Chapter 4
Chapter 4
That day, I still failed to find the way out.
Not that I was surprised.
After returning to Lanyin Temple, I wrapped myself in my quilt-now crawling with lice-and drifted in and out of sleep. Then, all of a sudden, two clear voices sounded beside my ear.
One was shrill and drawn-out:
“Asura, zhengwei xiaoni, zongqiang liaokang can die dian?”
The other was calm and unhurried, pure as still water:
“Leave it to me. She’ll take the bait.”
“…”
The two of them rustled and whispered for a long while, sounding as if they were fighting tooth and nail over something. Just then, a gust of cold wind blew in through the window. I shuddered and snapped awake.
When I looked outside, the night was still pitch-black.
I threw on my clothes and got out of bed. The moment I opened the door, a long, shaggy shadow shot past me like a bolt of lightning, vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye.
No.
No beast could move that fast!
I was still frozen in speechless shock when, up ahead, a pair of spotless white shoes slowly came into view.
Under the moonlight, pale as snow-white silk, that luminous figure seemed to make the very road glow. He was almost too bright to look at. The instant I turned to leave, he called out softly, “Stop.”
“Are you afraid of me?”
“…No.”
“Then why are you avoiding me?”
“…”
His footsteps drew closer.
Behind me, cool fingers came to rest on my shoulder. He leaned in and murmured, “That was… such a huge beast just now. Did you see it?”
“I-I-I-I-I-I saw it.”
“Feel this. My heart is beating so fast. I’m so scared.”
“I-I-I-I-I-I am scared too.”
“…”
After a moment of silence, the young man shifted the tip of one shoe and lightly stroked the satin-like hair over his chest. His gaze drifted toward me, plaintive and lingering. “You said the other day that you wanted to thank me. Does that still count?”
I nodded.
At that, he smiled faintly. “This temple is too large, and the night is too dark. I can’t find my way home… What do you think I should do?”
“It’s all right,” I said, instantly understanding. “I live alone anyway.”
At my words, his eyes grew even more tender. “Then why don’t we…”
“Why don’t I walk you home?”
I said sincerely, “I live alone, with no ties and nothing holding me back. I can leave whenever I want.”
“…”
After that, I turned back into my room, dug a hemp rope out of my bundle, and tied it firmly around my waist.
His smile had long since disappeared. Expressionless, he asked, “What is that?”
“A belt,” I said, then tied my bundle to my waist as well.
“Let’s go.”