The sudden gust of wind came out of nowhere. It caught the hem of Prince Jin's robes as he stood in the room. His heart stirred.
At that same moment, the Emperor's mind went blank for a second. When he came to, he abruptly remembered someone.
"I remember that some ten-odd years ago, there was a girl in the capital with extraordinary talent. Her calligraphy was exceptionally beautiful, and her transcriptions of sutras were highly favored by several elderly noblewomen."
The Emperor's sudden remark struck the internal attendant as quite strange.
"It is a pity that after she married and gave birth, her talent and spirit seemed to dry up. No one ever heard of her fame again." The Emperor looked up at Prince Jin in surprise. "That's right, I remember now. She married Lu Ming she was his original wife."
Prince Jin was taken aback.
"How strange. I had long forgotten such a person, yet seeing this sutra made her come to mind so suddenly." Even the Emperor felt a bit astonished.
"Lu Ming had a previous wife?" Prince Jin asked.
He hadn't known about this. He had only verified Lu Zhaoling's identity and investigated how she ended up in the countryside as a child and what happened upon her return to the capital. It had never occurred to him that her father had a wife before the current one.
That would mean the current Madam Lu was a successor wife.
Ten-odd years ago, Lu Ming wasn't even an eighth rank official. He had only just begun to show some talent, and few in the capital paid him any mind. It was strange that the Emperor would know about this.
"Most likely. At the time, I only happened to hear my Royal Aunt mention the girl in passing, saying she had married into the Lu family. Back then, I saw a sutra she had transcribed; the characters were truly as elegant as pearls and jade. Few women could compare."
The Emperor looked down at the sutra before him again. "This handwriting is somewhat similar, though upon closer inspection, these characters are more forceful than those of the former Madam Lu."
Prince Jin looked at him and realized the Emperor hadn't seen the Hidden Talisman on the paper at all.
Could the effect of that talisman be to make him remember the other Madam Lu?
"This is strange indeed. Is this the second Miss Lu I betrothed to you?" the Emperor asked.
"Yes."
"The wedding hasn't even happened yet, and you were already calling her 'Princess Consort' just now?" The Emperor caught onto a strange point of focus.
Prince Jin remained silent. He must have had a moment of madness just then.
"Logically speaking, since she is the second daughter, she wouldn't have been born to the first wife. How did she learn that woman's calligraphic style? The current Madam Lu doesn't seem like the broad-minded type; wouldn't she mind?"
The Emperor felt that after hearing those strange rumors about noble daughters losing their composure, he had become a bit of a gossip himself, like an old woman at the market.
Because of the betrothal to Prince Jin, he had naturally heard a few things about the Lu family these past few days. He had heard that the current Madam Lu was quite the jealous type.
The fact that no one had remembered the original wife for so many years was likely due to her influence. Would she really let her own daughter learn the style of the woman who came before her?
"Didn't they say this second Miss Lu was raised in the countryside for ten years? How could she write such a fine hand? Could it be that Lu Ming's relatives in his hometown valued her education and provided for her studies?"
The Emperor wasn't the only one curious; even Prince Jin couldn't figure it out. Lu Zhaoling was becoming more mysterious by the day.
However, the Emperor didn't dwell solely on Lu Zhaoling.
"She put a lot of heart into transcribing this Heart Sutra. Send it along with the ones Changning delivered to the Grand Emperor's funeral altar," the Emperor commanded.
The internal attendant hurried forward and placed Lu Zhaoling's copy into the box.
But then, the Emperor suddenly thought of something. "Actually, send them to the Ancestral Temple instead. Offer them before the Grand Emperor's spirit tablet."
When the time came, the Grand Emperor would be buried in the imperial mausoleum. These young ladies' sincere offerings should be presented before the tablet for now.
"As you command."
"I shall take my leave as well," Prince Jin said, turning to depart.
The Emperor wanted to ask him to stay so the imperial physician could examine him, but he was too late.
"I'll head to the Ancestral Temple as well." After stepping outside, Prince Jin watched the attendant carrying the box and decided to follow.
Inside the temple hall, Jiechi was striking the wooden fish while stealing glances at the Grand Emperor's spirit tablet.
For the past two days, the spirit tablet hadn't fallen over again. His senior brother said there might have been a wind before a strange wind that didn't hit them but only blew against the tablet.
But little Jiechi felt that the reason it stayed upright was likely because Prince Jin had sent over a different kind of thread incense two days ago. Only one family could produce this kind of incense, and they didn't make much of it in a year. It was incredibly expensive.
Furthermore, once this incense burned down, the ash would curl into the shape of a flower, remaining intact for a long time without scattering. Its scent was elegant and refined, unlike the choking smoke of ordinary incense.
This incense was named Lingxi Incense.
Ever since they switched to the Lingxi Incense, the Grand Emperor's spirit tablet hadn't fallen. Little Jiechi decided that the Grand Emperor was a man who had high standards for his incense. However, he didn't dare say it aloud.
The internal attendant arrived with the sutras and carefully placed them before the spirit tablet. Jiechi and Sizhen stopped their wooden fish as they watched Prince Jin enter.
"Young masters, these are the sutras transcribed for the Grand Emperor by the noblewomen of the capital. Please look after them," the attendant told them.
"Amitabha. The female benefactors are very thoughtful," Sizhen responded earnestly.
Jiechi's eyes went wide. He had gone into the city today and heard about the incident where the noble daughters had lost their composure during the sutra copying gathering... But as a child, he couldn't commit the sin of improper speech, so it wasn't right to mention it.
Little Jiechi rubbed his small bald head and glanced at the sutras a few more times.
Right at that moment, the Grand Emperor's spirit tablet fell over with a sharp clack.
The little monk Jiechi jumped up, shouting in shock, "The Grand Emperor thinks the sutras have been tainted by a foul stench!"
His senior brother Sizhen, who was a few years older, couldn't cover his mouth in time.
The internal attendant's brow twitched as he quickly looked back at Prince Jin.
Prince Jin stared at the fallen spirit tablet. Could it be because Lu Zhaoling's Hidden Talisman was in there?
"Since the Grand Emperor doesn't like these sutras, don't offer them. Burn them," Prince Jin said.
The attendant's heart trembled. No way? Does the Grand Emperor really have a lingering spirit? Did he truly despise these sutras because of what happened at Princess Changning's gathering?
If word of this got out, it would be a massive slap to Princess Changning's face. And the other young ladies who had transcribed them, including Miss Shen, would find their reputations tarnished.
Prince Jin's gaze swept toward him. The attendant didn't dare disobey and quickly moved to retrieve the sutras.
Prince Jin reached out and took the top one for himself. "Go on."
The rest of the sutras were tossed into a fire.
"You two young masters, I wish to speak a few words with my father."
Sizhen quickly pulled little Jiechi out of the hall.
Prince Jin was left alone in the hall. He stepped forward, placed the single sutra back on the offering table, and righted the spirit tablet.
"Old man, are you despising this particular copy?"
Clack.
The spirit tablet fell again.
Just as he thought.
"Lu Zhaoling has shown kindness to both of us, father and son. I truly don't understand your behavior. Fine then, I'll bring her here in person another day to ask you myself."
He really wanted to see what kind of temper the Grand Emperor's spirit tablet was throwing. Moreover, he wanted to know exactly what the purpose of Lu Zhaoling's Hidden Talisman was.
Taking back the sutra, Prince Jin left the Ancestral Temple and headed straight for the Lu Residence.
🚨 Note: Consider supporting this story on Patreon.com/Flokixy to access 400+ advance chapters and 2 new chapters daily! (Full story bundles also available without a subscription).