Courtyard Competition Dharma Assembly

"The Golden Benba Bottle is used to seal Vengeful Ghosts. There's a Vengeful Ghost inside that bottle? You want me to steal it?" Qu Zan asked in astonishment.

Yeluo said, "Who said anything about stealing? I said to fetch it."

"What kind of Vengeful Ghost is inside?" Qu Zan asked.

Yeluo smiled without answering.

"You expect me to fetch something for you on your word alone? Besides, you haven't even explained who you are," Qu Zan said. "Do you have the power to control this Vengeful Ghost?"

"I can grant you any one wish, as long as you help me get that bottle," Yeluo said with a smile, revealing the gaps in his teeth. "For instance, controlling a Vengeful Ghost!"

"All right, then my first wish is for you to grant me another thousand wishes," Qu Zan said.

A vein bulged on Yeluo's forehead. Through gritted teeth, he said, "There's no point playing these word games, is there?"

"So you can't grant just any wish?" Qu Zan said. "Besides, if you really were all-powerful, couldn't you simply pocket that Golden Benba Bottle yourself? You should change your pitch. Something like granting a wish within your power."

"Fine. I can grant you any one wish, provided it's within my power," Yeluo said.

"We'll see," Qu Zan said.

"What does that mean? Yes or no? Give me an answer!" Yeluo said.

"This matter shouldn't be decided in haste. I haven't fully grasped your request, and I must carefully assess my own abilities before giving you a satisfactory response at an appropriate time."

"Huh?" Listening to Qu Zan's rapid delivery, Yeluo was lost in a fog. "You mean you want to go back and think it over?"

"Exactly."

"When will you give me an answer?"

"As soon as possible!" Qu Zan said. He had not uttered a single firm commitment.

Hearing this reply, Yeluo forced down the somewhat churning feelings in his heart. He had wanted to find someone clever and cautious, but this brat was a little too clever and cautious.

"Fine. I'll wait for your answer."

"Should I come here to find you next time? Do I still need to bring wine?"

"No need. Come after you've thought it through," Yeluo said.

After speaking, Yeluo walked over to Doje, lightly patted his arm, and said, "Go somewhere else, you two."

Yeluo's figure became hunched again, and he walked into the stable.

Doje put down the wooden shovel in his hands, as though waking from a dream, and said, "Junior brother, how did we get here?"

For a moment, Qu Zan did not understand. "What?" he asked suspiciously.

"I remember you saying we'd come find someone together after eating. Who were we looking for again?" Doje scratched his head.

His memories had been altered?!

Qu Zan's scalp prickled as he listened. Did Doje not remember anything about Yeluo?

That mysterious fellow actually possessed such an ability.

Qu Zan tentatively chatted with Doje some more about the Gap-Toothed Old Man.

He discovered that Doje's memories of Yeluo were all hazy, as though there had been such a person, but he could not remember his name.

It was like an acquaintance who gradually faded from memory, even if they had once shared deep ties.

Qu Zan took stock of what he knew about Yeluo:

The fellow was mysterious and wielded some strange power; he seemed able to foresee the future; one of the abilities he had demonstrated was altering memories.

But he deliberately patted Doje's arm. Could it be that he can only alter memories through contact?

Based on what he had just observed, Qu Zan arrived at a preliminary guess.

This fellow is so mysterious.

Qu Zan rubbed his somewhat tight forehead.

His objective is that Golden Benba Bottle. Since he needs something from me, I should be able to make use of him before I complete the deal for him.

Still, unless it's a matter of life and death, I won't use this connection.

In the days that followed, Qu Zan did not visit the stable again.

He devoted himself fully to reviewing the scriptures and preparing for the Courtyard Competition Dharma Assembly.

Day after day passed, and the day of the Courtyard Competition Dharma Assembly finally arrived.

The Dharma Assembly would last three days.

Hundreds of Scholar Monks and Attendant Monks participating in the Dharma Assembly gathered before the Sutra Academy's main hall.

Beneath the tall cypresses lay a level stone-paved surface. Colorful prayer flags covered the trees and the surrounding pillars.

The Courtyard Competition Dharma Assembly consisted of four assessment stages: chanting scriptures, reciting scriptures from memory before an audience, open-air debate, and taking the teaching seat to expound on the scriptures.

The four core strengths being tested were memorization, eloquence in debate, observance of precepts, and ascetic practice.

There were also colorful canopies on either side, with translucent gauze curtains hanging across their fronts. Seated inside were merchants and nobles from several surrounding dzongs, along with their relatives and families.

If they spotted promising monks during the Dharma Assembly, they would be willing to give alms and offerings. The two sides would form ties and exchange benefits in the future.

"Junior Brother Gyatso!" Namkha waved at Gyatso.

"Are you taking part in the Dharma Assembly too, senior brother?" Qu Zan asked with a smile.

"Yes. After all, this is a chance to show what I can do. Of course I can't miss it!" Namkha said. "Besides, the Dzongben has come to watch the Dharma Assembly too."

He pointed diagonally toward the colorful canopies.

Qu Zan saw a somewhat portly middle-aged man with two little tufts of mustache above his lips.

He wore a fox-fur official's hat with a cylindrical body, a small coral finial set into its crown, and long silk ribbons hanging down on both sides.

He wore a pure white, long-sleeved silk shirt beneath a thick black robe trimmed with otter fur. His right arm was bared of the robe, exposing the white shirt, and a short blade in a silver sheath hung at his waist.

The Dzongben was essentially the local emperor of a county-sized territory.

"Does having your father here to watch make you nervous?" Qu Zan asked quietly.

Namkha gave a bitter smile and said, "I'm the descendant of a serf. I don't have a father who is a Dzongben."

Because of his mother, Namkha's status would never be acknowledged. Only by taking the monastic path and relying on his learning could he fight for a future of his own.

"Junior Brother Gyatso, do your best. I believe you're no creature destined to remain in a pond."

Qu Zan said sincerely, "Neither are you, senior brother!"

"Gyatso, there's one monk you need to pay particular attention to, especially during the debates."

"Who?"

"Jiumo." Namkha pointed to a monk seated on a meditation cushion in the distance.

The monk had delicate, handsome features and long, slender eyebrows whose tails swept upward like swords.

"He's decisive in debate and full of boldness. Be careful. He advanced to Senior Druptsawa in less than two years, and this will be his path to graduation. Once this Dharma Assembly is over, he'll be able to advance to Beqawa..."

Novice Scholar Monks studying Collected Topics, the Druptsawas, had three levels: junior, intermediate, and senior.

Senior Druptsawas studied the longest, ordinarily spending at least six years in practice.

Qu Zan was merely a Junior Druptsawa who had studied Collected Topics for less than two months.

"...Let's hope neither of us runs into him," Namkha said.

After exchanging pleasantries, the two went to their respective cushions.

The weather was cold, and the many monks sat upright in the open air before the main hall.

Even when cold winds poured beneath their robes, they had to remain steady, without swaying or shifting even as their breath steamed from the cold, never losing their dignity. This was what it meant to have a disposition worthy of cultivation.