Chapter 3556: He Will Naturally Understand

The owner of the tofu soup shop would never know in this lifetime that he would actually get to see the Miss Saito from his great-grandfather's story.

It is said that even his great-grandfather did not know what Miss Saito's given name was, only that her surname was Saito, and since Saito is a relatively prominent surname in Japan, it became even harder to trace.

Lin Wan'er ate the bowl of tofu soup, paid, and happily left the small shop with her schoolbag on her back.

After leaving the shop, she continued walking toward Kinkaku-ji, but her attention remained on the various shops around her.

Lin Wan'er had lived in Japan for a long time, only leaving after entering the 20th century.

During her time in Kyoto, she was the charitable Miss Saito, and at that time Japan had just undergone the Meiji Restoration, transforming from an agricultural nation into an industrial one; although militarism had begun to sprout, it had not yet spread nationwide.

At that time, most ordinary people in Kyoto lived frugally, many shops and small business owners had received some favor from Lin Wan'er, and what amazed her was that many of those shops were still open to this day.

There were sushi shops with two-hundred-year histories, tempura shops with three-hundred-year histories, and several Western dress and kimono shops that had existed since the 19th century.

The reason this place could have so many brands with histories of several hundred years is largely due to the fact that the country was hardly ever invaded or colonized by foreign enemies; even though they caused turmoil throughout East and South Asia during WWII, most of their own territory ultimately escaped the ravages of war, so these old brands have been passed down.

When Lin Wan'er came to the gate of Kinkaku-ji like a truant high school girl on a day trip from Osaka to Kyoto, An Chengxi inside Kinkaku-ji knew nothing of her movements.

Since faking her death to escape, she had been secretly laying plans all these years, never expecting that she herself would also be exposed.

Twenty minutes before Lin Wan'er arrived in Kyoto, Tang Sihai had already made his way to Kinkaku-ji and met with An Chengxi.

An Chengxi was very pleased with his arrangement this time, praising him: "Tang Sihai, you have made an indispensable contribution this time; you have also worked hard these past few days; from now on, just stay here and rest well."

Xiao Churan and her family of three had already left China, and Xiao Churan's sudden inspiration had also completely eliminated the risk posed by Xiao Changkun and Ma Lan; for An Chengxi, this was the best possible situation.

Tang Sihai said somewhat emotionally: "Now that the Young Lady has left, the Young Master must be in great pain; I don't know how long it will take for him to recover..."

An Chengxi nodded and sighed: "Although the Xiao family of three has left, I know that Chen'er must now be feeling both anxious and painful; otherwise he would not have immediately sought out Li Yalin for help; he naturally wants to spare no effort to find Xiao Churan."

Saying this, she felt a deep sense of unease in her heart.

After all, her original intention was never to secretly manipulate Ye Chen's life, nor as a mother to exert various controls over Ye Chen; the reason she wanted by all means to make Xiao Churan leave was because Ye Chen's cultivation progress during this period had been too slow, and he had long failed to open the Niwan Palace, meaning that he would forever be separated from Wu Feiyan by an unbridgeable heavenly chasm.

Neither Wu Feiyan nor Meng Changsheng of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains would give Ye Chen much time; if Ye Chen did not wholeheartedly strive to improve his cultivation, all revenge plans would come to nothing.

For this, she had even prepared herself to be resented by Ye Chen in the future; her twenty years of enduring humiliation and bearing burdens were solely to give Ye Chen a chance, a chance to clear away all obstacles and forever no longer need to hide and sneak about.

Thus she sighed: "When I meet Chen'er in the future, he will naturally know that everything was secretly driven by me; at that time I do not know whether he will hate me..."

Tang Sihai said respectfully: "Madam, you acted for the greater good; surely the Young Master will be able to understand your painstaking efforts."

An Chengxi nodded, quietly wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, and smiled: "Wu Feiyan has always thought I am not dead; perhaps I will not even live to see the day Chen'er wins; if that is the case, then whether it is you or Sister Sun who survives, whoever remains will go to see Chen'er and tell him all this truth; as long as he can laugh last, it does not matter if he resents me, hates me, or fails to understand me; but I must let him know that over these many years, he has not been walking alone."

……

At this moment, above the main hall of Kinkaku-ji which had already been closed, the elderly monk Kongyin, accompanied by several of his most favored disciples, sat cross-legged on the futons, listening to the lecture of Monk Jingqing.

Jingqing knew that Kongyin had this time shut down the entire Kinkaku-ji to help An Chengxi, so he also very earnestly imparted his own profound insights on the Dharma; the two were like old friends who forgot their ages, discussing joyfully every day; and not only did Kongyin receive deeper inspiration from Jingqing, but Jingqing, through Kongyin's sincere heart, further purified his own spirit; it was mutually beneficial, and Kongyin's disciples also greatly benefited from their discussions.

However, Kongyin is old, his physical condition is not good, and sitting cross-legged for long periods consumes a lot of energy, so his exchanges and studies with Jingqing must frequently be interrupted due to his physical condition, to resume only after he has recovered somewhat.

Seeing that everyone had exchanged ideas for a morning, Kongyin's physical condition was clearly not good, even his breathing had become much more hurried; Jingqing then pressed his palms together and said: "Namo Amitabha, Monk Kongyin looks somewhat fatigued; let us stop here for the morning, let the monk return to rest properly, and we will decide this afternoon according to circumstances."

Kongyin, because he had forced himself to persist, weakly waved his hand and said in fluent Chinese with a smile: "Monk Jingqing... I recently... feel that my time is up, I fear I have little time left; the ancients of China said, 'To hear the Dao in the morning is to be able to die in the evening'; your understanding of the Dharma, Monk Jingqing, is the most profound I have encountered in a hundred years; so before my passing, I would like to hear as much as possible; please, Monk Jingqing, do not withhold your teachings."

Jingqing could not help but sigh: "Monk Kongyin can view life and death so lightly, it truly inspires admiration; since that is the case, then let us continue."

When Lin Wan'er arrived at the gate of Kinkaku-ji, a sign refusing entry had already been erected outside the temple gate; beneath the sign was written the specific reason for refusing entry, still that set of renovation excuses; exactly when the renovation would be completed remains undecided for now.

At the gate, several monks were on guard; all approaching visitors would be patiently persuaded to leave by them.

When the young Lin Wan'er walked up close, a monk habitually stepped forward and said: "Namo Amitabha, benefactor, please do not come any closer; Kinkaku-ji is currently closed for renovation and temporarily not open to the public."

Lin Wan'er sweetly smiled: "Hello, I wish to see Monk Kongyin."

The monk shook his head: "Monk Kongyin has not seen visitors for many years; please return."

Monk Kongyin is the most famous monk in all of Japan and a leading figure in the Japanese Buddhist world; many devout Japanese Buddhists hope to have the opportunity to see Monk Kongyin in person; even at the gate of Kinkaku-ji, one can encounter several such people every day, and he has long grown accustomed to it.

Lin Wan'er knew that the mysterious person hiding here must be especially cautious; perhaps there are surveillance lines laid by the other side around here, secretly watching; thus she revealed no aura, but smiled and said: "Let me be frank, my ancestors and Monk Kongyin are related by blood; this time I come at the command of my elders to see Monk Kongyin; please trouble Master to pass a message to Monk Kongyin, just say 'Zhengping, the Miss has come'; he will naturally understand."