Shen Yunjiao and Fu Xia didn't exchange many pleasantries. After entering the door, they followed the Taoist nun.
Following the winding side path next to Xuanzhen Temple, after passing most of the temple, you still need to go up the mountain. The destination is at the top of the mountain.
The three of them stopped at the door.
Shen Yunjiao looked up and saw a plaque nailed above the wooden door with three characters written on it: "Qingxin Pavilion".
Although it is called Qingxin Pavilion, it is actually a small courtyard.
The courtyard looks a bit dilapidated, but the surrounding scenery is still quite nice. Looking around, you can see Dayong City at a glance.
On a clear morning during the White Dew season, the fog was not very heavy, and the entire capital city was shrouded in a hazy mist. The pavilions, towers, and corridors within the city could be vaguely seen, resembling an extremely elegant landscape painting.
The nun took a key, opened the courtyard gate, but stood at the door and refused to go in. She simply said to Shen Yunjiao and the other girl, "There are empty rooms if you turn left after you go in. Someone will bring you meals every morning."
After saying that, she reached out to close the door and took out the lock in her hand, intending to lock the door.
Fu Xia was still immersed in the sadness of leaving the Shen Mansion when she saw that the Daoist nun actually wanted to lock them up. She immediately opened the door angrily and said, "What do you mean by this? Why are you locking us up here?"
The nun was startled and frowned at Fuxia, saying, "These are the rules of Qingxin Pavilion, don't you know that? Apart from the two meals a day when someone from the temple brings food to open the door, this door must never be opened!"
"Do you mean to lock us up here like prisoners?" Fu Xia's eyes widened in anger as she tried to open the door from the inside, but the Daoist nun suddenly slammed it shut.
“Benefactor, I just remembered that I still have morning prayers to attend to at the temple, so I’ll take my leave now.”
After finishing her words, the Taoist nun quickly locked the door and ran away.
Fu Xia was so angry that she kicked the wooden door a few times to vent her anger, and then squatted on the ground, refusing to get up.
Shen Yunjiao found it both amusing and helpless, saying, "Silly Fuxia, what's the point of getting angry with her? Xuanzhen Temple is a famous temple in the capital. If people from Qingxin Pavilion were to wander around freely within the temple, would any worshippers still be willing to come and offer incense?"
Fu Xia was stunned for a moment, then pouted and said, "Are we going to be locked up here for the rest of our lives?"
"No, don't worry." Shen Yunjiao reached out and pulled Fu Xia up. "Let's go see what the room is like."
Fortunately, the room was better than they had imagined. Although there weren't many things, there were still some daily necessities such as a bed and a table, and it was cleaned fairly well.
Moreover, after Shen Qinghuai arranged for someone to take care of things, the Shen family had already secretly transported some of Shen Yunjiao's clothes and bedding over in advance.
Fu Xia opened the box and began making the bed and packing her clothes.
Shen Yunjiao then took all her wooden boxes out of the trunk and placed them on the shelf.
Just as she reached for the medical book, a voice suddenly came from outside the door, "Who are you?"
Shen Yunjiao looked up and saw a girl with her hair tied in a bun and wearing a moon-white dress standing at the door. She looked about fifteen or sixteen years old and was curiously looking at them.
Shen Yunjiao straightened up and greeted the girl with a smile, "I am Shen Yunjiao, and this is my maid, Fuxia."
"Shen Yunjiao...?" The girl frowned and muttered her name several times before hesitatingly asking, "Are you the daughter of Minister Shen, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel?"
Shen Yunjiao was taken aback at first, and a thought flashed through her mind.
How long has this little girl been locked up here?
Shen Zhizhang served as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel eight or nine years ago.
"Do you know my father?" Shen Yunjiao took a few steps closer and looked at the girl.
The girl seemed a little shy and afraid to meet people. She lowered her eyes and answered softly, "I... when I was a child, I accompanied my father to the Shen family mansion as a guest."
It seems this little girl comes from a good family, so why is she locked up here?
Just as Shen Yunjiao was about to ask, a rumbling sound came from her stomach, which seemed quite abrupt in the quiet atmosphere.
“Miss, you must be hungry since you haven’t had breakfast,” Fu Xia said with a smile. “I’ll go to the yard and cook something to eat.”
“Well, there’s not much to eat in the courtyard.” The girl looked up at the two of them. “The food at Qingxin Pavilion is delivered by a regular person every day. Although there is firewood in the kitchen, there’s nothing to cook.”
"Breakfast has already been delivered by now."
"What?" Fu Xia exclaimed, "What if my daughter is hungry?"
The girl looked at Shen Yunjiao and mustered her courage to say, "I have some leftover steamed buns from this morning in my room, do you want them?"
Shen Yun smiled gently at her, shook her head and said, "No need, I brought some pastries from home."
Fu Xia jumped up suddenly, slapped her forehead and said, "Oh right, I forgot we also have the sour jujube cake and cloud pastry that Haoweizhai brought."
She carried the food box to the wooden table, opened the lid, and arranged the pastries one by one on small plates.
Shen Yunjiao looked at the girl who was staring intently at the pastries and asked softly, "Would you like to have some pastries with us?"
The girl was flattered and her expression changed slightly. "Can I eat it too?"
"Of course, sit down. I'll wash my hands first." Shen Yun smiled, pulled out a chair for the little girl to sit down, and then went to the ancient well outside the courtyard to scoop up a small basin of water and carefully washed her hands with fragrant soap.
Fu Xia also ran over and diligently shook the well for her daughter.
Xie He couldn't help but glance out of the courtyard. To her, Shen Yunjiao was a novel figure.
She had lived in Qingxin Pavilion for so many years and had seen many women who had committed crimes, but she had never felt any affection for them.
But as soon as she glanced into the room and saw this beautiful woman, she inexplicably felt an urge to get closer to her.
After wiping her hands with a clean handkerchief, Shen Yunjiao returned to the room. Seeing that the little girl was still very reserved and dared not touch the plates of pastries, she smiled and picked up a piece of jujube cake with her slender white fingers, placing it on the empty plate in front of her, "Try it."
"Thank you, thank you," Xie He said softly, holding the soft jujube cake in both hands and taking a small bite.
The smooth texture, accompanied by the sweet aroma of dates, instantly fills the entire mouth.
Shen Yunjiao noticed the fleeting look of amazement in the little girl's eyes and moved the plates of pastries closer to her.
"Thank you," Xie He said, raising her eyes, her mouth never stopping moving.
She hadn't eaten pastries from outside in a long time, and every bite was a delicacy to her.
Fu Xia was so surprised that her jaw almost dropped when she saw her devour all three plates of pastries in a flash.
Shen Yunjiao sat down beside her, munching on a pastry with a glass of water, and asked as she ate, "What's your name?"
"Xie He." Xie He put the last bite of pastry into her mouth, let out a satisfied sigh, and replied.
Seeing that she was no longer as reserved as before, Shen Yunjiao asked curiously, "Have you been living here for a long time?"
After a moment of silence, Xie He replied somewhat forlornly, "I've lived here for fifteen years."
"Fifteen years?!"
Shen Yunjiao and Fu Xia exclaimed in unison.
But she looks only fifteen or sixteen years old. Could it be that she's been here all along?
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