Chapter 477

Just as he bitterly complained about the injustice in his heart, the Guanyin statue let out another sigh.

Don't you understand yet?

After studying the scriptures for so many years, you still haven't been thoroughly battered by worldly affairs.

Xie Huaiyuan, whatever mistake you made back then is a mistake; no matter how much you do now, you cannot make up for the consequences and harm you caused.

Hearing the Buddha statue truly transmit a sound, Jiaoguan plopped down on the ground again.

Then, the statue's distant voice, seeming real and illusory, sounded again: "Xie Huaiyuan, you dare to carve a mortal likeness upon the Guanyin statue, offending the divine with your selfish heart."

As the abbot, what crime should you be charged with?

Xie Huaiyuan's face, which originally still held a hint of delusion, instantly turned to shock upon hearing those words.

He retreated backward using both hands and feet.

Then, with a gurgling sound, he scrambled up, turned around, and ran away screaming.

Only then did Li Qingluo and Duan Rongshi walk out from behind the Guanyin statue.

Those seemingly plausible words just now were naturally spoken by Li Qingluo.

I never expected that after just a few sentences, he would scare Xie Huaiyuan so badly he lost control of his bowels.

However, the madness of these two still gave Li Qingluo a big surprise.

A portrait and name of Zongzheng Qingyue alone could make them reveal these prototypes; I wonder what they'd look like if they also saw Duan Rongshi's appearance.

One can see how many shameful deeds they did to their mother back then.

A Shi, are you still alright?

Li Qingluo was more worried about Duan Rongshi.

In their words, they often humiliated the mother; especially this old bald donkey, who seemed deeply devoted to her but actually deserved death the most!

When he had an affair with the Second Princess, he constantly thought of the mother; even Li Qingluo wanted to tear him apart, let alone Duan Rongshi, the sole son of Zongzheng Qingyue.

He probably hated them so much in his heart that he wished to crush their bones and scatter their ashes.

Duan Rongshi pressed his thin lips together, his whole body icy as he stepped out of the Guanyin Hall's great door, his chilly gaze sweeping over the entire Ningyuan Temple.

This place, since it has already defiled Buddhism, no longer has any reason to exist in the world.

I want them all to die in agony!

The blazing fury in his eyes made Li Qingluo shudder violently.

These fake monks, it's their turn now!

Guanyin, Your Highness, the underground secret chamber.

All the monks turned pale and shivered tremblingly.

This underground secret chamber is where they have lived for over a decade, yet they never knew this place existed.

And yet these people have locked them up here.

Who exactly are they?

This is certainly no ordinary merchant!

Now, the vast majority of the monks in the temple are already here.

Moreover, several black-clad men are tightly guarding them; anyone who dares to make a sound will immediately be given a hard slap.

These black-clad men's slaps are no ordinary slaps—one blow can swell the face, and even the teeth of the monk Jiechen, who had just refrained from anger, were all slapped out.

Who still dares to defy?

What's more frightening to this group of monks is that they have all heard the abbot's earth-shattering secret!

That Princess Changning is actually the illegitimate daughter of the abbot and the second princess!

The abbot even nearly killed the second princess.

Not to mention their sordid thoughts and words.

The abbot, who used to be aloof and lofty, rarely concerning himself with worldly affairs, is actually this true face—this leaves the monks somewhat unable to accept it.

Some novice monks can only keep chanting sutras softly under their breath, hoping to quickly cleanse themselves of these sins.

As for old-timers like Jiechi, Jiekong, and Jiechen, they merely sit there coldly and dazedly.

When the footsteps above had all faded away, Jiechen angrily asked, "You lot, what exactly do you want to do?"

Kill Three stepped forward and dealt another slap across Jiechen's face.

Before Jiechen could even rise to resist, a heavy kick slammed into his body, pinning him completely to the ground, unable to move or turn over.

"If you want to die, then make a bigger commotion."

"Anyway, you're not exactly good people either."

"Because we are merchants, you bully and suppress us, wanting to black-market as many of our banknotes as you like, never satisfied."

"Over these years, we haven't been the first, have we?"

"Speak! What other wicked deeds have you done?"

"As monastics, you've really portrayed the character 'greed' to the fullest."

"You've truly defiled these monk's robes in vain."

The entire pavilion fell into dead silence; every monk's face was written with embarrassment.

Soon, Li Qingluo and Duan Rongshi waited for Kill Three to come report: "Miss, besides extorting money, several monks from Ningyuan Temple have even gone down the mountain to indulge in feasting and revelry."

"They also often use the deceitful art of altering fate through talismans to swindle the hard-earned savings of poor families accumulated over years."

"There's also that flowery monk who, under the pretense of cultivation techniques, has deceived some young maidens and married women of their purity."

"Moreover, the monk Jiechen even accidentally killed someone, burying the corpse in the peach grove behind the mountain."

"Furthermore, what the abbot of Jiaoguan said should all be true; Jiechen said he had known this secret two years ago."

"He saw the abbot of Jiaoguan and the second princess meeting privately in the thicket, their words indistinct as they tugged at each other."

At that time, the Second Princess had said that the Princess of Changning was of Jia Guan's bloodline, but Jia Guan refused to acknowledge it.

Li Qingluo: 'Okay, I know.'

Thank you for your hard work, keep watching them.

When the time comes, act according to the plan.

Sha San immediately and silently retreated again.

Here, Li Qingluo and Duan Rongshi stood at the highest point of the entire Ningyuan Temple.

That is, the roof of the Guanyin Hall.

They looked at the now empty Ningyuan Temple, only hearing faint noises coming from the side rooms.

Duan Rongshi then looked toward Zhui Yu, who had just come up behind him: 'What kind of noise is that?'

Zhui Yu: 'Your Highness, this Second Prince Consort really has great patience.'

He clearly heard everything, yet he pretended not to know and first sent the Second Princess back to the side rooms. However, he was seriously searching for the more than ten guards who had gone missing from the Princess's residence.

Duan Rongshi: 'Although the authority of the Princess's residence appears to be in the Second Princess's hands, it has actually long completely and truly fallen into the hands of this Prince Consort.'

This person is quite scheming.

Zhui Yu: 'Yes, Your Highness. He continues to search for people in the temple while superficially dealing with the Second Princess.'

Looking at the Second Princess's intention, she wants to hurry down the mountain back to Nan'an, but the Prince Consort seems not to have that intention.

He is sending people to chisel the stones beside the mountain path, apparently intending to bury the mountain path.

Duan Rongshi: 'Go, give him a hand.'

Want to leave? No way!

Right, does Ningyuan Temple still have another way up the mountain?

Zhui Yu: 'Yes. There is a very rugged small path leading to the back mountain. However, the Second Princess definitely couldn't walk it, and even ordinary people would find it difficult.'

Going up the mountain is relatively simple, but going down is practically a death sentence.

Li Qingluo held her chest: 'That's enough.'

From now on, we just need to wait; the wicked will voluntarily line up to bring about their own doom.

The pitch-black night sky quickly fell.

Li Qingluo and her party silently settled everywhere in Ningyuan Temple.

Their whereabouts would be hard to be discovered by those people in Ningyuan Temple.

They also still had dry rations on them, so they wouldn't go hungry.

However, this was bitter for the monks of Ningyuan Temple.

They heard the chewing sounds in the dark; not only were their stomachs growling from hunger, but their mouths were also parched and cracked from thirst.

Someone boldly dared to ask for a little food and water, but naturally received only a slap in return.

Eat?

What qualifications do you have to eat and drink?

You've deceived the common people out of so much money and wealth; you should have had your fill by now, and now you should also taste the flavor of hunger.

The monks' side was bitter beyond words, and the Second Princess's side rooms were likewise in an uproar.

Zongzheng Zhi Yan had already been drooling from hunger; upon hearing the servant's report, she couldn't help but shout loudly: 'Not even a grain of rice? How is that possible?'

The road down the mountain has also been sealed shut.

Could it be that someone wants to force this palace to death in Ningyuan Temple?