Jinyi Spring

When Jing'an went out, she called a young nun to go with her.

As expected, as soon as they got the item, someone told the young nun to do something else.

Jing'an felt even more uneasy, constantly paying attention to her footing and the movements around her.

As she reached the stream, her knee felt as if it had been struck by something, and she suddenly felt a sharp pain, causing her entire body to sway to the side.

"what--"

With a scream, Jing'an plunged heavily into the stream, the ice cracked, and she fell in.

A nun happened to be passing by nearby. Hearing the commotion, she ran over and, by the moonlight, saw someone struggling in the icy water. Terrified, she screamed, "Help! Someone has fallen into the stream!"

The shouts alerted the nuns nearby, and several of them rushed over and pulled Jing'an out of the icy water.

Jing'an was soaked to the bone, his teeth chattering from the cold, and he was carried back to the monastery shivering.

Qingxin was shocked when she saw this and quickly ordered someone to make ginger and brown sugar water.

The kang (heated brick bed) was scorching hot, and Jing'an lay on it, wrapped in a thick quilt, but still couldn't stop shivering.

Qingxin could tell that she had something to say, so she said to Cixi, who had been standing guard beside her, "I remember there are still a few pieces of ginseng left in the storeroom, go and get them quickly."

Ci'an didn't want to leave, but she had no choice but to go.

Jing'an trembled as she spoke, "Fa Gu, those people... they really did try to kill me. They didn't drown me today, but they'll definitely move me out tomorrow, leaving Fa Gu all alone and helpless..."

Tears streamed down her face. “Master Fa, you must remember what I said before… Be more careful, don’t listen to Ci’an, listen to her words in reverse… If anything happens, Master Liaobei will find a way to inform you.”

Qingxin's eyes welled up with tears, and she gripped her hand tightly, her voice trembling, "You can't die...you have to hold on..."

Jing'an looked at her, her lips moving slightly, and said softly, "Finally... dawn is almost here. I don't want to die either... but it seems... I'm afraid I won't live to see that day..."

She used the self-reference she used before becoming a nun.

Qingxin could no longer hold back and burst into tears, "Hongguo... you must hold on. You've suffered with me all these years."

Jing'an gently shook her head, a slight smile appearing at the corner of her lips, "It is my honor to serve you, Miss..."

She took a breath, her eyes suddenly clearing as if she had gathered all her strength, and instructed again, "Remember what I said before... Be careful, and get out alive to reunite with His Highness the Prince..."

Qingxin sobbed softly, "I know I'm not the Xiao Wan I was years ago. Just focus on getting better, I can handle it..."

The sound of footsteps grew louder as they approached.

The two stopped talking at the same time. Qingxin wiped away her own tears and then quickly wiped away Jing'an's tears.

The young nun brought in ginger and brown sugar water, which Qingxin took and personally fed Jing'an spoonful by spoonful. Ci'an also brought ginseng slices and had Jing'an hold them under her tongue.

After daybreak, Jing'an developed a high fever, her whole body was burning hot, and she was so dizzy that she couldn't even open her eyes.

Ci'an lowered her eyelids and said in a flat voice, "Master Fa, it's best to let Jing'an move out. If she stays any longer, she might bring you illness. Your health isn't good to begin with..."

Qingxin looked at Jing'an on the bed, her voice as indifferent as thin ice, "Jing'an is right here, she's not going anywhere."

Before long, two burly old women entered the Zen temple and went straight to Jing'an's meditation room.

Qingxin's face darkened, and she stood in the doorway, saying, "Jing'an is the one who serves this humble nun; she won't go anywhere."

The leading old woman bowed slightly, but her expression was anything but respectful. "Master Fa, please don't make things difficult for us. If you fall ill, we'll be punished." With that, the two women bypassed Qingxin, went into the house, and dragged the nearly unconscious Jing'an out.

Qingxin trembled with rage, "You...how dare you!"

The old woman ignored her. She's been a nun for so many years, yet she still thinks she's an empress?
Ci'an hurriedly said, "Please wait a moment, esteemed benefactors, and let this humble nun help her put on the nun's robes before you leave."

The old woman put Jing'an down, watched as Ci'an dressed her in a plain cotton coat, and then dragged her outside.

Qingxin watched Jing'an being carried away, her heart breaking.

She stood for a moment, leaning against the doorframe, then turned and went inside. She took out a string of fine sandalwood beads and two silver ingots from the cabinet, walked quickly to the courtyard gate, and handed them to the young nun guarding the gate.

"Quickly, send these to Master Ji and ask her to help take care of Jing'an, and to find doctors and medicine for her. If Jing'an recovers, this humble nun will repay her handsomely."

Liaoji was a nun in charge of welcoming and seeing off guests at the temple. She loved collecting fine prayer beads and was also a fierce and shrewish person.

Although Jing'an once said that she had something to ask Master Bei, that was in private.

The little nun clutched the beads and silver and ran off in a flash.

The sunlight in the courtyard was faint, shining on her face, making her as pale as the snow on the roof.

She stared at the courtyard gate, motionless for a long time, unaware that her feet were numb with cold.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the little nun came running back, panting: "Reporting to the nun, the prayer beads and silver have been given to Master Ji! She asked you to rest assured that she will make proper arrangements for Uncle Jing'an and will also change his meditation room."

Qingxin put his hands together in prayer, "Amitabha, may the Bodhisattva protect me!"

The courtyard gate creaked shut.

Just as Qingxin was about to turn around and go back into the house, she heard the voices of two female worshippers talking outside the wall.

"I heard that General Ming is about to return to the capital from the border, and the Empress Dowager is going to bestow a marriage upon him again."

"He's thirty-seven this year, and will be thirty-eight after the New Year. Other people his age are already grandfathers, but he hasn't even gotten married yet. Everyone says he has homosexual tendencies, which is why he hasn't been able to get married."

"Whether it's for that reason or not, he still has to get married, have children, and carry on the family line. I just wonder if this time, he'll be like he was back then—preferring to be beaten rather than obey the imperial decree..."

Cixi seemed to have just come to her senses. She rushed to the door and shouted sternly through the door, "Who's gossiping outside? Those old women are all useless, letting people come here and spread nonsense?"

The footsteps faded into the distance.

Ci'an turned around and helped Qingxin walk into the meditation room, comforting her as they went, "Don't take it to heart, Dharma Master. Those gossipy women, all they do is talk nonsense all day long..."

Qingxin glanced at her, her gaze deep, and said nothing.

After entering the meditation room, she remained silent for a moment before finally speaking, "Lord Ming... was he truly flogged for disobeying an imperial decree?"

A hint of embarrassment flashed across Ci'an's face. She lowered her eyes, unsure whether she should answer.

Qingxin's face darkened.

Cixi then said in a low voice, "That was an old story from more than ten years ago. The Empress Dowager bestowed a marriage upon him, but Lord Ming was unwilling and was beaten with twenty strokes of the cane. If it weren't for Princess Changning pleading for him, he probably would have been beaten to death. At that time, you had not yet become a nun, and we were afraid that you would be saddened, so we dared not say anything."

She paused, glanced at Qingxin, and sighed softly, "He's a rare good man. He doesn't have homosexual tendencies, it must be for..." (End of Chapter)