A Perfect Spot to Meditate

Fahai closed his eyes.

The rustling of branches in the wind seemed to slowly fade out of his consciousness as he immersed himself in his meditation. He had taken a long walk to the mountains, seeking a quiet place, and as he followed the river he had come across a flat, smooth rock on the top of a small ledge overlooking the river. With his qinggong, it was no hard feat to leap up there, out of sight from any passerbys unless they happened to look up. He had seated himself on the rock, without bothering to sweep aside the snow that had fallen there, and composed himself. He liked to challenge himself by meditating in places which were increasingly unconducive, especially when it was due to exposure to the elements. It gave him a deep sense of satisfaction when he could force his mind to focus on meditating, even when his physical body was undergoing discomfort. With the onset of winter, he had caught a nagging cough this way, but never gave it a chance to recover completely.

It took him a while to quieten his mind, especially with the cold. He had actually seen the snake spirit, on his very first day arriving in the village, and already knew where she lived--what was more, they were immediate neighbours. The gods must be helping him. He had never expected that the chatty old woman he had bumped into at the entrance of the village, who offered to let him lodge at her place for a few copper coins, would turn out to be the neighbours of the same couple he was so interested in.

From Granny Hong, he had found out all he needed to know about them. Physician Xu seemed to be an ordinary man, compassionate and engrossed in his work. What had been less ordinary was the story of how he had met his wife, and his deep love for her, which was already well-known in the village. Fahai had listened intently as Granny Hong happily chattered about Suzhen.

Xu Suzhen. A seemingly commonplace name, but an anything but commonplace woman. At first glance she appeared to be simply a beautiful woman, somewhat reserved, tending to her own business. He had questioned himself repeatedly, whenever he saw her, because she seemed so quiet and modest.

His brows furrowed unconsciously as he found himself replaying the scene that had taken place last night over Granny Hong's dinner table. Somehow, as she got comfortable with him and tried to interest him with chatter about their village, the conversation had turned naturally of itself to Xu Suzhen, the very person he was interested in.

"A sweet child," enthused Granny Hong. "Don't let those jealous gossipers in the village poison your mind against her. They're simply sour because she's so pretty." She sighed. "Poor child, she had a difficult childhood. It's a curse, sometimes, the gift of beauty, for a woman in this cruel world."

Fahai had gone as far as to press further, something he usually never did, but he told himself it was for the greater good, and did not count as the evil of common gossiping. "Why do you say so?"

Granny Hong had shook her head energetically as she ladled a bowl of soup for him. "When she first came, she was so odd. There were so many things she didn't know how to do, and wasn't familiar with. People talked about her, but Physician Xu would never hear a word against her. And she worked hard. She's a quick learner, and she never complained. Now to look at her, you'd never guess that she had so much to learn when she first came."

"Odd, you say." Fahai said softly.

Granny Hong shook a finger at him. "But it wasn't her fault, the poor thing. We later found out the reason why. She'd been pursued by a lecherous old noble since she was a young girl due to her great beauty, and her parents had to live in the mountains like hermits to avoid his reach. No names were mentioned, but from the description I feel fairly convinced that it was none other than that old codger who died a while back, none other than--" She whispered something significantly into Fahai's ear. The monk's unchanged expression showed that he neither knew nor cared about the name she mentioned. He lowered his eyes and sipped quietly at the hot soup.

He could not help feeling a wave of disgust. What a ridiculous tale, blatantly deceiving these gullible people. These spirits were really shameless.

"Ah, but she's devoted to Physician Xu. He is a changed man, now. I am so happy for the two of them." Granny Hong handed Yuanzheng a bowl of soup.

Yuanzheng cleared his throat. "Mother. The reverend man does not need to know all about Physician Xu and his wife in order to digest your food." he said dryly.

Granny Hong snorted. "Well, I'm just telling the truth. The holy man must know what a good person Physician Xu is, and Madame Xu too. I'm trying to convince him to see Physician Xu for that cough he has. Really, reverend sir, you must do something about that cough."

Fahai's face was impassive. "It is of no consequence. The body is but temporal, and its needs are nothing compared to the soul's," he said firmly.

Granny Hong looked disapprovingly at him. She did not quite dare to scold him, so she had to be contented with an unconvinced "Well, I'm sure you know best." She was quiet after that, much to Yuanzheng's relief, but Fahai had found himself toying with the suggestion. So Xu Suzhen had seduced this physician. Why, he had no idea, as the man seemed like any common village physician; but his heart went out to the man. It was something, to hear people speak so warmly of him without having any enticement to but their own sincerity. He felt an unconscious wave of respect for this man, who had achieved this. And he felt a redoubled determination to rescue this man from the web of deceit, possibly even danger and death, which he was living in each day from the woman at his side. A good man, who deserved to be saved. Who needed to be saved.

Fahai shifted slightly as he pushed the scene away with an effort and tried again to concentrate on meditating. The faint sound of water below seemed to pierce through his consciousness, disturbing him like a mosquito. He bore it as long as he could, then gave way to a wince. His eyes opened, and he stared fixedly at the river below with a frown on his face, and a steely expression in his eyes.

He did not like the sound of water. It brought too many memories with it. Memories he would much rather have forgotten. Splashing. The dark. The awful sense of loneliness. The stray gleam of moonlight on an upturned face before it went down and vanished forever, a ghastly white blur of terror in the darkness which he would never be able to forget even if he was asleep, even if he went blind. Only when he was immersed most deeply in his meditation could he free himself from the terrible contaminating touch of that memory.