Go up the mountain
On that day, the sky was clear and the air was crisp. The clear chirping of orioles caused the willow branches to sway, hanging down in countless strands, like spring blossoms, full of tender feelings.
Xie Lingxi went with her elder sister, Lingguang.
After the crisis that day, the two rekindled their old friendship and became even more inseparable. Xie Lingxi casually mentioned that she wanted to come to Fragrant Hills to worship Buddha. Lingguang paused for a moment, then immediately made the decision and took Xie Lingxi's hand to get into the carriage.
On the carriage.
A faint fragrance wafted by, and Xie Lingxi put down her handkerchief and rummaged through the box to find a box of pastries. "Sister, try this. I made it a few days ago according to a secret recipe I found. It should be sweet and sour and refreshing."
Upon hearing this, Xie Lingguang picked up a piece, sniffed it carefully for a while, and then put it in his mouth.
The moment the food melted in her mouth, she exclaimed in surprise, "Lingxi! Your skill is superb! It's enough to take over the place of that Babaoge restaurant in East Alley!"
She affectionately grabbed Xie Lingxi's hand: "Good sister, may I borrow that secret technique from Guanlan?"
The girl's incense suddenly wafted to Xie Lingxi's nose, but she couldn't help but think of something completely unrelated—
Speaking of this recipe, she did see it in a book by a scholar that day. The scholar said it was written by his mother, and the pages were yellowed, so it must have been a long time ago.
Xie Lingxi: "This recipe was given to me by a friend. My sister wants to learn it, so I will ask him first."
Seeing that she clearly had something on her mind, Xie Lingguang didn't ask any further questions and simply agreed. He then turned to his own affairs: "I'm not afraid to tell you this, but I already have someone I love. I'm going to Fragrant Hills to ask for a marriage match for us and to have a divination done."
"My beloved?"
Xie Lingxi opened her mouth slightly and asked in surprise, "Which young master has caught my good sister's eye?"
She raised her hand from her lap and tapped it rhythmically on her knee, saying, "No matter what their family background is, I don't want anyone who is morally corrupt, unambitious, cunning, or doesn't cherish their older sister."
Xie Lingguang, dressed in a peach blossom robe, chuckled upon hearing this: "With you here, what do I have to fear?"
"His surname is Pei, and his given name is Zhao. He is the son of Prefect Pei of Jinan."
Xie Lingxi nodded thoughtfully: "General Pei's reputation is widespread, and I have had the pleasure of hearing about him. However, I have heard that although he is highly skilled in martial arts, he is not proficient in literature and can only write victory reports?"
"She's not quite good enough for my sister."
When Xie Lingguang heard her say "report of victory," he understood that she was praising Pei Zhao for his bravery and skill in battle. He patted her head and said, "It is enough for a person to be proficient in one profession in his life."
Just like my silly little sister, who is second to none in literature but knows nothing about martial arts.
Xie Lingxi smiled and rubbed her still-healing arm joints. "We're clearly talking about General Pei, so please don't tease me, elder sister."
Lingguang is indeed very different from her.
He didn't inherit any of Aunt Wanqing's quiet and reserved nature, but instead developed a chivalrous spirit in that gentle Jiangnan water town.
She has always been decisive, passionate, and unrestrained.
Xie Lingxi shook her head as she recalled her past life: she clearly remembered the woman she saw at the Marquis of Yongyi's residence, who was dressed in short skirts, lying in thin bedding, and looking sickly.
The sisters then recounted some strange tales, with Xie Lingguang even blurting out all of Pei Zhao's embarrassing childhood stories. When he recounted how Pei Zhao tried to emulate the ancient general's "one arrow that brings autumn to the world," but accidentally shot the arrow into his own chicken's rear end, a flying arrow came from behind him—
"shuttle!"
With quick reflexes, Lingguang grabbed her sister and dodged to the side. "Thump!"
A jet-black iron arrow pierced through the wooden wall of the carriage and embedded itself deep into the curtain in front, causing the copper bells to jingle.
"Lingxi! Are you alright?!"
Xie Lingxi propped herself up, carefully bracing herself with her arms, and frowned, saying, "Not good."
The arm, which was already injured, suffered a further blow when a crisp cracking sound came from it, as if it had dislocated again.
Who is it?
The horse was startled, let out a long neigh, and staggered forward, crashing into the road.
Xie Lingxi carefully lifted the curtain and looked back, but there was no one there.
At this moment, the sky also turned gloomy, with dark clouds pressing down, and above, it seemed, were thousands of demon soldiers, raising their spears and brandishing their lances in a show of arrogance.
The arrow seemed to be imbued with a sinister and terrifying eye, and the person behind it harbored treacherous intentions, attempting to use dripping blood to strangle the lives of the two poor girls.
Or was it to blackmail her father... or was the Xie family dragged into this filthy mess?
A gust of wind howled and pulled back the carriage curtains. She made a snap decision: "Sister, jump out of the carriage!"
Upon hearing this, Xie Lingguang wrapped his arms around his sister, performed a graceful backflip, landed on his horse, gripped the mane tightly, and gave a sharp spur—"Whoa!"
The horse finally stopped.
At this moment, a group of people arrived from behind. The leader was dressed in a tight-fitting outfit, with his hair tied up high. His ponytail, which hung down, touched his back little by little with his movements. His arms, which were holding the reins, were lean and strong. Every move he made exuded a dignified air.
Pei Zhao dismounted swiftly. Seeing the two young women in front of him looking disheveled, he first had his subordinate hand them handkerchiefs, then clenched his fist and said, "You two ladies have been frightened."
He watched Xie Lingguang slowly wipe her loose hair, a tenderness flashing in his eyes. He then glanced at Xie Lingxi beside him and said with righteous indignation, "We are from Xingwu Camp, and we are on patrol around Xiangshan by imperial orders. Just now we saw a flying arrow coming this way. We were stopped by someone while chasing it. Fortunately, neither of you were injured."
Xie Lingxi was still holding her arm. Looking at the man before her, she saw that he was quite dashing and young, yet already possessed a dignified and imposing presence. She understood that they had just blocked the hidden arrow from behind. She bowed and said, "Thank you for saving us, sir. My sister and I went up the mountain to worship Buddha and encountered this calamity. Although we escaped danger, we are still shaken. We are already halfway up the mountain. Could you please send someone to escort us up the mountain?"
The gale subsided, and the surrounding vegetation was lush. Her words were hidden in the greenery. Faced with such a beautiful young woman, the soldiers behind her still kept their eyes straight ahead, their faces unmoved.
To be honest, Xie Lingxi herself may not have realized that although she was pleading with someone, her expression was different from that of ordinary people; it was extremely stern.
There was no sign of weakness in his expression; his eyes were as calm as ancient waves, reminding one of withered lotus leaves in a pond, standing upright and unyielding, naturally unassailable.
Xie Lingguang had just exchanged a few glances with Pei Zhao when he turned to look at his younger sister. He was momentarily stunned by her, and after a few seconds, he smiled and said, "Lingxi, the master is busy with official duties, so let's not disturb him."
Seeing Pei Zhao's hawk-like eyes staring intently at her sister, Xie Lingxi sensed something was amiss. She patted her sister's hand: "Sister is right. But... what should we do if we encounter bad guys again later?"
After saying that, he looked at General Pei.
Pei Zhaoben was still hesitating, but after listening, he went straight to the point: "Recently, the Prince of Pingnan and the northern barbarians entered the capital, and His Majesty has specially ordered us to return to the capital to strengthen defenses. Fragrant Hills is a place for Buddhist worship, and bloodshed must not be seen—Li Yu!"
"—You take three or four people to protect the girls up the mountain!"
Having said that, he mounted his horse and rode swiftly like the wind, his red tassels fluttering behind him.
"The rest of you, follow me!"
...
It was another quarter of an hour before I got off the carriage.
At this time, the trees were lush and the grass was green, and the temple was surrounded by a verdant landscape. The morning dew had not yet dissipated and shone brightly in the sunlight.
Inside, the temple is ancient and rustic, with vermilion temples shrouded in incense smoke. Occasionally, a few monks sweep the ground with light steps. In front of the temple, old trees are lush and green, with red ribbons hanging in various places.
The Xie sisters thanked those people and carefully walked in. As soon as they entered, they met an old acquaintance.
A maid was waiting outside the hall. Xie Lingxi walked into the front hall, where the Princess of Qixia was kneeling in front of the offering table.
While she was recuperating at home, she heard that Qixia and the nephew of the Princess of Jing'an were getting married soon, and that they had already matched their birth dates and submitted their marriage certificates.
These two must have been seething with hatred, but had nowhere to vent it.
Xie Lingxi coldly watched her retreating figure. This was certainly not enough; today's events reminded her of a past incident—
In the eighth year of the Tianbao era, General Pei Zhao died on the battlefield. He had no wife and was not buried in a coffin with his body intact. He entrusted someone to bury him south of the Wei River.
At the time, people couldn't understand it, and there were many different opinions. Now that I think about it, isn't that the very place surrounding the burial ground of my elder sister from my previous life?
Thinking it over, she found a cushion some distance away, knelt down, and performed a deep bow to the Buddha.
A series of actions caught Qixia's attention.
It was quite a coincidence. Qixia and Lin Jun had been arguing fiercely about the betrothal, and she had come here today to clear her head, but she ended up running into the culprit who had caused her to fall into the water. The fuse that had been smoldering in her heart was suddenly lit.
She didn't know who pushed Lin Jun into the water, but as the host family, the Xie family couldn't escape responsibility, not to mention that the woman they wanted to harm was Xie Lingxi's cousin.
Her hatred for Xie Lingxi was entirely justified.
Therefore, he spoke in a sarcastic tone: "Third Sister Xie is also going to Fragrant Hills today."
“What a coincidence! I was just telling my sisters that we’ve been having a lot of unexpected misfortunes lately, and I was thinking of coming to the temple to pray for everyone. It’s so great to see you here.”
Qixia stood up, walking and sizing up Xie Lingxi, her hair ornaments jingling, her eyes full of schadenfreude.
She picked up Xie Lingxi's arm and teased it, saying, "Look, the wound is almost healed. I was so worried that my sister would end up like a chicken with a broken wing!"
"I heard that a few days ago, the Crown Prince also visited your residence to inquire about your health, and it has been the subject of much praise!"
Lingguang had already gone to the back room to ask for the divination slip; otherwise, things would have gotten out of hand. Xie Lingxi only glanced at Qixia holding her hand and chuckled, "Thank you for your concern, Princess."
"To my shame, Your Highness has found such a good match. I have been recuperating at home for so many days and it is inconvenient for me to go out. I have not yet had the chance to congratulate Your Highness. I hope you will forgive me."
She pulled her arm back, stood up, and was actually half a head taller than Qixia. Looking down at her, she said, "The doctor said that no one can touch my arm until it heals, otherwise anyone who touches it will surely develop sores and rot on their face."
Seeing Qixia's face gradually contort, Xie Lingxi smiled gently: "But there is a way to deal with it. Since the county princess cares about me, I will teach her that next time she meets someone, no matter who it is, she should keep her mouth shut and not say anything that might cause gossip."
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