The Legend of the Condor Heroes Chapter 1 – Part 2

Zhang Shiwu said, “When the soldiers and people of the whole country heard this news, every one of them was filled with fury. The folk north of the river, seeing no hope of recovering their homeland, wept tears of blood. Emperor Gaozong, finding his throne secure as Mount Tai, credited Qin Hui with the great achievement. Qin Hui, already enfeoffed as Duke of Lu, was now further elevated to Grand Preceptor, honoured beyond measure, his power darkening the sky. Gaozong passed the throne to Xiaozong, Xiaozong to Guangzong, and the Jin held fast more than half our realm. Now Guangzong has passed the throne to our present emperor, the Qingyuan Emperor, and the man in charge is this Chancellor Han Tuozhou.¹ And what of the days to come? Heh heh. Hard to say, hard to say!” He shook his head again and again.

Guo Xiaotian said, “What’s hard to say? This is the countryside. Speak freely. It’s not like Lin’an, where you must fear someone overhearing and bringing disaster. That traitor of a chancellor Han Tuozhou, is there a man alive who doesn’t call him a villain? When it comes to ruining the country and grinding down the people, he and Qin Hui might be sworn brothers.”

Now that the talk had come round to the present day, Zhang Shiwu lost his nerve a little and spoke less freely. He drank a cup of wine and said, “I’ve imposed on you two, but this lowly one has a word of advice to offer. You are hot-blooded men, and you must take care what you say and do, or you’ll bring trouble on yourselves. The times being what they are, we common folk can only scrape by on a bitter meal and endure the days. Alas! As the verse goes:

Beyond the hills are hills, beyond the towers are towers; The songs and dances by West Lake, when will they end? The warming wind intoxicates the travellers, Till they mistake Hangzhou for Bianzhou.”

Yang Tiexin asked, “What story do those four lines tell?”

Zhang Shiwu said, “That is no story. It tells how our Great Song’s court and emperor, drinking and making merry by West Lake, enjoying song and dance, intend to hold Hangzhou as their capital for generations to come, never again to think of recovering the lost territories or returning to the old capital at Bianliang.”

Zhang Shiwu, thoroughly drunk, took his leave. He stumbled eastward toward Lin’an, his mouth still muttering the lines from Yue Fei’s “Man Jiang Hong”:² “The shame of Jingkang is not yet avenged; when shall a subject’s hatred be extinguished?…”

Guo Xiaotian paid for the wine and walked home side by side with Yang Tiexin. The two lived next door to each other, and a little over a hundred feet on they reached their gates.

Guo Xiaotian’s wife, née Li, was shooing the chickens into their coop. She laughed. “The two of you have been at the wine again. Uncle Yang, you and your wife come and eat with us. We’ll kill a chicken.”

Yang Tiexin laughed. “Good. We’ll impose on you again tonight, Sister-in-law. The one at home raises all those chickens and ducks and only wastes grain on them. She can’t bear to kill so much as one, so we’re forever eating yours.”

Guo’s wife said, “Your wife has too soft a heart. She says these chickens and ducks were raised from chicks, and she cannot bear to slaughter them, no matter what.”

Yang Tiexin laughed. “I said I’d do the killing myself, and she burst into tears. It really is too funny. Tonight I’ll go hunt some game, and tomorrow I’ll treat you both.”

Guo Xiaotian said, “We’re brothers. What talk of treating? Tonight we go hunting together.”

That night, at the third watch,³ Guo and Yang hid in a grove seven li⁴ west of the village, bows and arrows and hunting forks in hand, hoping that a wild boar or a muntjac might come out to forage in the dark. They had waited more than one shichen without hearing the slightest sound. They were growing restless when suddenly, from beyond the grove, came a clack, clack, clack. Both men tensed, and both thought it strange, What is that?

At that moment, they heard shouts from afar: “Where are you running?” “Stop right there!” Then shadows shifted, and a figure darted into the grove. Moonlight fell upon him, and Guo and Yang saw clearly. They were greatly astonished, for the man leaned on two crutches. It was Qu San, the lame man who ran the small wineshop at the village head.

Qu San planted his left crutch on the ground with a clack and launched himself into the air, hiding behind a tree. The movement displayed qinggong⁵ of the highest order. Guo and Yang, without thinking, reached out and clasped each other’s hands, both astonished beyond measure. We have lived in Niu Family Village for three years, never knowing this lame man Qu San possessed such extraordinary martial arts! They crouched in the tall grass, not daring to stir.

Footsteps approached. Three men reached the grove’s edge, conferred in low voices, then stepped in, one pace at a time. All three were dressed as military officers, and cold blue light glinted in their hands: each gripped a single dao. One bellowed, “You lame wretch! I see you. Why not kneel and surrender?”

Qu San remained hidden behind the tree, unmoving.

The three officers came on step by step, slashing at the empty air with a whoosh, whoosh. Then, with a sudden thud, Qu San’s right crutch shot out from behind the tree and caught one officer full in the chest with savage force. The officer gave a muffled grunt and flew backwards, crashing to the ground. The other two swung their dao at Qu San.

Qu San planted his right crutch and leapt several feet to the left, evading both blades. His left crutch darted toward one officer’s face. That officer was no weakling either, and he raised his dao to parry. Qu San would not let the dao touch his crutch. He brought his left crutch back to the ground, and his right swept at the other officer’s waist. The twin crutches rose and fell in rapid succession, swift beyond compare. Though one crutch must support his body, leaving only one free to fight, he showed not the slightest disadvantage.

Guo and Yang saw that he carried a bundle on his back, a considerable burden. After some exchanges, one officer’s dao slashed down and struck the bundle. A clang rang out, and the bundle tore open, spilling countless objects. Qu San seized the moment of the officer’s triumphant shout and swung his right crutch. Crack! The crutch struck the officer’s crown, and he fell face-first to the ground.

The last man was terrified and turned to flee. His steps were swift, and in moments he had covered several dozen feet. Qu San’s right hand dipped into his robe, then flicked outward. In the moonlight, a black disc-shaped object flew forth and lodged with a soft thud in the fleeing officer’s skull. The officer gave a long, agonised cry. His dao flew from his grasp, his hands flailing wildly. He fell slowly backwards, twisted a few times, and lay still. He was dead.

Guo and Yang watched as the lame Qu San killed three men in the space of a breath. The martial arts he displayed surpassed anything they had ever seen. Their hearts pounded and they hardly dared breathe, both thinking, This man has slain imperial officers. He has committed a capital crime. If he discovers us, he will surely kill us to silence the witnesses. We two are no match for him.

Qu San turned and said slowly, “Brother Guo, Brother Yang, please come out!”

Guo and Yang started violently. They had no choice but to rise from the grass, gripping their hunting forks tightly. Yang Tiexin glanced at the fork in Guo Xiaotian’s hand, then stepped forward two paces.

Qu San smiled. “Brother Yang, you practise the Yang Family Spear Technique, so a hunting fork will serve well enough. But your sworn brother wields a pair of short ji.⁶ The weapon does not suit him, so you stand before him to guard him. Good, good, you’re loyal!”

Yang Tiexin, his thoughts laid bare, felt somewhat abashed.

Qu San continued, “Brother Guo, even if you had your ji in hand, could the two of you together defeat me?”

Guo Xiaotian shook his head. “We could not! We had eyes and saw nothing. We have lived alongside you in Niu Family Village for over a year and never realised you, sir, were a master of such extraordinary skill.” Qu San had come to Niu Family Village little more than a year ago, after his wife died, unwilling to remain where he was, and had opened a small wineshop.

Qu San shook his head and sighed. “My legs are dead. What talk is there of extraordinary skill?” He seemed dispirited and continued, “In the old days, would three dao-carrying palace guards have given me so much trouble? Alas, it is of no use now, of no use.”

Guo and Yang exchanged glances, not daring to respond.

Qu San said, “May I ask you two to do this lame man a favour? Bury the bodies, will you?”

Guo and Yang exchanged another glance. Yang Tiexin said, “We will!”

The two used their hunting forks to dig a large pit and carried the three bodies over. When moving the last one, Yang Tiexin saw the black disc-shaped object still embedded in the officer’s skull, sunk several inches deep. He put his strength into his right hand and wrenched it free. It was heavy in the hand. It proved to be an eight-sided iron bagua.⁷ He wiped the blood on the corpse and carried it over to Qu San.

Qu San said, “Much obliged!” He took the iron bagua and tucked it into his pouch, then untied his outer robe and spread it on the ground. He gathered the scattered objects one by one and wrapped them in the robe. Guo and Yang, shovelling earth over the bodies, glanced sideways and saw three long scrolls, along with many gleaming gold vessels and jade ornaments.

Qu San set aside a gold pot and a gold cup, not wrapping them with the rest, and handed one to each of Guo and Yang. “I stole these things from the imperial palace at Lin’an. The emperor has wrought great suffering on the people. Taking some of the gold and silver he squeezed from them can hardly be called loot from a thief. These two gold pieces, I give them to you.”

Guo and Yang, hearing that he had dared to rob the imperial treasury, stood dumbfounded. Neither dared reach out.

Qu San said sharply, “Do you refuse because you dare not accept, or because you will not?”

Guo Xiaotian said, “We have rendered no service and dare not accept reward. As for tonight’s affair, we two will certainly not breathe a word. You may set your mind at ease, sir.”

Qu San said, “Hmph. You think I fear you revealing the secret? Had I not long since investigated the two of you thoroughly, how could I have allowed you to leave alive tonight? Brother Guo, you are a descendant of Guo Sheng,⁸ the Diyou Star among the brave men of Liangshan Marsh, called the Rival of Rengui. You use your family’s ji technique, only you have made the long weapon short and the single one a pair. Brother Yang, your ancestor Yang Zaixing⁹ was a famous general under Grandfather Yue. You two are heirs of loyalty and righteousness. When the north fell, you drifted through the jianghu.¹⁰ Later you swore brotherhood, bound by the eight-fold ceremony, and together moved to Niu Family Village. Is this not so?”

Guo and Yang, hearing their origins and backgrounds recounted so clearly, were all the more astonished. They could only nod.

Qu San said, “Your ancestors Guo Sheng and Yang Zaixing were both brave men of the greenwood before they entered the court’s service and fought for the Great Song. Your ancestors robbed ill-gotten wealth themselves. Now, will you take these gold pieces or not?”

Yang Tiexin thought, If we refuse, we will surely offend him. He accepted them with both hands and said, “Our thanks!”

Qu San’s face brightened. He lifted the bundle, tied it to his back, and said, “Let’s go back!”

The three walked out of the grove side by side. Qu San said, “Tonight I have gained much. I obtained two paintings by the Daoist Lord Emperor, and a piece of his calligraphy. That fellow was useless as an emperor, but his feather-and-colour painting of birds, and his Slender Gold calligraphy, have no equal under heaven.”

Guo and Yang had no idea what “feather-and-colour painting” or “Slender Gold calligraphy” might be. They could only murmur assent.

Footnotes

1. 韩侂胄 — Hán Tuōzhòu (1152—1207). Chancellor of the Southern Song, who led the war against the Jin (historical). See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

2. 满江红 — Mǎn Jiāng Hóng. Literally the river all red, the name of a ci tune. The lyric to this tune attributed to Yue Fei vows vengeance for the Jingkang Incident. ↩

3. 三更 — sān gēng. The third of the five night watches, approximately 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. Night watchmen would strike a gong or wooden clapper to mark each watch. ↩

4. 里 — lǐ. A traditional unit of distance, about 500 metres or one-third of a mile. ↩

5. 轻功 — qīnggōng. The martial art of body lightness. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

6. 戟 — jǐ. A halberd combining a spear point with a dagger-axe blade. ↩

7. 八卦 — bāguà. Literally eight trigrams. The eight three-line symbols of the Book of Changes, representing the fundamental principles of reality. ↩

8. 郭盛 — Guō Shèng. One of the outlaw heroes of Mount Liang in the Water Margin, famed for his skill with the ji. ↩

9. 杨再兴 — Yáng Zàixīng (?—1140). A Song general under Yue Fei, famed for his courage against the Jin. ↩

10. 江湖 — jiānghú. Literally rivers and lakes. The world of martial artists, outside mainstream society. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩