Steward Jiduo had already made preparations, having the Attendant Monks heat two large barrels of water well in advance.
Jiduo and Qu Zan each entered a room, bathed and washed themselves clean, then sprinkled some spices on their bodies before setting out.
Qu Zan thought to himself, Even the Sutra Academy's steward has to bathe and wash himself clean. This Dharma Master must have quite a background.
Jiduo led Qu Zan toward the rear mountain, where the private courtyards and Private Quarters of the temple's middle and upper ranks stood, their grounds paved with bluestone slabs.
High, thick walls of rammed earth flanked both sides.
Jiduo came to the Private Quarters and knocked on its vermilion wooden gate. A maid opened it.
The maid led Jiduo and Qu Zan into the Private Quarters.
Trees grew densely in this courtyard, with winding paths lined with cosmos and camellias.
There was a pond in the courtyard, apparently fed by a geothermal hot spring. Steam rose from the water, giving the place the mist-wreathed air of an immortal realm.
The moment they entered the courtyard, they felt both its warmth and its distinctive tranquility and refinement.
They crossed a little bridge over the pond and arrived before a secluded, peaceful two-story building.
The surroundings were spotless, solemnity and splendor suffusing every corner, without the slightest trace of worldly dust or impurity.
The two arrived before the hall and saw thick carpets covering its floor. They removed their shoes and walked inside barefoot.
Since they had washed beforehand, neither had any unpleasant odor.
A multitiered golden-thread nanmu medicine cabinet covered the entire western wall of the hall. It was divided into over a hundred sealed drawers, each with a wooden label bearing a medicine's name written in cinnabar in an esoteric script, storing all