Chapter 16: The Whole Family Goes to Pray for Blessings

The octagonal wind chime outside the carriage rang a few times as the coachman let out a long sigh. Gu Pan and Wan'er, who had been hiding in the shadows, stood guard outside the carriage. Inside the carriage, Li Shuran looked at the unassuming gate of the Pingnan Bo Mansion with worry. She forced a smile and nodded at Qi Simeng as a farewell. Then she pulled down the curtain and took Pan Yueqing's hand. "A Yue, was it really Mudan who tried to harm you?"

Pan Yueqing smiled and shook her head. "Mudan was the dowry maid brought by Pan Yingqian. She's Pan Yingqian's confidant. What happened today was just Pan Yingqian sacrificing her own pawn to protect herself."

"Was it really Pan Yingqian who tried to harm you?" Li Shuran lowered her voice, feeling terrified. She had just gone out for a walk because she really disliked Princess Pingning and the others during the banquet. But then she heard Pan Yueqing crying for help. From a distance, she saw four or five servants with fierce expressions chasing after Pan Yueqing! Ahead was the inner lake. Fortunately, Qi Simeng was fast enough to stop those servants.

If Pan Yueqing hadn't met Qi Simeng, the consequences would have been unthinkable!

After hearing Li Shuran's words, Pan Yueqing lowered her eyes and replied with a bitter smile, "It was her." Before Li Shuran could say anything, she placed her hand on Li Shuran's warm hand. "In that mansion, it's like being constantly oppressed by swords and harsh winds all year round. I used to not understand and thought we were all family. But it turns out that in that family, except for my father, no one really treated me as family."

"A Yue, you're still a young girl in the boudoir. How can you fight against them?" Li Shuran shook her head slightly. "The aunts in my family aren't good either, but at least I have my mother to protect me. You might as well tell your grandmother about this and let her take you in. Then you don't have to endure the mistreatment from your grandmother and stepmother."

"I understand, but I also have to think about my grandmother. Although my mother passed away early, there's still my grandmother. There are elders in the family to teach me. If I leave the Pan Mansion and go to my grandmother's place, won't people gossip about it?" Pan Yueqing turned to meet Li Shuran's eyes. "Don't worry. I'm not the Pan Yueqing who can be bullied anymore. If someone tries to harm me, I'll fight back and take a piece of her flesh with me!"

Li Shuran was about to say more, but the carriage slowly stopped. Wan'er lifted the bamboo green curtain of the carriage. "Miss, we're here."

Pan Yueqing patted Li Shuran's hand and gave her a reassuring look. Then she bent down and got out of the carriage, putting her hand on Wan'er's. Looking back at Li Shuran who lifted the curtain by the window, she gave a smile. "I'll invite Sister Shuran to come and visit another day."

All the way, they passed the hanging flower gate and walked through the rockery and covered corridors. Just as Gu Pan and Wan'er helped her change her clothes, Pan Yueqing took off the hair ornaments on her head and simply coiled her hair into a Suiyun bun. Before she had a chance to wash her face with clear water, someone came to inform her that the Second Young Lady was to go to Cianxuan. Gu Pan looked at Pan Yueqing in the phoenix pattern dressing mirror with some worry and presented the jewelry box with both hands. "Miss, could it be that they've heard about what happened in that mansion and are coming to question you?"

"I don't think so," Pan Yueqing casually picked a plain and elegant camellia hairpin from the jewelry box and added two light green crescent-shaped earrings. She took a piece of mouth paper and pressed it gently, then got up and set off for Cianxuan. Although she denied Gu Pan's worry, in fact, she didn't have much confidence in her heart.

In Cianxuan, Mrs. Pan was chatting and laughing with Pan Haiyun, Liu Shi, and Li Shi. Pan Lianshan sat upright below. Someone outside announced, "The Second Young Lady is here."

The curtain at the main door of Cianxuan lifted a little, and Pan Yueqing bent down and entered the warm Cianxuan. A rush of hot air made her feel a bit dizzy. She formally greeted Mrs. Pan and Pan Haiyun, then half turned to avoid the greetings from Liu Shi and Li Shi. Then she took a seat as the maid indicated and nodded at Pan Lianshan.

"Both Yue girl and Lian girl are here. I'm just about to tell you something important. Today, your father received a special favor from the emperor and was granted a five-day leave. Our family is going to take the two concubines to Cibei Temple. It's said that the Goddess of Mercy for Bestowing Sons there is very efficacious! Moreover, the Marriage Tree there is also very effective. You're both about to reach the age of ji ji. It's time to go and pray for something," Mrs. Pan's smile was filled with anticipation for this trip. "Our whole family has never had a chance to go out together before. This is a great opportunity."

The whole family? It seemed that Pan Miaoqian would also go? Pan Yueqing looked up at Pan Haiyun. She saw Pan Haiyun pick up the tea cup, take a sip gently, and deliberately or unintentionally avoid her gaze. He didn't seem to have any opinion, so it seemed he had no objection.

Cibei Temple was in the outskirts of the capital, a large temple with few people around. In her previous life, she had also been there to pray for a child. But she had always felt that the location of Cibei Temple was a bit strange. Every time she went there, she felt extremely uncomfortable. But at this moment, she wouldn't speak out easily. She just nodded in agreement with Mrs. Pan's words.

Liu Yingwei stood up and smiled at Mrs. Pan. "Everyone go back and pack tonight. We'll set off early tomorrow morning. I've already sent someone to contact the abbot of Cibei Temple today. They'll clean up the side rooms tomorrow and ensure that Mrs. Pan lives comfortably!" Liu Yingwei had been in charge of the household for many years and was always skilled in arranging such things.

"The Second Young Lady and the Fourth Young Lady are going on a long trip for the first time. You should think about what to bring. Don't be like when our eldest daughter went out on a trip. She wanted to take all the things from an entire courtyard with her!" Liu Yingwei turned her gaze to Pan Yueqing and said with a laugh while giving a reminder, but her gaze was meaningful.

"Aunt Liu has remembered wrongly. This isn't my first long trip," Pan Yueqing stared at the tea cup in her hand and replied indifferently.

She could tell that in Liu Yingwei's joking words, Pan Yingqian was mentioned. It was very likely that Liu Shi knew about what happened in the Pingnan Bo Mansion today. Pan Yueqing sneered inwardly. So what? It wasn't just Liu Shi who held grudges. She remembered clearly how she had been driven out of the capital like a drowned rat and how she had managed to survive and come back.

Early the next morning, five or six carriages in the Pan Prime Minister's Mansion slowly set off.

Pan Yueqing had a carriage to herself, accompanied by Gu Pan and Wan'er. She lifted the brocade bead curtain and looked far at the other carriages behind. She was rather relieved. She had originally thought that she would be arranged to share a carriage with Pan Lianshan and Concubine Li. Although she felt sorry for Pan Lianshan, this dull girl had been married to Liu Yang by Liu Shi in her previous life. Unexpectedly, Liu Yang was a despicable man. When she couldn't bear children, he divorced Pan Lianshan, and then Liu Shi sold her to a wealthy merchant in the south.

"Miss, the Third Young Master returned to the capital last night," Wan'er opened the preserved fruit box and held it in front of Pan Yueqing. "The Young Master sent a letter to inform the Miss that it's not peaceful in the capital recently. The Marquis Mansion can't always keep an eye on the Miss's whereabouts. When you go to Cibei Temple, please be extremely careful."

"Okay," Pan Yueqing softly responded. The Third Young Master that Wan'er mentioned was her third cousin Su Ruoqing from her uncle's family. He had always been her uncle's most proud son. If this young and promising cousin said that it wasn't peaceful, it seemed that there were indeed many troubles in the capital recently. Perhaps Pan Haiyun agreed to the family's trip to pray for blessings to avoid these troubles.