That day was also the death anniversary of Pei Xiaoyuan's late mother, Madam Cui.
Not long after the Danfeng Gate incident, she died of excessive depression. Before her death, she did not accept Cui Daosi's offer to raise her nephew when they met in private, but instead ordered her son to leave the capital and go to her uncle Pei Ji who was far away in the northwest.
Of course, these are all old things. Now that Pei Xiao is an adult, the attitude of Lady Wang, the mistress of the Cui Mansion, has changed. This time, she attaches great importance to the death anniversary of her late aunt, and she called her niece Wang Zhenfeng to help prepare in advance. On this day, a large ritual was held in Ci'en Temple. Because it was the Yulan Festival three days later, this ritual would be held for three consecutive days to meet the Yulan Festival's intention of using Buddhism to offer merits to the Three Treasures and to help the ancestors and relatives to increase their lotus rank.
After this accidental encounter, Pei Xiaoyuan quickly put his thoughts aside and went into the palace to attend the meeting.
Han Kerang was able to hold his current position because, in addition to his status as a loyal follower who had fought bravely for King Ding in his early years, he was also no ordinary person. He made a very thorough plan for the escort this time, from the departure to the stop on the road to the arrival at the Cangshan Palace. Not only was every step clearly arranged, but even the details such as how many guards and secret sentries were in each post were not missed, and he personally inquired about them one by one. After making sure that there were no more omissions, he ordered everyone to disperse and make preparations.
He also knew that the Cui family was holding a ceremony for Madam Cui at Ci'en Temple today. After the ceremony, they deliberately kept Pei Xiaoyuan and told him not to be distracted by the travel in the next few days and to take care of his mother's ceremony first. As for the matter of Lu Wusi, he would personally help him keep an eye on it.
Pei Xiaoyuan was very grateful and bowed solemnly. Han Kerang told him not to be so reserved, saying that he was also moved by Cui Niangzi's righteous act in the past, and he still remembered it vividly. Today was the anniversary of his late mother's death, and it was also his first sacrifice since he came to Beijing. As a son, how could he stay out of it? Just treat it as an extra vacation for him and tell him to go there without worry.
Pei Xiaoyuan had already planned for this matter. Since his boss had specially arranged it this way, he did not refuse anymore. He thanked him again, then left the palace and came to Ci'en Temple.
As Wang's daughter Zhenfeng said before, she was very concerned about the anniversary of the death and had arranged everything properly. Ci'en Temple knew that the Cui family was holding a ceremony for the late Pei's daughter Cui, so they did not dare to neglect it and gave up the entire Guanyin Hall as the venue for the ceremony for the next three days. The presiding officer of the ceremony was also the famous Juehui in the temple, a senior monk who often went in and out of the palace to preach Buddhism to the Empress Dowager and the nobles.
Pei Xiaoyuan arrived in front of the Guanyin Hall, where the Dharma Assembly had already begun. Amid the lingering incense and the chorus of wooden fish and bells, Juehui led a group of monks in chanting sutras in unison. Pei Xiaoyuan listened outside the door for a moment and heard that they were chanting the Heart Sutra of Prajnaparamita. Then he walked outside the door and the first person he saw was Qingtou.
He had been on a mission recently and must have been exhausted. He listened to the scriptures, leaned against the door, tilted his head, and fell asleep while standing. Wang was surrounded by many women and sat in the center of the Dharma Hall. All the women had pearls and jade on their heads and silk around their bodies. Most of them should be relatives of the Cui or Wang families. Pei Xiaoyuan had never seen many of them before and did not know them.
Wang Zhenfeng knelt on a cushion beside Wang. In the Guanyin Hall, she was the only one dressed plainly today, wearing a light blue jacket and a moon-white skirt, which made her stand out. She was holding her hands together in front of her chest, concentrating as if she was praying devoutly.