https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-33-Even-the-Grand-Commander-Has-His-Day-of-Reckoning/12582405/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-35-The-Grand-Viceroy-Takes-the-Initiative-Part-I-/12582419/
Chapter 34: Audience with the Emperor
Chapter 34: Audience with the Emperor
The Cold Mountain Temple was bustling with devotees, and after a busy morning of prayers, everyone was feeling a little tired.
The matriarch asked Wu Mama to prepare a few Zen rooms for them to rest and have a vegetarian meal.
The matriarch then called Lin Wan'er aside for a private conversation.
Lu Mu and Meng Qianqian shared a room, with the Grand Madame next door and the second wife further down the hall.
Noticing Lu Mu's pensive expression, Meng Qianqian asked softly, "Mother, is something troubling you? Should we head down the mountain and have Tan'er carry you?"
Lu Mu snapped out of her reverie and shook her head. "I'm just a bit weary, it's nothing serious. I'll go and see your great-grandmother."
With that, she left the room, her eyes downcast.
Soon, Banxia and Yulan returned with the vegetarian meal.
Meng Qianqian guessed that her mother wouldn't join them, so she asked Yulan to send Lu Mu's meal to the neighboring room.
Tan'er immediately bounced over, exclaiming, "Time to eat, time to eat, time to eat!"
Banxia opened the food box.
Upon seeing the plain vegetarian dishes devoid of any oil, Tan'er froze, "Where's the meat?"
"Where would a temple get meat?" Banxia replied.
Tan'er clenched her fists tightly, "I barely made it through those three days! Tell me, I can't eat meat? I want meat—"
"Meat! Meat! I want meat..."
"Boo hoo hoo... Poor little me..."
Tan'er covered her heart and burst into exaggerated sobs.
Suddenly, her ears twitched, and her crying ceased. She stared at the slightly ajar door, her heartbroken expression transforming into one of fierce determination. "Who's there?"
She leaped forward and flung the door open, her killing move at the ready. But just then, a rich aroma of braised meat invaded her nostrils, numbing her senses.
Forgetting about her pursuit, she followed the scent and looked down, her eyes glowing with greed. "Chicken... thigh! Big... chicken thigh!"
Bao Shu, wearing a red tiger hat, a matching tiger jacket, and tiger-head shoes, sat on the floor with her legs crossed. She held a greasy chicken thigh in her hand and stared at Tan'er with a tiger cub's innocent gaze.
Tan'er drooled, bent down, and gently said to Bao Shu, "Little sister, it's hard to refuse chicken thighs. Sister will help you refuse it."
Tan'er stuffed the entire chicken thigh into her mouth!
Er, it didn't seem like meat...
Bao Shu experienced her first robbery in life and was completely stunned!
Her little chest heaved violently a few times before she finally came back to her senses. Her lips pouted, and she burst into loud wails.
Her cries were deafening, and Tan'er jumped in surprise, quickly shoving the chicken bone back into her hand, "Here, take it back!"
Seeing the bare "chicken bone" in her tiny palm, Bao Shu cried even louder!
In the backyard of the Cold Mountain Temple, there was a secluded courtyard off-limits to devotees.
In the Zen room at the east end of the courtyard, a monk dressed in gray robes had just finished reciting sutras and striking the wooden fish.
Lu Yuan, his waist and abdomen wrapped in thick gauze, had changed into a loose purple robe. He sat casually across from the monk, reading a book.
"This Diamond Sutra is quite interesting."
The monk spoke up, "The Buddhist door is a clean place. The benefactor is seriously injured and shouldn't come here."
Lu Yuan hooked his lips, "It is precisely because it is quiet that I came. The Governor's Office released a body double, and things should be quite lively for the next few days."
The monk paused before saying, "With her here, there is a loophole in the Governor's Office."
Lu Yuan replied nonchalantly, "Even the body double has its own body double."
The monk looked at Lu Yuan, "You really..."
"...treat human lives like grass and moths, and even children are not spared." Lu Yuan finished the sentence for him, "This is how ruthless and ruthless the governor is.
In another Zen room, Bao Shu sat obediently in Meng Qianqian's embrace.
Lu Mu and the Grand Madame also came over.
Having never met Bao Shu before, they asked whose child she was. Meng Qianqian hadn't attended the banquet at the Governor's Mansion, so she shouldn't have known Bao Shu either. Thus, she replied, "She crawled over here by herself. Banxia, go and ask around to see which Zen room is missing a child."
"Aye!"
Banxia left to inquire.
While Bao Shu was a little troublemaker at the Governor's Mansion, she was exceptionally well-behaved with Meng Qianqian. Her big, round eyes blinked innocently, and she laughed easily when Meng Qianqian played with her, giving ample face to the Grand Madame and Lu Mu.
The nearby Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard was convinced he must be seeing things.
Who knew how difficult this little ancestor was to please?
Laugh?
It was already impressive that she wasn't wailing and scolding!
Meng Qianqian played with Bao Shu for a bit, eliciting laughter from the little girl, which in turn brought smiles to everyone in the room.
Midway through their laughter, Bao Shu spotted the Commander hiding behind a tree.
Mimicking Meng Qianqian's actions, he covered his face with his hands and slowly revealed himself, smiling!
Bao Shu's laughter abruptly stopped.
Commander: "..."
In the second wife's Zen room, the Second Master Lu was napping on the wooden bed while the second wife sat down with an aching back and glared at her husband. "All you do is eat and sleep!"
The Second Master Lu turned his back to her.
"You—" The second wife was so angry that she almost flipped the table.
Lu Linglong covered her ears. "Who's child is that? They're so loud!"
"They're not being loud." The second wife replied. The child's laughter wasn't loud, and the pilgrims were the ones making most of the noise.
This was unavoidable, as there were just too many pilgrims at Hanshan Temple.
Lu Linglong wasn't bothered by the child's noise; she simply despised Meng Qianqian and couldn't stand to see her happy.
The second wife said to Lu Linglong, "If you find it noisy, go for a walk outside."
"Fine, I will!"
Lu Linglong stormed out in a huff.
The second wife waved her hand, signaling for a maid to stand guard outside, then she pushed the Second Master Lu and asked, "Tell me the truth. Why did we really come to the temple today?"
The Second Master Lu casually replied, "To burn incense and fulfill vows, of course."
The second wife slapped his waist.
The Second Master Lu jolted in pain and turned to glare at her. "You hit a man's waist?"
The second wife massaged his waist to soothe the pain and asked with a smile, "Do you take me for a fool? We could have come to fulfill vows any other day. Why did it have to be today? Was it Big Brother's idea? What is he up to?"
The Second Master Lu continued to lie down, pretending to sleep. "Mind your own business when it comes to Big Brother."
The second wife was so angry that she wanted to hit him again. "Our son has lost his inheritance, and you tell me to mind my own business? What kind of father are you?"
In the Grand Madame's Zen room, Wu Mama left for a while and returned to exchange glances with the Grand Madame.
The Grand Madame said to Lin Wan'er, "Follow Wu Mama."
"Yes, Grand Madame."
Lin Wan'er put on a veil and, along with Lu Lingxi, followed Wu Mama out of the Zen room and into a pavilion in the temple.
The pavilion was surrounded by beaded curtains, obscuring the interior from view.
However, several guards were stationed outside, indicating that the person within was of great importance.
Wu Mama delivered them to the pavilion and did not proceed further.
Lin Wan'er and Lu Lingxi entered the pavilion.
Lin Wan'er immediately spotted Lu Xingzhou standing by the stone table, and she bowed respectfully. "Your Excellency."
Then, her gaze fell upon another person in the pavilion—a young man dressed in brocade, sitting on a stone bench.
The young man's eyes rested on Lin Wan'er as he asked, "Is this her?"
Lu Xingzhou addressed Lin Wan'er, "Wan'er, haven't you met His Majesty before?"
(End of Chapter)
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