Chapter 25: Huguo Temple (Part 1)

  For two consecutive days, Chen Lan went to the Shuijing Hall in the morning to take care of household chores with her sisters Chen Huang and Chen Quan. After lunch, she would return to her room and wait for Zhu Shi to wake up from her afternoon nap before heading to the Lianxiang Institute. Although it was supposed to be just idle chatter, Chen Lan would always report every detail of the morning's events to Zhu Shi, who would either listen silently or ask a few follow-up questions.

  This day was the twelfth of the first month, which was the agreed date for the memorial ceremony for her mother with Zhu Shi. Early in the morning, she brought people and Chen Yan together to meet at the front gate, got on a carriage, and headed towards the Temple of National Protection.

  Sitting in the sedan chair, the hustle and bustle of the street came in through the curtains and carriage windows, bringing a kind of indescribable novelty to Chen Lan, who had never left the house since arriving in this era. However, within the spacious carriage were also Chen Yan, Qin Fang, Hong Rou, and Yun Er, three maidservants, with another smaller carriage behind carrying Su Mu, Hu Jiao, and two accompanying mothers. Even if she wanted to, she couldn't give people anything to gossip about, so she could only occasionally lift a corner of the curtain and peek through the narrow opening to see what was going on outside.

  Yangning Marquis Chen's family was one of the old aristocratic families in Beijing that had been passed down for over a hundred years, and they were meticulous about everything. This time, Zhu gave Chen Lan the car she usually used.

  It's called a sedan, but actually because the carriage is similar to a palanquin. The car shed uses carefully carved nanmu wood, and a thick layer of wool felt is wrapped on the wooden frame, with another layer of cotton cloth and a large red wool felt coated with tung oil outside, making it exceptionally warm. The curtains are thick and dense sheep's wool tapestry, and the carriage is covered with dark-colored Jiangnan woven blankets.

  Three seats, with a black bear skin cushion in the middle, and white rabbit skin cushions on either side. The decorations inside the carriage are not worth mentioning, even the hooks, nails, and packages on the carriage's surroundings are all made of gold and silver threads, this carriage alone is priceless. And the two drivers driving the carriage do not sit across the yoke, but instead walk alongside the mule cart, this has a loud name among the people, called "Double Flying Swallow", referring to the fact that the attendants' footsteps are as swift as flying swallows.

  Through that tiny gap, you can just see the two coachmen striding along with flying feet and shouting as they hurry along the road. You can even see the mist rising from their heads due to their rapid pace. At this moment, Chen Lan, who was already accustomed to the ups and downs of life, couldn't help but be amazed.

  It's probably due to the first month, there are quite a few people on the road, and there are also vendors setting up stalls and peddling goods everywhere. The pedestrians' clothing is still decent, it can be seen that under the emperor's feet, it is extremely prosperous and flourishing.

  Yun'er squeezed in beside Chen Lan, chattering nonstop. As a maid, she only had a few days off each year to visit her family and occasionally go shopping, so she talked about which household's cosmetics were famous or whose silk fabrics were the brightest. In the end, Chen Yan got annoyed and said, "These are just ordinary things from the market, aren't the things we use at home much better?"

  Yun'er was taken aback, Chen Lan rarely saw her at a loss for words and couldn't help but smile. He immediately composed himself and looked at Chen Yan: "Don't keep saying that we're commoners. Those valuable items were given to Old Madam by Princess Jin of the Imperial Court, and she gave them to us. With our family's status, if it weren't for Princess Jin, we might not even be able to use such things. What's there to brag about?"

  Chen Yan was born into a wealthy family, so he naturally developed an arrogant temperament. At this moment, being spoken to by Chen Lan like that, his face turned red and he couldn't even think of anything to say in retort, could only sullenly lower his head, thinking to himself that although his sister had also often lectured him before, it was nothing compared to now, just a few sentences and she could shut him up completely. Just as he was awkwardly unsure what to say next, he felt someone lightly patting his hand.

  "But let me remind you of two things, and then put on this dejected look. They are all dead objects, when you have the ability to get those good things with your own name in the future, that is the real pride. Other people's things are other people's things, giving them to us is a blessing; yours is truly what we deserve, do you understand?"

  Chen Yan was taken aback for a moment, then nodded repeatedly with a smile, and Chen Lan also smiled. She took the opportunity to tidy up Chen Yan's hair, which had been blown into disarray by the strong wind when he got on the carriage, and re-fastened his jade hairpin. Chen Yan sat there motionless, speaking in a flattering tone about the praise he received from his teachers at school. Chen Lan listened carefully, occasionally praising him with a sentence or two. In this short journey, the carriage was filled with a warm atmosphere, even the talkative Yun'er unknowingly stopped talking.

  The capital of the Great Chu is precisely the former Yuan Dadu, only without experiencing the turmoil of the Ming Dynasty's first fixing its capital in Nanjing and then moving it to Beijing. As a result, successive emperors expanded this northern fortress several times during their reigns, making it even more majestic and magnificent. Now it has been divided into an inner city and an outer city. The names of the nine gates of the inner city are said to have been personally determined by Taizu, with no difference from those familiar to Chen Lan in later generations.

  Because Tonghui River in front of Chongwenmen was dredged, a tax office was set up here, so big merchants all lived in the east city, while most of the powerful officials lived in the west city. As a result, Buddhist temples and Taoist monasteries naturally also had their own hierarchy, with Xicheng's Huguo Temple being an imperial temple, where although many devout men and women came to worship on ordinary days, when important incense burners came, they would often close their doors to visitors.

  This day was no exception, although when Zheng's mother came that day, the Yang Ning Hou Fu had not yet changed, but now three days have passed, and the host Zhi Yong, who has been in contact with various wealthy families, knew that Yang Ning Hou Chen Jue was imprisoned. Although the Brocade Guards searched the Chen family, there was no major news afterwards. It is said that several noble families also offered assistance by submitting memorials, and even the cabinet members in the court did not abandon them. Therefore, it can be inferred that the Chen family will eventually turn danger into safety, so the plan to clean up the temple has not been delayed at all.

  On the contrary, he faintly heard another rumor and even planned to welcome him in person. However, there were other distinguished guests at the temple early that morning, and he couldn't leave for a while, so he could only repeatedly instruct the monk who received guests.

  When the sedan chair of the Yangning Marquis's residence stopped in front of the temple, Chen Lan found that there was a dispute on the side of the mountain gate. Chen Yan was impatient and directly lifted the curtain to jump down. Chen Lan couldn't stop him and had to hurry up to let the little servant follow closely behind. Just after a while, she heard the quarrel sound suddenly became louder.

  "They say that Buddhist temples are pure and clean, but this one is also full of corruption. I'd like to ask you, the Buddha said that all living beings are equal, what right do you have to lock up the temple and not let us in? Is this Protecting the Country Temple also a place that only lets people in if they donate incense money?"

  "Big brother, don't say anything else, someone is coming!"

  "What's the big deal if someone comes? The sky is vast, and reason is the greatest! I don't believe that even temples and Taoist monasteries are now places where family background and wealth are scrutinized, turning them into dens of gold worship. And I'm not just an ordinary commoner, I still have the honor of being a scholar!"

  "Big brother, say a few less words... what if this gets out of hand and not only do we lose face, but also the Yangning Marquis's household..."

  "What's wrong with bringing home a wife from a good family?! It's not like Grandma would ever give in, you think I'd be willing to marry some spoiled rich girl from a wealthy family?!"

  The words that followed seemed to be blocked by someone, and that person ultimately didn't continue speaking. Even so, Chen Lan was still shocked. After thinking for a moment, she gently lifted the thick curtain on the window again and looked towards the mountain gate.

  Only four people were seen on that side, the front two seemed to be a brother and sister duo from their previous address, while the man and woman at the back should be the young master and servant girl, who were desperately trying to persuade them. The man who had just been persuaded was now being blocked by Chen Yan, who had just stepped forward, after the reception monk said a few words, he actually stretched out his arm to block Chen Yan's way.

  Chen Yanping rarely went out, and since his parents were not around, he only came to the temple once a year, except for school. He didn't even bother to listen to what the young man was shouting about, and directly ordered his servants to chase them away. He walked up to report his name to the reception monk, just as he was about to go back and let Chen Lan and others get off the carriage, when someone suddenly blocked his way.

  Although he was young in years, his temper was not small. At this time, he became annoyed and suddenly shouted: "Poor scholar, what are you doing blocking my way!"

  That young man was wearing a dark blue robe, the favorite of Confucian scholars, which had been washed clean but had faded somewhat, giving an impression of poverty. However, these three words "poor and shabby" seemed to have ignited his anger, he immediately changed color, glared at Chen Yan and said with a huff: "Good, good tone, no wonder the other noble families are all law-abiding, but the Yang Ning Marquis was imprisoned for corruption, and even a child dares to speak ill! Little sister, let's go, after we get back, I'll go to the Hou Mansion, I want to ask, is this how they teach their juniors in the Hou Mansion?"

  It's better not to say this, but once said, Chen Yan was even more annoyed. He immediately sneered: "There are many people who randomly claim to be relatives under the sky, and the gate of the Hou Mansion is also one that you can enter at will?"

  At this moment, the young girl behind the young man finally caught up, blocking him tightly, and then turned around to apologize: "Chen Gongzi please forgive me, my brother is just like that, please tolerate him a little. My brother Su Yi, I am Su Wan'er, our grandmother is related to the old marquis by marriage, so we are actually relatives. It's just that the weather has been cold for several days, and grandma caught a cold, heard that the incense at the Protecting Country Temple is very effective, so we came to pray for her. Please Chen Gongzi be magnanimous and give us some convenience."

  There is a saying that goes, "A smiling face can hide a knife." Su Wan'er was wearing an old but not new honey-colored jacket with a pinkish-red lining, and there were no sparkling jewels on her head or hands like those of a noble lady. Her fresh and elegant appearance made Chen Yan feel somewhat embarrassed. After glancing at the horse carriage, he spoke up, "I'm not sure if we're related or not, but considering Su's filial piety, it's convenient for you to come in, so please do."

  Nan Su saw Chen Yan drop this sentence and hurriedly took a few followers to the direction of the horse carriage, couldn't help but hummed again, and then under Su Wan's persuasion, reluctantly entered the Huguo Temple. The little servants and maidservants also followed closely behind. The monk who received guests naturally didn't bother with such small people, and hurriedly brought two young monks to the side of the horse carriage to welcome them, being extremely enthusiastic and thoughtful, which was completely different from his previous serious face when blocking people from entering the temple.

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