Moon Princess (13 page)

The monk looked wary. ‘In all these years no one has ever strayed into my workshop by chance. Though I admit it is nice to see someone other than my master,' he sighed, smiling sadly. ‘I have lived down here for a long time, entertained only by my work, venturing up to the temple only rarely. There is always so much work to do, you see, so much … And now not one, not two, but
three
visitors.' At that the old man bowed to Rufus. The little spaniel growled quietly and Sienna's eyes widened in surprise.

‘May we look around?' she said, breaking an awkward silence.

‘Be my guest,' smiled the old monk. He returned to an easel set up at the rear of the room, sketching the contours of a landscape in charcoal.

Sienna, Feng and Rufus gazed at the collection with curiosity. Feng picked up several calligraphies while Sienna explored a shelf of pottery and Rufus browsed one bottom shelf after another. Suddenly he exclaimed loudly: ‘What's this!' and held out a necklace in his mouth. Sienna took it from him and gasped. It was her grandmother's necklace!

The old monk sighed and set down his charcoal as he saw them looking at the piece. ‘Not my best work. Look – it's my third attempt, and still not perfect.' He pulled several more necklaces from the shelf, which all looked identical to the untrained eye. ‘Art from distant lands is not my strongest suit,' said Sun. ‘I did tell Fa Yi that, but he insisted that I try. He said it was for a new project. And I always like to be of use to him.'

‘How can this be? It's impossible!' Rufus was gazing at each identical necklace in amazement. ‘This necklace belongs to Sienna's mother – or
at least, the original did!'

The old man shook his head, confused.

Rufus turned to Sienna. ‘The curler-monster was stealing your mother's jewellery and replacing it with copies, remember?' Rufus growled, let out an angry bark. ‘This man is creating the forgeries!'

The old monk was shocked. ‘Fa Yi has always assured me that it was all in honour of the goddess. That she would reward me if I did my work well. Now you tell me he was using my work for criminal activity – for profit!' His eyes filled with tears. ‘How stupid I was. I should have guessed.'

Feng looked at the monk searchingly. ‘Maybe you can help us with something.'

‘Of course. What is it?' said Sun, turning towards him, his face composed.

Feng reached into his pocket and pulled out a dirty bundle of cloth. Unwrapping the statue, he passed it to the monk.

Sun smiled. ‘Aha, this one is only
almost
perfect, sadly. I created a perfect statue for my master only yesterday. It's flawless. It took a long time to reach that result. Look!' The ancient
monk carefully pulled down a box from the shelf and placed it on the floor. Inside the box were many more identical statues, wrapped in cloth.

Rufus's eyes widened. ‘I don't believe it. There are more than twenty of the things, and they all look the same.'

Sienna knelt down on the floor by the statues. Carefully she picked up one after another. ‘I can't spot any flaws.' She turned to the monk.

‘No, not at first sight,' said the monk, a glimmer of pride in his bright, brown eyes. ‘You have to look very closely. But none of the statues is perfect – except the last one. My master has already taken it to a special place. It will be shown tonight as part of our Moon Festival celebrations. I'm rarely allowed away from this workshop, but even I can feel the full moon rising.' He beamed at Sienna and Feng proudly.

‘What is going to happen with the statue, and how is it connected to the full moon?' Sienna whispered hoarsely.

‘Aah, there will be the most tremendous spectacle.' The monk's face lit up as he leant closer to Sienna, holding one of the imperfect statues. Feng stepped closer to watch. ‘This
white stone is very rare and special – it's as porous as plaster or ceramic.'

‘You mean … it soaks up water?' asked Sienna, remembering how the stone in the mine had felt damp against her fingers.

‘That's right, child. A soft glaze on the finish of the statue creates a layer on the outside that water cannot penetrate. But here' – he pointed to the statue's delicately carved eyes – ‘here I've left the glaze off. Before the ceremony tonight, Fa Yi will fill the cavity of the statue with oil – through here, see?'

Sienna and Feng peered closely at a minuscule dent in the head of the figurine.

‘This was the most difficult part to get right! But in the latest statue, the opening is invisible. It takes a few minutes for the oil to penetrate the eyes – enough time for the opening speech, perhaps. But then—'

‘The statue will cry,' breathed Feng.

‘Yes. On the night of the Moon Festival, when the moon is full, the statue will begin to weep. Just like the goddess Guanyin. The spectacle will draw more to follow her way, to take the path of mercy. To bring more peace into this world.' He
sighed. ‘I only wish I could leave my work and see it myself, but I must meet my vow to serve the goddess the best way I can, to continue my work down here, even tonight.'

Feng, Sienna and Rufus stared at each other, stunned.

Sienna didn't understand at first. She stared again at the statues in the box. What were Ling and Fa Yi trying to achieve by forging this statue, over and over, until it was perfect enough to fool an expert? Forging a statue that would weep?

Gradually she pieced it together. ‘Fa Yi tricked my mother into thinking she'd discovered something priceless, but she figured out it was forged. That must be why they've imprisoned her!' She clenched her fists as realization gripped her, but Feng finished her thought.

‘That's why they're making her write a book to make it seem like the real thing!' he said.

‘And that,' said Rufus darkly, ‘is why they need to get rid of her as soon as it's done.'

If she's still alive, Mum's in more danger than ever
, Sienna realized. She would've felt terrified if she weren't quite so angry.

‘I'm so sorry you have been made to work
down here,' she said softly to the monk, angry too at the labour he'd been forced into by Fa Yi. ‘We will make sure those who have deceived you so badly are punished for their cruelty.'

At that moment there was a horrible rumbling sound from above. The group looked up at the hatch in the ceiling, which opened as quick as lightning. With a mighty leap a terrible animal jumped down into the workshop and Sienna started backwards, her hands instinctively balled into fists. She hadn't seen it up close last time, and she wished she didn't have to now.

It was huge – much taller than her dad. On its greenish, bulky, half-human body, an ugly head like a crocodile's leered from a thick scaled neck. Crocodile claws sharp as talons glinted from the ends of muscular arms.

‘What's that?!' shouted Feng. This was, of course, the first time he had been able to see the creature!

‘Ling's monster,' Sienna replied. She sounded much calmer than she felt.

‘Oh, not you again,' said Rufus with a groan.

‘Get back!' Sienna called to Sun. The old monk hurried to the far end of the room and hid
in a small alcove. The crocodile monster bellowed and rushed at Sienna and Feng, saliva dripping from its mouth.

As before, Rufus leapt forwards protectively, a growl building in the back of his throat. The monster hesitated and Rufus snapped at his ankle bravely, but a savage kick sent him hurtling into the shelves in a ball of black fur.

‘Rufus!' shouted Sienna, rushing to his side.

The monster cried out, enraged by the dog's attack.

Now Feng stood in front of Sienna and Rufus, his fists clenched. ‘Go away!' he shouted. ‘Leave us alone!'

The crocodile monster drew back its huge clawed hand, aiming for a punch. Suddenly a huge bang sounded from above, hurried footsteps thumped on the stairs and a familiar roar filled the air as Xiaolong shot into the workshop and breathed a huge fireball at the monster. Sienna marvelled at how strong and brave the little dragon had become already, with Feng's love and faith!

The crocodile howled in agony, shaking its head in pain.

‘Xiaolong!' cried Feng joyfully, as the dragon looped over his head.

An old man burst into the room next, breathless.

‘And Zou!' said Sienna, a rush of courage straightening her shoulders.

The monster, recovered from the dragon's attack, reached out for Xiaolong with its hooked claws. Desperate to protect his friend, Feng grabbed a chisel from the bench and ran towards the crocodile monster, jabbing the crude weapon towards its stomach. The beast swatted him away effortlessly and he tumbled into the nearby worktop, priceless treasures crashing to the floor. Xiaolong zoomed to his side while Sienna jumped backwards as a porcelain jug smashed at her feet.

The monster approached Feng, its yellow eyes flashing, huge teeth glinting in the dim light as it loomed over Sienna's friend. She shouted and rushed towards its back, adrenaline pushing through her terror. She had to save Feng!

‘Enough!' said Zou. The sharp tone of his voice stopped Sienna in her tracks and the crocodile spun around. The doctor walked towards
the monster. He seemed suddenly younger, taller and stronger.

The huge crocodile opened its awful mouth and snapped at Zou's head, but the old man jumped impossibly high in the air and kicked out at the monster with all his strength. The monster fell to the ground, smacking its skull on the stone wall. It lay very still, but Sienna could tell it was still breathing.

Feng – now recovered – rushed again at the monster on the ground with the chisel in his hand. ‘Stop!' cried Zou, restraining the boy with his arm. ‘We're not going to kill it. The best way to ensure we never see this monster again is to make sure its mistress, Ling, comes to justice. It is she who has made him become so despicable and violent.'

Rufus heaved himself upright, grumbling. ‘Urgh,' he managed, shaking his black coat. ‘Fighting crocodiles is hard work!'

Sienna laughed and ran her fingers through his fur. ‘I'm glad you're all right, Rufus.'

Xiaolong settled on Feng's shoulder, stretching his broadening wings.

‘What happened?' said Feng to his invisible
friend. ‘Where's Gege? Did you and Minka find him and Sienna's mother?' But the little dragon's only reply was a shower of yellow sparks.

Sun emerged from his hiding place in the small alcove. ‘I'm going to go up to the temple now,' said the old monk. He was visibly confused and shaken, but his eyes were bright with excitement. ‘I feel free at last and full of bravery – I can't wait to taste the fresh air and feel the wind against my skin tonight. To witness the festival in honour of Guanyin. Thank you all.'

‘You can witness the great spectacle you have helped to create too,' said Zou, picking up Bai tuzi, who'd been hiding in his pocket. ‘It's going to be a memorable evening for the temple.'

16 Guanyin

A
s Sienna and her friends returned to the crowds upstairs, Hong Yi – the young monk who Sienna had spoken to at the temple just the day before – appeared before them. He bowed to Sienna, glancing quizzically at her injured head.

Although Sienna's heart thumped, she did her best to appear calm. ‘Good evening, Hong Yi. This is my friend Feng.'

Hong Yi bowed to Feng, though he gave him a
slightly strange look. Feng was covered in dust from the mine, and he looked nervous, brushing his dark hair in front of his face and folding his arms across his grubby T-shirt. ‘I'm very glad that you have both come along this evening,' said Hong Yi, pushing his glasses up his nose. ‘This is the occasion for which the honourable Kate worked so hard, and I promise you that we are all going to experience something wonderful. Please follow me.'

They followed the monk to the courtyard. Tonight, the space was filled with plastic chairs set out in rows, circling around the brightly decorated well at its centre. Paper lanterns threw a warm yellow glow through the temple arches, lighting the faces of the gathering audience.

But the lamplight was nothing compared to the full moon. Sienna's eyes were drawn to the sky. Now at its peak, the moon was so large and clear that she could see the grey circles of mountains and craters on its surface. Its silvery light was bright enough to cast shadows. It was the most beautiful moon she had ever seen.

‘It's amazing,' said Feng, his eyes fixed on the sky.

‘It is,' Sienna whispered, as they hurried after Hong Yi. ‘But we should watch out for Ling and Fa Yi. They're about to reveal their fake statue – we can't let them get away with it.' She combed the crowd, suddenly anxious, but she couldn't see Ling anywhere among their upturned faces. Nor could she see Minka, or her mum, or even Zou. Where had
he
disappeared to?

‘Hurry up,' grumbled Rufus. ‘I need to lie down. Defeating that crocodile monster was exhausting.'