Chapter 14, "A Buddhist Site of Great Importance".
==Chapter Fourteen: Guimin Temple==
On the appointed day, at noon, the sun was high in the sky, and the heat was intense.
After only half an hour outside, her thin shirt was soaked with sweat, and Su Wanyue's fair face turned red. Qin'er held an umbrella for her on the left, while Chunzhi fanned her on the right, trying to drive away the heat outside.
The carriage was parked at the gate of the mansion when the steward greeted her with a smile, "Your Highness."
"Sister-in-law." Qin Sisi lifted the curtain and greeted Su Wanyue with "hello." Because the Imperial Concubine had specifically requested someone, Su Wanyue and Qin Sisi were going together today.
The carriages at Prince Cheng's residence were exquisitely designed and particularly spacious. Su Wanyue and Qin Sisi were not very close, so they didn't talk much along the way. Fortunately, Guimin Temple was not far from the capital, and they arrived in an hour.
Upon hearing that the Imperial Concubine had come to Guimin Temple to pray for blessings, the temple was immediately packed with people. However, all entrances and exits of the temple were heavily guarded, so there was no concern that anyone would disturb the Imperial Concubine.
The carriage bearing the insignia of "Prince Cheng's Mansion" arrived at Guimin Temple, and someone immediately came to greet them, "Your Highness, Miss Qin, Her Majesty is resting in the west wing right now. This servant will take you there."
"Thank you for your help, Granny Zhang."
The Imperial Concubine remained as before, plump and graceful, with a languid demeanor. She held a lotus-shaped fan in her hand, the handle adorned with a piece of mutton-fat jade.
Before Su Wanyue and Qin Sisi could even pay their respects, Consort Qin had already smiled and raised her hand, "Weiyang and Sisi have arrived, please sit down."
Qin Sisi and Consort Qin had always been close. Upon hearing this, she stepped forward and hugged Consort Qin's arm, her voice as sweet as honey, "Aunt, I missed you so much. Have you missed Sisi?"
"I miss Sisi very much, but Sisi hasn't come to the palace to pay her respects much lately. I thought Sisi had a lover she admired and no longer had the heart to come and pay her respects to me."
This was just a joke. Her son was already married, and Consort Qin would choose a good husband for her niece from among the many fine young men in the capital. As for anything else, that was out of the question.
Qin Sisi shyly threw herself into Consort Qin's arms, but her eyes were on Su Wanyue standing to the side. Seeing Su Wanyue sipping her tea as if nothing had happened, her posture gentle and calm, Qin Sisi gritted her teeth. How could Su Wanyue be so composed when they were about the same age, while she was as impatient as a little girl? Qin Sisi felt annoyed. Was she really only destined to be her cousin's sister?
Qin Sisi: "Then Sisi should go to the palace more often to pay her respects to her aunt."
Consort Qin smiled and tapped her forehead, her tone full of affection, "I couldn't ask for more."
Immediately afterwards, Consort Qin turned her gaze to Su Wanyue, "Weiyang, I heard that you have managed the Prince Cheng's residence very well and even dealt with two unruly servants. You have worked hard."
Prince Cheng's mansion is not short of money, but what is feared is that once such arrogance takes hold, if someone seizes on it one day, it may cause trouble. Without rules, there can be no order[1]. Consort Qin is very satisfied with this.
Su Wanyue said softly, "This is what I should do."
Consort Qin's peach blossom eyes were full of smiles, and she undoubtedly liked the woman in front of her even more. She took off a jade bracelet from her wrist and put it on Su Wanyue's hand, then gently patted the back of her hand, "I will be going to the Fahua Hall to listen to people chanting sutras tomorrow, you two should go back to your rooms first."
Granny Zhang escorted the two to the door. Qin Sisi and Su Wanyue returned to their respective rooms. The temple rooms were simple, but the environment was quiet. Guimin Temple was built on a high mountain, and the temperature was much lower than in the capital. There were also a few peach blossoms in bloom this season.
Qin'er tidied up the bed and other things, then boiled a kettle of water and asked, "Would the Princess like to rest for a while?"
Based on Qin'er's understanding of her princess, she probably wouldn't go to rest.
Su Wanyue really didn't want to rest. She had been feeling uneasy for the past few days, and since she was already here, she wanted to go to the main hall to burn incense.
"Come with me to the main hall to burn incense."
"yes."
Upon hearing that Su Wanyue was going to the main hall, the young novice monk hurriedly led the way, winding through layers of corridors until they finally arrived at the main hall. "Amitabha, Your Highness, this is the main hall."
Su Wanyue knelt upright on the prayer mat. Qin'er brought her three incense sticks. Su Wanyue closed her eyes and prayed devoutly three times. She didn't ask for much, only that her father and that person be well, and that she could see her father again in the future.
Because she was still unsure of the situation in Nanqiong, Su Wanyue remained uneasy. However, she couldn't show any of these emotions, because if she did, her identity would be exposed.
Su Wanyue lowered her eyelashes, placed the three incense sticks in her hand into the incense burner, and bowed once more.
Qin'er noticed that her interest was not very high, so she suggested that they go for a walk in the temple. As they walked, they came to a place where people were drawing lots. Many people were gathered there. Qin'er stopped and asked, "Would Your Highness like to draw a lot?"
Thinking that she had nothing else to do today, Su Wanyue nodded slightly, and the two of them went over. The person in charge of drawing lots was a monk from the temple. Seeing that Su Wanyue wanted to draw a lot, the young monk handed over the whole bamboo tube. Qin'er looked on expectantly, hoping that she would draw a good lot. Su Wanyue didn't care whether she could draw a good lot or not. She put her hand in and randomly took out a lot. Qin'er quickly came over to look. It was two lines of poetry, but it was extremely obscure. Qin'er couldn't tell whether the poem meant good or bad.
The two characters "鸑鷟" on the fortune slip made Su Wanyue's brow twitch. Why would a temple usually put such a fortune slip in? Perhaps she was overthinking it.
Su Wanyue frowned, wanting to put the fortune slip back without anyone noticing, but the little monk smiled and glanced at her fortune slip, "Your Highness, this fortune slip is an auspicious omen, a very good one. Your Highness will surely be blessed with good fortune in the future."
Qin'er breathed a sigh of relief. Regardless of whether the fortune slip was real or fake, at least she could have peace of mind.
The delay made it quite late. Qin'er helped Su Wanyue walk back, and before they even entered the room, Zhang Mama, who was by the Imperial Concubine's side, came over with a smile, "Your Highness made it hard for me to find you."
Su Wanyue silently hid the fortune slip in her sleeve, a gentle smile on her lips, "Does Mother have any instructions?"
"That's right. Madam Xie from the Xie family has come to offer incense with the eldest son and the third daughter of the Xie family. They are currently with the Imperial Concubine."
The Xie family is a prominent clan in this dynasty, with all its members serving as officials in the court and highly valued by the emperor. The importance of the Xie family in the princes' allegiance is self-evident. The Duke of Xie is upright and incorruptible, wholeheartedly devoted to the emperor. However, the current Crown Princess was once the betrothed of Xie Cheng, the eldest son of the Xie family, since childhood. Due to the twists and turns in this relationship, Xie Cheng became very close to Xiao Yu after entering the court and is now regarded as a member of Prince Cheng's faction by the Crown Prince and the Eighth Prince.
Su Wanyue dared not be careless and immediately followed Zhang Mama to the west wing of Consort Qin's room. Before she even reached the door, she heard laughter and cheerful voices coming from inside. Zhang Mama smiled and stepped aside, "Your Highness, please come in."
Su Wanyue walked in gracefully, her slender waist swaying. She greeted her warmly as "Mother Consort." Consort Qin smiled and beckoned her over, introducing her, "Weiyang, this is Madam Xie from the Xie State Duke's Mansion."
Madam Xie is thirty-five years old this year, but she still looks like a young woman. She has a dignified and generous temperament. She looked Su Wanyue up and down and said with a smile, "I have long heard that Princess Consort Cheng is exceptionally intelligent. Seeing her today, I can confirm that it is true."
Madam Xie had seen many beautiful women, but what attracted her most about the woman before her was her eyes, which were bright and clear, as if they could speak. Her demeanor was also graceful and poised, quite different from what Madam Xie had imagined.
Consort Qin's smile was undisguised. Xie Cheng kept his eyes straight ahead. Xie Mo'er was in her prime, a time of great curiosity. She would steal a glance at Su Wanyue every now and then before lowering her head.
"Cheng'er, Mo'er, hurry up and greet Princess Cheng."
"Your humble servant (this humble woman) greets Your Highness Princess Cheng."
"Why has Madam Xie come to Guimin Temple today?" Consort Qin asked.
"It's all for the sake of my son and daughter's marriage. Mo'er is currently in the process of finding a husband, so I brought her here to offer incense, just to put my mind at ease."
Speaking of Madam Xie, she was an enviable figure. She held the title of First-Rank Imperial Lady, was highly respected by the Duke of Xie, had a son who entered the court as an official at a young age, and a daughter who was filial. However, Madam Xie was truly worried sick about her children's marriages.
Especially this son, who is already showing signs of never marrying. No one knows a son better than his mother, but he hasn't completely let go of his attachment to marriage yet.
Consort Qin suddenly had an idea: to match Xie Cheng and Sisi. Sisi was the only young lady of the Yiyong Marquis's generation and one of the two beauties of Shengjing. If she really married Xie Cheng, it would be a good match. If we set aside the factor of whether they liked each other or not, they could probably live a harmonious life together. She should keep an eye on it.
"Miss Xie seems lively and clever; I wonder which family Madam Xie has taken a liking to?"
"Your Highness, I think General Mu is quite good, but whether it will work out depends on the two children's wishes."
Mu Ziyi had been trained in the military since he was a young man. As the saying goes, yin and yang are in harmony. Madam Xie felt that her daughter, with such a personality, should be matched with a military general.
Consort Qin clearly knew Mu Ziyi, and said with a smile that if the two families were really interested, she would ask the Emperor to bestow a marriage upon the two children.
The Imperial Concubine is currently the most favored concubine in the palace, so what she said must be true. Madam Xie was overjoyed and thanked the Imperial Concubine.
Madam Xie originally planned to leave after offering incense, but since the Imperial Concubine would be staying at Guimin Temple for one night, they decided to stay for a few more days. However, there weren't enough rooms in the west wing, so the whole family went to stay in the south wing.
As night deepened, Qin'er helped Su Wanyue remove her hairpins and jewelry. "Your Highness, please rest now. Tomorrow we will accompany the Imperial Concubine to the Dharma Hall to listen to the sutras."
Because she had important business to attend to the next day, Su Wanyue dared not sleep too soundly and slept fully clothed.
Unexpectedly, in the middle of the night, the sound of fighting came from outside the room, which sounded particularly eerie in the quiet night.
-"assassin."
"Help! There's an assassin!"
Su Wanyue suddenly woke up, "Qin'er."
Qin'er was in the outer room. She walked over quickly and helped Su Wanyue straighten her clothes in a few moments. "Your Highness, it seems like there are assassins outside. Please don't go out yet."
Why would assassins break into a temple in the middle of the night? Did these assassins not know that the Imperial Concubine was there, or were they specifically targeting the Imperial Concubine?
Aren't these people afraid of being executed along with their entire families by the Emperor? Qin'er felt a chill run down her spine.
Su Wanyue then thought of another problem. They weren't going out, but what if the assassin broke in through the window? Could they just sit there and wait to die? And what about the Imperial Concubine? She didn't know what the situation was like.
Su Wanyue's mind raced. She was worried about the situation outside while trying to figure out how to break the deadlock. If she was really forced to do something, she would have to kill her with one blow. A resolute look flashed in her eyes, and she quickly got out of bed.
Outside the room, swords clashed, the sound of cold blades hitting each other was particularly jarring, mixed with Qin Sisi's frightened screams. Su Wanyue frowned, no longer hesitating, and quickly walked out.
"Your Highness!" Qin'er cried out and hurriedly followed.
“This is a sacred Buddhist site; who would dare to act recklessly?”
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