The two came to Jinghua Temple but only glimpsed Consort Rong’s back before leaving.
After descending the steps, Mu Yunjin instinctively started walking toward the temple exit but was pulled back by Chu Li, who frowned at her, “Didn’t you say you wanted to pray for blessings here?”
“…” Mu Yunjin’s mind went blank, having almost forgotten that she had made up this excuse.
This was her first time visiting this place, and she knew nothing about how effective the blessings were. She had only wanted Chu Li to see Consort Rong, hoping mother and son could open their hearts and have a proper conversation.
But since they were already here, there wasn’t much else to do if they went back now.
“Let’s go pray for blessings,” Mu Yunjin looked up at Chu Li.
Chu Li gave a soft “Mmm,” and the two walked toward the blessing hall on the other side.
Yun Lianqing and Imperial Advisor An had also come to Jinghua Temple. After walking around, they returned to see Mu Yunjin and Chu Li approaching, seemingly heading to the blessing hall.
“You two…” Imperial Advisor An saw the couple, opened his mouth, but swallowed back half of what he was about to say.
…
…
“We’re going to pray for blessings. Would you like to join us?” Mu Yunjin glanced at Imperial Advisor An, avoiding the topic of Consort Rong.
Imperial Advisor An had no particular wishes, so it didn’t matter to him whether he went or not.
Yun Lianqing immediately picked up the conversation, “Pray for blessings? Let’s go together.”
“Your Highness, didn’t His Majesty forbid you from privately coming to Jinghua Temple to pray?” Imperial Advisor An reminded from the side.
“Oh? Did he?” Yun Lianqing glanced sideways at Imperial Advisor An, drawing out the last syllable.
Imperial Advisor An was hardly afraid of the Crown Prince and nodded, “Yes.”
Yun Lianqing pouted, muttering about the lack of fun, “If I can’t pray, can I at least come along to watch?”
“That’s acceptable,” Imperial Advisor An raised an eyebrow and said.
With that, all four walked forward together.
When they arrived at the blessing hall, there was no one inside. Mu Yunjin and Chu Li walked in, but as Yun Lianqing was about to enter, his gaze caught an elderly monk sitting at the entrance.
The old monk was seated on a chair with a table covered in red cloth before him. On the table were writing brushes, ink, paper, and an inkstone, as well as a bamboo tube containing many bright red fortune sticks.
Yun Lianqing had visited Jinghua Temple several times before, but only for annual sacrificial ceremonies, so he had never seen this spot.
“Amitabha, this humble monk pays respects to the Crown Prince and Imperial Advisor An.” The old monk naturally recognized Yun Lianqing and Imperial Advisor An and immediately stood up to greet them.
Yun Lianqing walked over and examined the items on the table. “What is this for?”
“Heh…” Imperial Advisor An chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.
“What are you laughing at?” Yun Lianqing narrowed his peach blossom eyes with some displeasure.
Imperial Advisor An contained his laughter and said, “This is a place to pray for marriage fate.”
“Marriage fate?” Yun Lianqing suddenly realized how limited his experience had been, not knowing that Jinghua Temple had a place for seeking marriage fate.
However, upon hearing these three words “marriage fate,” Yun Lianqing became interested and looked at the old monk, “Since it’s for seeking marriage fate, this Crown Prince will try it too, to see if your marriage divinations are accurate.”
Though surprised, the old monk dared not refuse Yun Lianqing’s wish.
Throughout South Court Kingdom, women were lining up hoping to marry into the Crown Prince’s residence, yet here the Crown Prince was, seeking marriage fate at the temple—truly willful.
“Your Highness may draw a fortune stick from here,” the old monk pointed to the bamboo tube filled with red fortune sticks.
Yun Lianqing raised an eyebrow, looking suspiciously at the old monk, then at the bamboo tube, “Just draw a stick?”
“Indeed,” the old monk nodded.
Hearing this, Yun Lianqing reached out and casually pulled out a fortune stick, handing it to the old monk.
The old monk received it with both hands and looked at the content on the stick, furrowing his brow, “Has Your Highness recently encountered a lady who caught your fancy?”
“Huh?” Hearing the old monk’s question, Yun Lianqing instinctively blushed.
He had only sought marriage fate with a playful attitude, but somehow his heart’s secret had been exposed.
Imperial Advisor An watched from the side, imperceptibly curling his lips with an expression of enjoying the show.
From his angle, he could see the eight characters on the fortune stick: “A graceful lady, a gentleman’s pursuit.”
“The fortune stick Your Highness drew indicates that you have recently met a lady who has caught your interest. Is this correct?” the old monk asked again.
“Continue,” Yun Lianqing neither confirmed nor denied.
The old monk naturally understood and cast a divination based on the fortune stick’s content, then continued, “The divination points to the western direction.”
“In the west, the nearest would be neighboring Gushan City, and the farthest would be Western Yuan Kingdom.”
“Setting aside the direction, look at this divination: the left side points west, but the right side remains unchanged, revealing no information. According to common interpretation, that lady must be a mysterious person, which is why no information can be divined about her.”
Hearing this, Yun Lianqing looked at the old monk with an expression as if he had seen a ghost, “Are all your marriage divinations this accurate?”
The old monk smiled, “Not necessarily. For ordinary people, this humble monk only interprets the fortune stick in simple terms. But since the Crown Prince came seeking marriage fate today, this humble monk naturally must use all his skills to cast a proper divination for Your Highness.”
“However, from Your Highness’s reaction, has this humble monk’s divination been accurate?” the old monk probed curiously.
Yun Lianqing’s expression turned peculiar. With a flick of his sleeve, he awkwardly said, “Half and half, not entirely accurate.”
“This…” the old monk became somewhat serious, “That shouldn’t be. This humble monk’s divinations have never been wrong in all the decades at Jinghua Temple.”
After speaking, he tugged at Imperial Advisor An’s sleeve, “Imperial Advisor, why don’t you also draw a fortune stick, and let this humble monk cast a divination for you to see if it’s accurate?”
“I’ll pass. I’ve already lived more than half my life,” Imperial Advisor An said with an embarrassed smile.
“Come on, you should draw one too. You’ve been enjoying watching me,” Yun Lianqing said with a mischievous expression, pushing Imperial Advisor An toward the table.
Imperial Advisor An rolled his eyes, casually drew a stick, and handed it to the old monk. He was already an old man—what marriage fate could he possibly have? Ridiculous!
Just then, Mu Yunjin and Chu Li finished their prayers and walked out. Seeing Imperial Advisor An seeking marriage fate, they exchanged a glance, becoming interested and standing to the side to watch.
After looking at Imperial Advisor An’s fortune stick, the old monk raised his eyebrows at him, “Imperial Advisor, this is an extremely auspicious sign.”
“…” Imperial Advisor An remained silent.
“My, my—’Spring heart stirring, love at first sight,'” Yun Lianqing exclaimed after seeing the content on the fortune stick, repeatedly clicking his tongue and patting Imperial Advisor An’s shoulder. “This Crown Prince would like to see how, at your advanced age, a stirring spring heart manifests.”
“No, no, no, Your Highness has misunderstood. This fortune means that a lady will fall in love with Imperial Advisor An at first sight, with her spring heart stirring, not referring to Imperial Advisor An himself,” the old monk explained.
Yun Lianqing stroked his chin and nodded with understanding, “So that’s it. Quickly cast a divination for him to calculate which direction this lady is in.”
The old monk agreed.
Watching from the side, Mu Yunjin suddenly smiled, “Is the place for seeking marriage fate in South Court Kingdom this formidable? You can even divine the direction?”
“Of course, just now for this Crown Prince…” Yun Lianqing blurted out, saying half before realizing he had misspoken, and quickly covered his mouth, turning to look elsewhere.
Mu Yunjin raised an eyebrow, “Could it be that the Crown Prince’s marriage fate lies in the west?”
“Yes, yes, exactly west,” the old monk quickly confirmed, still feeling wronged by Yun Lianqing’s earlier doubt about his divination’s accuracy.
“The west? Isn’t that the Western Yuan Kingdom? And the westernmost part of the Western Yuan Kingdom would be Zhangzhou City, right?” After saying this, Mu Yunjin looked at Chu Li.
Chu Li cooperatively nodded, saying with conviction, “Zhangzhou City is indeed in the westernmost part of Western Yuan Kingdom.”
“I see…” Mu Yunjin curled her lips, “Then this master’s divination is truly accurate.”
The old monk smiled, having also completed the divination for Imperial Advisor An, “Look, the direction is south, and it points to the nearest place, indicating it’s within this imperial city.”
After explaining the left side of the divination, he looked at the right side, which, like Yun Lianqing’s earlier, revealed no information.
“Is his lady also a mysterious person?” Yun Lianqing raised an eyebrow, once again doubting the reliability of the old monk’s divinations.
The old monk nodded, furrowing his brow and secretly sighing. These two who came for divination today were indeed extraordinary, and their fated ladies were equally extraordinary.
……
On the way out of Jinghua Temple, Mu Yunjin became curious, “Crown Prince Yun, what’s the name of the divine female physician you met in Zhangzhou City?”
“Her surname is Bai, that’s all I know,” Yun Lianqing answered honestly.
“A divine female physician surnamed Bai?” Imperial Advisor An picked up the conversation, his tone laden with meaning as he raised an eyebrow at Yun Lianqing.
Yun Lianqing nodded, “That’s right.”
Finally, he looked Imperial Advisor An up and down and said slyly, “Could it be that you know her?”
“I’m not sure if I know her, but in my early years traveling, I met a young man surnamed Bai. His entire family was medical practitioners, highly skilled in medicine. However, this family was very low-profile and rarely treated patients, which is why the Bai family isn’t well-known,” Imperial Advisor An explained.
Hearing this, Yun Lianqing became excited, his eyes lighting up as he looked at Imperial Advisor An, “By your account, could that suddenly appeared divine female physician possibly be from the Bai family?”
“Perhaps,” Imperial Advisor An said softly.
Hearing this, Mu Yunjin gently elbowed Chu Li and said in a low voice, “It seems there truly are always greater heights beyond heights, and people beyond people in this world.”
“Indeed,” Chu Li laughed softly, holding her as they walked out.
“Imperial Brother, Imperial Sister-in-law, when are you returning to Western Yuan Kingdom?” Yun Lianqing suddenly spoke up, looking at Chu Li and Mu Yunjin.
Mu Yunjin was about to answer “in a couple of days” when she saw Chu Li give Yun Lianqing a calm look and say, “Not for now.”
“Then, you…” Yun Lianqing suddenly became a bit stammering.
“You wouldn’t happen to want us to accompany you to Zhangzhou City to find that divine female physician, would you?” Mu Yunjin saw through him at once, her eyes revealing a mischievous smile as she gazed at Yun Lianqing.
Yun Lianqing tried to appear composed, but inwardly felt utterly pathetic. After all, he was a crown prince—how had he become so hesitant and indecisive, completely lacking the majesty of an imperial heir? It was truly maddening!