There was a few breaths of dead silence.
Shen Zhiyi suddenly sighed very lightly, lowered his eyes and said, "Nothing can be hidden from the master."
"I approached the Master for a purpose."
She took a slight half step forward.
The halo of light swirled with the light, illuminating her approaching, slightly raised face. The feigned innocence in her eyes faded, leaving only clarity and sorrow.
"I keep bothering you not just to express my gratitude, but..."
She leaned over.
The paper was squeezed and the paperweight moved slightly, revealing a messy wet mark underneath.
"I want to ask the Master... to save me."
She was too close.
Yan Zhuoxu's eyes darkened, and he leaned back slightly, keeping some distance. "If you are talking about a weak disease, I can't help you."
He wouldn't be entangled with her for months.
Shen Zhiyi was unyielding, and leaned forward again, “Now the mountain road is blocked, I don’t know when it can be repaired.”
"If you are not pleased, Master, I will pester you every day."
She lowered her eyebrows, her expression gloomy. "Even though this life is thinner than paper and cheaper than grass, I just won't accept it."
"Master, if you are tired of me, you can bully me and humiliate me, or even chase me away and kill me, just like the mistress and her elder sister did..."
She raised her eyelids again and looked at him intently.
"Death is everywhere."
"It is better to die in this golden Buddhist temple than to die in the dark and gloomy backyard."
"Death... beside the master."
The candle on the wall suddenly jumped.
Yan Zhuoxu's Adam's apple rolled, his heart fluctuating slightly: "How could this poor monk break the precept of killing?"
"Why do you have to be so self-deprecating?"
He looked at her delicate and frail face, his eyebrows twitching as he said, "Let alone flowers, plants, and trees, even dirt and dust, in this poor monk's place, are no different from gold and silver treasures."
"You..." He met her eyes and whispered, "...very good."
The sorrowful look on Shen Zhiyi's face faded, and he regained his radiance.
"So, Master is willing to save me?"
Yan Zhuoxu closed his eyes.
Not sure if it was in response to her or to himself, he put his palms together and said, "Amitabha."
"My Buddha, be merciful."
He paused and said, "Donor, please go back first."
"I'll see you after I finish reciting the Heart Sutra."
Shen Zhiyi's eyes blossomed into a sweet smile, and the light cast a warm glow on her cheeks, making her look like a goddess.
She held up the hem of her skirt and saluted gracefully, "I'll be waiting for you, Master."
…
The moon and stars are sparse.
The entire temple was shrouded in darkness and gradually became silent.
But a pair of bony hands knocked on the door gently and slowly.
Shen Zhiyi opened the door, smiling broadly.
"Master, you are here."
Yan Zhuoxu looked at her smiling face and his eyes paused.
He withdrew his hand, nodded expressionlessly, picked up the medicine box, and walked into the house.
The maid had disappeared somewhere and was the only one in the room.
Just felt inappropriate.
With a squeak—
Shen Zhiyi closed the door behind him.
Yan Zhuoxu looked at the bright moon hanging outside the window and closed his eyes.
That's all.
If your mind is pure and peaceful, what is there to fear?
He walked to the table by the window, sat down cross-legged, and opened the medicine box.
Shen Zhiyi followed suit and sat down on the futon opposite him.
There was a table called Zhang Xiaofang between the two of them.
Shen Zhiyi looked at the handkerchief in his hand with some curiosity, "Master, aren't you going to diagnose the pulse today?"
Yan Zhuoxu's movements were slightly tense, and his voice was clear and upright. "This is a chronic illness that has lasted for many years. It requires palpation."
Shen Zhiyi nodded.
She unzipped her sleeves, revealing a bit of her snow-white wrist, which she placed on the square table.
Yan Zhuoxu's gaze dropped for a moment.
The purple blood vessels, the slender little veins, hidden beneath the translucent pink skin, surge with the purest desire.
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