When she reached the threshold of the Taoist temple, Xuyu felt as if all her strength was exhausted. She paused for a moment before finally lifting her foot and stepping out of the door.
It was getting dark, but there was still an endless stream of pedestrians and carriages on the streets. As soon as she came out, her eardrums were suddenly filled with a boiling wave of sound, which beat violently against her heart, as if her chest was going to burst. She had difficulty breathing, and she held on and walked a few steps. A carriage came quickly from the side, and she could not avoid it and was almost hit. The driver turned around and scolded her for being blind, and drove past her with a rumble.
She retreated hastily until she stopped at the foot of the Taoist temple's wall.
Probably because she hadn't eaten all day, she felt dizzy and had tinnitus, cold sweat on her back, and stars in her eyes, and she was about to fall. She held onto the wall to avoid falling down, and after supporting herself, she slowly sat down on the ground, then weakly lowered her head and closed her eyes.
She lay there, leaning against the wall until the discomfort in her body subsided and her heartbeat slowly returned to normal. Then she could hear voices again, and heard someone talking about her.
"… What's wrong with this person? Is he sick?"
"Is it heat stroke?"
"It doesn't look like it. It's not a hot summer day..."
She slowly opened her eyes and raised her head.
Several passers-by stopped and looked at her. Seeing that she was still pale, someone kindly reminded her that there was a charity hall in the Zanxing Temple where she could rest and asked her to go in and ask for water.
Xuyu wiped the cold sweat from her forehead and forced a smile. She stood up and continued walking along the high wall of the Taoist temple. When she reached a gate, she saw people hurrying on the street outside. Then she was startled to hear the rumbling sound of street drums again.
Another night falls.
She stood by the gate for a long time, until the last street drum sounded and the gate slowly closed in front of her.
The place where she was located was one of the most prosperous towns in Chang'an City, bustling day and night with lights on all the time.
That night, Xuyu walked aimlessly among the bright lights until she could no longer walk. She returned to the Zanxing Temple and sat in a corner at its back door for the night. There were no lights here, and no one would come. In the darkness, she closed her eyes and spent the second night after her return.
At dawn, the gate of the nearby Chongrenfang opened. The waiter of the Sitong Inn yawned as he opened the gate. He saw a thin young man standing outside. Although his clothes were wrinkled and his face was pale, he had good features. He thought he was a scholar who was going to take an exam and stayed at the inn. When he heard the man say that he was looking for a man named Zhou He who lived here, he pointed the way and curled his lips.
"That poor painter! He pretends to be well-fed with a bulging belly! He has already owed half a month's rent, and he refused to move to a dormitory. If he hadn't begged, he would have been kicked out long ago!"
Chang'an was full of wealthy guests. Many poor scholars would rather borrow money to stay in decent hotels or houses after arriving, so as not to lose face and be looked down upon, which would affect their social life. Chongrenfang was adjacent to the imperial palace, sandwiched between the East Market and the old Shangshu Province Selection Institute, and became a place that attracted many scholars. It was difficult to find a place, so the price of the hotel was naturally high.
Zhou He probably lived here with this thought in mind.