Chapter 586
Prison Break
The ninth day of the ninth lunar month in Jianing is the Double Ninth Festival.
Xiaoman got up earlier than usual. Wearing an apron, she carried out the glutinous rice that had been soaked the night before and poured it into a steamer lined with a cloth. The firewood in the stove crackled and popped.
The glutinous rice was steamed and poured into a stone mortar. The little monk rolled up his sleeves and began to pound it with a wooden pestle.
"Push harder," Xiaoman instructed from the side, "Didn't you eat?"
The little monk was panting heavily: "I really haven't eaten yet..."
Xiaoman rolled her eyes at him, took the wooden pestle, and used her shoulder to push the little monk aside: "I can do it myself."
At this moment, Bai Li came out of the main house and looked around curiously: "Xiaoman is going to make Chongyang cake herself?"
Xiaoman looked up and saw that she was still wearing the white dress that she had prepared. She smiled and said, "Princess, when I was little, my aunt would make them by hand every year. My aunt said that the food for the festivals must be made by hand for a home to feel like a home. If you buy everything from outside, and you don't make the dumplings for New Year's Day, the zongzi for Dragon Boat Festival, or the tangyuan for Lantern Festival by hand, the festive atmosphere will fade over time. And when the festive atmosphere fades, the home atmosphere will also fade."
Seeing Xiaoman swinging the pestle, Baili said gently, "Let me help you."
Xiaoman paused for a moment, then stepped aside and handed over the pestle.
But Bai Li didn't take the pestle; he simply gripped it tightly in the air, and the pestle miraculously began to pound in mid-air. The wooden pestle applied force evenly, and before noon, it had pounded the glutinous rice into a ball.
Xiaoman's eyes widened: "Princess, what kind of official procedure is this?"
Bai Li changed the subject: "What's next?"
Xiaoman takes out the pounded glutinous rice dough, rolls it out on a cutting board, and sprinkles it with sesame seeds, melon seeds, and red and green candied fruit: "Roll these up again, cut them into pieces, and steam them again before eating."
"Let me cut it," Bai Li said, taking the knife and making clean, even cuts on the cutting board.
Xiaoman was taken aback: "The princess has done chores before?"
Bai Li said gently, "Back when my brother and I were at Donglin Academy, we had to cook for ourselves every day. Not only did we have to cook for ourselves, but we also had to cook for my brother and the little monk. Over time, we learned a lot."
Xiaoman looked at the little monk, who quickly explained, "The princess's cooking skills are excellent. When I was at Donglin Academy, if it weren't for the princess, I would have starved to death."
Xiaoman exclaimed with delight, "Then I won't have to cook for myself on this journey. By the way, the carriages are ready, one for people and one for goods. The axles are made of elm wood, and I personally supervised the carpenter applying tung oil three times. They're very sturdy."
She got more and more excited as she talked, arranging the sliced Chongyang cake into the steamer one by one: "I've prepared three big bags of food. The fried noodles are made from oats; this stuff is very filling, you can eat it just by adding boiling water. I bought fifty catties of dried meat, choosing the leanest hind leg and cutting it into strips; one piece can keep you full for half a day. The pickled vegetables are from Liu Biju on Qipan Street; it's their family's ancestral recipe, extremely salty, and it won't spoil even after a year."
Xiaoman covered the steamer and patted the glutinous rice flour off her hands: "Winter clothes are all ready. Everyone has a thick cotton-padded coat and trousers, and an old windproof jacket over them. They were bought from a secondhand clothing store, starched and washed three times, so they're clean and warm. Fur coats are too expensive, so we only bought one for the young master and one for the princess. We'll get the others in Guyuan. The furs there are really expensive... By the way, shall we leave tonight?"
Bai Li suddenly interrupted, "I'll cook you lunch and let you try my cooking."
Xiaoman exclaimed in surprise, "Really?"
Bai Li hummed in agreement, then untied Xiao Man's apron and tied it around her own waist: "Pan-fried tofu, stir-fried cabbage with vinegar, scallion-fried mutton, dried bamboo shoots and cured meat—the ingredients were bought yesterday."
Xiaoman smiled and said, "I'll help you."
Bai Li pushed her out of the kitchen: "I forgot to buy scallions, could you go and buy some for me?"
"Ah?" Xiaoman quickly replied, "Then I'll go right away."
After Xiaoman rushed out the door, Baili looked at Chenji and said, "The water tank at home is empty. Why don't you go and fetch some water?"
Chen Ji glanced at the half-full water vat, asked no further questions, and left the liquor alley with his carrying pole.
The courtyard quieted down, with only the rustling of the dry grapevines in the breeze.
The white carp looked at the little monk again: "Little monk, please help me..."
The young monk looked into her eyes and said softly, "You actually want to get rid of us all and then leave quietly, right?"
The white carp remained silent.
The young monk sighed, “Of the three poisons, Benefactor Chenji has severed greed and hatred, leaving only ignorance. Of the seven emotions, Benefactor Baili severed desire at Jingyang Palace, fear at Xuanzhen, hatred at Zhu Lingyun, and sorrow at the Empress. Yesterday, he also severed joy through Benefactor Chenji, leaving only anger and love. For a moment, this humble monk does not know whether to congratulate Benefactor on reaching the Seeking the Dao Realm or to feel sorry for Benefactor.”
The white carp has already severed five of its seven emotions; only two more steps remain before it ascends to the Great Dao.
The young monk earnestly said, “Benefactor, this humble monk does not know who threw that white jade leaf from the forty-ninth heaven. However, this humble monk once heard my master say that there are not many gods who can look down upon the world from the forty-ninth heaven. Only a few, worshipped day and night by countless beings, can do so. If that's the case, there are not many people in the Daoist court with this ability. It must be one of the Three Pure Ones.” “But regardless of who this person is, he first chose Princess Yongchun, and after decades, he chose you to teach the Supreme Forgetfulness Method. His intentions are far greater. And the matters you asked about through the divination blocks were all intentionally orchestrated by him. On the day at Jingyang Palace, he cleared up the misunderstanding between you two, just to intensify your love. On the day at the City God Temple, he answered you with ninety-nine divination blocks, clearly wanting you to sever the most difficult of the seven emotions—love—and overcome the most difficult hurdle of the Supreme Forgetfulness Method… It's just that you were unwilling to let go, so it didn't work out.”
The white carp remained silent for a long time.
The young monk said with a compassionate expression, "Benefactor Chenji also has his own difficulties."
The white carp looked up at the little monk, who gazed into her eyes.
At this moment, the wind in the courtyard stopped, and the rustling of the withered vines also ceased. The entire courtyard seemed to have suddenly sunk into a deep well, with only the crackling of firewood burning in the kitchen to steam Chongyang cakes remaining.
Those eyes held no hatred, fear, joy, sorrow, or desire, only tranquility, like the eternally burning lamp before the statue of the Three Pure Ones, or perhaps the shadow beneath that lamp.
Bai Li said softly, "You don't need to say these things. I don't hate him, and I can't bring myself to hate him. It's just that he has his own unresolved issues, and I have mine, and over time they've both become intractable problems."
The young monk hesitated for a moment, then finally said, "The knots in Benefactor Chen Ji's heart are never insurmountable; it's just that he tied them too tightly and forgot how to untie them... But you, Benefactor, can untie them. I know you want to avenge the Empress, but Benefactor Chen Ji may not be unwilling to do it with you. You've traveled all the way from Luoyang to the capital, such a long journey, not to part ways."
Bai Li lowered his eyes: "Little monk, what Miss Qi said at the Jiaofangsi a few days ago makes sense. I and the Forbidden City have trapped Chen Ji for too long, and we shouldn't trap him any longer."
The young monk said anxiously, "Benefactor..."
Bai Li interrupted, "Little monk, go and buy me two heads of garlic."
The young monk was silent for a moment, then put his hands together and bowed deeply: "Okay."
Bai Li watched the little monk leave and returned to the kitchen to quietly cook.
At this moment, Lü Qi appeared in front of the courtyard gate and lowered his voice: "Chief, the carriage is at the entrance of the alley, let's go quickly."
Bai Li ignored them and continued to concentrate on cooking. First, she made braised tofu, then stir-fried cabbage with vinegar, then scallion-fried mutton, and finally dried bamboo shoots and cured pork.
Lu Qi paced anxiously at the kitchen door, while Bai Li leisurely carried the dishes to the stone table in the courtyard, then returned to the main room and changed back into his Taoist robe.
Lu Qi hurriedly said, "Chief, let's go quickly. If we wait for Chen Ji and his eunuch faction to return, we may not be able to leave."
But as Bai Li walked out, she suddenly stopped, turned around, and took one last look at the courtyard.
Only after Lü Qi urged him again did he turn and leave.
Outside the alley not far away, Chen Ji stood behind the corner, a carrying pole and an empty bucket at his feet. He looked up at the midday sky, listening to the receding footsteps, lost in thought.
He seemed to have already foreseen the outcome; all that remained was to wait for it to arrive.
A moment later, Chen Ji heard the sound of the axle turning gradually fade away, and then silently picked up the two empty buckets and returned to the courtyard.
He looked at the empty courtyard and the food on the table, silently unloaded the carrying pole on the ground, and sat down at the table with a calm expression.
Chen Ji didn't frantically search for people in the courtyard, nor did he rush out to look for the departing carriage. At this moment, Xiao Man returned to the courtyard, holding a bunch of scallions in her hand, and said excitedly, "Young master, look how fresh these scallions are! Aunt Zhang grew them herself, and they smell much better than the ones sold at the market... Oh, the dishes are already cooked?"
Chen Ji picked up his chopsticks: "Let's eat."
Xiaoman walked around the courtyard and asked, "Where is the princess? Is there anything she needs? Did she go out and buy it herself? Let's wait for her to come back before we eat."
Chen Ji picked up a piece of tofu with his chopsticks: "Eat it, we can't wait any longer."
……
……
The canal caravans circled around the outer city, not leaving the capital immediately.
Bai Li sat in the carriage with his eyes closed, chanting sutras. Lü Qi sat opposite him and said, "Chief, tonight is the Double Ninth Festival, and there will be a Bodhisattva procession at Yuanjue Temple. The people will follow the procession, and the whole capital will be in an uproar. The Annamese envoy will also be bidding farewell to the court today. At that time, the secret police and the guards will be concentrated along the line between the Huitong Hall and the Forbidden City... No one will notice us."
Lu Qi continued, "The old gang leader is currently imprisoned in the Taiye Pond Prison. Our Cao Gang's four pillars and eight beams are ready. We will rescue him tonight, and we will leave the capital together."
Bai Li opened her eyes and looked at Lü Qi: "How do you plan to rob me?"
Lu Qi lowered his voice: "The eunuch faction's inner prison only recognizes waist tokens, not people. We have a gyrfalcon waist token. When the time comes, we'll use it to knock on the prison door, and then we'll all rush in and take the old gang leader away... Nowadays, everyone in the gang has their own agenda. Without the old gang leader, I'm afraid we won't be able to control the members. Gang leader, you don't need to risk your life with us. Just wait outside Taiye Pond. If it succeeds, we'll all go together; if it fails, you'll have to leave on your own." (End of Chapter)