Chapter 379: Chapter 378: If Not You, Who Else Could Hold Me Like This
The car stopped in silence. They had arrived at their destination.
The driver opened the door from the outside, and Zhou Mochen helped Xu Su out of the car.
Pu Hua Temple was located in the suburbs of Beijing, on the summit of Lianhua Mountain.
At an altitude of over six hundred meters, with more than a thousand stone steps leading up to it, the temple was always bustling with worshippers. Countless people made the pilgrimage every day to pray.
Occasionally, some exceptionally devout believers facing hardship would make the ascent by kowtowing every three steps.
Standing at the foot of the mountain, Xu Su looked up and could faintly make out the magnificent temple on the summit, which looked solemn and majestic.
Zhou Mochen took her hand, leading her toward the steps. "Let’s go."
"On foot?" Xu Su’s eyes widened as she pointed to the sedan chairs nearby. "Why don’t we give them some business?"
’I’ve been lazy for years. If I actually climb this on foot, I won’t be able to get out of bed tomorrow.’
Zhou Mochen frowned, his gaze falling on her slender legs, clad in trousers. He thought about last night...
Zhou Mochen cleared his throat, a hint of unease in his expression, and nodded. "Alright, whatever you say."
He hailed two sedan chairs, one for himself and one for Xu Su. They rode them halfway up the mountain before getting out.
Zhou Mochen practically dragged Xu Su up the remaining half of the way.
His reasoning was that it was more devout this way.
’As if he were some devout Buddhist...’
By the time they reached the flat ground at the summit, Xu Su was so exhausted she collapsed onto a rock, gasping for breath. "If you’d told me we were going hiking, I never would’ve come."
"You really need to get some exercise." Zhou Mochen stood before Xu Su, cradling the back of her head with his hand and letting her lean against his waist to rest. "It was barely anything, and you’re already this exhausted."
"Barely anything?" Xu Su’s face was pale with fatigue. She wrapped her arms around his waist and complained, "I was climbing for over an hour! A whole hour of stairs!"
’That’s a huge amount of exercise for a delicate, recent high school graduate!’
’I haven’t even gone to more than a handful of P.E. classes in the last three years!’
Zhou Mochen sighed, his heart aching for her. He stroked her hair, and seeing as they were already at the temple entrance, he sat down as well, pulling the young woman into his arms to soothe her.
The mountaintop was shrouded in mist, so thick that it dampened their hair. Even in the middle of summer, Xu Su, dressed in a short-sleeved shirt and trousers, started sneezing from the cold.
Zhou Mochen tightened his arm around her. He took a jacket from one of the black-clad bodyguards behind them and draped it over Xu Su’s shoulders.
The other bodyguard, who had been following them, entered the temple. He returned a moment later with a young novice monk, who bowed slightly in their direction before leading the way.
Zhou Mochen helped Xu Su to her feet, half-embracing her as they followed the young monk toward the rear entrance of Pu Hua Temple.
Xu Su had expected to see what an eminent monk looked like, but instead, she was settled in a pavilion in the rear courtyard with two bodyguards standing watch. After telling her to wait, Zhou Mochen was led alone by the novice monk into a meditation room.
Xu Su sat in bored silence, her gaze drifting occasionally to the meditation room Zhou Mochen had entered nearby.
After some time, the wooden window of the meditation room slid open. As if sensing it, Xu Su looked up and saw an old, white-bearded monk standing in the window. He, too, was looking her way.
Xu Su froze for a second before quickly recovering. She stood up, pressed her palms together, and bowed respectfully.
’Since this is about me, shouldn’t I go in and say a few words?’ Just as she had the thought, the wooden window was shut again.
They had only exchanged a brief glance from a distance, yet Xu Su could sense a profound aura of Buddhism emanating from the old monk—the kind of spiritual nature found only in those who live as recluses in the deep mountains, untainted by the secular world.
Xu Su didn’t know if he was a truly enlightened master, but he certainly didn’t seem like any ordinary person.
No wonder Zhou Mochen had personally made the trek up the mountain to see him right after returning to Beijing.
Zhou Mochen wasn’t inside for long before he came out.
He walked over to Xu Su, his expression as calm as ever. Seeing her curious face, he simply patted her on the head and asked with a smile, "Rested up? It’s getting dark, we should head down the mountain soon."
Xu Su nodded. She had been resting for a while, and though her legs were still sore, she had at least regained some of her energy.
Sedan chair bearers were already waiting for passengers on the flat ground at the summit. Xu Su was relieved that she wouldn’t have to walk down herself.
Once they were back in the car at the bottom of the mountain, Zhou Mochen pulled Xu Su onto his lap, his arms around her waist.
He brushed her long hair aside, intending to remove the small Jade Lock she wore around her neck.
Xu Su quickly stopped him. "What are you doing?"
Zhou Mochen held her hands still, his tone gentle. "I’m going to have you wear something else."
The Jade Lock had been his eighteenth-birthday gift to her. It was made of translucent jadeite, exquisitely carved by a top master in the craft, and it was clear and lustrous.
Xu Su had barely taken it off in months, not even to shower.
But now he was removing it, replacing it with an oval-shaped bead of some unknown material.
"What is this?"
Xu Su held the new necklace, which hung down to her chest. The oval bead was jet-black, covered in densely engraved Sanskrit characters so tiny they were smaller than ants.
’The person who carved this was seriously amazing.’
"Something good." After fastening the Buddha Beads around her neck, Zhou Mochen squeezed the nape of her neck, leaned down to press a kiss there, and said with a smile, "Something good to keep the dreams from bothering you."
Xu Su looked up. "What do you mean?"
"The Master said your soul is unstable, which is why you keep having strange dreams. This is one of the Buddha Beads that has been consecrated at Pu Hua Temple for fifty years. It’s perfect for stabilizing your soul."
Zhou Mochen instructed her seriously, "You can’t take it off, not even to shower or sleep. Got it?"
"Are you serious?" ’Unstable soul, stabilizing your soul... the more I hear, the more this sounds like something a con artist would say.’ Xu Su stared at him. "You didn’t get scammed, did you? How much did this thing cost?"
Zhou Mochen glanced at her and said quietly, "Nine figures."
"..." Xu Su gave him a look that said, *you’re a rich, gullible idiot*. "You just believed everything he said?"
"Mhm..." Zhou Mochen nodded and said softly, "I was terribly worried. So, Susu, even if it’s just to give me some peace of mind, will you please listen to me? Don’t take it off. Keep it with you always, okay?"
It wasn’t a big deal. Whether the thing was a total scam or not, Xu Su was willing to do it if it would put his mind at ease. She nodded solemnly. "Okay. I promise I won’t take it off. I’ll wear it every day."
A smile touched Zhou Mochen’s lips. He leaned down, kissed her on the forehead, and coaxed, "My Susu is so good. Is there any reward you’d like?"
Xu Su shot him a look. "Don’t give me that."
’He’s not even willing to kneel for me. It’s all just empty talk.’
Zhou Mochen didn’t mind her comment. He simply began placing slow, soft kisses on her delicate, jade-like neck. "Susu," he murmured, "you’re all mine, right?"
"Who else would be holding me like this?" His kisses tickled her neck, and she couldn’t help but squirm, pushing his face away slightly. "What’s with you all of a sudden?" she asked, a hint of exasperation in her voice. "What did that Master Kongzhi say to you?"
