Master Ku Hai’s meditation room was very simple. It was only a small single room of 20 square metres. Other than a praying mat, there was nothing else. On the outside, there was a small courtyard where a Bodhi tree was planted and there was an inground lotus pond.. It was simple but majestic.
The Old Madam held her breath and walked slowly. When they arrived at the door of the Zen room, she hesitatingly said, “Xiang’er, could you wait outside the courtyard for a moment? Grandmother would like to speak to the Master alone.”
Yu Xiang was an outsider. If she wanted to meet Master Ku Hai who was like a deity, she would inevitably feel anxious and uneasy, so she nodded her head. Her heart had already been dug out of her body and the corpse must be in her mother’s hands. In order to hide the truth, she must have been hastily cremated. Even if she returned, would she still be Yu Xiang? Could she meet that man again?
She felt lost for a moment.
Seventy years have passed since the founding of the Han Dynasty. Currently, Master Ku Hai’s appearance remains the same as it was 70 years ago. The eyebrows and beard were frosty white. There weren’t any extra wrinkles on his face, and his eyes were as deep as the sea. When he met the Old Madam, he chanted the phrase ‘Amitabha’ and asked her to sit down.
“May I ask what does Benefactor wish to consult about?”
“Please help me to read these two Ba zi[1].” The Old Madam took two pieces of paper from her sleeve pocket and spread them on the table.
Master Ku Hai nodded, looked at it carefully for a moment, and then pointed to one of them and said, “A jinx. Her life is fated to be in solitary and alone. She would curse her parents, spouse, children, relatives and even livestocks. No one would be able to avoid her curse. If there isn’t a noble person who can resolve the curse, then no one can resolve it.”
The Old Madam was already mentally prepared before, but when she heard this, her expression turned inevitably pale.
Master Ku Hai didn’t care about her, pointing to another piece of paper, “The string of fate between his parents are thin. No one can help them to reconcile, and they would always be in conflict. If it is a girl, she would be good with martial arts. If it’s a male, he is aggressive, and the Nanyin sword is sharp, so there isn’t a good end.”
“No, no-no good end?” The Old Madam was shaking, as if she was about to faint, Ma Momo quickly rushed to help her.
Master Ku Hai glanced at her, and then spoke, “these two people’s lives are in conflict. If they are husband and wife, there would be no peace at home. If they are brothers and sisters, they will fight with each other and cannot coexist.”
The Old Madam felt even more dizzy, she trembled as she spoke, “If he doesn’t have a good end, isn’t there any way to change his fate? How could it be a bad ending?” As for the fate conflict, she didn’t have the time to think deeply into it.
Master Ku Hai shut his eyes and calculated, and he suddenly said, “Hm?”
The Old Madam quickly pounced forward and asked, “Master, is there any other way?”
“This is originally a fate of no solution, but suddenly a taiyi nobleman[2] has appeared. Very good indeed.” Master Ku Hai placed his hands together and sighed, “This person had just experienced a catastrophe of life and death a few days ago, the great noble person must have already been by his side. You can rest assured.”
“Who is this great noble person?” The Old Madam was weak all over but she still earnestly wishes to know about it.
“Far in the sky, right in front of your eyes.” he spoke as he stood up and walked towards Yu Xiang who was under the Bodhi tree, his eyes were full of splendor.
It was clearly a child’s body, but there was a soul from a different world. The left eye was filled with malevolence, the right eye was indifferent. The space between the eyebrows were overflowing with the majestic Golden Buddha rays, a halo above the head, and the luck was incomparable. This person was the only person he saw with such a profound Buddhism.
“Amitabha…” Master Ku Hai pressed his palms together and spoke.
Yu Xiang rushed to cut him off, “If you want to ask me where I have come from and where I will go, I will tell you, I come from where I came and I go to where I am going. If you want to ask me what I think, I will tell you when one has no desires, the heart is one with Buddha; when one has desires, the heart is one with hell. I have desires, thus I’d rather be in hell.” Therefore, there was no need to pity me or convince me. Since I had made up my mind to hold onto the only one that I can grasp, I would not look forward to the uncertain future or should I say, the past.
She exhaled a hazy air towards the lotus leaves in the pool, feeling that her mood was unprecedentedly bright and cheerful.
Master Ku Hai finally showed his first smile today and said slowly, “I don’t need to say any further as this benefactor has already thought it through.”
Yu Xiang nodded her head and questioned, “Is my brother safe?”
“If he could survive through a calamity, he would be blessed later on.” Master Ku Hai looked at the Old Madam and said with a smile, “Fortune is incomparable, your fate with Buddhism is deep, to bring the spouse and family good luck, and a gem in the house. The Taiyi nobleman is already here, this benefactor wouldn’t need to go search elsewhere. Amitabha. Very good indeed”
The Old Madam was stunned for a moment before she showed an ecstatic expression. She thanked Master Ku Hai. Master Ku Hai chucked and shook his head. After he spoke, he went to look for his junior and ordered him to treat the leg injury for the female benefactor.
A gem in the house? Me? The corner of Yu Xiang’s mouth twitched continuously, but she understood the meaning behind the old monk’s words. Her life in Yongle Manor would be better. However, no matter how good her life was, it was just the foil of the female lead, as she was destined to be the phoenix of the Ninth heavens.
When the female lead returns home, all of her fate would start to turn. Nothing could be determined now. Thinking about this, Yu Xiang’s eyes flashed a trace of hostility. It seemed that she could no longer be as indifferent as she was previously, because she had something that she could not afford to lose no matter what.