「A month passed in the blink of an eye.」
The young female devotee was pregnant again.
"Little Divine Monk, my name is Liang Fangying."
On her last night, before leaving, she said, "I know this might be against your rules. Outside the temple, we are to be strangers. But I… I still wanted you to know."
"Amitabha Buddha," was all Xu Lei said.
「Another week passed in the blink of an eye.」
Since Liang Fangying left, Xu Lei hadn't had any suitable candidates for Charitable Giving.
But he didn't go down the mountain again.
It was a good time to rest.
Seduction could suck the very marrow from your bones, a fact Xu Lei had experienced firsthand this past month.
Fortunately, after a week of rest, Xu Lei felt fully recovered.
Just then, Zhao Xiaocha arrived, seeking a child.
Soon, inside the Almsgiving Room, Zhao Xiaocha hugged Xu Lei from behind.
「Another month and a half went by.」
Xu Lei had once again successfully performed Charitable Giving for Zhao Xiaocha.
The Ten Thousand Lives Book's display changed to:
[Current Number of Descendants: 5]
After Zhao Xiaocha went back down the mountain, Xu Lei was alone again.
Although female devotees from near and far occasionally came seeking children, none of them met Xu Lei's standards for Charitable Giving.
Xu Lei thought about it and realized that in all his time as Zen Master Bu Zhong, he had only performed Charitable Giving for three female devotees.
He had performed it twice for both Liang Fangying and Zhao Xiaocha; one child had already been born, while the other was still in the womb.
However, the Lady of the County Magistrate had not returned to ask for another child.
She had successfully received Charitable Giving before Zhao Xiaocha, so by now, she would have naturally given birth as well.
Although Xu Lei hadn't deliberately sought out news, he had heard some rumors.
It was said that the Lady of the County Magistrate had given birth to a daughter.
Of the three female devotees Xu Lei had performed Charitable Giving for, only Liang Fangying had given birth to a son.
'Logically, in an ancient world like this, a family should have a son to inherit the family estate, right?'
Xu Lei thought to himself, 'Is one daughter enough? Why hasn't she come back to ask for another child?'
After all, this was a feudal, ancient society.
Many families insisted on having a son.
If a family had no son, others might secretly mock them.
Therefore, the Lady of the County Magistrate would surely need to seek another child.
'If she does, coming to Longyuan Temple should be her first choice compared to seeking help from other, unknown places, right?'
Of course, Xu Lei couldn't rush her.
He was Zen Master Bu Zhong, after all, not some lecherous thief who crept into homes at night.
However, Xu Lei guessed that the beautiful Lady of the County Magistrate would definitely come looking for him again.
So, he stayed at the temple, peacefully continuing his Martial Arts Training, exercising, and strengthening his body.
Sure enough.
「Just three days later.」
The beautiful Lady of the County Magistrate appeared at Longyuan Temple once again.
She wore a magnificent, waist-cinching dress of Brocade Clothing. Her fair, pretty face was lightly dusted with powder, her lips touched with crimson rouge. Her only accessory was a silver hairpin tucked into her coiled hair.
Her attire was not extravagant.
Her husband, after all, had a reputation for being incorruptible.
But despite the lack of extravagance, it was clear she had put in effort—her eyelashes, for instance, had been carefully brushed.
It made her long lashes stand out and her limpid eyes seem full of life whenever she blinked.
But she had come during the day, not at night.
Furthermore, she hadn't come to ask for a child, but to accompany someone to worship.
The person she was accompanying was also a beautiful woman.
A flower-like vermilion mark was painted between her brows, a glittering gold hairpin was tucked in her hair, and a pair of translucent earrings dangled from her ears. The robes she wore were embroidered with exquisite gold thread.
Not far behind her, a number of guards followed.
The Lady of the County Magistrate stood by her side, a faintly obsequious smile on her pretty face.
'Who is this woman?'
Seeing this, Xu Lei couldn't help but wonder, 'Her status must be incredibly high. Who else could make the Lady of the County Magistrate act so deferentially?'
Just then, the Lady of the County Magistrate also saw Xu Lei. The moment their eyes met, her pupils trembled slightly, but she quickly regained her composure.
Xu Lei didn't go out to talk to the Lady of the County Magistrate.
He had only heard she had arrived and had come to take a look from a distance.
Seeing that she wasn't here for a child, he naturally paid her no further mind.
「Another ten-odd minutes passed.」
Unexpectedly, Xu Lei, who was reading a Buddhist Scripture, was summoned by Qi De.
He said a visitor had come specifically to see Xu Lei.
When Xu Lei arrived, he immediately saw the Lady of the County Magistrate and the noble young woman beside her.
"Is this the young Divine Monk who created the Wooden Ox and Flowing Horse?"
The Lady of the County Magistrate hadn't spoken yet when the noble young woman said, "His bearing is truly extraordinary. He is worthy of the name Divine Monk."
Xu Lei looked at Qi De. But Qi De just gave him a look, motioning for him to entertain the two female devotees, then recited a Buddhist phrase and left.
Xu Lei looked to the Lady of the County Magistrate, hoping for a hint.
Who on earth was this noble young woman?
But the Lady of the County Magistrate couldn't say anything directly. She merely showed her respect for the noble young woman.
This indicated that the other party had an extremely high status and that Xu Lei should not be negligent.
"Amitabha Buddha." Xu Lei could only say to the noble young woman, "Madam, you flatter me. This humble monk did not create the Wooden Ox and Flowing Horse; I was merely parroting my master's wisdom."
"I have indeed heard that the Little Divine Monk has an enigmatic master," the noble young woman said. "But that due to his own unruliness, he only learned a drop in the ocean of his master's knowledge. I wonder, what does that 'drop in the ocean' contain?"
"Astronomy, geography, physics, mathematics, and so on. I have dabbled in them all," Xu Lei replied, still unsure of the woman's identity. "To my shame, this monk has studied many things, but mastered none."
"Mathematics, excellent!" To his surprise, the noble young woman said, "What a coincidence. I have loved studying mathematics since I was a child. I wonder if the Little Divine Monk would be willing to offer some guidance?"
"Amitabha Buddha," Xu Lei said. "It is a good thing that you are dedicated to mathematics, Madam. However, this poor monk is a man of the cloth and does not have much time to devote to its study. At most, I can exchange a few words with you on the subject."
If it were a competition in anything else, Xu Lei would have been a little nervous. But mathematics! He didn't believe anyone in this ancient world could surpass him.
Of course, as a Divine Monk, he couldn't get entangled with her indefinitely.
"May I ask how many years you have been studying mathematics, Madam?" he asked.
"I am not talented, but I have studied it since childhood. It has been about ten years now," the noble young woman replied.
"Ten years of study is a rare feat." Xu Lei nodded. "In that case, may this poor monk ask you, Madam: do you know of the Gougu theorem? Do you know the height of Mount Tai? Do you know how much silt the Yellow River carries?"
"The height of Mount Tai? The amount of silt in the Yellow River?" The noble young woman was stunned, her delicate mouth hanging open. "How could such things possibly be known?"
"There is nothing in this world that cannot be measured." Xu Lei shook his head. "One can measure a mountain's height by its shadow, and the Yellow River's volume with a single bucket of water. This poor monk thought that after ten years of study, you would have some true accomplishments. I did not expect that you wouldn't even know how to apply the Gougu theorem.
If so, how could you possibly solve for sixteen palaces? Or thirty-two palaces?
And how could you ever learn about univariate, bivariate, trivariate, or multivariate equations?"
The noble young woman was left dumbfounded on the spot.
She could barely understand the part about the Gougu theorem. Everything that followed was like a heavenly script to her.
「Ten minutes later.」
The noble young woman was still studying a diagram illustrating the Gougu theorem with squares and circles that Xu Lei had drawn on the ground.
Meanwhile, her guards stared, dumbfounded, at her engrossed state.
Xu Lei, on the other hand, had moved a short distance away with the Lady of the County Magistrate.
"Little Divine Monk, I only knew how formidable you were during Charitable Giving." The Lady of the County Magistrate's voice was filled with disbelief. "I never imagined your attainments in mathematics were so profound! Although Her Ladyship is no great mathematician, she considers her skills quite advanced. Yet you've reduced her to this state with just a few words!"
"Her Ladyship?" Xu Lei froze. "Are you saying she… is a woman of the current Saint?"