"You're not...?"
Just as Xu Lei took a step back, the woman before him purred in the dimness, "Expecting Yu Fengying?
You crafty Little Divine Monk. I never thought that beneath that holy facade, that untouchable Divine Monk act, you'd be secretly carrying on an affair with the County Magistrate's wife!
No wonder Yu Fengying has been glowing ever since she came up the mountain. She tried to hide it, but the bliss was practically radiating from her eyes.
You're utterly consumed by lust! How audacious!"
"Amitabha Buddha."
Xu Lei placed his palms together. "Patroness, please do not speak such nonsense. This humble monk was merely performing an act of Charitable Giving for her.
She is unable to bear children with her husband.
For the peace of her household and to quell vicious rumors, she came to the temple to pray for a son.
This humble monk, in his Buddhist compassion, simply offered his body to grant her wish."
"Such high-sounding words."
The woman before him retorted, "No matter how you dress it up, it doesn't change the fact that you and Yu Fengying are having an affair."
Faced with her accusation, Xu Lei was naturally unperturbed.
The woman's arrival was also highly unusual.
Though her words were sharp, she didn't look at all like she was here to make trouble.
After all, her long hair was let down, and one could tell it had been meticulously washed.
She wore no jewelry, and this simplicity only served to accentuate her natural beauty.
She wore only a thin, silk dress, a dudou, and a pair of silk inner shorts.
Although the light in the Almsgiving Room was dim and Xu Lei couldn't see clearly, his hands had already felt everything during their embrace and kiss just now.
Who would come dressed like this to cause a scene?
"Amitabha Buddha."
Therefore, Xu Lei asked, "Patroness, have you also come here to ask this humble monk for a child?"
"Correct. Little Divine Monk, you truly live up to your name."
The woman before him chuckled softly. "To remain so calm in the face of this... and here I thought I might have scared you."
Indeed, the woman who appeared in the Almsgiving Room tonight was not Yu Fengying, but Lady Consort Li.
"Amitabha Buddha."
Xu Lei asked, "What has become of Patroness Yu?"
"Relax."
Consort Li smiled. "I just used a special knockout drug from the palace to make her pass out. She'll sleep for a night and wake up tomorrow as if nothing happened, perfectly fine."
With that, she took the initiative, stepping forward to wrap her arms around Xu Lei's waist and press her entire body against his chest.
"Little Divine Monk."
She asked, "Is this servant not supple enough for you?"
"Amitabha Buddha."
Xu Lei allowed her to hold him, but said, "Patroness, please have some self-respect."
"What, are you scared?"
Consort Li huffed. "Is it because I'm the Emperor's woman that you dare not touch me?
I never imagined that you, a Divine Monk, would be as cowardly as any common mortal.
I thought a Divine Monk would be different from an ordinary man.
It seems I have misjudged you."
"Amitabha Buddha."
Xu Lei replied, "My Buddha is compassionate. All living beings are equal. In the eyes of the Buddha, all are the same, be they the Emperor or a commoner.
Patroness, even though you are the Emperor's consort, revered and honored in the mortal world...
What of it?
In this little monk's eyes, you are just another patroness struggling in a sea of suffering."
"Then why did you tell me to have self-respect?"
Consort Li shot back, "Can you perform your Charitable Giving for Fengying, but not for me?
How is that Yu Fengying better than me? Am I less beautiful than her? Is my body not as good as hers?
Is my voice not as pleasant? Is my skin not as smooth?
Or do you think that because I threw myself at you, my body is somehow tainted?
Only *that man* has ever touched this body.
In that, I am no different from her, am I?
The only reason I am doing this is because *that man's* body is failing.
But I need to have a child!"
"Patroness, you are overthinking things."
Xu Lei explained, "You were chosen as Consort Li and entered the imperial harem.
Your figure, your beauty, your charm, your allure—they are all of the highest quality.
You are in no way inferior to Patroness Yu.
It is just that when this humble monk performs Charitable Giving for her, it is because she cannot have a child at home, and her family is aware of her quest for a son.
Therefore, this humble monk is performing a meritorious deed.
However, your situation, Patroness, is different.
If this humble monk were to touch you, it would not be a meritorious deed, but perhaps a grievous sin."
"I see."
Consort Li said, "This little woman underestimated the Divine Monk. My apologies."
"It is of no consequence."
Xu Lei said, "For you to act this way today, Patroness... I imagine it is because of some deep-seated suffering that has forced your hand."
"That's right."
Consort Li said, "I entered the palace at fourteen. I am now twenty. Divine Monk, can you imagine my despair? Six years have passed, and I still have no child.
Since you pity the people of this world, Divine Monk, why do you not pity me?
This trip out of the palace may be the only chance I have in this lifetime.
Once I return to the harem, I may grow old and die there.
Given his physical condition, it's impossible for him to give me a child.
Am I fated to die without descendants in this life?"
"And so, Patroness, you wish to use this time outside the palace to conceive a child in secret."
Xu Lei asked, "But why seek out this humble monk?"
"At first, it was just a thought, but I didn't dare to act on it."
Consort Li continued, "After all, I have a large entourage on this trip.
And I didn't know who I could ask for a child without causing trouble.
Besides, I could hardly bring myself to be with an ordinary man.
But then, here in this temple, I discovered that something was unusual about Sister Fengying.
Her room actually connects to this one. It was a gift from the heavens.
A holy and Extraordinary young Divine Monk who secretly gives his own body in Charitable Giving.
And so, I came.
Before, I thought it would be difficult to accept being with an ordinary man.
But if it were a Divine Monk... I thought, that would be acceptable."
"Amitabha Buddha."
Xu Lei sighed. "Thank you for your high regard, Patroness, but your request for a child does not conform to the rules of the temple's Bu Zhong Hall. I fear it goes against the Buddha's will, and this humble monk cannot agree."
"I beg the Little Divine Monk to have mercy."
But Consort Li's eyes shimmered with tears as she knelt directly before Xu Lei. In the faint moonlight filtering through the window, she lifted her pale, beautiful face and choked out, "This little woman knows full well that it is wrong to ask the Little Divine Monk to put himself in such danger.
After all, one careless misstep could lead to a fatal disaster.
But this little woman's fate has been a harsh one, and my life is not my own to control.
Once you enter the palace harem, it is as deep as the boundless sea, filled with treacherous waves and shifting clouds.
Life in the harem is miserable, full of scheming and backstabbing. It is a struggle just to survive.
Now, all I ask for is a son, or even a daughter, to support me in my old age and to see me off at my death."
As she spoke, she slipped off her silk dress.
The silk dress slid softly to the floor.
She was left wearing only the dudou and a pair of very short silk shorts.
Her slender, pale neck, her slim arms and jade-like legs, and a waist that could be encircled by a single grasp, were all faintly visible in the dim light.
"Amitabha Buddha."
Xu Lei closed his eyes and said solemnly, "I am sorry, Patroness. Even if you possess a peerless, nation-toppling beauty that can overthrow cities with a single glance and kingdoms with a single smile...
And even if your naked jade body is like a supreme, celestial jewel...
This humble monk is a Buddhist Disciple. To me, the temptations of women are like passing clouds.
I truly cannot agree to a Charitable Giving that does not conform to the rules.
Even if you were to hold a blade to my neck, Patroness...
My answer would remain the same."
"I beg for the Divine Monk's mercy."
But Consort Li continued to disrobe. She then moved forward, hugged Xu Lei's legs, and pleaded alluringly, her eyes brimming with tears, "I beg for the Divine Monk's compassion!"
Xu Lei was silent.
After a while,
Tears fell from Consort Li's eyes.
She sighed in disappointment.
"It seems I have underestimated you, Divine Monk."
She said, "I prided myself on my beauty, yet I could not sway the Divine Monk in the slightest. I have overstepped my bounds tonight. I hope the Little Divine Monk will not take offense."
She gathered her clothes, ready to leave with tears in her eyes.
"Amitabha Buddha. Your suffering is profound, Patroness, and my heart aches with pity."
But just then, Xu Lei suddenly said, "So be it. In that case, this little monk shall perform the Charitable Giving for you."
"What?"
Consort Li was overjoyed. "Little Divine Monk, you... you really agree?"
Tears welled in her eyes again as she asked, "Aren't you afraid of bringing a fatal disaster upon yourself?
Do you no longer care about my identity?
Didn't you say that it doesn't conform to the rules and might become a grievous sin?
Are you not afraid of being cast into hell now?"
"Amitabha Buddha. Identity is but a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow. As this humble monk has said, in the eyes of the Buddha, all living beings are equal. What does it matter if you are a Celestial Maiden?"
Xu Lei continued, "As for your other two points, this humble monk has just had a moment of clarity.
If I were to see suffering but not dare to alleviate it for fear of breaking the rules, then what right do I have to speak of a Buddha's heart?
It is said that my Buddha is compassionate. If I do not enter hell, who will!"