Chapter 74 A Fleeting Rain "Man is guilty, and I am guilty too..."

The rain gradually subsided, and even the wind became gentle.

This summer rain came suddenly and stopped just as quickly, leaving behind only a large patch of lingering moisture.

Jiang Ce didn't know why Xue Chan slept so soundly, even after he carried her off the bed, blew out the lamp, and walked her to the corridor, she didn't wake up.

She simply nestled quietly in Jiang Ce's arms and slept soundly, her breathing light and long.

On the contrary, Jiang Ce took three steps to inhale and five steps to exhale, walking very, very slowly.

He didn't look down at Xue Chan, his eyes fixed on the darkness ahead, walking step by step. He even deliberately rolled up his sleeves several times to shield her from the darkness, and didn't tighten his grip too much.

What should have been just a few steps for him took him a very long time to walk.

Jiang Ce walked straight to the bedside and gently placed Xue Chan on it. As soon as she touched the blanket, Xue Chan turned over, her back to him.

A strand of hair flowed like water through Jiang Ce's palm, and a sense of fear and loss welled up in his heart. He immediately reached out and grabbed it.

But I grasped nothing; all I felt was a sudden itch in my palm and an endless sense of loss in my heart.

Jiang Ce lowered his head, lost in thought, and took a deep look at Xue Chan, who was still sleeping peacefully. He covered her with a light blanket, pursed his lips, stepped back, turned around, gently opened the window, and then climbed out to close it.

Jiang Ce initially wanted to go back down the mountain, but the thought of Xue Chan on the mountain made him less inclined to return.

He stood for a long time in front of the wall behind the bamboo grove, standing outside the wall with his back against it.

The bricks and stones were too cold, the walls too thick. He could hear Xue Chan's pulse beating, and he also listened quietly to the gradually subsiding rain.

Jiang Ce closed his eyes and tilted his head back. It seemed that this way, the heavy rain could wash away his filthy heart.

When the scissors fell, he reached out and caught them, gripping the handle.

But the moment the scissors landed in his hand, he changed his mind. With a gentle twist of the small scissors in his hand, the tip cut his palm, and blood dripped onto the floor.

The dim light was too dim, but in that instant, Jiang Ce saw her furrowed brows and heard her soft sigh.

Jiang Ce suddenly had a feeling, but before he could figure out what it was, it was gone.

She simply felt that the torn wound and the blood flowing out seemed so insignificant and so worthwhile amidst Xue Chan's furrowed brows, slightly pursed lips, and soft sighs.

Jiang Ce raised his hand and slowly opened his palm.

A long, still-healing wound was clearly visible across his palm.

Jiang Ce realized this too late.

That feeling was one of contentment.

What did he really want after all this trouble? Just a little bit of heartache.

People are just too greedy and too biased.

Desires are endless; once you get one thing, you want another.

But he was too dishonest and corrupt, too secretive.

Jiang Ce covered his face and murmured softly.

"Humans are sinful, and I am sinful too."

The rain gradually subsided and then stopped.

Jiang Ce glanced back at the wall and walked away. He passed through the long corridor, walked past the pagoda, and circled around to the stone Buddha wall behind the mountain, where the wind blew down petals.

He caught the flower, and suddenly a lantern lit up beside him, shining its light on the flower in his palm: "So it's a pomegranate flower."

Jiang Ce tucked the flower into his sleeve, looked up, and in the dim light, saw an ancient pomegranate tree growing on the cliff face. Its branches stretched outwards, with most of them drooping over his head.

He reached out and broke off two branches, holding them in his arms.

"You are guarding this place, and although you have dismissed those who are not important, why have you drugged everyone in the monastery?"

The man carrying the lantern beside him exclaimed in surprise, "Yu Yu entrusted some of us to disguise ourselves as guards and accompany him, while others secretly kept watch, and we have been doing so for the past few days. Today, when you came, although we secretly retreated to guard, we did not drug them or knock them out, did we? Is there any error in this matter?"

Jiang Ce turned around, his long eyebrows furrowed.

In fact, he noticed the traces of the incense the moment he entered the Zen temple, but Xue Chan was drinking medicine and burning calming incense, so the smells were mixed together and difficult to detect.

Jiang Ce suddenly realized what was happening and ran towards the front yard.

"Damn it!"

When Jiang Ce arrived at Jingxin Courtyard, the courtyard was already filled with the clash of swords.

Their men appeared silently, blocking the entrance, the porch, and the courtyard wall, surrounding these assassins who had appeared out of nowhere in a small courtyard.

Unable to move forward, and unable to escape.

Jiang Ce darted to the stone steps under the corridor, still holding two large branches of pomegranate flowers in his arms.

He caught the knife handed to him from elsewhere and said in a low voice, "I didn't hold back last time and they all died. I was just worried about having no survivors, and you delivered yourselves to my doorstep."

He chuckled softly, "How stupid is that?"

Amidst laughter and banter, the long sword was drawn and pulled, blood splattering as it disappeared into the soft, rain-soaked earth. He struck first, severely wounding two, and the rest followed suit, each fighting in unison.

The sky darkened again, and a flash of blue-white lightning illuminated the sky, making the knives in their hands gleam silver.

Jiang Ce, holding the flower, spun around with his sword, dodging the splattered blood. The other man's arm fell to the ground, but he remained clean, the pomegranate flower in his arms still fresh and dewy.

But the wound on his shoulder and back reopened, and blood stained his clothes, sliding down his arm to his palm, then down the hilt of the knife to the tip, and into the mud.

Two claps of thunder were followed by a torrential downpour. The rain washed away the blood and drowned out the sounds of clashing swords.

Rainwater streamed down Jiang Ce's nose and chin. He wiped the water from his face and twirled the long sword in his hand.

He grinned.

"Keep it down, and bring them all down the mountain!"

A door, a window, a wall, and the sound of rain define the boundaries.

In one courtyard, swords clashed and blood flew everywhere. Inside another room, peace and tranquility reigned, as the incense from the burner rose gently.

The lamp on the flower stand burned softly, the light gauze curtains remained still, and the person sleeping inside slept peacefully, breathing deeply.

She rolled over, yawned groggily, and sat up.

She was still in the same room. Yingyue was asleep on the couch under the window. Xue Chan tucked her in and gently opened the window.

The rain was still falling, and Jingxin Courtyard remained the same as before. The lamps under the eaves had been replaced with new candles, making the night even brighter.

Xue Chan was in a daze for a moment. Was she dreaming just now?

But she was too tired, so she went back to sleep.

The next morning, the wind and rain had stopped, the bamboo mountain was clean, the flower windows were bright, and everything was spotless. The stone steps were slightly moss-covered and clean, and a few vibrant petals had fallen on the floor tiles.

When Chu Tao brought in the water, Ying Yue was sitting by the window, lost in thought. She smiled and asked, "What's wrong with you? Didn't you sleep well last night?"

Yingyue sighed and said, "That's strange. Last night's thunder and rain were so heavy, but it didn't wake me up at all. I slept like a log."

Chu Tao glanced at the bed with its curtains hanging down and asked her with her eyes: Are you awake?

Yingyue shook her head. She stepped forward, opened the window, and took out her makeup box to comb Xue Chan's hair. She murmured with a puzzled look, "I remember I went to close the door last night, and then I have no recollection of it at all. I fell asleep on this low couch this morning. How strange."

Chu Tao splashed some water on her and joked, "You didn't forget you were out at night, did you?"

Yingyue paused, then sighed, "Never mind, maybe so."

She glanced back at the bed and nudged Chu Tao with her elbow: "It's time to wake the young lady up. Sleeping too long isn't good."

Chu Tao gently called out to Xue Chan.

Xue Chan rubbed her eyes and let Yingyue help her up. She yawned and sat on the bed, lost in thought for a while.

I slept soundly and comfortably in the second half of the night without any dreams.

"Oh my! Why is the young lady sleeping with flowers in her hair?" Chu Tao exclaimed in surprise.

flower?

Yingyue also leaned closer and tilted her head to look: "Hey, it really is."

Xue Chan looked at the two of them in confusion. She had clearly removed all the hairpins and ornaments, so why were there still pearl flowers left?

Yingyue held the bronze mirror in front of Xue Chan. The mirror reflected her fair face, with a bright pomegranate flower adorning her simple hair.

She raised her hand to touch the pomegranate flower in front of the mirror, and pursed her lips slightly.

"There are two pomegranate blossoms in this vase too. Did someone bring flowers last night?"

Chu Tao, carrying a vase, walked to the bedside and blinked as she asked.

Yingyue shook her head, she didn't remember.

The two looked at Xue Chan.

Her gaze fell on the deep green and bright red in the porcelain vase, and she said softly, "Last night I suddenly thought of the pomegranate tree in my family's house when I was in Yuchuan, and I missed my father. So I asked the monks in the temple to break off two branches of pomegranate blossoms for me, so that I could remember him by looking at the object."

Chu Tao and Ying Yue exchanged a glance and didn't ask any further questions.

Xue Chan stayed at the Bitter Bamboo Temple for a few more days, but Jiang Ce never came again.

I don't know if his injury is any better; it was raining heavily that day.

On the morning of June 27th, an urgent letter was delivered from the capital to Kuzhu Temple.

Xue Chan opened the letter, which was a long, rambling complaint and urging from Cheng Huaizhu to hurry back and prepare for her birthday.

So, the group packed up and prepared to go back.

When Xue Chan arrived at the mountain gate, Xu Yin came to see her off.

She bowed to Xu Yin and said, "Thank you for your patient guidance over the past few days. I have benefited greatly from it in my painting skills. I have also gained a lot of insight into many things that I used to find obscure and difficult to understand. It was truly worthwhile to have the opportunity to meet Master Xu Yin at Kuzhu Temple."

Xu Yin smiled and said, "Benefactor, you have already surpassed many in terms of your mind, but if you want to take it a step further, you still need to temper your mind."

Xue Chan listened with only a partial understanding: "Forgive my dullness, what is outside the mind, and what is inside the mind?"

Xu Yin: "Outside the mind are techniques and tools, but within the mind is the Way."

She wasn't unaware of the word "Dao".

From the time she began learning to paint as a child, her mother, father, and teachers had all spoken of this word, each with their own philosophy.

Seeing Xue Chan frown and remain silent, Xu Yin continued, "Benefactor, although you have inherited your father's painting skills and studied the works of your predecessors, these are all other people's paths. Although you have glimpsed some of them, you find it difficult to understand and comprehend them, is that right?"

Xue Chan: "Yes, that's why I've felt a bit rusty and stagnant lately."

Xu Yin: "Because these are other people's paths, not your own. You have never walked their paths, seen the scenery in their eyes, or felt the emotions in their hearts, so naturally you feel that they are illusory and distant."

Xue Chan raised her face and said solemnly, "I beg you, Master, to give me some further guidance. How should I find my path? Where should I look for it?"

Xu Yin smiled faintly and said, "The heart of a painter should be as pure as a mirror, untouched by dust. The traces of the heart are the threads of emotion. Perhaps one day, you will be able to step out, connect your heart with your emotions, and let your emotions flow into your paintings. Do not be afraid to discard everything from the past, and at that time, you will be reborn in the world."

Xue Chan listened with a sense of understanding but not quite, yet she found it difficult to grasp those intangible, fragmented feelings.

She sighed and stepped back to give a deep bow.

"Although I don't fully understand what my master said, I keep it in mind. I think that as things change, one day I will understand and find my own path."

Xu Yin smiled and said, "Heaven and earth are boundless, and so is the Dao. I hope that when we meet again, you will have been reborn."

Goodbye

Goodbye

Xue Chan returned to the capital just like that. She had just entered the gate of the mansion when she saw Cheng Huaizhu running towards her from afar.

She ran up to Xue Chan, panting and sweating profusely.

"You, you, you're finally back."

Xue Chan laughed as she wiped her sweat, "What are you doing here on such a hot day?"

Cheng Huaizhu grabbed her hand and pulled her along as they ran towards the inner hall, laughing as they went, "Guess who came to our house?"

She ran fast, like a gust of wind, and Xue Chan was swept away and broke out in a light sweat.

"Who is it? Miss Xiao? Miss Fang?"

"Neither," Cheng Huaizhu chuckled, speaking in riddles, "is someone very important to you and someone you think about constantly."

The two ran through the flower-shaded corridor and were about to walk down the climbing corridor when they suddenly stopped.

At the end of the mountain corridor, on the stone steps, stood a man in a green robe and feathered crown, with a clean face and a beautiful beard.

He leaned on a cane, still as warm and approachable as ever, slightly bent over with a gentle smile.

"Oh my, is this still our Qiaoniang? How come I don't recognize her after almost a year?"

Xue Chan hesitated for a moment, then stood on the stone steps without moving forward.

After a moment, she came to her senses and jumped down the stone steps, both surprised and delighted.

"father!"