The young monk said that Tan Linyuan asked Nan Yu to wait for him in the meditation room.
The meditation room was where the monks in the temple usually meditated, chanted scriptures, and lived.
Although Tan Linyuan no longer lived here, Chan Guang Temple still reserved this meditation room for him, making it convenient for him to use when he came occasionally.
The room was very simple. There was only a bed, a solid - wood square table, a Buddhist incense burner, and a solid - wood bookcase filled with scriptures.
The air was filled with Tan Linyuan's thin and cold aura. Nan Yu waited here for another ten-odd minutes, but no one came in.
She grew a bit impatient. She took out her phone but then remembered that she didn't have Tan Linyuan's contact information, so she irritably put it back in her pocket.
After waiting for quite a while, Nan Yu suddenly thought that maybe Tan Linyuan was deliberately teasing her, making her wait here until it got dark.
At this thought, she felt like she had been played with. She lifted her foot and was about to walk out of the room.
Just as she was walking towards the door aggressively, the door was pushed open from the outside.
Nan Yu was so frightened that she took a few steps back and immediately got into a defensive position. To her surprise, it was the young monk who had brought her here, carrying a food box in his hand.
"Benefactor, please wait a moment. Senior Brother Tan will come right away." The young monk put down the food box, clasped his hands in salute, and then left.
Nan Yu stared at the food box for a moment, and her stomach began to growl.
Nan Yu thought that Tan Linyuan probably wouldn't come back anytime soon.
...
When Tan Linyuan came in, he saw Nan Yu sitting upright at the table. In front of her were two plates of vegetarian dishes and a bowl of hot soup from the food box.
She was holding the bamboo chopsticks prepared in the food box and putting the vegetables into her mouth. Hearing the door open, the woman immediately turned her eyes and met his cold and dispassionate ones.
Well, she had been caught red - handed.
Since she had already been seen, Nan Yu didn't bother to hide it. She slowly put the green vegetables into her mouth, chewed them carefully, swallowed them, and then calmly said, "Hello, Uncle Tan."
Tan Linyuan was still wearing the long robe he had worn for praying in the temple. He still looked like an inviolable god, as aloof and self - controlled as ever.
But his look at her was quite different from that in the main hall just now.
He stared at her expressionlessly. "Is it delicious?"
"Delicious." Nan Yu nodded and sincerely praised, "I didn't expect the vegetarian food in the temple to be so delicious. No wonder the monks never get tired of eating vegetarian food all year round."
While eating just now, Nan Yu was thinking that if she didn't have to pay off her debts, she would even want to become a nun in the temple.
Tan Linyuan opened his lips and said in a cold and sarcastic tone, "Miss Nan, although you were born into a wealthy family, you don't even have the most basic manners and upbringing. You ate other people's food without permission. It's really an eye - opener."
Hearing his sarcastic remarks, Nan Yu remained unmoved. "Uncle Tan deliberately left me hanging during lunch time. I couldn't just faint from hunger here."
Nan Yu put down the chopsticks, boldly picked up his teacup, and took a sip. "Moreover, Uncle Tan didn't tell the young monk clearly who this meal was for. I just assumed it was for me."
Tan Linyuan didn't want to haggle with her over the vegetarian meal. He said in a flat tone, "What do you want from me?"
Finally, they got to the point. Nan Yu immediately stood up and took off the Buddhist beads that had been wrapped around her left wrist several times. "I asked the abbot to re - string and consecrate them this morning. Now, it's time to return them to their rightful owner."
Tan Linyuan lowered his eyes and looked at the fist in front of him and the Buddhist bead bracelet in her palm. He was slightly stunned.
When he came back to his senses, he locked eyes with Nan Yu.
Tan Linyuan slowly shifted his gaze to the Buddhist bead bracelet. "This was a magical artifact purified and blessed by Master Wen Jing ten years ago and given to me to ward off evil spirits, disasters, and sins. No one else but me is allowed to touch it."
Nan Yu listened quietly and knew that many things matched what Nian Nian had said.
"Now that Master Wen Jing has already passed away, and the Buddhist beads have been touched by you, I won't take them back. Since you've asked the abbot to consecrate them again, they'll be yours from now on."
Nan Yu was surprised to learn the special and precious origin of this Buddhist bead bracelet. At the same time, her sense of guilt deepened.
Seeing her hanging her head like a wilted flower, looking listless, Tan Linyuan suddenly felt bored. "If there's nothing else, you can leave now."
After saying that, he turned around and was about to leave the meditation room.
Nan Yu walked over and quickly grabbed his hand that was hanging in the long sleeve of his robe. Suddenly, she whispered, "I'm sorry."
Tan Linyuan was about to shake off her hand, but hearing what she said, his movement slowed down a bit. His gaze fell on her.
Nan Yu looked up, with a sincere look on her face. "Tan Linyuan, I didn't know that the Buddhist beads were so important to you. I'm sorry."
Since it was a very solemn apology, she didn't playfully call him "Uncle Tan" anymore. Instead, she seriously called him "Tan Linyuan".
Tan Linyuan didn't respond to her apology. He just said indifferently, "Wear it yourself. The consecrated beads can bring you peace."
Nan Yu kept silent. Knowing that he wouldn't take it back even if she forced it on him, she had no choice but to wrap the Buddhist beads around her wrist a few more times and put them back on her left wrist.
"Wear it on your right hand." Tan Linyuan reminded in a soft voice.
Afraid of violating any taboos, Nan Yu quickly moved the Buddhist beads from her left hand to her right hand.
Tan Linyuan saw all of her clumsy actions. A faint smile appeared on his lips, but it disappeared quickly.
Receiving such a significant "gift", Nan Yu felt really uncomfortable. Rubbing her hands, she said, "Well, let me give you something as compensation."
Tan Linyuan looked up, scanning her from top to bottom with his eyes. Finally, he let out a soft laugh from his nose.
He didn't say a word, but Nan Yu understood.
He was mocking her for being penniless and in huge debt, yet still wanting to compensate him. It was simply ridiculous.
Nan Yu was irritated by his sneer. She angrily lowered her head and rummaged through her bag for a while. Finally, she sighed in frustration.
She really didn't have anything presentable.
Just then, she suddenly felt the plain silver ring on her index finger. Her heart trembled slightly, but she still made up her mind. She took off the silver ring and put it in her palm.
"This is for you."
She raised her hand and showed it to Tan Linyuan. "This was left by my mother. I've always regarded it as a talisman."
Gritting her teeth, she decided to part with it reluctantly. "Now I'm giving it to you as an exchange for the Buddhist beads."
Since the Buddhist bead bracelet was so important to him, she would also give him her most important thing. Only in this way could it be called an equal exchange.
Tan Linyuan's eyes were as black as thick ink. He stared at her stubborn little face and slowly opened his lips. "I don't like to force others."
Nan Yu immediately replied, "I do it voluntarily."