C40

In the early morning of the next day, Jin Lan first accompanied Madame SHen to the Earth Treasury Hall for an incense stick of time, then went back to his room to have his fast food. A young Shamil who was about seven or eight years old came to the Madame SHen to pass on a message, saying that Master Huifeng would be lecturing at the opening of the Bodhi Courtyard today, and would be able to listen to the buddhist mantras.

Since they had run into each other, the Madame SHen was naturally going there. Jin Lan felt that it was still too early, and decided to listen in instead of staying in the room. Moreover, the Bodhi Courtyard was not far from the rear mountains. At that time, it would be convenient to find an excuse for the Madame SHen to go there.

Thus, she took the Drapery Cap and went to the Bodhi Courtyard with Madame SHen.

Although it was called a courtyard, it didn't have a single room, only a tall and luxuriant Bodhi tree. This Bodhi tree had been growing for who knows how many years. Its trunk was tall and sturdy, and it was difficult for five or six people to embrace it. Its branches were lush and the leaves were green.

Master Hui Wei's eyebrows were tightly knitted, and his eyes were tightly shut, as though he had already entered a meditative state. His face was full of wrinkles, but in between his eyes, there was a hint of compassion. He sat cross-legged under the Bodhi tree, his left hand forming a seal in front of his chest. After a while, he opened his eyes and his lips moved slightly.

Three feet away from the Bodhi tree, the prayer mats lined up on the ground in rows and rows, until they filled up the entire Bodhi Courtyard. The few monks in the front rows of prayer mats who were already sitting cross-legged on them had Lingji Temple already. Behind them were the pious and pious monks who were like the Madame SHen. Everyone quietly sat on the ground with respectful expressions.

After an unknown period of time, a melodious bell sound rang out. Master Hui Wei clasped his hands together and chanted a Buddhist chant, indicating that the lecture was over.

Jin Lan hurriedly got Wan Ju to help him up. After sitting there for so long, her legs had long ago become numb. Wan Ju and Bi He helped her up. She looked at the sky and asked in a slightly anxious voice: "What time is it now?"

"Just now, the bell for Master Huiyuan Palace's sermon rang a few times, I'm afraid that it is already more than halfway through, what's wrong, is there anything for Lan Er?" Madame SHen was not fully satisfied, she had always been respectful to the Buddha, so she could still sit at this time.

Since it was already halfway through, wouldn't that mean it was almost noon? Jin Lan thought for a moment, then pulled Madame SHen's sleeves and pouted: "Mother, I heard that the scenery behind the Lingji Temple is unique, and is even more beautiful than the garden at home. Let's go take a look at the back of the mountain?"

Madame SHen was angry and amused at the same time. She lightly tapped her nose and said, "Girl, you obviously wanted to play by yourself, but you still had to find such an excuse."

She didn't explain, she had originally been pondering about what kind of reason she should give for the Madame SHen to go to the rear mountains. Now that things had turned out this way, it was natural for her to go to the Stainless Pavilion since she loved to play. She pulled Madame SHen along, and the two of them walked towards the back of the mountain after leaving the Bodhi Courtyard, with Hui Xiu and the other two maidservants following closely behind.

Today, there were many pilgrims listening to the scripture lecture. After dispersing, they would also be able to observe the scenery at the back of the mountain. As a result, it was completely different from yesterday's seclusion.

Even though it was already the early autumn, the back of the mountain was still covered in verdant and lush greenery, as if it was spring. All kinds of wild flowers decorated the green grass with a myriad of colors, causing Madame SHen to be unable to help but exclaim in amazement.

The Stainless Pavilion was on the west side of the rear mountain, and Jin Lan specially pulled the Madame SHen to the west side of the mountain to look around. A path of Ethereal Opening slowly extended into the distance, and perhaps with a companion, they chatted and laughed at each other as they walked quickly. After a short while, the road came to an end. What entered his eyes was a large patch of quiet green bamboo forest. Occasionally, a breeze would caress it, making it rustle lightly, and it was extremely pleasant to listen to.

Sparse sunlight slid through the leaves, and a hazy light fell on the ground. An exquisite hexagonal pavilion was hidden in the depths of the bamboo forest. On one side of the pavilion facing the path, there was a small signboard with the words' Stainless Pavilion 'written in black and gold on it. On the columns on both sides of the pavilion, there were two words' Buddha's abode '.

Looking around, there seemed to be another person sitting in the pavilion. Jin Lan was elated; it seemed that he was still keeping his word, so he couldn't help but quicken his pace.

"Lan Er, where are you going?" The Madame SHen was completely confused by Jin Lan's actions. He said that they were here to enjoy the scenery at the back of the mountain and that they were going to come to this remote place even if it was worth not looking at.

Jin Lan pointed at the nearby hexagonal pavilion. "My legs are aching from walking. Mother, let's rest in the pavilion for a while."

Madame SHen shook her head helplessly and followed her. However, as they got closer, her gaze suddenly focused and she muttered with uncertainty: "That person, looks a little like Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu."

Although the mutters were not loud, they just happened to fall into Jin Lan's ears. She followed the Madame SHen's gaze and saw that there wasn't one person sitting in the Six Horn Tower, but two. One of them was the man in the robe from yesterday, while the other one was wearing a monastic robe. His back was facing the crowd, so it was hard to see his face. The two were sitting in the pavilion, playing chess.

It wasn't until he reached the foot of the pavilion that Madame SHen confirmed that the monk was indeed Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu.

Many years ago, she prayed for her son to study in a temple and monastery of various sizes in Yangzhou, and then after that, she became pregnant. As a result, she had always been there to burn incense, and was naturally familiar with the Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu. It was just that Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu did not normally meet any outsiders, she had only met a few of them due to fate, he did not expect to meet them here.

Madame SHen pulled on Jin Lan's small hands, signalling for her to slow down so that she wouldn't disturb Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu. The two of them quietly walked into the pavilion. Although the hexagonal pavilion looked spacious, in truth, the space inside wasn't too big, and Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu and the robed man were coincidentally seated in the middle of the pavilion playing chess. As a result, there was only enough space for the two of them to sit outside the pavilion.

Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu's face was indifferent, as though he did not know that there were more people behind him, he did not even raise his head, and his gaze was fixated on the chess board. The robe was the same. Even though Jin Lan was standing right in front of him, the two of them still played chess without even glancing at him.

Jin Lan was anxious, but he didn't dare to say anything. Madame SHen had a calm expression, as if he had already expected this would happen.

After about the time it took for an incense stick to burn, the last black piece settled. A trace of a smile appeared on Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu's indifferent face.

The robed man didn't say anything. He raised his head and glanced at Jin Lan. Then, he picked up the black and white chess pieces one by one and placed them into the round wooden chess box.

Only then did Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu stand up and clasped his hands together towards Jin Lan and Madame SHen. He chanted a Buddhist prayer, "Amitabha, how have you been?"

"Greetings, Grandmaster Fang." A look of pleasant surprise surfaced on Madame SHen's face. It was obvious that she did not expect Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu to recognize her, and she quickly returned the greeting.

Although Jin Lan couldn't understand why the Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu would come here, he still bowed like Shen Wu, "Greeting Master Fang Shen."

"Young Benefactor need not be so courteous." Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu nodded his head, and looked at Jin Lan with eyes as deep as an ancient well, unable to see the bottom, but filled with wisdom and understanding. After a long while, he sighed: "Foolish, foolish son, since it has already settled, why are you so determined?"

Madame SHen was confused when she heard it, "Master, you're talking about..."

Jin Lan was shocked. It was said that Master Hui Wu was an outstanding monk with boundless magical powers. Could it be that he really saw through his own plight?

Master Hui Wu's gaze fell on her. He saw that her expression was slightly startled, but he pursed his lips and did not reply. He could not help but sigh, "Doing things against the will of the heavens will not bear fruit."

Jin Lan was already alarmed and uncertain in his heart, but upon hearing Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu's words, he immediately became angry, and replied: "Master Fang Shen's words are wrong."

Hearing this, the long robed man sitting next to him picking up pieces raised the center of his brows. A look of surprise appeared on his calm face.

"Lan Er, don't be rude!" Seeing Jin Lan speak like that, the Madame SHen frowned and scolded softly, "Hurry up and apologize to the great master."

"It's fine, it's fine." Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu laughed and waved his hand at Madame SHen, his gaze however, was fixated on Jin Lan. He squinted his eyes and said calmly: "Young Benefactor, please enlighten me."

At this point, Jin Lan wasn't sure if the Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu was really able to see through everything, but various memories from her previous life kept flashing through her mind, and her heart felt as if it was ignited with a raging flame, "Buddha talks about being greedy, angry, addicted, slow, and suspicious. Master is an outsider, so naturally, he is superior to everyone else, but how many people in this world can achieve great things like master? As for karma, if there are consequences, there must be reasons. Why is it that the Grandmaster only looks at the fruits and ignores the cause? "

Right now, Jin Lan was only a nine year old child, yet he had actually said those words so coldly, that every word and sentence he took in completely different parts of his body. This caused Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu to be taken aback for a moment.

Needless to say, Madame SHen looked at her daughter in astonishment. However, her expression could not be seen clearly due to the Drapery Cap.

The chess player also stopped mid-air. His calm eyes seemed to reflect an unyielding little face. A trace of unease appeared in the depths of his eyes.

After a moment of silence, Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu suddenly laughed out loud. "It's indeed exquisite, forget it, little Benefactor is right. The cycle of karma, naturally there's logic in it, this humble monk is speaking nonsense." Saying that, he continued, "It's just that I still have something to tell you."

Jin Lan only blurted out those words due to anger, he was not truly angry at Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu. As soon as he said it, he felt slightly regretful, and upon seeing that Master Fang did not blame him, he immediately heaved a sigh of relief, and said politely: "Master, please speak."

"Don't ask too much of anything. Heaven's will is already set. It is not something that can be changed by one person."

Could it be that he would have to helplessly watch the death of Madame SHen in this life? Jin Lan bit his lips, concealing the dissatisfaction in his heart as he replied softly, "Thank you, master, for your guidance."

So what if fate was already set? Wasn't her appearance here the biggest variable? Since the heavens had allowed her to live a new life, they agreed that she would make up for all the regrets she had in her previous life!

Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu could hear the stubbornness in her tone and knew that he had not heard anything, but he did not say anything else. He turned around and said to Madame SHen, "Benefactor Shen, please take a seat."

Jin Lan and Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu's repeated explanations made the Madame SHen feel as if she was falling into a cloud. When she suddenly heard Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu talking to her, she was startled, but she quickly reacted and sat on the stone table in the pavilion.

Just as Madame SHen took her seat, Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu once again spoke out, "Benefactor Shen, please place your hand on the chess board."

Looking at the empty chess board, Madame SHen asked in puzzlement: "May I ask Master, why is this so?"

The Madame SHen was not clear, but Jin Lan could tell immediately. He was afraid that the poison in his body was detoxified by the Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu, that's why he said he was here today at noon. She smiled at Madame SHen and said, "Mother, I heard that Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu's medical skills have reached perfection.

"You child …" Madame SHen instantly understood why Jin Lan pulled her here today. He couldn't help but feel warm in his heart and immediately placed his hand on the chess board.

Buddhist Abbot Hui Wu nodded, and extended his hand to feel the Madame SHen's pulse through her long sleeves. However, as time slowly passed, his expression gradually became stern.