Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Spending the night in a deserted temple, I found a faintly fragrant gauze kerchief hanging on the door.

Pure white and soft.

Thin and exquisitely made.

I thought nothing of it. I pulled it down to wipe my hands and feet, then used it to wipe down the bed boards and window lattice. After that, I spread out the bedding I had brought with me and drifted off in a daze.

Just as sleep was growing heavy, someone suddenly knocked on the door.

I jolted awake. “Who is it?”

A soft murmur came from outside. “My lady, have you perhaps seen the handkerchief this humble scholar left behind?”

Spending the night in a deserted temple was terrifying.

More terrifying than that was someone speaking beneath your window in the middle of the night.

Peering out through a hole in the window paper, I saw a young man standing in the moonlight in wooden clogs. His wide robe and billowing sleeves fluttered as if he had arrived riding the wind, giving him an ethereal air.

An ancient temple, a deserted village, a beautiful figure with a bewitching face.

The scene had a certain hazy, sensual quality straight out of a storybook.

Before leaving home, I had heard strange rumors about Lanyin Ancient Temple.

It was said that seductive ghosts haunted this place. Once a passerby became entangled with them, they would either have their vital essence sucked dry or be dragged into another world, never to be seen again.

At that thought, I opened the window a crack and threw out the piece of cloth I had used to wipe the floor, the windowsill, and my stinky feet.

“Here, take it back!”

The other party was quick-eyed and quick-handed, catching it in one grasp.

Then he stared at the gauze kerchief in his hand, now ruined like a strip of dried pickled vegetable, and sank into contemplation.

Three years ago, my elder brother went to the capital to sit for the imperial examinations and had yet to return.

Worried for his safety, I packed up my bundle and valuables, intending to head south in search of him.

After crossing mountains and rivers along the way, I arrived in the Heishan region. There, banyan trees stood everywhere, half concealing a low, dilapidated temple. In front of the temple lay a fallen grayish-white signboard, engraved with three large, time-eaten characters: Lanyin Temple.

I decided to stay there for the night.

The temple was not large, but a few of its ruined rooms could still shelter a person. On the nearest door, a light gauze cloth had been tied, faint fragrance curling from it. I thought nothing of it, pulled it down in one tug, and carried my bundle into the room.

Who would have thought that very night, the owner of the gauze kerchief would come knocking…

At that thought, I woke with a start, only to find the sky already bright. There was no one outside either.

Everything that happened last night seemed like an illusion, a dream that had bloomed and vanished in an instant.

Alarmed, I packed up my bundle and continued on my way. Banyan trees grew everywhere here, towering high enough to blot out the sun. Walking among them, I could barely tell day from night.

After trudging onward for a long while, I was so hungry my chest felt glued to my back. In a daze, I suddenly saw a household up ahead. As I walked farther, the houses grew more numerous, more densely clustered…

This was actually a neat little village!

A flock of plump chickens waddled past my feet. Beyond the orderly crisscrossing footpaths lay vast golden rice fields. Several old men strolled along the ridges between paddies, each with a ruddy complexion and relaxed expression.

Could it be true, as the travelers back in my hometown said… that the Jiahe Era was a prosperous age of revival?

Puzzled, I continued forward.

The people here were simple and honest. Everyone wore a smile. Seeing me so hungry I could hardly straighten my back, an elderly man sighed in pity, sliced half an ear off the braised pig’s head he was carrying, and earnestly handed it to me.

I did not even have time to thank him. I took it and stuffed it into my mouth.

Strangely enough, the pig’s ear looked glossy, red, and rich with oil, but in my mouth it tasted like chewing wax. It had no flavor at all!

I hurriedly spat out every bit of meat in my mouth. Seeing this, the old man cut off the pig’s snout and offered it to me, still smiling benignly.

“Thank you, sir, but there’s no need.”

When I tightened my belt and turned to leave, the villagers looked at me sideways, whispering among themselves from time to time.

Fortunately, after passing another village entrance, I spotted a few familiar green-leafed trees by the roadside.

Looking down, I saw fallen nuts scattered all over the ground. Their outer skins had long since turned brown. When I split open the dried flesh, a subtle, sharp, astringent fragrance shot straight up to the top of my head.

Hickory nuts!

This was the smell of food!

I quickly picked up a stone, smashed open the shells, and swallowed several kernels in one go.

The old man carrying the braised pig was still following behind me. Grinning, he said, “Little lady, you have no fortune.”