Green Mountain-Chapter 732 - 585: Prison Break

Jianing, the ninth day of the ninth month, Double Ninth Festival.

Xiao Man got up earlier than usual. She put on an apron, took out the glutinous rice soaked last night, and poured it into the steamer lined with bamboo mats. The fire in the hearth crackled as it burned.

Once the glutinous rice was cooked, it was poured into the stone mortar. The little monk rolled up his sleeves and began to pound it with the wooden pestle, one blow after another.

"Put some effort into it," Xiao Man directed from the side, "Haven't you had breakfast?"

The little monk panted heavily, "I really haven't eaten yet..."

Xiao Man gave him a look, took the pestle from him, and with a shove of her shoulder, moved the little monk aside: "Let me do it myself."

At this moment, Bai Li came out from the main house, looking curious: "Xiao Man wants to make Chongyang Cake herself?"

Xiao Man looked up, seeing her still in the white clothes she had prepared for her, and said with a smile: "Commandery Princess, when I was young, my aunt would make it by hand every year. My aunt said that the food for festivals should be made by oneself for the family to feel like a family. If everything is bought from outside, like dumplings for the New Year, zongzi for the Duanwu Festival, and yuanxiao for the Lantern Festival, after a while, the taste of the festival fades. If the flavor of the festival fades, so does the feeling of family."

Bai Li saw Xiao Man handling the pestle and said warmly, "Let me help you."

Xiao Man hesitated for a moment, by making space and passing the pestle.

But Bai Li didn't take the pestle; she merely clenched her hand in the air, and the pestle began to pound by itself. The force of the wooden pestle was even, and by noon the glutinous rice had turned into a whole mass.

Xiao Man's eyes widened: "What kind of official gateway method is this, Commandery Princess?"

Bai Li diverted the topic: "What's next?"

Xiao Man took out the pounded glutinous rice dough, spread it flat on the chopping board, then sprinkled sesame seeds, melon seeds, red and green silk: "Roll these up, cut them into pieces, and steam them again – then they can be eaten."

"I'll do the cutting," Bai Li took the knife, skillfully slicing on the board, the thickness even.

Xiao Man was startled: "Has the Commandery Princess done this before?"

Bai Li responded warmly, "In the past, when I was at Donglin Academy with my brother, we had to cook every day. Not only for myself but also for my brother and the little monk. After a while, I learned quite a lot."

Xiao Man looked at the little monk, who quickly explained: "The Commandery Princess's cooking skills are excellent. When I was at Donglin Academy, if it weren't for her, I would have starved."

Xiao Man was delighted: "So on the journey, I won't have to cook alone. By the way, the carts and horses are ready, one for people and one for goods. The axle is made of elm; I personally supervised the carpenters applying tung oil, brushed three times, very sturdy."

As she spoke more animatedly, she stacked the Chongyang Cakes that Bai Li had cut into pieces into the steamer: "I've prepared three large bundles of food. Fried noodles are made of oats, which sate hunger, just add boiling water to eat. I bought fifty pounds of jerky, choosing the leanest hindquarters cut into strips, one to chew for half a day. The salted vegetables are from Xuanzhen's Lubiji on Chessboard Street, using their family's ancestral recipe, very salty and doesn't spoil for a year."

Xiao Man covered the steamer and dusted off the glutinous rice flour on her hands: "Winter clothes are also ready, each with a set of thick cotton-padded clothes, the outer is an old coat to shield from wind, bought from the second-hand shop, washed three times, clean and warm. Fur coats are too expensive; I only bought one each for the young master and the Commandery Princess, others can get theirs when we reach Guyuan, the fur there is really... right, are we leaving tonight?"

Bai Li abruptly interjected: "Let me cook lunch for you all, so you can taste my cooking skills."

Xiao Man was surprised and delighted: "Really?"

Bai Li nodded, undoing the apron from Xiao Man and tying it around her own waist: "I'll make pot roasted tofu, vinegar-sautéed cabbage, scallion-exploded lamb, dried bamboo shoots with cured meat, the ingredients were bought yesterday."

Xiao Man replied with a broad smile: "I'll help you as your assistant."

Bai Li gently pushed her out of the kitchen: "I forgot to buy scallions, can you please go buy some?"

"Huh?" Xiao Man quickly agreed: "I'll go right away then."

As Xiao Man hurriedly left, Bai Li looked at Chen Ji: "The water tank at home is out of water, can you help fetch some water?"

Chen Ji glanced at the half-full water tank, asked no questions, and left Shaojiu Alley carrying the pole.

The small courtyard quieted down, leaving only the slight rustle of the dry grapevines in the breeze.

Bai Li then turned to the little monk: "Little monk, could you..."

The little monk looked into her eyes and softly spoke: "Benefactor is actually trying to send us all away to quietly leave, isn't that right?"

Bai Li remained silent.

The little monk sighed: "Among the three poisons, Benefactor Chen Ji has severed greed and anger, leaving only delusion. Among the seven emotions, Benefactor Bai Li severed desire at Jingyang Palace, fear at Xuanzhen, hatred at Zhu Lingyun's place, sorrow at the Empress's place, and yesterday, with help from Benefactor Chen Ji, severed joy, now only anger and love remain. For a moment, this humble monk does not know whether to congratulate the Benefactor on entering the Seeking Dao Realm, or to feel sad for the Benefactor."

Bai Li, among the seven emotions, has already severed five, with only two steps remaining to ascend the great path.

The little monk said sincerely, "Benefactor, this humble monk does not know who threw that White Jade Leaf from the Forty-nine Heavens, but my master once mentioned that not many deities can overlook the world from the Forty-nine Heavens. It must be one of those few whom countless beings pray to day and night, so there aren't many in the Dao Court with such power. It is likely to be one of the Three Pure Ancestors."

"But regardless of who this person is, he initially chose Princess Yongchun and, decades later, selected you to impart the Supreme Forgetful Technique. His intentions are significant. The matters you inquired about with divination sticks were all orchestrated by him. At Jingyang Palace that day, he resolved the misunderstanding between you two just to deepen your affection. On the day at the City God Temple, with ninety-nine divination sticks, he clearly intended for you to sever the most difficult emotional attachment among the seven emotions, to pass the hardest barrier of the Supreme Forgetfulness... It's just that you couldn't let go, so it didn't succeed."

Bai Li remained silent for a long time.

The little monk said, with a compassionate expression, "Benefactor Chen Ji also has his own struggles."

Bai Li looked up at the little monk, who gazed into her eyes.

At this moment, the wind in the courtyard stopped, and the rustling of dead vines also ceased. The entire small courtyard seemed to suddenly sink into a deep well, with only the crackling sound of firewood steaming Chongyang Cake in the kitchen remaining.

In those eyes, there was no hatred, fear, joy, sorrow, or desire, only calmness, like the green lamp in front of the eternal statue of the Three Pure Ones, or the shadow beneath the green lamp.

Bai Li said softly, "You don't have to say these things. I don't hate him and can't bring myself to hate. It's just that he has his knots, and I have mine, which over time have both turned into dead knots."

The little monk hesitated, then finally said, "Benefactor Chen Ji's knots are not dead knots; it's just that he tied them too tightly, forgetting how to untie them… but you, benefactor, can untie them. This humble monk knows you want to avenge the Empress, but Benefactor Chen Ji may be willing to do this with you. You both traveled such a long way from Luocheng City to the Imperial Capital, not to part ways."

Bai Li lowered her eyes, "Little monk, Third Miss Qi's words at the Imperial Music Bureau a few days ago were reasonable. I and that Forbidden City have trapped Chen Ji for too long, and I shouldn't trap him any longer."

The little monk said anxiously, "Benefactor…"

Bai Li interrupted, "Little monk, go buy me two cloves of garlic."

The little monk was silent for a moment, then pressed his palms together and bowed deeply, "Alright."

Bai Li watched the little monk leave, then returned to the kitchen to silently stir-fry vegetables.

At that moment, Lü Qi appeared at the courtyard gate, speaking in a low voice, "Gang Leader, the carriage and horses are at the alley entrance, let's go quickly."

Bai Li paid no heed, continuing to concentrate on cooking. First tofu, then stir-fried cabbage, next scallion lamb, and finally dried bamboo shoots with bacon.

Lü Qi paced anxiously at the kitchen door, but Bai Li unhurriedly brought the dishes to the stone table in the courtyard, then returned to the main house and changed back into her Taoist robe.

Lü Qi hurriedly said, "Gang Leader, let's go quickly. If we wait for Chen Ji and that Eunuch Party to return, I'm afraid it will be too late to leave."

Yet, as Bai Li was walking out, she suddenly stopped and turned around, giving the courtyard one last look.

Only when Lü Qi urged her again did she finally turn and leave.

Not far from the alley, Chen Ji stood behind a corner, with a shoulder pole and two empty water buckets at his feet. He looked up at the midday sky and listened to the receding footsteps, lost in thought.

He seemed to have long foreseen the outcome; the only thing left was to await its arrival.

A moment later, Chen Ji heard the sound of wheels gradually fade away, then silently shouldered the two empty water buckets back to the small courtyard.

He looked at the empty courtyard and the food on the table, quietly set down the shoulders pole, and sat calmly at the table.

Chen Ji didn't frantically search the courtyard for people, nor did he rush out to follow the receding silhouettes of carriage and horses. At this moment, Xiao Man returned to the courtyard, holding a bunch of scallions and said excitedly, "Young master, look how fresh these scallions are, grown by Aunt Zhang's family, much more fragrant than those sold at the market... Eh, are the dishes already done?"

Chen Ji picked up his chopsticks, "Let's eat."

Xiao Man walked around the courtyard, "Where is the Commandery Princess? Is something still missing, did she go out herself to buy it? Shall we wait for her to return before eating?"

Chen Ji picked up a piece of tofu, "Let's eat, she won't be back."

...

...

The Cao Guild's carriage meandered in the Outer City, not leaving the Imperial Capital immediately.

Bai Li sat in the carriage reciting sutras with her eyes closed, while Lü Qi sat opposite, saying, "Gang Leader, tonight there's the Bodhisattva parade from Yuanjue Temple for the Double Ninth Festival, and the people will follow the parade. The entire Imperial Capital will be bustling. The An Nan Envoy will also bid farewell to the court today, so the Hawk and Dog of the Spy Department and Jiefan Guard will be concentrated along the line of Huitong Hall and the Forbidden City… No one will pay attention to us."

Lü Qi continued, "The former Gang Leader is currently imprisoned in the inner prison of Taiye Pond. Our Four Beams and Eight Pillars of the Cao Guild are ready. Tonight, we will rescue him and leave the capital together."

Bai Li opened her eyes and looked at Lü Qi, "How do you plan to rescue him?"

Lü Qi lowered his voice, "The inner prison of the Eunuch Party only recognizes waist tags, not people. We have a waist tag belonging to Hai Dongqing. We'll use the tag to open the prison door, and the Four Beams and Eight Pillars will storm in to rescue the former Gang Leader… Now everyone in the Cao Guild has their own agendas. Without the former Gang Leader, I'm afraid it will be hard to control the members. You don't need to take risks with us, just wait outside Taiye Pond. If it succeeds, we leave together; if it fails, you escape on your own."