The Ghost Festival.
Outside the courtyard, candlelight flickered as smoke curled and billowed upward. Slips of yellow paper inside the brazier burned one by one, reducing to ashes.
Pei Yaoguang’s mood was somewhat melancholic, his eye sockets still suffused with a faint crimson hue.
Every year during the Ghost Festival, he would burn ghost money for his departed mother, yet he and his biological father remained locked in mutual estrangement, having parted ways down divergent paths long ago.
Back then, his father had submitted a recommendation to the Emperor, personally sending him off to a hostile state as a political hostage. In that foreign land, he was subjected to every possible form of disdain and contempt. At times, he was reduced to eating rotten vegetable roots, and the enemy state’s second prince would frequently gather his companions to urinate upon him for amusement…
Whenever he recalled the past, his hatred for those people burned so fiercely that his teeth itched. He wished nothing more than to kill them with his own hands one day, disembowel them, rip out their hearts, and feed them to wild cats and stray dogs.
Standing to the side, Li Qing spoke up: “Lord, do not grieve too deeply. If your late mother’s spirit in heaven sees that the Lord now occupies such an elevated position, she can rest in peace beneath the nine springs.”
He knew that Pei Yaoguang was actually quite sentimental and deeply attached to his mother, never once omitting the ritual during the Ghost Festival.
Watching his expression brimming with sorrow, Li Qing understood that the softest corner within Pei Yaoguang’s heart was entirely reserved for his mother.
In truth, Pei Yaoguang had truly suffered immensely; he had weathered thousands of perils, obstacles, and every imaginable hardship before achieving his present success.
Moreover, Pei Yaoguang treated him quite well. Whenever he handled household affairs or went out, Pei Yaoguang would frequently bestow extra rewards upon him.
Pei Yaoguang might appear fierce and overbearing on the surface, but that was merely a facade used to mask his inner emptiness and desolation.
Over all these years, only he truly understood Pei Yaoguang!
“In this lifetime, the only person I have failed is my late mother. Burning this small amount of paper money for her is not enough to make up for the regret in my heart.”
Sooner or later, the day would come when he uncovered the truth behind her death by poisoning.
Li Qing promptly asked, “Will the Lord perform the finger-burning ritual using that monk as the target this year?”
During the Ghost Festival every single year, Pei Yaoguang would select a young man and sever a section of his finger as a means of “burning a finger to offer to his mother.”
A sudden flash of light gleamed within Pei Yaoguang’s eyes as the corners of his lips curved upward: “That’s right, I’ll take his finger another day!”
The Seven Kills Gate.
The brazier upon the ground was filled with ashes.
Clutching a cyan porcelain bottle in his hand, Fenxin sat upon the ground, drinking away his melancholy in solitude.
Watching the flames gradually extinguish, longing surged within the depths of his heart while a faint sorrow veiled his eyes.
Seeing him looking so intoxicated and bleary-eyed, Chiyu felt a latent ache of sympathy for him. She recalled when Fenxin had first arrived at the Seven Kills Gate at the age of twelve. His face had been entirely disfigured at the time, and she had heard that his family suffered a bandit raid in which his entire household perished.
“Don’t grieve so deeply; you have me accompanying you now.”
Raising his head, he downed the alcohol, yet the bitterness on his tongue could not mask the melancholy within his heart.
“What do you suppose is the true meaning of a person living in this world?”
“In my opinion, people should look forward, cherish the present moment, and simply do their best with everything else.”
Consumed entirely by drinking, Fenxin offered no response.
Noticing his flushed cheeks, she said, “You must be exhausted. How about I help you back to your room to rest?” With that, she reached out to support his arm.
Pulling his hand away with a jerk, Fenxin refused: “No need, I can walk by myself.”
Offering a slight bow, Chiyu followed him into the house.
Just as he was about to lie down, he noticed her lingering right beside him: “What are you doing in here? Withdraw.”
“I… do you need me to brew some hangover soup for you?”
“No need, a brief nap will suffice.” Closing his eyes slightly, Fenxin turned onto his side, presenting his back toward her.
With no other choice, Chiyu silently withdrew and pulled the chamber door shut.
In his hazy, half-asleep state, Fenxin’s mind once again conjured images of Puding. This time, he began to face himself squarely—Puding kept intentionally or unintentionally intruding into his thoughts; could it be due to the fact that they shared a bed day in and day out?
From what point onward, he had already begun to regard him as a confidant.
He was naturally someone who placed trust in no one, yet perhaps through their day-and-night companionship over these past days, he discovered that Puding was indeed a friend well worth cultivating deeply.
It was just that he had yet to figure out whether Puding was truly the young boy he had encountered at the An’guo Estate during his childhood. Upon their next meeting, he was determined to clear up this question.
Before long, Fenxin received another assignment assigned by the Young Master. This mission lacked the danger of the previous one; instead, it required him to travel to the Southern Courtyard to assassinate a specific individual the top-ranking xianggu entertainer.
Since this mission did not permit the wearing of a face mask, he disguised himself as a woman.
Atop his high-coiffed bun of dark hair rested a white jade hairpin, while he wore a pristine white gauze dress draped with a satin-surfaced, fur-trimmed cloak.
Upon seeing him disguised as a woman for the first time, Chiyu’s eyes lit up in sudden astonishment. She hadn’t expected his feminine makeup to look completely natural and harmonious, appearing even more dazzling and alluring than she herself.
Gazing at him with aesthetic appreciation for a moment, she remarked, “You really are extraordinary today; you look even more enchanting and alluring than a distinguished young lady from a wealthy family possessing a heavenly countenance.”
Fenxin remained noncommittal: “Are you praising me, or are you teasing me?”
“Naturally, I’m praising you.” With a single glance, she felt deeply inferior, as if standing before him, even she was stripped of all her radiance.
Chiyu accompanied him into the Southern Courtyard disguised as a maidservant.
Upon the stage, two men were gracefully dancing amidst a curious crowd of men and women gathered around in a circle.
Their upper bodies were bare, revealing smooth, fluid back lines and sturdy, well-defined pectoral muscles, while their waists were wrapped in vibrant, blazing crimson long skirts.
Their hair was bound high with golden crowns, and four long golden tassels swayed seductively in the air.
A massive brazier burned fiercely in the center of the stage, emitting intense heat so that despite their bare arms, they felt no chill whatsoever.
The two men grasped one another by a single hand, slowly arching their bodies backward to accentuate their abdominal muscles into a full, taut, and plump contour.
The visual impact was exceptionally intense!
The onlookers below the stage watched with dropped jaws, their eyes riveted entirely upon the two red-skirted men on stage.
Looking around in all directions, Fenxin noted that the person he needed to assassinate was not yet present and ought to be inside one of the back chambers.
In the distance, the moment the proprietress caught sight of Fenxin noticing his unfamiliar face yet perceiving an undeniable air of elegance and aristocratic distinction she beamed from ear to ear, her fleshy cheeks rippling as she bustled forward to greet him: “Is the young lady… looking to find someone for a chat?”
“Our young miss wishes to see your top-ranked entertainer.”
“Easy to talk about, easy to talk about! It’s just that the top entertainer is currently entertaining a guest and requires an appointment in advance!”
Pulling out a stack of silver banknotes from his pocket, Fenxin flashed them to the proprietress. Catching sight of such a substantial sum of notes, her eyes curved into crescents as she grinned obsequiously: “Very well, very well, young miss, please calm your impatience and compose yourself.”
Several days later.
A gentle, drizzling rain fell outside.
Pei Yaoguang reclined sideways upon a soft couch. Throughout these past days, he had been constantly accompanied by Zhang Shu and Wu Huan, yet he still felt depressed and bored, the sense of emptiness growing increasingly pronounced.
Noticing his displeasure, Li Qing offered a piece of advice: “Why doesn’t the Lord go find some amusement down at the Southern Courtyard?”
Wearing a nonchalant expression, he replied, “Too filthy. How could I ever associate with people from the Southern Courtyard?”
Sighing softly, Li Qing remarked, “It’s a pity; that top entertainer was all the rage during his lifetime, yet just these past few days, word came that he suddenly dropped dead overnight.”
“I wonder who he offended to meet such a bizarre demise? Truly a pity.”
Pei Yaoguang sneered: “Since ancient times, debased and filthy affairs are most prone to breeding disasters. Perhaps it was a calamity provoked by men fighting jealously over him.”
“A tragic fate for a beauty!” Li Qing lamented. Though this phrase was typically used to describe women, he uttered it straight from the heart, and in this context, it fit the top entertainer to perfection.
Pondering silently, he knew that the thorn in Pei Yaoguang’s heart was none other than that Puding monk.
“Shall this subordinate have that stinky monk dragged over right this instant?”
Lowering his eyelids, Pei Yaoguang did not give an immediate response.
Seeing him maintain silence, Li Qing felt a creeping sense of terror grip his heart.
He had beaten Puding, and had even behaved intimately with others right before Puding’s eyes, yet it appeared insufficient. He needed to find an alternate method to stimulate his sexual desire.
Before long, Puding was invited over to the estate by men from the Town and Pacification Bureau.
Tonight, Pei Yaoguang deliberately commanded Wu Huan and Zhang Shu to ingest the “Jade-Bone” aphrodisiac.
Puding sat quietly by Pei Yaoguang’s side, silently observing the “martial arts spar” unfolding between the two men.
Watching that nauseating spectacle before his eyes, a surge of hot blood rushed to Puding’s head, causing him to open his mouth and rebuke Pei Yaoguang: “Do you possess even a shred of humanity? To toy with people in this manner right before this poor monk!”
Hah, he had almost forgotten what humanity even looked like.
“Get used to it; the Dharma Master shouldn’t mind it too much.”
“This poor monk is a person of religion how can I watch such base and licentious acts? This is a grave sacrilege against the Buddha!”
With a low register, Pei Yaoguang asked, “Where is your Buddha? Have you ever seen him?”
“The one who can help you, the one who can transform you, is the Buddha.”
“And I am your Buddha!”
“You—you…” Choking with anger, Puding found words failing him. A sudden reversal of his internal Qi rushed upward to his head, causing him to collapse to the floor in a faint.
“Stop! Withdraw.” Seeing this, Pei Yaoguang ordered the two men to halt.
The pair hastily scrambled away in disarray, barely half-clothed as they fled the room.
Pei Yaoguang instructed the servants to carry Puding to a guest chamber. He had no intention of taking advantage of a person when they were unconscious, simply because he disliked coercion and found no joy in it.
He preferred the other party to welcome him of their own accord and beg him to grant it.
A moment later, he summoned a physician.
After taking his pulse, the physician reported that he was suffering from no major ailments—it was merely a temporary fainting spell from which he would recover shortly.
Thus, Pei Yaoguang simply sat quietly within his room, thinking to himself: You bald donkey will surrender to me sooner or later. When that time comes, you’ll definitely beg me to give it to you.
Lowering his gaze to observe the monk, noting his flushed cheeks brought on by the upward surge of Qi, he extended his fingertip to stroke his face gently.
Smooth.
Soft.
The next instant, Puding’s head shifted slightly as he murmured softly: “Xi-Xiaobai… Xiaobai…”
Leaning closer to cup his ear, Pei Yaoguang strained to hear what on earth he was calling out!
He only caught the mumbled repetition of: Bai… Bai…
Who on earth was the person he was chanting in his mouth? What relation did they share?
Deliberating carefully, Pei Yaoguang summoned Li Qing and ordered him to investigate the people the An Estate Heir had interacted with during his life to see if any bore the surname “Bai”.
He had never anticipated that a monk would harbor someone etched so deeply into his mind and heart! And yet he went around preaching about pure monastic precepts and the prohibition against breaking vows!
He had almost believed him!
He knew all along that desires lurked within his heart; ever since that day when he tested the waters beneath the water, he had sensed that scorching temperature, clearly concealing enduring desires!
An incense stick’s time later, Puding’s eyelashes trembled slightly as he raised a hand to massage his temples. Upon opening his eyes and catching sight of Pei Yaoguang, his frame shrank back in dread: “Y-Your Excellency, I earnestly beg you not to disturb this poor monk’s Buddha-heart.”
Pei Yaoguang burst into a loud laugh, his laughter laced with a trace of mockery: “What a brazen monk! Do you know what kind of nonsense you were spouting just now?”
Puding’s heart skipped a beat nonsense? Did I say something I shouldn’t have?
“Just now, you were murmuring the words ‘I miss you’.”
Puding’s expression remained unchanged, though in his heart he had already realized that Pei Yaoguang was clearly probing him he was entirely fabricating lies!
“Talk utter nonsense! How could this poor monk utter such words? That would be a grave sacrilege against the Buddha, and moreover, this poor monk has no one whom he misses.”
Seeing Puding maintain such a resolute attitude, half of his suspicions dissipated, leading him to pivot instead: “You indeed did not utter those words, but you were muttering someone’s name.”
A flash of shock flickered through the depths of Puding’s eyes before he immediately reined it in and regained his composure: “A name? I wonder what name Your Excellency is referring to?”
Drawing closer, Pei Yaoguang fixed his eyes intently upon his dark pupils, attempting to capture any nuance of abnormality.
He pronounced each word distinctly: “Bai!”
Hearing this, Puding’s expression grew stern before he forced an appearance of calm: “There is no such thing whatsoever! Among the people this poor monk knows, none bear the surname ‘Bai’.”
The two fell into a brief silence.
Pei Yaoguang pondered inwardly: Unwilling to admit it? That simply means the person is exceptionally important, and perhaps even the object of his unrequited love!
Slowly rising to his feet, a cold glint tainted his gaze with an indescribable darkness as he turned back to warn: “You had best hope I don’t find out who this person is!”
With that, he turned on his heel and strode out of the room.
Clenching his fists tightly, Puding broke out in a cold sweat upon his palms, his pupils clouded with an obscure, murky hue.
Fate truly enjoyed toying with people why on earth did it have to make him cross paths with Pei Yaoguang!
Oh Buddha, oh Buddha, this disciple is willing to endure anything! However, you must never allow harm to befall those around this disciple. May the Buddha in his mercy grant his protection. Puding joined his hands together in silent prayer.
Let all tribulations descend solely upon his own head.
This time, having temporarily evaded that nauseating spectacle by fainting, he wondered what kind of torment awaited him on the morrow.