Chapter 478

As soon as Zong Zheng Zhi Yuan said that, Chang Ning's crying grew louder.

"No, I want to go down the mountain—waa, I want to eat, Mother, I'm really hungry, Mother—"

Zong Zheng Zhi Yuan was hungry too.

How many hours have passed since the last meal?

Now my stomach is empty as empty, still growling, and I can still hear Chang Ning's crying in my ears.

Zong Zheng Zhi Yuan was annoyed to no end.

Thinking of the grievance she suffered today at Xie Huaiyuan's place, she flew into a rage and slapped Chang Ning across the face.

"All you do is cry, cry, cry. Besides crying, what good are you?"

"You're hungry but you don't go look for your father; what's the point of coming to me, your mother?"

"Do I have to be the one who has food?"

Chang Ning covered her face, stunned.

Since she was little, she had hardly ever been beaten, let alone scolded.

And now, her mother, who had always doted on her to the bone, actually slapped her in front of a whole room of servants.

Chang Ning not only felt her face burning, but the dignity of her status as a princess was ruthlessly torn away.

"What are you doing?"

As soon as Prince Consort Zhang Ting Gui entered, he saw the scene and hurried over quick steps.

"Your Highness, why are you angry, to the point of striking our Chang Ning?"

"Chang Ning, come here, Father has something to eat."

"Father just hunted some quail, had them roasted and brought for my Chang Ning to eat."

"Go on, try it."

Zhang Ting Gui said, and indeed took a quail, roasted crisp outside and tender inside, from the servant behind him.

"Stop crying already, Father feels heartbroken seeing you like this."

Only then did Chang Ning, feeling wronged, throw herself into Zhang Ting Gui's arms and burst out crying, "Waa."

"Father—waa..."

"Chang Ning doesn't want to live anymore."

Zhang Ting Gui patted her: "My silly Chang Ning, it's just that your mother touched you a little—what's there to be angry about? Let's ignore her and come with Father."

Saying that, Zhang Ting Gui pulled Chang Ning aside.

After coaxing her with a few words, he finally calmed Chang Ning down.

Chang Ning was truly starving, so she grabbed the oily, sizzling roasted quail and started gnawing on it.

Although there was little meat, at this point anything edible smelled fragrant.

The Second Princess, too, stared at her own hand for a while, then lowered her head, feeling regretful and dispirited.

When she smelled the aroma, she couldn't help but repeatedly swallow her saliva.

"You—Zhang Ting Gui, what kind of conduct is this? This is supposed to be a Buddhist holy ground, yet you dare to kill living beings!"

Zhang Ting Gui stood far away, utterly unconcerned: "It's just breaking the precept against killing; if heavenly punishment comes for me, let it come."

"Since food is heaven to the people, I would rather starve to death than let my own daughter go hungry."

"Besides, I don't believe I'm the only one who has broken the precepts at Ningyuan Temple."

"If the princess really wants to blame me, the prince consort has nothing to say."

Zong Zheng Zhi Yuan felt a sudden jolt in her heart.

Speaking of breaking precepts, I myself broke them over a decade ago.

Moreover, Chang Ning is not the prince consort's biological daughter at all.

But so what?

As long as it's my own child, could he possibly refuse to acknowledge it?

Besides, they still have a biological son, so it's not as if I, as the princess, owe him anything as his prince consort.

Zong Zheng Zhi Yuan showed no shame on her face, merely changing the subject: "Our own carried dried provisions and food have mysteriously disappeared."

"Not even the Ningyuan Temple kitchen has any grain left, and the fields have been completely stripped of vegetables."

"Prince Consort, do you have any way to let everyone get something to eat?"

Zhang Ting Gui: "Yes."

"Go hunt in the rear mountains."

Zong Zheng Zhi Yuan felt he was mocking her: "You—!"

"You clearly know that every year, for half a month before we come to Ningyuan Temple, I observe a strict vegetarian diet. You let Chang Ning break the precept—that's bad enough—but do you also want me to break it?"

"You have ill intentions from the start!"

Zhang Ting Gui: "Princess, you've misunderstood; no one forces you to eat if you don't want to. But if you do want to eat, just come with this prince consort!"

Having said that, he swept his long arm and led Chang Ning away.

Soon, only Zong Zheng Zhi Yuan and a few close attendants remained in the courtyard; the other servants, already starving to the point of seeing stars and unable to bear it, who wouldn't run at the word of food?

By the time the princess's household had all set off in a mighty throng to hunt in the rear mountains,

Zong Zheng Zhi Yuan was so angry she nearly went mad.

"All of you, get out of my sight!"

"The farther you roll, the better—don't ever come back!"

However, she soon regretted it.

Because the deserted, empty Ningyuan Temple was filled everywhere with the howling of wind.

She couldn't bear being both hungry and cold, so she hurried into the house and slipped under the covers.

But outside a sudden shout rang out; by the time Zongzheng Zhiyuan shouted for help again, no one answered her.

"Chuncao?"

"Xiachan?"

"You, you guys don't scare this palace..."

"Come, someone come!"

However, the only response she got was endless darkness.

From afar came a faint, intermittent wail.

Zongzheng Zhiyuan let out a frightened "ah" and quickly covered her head with the blanket.

But she heard footsteps approaching.

Moreover, the footsteps grew closer, sounding as if someone had pushed the door and entered the room.

She trembled so much she dared not peek out, only able to clutch the edge of the blanket tightly.

Soon she felt someone tapping her head a few times.

"Elder sister?"

Someone shouted.

Zongzheng Zhiyuan rolled her eyes, and she under the blanket soon fell silent.

Que'er flung the blanket open, covering her nose in disgust.

"Miss, just like Li Qingzhu, you've wet your pants."

Li Qingluo also waved away the scent at her nose.

"I didn't expect that before we even made a move, the people of the princess's manor have already fallen into internal strife and are split apart."

Looking at the second princess who had fainted from fright on the bed, Li Qingluo gave a cold smile: "With such cowardice, you still dare to commit so many evil deeds."

"Seize her."

At dawn, the Grand Prince Consort and his entourage finally returned loaded with spoils.

They carried pheasants and hares, baskets full of edible wild vegetables and fruits, and came back from the back mountain in a mighty procession.

They didn't even go back to the side rooms.

Right in the temple kitchen, they began slaughtering chickens and rabbits to start cooking.

Soon the aroma filled the entire temple.

Xie Huaiyuan also couldn't help but open his eyes.

It was the smell of meat.

He sat up angrily, put on his robes and kasaya, was about to rush out of the meditation hall when he suddenly glanced at the Guanyin statue on the small table.

No… that was a portrait of the Third Princess of Great Chu, Zongzheng Qingyue.

He hesitated for a moment, then quickly took down the portrait, rolled it up, and stored it in the cabinet.

Only then did he turn around and open the door again.

However, as the door creaked open just a crack, a hanged figure suddenly appeared at the entrance of the meditation hall.

Xie Huaiyuan let out a startled cry and fell sitting on the ground in shock.

With a gust of cold wind, that figure swayed gently and began to swing lightly.

Xie Huaiyuan: "Come, someone——"

"Someone come!"

But there's no one left in this temple.

All the monks have been captured.

The Grand Prince Consort and his entourage were cheering in the kitchen as they slaughtered and cooked.

Only Xie Huaiyuan's shout, which couldn't even reach the kitchen.

He was so scared his whole body broke out in a sweat, and only then did he see clearly that the person hanging at the doorway was none other than Zongzheng Zhiyuan!