Harem Daily Life

Chapter 520: The Same Journey

Hearing his question, Xinlan originally didn't want to say it, but her servant replied: "Reporting to General Gu, my princess wants to go to Fuyan Temple outside the city to burn incense. In a few days, it will be the anniversary of the princess' death, and she wants to take the copied scriptures to offer as a sacrifice."

Gu Yi coughed, thinking that his sister and brother-in-law would have to pass by Fuyan Temple on their way back to Beijing, so he said, "It will take more than half an hour to get to Fuyan Temple. I just happen to be on the way, so I'll go with the princess."

Xinlan hurriedly said, "If General Gu has a mission, just go and do it. I can go by myself."

Xinlan has decided to let him go slowly, never see him again, never think about him again. Today was just an accident. She thanks him for saving her, but after leaving the city gate, it would be better for everyone to go their separate ways.

Gu Yi heard her refusal and narrowed his eyes: "It's okay, I'm going to pick up my sister today, they will just pass by Fuyan Temple and go the same way as the princess, so it won't delay them."

After saying this, he saw that it was his turn for inspection, so he took out the token and gestured. The soldiers guarding the city saw that it was the token of Ningyuan Marquis' Mansion and the carriage of Changping Prince's Mansion, so they let them go without even checking.

At this point, Xinlan didn't know what to say. She just felt sad and sat in the carriage in silence.

Although there had been an incident in Fuyan Temple where a monk colluded with the empress to poison the emperor, after the monk was executed, the temple slowly returned to its former prosperity, with pilgrims coming in an endless stream.

Princess Xinlan arrived at the temple. The carriage had to be parked in the unified parking lot, and people had to walk into the temple. She got off the carriage with a veil on her head, bowed slightly to Gu Yi and said, "Thank you, General Gu, for seeing you off all the way. I won't delay you, and I'll take my leave now."

Gu Yi looked at the people coming and going. Most of the families were elders with young girls, while Princess Xinlan was only accompanied by maids and servants. He couldn't help but said, "I also want to go in and ask for a lucky charm, so I'll go with the princess."

Xinlan was stunned for a moment, then nodded and walked ahead.

Gu Yi followed slowly behind. There were several people between the two of them, but somehow people would think they were together.

Xinlan's face, which was hidden by the veil, was completely red at this moment. She didn't know if it was her illusion, but she always felt that General Gu was more talkative today than before. When they went hunting before, she chattered a lot, but he refused to say a word to her. Why was he so talkative today?

Unable to figure out the reason, Xinlan had to suppress her doubts and walked up the stairs step by step.

Although the weather in March has gradually warmed up, it is still cold in the mountains, and the ground is especially slippery. There was dew on the steps, and Xinlan almost fell down without noticing.

Gu Yi was quick to move and took a step forward to hold her steadily from behind.

"Ahem. The mountain road is slippery, please be careful, Princess." Gu Yi helped the person steady, then stepped back half a step and let go of her arm.

Xinlan was still in shock. After she came to her senses, she said nervously, "Thank you...thank you, General Gu." After that, she quickly asked her maid to support her and walked forward quickly. Her steps were messy, which made Gu Yi behind her couldn't help but smile.

Realizing that he was actually amused by her, Gu Yi was stunned for a moment, then immediately stopped smiling and continued to follow her.

Speaking of which, this was Gu Yi's first time in the temple, and he had no idea how to ask for amulets. As if seeing that he was not familiar with the place, Xin Lan said, "I will accompany General Gu to ask for amulets from the monks. Please follow me."

The two of them knelt down and worshipped the Bodhisattva devoutly before they went to a monk to ask for a talisman.

"One is for my cousin, hoping that she can give birth to the baby safely, and both mother and child will be safe. One is for my younger sister." Gu Yi said.

The monks were reading scriptures and blessing the talisman. Xinlan was very curious about who General Gu's cousin was. General Gu seemed to be very kind to his cousin, and he even came to this temple to ask for a peace talisman for her.

However, this is Gu's family affair, and Xinlan is not in a position to ask, so she remains silent.

After Gu Yi got the talisman, Xin Lan said, "General Gu, do you want to go to the main road and wait for Miss Gu first? I'm going to light an oil lamp and offer Buddhist scriptures to my mother."

Gu Yi saw that it was still early, so he said, "I'll go with you. It's just a good opportunity to see how you do it, and I can learn from you."

Xinlan thought of his biological mother who had passed away when he was very young, and felt compassion for him, so she said, "I copied two volumes of Buddhist scriptures. If General Gu doesn't mind, why don't I give one volume to your mother as an offering."

After saying that, she felt something was wrong. This kind of thing is best done by relatives. How can she, an outsider, copy the Buddhist scriptures? So she blushed and changed her words: "But if General Gu feels it is inappropriate, you should not use the Buddhist scriptures I copied. You can watch how I do it this time, and you can copy it yourself next time."

Gu Yi thought about it and nodded: "Okay, I'll learn it this time, and I'll do it myself next time. Thank you for your kindness, Princess."

Xinlan nodded and took him with her. They knelt devoutly, burned incense, added fragrant oil, offered Buddhist scriptures, chanted sutras and prayed for blessings. During the whole process, Gu Yi watched quietly, watching a daughter's sincere filial piety and longing for her mother.

At noon, the faint sunlight shone through the windows of the temple onto the ground, creating patches of mottled light and shadow. Gu Yi and Princess Xinlan sat together at the dining table in the temple, on which were placed two very simple vegetarian dishes and two bowls of white rice.

Gu Yi thought that he didn't have too many requirements for food when he was on the march and fighting, as long as it was edible. However, he was surprised that Princess Xinlan, as the daughter of a royal prince, could actually enjoy such a simple vegetarian meal so peacefully.

Gu Yi couldn't help but secretly observe Princess Xinlan. She had taken off her veil, revealing her elegant face. She picked up the chopsticks gracefully, gently picked up a piece of vegetarian food and put it into her mouth, chewing slowly, as if she was savoring the flavor. Even if she was eating the simplest dish, she didn't complain or feel dissatisfied at all.

As if noticing the confusion in his eyes, Xinlan smiled and said, "My mother died when I was only ten years old. After that, I would come to the temple every year around her death anniversary. I got used to it after eating so much. But speaking of it, lighter meals also have their benefits. Concubine Tao often said before that we should eat more vegetables to have a balanced diet."

When Gu Yi heard Tao Yanyan's name, his eyes softened and he smiled and said, "Empress Tao likes to cook. She cooks both meat and vegetables very well."

Xin Lan paused, and asked suspiciously, "General Gu, have you ever eaten the dishes made by Concubine Tao?"

One is a minister, the other is a concubine. The concubine cooks for the minister? How is that possible? Are you two so close?

Gu Yi nodded, remembering the time when he hunted rabbits for Concubine Tao in the hot spring palace, and smiled: "I have, more than once." After saying that, he seemed to realize that something was wrong, and he explained: "Concubine Tao recognized my father as her uncle, and she is my cousin."

Xinlan was completely shocked. Although she had heard her father mention that the Ningyuan Marquisate had a good relationship with Concubine Tao, she didn't expect it to be so good. She always thought that the relationship was good because Gu Yi's sister married Concubine Tao's brother.

Recalling how Concubine Tao had introduced her to Gu Yi, she told her many intimate words and her face turned red.

How could she tell her cousin all her little secrets? She was so embarrassed. She was really going to cry because of her stupidity!