Chapter 164: Seventeen Sons of Bodhi
After lunch, Shen Chutang took Zhao Wenxian straight to Xiangshan Temple. The driver parked the car at the foot of the mountain and followed behind the two of them.
There was no time to clear the area because there was no prior notice. Xiangshan Temple is already very popular, and today is the weekend, so there are even more people.
In the second half of the walk, Shen Chutang's pace slowed down significantly. Zhao Wenxian wanted to help her, but she waved her hand to refuse.
"I heard people say that one must be sincere."
Zhao Wenxian wiped the sweat off her forehead with a tissue, feeling a little distressed. "What a twisted theory."
Shen Chutang smiled faintly, his eyes bright and full of anticipation.
Finally entering the temple, Shen Chutang asked for incense, bowed three times devoutly, and then inserted the incense into the incense burner. As the smoke lingered, Shen Chutang felt particularly peaceful in his heart.
Zhao Wenxian didn't ask for anything. Looking at her pondering in front of the incense burner for a long time, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
Seeing her coming, he quickly put on a smile and waved to her.
After they turned around, the three incense sticks that Shen Chutang had inserted into the incense burner swayed twice in the wind and suddenly went out.
The young monk next to him was a little confused for a moment. It was the first time he encountered such a situation in all his years in the temple. He looked at the abbot and said, "This..."
The abbot stroked his beard and said, "Take it out."
"Temple should not be about things that have already been done."
"yes."
"Tangtang, don't worry and don't think too much. You two are still young, and the most important thing is to take good care of your health."
On the way down the mountain, Zhao Wenxian kept counseling her.
Shen Chutang agreed with a smile. She thought she would be very excited after coming here, but she was not. Instead, she felt very calm.
"I understand, sister-in-law. Just let it go and leave everything to God's will."
“Ouch, ouch—”
Hearing the sound coming from behind, Shen Chutang was hit on the shoulder before she could dodge, and she staggered forward.
Zhao Wenxian quickly pulled her over and held her in his arms, then hid to the side. The driver saw this and moved in front of the two of them.
A woman on the steps fell down and knocked down several pilgrims who were coming down the mountain.
Shen Chutang patted his chest with a lingering fear, "I was scared to death."
Zhao Wenxian held her arm, fearing that something unexpected would happen again. "Fortunately, nothing happened. If she had leaned towards you again, you wouldn't know what would have happened."
"This girl is very lucky. She is wearing the protective bodhi necklace. The Bodhisattva is blessing her." An old man next to her said.
Shen Chutang smiled faintly, "My lover asked for it for me."
"Oh! You have seventeen of them! The other one is with your lover. Your lover really puts his trust in you."
Shen Chutang was a little confused, "Grandma, what does this mean?"
"You are young, so you probably haven't heard that the bodhi bracelets at Xiangshan Temple have always had 18 beads. One bead is taken from one string and placed on another, and then consecrated together in the temple. It means to ward off disasters for people."
"Protect others from disasters?"
"Yes, I have lived for so long, but this is the first time I have seen it. The eighteen bodhi seeds are common, but there are very few people who are missing one."
The old man smiled, but couldn't help sighing in his heart. It seemed like she was still unaware. She had been tricked into wearing a 19-dove crown before, but this was the first time she wore a 17-dove crown without knowing it.
"Girl, you are lucky."
Shen Chutang suppressed his emotions and thanked her, then walked down the stairs in a daze, with those four words circling in his mind.
She always complained to Shi Chengyu that the bracelet didn't work, but she never knew that the bracelet was never used to protect Shi Chengyu, but was used by him to protect her from disasters.
She ignored the fact that her health was getting better little by little, she never suffered any serious injuries again, and she rarely got sick.
On the other hand, Shi Chengyu had a fever after the annual meeting that night, and his knees hurt for a long time. He was sick for half a month before he recovered, but she was fine. In addition, he always had inexplicable small wounds on his body, which she usually ignored.
Shen Chutang's tears fell, and he stopped walking, choking, "I don't know... Sister-in-law, I don't know at all..."
Zhao Wenxian didn't know how to persuade her for a moment. They had seen Shi Chengyu prepare these bracelets one by one, and no one had counted the number of beads on them. No one knew that there was such a deeper meaning behind them.
She was still shedding tears and she missed the stairs several times when going down the mountain. Later, Zhao Wenxian didn't dare to let her go and helped her down the mountain.
After sending her to the door of her home, Zhao Wenxian was still worried, so she followed her inside. When she saw Shi Chengyu coming out to pick her up, she sighed, shook her head and left.
"What's wrong?"
Shi Chengyu hadn't seen her so sad for a long time. Tears were hanging from the corners of her eyes. She looked sad and grief-stricken. His heart suddenly ached, and then a dense pain came over him.
He quickly came over and hugged her, coaxing her softly, "It's okay, Tangtang, don't worry about the child, we still--"
Shen Chutang gently pushed him away. Shi Chengyu was stunned. The next moment, he heard Shen Chutang ask in a hoarse voice, "Why is there one bracelet missing from my bracelet?"
Shi Chengyu's heart was shocked, and he couldn't utter a word when he saw Shen Chutang's heartbroken eyes.
She knows.
Silent silence was the best answer. Shen Chutang took off the bracelet and threw it on the ground, then pulled Shi Chengyu's hand over, took off the bracelet and threw it away.
Shi Chengyu turned around in a panic, picked it up, and like a child who had done something wrong, he walked over slowly, took Shen Chutang's hand, and carefully took the necklace that belonged to her.
Shen Chutang's tears fell down in large drops. She shook off Shi Chengyu's hand and shouted, "Shi Chengyu!"
Shi Chengyu's eyes were red, and he held her hand again, pleading in his tone, "Tangtang, please don't take it off..."
The small bracelet seemed to be his only hope to protect her safety.
Shen Chutang closed her eyes, angry, helpless, bitter...all kinds of emotions intertwined together, tearing at her tense nerves. She didn't want such a blessing, what she wanted was for both of them to be safe and sound.
Shen Chutang shook off his hand again, took off the bracelet, put it on the table, and went upstairs without saying a word.
Shi Chengyu picked up the bracelet and followed her closely, "Tangtang, Tangtang..."
"Bang--"
Shi Chengyu was refused entry, followed by the sound of the door lock turning.
A gust of cold wind squeezed out from the gap in the door and hit his face, making him feel suffocated for a moment. Shi Chengyu stood at the door in a daze. After a while, he asked the servant to bring him the spare key.
The bedroom was very quiet. As Shi Chengyu walked inside, the crying became clearer.
His pillow was thrown to the ground. Shen Chutang lay on his side on the bed, his thin shoulders trembling with his crying, and every cry made him feel heartbroken.
Shi Chengyu wrapped her in a quilt and held her in his arms. Shen Chutang couldn't break free and cried even louder.
"Please take it off, Shi Chengyu... We won't wear it anymore, none of us will wear it anymore..." Shen Chutang was choking with sobs, her words were intermittent, and she sobbed in his arms.
Shi Chengyu did not answer, but just hugged her tightly and kissed her tear-stained cheeks and the corners of her lips.
This question has no answer because of love.
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