The Return of the Condor Heroes Chapter 21 – Part 2

With Guo Jing’s profound neili pressing against his dantian, Yang Guo could not utter a sound. Worried sick about Xiaolongnü’s safety, his face flushed crimson with desperation. He struggled frantically, but with his dantian pinned down, his entire body was immobilised. He could not move at all.

Slowly, Guo Jing said, “Guoer, you have been training too intensely. As the saying goes, haste makes waste.¹ Stop thrashing about. I will help you guide your qi back to its source.” Yang Guo froze, not understanding what he meant. Then he felt a warm current gradually flow from Guo Jing’s palm into his dantian, indescribably comfortable and soothing. He heard Guo Jing continue: “Exhale slowly. Let this warmth travel from the Shuifen acupoint to Jianli, pass through Juque and Jiuwei, then reach Yutang and Huagai.² First, open the Conception Vessel. Do not worry about the other meridians for now.”

Hearing these words, and feeling Guo Jing using his neili to help open his meridians, Yang Guo understood nine-tenths of what was happening. He thought, Shame on me! He only thinks I have suffered a qi deviation, that I have lost control of myself. He secretly circulated his neili, deliberately sending it surging wildly in all directions, crashing and colliding as if beyond restraint. Concerned, Guo Jing increased the force from his palm, gathering Yang Guo’s rampaging qi into a single channel. Yang Guo, determined to make the act convincing, pushed his acting further. By now, his neili cultivation was far from shallow. With his qi rampaging through his body, Guo Jing had considerable difficulty subduing it. It took a full half a shichen³ before he finally guided all the renegade energy back into proper flow.

By the end of this ordeal, Yang Guo was utterly drained, and Guo Jing was deeply fatigued as well. The two sat meditating together until dawn before they recovered. Guo Jing smiled faintly. “Guoer, are you all right now? I never imagined your neili had reached such a level. I nearly could not manage it.” Yang Guo knew that to save him, Guo Jing had not hesitated to expend enormous reserves of his own power. Deeply moved, he said, “Thank you for saving me, Uncle Guo. Last night, your nephew nearly crippled all four of his limbs.”

Guo Jing thought, In your delirium last night, you tried to stab me. It is fortunate you do not remember, otherwise, how ashamed you would be. Fearing Yang Guo would be mortified if he learned the truth, Guo Jing changed the subject. “Come with me outside the city. Let us inspect the defences on all four sides.” Yang Guo answered, “Yes!”

Each mounted a warhorse, and they rode out of the city side by side. Guo Jing said, “Guoer, the Quanzhen Order’s inner arts are the orthodox foundation of all inner energy cultivation. Though progress is slow, it never goes astray. You may dabble in the martial arts of every school and sect, but for neili, it is best to focus on the Daoist path. Once the enemy retreats, we shall study it together in earnest.” Yang Guo said, “Last night’s incident, please do not breathe a word to Auntie Guo. If she finds out, she will laugh at me. She will say I learned crooked arts from Gugu and made Uncle Guo suffer for it.” Guo Jing said, “Of course I will not speak of it. In truth, Miss Long’s arts are not crooked at all. The problem was your own wandering thoughts, you failed to clear your mind and focus on the one.” Yang Guo knew that if Huang Rong ever learned of this, she would instantly see through the deception. Relieved that Guo Jing had agreed to keep silent, his heart settled.

The two men rode west of the city and came upon a small stream flowing out from the foothills. Guo Jing said, “This stream may be small, but it is immensely famous. It is called the Tan Stream.”⁴ Yang Guo exclaimed, “Ah! I have heard the tales of the Three Kingdoms, how Imperial Uncle Liu leaped across the Tan Stream on horseback. So this is where it happened.”⁵ Guo Jing said, “The horse Liu Bei rode that day was called Dilu. Horse-tamers said it would bring misfortune to its master. Who could have known that this very Dilu would leap across the stream, escaping the pursuing soldiers and saving Imperial Uncle Liu’s life?” At this point, he could not help thinking of Yang Guo’s father, Yang Kang. With a heavy sigh, he said, “In truth, all people in this world are like that horse Dilu. Do good, and you become good. Do evil, and you become evil. Good men and bad men, is there really any fixed distinction? The difference lies only in the turning of a single thought.”

Yang Guo’s heart jolted. He glanced sideways at Guo Jing and saw a deeply sorrowful expression on his face. Clearly, these were not words meant to mock him. He thought, What you say may be true, but what is good? What is evil? You and your wife secretly murdered my father, is that good? Such grand-sounding words. Shameless beyond belief. He admired Guo Jing in every respect, but whenever he thought of how his father had died at the hands of this couple, vicious thoughts could not help but surge through his chest.

The two rode on for a while, arriving at the summit of a small hill. They gazed into the distance from the cliff’s edge. The Han River flowed southward in mighty torrents. The countryside in all four directions was thick with refugees, men, women, and children, flooding toward Xiangyang. Guo Jing pointed his riding crop at the stream of humanity and said, “The Mongol troops must be intensifying their slaughter in the villages, driving our people from their homes. It is truly hateful.” Looking across the Han River toward the city of Fancheng on the opposite bank, he saw that it remained, for the moment, peaceful and undisturbed.

From the hill, they could see a stone tablet beside the road below. Carved upon it in large characters was a line of text: “Former Residence of Du Fu, Minister of Works of the Tang.”⁶ Yang Guo said, “Xiangyang is truly remarkable. So this great poet’s hometown is right here.”

Guo Jing raised his riding crop and chanted:

“Great city harder than iron, small city towering beyond measure… Clouds line the battlements, not even birds can fly over. When the barbarians come, we need only defend, why worry about the western capital?… Through hardship, raise the long halberd, through all the ages, one man holds the pass.”⁷

Yang Guo, hearing the passionate fervour in his recitation, followed along: “When the barbarians come, we need only defend, why worry about the western capital? Through hardship, raise the long halberd, through all the ages, one man holds the pass. Uncle Guo, those lines are wonderful. Did Du Fu write them?” Guo Jing said, “Yes. A few days ago, your Auntie Guo and I were discussing the defence of Xiangyang, and she thought of this poem by Du Fu. She wrote it out for me. I love this poem, but my memory is poor. I have read it dozens of times and can only remember these few lines. Think about it, every educated man in China can compose poetry, yet through all the ages, Du Fu alone is acclaimed as the greatest. It is surely because his heart was filled with love for his country and his people.” Yang Guo said, “You said, ‘For country and for people, that is the mark of a true hero.’⁸ So although the civil and military paths are different, the principle is the same.” Guo Jing was delighted that Yang Guo had grasped this point. “I do not understand the classics or essays at all,” he said. “But I believe that in this life, even if you are just a peddler or a foot soldier, as long as you have a heart that serves your country and your people, you are a true man, a genuine hero.”

Yang Guo asked, “Uncle Guo, do you think Xiangyang can hold?” Guo Jing was silent for a long time. He pointed to the lush, verdant hills and woods to the west and said, “The most remarkable figure in Xiangyang’s history, ancient or modern, is surely Zhuge Liang.⁹ Twenty li west of here lies Longzhong, where he once farmed and lived in seclusion. Zhuge Liang’s genius in governing the nation and bringing peace to the people, a simple man like me cannot grasp it. He once said he only knew to ‘serve with utmost devotion until the last breath, and only in death shall his duty end.’¹⁰ As for ultimate success or failure, even he could not see that far. When your Auntie Guo and I discuss whether Xiangyang can hold or not, in the end, we always come back to those same eight words: ‘Serve with utmost devotion until the last breath.’”

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Even as they spoke, they suddenly saw the refugees at the city gate turn and flee backward. But the human tide behind them continued surging forward. In an instant, wails and shrieks filled the air outside Xiangyang, utter chaos. Guo Jing was alarmed. “Why are the gate guards not opening the gates to let the people in?” He spurred his horse and galloped forward, riding at full speed until he reached the city outskirts. There, he saw a line of guards with bows drawn, arrows aimed at the refugees. Guo Jing roared, “What are you doing? Open the gates!” The guard commander, seeing it was Guo Jing, hurriedly opened the gates and let him and Yang Guo enter. Guo Jing demanded, “These people are suffering slaughter at the hands of the Mongol soldiers. Why do you not let them in?” The commander said, “Grand Commandant Lü says there may be Mongol spies among the refugees. Under no circumstances can we let them in. The consequences would be severe.”

Guo Jing bellowed, “Even if there are one or two spies, how can you doom thousands of innocent people because of it? Open the gates, now!” Guo Jing had long defended the city and had repeatedly performed extraordinary deeds. His authority was well established. Though he held no official rank, the guards dared not disobey his orders. They opened the gates, while sending a messenger at top speed to report to the Pacification Commissioner, Lü Wenhuan.¹¹

The common people poured into the city, supporting the elderly and carrying the young. Just as the last of them were entering, a great cloud of dust rose in the distance. The Mongol army was attacking from the north. The Song soldiers scattered and took cover behind the battlements to defend. Below the city walls, at the front of the enemy force, came a large crowd of people in tattered clothes, clutching clubs and sticks, not a single real weapon among them. In ragged, disorderly ranks, they shouted in unison, “Do not shoot from the walls! We are all subjects of the Great Song!” Behind these commoners, however, lurked the elite Mongol cavalry in their iron armour.

Ever since the days of Genghis Khan, the Mongol army had always driven the enemy’s civilians ahead of them when attacking a city. If the defenders hesitated to shoot, the Mongol troops would follow right behind. This tactic slaughtered the enemy’s people while shaking the defenders’ morale, striking two targets with one blow. Brutal, vicious, and often devastatingly effective. Guo Jing had spent years in the Mongol military and knew this tactic intimately. Yet for all his knowledge, he could think of no good way to counter it. He watched as the Mongol elite troops, spears and sabres in hand, drove the Song civilians toward the city walls. The people pressed closer and closer. The first among them had already begun climbing the scaling ladders.

Lü Wenhuan, the Pacification Commissioner of Xiangyang, rode a grey horse as he inspected the four walls. Seeing the dire situation, he gave the order: “Defending the city comes first! Loose arrows!” The soldiers released a rain of arrows. Amid shrieks of agony, the civilians fell, pierced through. Those still alive turned and fled. A Mongol blade took off a head. A Mongol spear punched through a body. The soldiers herded the people back toward the city.

Yang Guo stood beside Guo Jing, watching this atrocity. Fury choked his throat. He heard Lü Wenhuan shout, “Loose!” He another volley of feathered arrows shot downward. Guo Jing roared, “You cannot do this! Do not kill the innocent by mistake!” Lü Wenhuan said, “In such a crisis, even if they are innocent, we have no choice but to kill them by mistake.” Guo Jing shouted, “No! How can the innocent be killed by mistake?”

Footnotes

1. 欲速则不达 – Haste makes waste. Classical Chinese saying from the Analects of Confucius, meaning that rushing leads to failure. ↩

2. 任脉 – Rèn Mài. Conception Vessel, one of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians in neigong practice. ↩

3. 时辰 – shíchen. Traditional Chinese double hour; one twelfth of a day, equal to two modern hours. ↩

4. 檀溪 – Tán Xī. Stream near Xiangyang, famous from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Liu Bei’s horse Dilu made its legendary leap across this stream to escape Cai Mao’s pursuing soldiers. ↩

5. 刘皇叔 – Imperial Uncle Liu. Liú Bèi (刘备), founder of the Shu Han kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period. He was referred to as “Imperial Uncle” because he claimed descent from the Han imperial line. ↩

6. Du Fu (杜甫). One of China’s greatest poets, of the Tang dynasty. His poem “Song of the Eight Immortal Drinkers” celebrates eight famous drinkers, including Zhang Xu. ↩

7. Du Fu’s “Tongguan Pass” poem. These lines are from Du Fu’s poem about defending the Tongguan Pass against the An Lushan rebels. Guo Jing sees parallels between that defence and the defence of Xiangyang. Lines describe fortifications so formidable that a single man could hold the pass against an army. ↩

8. 为国为民，侠之大者 – “Serve the country, serve the people — this is what makes a true hero”. Wèi Guó Wèi Mín, Xiá zhī Dà Zhě. This is the single most famous line in the entire Condor Heroes trilogy and perhaps in all of Jin Yong’s work. It crystallises the novel’s moral philosophy: true heroism is not measured by martial prowess or personal vengeance, but by selfless devotion to one’s country and people. Chapter title “侠之大者” (What Makes a True Hero) derives directly from this line. It marks the pivotal moral turning point for Yang Guo and is the thematic heart of the entire novel. ↩

9. 诸葛亮 – Zhūgě Liàng. (181–234 CE) Legendary prime minister and military strategist of the Shu Han kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period. ↩

10. 鞠躬尽瘁，死而后已 – Jūgōng Jìncuì, Sǐ Ér Hòu Yǐ. Zhuge Liang’s most famous phrase, from his “Second Memorial on Sending Out the Troops.” It expresses the ideal of serving one’s cause with total commitment, regardless of outcome. ↩

11. 安抚使 – Pacification Commissioner. Ānfǔ Shǐ. High-ranking military-civil administrative post in the Song Dynasty, responsible for the defence and governance of a region. Lü Wenhuan historically defended Xiangyang for six years before surrendering to the Mongols in 1273. ↩