Taking her into his tent, he incurred the wrath of a powerful and mad minister, from which he could

Mingyi stepped forward to greet him, "Young Master Fan."

Fan Siyuan immediately cupped his hands in a respectful bow and smiled gently, "Miss Ji."

Zong Xian said, "I'll lend you the hot spring."

Hidden deep within Tianchi Mountain are several natural hot springs. The spring water is warm and soothing, and when combined with prepared medicinal herbs, it becomes an excellent medicinal bath for nourishing the body and healing injuries.

Fan Siyuan's gaze shifted slightly, sweeping over Mingyi's pale face before he calmly nodded: "Of course. The hot spring on the east side is the most secluded, and the medicinal herbs are always kept in my estate. My servants can prepare them immediately."

A female servant bowed her head and stepped forward to await instructions.

Zong Xian turned to look at Ming Yi, his tone unusually gentle: "Go ahead, I'll wait for you here."

Mingyi lowered her eyes, nodded obediently, and followed the maid as she turned and left.

Only after her figure disappeared around the corner of the bamboo corridor did Zong Xian turn his gaze away and say to Fan Siyuan, "She is weak and needs medicine to regulate her qi and blood and strengthen her body."

Fan Siyuan immediately understood and instructed his servants to make preparations.

The two sat around a stove by the stone table, brewing tea. Fan Siyuan glanced at him a few times and couldn't help but sigh, "You actually fell in love one day."

He was the one who knew Zong Xian best, so he was even more surprised than others.

"So what if it is?" Zong Xian's expression remained completely unmoved despite Fan Siyuan's teasing.

He lightly tapped the warm teacup with his fingertips, his brows and eyes still displaying their usual pride, arrogance, indifference, and composure.

He is that kind of person. Call him extremely confident or arrogant, he will always accept all his states with equanimity.

Because in his view, everything was under control.

He never deceived himself; from the moment he realized he had feelings for Ji Mingyi, he accepted those feelings without hesitation.

But this doesn't mean he'll become like those lovesick men and women, trapped in the entanglements and despair of love, to the point of life and death.

For him, love was ultimately just a pastime, and could never supersede his pursuit of power and his schemes.

Ji Mingyi was the same.

She was the one he had his eye on, but she was by no means his everything.

She was different from others; he was willing to make some concessions for her, but these concessions had clear boundaries, and he would not indulge her without limits.

Fan Siyuan slowly shook his head: "Being liked by someone like you must be torture."

Zong Xian frowned upon hearing this, clearly dissatisfied with his comment, but unable to find a rebuttal.

Fan Siyuan kindly reminded him, "If you really like her, then treat her well, otherwise you'll regret it in the future."

Zong Xian frowned even deeper: "Haven't I been good enough to her?"

Since she entered the manor, he has granted her every request. If she were more obedient and lived a good life with him, he would not cause trouble for no reason.

He believed he had been more tolerant of her than usual.

It was ultimately someone else's family matter, and Fan Siyuan was unwilling to get involved. Seeing that he was still so stubborn, he was too lazy to persuade him any further.

Zong Xian's methods of obtaining Ji Mingyi were not honorable.

This relationship was destined to be unsuccessful.

Fan Siyuan changed the subject and talked about matters of the court.

Before long, two monks approached from a distance. Fan Siyuan looked over and said, "That's Master Wuming. He's passing through and decided to stay here for a while."

A high-ranking monk in a white robe approached the two, clasped his hands together, chanted a Buddhist prayer, and looked on with compassion.

During the reign of the late emperor, Buddhism flourished, and this nameless man was a very famous and highly accomplished monk who was always elusive and rarely seen.

Unexpectedly, it appeared at Fan Siyuan's estate.

What surprised Zong Xian even more was that he had seen Wuming in the palace twenty years ago. At that time, Wuming was young and handsome, and looked to be only in his early twenties.

Now, another twenty years have passed, and Wuming's appearance is exactly the same as it was back then, without a single wrinkle on his face, which is really against common sense.

Noticing Zong Xian's probing gaze, Wuming slowly raised his eyes, met his gaze, and smiled faintly.

"Benefactor, we meet again."

Suppressing his inner shock, Zong Xian calmly asked, "Does Master still remember me?"

"Of course, I have a deep impression of you, benefactor. I wonder if you remember me saying that you have a strong affinity with Buddhism?"

Zong Xian naturally remembered that when the two first met, Wuming had bluntly advised him to shave his head and become a Buddhist monk, which could be described as presumptuous.

Therefore, he was also deeply impressed by Wuming, but he didn't have a good impression of him.

Zong Xian had never believed in gods or Buddhas. He felt that Wuming had misjudged him, and that the legendary enlightened monk was probably just a figurehead.

Fan Siyuan, however, showed great respect to Wuming and poured him tea.

...

Several people sat in the pavilion chatting idly.

After an unknown amount of time, a graceful figure emerged from the bamboo corridor. Wuming seemed to sense something and turned his head to look.

Ji Mingyi walked into the pavilion and saw a white-robed monk standing to the side, but he didn't know who he was.

Zong Xian then said, "This is Master Wuming."

Mingyi then curtsied.

The nameless man returned the greeting with his palms together, his gaze falling on her face with a meaningful look: "Greetings, female benefactor."

Mingyi vaguely sensed that the monk's gaze was a little strange, but she didn't show it.

Seeing that her complexion was rosy and she looked much better, Zong Xian felt relieved and immediately decided to take her away.

Just as the two were about to depart, Wuming suddenly spoke up: "May this humble monk have a few words with the female benefactor in private?"

Mingyi subconsciously looked at the man beside her.

Seeing him nod slightly, Mingyi followed Wuming to the side, still within Zongxian's sight.

It really was just a few words; a moment later, Mingyi walked back to his side with a normal expression.

Apart from the person involved, no one knows what Wuming said to her.

The two took their leave and boarded the carriage.

Zong Xian was the first to ask, "What did that evil monk say to you?"

He had always been in control of everything, so the thought of exploring naturally arose in his mind.

The fact that he changed his address from "Master" to "Demon Monk" shows that he has no respect for Wuming whatsoever.

Mingyi lowered her head, straightening her sleeves, and said in a nonchalant tone, "He forbids me from telling anyone, or I'll die. Does Your Excellency still want to hear it?"

Zong Xian raised an eyebrow: "I've never heard of anyone taking a life with just a few words. Besides, with me here, nothing can easily take your life."

Mingyi looked up at him, her eyes clear and bright, and asked again, "Does Your Excellency still wish to hear? If Your Excellency wishes to know, I will not hide anything from you."

The carriage fell silent for a moment.

The wheels rolled over the mountain road, making a dull thud.

Zong Xian stared intently at her face, trying to discern how much of her words were a pretense and how much were the truth.

In fact, he could have simply sent someone to capture and interrogate that evil monk, and he would have been able to understand the truth clearly.

But after thinking about it for a moment, he decided against it.

Forcing a conclusion might not be a good thing. Zong Xian looked away and slowly leaned back against the carriage wall. "Never mind."

He added, "That monk is adept at spreading falsehoods and misleading the public, so you don't need to take him to heart."

Seeing that he had given up on asking further questions, Mingyi lowered her eyes and gave a soft "hmm".

Her sleeves fell down, just enough to cover her palms, and no one could see that her palms were already wet with cold sweat.

The nameless monk saw right through her, recognizing her as a time traveler!

This was a secret she kept buried deep in her heart, one she could never reveal to anyone.

Mingyi concealed the surging fear in her eyes, her fingertips quietly curling as she tried her best to steady her breathing.

An invisible chill slowly crept into my heart...