Daping Mountain Temple is located in the southern Jiangnan region and is one of the most famous temples in the Hui Dynasty.

This Buddhist temple, nestled deep within the mountains, has a long history and has been thriving for hundreds of years.

It has survived the rise and fall of several dynasties, and the large Buddha statues inside continue to look benevolently upon the world.

The temple earned its name, Daping Mountain Temple, because one must climb three mountains to reach it. These natural mountains form a natural barrier around the temple.

For this reason, it is highly renowned throughout the entire Hui Dynasty.

It is not easy for an ordinary person to make a trip to Daping Mountain Temple, let alone obtain the Buddhist beads that are offered before the Buddha.

These beads are rare.

The young servant behind Yan Ling, Di Zhu, had a flicker in his eyes.

Although the Buddhist beads were rare, they were nothing particularly precious in Yan Ling’s eyes.

Yan Ling came from a family of wealth and status, and with a powerful aunt like Yan Guifei, the treasures in his household vaults were countless.

Though rare, the Buddhist beads were still inferior compared to some of the treasures he possessed.

But this was Yan Ling, their aloof and unapproachable master.

When had he ever given a gift to someone?

As Di Zhu wondered, he heard Yan Ling’s calm voice: “Thank you for the gift.”

Zhao Mama, who was behind Wen Yuesheng, was also stunned.

What gift? She had always been by Wen Yuesheng’s side and had never seen her help Yan Ling.

Then she heard Wen Yuesheng speak: “Gu Yu.”

Gu Yu quickly understood and reached out to take the gift, but Yan Ling handed the brocade box to Di Zhu instead.

Di Zhu understood the hint and, using the excuse of maintaining the Buddhist beads, sent Zhao Mama and Gu Yu away.

The hall grew quiet.

The fate of Zhang Yulin was unknown, and outside, there was a lot of commotion as people came and went.

The sky had darkened, and the candlelight in the hall flickered, casting shadows on Wen Yue Sheng.

The faint sandalwood fragrance lingered, like mist or clouds.

Yan Ling listened as Wen Yuesheng spoke: “I have a question.”

Yan Ling’s expression was indifferent, and there was no sign of emotion on his face.

This man, who was as stunning as snow on a mountain, yet held immense power, gave nothing away from his appearance. It was impossible to tell anything about his emotions just by looking at him.

It was as though no one would ever know that the Empress Dowager’s illness had been orchestrated by him.

The illness was his doing, and the recovery was also his intention.

The so-called healing through Buddhist scriptures was merely a convenient pretext.

Since the Buddhist scriptures had come from Wen Yue Sheng’s hands, she was the one most familiar with their effects.

“What if the scriptures offered that day were from a high monk?” she asked, looking at him.

Yan Ling lowered his eyes, and the image of the bright red lotus that had once appeared before him resurfaced in his mind.

He answered slowly: “It would make no difference.”

So that was the case.

In the original story, when the Empress Dowager recovered from her illness, it happened to coincide with Wen Yurou’s visit to the palace.

The Empress Dowager, unable to see her due to her illness, had received a bow at the palace gates.

The next day, the Empress Dowager was miraculously cured, and the entire capital believed it was due to Wen Yurou’s auspicious presence.

In reality, the speed of the Empress Dowager’s recovery had only been determined by the mood of the person before her now.

Wen Yuesheng remained silent, but soon, the eunuch’s voice echoed from outside—”The Emperor has arrived.”

Zhao Mama(Zhao Momo) and Gu Yu quickly gathered Wen Yuesheng’s belongings and turned to leave, only to hear the announcement.

Gu Yu’s face immediately turned pale.

She anxiously turned to Zhao Mama: “Mama, the young master will be alright, won’t he?”

The foolish heir, so robust in body, had fallen into the lake—he shouldn’t die like this, right?

Zhao Mama’s expression was also grim: “The young master is a blessed soul. Don’t worry.”

She didn’t know whether Zhang Yulin was alright, but she feared that today’s punishment for Wen Yue Sheng might be unavoidable.

If Zhang Yulin was fine, she still considered Wen Yuesheng as one of the culprits who had pushed him into the lake.

If something had happened to him…

Given how highly the Marquis of Zhongyong valued Zhang Yulin, this matter would likely not end well.

As Zhao Mama had expected, when the Emperor entered, his face was dark.

The Emperor was the eldest son of the late Emperor and only two years younger than Wen Yuesheng’s mother, Princess Hui Yi.

Now in his forties, the Emperor still maintained his regal presence.

Though his youthful handsomeness had faded with age, his majestic demeanor had only grown stronger.

As soon as he entered the hall, the attending servants all knelt.

The Emperor had initially intended to scold, but when he saw that Yan Ling was present, his brow furrowed.

“Master Yan hasn’t left the palace yet?” he asked.

“Correct.”

Behind the Emperor, the eunuch Gao Quan cleared his throat.

No matter what great deeds Master Yan had done, he always appeared distant and unapproachable.

Gao Quan quickly added, “Master Yan must be concerned about the young master’s health, which is why he hasn’t left the palace.”

The Emperor nodded, his expression darkening further as he heard Zhang Yulin’s name.

He pointed at Wen Yuesheng: “You’ve done this!”

Before the Emperor could finish his words, another servant outside called, “Your Majesty, Lord Wen requests an audience.”

“Let him in,” the Emperor reluctantly said, suppressing his anger.

Wen Xun quickly entered and knelt as soon as he entered the hall: “I have failed in raising my daughter. Please punish me, Your Majesty!”

As soon as he finished speaking, he realized something was wrong. Looking up, he saw Wen Yuesheng’s white gown.

His face turned ashen, and he quickly shifted direction to kneel before the Emperor.

At this moment, he couldn’t care less about Wen Yuesheng and anxiously asked, “How is the young master?”

“How dare you ask!” the Emperor roared. “After Zhang Yulin was pulled out of the lake, he’s been unconscious! His father is about to collapse from grief!”

The Emperor was furious, pacing back and forth. “Zhang Xian is on the brink of death, and he has this son! Tell me, how will you make up for it if Zhang Yulin doesn’t survive?”

Wen Xun: “I deserve to die a thousand deaths!”

The Emperor almost laughed in anger. Was this why he had come—to stand before him and cry out that he deserved to die?

He knew this wasn’t Wen Xun’s fault, but rather Wen Yuesheng’s.

Turning his head, he saw Wen Yuesheng standing straight.

The Emperor snapped: “You don’t feel the slightest bit guilty!”

Gu Yu, kneeling behind Wen Yuesheng, gritted her teeth, ready to rush out and explain for Wen Yuesheng.

But before she could, another palace servant reported, “Your Majesty, Lord Zhou, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice, requests an audience.”

The Emperor frowned. “What does he want? I am not in the mood right now.”

“Your Majesty,” the servant said, “Lord Zhou claims that his youngest daughter, Zhou Manniang, was bitten by the heir to the Marquis of Zhongyong during the banquet, and it was the princess who saved her.”

There was a brief silence in the hall.

When Wen Yuesheng had kicked the man, the Emperor and others had been standing outside in the corridor, able to see the general situation but not the details.

Hearing the Emperor say nothing, Gao Quan whispered, “Your Majesty, it’s true. Zhou Manniang is still in the palace and was greatly frightened.”

Kneeling, Wen Xun breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing the words.

Not to mention the Emperor, even he had thought that Wen Yuesheng had intentionally kicked someone.

In that case, since she was trying to save someone, she could be said to have a legitimate reason.

However, the Emperor’s expression didn’t improve much.

He looked at Wen Yuesheng with a heavy gaze. “I see that you’ve grown accustomed to being unruly, and that’s why you act so absurdly!”

“At that moment, inside and outside the palace, there were guards everywhere. How could it be your place to save anyone?”

In recent years, the Emperor had a very bad impression of Wen Yuesheng, so he didn’t think she would act with good intentions.

“Your Majesty! This isn’t the case!” Gu Yu, unable to hold back any longer, spoke up.

“Where did this servant come from?” Gao Quan snapped coldly. “In front of His Majesty, how dare you speak?”

Gu Yu, unwilling to keep silent, remembered clearly the situation in the palace.

Miss Zhou had already been bitten by Zhang Yulin.

Zhang Yulin had wanted to bite again, and the target was Miss Zhou’s chest…

Such a place, not to mention how painful it would have been if truly bitten, would have been enough to ruin Miss Zhou’s reputation even if the injury was minor.

Given the many people and guards in the palace at that time, if she had been truly bitten, wouldn’t it have forced Miss Zhou to die?

But she knew well that, given the Emperor’s current opinion of Wen Yuesheng, even if she explained the truth of the situation, the Emperor would not spare Wen Yuesheng.

Just then, another palace servant hurried in and reported, “Your Majesty, the second Miss of the Wen family requests an audience.”

“Why has she come?” Upon hearing Wen Yuruo’s name, the Emperor’s expression softened slightly. “She’s in poor health and was just startled. Tell her to return and rest. She doesn’t need to concern herself with this matter.”

“Yes.” The servant withdrew.

The Emperor turned to Wen Yuesheng, his voice cold. “Your sister knows to come and plead for you, yet you, relying on your position, act recklessly. From what I see, you no longer wish to keep your title as a Princess!”

The words made the atmosphere in the room immediately freeze.

Wen Yuesheng had been a princess since she was a year old.

The Emperor had even specially named her “Si Ning” in memory of her mother, the Princess Hui Yi.

Yet now, after sixteen years, she was about to lose even the title of princess.

“Your Majesty!” Wen Xun opened his mouth to plead.

If Wen Yuesheng lost her princess title, the entire princess residence would be seized as well.

He really couldn’t bear to lose face.

But before he could finish, another voice came from outside. “Your Majesty…”

The Emperor, furious, shouted, “Who is it now? Tell them to get lost!”

Suddenly, all was quiet outside.

After a moment, the loyal and courageous Marqiuis of Fang stood outside the palace and said in a deep voice, “I, Zhang Xian, seek an audience with His Majesty!”

He’s here!

Wen Xun’s heart skipped a beat.

“Come in.” The Emperor’s face darkened.

By now, it had started to rain outside.

The light rain fell on Zhang Xian, soaking his hair and clothes.

However, after entering the palace, he paused slightly, glancing imperceptibly at Yan Ling.

Zhang Xian saluted the Emperor.

When he stood up, he appeared unsteady.

He was a military general and rarely showed such unsteadiness.

The Emperor watched, his voice harsh. “Zhang Qing, rest assured. If anything happens to your son today, I will not let her off!”

But unexpectedly, before he finished speaking, Zhang Xian suddenly kneeled with a loud thud.

Zhang Xian, older than the Emperor, was nearly fifty now. Apart from Zhang Yulin, he had no other children.

The Emperor looked at him, feeling a pang of sadness.

Just as he was about to speak, Zhang Xian, tears streaming down his face, cried, “Thank you, Princess! Thank you, Princess!”

He was so emotional that his words became jumbled.

The Emperor was stunned. Was he really so infuriated by Wen Yuesheng?

The next moment, Zhang Xian stammered, “Your Majesty! You don’t know! Since Yulin was born, I’ve been unable to sleep at night, suffering in my heart!”

“I’ve been on the battlefield for half my life, and I’ve never killed an innocent man. But I never expected the heavens would hold a grudge, and my son would end up so foolish and senseless!”

“Not to hide it from you, Your Majesty, my wife and I even started believing in Buddhism these past few years.”

Zhang Xian cried, snot and tears everywhere. “But no matter how many famous temples we visited or great doctors we sought, we couldn’t cure Yulin!”

The Emperor, helpless, could only say, “Yulin’s condition…”

“Your Majesty! It just happened!” Zhang Xian grabbed the Emperor, pulling so hard that he almost knocked the Emperor over.

Gao Quan was startled and rushed forward to support the Emperor.

But even he couldn’t move Zhang Xian, who seemed oblivious to Gao Quan’s reddening face.

He shouted even louder, “Yulin has woken up!”

The Emperor sighed in relief.

“He even called me ‘father’!”

The Emperor:?

“The imperial physician says that after this event, he has recovered his sanity!”

Wen Xun: “Huh?”

These few words from Zhang Xian left everyone in the palace dumbfounded.

“Your Majesty! My Yulin is better! He’s better now!” Zhang Xian gasped, tears still flowing. “If I had known he could be healed by the Princess’s kick, I should have brought him to the Princess’s residence earlier and let her kick him to cure him!”

Wen Yuesheng:…

No need for that.

She hadn’t kicked him to the point of harm, knowing Zhang Yulin wouldn’t lose his life. But to fully recover?

That wasn’t her ability.

At that moment, both Wen Xun and the Emperor were stunned.

Especially Wen Xun.

He never expected that Wen Yuesheng’s kick could have cured the person.

As Zhang Xian said, over the years, they had visited countless temples and sought out famous doctors.

But Zhang Yulin’s condition was innate, not caused by external factors, and no doctor could treat it.

This was common knowledge in the capital.

Yet now, after a violent episode, after falling into the water, he was better?

Wen Xun still doubted, when the Emperor asked, “…Have you sent people to investigate the cause of his sudden outburst?”

Hearing this, a cruel light flashed in Zhang Xian’s eyes as he spoke solemnly, “It’s my fault for not being strict with my household. That villain took the opportunity to drug my son, causing him to lose control and go mad.”

“The drug is not rare. I’ve asked the imperial physicians, and it can be made at any pharmacy. Yulin was born foolish, and after taking this maddening drug, the imperial physician said it was a life-or-death situation!”

“But he survived and even regained his sanity!”

“So!” Zhang Xian’s eyes reddened, and with a shift in tone, he said, “The fact that Yulin recovered is all thanks to the Princess, Your Majesty!”

The Emperor: …

So, Wen Yuesheng’s kick sent him to meet the gods of immortality, right!

The Emperor hesitated. “But she did kick him into the lake…”

Zhang Xian quickly shook his head. “No! Yulin’s recovery, the Princess is the benefactor of our entire family. For a benefactor, we would never repay kindness with enmity!”

“Please, Your Majesty, show mercy and do not punish the Princess! Otherwise, the heavens might misunderstand me and take Yulin back!”