The Heavenly Sword & the Dragon Sabre – Chapter 14 – Part 3

Jian Jie finished his mushrooms, patted his belly, and laughed. “That's a start. Now we can eat mutton.” His left hand seized the collar at the back of Yang Buhui's neck, and his right hand lifted the dao. Zhang Wuji, seeing that none of them showed the slightest ill effect after drinking the mushroom broth, concluded the mushrooms must be harmless after all, and could not help cursing his luck under his breath.

Jian Jie had taken only two steps when suddenly he cried out, “Aiya!” His body swayed several times, and he fell to the ground, letting go of Yang Buhui and the dao alike.

Xue Gongyuan cried in alarm, “Brother Jian, what’s wrong?” He ran over and bent down to look. The moment he stooped, he could not straighten up again, but collapsed on top of Jian Jie. The two Huashan School disciples following behind were struck by the poison not long after and perished as well.

Zhang Wuji cried aloud, “Heaven be thanked!” He rolled to the dao, seized it with a backward grip, and cut the ropes binding Yang Buhui’s hands. Yang Buhui, her hands still trembling, pierced Zhang Wuji’s palms in two places before she managed to cut his bonds. The two of them, snatched back from the jaws of death, were overcome with joy and threw their arms around each other.

After a time, Zhang Wuji went to look at the four of them. Each of their faces had turned black, their features twisted into hideous contortions. The sight of their deaths was terrible to behold. He thought, A poison that can kill wicked men can also save good ones. He tucked the volume of Wang Nangu’s Treatise on Poisons¹ carefully into his robe, resolved to study it thoroughly when the time came.

Zhang Wuji took Yang Buhui’s hand and led her out of the grove. They were about to find a path when suddenly they saw torches blazing to the east, and seven or eight men running towards them at speed, weapons in hand. The two hastily hid among the grass. As the party drew near, Zhang Wuji recognised the man at their head as Xu Da,² his left hand holding a torch aloft, his right gripping a long spear. Xu Da shouted at the top of his voice, “You conscienceless man-eating wretches, yield up your lives!”

The group rushed into the grove and saw Jian Jie, Xue Gongyuan and the other two lying dead on the spot. All of them were taken aback.

Xu Da called out, “Brother Zhang, are you unharmed? We’ve come to rescue you!”

Zhang Wuji cried, “Brother Xu, I’m here!” He ran out from the grass.

Xu Da was overjoyed. He swept the boy up in his arms and said, “Brother Zhang, a xia³ as righteous as you is rare enough among grown men, let alone children. I was afraid you’d already fallen into the clutches of those villains. Heaven be praised that good is rewarded with good and evil with evil. Retribution never fails.”

When they asked how Jian Jie and the others had been poisoned, Zhang Wuji told them about the mushroom broth. Everyone praised his quick wits.

Xu Da said, “These four were all good friends of mine. They slaughtered an ox and we were cooking it together at Huangjue Monastery.⁴ I only had to call for them and they came at once. But for Brother Zhang’s presence of mind, we’d have been too late even so.” He introduced Zhang Wuji to each of them in turn.

One had a broad face and large ears, and his name was Tang He.⁵ One was vigorous and spirited, named Deng Yu.⁶ One was dark-faced and tall, named Hua Yun.⁷ Two were fair-complexioned brothers, the elder Wu Liang and the younger Wu Zhen. Last came a monk of exceedingly ugly appearance. His chin jutted forward like an iron shovel, his face was pitted with scars and dark moles, his eyes sat deep in their sockets, and yet they burned with a sharp, vivid light.

Xu Da said, “This Brother Zhu is named Yuanzhang.⁸ He has taken the vows at Huangjue Monastery.”

Hua Yun laughed. “He’s a monk who likes his pleasures. He cares nothing for sutras or worship, but drinks wine and eats meat the whole day long.”

Yang Buhui, seeing Zhu Yuanzhang’s ghastly face, was frightened and hid behind Zhang Wuji.

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed. “A monk may eat meat, little sister, but he doesn’t eat people. Don’t be afraid.”

Tang He said, “That pot of beef we’re cooking ought to be done by now.”

“Let’s go quickly!” said Hua Yun. “Little sister, I’ll carry you.” He hoisted Yang Buhui onto his back and strode away at a great pace. Zhang Wuji, seeing the frank and cheerful dispositions of these men, felt his own spirits rise.

They walked four or five li⁹ and came to a temple. As they entered the main hall, the fragrance of roasting beef met them.

Wu Liang called out, “It’s done! It’s done!”

Xu Da said, “Brother Zhang, rest here awhile. We’ll bring out the beef.”

Zhang Wuji and Yang Buhui sat side by side on a prayer-cushion in the main hall. Zhu Yuanzhang, Xu Da, Tang He, Deng Yu and the rest bustled about, carrying out great basins and bowls of cooked beef. Wu Liang and Wu Zhen brought out a jar of white wine, and the whole company sat before the bodhisattvas, drinking and making merry. Zhang Wuji and Yang Buhui had not eaten for days, and now with beef in their bellies, their relief was beyond words.

Hua Yun said, “Brother Xu, our Order’s rules are all well and good, but forbidding meat is a bit much, don’t you think?”

Zhang Wuji’s heart gave a lurch. So they’re all of the Ming Order too. The customs of the Ming Order were to eat vegetables and worship the Demon King,¹⁰ yet here they were devouring beef.

Xu Da said, “The first principle of our Order’s rules is ‘practise goodness and put away evil’. Eating meat is not ideal, but that is a minor matter. With no rice and no vegetables to be had, are we to stare at a pot of cooked beef and starve to death with it still warm before us?”

Deng Yu clapped his hands and cried, “Brother Xu’s words are always the most sensible. Eat up, eat up!”

They were eating and drinking when suddenly footsteps sounded outside the door, followed by a knocking. Tang He leapt to his feet and cried, “Aiya! Zhang Yuanwai’s men have come looking for their ox!” The temple gate was pushed open, and two swaggering servants with chests thrust out and bellies pushed forward walked in.

One of them shouted, “Aha! The Zhang family’s big ox, so it was you thieves who ate it!” With that he seized Zhu Yuanzhang by the collar.

The other said, “You wretched monk, the stolen goods are plain as day. Where do you think you’re running to? Tomorrow we’ll drag you before the prefect and have you beaten to death.”

Zhu Yuanzhang laughed. “What nonsense is this? How dare you slander us for stealing Yuanwai’s ox? A monk eats vegetables and chants sutras. You accuse me of eating meat. What a sin you commit!”

The servant pointed at the basins of beef. “Is that not beef?”

Zhu Yuanzhang gave a sidelong glance and said with a smile, “Who says it’s beef?”

Wu Liang and Wu Zhen stepped behind the two servants. With a shout, they seized both men’s arms.

Zhu Yuanzhang drew a dagger from his waist and said, “Brothers, to tell the truth, what we’ve been eating is not beef but human flesh. Now that you’ve seen it, we’ll have to silence you both, lest the secret get out.” With a tearing sound, he slashed open one servant’s tunic at the chest, the blade’s point leaving a line of blood across his flesh. The servant was terrified and cried, “Spare… spare my life…”

Zhu Yuanzhang seized a handful of beef and stuffed it into both their mouths. “Swallow it!” They dared not even chew, but gulped it down.

Zhu Yuanzhang went to the kitchen and grabbed a great handful of ox hair. He forced it into both their mouths in turn. “Swallow it quickly!” The two men, faces contorted with misery, swallowed that too.

Zhu Yuanzhang smiled. “If you go and tell Yuanwai that we stole his ox, we’ll rip open your bellies and compare the contents. Let’s see who’s been eating beef, and who hasn’t even bothered to pluck the hair clean.” He turned the dagger over and drew the flat of the blade across the man’s belly. The servant felt the cold steel sliding over his stomach and screamed in terror.

The Wu brothers burst out laughing, seized another handful of ox hair, forced it into both men’s mouths and made them swallow it at once. Then they kicked the two servants rolling out of the hall.

The company fell to with a will, laughing and cursing the two servants for bringing their suffering on themselves. Those two had spent their days bullying the village folk on the strength of Zhang Yuanwai’s power, and now, terrified of having their bellies ripped open for inspection, they would surely dare not report the theft to their master.

Zhang Wuji found it at once amusing and admirable. He thought, This monk Zhu may be ugly as sin, but he acts with a clean, decisive swiftness. He pinned those men down so they couldn’t so much as twitch. His methods are formidable indeed.

Zhu Yuanzhang and the rest had already heard from Xu Da how Zhang Wuji had been willing to sacrifice his own life to save Yang Buhui. They all took a liking to him as a young xia of honourable character, and treated him not as an ordinary child but as a true friend, pressing wine and meat upon him.

When the drinking grew heated, Deng Yu sighed. “We Han people have been bullied by these barbarian slaves all our lives, swallowing one insult after another. Now things have come to such a pass that we can’t even get a mouthful of coarse rice. How are we to go on living like this?”

Hua Yun slapped his thigh and cried, “Half the people of Fengyang Prefecture are dead, I tell you. I reckon it’s the same everywhere under heaven. Rather than starve before our own eyes, we might as well fight the Tartars to the death.”

Xu Da said in a ringing voice, “Today a man’s life is worth less than a dog’s or a pig’s. These two little brother and sister were nearly turned into someone else’s dinner. Who knows how many good folk under heaven have been made into cattle and sheep? If a man cannot save others from the flood, his living is in vain.”

Tang He said, “Right. Today we were lucky enough to steal an ox and eat our fill. Tomorrow we may not be so fortunate. And yet across the realm, most decent men can barely feed and clothe themselves. Are we to tell all the heroes and brave men to turn thief?”

The more they spoke, the angrier they grew, cursing the Tartars for the harm they did.

Zhu Yuanzhang said, “We can stand here cursing a thousand curses, ten thousand curses. Will that pluck a single hair from the Tartars’ heads? Any man with a spine in him, go kill Tartars!”

Tang He, Deng Yu, Hua Yun, Wu Liang, Wu Zhen and the rest cried out together, “Let’s go! Let’s go!”

Xu Da said, “Brother Zhu, there’s no need for you to play monk any longer. You’re the eldest among us, and we all follow your lead.”

Zhu Yuanzhang did not demur. He said, “From this day on, we live and die together. We share our fortune and we share our peril.”

They all raised their bowls and drained them dry, then drew their daos and hacked the table to splinters, their spirits reaching to the clouds.

Yang Buhui watched the men, understanding nothing of what they said, and was afraid in her heart. But Zhang Wuji was thinking, Grand Shifu has time and again warned me never to associate with men of the Ming Order. Yet Brother Chang Yuchun and this Brother Xu are both of the Ming Order, and compared with the likes of Jian Jie and Xue Gongyuan, disciples of renowned and righteous schools, they are a hundred times the better men. He had always held Zhang Sanfeng¹¹ in the highest reverence. Yet from his own experience, he could not help feeling that his Grand Shifu harboured a prejudice against the Ming Order. Even so, he thought that Grand Shifu’s words were not to be disobeyed.

Zhu Yuanzhang said, “A true man does what he says without delay. We’ve eaten our fill, and the time is ripe for action. Zhang Yuanwai is feasting the Tartar soldiers today. We’ll go and drag them out first.”

Hua Yun said, “Excellent!” He rose, dao in hand.

Xu Da said, “Wait.” He went to the kitchen, took a basket, and filled it with fourteen or fifteen jin¹² of cooked beef. He handed it to Zhang Wuji and said, “Brother Zhang, you are still too young to join us in this business of killing officials and raising rebellion. We’re all as poor as church mice, without a single coin of silver on us. All we can give you is a few jin of beef. If fortune smiles on us and we survive, when we meet again, we’ll have a proper feast of beef together.”

Footnotes

1. 王难姑毒经 – Wáng Nàngū Dú Jīng. A treatise on poisons compiled by Wang Nangu, a toxicology expert of the Ming Order. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

2. 徐达 – Xú Dá. A military tactician of the Ming Order who later became one of the founding generals of the Ming Dynasty. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

3. 侠 – xiá. One who champions the weak and upholds right. Never rendered as ‘knight’ or ‘hero.’ See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

4. 皇觉寺 – Huángjué Sì. A Buddhist monastery near Haozhou, where Zhu Yuanzhang took his vows as a young man. ↩

5. 汤和 – Tāng Hé. A founding general of the Ming Dynasty and early follower of Zhu Yuanzhang. ↩

6. 邓愈 – Dèng Yù. A founding general of the Ming Dynasty, known for his bravery in battle. ↩

7. 花云 – Huā Yún. A founding general of the Ming Dynasty, celebrated for his martial prowess. ↩

8. 朱元璋 – Zhū Yuánzhāng. The future Hongwu Emperor, founder of the Ming Dynasty. At this time a young monk at Huangjue Monastery. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

9. 里 – lǐ. A Chinese unit of distance, approximately 500 metres or one-third of a mile. ↩

10. 明教 – Míng Jiào. The Ming Order, a revolutionary secret society with Manichaean and Zoroastrian roots. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

11. 张三丰 – Zhāng Sānfēng. Founder of the Wudang Order and Zhang Wuji’s Grand Shifu. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

12. 斤 – jīn. A Chinese unit of weight, approximately 590 grams in the Ming Dynasty. Fourteen or fifteen jin is roughly eighteen to twenty English pounds. ↩