Chapter 89: Praying for Peace
Qin Xiangning's face was red from the cold. She sat on the futon in a proper manner, holding two pieces of dried fruit in her hands. She looked at the Bodhisattva statue with concentration and curiosity, wiped the two drops of saliva from the corners of her mouth with the back of her hand, and wiped her snot on her clothes while sniffing. "Big brother said that the gods can help good children realize their wishes. Beibei is a good child and very obedient! Along the way, I never complained about being tired like my brother Song, nor did I secretly eat my great-grandmother's food. Big sister praised me!" Beibei's innocent and cute self-promotion made Qin Xiangnuan chuckle at her baby voice.
"So what is your wish?"
Beibei is still young, so naturally he is not smart enough to notice that something is wrong.
Qin Xiangnuan naturally wanted to coax her, pinching her throat and asking in a changing voice. Qin Xiangning was startled, but quickly adjusted herself. She stared at the statue with wide eyes, her mind full of wild thoughts. She pressed her hands on the cushion and asked with blinking eyes, "Goddess, is that you? Why don't you open your mouth when you speak? Can you teach Beibei?"
Seeing that she didn't answer, Qin Xiangning staggered to his feet, walked to the bottom of the statue, and tried to climb up the steps using his hands and feet.
"If you don't tell me your wish, I'll leave!"
Seeing this, Qin Xiangnuan stopped her and scolded her in a slightly authoritative voice. Beibei was too frightened to move. She timidly moved her butt down and sat on the ground. She rubbed her sore bottom, bit her lip, and said a little aggrievedly, but tilted her head with two braids, "Fairy sister, your voice is a bit like my big sister. You look a bit like her too..." Did she hear it? Qin Xiangnuan couldn't help but become cautious and held her breath in silence.
Unexpectedly, the little guy's ears are very sensitive.
"Big sister is very good to me, always giving me delicious and sweet things. She has been very busy recently, and Daddy and Mommy won't let me play with her, saying that it will disturb Big sister's rest." Qin Xiangning lowered his head, pulled two fingers together, and gently touched them. Qin Xiangnuan didn't expect that she would like him so much. Touching the two remaining marshmallows in his arms, he rolled out on the ground, "Is this what you are talking about?"
Beibei rushed over, picked up the marshmallow, stuffed it into his mouth, and immediately his eyes narrowed into slits because of the sweetness.
She opened her mouth to say something, but she heard footsteps behind her. The crutches made a thumping sound as Old Lady Qin came out of the darkness. "Little girl, why are you here?" Beibei stood up, ran over, hugged Old Lady Qin's legs, and rubbed her head against her waist. Old Lady Qin hugged her head and pinched her chubby cheeks with her fingers, "Go back quickly."
"Sister Fairy's voice is so beautiful, Great-grandmother, she gave it back..." Beibei was about to reveal her secret, so Qin Xiangnuan quickly thought of a way. She picked up a stone from the ground and threw it across. The stone collided with the wall and made a sound. Beibei was so scared that she hid in the arms of Old Lady Qin and closed her eyes tightly. Old Lady Qin looked up at the statue, a look of disbelief flashing in her eyes, "Beibei, be good and wait for Great-grandmother outside."
Old Madam Qin watched Qin Xiangning go back, then put down her crutches and knelt devoutly on the mat.
Presumably, word of the Bodhisattva's miraculous presence had spread throughout the General's Mansion. The old lady had come in the dead of night, surely with a wish in mind. Qin Xiangnuan remained silent, quietly listening to the noises outside. Old Lady Qin wore a string of Buddhist beads on her wrist. They were the beads she had received from the abbot when Qin Guang first returned from his campaign, passing by a temple outside the capital.
Old Madam Qin wore it every day for many years, just because it made her feel that Qin Guang was always by her side.
Time ticked by. After reciting the Buddhist scriptures, Old Lady Qin looked up at the statue. Tears welled up in her cloudy, old eyes. She said, her voice choking slightly, "If you are truly in heaven, please bless my son and hope he will live a smooth and peaceful life." Was she actually praying for Qin Guang? Qin Xiangnuan looked at Old Lady Qin through the gap in surprise.
She was in poor health, suffering from many illnesses, and had to take medicine every day.
Qin Xiangnuan thought she would ask him to live a long life, but she never expected that the old lady would only think about Qin Guang who was far away.
"Guang'er suffered hardship as a child. As the eldest brother, he helped me raise my two troublesome younger brothers. A few years ago, he earned some military merit, and I thought I could live a good life, but he was framed by a traitor. I would never believe that Guang'er is collaborating with the enemy and treason. But Your Majesty is deaf and blind, unable to distinguish the truth from right and wrong. I am old, half a foot in the earth, and I am just waiting for you to take my life."
"But Guang'er is still young, and he still has a long way to go."
Old Madam Qin slowly leaned forward and kowtowed. When she arrived, she had already removed all her hairpins and jewelry, not even the down jacket Qin Xiangnuan had given her. She was only wearing a thin plain dress. "The Qin family has had many difficulties along the way. Someone secretly framed us. We are all grateful for the protection of Nuannuan's friends. Guang'er's situation will definitely be even more dangerous. If you are still in heaven, I will eat vegetarian food every day from now on and do good deeds, just to pray for his safety."
"I haven't heard from Guang'er for many days... I don't know if he's okay."
Madam Qin wiped away her tears, and Qin Xiangnuan's heart was moved. Indeed, as she said, Qin Guang would undoubtedly face far more dangers on his way to the border than they did. Seeing his destitute state, the foreign enemies in the court naturally sought to take his life. For over two weeks, Xu Jian hadn't received any letters from the exiles on the other side, completely cutting off contact.
Qin Xiangnuan couldn't bring herself to offer any feedback. She'd be aware of the situation if she did. The elderly Qin wasn't like Beibei, easily fooled by a few candies. So she could only quietly hide until she'd recited a Buddhist sutra several times before she left, leaning on her cane.
Dong—Qin Xiangnuan confirmed that there was no one around, moved some more things out of the space, and piled them in the cabinet next to the statue.
We'll leave this to Anliu and the others who'll come to investigate later. Qin Xiangnuan patted the hem of her skirt and quickly left. The hem of her skirt was stained with a little dirt from the statue, sometimes visible, sometimes hidden. Back in the cave, several people had already fallen into a very light sleep and were about to wake up.
Qin Xiangnuan hurried back to Liu's side and closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep.
When she closed her eyes, she didn't notice that Liu beside her opened her eyes almost at the same time, staring at Qin Xiangnuan with doubt and pain in her eyes, "Are you my Nuannuan?"
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