Chapter 004
Chapter 4: Buddha’s Chosen Faces His Love Trial, A Maid Enters a Dream
After working all day, the silver ran out like water, yet none of it helped. Xiao Man lay on her bed, her chest tightening again and again.
In the Old Madam’s yard, each first-class maid had her own room, and so did the second-class maids. Third-class maids like her shared two to a room; it wasn’t big, but it was private and clean. Compared with the rest of the manor, this was one of the best places to live. The Old Madam was kind, easy to serve, and paid well; every farm and shop under her name turned a profit. But even the best post could not survive this kind of spending.
Her thoughts were stuck like a clog in a pipe, but she still had to eat and sleep. She gripped the protective talisman she had asked for at Azure Cloud Temple, rolled over, and shut her eyes. Very soon she slipped into dreamwalking.
In the familiar thick fog, a sharp voice spoke with a sneer: “Fool, you wasted your money, didn’t you!”
The voice went on, light and fearless: “I’m not a demon, and I’m not a wandering ghost. No one you ask can stop me. Even if a Bodhisattva came, I wouldn’t be afraid.”
Xiao Man found a bit of courage inside the dream and shot back, cool and bold: “Bragging. If you’re so strong, why don’t you even have a shape?”
The voice sounded hurt, yet proud: “Sister, don’t look down on me. I’ve only been a little lazy in my practice; that doesn’t mean I’m useless. I’ve found a shortcut to move faster. I’m also helping that Buddha’s Chosen. His Love Trial is hard. If it keeps going like this, he might fall into demonic deviation.”
“Demonic deviation? That serious?” she muttered, only half believing. Then she scoffed: “You shapeless spirit creature, you’re trying to trick me again.”
Before her words finished, the fog spun and the scene snapped into place. Strange, messy sounds pushed in from all sides. Xiao Man saw the Eldest Grandson Young Master sitting cross-legged in a black-and-red world, his face twisted, black air coiling around him. The sight was terrifying.
She clutched her stomach and gagged: “I don’t want to stay here! Take me out!”
In the next moment, Xiao Man woke. Bent over the bedside, she retched again and again until even bile burned her throat.
At first light, the junior maids were whispering with hushed voices: “Did you hear? The Eldest Grandson Young Master has gone days without eating or drinking, sitting in seated meditation, and he won’t wake no matter how they call!”
Another hissed back, worried but excited: “Right, the Heir Apparent and Madam are beside themselves. They’ve sent people to Minghui Temple to invite Dharma Master Shi Neng!”
By afternoon, Dharma Master Shi Neng was brought into the manor with great respect. He went to Lin Qing Xuan’s Auspicious Cloud Residence, stood outside the door for only a moment, then turned away. Pressing his palms together to the anxious Heir Apparent and Madam, he said calmly: “The heart demon is hard to clear. Yuan Jue must break through it himself. But Yuan Jue has his own destined chance. Do not disturb him.”
He paused, then added, steady and sure: “Heir Apparent, Madam, Old Madam, Yuan Jue’s bond with the Buddhist order has not yet ripened, and his Love Trial is not yet over. You need not worry he will become a monk.”
First Madam’s face lit at once. Grabbing the Heir Apparent’s sleeve, she blurted with relief: “Wonderful! My son won’t become a monk!” Then she frowned in confusion and asked, small and puzzled: “Only… what is this Love Trial?”
The Old Madam listened from the side and quietly relaxed. Good. Very good. She had two sons: the elder held the title; the younger fought at the border. The vast Heir Apparent Manor had only one precious grandson, Lin Qing Xuan, and he kept saying he wanted to become a monk. The younger son was a General, but he had only three daughters. Now, with no tonsure, the family line could continue.
All through the manor, the Masters hovered near Lin Qing Xuan’s yard. Maids and old grannies tiptoed, afraid to bother the Buddha’s Chosen as he worked through his Love Trial. Yet none of this touched Xiao Man in the Old Madam’s quarters. Lately she’d been given light days—no service at the Masters’ side, no night shifts. She only did mending for the outer court from her own room. As soon as the sky darkened, she went back to rest.
She kept the oil lamp turned down to a bean-sized flame. Sitting at the table with a needle in her hand, her mind tangled like a ball of string, she propped her forehead on her palm and drifted off.
In a blur, a warm hand lifted her. A soft voice brushed her ear: “Wife.”
She glanced down and froze. She was wearing a bright red wedding robe. Around her, the bridal chamber glowed with red candles. The groom lifted her veil. He and she drank nuptial wine.
Heat rushed to her cheeks. The wine brought a strange flutter that left her drowsy. She heard the groom’s low praise, rich and close: “You’re beautiful.”
She forced her eyes wide to see his face. The stunning features belonged to Lin Qing Xuan. The red wedding robe set off his jade-like looks; the eyes that were always cool and distant now shone bright, full of deep feeling. He called her name, gentle and earnest: “Xiao Man.”
Her heart stumbled. His long fingers brushed her lips and traced her brows; his touch was careful, as if she were rare treasure. So close now, he gathered her into his arms with quiet strength.
Xiao Man stared at that bewitching, handsome face and forgot to resist. [The Eldest Grandson Young Master is so gentle.]
A wild thought broke free inside her: [It’s only a dream. If I sink into it, so what? Tomorrow I’ll wake, and no one will know. It can be nothing but a foolish dream.]
As if guided by a hidden pull, she lifted her head and gently bit his earlobe. Lin Qing Xuan trembled; his breathing turned rough. Their closeness blurred the room until only their two heartbeats filled the quiet.
His gaze burned, as if it could melt her. A shared wave of heat rose and swallowed Yao Xiao Man’s thoughts.
Lin Qing Xuan, the Buddha’s Chosen, tasted love for the first time; in the dream he couldn’t control it. Desire and wonder swelled, and the sweetness of it soaked the dream. Their hot sweat felt so real, it hardly seemed like a dream at all.
At full daylight, Xiao Man shot upright, heart pounding. Her coarse nightclothes were soaked with sweat, clinging tight. Uncomfortable heat shook her. She had actually dreamed something so wild. The leads in that dream were the spotless Buddha’s Chosen and herself.
She hugged her quilt and buried her face deep, [I wish I could suffocate and be done!] Yet the dream was too clear: his hot chest, his rough breathing, the thin callus on his fingertip when he touched her skin, and the husky “Xiao Man” at her ear. Shame and a secret sweetness wove a net that trapped her.
Scrambling down from the bed, she wiped her flushed face and neck with a cloth. Only after did she lean on the bedpost, gulp air, and slowly steady herself.
Dawn hadn’t fully broken when the manor boiled over. Noise rushed in through the papered windows like a pot of oil going to a rolling boil. “The Eldest Grandson Young Master woke up!” “Heaven bless us! He finally woke!”
The little maids ran to spread the good news, skipping as they went. Xiao Man’s hands shook; half the water spilled from her basin. Awake? He actually woke. [Could his waking in real life have anything to do with last night’s dream?] The thought crashed through her like thunder.
More good news buzzed at the door: “Did you hear? Not only did he wake, he also had half a bowl of medicinal porridge!” “The Old Madam and Madam kept watch all night. Now they can rest.”
Outside, Chun Yan and a few maids chirped with relief. Chun Yan spotted Xiao Man and curled her lip, sharp and mean: “Well, if it isn’t Xiao Man. The Eldest Grandson Young Master is better. Why do you look like you saw a ghost?” Another maid added with a snicker, “Right, this is the biggest happy news. Why are you so down?”
Clutching the basin until her knuckles hurt, Xiao Man forced a smile worse than a sob and hurried away, as if chased by something evil. [Happy news? For me, it’s a death spell.]
All morning the manor brimmed with joy—servants walked fast, faces bright, and even the stewards softened. But by afternoon, the cheer cut off. Word spread that after meeting the Old Madam, Madam, and Heir Apparent, the Eldest Grandson Young Master had shut himself back inside his yard. The gate locked. He saw no one.
The lively house cooled like splashed with cold water. People whispered: “What’s going on? He just woke up. Why close himself off again? Is he working through his Love Trial, like the Dharma Master said?” “But didn’t the imperial physician say he’s fine?”
The sudden change sparked a tiny, ridiculous hope in Xiao Man’s heart. Without thinking, her feet took her once more to the wall outside the Eldest Grandson Young Master’s Auspicious Cloud Residence. The tall wall cut off everything; the gate was closed; not a sound came from inside. It was as silent as an abandoned temple.
The clear, distant man was just beyond that door. The quiet oddly soothed her. Peeking from the corner, she stole a look at the locked gate. No movement. She slipped back, leaned on the cold wall, and let her racing heart slow.
She let out a long breath and knocked her chest with her fist. [It was a dream. It had to be a dream. Someone like him would never…] She kept telling herself: [Offending the Buddha’s Chosen inside a dream shouldn’t count as a huge disrespect, right?]