Time Is Slow - Chapter 49

TheThe guest monk’s footsteps were light, and Li Jiaoo’s breathing seemed to soften along with them.

 

For a brief moment, she felt a pang of regret.

What if she got found out?

 

Li Jiaoo’s heart grew heavier.

 

The guest monk at Dafu Temple had spent years receiving noblewomen and was quite perceptive. Seeing her nervousness, he reassured her.

 

“Benefactress, you needn’t be anxious. The abbess is very kind.”

 

“Master, have you ever met Abbess Wumei?”

 

The monk smiled and shook his head.

 

“I haven’t had the fortune. But I’ve heard my senior uncle mention her. In all these years, the abbess has never received outsiders. For you to be granted an audience is truly rare.”

 

Hearing this, all traces of regret in Li Jiaoo’s heart vanished.

 

What was there to be afraid of? It was her grandmother who pushed her forward. The only ones who had seen the handwritten scripture were people from the Li family and Dafu Temple. As long as she insisted on her story, how could the abbess possibly know she was a fraud? She had never heard of anyone being asked to write on the spot just because of their handwriting. 

As long as she made it through this moment, she would become unrivaled among the noble girls of the capital.

 

With this in mind, Li Jiaoo secretly cheered herself on.

 

At the entrance to Shuying Nunnery, the guest monk came to a stop. A middle-aged nun took the scripture from him and led Li Jiaoo inside.

 

Li Jiaoo couldn’t suppress her curiosity. She glanced around out of the corner of her eye, thinking to herself that this visit to Shuying Nunnery would give her plenty to talk about in the future—especially since outsiders had never seen its interior.

 

Her thoughts drifted along the way, and by the time she came to herself, the nun had already brought her before Abbess Wumei.

 

“This is the young lady?” Abbess Wumei spoke, her voice cool and ethereal, untouched by worldly dust.

 

“Master, this is Second Miss Li, who copied this Buddhist scripture,” the nun said respectfully, offering the manuscript with both hands.

 

Abbess Wumei reached out and received it, gently caressing the pages as if they were something precious. Then she gave Li Jiaoo a faint smile.

 

“Come forward, benefactress.”

 

Li Jiaoo suddenly grew nervous and hurriedly bowed.

 

Abbess Wumei smiled slightly.

 

“No need for excessive courtesy. I didn’t expect you to be so young.”

 

She suddenly pointed to the scripture in her hand and asked, “Did you copy this yourself?”

 

Li Jiaoo’s heart pounded wildly. She summoned all her courage and squeezed out a single word.

 

“Yes.”

 

Abbess Wumei gazed at her, and her eyes carried a depth of emotion Li Jiaoo couldn’t understand.

 

The room was silent. Li Jiaoo even had the illusion that this abbess before her—who had once been the Grand Princess—might go on looking at her forever.

 

She quietly clenched her fists, her palms damp with sweat

.

“Though written in standard script, it can’t conceal its graceful freedom and subtle beauty,” Abbess Wumei murmured.

 

There was only one person she knew in the world capable of such a style.

 

Basked in such praise, Li Jiaoo couldn’t help lifting her head, boldly studying Abbess Wumei’s features.

 

Her brows and eyes were cold yet striking, her bearing elegant and poised. The fine lines at the corners of her eyes added a quiet beauty that only time could bestow, making her age impossible to guess.

 

She must have been a once-in-a-generation beauty in her youth, Li Jiaoo thought with awe.

 

A princess by birth, peerless in grace—how could someone like that have chosen to become a nun?

 

As this thought passed through her mind, she heard Abbess Wumei ask, “Benefactress, can you recite Invitation to Wine by Qinglian Jushi?”

 

“I can,” Li Jiaoo replied with a smile.

 

A poem that had echoed through the ages—which educated person couldn’t recite it?

 

“Come,” Abbess Wumei said, rising to her feet.

 

Li Jiaoo followed her into the inner chamber.

 

The room was like a snow cave, containing only a couch, a desk, and a few chairs.

 

Abbess Wumei gestured to the desk. “Benefactress, I would like to ask you to write Invitation to Wine for me. Would you be willing?”

 

Li Jiaoo froze on the spot.

Abbess Wumei looked at her with a calm gaze. Her gaze was serene like still water, yet with an undercurrent flowing beneath.

 

The color drained from Li Jiaoo’s face. Her delicate features turned paler than the snowy room itself.

 

“I—” She opened her mouth, but it was as if cotton had stuffed her throat. Not another word would come out.

 

Abbess Wumei said nothing to hurry her, but her gaze was long and steady—so steady that Li Jiaoo suddenly realized: she would not be allowed to make excuses.

 

The real reason Abbess Wumei had agreed to see her… was because she wanted to see her writing.

It wasn’t some spontaneous whim to ask her to write after meeting her.

 

Under that kind of gaze, Li Jiaoo braced herself and picked up the brush. The tip hovered for a long time, refusing to fall. Finally, a drop of ink stained the pristine white paper on the desk into a blot of black.

 

Along with the drop of ink came her cold sweat.

 

Abbess Wumei gently furrowed her brow—and suddenly, she understood.

 

From the moment Li Jiaoo entered, the abbess had maintained a serene expression, but now it finally changed.

 

Cold as snow, sharp as ice.

 

Li Jiaoo’s hand trembled as she held the brush. In the end, her whole body shook like a leaf in the wind—completely devoid of the grace and composure expected of a well-bred young lady.

 

Abbess Wumei let out a sigh of disappointment and instructed the nun standing outside, “Jingxi, escort this benefactress out. Tell the junior monks at Dafu Temple that they’ve brought the wrong person.”

 

“Yes.” The middle-aged nun glanced at the stunned Li Jiaoo and shook her head slightly. “Miss, this way, please.”

 

Li Jiaoo seemed to have lost her soul. With a dazed expression, she followed the nun out.

 

Behind her, Abbess Wumei’s voice suddenly rang out.

 

“Jingxi, bring me the right person.”

 

Jingxi stiffened and responded respectfully, “Yes.”

 

The path through Shuying Nunnery came to an end quickly. The guest monk waiting outside hurried forward.

 

Jingxi frowned.

 

“Junior brother, this is not the girl who copied the scripture. You brought the wrong person.”

 

The guest monk looked at Li Jiaoo in shock. That single glance made her feel utterly humiliated, and she involuntarily stepped back.

 

“This… I really didn’t expect this…” After a long moment, the monk finally managed to squeeze out a sentence.

 

“Go back quickly, brother. Master is still waiting.”

 

“Waiting?” The guest monk, stunned, reacted slowly.

 

Jingxi explained with some exasperation, “Of course, waiting for you to bring the girl who actually copied the scripture.”

 

It had been years since the abbess had seen an outsider, and now such a blunder had occurred. It was truly upsetting.

 

The guest monk straightened up and solemnly promised, “Don’t worry, senior sister. I won’t make the same mistake again.”

 

Jingxi nodded and turned back into the nunnery.

 

Li Jiaoo felt as though a hole had been torn in her chest, letting the wind howl through. Every step she took felt like she was trudging through snow and ice.

 

On the way back, no one offered her a word of comfort. Even the quiet mountain breeze seemed to have stopped.

 

“Second Miss Li is back—” a stir spread through the temple.

 

Seeing Li Jiaoo’s strange expression, everyone grew curious. Those with the means went directly to the guest hall where the Old Madam Jiang was waiting. Those without sent servants to inquire.

 

When the guest monk led Li Jiaoo through the doors of the hall, the room instantly fell silent. Then cheerful laughter rang out again.

 

“Oh my, our Second Miss is back! Come here, come here,” Madam Li called out with a smile.

 

Another lady laughed and interrupted, “You’re always so quick to speak. If anyone, Second Miss should go to Her Ladyship’s side. We should consider ourselves lucky just to hear about what she saw inside the nunnery.”

 

Old Madam Jiang couldn’t hide her amusement either—until the guest monk stepped closer and she realized something was off.

 

He bowed to her and chanted a Buddhist verse, then said, “Old Madam, I fear there’s been some kind of mistake. The abbess at Shuying Nunnery did not intend to see this young lady.”

 

The moment he spoke, the entire hall—and even the space outside—fell silent enough to hear a pin drop.

 

Li Jiaoo knelt on the floor. The icy surface pierced through her like a blade, chilling her to the bone. Tears welled up in her eyes instantly.

 

The mocking, scornful gazes around her turned into countless daggers that landed mercilessly on her body, stripping this once-pampered girl of all dignity in a moment.

 

Old Madam Deng sighed quietly and said, “Master, may I take a look at the scripture?”

 

The guest monk quickly handed it to her.

 

Old Madam Deng already had her suspicions, but she still put up a show. She glanced at it briefly and said, “As expected, there was a mix-up. This one belongs to our third young lady. I remember seeing her copy it—her writing was so good that I purposely placed it on top when sending it to the Eastern Residence. Who would’ve thought my nephew’s wife had the same idea, hoping the Lady would notice it at first glance. Who knew the Lady would misunderstand? When she said it belonged to the second young lady, how could the girl, nervous as she was, have noticed?”

 

These words managed to salvage a little of Li Jiaoo’s reputation.

 

Even though all the noblewomen present clearly understood Li Jiaoo had harbored the wrong kind of ambition, the Li family couldn’t afford to let this incident become fact.

 

Old Madam Jiang instinctively wanted to distance herself from the situation. However, Old Madam Deng wasn’t about to let her get her way so easily.

 

She had four granddaughters of her own. If the second girl’s reputation was ruined, what good could come to the others?

 

Old Madam Jiang was momentarily stunned. Since the situation was already embarrassing enough, she said nothing more, tacitly accepting the explanation by default.

 

Li Jiaoo bowed her head, tears streaming down her cheeks.

 

“So it was the third young lady of your household who copied it. May I ask where the benefactress is now?” the guest monk asked loudly.

 

The hall was silent, but outside, voices rose in discussion, loud enough to be heard.

 

“The third girl of the Li family? Wasn’t she the one who got kidnapped recently?”

 

“That’s right, and didn’t she get brought back personally by Divine Doctor Li?”

 

“Wait, I’ve seen that girl before. She didn’t look like someone who could write well.”

 

“Heh, and how exactly does someone look like they can write well?”

 

…

 

Du Feixue scowled and said, “Cousin Jiao, remember that year your uncle in the Eastern Residence had his birthday? Didn’t Third Miss Li send a calligraphy scroll? I remember it being utterly unimpressive!”

 

She deliberately raised her voice, immediately drawing everyone’s attention.

 

Li Jiao stood tall, smiling gently. “Perhaps our third sister has worked hard on her writing since then and improved.”

 

Du Feixue curled her lips. “Improved that much in just two years? Better than all the girls in the capital? Enough to make the abbess of Shuying Nunnery break protocol to meet her?”

 

Under all those stares, Li Jiao maintained her mild smile. “Maybe Third Sister is exceptionally gifted. Recently, she has been diligent, which should be why her progress this time is so smooth.”

 

If Li Zhao was exceptionally gifted, that would be a miracle. However, she would never speak ill of her sister in front of outsiders.

 

No one knew where that scripture had come from. First, Great Aunt pinned it on Li Jiaoo; now Grandmother wanted to credit it to Li Zhao.

 

Du Feixue scoffed coldly.

 

“If she’s that talented and improved overnight, then the sun must be rising in the west!”

 

Many in the room nodded silently in agreement.

 

The guest monk heard it all and grew increasingly uneasy.

 

If they got the wrong person again, it would be a complete disaster.

 

“Old Madam?” he asked.

 

Old Madam Deng, completely unfazed by the gossip, responded calmly, “Our third girl didn’t come today. But since the abbess wishes to see her, that’s her good fortune. I’ll send someone to fetch her right away.”

Beside her, Old Madam Jiang sneered silently.

 

Let’s see what sort of miracle it’ll take for that third girl to pull off such a piece of work.

—-

West Residence, Yahe Courtyard.

 

Qingyun rushed in and said to Binglu, who came out to meet her, “Quick, have Third Miss get ready. The Old Madam sent me to take her to Dafu Temple!”