Chapter 12 "Good brother, you should try it yourself..."
“Benefactor Nie,” Sanzang refused, “to be honest, my eldest disciple has not yet returned, and this humble monk dares not wander around.”
Good Bao'e, you ate your fill yesterday, so you can resist the temptation to eat now.
“Exactly, exactly!” she said. “That monkey is extremely fierce and unruly.”
Nie Guiyu: "That's alright. We can arrange for another servant to guard this place. When the young elder returns, we can inform him."
Bao'e muttered, "If you tell the servants to come, that rascal will probably beat them to a pulp with a stick."
The whispered remark startled Sanzang, who trembled with fear and clasped his hands together, repeatedly saying, "Amitabha, well said, well said! Please return, benefactor, this humble monk is not at liberty to go."
Upon hearing this, Sanzang was slightly moved, but remained silent.
The simpleton remembered the group of monks he had bumped into in the mural and suddenly asked, "Could they be the monks in the painting? Did they move with us?"
“It’s not such an evil thing.” Nie Guiyu paused for a moment, then called out to her, “Miss Bao’e…”
Bao'e shook her head: "I won't listen to the sutras, I won't! Listening to them will only make me sleepy."
"I didn't ask you to listen to the sutra, but I don't know where I have offended you. It's only been one night, and we've become so estranged."
He spoke softly, making Bao'e feel uneasy and itchy: "Brother, don't say such distant things."
"Then why won't you eat a single bite of vegetarian food?"
Bao'e said nonchalantly, "Who wouldn't want to eat a ready-made meal? It's just that there's a third-rate master who's eagerly waiting for my senior brother to give the whistle before he'll set off."
Hearing this, Sanzang blushed and cursed in a low voice, "You vile demon! I can endure hunger and cold, but you can't, and you still want to humiliate and humiliate me like this."
“Elder, please don’t be upset. A kind-hearted and capable Bodhisattva like Miss Bao’e naturally has a bigger appetite,” Nie Guiyu said. “Besides, those senior monks are eager to discuss profound mysteries with you. If they make any mistakes, they can receive your corrections and benefit from it, thus making progress.”
Upon hearing the “mistake,” Sanzang suddenly recalled what Wumiao had just said about the practice of “greed, anger, and ignorance.”
He thought to himself that such heretical scriptures should not be taught. If the foolish ones were to fall into demonic possession, they might not be able to escape.
After much deliberation, he was fearless and put his palms together, saying, "Excellent, Benefactor Nie. I will not offer any corrections, but will simply discuss the scriptures and doctrines with him."
Bao'e was a restless person; upon hearing that the elder was going to discuss the scriptures, she dragged her rake along.
As soon as he stepped out, he bumped into a white horse.
What a smooth and shiny horse!
The white horse was not afraid of people and turned around to bump into her.
Bao'e laughed and said, "Master, this horse doesn't eat grass, but it seems to want to eat vegetarian food. Perhaps we should bring a plate and bowl and cut the grass into neat pieces before it will chew it."
The white horse lashed out at her with its tail.
Bao'e stroked the horse's mane: "Good horse, good horse, how could you bear to let me ride it today?"
She tried to climb onto it, but the white horse snorted and pounced on her.
Bao'e was so frightened that she ran away everywhere: "I'm not going, I'm not going! This bastard has gone mad and wants to beat me to death. If he beats me to death, fine, but if he leaves two matching hoof prints on my face, then the coffin bearers will suffer and have nightmares for days."
"Wumiao, don't quarrel with this horse. It may have grass to eat, but it may not have enough water to drink." Sanzang said, "Let's take it to drink some water."
Bao'e listened and, regardless of the horse's condition, used her immense strength to drag it away.
Sanzang said to Young Master Nie, "My disciple is reckless and impulsive, but he has some ability to subdue demons and monsters, and he is also kind-hearted. Please do not be afraid."
“It doesn’t matter,” Nie Guiyu said, looking at Bao’e as she pulled on the reins and led the horse, a very lively sight. He looked away, a faint smile on his face, “She is a truly genuine person.”
Now, when Bao'e let the horse go, the horse was not obedient at all, and it kept shaking its head and kicking its hooves all the way.
If she hadn't been strong, it probably would have escaped from the temple long ago.
After a while of commotion, for some reason, the horse suddenly calmed down with a hoarse voice.
She finally managed to tether it, then turned around and found Sanzang and Nie Guiyu, and together they went outside the courtyard.
Young Master Nie first said that the vegetarian meal would be served in the main hall, but the door to that hall was peculiar.
A solitary door is embedded in the white wall, looking like it was drawn with black ink.
I have no idea where the bolt is or where the lock is.
Before the two of them could take a closer look, Nie Guiyu had already opened the door, stepped aside to let them in, and invited them into the hall for a vegetarian meal.
After eating only a little, Sanzang asked, "Where are those senior monks? Have they had their vegetarian meal?"
"We are waiting for the elder in the Buddhist hall." Nie Guiyu called over a servant and instructed him to lead the way for Tang Sanzang, repeatedly telling him not to be negligent.
Tripitaka gladly went.
Zhu Bao'e was left alone, and she was fed everything on the table, from rice and flatbread to vegetables and soup.
Eat to your heart's content and forget all worldly affairs.
After finishing all the food on the table, she finally looked up at Nie Guiyu.
"Brother, why aren't you eating? It's not to your taste."
Nie Guiyu glanced at the empty plates on the table and remained silent for a moment.
“Miss Bao’e…” he paused for a moment, “This journey to the west to obtain the scriptures has truly been arduous.”
Bao'e stared blankly, only saying, "Walking is tiring, so I must take good care of the five internal organs in my belly, lest they come out with a gluttonous worm and cause trouble."
Nie Guiyu was not fond of smiling and had a haughty air about him. But now, hearing her light and witty words and her neat eating manners, he actually felt a sense of closeness to her.
He rarely suppressed his aloofness and asked, "Is the offering now considered properly made?"
"Half full, half full." She rubbed her stomach. "I wonder what the fruit and vegetarian wine in this temple taste like."
He then instructed people to add fruit, vegetarian dishes, and wine, which were then laid out one by one.
Bao'e then ate heartily again.
After a few jugs of plain wine, she developed a flushed, drunken look.
She developed a tendency to worry in Gao Laozhuang. After drinking, she noticed that the window behind him was dilapidated and started clamoring to have it repaired.
Good Bao'e wiped her mouth clean and paced around the room like a millstone. She found a hammer and wooden planks somewhere and began to mend the window with a loud, grating sound, making the house shake.
Nie Guiyu was born young and suffered from severe cold and hardship for many years.
But the long-frozen skin and flesh, suddenly exposed to the light of day, are bound to suffer some damage.
Seeing such a vivid person now, he couldn't help but feel a deep sense of sorrow.
He said, “I used to love eating this grape-based vegetarian wine the most, but my mother wouldn’t let me drink too much, at most three cups each time.”
Bao'e tossed aside the hammer, took the last sip of wine, and said, "Brother, let's not dwell on the past. If you enjoy drinking, why not drink heartily now?"
Nie Guiyu looked at the exquisite cup and said, "My health is not as good as before, and I haven't drunk alcohol for many years."
Bao'e, all smiles and slightly drunk, reached out to him, clutching the wine jug.
"I haven't drunk wine in years, this is the day!" She didn't pour any wine, but shook the pot again. "Huh, it's empty!"
Nie Guiyu's face suddenly turned as cold as ice: "Yes, it's empty."
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. Even if we can't enjoy the food, it's good to taste some of the old flavors." Bao'e's wicked thoughts were aroused, and she sat down next to him. She wiped her lips and then reached out her hand, saying, "Good brother, you can try it yourself."
Young Master Nie's mind was completely blank.
Perhaps it was a strange impulse, but he let her press her fingertips against his lips.
She rubbed a shimmering wine-colored stain on his lips, and he opened his mouth, licking the tip of his tongue against her fingertip.
A note from the author:
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