hair in a bun and a peach wood hairpin. The eldest concubine was still kind and friendly, while the second concubine was still cold and frosty. But compared to when they were in the Luo family, the two looked much better. Especially the eldest concubine, who had gained a lot of weight.

"We are now lay Buddhists, and our house is simple. Miss Eleven, please bear with us!" The eldest aunt looked at the Eleventh Lady with a trace of guilt in her eyes, turned around and went into the house to bring out an armchair, "Please sit down!"

The Second Aunt watched as she brought out another armchair from the inner room without saying a word and placed it next to Jining: "Master, please sit down." Although she was not enthusiastic, she was not cold either, and there was none of the sharpness that Eleventh Aunt remembered.

"I wonder what the master has come here with Miss Eleven for?" The second aunt stood silently aside while the eldest aunt greeted them.

"You can't call her Miss Eleven anymore." Jining glanced at the silent Miss Eleven and smiled to liven up the atmosphere. "Your Miss Eleven is now the wife of Marquis Yongping. You should call her Madam Xu!"

The eldest aunt smiled and called out "Mrs. Xu": "Why did you suddenly think of coming to see us?"

"I accompanied the Madam to the temple to burn incense today," Eleventh Lady said briefly, "and came to take a look by the way!"

The young chef who answered the door brought in tea.

Jining personally presented it to Shiyi Niang.

The fragrance is refreshing, it is the best Mingqian Longjing, and after a sip, the mouth is fragrant. Although it is not as good as the one the lady had appreciated, it is not much worse.

Seeing that Shiyi Niang didn't say anything and just sat there drinking tea, Jining smiled and stood up: "Madam, please sit here. I'll go and see how the vegetarian meal prepared for the Madam is going!"

Eleventh Lady did not keep her, and told Mother Song to send her out, then suddenly asked: "What is Lu Yonggui doing here?"

The two aunts' faces changed drastically when they heard this.

Eleventh Lady felt relieved and sat there drinking tea leisurely.

"Nothing!" The aunt forced a smile, "We are all from the same hometown. He just comes to see us when he comes back to Yanjing occasionally!"

Eleventh Lady stood up and said, "In that case, I'll go ask Lu Yongfu. He's Lu Yonggui's brother, so he should know some things!"

After hearing this, the eldest aunt hurried forward and pulled Eleventh Lady's sleeve: "Madam Xu, this has nothing to do with the brothers Lu Yonggui and Lu Yongfu!" There was a hint of panic in her expression.

Second Aunt took a long breath, "Miss Eleven is now the wife of Marquis Yongping, and she behaves very differently." She looked at Miss Eleven with a slight smile, and a hint of sarcasm between her brows, "This is not a secret. The older people in the Luo family know it. Since Madam Xu came to us specifically for this matter, it would not be a good way to entertain guests if we keep hiding it.

Before I was taken in by the eldest master, I was engaged to the nephew of Manager Niu. Lu Yonggui and Lu Yongfu lost their father when they were young. Thanks to Manager Niu's help, they were later arranged to work as servants in the mansion. Speaking of which, we have some history. When meeting old friends in a foreign land, Manager Lu will inevitably come to see us. "

If you have doubts, you must provide evidence!

Eleventh Lady, let it go for now.

"Why did Aunt Yang commit suicide?" She stared into the eyes of the eldest aunt, "Please don't tell me I don't know. Shi Niang was escorted to Yanjing by the same escort agency as you!"

When the aunt heard this, her expression darkened and she sighed slightly, but she showed no guilt.

"Yang Yimiang has caught a cold since the time when the first wife knelt down in the ancestral hall." The second wife said calmly, "The first wife has not given her medical treatment. After a long delay, she has developed tuberculosis. The few private money she has in her hand has almost been used up. For the sake of Shi Niang's future, she had to force Shi Niang to flatter the first wife. Seeing that the first wife had no intention of letting her off easily, she thought that the first wife was unreliable. So she discussed with the two of us and asked us to escort Shi Niang to Yanjing. It was all Yang Yimiang's idea to hire the escort agency. As for suicide..." The second wife smiled coldly at this point, "She has been terminally ill for a long time. Instead of sitting and waiting to die, she might as well give it a try. She was just hoping that the first master would give Shi Niang a future for the sake of their past love and the fact that Shi Niang grew up under his nose and loved her the most."

Who knew that this man was not reliable at all!

※

Sisters, I wish you all good luck in the Year of the Rabbit, and may all your wishes come true!

Although it is a very old-fashioned wish, it is still very auspicious if you think about it carefully.

(*^__^*) Hehehe…

It’s time for New Year greetings, and Zhizhi is reaching out for red envelopes - Happy New Year, and sisters who have pink tickets, please give your support!

PS: I got home very late, so I’ll post the draft first and catch some bugs tomorrow!