The Heavenly Sword & the Dragon Sabre – Chapter 15 – Part 3

In every wealthy household, the year's end brought a doubled measure of bustle and cheer. The servants scrubbed walls and repainted doors, slaughtered pigs and sheep, ground flour for cakes, and cut paper red diamonds for the doorframes, all in a tremendous flurry of excitement. Zhang Wuji helped Qiaofu with odd jobs, wishing only that the first day of the new year would arrive quickly. He told himself that once he had kowtowed his New Year greetings to the master, the mistress, and the young miss, he would surely see the young miss once more. One last look, and then he would slip away into the deep mountains and find some place to die in peace, rather than spend his days trailing after Qiaofu and that pack of witless hirelings.

At last, amid the crackle of firecrackers, the first day of the year arrived. Zhang Wuji followed Qiaofu into the main hall to offer greetings to the household. In the centre of the hall sat a middle-aged couple of refined appearance, while some seventy or eighty servants knelt upon the floor. The couple beamed and said, “You have all worked hard this year!” Two stewards standing nearby began distributing reward silver. Zhang Wuji received two liang¹ of his own.

He did not see the young miss. Disappointment weighed on him heavily. He stood holding the ingot of silver, lost in a daze, when suddenly a sweet, soft voice drifted in from outside:

“Cousin, you have come early again this year.”

It was Zhu Jiuzhen’s voice. Zhang Wuji felt heat rush to his face. His heart nearly leapt from his chest, and his palms were slick with sweat. He had waited two entire months to hear Zhu Jiuzhen’s voice again. How could it not overwhelm him?

A young man’s voice laughed in reply, “Would I dare to be late for New Year greetings to my uncle and aunt?” Another woman’s voice joined in, laughing, “Shige came rushing over so early. One wonders whether it is to greet our two honoured elders, or to greet a certain cousin.” As they spoke, three figures entered the hall. The servants scattered to make way, but Zhang Wuji stood as though bereft of soul, rooted to the spot. Only when Qiaofu tugged hard at his arm did he stumble aside.

Of the three who entered, the one in the middle was a young man. Zhu Jiuzhen walked on his left, dressed in a scarlet sable-lined coat that set off the delicate beauty of her face beyond any power of description. On the young man’s other side walked another young woman. From the moment Zhu Jiuzhen entered the hall, Zhang Wuji’s eyes never left her face for a single instant. He did not see whether the other two were handsome or plain, whether they wore red or green. How they kowtowed to the master and mistress, what pleasantries were exchanged between host and guests, he neither saw nor heard. His eyes beheld Zhu Jiuzhen and Zhu Jiuzhen alone. In truth he was still young, and his understanding of love was half-formed. Yet in every person’s life, that first awakening to beauty and the longing for a fair maiden brings a kind of rapture that turns the mind to stone. It was not Zhang Wuji alone whom this befell. And Zhu Jiuzhen was dazzling in her beauty. He had met her in the midst of hardship and desperation, and her loveliness had seized him past all resistance. To steal one glance at her, to hear a single word from her lips, was joy enough to fill him utterly.

The master and mistress exchanged pleasantries with the three young people for a while. Then Zhu Jiuzhen said, “Father, Mother, I am going off with Cousin and Qing-meimei to play!” Her voice carried a child’s wheedling lilt. The master and mistress smiled and nodded. The mistress Zhu said, “Zhen’er, look after your Wu family meimei well. The three of you must not quarrel on the first day of the year.” Zhu Jiuzhen laughed, “Mother, why do you not tell Cousin he is not allowed to bully me?” The three young people walked off towards the rear courtyard, talking and laughing. Zhang Wuji followed after them at a distance, drawn by a force he could not resist. That day the servants were at leisure, some playing games and some gambling. No one paid him any heed. Only now did Zhang Wuji take proper measure of the young man: he was handsome, tall and slender, and despite the bitter cold wore nothing more than a thin pale-yellow satin robe, which spoke plainly of considerable skill in neigong.² The young woman wore a black sable-lined coat. Her figure was willowy, her manner refined and graceful. Her features were delicate and pretty, and by the standards of the world she might stand as Zhu Jiuzhen’s equal. But in Zhang Wuji’s eyes, she fell far short of the peerless beauty his heart had made of the young miss. Both girls were seventeen or eighteen. The young man seemed a little older.

The three chatted and laughed as they walked. The young woman said, “Zhen-jie, your One Yang Finger³ has deepened another layer, hasn’t it? Show your meimei a taste of it, won’t you, so I may widen my eyes in wonder?” Zhu Jiuzhen said, “Oh, you are making sport of me! I could practise for ten more years and still not match a single stroke of your family’s Orchid Acupoint-tracing Hand.”⁴ The young man laughed, “Neither of you need be modest. The Snow Ridge Twin Beauties⁵ are equally renowned and equally formidable.” Zhu Jiuzhen said, “I muddle through on my own at home. How can that compare with the two of you, shixiong and shimei, comparing notes and pressing each other forward? You spar today and practise tomorrow. Are you not advancing a thousand li in a single day?” The young woman, sensing a tang of jealousy in her words, pressed her lips together in a smile, gave no answer, and let the admission stand by silence.

The young man, as though afraid of giving offence, said hastily, “That is not so certain. You have two shifu to teach you, your uncle and aunt together. Are they not stronger still than the rest of us?” Zhu Jiuzhen retorted, “Your we and our? Hmph. Your shimei is naturally dearer to you than your cousin. I was only teasing Qing-meimei, and you keep taking her side.” She turned her head away and would not look at him. The young man said with an apoloatic smile, “Cousin is dear and shimei is dear too. Both of my meimei are equally dear, without distinction. Cousin, will you take me to see your gatekeeping generals? I am sure the generals have grown ever more fierce under your training.”

Zhu Jiuzhen brightened. “Very well!” She led them straight to the mastiff kennels.

Zhang Wuji followed far behind. He could see the three talking and laughing, but could not make out their words, and found himself drawn, without willing it, into the dog yard as well.

Zhu Jiuzhen was a descendant of Zhu Ziliu.⁶ The young woman surnamed Wu was called Wu Qingying, a descendant of Wu Santong,⁷ of the line of Wu Xiuwen.⁸ Wu Santong and Zhu Ziliu were both disciples of Great Master Yideng,⁹ and their martial arts had originally been of one school. But a hundred-odd years had passed, and through several generations each family’s teachings had grown and changed. The brothers Wu Dunru and Wu Xiuwen had studied under Guo Jing the daxia.¹⁰ Though they too had learned the One Yang Finger, their martial arts leaned towards the hard and forceful tradition of Hong Qigong,¹¹ the Nine-Fingered Divine Beggar. The young man, Wei Bi, was Zhu Jiuzhen’s cousin and a disciple of Wu Qingying’s father. He was handsome in face and gentle in temper, and both Zhu Jiuzhen and Wu Qingying had given him their secret hearts.

The two young women were of an age, both beautiful, each with her own distinctive charm, spring orchid and autumn chrysanthemum, and their family martial arts were closely matched. The wulin men of the Kunlun region had given them a joint title: the Snow Ridge Twin Beauties. In secret they had long been rivals. Fate, however, willed that Wei Bi found it as hard to choose between bear-paw and fish, and so whenever the three appeared together, the surface courtesy held, while the two girls fenced with sharp tongues, neither yielding an inch. Wu Qingying had the quieter manner, but she held the advantage: she and Wei Bi trained under the same shifu and met face to face every day, whereas Zhu Jiuzhen saw him only on visits.

Zhu Jiuzhen ordered the dog-servants to release the fierce hounds. The dogs obeyed every command without the least deviation. Wei Bi praised them without ceasing, and Zhu Jiuzhen was greatly pleased. Wu Qingying pressed her lips together and said, “Shige, will your title be Champion General or Cavalry General one day?” Wei Bi started. “What do you mean?” Wu Qingying said, “You are so obedient to Zhen-jie. Will she not reward you with the title of Champion General, or Cavalry General, or something of the sort? Only you must beware her whip.”

Wei Bi’s handsome face flushed crimson, and a flicker of anger crossed his brow. He spat, “Nonsense! Are you calling me a dog?” Wu Qingying smiled. “The generals wait in constant attendance upon a beauty’s dressing-table, wagging their tails and begging for scraps. They enjoy no small blessing, I should say.” Zhu Jiuzhen said coolly, “If he is a dog, then what is his shimei, I wonder?”

Zhang Wuji, listening, could not suppress a laugh. But at once he realised his indiscretion and hurriedly covered his mouth and turned away.

Wu Qingying, seething with anger but unwilling to confront Zhu Jiuzhen directly, said, “Zhen-jie, your household’s servants are remarkably well-bred. We are having a private conversation, and these low-born creatures have the effrontery to eavesdrop and even laugh aloud. Shige, I am going home.” Zhu Jiuzhen suddenly remembered that this very urchin had killed her Left General with a single palm strike, and that his palm-force had been far from weak. She said with a smile, “Qing-meimei, do not be angry, and do not look down on this servant. Your family’s martial arts are lofty enough, but if you can bring this low-born fellow down within three moves, I shall truly acknowledge your skill.”

Wu Qingying said, “Hmph. Is one such as him even worth my trouble? Zhen-jie, you must not think so poorly of me.”

Zhang Wuji could contain himself no longer and said loudly, “Miss Wu, you talk amongst yourselves. I did not presume to interrupt. Must I have your permission even to listen and to laugh?”

Wu Qingying would not so much as glance at him, but turned to Wei Bi and said, “Shige, you let this servant taunt me and will not take my side.”

Wei Bi, confronted with her soft, plaintive manner, felt his heart melt at once. In truth he had never ranked one of the Snow Ridge Twin Beauties above the other, but he knew his shifu’s martial arts were unfathomably deep, and he himself had been taught no more than a tenth or a twentieth of them. If he wished to learn the highest arts, he must win his shimei’s favour. He said to Zhu Jiuzhen with a smile, “Cousin, this servant’s martial arts are not half bad, are they? Shall I put him to the test?”

Zhu Jiuzhen knew he meant to help her shimei, but reflected, This Zhang urchin is of unknown origin. If my cousin can force him to reveal his roots, so much the better. She said, “Very well. Let him have a taste of your family’s arts. That could not be better. As for him, even I do not know which school’s disciple he is.” Wei Bi said in surprise, “The martial arts this servant knows are not from your household?” Zhu Jiuzhen turned to Zhang Wuji. “Tell the young master who your shifu is, and which school you belong to.”

Zhang Wuji thought to himself, You hold me in such contempt. How can I speak of my parents’ schools and bring shame on Grand Shifu and my dead father and mother? Besides, I have never truly trained in the Wudang Order’s arts. He said, “I lost both my parents when I was very small. I have wandered the jianghu¹² since then, and learned no real martial arts. Only when I was little did my father teach me a few things.” Zhu Jiuzhen asked, “What was your father’s name? Which school was he of?” Zhang Wuji shook his head. “I cannot say.”

Wei Bi laughed. “With the three of us watching, can we not see through him?” He walked slowly into the centre of the yard and said, “Boy, come and take three moves from me.” He turned and gave Wu Qingying a look that said plainly: Shimei, do not be angry. I shall give this brat a sound thrashing for you.

Men and women caught in love’s net attend to every word, every gesture, every shift of expression on the face of the one they cherish. The meaning of Wei Bi’s glance fell entirely into Zhu Jiuzhen’s eyes. Seeing that Zhang Wuji would not step forward, she beckoned him over and whispered in his ear, “My cousin’s martial arts are very strong. Do not think of beating him. Simply withstand three moves and you will have saved my face.” She patted his shoulder in encouragement.

Footnotes

1. 两 – liǎng. A unit of weight, approximately one-sixteenth of a jin, and the standard measure for silver. ↩

2. 内功 – nèigōng. Internal cultivation; the training of one’s inner force, as distinct from external techniques. ↩

3. 一阳指 – Yīyáng Zhǐ. Literally One Yang Finger. The Dali Duan family’s signature finger technique, combining Buddhist principles with devastating striking power. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

4. 兰花拂穴手 – Lánhuā Fú Xuè Shǒu. Literally Orchid Brushing Acupoints Hand. A technique from Peach Blossom Island, emphasising speed, precision, and grace, with the fingers shaped like an orchid flower. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

5. 雪岭双姝 – Xuělǐng Shuāngshū. Literally Twin Beauties of the Snow Ridge. The title given to Zhu Jiuzhen and Wu Qingying by the wulin of the Kunlun region. ↩

6. 朱子柳 – Zhū Zǐliǔ. A disciple of Great Master Yideng of the Southern Emperor, and an ancestor of Zhu Jiuzhen’s line. ↩

7. 武三通 – Wǔ Sāntōng. A disciple of Great Master Yideng, and an ancestor of Wu Qingying’s line. ↩

8. 武修文 – Wǔ Xiūwén. Younger brother of Wu Dunru, both sons of Wu Santong. They studied under Guo Jing. ↩

9. 一灯大师 – Yīdēng Dàshī. Literally Lamp of Unity, Great Master. ↩

10. 郭靖 – Guō Jìng. His name meaning “Guo Jing”. ↩

11. 洪七公 – Hóng Qīgōng. His name meaning “Hong Qigong”. ↩

12. 江湖 – jiānghú. Literally rivers and lakes. The martial circuit, the world of martial artists and wanderers beyond ordinary society. ↩