Chapter 350 Beautiful Spider Spirit VS Cold and Ascetic Monk 54
Emperor Xuanwu hurried forward to support Xuan Ji. Looking at his bloody back, he felt extremely distressed and shouted to the servant beside him, "Come here, quickly invite the imperial physician."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Eunuch Fuan stood aside and took the order respectfully and left.

Huikong took in the whole scene and said to Xuanji: "You must always remember the pain of today, uphold the Buddha's heart, and live up to the people."

Xuan Ji let go of Emperor Xuanwu's supporting hand, endured the pain and bowed deeply to Hui Kong, "Thank you for your teachings, Master. I will definitely remember it in my heart."

Huikong nodded slightly, talked with Emperor Xuanwu for a few more words, and then left with the monks.

As this unexpected punishment came to an end, the Prince of Wei's palace returned to peace.

However, the matter eventually spread and became the focus of discussion in the capital.

The Duke's Mansion of the State of Qin.

Yu Yao no longer lived in Wuyi Lane, but moved to the Qin Mansion.

She is the youngest daughter of Duke Qin, Meng Yao.

As for the house in Wuyi Lane, Uncle Zhou and Aunt Zhou are helping to take care of it, so she can just go over and take a look when she has time.

One day, she was sitting in the courtyard of the Duke of Qin's mansion, listening to a few maids discussing the affairs of the Prince of Wei's mansion.
"Hey, did you hear that His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei was punished by the abbot of the Huguo Temple with thirty canes for violating the Buddhist rules? I heard that his entire back was beaten to a bloody mess, which was scary."

"Yeah, I heard about that, too. Thirty strokes of the cane, it hurts just thinking about it."

"You said, it would have been fine if the King of Wei had lived among the common people before, but now that he has returned to the royal family and has long since broken his vows, why hasn't he returned to secular life? Otherwise, why would he have to suffer this?"

"Who knows what the King of Wei is thinking?"

The maids thought their voices were very soft, but they all fell into Yu Yao's ears.

Her heart moved, and she unconsciously played with an exquisite porcelain cup in her hand, her eyes showing a complicated look.

After all, the root of all this lies with her. If she hadn't intentionally approached and seduced him, Xuan Ji would still be the Buddhist monk with pure six senses.

Now, not only is she trapped in the secular world, but she is also being punished for breaking her vows. It would be a lie for her to say that she didn't feel anything.

She wanted to visit Prince Wei's mansion, but doing so would inevitably give people a lingering connection.

It is of no benefit to either her or Xuan Ji.

After much thought, she finally decided not to go.

Anyway, she often visits her two children, so she might as well visit Xuan Ji at the same time.

The next day, she turned into a stream of light and disappeared from the Duke of Qin's Mansion and went to the Prince of Wei's Mansion.

Prince Wei's Palace, side hall.

Yu Yao's figure slowly emerged from the shadows, her eyes falling on the center of the side hall.

An An and You You were sitting on the mat playing, surrounded by all kinds of toys.

Two maids stood by and watched over him carefully.

She lowered her eyes slightly, made hand gestures, and cast a spell. The two maids could not help yawning.

After a while, they all fell asleep on the side.

She slowly stepped out of the shadows.

"Mom, mom, hug me."

When An An and You You saw Yu Yao, they excitedly jumped into her arms like little birds.

"An'an, Youyou, have you been good these past two days?"

She smiled and picked up the two children, one in her left hand and one in her right hand.

The two little guys are already over one year old, chubby and heavy, which shows that Xuan Ji takes good care of them.

If she wasn't very strong, she wouldn't be able to hold him.

"Be good, An An is very good."

An An spoke in a baby voice, his articulation was not very clear, and he spoke word by word.

Youyou was not to be outdone and said hastily, "Youyou is also very good."

"Well, both babies are very well behaved, that's great."

Yu Yao was holding her two children and playing in the side hall.

"Mother, Father, it hurts, there is so much blood"

An An is not very good at expressing herself, but she understood what An An wanted to say and she felt complicated.

She didn't know whether the child saw it himself or a servant said it in front of the two children.

"It's okay. There are so many imperial doctors in the palace. I'm sure your father has been treated. He will be well soon."

She touched the two children's heads and comforted them softly.

After playing with the two children in the side hall for a while and lifting the sleeping spell cast on the two maids, he went to the main hall to see Xuan Ji.

But he did not show up, just hid in the dark and watched silently.

Xuan Ji was wearing a single garment, sitting cross-legged on the couch with his eyes closed in meditation, holding a string of Buddhist beads in his hand, turning them gently back and forth, and chanting scriptures.

His face was pale, and he showed a new fragility that he had never had before. There was a hint of worry between his brows, and a hint of melancholy was added to his cold and otherworldly temperament.

Xuan Ji sensed an evil spirit approaching and it was very familiar to him, so he knew who it was instantly.

He suddenly opened his eyes, a light flashed in his pupils, and he looked around, "Yao'er, since you are here, why don't you show up?" Yu Yao was hiding in the dark, and was shocked when she saw Xuan Ji suddenly open his eyes and look over here.

She did not answer, but hurriedly threw a medicine bottle in. Her body turned into a stream of light and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Xuan Ji sensed that the demonic aura was becoming weaker and weaker, and he began to panic.

He quickly got up from the bed, put two fingers together and wiped his eyes. His eyes instantly burst into a bright golden light, and he looked around the hall carefully.

Even the shadows in the corners were not spared, but still no trace of her was found.

Realizing that she had left, the golden light in Xuan Ji's eyes gradually faded and he looked distraught, as if his soul had been drained out.

He just stood there quietly without moving for a long time. After a long time, he finally turned back into the hall with difficulty.

Looking at the medicine bottle lying quietly on the ground, he was slightly startled, bent over to pick it up, rubbed it gently in his palm, and tenderness emerged in his eyes.

"Yao'er, you still care about me, right? But now that you're here, why don't you show up and see me?"

He murmured softly, his expression bitter and lonely, and he became even more depressed.

Since then, Xuan Ji became more and more taciturn and rarely went out. Every day he either recited scriptures and meditated, or accompanied An An and You You.

Or he might just sit quietly alone, often looking into the void, wondering what he is thinking about.

He seldom stepped out of the Prince of Wei's Palace, and even seldom attended some celebrations and festivals in the palace, as if he was isolated from the world.

In the East Palace, the night is dark.

Dugu Ye sat at the desk, the flickering candlelight illuminating his deep eyes.

He gently stroked a portrait on the table. The woman in the painting was gentle and beautiful. It was Yu Yao, or more precisely, Meng Yao.

"Yunyin, how are things going?"

Dugu Ye asked Yunyin who was standing quietly beside him.

After settling the queen, Yunyin returned from Jiangnan and then went to handle the matters assigned by Dugu Ye.

Yun Yin came out and said respectfully, "Your Highness, I have bribed the people in front of the emperor as you ordered, and asked them to mention the news that the prince should marry a wife, and have someone intentionally or unintentionally mention the daughter of Duke Qin, Meng Yao, in front of the emperor. I think there will be news soon."

Dugu Ye curled his lips, "You are doing very well, keep staring."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Yunyin said respectfully.

In the imperial study room.

Emperor Xuanwu reviewed memorials until late at night, and his exhaustion was evident on his face.

Eunuch Fu'an stepped forward at the right time, offered fragrant tea, and said softly: "Your Majesty, it is very late, the dragon's health is important, it is time to rest."

Emperor Xuanwu took the teacup, took a sip, and then asked, "Is there any movement in the East Palace? Is the Crown Prince behaving well recently?"

Some time ago, the prince refused to be the prince because of a widow with a child. He got angry when he thought about it.

The royal family wanted all kinds of women, but he actually fell in love with a widow with children. It was ridiculous.

Fu An knew that the emperor had some complaints about the prince's previous behavior, so he said carefully: "Your Majesty, the prince has been very diligent recently. He has been handling government affairs seriously every day. He has not slacked off and has not left the East Palace."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Xuanwu nodded slightly, his expression softened, and then he changed the subject, "The Crown Prince is in his twenties this year, right?"

Generally, princes of this age would have already been married, let alone the crown prince of a country.

He had mentioned before that he wanted to appoint a lady from an aristocratic family as the Crown Princess, and he had also rewarded many beauties to the Eastern Palace.

But the prince rejected them all with various reasons. Even the beauties he rewarded were arranged to sweep toilets and empty toilets.

Isn't this intentionally insulting?

When he got angry, he simply didn't bother to care. He thought that she was not old anyway, so if she wanted to get married, she would naturally do so.

"Your Majesty, the prince is twenty-one this year."

Fuan bent down slightly and replied carefully.

Emperor Xuanwu nodded slightly, thinking of something, and suddenly asked, "I heard that Duke Qin has a daughter who was raised in the countryside. Is this true?"

He had only heard about this recently. In his impression, the Duke of Qin was very good at giving birth to sons. He had seven sons in a row and had never heard of any daughters.

It was only recently that I heard that a daughter had been raised in the countryside and was only recently brought back.

"Your Majesty, this is indeed true. Miss Meng had been in poor health since she was young, so she was sent to a farm in the countryside to recuperate. Maybe after she recovered and reached the right age to get married, she was brought back."

Fu'an glanced at Emperor Xuanwu and answered truthfully.

Emperor Xuanwu said nothing, his eyes lost in thought.

The Duke of Qin's Mansion has made great contributions for generations, and their family background is also clean. Miss Meng can be said to be an excellent candidate for the Crown Princess.

But Miss Meng was raised in the countryside since she was a child, so I'm afraid she might have lacked some upbringing, and her poor health is also a problem.

However, we still need to investigate the situation and not be too hasty.

"Fu'an, go check on this Miss Meng. I want to know every detail of her."

Emperor Xuanwu ordered in a deep voice.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Fuan bowed and accepted the order, then ordered people to investigate.