"Abbot, she is lying… her phoenix hairpin is clearly on her… when I was being indecently assaulted by her, she even used her hairpin to threaten me!"
Monk Yihan quickly made excuses, but Hua Qiyue was waiting for this.
She was as calm as water, leisurely saying, "Master Hanming, the phoenix hairpin isn't on me. If you don't believe me, please ask a female pilgrim to do a body search!"
Her words were like a clap of thunder, scaring both Hua Mengshi and Lanzhu.
Lanzhu blinked and whispered to Hua Mengshi. Her pale face slowly regained its calm expression.
Master Hanming was the abbot here, and Hua Qiyue's suggestion was the only way to determine who was telling the truth.
The abbot asked one of the female pilgrims in the crowd to search on Hua Qiyue's body.
Youshui returned with a bowl of warm water in a panic. The young miss had been framed many times, but if she was found guilty this time, no one would dare to marry her, and knowing Hua Qiyue, she would likely commit suicide.
Hua Qiyue took the bowl of water and drank to ease her parched throat.
After a while, the pilgrim who had personally searched on Hua Qiyue's body groped around in confusion, shaking her head and said, "Master, I couldn't find the phoenix hairpin."
Hua Mengshi's expression did not change as she indifferently looked at Lanzhu who was standing beside her.
Lanzhu's eyes were widened as she looked at Hua Qiyue in disbelief.
Monk Yihan screamed, "Impossible, impossible!"
Master Hanming frowned. Hanyue Temple was a famous temple in Changjing City, and there was an endless stream of pilgrims every day. Until tonight, there hadn’t been a single disgraceful incident in two hundred years!
Moreover, the situation was not as simple as it appeared to be.
Abbot Hanming asked his men to search Monk Yihan, but a cold voice stopped him.
"There's no need to search him, abbot. I know who took my phoenix hairpin away. It was my second young sister's maid, Lanzhu!"
Hua Qiyue pointed at Lanzhu, her eyes like ice, her face like frost, her body emitting an invisible cold and prideful aura of extreme confidence.
Lanzhu's face was deathly pale, but after receiving Hua Mengshi's comforting look, she calmed herself.
"Eldest Miss, why would you slander me! How would dare I to steal your phoenix hairpin? " Lanzhu lowered her eyes to avoid Hua Qiyue’s icy stare.
"Abbot Hanming, please search Lanzhu immediately. My phoenix hairpin must on her!" Hua Qiyue was too lazy to talk nonsense with Lanzhu and directly asked the abbot.
She knew that Abbot Hanming was a righteous leader. Anyone who made trouble here was courting death.
"Miss, may I trouble you to search Miss Lan? This matter happened in my temple, so I must uphold justice. If I offend the Second Miss, I hope that she will forgive me," Hanming said to Hua Mengshi in a low voice.
Hua Mengshi immediately shook her head, " Not at all, abbot, let your people search. Lanzhu is innocent; she has nothing to be afraid of."
While she was speaking, the pilgrim began searching Lanzhu and cried out as she took out the phoenix hairpin from Lanzhu's belt!
That phoenix hairpin shone with a cold light under the light of lamp. Everyone gasped, and Lanzhu's face turned deathly pale!
She had never thought that she would have the hairpin on her! Lanzhu had put the hairpin back on Hua Qiyue when she and Monk Yihan had knocked her out.
"Lanzhu, you… how dare you do such a thing!" Before Lanzhu could regain her senses, Hua Mengshi took the initiative, pointing at her in shock.
Lanzhu was so frightened that she got down on her knees, "Second Miss, please help me! I have never done such a despicable thing … It must be that when the Eldest Miss told me to go over and help her, she put it on me! "
Everyone looked at Lanzhu, then at Hua Qiyue. They didn’t know who to believe.
Hua Qiyue smiled, and Hua Mengshi's heart trembled. Why did it seem like Hua Qiyue had changed into another person after she woke up? She was clearly a cowardly person. In the past, whenever she was in trouble, she would tremble and shrink away!
But now, Hua Qiyue's eyes seemed to be alive with electricity!
"It's not just the hairpin, I happened to see the thief's face when I was chasing them. That person's face was as white as a dead man's, and there was even some powder on the ground. Look!" Hua Qiyue pointed with her finger, and everyone looked down at a smudge of white powder.
"This is flour. The thief was pretending to be mysterious, so she used flour to cover her face. There is also some flour on Lanzhu's purple clothes."Right after Hua Qiyue finished speaking, the pilgrim pulled Lanzhu's sleeves. "Yes, her sleeves … even between her fingers! "The room fell silent.Lanzhu's face turned pale, and she kowtowed heavily, "It's not me … Second Miss, it's really not me … "Hua Qiyue's eyes were like lightning. "If I don't miss my guess, Monk Yihan accepted a bribe. The Hua family's silver usually has a small inscription on it. Monk Yihan, do you dare to let the male pilgrim search you?"Sweat trickled down his palms as Yihan looked at Hua Mengshi and straightened his waist. "Abbot! I was wronged!"His entire body trembling, he was the picture of guilt.Abbot Hanming's expression darkened. "Someone, search him!"A monk grabbed Yihan and conducted a quick s
Rong Qiyue lowered her head and thought, "Hua Qiyue, rest in peace. I have borrowed your body, and I will do my best to honor you!" The heaviness on her heart lessened, and she sighed in relief.Hua Qiyue looked down as her fingers brushed something cold at her waist. When she pulled it out to examine it more closely, she found it was a green jade gourd pendant. She didn't know why, but she felt attached to it, somehow.When she saw Hua Qiyue looking at the green jade gourd with such a serious expression, Lv Xin couldn't help asking, "Eldest Miss, what are you doing?" Since Hua Qiyue had been knocked unconscious last night, she seemed to have become a completely different person. You Shui and Lv Xin found it very strange, but it seemed that Hua Qiyue's observational skills had greatly improved. Not only had she seen the flour on Lanzhu’s purple clothes, which would be obvious to anyone looking for it, she could even see the powder on Lanzhu's
"You're finally here." The man laughed, his expression filled with emotion. "After 500 years, someone has finally come to see me. The stuff made by those old men were so evil that no one actually dared to take it, but here you are."His eyes overflowed with light as his gaze locked onto Hua Qiyue's body. She did her best to remain calm but couldn’t shake the feeling that he was plotting something.Everything was so strange, and she was unable to explain what was going on."What is this place? And you... who are you? Why am I here?" she asked in a low voice.The man laughed seductively. His footsteps were light, but in the blink of an eye, he was standing in front of Hua Qiyue.His jet-black eyes were shining with strange red light, Hua Qiyue felt her hand being held, and a strange fragrant smell was making her dizzy.The man's husky voice was like a rock thrown into the cold lake of Hua Qiyue's heart.
Hua Qiyue had heard of the Insanity Technique from this body’s previous memories. Qi Artists were rare, and Soul Takers even more so. It was said that there were only three Soul Takers on Tianyuan Continent.One Soul Taker could kill tens of thousands of soldiers in an instant! Just one move of a finger could cause thousands of soldiers to run away in fear!As a result, countless people who attempted to take the Insanity Technique book from them were killed. As time passed, no one dared to challenge them. Eventually, the three Soul Takers moved deep within the mountains. Their families were prosperous, and they had countless treasures, but no one dared to lay a finger on them.But how could this mysterious man in front of her possibly know the Insanity Technique? And if he was really that strong, why would he impart the knowledge to her?What was his purpose? Who was he? What was the truth behind the green jade gourd?
Within hours of Hua Qiyue returning home, the news that she wanted to adopt a foster son spread all over the capital. All of the commoners were talking about it. If a child could be adopted by the Hua family, he would surely have a great future.What happened in the Hanyue Temple was widely spread by storytellers, with embellishments from some of the pilgrims who’d witnessed the scene. It seemed Hua Qiyue’s bad reputation was quickly being forgotten.Hua Qiyue told Youshui to have a master write a notice about the adoption.Once Hua Mengshi returned, she informed the Old Madam that Hua Qiyue had her hairpin stolen in the Hanyue Temple and been framed for flirting with a monk. She also punished Lanzhu with fifty lashes.The Old Madam flew into a rage. A servant framing a noble lady? It was unheard of!For having the courage to confess her servant’s mistake, the Old Madam forgave Hua Mengshi, only fining her two months'
The Madam Dowager was surprised. In the past, when Hua Qiyue came to see her, the girl stuttered and shivered, as if she had seen a tigress who was going to eat her.But today, she looked elegant and beautiful. Seeing her gaunt face, the Madam Dowager thought of how she had neglected her in the past and felt sorry for her."Yue'er, sit down. I know you were wronged. Don’t be scared."The Madam Dowager Hua was a kind-hearted woman, and she felt guilty for how she'd treated Hua Qiyue over the years. The girl had always been scared of her, and she'd just never known how to respond."Grandmother, I’m sorry to make you worry about me. I was unfilial. On my way home, I bought fresh sea cucumbers for you. They were difficult to get, and only the Master Xuanji in the Rongfu Temple had managed to get some. The sea cucumbers can nourish the blood and the face. You have done so much for this family. We should thank you."Hua Meng
The Madam Dowager had always paid little attention to Hua Qiyue, but it didn't mean that others could bully her mercilessly. She hadn't expected that her negligence would cause her granddaughter such a miserable life. No one had told her!Nanny Wang, who worked for the Second Concubine, knelt down immediately when she heard this, saying, "Please forgive me… I was greedy. I saw the eldest miss being bullied by others, so I secretly took away her money… I kept it a secret from the Second Concubine. I didn't expect my crimes to be revealed today. I deserve to die…"The Second Concubine gave her a fierce slap on the face, "Damn servant! How could you treat her like this?"Hua Qiyue looked at all of this coldly. She knew the nanny only took her money because the Second Concubine told her to. The nanny was quite loyal — if Hua Qiyue wanted to get rid of the Second Concubine, she had to get rid of this nanny first, or make her work for her.
Zhou Zhicheng raised his head and saw the woman. He put down the account book with a smile."Princess... It’s you!"Princess Huizhen entered the room, followed by her maid, Cuilian.Princess Huizhen fell in love with Zhou Zhicheng, but the emperor disapproved of their marriage. For one thing, he had an official wife, and for the other, the Zhou family was not rich.Zhou Zhicheng was so handsome that Princess Huizhen fell in love with him at first sight. But the emperor looked down on him, and he did not consent to the marriage. Even though Zhou Zhicheng's wife, Rong Qiyue, had been killed by thieves, the emperor did not change his mind."Zhicheng, I have good news for you!" Huizhen said with a smile. Zhou Zhicheng helped her to sit down. The two of them had been together for a long time and they simply ignored the moral rules between men and women.Cuilian lowered her eyes, not daring to look at them.