Chapter 2  

Before Xiao Baoxin could turn around, she saw Aunt Zhang kneel in front of Madam Xie, giving her a shock.

Her face was already pale enough, but now that she suddenly knelt down and bared her teeth, she looked even more sinister. Were these people trying to scare her to death?

“Let’s talk—”

“Madam.” Aunt Zhang’s voice was hoarse, obviously shocked. “Second Master is going to become a monk!”

What?!

Xiao Baoxin and Madam Xie were both stunned. Even Madam Cai, who was holding onto her handkerchief and crying until there were no more tears left in her eyes, was stunned. For a moment, her mouth was agape as she stared blankly from Madam Xie to Xiao Baoxin and then to Aunt Zhang…

As expected, those who came from humble backgrounds were all good at causing trouble.

Her younger brother-in-law was only fourteen years old. Usually, he would behave strangely and pray whenever he saw a temple. Whenever he saw a Bodhisattva, he would burn incense. When he saw someone who spoke in a mysterious manner, he would think that he was an expert. He had worshipped masters all over the world, but none of them were reliable…

Such a guy was going to become a monk!

Madam Cai wrung her handkerchief. Why was she not surprised at all?

“W-What did you say?” As his biological mother, Madam Xie was not as calm and composed as Madam Cai. Her ears buzzed and her head almost fell to the ground. She no longer had the calm and composed demeanor of a noble lady. Her face turned pale and then turned green before turning black again.

“This bastard!”

Let her catch him and break his leg!

“Madam, it’s best to quickly send someone over.” Aunt Zhang was so anxious that her sideburns were drenched in sweat. “The servant tending to the Young Master didn’t dare to act on his own accord and secretly sneaked back to the residence to report. Young Master is about to shave his head!”

Time was tight, and it was rare for Madam to be in the mood to scold people.

“That stubborn donkey. Send someone to drag him back!” Madam Xie gritted her teeth. What kind of fate did she have?

After marrying as a second wife, she had a stepson who was a casanova and her own son had no bottom line. He was obsessed with all kinds of things and even wanted to become an immortal. Was he trying to become a Buddha now that he could not become an immortal? Why didn’t he reflect on himself and behaved like a dumb fool? Even if the deities did not want him, did Buddha not have standards?

“Damn it!” Xiao Baoxin’s face was filled with anger. She squeezed her fingers until they creaked.

Without waiting for Madam Xie to agree, she had already left the house like a gust of wind, leaving Madam Xie’s hand in mid-air and her mouth half-opened. “Your demeanor…”

A well-bred lady should behave like one.

The judgemental looks of the aristocratic families in Jiankang City made Madam Xie pay attention to her demeanor at all times, and she was even more attentive to her children’s demeanor. For this reason, she specially approached the main Xie family to invite a female teacher to teach the ladies some rules, as she was afraid that they would be laughed at.

However, her daughter was the only one who could handle her unreliable son. Madam Xie did not say anything and only asked Aunt Zhang to follow along.

“Don’t beat the Second Master until he’s badly injured,” Madam Xie instructed. “At least keep him alive.”

Madam Cai, “…”

Aunt Zhang, “…”

Xiao Baoxin did not care about what was going on in the room. She brought her maid and rushed out of the main courtyard. The person who was kneeling in front of the gate was Xiao Family’s little Master Xiao Baoshu’s personal servant, Papaya.

At the age of twelve or thirteen, he was thin and tall. His face was pale and his usually quick-witted face was shaking like a leaf. Not only his face, even his chest and back were covered with sweat out of heat and fear.

“Miss—” Papaya cried with a trembling voice. “Qiong Ju and I did not expect Young Master to suddenly make a fuss about becoming a monk. We couldn’t stop him…”

As a Songs of Chu enthusiast, Xiao Baoshu’s servants were called Papaya and Qiong Ju, while his maids were Mu Tao and Qiong Yao.

“That’s enough.” Xiao Baoxin waved her hand. She was in a fit of anger and was not in the mood to talk to him. “Lead the way.”

Xiao Baoxin was usually very kind to her servants, and everyone in the residence knew that. However, the maids and servants around Xiao Baoshu had seen the Eldest Miss flip out and were always afraid of her.

Even if she had no intention of blaming him, Papaya’s legs were already trembling.

However, he did not dare to delay any further. He was afraid that if he was too late, his Young Master would become a monk and would no longer be part of the Five Elements.

“… Young Master pestered the old monk to learn how to transcend for almost half a month, but the old monk refused to do anything. Today, he really had no choice after his persistent pestering, so he said that he would only teach one disciple. As a result, the Young Master wanted to become the old monk’s disciple, and insisted on becoming a monk.” Papaya wiped his tears as he cried, but he had a glib tongue and explained everything clearly.

“We couldn’t stop him, and neither could we persuade him. In the end, we had no choice but to secretly report back to the residence to Madam and Miss—” Xiao Baoxin strode forward like the wind.

If Madam Xie were in front of her, she would definitely scold her for not having the demeanor of a lady from a noble family, for baring her fangs and brandishing her claws.

Xiao Baoxin listened to what Papaya had to say all the way until he was outside the residence. Aunt Zhang had already prepared a carriage and was waiting at the bottom of the stairs, panting heavily.

“Miss, Madam instructed—”

Xiao Baoxin jumped into the carriage. “Baoguang Temple.”

Aunt Zhang smacked her lips and did not dare to say anything else. Everyone in the residence knew who Lady Xiao was. When her temper flared up, it was best to pretend to be a quail and not face the gun directly. Although Lady Xiao was not someone who liked to take out her anger on others, she was still a steward after all. It would be quite embarrassing to be criticized by her.

The carriage driver knew that the situation was urgent and did not dare to delay any further. However, bull carriages were currently popular in the Liang dynasty, so although it was stable, it moved extremely slowly.

Baoguang Temple was located in Huai Hua Alley on Nanjing Street. It was a small temple with many twists and turns. When Xiao Baoxin and her group arrived, it was already past noon. However, the sun was shining brightly, and the sunlight shone on Xiao Baoxin’s face, making her even more furious.

Everyone knew that the sun was scorching hot in the afternoon, and her skin would be tanned if she was exposed to too much sun. Yet she had a ‘good’ younger brother, who was still causing trouble on such a day, causing her to not have peace. Did he think that her snow-white skin was so easy to maintain?

“Lead the way.” Xiao Baoxin’s voice was ice-cold.

Papaya shivered and did not dare to take half a step back. He rushed into the temple with his head lowered, as if his tail was caught between his legs. Behind him were the three people, Miss and two servants who were in a hurry… and Aunt Zhang, who was clearly out of place. They looked like they were going to tear down the place. The young novice monk who was sweeping at the door did not even dare to stop her. He retreated to the side with his mouth agape.

The young novice monk, “…” This bunch of vicious-looking people, Master would definitely not blame him for not treating them well… Amitabha.

Baoguang Monastery was not big. After going around the pagoda in front, they reached the back hall. After turning a corner, Xiao Baoxin saw her younger brother kneeling on the ground with his back facing the door. His hands were still hugging the old monk’s thigh.

The old monk seemed to be in his sixties. His body was wide and fat. It was already very hot in summer, and with Xiao Baoshu’s sticking so close, he was perspiring from head to toe, even though he had struggled to break free with all his might but to no avail. It was as if his head had just been pulled out of the water.

“Benefactor… have mercy on me…”

“Master, don’t stand on ceremony with your disciple—”

Xiao Baoxin was so angry that her anger rose to the top of her head. Her face was as red as the sunset.

“Xiao Baoshu!”

Xiao Baoshu, “…Huh?” Who called him?

Before he could turn his face, the old monk saw a gust of wind coming from outside the hall. It arrived in front of him in an instant. Then, Xiao Baoshu was kicked in the face. Before the old monk could react, Xiao Baoshu had already been pulled off his body by being grabbed by his hair.

“…”

Didn’t he say that he couldn’t randomly acknowledge disciples? Had his enemies come knocking on his door?!