Chapter 3. The Rabbit's Jade
Elsewhere in the temple, the head monk sat next to the young girl with obvious worry.
The young girl had been found collapsed just inside the temple with an arrow stuck through her chest. It had narrowly missed her heart. Her exhaustion and blood loss had drained her face of color.
The monk looked down at the white jade amulet in his hands.
It was clearly a rare piece of jade. There was a sort of luminescence that glowed from within the jade. On one side, one could see the imprint of a plum blossom. It even held a faint scent of plum blossoms.
Ma Liaowen had once seen this amulet nearly identical the one he currently held. If his old memory was to be trusted, he had been the one to gift to the love of his life on her wedding day.
"I'll treasure it with my life, Liaowen…" a voice drifted through his thoughts. Those had been the promise that his love had uttered.
For the amulet to end up back in his hands… (Could it be that something unfortunate had taken place?) his face turned pale at the thought. (Did she die?)
After shaking away the accursed thoughts, the head monk stood up to leave.
He took a step towards the door and nearly fell over. A small white hand had snaked out of the blankets and grabbed his ankles. The cold from the girl's hand caused him to shiver ever so slightly.
"Please wait," a soft voice said. The girl's voice, though soft, was cold and just her utterance was enough to plunge the room into the mercy of winter winds.
The head monk looked down at the blankets hesitantly and was shocked to find a pair of eyes piercing through him. The stubbornness in her eyes clearly showed the intent to chase him to ends of the world regardless of her injuries. He gulped nervously and sat back down.
"You should rest," he said with concern.
"Huhu," the girl let go of his ankle and laughed. "How kind of you to worry about me. You're just as my mother described."
"Huh?"
"Much too kind," the smile on the girl's face melted away. "Sometimes rest doesn't equate to a higher chance of living."
"Usually it does," Liaowen watched helplessly as she strained her wounds to sit up. "No one will attack you here-"
"Why do you think someone attacked me, Venerable One?"
"You can't shoot an arrow into your own chest," the head monk deadpanned.
"Huhu, so you have emotions too, Venerable One."
"Now, rest, we'll be back later with your dinner-"
The girl watched as Ma Liaowen moved to escape from the room.
"Ah- Venerable One, don't you wish to know where I got that amulet from?"
"..." Liaowen pursed his lips. He truly did want to know where she had gotten the amulet from, but considering the state this girl had arrived in, her knowledge had to be dangerous. Would he regret learning the truth?
"Hmm… If you don't wish to know, I won't tell you," the girl sighed as she laid back down. She closed her eyes and a sly smile played on her lips. "But, my mother had been the one to tell me to come here."
"Your…. Mother?" he turned his head slightly. (Could it be?)
"Yes," he had bitten the bait. "Her name was Han Meilan."
***
Under the full moon, two people sat, absorbing their solace.
On one side of the temple, the head monk gazed at his plum blossom tree. It was his only plum blossom tree that had been given to him by Han Meilan in his youth.
On the other side of the temple, the young girl sat in the shadows. She held the blankets close to her as she fingered the white jade amulet.
A cool night breeze flew past the temple.
She shuddered slightly at the wind. She looked up, her eyes red as she suppressed her emotions. The sweet scent of plum blossoms blew into the room.
If you followed the scent of plum blossoms, it would lead back to the head monk's plum blossom tree.
The petals were swirling through the air. He looked on with unveiled sadness. The wells were filled and overflowed.
His tears dropped one by one and as they reached the ground a tinkling note was sent to the heavens.