“You want to use my Buddhist hall?” The Princess had just swallowed a bowl of medicinal soup and wiped the residue from her lips with a handkerchief before looking up at Yuanxi.
Yuanxi nodded, trying hard to discover something from her eyes, but only saw a deep pool. A trace of doubt flashed through her mind, yet she still spoke according to her prepared words: “Your daughter-in-law has been married into the family for a year now, but still has not conceived. I truly feel ashamed toward Mother-in-law and Father-in-law. A few days ago, I went to the temple to consult with an eminent monk, who gave me a talisman. He said that if I could retreat in my own family’s Buddhist hall to serve Guanyin for two days, I could invoke divine blessing to help me conceive soon.” As she spoke, she unconsciously placed her hand on her stomach, her face showing sorrowful expression: “Your daughter-in-law has been unable to sleep day and night over this matter, only wishing to soon add a son or daughter to the Xiao family. I hope Mother-in-law can understand and grant this request.”
She spoke with tears nearly falling, but the Princess only watched coldly with arrogant eyes. After a long while, she curved her lips in a cold smile: “It’s touching that you have such intentions, but this Buddhist hall…” She played with the sandalwood prayer beads wrapped around her wrist, deliberately stopping mid-sentence.
Yuanxi’s heart was lifted high by her words, constantly rehearsing in her mind how to respond to various reasons for refusal. Who would have known that the Princess suddenly gestured for Nanny Yu to help her stand, then walked beside her with a frown: “This Buddhist hall belongs to the marquis manor, not just to me alone. Since you want to use it now, I’ll let you use it.” Just as Yuanxi was about to breathe a sigh of relief, she suddenly caught sight of that mocking and sarcastic smile on the Princess’s face, her heart skipping a beat. The Princess then slightly bent her body and ran her fingernail across Yuanxi’s cheek: “Be careful not to damage my place.”
Yuanxi couldn’t help but shudder, forcing a smile onto her face as she replied: “Yes, Mother-in-law, Yuanxi will remember.”
After Yuanxi left, Nanny Yu looked nervously at the Princess. The Princess, however, sat down leisurely, revealing contemptuous eyes: “Since things have reached this point, I’d like to see what tricks she can play.”
The night was deep, but the Buddhist hall was brightly lit with lamps and candles. Yuanxi knelt straight before the Guanyin statue, devoutly chanting scriptures, though her eyes seemed somewhat distant, wandering elsewhere. Suddenly, a black shadow flashed outside the Buddhist hall. Yuanxi spun around abruptly, hearing the lacquered door being gently knocked. She quickly stood up and quietly opened the door, then was pulled into a solid embrace by large hands.
The familiar, steady presence made her feel very safe. Xiao Du lowered his head, smoothing the hair draped over her forehead, and said gently: “Are you tired from kneeling?”
Yuanxi smiled and shook her head. Mindful that this was after all a Buddhist hall, she quickly pulled away from his embrace and said urgently: “But I observed the surroundings for a long time during the day and really couldn’t see any problems. If there really were corpses hidden somewhere, there would definitely be a bloody smell that sandalwood couldn’t cover.”
Xiao Du said: “Could it be that we can’t find anything because the corpses have all been moved away?”
Yuanxi still shook her head: “Even if cleaned thoroughly, it couldn’t fool insects and ants. When I came, I secretly brought in a leech—this type of creature most loves the smell of blood, but it entered this Buddhist hall and couldn’t find direction.”
Xiao Du frowned: “Then what do you think is going on? Are we looking in the wrong direction?”
Yuanxi stepped on the blue bricks beneath her feet, her eyes flashing brightly. Xiao Du followed her gaze and suddenly understood: “You suspect there’s a cellar dug under the Buddhist hall.”
Yuanxi nodded: “Now we just need to find the mechanism and the way in, then we can discover the secrets here.”
The two no longer delayed and began carefully searching through the Buddhist hall. At first, Yuanxi thought that if a cellar had been dug, there would definitely be gaps, so she tried pouring water into the brick cracks to see where it would flow. Who would have known that after the two had worked for a long time without any results, and seeing the horizon about to turn white, they became somewhat anxious.
At this moment, someone outside suddenly shouted loudly: “Fire! Fire!” Yuanxi and Xiao Du exchanged glances and quickly opened the door to look outside. Who would have known that just as they were distracted looking around, an incense candle in the Buddhist hall suddenly fell over, then quickly spread, rising into raging flames.
The Buddhist hall contained many flammable items, and once the fire started, it became difficult to control. Xiao Du’s face darkened as he quickly pulled the already terrified Yuanxi aside, afraid she might be burned by the scattered flames. Yuanxi was held tightly in his embrace, staring dazedly at the raging fire before her. Thick black smoke obscured the Buddha’s face, and even the divine figures standing high above seemed to sway precariously.
Many servants had already rushed over, and after the initial shock, immediately picked up tools to fight the fire. At this time, the Princess and the Old Marquis finally arrived. The Princess’s hair was disheveled, wearing only a cloak over thin clothing, obviously having been hastily awakened and rushed over. Her face, without powder or rouge, appeared somewhat distorted in the firelight as she stared in disbelief at everything before her, then suddenly turned and pointed at Yuanxi: “You! I kindly lent you the Buddhist hall, why did you do such blasphemous things!”
Yuanxi was still in a daze and, hearing these words, found herself unable to defend herself. Xiao Du suddenly saw the Princess, his heart originally filled with mixed emotions, but now immediately gripped Yuanxi’s hand tightly, signaling her not to panic, and called out loudly: “It’s not her fault. I was just with her and saw with my own eyes that she did nothing.”
The Princess’s face seemed soaked in ice as she stared coldly at Xiao Du for a long while without speaking, then sneered: “She was the only one in the Buddhist hall tonight. If she didn’t do it, how did this fire start?”
“Enough,” Xiao Du was about to argue further when the Old Marquis spoke: “The weather is dry, and fires are common occurrences. Don’t make a big deal of this matter. Tomorrow we’ll repair it and that will be the end of it.”
“This Buddhist hall is a place for worshipping divine beings. Now there’s been a fire that has damaged the golden bodies of the god statues, and Old Master is prepared to simply let it go like this?” the Princess said coldly, her usually weak voice suddenly filled with authority.
The Old Marquis frowned as he looked at her, but the Princess also stared at him relentlessly, her intention very clear—tonight she was determined to get an explanation for the Buddhist hall fire. After a standoff with the Princess, the Old Marquis understood that without doing something, it would be difficult to satisfy everyone, so he sighed: “Very well, then let Yuanxi be confined for a few days as atonement for today’s incident. Other matters will be discussed after the truth is investigated.”
Xiao Du immediately became angry and quickly protected Yuanxi behind him: “I was also in the Buddhist hall today, so if punishment is needed…” Before he could finish, Yuanxi had already stepped forward. Her face was still somewhat pale, but her tone was firm: “Husband need not protect me. I’m willing to bear responsibility for this matter myself.” She then turned around, straightened his clothes and hair, her eyes conveying a meaning that couldn’t be clearer: they couldn’t both be punished.
Xiao Du felt anxious in his heart, almost unable to contain his temper, preparing to argue for her again. But Yuanxi suddenly smiled, and for the first time, disregarding everyone’s gaze, she hooked her arm around his neck and whispered in his ear: “Look how anxious you are. In the marquis manor, what could happen to me? It’s just being confined for a few days. Don’t worry about me. Focus on your own affairs.”
Knowing she didn’t want him to forcefully intervene at this time, Xiao Du could only swallow his reluctance and took her hand: “Fine, where to confine her and how will be decided by me. I hope Father and Mother will show consideration for your son’s sake and not make things more difficult.” He paused after saying “Father” before continuing with the complete sentence.
The Princess’s eyes flashed sharply as she lingered on Xiao Du’s face for a long time. Seeing the two of them leave together, for some reason her heart felt irritably agitated. The hand supporting Nanny Yu trembled slightly, but her mouth still said coldly: “Since the fire is out and punishment has been given, let’s go back.”
After speaking, she walked directly past the Old Marquis. But as she passed by Xiao Zhixuan, she heard her say softly: “I know about the fan…”
The Princess’s body trembled as she spun around to stare at Xiao Zhixuan. She saw mocking smile rising in Xiao Zhixuan’s eyes, her chin slightly raised: “I saw everything. Don’t think that confining Sister-in-law will make everything fine. Your ugly deeds will soon be made public.”
The Princess dug her fingernails deeply into Nanny Yu’s wrist but forced herself to turn away as if nothing had happened and continued walking forward. Behind her, the smile at the corners of Xiao Zhixuan’s lips deepened, though her eyes carried some desolation as she murmured: “So… you also have times when you’re afraid.”
On the other side, the Princess walked back to her room with feigned composure, dismissed the maids in the room, and walked to the table with a livid face, her hands trembling violently. Suddenly she went mad and threw everything to the ground, constantly muttering: “She said she saw it, she said she saw it! How could she possibly see? Tell me! How could she possibly see!” The last sentence she pointed directly at Nanny Yu, her reddened eyes revealing deep fear.
Nanny Yu quickly stepped forward and pressed down on her trembling hands, saying calmly: “Don’t listen to her nonsense. That little girl might just be bluffing us.”
“But how could she know about the fan, and speak so confidently?” The Princess slumped down, still appearing panicked.
“Maybe she was just guessing wildly?” Nanny Yu frowned, her confidence also somewhat lacking.
The Princess bit her lips hard, seemingly thinking about something. At this moment, lightning suddenly flashed outside the window, illuminating her face in alternating light and shadow. Her pupils slowly gathered deep blackness as she stared at Nanny Yu: “We can’t take risks. Find me a way to make sure she can never speak again.”
Thunder roared again in the night sky, followed by a torrential downpour. All the quarreling voices inside were drowned in the rumbling thunder and rain. Many people couldn’t sleep peacefully this night, and after this night passed, many long-buried chronic ailments and past events would finally be completely exposed under the sunlight.