Earlier, the way Liu Zhu looked at Yun Wenfang had made Ren Yaoyu extremely displeased. Seeing that they were acquainted with the Second Young Master Su, she felt somewhat restrained. Therefore, as soon as the Liu sisters left, she sent someone to investigate their background.
The older and plain-looking Liu Yun was the legitimate eldest daughter of the Liu family, while the younger Liu Zhu was born to a courtesan whom Master Liu had redeemed from a brothel. The Liu family was merely a wealthy household that had risen to prominence in recent years, lacking the strict conventions of prestigious families.
Ren Yaoyu was having the maid who had gone to gather information recount the details about the two Liu young ladies when First Madam sent a servant woman over to summon Ren Yijun.
Judging by the servant woman's expression, it seemed First Madam had learned about what had happened earlier.
Ren Yijun curled his lip and said to Ren Yaoqi, "I'm going to see Mother. This matter started because of me anyway and has nothing to do with you."
Ren Yaoqi wasn’t worried about Ren Yijun being scolded by First Madam. After all, they were mother and son. No matter what, First Madam cared more for her son Ren Yijun than she blamed him. There was no need for her, an "outsider," to meddle in their affairs.
Moreover, this incident hadn’t escalated like the last one, and the conflict with the Liu family was something First Madam could likely resolve on her own.
So Ren Yaoqi smiled and winked at Ren Yijun, saying, "Good luck, Third Brother!"
Ren Yijun was both amused and annoyed by her words. He glared at her before puffing himself up, putting his hands behind his back, and strutting off with an air of arrogance.
After Ren Yijun left, Ren Yaoqi noticed that Ren Yaohua was acting strangely. She hadn’t stepped forward to scold her for meddling?
Ren Yaoqi couldn’t help but glance at Ren Yaohua beside her, only to find that Ren Yaohua’s mind was clearly elsewhere. She was frowning slightly, lost in thought.
Just as Ren Yaoqi was about to speak to her, Ren Yaoyu walked over and said, "Fifth Sister, didn’t you say earlier you needed to freshen up? Are you still going?"
Remembering that she had indeed used that excuse earlier, Ren Yaoqi nodded. "I was delayed earlier because we ran into the Liu sisters."
"Perfect, I need to go too. Let’s go together," Ren Yaoyu said.
Ren Yaoqi didn’t mind, so she asked Ren Yaohua, "Third Sister, do you want to come with us?"
Ren Yaohua shook her head. "You two go ahead. I’ll take a walk around the temple."
Thinking she could talk to Ren Yaohua later when no one was around, Ren Yaoqi left first with Ren Yaoyu.
On the way, Ren Yaoyu, surprisingly, acted very intimately, leaning in and linking arms with Ren Yaoqi.
Ren Yaoqi looked at her in surprise, only to hear her whisper mysteriously, "Fifth Sister, what do you think of Young Master Wen?"
Ren Yaoqi raised an eyebrow inwardly but replied, "Young Master Wen? Since he’s a friend of our cousin, he must be decent, right? I’m not very familiar with him. Why do you ask, Eighth Sister?"
Ren Yaoyu covered her mouth with a laugh and gave Ren Yaoqi a sidelong glance, chiding playfully, "Are you really not familiar with him, Fifth Sister? Don’t try to fool me. Right after you left earlier, he followed you. And yesterday, I heard he went to Purple Magnolia Courtyard to look for you, and then the two of you went to Aunt’s Warm Fragrance Pavilion together."Ren Yaoqi stopped walking, frowning seriously as she said, "Eighth Sister, you shouldn't speak such baseless words in the future. Even if you don't consider my reputation, you should be careful not to let others say that Young Master Wen is frivolous and lacks propriety. Just now, Young Master Wen merely happened to need a place to freshen up. As for yesterday, he went with our cousin to pay respects to my father and mother, and going to Warm Fragrance Pavilion together was simply a matter of convenience. If you don't believe me, you can ask our cousin—he was there the entire time yesterday."
Ren Yaoyu scrutinized Ren Yaoqi for a long moment before finally shaking off her arm. Then, suddenly adopting a haughty expression, she snorted lightly and said, "Well, that's for the best! If I ever find out you're behaving improperly, I'll tell Grandmother. I wouldn't want you to do something shameless and tarnish the reputation of our Ren Family, dragging the rest of us sisters down with you."
Ren Yaoqi, infuriated by her smug demeanor, laughed in spite of her anger. "Thank you for the reminder, Eighth Sister."
Ren Yaoyu snorted again, leaving Ren Yaoqi behind as she walked away.
For the rest of the journey, the two of them didn't exchange another word.
By the time Ren Yaoqi emerged from the washroom, Ren Yaoyu was nowhere to be seen. Ren Yaoqi went to find Ren Yaohua and learned that Yun Wenfang and Qiu Yun had been summoned by someone sent by Ren Yijian, and Ren Yaoyu had followed them after leaving. Ren Yaohua, however, said she wanted to take a walk to the apricot blossom grove and left on her own.
Thinking back to Ren Yaoyu's earlier words, Ren Yaoqi became even more convinced that Yun Wenfang was nothing but a jinx, someone she should stay as far away from as possible. She had no desire to get caught up in the petty jealousies and gossip among young girls.
So, she took her attendants and went to look for Ren Yaohua.
But even after searching the entire apricot blossom grove on the back hill, Ren Yaoqi still couldn't find Ren Yaohua.
Ren Yaoqi didn't dwell on it and casually visited several of the temple's main halls. She didn't care which bodhisattvas were enshrined inside—she simply bowed before every Buddha she saw.
In her previous life, she hadn't believed in Buddhism, and in this life, she hadn't yet had the chance to start.
As she left the Hall of Amitayus Buddha, which enshrined Amitayus Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva, and Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva, Ren Yaoqi overheard two women, likely servants from some household, whispering behind a large ginkgo tree.
"...Good heavens! Are you telling the truth?"
"If I'm lying, may I be struck by lightning! I heard that when the man came out of the nearby White Cloud Nunnery, his clothes were disheveled. He was chased all over the mountain by the nun's relatives and even fled into White Dragon Temple!"
"Truly depraved! That nun really has no shame! If she can't let go of worldly desires, she shouldn't have taken vows. Now she's disturbing the peace of this sacred place. Doesn't she fear the gods above, who might strike her down with lightning someday?"
"Ah, you don't know the whole story. I heard that even when her husband was alive, this Nun Liang was restless and far from easy to deal with—her husband's relatives still don't have a single good thing to say about her! After her husband died, she hooked up with some nobleman, took her husband's family's wealth, and entered the nunnery. Under the temple's protection, even her husband's family couldn't do anything about it. And now she's still living it up? With money to rely on and keeping young men as her lovers, she lives a carefree life like an immortal. Why would she care about the gods above? She's probably forgotten what the Buddha's surname even is!""Does the abbess of White Cloud Nunnery not care? How can she allow such insolence before the Buddha?"
"Hey! Haven't you heard that money can make the devil turn the millstone? Besides, nuns are still mortals, aren't they?"
...
Although Ren Yaoqi hadn't intentionally eavesdropped, she still caught the gist of what the two were saying.
The young maidservants following behind blushed, their eyes filled with curiosity.
The two old women hiding behind the tree, however, noticed someone approaching and fell silent, no longer speaking.
Just as Ren Yaoqi was thinking of going to see the Dragon King Hall at the back, she spotted Xiangqin, the chief maidservant of Ren Yaohua, walking while looking around as if searching for someone.
Ren Yaoqi's maidservant, Pingguo, was sharp-eyed and had a good relationship with Xiangqin, so she waved in that direction. Coincidentally, Xiangqin also saw Ren Yaoqi and her group and hurried over.
Ren Yaoqi asked in surprise, "Why are you alone here? Where is Third Sister?"
Xiangqin glanced at the maidservants and old women behind her and said, "Fifth Miss is resting at Fourth Miss's place and asked me to find Fifth Miss to discuss a small matter."
Though she called it a small matter, she said nothing more after that, only subtly winking at Ren Yaoqi.
Ren Yaoqi knew something must be up, so she nodded and said, "The halls ahead are quite crowded. I was just about to go see the newly built Dragon King Hall at the back. Come with me."
Xiangqin lowered her head in acknowledgment and stepped forward to support Ren Yaoqi by the arm.
The Dragon King Hall was situated on higher ground, closer to the back of the mountain, making it relatively secluded. As it was newly built, not many people came this way.
Seeing a small pavilion beside the pond next to the Dragon King Hall, Ren Yaoqi sent the maidservants and old women accompanying her to either offer incense or attend to their needs. She then took Xiangqin with her toward the pavilion.
Unexpectedly, after only a few steps, she saw three or four women hurrying in their direction. The women, both old and young, looked around as they walked, panting heavily as if searching for something.
"...Fourth Aunt, could it be that he isn't hiding in the temple? We've searched everywhere and still haven't found that adulterer," a slightly younger woman asked the middle-aged woman leading the group.
Though the middle-aged woman also seemed uncertain, she shook her head and said, "My husband saw him running toward the mountain, and they're guarding the foot of it. He can't escape. The only place to hide on this mountain is White Dragon Temple... It must be right! Let's keep looking carefully. Once we find him, we'll definitely drown that little harlot in the pond when we get back!"
"Fourth Sister-in-law is right. I've never seen such a shameless woman! That wretch has completely disgraced our Zhang family! Once we find the adulterer, let's see how she can deny it!" another middle-aged woman said, her face a mix of anger and excitement.
The group glanced at Ren Yaoqi and her maidservant briefly before hurrying off toward the Dragon King Hall.
Xiangqin was momentarily stunned and looked at Ren Yaoqi in confusion. "Fifth Miss, what are they doing?"
Ren Yaoqi recalled what she had overheard earlier from the two old women behind the ginkgo tree and guessed they were likely searching for the adulterer of the flirtatious nun. She shook her head and said, "Never mind that. Did Third Sister send you to find me? Is she really at Fourth Sister's place?"The two had already reached the pavilion by the pond. Xiangqin shook her head and was about to speak when suddenly another person emerged from a side path.
==I really didn’t expect the title to get censored…
Those two words were romantic
Annoying(~>__
OpenNovel