Lin Qingge looked down at the wide-open doors of the Guanyin Hall. If she remembered correctly, she had entered and exited through the main doors just now?
"Amitabha, a monk does not tell lies. Everything this humble monk says is the truth."
...
???
!!!
After a series of complex psychological activities, Lin Qingge looked at Abbot Xuanjing, who was smiling at her, and suddenly felt her brain wasn't quite keeping up.
What the hell!
Could it be what she was thinking?
This wasn't just a matter of how much information there was!
It was a matter of whether one dared to even think about it!
As Lin Qingge's entire being felt off, Abbot Xuanjing, with one hand held to his chest, chanted:
"Descendants for a thousand years will inherit the great cause,
As the times turn, chariots and horses will shine.
Three thousand li away, the emperor's land,
Carved wood for a head, silk for a tail."
...
With her emotions a little scattered, Lin Qingge asked Abbot Xuanjing a few more questions and then called over the Khitan Emperor and the General of the Flying Cavalry, whose presence was almost zero.
"Your Majesty, before Prince Andrei entered the Guanyin Hall, did you and General Ta Buyan notice anything unusual?"
"What could I notice?
Ta Buyan and I do not believe in these things. After waiting for a long time with no sign of food, Ta Buyan and I squatted on the steps in front of the hall.
Oh, right, I faintly heard the dull thud of something heavy falling and heavy breathing.
Ta Buyan, did you hear it?"
"Your Majesty, this humble subject was so dizzy from hunger at the time that I had no mind to listen for sounds.
However, I did hear something like heavy breathing as if someone was moving something heavy. I thought then that Prince Andrei might be hiding in the hall, secretly eating something delicious."
Looking at the two teenagers smacking their lips before her, Lin Qingge felt that it would take at least fifty to a hundred years for the Khitan Kingdom to recover its vitality.
But moving heavy objects?
Andrei was a prince, after all. It was impossible and unlikely that he would move things inside the Guanyin Hall.
So, besides Prince Andrei, was there anyone else present in the Guanyin Hall?
With this thought, Lin Qingge summoned Lin Yan.
"Clerk Lin, do you remember who was present before Prince Andrei entered the Guanyin Hall?"
"Besides the Khitan and Chile delegations and our people, there was Abbot Xuanjing and his two accompanying disciples."
"Did those two accompanying disciples enter the Guanyin Hall with Prince Andrei?"
"As for that, this subordinate cannot clearly recall.
But this subordinate is certain that after Prince Andrei was discovered missing, those two accompanying disciples were indeed helping to search for him in the Guanyin Hall."
"Helping to search for him in the Guanyin Hall?"
Lin Qingge narrowed her eyes slightly and immediately summoned the two disciples.
"This humble monk is Huiming, this humble monk is Huixing. We pay our respects, sir."
"I ask you, were you two accompanying Prince Andrei when he entered the Guanyin Hall?"
"Yes."
"No."
Huiming and Huixing, who gave different answers, glanced at each other. Huiming stepped forward to explain:
"Reporting to sir, it was this humble monk who opened the door for Prince Andrei and ushered him into the hall.
But after informing Prince Andrei how to worship and make a wish, this humble monk withdrew. Huixing can bear witness."
"Yes, sir. This humble monk and Huiming have been waiting outside, ready to be dispatched at any time."
"Then where were you two when Prince Andrei was discovered missing?"
"Replying to sir, we humble monks have been guarding outside and even served tea to everyone during that time."
After Huiming finished, Huixing nodded in agreement.
Lin Qingge stared at the two bald heads before her, dressed identically, making them indistinguishable if one didn't look closely, and fell into thought.
Because Prince Andrei had not been found, Lin Qingge and the others could not leave.
Thus, the courtyard arranged by Abbot Xuanjing came into play.
After dinner, there was still no trace or news of Prince Andrei.
Lin Qingge rejected Hua Jinrong's suggestion to bring the imperial guards to search the temple. She instead had him return to the Lin Manor personally to deliver a message to Leng Ningyue, saying that Prince Andrei was lingering in Putuo Temple, and their party would be staying at Putuo Temple tonight.
Then, she found an excuse to send Yan Tinghao and Lian Chengyi away.
The moon climbed high.
Just after midnight, Lin Qingge, who should have been resting, pushed open her door, tiptoed out of the courtyard, and went alone to the Guanyin Hall where Prince Andrei had disappeared.
The empty hall lacked the solemn grandeur of the daytime, instead exuding a somewhat creepy and sinister atmosphere.
Especially the Guanyin statue, holding aćç¶ (pure vase) to save all beings, seemed somewhat ferocious with its upward curve illuminated by the mottled moonlight.
Lin Qingge swallowed hard, rubbed the goosebumps on her arms, and looked around.
A moment later, a figure appeared at the entrance.
The figure slowly paced into the hall, chanting Buddhist phrases:
"Amitabha."
"May I ask why Abbot Xuanjing has summoned this official here so late at night?"
"Amitabha, it should be this humble monk asking why Lord Lin visits the Guanyin Hall so late."
Hearing this, Lin Qingge rolled her eyes ungracefully, "Enough, stop playing dumb with me. Abbot Xuanjing, you clearly used a hidden-word poem to hint that I should come here at the third watch of the night."
Hearing Lin Qingge say this, Abbot Xuanjing seemed to nod with satisfaction, then actually performed a deep bow to Lin Qingge:
"This humble monk, Xuanjing, greets my master."
Master???
Lin Qingge's brain crashed again.
After a long period of no response, Abbot Xuanjing looked up with a hint of strangeness, "Amitabha, it has been some time since we last met. Why has my master become like a different person?"
"Heh heh."
Lin Qingge, who vaguely understood that the other party had mistaken her for her elder brother, pulled at the corners of her mouth and inwardly exclaimed, "Good heavens."
My goodness, it turns out 'I' also have a disguise?
But can I do without this disguise?
It seems that with the slightest carelessness, it's easy to lose my head, isn't it?!!!