“Sorry, I don’t know him.”
He Xulan’s cold voice reached Xueya’s ears. Xueya even felt He Xulan was pulling his hand. He immediately used all his strength to hold He Xulan, but was still pushed away.
Being pushed away, Xueya glanced at the group of strong men. Seeing the lewd look in their eyes, he only wanted to grab He Xulan again. But He Xulan didn’t let him get close at all. Whenever he approached, He Xulan would step aside, even using his hand to block Xueya’s direction. Xueya was at a loss, thinking he absolutely couldn’t let go of He Xulan. If he was abandoned here by He Xulan, it would be over for him.
Those strong men wouldn’t let him go. They might even play with him and then kill him, or sell him.
Weighing the pros and cons, in just a moment, tears filled Xueya’s eyes. He pitifully looked at He Xulan, his voice and demeanor softening to the utmost, “Brother, I was wrong, sob… sob…”
The strong men were stunned for a moment at this scene, then burst into laughter. “Oh, what’s this? This little lady turns out not to be a lady after all.”
Someone else directly said, “I haven’t tried a man dressed as a woman yet. I wonder how it feels?”
This terrified Xueya even more. In his heart, he became even more unwilling to let He Xulan go. If he stayed with He Xulan, he still had a chance at survival. At least if both of them were taken away, someone would come to rescue them. If he was taken away alone, no one would save him.
“Brother,” most of Xueya’s crying was just a means to an end, to achieve a certain goal. But this time, he was genuinely scared.
He Xulan ignored the vulgar words of those strong men, only looking at Xueya. “What did you do wrong?”
Xueya didn’t expect that at this critical moment, He Xulan would still ask him what he did wrong. What… what did he do wrong? He was just unlucky! But on the surface, Xueya couldn’t say that. He could only struggle to squeeze out a sentence, “I… I won’t wander around randomly in the future.”
He Xulan remained silent, but the strong men had already started to surround them. Xueya caught a glimpse of this and immediately said, “I won’t run anymore! I’ll listen to brother in the future!”
As soon as he said this, He Xulan lowered his eyes. Xueya sensed his softened attitude and rushed over, finally managing to hug He Xulan again. He hid behind He Xulan, both hands clutching He Xulan’s clothes tightly, stuttering, “Bro… brother, what do we do now?”
He Xulan remained indifferent. “Close your eyes.”
“Huh?” Xueya was stunned.
“Just close your eyes,” He Xulan turned to look at Xueya, raising a hand to cover Xueya’s eyes. “Can you smell it? The scent of sugar figurines. Do you want to eat?”
Want to eat!
Wait, is it time to eat sugar figurines now?
Xueya opened his mouth to ask, but he suddenly heard screams around him. Realizing this, he immediately pursed his lips and said after a while, “I want to eat.”
“I’ll take you to buy sugar figurines later, but will you come with me to a place?” He Xulan’s voice was very gentle.
At this critical moment, Xueya dared not refuse. He realized he hadn’t escaped, but had instead gone from the wolf’s den to the tiger’s den. Right now, all he could do was hope that this tiger was in a good mood and wouldn’t eat him.
Not long after, He Xulan withdrew his hand. He put on the mask of the ghostly deity and turned to walk towards a sugar figurine shop. Xueya looked around and found that the several strong men had disappeared.
At this moment, He Xulan had already bought the sugar figurines. He turned around and looked at Xueya, holding a sugar figurine of Zhu Bajie in his hand. “How about this one?”
He masked his true face, turned away from the candlelight, and his eyes seemed inexplicably melancholy.
Xueya looked at He Xulan, squeezed out a smile, walked over, and took the Zhu Bajie sugar figurine from him. “Thank you, brother.”
He Xulan nodded.
Xueya paused, met He Xulan’s gaze, and started to nibble on the sugar figurine.
With each bite, Zhu Bajie’s head was gone, and with another bite, half of his body was gone. Xueya finished the sugar figurine in four or five bites.
At this moment, someone led a black horse past them. When the person walked away, the horse stayed behind. Xueya was just beginning to feel puzzled when he saw He Xulan mounting the horse. Not only that, He Xulan turned and glanced at him, then bent down to lift him onto the horse as well.
This series of actions happened almost in an instant. Just as Xueya was forced to sit securely, the horse began to gallop forward. The cold wind rushed at Xueya, and unable to bear it, he closed his eyes. Initially, he didn’t want to lean against He Xulan, but the wind, coupled with the jolts of the horse, forced him to almost completely curl up into He Xulan’s arms, filled with the scent of pine and cypress from He Xulan.
Leaving the Lantern Street, there were fewer pedestrians on the road, and as they approached the city gate, there were even fewer. The guards saw someone riding a horse approaching and immediately moved to intercept, but before they could act, the rider presented a waist token.
The head guard saw the token and stepped aside immediately, calling out, “Open the city gates!”
Upon hearing this voice, Xueya immediately opened his eyes. He had been too afraid to ask He Xulan where they were going. As they neared leaving the capital, he began to panic slightly. Was He Xulan going to take him to the wilderness to kill him?
The closer they got, the more Xueya dared not ask, afraid that if he asked, his suspicions would come true.
He Xulan took Xueya out of the city gate and headed southeast. The road became increasingly desolate. Not only was Xueya’s heart tense, but his thighs were also sore from riding the horse. He didn’t dare to utter a sound.
They were climbing up the mountain.
Finally, He Xulan stopped because the horse couldn’t go any further. He dismounted first and then lifted Xueya down from the horse.
With his feet back on the ground, Xueya quickly scanned the surroundings. This place looked like the wilderness, perfect for murder and burial.
After He Xulan put Xueya down, he started walking forward. Xueya stood still for a moment, gritting his teeth and following. After walking for a while, Xueya finally saw their destination—
Thousand Buddha Temple.
Thousand Buddha Temple stood majestically, towering at the top of the mountain. The tolling of the bell that Xueya had heard earlier emanated from here. Looking at the plaque of Thousand Buddha Temple, he suddenly felt that he might not die here. However strange He Xulan might be, he wouldn’t kill someone in a sacred Buddhist place.
“Bang, bang, bang—”
He Xulan knocked on the door.
Soon, the temple gate opened from inside, and a young novice monk appeared. Upon seeing He Xulan, he bowed respectfully, “Namo Amitabha, venerable guest arrives late at night. May I ask what brings you here?”
“I’m looking for Master Ruzhen,” He Xulan said calmly. “Please inform him that Lingduan has arrived.”
Upon hearing the word “Lingduan,” the young novice monk looked at He Xulan with surprise. However, as He Xulan wore a fierce ghostly mask, his face was hidden. “Please wait a moment, venerable guest.”
The young novice monk hurriedly turned and ran away. He showed no signs of his earlier maturity and composure. He Xulan watched quietly as the young monk disappeared into the temple, lost in thought. Soon, the young novice monk returned, panting, “Venerable guest, the abbot is waiting for you in the Mahavira Hall.”
“Thank you.” He Xulan clasped his hands together and bowed, stepping into the temple. The young novice monk watched He Xulan enter and suddenly looked back at Xueya behind him. “Why don’t you come in together?”
Xueya was about to say he would wait outside when He Xulan turned around.
Although He Xulan didn’t say anything, the look in his eyes made Xueya hastily enter the temple. As he entered, he also imitated the young novice monk and bowed respectfully, “Namo Amitabha.”
Xueya followed He Xulan into Thousand Buddha Temple. He felt that He Xulan must be very familiar with this place. Although it was dark and he couldn’t see anything, He Xulan walked without hesitation. Before long, they arrived outside the Mahavira Hall.
Two lanterns were lit outside the hall. The pale moonlight and dim lantern light blended together, making the temple look strangely eerie at night. He Xulan stood outside the hall and didn’t enter directly. “Abbot.”
He called out to the person inside the Mahavira Hall.
A monk in a red robe turned around, his face kind and gentle. He saw He Xulan and bowed with his palms together, “Namo Amitabha.”
“Abbot, may I come in?” He Xulan asked.
Master Ruzhen nodded. “Since the guest has arrived, there is no need to ask.” He noticed Xueya standing behind He Xulan and his expression changed subtly when he saw Xueya’s face clearly.
Seeing the monk looking at him, Xueya bowed very respectfully. He came from a place of romance and was naturally afraid of monks and temples. Even this place scared him.
People say there is reincarnation. If one commits evil deeds in this life, they will be repaid in the next. Xueya knew he was not a good person. He wasn’t afraid of repaying his debts in the next life. He was afraid of repaying them in this life, so he didn’t dare to come to the temple, fearing that if the Buddha saw him, he would be angry and demand immediate repayment.
Master Ruzhen returned Xueya’s greeting. By this time, He Xulan had already discarded his luxurious robes, removed his crown, and entered the main hall wearing plain clothes. He knelt on the yellow cushion and silently pressed his forehead against the cold ground.
“Namo Amitabha,” Master Ruzhen sighed. “Since you’ve come, why not remove the mask?”
“I have no face to meet the Buddha, it must be this way,” He Xulan’s voice was extremely calm.
“You served the Buddha for seven or eight years, how can you say you have no face to meet the Buddha?” Master Ruzhen shook his head.
Xueya heard their conversation and was startled.
He Xulan lived in the temple for seven or eight years?
He wanted to hear more, but He Xulan and Master Ruzhen seemed to have become mute. Neither spoke, and for a while, Xueya could only hear the sound of Master Ruzhen turning his prayer beads.
“Dong— Dong—”
The peaceful and meditative sound of the bell rang, breaking the tranquility of the hall.
He Xulan lifted his head and looked at Master Ruzhen. “Master, I should go.”
Master Ruzhen sighed again, “First go and see the room you used to stay in. There’s no rush to leave. Lingduan, it’s been a long time since you had the temple’s vegetarian porridge, hasn’t it?”
Upon hearing this, He Xulan revealed his first smile since coming to the temple. “Master, when did you send someone to cook porridge? Lighting a stove in the middle of the night, that’s quite a commotion. I’ve never had this honor before.”
“You may not have it next time.” Master Ruzhen also smiled slightly. “Go on, take the young guest with you. He’s been waiting outside for a long time.”
“Yes.”
He Xulan stood up, bowed to Master Ruzhen, and then turned to leave. When Xueya saw He Xulan come out, he immediately showed what he was holding in his hands. He hugged He Xulan’s robe and hat to his chest. “Brother, are we going back now?”
He hadn’t heard the conversation between He Xulan and Master Ruzhen in the hall just now.
“Not yet, let’s have some porridge first.” He Xulan didn’t take what Xueya was holding. He walked straight ahead. Xueya exclaimed and followed a few steps before running back to bow to Master Ruzhen who was still in the Mahavira Hall. However, he felt very awkward with things in his hands.
Xueya was already very tired at this point, but he didn’t dare to say so. He could only follow He Xulan step by step. After walking a long circle, they finally stopped in front of a small courtyard. He Xulan pushed open the courtyard door and walked in. The courtyard was clean, as if someone had been cleaning it regularly. He walked to the door, pushed it open, and there was a lamp lit inside. There were two bowls of clear porridge on the table.
Seeing that there were chairs to sit on, Xueya quickly squeezed in. However, as soon as he entered, he took a cold breath.
Because he saw a table against the wall with many memorial tablets. The tablets faced the wall, so Xueya couldn’t see whose tablets they were.
He Xulan took off the terrifying ghost mask from his face and casually threw it on the table where the porridge was placed. Then he looked at Xueya, his normally calm eyes now swirling with hidden emotions. Startled by this look, Xueya couldn’t help but step back. When he saw He Xulan approaching him, he turned and ran in fear.
But he didn’t even touch the door before he was caught.
Xueya’s body trembled slightly, and the things in his hands had already fallen to the ground. He didn’t dare to look back, and he pleaded softly, “No, please, I won’t say anything, I won’t say anything, please.”
