Xue Yingxue's fan froze in mid-air, her purple gauze sleeves trembling slightly. Xin Jiuwei's words, "taking in a down-on-his-luck scholar," were like a needle piercing her most vulnerable spot.
"Third Miss, what you're saying makes no sense." Xue Yingxue forced a smile, covering her twitching lips with her fan. "My relationship with Young Master Qi is completely innocent; I merely intervened to right an injustice..."
"Seeing injustice on the road?" Xin Jiuwei suddenly chuckled, taking a piece of mutton-fat jade pendant from her waist. "Does Miss Xue recognize this?"
Xue Yingxue's pupils suddenly contracted—it was clearly the beautiful jade she had "accidentally" obtained on her birthday last year.
"What...what does this have to do with me?"
"The manager of Yuzhen Pavilion in the south of the city still remembers," Xin Jiuwei said, her fingertips lightly tracing the lotus pattern on the edge of the jade pendant. "Last year on the eighteenth of the twelfth lunar month, Young Master Qi bought this jade with my Xin family's silver notes, saying he wanted to give it to his 'soulmate.'" She suddenly turned the jade pendant over, revealing the character "Snow" engraved on the back. "Miss Xue's maiden name, it's engraved so exquisitely."
A chorus of boos erupted from the crowd. Several ladies who had initially sided with Xue Yingxue immediately changed their expressions and began whispering among themselves:
"So that's how those valuable items came to be..."
"Still pretending to be high and mighty, clearly..."
"Tsk tsk, the thief crying 'stop thief!'..."
Xue Yingxue snapped the fan shut in her hand, her knuckles turning white as she clenched it: "Xin Jiuwei! You...you..."
"What?!" Xin Jiuwei put the jade pendant back into her sleeve. "Snobbish? When Miss Xue accepted the gift, why didn't she complain that this jade pendant was tainted with the Xin family's money-grubbing?"
The crowd erupted in an uproar. Several women who had initially sided with Xue Yingxue immediately stepped back, whispering amongst themselves:
"So that's how Miss Xue acquired those precious jewels..."
"Still pretending to be high and mighty, clearly..."
"Tsk tsk, the thief crying 'stop thief!'..."
Xue Yingxue snapped the fan shut, her fingers clenching the ribs so tightly they cracked: "Xin Jiuwei! You...you..."
"What about me?" Xin Jiuwei stepped closer. "You're a snob? Why didn't Miss Xue look down on Qi Huaiyu for being poor when she accepted the gifts? He's just a stable boy's son, where would he get the money to buy jade and rubies?"
These words struck Xue Yingxue like a barrage of arrows, leaving her completely defeated. Her face turned pale, and she could no longer maintain her usual aloof demeanor. She flung her sleeves and left.
Seeing the situation was turning against him, Qi Huaiyu immediately changed tactics. He knelt down in the muddy ground after the rain with a thud, his voice choked with sobs: "Jiuwei, it's all my fault! I only beg you to remember the past..."
"In the past?" Xin Jiuwei interrupted coldly, "Young Master Qi, have you forgotten that I have been enlightened by Master Jueming and have sincerely worshipped Buddha for five years?"
She deliberately raised her voice, "Are you trying to disturb my scripture copying and meditation, and displease the Buddha?"
The moment the words "Master Jueming" were uttered, the onlookers fell silent. The people of Yingzhou were devout Buddhists, and Jueming was a renowned monk of the time; no one dared to offend him.
Qi Huaiyu was caught off guard by this move and was speechless for a moment.
Xin Jiuwei pressed her advantage: "Or is it that Young Master Qi doesn't even respect Buddha?"
These words were like boiling water poured on an anthill, and the onlookers immediately erupted in uproar:
"Oh my god! Disturbing someone's cultivation will bring retribution!"
"He dares to harass someone enlightened by Master Jueming?"
"Go quickly, don't drag us down with you..."
Qi Huaiyu's face turned pale and then red, unsure whether to kneel or rise. He had intended to use public opinion to force Xin Jiuwei to submit, but unexpectedly, she used her Buddhist influence to suppress him, rendering him unable to move.
"I...I just..." he stammered, trying to explain.
"Young Master Qi," Xin Jiuwei said, pressing her palms together in a standard Buddhist gesture, "the sea of suffering is boundless, but turning back is the shore. Please have some self-respect."
This subtle attack completely cut off Qi Huaiyu's escape route. Amidst the pointing fingers and whispers of the crowd, he could only slink to his feet, not forgetting to utter a harsh threat before leaving: "Xin Jiuwei, you just wait..."
"Waiting for what?" Xin Jiuwei suddenly shouted sharply, "Waiting for you to poison my tea? Or waiting for you to borrow money from gambling dens at exorbitant interest rates to harm my Xin family?"
Qi Huaiyu was struck dumb, staggering back two steps—how could she know about the gambling den?
Before he could react, onlookers angrily picked up rotten vegetable leaves and threw them at him.
"You utterly depraved wretch!"
"Still dare to poison them? Turn them over to the authorities!"
"Get out of Yingzhou!"
Back in the inner courtyard, Xin Jiuwei had just changed out of her mud-stained dress when Wang Qing rushed over: "Miss, Master Jueming has sent someone to invite you over."
Xin Jiuwei's hand trembled, and the hairpin almost poked her scalp.
"What in Yingzhou could possibly escape his notice?"
Wang Qing curiously leaned closer: "What business does the master have with Miss?"
"Perhaps he's upset that I used his name to scare Qi Huaiyu?" Xin Jiuwei straightened her sideburns in front of the mirror, then suddenly remembered something. "Go and fetch the Heart Sutra I copied."
Xin Jiuwei took the copied Heart Sutra to the other courtyard, where Jueming had already arrived.
A young monk in a plain white robe stood by the railing, the mountain breeze ruffling his robes, making him appear like a banished immortal.
As Xin Jiuwei climbed the steps, she saw him gently twirling a fallen leaf between his fingers, his expression focused as if he were trying to understand some profound mystery.
"Master." Xin Jiuwei bowed respectfully outside the pavilion, placing the copied Heart Sutra on the stone table. "The Buddhist scripture you requested."
Jueming asked without turning his head, "Is it easy to use?"
"What?"
"My name, that humble monk." He turned around, a hint of mockery in his eyes she had never seen before. "Weren't you using it quite skillfully at the gate today?"
Xin Jiuwei's ears burned, but she forced herself to remain calm and said, "In urgent situations, we must act expediently. Besides..."
She looked up at him directly. "Didn't the master already tacitly agree?"
"Oh?" Jueming approached slowly, a faint scent of sandalwood emanating from him. "When did this humble monk give his permission?"
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