She refused to marry.

on the way back.

"Miss, why did you give all the money to Consort Shen? She's from the Shen family, she's our eldest young lady's enemy, and our brother hates her. How could you give her that money? That's a hundred taels..."

Chunhua kept muttering to herself.

"Miss...Miss..."

"Huh?" Su Wanwan came back to her senses.

"Miss! The Shen family are all bad people! Shen Yan is definitely not a good person." Chunhua put her hands on her hips and became more and more agitated as she spoke.

"Oh..." Su Wanwan lifted the curtain. "Afu, take me to the Grand Tutor's residence."

"Yes, Miss."

Half an hour later, the carriage stopped in front of the Grand Tutor's residence.

The doorman went to inform them, and returned with a bow, saying:

"Miss Su, the master is not in the manor at the moment. If you have something to attend to, please wait until the master returns and then come to visit together."

Su Wanwan sneered.

He turned and got back into the carriage.

If they weren't in the mansion, why would the doorman announce their arrival? It's just that he thinks the Su family isn't worthy.

"Chunhua, go back and find Qiushi, take five thousand taels of silver, and go to the main hall of Fragrant Hills to find me. Afu, take me to Fragrant Hills."

"Yes." Although Chunhua didn't understand what her young lady was going to do, she got off the carriage and went straight to the shop.

Su Wanwan entered Fragrant Hills and sincerely kowtowed for a long time in the main hall. Finally, she drew a fortune stick and walked to the fortune teller.

"Please interpret this divination slip."

"Miss, what do you wish to ask for?" The young monk took the fortune stick.

"I request an audience with the abbot to resolve this crisis." Su Wanwan's lips curled into a slight smile.

The young monk looked up in surprise.

He had been sitting at the fortune-telling table for decades and had never encountered such an absurd person.

I glanced down at the fortune slip, and realized that though the clouds were deep and the path was hidden, the guide was right there when I looked up.

"A very auspicious sign, the will of Heaven."

"Please lead the way, young master." Su Wanwan bowed.

"Okay." The little monk stood up.

He led Su Wanwan to a Zen temple. The young monk stopped at the entrance and said, "Young benefactor, please wait a moment."

After a while.

A kind-looking old monk came out, put his palms together in prayer, and asked, "Young benefactor, what do you wish for?"

"Naturally, it's to pray for the good fortune of the Chen Kingdom," Su Wanwan replied.

"Judging from your young age, you are no more than ten years old. These words are shocking. Among the women of today, only the Princess could say such a thing."

The old monk, cautious and discerning, sized up the young girl before him.

She had delicate features, calm almond-shaped eyes, wore a plain white brocade jacket with subtle patterns, and had a white jade hairpin in her hair bun.

She looks like a young lady from an ordinary wealthy family.

"Abbot, may I speak with you in private?"

"Please." The abbot conceded.

Su Wanwan entered the Zen temple. In the tea room on the left, there was a tea table with several simple cups on it and several cushions around it.

The abbot placed the brewed tea in front of her and said, "Please."

"Thank you." Su Wanwan accepted it, took a small sip, and said, "I'm really sorry to have bothered you today, but if I hadn't come, the capital would probably not be peaceful tomorrow."

The abbot picked up the divination slip and examined it carefully. "Young benefactor, I do not know what abilities I have to help you out of this predicament."

"Abbot, are you familiar with Lord Fengchen?"

"Xiangshan is a place of tranquility, where one does not concern oneself with worldly affairs or court matters, but only focuses on cultivating the mind and liberating oneself from the cycle of birth and death." The abbot placed down the divination slip.

"When Fengchen went to war, 50,000 soldiers died in battle. Does Xiangshan have any intention of performing a proper rites for them?" Su Wanwan put down her teacup.

The old monk put down his teacup, clasped his hands together, and chanted a Buddhist prayer.

If we say no, we are destroying our own reputation for compassion. If word gets out, how will believers around the world view this centuries-old temple?

"When the soldiers return in triumph, the royal Buddhist and Taoist rituals will be held to pray for their souls. There is no need for Xiangshan to overstep its bounds."

"The soldiers died on the battlefield, their souls have nowhere to rest. Xiangshan was originally compassionate, but it has no heart for the world. In the future, the number of believers in Xiangshan will only decrease." Su Wanwan raised her eyes.

"Young benefactor, do you wish to hold a Dharma assembly for the soldiers at Xiangshan?" the abbot asked, frowning.

"Yes, tomorrow I will set up a thousand tables of hot porridge, steamed buns and ginger soup at the ten-mile-long pavilion outside the city gate, which will be provided free of charge to the soldiers returning to the capital."

After the soldiers entered the city, we set out the sacrificial offerings and earnestly requested the abbot to come forward, promising that I would bear all the expenses required.

After the Dharma assembly, five thousand taels of silver were donated.

The abbot scrutinized the girl before him once more. "Young benefactor, a ten-mile-long table, five thousand taels of silver... only the powerful and the emperor can provide that."

Su Wanwan took out a silver note from her bosom. "This is the deposit."

The abbot looked at the thick stack of silver notes, totaling three thousand taels. "Young benefactor, what a generous gift! Who is this person?"

"An unknown nobody." Su Wanwan chuckled.

"It doesn't seem like it." The abbot's palm trembled slightly.

Currently, other temples have a large number of believers and do indeed need a large sum of money.

"Abbot, may you agree to this?"

The abbot hesitated for a moment, then said, "Alright."

Su Wanwan rose and bowed, then took out a brocade pouch from her sleeve. "I thank the abbot. There is still one person missing from this matter. I humbly request that you give this to Her Majesty the Empress Dowager, as I have something to ask of her. Her Majesty will naturally grant me an audience once she sees the pouch."

The abbot rose and said, "The Empress Dowager has long since withdrawn from worldly affairs; this matter is truly difficult for this humble monk."

"This is a jade pendant bestowed by Her Majesty the Empress Dowager. Tomorrow at the Dharma assembly, there is another matter concerning the fate of the nation, which I can only speak of in Her Majesty the Empress Dowager's presence. If this matter is accomplished, I will personally gild all the Buddha statues in the temple and donate ten thousand taels of silver." Su Wanwan knelt down and bowed.

The abbot hurriedly stepped forward, clasped his hands together, and said, "Benefactor, please rise."

"Does the abbot agree?" Su Wanwan stood up.

"Let's go," the abbot said helplessly.

Half an hour later.

The two stopped in front of the gate of an ancient and quiet garden.

The abbot clasped his hands together and handed the brocade pouch to the gatekeeper.

The old woman went in and came out in the blink of an eye. "Please come in, both of you."

Upon entering the garden and climbing the steps, one arrives at the main hall, where the Three Jewels are enshrined and incense burns throughout.

An elderly woman stood before the Three Treasures, her clothes made of smooth fabric without elaborate embroidery, her simple hairpin exuding nobility.

"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

The abbot bowed.

The Empress Dowager stood up, turned around, and looked at the kneeling woman.

No need for formalities.

Su Wanwan pressed her forehead against the back of her hand, "I beg Your Majesty the Empress Dowager to save Feng Chenjun."

The Empress Dowager paused, took a step forward, and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

"Your Majesty, today I heard in the streets that someone is spreading rumors about Feng Chenjun, saying that he made a deal with the mountain spirit and sacrificed 50,000 soldiers to achieve the current victory, which is why his hair has turned white. Everyone is very curious."

"Your Majesty's hair has already turned completely white due to the war. If Your Majesty returns tomorrow, wouldn't that confirm the rumors?"

"What did you say? Jing'er has white hair?" The Empress Dowager took a step back.

The old woman stepped forward to help him up.

"Your Majesty's hair is now completely white," Su Wanwan said softly.

"Jing'er, his hair has turned white?" The Empress Dowager gripped the nanny's wrist tightly. "How can someone so young have white hair?"

"When Your Majesty went to war, you did not receive even half a cartload of provisions. Your 50,000 soldiers ate all the bark from the trees. Later, you were besieged by the Prince of Changxin, and in the end, only a hundred men remained. When I saw Your Majesty, your hair was completely white and you were so thin that you were just skin and bones."

The Empress Dowager sat back down in her chair, her eyes dim.

"If His Majesty greets us at the city gates tomorrow and hears the rumors circulating among the people, he will surely become suspicious of Prince Fengchen," the Empress Dowager said in a low voice. "What will become of us in just one night? This capital has never had a moment of peace..."

"Your Majesty, I have a plan that can relieve His Majesty's worries," Su Wanwan kowtowed again.

"Raise your head." The Empress Dowager's eyes changed slightly as she stared at the woman before her.