The First Lackey Under The Empress

Prajna Bodhisattva!

The moment this Buddhist female Bodhisattva stepped into the Zhao family residence, Zhao Du'an, who was sitting in the hall, noticed her presence.

Upon hearing the "Amitabha" in the courtyard, he confirmed her identity.

That fifty-two-year-old, beautiful woman who coveted his body and intended to offer it in a fleshly donation… Zhao Du'an glanced at Zhenbao beside him:

Bah, ugly old nun?

Why did she come? And at night?

"Your Majesty, please don't misunderstand. I have no connection with that old nun!"

Zhao Du'an was eager to clarify, stating that he hadn't met her since their last, and only, encounter.

The Empress ignored him.

…

In the courtyard.

When Prajna Bodhisattva, a woman who was a nun but whose allure far surpassed that of ordinary women, appeared, the mother and daughter were completely stunned.

"Bo… Bodhisattva?"

You Jinhua stammered, she had seen Prajna before.

Because Jizhao Nunnery occasionally held events to bless believers, You Jinhua had visited it once when she symbolically believed in various deities, and had the honor of seeing Prajna.

However, at that time, the female Bodhisattva was quite proper when facing believers, and her attire was far less… casual than tonight.

Why would a dignified Buddhist Bodhisattva visit so abruptly?

And say she came to find D郎 (Big Brother)?

The mother and daughter's minds couldn't process it.

At this moment, several palace guards rushed in from outside the door, looking tense.

"Leave."

Only when the Empress's voice came from the inner hall did the imperial guards, whose qi had been shaken by trying to stop Prajna, respectfully retreat.

Prajna Bodhisattva's smile did not diminish as she strode straight into the inner hall, followed by the mother and daughter who subconsciously chased after her.

"Prajna Bodhisattva? Why are you intruding into my home…?" Zhao Du'an said with a stern face and tone.

He didn't want to be associated with this old nun who was always thinking about draining his potential to replenish herself.

But halfway through his sentence, he was interrupted by Xu Zhenguan, who acted like the mistress of the house: "What are you here for?"

The white-robed Bodhisattva smiled:

"If Your Majesty can come, why can't this humble nun? Today, I heard about the Plum Garden Gathering, where Lord Zhao overshadowed Zhengyang and even proposed the philosophy of the Mind, which I found very interesting. This philosophy of the Mind has similarities with the Chan Buddhism branch of my Buddhist school, so I have taken the liberty of coming to discuss and study it with Lord Zhao."

Ah, this… Although some doctrines of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism do have similarities, why discuss it at night?

Why did you have to come at night… Zhao Du'an's expression changed drastically, and he was about to disassociate himself and explain.

But he heard the Empress beside him sneer: "Just discussing Buddhist teachings?"

The white-robed Bodhisattva looked at Zhao Du'an with an ambiguous expression, not hiding her intentions, and smiled:

"If Lord Zhao is willing, this humble nun would naturally like to cultivate the Great Dao of Dual Cultivation with him."

Bah! How shameless… Xu Zhenguan's beautiful eyes contained murderous intent, and her jade face frosted over.

Dual cultivation?

You Jinhua and her daughter were struck by lightning. Even if they didn't fully understand cultivation, they still had the ability to observe people's expressions.

The Bodhisattva's attire and her late-night visit were already inappropriate, but now she openly stated that she came for dual cultivation, almost collapsing the mother and daughter's worldview.

Looking at the Empress, and then at Prajna, they couldn't figure out the situation for a moment.

"Why is D郎 (Big Brother) involved with the Bodhisattva again?" You Jinhua couldn't understand.

"Does Big Brother… have affairs with so many women outside?" Zhao Pan bit her lip, indignant for her sister-in-law.

Bodhisattva, please be quiet… Zhao Du'an's face changed, thinking, what are you trying to do?

Not long ago, the concubine was still lamenting that the family meals were too quiet.

Good heavens, now it's lively…

Fortunately, the family's maids and servants had returned to their rooms early to avoid disturbing the Holy Presence, otherwise there would be another story circulating in the streets tomorrow.

What messy stories would emerge in those folk "Palace Secrets" novels?

"Prajna Bodhisattva doesn't seem to have taken what I said last time to heart," Xu Zhenguan said coldly.

The white-robed Bodhisattva quietly met her gaze, remained silent for a moment, then suddenly turned to look at Zhao Du'an and smiled:

"Lord Zhao, won't you say something?"

I don't want to say anything, I want you to get lost… Zhao Du'an's forehead was sweating, feeling that even Zhengyang was not as troublesome as this old woman.

Is it popular among Buddhists to ruin other people's relationships now?

"You don't need to say anything."

Xu Zhenguan glanced at the lackey who was climbing up the pole, radiating domineering aura, then looked at the white-robed Bodhisattva with disdain:

"If you want to discuss Buddhist teachings, I can discuss them with you."

Prajna Bodhisattva remembered the last time the Empress injured her with a shock, her expression slightly stagnated, and she smiled sweetly:

"Your Majesty, please don't be angry, this humble nun was just joking. I apologize for my abrupt visit today, and I won't disturb you two from enjoying your meal."

After saying that, her figure quickly faded away, and she quietly retreated several feet, appearing in the courtyard, and then retreated several feet again.

Having left the Zhao residence, her figure also faded and disappeared into the night.

Running away after teasing… This scene stunned the Zhao family, and then they belatedly realized that perhaps if Prajna didn't leave, the Empress would really punish her.

…

Quiet.

"I… I'll go out and see if the water in the kitchen is boiling," You Jinhua stammered, finding a poor excuse and dragging her daughter, who hadn't had enough of the gossip, away.

In the inner hall.

Zhao Du'an swallowed, feeling that this interlude came quickly and went even faster, and nothing happened except that he was tricked.

"Your Majesty… she…" Zhao Du'an felt that he should explain.

But Xu Zhenguan gently exhaled, the coldness on her face dissipated, and her brow smoothed as she said:

"She did it on purpose, I can see it."

With Prajna's cultivation, even if she didn't know it at first, she would definitely be able to sense the Empress's presence before entering the Zhao family's gate.

But she still stubbornly came in at the cost of getting injured, stirring up trouble, her intention was too obvious, just to disgust people.

However, even if the Empress was angry, she would at most beat her up, and wouldn't do anything else just because of this.

"Your Majesty is wise… This old woman just can't stand seeing Your Majesty and I getting along," Zhao Du'an said indignantly.

Xu Zhenguan glanced at the running dog who was climbing up the pole: Who said I wanted to get along with you?

"Your Majesty, what that old woman said just now, something about the philosophy of the Mind, Chan Buddhism… it doesn't sound like a lie," Zhao Du'an changed the subject.

He could see that Prajna probably came to him because of the philosophy of the Mind, and provoking and disrupting his relationship was just a side effect.

Xu Zhenguan indifferently "Mm"ed, and frowned:

"Your philosophy of the Mind… does indeed have some similarities with the Chan Buddhism advocated by Prajna's branch within the Shenlong Temple."

She explained it to Zhao Du'an, and it wasn't complicated.

The Buddhist ancestral temple of this world is in the Western Regions, famous for its rich collection of scriptures and texts, somewhat similar to "Esoteric Buddhism". The ruler of Western Regions Buddhism is the "Reincarnated Dharma King", a theocratic power.

After being introduced to the Great Yu Dynasty, it underwent some localization reforms and became the "Central Plains Buddhism" led by Shenlong Temple today.

However, in the process of localization, internal branches also appeared. Among them, the faction led by Abbot Xuanyin still retains the style of the ancestral temple, characterized by strict adherence to precepts and advocating asceticism and meditation.

The other branch, however, has been more thoroughly reformed, influenced by Taoism, advocating "sudden enlightenment" and "Chan meditation."

"Prajna belongs to the latter branch of Chan Buddhism, and Dragon Tree Bodhisattva can barely be considered part of this faction," Xu Zhenguan explained.

"Therefore, it's not entirely surprising that she came to you after hearing about the philosophy of the Mind."

Is that so… Zhao Du'an marveled, gaining a clearer understanding of the internal divisions and disputes within Buddhism in this world.

Xu Zhenguan glanced at him and said:

"However, her eagerness to find you should be related to the internal turmoil within Buddhism.

I received news that after you thwarted Shenlong Temple in the Buddhist-Taoist debate last time, the Western Regions also received the news and may think that the setback of Shenlong Temple is a good opportunity, and there have been some subtle movements recently. This old nun is also eager to increase her strength."

Is this also my fault?

Zhao Du'an looked innocent, not expecting that the Buddhist-Taoist debate would also affect the direction of Western Regions Buddhism… Just as his introduction of new policies led the Eight Kings to no longer lie dormant and take action one after another…

Unintentionally, these two things Zhao Du'an participated in are affecting and promoting the situation of the entire continent in different ways.

"Alright, these are still far away from you," Xu Zhenguan's voice softened a bit.

Zhao Du'an nodded and said, "It's getting late, should I send Your Majesty back?"

After this interruption, this meal was clearly declared over.

But Xu Zhenguan quietly looked at him, not speaking, staring at Zhao Du'an until he felt goosebumps, and then she faintly said:

"Guess, if I leave, will that old nun make a surprise attack and forcefully engage in dual cultivation with you?"

Zhao Du'an was shocked: "This… or should I go back to the palace with Your Majesty to hide?"

Xu Zhenguan continued to look at him with a strange expression, and suddenly smiled sweetly and said:

"No need to be so troublesome, how about I stay at your house tonight?"

Ah?

Zhao Du'an was stunned, his first thought was, is there such a good thing?

The second thought was:

Bodhisattva is a good assistant!

…

First draft, will revise later.