The whole family is insanely eavesdropping on my thoughts Chapter 599
Chapter 599: Leading Astray
Senior Brother Lin staggered as he stepped out, his face pale as a sheet.
“Mother, please go to the National Temple and ask for a protective talisman for me. I must have been haunted by something unclean…” Sweat poured down his forehead as he spoke, his body feeling as if every bone had been broken inch by inch. His limbs were weak, and his legs trembled uncontrollably.
The Lin family was greatly alarmed, and the Old Madam personally led a group to the National Temple to seek divine protection—but that was a story for another time.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Senior Brother Lin recalled that he had already selected his students yesterday, and today marked the beginning of his teaching duties. He endured the pain and climbed into the carriage.
When the carriage stopped outside the Women’s Academy, the book boy assisted him down, but he almost collapsed. Looking up—
He saw his fellow scholars, their faces just as pale, foreheads covered in cold sweat, their eyes reflecting barely concealed pain.
The group exchanged glances.
“You all…”
“Got beaten by ghosts too?” Senior Brother Lin asked in disbelief.
His fellow scholars darkened their expressions and hastily pressed their fingers to their lips. “Shh…”
“We must not speak of it, must not! What if it returns tonight? I can’t bear another beating!” One of them nearly choked up. They had cried to the heavens and pleaded with the earth, yet their torment remained unbroken. The most terrifying thing was—they couldn’t wake from the nightmare.
Finishing his words, the scholar clasped his hands together and prayed to all four directions. “I said nothing, truly nothing. Please, spare me. May the Bodhisattva bless me…”
Supporting one another, they stepped through the gates of the Women’s Academy.
Senior Brother Lin’s eyes reddened, the fear within barely suppressed. “We must have encountered something truly sinister. I’ve already asked my mother to go to the National Temple for protective talismans. Later, we should also visit the City God Temple and seek divine aid. I refuse to believe we cannot suppress this malevolent spirit!”
“With gods and deities everywhere, surely one of them can subdue it!”
“Indeed!” The group encouraged one another.
Then, one of them suddenly laughed. “Do you know who came looking for me this morning?”
Everyone looked at him, puzzled.
“Someone wanted to buy my teacher’s position. Guess how much they offered?” This scholar had previously cursed Lu Chao Chao for swindling him out of three hundred taels—fifteen hundred taels over five years. But now, his heart brimmed with gratitude toward her.
“How much?” They momentarily set aside their fears and asked eagerly.
“Thirty thousand taels, and they even offered to go higher.” Had he not been determined to take the imperial exams, he might have been tempted.
He was born into a poor family. His mother washed clothes for others daily, and his father was a humble farmer. Thirty thousand taels were enough for him to buy a house and a shop in the capital, marry a beautiful wife, and live a secure life.
“You mustn’t sell it. A scholar’s word is worth a thousand gold pieces!” Senior Brother Lin hurriedly warned.
The scholar waved his hand. “Rest assured, I am not that foolish. What is thirty thousand taels compared to being personally guided by a sage for five years? Even if I don’t attain high rank, I will benefit for a lifetime.”
In the future, he would earn far more than thirty thousand taels.
“Thankfully, we acted quickly! No amount of money could have secured these positions.”
“Princess Sunshine forgave our transgressions and still granted us these teaching posts. Three hundred taels was practically a gift. Perhaps, she charged us merely to teach us a lesson.”
After all, how could a princess covet three hundred taels?
Of course not! A princess lacked nothing!
The ones who had previously been so enraged that they lost sleep over Lu Chao Chao’s demands now felt deeply ashamed. Senior Brother Lin sighed, “We have wronged Princess Sunshine. Let us dedicate these five years to teaching to the best of our ability.”
“Indeed, we must impart all our knowledge to the students and live up to the princess’s trust!” Their hearts swelled with gratitude for Lu Chao Chao.
Their sense of duty as teachers deepened.
In a nearby corner, Lu Chao Chao pouted in frustration.
She turned to the young man beside her. “Do I really look that wealthy?”
“Where do they think I have no need for money? I need money the most! I even have to grit my teeth just to buy a candied hawthorn…” She turned her pockets inside out—completely empty.
“Do they think I don’t want to sell those positions?”
“If it weren’t for the sages’ disdain for worldly wealth…” If she had sold those posts, those old scholars would have turned their backs on her in an instant.
The three hundred taels had been their punishment for their previous misconduct.
It was a sum that made sense even in the eyes of the sages.
“Chao Chao, do you really need money?” The young man’s voice was deep, tinged with curiosity.
“Yes, desperately.”
He fell silent, memorizing her words.
“Where were you last night? I couldn’t find you anywhere.” The Heavenly Dao often copied Lu Chao Chao’s homework—their handwriting was identical. She had been looking for him to do her assignments.
The young man hesitated briefly but ultimately did not tell the truth. “Matters of the Upper Realm delayed me.”
Lu Chao Chao did not press further.
By afternoon, the Lu family was preparing their luggage.
Lu Chao Chao was departing the next morning.
Xie Yu Zhou was set to travel to the Brahma Kingdom, and the Prince and Princess Consort of Jing Xi were deeply troubled, coming in person to plead their case.
Inside the room—
“Yu Zhou was born with a deep affinity for Buddhism. I live in constant fear that he might renounce the world and become a monk. The Brahma Kingdom is a land of Buddhism—I truly cannot rest easy…”
Prince Jing Xi, knowing of his son’s close ties with Lu Chao Chao, realized he could not dissuade him directly. Instead, he turned to the Lu family, hoping they might intervene.
Princess Consort Jing Xi wiped away tears with her handkerchief. “He is already of marriageable age. A few more years, and he could wed and continue the family line. I would no longer have to worry about him…”
“At his birth, an old monk prophesied that he belonged to the Buddhist path. I have since eaten and slept poorly, my heart entirely consumed by fear. Madam Xu, as a mother yourself, you must understand my distress.” She grasped Madam Xu’s hand in sorrow.
“Please, I beg you, persuade him.”
Outside the door—
Xie Yu Zhou toyed with a jade pendant—an heirloom of the Jing Xi royal lineage, granted by the late emperor.
He was also holding the hand of a chubby, bald-headed toddler.
This was Xie Yu Zhou’s younger brother, Xie Yu Zhu, not yet two years old but already remarkably sharp-witted.
In a sweet, childlike voice, he asked, “Big Brother, can Ah Zhu have your jade? Ah Zhu really likes it…”
He reached out, trying to grab the pendant.
“Father said this jade pendant was gifted by the late emperor. It is our family heirloom… It was passed to me, so I cannot give it to you.”
“However, if you become a monk, I will give it to you.” Xie Yu Zhou grinned mischievously.
Ah Zhu tilted his head. “No way.”
“Mother says monks can’t marry.”
Xie Yu Zhou smirked. “Then I can’t give it to you.”
Ah Zhu panicked. “Then can I have it when you die?”
Xie Yu Zhou smacked him on the backside. “You little brat! How dare you wish me dead? I’m your big brother!”
“You’re the brat! Your whole family are brats!” Ah Zhu bared his tiny white teeth, furious.
Originally, he had a slight stutter. Prince Jing Xi had even consulted an imperial physician.
But ever since his older brother returned, his speech had become incredibly sharp—his stutter completely cured.
The two bickered louder and louder. Hearing the argument, Prince Jing Xi rushed out.
As he heard them exchanging insults, veins bulged on his forehead.
Seeing his younger son being led astray, he roared in frustration.
“I take it back! Let him go! Let him go! No one is to stop him! Madam Xu, please pretend we never came!” With that, he grabbed Xie Yu Zhu and fled.
Xie Yu Zhou blinked in confusion and turned to Lu Chao Chao. “What’s wrong with my father?”
“Last night, he forbade me from visiting you, afraid I’d take you to the Brahma Kingdom to become a monk.”
Now, his father had fled in defeat, leaving him at the Lu residence.
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation