Xiang Lan rang the bell in the tower and looked around. She saw lights coming on in the monks’ quarters nearby but noticed several torches approaching the bell tower from behind. She stumbled down the stairs in panic, running in the opposite direction of the Scripture Hall. Her lungs felt ready to burst, and her legs were as heavy as lead, yet the footsteps behind her grew ever closer.
When Xiang Lan could run no further, she found herself in an open area with nowhere to hide. Supporting herself against the wall, she made her way behind the meditation quarters. Looking up, she saw three characters reading “Ji Xiang Kitchen” on a building – it was the temple’s kitchen. Stumbling over, she discovered the unlocked door and hurried inside, desperately searching for a hiding place. Suddenly, a clattering sound startled her. She found two young monks, about Seven or Eight years old, crouching and hiding with date cakes and other snacks in their hands.
Earlier, when the Lin family women came to the temple for ceremonies, the kitchen had prepared exquisite vegetarian delicacies. After serving the distinguished guests, the leftovers were stored in the kitchen cabinet. The two young monks had been eyeing them hungrily and snuck out when they heard the bell ringing to steal some food, unexpectedly encountering Xiang Lan. One young monk stood frozen to the side while the other crouched trembling between two water vats, looking terrified.
As the footsteps and shouts drew nearer, it was too late for Xiang Lan to flee. With a bang, the door was kicked open. Xiang Lan quickly turned around, shielding the young monk behind her.
Four masked strong men burst into the room. One of them, seeing a young monk, struck with his sword. The monk instantly fell into a pool of blood, splattering like scattered peach blossoms. Xiang Lan screamed, nearly fainting. Her heart raced, her legs trembled, and she had to support herself against the water vat to keep from collapsing.
The leader of the four was Du Bin. He charged in holding a torch with murderous intent but stopped short when he saw a beautiful young woman with disheveled hair shrinking into the corner. Though pale-faced, her bright eyes were striking. Despite trying to maintain composure, she couldn’t hide her panic, trembling all over and looking particularly pitiful.
Du Bin froze, his throat dry, unable to speak for a long while.
The man beside him asked quietly, “Is this woman from the Lin family?”
Du Bin licked his lips. Though he wanted to capture Xiang Lan, seeing her trembling made him hesitate. Unwilling to frighten the beauty, he turned his face and said softly, “Wait outside, I’ll handle this.” The three men withdrew.
Du Bin thought to himself, “I heard from Hua Mei that this woman is extremely stubborn. If I frighten her now, it won’t be enjoyable. After missing for one night, her reputation will be damaged. If I hide her for a few days, things will become even more unclear. She should understand that Young Lord Lin won’t want her anymore because of this. She might as well follow me. If I first coax her, I can both earn her goodwill and make her completely devoted to me in the future.” He stepped forward.
Xiang Lan wanted to dodge but remembered the young monk hiding behind her. She bit her lip and remained still, trembling like an autumn leaf.
Du Bin approached her, and pulled down his black cloth mask, revealing an extremely handsome face. He smiled gently and said, “Don’t be afraid, Miss. I’m General Lin’s guard. When I heard the bell, I came specially to rescue you. May I ask if you know where Madam and Young Miss are now?”
When Xiang Lan saw his face, her heart sank. She thought, “Isn’t this Lin Dong Ling’s lover? Why is he here?” She looked him up and down, noting his black clothes, and thought further, “He was wearing a mask just now. If he were Young Lord Lin’s guard, why would he dress like this? Moreover, he hasn’t seen me before, how could he know I’m not the Lin family’s Young Miss, yet ask me where Madam and Young Miss are… This man is suspicious at every turn. He probably has ill intentions. Perhaps his relationship with Lin Dong Ling was discovered, and Young Lord Lin punished him severely, so he’s come tonight with villains to seek revenge?” Xiang Lan speculated wildly, remaining vigilant. She didn’t answer but merely shook her head as tears welled up in her eyes.
Du Bin quickly smiled, “Perhaps Miss doesn’t believe me? I have the camp’s waist token.” He pulled out a token from his chest and showed it to Xiang Lan. It was a command arrow with the character “Lin” carved in the seal script. Looking at the ground, he saw the young monk had stopped breathing, still clutching a cake – having come to steal snacks. He deliberately said, “Just now my men thought there were villains here wanting to harm Miss, so they used excessive force. Alas, poor little master, we’ll compensate generously for his burial later.”
Xiang Lan dared not look at the corpse again, only softly said through tears, “It’s not that I don’t trust the Military Lord, but I truly don’t know where Madam and Young Miss are. Earlier in the darkness, we got separated…” She began crying again.
This crying made her even more pitiful and lovable.
Du Bin liked her more and more as he looked at her. He thought to himself, “Though His Lordship isn’t one to keep beauties, what man could pass up such an exceptional beauty? If I present her to him, she’ll likely never return. Better to keep this secret and hide her away as a concubine. His Lordship is interested in Young Lord Lin’s mother anyway, missing one concubine won’t affect the bigger picture.” He said softly, “Don’t cry, Miss. Come with me first. There’s a carriage outside, perfect for taking Miss back to the manor.”
Xiang Lan was anxious but could only stall for time. Blinking tearful eyes, she said, “I twisted my ankle while running earlier, I’m afraid I can’t walk. Please, Military Lord, let me rest for a moment.” She added, “Thankfully Buddha protected me and let me meet Military Lord, so I didn’t fall into the hands of villains…” She continued crying as she spoke.
Du Bin grew very impatient and considered forcibly taking Xiang Lan, but seeing her cry so sorrowfully made his heart soften somewhat. Seeing the strong men peering in at the doorway, he thought, “If she’s twisted her ankle, it would be inconvenient to take her out now, and carrying someone out in front of everyone would be hard to explain to His Lordship. Better to leave her here and secretly take her away later when no one notices. The brothers who came with me are all sworn brothers, so I’m not worried about word getting out. The urgent matter now is finding Young Lord Lin’s mother.” He said, “Then Miss rest here for a moment, I’ll return shortly.” After speaking, he walked around the kitchen, and peered into the water vats, while Xiang Lan pressed herself tightly against the wall. The young monk was small and thus went unnoticed by Du Bin. Seeing truly no one else hiding, he left, leaving one man to guard the door. Seeing a lock hanging on the door, he took it and locked the door with a click.
Xiang Lan crept to the door and peeked through the crack, seeing someone guarding outside. Her heart sank. She pushed the door, but it was indeed locked tight. As she worried, she heard a tearful voice behind her say, “Female Bodhisattva…”
Xiang Lan turned around to see the young monk standing there timidly, trembling all over with tears streaking his face. She sighed and said, “Little Master, those were bad men just now. When they return later, hide well and don’t make a sound.”
The young monk’s face turned white, and he quickly said, “Then let’s escape quickly!”
Xiang Lan smiled bitterly, “The door is locked and guarded, where can we escape to?”
The young monk stammered, “I-I-I, I stole the kitchen master’s keys to sneak in and steal food…” He continued, “Female Bodhisattva, follow me.” He walked to the inner stove area, untied a bunch of keys from his waist, and with trembling hands tried several times before unlocking the back door.
Xiang Lan quickly said, “Let’s hurry!” and ran out with the young monk.
The young monk knew the temple layout very well. The two of them dodged and hid until they reached the east side gate, removed the bar, and hurriedly left the temple. After running for a while, Xiang Lan could no longer move. They hid behind some bushes to rest, faintly hearing approaching hoofbeats. Xiang Lan quietly stood up supporting herself against a tree. She saw a line of torches lighting up in the distance – apparently, nearby monks had heard the bell ringing, knew something was wrong, and were rushing over. Additionally, about a dozen mounted guards wearing Lin family military clothing had arrived at the temple gate. However, because the temple doors were tightly closed, they couldn’t enter no matter how much they called. These guards had escorted Old Madam Lin home at noon, and when they returned in the afternoon to find the temple mountain gate closed, they had temporarily stayed in nearby monks’ quarters. When they heard the bell at night, they hurried over.
Xiang Lan quickly said to the young monk, “Little Master, I can’t walk anymore. Please lead the mounted men to the side gate and tell them villains have entered the temple, about Fifteen or Sixteen of them. Second Madam and Third Young Miss have likely been captured. First Madam and Fourth Young Miss are hiding in the Scripture Hall.”
The young monk hesitated, clearly still traumatized.
Xiang Lan pleaded, “They are all Lin family guards and won’t harm you. Little Master, saving one life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Please help.”
The young monk finally agreed and stumbled off to report the news. Let us leave that for now.
While killing cries arose in Qi Xia Temple, the Yi Hong Courtyard was warm and peaceful.
In the painted pavilions and orchid halls with gauze windows, five young gentlemen sat around an Eight Immortals table piled high with delicacies. Several beautifully made-up courtesans attended them, while a beauty in a big red flowered wide-sleeved jacket and bright green satin skirt held a pipa and sang sweetly, her tune quite elegant.
Lin Jin Lou reclined against his chair. After finishing her song, the beauty sat beside him as a young maid brought over a silver basin. She carefully washed her hands and began peeling shrimp, dipping the peeled shrimp in sauce and using small silver chopsticks to feed them to Lin Jin Lou’s mouth.
Liu Xiao Chuan watched enviously and said, “Brother has been cultivating himself these days. Though we’ve invited you many times, it’s rare to get you to come out. Thankfully this little beauty got you to grace us with your presence. For this alone, we must toast Miss Yun Zhui.” He raised his cup to toast.
Yun Zhui blushed slightly and stole a glance at Lin Jin Lou. Seeing him still smiling without any trace of annoyance, she finally raised her cup in return and said, “This slave should toast the lords instead. How could I deserve Lord Liu’s toast?” She then drank half a cup.
Everyone laughed and cheered.
Lin Jin Lou tapped Liu Xiao Chuan’s head with his chopsticks, then met Marquis Yong Xin Lu Shao Tang’s eyes with a half-smile, saying, “You think just anyone can invite me out? You alone don’t have enough weight. If not for Young Marquis’s face, would I come to drink this courtyard wine?”
Lu Shao Tang raised his cup in a distant toast, first drinking the half cup of remaining wine. Just as he was about to speak, Liu Xiao Chuan interrupted: “Oh? So Miss Yun Zhui’s face isn’t enough? Brother Lou, you’re too honest – saying such things, aren’t you afraid of breaking the beauty’s heart and making her cry?”
Lin Jin Lou ignored him, just half-squinting his eyes and smiling while watching Lu Shao Tang. A few days ago, Lu Shao Tang had sent an invitation which he completely ignored. Later, this fellow sought help from Liu Xiao Chuan and their childhood friends. Not wanting to refuse his friends’ faces, and curious about what trick this guy was planning, he finally came out to socialize. He and Lu Shao Tang were the same age and had been close as children, but later that fellow suddenly changed his nature and constantly opposed him. Lu Shao Tang was vicious – at age Twelve, he put iron spikes under his saddle, nearly getting him killed when he was thrown from his horse. Lin Jin Lou didn’t let it go either – after investigating who did it, he whipped that Lu boy so badly he couldn’t recognize his father, making him wet himself on the spot and stay bedridden with serious illness for a month. From then on, the two became enemies.
Later, Lin Jin Lou established several military achievements and his reputation rose among the younger generation of generals. Lu Shao Tang’s father died and he inherited the title, also commanding his forces in the military, continuing the connections his late father had established. However, Lin Jin Lou maintained the upper hand over Lu Shao Tang. Now the Lin family aligned with the Crown Prince’s faction while Lu Shao Tang openly supported the Second Prince. The two openly and secretly fought each other daily, with dangers untold to outsiders, becoming increasingly hostile.
Lu Shao Tang had thick eyebrows and phoenix eyes, tall and strong though slightly shorter than Lin Jin Lou, with a similar commanding presence that naturally inspired awe. He just smiled at Lin Jin Lou: “I didn’t know my face carried such weight. It sounds like Brother Lin is deliberately mocking me. I sent you invitations years ago that you never acknowledged – I thought Brother Lin looked down on me.”
Chu Da Peng was quick-witted and personally poured wine for Lu Shao Tang, smiling, “We all grew up together – what’s this talk of looking up or down? Don’t you know him? He’s always busy as anything, even though we barely see his shadow.”
Lu Shao Tang laughed coldly inside while maintaining his spring breeze expression, looking at Chu Da Peng and saying, “You boys too – you’ve grown increasingly distant from me these years.”
Xie Yu raised his cup and smiled, “That doesn’t sound right, but since brother says so, we must be at fault. I’ll punish myself with a cup.” He kicked Liu Xiao Chuan under the table.
Liu Xiao Chuan quickly raised his cup to toast Lu Shao Tang. He was somewhat drunk, his head fuzzy, and slurred, “Actually, if you ask me, we brothers all grew up together – what can’t we talk about? Why not drink a cup of wine and forget old grudges?” He then said to Lu Shao Tang, “I always thought you took the wrong medicine – why did you offend the Lin Tyrant for no reason? The obstacles he’s put in your way these years must have been enough to make you suffer…”
Xie Yu kicked Liu Xiao Chuan hard under the table. Liu Xiao Chuan sobered up three points and immediately shut his mouth.
Both Lin Jin Lou and Lu Shao Tang acted as if they hadn’t heard. Lin Jin Lou’s lips still held a smile as he asked, “Tell me, why did you invite me here today?”
Lu Shao Tang also smiled slightly and said, “Nothing much, just that we haven’t sat at the same wine table for many years. Let us brothers catch up.”