Huan'er seemed to suddenly remember what the old woman had said to Wang Er during the day, and asked curiously, "By the way, were all those things the old lady said to Wang Er about some noble person true?"
The old woman sat upright to one side, looked at the woman on the bed, sighed deeply, and said with a long expression, "Perhaps I am really getting old. The affairs of this world, the rights and wrongs, and the people in this world, who are both real and fake, now seem to be beyond my understanding."
Upon hearing this, Huan'er immediately stopped what she was doing, her mouth agape in surprise. "Ah? No way! Could it be that what the old lady said to Wang Er—that if he secretly carried the girl to the back mountain and buried her, or if he became greedy and took the bracelet off her wrist—he would really be in big trouble, and perhaps the whole world would not let him off the hook—was all a lie to Wang Er?"
Ever since the girl in yellow started living with the old woman, she had always thought of the old woman as someone who would never lie to anyone. But now, she was truly stunned to hear her master say such things.
After regaining her senses, she frowned and said to her mistress with a worried expression, "But this Wang Er always calls you 'Living Bodhisattva' all the time, and he truly believes you. He considers this girl to be his lucky star, even someone who can change his life, and he's eagerly waiting for her to wake up! Just this morning, when he brought this girl back from the river, he refused to leave our courtyard, saying he would guard it every step of the way until he saw her wake up. Huan'er talked until her lips were sore and pleaded with him for a long time, and even cooked a big table of delicious food, before she finally managed to send him away. Even then, he said he would come to see her again first thing tomorrow morning. But now, what should we do? If he finds out that you, 'Living Bodhisattva,' were lying to him, I don't think he'll let it go so easily."
"Now that things have come to this, we can only take it one step at a time. Although Wang Er is sometimes lazy and a little greedy, he is good at heart and won't do anything outrageous. It's all my fault for being so blind. I thought I had seen an old friend I hadn't seen in a long time, and in my excitement, I misjudged him. For me, it was all for nothing. I thought that in my lifetime, I had finally waited for the return of the guardian of my Western Qin land. From then on, all suffering would be over, all heart-wrenching separations would be reunited, and the people of my Western Qin would never suffer again... But is it really true that I can't wait any longer? What am I still doing here? I should go back, I should go back..." The old woman said with disappointment and desolation, as she slowly got up, dragging her seemingly extremely heavy and weak body, preparing to return to her room.
At this moment, Huan'er watched as the old woman's face showed a despondency and loss she had never seen before in many years. As she watched the old woman's gray hair gradually disappear into the distance, her lonely figure was overwhelmed with sorrow. Huan'er's gaze fell on the empty medicine bowl she was holding, which had long since gone cold, and she stood there motionless for a moment.
Suddenly, Huan'er noticed that the ephedra soup from before seemed to be taking effect. The woman's forehead, the area around her neck, and her neck were all covered in a thick layer of fine sweat, and she was sure that her whole body was sweating. Huan'er quickly got up, put down the bowl of medicine, and slowly began to remove layers of blankets from the woman's body. She then picked up a dry cloth and carefully wiped away the sweat.
Just as Huan'er was slowly moving her gaze, preparing to lift the woman's sleeve to wipe the sweat from her fair and delicate arm, her eyes suddenly seemed to be drawn to something, and she abruptly stopped her busy movements. She was staring intently at the seven-colored gold and jade bracelet on the woman's wrist, her already large and bright eyes widening even further.
Just then, the old woman behind her was about to step over the threshold of the door when Huan'er's urgent and loud voice suddenly came from behind her: "Madam, come and see! This girl's bracelet on her wrist is glowing! It's so amazing! Huan'er has never seen a glowing bracelet before!"
Upon hearing the sound, the old woman immediately stopped, her eyes widening in surprise. She then turned around and hurried to Huan'er's side, taking three steps at a time. She was just as stunned by the scene before her as Huan'er.
The woman's symptoms were well under control, and she was now sleeping peacefully and comfortably. One of her hands was being held tightly by Huan'er, who was sitting beside her with a look of amazement. The seven-colored gold and jade bracelet on her wrist was flashing with purple light, as if it were radiating some kind of magical power.
Both master and servant held their breath, staring intently at the magical seven-colored jade bracelet.
After an unknown amount of time, a crimson pattern suddenly appeared faintly within the flickering purple light. This pattern resembled an "L" shape, but it vanished as soon as it appeared. Immediately afterward, the flickering purple light also disappeared.
The master and servant were extremely surprised and couldn't help but look at each other in disbelief.
After a long while, Huan'er still held the woman's hand tightly, as if she had forgotten to let go, and asked in a low voice with a hint of fear, "Madam, what exactly is this seven-colored gold and jade bracelet? Is it righteous or evil?"
Undoubtedly, Huan'er's words reflected her doubt about the woman they had gone to such lengths to save that day. Was she truly a good person? Were they doing a good deed, or were they inviting a wolf into their home, raising a tiger to cause future trouble? If she hadn't witnessed it with her own eyes tonight, and had her master as a witness, she wouldn't have known that such a wondrous thing truly existed in this world. And what extraordinary talents would the person who possessed this wondrous thing possess?
At this moment, Huan'er looked at her master, who was serious and silent, with astonishment. There was only one thing she was certain of: the woman in front of her was no ordinary person.
The old woman standing nearby, witnessing this strange phenomenon, was completely bewildered and unable to comprehend what was happening. She kept repeating to herself, "Who is she? Who is she? Who is she?..."
Suddenly, she remembered many years ago, the abbot of the City God Temple in the south of the city, who had saved her life and was hailed by the world as a highly accomplished monk, had personally brought her to this secluded Peach Blossom Village. Before leaving, he had repeatedly told her, "Remember: when the purple light appears in this place, it will be the time for you and your beloved child to be reunited after a long separation. At that time, you must come back to the City God Temple to find me so that we can break the seal and save all living beings."
Upon realizing this, the old woman couldn't help but murmur in a daze, "Could it be... the purple light that the high monk repeatedly instructed me to wait here in peace, the purple light that is now appearing before my eyes, fleeting and elusive..."
Suddenly, the old woman felt that everything that had happened was too unbelievable. Back then, she had only been forced to settle down here in anonymity.
Over the years, time has passed so slowly that she has almost forgotten who she is, forgotten her true identity, and forgotten why she cruelly abandoned her own flesh and blood and lived in anonymity here.
These years seem to have passed too quickly, so quickly that she was not even prepared before this purple light appeared in the world.
Upon realizing this, the old woman's heart suddenly surged with overwhelming emotions, so much so that she stood there, too excited to speak, her mouth opening and closing incessantly, but ultimately tears welled up and spilled out first.
Upon seeing her master's incredibly surprised and speechless expression, Huan'er's round eyes widened in shock. A terrible premonition suddenly arose in her heart, and she timidly asked, "Madam, what's wrong?"
As Huan'er spoke, she looked in the direction the old woman was looking, and suddenly said, "Could it be... could this girl really be a monster?"
"Ah..." Huan'er had been talking to herself, and now she had completely frightened herself. As soon as she finished speaking, she cried out in alarm.
The old woman rushed forward and quickly covered his mouth, whispering "Shh..." in his ear.
But as soon as she let go, Huan'er began to tremble again, trying to back out the door while whispering timidly, "Madam, Huan'er is scared..."
Seeing this, the old woman grabbed her arm tightly and pulled her back forcefully. The thin Huan'er was immediately thrown back and then tightly imprisoned in her palm, unable to move. "This is your bedroom. Where do you think you can escape to?"
"I...I...I..." Huan'er stammered for a long time. In her panic, she forgot that there was only the old woman and herself in this courtyard, and there were only two bedrooms.
Huan'er glanced quickly out the window. She'd been up and about all day, and before she knew it, the moon was already high in the sky. It was still quite cold outside in this early spring night.
Just as she was agonizing over this, the old woman suddenly spoke up, "Move her to my room!"
“No… how can this be? You are the master, and Huan’er is the servant. How can Huan’er let her disturb you at night? Besides, she is still… she is…” Huan’er immediately objected, but then stopped herself from speaking.
"So, tonight, she will sleep with you?" the old woman asked deliberately.
"I...I..." Upon hearing this, Huan'er's slightly calmed emotions began to churn again. So, she lowered her head and stammered.
"Alright, stop standing there, come and help. If you don't go to sleep soon, it'll be dawn soon," the old woman said as she walked towards the woman.
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