My elder sister forced me to become a concubine; I was reborn and remarried into the emperor's

Wei Nanxun learned from Pei Ji's casual conversation along the way that he had come here to seek Master Wuhui's help to heal his injuries.

It wasn't the injury she sustained while saving him, but rather his old wound, which was a private matter, so she didn't ask any further questions.

All that is known is that the two of them would meet, which is indeed a bit of a coincidence, but there is also his arrangement and planning involved.

Back in the temple, when she looked at the tightly closed room next door, she immediately guessed who the owner of the room was.

Only when he was staying here would he say "see you later".

The thought of her father and brother just a wall away, and him having to meet her right under his nose, made her face burn again.

This person is truly shameless.

"Young lady, your face is so red. Did you catch a chill from the wind on the mountain?"

Wei Rongde brought her over first, and upon hearing this, he immediately examined her carefully. Sure enough, he saw that her face was flushed, and even her neck was a little red.

He immediately asked with concern, "Are you feeling hot? Are you dizzy? It's colder up here than outside. You're not dressed warmly enough. I remember the abbot is quite knowledgeable in medicine. I'll go and ask him to come over."

How could Wei Nanxun dare to let the abbot treat her? She shook her head repeatedly and grabbed her father, who was about to rush out.

"Father, I'm not feeling unwell. It's probably because I walked too much on the mountain path and got too hot from sweating that my face is hot. Really, if you don't believe me, touch my forehead; it's not hot at all."

Wei Rongde placed the back of his hand on her forehead with some skepticism, confirming several times that she was indeed not in pain or sick, before telling her to rest properly.

Don't go to the dining hall for dinner; eat indoors instead.

Wei Nanxun wasn't lying; today was truly the day she had walked the most in recent months, and her undergarments were already soaked with sweat.

She was really tired.

Therefore, she was relieved to hear that she didn't have to go to the dining hall. After seeing her father off, Zhixia and Yidong went to fetch hot water.

Although you can't take a bath in the temple, you can still wipe your sweat off with hot water, otherwise you'll really catch a cold at night.

By the time she had washed, changed her clothes, and everything was ready, it was completely dark.

The servant brought her vegetarian food, and she sat down at the small square table by the window to eat.

"Zhixia, sit down quickly, let's eat together."

The two shared hardships and had a bond that allowed them to get along well. She never regarded Zhixia as a maid.

She is still restricted in the Wei family, and she has mentioned to her father that once they separate from the family and she moves out, she will ask him to adopt Zhixia as his goddaughter, and then the two of them will be true sisters.

Zhixia didn't hesitate and sat down next to her to have a meal together.

The dinner at Huangjue Temple was still very exquisite. The tofu with scallions and the lotus root with glutinous rice even tasted a bit like the original Baima Temple.

Wei Nanxun would only eat a few bites before staring out the window, lost in thought.

"Young lady, what are you looking at?"

There weren't many pilgrims staying overnight at the temple. As night fell, only a few lanterns were visible outside, rustling in the wind. In the distance, one could hear monks chanting sutras while striking wooden fish.

Wei Nanxun snapped out of her reverie, stirred the tofu pudding in her bowl, and lowered her head, saying, "It's nothing. I was just looking at the scenery in this courtyard and it reminded me of when we were at the White Horse Temple."

“You think it looks similar too, young lady? I also felt it looked familiar when I first came to this courtyard. Could it be that all temples in the country are decorated the same way?”

"By the way, the girl disappeared at Baima Temple. You have no idea how sleepless my grandfather and I were for those two days. We had the young monks in the temple lead us to search all over the mountains."

"Who would have thought that the next time I saw you was with Mr. Ji..."

Zhixia realized she had said the wrong thing and quickly covered her mouth. He was no longer Mr. Ji, but the Regent.

She was unaware that her young lady had reconciled with Pei Ji, and assumed that her young lady was still troubled by love, a person she couldn't mention.

In fact, if you ask her, the girl should be with this prince. Then she will become a princess and be able to suppress the crown prince in every way, so that the dog of a crown prince will have to respectfully call her aunt.

Just thinking about it makes me feel really good.

Upon hearing Zhixia mention Pei Ji, Wei Nanxun felt a guilty sense of having her secret exposed.

"Why bring him up? Let's eat."

Just then, the courtyard gate creaked open, and someone arrived.

Before Zhixia could react, she had already put down her chopsticks and stood up: "I'll go see who's here."

"Girl, it's windy outside, put on a coat."

Wei Nanxun acted as if she hadn't heard, and quickly went out, muttering to herself, "Why did this person choose to come back at this time? Won't she be seen by the people around her right away?"

Holding a lantern in one hand and lifting her skirt with the other, she saw the door open from the outside and blurted out, "You're back?"

The courtyard gate was pushed open, and the candlelight from the lanterns shone on Wei Rongde's face. He looked at his daughter suspiciously: "Who's back?"

Wei Nanxun was suddenly stunned; it wasn't him after all.

She suppressed her disappointment and quickly replied, "It's Yidong. She said she ran out of charcoal and went ahead to find some to make tea, but she hasn't come back for a long time. It's getting dark, and I'm worried she might get lost."

Wei Rongde naturally didn't doubt his daughter's words. "The temple is locked at night, so you can't just wander around. I'll have Xiyan go look for it."

Wei Nanxun forced a smile: "Why did Father come over at this time?"

“Your face was so red earlier, and I was still worried, so I came to see if you were feeling better.”

"I'm fine now. I just sweated a lot when I went up the mountain, but I sat down and relaxed after that and I felt better."

"It's okay."

Wei Nanxun felt a warmth in her heart: "Where's He Yu? Why didn't he come?"

"He hadn't rested well to begin with, and then he spent the afternoon searching for you all over the mountain. He was really exhausted. He only ate a few bites of dinner before falling asleep, and now he's already snoring away."

"It's my fault for making Father and Brother worry."

"There's no need for formalities between us, father and daughter. As long as you and your brother are safe and sound, I'm perfectly content."

Wei Nanxun felt a little ashamed. Remembering that she had seen a chessboard in the room earlier, she said, "My father and I haven't played chess for a long time. I wonder if my father has become rusty."

Wei Rongde laughed heartily: "Alright, then I'll see if our Xun'er has gotten any more powerful."

Upon hearing this, Zhixia quickly set up the chessboard, and took out a futon and a kang table. The father and daughter sat down cross-legged, and the crisp sound of the chess pieces being placed added a touch of warmth to the quiet autumn night.

The father and daughter played three games in a row, with Wei Nanxun ultimately winning two games and narrowly emerging victorious.

"It's been a long time since I played chess, and Xun'er's playing style has become so aggressive."

Wei Nanxun was stunned for a moment. Her usual chess style was rather casual, playing whatever came her way, but she didn't know when it started, but it had become like Pei Ji's style.

"Perhaps it's been too long since I played chess with my father, and my desire to win has been aroused."

"Good job, it was just my rusty skills. By the way, it's boring up in the mountains, I've already informed the owner of the horse farm, and I'll take you horseback riding tomorrow."

"Okay, I'll do whatever Father says."

Wei Nanxun escorted Wei Rongde to the courtyard gate. As she returned to the house, she glanced at the adjacent room out of the corner of her eye to make sure the doors and windows were tightly closed and there were no signs of anyone having entered or left.

She bit her lower lip, turned around, and quickly went back into the inner room.

She didn't want to see him at all!

Wei Nanxun didn't sleep well that night. Whether it was because she was in an unfamiliar place or because the night wind was bothering her, she could always hear the rustling of leaves in her half-awake state.

She rubbed her eyes and sat up. Just as she was about to ask Zhixia to pour her a glass of warm water, her palm touched something cool.

She looked down and saw a bright red maple leaf on her pillow.

It was the maple forest she and Pei Ji had strolled through yesterday.

Has he been here?