All Hail Cousin Brother

258 Cousin, Ask Quickly

The sound of wheels in his ears made Zen Master Hui Ji close his eyes and recite a scripture. “Amitabha. The heart is formless. A person’s appearance will change according to the good and evil of the heart. With a thought, one will be foolish, and with a thought, one will be wise. Protect your true heart, and in an instant, it will be eternal. You can’t say that you’re comprehending the words of Buddha. You have to walk the path of Buddha…”

Zhou Linghuai left the meditation room. The Buddhist scripture was still echoing in his ear. His gaze was deep. In the distance, the wishing Bodhi tree cover was like a cloud, and the red wishing silk on it fluttered in the wind.

Suddenly, he remembered that on the day of the Buddhist Festival, the little girl was in this meditation room. She gently tugged at his sleeve. “Cousin, Cousin, did you see the wishing Bodhi outside the meditation room? I went there to make a wish just now. I’m very strong. The wishing silk was thrown high up, so it will definitely hang for a long time. The longer and higher the wishing silk is hung on the tree, the more effective it will be.”

He had never believed in ghosts and gods, only himself. However, Zhou Linghuai was amused by the little girl’s chatter.

Yu Youyao chatted on. “When I was throwing the wishing silk just now, a strange wind blew from somewhere, scaring me. Fortunately, there was a good wind. I borrowed the force to send the wishing silk to a high branch. The auntie who sold it said that this was a good sign and auspicious.”

Zhou Linghuai chuckled. “It’s indeed a good sign that the wind sent it to the top branch.”

“Yes, yes.” Yu Youyao nodded vigorously. Then, she tugged at her cousin’s sleeve and asked happily, “Cousin, why don’t you ask me what I wished for?”

He did not believe this, so there was naturally nothing to ask. However, he saw Yu Youyao pouting slightly and looking at him with sparkling eyes with anticipation. Her face was filled with the words, “Cousin, quickly ask, quickly ask.” Zhou Linghuai couldn’t help but smile and ask smoothly, “I wonder what wish Cousin made just now?”

Yu Youyao giggled and tilted her head. “I can’t tell Cousin. It won’t work if I tell him!”

Zhou Linghuai immediately felt his hand itch. He raised his hand and tapped her forehead lightly.

Yu Youyao looked aggrieved. “Cousin, I won’t be smart if you knock me again!”

Zhou Linghuai suddenly laughed. He looked up and saw the green clouds above his head. Only then did he realize that he had unknowingly arrived under the Bodhi tree.

He sat under the tree and looked up. The red silk of the tree swayed in the wind. It was as if he could see a little girl in a plain dress standing under the tree on her tiptoes.

A Bodhi tree did not attract dust. It represented Prajna, and was extremely pure

He wondered which one belonged to the little girl.

He wondered what the little girl wished for.

Occasionally, when a gust of wind blew, the branches and leaves of the Bodhi tree would move, and the wishing silk hanging on the tree would fall. The monk who was sweeping the ground bent down to pick up the wishing silk.

Zhou Linghuai asked calmly, “What will the temple do with the wishing silk that fell from the tree?”

The monk who was sweeping the floor retracted his gaze. “Amitabha. Bodhisattva originally did not have a tree, and the mirror was not a platform. It originally did not have anything, so how could it cause dust! Bodhisattva only seeks what is in its heart, so why should it seek enlightenment from the outside? Naturally, it was consecrated in front of Buddha and received incense offerings. After chanting for 49 days, it was burned clean. It sought Buddha but sought the heart, so it could be considered as resolving the karma.”

Zhou Linghuai noticed the copper coins on the wishing silk and suddenly understood. What was hanging on the tree was wishing for money, and what had fallen to the ground was also incense money.

So much for karma.

His cousin’s wishing silk was probably no longer on the tree. Zhou Linghuai looked up at the tree with a disappointed expression. He turned his wheelchair and prepared to leave.

At this moment, a wishing silk fell to the ground at his feet with a clang. The breeze blew, and the wishing silk was flipped. “May Cousin’s evil illness disappear on its own, and all his illnesses disappear. May he stay away from calamity and live a peaceful life.”

Zhou Linghuai’s gaze suddenly paused. It was the little girl’s handwriting.

He bent down and picked up the wishing silk. His fingers gently stroked the words on it. He could feel that when the little girl wrote this line, she was reciting Buddhist scriptures in her heart and filled with pious hope.

He smiled. “Yin San!”

Yin San, who was hiding in the rockery, suddenly appeared and bowed. “Young Master.”

Zhou Linghuai handed the wishing silk to him and instructed, “Tie it to the highest point of the tree.”

Since this was his cousin’s wish, he had to be the “good wind” to help her achieve her wish. She had to let this wishing silk hang at the highest point for a long time.

“Yes—” Yin San took the wishing silk and jumped onto the tree. In a moment, he was at the top of the tree and tied the wishing silk to it.

Zhou Linghuai stood under the tree. The Bodhi tree towered into the clouds, covering the sky like the tree in the Jade Courtyard. However, he could still see a bright red color between the green clouds. It would probably take a long time for it to fade.

He looked at it for a long time until his neck felt sore. Then, he lowered his head.

He wondered how the little girl was doing in the Marquis of Changxing’s Residence.

Qi Sinian, who was playing chess with Yu Youyao, watched as she twirled the white chess piece in her hand and stared at the chessboard, scratching her cheeks and ears. “Where am I going to do now?” Seeing a gap in the middle, he reached out his hand. “Is this okay?”

As he spoke, he looked up at her.

Seeing that she did not answer with a straight face, Yu Youyao moved her hand to another spot. “Or here?”

The veins on Qi Sinian’s forehead also twitched, but he resisted the urge to flip the chessboard.

He finally understood. Eldest Miss Yu had said that her talent was not good, and she was not lying at all. He had seen people with bad chess skills, but she had never seen anyone as bad as her. However, she was a lousy chess player, and her chess skills were extremely poor. It was infuriating.

After waiting for a long time, Yu Youyao still did not make a move. Qi Sinian was a little impatient. “Are you going to play or not?”

Yu Youyao pouted. “I haven’t thought about it yet, okay? Don’t rush me. My cousin said that you have to think carefully when playing chess. I’ll make a move after I’ve thought it through.”

Qi Sinian’s face was wooden. “Your cousin is right, so you have to play chess with him.”

At this moment, a few young misses escorted Lu Mingyao, Cao Yingxue, and Yu Jianjia towards the octagonal pavilion. The group chatted and laughed. It was really lively.

They had finished admiring the flowers.

The two of them looked at each other and naturally picked up the black and white chess pieces from the chessboard in tacit understanding. They placed them into the chessboard and did not plan to continue playing.

A maidservant served tea and they picked it up to drink.

Yu Youyao sat still, not planning to go up and curry favor. However, after Yu Jianjia entered the pavilion, she saw her immediately. She even brought Lu Mingyao and Cao Yingxue over.

Since they had already walked over, it was not appropriate for Yu Youyao to sit any longer, so she stood up.

Yu Jianjia warmly held Yu Youyao’s hand and introduced her warmly, “Big Sister, this is Seventh Sister Cao of the Marquis of Changxing’s family and Fifth Sister Lu of the Marquis of Weining’s family. They’re both polite and kind people.”

She had befriended a noble lady at the Flower Festival, so she couldn’t wait to introduce her sisters to her. In the eyes of anyone, she was polite and kind.