This day was the day when the Sheng family went to burn incense and fulfill their vows. The inner house was in motion early in the morning. Three large flat-top carriages made of paulownia wood were ready at the second gate. One was for the old ladies Wang and Hai, one for the three Lans, and one for several maids and old women. Wang also ordered eight or nine strong old women and a dozen guards to set off.
Having both risen early, Molan and Rulan were tired and had no interest in bickering. They just seemed to doze off, just like Minglan, leaning against the cushions as the carriage rocked. Rulan, disliking Molan, kept leaning against Minglan, pressing down on her until she tossed and turned in agony. It took a long time for Minglan to finally wake up, and when she heard the faint sound of Zen bells outside, she knew they were almost there.
Minglan used the skill she had used to wake her roommates up for morning self-study and pinched their noses expertly. They woke up in a short while and glared at Minglan. Minglan smiled and said, "Sisters, we're almost at Guangji Temple."
Upon hearing this, Molan quickly lowered her head to fix her makeup. Rulan was a beat slower and also reached out to adjust a pair of small hairpins with glittering gold-boxed inverted lotus flowers on her temples. The three Lans in the car heard the voices outside gradually getting louder, mostly women's voices, interspersed with some children's voices. It seemed that many families came to burn incense, and the faint aftertaste of sandalwood filled the car.
Listening to the commotion outside, the three girls looked at each other, their hearts feeling like they were being scratched by a fat cat. They stared at each other, but no one dared to lift the curtain to look. Minglan lowered her head and sighed: The theory of the three monks is really classic.
The atmosphere inside the carriage was low. Suddenly, the carriage jolted violently. The three girls, none of whom had secured their seats, were thrown forward, nearly falling. Suddenly, a burst of yelling and cursing rang out from outside. Minglan felt a surge of excitement. Did carriages in ancient times also rear-end each other?!
Rulan, the most agile, was the first to get up, touching her head. Even though the car was covered with thick velvet cushions, she still felt pain from hitting her forehead. She immediately yelled, "What happened?!" - Of course, no one answered her.
After Molan got up, she alertly leaned to the side and lifted a curtain to look. Rulan didn't bother to ridicule her and also leaned over to look. Finally, Minglan who got up followed the crowd and leaned over to look. Fortunately, the coachman of Sheng Mansion drove the carriage behind a big tree on the side of the road, which provided some shelter. The three Lans were not seen when they secretly lifted the curtain.
This sight startled her immediately. The old lady and her companions' carriage was parked in front. There was chaos outside, with people crying and shouting for their parents, so the carriage could not pass. Not far away, several young men in fine clothes and jade ornaments were riding tall horses, laughing and cursing. Minglan listened briefly and realized that they had just galloped past, kicking over several small stalls that had been set up at the intersection. Because they were moving too fast, they also trampled down many pedestrians. Women and children were crying, and people and horses were falling, but they still blocked the way.
Molan cursed softly: "Dandy!"
Rulan growled, "Scum!"
Minglan thought to herself: Urban management?!
One of the men in bright red brocade clothes raised his horse whip and cursed loudly, "You blind slave! How dare you block my way? I'll trample you to death like a grasshopper!"
A man below was supporting his dying mother, whose head was covered in blood from the collision, and he shouted angrily, "You...you, have no law? You are so abhorrent and disregard human life!"
The man in red swung the whip, and the man's face was covered with blood. He lowered his head and hugged his mother. The man in red's face was shaking, and he pulled his back teeth apart and spat: "The law? I am the law! Why don't you get out of the way!" The man seemed to be provoked to be stubborn, and he stepped forward and hugged the man in red's thighs and refused to let go. The man in red just whipped him with the whip, but the man refused to let go.
Several other noble young men on horseback nearby all laughed and said, "Rongxian! Your whip isn't strong enough!"
"Could it be that Little Cuixian drained her body last night? Hahahaha..."
"Brother, you better be careful when smoking, don't hurt your waist. If anything happens to you, half of Tianxian Pavilion's business will go bankrupt!"... The young men in bright clothes and riding horses around laughed and joked.
Rong Xian was even more enraged. He whipped harder, thrashing the man until his skin was torn and flesh was exposed. He was joking with someone nearby when he heard a cold male voice say, "If you want to whip someone, go back and find a servant to beat him to your heart's content. Even if you beat him to death, no one will care. What are you doing here? The son of Lord Yang is holding a poetry gathering in the plum forest in the back mountain today. Everyone will be going up the mountain soon!"
Minglan had already turned her head away and stopped looking, but suddenly she felt that the voice seemed familiar, so she glanced again and saw a man in a royal blue round-necked straight-collared dress. Even when riding a horse, he looked broad-shouldered and straight-backed, and very tall. Who else could it be but Gu Tingye?
At this time, more and more carriages stopped at the intersection. All of them were magnificent, with strong people on board. Several families had sent their servants to inquire about the situation. When the group of young men in brocade clothes saw that something was wrong, they threw out a handful of silver and money, galloped away on their horses, and left behind only the common people crying and shouting on the ground. They were kicked and trampled for no reason, but they were still rushing to pick up the money.
Minglan shook her head and went back into the car. It seemed that the rumors were true. Yanran had a close call.
Most of the women in the carriages came from wealthy families. Seeing the crying, they immediately opened their purses to help and gave a lot of silver to the injured. The crowd outside gradually dispersed, and the remaining carriages continued to move forward and headed towards the mountain.
Guangji Temple is located on the left side of the top of Yumei Mountain in the west of the city. It is one of the three famous temples in the capital. When the dynasty was founded, Emperor Taizu wrote the four characters "Save All Living Beings" in his own handwriting and became famous. The temple is not particularly grand and magnificent. It only has three large halls in the front and back, which respectively enshrine the Tathagata Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva and Miller Arhat. There is also a bell tower on each side. The incense is not as prosperous as the other two large temples. Therefore, Mrs. Sheng chose to burn incense here for the sake of peace and quiet.
Minglan was already familiar with burning incense and worshipping Buddha, so the group followed the monk in charge of receiving guests into the main hall, where they saw the host Miaoshan coming to greet them in person. After a brief exchange of greetings, Mrs. Sheng donated a large sum of money for incense, and Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Hai also donated some. Then the female members started from the main hall, and from left to right, they burned incense and kowtowed at each Buddha statue, silently prayed and burned a lot of paper.
Because most of the people who come to pray to gods and Buddha are women and children, the people busy coming and going in the temple are either old monks who have lost half of their teeth, or young monks who have just replaced their baby teeth. At a glance, there is not a single young and middle-aged monk. Minglan sighed: Look at their professional quality!
When they reached the last statue of the Yangzhi Guanyin in the third hall, Minglan thought of Yao's father, Yao's mother, and Yao's brother, and kowtowed a few more times sincerely, hoping that everything would be well with them. When she looked up, she saw Wang Shi pulling Hai Shi towards the Guanyin statue of Childbearing in the back corner. Hai Shi's face flushed and she kowtowed shyly again and again. Old Madam Sheng stood aside, looking up at the Guanyin statue in silence. Minglan turned around and saw Molan staring blankly at a fortune stick on the incense table, her eyes eager to try. Seeing Minglan looking at her, she covered her sleeve with a smile and said, "Sister, do you want to try?"
Before Minglan could say anything, Rulan grabbed the fortune stick holder and knelt down, shaking it with her hands, muttering something to herself. Molan bit her lip, not wanting to get angry outside, so she watched as Rulan shook out a stick. Before she could see what it was, Rulan grabbed it and looked at them, saying, "Do you want to ask for a fortune? Once you're done, let's go and interpret it together."
Molan was beaten by Rulan, so she didn't delay any longer. She immediately took the fortune stick box, knelt down, kowtowed three times, and then shook it carefully. Then a fortune stick fell out, and she caught it in her hand without being seen clearly. Then she went to see Minglan.
Minglan shook her head and said, "I don't need it. My sisters, go and interpret the divination." Rulan refused, pulling Minglan down onto the mat and saying, "No, no, we've both prayed, you can't be left behind." Molan also said lightly, "Sister, you'd better pray. If Grandmother knew, she might blame me, your elder sister, for not looking after you."
Minglan knelt in front of the Buddha with a wry smile, shaking the fortune stick box, and suddenly remembered what Mrs. Sheng said to her after He Hongwen left that day, and her face turned slightly red; in fact, she had thought about her own future, but in this closed world, how many people could she know? Wouldn't it be better to trust those who are trustworthy?
After suffering pain for half her life, the old lady felt that fame, wealth and power were all fleeting. It was enough to live a decent life. What mattered was that people were kind. At first, she considered her cousin Taisheng. Although the Hu family was a merchant family, Uncle Hu and his son were very kind. Aunt Sheng Yun owed the old lady a favor. If Minglan married into the family, she would surely have a smooth, happy and healthy life.
Unexpectedly, two Cheng Yaojins appeared on the road. First, they met the grandparents and grandchildren of the He family. When Mrs. He saw Minglan, she liked her very much and expressed her intention to marry her. Then she met the uncle and wife of the Li family, who also wanted to marry Minglan. After moving into the ancestral home of the Sheng family, Mrs. Sheng observed carefully and found that the eldest lady and Mrs. Li secretly expressed their hope that Pinlan and Taisheng would get married. The old lady did not want to embarrass her relatives, so she lost interest in Taisheng.
In this way, there are only two candidates for Minglan to marry, He Hongwen and Li Yu.
Although the Li family is richer, they are of merchant origin and have no roots in aristocratic families (Minglan said: If he were rich and had aristocratic family background, why would he marry her?). He Hongwen is a man of refined character, handsome and gentle. Old Lady Sheng likes him quite a bit, but she is worried that he lost his father at a young age and has no one to rely on, and his widowed mother is sick, so the daughter-in-law will have a hard time in the future.
That day, after Old Lady He came to check Hua Lan's pulse, she told Old Lady Sheng everything. First of all, they loved their little grandson the most. When his father passed away, they were worried about the child's future, so they divided the family property early and allocated the third room's share of the property and money. Now it was managed by Old Lady He. After the old couple passed away, the third room would divide the ancestral property equally. He Hongwen could practice medicine and treat illnesses, and he had his uncle who was an official and other clansmen to rely on, so he could live a worry-free life.
After a few more words, the outspoken Mrs. He also revealed that He Hongwen's widowed mother had been terminally ill for a long time, and was only relying on her mother-in-law to take care of her and keep herself together in the hope of seeing her son get married and start a family. She could not survive more than three to five years - thinking of this, Minglan felt deeply remorseful and felt that she was too mean. At that time, she actually felt a little happy that she did not have to deal with her mother-in-law.
Molan and Rulan always laughed at her for having no ambition. In fact, Minglan thought that they were too ambitious after seeing the prosperity of the capital. There were so many royal relatives, nobles and dignitaries in the capital, and they were all national-level. But someone like Sheng Hong, who was not very noticeable in the capital, was a big shot in Youyang.
Let He Hongwen learn more in the capital, get some experience in the Imperial Hospital, find a small county with beautiful mountains and rivers, open a clinic and drug store, and live a leisurely life there. In fact, the He family's hometown is in a county near Youyang.
According to Mrs. He's feedback, He Hongwen also likes her very much. Comparing with the scenes of their several meetings, she believes that after they get married, they will be able to live in harmony with each other. By then, she will manage the family business well, strive to become the richest person in the county, and then raise one, two, three, or four flower-guarding dogs, and walk sideways along the road. Wouldn't it be wonderful!
But Old Lady Sheng also said: Don't worry, let's wait and see, what if there is a more suitable one? In short, she wants to observe He Hongwen again, and then consider Li Yu, maybe there will be other Cheng Yaojins coming in.
Molan and Rulan looked at Minglan shaking the stick box with silly smiles on their faces. Rulan pushed her impatiently, and then shook out a stick in a daze. Minglan stood up, and the three sisters held up the sticks to compare. From big to small, the order was: top middle, top middle, bottom bottom.
Molan and Rulan were both quite pleased, and then looked at the pitiful bad fortune in Minglan's hand with pity, and said to her in a soothing tone: "It's just a bad fortune, sister, don't take it to heart."
Minglan was very calm: this fortune stick reflected her experience very realistically.
At the entrance to the hall was the place where the divinations were interpreted. Three or five old monks sat there. After reporting to the old lady and Wang, the three Lans, accompanied by the maids and servants, went to interpret the divinations. As they approached, they saw a young woman in splendid clothes sitting there surrounded by a group of servants. She sat with her back to the emperor, and her face could not be seen clearly. All they could hear was the old monk opposite her saying, "...When Qin Qiong sold his horse, things seemed to be looking up. Although things are not going well for you now, young lady, as long as you follow the trend, you will eventually see the moonlight..."
Minglan laughed. All the fortune sticks were panaceas and could be used anywhere.
Molan and Rulan were also very excited and each found an old monk to interpret the divination. Minglan stood behind and listened for a while, and roughly summarized it: the future is bright, the road is tortuous, as long as you work hard, even if you are a fool - this applies to marriage, career, and health.
Minglan felt she couldn't stand out too much, so she went to interpret the divination sticks as well. She saw a strangely ugly old monk sitting next to her. His face was more wrinkled than dried orange peel, and his expression was ferocious and terrifying. He sat alone in a deserted place, and no one asked him to interpret the divination sticks. Minglan was impatient to wait in line, so she went straight over and sat down, handing the divination stick over with both hands. The old monk took a quick look and was about to speak when he saw Minglan's face and frowned, as if a little surprised. He threw the divination stick away and waved Minglan away like a fly: "This divination stick is not yours. You don't need to ask for divination sticks again in the future. It's useless."
Minglan was shocked, thinking that maybe she had met a master. Just as she was about to ask, the old monk shouted impatiently, "Go away! The more you talk, the more mistakes you make. Don't try to harm me!"
Minglan seemed to understand, and was about to say something, but Rulan and Molan had already finished interpreting the divination. A maid came to tell the three of them to go back. Minglan was dragged a few steps by You Mama. Looking back, she saw the old monk running away in a hurry, as if he were being chased by a tiger. Minglan was furious: Who said that the wise men in the world love to help others?!
The three girls were first taken into an ear room to have tea. There were old lady Sheng, Mrs. Wang and Mrs. Hai as the host, and several ladies in gorgeous clothes sitting there. The group of women were chattering incessantly. There were some adult topics that the girls could not talk about, so Mrs. Wang sent the three girls to a side room to rest.
The young monk found a quiet and elegant empty room and invited the three girls in. Unexpectedly, when Rulan stepped in, she saw a girl sitting at a round table drinking tea. Judging from her clothes, it was the girl who had just interpreted the fortune. She was about fifteen or sixteen years old, with willow eyebrows and almond eyes, a beautiful face, and a bit of charm between her eyebrows and eyes.
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