Chapter 16 Efficacy(1/2)
This famous temple, which has been donated and supported by countless good men and women, even though it is not the main hall, is more than twenty feet wide and ten feet deep, with several people hugging each other, and the thick and thin pillars on both sides are all impressive.
Pillars separate the east and west compartments, and nearly four hundred futons are laid on the dark glossy masonry floor. At this time, nearly half of them are already seated, with the male guests on the left and the female family members on the right, in an orderly manner.
Thanks to Qin Shisan's relationship, Zhou Lang was able to sit in a good position. With his clear vision, he could clearly see all the rituals of the Zen tea, and he could also clearly see the people in other positions in the palace.
The female members of the Chen family over there have all taken their seats, and since it hasn't started yet, they are all talking and laughing with the familiar people around them in low voices.
There were two empty seats to Mrs. Chen's left and right, but no one was sitting there. But not long after, someone came from outside the hall and sat down with some joy and some anxiety, but the woman was not among them.
Saturday Lang frowned.
Amidst the humming and low noise, the sound of ritual music and chanting of scriptures sounded outside, accompanied by a series of footsteps, indicating that the Zen tea party was about to begin, and the hall became quiet.
No one will be allowed in at this time.
Liu Lang let go of his hands on his knees, with a hint of disappointment on his brows.
What did she do when she came but didn't come back? Couldn't this woman live in peace for a moment?
A handful of flower petals fluttered into the pond, and the fish vying for food immediately rushed in, but soon they knew they had been tricked and dispersed.
Chen Danniang giggled, and the maids and servants stood guard carefully to prevent her from losing her grip on the jade railing.
"I'll do it, I'll do it." Brother Jin took a few pieces of fish food he bought in advance and threw them in.
"Look at this, it's said to be a fish released by His Majesty." The maid pointed at the fish among them and said.
The pond was so full of fish that it was so dazzling that even with his eyes wide open, Banqin couldn't tell the difference between them.
"Sister Cheng."
Chen Danniang ran from the edge of the pool to Cheng Jiaoniang.
Cheng Jiaoniang stepped in and stood looking at the pool of water.
"Are you unhappy?" Chen Danniang asked after hesitation.
Cheng Jiaoniang shook her head.
"No, why do you ask?" she asked.
"Mother said it's very pitiful that you are disliked by your relatives..." Chen Danniang said.
The maid behind him stared in fright and hurriedly rushed forward.
"Nineteenth lady, don't be joking, madam, madam didn't say that," she said.
The mother had clearly said it, but the servant girl refused to let her say it. Even though she was young, Chen Danniang knew that she had said something she shouldn't have said.
"I, I mean, sister Cheng, don't be afraid. My mother and sister and I both like you. They don't want you, but we want you. You are not pitiful." She hurriedly added.
It would be better not to say this, which would make the servant woman even more panic-stricken.
It doesn't matter whether it's good or bad to talk about people behind their backs. It's just that compassion is the hardest to grasp. To put it lightly, it's just for conversation. To put it seriously, it's condescending. Especially this kind of woman, her heart is more sensitive than ordinary people, and she looks numb on the surface.
, but in my heart I am very concerned about what others are talking about behind my back.
This woman behaves erratically, but she is also the most valued person in the family. Wouldn't it be bad if his words offend her?
I have already said that Dan Niang cannot be with her all the time. Tong Yan is so Wuji after all.
The servant woman was so anxious that she was sweating on her back. Just when she was about to think of a way to tact, Cheng Jiaoniang had already reached out to hold Chen Danniang.
"I'm not afraid," she said, "It's not that they don't want me, it's okay."
Chen Danniang took her hand and nodded.
"Then, don't be sad. Mother said that people who understand everything are the saddest." She continued.
The maid who just breathed a sigh of relief almost fainted again from fright.
"I'm not sad either." Cheng Jiaoniang said with a slight smile, "It's because I understand that I'm not sad. There's nothing to be sad about."
She turned around and pulled Chen Danniang forward.
Across the road from the pool is a Buddhist temple with a ten-foot-long corridor.
"I have been stupid. This is a fact. It is human nature to be disliked by others." She said, "It is lucky for others to treat you well. It is not strange for others to dislike you. How can you want everyone to like you in this world?
You, whenever someone doesn’t like you, shouldn’t you be resentful?”
Chen Danniang looked up at her.
"My cousin doesn't like me. When I went back to my grandmother's house, she told the other sisters not to play with me. I hated her," she said with a pout.
"If you hate her, will she just play with you?" Cheng Jiaoniang asked.
"No." Chen Danniang sighed like a little adult.
"So, just ignore it. Why not go and have fun with the person who likes you." Cheng Jiaoniang said, "Unless she bullies you."
Chen Danniang looked up at her.
"What about bullying me?" she asked with bright eyes.
Cheng Jiaoniang looked down at her and smiled slightly.
"I don't know," she said, "because I'm not you."
Chen Danniang tilted her head.
"What if someone bullies you? What should you do?" she asked.
Cheng Jiaoniang smiled again.
"It depends on what they want to do," she said.
Chen Danniang grabbed the gold necklace she was wearing, looking confused and puzzled.
When they said this, they had already reached the back door of the side hall. Cheng Jiaoniang stopped and looked at the plaque.
"This is the Daci Hall, dedicated to Guanyin." The maid said from behind.
"Let's go see the Dragon Girl." Chen Danniang said, putting aside her confused words, and happily walked into the palace first. She and Cheng Jiaoniang turned around and said, "...and the Guanyin Queen all over the wall, they are all beautiful..."
"This is the picture of the Thirty-two Transformations of Guanyin." The maid explained in a low voice from behind.
Cheng Jiaoniang stepped in.
The maid waved to Banqin and Brother Jin who were following them.
"You go and play by yourselves. Madam, I'm here." She said, "After a while, I spread a blanket by the pool and laid out the snacks we brought. There is well water in the yard. You can fetch it and burn it in the clay stove.
, let the lady eat it.”
Brother Jin and Banqin responded, not dissatisfied with her assignment at all, and turned around.
In the Zen Tea Hall, there is the sound of Buddhist music and the chanting of sutras.
Everyone looked at the great Zen master in the middle who finished his zazen and began to purify the world with holy water.
Nearly half an hour had passed since the ceremony started. Zhou Lang was a little restless. He couldn't help but occasionally look outside, until Qin Shisan poked him with his hand.
What are you doing?
Qin Shisan asked him with his eyes.
nothing.
Saturday Lang stared back at him.
Qin Shisan looked at him with a look that could see through him. Liu Lang looked away and pretended not to see it.
He looked at the serious movements of the old monk in the temple, but what he was thinking in his heart was that since Cheng Jiaoniang was here, she must have not left the temple, otherwise she wouldn't have come.
Otherwise, something happened suddenly when she came, so she left? What could happen to her?
Why would you want to leave in such a hurry?
Arrogant and weird, she has always caused trouble for others, who can do anything to her?
Saturday Lang was in a complicated mood.
But, who in this world is born weird?
He thought of his aunt, that thin and small woman sitting on the mat, smiling softly at him.
"...Zijian, my aunt has some honey to eat here, come quickly." She stretched out her hand and said.
My mother said that there was a fool living in my aunt's house, and he would turn into a fool if he went in.
"I won't eat from fools..." he shouted, turned around and ran away.
No one behind him shouted or cursed, so he looked back anxiously. The woman sitting in the hall just looked at him and still smiled softly.
My aunt and my grandmother look very much alike. When he was a child, he slept with his grandmother. Her grandmother would wash his feet at night, and she would pinch his toes and read a tune while washing his feet.
The thumb is shorter and the thumb is longer...
Then he laughed and his grandmother laughed, but this kind of life was short-lived. Soon he never saw his grandmother smiling again. He always saw her crying, in front of others, crying and sighing, and then she lost weight quickly.
, more like my aunt.
My father said that my grandmother’s father was good with a gun. When my grandmother first got married, she had a gunfight with my grandfather on the school field, and my grandfather couldn’t stand it.
To be continued...