Now that she was already a daughter of the Shen family, Feng Wan'er insisted that Xu Zhi call her Sister Mingwan in order to avoid causing trouble. Now, Feng Wan'er's parents, who were part of the Feng family, knew that Feng Wan'er had left the capital after faking her death.
After dinner, Xu Zhi and Shen Mingwan talked inside the house.
Xu Zhi recounted in detail how Xu Di went to Chen Wufu to ask for people, which was discovered by the Emperor, who then assigned five Imperial Guards to her.
Xu Zhi said somewhat embarrassedly, "Sister Mingwan, this was originally a matter between the two of us, but now it has become a matter between the two of us doing things for the Emperor. It's all my fault for not stopping my brother."
Shen Mingwan smiled and said, "Xiao Jiu, actually this is the best and safest thing for us. What we are doing requires a lot of money, which may make many people envious. We are just two weak women. When that time comes, anyone can bully us. But with the Emperor standing in front of us, who would dare to mess with us?"
Xu Zhi nodded and said, "That's true. I came to Tongzhou a few days ago. I had already booked the shop and was about to start decorating when someone stopped me. I was furious, but I couldn't win against them. I was upset, so I went back to my home in the capital. This time, I brought back five imperial guards. Sister Mingwan, I heard that they are the most powerful imperial guards around the Emperor. I've already planned it out. In the future, you will be accompanied by Qinglian and Honglian, and I will give you two more imperial guards. I will keep Honggu and Shiliu by my side. What do you think?"
Shen Mingwan declined repeatedly, but Xu Zhi took Shen Mingwan's hand and said, "Good sister, we can't always be together in the future. It's always safer to have someone with you. Besides, it's not like I'm doing this alone. This is something we're doing together."
Shen Mingwan then agreed to take the man in. After speaking with Jia San, she transferred two people from there to stay by her side.
Shen Mingwan stayed in Tongzhou for one night, and the next day after breakfast, she was going to Dafosi Temple near the outskirts of Beijing.
Xu Zhi had nothing to do at the moment. She had originally planned to hurry up with the renovations and open the business in December, but now it seemed that the plan would have to be shelved. So she simply accompanied Shen Mingwan to the Great Buddha Temple.
Dafosi Temple is the largest temple near the capital. It is built on a mountain near the capital. There is a long staircase starting from the bottom of the mountain, but now a road has been built nearby, which allows two carriages to travel side by side, winding all the way from the bottom of the mountain to the entrance of Dafosi Temple.
Because people come to burn incense all year round, the Dafosi Temple is very popular. From the foot of the mountain all the way up to the entrance of the Dafosi Temple, people from some nearby villages sell things here, from incense and paper money to seasonal fruits and vegetables, and some homemade snacks and desserts. As long as you are patient enough, you can always find something you want to eat by slowly walking up from the foot of the mountain.
The monks of Dafosi Temple have always had a good relationship with the people in the nearby villages. When these villagers set up stalls here, the monks of Dafosi Temple not only do not come over to chase them away, but sometimes they also make good arrangements for the stall owners so that each stall owner can find a suitable place.
Xu Zhi and Shen Mingwan took a carriage directly to the entrance of Dafosi Temple. Their family estate was located near Dafosi Temple. It was acquired by Madam Shen after Shen Lifu became the head of the Dafosi family. Some people were stationed on the estate so that if Shen Lifu needed anything, they could arrange for someone to come and help.
After Shen Mingwan and Xu Zhi got off the carriage, Granny Lin had already arranged for someone to invite Shen Lifu. After waiting for a short while, the two of them were led to a very quiet courtyard by a young monk.
As they walked, Granny Lin whispered to Xu Zhi and Shen Mingwan, "When our Third Master first came here, he stayed in this courtyard. Madam tried to persuade him to go home, but he refused to leave. In the end, he shaved his head and became a monk. Madam hasn't told anyone in the family about it yet."
Shen Mingwan nodded. When she was a child, she had come with her mother to visit this third uncle. Shen Lifu was also a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), but because of his unruly nature and love of travel, he never took the imperial examinations and instead traveled around on his own. His paintings were very famous in the capital, and once a painting was worth a thousand gold pieces. However, after he became a monk, he was never seen to paint again.
Shen Lifu, dressed in a black monk's robe, sat upright in the room. After Shen Mingwan bowed to him, Shen Lifu nodded and said, "Wan'er is back? Since you're back, why don't you come and stay at the manor?"
Shen Mingwan nodded and said, "Father, this time I'm not only leaving again, but after my aunt returns in a few days, I will meet her and then open a shop with the ninth sister of the Xu family to make money and then open an orphanage."
Upon hearing this, Shen Lifu looked at Shen Mingwan with surprise and suspicion, then at Xu Zhi, who was kneeling beside Shen Mingwan, and said, "Just the two of you young girls?"
Shen Mingwan then explained the details to Shen Lifu. After listening, Shen Lifu nodded and said, "It is ultimately a matter of doing good deeds and accumulating virtue. It is difficult to do, but if done well, one's name will be remembered for generations to come."
Shen Lifu remained silent for a moment, then said to Shen Mingwan, "I'm doing fine here. Don't come over unless necessary. Go to the estate and settle in properly. Be careful in everything you do in the future."
After leaving Shen Lifu's Zen temple, Xu Zhi and Shen Mingwan saw that the scenery behind the temple was quite nice. Since they had come all this way, they slowly made their way to the back of the mountain along the path paved with bluestone slabs.
The Great Buddha Temple is built on the mountainside. In front of the temple is the mountain gate. After entering the gate, several magnificent halls stand in succession along the mountain slope. On both sides of the halls are some meditation courtyards or side rooms. Near the mountain gate, there are also some small courtyards where pilgrims can stay.
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