She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

Zhao Jue's eyes softened: "I'll be waiting for you tonight."

Shen Qingtan stands on the opposite side of him, posing a huge threat to him.

Whether she genuinely still harbors feelings for him and is deliberately playing hard to get, or whether she has other motives, it doesn't matter.

If she goes to their appointment tonight and he takes her body, she will be devoted to him.

Shen Qingtan nodded: "Mm."

Having received the answer he wanted, Zhao Jue left satisfied.

Shen Mingzhu hid in the corner, and Zhao Jue's beaming face stung her eyes.

She secretly followed him when he left the dormitory.

Sure enough, he came to see Shen Qingtan.

Shen Mingzhu glanced at Shen Qingtan with a dark look in her eyes, then retreated into the shadows and walked away along the path.

The moment Shen Qingtan closed the window, her gaze inadvertently drifted to the spot where Shen Mingzhu was hiding. It was now empty, with only a withered leaf drifting to the ground in the breeze.

-

The monks at Hualing Temple do not eat after noon, and so do the pilgrims who come to worship Buddha and pray for blessings.

At the end of Shenshi (3-5 PM), Shen Qingtan went to the Mahavira Hall for evening classes and encountered the Second Madam with a dark face at the entrance.

"Niece-in-law, what are you doing here?" The second wife frowned. "One should not speak falsely before the Buddha. Since I said I would pray for your well-being, I will not go back on my word."

Shen Qingtan said solemnly, "I'm just here to remind Second Aunt that one must be sincere when worshipping Buddha and not harbor evil intentions, otherwise it would be blasphemy against Buddha and would bring back bad luck."

The second wife wished Buddha would take away that vile woman Shen Qingtan, and had no intention of sincerely praying for their well-being.

Upon hearing Shen Qingtan's words, the Second Madam felt uneasy.

"Don't talk nonsense, or you'll offend Buddha."

The second wife glared at Shen Qingtan before entering the main hall and finding a corner to sit in.

Shen Qingtan deliberately moved to a position next to the Second Madam.

The second wife gritted her teeth, ultimately daring not to act presumptuously before the Buddha.

"Second Aunt, the evening prayer is one hour, followed by half an hour of meditation."

Shen Qingtan kindly reminded her, "The physician said that you have emotional distress and pent-up anger. Praying to Buddha and chanting scriptures can help you cultivate your mind and character. If you take a more detached view of material possessions, you can recover completely without medicine."

How to take things lightly?

That's 90,000 taels of silver!

The second wife felt chest tightness and tinnitus from the shock, and felt that her illness had become more serious.

Upon seeing Shen Qingtan at the mountain gate today, she immediately became upset and did not eat her vegetarian meal at noon.

She planned to attend the evening class after dinner, but the old lady said that once one enters the Buddhist order, one must abide by Buddhist rules.

Buddhist disciples only eat one meal a day at noon, so she would have to wait until noon the next day to eat.

Dozens of monks chanted sutras inside the main hall, their chanting filling the air, but the second lady's heart could not find peace.

Especially when there's no oil or fat in your stomach, the increasing hunger intensifies the agonizing feeling.

Every quarter of an hour was torture for her.

Unable to sit still.

After the evening class ended, the second wife was finally relieved. She stood up, but her legs went weak and she collapsed to the ground.

Shen Qingtan helped her up: "Second Aunt, let's go to the meditation room to meditate."

The second wife was so hungry that her stomach was practically sticking to her back: "I..."

“I noticed that you were reciting the scriptures incorrectly. We’ll meditate for another half hour later, and I’ll teach you to recite the scriptures.” Shen Qingtan helped her toward the meditation room.

The second wife grabbed Shen Qingtan's arm: "Niece-in-law, I'm not feeling well today. Let's meditate another day... tomorrow?"

Shen Qingtan's smile faded: "Second Aunt, didn't you sincerely wish my husband and I a long and happy life together?"

The second wife forced a smile and said, "My illness is not fully recovered, and I am exhausted from the journey today. I really can't take it anymore."

Shen Qingtan said with concern, "Since you are not feeling well, you don't need to pray for us. Go back to the manor to rest first thing tomorrow morning. I will inform my grandmother, and she will understand."

She brought out the old lady, this formidable figure, and the second wife's smile vanished. She forced out a few words through gritted teeth: "Go! I'll go!"

"Your body..."

"I'm fine!"

"Alright." Shen Qingtan instructed, "Don't push yourself. Tell me if you feel unwell."

The second wife was so angry that she trembled all over, wishing she could tear Shen Qingtan's mouth apart.

The group went to the meditation room.

Shen Qingtan urged the second wife to recite scriptures in the meditation room until the end of the 7 PM period before she stopped.

The second wife slumped weakly in her chair, drinking several cups of water, but she was still so hungry that she felt anxious and didn't even have the strength to get angry.

Shen Qingtan looked refreshed: "Second Aunt, you're not feeling well, I'll send someone to invite Third Brother's wife to come and take care of you."

The second wife really didn't want to move, so she acquiesced to Shen Qingtan's arrangement.

Shen Qingtan walked out of the meditation room and instructed Qiu Chan, who was waiting at the door, "Go and invite Third Madam over."

Qiu Chan tightened her grip on her fingers, lowered her head meekly, and said, "This servant will go now."

"Wait a minute." Shen Qingtan called out to Qiu Chan, took the cloak from Liu Yue's hand, and draped it over Qiu Chan's shoulders: "It's chilly on the mountain at night, don't catch a cold."

Qiu Chan looked down at the pink and navy blue cloak on her shoulders, and reached out to grab the two ties at the collar: "This servant thanks Your Majesty for your kindness."

As Liu Yue watched Qiu Chan's departing figure, she felt that her master had been deliberately tormenting the second mistress, waiting for this very moment.

But why would the master torment the second wife for no reason?

Liu Yue couldn't figure out the reason, so she thought that her master was deliberately tormenting the second mistress.

She held a lantern in her hand, shielding herself from the wind: "Second Grandmother, it's chilly at night, and you're dressed too lightly. Hurry back to your room."

Shen Qingtan smiled and said, "Let's go."

Back in her room, Shen Qingtan noticed a dim, yellowish light shining through the window: "Did you light an oil lamp in the room when you left?"

"No order." Liu Yuexin's voice rose to her throat. "This servant will go and check."

Shen Qingtan figured that since the monks were looking after the dormitory, there shouldn't be any bad people there.

If a villain were hiding in the room, they wouldn't openly light the lamp.

She suspected that the old lady was in the room.

Liu Yue's heart pounded. Seeing Shen Qingtan following behind her, she said, "Second Madam, please stay away. If there are any bad guys, you should run away quickly..."

Before she could finish speaking, Shen Qingtan pushed open the door.

Liu Yue's scream was on the tip of her tongue, but when she saw the people in the room, she shut her mouth.

My temporal joint clicked, and my jaw almost dislocated.

"Second...Second Master..."

Shen Qingtan looked at the man in the room in surprise. He was dressed in a jade-colored robe and stood tall and elegant beside the scripture table, flipping through a scroll of scripture that she had copied that day.

Hearing the noise, he turned his head and saw the person standing dumbfounded at the door. He smiled and said, "My mother said you came to Hualing Temple to pray for blessings, so I came to see you."

"Oh."

Shen Qingtan calmly responded, then her expression changed as if she had thought of something. She hurriedly walked to the scripture table and reached out to take the scriptures.

A pale, slender hand pressed down on the scripture. Shen Qingtan tried to pull it away but couldn't. Afraid of damaging it, she didn't dare to use force.

"Second Master... please let go."

"I've finished reading it."

Zhao Yi's gaze fell on the Medicine Buddha Sutra she had copied, a sutra that sought health and longevity.

Shen Qingtan looked at him in astonishment, seemingly not expecting that this usually composed person would make her feel awkward.

Zhao Yi chuckled and said, "Your handwriting is very good."

Shen Qingtan moved her lips: That's it?

Zhao Yi coughed a few times, about to speak.

"Knock knock."

Madam Wei knocked on the door and called out from outside, "Second Master, the Old Madam requests your presence."

Shen Qingtan urged, "Don't keep Grandmother waiting, you should go quickly."

Zhao Yi sighed softly, seemingly helpless, and put away the scroll of scriptures: "If you don't believe that the handwriting is good, I will take it to my grandmother for evaluation."

Shen Qingtan: "!!!"

Did she say she didn't believe it?

That was...

“I am delighted by your sincere intentions, Madam.”

"..."

Shen Qingtan silently withdrew the two fingers that had been resting on the scripture.

The man asked, "Madam, would you like to hear this?"

Shen Qingtan was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized what he meant and glared at him with embarrassment and annoyance.

This man is deliberately teasing her again!

Zhao Yi looked at her vivid eyes and smiled happily. He put the scripture back in her hand and left with Mama Wei.

Liu Yue laughed from the side, "Second Madam, you haven't been this lively since you got married. Only in front of Second Master do you show the charming and innocent side you had when you were in your boudoir."

"Shut up."

Shen Qingtan glared angrily at Zhao Yi's retreating figure.

He is genuinely gentle and considerate.

She really knows how to annoy people!

Just then, the cicadas returned.

She glanced quickly at Zhao Yi's retreating figure a few times before entering the room, holding the cloak and saying, "Second Madam, I'll take this to wash it clean and return it to you."

"No need, you can keep it."

"Second Madam, the light blue of your cloak suits me better than pink."

Shen Qingtan hummed in agreement and instructed Liu Yue, who was suppressing a laugh, "Second Master came to Hualing Temple today, and I couldn't get away to keep my appointment. Go tell my old friend that we'll reschedule for another day."

Qiu Chan's eyelashes trembled as she hugged her cloak tightly: "Second Madam, Sister Liuyue will stay and serve you. This servant will go and run this errand."