Xuan-Xuan of Xi'an - #AtoZChallenge

The star gleamed in the window of Xuan-Xuan's room. She removed her student's robes and the binding she wore around her chest to disguise her gender. "Aaah..." She swung her torso side-to-side luxuriating in the freedom of her privacy. One day, maybe women wouldn't have to disguise their sex just to study.

She exposed her naked body to that pesky star. It out-shone the moon these days. Was it possible it was growing even brighter? Her hand ran over her shaved head, as if ruffling phantom hair. Pulling on her shift for sleeping, Xuan-Xuan plopped down onto her mat and crossed her legs under her to meditate. 

It was no use. Even with her eyes closed, she could feel the light of the star staring at her. Her mind was too full tonight. She got up and pulled out the scroll she'd hidden in a secret pocket of her robe. It was a promising text for illuminating the clue of the star, but she needed help. No one here in the revered towers of Xi'an Xue were curious enough to help. Looking out at the star, she thought of its trek across the night sky over the past weeks. Maybe she should follow it. The landscape below was not easy. How far away was the next scholar who might understand? The next day she packed up a dromedary and left.

Thousands of leagues away, high in the snowy mountains that divided the continent, she met another scholar who'd observed the same astronomical phenomenon. "I'm amazed you came so far alone, young..." 

"Xu-Yuan," she offered the male version of her name. The world was a dangerous place for a woman traveling alone. At Faisal's monastery, they consulted together for three nights, discovering among hidden texts the first hint that this was a portent of a new and powerful king. 

Finally, with the blessing from his superiors, they determined to travel on together, still following the star. "You must not go empty-handed," the Lama of the monastery advised. "Take gifts suitable for a ruler of such wisdom and far-reaching impact." Xuan-Xuan had brought with her a supply of gold but the monastery added more gold and a quantity of frankincense, a gift from pilgrims who had climbed the mountains to seek wisdom here. 

Faisal and Xuan-Xuan carried on, bringing with them a young novice to manage their supplies along the silk road. 

It was only a couple of days before they came upon a large caravanserai heading for the rich ports on the sea to the west. They joined forces for added safety. Soon a pair of young men from the caravan came forward, having noticed the same star. They were not scholarly, but young, clever, and curious. "A king! We knew it must bode something great. Tell us more." Xuan-Xuan and Faisal spent their evenings educating the two men.

Beyond the Euphrates, Xuan-Xuan and Faisal prepared to leave the large group. "Would you take us with you?" one of the two young men asked. They couldn't pronounce his name, so they'd taken to calling him "Chin" and his friend "Fen". Xuan-Xuan asked, "What will you bring as a gift for such an important new king?"

The pair consulted, and then Chin responded. "Fen picked up some Myrrh at the last traveling bazaar we met with. Will that be suitable?"

Xuan-Xuan hadn't heard of this thing, but Faisal appraised the two younger men. Did they understand the properties of myrrh? After consulting with Xuan-Xuan, he smiled at their new proteges. "We may have misjudged you because of your youth. Any king will value such a noble gift."

The journey had taken Xuan-Xuan the better part of a year, but with her new traveling companions, she, and Faisal, Chin, and Fen finally found the small town of Bethlehem. When they finally found the young family, she fell on her knees in tears of joy and relief. The four wise "men" presented their gifts to a grateful father and bemused new mother. 

A few days later, they said farewell to the infant king, and left for the coast. Xuan-Xuan would decide later whether to return to Xi'an or find a new quest. Her eyes had been opened.

Reference: The wise men (magi) are included in the Christmas story in the book of  Matthew, chapter 2, verses 1-12. The Bible does not say there were "three wise men", but names the three gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh so most people assume three people. It also says they came from "the east". Why not start the trip in what is now Xi'an, China? And if Joan of Arc could disguise herself as a man to fight, why not a young female student disquised as a wise man?