Chapter Summaries

Chapter summary

Key plot points and events

• Verdant Green Maiden wakes after several days unconscious, only to learn that Lin Moniang has already been buried. Realizing the boat she saw during Mad Wind’s attack may have been Moniang’s, she grieves that she could not witness her disciple’s final moments.
• At Moniang’s grave, Verdant Green Maiden decides her sacrifice should not be forgotten. She builds a temple for her and names her Mazu, insisting that Moniang deserves such honor. The local people support the temple, and the county magistrate ultimately allows it.
• Verdant Green Maiden remains for a year to ensure the temple is established, then leaves with Liu Yong. When he suggests she may be choosing gods for Heaven, she angrily rejects the idea: honoring Moniang was her own decision, not Heaven’s.
• News of the emperor’s Grace Examination excites Liu Yong. Verdant Green Maiden encourages him to take it and says that pursuing ambition is natural. They return to Bianjing, where Liu proposes to the singing girl he once loved, but she refuses, believing her low social status makes her an unsuitable wife for him.
• Verdant Green Maiden does not intervene in their relationship. After Liu enters the examination grounds, she disappears without saying farewell. Liu later passes the examination and becomes a Presented Scholar at age fifty, but reacts with restraint rather than youthful celebration.
• The chapter ends with an unnamed young man hearing people discuss the successful scholars and muttering, “It was only a Grace Examination!”

Character developments and interactions

• Verdant Green Maiden is overwhelmed by grief and regret over Moniang’s death, but turns that grief into a lasting tribute. Her fierce defense of Moniang’s honor reveals her independence from Heaven and its authority. She also shows a tolerant, humane view of ambition, while keeping her own deepest desire private.
• Liu Yong grows more composed after years of traveling with Verdant Green Maiden. He admires her, misunderstands her motives at times, and is chastened when she rejects his speculation about Heaven. His examination success comes late in life.
• Lin Moniang is absent from the events but remains central: her self-sacrifice, remembered through her clay figurine and temple, shapes Verdant Green Maiden’s grief and actions.
• The singing girl loves Liu Yong but refuses marriage because she believes social status makes her unworthy of him. Their exchange exposes the constraints imposed by class and respectability.
• Verdant Green Maiden and Liu Yong’s companionship ends quietly and permanently when she vanishes. Liu is left to interpret her as an immortal woman.

Significant themes

• Grief transformed into remembrance: The temple gives public and lasting form to Moniang’s sacrifice.
• Recognition and worth: Verdant Green Maiden argues that heroic deeds deserve honor regardless of a person’s rank or status.
• Personal agency versus authority: She rejects the idea that Heaven appoints gods, claiming the choice as her own.
• Social status and love: The singing girl’s refusal shows how class expectations can prevent people from pursuing happiness.
• Ambition and acceptance: Liu’s late success contrasts with the chapter’s more reflective view of fame, desire, and the passage of time.

Key events

• Verdant Green Maiden (Shao Dian Qing Nü) approaches Su Xun in a tavern after overhearing him dismiss the Grace Examination. She offers to pay for his meal in exchange for hearing his story.
• Su Xun explains that he once preferred roaming freely over pursuing scholarly success, but seeing successful candidates celebrated in Bianjing has made him want to pass the examination and become a Presented Scholar.
• Verdant Green Maiden respects his honesty and independent thinking. They agree that if Su Xun passes, she will dine at his expense; if he does not, he will still owe her a meal.
• Su Xun sets off for Shu. In Hanzhong, he unexpectedly encounters Verdant Green Maiden again, and they agree to travel together.

Character development

• Su Xun recognizes that his earlier carefree outlook and his new ambition can both be genuine. He begins to embrace the possibility of scholarly achievement without rejecting his former love of freedom.
• Verdant Green Maiden reveals her fascination with stories and her admiration for people who think independently. Her remarks about “settling karma” and having once been from Shu hint at a mysterious background.

Themes

• Ambition and self-discovery: Su Xun’s desire to succeed emerges through reflection rather than shame about his past.
• Individuality and respect: Verdant Green Maiden values people’s capacity to form their own views, even when she may disagree with them.
• Fate and coincidence: Their chance meeting in Hanzhong, far from Bianjing, raises the possibility that their reunion is more than random.
• Stories and connection: Their bargain turns storytelling and a shared meal into the beginning of a relationship.

Character interactions

• Verdant Green Maiden gently probes Su Xun’s feelings, while he tries—unsuccessfully—to change the subject when she guesses his regret.
• She treats him generously and encourages his ambition without judging his earlier choices.
• Their playful meal agreement creates an ongoing bond, and her invitation to travel together brings them back into each other’s company.

Plot points and events

• At Chengdu’s outskirts, Su Xun parts from Verdant Green Maiden (Shao Dian Qing Nü), who says she will stay near the Tai Ping Daoist temple on Crane Call Mountain for two months. Su Xun finally realizes the perceptive ox traveling with them belongs to her and learns she is a Daoist priestess.
• Verdant Green Maiden visits the temple but does not enter, since its residents are strangers to her. She settles in a hut at the mountain’s foot, selling small trinkets. The temple’s Daoists provide supplies and uphold the principles she left them centuries earlier: cultivate freely, follow one’s heart, help the world, and bring peace.
• Su Xun does not arrive until after Verdant Green Maiden has left. He regrets missing her, but Cheng comforts him, saying they will meet again.
• The temple master later recognizes Shao Dian Qing Nü’s name in a scripture and realizes she is the revered figure who wrote it. Overwhelmed by the encounter, he declares that he has attained Mahayana cultivation simply by meeting her.
• On the road, Verdant Green Maiden admits to Old Yellow Ox that she used him as an excuse for leaving familiar places. Their teasing continues as they travel onward.
• Three years later, Su Xun fails the imperial examination in Bianjing. Cheng reassures him, and he resolves not to lose heart. Their conversation is interrupted by a knock at the door.

Character developments and interactions

• Su Xun is curious about Verdant Green Maiden’s identity and later disappointed to miss her, but accepts Cheng’s comfort. After failing the examination, he remains determined and gratefully credits Cheng’s faith in him for helping him turn his life around.
• Cheng is a steady, affectionate source of support, encouraging Su Xun both after missing Verdant Green Maiden and after his examination failure.
• Verdant Green Maiden reveals a more solitary, self-conscious side beneath her playful confidence: she avoids staying in places tied to her past and disguises this preference as the ox’s. She shares an affectionate, joking bond with Old Yellow Ox.
• Old Yellow Ox serves as her loyal, exasperated companion, reacting to her teasing but continuing to carry her.
• The temple master moves from polite hospitality to awe after discovering Verdant Green Maiden’s identity.

Significant themes

• Fate and missed connections: Su Xun and Verdant Green Maiden narrowly miss meeting again, though the chapter treats their paths as capable of crossing in the future.
• Faith and legacy: Verdant Green Maiden’s teachings continue to guide the temple long after her departure, and her presence profoundly affects its master.
• Perseverance and mutual support: Su Xun’s failed examination is softened by Cheng’s encouragement and his determination to continue.
• Freedom and loneliness: Verdant Green Maiden’s wandering reflects her independence, but also her reluctance to remain among reminders of the past.

Key events

• Su Xun reunites with Verdant Green Maiden, whom he had promised to treat to a meal after the imperial examinations. She comforts him over failing and restores his resolve to take the Outstanding Talent Examination the following year.
• During the meal, Cheng feels unwell. Verdant Green Maiden examines her and discovers that she is pregnant. The couple rejoice, though Su Xun immediately considers abandoning the examination to take Cheng home. Cheng persuades him to stay so he will not regret giving up.
• Verdant Green Maiden arranges pregnancy-appropriate food and explains that welcoming new life helps her feel connected to the present.
• The narrative jumps to Jingyou’s fourth year: Cheng gives birth to a son, Su Xun again fails the examination, and Bao Zheng returns to Bianjing before another posting.
• Meanwhile, the Tanguts ally with tribes from the Mobei steppes and rebel, aiming to disrupt the Silk Road. Song officials divide between those urging peace and those demanding military action. The chapter ends with the decision unsettled, as Zhao Zhen has been raised under ministers opposed to war.

Character developments and interactions

• Su Xun moves from disappointment toward renewed ambition, then shows deep concern for Cheng and their unborn child. Their affectionate exchange highlights the closeness of their marriage.
• Cheng becomes pregnant and insists that Su Xun continue pursuing his examination rather than sacrifice his ambitions for her sake.
• Verdant Green Maiden shows warmth and practical care as well as her medical knowledge. Her playful laughter at the couple’s joy, and her solitary meal while they dote on each other, add gentle humor.
• The court and Zhao Zhen face a growing political and military crisis, revealing tension between advocates of force and the pacifist outlook instilled in the young emperor.

Significant themes

• New life and renewal: Cheng’s pregnancy and the birth of her son embody the continuing arrival of new generations.
• Effort versus fate: Verdant Green Maiden encourages Su Xun to keep trying, even while she habitually invokes Heaven’s will.
• Love and personal ambition: Su Xun and Cheng balance devotion to family with the pursuit of individual goals.
• Political division: The rebellion exposes competing priorities—protecting trade and territory through war, or avoiding conflict through peace.

Zhao Zhen appointed Di Qing to lead an offensive against the Tangut rebellion after military and civil officials argued over whether the Song Army could fight. Meanwhile, Cheng again asked the Verdant Green Maiden to become little Su Shi’s godmother, but she declined.

• Military and civil officials argued before Zhao Zhen over whether to send troops against the Tanguts.
• Di Qing declared that the Song Army could fight, and Cao Qi defended him against a Hanlin scholar who called him a mere warrior.
• Zhao Zhen appointed Di Qing Three-Ban Commissioner, Palace Attendant, and Commander of Yan Prefecture, ordering him to quell the Tangut rebellion in the Hexi Corridor.
• After Zhao Zhen left the Grand Hall, Cao Qi invited Di Qing for a walk, and Di Qing accepted.
• The Verdant Green Maiden played with little Su Shi while Cheng asked her to become his godmother, but she declined.

Verdant Green Maiden explained to Su Xun why Great Song needed to resist the Tanguts rather than yield, and Su Xun decided to return to Shu with his family. She gave little Su Shi a gold Longevity Lock despite Cheng and Su Xun's protests.

• Su Xun told Verdant Green Maiden that the court had ordered troops to march against the Tanguts, though he did not know who would command them.
• Verdant Green Maiden argued that the Six Kingdoms had fallen because they repeatedly yielded to Qin, and Su Xun concluded that Great Song must not follow their example.
• Su Xun told Verdant Green Maiden he had decided to leave Bianjing and take Cheng and their son back to Shu.
• Verdant Green Maiden gave little Su Shi a gold Longevity Lock and fastened it on him despite Cheng and Su Xun's objections.

Verdant Green Maiden reunited with Bao Zheng on the road and reaffirmed his duty to serve the people before they parted. She then reached the sealed Xiao Pass on her way to Hexi and, after soldiers refused her entry, decided to cross the mountains instead.

• At Bianjing's city gate, Old Yellow Ox damaged Bao Zheng's carriage, and Verdant Green Maiden recognized her former student.
• Bao Zheng explained that unrest in the Hexi Corridor had delayed his appointment as Tianchang's county magistrate, then accompanied Verdant Green Maiden west for a while.
• Verdant Green Maiden asked whether Bao Zheng feared her unchanging appearance, and he assured her that he saw her as a kind fairy rather than an ancient monster.
• Bao Zheng told Verdant Green Maiden that his frail wife had died and that he had buried the little deity statue she had given her.
• Verdant Green Maiden charged Bao Zheng to aid the world, remain just and incorruptible, and govern as a clear blue sky; they then went their separate ways.
• At Xiao Pass, soldiers refused to let Verdant Green Maiden enter the Hexi Corridor because of martial law, so she planned to cross the mountains as a rider arrived bearing military orders.

Verdant Green Maiden, calling herself Shao Dian Qing Nü, met Di Qing as the Imperial Guard advanced toward Xiao Pass to suppress the Tangut rebellion. Di Qing accepted her into the army after learning of her connection to the Defender of the State Grand Princess, but kept her under watch as the force prepared to enter Hexi.

• A military courier ordered Xiao Pass to prepare for the Imperial Guard’s arrival and assist in suppressing the Hexi rebellion.
• Verdant Green Maiden introduced herself to a scout as Shao Dian, a shepherdess seeking her family, and asked whether the army had come to put down the rebellion.
• Di Qing recognized that Verdant Green Maiden was no ordinary shepherdess, drew his sword, and demanded to know who she was.
• Verdant Green Maiden named herself Shao Dian Qing Nü, showed Di Qing an imperial palace object, and said she had a connection to the Defender of the State Grand Princess in the Western Regions.
• Di Qing allowed Verdant Green Maiden to accompany the army but assigned soldiers to watch her as the force reached Xiao Pass.
• The commander of Xiao Pass gave Di Qing intelligence on Hexi, and that night Verdant Green Maiden looked toward the corridor from the gate tower.

Verdant Green Maiden crossed the Yellow River and traveled through the Hexi Corridor, aiding displaced people as her reputation spread. After meeting a cavalry officer from Zhao Qingyu’s guard, she hurried to the Eastern Expeditionary Army’s camp and reunited with Zhao Qingyu.

• Verdant Green Maiden crossed the Yellow River on Old Yellow Ox and told Di Qing to bring his army to Dunhuang, prompting him to order the troops to cross.
• Verdant Green Maiden aided displaced people throughout the Hexi Corridor, and they spread songs praising her as a compassionate Heavenly Maiden.
• Verdant Green Maiden learned that Zhao Qingyu had come to the Hexi Corridor after meeting Alisha, a cavalry commander of the princess’s guard.
• Verdant Green Maiden reached the Eastern Expeditionary Army’s camp and reunited with Zhao Qingyu, who noticed her white hair.

Zhao Qingyu reunited with Verdant Green Maiden and revealed how she had built up the Western Regions and adopted Binghong’s son as her heir. Zhao Qingyu and Di Qing defeated the Tangut rebels, captured Li Yuanhao, and celebrated their victory with Verdant Green Maiden in Dunhuang.

• Zhao Qingyu reproached Verdant Green Maiden for not visiting or writing, then told her about the Western Regions corps and its growth under her rule.
• Zhao Qingyu revealed that she had adopted Binghong’s son and intended for him to inherit her position; she also told Verdant Green Maiden that Binghong had died the previous year.
• Zhao Qingyu assured Verdant Green Maiden that the Tanguts would not take the Hexi Corridor, and Verdant Green Maiden said she believed her.
• A month later, Zhao Qingyu joined forces with Di Qing’s Great Song Imperial Guard, and Di Qing learned that Verdant Green Maiden was Zhao Qingyu’s master.
• Zhao Qingyu and Di Qing swept through the Hexi Corridor, captured rebel leader Li Yuanhao, and sent him to Bianjing to face the emperor.
• In Dunhuang, Di Qing greeted Verdant Green Maiden as a senior, and she urged him to celebrate their victory.