Just then, Su Jinhan’s call came from the front courtyard, so Xiao Sui An tucked the jade pendant into her pocket and pulled Shen Jingzhao back with her.
The siblings had a tacit understanding; after entering the room, they ate quietly, neither mentioning that they had just been to the Eldest Brother’s room.
After finishing breakfast, Xiao Sui An jumped off her chair and said, "Mother, are you going out today? Sui An wants to go too!"
She had to go out and test it to see where that jade pendant was so urgently trying to go.
It was getting warmer, the perfect season for an outing, and Su Jinhan also wanted to take her daughter out for a walk, so she naturally agreed.
"If you want to go out and play, you must promise Mother that you won't be a picky eater anymore and that you can't just eat meat without vegetables." She tapped her daughter’s little nose, full of tenderness.
After Xiao Sui An pouted and agreed.
Su Jinhan tidied up, then led her two children, boarded the Marquis's Estate carriage, and headed toward Pu'an Temple.
Come to think of it, this was Xiao Sui An’s first time leaving the estate.
The prosperity of the long street and the liveliness of the market were things the little one had never seen while in the cold palace.
Along the way, she poked her little head out of the window, finding everything she saw fresh and new.
The more the little one saw, the more questions she had. A moment later, she asked curiously, "Mother, what is that pastry shop they are talking about? Why are so many people going inside?"
A moment later, she exclaimed, "Oh? I see the sugar figure Second Brother bought for me last time! So it’s blown out with a mouth? That’s so amazing, I want to learn too!"
At first, Su Jinhan was very patient and answered everything for her, but by the end, she couldn't help but feel heartbroken.
It turned out that in all the time Sui An had been alive, she had never once been out to the market.
"What kind of life has this child been living all this time?" Su Jinhan sighed.
Shen Jingzhao, standing to the side, also felt heartbroken. "It’s okay, little sister. In the future, Second Brother will take you out to play often. Whatever you want to see or have, Second Brother will buy it for you!"
Xiao Sui An, however, didn't feel sad at all; instead, she swung her little feet and laughed.
"Okay, okay! Then Sui An is just too happy."
She didn't fear the past; as long as the future was full of love, that was enough. The little one never dwelled on things.
Xiao Sui An’s sunny expression infected both Su Jinhan and Shen Jingzhao.
Su Jinhan’s mood improved quite a bit, and she flicked Jingzhao on the forehead. "You brat, trying to show off, are you? Sui An is Mother’s daughter; if she wants to buy something in the future, won't Mother take her?"
Just as the mother and son were bickering, the carriage turned a corner, and suddenly, the jade pendant in Xiao Sui An’s little pocket began to shake violently again!
Xiao Sui An noticed the strange movement and hurriedly turned to ask Su Jinhan.
"Mother, Mother! Where are we now?"
Su Jinhan looked out the window. "We just passed the East and West streets and have arrived at Orchid Alley."
Feeling the jade pendant’s increasingly intense agitation, Xiao Sui An hurriedly told the carriage to stop. "Stop quickly, don't go any further!"
The coachman hurriedly pulled on the reins with a "whoa," leaving two rut marks on the bluestone road.
Su Jinhan couldn't help but be surprised. "Sui An, what’s wrong?"
Xiao Sui An shook her head, not knowing how to explain. "Mother, let’s get off first and walk around the neighborhood. Perhaps we will all know soon."
Su Jinhan had a feeling; the more unusual her daughter acted, the more it meant this matter was important. "Alright, let’s all get off."
She picked up Xiao Sui An with one hand, stepped steadily off the carriage, and turned back to help Shen Jingzhao.
At this moment, Xiao Sui An touched the jade pendant in her pocket and felt it almost going crazy, as if it wanted to break through her clothes and fly toward a certain direction!
Following the direction the jade pendant wanted to go, Xiao Sui An walked quickly with her short legs, with Su Jinhan and Shen Jingzhao following behind.
Soon, after turning a corner at the entrance of Orchid Alley, a small temple came into view.
And at this moment, the jade pendant suddenly stopped its agitation and, for some reason, became quiet.
Su Jinhan looked around; this small temple did not have much incense, and although it was in a busy area, she had never really come here before.
"What does Sui An want to do here?" she murmured.
Just as she was dazed, a little boy sweeping the floor saw them and brought over a bamboo fortune-telling cylinder, handing it to Su Jinhan. "Benefactor, for ten coins you can draw a fortune. Would you like to draw one?"
Su Jinhan didn't think much and nodded in agreement. Although she hadn't come with a sincere heart, since she had already disturbed the place, it was only right to offer some incense money.
So, she took out half a piece of silver, drew a stick at random, opened it, and saw it written: 【The wild goose flies beyond the sky, the boat moves without wind, the person is in the bright moonlight, a supreme fortune.】
The little boy put the silver away, took the fortune slip, and said, "Thank you, Benefactor. Let me interpret the fortune for you."
He looked it over and his eyes suddenly brightened. "This fortune is very rare. Not only is it a supreme fortune, but it also signifies life emerging from death and the reunion with an old friend. May I ask, Benefactor, has there been a death in your family within the past year?"
Su Jinhan was stunned by these words, her heart aching, but she only shook her head.
It was just a fortune slip; it couldn't be taken seriously. Besides, what did "life emerging from death" mean? Could a deceased person actually come back to life?
Just as they were talking, a burst of scolding suddenly came from ahead, catching Xiao Sui An’s attention.
She looked up and saw a young woman dressed in brocade speaking harshly to a beggar outside the main hall.
"You lowly thing, begging all the way to the temple and even dirtying my dress. How unlucky."
"What are you all standing there for? Throw his rice bowl away and beat him hard!"
The beggar was thin and weak; seeing his rice bowl knocked over, he didn't know how to resist and only hurriedly crawled on the ground to pick it up.
"Cake... my cake... eat, eat."
Seeing the servants' large fists, the next moment, they were about to land on his head.
Xiao Sui An furrowed her little brows and shouted hurriedly, "Stop! You want to hit someone in front of the divine hall and still expect the gods and Buddhas to protect you? It would be a miracle if you didn't get struck by lightning!"
Hearing the voice, Su Jinhan and Shen Jingzhao also rushed over and stepped forward to scold the crowd.
"Who dares to make a move? Get out of here!" Shen Jingzhao’s eyes turned cold as he shielded his sister.
Seeing that someone had arrived, the woman gritted her teeth and could only take her people away. "Hmph, I don't have the patience to deal with them. Let’s go."
Su Jinhan frowned, and after seeing that Xiao Sui An was fine, she went up to help the beggar. "Are you alright, child? Did they hurt you?"
The beggar still only cared about eating the cake.
At this moment, a breeze blew, lifting his messy hair and revealing a large burn scar on his face and a pair of gentle, beautiful eyes.
When Su Jinhan saw this, she trembled all over and nearly fell to the ground.
Her voice seemed to tear through her throat as she cried out, "Jing Huai... Mother’s good Jing Huai, is it really you!"
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