A horse-drawn carriage is faster than an ox-drawn carriage, at least half the time.
We arrived at Tianmen Temple smoothly, and it was not yet noon.
The abbot of Tianmen Temple, Master Huitong, went out to greet him personally.
"Amitabha, Madam Gu, please come this way."
"Master, you're welcome."
Everyone followed the monk into the main hall.
The monk in charge of reception brought incense and candles, and everyone followed Xie, kneeling on the cushions and praying devoutly.
Gu Jiu looked around and saw a man with a fierce temperament, dark complexion, and the whole body like a sword drawn from its sheath, suddenly appeared in the hall.
Gu Jiu wondered, when did this man appear?
The man obviously noticed Gu Jiu's gaze. He turned around and looked at him with a gaze as sharp as a knife, just aiming to "kill" Gu Jiu.
Gu Jiu's heart shuddered. What a sharp gaze.
This is a soldier, and a soldier who kills and drinks blood.
Gu Jiu quickly looked away.
A moment later, when she looked over again, the man who had suddenly appeared had suddenly disappeared again.
It was as if everything that happened before was just a dream of Gu Jiu.
After burning incense, everyone stood up.
The monk in charge of reception led everyone into the backyard.
"The kitchen has specially prepared vegetarian food today. Madam Gu, all the young donors, please take a short rest in the backyard. We will deliver the food to you as soon as it's ready."
"Thank you, little master."
Xie said politely.
Passing through the moon-shaped gate and coming to the backyard, Gu Jiu felt a little emotional when looking at the familiar courtyard.
After settling down in the courtyard, Mrs. Xie said to everyone, "There's still some time until noon. Go and have fun, but don't stray too far. Remember to come back in an hour for the vegetarian meal."
Gu Yue smiled and said, "Mother, I'm going to the back mountain to see the maple leaves. I've heard that the scenery behind Tianmen Temple is very beautiful."
Xie smiled and said, "Go ahead, be careful and be safe."
Gu Yue said: "Don't worry, mother, your daughter will pay attention to safety."
Gu Yue pulled Gu Shan out.
Gu Jiu also took the opportunity to say goodbye.
Gu Lin originally wanted to stay with Gu Jiu, but Gu Jiu was going to see Pei Yun and rejected Gu Lin flatly.
Gu Lin felt wronged, stomped her feet and ran away.
Qingmei murmured softly, "Fifth Miss is also acting like a spoiled brat."
Gu Jiu said, "Don't worry about her."
Gu Jiu came to the back mountain and saw someone sitting in the pavilion from afar. It was Pei Yun.
Pei Yun was dressed in women's clothes today, in plain clothes, and was only accompanied by two maids, appearing to be extremely low-key.
Gu Jiu walked up to the pavilion and called out, "Sister Pei."
Pei Yun looked at Gu Jiu and smiled, "Sister Gu is here, please take a seat."
Gu Jiu sat down on the stone bench.
The maid came forward to pour tea.
Pei Yun asked, "How is my sister these days?"
Gu Jiu nodded and said, "Thank you for your concern, Sister Pei. I'm fine. Sister Pei is willing to see me, and I am very grateful."
Pei Yun smiled faintly, "You're welcome, Sister Gu. I'm very interested in the woolen fabric you mentioned in your letter. Could you please let me see it?"
Pei Yun's character is as straightforward and frank as ever.
Gu Jiu stretched out his hand, and Qingmei placed a sample of woolen cloth in his hand.
Gu Jiu handed over the wool fabric sample and said, "Please take a look, Sister Pei."
Pei Yun picked up the wool fabric sample and observed it carefully.
It was very soft and warm. She smiled and said, "Wool is perfect for making winter clothes."
Gu Jiu nodded, "Sister Pei is right."
Pei Yun returned the sample to Gu Jiu and asked, "Sister Gu, can this really be mass-produced? Will it be difficult?"
Gu Jiu smiled softly, "It's not difficult to weave cloth with wool. The difficult part is that it requires a lot of water to wash the wool, and a lot of people to pick the wool."
Pei Yun laughed when she heard this. "These two problems are easy to solve. Sister Gu, I'm very interested in the wool weaving industry you mentioned and would like to cooperate with you."
Gu Jiu was overjoyed, "Really? Sister Pei, do you want to reconsider it?"
Pei Yun shook her head. "I had already thought about it on the way here. At that time, I thought that as long as the samples you gave me satisfied me, I would agree to cooperate."
Gu Jiu asked again, "Sister Pei, aren't you worried about losing money? It's also possible that the wool weaving industry won't develop, and all your hard work will end up in vain."
Pei Yun smiled and said, "I have confidence in Sister Gu."
Gu Jiu's eyebrows curved and he smiled warmly.
"Thank you for your trust, Sister Pei. I won't let you down."
The two continued to discuss cooperation.
Pei Yun is willing to be the backer of the wool weaving workshop. Even if she leaves the northwest and returns to the capital in the future, she will arrange for someone to take care of the wool weaving workshop.
In addition, Pei Yun invested 3,000 taels, holding 40% of the shares. However, he would not participate in the management, nor would he interfere with any of Gu Jiu's decisions.
Gu Jiu thanked her solemnly, "Thank you Sister Pei for your generous help. Without you, the wool workshop would never be able to start."
Pei Yun smiled and said, "I'm looking forward to the scene that Sister Gu described in her letter. Actually, I just want to follow Sister Gu to earn some pocket money."
Gu Jiu felt grateful.
Pei Yun had no shortage of pocket money, let alone this little income. Her willingness to invest and support the workshop was partly to repay the favor she received from Gu Jiu last time.
Gu Jiu remembered this favor in his heart.
"It's getting late, I dare not stay any longer. Sister Pei, we will say goodbye now."
"Sister Gu, take care. You are going back to Beijing, and I can't see you off. I wish you a safe journey."
"I appreciate Sister Pei's kind words."
Pei Yun smiled and said, "Sister Gu, when I return to the capital, I will invite you out to play. You can't refuse."
Gu Ji pursed his lips and smiled, "Sister Pei's invitation is something I'd love to hear."
"Then it's settled."
Gu Jiu and Pei Yun parted ways and returned to the backyard.
As soon as I entered the courtyard, I noticed that the atmosphere was not right.
Immediately afterwards, Gu Jiu saw the fierce-looking man whom he had seen when burning incense in the main hall, walking out of the main gate.
Gu Jiu was stunned, standing there, looking around, almost wondering if he had walked into the wrong gate.
How could this man appear here?
Pei Meng also noticed Gu Jiu, who was the little girl who looked at him boldly in the hall.
Pei Meng passed by Gu Jiu and walked away without looking back.
Gu Jiu asked hurriedly: "What's going on?"
It's so weird.
Xiao Cui pulled Gu Jiu to a corner and whispered, "The third girl fell down the mountain and landed on Master Pei. Then Master Pei brought her back."
"You said the young man just now was surnamed Pei?" Gu Jiu stared at Xiao Cui.
Xiao Cui nodded repeatedly, "I was standing outside the window and heard it clearly. That's exactly how Master Pei introduced himself."
Gu Jiu looked in the direction where Pei Meng left. It was obvious that this Mr. Pei was Pei Yun's brother.
It was just that Gu Yue happened to fall on this Mr. Pei, which was so weird.
Gu Jiu wanted to go in and see Gu Yue.
Chun He stopped her and said, "Second Miss, go to the side room and rest. The Madam is talking to the Third Miss right now, so it's not convenient."
Gu Jiu didn't rush in, but asked, "Is the third sister seriously injured?"
Chun He said, "Thank you for your concern, Second Miss. Third Miss twisted her ankle and can't walk for the time being."
Gu Jiu said, "Third sister is fine, I'm relieved."
After saying that, Gu Jiu didn't stay for long and turned to go to the side room to rest.
In the room, Gu Yue was lying on the bed, and Xie was guarding the bedside.
Xie's expression was gloomy, and she stared at Gu Yue intently, "Yuer, tell me the truth, was this fall an accident or was it intentional?"
Gu Yue said timidly: "It was an accident."
Xie narrowed her eyes slightly, "You didn't lie to me?"
Gu Yue has a criminal record, and Xie will not easily believe what she says.
Gu Yue nodded repeatedly, "My daughter dared not lie to her mother. When she was going down the stairs, her foot slipped and she fell. Fortunately, Master Pei was just a few steps away, so she avoided being disfigured."
Xie said very seriously, "As for Master Pei, I will thank him on your behalf. But from now on, you are not allowed to mention Master Pei again."
Gu Yue looked bewildered, "My daughter doesn't understand."
"You don't need to understand."
Xie was shocked and angry. Gu Yue fell down, and happened to fall down in front of Pei Meng, which made Xie think more.
She did not forget the task assigned to her by her elder brother.
She had already written to her eldest brother, declining the assignment.
Could it be that the eldest brother agreed openly, but secretly arranged for someone to deliberately create this accident in order to make Gu Yue marry Pei Meng?
The more Xie thought about it, the more possible it seemed.
Pei Meng is married.
If her precious daughter married Pei Meng, she would only be a concubine.
Xie understood better than anyone the sadness and difficulty of being a concubine.
No matter what, she would never let her daughter become someone's concubine.
Gu Jiu felt uneasy when he saw Xie's expression changing unpredictably.
She asked cautiously, "Mother, did I do something wrong? At that time, I told Master Pei that I didn't need him to send me back. But Master Pei insisted on sending me back, and I had no choice."
Xie stared at Gu Yue, "Do you know the identity of this Mr. Pei?"
Gu Jiu nodded, then shook his head, "My daughter guessed a little."
"Since you've guessed it, I won't hide it from you. This Mr. Pei is the eldest son of the Marquis of Lu. He got married several years ago. If I remember correctly, the child is already five or six years old. Yue'er, do you understand what I mean?"
Xie stared at Gu Yue, not missing any expression on her face.
Gu Yue looked timid. "My daughter understands what mother means. My daughter will not have any inappropriate thoughts just because Mr. Pei sent me back."
Xie heaved a sigh of relief, "That's great."
If it were someone else, Xie wouldn't be so nervous.
But Pei Meng and Xie felt like they were facing a formidable enemy.
She was worried that this incident was not an accident but man-made.
Someone deliberately created the encounter between Gu Yue and Pei Meng, and the purpose is self-evident.
What’s even more terrible is that Pei Meng came back holding Gu Yue.
That’s right, she was carried back, and the maids all saw it.
This incident made Xie frown.
This Mr. Pei is too unrefined.
How can you just hug a little girl? Even if you want to help, you should be cautious.
It turned out that he had stayed in the military camp for too long and had forgotten the differences between men and women.
Xie told Gu Yue, "You should take good care of your injuries and don't let your mind wander. I'll be back soon."
Gu Yue nodded obediently.
Xie walked out of the bedroom with a face as gloomy as water.
She asked Chunhe, "Where is Madam Ping?"
Chun He bowed and said, "Madam, Madam Ping should be in the side room."
Xie didn't waste a moment and walked towards the wing room.
When she saw Madam Ping, Xie lowered her voice and asked bluntly, "Did you do what happened to Yue'er?"
Nanny Ping said calmly, "Madam, you misunderstood. I know nothing about the Third Miss. Didn't you say it was an accident?"
"snort!"
Xie's face was gloomy. "Accident? There aren't so many accidents in the world. An accident happened right in front of Master Pei, and Master Pei happened to come back with Yue'er? You old slave, even now, you still refuse to tell the truth."
"Madam, please understand. I really didn't do it. Everything I said is the truth."
Xie pointed at Madam Ping and said, "So it really wasn't you who harmed Yue'er? Yue'er said that she slipped and fell when she was going down the stairs. Tell me, did you do anything beforehand?"
Madam Ping shook her head. "Madam, please understand. I have been in the side room the entire time and have never left. How could I have done anything wrong? Madam, you are really overthinking it. The accident that happened to the Third Miss was truly an accident."
Xie snorted coldly, "It'd be best if it was an accident. If I find out that someone is using this to make a big deal out of this and wants to marry Yue'er to Master Pei as a concubine, I won't forgive you."
Madam Ping bowed and said, "Don't worry, Madam. No one will ask the Third Miss to become Master Pei's concubine. The eldest master also made it clear in his letter that he has given up this plan and will no longer embarrass Madam."
Xie said with a straight face, "That's better!"
Xie flicked her sleeves and left.
After leaving, he said to Chun He, "Pass on my order. Regarding the matter of the third young lady, a silence order will be issued. If anyone discusses it privately, they will be severely punished."
"I understand."
Xie was really angry.
She would never allow anyone to plot against her precious daughter under her nose.
In addition to shutting the maids' mouths, he also had to keep an eye on Gu Yue.
Gu Yue must not have any improper thoughts about Master Pei. Xie will personally monitor this matter.
Once Gu Yue shows any signs of being unwell, she will act decisively and nip Gu Yue's wild thoughts in the bud.
Mrs. Xie now thinks Tianmen Temple is unlucky, and she is most worried that something might happen as soon as she arrives.
She wanted to set off back to Jinzhou City immediately.
However, it is a rare trip here, and if I go back without even eating vegetarian food, it will attract attention.
Moreover, the wife of the prefect has already arrived. She is burning incense in the main hall and will be here soon.
So, even though Xie wished she could grow wings and fly back to Jinzhou City with Gu Yue, she had no choice but to endure it.
In the left wing, Gu Zhen said to Gu Jiu, "Second sister, Madam and third sister have finished talking. Let's go visit third sister."
Gu Jiu said: "Let's wait a while."
After a pause, Gu Jiu asked, "Big sister, were you there when the third sister was sent back?"
Gu Zhen shook her head. "I wasn't here. I rushed back after hearing the news."
Gu Jiu nodded and said, "It's fine, how could Third Sister fall down?"
Gu Zhen smiled and said with a gloating look, "She must have gotten too carried away."
Soon, Gu Shan and Gu Lin also came back.
Gu Shan was very worried when she heard that Gu Yue fell, twisted her ankle and couldn't walk.
Gu Lin secretly complained, "Third sister is really something. She can't even walk properly."
With Xie's permission, everyone went into the house to visit Gu Yue.
Gu Yue looked listless and had no energy.
Gu Shan was the first to ask, "Third sister, are you okay?"
Gu Yue nodded, "I'm fine. I'll be fine after two days of rest."
Gu Zhen was curious, "Third sister, why did you fall down?"
Gu Yue said unhappily, "I slipped and fell suddenly. Big sister, you won't think I fell on purpose, will you?"
"How could that be?" Gu Zhen smiled awkwardly.
Gu Jiu observed Gu Yue, who looked depressed and a little irritable, as if something was bothering her.
She was about to ask tentatively when a maid called out from outside the door, "The prefect's wife is here."
Gu Yue raised her head, her face full of joy, "Sister Xu is here."
Gu Zhen suddenly spoke up and told Gu Yue, "Third sister, lie down well. We'll take care of Miss Xu for you."
Gu Yue stared at Gu Zhen, "Big sister is thoughtful, but it's not necessary."
The maid came in and asked Gu Jiu and the others to go out and meet the guests.
Everyone filed out of the bedroom and came to the living room to pay their respects to the prefect's wife, Mrs. Cai.
The prefect's wife, Cai, curiously asked Xie, "Sister, why don't you see Yue'er?"
Mrs. Xie said, "Yuer is a very impulsive child. When she went to play in the back hills, she accidentally fell. She twisted her ankle and is now lying down to rest."
Cai asked with concern, "Is Yue'er seriously injured?"
Mrs. Xie smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern, my ankle is a little swollen, but it's not serious. It will be fine in two days."
Cai nodded. "Then I'm relieved. Yuanniang, go see Sister Yue'er and tell her to take good care of her injuries."
Xu Yuanniang stood up and said, "A daughter listens to her mother."
Gu Zhen took the initiative to say, "Miss Xu, I will lead the way for you. Please go this way."
"Thank you, Sister Zhen." Xu Yuanniang pursed her lips and smiled.
Gu Jiu raised his eyebrows. It was really surprising that the elder sister was so proactive today.
Gu Lin was indignant. "We'll be returning to Beijing soon. What's the point of Big Sister trying to please Miss Xu at this time?"
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