provocative
Crown Prince?
Perhaps they really did come here.
Xie Lingxi thought that the best way to attack a woman was to slander her chastity, which was both vicious and ridiculous.
She watched Qixia leave, cursing and swearing, but not out of anger. Instead, she heard the hearty laughter of several young men coming from the front hall; they sounded like they were untouched by hardship, wealthy and noble.
It is the Fifth Prince Yan Ji who has arrived.
The man next to him seemed to be his follower, Pei Qian, the son of the head of the Pei family.
This man was her brother's enemy, so she made no attempt to hide her disgust when she saw him.
The aristocratic families all knew this old story, and when these people met, they all tacitly understood each other, regardless of the strange atmosphere.
But today, the Lady of Qixia County is determined to cause trouble.
She spotted the Fifth Prince at a glance and thought that even if she couldn't get close to him, it would be good to at least become acquainted with him, especially since her family had a very close relationship with the Fifth Prince's maternal clan.
So she quickly had her maid tidy herself up and remove the gold hairpins—because she had heard that the Fifth Prince disliked extravagance and preferred elegant ladies.
Qixia glared fiercely at Xie Lingxi, as if she were Yan Ji's beloved.
After all, there were rumors among them that the Xie family girl would surely be the one to become the Fifth Prince's consort.
On the surface, Xie Lingxi does not associate with His Highness, but who knows if she is pretending or if she is truly without desires?
Thinking it over, Qixia took a step forward and bowed respectfully to Yan Ji: "Your Highness, I did not expect to meet you here."
“My daughter lives in the Marquis of Dingbei’s residence. We met her at the Spring Banquet a few days ago.”
The girl was dressed extravagantly and ostentatiously, as if she wanted to pile all her jewelry on her body. Judging from her words, she must be the county princess recently bestowed by the Emperor. Yan Ji secretly plotted, but smiled warmly on the surface: "So you are Sister Qixia. My uncle often mentions you to me. How have you been lately?"
Qixia was overjoyed, her face flushing red: "Your Highness still remembers me."
Isn't he so much better than Lin Jun? Why did she have to marry such a useless man?
After thinking it over, she pretended to be weak and coughed lightly a few times while covering her mouth with her handkerchief: "Qixia is fine, but... it seems that Third Sister has some misunderstanding with me. However, this is just a young lady's private matter, so I won't trouble Your Highness."
"Third Sister?"
Pei Qian was quite perceptive: "The third in the family... could it be... Xie San Niang from the Xie family?!"
Qixia nodded.
Pei Qian looked inside and, sure enough, met Xie Lingxi's gaze. He deliberately raised his voice and sneered, "What's there to worry about! She's just like her brother, relying on her sharp tongue to never let things go! I think she's just like a street thug!"
The sound startled several birds in the tree away.
Qixia was overjoyed to hear this, and the blush that had appeared when she was angry with Xie Lingxi faded considerably. She looked up at Xie Lingxi, her eyes full of smugness.
Yan Ji also looked into the doorway at this moment. Xie San Niang lowered her eyes indifferently, seemingly unaware of the provocation.
That's interesting.
He concealed his emotions, looked at Pei Qian reproachfully, and said in a feignedly impartial tone, "Yuan Jing, what are you saying? Quickly apologize to the Third Miss."
Xie Lingxi had already walked up to them and looked Pei Qian up and down: "No need."
“You have a pointed mouth and monkey-like face, not inheriting any of your parents’ good features. Your voice is as unpleasant as a one-year-old child playing stringed instruments. If I were like you, I would definitely hide at home and dare not go out. How could I be like you, barking like a dog in this quiet Buddhist temple?”
Although her voice was light, the words she uttered were like the chilly wind of early spring, chilling Pei Qian's smug expression.
A pair of ornate shoes charged straight forward, carrying with them a fierce aura.
"What? What do you have to say in your defense?"
Xie Lingxi greeted him nonchalantly, looking up at him with an arrogant expression: "You say I'm sharp-tongued, so I can't possibly suffer a loss here, can I? Besides, everyone knows that the one who provokes first is always petty. Yuan Jing, I have a kind heart and won't hold it against you."
"you--!"
Enraged, Pei Qian ignored Yan Ji's attempts to stop him and rushed in front of Xie Lingxi, shouting, "What a load of nonsense!"
"It would be a good opportunity for those young men and women to see what Xie Lingxi, the legendary beauty of the Jade Steps and Bright Moon, really looks like?"
Xie Lingxi: "What could I possibly look like? Even at my worst, I'd be a thousand times more attractive than you!"
"My esteemed Pei family—"
"You, from the prestigious Pei family?"
"!"
Even though Yan Ji held him back, Pei Qian couldn't care less about anything else at the moment. What ordinary woman would dare to talk back to him like that? Besides, he had never been so embarrassed when he clashed with Xie Lingjun before.
A gust of wind lifted his face, as if granting him a degree of arrogance. He pouted and looked at Yan Ji: "Your Highness, please speak!"
Yan Ji understood that Pei Qian had always been the one bullying others since childhood, and after being repeatedly thwarted by the Xie siblings, he was already filled with resentment.
However, he has no intention of getting involved in this mess.
"Cough cough—"
“Yuan Jing, you were the one who spoke offensively first, and Third Sister was just retaliating. There’s nothing wrong with that. Just apologize to her, and we’ll let it go.”
After lingering there for a long time, and seeing that it was getting late, Xie Lingxi remembered that her elder sister was still waiting for her at the palace. She didn't even glance at them, thinking to herself: "A smiling tiger and a brainless idiot, what a perfect match."
Yan Ji has long harbored ambitions to seize the throne. If he ascends to power, the powerful clans will undoubtedly become obstacles to his absolute authority. Since this is an inevitable crisis, why bother speaking to him politely now?
What bad luck!
Xie Lingxi thought for a moment, then coldly bowed and turned around: "No need. I have urgent business to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
As she passed Pei Qian, she caught a glimpse of him glaring at her with his bloodshot eyes. Xie Lingxi lifted her skirt, slowly stepped over the threshold, and chuckled softly.
"Yuan Jing, next time you go to Qi Lou, be careful with your roof."
Pei Qian immediately jumped up and down: "You!"
It would have been fine if Xie Lingxi hadn't said that, but Xie Lingxi insisted on bringing up this old story. The humiliation and shame of the past surged up, making Pei Qian's eyelids roll back and he almost fainted on the spot.
At that time, Pei Qian was still secretly taking Xie Heng as his role model.
after all--
In poetry and prose competitions, Xie Heng was number one; in archery and chess, Xie Heng was number one; in classical studies and policy essays, Xie Heng was also number one.
Pei Qian was arrogant, and no one knew what he thought of Xie's son.
But one day, this admiration was shattered, because Xie Heng went to the brothel!
What kind of place is Qilou? It's a place for pleasure-seeking! How could the peerless Xie Heng go to such a place? Moreover, how could he, who is also seen as a handsome and dashing young man by those men and women, go to such a place!
He just went there to drink!
Unfortunately, on that day, a robber broke into the brothel and set it on fire before leaving. The fire happened to reach the room where he was drinking. He hurriedly and disheveledly rolled down the stairs and was splashed with water by the madam. As he staggered to the door, he turned around and saw the girl he admired standing in front of him.
How tragic and pitiful!
Heaven is cruel!
After this incident, not only did his reputation in Chang'an immediately reverse, but seeing Xie Heng smiling warmly at everyone, Pei Qian couldn't help but think:
Why wasn't it him who was exposed?
Later, at the poetry gathering, he deliberately provoked Xie Heng, and the two of them openly became enemies.
Recalling this, Pei Qian cried out relentlessly, "You're standing up for your brother like this, do you even know who he is!"
Xie Lingxi stopped with her foot that was sticking out of the doorway, turned around in surprise, and said, "Who he is and what business is it of yours? If you want to go to the Ministry of Revenue to ask for a job counting people's places of origin, you shouldn't be telling me."
Having said that, he walked away like the wind, leaving only the three of them standing there like withered trees.
Qixia was the first to react. She had intended to dampen Xie Lingxi's arrogance, but instead, she was rebuffed. However, she felt that those words, spoken out of turn, were nothing more than "killing a thousand enemies while losing eight hundred of your own."
She dared not look at Pei Qian, fearing his gaze could kill, and understood that today's attempt to get close to him had come to nothing. So she bowed to Yan Ji and said, "Third Sister has always been outspoken, Your Highness need not take it to heart. Master Liaoran is currently chanting scriptures in the back hall, so I will take my leave now."
There was no wind around, but Yan Ji's lips seemed to curl upwards slightly, as if he were in a good mood. He was also very polite to her: "Take care, young lady."
Xie Lingxi is certainly interesting.
Unfortunately, there are more important things to do today.
...
Master Liaoran was in the back hall. He had finished his lunch and taken a nap. Just as he was about to wash up, he encountered a girl of unparalleled beauty.
The girl wore a light blue blouse with a few lotus flowers faintly outlined in silver thread on her skirt. A moon-white brocade ribbon was tied around her waist. When the sun shone on her, the white brocade and snow-white silk looked like clouds and water, and as fragrant as a secluded orchid.
That was Xie Lingxi.
Just a quarter of an hour ago, Xie Lingxi was looking for her sister behind the temple, but there were too many narrow paths, and it was like entering a fog. She unknowingly ended up here.
Finally seeing a figure, she was about to ask for directions. As she approached and opened her mouth, she suddenly noticed a couplet in front of the courtyard that read: "Emptiness is the world, formless and limitless."
The words that were about to come out of his mouth were suddenly changed: "Master, do you know someone called 'Master Kongkong'?"
He suddenly realized and laughed, "It is I!"
"What, has this reputation spread so widely?"
The monk in front of me was unkempt. Although he had a kind face, he looked more like a grandfather enjoying his old age at home. He still had worldly manners and had no trace of the demeanor of a sage.
Xie Lingxi stared at his silvery-white beard and asked suspiciously, "Are you really him?"
Having seen this expression many times before, Liao Ran waved his hand and led Xie Lingxi into the house. He noticed that her clothes were made of very fine material, indicating that she must be a person of great wealth and status. He was delighted and said, "Amitabha, monks do not lie. You must have something on your mind that you are wondering about today."
"With a single thought of purity, the heart blossoms like a lotus. If the heart is impure, how can it remain unstained by dust?"
The room was simply furnished, with a plain peachwood table and only a set of teacups. In one of the teacups, which had a chipped rim, were two sprigs of peach blossoms that had been broken off from a branch.
After Xie Lingxi sat down, he picked up a teacup and asked, "I do have some questions that I don't understand. I've come here today hoping that you, Master, can enlighten me."
Liao Ran bluntly stated: "There are countless disturbances in the world, but what can truly disturb people's hearts is birth, old age, sickness, death, separation from loved ones, encountering those one hates, not getting what one desires, and the burning of the five aggregates."
Xie Lingxi said, "That is not what I am worried about. Master, do you know why some people die and come back to life?"
Upon hearing this, Liao Ran was shocked. "What you say is appalling."
"Even the master doesn't know?"
Xie Lingxi saw the monk slightly close his eyes, turn the prayer beads on his wrist, and murmur, "It cannot be said, it cannot be said."
"All things arise from causes and conditions, and good and evil deeds have their karmic consequences. Do you know that the Buddha said that destiny is created by oneself? Even a mortal with a single thought can create a small world with a skillful touch."
Why do all phenomena arise from causes and conditions?
Xie Lingxi muttered a few words to herself, seemingly lost in thought, and then asked, "Can the bonds between people be transferred?"
"Can someone who didn't exist in their past life suddenly appear in this one?"
She didn't care about what could or couldn't be said; she would just tell Liao Ran everything. Could she possibly incur divine retribution?
"It's all just a case of good beginnings and bad endings."
Liao Ran let out a long breath, suddenly opened his eyes, and looked at Xie Lingxi meaningfully: "Judging from your face, the Red Phoenix Star is in motion, indicating that you are destined to become a phoenix. However, after overcoming the tribulation, you will be blessed with abundant fortune, like a gentle rain!"
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