The midday sun shines through the tall, leafy locust trees along the roadside, casting dappled shadows on the stone path.
Although they had arrived at the rear hall, the incense smoke from the main hall still lingered around Meng Ruliu's nose and mouth. She couldn't stand the smell, so when the monk leading the way wasn't looking, she secretly fanned her nose.
"Sister, why don't we just wait for them down the mountain?" She whispered to Su Wan beside her. "If we want to see the old monk, we can wait until we've dealt with Jia Tuo."
Su Wan was pale, somewhat dazed, and breathing rapidly, often needing to gasp for air. She didn't think anything was wrong; her sworn sister was always frail, and she guessed it was from the exertion of climbing the mountain.
She asked a question, but Su Wan seemed not to hear her and continued walking forward.
“Sister-in-law, I’m talking to you,” she tugged at Su Wan’s sleeve.
Su Wan then came to her senses and asked, "What did you say?"
Meng Ruliu supported Su Wan's shoulder and tilted her head to look into Su Wan's eyes: "You look very unwell. Why don't you sit in the shade and rest for a while?"
“I am indeed a little tired, but I want to see Master Huiming as soon as possible,” Su Wan waved her hand with a relaxed expression, “What did you ask me just now? Say it again.”
“I said, why don’t we wait down the mountain, deal with Jia Tuo, and then come to see the old monk?”
“Oh, this,” Su Wan took a deep breath and frowned, “we’ve waited long enough at the foot of the mountain, but Jia Tuo still hasn’t come. Doesn’t Sister Yi think there’s something wrong?”
Meng Ruliu couldn't figure it out and replied, "I'm also puzzled. They were riding horses, so Jia Tuo should have known by now."
Su Wan said, "If someone were to cause trouble at the foot of the mountain, the yamen runners would definitely come to arrest them. But they didn't come, so they probably guessed who we are."
"You're saying Jia Tuo recognized us?" Meng Ruli touched her face in disbelief. "Our makeup is flawless, and they weren't here, so how could they recognize us?"
Su Wan shook her head: "No matter how good the makeup is, no woman in the world can match my sister's superhuman strength."
Meng Ruliu then realized what was happening and said, "I didn't think of that at the time."
Su Wan said, "Jia Tuo guessed our identities and dared not come over rashly. He will likely go to the county magistrate to discuss countermeasures. They have committed many evils and cannot escape punishment no matter what. I'm afraid they will use insidious methods to deal with us."
Meng Ruliu, a warrior who had fought his way through battle, was fearless and said to Su Wan, "No matter what methods they use, I will protect my sworn sister, just like when we dealt with the scimitar guards at the inn."
The Scimitar Guard was the most skilled royal guard in Southern Chu. She once ambushed and annihilated the entire escorting convoy of Su Yuze. At the time, she disguised herself as a pregnant woman and brought a hammer into the inn, where she easily dispatched three Southern Chu Scimitar Guards, taking great pride in the incident.
Su Wan smiled and said, "This time is different from the last. This time we are in the open, and they are in the dark. We can't guess their tricks. After we meet with Master Huiming, we will leave here and let Ajin send officials to deal with them."
Meng Ruliu also knew that it was easier to dodge a spear in the open than to guard against an arrow in the dark, so she said, "My sworn sister is right. To be on the safe side, let's leave now."
Su Wan said, "I must go see Master Huiming."
Seeing that Su Wan insisted, Meng Ruliu had no choice but to touch the double whips in the bundle on her back and follow Su Wan, saying, "Alright, let's finish our business before we leave."
The monk did not lead them to the abbot's quarters, but instead led them away from the stone path and along a gravel path to the edge of a lush bamboo grove. In a clearing in the bamboo grove stood a small hut. The monk stopped and said, "Esteemed benefactors, the abbot is inside."
Meng Ruliu looked at the small house and recognized it as a woodshed specifically for storing firewood. There were also bundles of firewood piled up outside the woodshed, which greatly surprised her.
"The abbot lives in the woodshed?" she said to the monk. "Is this how your Tongchan Temple treats its abbot?"
The monk looked embarrassed, seemed to want to say something but didn't, and then turned and left in a hurry.
If they hadn't known that Meng Ruliu had easily defeated a group of burly men at the foot of the mountain, they wouldn't have allowed anyone to see Master Huiming. This was Jia Tuo's order, and no one dared disobey.
Su Wan pulled Meng Ruliu aside and said, "Sister-in-law, he has something he can't say, so we don't need to ask."
The two arrived at the woodshed. Su Wan stepped forward, clasped her hands together, and bowed three times towards the woodshed. Meng Ruliu watched from behind, wondering what was wrong with her sworn sister; she had never seen her so serious before.
After Su Wan finished bowing, she said in a devout tone, "This humble woman, Su Wan, requests an audience with Master Huiming."
A weak voice came from inside the room: "Please come in, female benefactor. This old monk is unable to rise and cannot come out to greet you."
"Sister-in-law, please wait here for a moment. I need to speak with the master." Su Wan said to Meng Ruliu, then pushed open the wooden door and went inside.
The room was dimly lit, containing only a simple bamboo bed and a square table. An old monk sat on the bed with his eyes lowered, his appearance thin and emaciated, wearing a kasaya, his hands, which resembled withered tree bark, counting a string of prayer beads.
Upon seeing Su Wan enter, the old monk raised his eyelids and glanced at her, saying, "This old monk is Huiming. May I ask what your relationship is with the Empress?"
Su Wan said, "The same person."
Huiming smiled slightly, clasped his hands together, and bowed to Su Wan: "So it is Your Majesty the Empress who has come from afar. I have been impolite."
Su Wan said, "Master, there's no need for such formality. I'm just a woman with a lot on my mind."
Huiming lowered his hand and gently lifted the hem of the monk's robe, only to see that his legs had been amputated at the knees.
Su Wan was taken aback at first, but then she guessed what had happened and said, "It's Jia Tuo."
Jia Tuo, a disciple of Master Huiming, committed evil deeds at the foot of Huishan Mountain, yet Huiming turned a blind eye, clearly indicating his inability to intervene. Unexpectedly, he had even lost both his legs.
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