Niangniang Temple.
The temple is small but famous, and its incense is very popular.
It's not that people are particularly superstitious, but rather that people are now more affluent and less strapped for cash. When they see something auspicious, they might offer a prayer for good fortune. But to say that they truly believe in the goddesses in temples is not necessarily true.
Most people will visit any temple they encounter, regardless of which Bodhisattva or deity they worship, because they can't lose out, won't be fooled, and can at least gain peace of mind.
Gu Yanyan and Zhang Yang bought tickets and followed the long queue inside.
The temple is very clean and tidy, with thriving incense offerings. It is cleaned and maintained year-round, and the painted murals are all newly restored, with bright colors and dazzling beauty.
Walking across the bluestone square, the tall, serene trees on both sides exude a sense of Zen. In the largest hall at the front, there is a beautiful statue with a full face, long eyebrows and wide eyes, looking very kind. It is dressed in brocade robes, the sleeves of which flutter gracefully.
Gu Yanyan recognized it at a glance; it was dressed like a person from the Great Jing Dynasty, and the face of the goddess statue really did resemble the girl from back then.
Gu Yanyan felt a slight pain in her chest.
She was certain that the artist who sculpted the statue must have seen the girl, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to capture her extraordinary charm.
Looking at Gu Yanyan's expression, a mixture of sorrow and joy, Zhang Yang asked, "Does it look very similar?"
"Yes! It's very similar! It's the most similar of all the statues." Gu Yanyan's voice was very soft, as if she was afraid of startling the spirit inside the statue.
The empress's eyes were carved from black jade and inlaid within them. No matter which angle you looked at them, they seemed to be looking directly at you, radiant and full of spirit.
With the help of the temple staff, the people around them knelt down in an orderly fashion to worship.
Zhang Yang queued up, and Gu Yanyan looked around. The blue stone carvings were intricate and exquisite, and the jade railings still showed signs of the splendor of yesteryear.
In a long, winding corridor, many modern propaganda signs are hung, describing the history of the Niangniang Temple and telling its past and present stories.
Gu Yanyan decided to look at them one by one.
I stopped after seeing just the first picture and couldn't move on.
The first billboard depicted the portrait of an old man. It was an impressionistic drawing and did not accurately reflect the old man's appearance, but it captured about 80% of his spirit and essence.
Gu Yanyan recognized him at a glance; it was Xu An!
The aging Xu An's face has lost the shrewdness of his youth, but gained more kindness and wisdom, making him look like an ordinary wealthy old man.
The text next to it clearly states: Xu An, courtesy name Pingyuan, was a native of Guangwu City. He was once the first imperial merchant of the Great Jing Dynasty, operating businesses such as money shops, cloth shops, and jade shops. He opened up a northward waterway for cargo transportation, and his business map spread from Great Jing to neighboring countries such as Xianyu and Hulin. He expanded the trade routes for the Great Jing Dynasty and left his name in history.
He married a woman surnamed Ning, and they had two sons and three daughters. During the reign of Emperor Jing, he withdrew from the competition among imperial merchants and returned to his hometown, where he lived a peaceful and wealthy life. Later, he funded the construction of a temple to commemorate Empress Zhenrui.
Tears blurred Gu Yanyan's vision.
Some people wondered why this beautiful and refined girl would burst into tears in front of an ancient portrait, but the scene was strange yet not abrupt.
It was as if this girl was one with the place.
"Could she be a descendant of the Xu family?" some people speculated.
After all, the Niangniang Temple has now been nationalized, and the descendants of the Xu family were reportedly given a sum of money, after which they had nothing to do with the Niangniang Temple anymore.
"She's really beautiful!" Someone mustered up the courage to take a few photos.
Beauty always touches people's hearts.
Gu Yanyan was delighted.
A joy of reuniting with an old friend, separated by time and space, by the long river of history, one in a painting, the other in the human world, gazing at each other.
Tears fell onto her hands before she realized she was crying.
When Zhang Yang couldn't wait for Gu Yanyan, he came looking for her and saw her in front of a portrait with tears streaming down her face. He stood quietly to the side and waited patiently.
Some emotions need to be released.
Only by crying can we live better.
Gu Yanyan did a great job. If it were me, coming to a completely unfamiliar place, I might not be able to do it like her.
His gaze fell on Xu An's portrait, and he quickly understood why Gu Yanyan was crying.
Empress Zhenrui came from a merchant family, as did Xu An. He had once been a retainer of Empress Zhenrui. After Empress Zhenrui married the Prince of Chu and became the Princess Consort of Chu, it was no longer appropriate for her to appear in public. Xu An took care of all the business matters.
After Emperor Wuzong ascended the throne, Xu An became a royal merchant with immense power. However, he was always cautious and did not commit any evil deeds. He maintained his position as a royal merchant very steadily until Emperor Jing ascended the throne. He then stepped down and divided up many of his businesses...
This is a very intelligent person.
It's reasonable for Gu Yanyan, who had served Empress Zhenrui, to know Xu An.
This temple dedicated to the Goddess of the Year was built by Xu An.
Friendship is something that cannot be seen or touched, yet it has been passed down for thousands of years. It must be said that this is a kind of fate.
a long time.
Gu Yanyan stopped, breaking free from that dreamlike atmosphere.
A handkerchief appeared in front of her at just the right moment.
It was a pure white silk handkerchief, embroidered with patterns using pure white pearlescent silk thread. It looked quite ordinary, but as soon as the sunlight shone on it, silver patterns would appear, and the flowers would bloom in profusion.
This was her own work; she embroidered many of them and gave them to Zhang Yang.
She still prefers to use handkerchiefs, which are warm, soft, and antique, a steadfast reminder of time from a thousand years ago.
She took the handkerchief and whispered, "Thank you!"
"You know him?" Zhang Yang asked.
Gu Yanyan nodded. "I know him! He manages the Empress's business. He's a very good person. I learned how to do business from him for a long time. Later, when I went out to travel, he also arranged for people to take care of me along the way."
The Empress treated her very well.
Xu An treated her very well.
Sometimes she would get confused about which of the comforts she enjoyed along the way were arranged by the Empress and which were arranged by Xu An.
In the dead of night, I dreamt of you.
She would also wonder whether Xu An stopped waiting because he truly couldn't wait any longer, or because he realized his feelings for the girl and gave up.
past.
There is coming and going, coming and going, all the hustle and bustle, making one think back a thousand years.
Listening to Gu Yanyan's words, Zhang Yang felt a strange pang of sadness. He looked up at the old man's portrait again, his eyes filled with complex emotions. After a long silence, he said, "Let's go! We need to queue up again. I hope we can pay our respects today."
As evening approached, the number of people dwindled.
Some people couldn't wait and left.
after all.
Gods and Buddhas are important, but not as important as eating.
This time, the two of them arrived at the statue of Empress Zhenrui after a short wait. Separated by a cordon, Gu Yanyan gracefully bowed before the tall and dignified statue.
I bow once to express my gratitude for being saved.
The second bow signifies a sincere commitment.
Three bows, to express gratitude for being given a second chance at life.
After breaking the statue, she clasped her hands together and looked at the tall statue with her bright eyes. Even from this angle, she still felt as if the statue was watching her.
Suddenly, her vision blurred, and she seemed to see the stone statue smiling.
"You've come!"
The soft, ethereal voices came in layers, densely packed from all directions, and every word reached Gu Yanyan's ears.
A graceful woman emerged from between the stone statues, and with soft steps, she floated down slowly, standing in front of Gu Yanyan in a few steps. Her posture was dignified and her demeanor was elegant, like a goddess descending to earth or a fairy walking on water.
Gu Yanyan suddenly stood up, her clear eyes filled with tears, her heart pounding with anxiety. "Miss!"
"girl?"
The sounds still overlapped, carrying memories of the past, as if a thousand mouths were speaking in unison, or as if many people stood in the middle of a valley and softly uttered a sentence, which then stirred up countless echoes.
Gu Yanyan gripped her handkerchief tightly, afraid that a single breath would blow the woman away. "Who are you? You're a young lady!"
The woman chuckled softly, reached out and touched Gu Yanyan's soft hair, and said with a smile, "Come with me!"
Where to go?
Gu Yanyan smiled.
It's like a flower blooming in the mountains, which happens to meet a beautiful deer. It no longer admires itself in solitude; its life becomes extraordinary because of the appearance of a deer.
The woman walked out gracefully, smiling and beckoning to Gu Yanyan, "Come here!"
Gu Yanyan was overjoyed, feeling dizzy and dreamy, and quickly followed after him.
She didn't see that the ostentatious crowds around her had disappeared, the tourists had disappeared, the service staff who were there to greet her had disappeared, the vendors selling incense had disappeared, and even the donation boxes inside the temple had disappeared.
The changing scenery around her seemed to have absolutely no effect on her.
She only had eyes for her girl, and even if there were mountains of knives and seas of fire ahead, she would jump down with her.
"Girl, where are we going?" Gu Yanyan felt as if she had returned to the past in an instant. At this moment, she really wanted to sit down, take the girl's hand, and tell her about the gossip she had heard from her travels over the years.
The woman laughed and said, "Go into your heart."
He pointed a finger at Gu Yanyan's heart, and a beam of white light flew into her heart like lightning.
Gu Yanyan: "..."
She looked down at her heart, which is normally invisible in her chest, but at that moment, she saw it—a small, red heart, pounding loudly.
"Girl, my heart!" Gu Yanyan felt a mix of fear, joy, and inexplicable emotions.
The woman walked up to Gu Yanyan, extended her slender white fingers, touched her heart, and sighed, "There is a red thread on your heart. I will remove it for you. From now on, you should live a more peaceful life."
As she spoke, she pinched her fingers and pulled out a thin, red thread, placing it in Gu Yanyan's hand.
The thread seemed to possess a spirit, writhing restlessly in her hand, shimmering with a red light, looking lustrous, lovely, and crystal clear.
Gu Yanyan felt uneasy. She vaguely sensed that this thread was deeply connected to her, and losing it seemed to sever some kind of connection between her and the past. "Miss!"
"Red thread, red thread. A single thread binds us together in marriage. Do you want to see her?"
"Her?" Gu Yanyan was somewhat surprised. "Who is she?"
The woman's expression remained unchanged as she reached out and tapped Gu Yanyan's forehead with her finger. "She's been in your heart for so long, and you've actually forgotten?"
Gu Yanyan felt a little scared subconsciously, as if some important truth was about to be revealed to her.
Before she could answer, the woman took Gu Yanyan's hand and led her to a place amidst layers of clouds and mist. She stretched out her finger and wiped it in the mist, and the clouds and mist dispersed, revealing what appeared to be a mirror.
The mirror was enormous, and countless people could be vaguely seen moving around inside it. The face of an unfamiliar woman appeared in the mirror, and she was being placed on a cart. A man was hurriedly pushing the cart, looking anxious.
With just one step, Gu Yanyan seemed to walk into the mirror.
She had this thought in her mind, but didn't act on it at all. The girl was here; she wasn't going anywhere.
The woman behind her smiled and shook her head. "Foolish child, foolish child! You can't see the truth of the illusion, I'll see you off."
Gu Yanyan didn't understand; she hadn't seen the young lady for a long time and could no longer comprehend her words. "Young lady!"
The woman shook her head, her features gentle and refined. She reached out and gave Gu Yanyan a push on the back. "I'm not your daughter. This is all just a dream, a mirage. The grudges should be settled. I'll take you to see her."
Gu Yanyan tripped and fell into the mirror, as if she had fallen into water. She was quickly submerged by the mirror. Before she was completely submerged, she turned her head and looked behind her. The woman was smiling, but her kind face was cracked with fissures. In the blink of an eye, she seemed to be swallowed by the mist and disappeared into the world.
Gu Yanyan felt sorry for him.
She cried out in anguish, "Girl!"
But when I called out, it was just a baby crying. "Wah! Wah! Wah!"
Gu Yanyan: "..."
She looked at herself in surprise, but found that she could not see anything except her two small, red, sweet potato-like hands. Then she remembered that she had heard someone say on TV that newborn babies are all extremely nearsighted.
She turned into a baby?
Gu Yanyan was very anxious. She couldn't figure out what was going on. Secretly, she wanted to escape, but in fact, she was suddenly picked up and carried away.
"Mo Tang, our daughter, do you like her?"
The voice was gentle, as if striking her soul. Gu Yanyan stopped crying and struggling, staring blankly at the woman in front of her. She had never seen this woman before, yet it felt as if she had known her for a long time.
My heart aches a little, but it also feels warm.
The man named Mo Tang reached out and teased her cheek. Because they were so close, Gu Yanyan saw his eyes well up with tears and his voice choked with emotion. "Lanlan, you've worked so hard."
They are very much in love!
This was Gu Yanyan's first thought.
They loved her very much.
This was Gu Yanyan's second thought.
Linghu Lan asked, "What should we name the child?"
"The eldest is named Rong Yu, and the second is named Rong Zhi? Of all the names I thought of, I think this one sounds the best."
"Okay! Her name will be Rong Zhi, little Rong Zhi. I'm your mother!" Linghu Lan looked at her with great joy.
Gu Yanyan tried to widen her eyes and meet her gaze.
Linghu Lan looked at her for a while, then looked away and smiled, "Don't you think she looks a little like Gu Yanyan? She looks a bit silly, but cute, right?"
The clouds parted and the fog cleared, but my heart was filled with thunder and lightning.
Gu Yanyan suddenly understood something, and she exclaimed, "Miss!"
However, what came out was, "Waaaaaaah!"
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