"Miss, we have arrived at Duanyun Temple."
A pale white hand lifted the carriage curtain.
With a slight turn of her delicate fingers, she revealed a beautiful and charming face.
She had a beautiful forehead and arched eyebrows, fair skin and black hair.
He looked sickly and somewhat frail.
Shen Zhiyi took the hand of the maid, bent down and got out of the carriage, as if she had stepped out of the most poetic ink painting.
She was slender, wrapped in a white, soft silk dress, with narrow shoulders, and when she bent over, a section of her delicate, long neck was revealed.
It was as if a strong gust of wind could break her.
After she regained her footing.
The maid Chen Bi immediately unfolded a cloak and covered her with it.
"Miss, it's chilly here, please be careful not to catch a cold."
It is now late summer and early autumn, and the heat has not yet subsided.
It had just rained, and the temperature on the mountain was colder than down below.
Extra caution is still required.
“It’s not that weak.” Shen Zhiyi smiled.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of the swaying bamboo shadows to the side.
He gave Chen Bi a wink.
“You’re right,” Shen Bi immediately understood and raised her voice, “I’ve been sick twice in the past month and have been taking medicine constantly. If I catch a cold again, my cough will probably flare up again.”
"I hope that Master Kongchen can cure your illness."
Shen Zhiyi gently raised the corners of her lips, "A weakness that comes from the womb is not so easy to cure."
"I don't seek medical help; I only seek enlightenment from Buddha and peace of mind."
As soon as he finished speaking, a gust of wind blew by, the bamboo swayed twice, and then returned to stillness.
"Miss, the person is gone," Shen Bi, who knew martial arts, reminded her in a low voice.
Shen Zhiyi breathed a sigh of relief.
Chen Bi fastened her cloak and whispered, "Miss, who do you think sent these people?"
Shen Zhiyi looked up.
Looking towards the temple hidden in the morning mist.
The ancient temple stands silently, its weight pressing down on a lush green landscape, exuding a sense of coldness and imposing authority honed by the passage of time.
The red walls stand tall amidst the pines and bamboos, their eaves gleaming with green, the gold paint peeling away. The stone steps wind their way up, covered in deep moss, exuding a cold, damp aura.
Like a lurking, clawless beast.
"Who else could it be?"
Her voice was clear and melodious, sounding especially pleasant in the damp mist, "They're just people who want to know why I'm here."
It's either her elder sister or...
The prince inside is Master Kongchen.
Her nose twitched.
I could smell a complex, almost imperceptible scent in the air.
It was the scent of burnt incense, mixed with the slightly rotten smell of damp wood and the fishy, astringent odor of moss from the cracks in the rocks.
There were very few worshippers around.
When the wind blows, you can even hear the sound of scattered water droplets hitting the stone slabs.
Compared to the bustling Fahua Temple, this place is indeed much quieter.
But who could have imagined it?
There's a nobleman hiding inside.
Shen Zhiyi raised her eyebrows slightly.
Why seek medical help? Why consult Buddha?
There was only one reason she came here—
This led the prince, who was indifferent to worldly affairs, to fall into the mortal world and be moved by worldly desires.
She walked gracefully toward the open mountain gate.
It felt like walking into the gaping maw of a giant beast.
It slowly devoured me...
*
The capital city, the Prime Minister's residence.
Shen Qingyuan gripped the side of the chair tightly as she listened to the servant report, "Did Shen Zhiyi really go in?"
The servant nodded: "I followed behind the carriage and saw it with my own eyes. Duanyun Temple doesn't have many worshippers to begin with, and if we're talking about efficacy, it's nowhere near as good as Fahua Temple."
"Why did the Second Miss choose that particular place to offer incense?"
Shen Qingyuan sneered.
What else could it be?
Naturally, it was done in accordance with the imperial decree.
She didn't explain further, just waved her hand and dismissed the servant.
Madam Shen, standing to the side, asked worriedly, "Daughter, do you really want to marry that Ye Jinghong?"
"He's just a minor official in the Ministry of Personnel, a mere sixth-rank official. How could he be worthy of your status as the legitimate daughter of the Prime Minister's family!"
"Besides, I originally intended to arrange this marriage for your half-sister, Shen Zhiyi." She lamented, "How could you be so foolish, giving up the position of Crown Princess to insist on marrying into that poor, muddy family!"
"Does this mean we'll really have to live on our monthly paychecks from now on?"
"How could I, your mother, bear to do this!"
"No, I absolutely refuse to agree to this marriage."
"Mother!" Shen Qingyuan said anxiously, "Please listen to me! Ye Jinghong will have a bright future!"
Seeing that Madam Shen still disagreed, she gritted her teeth and said, "I had a dream yesterday."
In his dream, Ye Jinghong held the highest rank of official and wielded immense power.
“On the contrary, the Crown Prince…” she lowered her voice, “will spend his life with only the dim light of a lamp and the ancient Buddha.”
"Although Your Majesty has not yet given up on persuading the Crown Prince to return to secular life, as time goes on, you will realize that some things are doomed to fail."
"In the end, the power of the imperial court is still in Ye Jinghong's hands."
"Although my daughter became the Crown Princess in her dream, she was locked in the underground palace of the Buddhist temple every day, living a life of darkness and despair."
“He was a devout Buddhist during the day, but at night he became a completely different person, cold, violent, and irritable, losing control of his emotions, and even forcing his daughter to chant scriptures and recite Buddhist mantras.”
"He's a complete madman!"
"If it weren't for His Majesty protecting me out of respect for my father and frequently sending people to visit me at the Buddhist temple, I would have been tortured to death by him long ago!"
"Compared to such a life, being the wife of a sixth-rank official is an immense blessing!"
Shen Qingyuan trembled with fear at the thought and threw herself into Madam Shen's arms, pleading, "Mother, please believe me this once!"
"I really don't want to be the Crown Princess in name only anymore."
"That's a real pit of fire!"
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