The bright moonlight spread clearly for a thousand miles, the pale night sky was desolate, and outside the courtyard, the shadows of trees swayed gently.
Xin Hexue guessed that this place should be Du Zhi’s residence.
Even though it was his own home, and late at night with no one around, the bedroom was still adorned with sacred lotus patterns embroidered onto the gauze canopy, not to mention the Buddha statues likely enshrined in various corners of the residence.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Xin Hexue’s lips.
This so-called personal disciple of the National Monk, the Deputy Minister(the Shaoqing) of Taichu Temple, would he really dare to act as instructed?
Du Zhi stood where he was. His eyes that were naturally darker than most were like a deep pond, still and unreadable.
The golden-red kasaya quietly traced the solid lines of his shoulders and back, as though he were suppressing some kind of emotion.
Xin Hexue raised his delicate eyebrows. “Breaking the precept of lust isn’t that easy, Holy Monk. Are you scared?”
Just when Xin Hexue thought Du Zhi would shrink back in the face of difficulty, the other party turned his gaze and looked straight at Xin Hexue.
“Alright.”
The smile of impending triumph on Xin Hexue’s lips froze. He even sensed a trace of disappointment in Du Zhi’s tone, mingled with a hint of anticipation, as he asked Xin Hexue, “Is it only this much?”
Du Zhi picked up the scroll that Xin Hexue had thrown at him earlier, which had fallen to the floor, and opened the first few pages. The contents were mostly explanatory text, with no illustrations.
Du Zhi: “According to the book, when two people are seeking pleasure, foreplay should include kissing, touching, and…”
Xin Hexue: “Shut up.”
Du Zhi obediently fell silent, his expression as calm as still water, as if he were seriously engaged in scripture debate.
It was as if he completely failed to grasp the meaning behind the words in the book, merely reciting them and preparing to follow them dogmatically and to the letter.
‘What kind of Holy Monk was this supposed to be?’
Xin Hexue asked, full of doubt, “What exactly do you want?”
Du Zhi was silent for a few moments. His gaze landed on Xin Hexue’s forehead, the tip of his nose, his earlobes, and then his lips, before averting again. “I want… to kiss you.”
Xin Hexue grabbed the cushion beside the brocade quilt, unfortunately discovering it was a soft pillow. He began searching for something more lethal to knock this pervy monk unconscious.
However, Du Zhi’s next sentence made him pause his plan of knocking him out and going off to find the fox demon.
Du Zhi: “If you want to find Zhou Shanheng, there’s no need to rely on others, especially not a cunning fox demon.”
‘Zhou Shanheng?’
Xin Hexue finally looked at Du Zhi seriously. It seemed Du Zhi knew about the things between him and Zhou Shanheng.
Xin Hexue then realized something else. “Since you say he’s a cunning fox demon, why didn’t you kill him?”
“That fox demon hasn’t yet incurred karmic debt,” Du Zhi replied, then added the more important reason, “Besides… I see that your relationship with him is close.”
So it was out of regard for his friendship with the fox that he spared his life.
Xin Huexue felt as though he was meeting Du Zhi for the first time.
Strictly speaking, this was indeed their first meeting since he’d lost his memory. But this person’s speech and behavior differed greatly from the rumored ascetic monks of Taichu Temple.
To put it plainly, Taichu Temple was an organization directly under the royal family, responsible for protecting the emperor’s safety and maintaining order by purging evil. Good or bad, as long as it was strange, it was evil. All evil must be destroyed and sent to the afterlife. If destruction wasn’t possible, it was to be captured and suppressed at the An Ning Tower.
As the Deputy Minister of Taichu Temple, Du Zhi was actually operating outside Buddhist law and ignoring regulations?
Du Zhi watched Xin Huexue’s expression carefully, as if afraid of losing trust. He leaned forward slightly and spoke earnestly, “If you insist on looking for him… I can be the concubine.”
???
The little cat’s head was full of question marks.
Even System K was speechless at this statement from the target.
Xin Huexue finally couldn’t help but ask, “Who taught you that?”
Without a word, Du Zhi opened the scroll and sure enough, the pages near the front were dense with words.
He pointed and showed Xin Huexue. After a brief silence, he asked, “This… is it correct?”
Xin Huexue scanned it rapidly.
The words even included how to become a concubine, gain favor, and kick out the legal wife.
‘Shouldn’t books like this be banned?’
He pulled the scroll over and saw that the author was anonymous.
Looking at Du Zhi’s innocent expression, he realized this monk was indeed very dangerous.
Xin Huexue didn’t even want to ask how much Du Zhi understood, because the other party would definitely answer that he’d memorized it all.
Thinking of those shocking illustrations he caught sight of earlier, poses no normal body could even achieve, Xin Huexue simply grabbed Du Zhi by the collar and flipped him down against the bedhead. The action was quick and decisive, and the roles reversed in an instant.
Xin Huexue casually sat down at the moonlit table and crossed his legs, the scroll on his lap.
With a tearing sound, he ripped the scroll into half.
“The contents are all wrong. Forget them,” he said calmly.
Du Zhi looked at the shredded pages that fell from Xin Huexue’s lap hesitantly. “But…”
He still seemed to believe the book more than anything.
Xin Huexue felt that this monk’s brain must be missing a few connections.
He asked, “Do you trust this anonymous author, or do you trust me?”
Du Zhi abruptly raised his head and said without any hesitation. “I trust you.”
He seemed easier to manipulate than that stinky snake.
As Xin Huexue lowered his long eyelashes, moonlight poured in and a shadow fell precisely beneath his feet, overlapping the thin fabric of the kasaya.
His eyes curved slightly, and he slowly ground the ball of his foot forward. “Master, how does that feel?”
‘Still…no kiss.’ A look of regret surfaced in Du Zhi’s eyes, but his body’s reaction remained honest and he could only murmur, “…Good.”
[Du Zhi’s heartbreak value +5]
Xin Huexue frowned and suspected that there was a program error in the system’s prompt.
Xin Huexue: [He looked like he was about to ascend from pleasure, how could it be heartbreaking?]
K didn’t reply. Since there was no error, then it meant everything was functioning normally.
Xin Huexue pursed his lips slightly.
In that case…
He could take the opportunity to brush up on some points.
As the moon fell behind the clouds, it began to snow, like dense fluffy cotton, covering the ground.
A breeze stirred the gauze curtains. Under the flickering candlelight, silhouettes intertwined.
The young man straddled the monk’s waist, long hair falling loosely over his shoulders. His white robe clung to the elegant line of his back, like new frost held in firelight.
His profile moved slightly, his voice delicate and soft as his fingers hooked a string of agarwood prayer beads.
The man under him suddenly reached out a strong and powerful hand and clasped the narrow waist firmly.
…
Du Zhi really had the demeanor of a man willing to be a concubine.
He brought Xin Huexue to a banquet held at the residence of the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Zuo Buque.
Although Zuo Buque was just a subordinate seventh-rank official, he was in charge of ceremonial offerings and remonstrations. Not only did he need to advise the emperor, but he could also recommend talents.
Besides high ranking officials, the banquet was attended by scholars and xianggong from all over. For these young scholars rushing around to lobby officials, such a gathering of high officials was truly an excellent opportunity to submit their essays. Therefore, it was expected that Zhou Shanheng would attend.
However, Xin Huexue was confined to Du Zhi’s side and limited by a restriction to remain within ten meters of him. Moreover, the restriction concealed his figure, so others could not see him.
Xin Huexue whispered using his heart voice, “Didn’t you say you’d bring me to Zhou Shanheng?”
Du Zhi’s thin lips tightened into a straight line.
He was currently playing Go with Zuo Buque, the host of the banquet. The two were sitting across from each other in a stone pavilion, the black and white pieces scattered across the board in front of them. Beside them was a rock garden pond, where koi swam leisurely.
Du Zhi also replied using a heart voice, “You will see him.”
He said “see,” but didn’t say “meet”.
Xin Huexue narrowed his eyes slightly, his lashes like pigeon feathers, and there was a sense of danger at the ends of his eyes.
This bald donkey had even learned to play word games.
Though Zuo Buque and Du Zhi were all officials of Dacheng, Taichu Temple was special. Even though he held the position of Deputy Minister at Taichu Temple, Du Zhi often traveled through the countryside unlike regular court officials who entered the palace daily for morning court. So the two rarely met in the court hall.
Zuo Buque played Go while glancing at his official notes, “You frequently travel through the outskirts, Have you heard about the Xu Prefecture massacre case that shook the court and the people this year?”
Du Zhi’s eyes were calm like still water. He picked up a jet-black Go piece carved from jade and quietly placed it on the board, responding, “I haven’t.”
He rarely paid attention to those entanglements that had nothing to do with karma.
Zuo Buque frowned, staring at the board with a troubled expression.
The few rounds Du Zhi had played so far were not flashy or aggressive, but steady and tight in formation. His moves had already occupied three corners, faintly taking the shape of an encirclement.
Zuo Buque could only start telling a story to Du Zhi: “That Xu Prefecture massacre, originally a local landlord forcibly took another’s wife. That woman’s husband was rumored to have died in battle at the northern border, but he was actually alive. Years later, he returned from the border, and hearing his wife had been abused and died miserably, he slaughtered the landlord’s entire household of ten.”
“The landlord was greedy and lustful, and died with no bones left. The husband blinded by hatred was eventually caught and executed in autumn.”
Du Zhi showed no emotional ripple but made a gesture signaling Zuo Buque to continue placing stones.
Having told his story, Zuo Buque saw that Du Zhi had no reaction and gave a dry chuckle after placing his piece. “It’s nothing big. I don’t understand it much, but I deal with cases like this nearly every day. So, what do you think is scarier? Lust, or hatred?”
Du Zhi pondered for a moment, but then his body suddenly stiffened.
A soft hand guided him, placing a black stone exactly at a weak point that was easy to overlook.
Zuo Buque sighed with regret, “Your skill in Go…if not among masters, I fear even someone like Master Feng Ya would struggle against you.”
Du Zhi showed no interest in Zuo Buque’s flattery.
A warm and supple body like polished jade nestled into his embrace. The young man sat between his legs, his breath brushing against his ear and neck as he whispered, “Why didn’t you answer? Which is scarier? Lust, or hatred?”
A fingertip pressed directly against Du Zhi’s Adam’s apple, his fatal weak point.
A flicker flashed across Du Zhi’s eyes. Across from him, Zuo Buque didn’t notice anything odd, only heard Du Zhi calmly and steadily comment on the earlier story, “Lust and desire are like holding a torch and walking against the wind, one is sure to burn their hands.”
Lusting for a person was like a fool carrying a lit torch against the wind. If one insisted on raising the flame high, it was bound to become a disaster that burned the hand.
Zuo Buque had not yet spoken.
The young man in his arms sat even closer, and as Du Zhi’s Adam’s apple moved, the other party’s fingertips moved slightly.
Xin Huexue repeated Du Zhi’s words, his fingers silently fiddling with the string of Buddhist prayer beads on Du Zhi’s wrist. “Master, do you now feel the burning of fire upon your body?”
“The marks these Buddhist beads left on my waist last night haven’t even faded yet.”
Of course, the marks on his waist were from last night, when he had coaxed this monk with great effort. His inner thighs had been rubbed raw from the friction.
He looked at the monk with smiling eyes, pressing down with his hand as if leaning in leisurely.
A faint sheen of sweat formed on Du Zhi’s forehead. His body’s instinctive reaction was slightly rude but also appropriate.
In the end, he was defeated in the game with Xin Huexue. With a sigh, he responded through a heart voice, “Go find him.”
Du Zhi pressed his lips together. “I will wait for you at the gate of Luoyue Cave after the banquet ends.”
Since he had won, the restriction was loosened and he floated away lightly.
There was no kiss again.
Du Zhi lowered his gaze.
[Du Zhi’s heartbreak value +10]
………
After Xin Huexue passed through the rock garden corridor, his figure finally became visible.
He ran into the fox demon just outside the corridor.
At this moment, the other party was still using the identity of a candidate and was busy handing in his scroll to seek connections.
“Benefactor!” the fox demon stepped forward eagerly. “I’ve figured it out! That bald donkey from Taichu Temple must’ve kidnapped you! I’ve already found that scholar surnamed Zhou…Zhou Shānhéng!”
Xin Huexue lowered his eyes and lifted the hem of his robe to show the tracking bangles at his ankle.
“Do you have any way to help me get rid of it?”
The fox demon hesitated for a moment. “Yes, but…”
He rummaged in his bundle for a while before finally finding a pill.
Worried that Du Zhi might change his mind or notice something was wrong, Xin Huexue, in his anxiety, didn’t even wait for the fox demon to finish speaking before taking the pill and swallowing it.
It melted in his mouth instantly.
A fog like white clouds began to form, gathering and then dispersing with a “puff” sound.
The tracking bangles clattered and fell onto the stone slab, spinning a couple of times before coming to a complete stop.
Along with it fell a pile of overlapping clothes.
A small bundle bulged and wriggled slightly from within before squeezing out.
A small head emerged and stared silently at the fox demon.
The two stared at each other in silence.
Xin Huexue:“… You should tell me the side effects faster next time.”
The fox demon nodded. “Oh, o-oh!”
Benefactor…
The benefactor is not even the size of his palm now!
