"Bring it along? Such a cumbersome beast, always getting in the way..." Chai Yingluo pondered for a moment. "Fine. Might as well bring it. We'll squeeze in."
The servants fetched a collar and leash, helping the abbess secure it around the leopard's neck. Chai Yingluo and Wei Shufen climbed into the carriage, then beckoned Jing Xuan to join them. The three women and the leopard packed the carriage tightly. Fortunately, this carriage was cruder but more spacious than the vermilion-wheeled palace carriage Chai Yingluo usually rode, and it was drawn by two horses instead of a single ox. After the eunuch servants hitched the carriage, the group set off from the Purple Void Monastery, surrounded by attendants.
The procession entered the inner city through the Fragrant Forest Gate. Chai Yingluo was so familiar with this gate from her frequent comings and goings that she merely leaned out the window to greet the guards. They exchanged pleasantries, addressing her repeatedly as "High Truth Master," and after a cursory check of their credentials, let them pass.
To the east of the main street south of the Fragrant Forest Gate stood the towering rammed-earth walls of the Imperial City and the Palace Women's Quarters, patrolled at intervals by halberd-wielding guards. After traveling the length of one ward, Chai Yingluo suddenly ordered the carriage to turn west onto the east-west street between Xiude and Fuxing Wards. Passing another ward, they rounded a corner and halted.
Wei Shufen followed Chai Yingluo out of the carriage, taking the reins of a horse and slinging a bundle containing their belongings onto her mount. Chai Yingluo, meanwhile, lifted Atun from the carriage and placed the plump hunting leopard directly in front of her saddle. The beast seemed quite comfortable perched on the horse, remaining remarkably calm and still.
While Chai Yingluo gave instructions to Jing Xuan, who remained in the carriage, Wei Shufen took the opportunity to survey their surroundings. They were near the northern outer wall of Chang'an, where foot traffic was sparse and nothing unusual caught her eye. The high walls of Fuxing Ward blocked their view of the palace walls to the east, making this an inconspicuous spot to switch from carriage to horseback.
After a brief exchange, Chai Yingluo waved Jing Xuan onward with the carriage and mounted attendants, while she and Wei Shufen led their horses slowly to create some distance.
They headed south along the north-south road between Fuxing and Xiuxiang Wards. Halfway down, Chai Yingluo suddenly exclaimed, "Huh? Why is he here?"
"Who?" Wei Shufen asked.
The female Taoist pointed at three figures who had just emerged from a gate on the western side of the road. The trio led a saddled horse out of a grand entrance facing the main street—unusual for a residence, as most gates opened inward to the ward. The compound beyond appeared to be a high-ranking official's mansion, with towering pavilions, layered eaves, and even a pagoda.
Wei Shufen's eyesight was sharp enough to make out the young man mounting the horse—a handsome youth dressed in plain cloth robes, followed by two servants who seemed unremarkable.
"Ying-jie, do you know them?"
"Yes," Chai Yingluo nodded. "That young man is the only surviving grandson of the last Sui emperor, Yang Guang. His name is Yang Min, courtesy name Zhengdao, currently serving as Attendant Gentleman of the Palace. Why is a man of rank dressed like this, mingling incognito among commoners?"
"Yang Guang's grandson?" Wei Shufen found this intriguing. "So after he was returned from the Turks, the court granted him such a grand residence..."
"That's not his house... Mount up. Let's follow him!"Ahead of them, Yang Min and his servants maintained some distance, showing no signs of noticing they were being followed. However, once the horses picked up speed, the two servants trailing behind had to quicken their pace to keep up. Chai Yingluo and Wei Shufen mounted their horses as well, following at a distance. After passing through two wards, they watched as Yang Min and his group entered the western gate of Buzheng Ward.
In the northern wards of the city, guards stationed at each gate conducted routine checks. Ordinary passersby rarely drew attention, but a striking beauty dressed in men’s attire, leading a hunting leopard and horses, was impossible to ignore. It would have been strange if they weren’t stopped. Fortunately, the stern-faced female Taoist flashed an official pass issued by the palace, and the guards wisely stepped aside.
The two women led their horses into Buzheng Ward, still able to glimpse Yang Min’s party in the distance. Chai Yingluo followed silently until they reached a crossroads, where the trio turned into an ordinary-looking residence on the eastern side of the road and closed the modest gate behind them.
“What place is that?” Wei Shufen asked.
Chai Yingluo replied, “That’s his actual home.”
“What?” Wei Shufen was surprised. “Then the grand estate he left earlier—where was that?”
Chai Yingluo shook her head without answering and led the horses southward. Wei Shufen followed, spotting a large mansion at the southern end of the crossroads, its towering eaves and roof ornaments standing out conspicuously above the surrounding commoners’ homes. At the highest point of the grandest eave was a bright red clay statue, shaped like leaping flames soaring toward the sky.
Fire… Could that be Chang’an’s oldest and most famous “Buzheng Ward Fire Temple”?
Come to think of it, Chai Yingluo had instructed Prince Wu’s servants that they were going to “see the sacred fire.” The young Tuyuhun prince Sang Sai had also mentioned that the bald young merchant in charge of guarding the Seventeenth Princess was the son of a high-ranking steward from some Zoroastrian temple or Sart family. It seemed both Li Yuangui and Chai Yingluo were familiar with these foreign merchants. Was the female Taoist planning to storm their stronghold directly to demand the princess’s release?
If so, just the two of them might not be enough… But then again, what did she have left to fear now?
Chai Yingluo strode confidently toward the Zoroastrian temple, ignoring the stares of passersby. At the gate, she exchanged a few words with the elderly Hu gatekeeper, who promptly went inside to announce them. Shortly after, he returned with an invitation: “Chai Yiniangzi is requested inside.”
This was Wei Shufen’s first time entering a Zoroastrian temple, and curiosity was inevitable. Beyond the outer gate lay an expansive courtyard dotted with over a dozen domed tents, surrounded by camels, horses, wooden fences, and firewood stacks. Numerous Hu merchants bustled about, creating a lively scene.
The elderly guide did not lead them to the grand main hall but instead took a winding path to a smaller side courtyard. Chai Yingluo smirked and whispered to Wei Shufen, “They don’t allow women into the sacred fire altar—so many ridiculous rules. Though Atun might be allowed in.”
Wei Shufen glanced at the plump hunting leopard Chai Yingluo was leading, noticing the two furry round orbs beneath its tail. She stifled a giggle, her cheeks flushing pink. Recently, she had been reading medical texts at Purple Void Monastery, and the anatomical diagrams of human meridians and acupoints had been quite enlightening—perhaps a bit too enlightening for an unmarried maiden.The old Hu man pushed open the side chamber door and ushered them inside. The sky was already growing dark, and servants entered to light the lamps and candles, bringing in some pastries and cheese. Wei Shufen picked up a bowl of milk curds but was immediately overwhelmed by the pungent smell and quickly set it down. Chai Yingluo, however, seemed quite accustomed to the taste of Hu cuisine, first feeding some to Atun before heartily digging in herself.
The door creaked open again, and a middle-aged Hu man with a hooked nose entered, exchanging greetings with Chai Yingluo. Removing his Hu-style hat and bowing, his completely bald head gleamed without a single hair, so Wei Shufen didn’t need an introduction to know this was An San, the current steward of the Office of the Protectorate General.
After the customary pleasantries, they took their seats, and the female Taoist got straight to the point:
“Steward An, your son Yanna and the minor prince of Tuyuhun, Sang Sai, conspired in rebellion and have now abducted my seventeenth aunt—the Seventeenth Princess, sister of the current Heavenly Khan—committing a crime punishable by the extermination of three generations. Are you aware of this, Third Brother?”
“I am,” An San Tuzi smiled at the two women. “My worthless son has gone astray, lost contact, and as his father, I am deeply worried. Whether this cowardly brat can return home safely now depends entirely on you, High Truth Master!”
#####This chapter includes explanatory notes about the Fire Temple. For related images, please visit the author’s Weibo. Search for the ID “Tang Dynasty Tour Guide Forest Deer” on Sina Weibo—exchanges are welcome. ????
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