Oops! The Black Lotus Can’t Be a Female Supporting Character

CHAPTER 9

Susu..

The soft rustle of the mountain breeze stirred the flames in the incense burner casting flickering light over Xiao Luanfei’s face.

The wind swayed the lush branches of the bodhi tree causing the red ribbons tied to the branches to dance gently. Each ribbon held a small wooden plaque at both ends, and as the plaques clashed together, they emitted soft clinking sounds, reminiscent of countless wind chimes.

Xiao Luanfei looked up at the ribbons and plaques, her gaze thoughtful. “Second Sister, you probably don’t know, but this bodhi tree is the very one where His Majesty and the late Empress first formed their bond.”

“A matchmaking tree?” Xiao Yanfei echoed, following up on the other person’s words.

She truly didn’t know as the original owner rarely left the house, except for the two years spent living in the village.

Xiao Luanfei smiled softly. “When His Majesty was seventeen, he met the late Empress here under this very tree. It was love at first sight, and he implored the former Emperor to grant their marriage.”

“The late Empress threw her wish plaque here.” She added, her voice tinged with nostalgia.

“The emperor and empress were a young couple deeply in love and admired by all for their devotion. Sadly, the late empress’s life was cut short leaving the emperor in profound grief…”

Deeply in love? Xiao Yanfei thought, silently skeptical. If the Emperor truly cherished his first wife so deeply, how could he have remarried so soon within a year of her passing?

The mountain breeze swept through again, setting the wooden plaques clashing once more, their sounds like soft lamentations in the wind.

Just then, Princess Ning Shu and Third Miss Lu emerged from the Grand Hall, their faces bright with smiles having successfully drawn their lots.

Seeing the Xiao sisters admiring the bodhi tree, Princess Ning Shu nudged Xiao Luanfei playfully with her elbow. “Do you want to throw a wish plaque too?”

She leaned in close to Xiao Luanfei’s ear, her voice a soft whisper. “My mother says the Empress is currently selecting a bride for the Crown Prince.”

Xiao Luanfei bit her lip gently, her gaze flickering with a hint of shyness and sweetness.

“Stop teasing.” Xiao Luanfei murmured, her tone playful yet embarrassed.

“What are you two whispering about?” Third Miss Lu asked curiously, leaning in with a wide-eyed expression.

Xiao Luanfei smiled, steering the conversation elsewhere. “We were just saying that the vegetarian dishes at Xilin Temple are quite good. The head chef here is a descendant of an imperial chef, and his skill with vegetarian cuisine is exceptional.”

“Really?” Third Miss Lu’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Let’s go try some!”

“What’s so special about vegetarian food? It’s just greens and tofu.” Princess Ning Shu said in a haughty tone, her distaste evident.

“Oh, come on, let’s just give it a try.” Third Miss Lu chirped, running over to grab Princess Ning Shu’s arm. “Please, Your Highness, let’s go!”

Unable to resist Third Miss Lu’s enthusiasm, Princess Ning Shu sighed lazily. “Fine, let’s go.”

Third Miss Lu beamed with delight.

“You won’t be disappointed. Our temple’s vegetarian cuisine is quite famous.” The young monk, Jingwu said proudly, smiling as he gestured toward a path. “This way, ladies.”

He led the group toward the annex located on the west side of the temple, and along the way, his mouth didn’t stop talking.

“Our temple is known for three treasures: the peace talisman, the vegetarian dishes, and the Scripture Pavilion.”

“Every abbot of this temple has mastered the art of traditional Chinese medicine and has collected many rare and valuable medical texts. Even physicians from the capital often come to study in our Scripture Pavilion.”

Listening to the mention of medical texts, Xiao Yanfei’s eyes lit up and immediately spoke up. “Elder sister, I’m not hungry, so I won’t join you for the vegetarian meal. I’d like to visit the Scripture Pavilion instead.”

Her eyes sparkled with obvious excitement.

Xiao Luanfei was slightly surprised but smiled gently, nodding. “If you want to go, then go ahead. We’ll join you at the Scripture Pavilion once we finish our meal.”

She added with a gentle reminder. “But make sure not to leave the temple.”

Xiao Yanfei obediently nodded.

The young monk Jingwu then gestured to another handsome young monk to guide Xiao Yanfei.

Monk Jingxuan led her through the temple, winding their way for a while, and after about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, they arrived in front of a hall with a plaque reading “Scripture Pavilion.”

The Scripture Pavilion was located in the northwest corner of the temple, a somewhat secluded spot. There were few visitors nearby, and hardly any monks were around. The surroundings were peaceful, with only the clear chirping of birds echoing in the air.

Creak!

As soon as the door opened, a strong scent of books rushed towards her.

In the center of the room hung an old, slightly worn painting of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion. Her image was solemn with a subtle and gentle smile playing on her lips, radiating a sense of kindness and serenity.

On either side of the hall, neatly arranged rows of bookshelves stretched out. Each shelf was packed with books, and from a glance, it felt like a vast sea of knowledge.

Jingxuan raised his chin proudly, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “In all of the capital, our Western Forest Temple’s Scripture Pavilion has the largest collection. We have many hand-copied texts, as well as numerous rare and valuable editions.”

“This is the hard work of generations of abbots, spanning over a hundred years!”

The young monk’s voice was innocent and soft, bringing a smile to anyone who heard it.

“Impressive!” Xiao Yanfei responded with enthusiasm before asking. “Where are the medical texts?”

“They’re over there.” Jingxuan pointed to the west side of the pavilion and led her to the farthest row of bookshelves.

The Scripture Pavilion lacked candles, and the dim light made the atmosphere a bit shadowed.

Xiao Yanfei quickly scanned the medical texts on the shelves. Some titles were familiar to her, such as Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica, The Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon, Treatise on Cold Damage Diseases, The Pulse Classic, and so on. But there were many more she had never heard of, such as Lin’s Acupuncture, Compendium of Materia Medica, and Selected Formulas of Golden Chamber…

She casually pulled out a book titled Sacred Medicinal Materia Medica, curious to see if the herbs in this world were the same as those in hers.

“This Sacred Medicinal Materia Medica is a rare edition.” Jingxuan said proudly. “It was originally incomplete, but Master Huaiyuan spent five years restoring it.”

A rare edition? That’s definitely not something she could find in a bookstore. Xiao Yanfei slowly flipped through a couple of pages, thinking to herself: It looks like she’ll have to settle for buying some more common books from the shop and make do for now.

At that moment, a commotion could be heard outside the hall, accompanied by the sound of hurried footsteps coming closer.

A hoarse, elderly male voice politely said. “Your Highness, the Grand Prince, this is our temple’s Scripture Pavilion.”

A group of men dressed in bright red robes of the Imperial Guard surrounded a young man wearing a light-yellow dragon robe. Alongside them was an old monk dressed in a cassock—it was none other than the abbot, Master Huaiyuan.

The young man at the front wore a calm smile, his deep eyes and thin lips framed by sharp eyebrows and a straight nose. His handsome appearance was striking as the midday sun bathed him in a golden glow, adding to his noble aura that was impossible to ignore.

Xiao Yanfei froze for a moment. Well, she had barely just crossed over and now she had already encountered both of the main characters.

One was running away, the other chasing—together, they were joyfully engaged in a “chase for the wife through hellfire”. In the end, it would be the original owner who bore the brunt of the misfortune.

The first prince’s gaze swept lightly over Xiao Yanfei barely lingering for even a second, clearly indifferent to the frail young woman who looked incapable even of hurting a chicken.

“Search!”

The first prince spoke in a casual tone, and with his command the imperial guards immediately responded in unison and immediately they began searching the area ruthlessly, their movements rough and their expression fierce and threatening.

“Master,” the young monk Jingxuan nervously walked up to Master Huaiyuan, his round face tense with worry.

Master Huaiyuan offered a reassuring smile. “It’s fine.”

The Imperial Guards carefully searched through the Scripture Pavilion even lifting the painting of Avalokiteshvara to ensure there was no hidden compartment behind it. Once satisfied, they returned the painting to its place.

“Bang!”

In the corner, a high-legged flower stand was nearly knocked over by one of the guards. The flower pot atop it shattered upon impact, spilling dirt everywhere and leaving a mess.

The Scripture Pavilion wasn’t particularly large, but within the time it took to brew a cup of tea, two guards with embroidered spring knives had made their way to where Xiao Yanfei stood by the bookshelves.

“You, move!” one of the guards with a square face said arrogantly, pointing at Xiao Yanfei who was standing still.

Xiao Yanfei obediently stepped aside lowering her gaze avoiding eye contact with the guards. She wasn’t interested in what they were searching for.

The distance between the bookshelves was about four feet, so it was easy to see whether anyone was hiding.

But the square-faced guard still walked up and down the shelves, then strode confidently over to the first prince, cupping his hands and reporting. “Your Highness, nothing was found here.”

The First Prince scanned the surroundings briefly before walking out of the Scripture Pavilion, casually tossing over a word. “Let’s go.”

The other Imperial Guards hurriedly followed, and Master Huaiyuan and Jingxuan walked at the back.

Xiao Yanfei was left alone inside the Scripture Pavilion.

The tall bookshelves blocked her view, and she couldn’t see the people at the entrance but she could hear the First Prince’s calm voice asking. “Abbot, what other places are there in the back of the temple?”

Master Huaiyuan replied. “Over there is the Avalokiteshvara Hall, and the Medicine Buddha Hall. To the northwest are several Buddhist stupas…”

Why haven’t they left yet? As Xiao Yanfei pondered, she absentmindedly reached for another book from the shelf.

She had barely pulled the book halfway out when she heard a “drip” sound, and something liquid suddenly dropped from above.

A drop of dark red liquid landed on the book she was holding — the Shenggong Materia Medica — leaving an unmistakable stain.

Xiao Yanfei’s heart skipped a beat, and then another drop of crimson liquid fell, creating another blood-red mark on the book, a sight that was impossible to ignore.

Blood?!

She swallowed nervously, a chilling premonition creeping up her spine.

Suddenly, everything clicked — she understood what the Imperial Guards had been searching for.

“Silencing witnesses,” “throat slit,” “killed on the spot,” and other such phrases surged through her mind in a dizzying rush. She fought the impulse to look up, forcing herself to remain calm. She casually shoved the book back onto the shelf, pretending as if nothing had happened, and turned to leave the room.

But just as she took a step, a ghostly shadow dropped down from the high beams above, landing silently, like a swift and agile black panther.

It was over!

Xiao Yanfei’s pupils contracted sharply.

In the next instant, she felt a chill on her neck as a cold, gleaming longsword pressed against it, the blade lightly but firmly resting against her skin.

The sharp edge of the sword slightly sunk into her delicate flesh, sending a sharp sting through her neck.

It was both a demonstration and a warning.

Xiao Yanfei’s hairs stood on end, her spine tensed, and she could sense the cold killing intent in the eyes of the person before her. The ominous words from the oracle flashed through her mind.

She didn’t want to die!

That was her first reaction.

The instinct for survival made her act decisively. With a thought, she opened her emergency kit. Then, the crescent-shaped birthmark on her left palm grew warm, and in an instant, a small brown glass bottle of cough syrup appeared in her hand.

Without saying a word, she raised her left hand high, displaying the glass bottle clearly for the man in black to see, her gaze fixed steadily on him.

In front of her stood a young man, around twenty years old, tall and graceful.

He was a head taller than Xiao Yanfei, looking down at her with a cold and aloof expression.

His raven-black hair was tied high at the back of his head, and his sharp, sword-like eyebrows framed eyes that resembled cold stars. His high, sculpted nose and chiseled features made him extraordinarily handsome, captivating anyone who looked at him.

He was a man of exceptional appearance, and even though he wore a simple dark robe with a tear in one sleeve that made him look slightly disheveled, his noble aura could not be hidden.

Xiao Yanfei lifted her delicate chin, her pitch-black eyes meeting the young man’s gaze without flinching.

Neither spoke, yet both understood in their hearts.

With his skill, the young man could easily end her life in a single breath, but at the moment of her death, she could at least shatter the glass bottle in her hand.

The sound of breaking glass would be enough to alert the First Prince and the imperial guards outside the Pavilion.

Xiao Yanfei’s gaze never wavered as she stared at him, her thoughts laid bare: either she would live, or they would both die together.

***