The Legend of the Condor Heroes Chapter 1 – Part 8

Bao Xiruo asked, “Where are we going?” Yan Lie cast her a glance, signalling that she should not ask too many questions before others. He helped her onto the horse, and the two rode side by side towards the north.

After they had travelled some ten li,¹ Bao Xiruo asked again, “Where are you taking me?” Yan Lie said, “We must first find some hidden place to lie low and wait for the storm to pass. Once the officials have relaxed their hunt, I will go and find your husband’s remains and give him a proper burial. Then I will track down that villain Duan Tiande² and kill him, to avenge your husband.”

Bao Xiruo was gentle by nature and never one to form her own plans. After such a catastrophe, alone and without support, she was deeply grateful for his forethought. She said, “Young sir Yan,³ how… how can I ever repay you?” Yan Lie said gravely, “My life was saved by you, my lady. This lowly one shall devote a lifetime to your service. Even if I were torn limb from limb or plunged into boiling water and blazing fire, it would not be more than I owe.”

Bao Xiruo said, “I only hope we can kill that great villain Duan Tiande soon and avenge Brother Tie. Then I will follow him in death.” At the thought, tears fell again.

The two travelled all day and that evening put up at an inn in Chang’an Town.⁴ Yan Lie claimed they were husband and wife and took a single room. Bao Xiruo’s heart was uneasy. She did not utter a word through supper, her fingers secretly touching the short jian Qiu Chuji⁵ had given her. She made up her mind, If he shows the slightest disrespect, I will end my own life with this blade.

Yan Lie asked the serving boy to bring two bundles of straw into the room. Once the boy had left, he bolted the door, spread the straw across the floor, and lay down among it, covering himself with a felt blanket. He said to Bao Xiruo, “Please rest well, my lady.” He closed his eyes.

Bao Xiruo’s heart pounded. She thought of her dead husband, and her grief cut her to the very core. She sat in a daze for more than half a shichen,⁶ then let out a long sigh. Without extinguishing the candle, she lay down on the bed fully clothed, the short jian clutched tight in her hand.

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When Bao Xiruo rose the next morning, Yan Lie had already seen to the tack and asked the serving boy to prepare breakfast. She was secretly grateful, taking him for a junzi⁷ of perfect sincerity, and her wariness at once faded by half.

When breakfast arrived, she saw a plate of shredded chicken stir-fried with dried tofu, a plate of ham, a plate of cured sausage, a plate of smoked fish, and a small pot of porridge made from fragrant rice, its scent filling the air. She had been born to a poor family, and since marrying into the Yang household they had lived by farming. On ordinary mornings their meal was a few pickled vegetables and half a cube of fermented bean curd. Save for New Year, festivals, and banquet occasions, when had she ever eaten such fine food? She felt quite uneasy as she ate.

When they had finished, the serving boy brought a bundle. By this time Yan Lie had stepped out of the room. Bao Xiruo asked, “What is this?” The boy said, “The young sir went out early this morning and bought it. It is a change of clothes for you, my lady. The young sir says, please change before we set out on the road.” With that he set the bundle down and left.

Bao Xiruo opened the bundle and stared, frozen. Inside was a full set of plain white mourning clothes, white shoes and white stockings all in order, and even undergarments, an inner jacket, silk kerchiefs and sweat-cloths, everything complete. She thought, How can a young man be so thoughtful? As she changed into the undergarments, knowing they had been bought by Yan Lie’s own hand, a blush spread across her face.

She had left home in the dead of night in such haste that her clothes had been in disorder to begin with, and the struggles and flight of the night had torn and dirtied them further. Now, new from the skin out, she felt her spirits lift a little. When Yan Lie returned to the room, she saw that he too had changed into fresh, smart clothing.

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The two mounted and set out, sometimes one ahead of the other, sometimes riding abreast. Spring was approaching in the lands south of the river. Willows brushed their shoulders along the road, the scent of flowers was intoxicating, and the paddies lay green with new shoots.

Yan Lie, wishing to lighten her sorrow, kept up a flow of conversation on this and that. Bao Xiruo’s father had been an unsuccessful village scholar, with only a smattering of learning. Her husband and his sworn brother Guo Xiaotian⁸ were both rough, straightforward men. In all her life she had never met a man of such elegant speech and broad knowledge. Every word he spoke carried some subtle, pointed meaning, and she marvelled silently.

Yet as they rode ever northward, Lin’an⁹ growing ever more distant behind them, and he said nothing of avenging her husband, nothing even of arranging a burial, she could not hold back and asked, “Young sir Yan, I wonder where my husband’s body lies?”

Yan Lie said, “It is not that I am unwilling to seek out your husband’s remains and lay him to rest. But the day I rescued you, I killed several of the soldiers. These are the most dangerous of times. The moment I show my face anywhere near Lin’an, the soldiers will have my life. At present the authorities are hunting you everywhere, saying that your husband killed officials and raised rebellion, a heinous crime. They say that when they catch his family, the men shall be beheaded and the women made into official prostitutes. My own life I count as nothing, but if you were left without protection and taken by the soldiers, your fate would be most terrible. Even from beneath the Yellow Springs, I would grieve and burn with hatred.”

Bao Xiruo found his words sincere and nodded. Yan Lie went on, “I have thought it through carefully. What matters most now is to recover your husband’s body and give him burial. When we reach Jiaxing,¹⁰ I will take out silver and entrust someone to go to Lin’an and see to it properly. If you insist that I must go myself before you can be at ease, then once I have settled you in Jiaxing, I will venture back.”

Bao Xiruo thought that to ask him to risk such danger would be unreasonable. She said, “Young sir, if you can find some reliable person to handle it, that will do as well.” Then she added, “My husband had a sworn brother surnamed Guo, who met disaster at the same time. I would trouble you, young sir, to see to his burial as well. I… I…” Tears fell as she spoke.

Yan Lie said, “That is easily done. Please set your mind at ease. As for revenge, that villain Duan Tiande is an officer of the court. To kill him will be no easy task, and he is on his guard at present. We can only wait patiently for an opening.”

Bao Xiruo wanted only to see the enemy killed and then take her own life to follow her husband. Though every word Yan Lie spoke was truth, who knew how many years or months the waiting might take? Her heart tightened, and she burst into sobs. “I no longer care about revenge. My husband was such a hero, and even he was killed. I… I am only a weak woman. What… what strength do I have? I will die and follow him. That is all.”

Yan Lie was silent for a time, as if deeply troubled. At last he said, “My lady, do you trust me?” Bao Xiruo nodded. Yan Lie said, “At present we can only go north, beyond the reach of the Song soldiers. The Great Song’s troops cannot cross the border to take us. Once we pass the Huai River, the danger is largely past. When things have cooled, we will return south and take our revenge. Please, my lady, set your heart at ease. The blood debt owed your husband shall be mine alone to settle.”

Bao Xiruo was torn. Her home was destroyed, her husband dead. She had no kin left in the world. If she did not go with this man, where could a lone, weak woman find shelter? That night she had seen with her own eyes how brutally the soldiers killed and burned. If she fell into their hands and was made a prostitute, she would wish for life and find none, wish for death and be denied. Yet this man was neither kin nor old friend. She was a chaste widow. How could she travel with a young man? If she drew her blade and cut her throat now, he would surely stop her. The road ahead was dim, the days to come full of hardship. She turned it over and over in her mind, her tender heart twisted a hundred ways. She had wept and wept these past days, and now she had almost no tears left.

Yan Lie said, “If my lady finds my plan unfit, please give your orders. I will obey without question.” Bao Xiruo saw how utterly accommodating he was, and felt quite ashamed to press him further. Unless she died on the spot and ended everything at once, there seemed truly no other way. Helpless, she lowered her head and said, “Do as you think best.”

Yan Lie was overjoyed. He said, “I shall never forget my lady’s great kindness in saving my life. My lady…” Bao Xiruo said, “Do not speak of this again.” Yan Lie said, “Yes, yes.”

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That evening the two lodged at an inn in Wudun Town,¹¹ again sharing a room. Since Bao Xiruo had agreed to go north with him, Yan Lie’s manner had lost some of its earlier restraint. From time to time a joy he could not contain showed in his words and bearing. Bao Xiruo sensed something not quite right, yet he had not once overstepped the bounds of propriety. She told herself he was merely repaying a debt of gratitude, and surely meant no improper thought.

At midday the next day they reached Jiaxing Prefecture. It was a great city of western Zhejiang, the gathering place for silk and grain, and had long been prosperous. In ancient times it was called Xiuzhou. During the Five Dynasties period, under the Later Jin, it was renamed Jiahe Commandery. In the Southern Song, when Emperor Xiaozong¹² was born there and afterwards ascended the throne, the name was changed to Jiaxing, meaning “the place of the dragon’s rise.” Near the capital Lin’an, its markets and shops were thriving.

Yan Lie said, “Let us find an inn and rest.” Bao Xiruo, still afraid the soldiers might pursue, said, “It is still early. We can press on.” Yan Lie said, “The shops here are good. Your clothes are worn. You must buy a few changes.” Bao Xiruo was taken aback. “Did you not buy these only yesterday? How can they be worn already?” Yan Lie said, “The road is dusty. Clothes lose their freshness in a day or two. Besides, with a beauty such as yours, how can you wear anything less than the finest garments in the world?”

Bao Xiruo, pleased at the praise of her looks, lowered her head and said, “I am in deep mourning…” Yan Lie said at once, “I understand, my lady.” Bao Xiruo said no more. She was beautiful, but her husband Yang Tiexin had never praised her face to face like this. She stole a glance at Yan Lie and saw no wantonness in his expression. Her heart was in turmoil, and she could not tell if she felt joy or sorrow.

Yan Lie asked a passer-by the way and went straight to the largest inn in the town, the Xiushui Inn.¹³ After they had washed, Yan Lie and Bao Xiruo sat facing each other in the room and ate some light refreshments. Bao Xiruo wanted to ask him to take a second room, but could not find the words. Her face went red, then pale, then red again, her mind heavy with unsettled thoughts.

After a time Yan Lie said, “Please make yourself comfortable, my lady. I will go out to buy a few things and return at once.” Bao Xiruo nodded and said, “Young sir, please do not spend too much.” Yan Lie smiled. “It is a pity you are in mourning and cannot wear jewels. Even if I wished to spend, there would be nowhere to spend it on.”

Footnotes

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

2. 段天德 — Duàn Tiāndé. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

3. 相公 — xiànggōng. A courteous address to a young man of standing, and also how a wife addresses her husband. ↩

4. 长安镇 — Cháng’ān Zhèn. A town in northern Zhejiang, between Lin’an and Jiaxing. ↩

5. 丘处机 — Qiū Chǔjī. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

6. 时辰 — shíchén. Traditional Chinese unit of time equal to two hours; the day was divided into twelve shichen. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

7. 君子 — jūnzǐ. Literally noble man. The Confucian ideal of the morally cultivated man. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

8. 郭啸天 — Guō Xiàotiān. His name meaning “roaring at the sky”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

9. 临安 — Lín’ān. Capital of Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1276) known for its cultural refinement and West Lake scenery. Modern day Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. See Wikipedia. ↩

10. 嘉兴 — Jiāxīng. City to the northeast of Lin’an, in modern day Zhejiang Province. See Wikipedia. ↩

11. 乌墩镇 — Wūdūn Zhèn. A market town between Chang’an Town and Jiaxing, the forerunner of modern Wuzhen in Zhejiang. ↩

12. 宋孝宗 — Sòng Xiàozōng. Emperor Xiaozong of Song (r. 1162—1189), the second emperor of the Southern Song, born in Jiaxing. He came to the throne on the abdication of Gaozong. See Wikipedia. ↩

13. 秀水客栈 — Xiùshuǐ Kèzhàn. Literally Elegant Water Inn. Xiushui is an old name for the Jiaxing area. ↩