The Return of the Condor Heroes Chapter 14 – Part 2

Yang Guo, hearing her bare her soul with such sincerity, was profoundly moved. But seeing the shock, bewilderment, embarrassment, and disapproval on every face around them, he knew that Xiaolongnü, in her innocence, had spoken words that ought not to be spoken in this place. Taking her hand, he rose and said gently, “Gugu,¹ let us go.” Xiaolongnü said, “All right.” Side by side, they walked toward the hall’s exit. Though the great hall was filled with the assembled heroes, nearly a thousand strong, in Xiaolongnü’s eyes there was only Yang Guo.

Guo Jing and Huang Rong stared at each other in stunned bewilderment. In all their lives, the two of them had experienced countless strange, difficult, and perilous situations, yet before the matter now confronting them, they had no idea how to respond.

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Xiaolongnü and Yang Guo were about to walk out of the great hall when Huang Rong called out: “Miss Long, you are the Alliance Chief of the jianghu under heaven, the hopes of the multitude rest upon you, and all eyes are fixed on your example. This matter deserves careful reconsideration.” Xiaolongnü turned back and gave a radiant smile. “I cannot be any Alliance Chief or whatever. Elder Sister, if you like, please take the position yourself.” Huang Rong said, “No, if you truly wish to yield the position, it should go to our senior hero, the former Chief Hong.”² The title of Alliance Chief of the jianghu was the most honourable and prestigious position a martial artist could hold, yet Xiaolongnü did not give it the slightest thought. Smiling carelessly, she said, “Do as you please. I do not understand any of this anyway.” Taking Yang Guo’s hand, she once more moved toward the exit.

Suddenly, sleeves billowed in a rush of wind and the red candles flickered. A figure leaped from among the seated guests, robed in Daoist vestments, a longsword held before him. It was none other than the Quanzhen Daoist Zhao Zhijing.³ He barred the entrance with his sword and shouted, “Yang Guo, you have betrayed your teachers and disgraced your ancestors, you are already beneath contempt. Now, in committing this bestial act, how can you still face heaven and earth? So long as this Zhao has breath in his body, he will never permit it.” Yang Guo had no wish to entangle himself with this man before the assembled crowd. Lowering his voice, he said, “Step aside.” Zhao Zhijing bellowed: “Zhen shidi⁴,⁵ come here! You tell us, that night on Mount Zhongnan, when we saw with our own eyes these two stripped naked together, what were they doing?” Zhen Zhibing⁵ rose to his feet, trembling. “They, as teacher and disciple they wish to marry each other. It is no business of ours!”

That night, Yang Guo and Xiaolongnü had been practising the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra⁶ among the flowers when Zhao Zhijing and Zhen Zhibing stumbled upon them. Yang Guo had forced Zhao Zhijing to swear an oath that he would not speak of it to a fifth person. Who could have imagined that today he would slander them so brazenly before this great assembly? Yang Guo was beside himself with rage. “You swore a heavy oath not to speak of it to a fifth person!” he shouted. “How can you be so… so…” Zhao Zhijing threw back his head and laughed. “Indeed, I swore not to tell a fifth person. But before me now there is a sixth, a seventh, a hundred, a thousand. None of them is the fifth person! You committed your filthy deeds, so naturally I may speak of them.”

When Zhao Zhijing had seen the two of them together in the flowers late at night, their clothing dishevelled, how could he have imagined they were practising the highest levels of martial arts? Now, in his fury, he blurted it all out, not out of deliberate malice, but from genuine belief in what he had seen. That night, Xiaolongnü had been so enraged by this that she had vomited blood and nearly died. Now, hearing his cunning sophistry, she could endure it no longer. She reached out and pressed lightly against his chest. “You had best not speak recklessly,” she said. By now she had long since mastered the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra, and this palm strike was delivered without trace or shadow. The Jade Maiden Heart Sutra was, moreover, the natural counter to all Quanzhen martial arts. Zhao Zhijing thrust out his hand to parry, but Xiaolongnü’s palm had already circled past his arm and reached his chest.

Zhao Zhijing’s parry met empty air, startling him greatly, but the other’s palm had merely brushed his chest and withdrawn, leaving no sensation whatsoever. Unconcerned, he sneered: “What are you touching me for? I’m not…” Before he could finish, his eyes suddenly bulged. With a thud, he toppled onto his back and lay motionless, having sustained a severe internal injury.⁷ Since Lin Chaoying had first created the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra, this move had never before been used to deal a serious blow to a Quanzhen disciple. Quanzhen martial arts were defeated so utterly that not only could they not retaliate, they could not even manage the slightest resistance.

Sun Bu’er⁸ and Hao Datong⁹ saw their shizhi¹⁰ injured and rushed forward to support him. His face was flushed crimson, as though drunk, and though he struggled he could not rise from the ground. A great mouthful of fresh blood followed. Sun Bu’er gave a cold laugh. “Well, well, your Ancient Tomb School truly means to make war on our Quanzhen Order.” She drew her longsword, ready to engage Xiaolongnü. In her heart she was secretly terrified, knowing that if she crossed swords with Xiaolongnü, she would likely be defeated in no more than a move or two. But cornered as she was, she had no choice but to issue the challenge.

Guo Jing hastily leaped out from among the tables and placed himself between the two sides. “We are all on the same side, let us not fight among ourselves,” he urged. Turning to Yang Guo, he said, “Guoer, both sides are your teachers and elders. Persuade everyone to return to their seats, there will be time enough to sort out right from wrong.”

Xiaolongnü had never imagined that in this world there could exist people who spoke binding words and then broke them, this treacherous faithlessness. Profoundly disgusted, she took Yang Guo’s hand and frowned. “Guoer, let us go. We shall never see these people again!” Yang Guo followed her two steps forward.

Sun Bu’er’s longsword flashed. “You think you can injure a man and simply leave?” she barked.

Seeing that the two sides were about to clash once more, Guo Jing spoke with solemn gravity: “Guoer, you must stand firm and live as a proper man. Do not bring ruin and disgrace upon your name. It was your Auntie Guo who gave you your name, do you know the meaning of the character ‘Guo’?”¹¹

Yang Guo’s heart jolted at these words. Suddenly childhood memories flooded back, all the grief and humiliation he had suffered. And he thought, How is it that Auntie Guo gave me my name?

Guo Jing loved Yang Guo deeply, and precisely because of that love, his demands were strict and his reproaches severe. Having watched Yang Guo distinguish himself so brilliantly before the assembled heroes this day, he had been brimming with satisfaction, only to suddenly discover that the boy had done something utterly unforgivable. Anxiety made his voice especially harsh. “Your late mother must have told you, you bear the single name ‘Guo.’ What is your courtesy name?”¹² Yang Guo remembered that his mother had indeed mentioned it, though he was so young that no one had ever addressed him by his courtesy name, and he had nearly forgotten it himself. “It is ‘Gaizhi,’” he answered. Guo Jing said sternly, “That is correct. And what does that mean?” Yang Guo thought for a moment and recalled the classics Huang Rong had once taught him. “Auntie Guo meant that when I commit a fault, I must repent and correct it.”

Guo Jing’s tone softened somewhat. “Guoer, every person has faults. To err and then reform, there is no greater goodness than this. These are the words of the ancient sages. Your disrespect toward your teacher is a grave fault. Think on it carefully.”

Yang Guo said, “If I were wrong, naturally I would correct myself. But he…” He pointed at Zhao Zhijing. “He beat me and humiliated me, deceived me and hated me. How can I acknowledge him as my teacher? As for Gugu and me, we are pure and innocent, as the sun in heaven can bear witness. I respect her and love her. Can this truly be wrong?” He spoke with eloquence and righteous conviction. Guo Jing’s wit and eloquence were far inferior, how could he argue against him? Yet he knew in his heart that Yang Guo’s conduct was gravely, terribly wrong, though he could not find the words to explain it. All he could manage was: “This… this… in any case, you are in the wrong…”

Huang Rong stepped forward slowly and said gently, “Guoer, Uncle Guo wants only what is best for you. You must understand this.” Hearing her gentle words, Yang Guo’s heart stirred. He lowered his voice and said, “Uncle Guo has always treated me well. I know that.” His eyes reddened, and tears nearly fell. Huang Rong said, “He is advising you with kind words. You must not misunderstand his intent.” Yang Guo said, “I simply do not understand, what fault have I committed?” Huang Rong’s expression hardened. “Do you truly not understand, or are you playing games with us?” Yang Guo felt indignant. You treat me well, and I return that kindness, what more do you want from me? He bit his lip and did not answer. Huang Rong said, “Very well. Since you want me to speak plainly, I will not beat around the bush. Miss Long is your teacher, which makes her your elder and superior. Between you, there can be no romantic attachment between man and woman.”

This rule was not something Yang Guo was wholly ignorant of, as Xiaolongnü was. But he simply could not accept it. Why, merely because Gugu had taught him martial arts, could she not be his wife? Why, when he and Gugu had done nothing improper, would even Uncle Guo refuse to believe them? He was by nature a person who feared neither heaven nor earth, stubborn, extreme, and fiery. Now, feeling wrongfully accused, he threw all caution to the wind. Loudly he declared, “What have I done that offends you? Whom have I harmed? Gugu taught me martial arts, but I insist on making her my wife. You may cut me with a thousand blades, with ten thousand blades. I will still make her my wife.”

These words struck the assembly like a thunderbolt, shocking and horrifying all who heard them. The people of the Song dynasty were rigidly bound by ritual and law. To hear such reckless, defiant words against the natural order was unspeakably painful, as painful as hearing someone openly declare their intention to marry their own mother. Guo Jing, who all his life had held his teachers in the deepest reverence, felt his rage surge upward. He lunged forward and grabbed at Yang Guo’s chest.

Xiaolongnü, startled, reached out to block him. But Guo Jing’s martial arts far surpassed hers, and in his towering fury he held nothing back. With a sweeping motion, he flung Xiaolongnü more than a zhang¹³ away. His hand shot out and seized Yang Guo by the Tiantu acupoint¹⁴ at the base of his throat. Raising his left palm high, he roared, “You little beast! How dare you utter such monstrous, immoral words?”

Caught in Guo Jing’s grip, every ounce of strength drained from Yang Guo’s body. Yet in his heart he felt not the slightest fear. Clearly and calmly, he said, “Gugu loves me with all her heart, and I feel the same toward her. Uncle Guo, if you wish to kill me, then strike. This conviction of mine, I will never change, not through all eternity.” Guo Jing said, “I have treated you as my own son. I will not permit you to do wrong and refuse to repent.” Yang Guo raised his head proudly. “I am not wrong! I have done no evil! I have harmed no one! Even if you grind my bones to dust, I will still marry Gugu and never, ever be parted from her!” Each word was delivered with the finality of a cleaver striking stone, ringing with absolute conviction.

Hearing this, the heroes in the hall all felt a chill in their hearts. They could not deny that his words carried a certain logic. If the two of them, as teacher and disciple, had said nothing to anyone and gone off to some paradise beyond the world, or some desolate island in a barren land, to become husband and wife, remaining forever unknown, truly, no one would have been harmed. So long as they never revealed their relationship as teacher and disciple, this perfectly matched couple, so handsome and so beautiful, could indeed marry without troubling anyone or harming anything. But to behave so brazenly, without the slightest restraint, this defied the morality of the age, making them not only degenerates in the jianghu, but villains and reprobates in society at large.

Guo Jing raised his palm. His voice was sorrowful. “Guoer, my heart aches terribly. Do you understand? I would rather you were dead than see you do evil. Do you understand?” By the end, his voice was choked with sobs.

Yang Guo knew that if he did not change his words, Uncle Guo would strike him dead with a single palm. Though at times he could be cunning and full of tricks, at this moment he was more stubborn than ever. Clearly and firmly, he said, “I know I am not wrong. I must marry Gugu and make her my wife. If you forbid it, then strike me dead.”

Guo Jing’s left palm hung high in the air. If this blow landed on the crown of Yang Guo’s head, what chance would he have to survive? The assembled heroes held their breath in utter silence. Hundreds of pairs of eyes were fixed on that suspended palm.

Footnotes

1. Gugu (姑姑) — Literally “paternal aunt,” but used here as a term of respectful address for a young woman of the older generation. Yang Guo uses this to address Xiaolongnü, his shifu. ↩

2. 洪七公 – Hóng Qīgōng. Literally Hong the Seventh Lord; the numeral seven marks seniority among sworn brothers. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

3. 赵志敬 – Zhào Zhìjìng. His name meaning “aspiring to reverence”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

4. 师弟 – shīdì. Male junior. Both apprenticed to the same shifu. Shī means teacher. Dì means younger brother. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

5. 甄志丙 – Zhēn Zhìbǐng. His name meaning “aspiring to the third stem”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩ ↩²

6. 玉女心经 – Yùnǚ Xīnjīng. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

7. 内伤 (Nèishāng). “Internal injury.” In wuxia fiction, damage inflicted not to the surface of the body but to the internal organs and energy pathways through the transmission of neili (neili). Such injuries are often more dangerous than external wounds and require specialised treatment. ↩

8. 孙不二 – Sūn Bùèr. Her name meaning “not two”, signifying non-duality. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

9. 郝大通 – Hǎo Dàtōng. His name meaning “great penetration”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

10. 师侄 – shīzhí. Lineage nephew or niece. Disciple of one’s shixiong, shijie, shidi, or shimei. Shī means teacher. Zhí means nephew or niece. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

11. 过 (Guò). Yang Guo’s given name means “fault,” “error,” or “excess.” His courtesy name, Gaizhi (改之), means “to correct it.” Huang Rong gave him this name hoping that he would learn from his father Yang Kang’s mistakes and walk a righteous path. ↩

12. 字 (Zì). “Courtesy name.” A formal name given upon reaching adulthood (traditionally at age twenty for men), used by peers and in formal contexts in place of the given name. Yang Guo’s courtesy name, “Gaizhi” (改之), literally means “reform it” or “correct it.” ↩

13. 丈 – zhàng. Traditional Chinese unit of length, approximately 3.33 metres or 10.9 feet. ↩

14. 天突穴 (Tiāntū Xué). “Celestial Chimney” acupoint, located at the hollow of the throat. Seizing this point can immobilise an opponent’s entire body by blocking the flow of neili. ↩