Since Wei Shuxuan had said so, Wei Wei, Xin Shang and the others had no choice but to take a short rest on the spot. Wei Wei walked over and asked with concern, "Miss, how do you feel now?"
"I feel okay. I've just been walking for too long and my feet hurt a little."
Wei Shuxuan forced a smile. It seemed that the saying "a broken bone takes a hundred days to heal" was no exaggeration. She had only rested for nearly a month after spraining her ankle, so it was natural that she hadn't fully recovered yet.
"Sister Xuan, do you want to have some pastries and a cup of tea before we continue our journey?" Si Ma Yongheng eagerly stepped forward in front of Wei Shuxuan, holding a peach - wood food box in his hand.
"Thank you, Yongheng. But I'm not hungry."
Seeing Si Ma Yongheng looking so cute, Wei Shuxuan couldn't help but stroke his head and gently declined his offer.
"Sister Xuan, it's not like that. If you think of climbing the mountain as a picnic, taking breaks and enjoying food along the way, you'll easily forget about the pain. Why don't you give it a try? Maybe your feet won't hurt so much. I feel like you seem really eager to climb up Qiuling Mountain."
"...... What you said does make sense," Wei Shuxuan reflected on her state of mind. It seemed that she was indeed a bit too eager. Her eagerness had put some pressure on herself, which was why her feet hurt. "Alright, then I'll try your way. Yongheng, come on, take out all the delicious food for me!"
Maybe she was really being too hasty. But why was she in such a hurry? Holding a pastry, Wei Shuxuan couldn't figure it out.
"Sister Xuan, are you full? If so, let's continue climbing the mountain!" Si Ma Yongheng seemed extremely excited. He quickly stuffed all the pastries from the food box into his mouth and shouted for Wei Shuxuan to set off quickly.
"Yes, yes, yes. Let's go now. Wei Wei, Xin Shang, are you two ready?" Wei Shuxuan turned around and looked at Wei Wei and Xin Shang who were sitting there with their eyes closed, resting.
"No problem at all, Miss. I'm ready to go right now."
"Yes, Miss Xuan. I'm also fine and can continue climbing the mountain."
They walked along the mountain ladder upwards. There were many tourists climbing the mountain with them. They were holding all kinds of sacrificial items. It seemed that only Wei Shuxuan and her three companions were carrying only food.
The scenery on the mountain was pleasant. The big trees around swayed gently in the breeze. Wei Shuxuan felt really comfortable. There were also colorful and gorgeous flowers blooming all around.
"Wow, I've never seen these kinds of flowers before! They're so rare!" Wei Shuxuan leaned forward to look at the flowers on both sides of the mountain ladder. Just as she was about to reach out and touch them, Xin Shang grabbed her arm.
"Miss Xuan, these flowers are spiritual. Please don't touch them casually, or you might cause a lot of trouble."
"Spiritual?" Wei Shuxuan looked at Xin Shang in confusion. Then she turned to look at those brightly - blooming and fresh flowers. With excitement on her face, she said, "Does it mean... do these flowers turn into fairies?"
"Miss Xuan, I never said that. But if you think so, that's okay. However, the flowers and plants on Qiuling Mountain can't be touched casually. It is said that these flowers and plants are extremely poisonous. Once you're poisoned, it will be very troublesome."
"I see..." Wei Shuxuan nodded thoughtfully. She wondered if Xin Zizhao in the past would also touch these flowers and plants out of curiosity.
Soon, the four of them reached the halfway point of the mountain. There was a resting pavilion and a very small temple on the halfway point of Qiuling Mountain. It seemed that only two monks were taking care of this temple. Although the temple was small, there were still many pilgrims coming to pay their respects.
Wei Shuxuan walked over and looked up at the plaque on the temple. The name of the temple was Qiuling Small Temple. Entering through the main gate, walking along a short stone path and climbing three stone steps, she entered the temple. A giant Buddha stood in front of her. There were already many pilgrims praying sincerely inside.
"Wow, there are so many people here..." Wei Shuxuan surveyed the environment inside the small temple. The space inside was small but very tall, probably to accommodate this giant Buddha.
"Miss, do you want to pay your respects?" Wei Wei bought a few incense sticks from an old monk in the temple and handed them to Wei Shuxuan.
"Since we're already here, why not."
Wei Shuxuan took the incense sticks from Wei Wei. Following the example of the other pilgrims, she first prayed sincerely to the Buddha, inserted the burning incense sticks into the incense burner, then knelt on the cushion to draw a fortune - telling stick, and finally went to ask the monk in the temple to interpret the stick.
"Bad luck?" Wei Shuxuan turned over the wooden stick and saw the word "bad luck" written on it. "I actually drew a bad - luck stick. Fortunately, I don't believe in this."
"Miss, since we're already here, why not go over there and get the stick interpreted?"
"I don't want to. If you want to, you can take it and have a look."
Wei Shuxuan carelessly threw the wooden stick to Wei Wei. Just as she was about to leave the temple, an old monk appeared in front of her.
"Miss, judging from your appearance, you have a unique and prosperous look. However, you weren't supposed to be here but have come here. I dare say that you will face a huge obstacle later. If you can overcome this obstacle, your life in the future will be good."
Wei Shuxuan was very interested in what the old monk said. She smiled and asked, "Uncle, do you know where I'm from?"
The old monk stroked his white beard and smiled gently. "Of course I do. You're from a place unknown to others. Miss, if you don't mind, you can climb up the mountain and ask my master to interpret the stick for you. My master is very accurate in interpreting sticks."
"That's just perfect. I was just planning to climb to the top of the mountain. By the way," Wei Shuxuan looked around, then pulled the old monk to a deserted corner. "Uncle, let me ask you, is this the place where the princes of the Yulong Kingdom have practiced over the generations?"
"You can say so. But the princes who come here are those who have been abandoned. I can tell that you must have had contact with the royal family. Am I right, Miss?" The old monk looked at Wei Shuxuan with a smile.
Wei Shuxuan had already known this. It turned out that this place wasn't for the princes to practice but just to take them in.