Having achieved his goal, Hu Xiaotian was naturally satisfied. Rong Shi was really only a minor figure, so why did Huo Xiaoru want to rescue him? Why had she even made it a condition for meeting him? As far as Hu Xiaotian remembered, she and Rong Shi should have had no connection. If there was one, it could only have been through Xue Shengjing. Xue Shengjing and Ren Tianqing had been secretly colluding-had Ren Tianqing asked Huo Xiaoru to do this through Xue Shengjing?
Fengyi Manor lay just ahead. After discussing it with Qiqi, Hu Xiaotian decided they would go straight to pay their respects at the grave rather than visit the manor. The Imperial Court had once confiscated the estate, but after Hu Xiaotian accepted his princely title, it had been restored and rebuilt. Throughout it all, however, Xu Fengyi's grave had remained completely untouched. Qiqi told the others not to follow, lest they disturb Xu Fengyi's departed spirit. Only she and Hu Xiaotian went up the mountain to pay their respects and tend the grave.
After paying their respects to his late mother, they did not linger, but headed directly to the Heavenly Dragon Temple.
By dusk, their party had reached the Heavenly Dragon Temple on Mount Luojia. Unlike the previous occasion, when they had accompanied the Old Emperor to worship, the temple had not arranged an elaborate reception. This was also at Princess Yongyang's request. Qiqi did not want their visit to disturb the entire temple, and the temple shared that preference. She had also chosen not to enter through the main gate. Instead, she, Hu Xiaotian, and the others took thirty guards up the mountain by the West Gate and followed a small path into the Samantabhadra Courtyard, rather than crossing the Five Wisdom Bridge to