Chapter 4.2: Temple
Jiang second young miss reminded her of herself. Just like her past self, soone snatched her things. Just like her past self, the turtledove wanted to occupy the magpie’s nest1. Just like her past self, she was unable to defend herself.
Tong’er helplessly looked at Jiang Lî’s dark look. She couldn’t help but shiver.
For so reason, Tong’er felt that the second miss had beco strange ever since she woke up. The second miss was always frank and straightforward, one was one and two was two. She had even fought with the nuns in the nunnery, easily agitated and easily angered. Of course, it was not the second miss’s fault, it was all those bad people’s fault.
However, since waking up, the second miss was not like before. She was mild and gentle, her speech soft and slow, which made her unable to tell what she was thinking. Also, Tong’er felt sowhat afraid when the second miss stopped speaking to ponder.
Jiang Lî’s finger caressed the already sewn shoe sole in front of her. The stitches were ticulous. Although Tong’er was noisy, her needlework was pretty good.
She had to think of a way to get out of here.
The Xue Fang Fei from Yanjing should already be dead. But she didn’t know how Princess Yong Ning and Shen Yurong, these two animals, would justify their lies. In addition, she wanted to go and see Xue Zhao again and think of a way to return him to Tongxiang. Xue Huaiyuan had passed away, his son and daughter had also passed away. Who had received his corpse and held a funeral for him? She was unable to see Xue Huaiyuan one last ti before his final monts.
She had to depart from this place, but nowadays in the city of Yanjing, nobody in the entire governnt house rembered her, Jiang Lî. A person that no one rembered was unlikely to be brought out from here.
Since this was the case, then she could only take the initiative to leave this place.
Nobody rembered, so she had to let everybody rember, it shouldn’t be a difficult thing to do.
Jiang Lî suddenly laughed.
Tong’er looked at her in surprise, this was the first ti Jiang Lî had smiled these past few days. It wasn’t a sneer or a bitter laugh, but a comfortable and happy laugh. In a split second, this single laugh made her withered yellow complexion beco lively, blooming brightly like a flower in the morning.
“Tong’er,” Jiang Lî asked, “You said a peddler will co up the mountain?”
“That’s correct,” Tong’er said, “Every year on the tenth of May, Mr. Zhang would co up here at noon. We had made an agreent with him, if there are any delicious pastries and candies, he would co to us first and let us pick them.”
Contrary to what one might expect, as the servant of a prestigious family, even though she was in dire straits and could only take out a string of copper coins, she still spoke in quite an imposing manner.
“Is there a lot of pastries?” Jiang Lî asked.
“A lot,” Tong’er asked, “does young miss want to eat pastries?”
Jiang Lî laughed, “I do.”
It was too bitter. And because it was too bitter, her mind constantly thought of the sweet taste of honey. These pastries could let her finally taste the sweetness, and at the sa ti could also make so other people feel bitter.
Tong’er excitedly said, “It’s good that young miss wants to eat so sugar. A few days ago we saved up a few copper coins and can exchange them for quite a few baskets. Young miss can eat as many as you want!”
Jiang Lî said, “You ntioned that this place is next to He Lin Temple, right?”
Tong’er stared blankly at her and asked, “Does young miss also want to burn incense?”
“No,” Jiang Lî replied, “I don’t believe in Buddha.”
Tong’er was puzzled.
Jiang Lî’s smiling expression softened a little as she said, “What trust can you put in Buddha?”
Footnotes:
1:鸠占鹊巢, aning for one person to forcibly take another person’s place. A version of the idiom 鹊巢鸠占, lit. the magpie made a nest but the turtledove dwells in it, aning to reap what one has not sown.:leftwards_arrow_with_hook:
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