CH 36

Míng Guī Lán gazed at Huò Wēi Lóu, contemplative, before he uttered, “I still remember that the subordinates beside Hou’ye have changed numerous times, and only those who are still being retained are capable of running around with Hou’ye as though they are cast in iron and other metals. Although Hou’ye has brought a lady with him, she doesn’t know what exhaustion is either.”

The space between Huò Wēi Lóu’s brows scrunched slightly, then he saw Bó Ruò Yōu crouching beside the Buddha statue, not finding the maggots frightening in the least as she carefully scraped at something on the inner walls of that Buddha statue. How could she not know exhaustion? She slept in his arms for the whole journey that night.

Even though that was what Huò Wēi Lóu was thinking at the bottom of his heart, he did not reveal a single thing on his visage. When Fu gonggong saw Bó Ruò Yōu fiddling with the maggot husks that were strewn all over, he went forward to ask: “What is Yōu Yōu looking at these for?”

Bó Ruò Yōu explained, “Min’nü has looked through the material evidence, and no other clues were discovered. Since it has already been confirmed that the deceased is Great Master Jìng Kōng, it would be better if the place where he met his demise is known.”

Fu gonggong sighed, “It’s already been ten years, it won’t be easy.”

“Certainly, it won’t be easy, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is devoid of hope.”

Bó Ruò Yōu held onto a small blade, scraping off another patch of dried maggot husks from the inner walls. After the corpse was dismembered and placed within the Buddha statue, it was inevitable that it wouldn’t escape the process of decay: the decaying would give birth to maggots, and since the maggots had nowhere to run, they could only die within the Buddha statue in the end as well. Presently, it had all turned into dried corpses.

Bó Ruò Yōu scraped all four sides clean before she lit another lamp to study the interiors of the Buddha statue. It was rather strenuous to keep her body bent, and after observing it for a short while, she stated: “When the Buddha statue was being crafted, the pedestal was probably made first, then the Buddha statue’s body, and lastly was the head. The inner walls of the Buddha statue’s upper portion have some brown stains, which was splattered on the surface when the corpse chunks were being put inside.”

Huò Wēi Lóu stepped forward at that moment, “The men who went to Jizhou have yet to send back any news. If your words are correct, then it’s not possible for the people crafting the statue to not notice any abnormalities.”

Bó Ruò Yōu nodded, “Shortly after the corpse was placed inside, it would bear the weight of a matured man. Disregarding the stench of blood, anyone would discover the abnormality caused by the additional weight as long as they move it a little.”

After giving a pause, Bó Ruò Yōu raised her eyes to gaze at Huò Wēi Lóu, “Is it plausible that the artisans crafting the Buddha statue had been bought out by the murderer?”

Bó Ruò Yōu was still crouching, and her forehead was sheeted with fine sweat. Now that she was raising her eyes to look at Huò Wēi Lóu, her small visage was meeting his, it appeared even more painted, especially with her umber-black dyed brows, crimson lips, and cool and bright eyes.

Huò Wēi Lóu stated: “Of course, if the artisans from that year can be found, the case will be much simpler.”

Bó Ruò Yōu hummed in response before turning her head back.  The maggots that had been scraped off the inner walls, and broken rags and threads were placed at the side together, and she started to look through them diligently. There was a large quantity of maggots, while they had all shrivelled up and died, remembering how they were born was enough to make people feel unwell. In spite of that, Bó Ruò Yōu did not shy away from it in the slightest as she held a pair of bamboo tweezers to sort through them. It was unknown what she saw, but her beautiful eyes lit up suddenly.

Holding the pair of bamboo tweezers, she clipped a dark-coloured maggot, raising in the direction of the sun to inspect it. Fu gonggong covered his nose and squatted at the side, “What’s the point of looking at this maggot?”

Bó Ruò Yōu shook her head, “This isn’t a maggot.”

Fu gonggong was a tad astonished, and Míng Guī Lán turned his wheelchair to come closer as well.

Bó Ruò Yōu stated, “This is a green bottle fly which frequently appears in the vicinity of latrines, and loves filth, but if a corpse starts decaying, it will be drawn over as well.”

Fu gonggong blinked his eyes, “What does that mean?”

Joy seeped into the bottom of Bó Ruò Yōu’s eyes, “The place where Great Master Jìng Kōng was murdered might be close to a latrine, or perhaps, he was dismembered near a latrine—”

Fu gonggong’s pupils turned, “But ten years have passed, it would be hard to search for traces, no?”

“Gonggong has forgotten about Great Master Jìng Kōng’s Buddhist beads. There are a hundred and eight Buddhist beads, but only one has been found right now, it’s very likely that the other one hundred and seven beads still remain at the place where he was harmed.”

Bó Ruò Yōu stood up to look at Huò Wēi Lóu. Huò Wēi Lóu glanced towards Liǎo Fán, who was still wearing grief-stricken expression at the side. “How many latrines does the temple have?”

Famen Temple was incredibly large, and it goes without saying that there was more than one latrine. Liǎo Fán composed himself, “There are five: one between the mountain doors and the Heavenly King Palace, another at the rear of the Hall of Great Strength, both of which are mainly prepared for the visitors. Apart from those two, there’s one in both the east and west meditation halls, and there’s one more in front of the hall for Buddhist doctrine sermons.”

Huò Wēi Lóu then said: “Lead benhou there to have a look.”

As he was issuing that order, Yuè Míng Quán and the other two walked out from the right wing-room. Huò Wēi Lóu said, “The three of you will stay here and wait.”

After the trio verbally complied, Huò Wēi Lóu departed with some embroidered emissaries.

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Bó Ruò Yōu looked at the green bottle fly corpse between the bamboo tweezers, a hint of relief colouring the bottom of her eyes. Míng Guī Lán peered at her from the side, “Even a small detail like this has been found by Bó guniang—”

Bó Ruò Yōu put the green bottle fly at the side on its lonesome, “A coroner is supposed to do this. Post-mortem autopsies are important, but the side branches or minor details from the material evidence shouldn’t be underrated. Any event, as long as it has happened, will leave behind traces, and the coroner has to help the government office find those traces.”

Míng Guī Lán mumbled, “As long as it has happened before, it will leave behind traces… If this statement was heard by the evildoers in this world, it’s highly likely that they will feel terrified at the bottom of their hearts.”

Huò Wēi Lóu returned very quickly, which caused Bó Ruò Yōu and the rest to look over and fix their eyes on him.

With dark eyes, Huò Wēi Lóu said: “None of them look like a place where a crime would occur. The latrines near the Heavenly King Palace and Hall of Great Strength have specific people watching over it, and it’s very close to their respective guard houses. Great Master Jìng Kōng was dismembered after his death, if such a place was only used to commit the murder, then there’s a chance where it would go undiscovered, but the bloodstains and blood stench caused by the dismemberment of the corpse would be hard to conceal. The same logic applied to the latrines close to the east and west meditation halls, as for the latrine near the preaching hall, it was only built seven years ago, and it never existed ten years ago.”

Bó Ruò Yōu’s brows furrowed slightly, was her conjecture wrong? But the green bottle fly was real, she would never distinguish it wrongly.

Bó Ruò Yōu looked towards Liǎo Fán, “Liǎo Fán shifu, ten years ago, were there only four latrines within the temple? It was the Grand Śarīra Ceremony back then, and there was a great number of people within the temple, were there any temporary latrines that were built in a remote area?”

For the Grand Ceremony that year, besides Emperor Jianhe and the hundred civil and military officials, there was a large number of imperial guards, and the Luozhou garrison troops that Yuè Míng Quán was leading. With that many people, it was highly probable that temporary latrines were built.

However, Liǎo Fán shook his head, “Not at all. Since the Buddha is being worshipped within the temple, it has always prized the purification of defiling illusion and reinforced cleanliness. Although there were a lot of people back then, His Majesty was present, and the Grand Śarīra Ceremony is only held once every thirty years, so the temple was all the more cautious.”

Bó Ruò Yōu’s brows were twisted together, but it was also at this moment where Fu gonggong threw out an abrupt remark: “That can’t be right, why does zajia remember that there seems to be a latrine outside the temple?”

Huò Wēi Lóu looked towards him, to which Fu gonggong smiled awkwardly and said: “Humans need to answer to the call of nature. When the imperial guards were changing shifts, quite a few people were heading outside the temple, and they said that there was a latrine outside the temple back then. Although zajia has a vague recollection of it, he has forgotten where it was located outside the temple.”

The knit of Liǎo Fán’s brows became even tighter, but when his gaze lowered and caught sight of the Buddha statue on the ground, his eyes brightened up a little. “This small monk remembers it now. Certainly, there was a latrine outside the temple, it was temporarily built inside the workshop which was situated outside the temple. Back then, a large batch of Buddha statues needed to be crafted, and many artisans were hired. Prior to the construction, a rancorous clamour broke out since there wasn’t such a large piece of land within the temple, so it was decided that the workshop would be constructed in the east. Apart from the masonry and smelting areas in that workshop, there was a fairly large latrine there.”

“Where was the workshop built back then?” Huò Wēi Lóu asked.

Liǎo Fán pointed towards the east, “Just outside the temple. Following closely, after the Buddha statues were all made, it was demolished very quickly for the sake of not damaging the fengshui within the temple. Afterwards, white birch trees were planted, and now it has become a white birch forest.”

Huò Wēi Lóu immediately said: “Find someone who has some understanding of the workshop and bring him over.”

Liǎo Fán did not hesitate, “Liǎo Jué shixiong was the managerial monk for the workshop that year.”

Without a moment’s delay, Huò Wēi Lóu proceeded to summon Liǎo Jué. After learning that the skeletal remains really belonged to Jìng Kōng, and it was exceedingly likely that the Buddha statue-crafting workshop was where Jìng Kōng was murdered, Liǎo Jué’s expression was inordinately mournfully as well. He led the way at the very front, and Bó Ruò Yōu followed Huò Wēi Lóu to the white birch forest.

After exiting from the east side door, the main road split off into two, going up and down: going up led to the back mountain, and going down led to the white birch forest. With ten years passing, the white birch trees have become dense as they stretched towards the sky, and since it was currently noon, the sun was casting down mottled pockets of sunlight and shade within the forest.

Liǎo Jué pointed at the forest, saying, “This area was slightly overgrown that year, and the artisans needed at least two to three months to make the Buddha statues, hence the land was levelled specifically for the construction of the workshop. Back then, wooden fencing was built around the workshop, with the northern face having a long row of smelting rooms, around a dozen or so. The western face leaning against the temple had a row of wing-rooms for the artisans’ board and lodging. The eastern face was an incredibly large area for the Buddha modelling, and the centremost empty land was for the mixing of the soil and water, whereas the latrine was in the northeast corner.”

Liǎo Jué brought the group to traverse through the forest before stopped at a low-lying ground. It was apparent that the growth of the white birch tree here was much denser than its surroundings, mostly because the latrine had been situated here, “This is the place. Close to this area was where the Buddha statues were moulded for one, and secondly, it was where the formed Buddha statues were left to dry. The process of crafting a Buddha statue is complex: whether it is the copper casting or the clay sculpting, it has to be gilded in gold and lacquered here, and then engraved and polished.”

Huò Wēi Lóu gestured to their surroundings, “Was there any vegetation in these areas?”

Liǎo Jué quickly said: “There was nothing, the entire area was levelled out.”

If it was overgrown back then, hiding a corpse would be rather simple, but since the entire area was levelled, that would make hiding a corpse difficult instead. If the murderer had committed the violent crime close to this area and happened to see the Buddha statues drying in the air and basking in the sun after the homicide, which led to him hiding the corpse inside the Buddha statue, then the explanation was tenable.

“Since you were in-charge of this area, do you know which phase the Buddha statues had been moulded to at the time of your Shifu’s disappearance?”

Liǎo Jué frowned, “This small monk does not understand Buddha sculpting in the least, and is only responsible for arranging the artisans’ food, lodgings, and salary for the most part. Moreover, it was the Grand Śarīra Ceremony during that period of time, so the attention given to this side of things was scarce. One cannot recall which stage it progressed to, but…”

Liǎo Jué’s expression crumbled with anguish, “But this small monk remembers the Buddha statues of Mahākāśyapa and Ānanda, it was close to completion during the days of the ceremony, because work for those two honoured figures began the earliest. Moreover, it was not moulded from clay, and it was slated for the Hall of Great Hall, so this small monk gave it more attention. After Shifu disappeared later, this small monk and two Shixiong, were searching for Shifu together with the others in the temple. When this small monk turned back to manage the workshop, the two Buddha statues were fully crafted, and then it was gilded in two layers of gold. After approximately two months, it was formally displayed within the main palace hall.”

At that time, no one could have anticipated that Jìng Kōng’s corpse was actually hidden inside the Buddha statue.

Huò Wēi Lóu observed the entire area but he did not find a single trace of the workshop’s existence, so he questioned: “When the workshop was being demolished afterwards, were there any noted irregularities?”

Liǎo Jué furrowed his brows, “There wasn’t any, no. Back when the roof beams were torn down and the entire flooring was pushed away, nothing unusual was discovered.”

Huò Wēi Lóu surveyed his surroundings. Ten years had elapsed, even the soil quality had given rise to some changes, to say nothing of the white birch trees which had sprouted up to the skies. In a place like this, what could they possibly discover?

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“Was it the people in the temple who planted this forest back then?”

Once Huò Wēi Lóu posed that question, Liǎo Jué shook his head again, “Not exactly. Several households of farmers living at the foot of the mountain were hired to help plant it. Those families are impoverished, and they would plant some wild fruits all year round and send it to the temple to earn some small change. The manpower within the temple is insufficient, so they are frequently hired to help with labour work. Back when the Buddha statues were being sculpted, the miscellaneous workers that helped with the clay mixing came from these families.”

Huò Wēi Lóu initially assumed that the artisans who crafted the statues were far away in Jizhou, and he did not expect that miscellaneous workers were hired from nearby. Although it had been ten years, he refused to give up any leads, hence he immediately ordered Lù Kē: “Go to the foot of the mountain and conduct a round of inquiries, asking if there were any abnormalities during the sculpting, especially the Mahākāśyapa Buddha statue.”

Lù Kē knew that Bó Ruò Yōu had discovered some clues, and he was also aware that the Buddhist prayer beads were missing, so he was cognizant of the vital points he had to inquire about. He immediately replied in the positive before bringing away some embroidered emissaries to go down the mountain.

Huò Wēi Lóu led the group in inspecting the forest, and Bó Ruò Yōu roamed around the small piece of land as well. The planting of white birch trees required an extremely deep pit, which was why this forest was rather dense. If there were any irregularities in the soil, it was not possible that the farmers planting the trees did not discover anything. Right now, however, the tree roots have entrenched themselves; wanting to dig up the soil from each square unit was honestly too difficult an endeavour.

The embroidered emissaries were searching the entire area, and even if they dug one meter down, it was improbable that they would find anything. Hence, Huò Wēi Lóu could only double back with his delegation. Just as they returned to the temple, he saw Huò Qīng Hóng coming over in search for them. Upon seeing Huò Wēi Lóu, Huò Qīng Hóng’s complexion brightened, “Older Brother! Heard that all of you went out of the temple doors to search for clues, were there any gains?”

Huò Wēi Lóu shook his head, “Were you together with Lín Zhāo the entire time just now?”

Huò Qīng Hóng could not resist issuing a lazy yawn when he heard that, “Lín Zhāo is currently skimming through the Buddhist ancient records. It was really too boring, and I actually dozed off in the Library Pavilion…”

When he spoke to this point, his eyes swept across Bó Ruò Yōu who was following them at the back. After looking at her for two seconds, he strolled over with a wide smile as he said: “Bó guniang, right? Are you aware of Famen Temple’s origins?”

At a slight loss, Bó Ruò Yōu shook her head, “Min’nü is not aware.”

Upon hearing that, Huò Qīng Hóng’s eyes squinted like a fox, “This is how Famen Temple started, the legends states that there was a scholar called Fa Ah Men who was extremely devout to the Buddhist faith, and at the start, he practiced the teachings of Dharma in the mortal world, enlightening all living beings. In the end, the Heaven’s Son of that time held an immense dislike for Buddhism, hence….”

Huò Qīng Hóng leaned his body forward, his voice becoming more eerie by two parts, “Hence, the Heaven’s Son ordered his men to arrest him, then chopped off his hands and feet, severed his tongue, and dug out his eyes, sentencing him to—”

Before he could finish saying the word “death”, Huò Qīng Hóng’s back collar was grabbed by someone. Huò Wēi Lóu lifted him with one hand, dragging him like he was hauling an object as he walked forward, “What did I say just now? Starting to make trouble already?”

“Hey hey hey, Older Brother, let’s calm down and talk in a civilised manner instead of resorting to violence. I merely wished to scare her ah, but why isn’t she scared at all.” Huò Qīng Hóng was dragged a few feet away before he was released. He looked at Bó Ruò Yōu in astonishment, his gaze conveying that he found it inconceivable.

Fu gonggong was wearing a smiling expression as he watched the good show, “Shizi ah, Bó guniang is a coroner; she’s not even afraid of corpses, why would she be afraid of your story?”

Huò Qīng Hóng neatened his collar hastily as he looked at Bó Ruò Yōu with a face full of disapproval, “Tsk, that would explain why my Older Brother brought you along, are you even a woman…”

Huò Wēi Lóu looked at him with a frown once more. Huò Qīng Hóng did not dare to speak again, coughing lightly as he adjusted his expression. He was not double-ten in age yet, and when he was not creating trouble, his countenance was handsome, exuding a natural romanticism that was akin to a jade tree with orchid branches.

Fu gonggong said smilingly, “The story that Shizi just spoke of, was it found from the Library Pavilion?”

Huò Wēi Lóu had already lifted his foot and ventured forward, while Huò Qīng Hóng kept pace and said: “Yes. This Library Pavilion does have more books than the Xiangguo Temple’s book collection. I was holding an ancient book, and just as I was reading about Famen Temple’s origins, I dozed off…”

Huò Wēi Lóu shook his head, “Without learning or skill.”

Contrariwise, Huò Qīng Hóng chortled and leaned closer, “With Older Brother around, why would I need to learn this skill and that skill?”

Huò Wēi Lóu could not be bothered to acknowledge him, but he continued to stick by Huò Wēi Lóu’s side from start to end. In one moment, he asked about when the case would end, and in the next, he talked about wanting to explore Luozhou City. Even though Huò Wēi Lóu would only occasionally answer with a line or two, his words continued to pour out in a steady flow.

Having finally comprehended what kind of temperament this Shizi’ye had, Bó Ruò Yōu found herself smiling a little. However, when she heard him saying that the Library Pavilion had a sizeable book collection, a thought suddenly emerged from the bottom of her heart. When the group returned to morgue courtyard, Bó Ruò Yōu proceeded to sidle up to Huò Wēi Lóu and say: “Hou’ye, Shizi said that the Library Pavilion here has a vast book collection, min’nü is thinking, could there be records relating to the Śarīra in its midst?”

Huò Wēi Lóu shifted his eyes to glance at her, and Bó Ruò Yōu continued to say: “The thief must have a motive for stealing the Śarīra. Owing to the fact that everyone knows that the Śarīra is the most valuable treasure in the Buddhist religion, everyone suspected Great Master Jìng Kōng the most for all these years. But what if the Śarīra has another use? If the thief’s motivation for stealing the Śarīra is known, perhaps it can provide some help.”

The corpse had been examined, as were the bones, the artisans were out of reach in Jizhou, and not much was gained from the other clues. Bó Ruò Yōu conceiving this thought could be considered as a new direction. Huò Wēi Lóu muttered irresolutely to himself briefly before saying: “It’s enough to ask the temple monks about the applications of the Śarīra.”

Huò Qīng Hóng approached them when he heard those words, “Do you know how many books are inside the Library Pavilion? If you want to find it from the books, who knows how long that will take.”

Bó Ruò Yōu agreed with good grace.

Very quickly, Liǎo Fán arrived before the group again. When he was asked about the other applications of the Śarīra, Liǎo Fán replied: “The Śarīra that this temple enshrines is the spiritual bones of the Gautama Buddha, who is the supreme, sacred figure of Buddhism, and the power of its blessings is not something ordinary monks can easily bear. Only senior monks that have achieved enlightenment are capable of gaining a bit of good karma. This small monk believes that Śarīra from the Buddha’s bones can benefit any monk, and protect the country’s vein and its common people. The Revered One of the World once said in the Lotus Sutra: ‘The sentient beings, seeing me enter perfect extinction, earnestly revere my relics, and filled with longing, yearn for me. When the sentient beings become sincere, mild, and receptive; in wanting wholeheartedly to meet the Buddha, are willing to give unsparingly, of their bodies and lives’. The Śarīra is the incarnation of the Buddha, the embodiment of the Buddha in this world, which can benefit all the people, and invest conviction in the disciples of Buddhism to seek the Great Way, unsparing with their bodies and lives.”

Once Liǎo Fán was done speaking, even Huò Wēi Lóu was furrowing his brows. His speech was earnest, but it was only speaking for the Buddhist disciples, as if it was only being worshipped by the monks, but what about ordinary people?

“Besides this, are there any sayings circulating among the common folk?”

Liǎo Fán faltered briefly, “All the sayings circulating among the common folk are just rumours which cannot be trusted. Whether it is the Śarīra being able to cure a hundred illnesses, granting a heart-felt desire, or going as far as resurrecting the dead, all of it is naturally fake… The Buddha is in the heart, Amitābha.”

Although he knew that the rumours were false in his heart, Liǎo Fán chanted a few lines of Buddhists hymns as if saying it once was still a sin.

Huò Wēi Lóu said: “You’re a Buddhist disciple, and you’re naturally aware that it’s fake. But the notion that someone insists on believing those rumours, thereby choosing to take the risk out of desperation, isn’t impossible. Sometimes, when people sink into despair, they will still lay down their life and try it, despite being aware that it is fake.”

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Liǎo Fán’s brows scrunched together, as if he was struggling to understand it. Huò Wēi Lóu turned around to look at Bó Ruò Yōu, “Still intending to go to the Library Pavilion?”

He originally thought that Bó Ruò Yōu’s doubts were mostly clarified, but she unexpectedly said: “Min’nü still wishes to have a look.”

Surprisingly, Huò Wēi Lóu indulged her as well. He glanced at Fu gonggong, who then said smiling: “Then zajia will go together with Yōu Yōu—”

Bó Ruò Yōu bowed with womanly obeisance and took her leave.

Huò Qīng Hóng clicked his tongue and said: “Why is she so stubborn ah!”

At the side, Míng Guī Lán chuckled, “Shizi naturally wouldn’t understand.”

Huò Qīng Hóng harrumphed, looking at the sun that was slanting towards the west before he said: “We should go and rest for a while. This entire journey has been terribly exhausting, I even fell asleep just now.”

Huò Wēi Lóu knew that the pair had travelled far, and he was about to order the embroidered emissaries to escort them back when he heard Míng Guī Lán say, “In the days that Hou’ye was away from the Capital, I went to visit Her Highness the Elder Princess, she… is slightly unwell.”

Huò Wēi Lóu frowned upon hearing that. In the end, he still sent the pair back to their meditation hall.

On the other end, Fu gonggong walked as he remarked: “Shizi’ye has been spoiled ever since he was young, so his temperament is somewhat childish. Yōu Yōu, don’t take any offense.”

“How so.”

Fu gonggong continued, “Although Hou’ye has his own residence presently, his patronymic is Huò when all is said and done. The two brothers are almost like real siblings; even though Shizi is slightly afraid of Hou’ye, he’s actually very dependent on Hou’ye.”

Bó Ruò Yōu could perceive it, “Brothers and friends respecting each other is a good thing.”

As the pair continued to converse, they eventually reached the Library Pavilion. Just as they arrived at the entrance, they saw Lín Zhāo coming out with two monks, who was slightly surprised to see Bó Ruò Yōu and Fu gonggong, “Gonggong, this is…”

Fu gonggong smiled and said, “Has Gongzi completed his work for today? Zajia is bringing Yōu Yōu to find some ancient records to look through.”

Lín Zhāo decided to stay behind after hearing that, “The books inside are in process of being organised for the past two days, may one inquire what Guniang is looking for?”

Bó Ruò Yōu promptly replied: “One would like to find books concerning the written accounts about Buddhist Temples, like the Śarīra and other secret religious treasures for instance, or legends concerning Buddhism—”

Lín Zhāo came to an understanding after hearing her criteria. He turned around and entered, bringing the pair to a row of tall bookshelves, “The scriptures here mostly detail the stories within Buddhism, and records of secret religious treasures, with mentions of the Śarīra being more than abundant.”

Bó Ruò Yōu retracted her gaze, “Many thanks to Gongzi.”

Lín Zhāo looked at Bó Ruò Yōu for a few seconds, then thanked Fu gonggong before departing. When he reached the door, he could not resist casting another glance inwards, mumbling something in his mind. His pageboy was standing at the entrance, and he asked in response: “What is Gongzi looking at?”

Lín Zhāo laughed in spite of himself, “For some unknown reason, [I] feel like that Guniang looks slightly familiar.”

Having said that, he shook his head before he lifted his foot and walked away.

Inside the Library Pavilion, Bó Ruò Yōu was amazed by the book collection that was as vast as the open sea. It was fortunate that Lín Zhāo pointed her in the right direction; if she had to slowly find it whilst blind, it was unknown how long it would have taken her. On the other hand, Fu gonggong already felt a headache coming just by looking at this row of bookshelves, “Yōu Yōu ah, not hiding it from you, zajia and Shizi have the same illness of—”

Bó Ruò Yōu looked over, and Fu gonggong said: “Of feeling drowsy upon looking at books.”

Bó Ruò Yōu giggled, “Gonggong can rest instead. Min’nü will be browsing through the books here. It’s uncertain if anything can be found, and the whole affair can be treated as using official business to seek private gain, where one gets to look at Buddhist scriptures that are rarely seen.”

Once Fu gonggong received this affirmation, he went to a tearoom at the side of the Library Pavilion with an easy conscience to wait for her.

Only the rustling noise of a book flipping remained inside the quiet room. Back facing the window, Bó Ruò Yōu skimmed through the Buddhist scriptures she took from the shelves with single-minded focus, but at a certain moment, she abruptly felt a small chill run down her spine.

A prickling sensation, one that was derived from being spied on, suddenly slammed into her.

Breath hitching, she twisted her body without any warning to look outside, and yet it was utterly empty outside the window. How was there a person?

She sighed in relief, only assuming that she was being nervous and paranoid as she turned her head back to flip through the scriptures again. However, at the window corner, which was out of her perception, there were footprints on a pile of listless dried leaves that were just left behind. When a gust of cold wind blew over, it whistled, causing the dried leaves to swirl, and the footprints disappeared…