The temple was within Yudu. It was about an hour's ride away from theĀ Palace, built on a fertile grassland. Xia Xi had never been there. The temple didn't allow for people to loiter because it was a very sacred place for the Barbarians. Almost all major prayers or sacrifices were held in that temple.
Xia Xi never thought that there would be so many people in his entourage. There were twelve maids alone, and more than a hundred guards who looked very jaded, each with a curved blade hanging on their waist and all riding on tall horses. It made him a bit doubtful; if his team of guards met even his father's thousand personal guards, they would be able to stand their ground. He couldn't figure out why so many guards had to follow a Queen who was sent to the 'cold palace'Ā¹.
Their journey was very smooth. The closer they were to the temple, the fewer people they meet. When they were about to approach the temple, there was basically no living person nearby. Sitting inside the carriage, Xia Xi couldn't help but be curious about the temple. When Lan Duo'er told him that the temple was in sight, he slowly lifted the corner of the curtain and looked towards the place where he was going to stay.
The appearance of the temple was completely different from what he imagined. There were many temples in the Kingdom of Xia. The current Emperor believed in Buddhism, there were even several temples built inside the Palace. He thought that the temples of the Barbarians would be similar to those in Xia, so he didn't expect to see a magnificent stone house. The temple itself was huge, it was even more majestic than the Palace of Yudu. Its design was very special; parts of it didn't even look like it was created by man, but by God instead.
The Barbarians were very proud of the temple, and Lan Duo'er was no exception. When she saw the astonishment on Xia Xi's face, her mouth which had never loved words couldn't help but say: "The temple is our most beautiful place. I heard it was built here by a deity. Us Barbarians were originally nomads. When my ancestors saw this temple, they settled down here and formed the tribes one by one. Later, our country was born."
Xia Xi said: "So that's why," While they were talking, the convoy had already reached the temple. They could see the magnificent building even more clearly. Taking a closer look, Xia Xi could see that this temple was indeed built by humans. There were many traces of man, but the temple's skeleton looked whole. It looked like it was originally a large rock, excavated to become what it was now.
It must've taken tremendous manpower and financial resources to achieve this.
Xia Xi was a foreigner visiting the temple, he was only greeted by a low-ranked priest. The great witch doctor didn't even show his face. The residence arranged for him by the priest was also the furthest from the main hall. It was a rather large courtyard. It's just that the yard was lonely and bleak, with almost nothing. There were many people with Xia Xi, so someone would naturally take care of it for him. The first thing Xia Xi did after arriving was greet Chu Lan's mother, Yue Ling'er.
The Barbarians were different from the Xia. In the kingdom of Xia, the Queen MotherĀ² was a very majestic existence. Although she was also situated inside the harem and the things she does outside would mostly be ignored, she was still deeply respected in all festivals. The weight of her words was no less than that of an Emperor's Imperial edict. The Emperor had so many wives, even a spoiled concubine was replaceable. After all, pampering was a temporary thing, and the Emperor had a steady stream of women. No matter how old he was, there would be many beautiful girls to choose from. Women were different; once old age faded their beauty, it would be almost impossible to regain favour. Only when you become a Queen Mother can your position be stabilized. The Emperor could have many wives, but there'll always be just one mother, the difference was really incomparable. (T/N: In case you're lost, Xia Xi meant that their son, rarely daughter, being the next Emperor)
In contrast, the Barbarians were different. The Barbarians didn't have the honorary title "Queen Dowager". Once the King died, his women could no longer stay in the harem. They must stay in the temple for three years before deciding whether to stay. They could remarry or stay, but no matter which choice they choose, they won't be able to have much impact on the King for the rest of their lives.
Xia Xi asked the priest to arrange a meeting with Yue Ling'er. He thought there would be many cumbersome rules, but the priest said: "The upright official is in the west pasture. If Your Highness isn't too busy, it's possible to go there now." Upright official was what everyone inside the temple called Yue Ling'er.
Xia Xi was stunned for a moment, "Ranch?" He wasn't that familiar with the Barbarian language and thought he had heard wrong for a while, the priest had to repeat it again before he was sure that he had heard it right. Of course, he couldn't really let alone and needed guidance, so he let the priest lead the way for now. While travelling, Xia Xi saw a lot of things that he hadn't seen before. The weather was cold and he was wearing thick clothes, but he was still bombarded by the cold wind. The tip of his nose was flushed red and his fingers were icy. Later, Xia Xi saw that this place was indeed a ranch, a rather crude one at that. He really didn't understand why Yue Ling'er was here. Did she live here?
But she was Chu Lan's mother after all, how could she be treated like this?
Xia Xi entered the pasture. There were a lot of cattle and sheep inside. It wasn't easy to graze because of the cold weather, they were all nested inside the shed. The dung smelled odorous. The other's expressions didn't change, but Xia Xi could smell it and there was a faintly unwell feeling in his stomach. He tried to hold it back and followed the priest inside. When he walked to a small room, he heard voices of people talking inside, the priest also said: "Your Highness, the upright official is inside."
Xia Xi thanked him and looked inside. The illumination inside was a bit poor. There were three people squatting and a cow. It looked like they were delivering a calf. The words they were saying were too uncommon, Xia Xi seldom hears it, so he didn't understand. He didn't dare to recklessly go in and disturb them, so he just stood outside and waited while watching their movements. After a long time, he gradually became fascinated by it, when he saw the calf being delivered, joy also appeared in his heart.
The three people inside were obviously relieved. A certain tall person picked up the hay next to her and wiped the smudges on her hands carelessly. She looked back slovenly and her eyes fell on Xia Xi's face, she was taken aback and quickly left the room. After coming out, she asked with a simple smile on her: "My child, how long have you been standing here?"
The person in front of him was Yue Ling'er.
Xia Xi couldn't recognize her anymore. After all, when they first met, she was well dressed up and wore a Chinese dress. Now, she was wearing the most ordinary grey robe and a hat made of black bearskin on her head. Her exposed face was big and square, her cheeks were rosy and her nose was also red, her dangling braids had been stained with stray grass, and her face wasn't very clean. But those eyes were still bright and dazzling, almost the same as Chu Lan's.
Xia Xi hurriedly bowed to her. The people behind him were about to kneelĀ³. He was also about to kneel down, but Yue Ling'er quickly supported him and smiled: "It's too dirty here, oh, I got your sleeves dirty too. Let's go sit in a warm place, see, you're about to freeze. Why did you come here in such a hurry?" She obviously knew Xia Xi was coming in advance, so she was not too surprised.
Xia Xi spoke in Barbarian clumsily, "I've arrived, of course, I would want to see you first... Dirty sleeves are fine..." He was almost carried out of the barn by Yue Ling'er and into a warm tent. When theĀ Barbarians were still nomads, they lived in such tents. The tents were tall and thick. They provided shelter from wind and rain and were easy to displace. They were really good homes, but now that they have settled down, few people still lived in such tents.
The interior of the tent was a little messy, with three or five cushions for people to sit on, a small table, and some cooking utensils, most of which were some kind of medicinal materials, and some tools that Xia Xi didn't know of. Yue Ling'er first ordered water to wash her hands with. The maid next to her began to make tea. Xia Xi was a bit cramped and wanted to salute Yue Ling'er again. Yue Ling'er stopped him again and smiled heartily: "This isn't the Palace, so don't think about it. By law, you sit down and have a sip of hot tea to warm your body. If you froze, my son would feel distressed."
Xia Xi's face flushed and he finally sat down. He wasn't really cold, but he felt better after drinking a few sips of hot tea. During this period, Yue Ling'er had been looking at him. There was no malice in those eyes. After seeing him calm down, she said: "It's cold, Chu Lan<b> </b>(T/N: it only says Chu Lan) sent you here, don't blame him, he did it for your own good," She was probably worried that Xia Xi couldn't understand, so she deliberately slowed her speech, but the middle series of syllables still stumped Xia Xi for a while, only after a while did he realize that it was Chu Lan's Barbarian name.
Xia Xi gently shook his head, "I don't blame him." He had vaguely guessed Chu Lan's other intentions since last night, with a heavy worry on his face, "I only worry about him... he..." Yue Ling'er smiled and said: "Don't worry, my son isn't an ordinary person, he'll overcome these difficulties. You just live here well, although life's here more difficult."
Xia Xi said: "I'm not afraid."
Knowing that he hadn't eaten lunch yet, Yue Ling'er asked him to eat with her. The food was much simpler than the ones in the Palace. There was a small stack of barbecue. The rest were naan cakes and some pickles. Xia Xi only ate some, but Yue Ling'er ate a lot. After chatting for a while, Yue Ling'er knew that he still had things to do, so he asked Xia Xi to go back first.
Xia Xi stayed in the temple.
The weather was very cold, it started to snow after two days. Among the things Xia Xi brought, except for the two boxes of clothes and books that he packed by herself, the rest were arranged by the maids. Mostly everything was well prepared, including the charcoal. The courtyard he lived in was several times smaller than the one in the Palace. A pot of charcoal was enough to warm the main house, his bed could also be kept warm. His daily diet was no different from when he was in the Palace, maybe it had even improved because of the fresh fruits available.
All of this gave Xia Xi the feeling that he hadn't left the Palace at all.
Except that he couldn't see Chu Lan.
As for the hundreds of guards who escorted him, Xia Xi thought they would leave after sending him, but he didn't expect that they would also live outside the house, almost barricading the courtyard where he lived. Except for guards in the inner courtyard, there was no one besides the twelve maids; the twelve maids were enough to manage his daily life in an orderly manner so he really needn't worry about anything.
Xia Xi thought about greeting Yue Ling'er every day, but he could hardly find her. Yue Ling'er was very busy. Xia Xi thought that she lived in the temple to practice here, like many wealthy women who liked staying in temples, doing things like reciting sutras and copying Buddhist scriptures, but he really didn't expect her to be busy with real tasks. There were several pastures in the temple, and there was also an "An 'Eryuan". Xia Xi didn't understand what it was at first, but later he realized that it was a place for orphans and abandoned children.
Xia Xi wanted to see it. With Yue Ling'er's "lead by example", he didn't want to stay in the house every day to mourn the passing of spring and fallā“. He hoped that he could also do something that would benefit others.
He even thought that such behaviour could be regarded as true "practice".
____
Notes:
1- More often used as a metaphor. It refers to a wife or concubine that is no longer favoured and is instead disliked/abandoned. There is no fixed cold Palace, it's usually just the furthest courtyard from the Emperor's personal suites.\n2- The mother of the current King\n3- Not very sure about this one\n4- Doing nothing
<b>_____</b>
<b>PastTimer: It's gonna be all plot for a long while... </b>