0p0 Chapter 427: At a Crossroads 4
Chapter 427: At a Crossroads 4
Wang Shuyuan abided by his duties and never dared to interrupt.
The third brother, Wang Shuyan, glanced at his elder brother. After they exchanged glances, he asked:
"Father, are you saying that there is another hidden reason why the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace was seriously ill and went to Beining City to supervise the army?"
Wang Minzhang slowly stood up from his seat, looking at his children and grandchildren on both sides with a solemn expression:
"I will tell you two things next. You must swear not to tell anyone."
Wang Shuyan knew that his father had something important to tell him, so he immediately stood up and walked to the main hall door, ordered the servant to close the door, and asked a few trusted servants to guard under the eaves.
In the hall, all the men knelt down.
Wang Minzhang swore in front:
"The descendants of the Wang family swear here that what we heard today will never be told to outsiders. If anyone violates this, the family rules will not tolerate it."
Behind him, the eldest son Wang Shuyuan and the third son Wang Shuyan followed closely, and among the grandchildren, Wang Wenzhen, Wang Wenbo, and Wang Wenzhen from the eldest branch, and Wang Wendong from the second branch also knelt down. Everyone followed their father (grandfather) in swearing an oath in unison.
Wang Minzhang stood up, his eyes swept across the faces that were either shocked or solemn, and said in a deep voice:
“First of all, the Crown Prince of the East Palace went to war to consolidate his position. He was not terminally ill, but was suffering from a chronic jade poison.
Next, there may be a power struggle among the princes. You must be careful. You must not get involved in any faction, but you must also be careful not to be implicated. "
Wang Shuyuan looked up at his father and asked hesitantly, "Then...does Your Majesty know?"
"Your Majesty has already known what we can all perceive."
Wang Minzhang waved his hand and said, "Everyone, stand up and take a seat."
After everyone was seated, he continued:
"The second thing, Third Brother, tell everyone about Jin'er."
Amidst the astonished gazes of the whole room, Wang Shuyan recounted the story of how Wang Jinyi inadvertently reminded the prince that radioactive ores were harmful, and how the prince entrusted him with the task before his death.
As for Wang Jinyi's whereabouts in the Pure Land Temple at this moment, he did not mention a word - that would not only expose Jin'er's whereabouts, but also reveal the royal family's thoughts.
"The second thing I want to say is,"
Wang Minzhang took over the conversation, his tone more serious.
"I want you to be careful of the people around you. Don't easily join any group or be used by others. Don't let your family be implicated because of your own selfishness!"
He walked into the hall and lowered his voice even lower:
"The clan has reached a consensus. The Wang clan will never participate in party disputes, let alone take sides. You must remember this!"
The two sons can certainly understand the profound meaning, but the young grandchildren still need more persuasion.
That same night, Chen Sanlang and Huo Ying rode at full speed and finally arrived outside Xunnan County before noon on New Year's Eve.
Huo Ying jumped out of the car first. Chen Sanlang lifted the car curtain and said, "Brother, there are only a few steps left. I will take you home first."
Huo Ying waved his hands again and again: "Hurry up, hurry up, I only have this one bag of things, it's easy to carry. You brought the four treasures of the study and so many books, it will be more convenient for you to use the carriage!"
Chen Sanlang finally couldn't persuade Huo Ying. He stood on the shaft of the cart and watched Huo Ying carrying his bag to the city gate. He suddenly shouted, "Brother, I will come to your house to pay New Year's greetings after the New Year!"
Huo Ying waved his hand and entered the city gate.
The carriage accelerated briskly on the official road. On the afternoon of New Year's Eve, pedestrians on the road walked in a hurry.
Chen Sanlang leaned against the carriage and chatted with the driver about interesting stories of the recent years. They soon arrived at Chenjia Village.
Because he was a scholar, the town erected a stone tablet at the entrance of the village. He was originally asked to write and carve the three words "Chenjia Village", but because the words were too embarrassing to be seen by others, the county magistrate was asked to write it himself.
After passing the stone tablet and arriving at the door of the house, the driver helped unload the book boxes and the things Huo Ying had prepared, and the two said goodbye politely.
A wooden door and a mud wall that is as high as a person's height is my home in this life.
The moment Chen Sanlang saw the door, his heart inexplicably calmed down. He raised his hand and knocked on the door knocker. A strange woman answered.
"coming."
There were brisk footsteps, the door was half opened, and a bride in a half-new coarse cloth dress and with her hair tied up asked timidly,
"Who are you looking for?"
Chen Sanlang turned around and looked at his neighbors to make sure he was in the right place, then he smiled and said,
"I'm Saburo."
There were footsteps again, and my father was shouting in the yard,
"Is Saburo back?"
The eldest sister-in-law squeezed out from behind the door and opened it while introducing,
"Sanlang, this is your second sister-in-law, who came in last month. This is the third child who has the most promising future in our family..."
The eldest sister-in-law kept talking to the second sister-in-law about Chen Sanlang. Chen Sanlang smiled and shouted to the door with a bookcase on his back and a pile of papers in his arms,
"Dad, big brother, second brother, I'm back."
The eldest sister-in-law asked from behind, "Third brother, are all our things at the door?"
Chen Sanlang placed the book box and the things he was holding on the millstone in the yard, and went out with his elder brother who had rushed over to carry the two baskets of things into the gate.
In the courtyard, the eldest sister-in-law, who had passed the examination and entered the family, was swiftly sorting out the food and cloth. The second sister-in-law, who had just entered the family, was helping her.
His father and older brother came over and asked questions with a smile, but their voices suddenly became farther and farther away. Chen Sanlang felt that his father and brother were getting taller and taller, looking down at him, opening their mouths anxiously, as if they were shouting.
He felt very tired and wanted to sleep, so he slowly closed his eyes...
Wang Jinyi opened her eyes and jumped off the carriage without the support of Yuqing and Zhuyu. What she saw was the empty and lonely little nunnery.
There is only one mud courtyard like this in the entire continuous mountain range.
It was unknown how many years the courtyard wall had been under construction. It had been eroded by rain and wind and was no longer a wall. In some places, it was not even half the height of Wang Jinyi.
Standing outside, you can see a small blue brick Buddhist temple and two blue brick meditation rooms. The most impressive part of the entire Luoxia Temple is the wooden plaque hanging on the door. The three big characters of Luoxia Temple raise the status of the three rooms.
Rather than calling it a nunnery, it was more like a half-old farmyard. It was so small that Wang Jinyi turned around to take a look at the ten royal guards who had followed them, and the things in the two carriages behind.
I really don’t know how to arrange these people and things today. I’m afraid I’ll have nowhere to stay tonight.
The father helped his mother out of the car, walked over, patted his daughter and rang the doorknob.
The sound of the copper ring hitting the wooden door echoed far away in the silent forest.
After a while, there was a sound of slow footsteps from inside the door. The door hinge turned with a creak, and a pretty little nun in a gray monk's robe poked her head out.
Seeing the scene outside the door, a trace of surprise flashed in his eyes, and he clasped his hands together and saluted: "Donors, who are you?"
"Sister, I am Jingyi, the new person Master has taken into the nunnery to practice asceticism."
Wang Jinyi spoke calmly, slowly raised his hands, entwined the Buddhist beads in his hands, and said, "Amitabha."
The little nun was stunned for a moment, then stood up straight and returned the greeting: "Amitabha, good, good."
Then, before the Wang family came in, she closed the two doors and ran away.