Chapter 117: The Evil Temple

  Qin Dai Xin returned to Pu Fa Temple once again with a very complicated mood, she really felt that this place was not compatible with her eight characters, and it was offending her! She only felt her right eyelid jumping non-stop, as if there was an omen - male left female right, beware of disaster.

  Thinking of this, she couldn't help but feel a surge of regret and frustration. If only she had known earlier, she wouldn't have insisted on coming with Lin Shi. She should have just gone with Qin Qian to enjoy the excitement, regardless of whether her face was saved or not. Even if they were kicked out, she would have been happy to be free from this place. Why did she end up accompanying Lin Shi to a place where their energies clashed?

  Lin had just gotten off the carriage when he saw Qin Dai Xin looking like she was about to turn green with regret, and couldn't help but find it amusing. He walked up to her and said, "Regretting it now?"

  "I just think that temples are all roughly the same, with a mountain gate at the front, bell and drum towers on either side, and then the Heavenly Kings' Hall, followed by the Mahavira Hall and the Sutra Depository. On either side of the main road there are usually monks' quarters and refectories, and at the back, against the hill, is a pagoda courtyard. They're all pretty much the same! I've been to this Pu Fa Temple many times before, I could find my way around it with my eyes closed, what's new about it?"

  Mr. Lin held her hand and said, "In the past, I didn't see that you were such a meticulous person. The last few times you came, I didn't see how you browsed here, nor did I know when you had toured this place thoroughly, so familiar with it?"

  Qin Dai's heart smiled and quickly changed the subject, "Sister has a mood to tease me here, it's better to think about how to tell mother about the second sister when we get back!"

  The Lin family's army was defeated without a trace.

  She couldn't help but sigh and rub her forehead, knowing that taking everyone to the flower festival wasn't an easy task. Every year, Fang Wanru would take charge, and even if they went to the same places every time, Qin Qian wouldn't dare say anything, just following the planned route. But this year, Fang Wanru didn't come, and instead passed on this hot potato to her - how could she possibly handle that mischievous devil, Second Miss Qin?!

  The two women walked up the stone steps, and a young monk came to greet them, walking with them towards the mountain gate.

  "I knew it was a troublesome matter, but you also saw that she wouldn't listen to my advice." He let out a light sigh, barely audible, yet still loud enough for Qin Dai's sharp ears to catch.

  "Sister-in-law, don't worry. If Mother blames you, I'll vouch for you myself. It was indeed Second Sister who wanted to go out and take a look around, it has nothing to do with you." Qin Qianxin was dissatisfied with Lin Shi's arrangement, insisting on taking people out to play herself. She didn't dare go against Fang Wanru's wishes, but the scapegoat would be Lin Shi instead.

  She was pleased, but she herself might be held responsible for "dereliction of duty". Lin's eyebrows furrowed involuntarily. Was it possible that this mother and daughter had colluded at such a critical moment?

  The two of them chatted idly as they walked, and soon entered the mountain gate. They had a young monk prepare a guest room for resting incense guests, and after a brief rest, they simply washed up and tidied themselves before going to the main hall to burn incense.

  Lin followed Fang Wanru's intention and donated a thousand taels of incense money, then according to his own intention, he sincerely knelt down, had something in mind, and asked for a divination stick.

  Lin knelt on the couch, holding a divination tube in her hand, her eyes tightly closed, muttering something silently. She then shook the tube evenly until a bamboo slip fell to the ground with a crisp sound. Only then did she open her eyes and handed over the slip picked up by Da Yu's shadow to the monk who was interpreting the slips on the side.

  "Amitabha Buddha, what is it that you wish to attain, female donor?"

  "Seeking harmony in the family." Although Lin was shy and unwilling to speak, she was worried about what was on her mind, so she whispered to the monk. A married woman with a bun seeking harmony in the family is naturally different from Yunying's unmarried girl seeking marriage.

  The monk read the divination text and recited: "Peach blossoms fall into the mud, apricot flowers bloom. New swallows enter their nest in the north. The spring water in the pool was originally calm, but the ripples caused by the stone are heartbreaking." The monk glanced at Lin Shi and said, "Donor, this is the divination result."

  Lin Qingyue's heart skipped a beat, she was a famous talented woman, how could she not know the meaning of this signature? The one who was going to enter the house as a concubine was none other than the girl from the Qi family in the north.

  Qin Dai's heart ached as she watched, and she couldn't help but feel sympathy for Lin Shi. Even though she was a renowned talented woman in the capital, she still relied on her husband's love to live, with Qin Zi Cheng's favor being her everything. She wasn't even twenty yet, how could she go on living like this?

  Qin Dai's heart didn't know how to comfort her, so she just said: "Sister, do you also believe in these things? It's just a bamboo divination stick, how can it decide someone's whole life?"

  Lin's family was embarrassed and smiled, regretting that they had asked for this sign in front of their younger sister-in-law. At this time, it was not a smile or a cry, but really didn't know how to behave.

  "Sister-in-law, I'm also tired. Why don't we take a rest for a while and have some vegetarian food before going to look for Second Sister and Fourth Little Sister? The original plan was for the four of us to come to Pufa Temple together, finish our prayers, have some vegetarian food, and then go to the Flower Festival together. But Qin Qianxin suddenly said it would be too tiring to come and go, so she had Lin Shi bring Qin Dai Xin to Pufa Temple while she and Qin Ruoxin stayed at the Flower Festival to wait. The four of them were supposed to meet on the second floor of 'Tai Chun Building', the largest building near the Flower Festival. Qin Dai Xin knew that she wasn't afraid of being tired, but rather didn't want to come to Pufa Temple. She had always been afraid of being confined and didn't believe in Buddhism, so she didn't think praying was a big deal. She just wanted to stay at the Flower Festival and have fun without anyone watching her. Luckily, Lin Shi reacted quickly and left two mothers to take care of her. If not, Qin Dai Xin would have been even more unmanageable. Those two mothers weren't Fang Wenyu's most trusted people, but they were still sent by her personally, so Qin Qianxin should have considered that before doing things."

  Lin thanked Qin Dai's kindness, feeling very grateful to her. Although she had just rested, how could she be tired again so soon? She said this simply because she wanted to find a quiet place to calm herself down.

  Lin's personal maid, Xiao Shami, came to fetch Lin and took her to the guest room where she had rested before. Qin Dai thought that Lin must not want to be seen in her current state of mind, so she tactfully didn't disturb her, saying she wanted to take a walk and get some fresh air, and led two maids, Ruyi and Chunli, to a quiet place in the courtyard.

  The temple is lush with vegetation, and the entire building was built in a garden style. In addition to Bodhi trees and tall trees, there are many precious and thriving tree species in the garden, some of which Qin Dai Xin didn't even recognize. The scenic area is still passable, but it's also bustling with people, which is somewhat disappointing. After thinking for a moment, Qin Dai Xin thought that only the tower yard was relatively quiet. The towers in Pu Fa Temple are mostly stone and brick towers, with an octagonal shape, dense eaves, and distinctive tower bodies adorned with exquisite religious story murals, richly decorated and beautiful, worth taking a look at.

  The three of them arrived at the pagoda, and as Qin Dai thought, it was indeed quiet here. Except for various lush trees and high and low stupas, there were no other things, not even a few dry leaves on the ground, which showed that someone had swept it regularly. When Qin Dai walked closer to take a look, she saw that one of the tall towers was nine stories high, about thirty meters high. The base was made up of five layers of brick carvings. The first layer consisted of various lion beasts, with rough patterns and a few ethnic minority styles. The second layer consisted of various lotus flower patterns, which were either open or closed in moderation, or had undergone artistic processing. Each one was vivid and had a strong sense of three-dimensionality. The third layer mainly depicted people, with more than ten dancers, each with realistic postures, plump bodies, and different poses. They all looked dignified, happy, and elegant, with exquisite clothes and lively movements, just like real people.

  Qin Dai Xin looked at it layer by layer, and felt that the craftsmanship of ancient people was really good, so much so that she, who had seen countless treasures, couldn't help but praise it. It's truly not easy.

  Chunli knew that the pagoda buried the ashes of high-ranking monks throughout the ages, and her heart couldn't help but feel a little creepy. The temple was covered in green trees and willows all year round, with little sunlight, making it seem especially mysterious.

  Qin Dai suddenly stopped in her tracks, calling out to Chunli and Ruyi, "You two don't need to follow me either. This stupa is also a very boring thing. I just saw outside that there are people selling small snacks. You two go buy some." After speaking, she took out a silver coin from her purse and handed it to Chunli.

  Chunli was delighted, eagerly accepting it, thinking that the young lady was kind and knew she was timid. Then she felt a bit blasphemous, so she kept apologizing to the high monks in her heart, now just waiting for Ruyi to leave with her!

  Ru Yi hesitated, the two mothers had already stayed with Second Miss, and there was only Ying Er and an old woman by Madame's side. Several servants were left outside to keep watch, and there weren't many people to begin with. If she and Chun Li were to leave, there would be no one by Miss's side, how could that be allowed?

  "I won't go then, let Chunli go instead." Ruyi said: "I'll stay by Miss's side."

  Qin Dai's eyes shone like water, bright as the dew on an autumn day. "You two go together!" Her tone brooked no argument, almost commanding.

  It seemed that Ru Yi had heard her unspoken words and knew that Qin Dai Xin was a person who said one thing and meant it, so she didn't persist and followed Chun Li out of the courtyard. After the two maidservants left, Qin Dai Xin finally put down the heart she had been holding up, quietly observed the surrounding terrain, and thought to herself that with all these pagodas around, hiding a few people shouldn't be difficult. Qin Dai Xin slowly adjusted her breathing, moved steadily, and although her eyes were still focused on the decorations of the pagoda, her mind had already begun to eliminate distractions and focus on listening for something.

  The other party was a master, otherwise she wouldn't have walked into the garden before discovering his presence. The air was filled with a faint scent of blood, so faint that Qin Dai wondered if it was just her imagination. There shouldn't be only one person here; she seemed to also sense another calm breathing sound. In other words, there were two people on the other side, both masters.

  Qin Dai Xin knew that her chances of leaving this tower garden were almost zero, but she still held onto a thread of fantasy, hoping...

  At this moment, Qin Dai's heart clearly felt a slight wind movement on the left side, extremely small, that was the momentum brought by a light and agile expert when making a full-speed attack. Then her neck hurt, and she fell to the ground.

  Qin Dai's last thought before losing consciousness was - this Pu Fa Temple is really damn mysterious.