Moon Princess (8 page)

Zou turned to the invisible animal. ‘Calm down, little one. We're all friends here. This young lady' – he turned the dragon to face Sienna – ‘has taken very good care of you.' Then Zou pointed to Feng. ‘Your special friend can't see you, for some reason. But I'm sure he will in due course. Now, I think we must all be hungry. I will prepare us some tea and food.'

Sienna rubbed her hand and Zou showed her
upstairs to a small bathroom where she ran cold water over the blistered skin to soothe the pain. She then whipped the headscarf from her hair. It was such a relief to take it off! Over the basin hung a small mirror. She had to stand on tiptoe to look into it. She looked at her reflection in shock – she hardly recognized herself: her uncombed fair hair hung in her face and her eyes seemed to shine more brightly.

Sienna shook her head. Everything had changed, and she felt that she had changed too! She knew now that the world was
full
of extraordinary people and invisible animals. And inside she felt alive with the hope that she was on the right track to finding her mum. Taking a deep breath, she washed her face and scraped her blonde hair back into a ponytail.

Turning into a room right next to the bathroom door, she saw that Zou was now frying some tofu and eggs in a pan, with a rice cooker bubbling on the floor. Sienna's tummy rumbled as she realized she hadn't eaten for almost a day! Feng was sitting at a table. He looked exhausted.

Sienna looked around the room. It was small
and sparsely decorated. Zou saw her curious glance.

‘You must excuse my humble home,' he said. ‘I'm not here very often. I go wherever I'm needed, so I'm usually away.' He grinned broadly.

Sienna smiled back at him. She felt as if she had known him for a very long time. Remembering that they had some food in the bags that they could contribute to the meal, she began to unpack.

‘What have we here?' exclaimed Zou happily as he saw what Sienna was doing. He headed over to the table with plates for each of them piled with food. ‘Mmm … moon cakes! My favourite! A sure sign that the Moon Festival is nearly upon us.'

‘What are moon cakes?' asked Sienna, studying the small, round cakes Feng had bought, as she gratefully ate a mouthful of the tofu Zou had just cooked. ‘And what is the Moon Festival?'

‘You have been in this country for weeks and
nobody
has explained about the Moon Festival?' He shook his head despairingly at Feng – who shrugged – and sat down next to Sienna. ‘The Moon Festival is one of the most important
events in Chinese culture, also known as the mid-Autumn festival. It marks the time of the year when the moon shines the brightest, a time of great celebration when friends and family gather together to pray, feast and give thanks to the gods. The festival takes place in three days' time, when the moon is full.'

Feng sat up straighter in his chair, seemingly cheered by the mention of the Moon Festival. ‘Moon cakes are always eaten around the time of the Moon Festival,' he explained. ‘This is why I bought some. You must try one.'

The small round cakes were decorated with Chinese characters. Sienna bit into one. The sweet pastry tasted wonderful, but she was shocked to discover a salty egg yolk in the middle of the cake. Yuck!

‘Ah yes, a hard-boiled duck-egg yolk,' said Zou, beaming. ‘It symbolizes the full moon.'

Feng passed her another cake. ‘Take this one instead,' he said. ‘It's got lotus paste in it.' Sure enough, it was much sweeter. Feng smiled sadly as he saw Sienna enjoying the cake. ‘Gege and I were planning on making moon cakes to sell at the temple,' he said softly. ‘Many people will
flock to the temple for the Moon Festival, to burn incense and light lanterns and celebrate the full moon.'

Sienna nodded, studying the picture of the pagoda on his T-shirt as Feng had just taken off his jumper. She could imagine how lovely it would be all lit up.

Suddenly Xiaolong, who had been sitting quietly on a shelf, shot at Feng like a rocket and started to spit fire at him, making him drop his moon cake. The dragon then looked intently at the cake and let out a strange cry.

‘He's trying to tell us something,' Zou cried. ‘What is it, Xiaolong?' The dragon, seeming much stronger than he had been on the train, lifted a trembling wing and pointed to the boy's T-shirt.

‘What is it? What's happening?' cried Feng. He was rubbing his arms where the sparks had landed. Even though he still didn't seem able to see the dragon, he
could
feel the flames, Sienna realized.

‘Is it the T-shirt?' asked Zou. ‘It shows the temple, doesn't it?'

The little dragon nodded, but then fluttered
to stand on top of one of the moon cakes and uttered another strange cry.

Zou frowned. ‘We already know we need to go to the temple, little one. But why are you so interested in the moon cakes?'

Something suddenly occurred to Sienna. ‘The Moon Festival,' she cried. ‘I think the little dragon is trying to make a connection between the festival and the temple!'

Xiaolong immediately fluttered up to Sienna and nestled close to her, as if to confirm she was right. She felt pleased but also confused. What did the Moon Festival have to do with the temple, and how was this connected to the disappearance of her mum … ?

9 Simiao – Temple

T
he next morning, after a restless night's sleep, Sienna woke up determined to go to the temple right away. After Xiaolong's strange actions yesterday, and now knowing that the Moon Festival was only two days away, she was burning to find out if there really was a connection between the festival, the temple and the disappearance of her mum.

Zou had headed out at first light, saying he had urgent business to attend to. But, annoyingly,
Feng had woken in a strange mood and seemed reluctant to help Sienna get ready for their journey. The little dragon had disappeared.

‘Feng, we
need
to go to the temple,' Sienna insisted, for the third time. ‘We've come all this way!'

‘I'm
NOT
going,' he snapped, sitting on the floor with his head in his hands.

‘What do you mean “not going”?' asked Sienna. ‘That's why we're here! We need to find my mother and your brother. It's simple!' She missed Rufus hugely. With Feng in this mood, she felt very alone. ‘Or don't you care about your brother?' she threw at him in frustration.

But this time, Feng didn't argue. He breathed out heavily and fell silent.

‘Feng, what is it?' said Sienna, softening her voice. ‘I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that.'

‘The temple … it's the place where Gege disappeared,' he said. He spoke very quietly now, his eyes filling with tears as he glanced up at Sienna and back at floor, as if ashamed. ‘I know we should go but … bad things must be happening there. I'm afraid.' Feng swallowed. ‘I can't go. I'm too scared of what might happen. Please
don't tell Zou.'

Suddenly Sienna understood and her anger evaporated. She sat down beside Feng on the floor and took his hand. At that moment, Zou came down the stairs.

‘Why are you both looking so sad?' he said. ‘Shouldn't you be on your way to the temple?'

Feng opened his mouth to reply, but Sienna spoke instead. ‘I've decided to go on my own,' she said. ‘Only … I don't know the way.' She blushed, feeling a little foolish, but Feng glanced across at her gratefully.

Zou's eyes passed from Sienna to Feng and back again. ‘Very well,' he said slowly. Somehow, he appeared to understand. ‘Why not take Bai tuzi? He knows how to get there. He knows a surprising amount of things! And he can help you if you need to ask questions.'

Zou took the white hare on to his arm and stroked him affectionately. Sienna saw sparkly dust rise from the hare's fur into the air, and she glanced at Feng's glum expression. He was probably feeling guilty. She would be sorry to go without him, but she
had
to go to the temple.

‘Thank you,' she said to Zou, standing up. Bai
tuzi hopped towards her, and she reached a hand out to stroke the animal's soft ears. Then she quickly got changed into her travelling clothes, hiding her blonde hair carefully under the headscarf.

The white hare and Zou nodded to each other, then Bai tuzi jumped on to Sienna's shoulder.

‘That tickles,' she laughed, as the hare gently rubbed his nose against her ear. She waved goodbye to Feng, who was slumped in his seat, and went downstairs with Zou.

Sienna was glad when they finally reached the temple. The man she'd sat next to on the rickety bus had stared at her for the entire journey. Finally he started to bombard her with all sorts of questions, but luckily, with Bai tuzi by her side, she was able to answer. Eventually the bus driver called out the name of her stop and she jumped off, relieved.

The air was hot and dry, yet when she spotted the temple on a hill in the distance, a shiver ran down Sienna's spine. So this was where Mum had spent so much time. And this was where she
might find out what happened to her. With a determined sigh, she began to climb the rocky hill.

She first spotted the pagoda of the temple. Several groups of people were gathered around with their tour guides, who held umbrellas up in the air. Making her way past the pagoda and the tourists, Sienna came to an inner courtyard. At its centre, an old well was sunk into the ground, surrounded by a crooked stone wall. A miniature pagoda protected it from the elements. Behind her was a hall with steps leading up to its entrance. The hall doors and windows were latticed with wooden carvings, and up on the roof Sienna could make out two red dragon statues. She stood still, studying the statues.

‘Can I help you?' a voice behind her suddenly asked. Startled, Sienna whipped round. In front of her stood a young man wearing a yellow-brown robe. He was Chinese, but he had addressed Sienna in English. He eyed Sienna searchingly through his silver-coloured glasses.

‘No … um …' she stammered. ‘I'm just looking around.'

The monk smiled at her. ‘Well, I have a little
time, so I can show you the temple if you like? My name is Hong Yi.'

Sienna nodded her agreement and they walked on through the crowds together. ‘Why are there so many people here?' she asked Hong Yi.

‘It's the holidays,' replied Hong Yi. ‘But this is not “many”. Especially when one considers the significance of this temple. Many more will flock here for the Moon Festival, in two days' time.'

They were now standing at the entrance to the main hall and Sienna, like the monk, took her shoes off before going in. Several golden Buddha statues stood before them.

‘The temple is almost two thousand years old,' Hong Yi began. ‘Although it has been destroyed and rebuilt several times over, the ground on which it stands is of great historical significance. Especially the well at the centre of the courtyard where I met you; that well has remained untouched for centuries.'

Hong Yi turned to a statue of a woman standing on the back of a dragon. Sienna looked thoughtfully at the golden figure. The statue seemed familiar to her.

‘Do you know who that is?' asked Hong Yi. Sienna couldn't make out his features in the dim light of the hall. Only his glasses glinted on his face.

‘I'm not sure, she looks like a princess,' replied Sienna.

‘This is Guanyin,' explained Hong Yi. ‘All Buddhists in China worship her, for she is the goddess of mercy. She helps people in need. Here, in this sacred place, Guanyin first revealed herself as a goddess in human form. But you are right. She was born as a princess and sacrificed everything for her faith.'

All at once Sienna saw the resemblance. The picture that Feng had given to her in the restaurant, back in Shanghai, was a picture of a statue of Guanyin!

Hong Yi gave her a thoughtful look. ‘I assumed you would know more about the temple. Didn't your mother ever tell you anything about it?'

Sienna was taken aback. ‘You know my mother? And how did you know I was her daughter?'

Hong Yi gave a sad smile. ‘You look just like
her. And I knew your mother well. Her work was very important for the temple. It is a tragedy for us all that she is no longer here. I'm very sorry.'

Sienna swallowed.

Just then, she felt a tickling feeling in her ear. The white hare wanted to tell her something – she glanced at him, perching on her shoulder, and saw his pink nose twitching towards the left. Sienna turned and saw a very old man in a monk's habit shuffling across the inner courtyard.

‘Come. I'll show you the rest of the temple,' the monk said softly.

Sienna followed Hong Yi back out into the courtyard, skirting round the well, her eyes meeting the old man's as he passed. He hesitated for a moment and then slowly approached. Hong Yi stopped and bowed before the older monk.

The old monk was bald, but his eyebrows were snow-white and his smile was kind. Sienna could see great sorrow and compassion in his face. He reached out and clasped her hand between his, his skin dry and warm. Sienna noticed a sprinkling of pure white dust on his fingers, which felt oddly rough and calloused for the hands of a monk.