The Heavenly Sword & the Dragon Sabre – Chapter 28 – Part 8

Zhao Min's fingers tightened suddenly around Zhang Wuji's palm. Her eyes fixed on him, and in their gaze appeared a mixture of mockery and resentment, as though she meant to say: “You have deceived me well! So this girl knew you first, and between you there has been all this tangle of affairs.” Zhang Wuji's face flushed. He thought of Zhu'er's¹ strange affection for him, and his heart was both sweet and sore.

Suddenly Zhao Min seized Zhang Wuji’s hand and raised it to her mouth. She bit hard into the back of his hand. Blood spurted at once from the wound. The Nine Yang Divine Skill² within him stirred of its own accord and sent a pulse of resistance through his flesh. The recoil broke the corner of Zhao Min’s lips, and blood trickled from them too. But both of them held back their cries. Zhang Wuji looked at Zhao Min, wondering why she had bitten him so suddenly. Yet her eyes were brimming with laughter, soft with tenderness, on the verge of overflowing. From behind her yellow painted face and false beard, Zhang Wuji saw in his heart her radiant beauty.

Xie Xun said, “Very well then, Lady Han!³ It was only because I worried for my poor orphaned Wuji that I crossed ten thousand li⁴ from Ice Fire Island⁵ back to the Central Plains.⁶ You promised to seek out Wuji for me. Why have you broken your word?” Tears rolled in Zhang Wuji’s eyes. Only now did he understand that his sworn father,⁷ knowing his enemies dotted every corner of the land, had returned to the Central Plains and courted danger all for his sake.

Jinhua Popo said, “We agreed on this that day. I would seek out Zhang Wuji for you, and you would lend me the Dragon-Slaying Dao.⁸ Third Brother Xie,⁹ you lend me the dao, and this old woman’s word stands like a mountain. I ought to bring you certain news of the young man.” Xie Xun shook his head. “Bring Wuji to me first, and naturally I will lend you the dao.” Jinhua Popo said coldly, “You do not trust me, then?” Xie Xun said, “The affairs of this world are hard to speak of with certainty. Even those as close as father and son, or brothers, have their moments of distrust.”

Zhang Wuji knew he was thinking of Cheng Kun’s¹⁰ past, and a fresh wave of sorrow passed through his heart.

Jinhua Popo said, “Then you are determined not to lend me the dao first?” Xie Xun said, “I let Chen Youliang of the Beggars’ Guild¹¹ go free down the mountain. From this moment Spirit Snake Island¹² will know no peace. Who knows how many enemies in the wulin¹³ will come to trouble me? The Golden Haired Lion King is not what he once was. Apart from this Dragon-Slaying Dao, I have nothing left to rely on. Heh, heh…” He gave several cold laughs and said, “Lady Han, just now those five men attacked me together. Even that hero from the Jujing Guild¹⁴ knew to hold seven pebbles in his hand. Can you say you harboured no thought of harming me? You hoped I would die at the Beggars’ Guild’s hands, and then you would come to pick up the spoils. Xie Xun’s eyes are blind, but his heart is not. Lady Han, let me ask you another thing. My coming to your Spirit Snake Island was a matter of the deepest secrecy. How is it that the Beggars’ Guild came to know of it?” Jinhua Popo said, “I was just about to investigate the matter thoroughly.”

Xie Xun flicked the Dragon-Slaying Dao with his finger, then slipped it beneath his robe. “If you will not seek out Wuji for me, I can only leave it to you. Xie Xun has no choice but to re-enter the jianghu¹⁵ and raise chaos once more.” With that he threw back his head and gave a long, clear cry. He leapt into the air and went down the western slope. His steps were swift and sure, heading straight for a peak in the north of the island.

At the summit of that peak stood a lone thatched cottage. He must live there.

Jinhua Popo waited until Xie Xun was far away, then turned and glared at Zhang Wuji and Zhao Min. “Begone!” she snapped.

Zhao Min took Zhang Wuji’s hand and at once led him down the mountain and back to the boat. “I want to go to my sworn father,” Zhang Wuji said. “When your sworn father left,” Zhao Min said, “did you not see the murderous light in Jinhua Popo’s eyes?” “I am not afraid of her,” Zhang Wuji said. “I think this island conceals many strange secrets. Why have the Beggars’ Guild come to Spirit Snake Island? How did Jinhua Popo learn where your sworn father was? How could she have found Ice Fire Island? There is much in this that I cannot understand. You could kill Jinhua Popo with a single palm-stroke, it is true. But then nothing would be explained.” “I do not wish to kill Jinhua Popo either,” Zhang Wuji said. “But my sworn father has missed me bitterly. I must go to him at once.”

Zhao Min shook her head. “You have been apart for ten years. Another day or two will not matter. Young Master Zhang,¹⁶ let me tell you this. We must certainly guard against Jinhua Popo, but we must guard against Chen Youliang too.” “Chen Youliang?” Zhang Wuji said. “The man values loyalty highly. He is a true hero.” “Do you truly think so? You are not deceiving me?” “Deceiving you about what?” Zhang Wuji asked in surprise. “Chen Youliang was willing to die in Elder Zheng’s place. That is rare indeed.”

Zhao Min’s bright eyes fixed on him. She sighed. “Young Master Zhang, Young Master Zhang, you are the Order Leader of the Ming Order.¹⁷ You must command so many wild and unruly heroes and brave men, and carry out so many great enterprises. If you are so easily deceived, how will you manage?” “Deceived?” Zhang Wuji asked in surprise. “Chen Youliang plainly deceived Xie daxia.¹⁸ Your own eyes saw it clearly. How can you not see it?” Zhang Wuji leapt up, his heart stirring with indignation. “He deceived my sworn father?”

Zhao Min said, “At that time Xie daxia swept the Dragon-Slaying Dao in a single stroke. Four of the Beggars’ Guild’s finest were killed and one wounded. However skilled Chen Youliang might be, he could not necessarily have escaped the dao’s edge. Faced with such a moment, a man must either throw himself forward to his death or kneel and beg for mercy. But consider this. Xie daxia did not wish his whereabouts to become known. Chen Youliang might have kowtowed three hundred more times, and still not have moved Xie daxia to pity. Apart from pretending to be a loyal and righteous man, what better course was open to him?” As she spoke, she spread a layer of ointment over the wound on the back of Zhang Wuji’s hand and bound it with her own handkerchief.

Zhang Wuji listened to her explanation of Chen Youliang’s situation. It fitted every detail. Yet when he recalled Chen Youliang’s impassioned speech, there had not been the slightest hint of falsehood in his tone. He remained half believing, half doubting. Zhao Min went on, “Very well, let me ask you another thing. When Chen Youliang spoke those words to Xie daxia, what were his hands doing? What were his feet doing?”

Zhang Wuji had been listening to Chen Youliang speak, looking now at his face, now at his sworn father’s expression. He had not paid attention to Chen Youliang’s hands and feet. But in truth he had taken in the man’s whole posture, and even if no one else had mentioned it, he would not have thought of it again. Now, hearing Zhao Min’s question, the scene came back to him. “Yes. Chen Youliang’s right hand was raised slightly, his left hand swept across. That was the move ‘Lion Seizes the Rabbit’.¹⁹ And his feet? Yes, that was the ‘Demon-Subduing Kick the Dipper Stance’.²⁰ Both are the Shaolin Order’s²¹ fist techniques, but they are nothing extraordinary. Could it be that while pretending to plead with my sworn father, he was actually attempting a surprise attack? That cannot be right. Those two moves would not work.”

Zhao Min scoffed. “Young Master Zhang, you truly understand too little of the world’s wicked hearts. However skilled Chen Youliang might be, how could a surprise attack on Xie daxia have succeeded? The man is clever and alert, a first-rate talent. He would have known his own limits. If his pretence of deep loyalty and righteousness had been seen through by Xie daxia, who would not have spared his life, then given the position where he stood at that moment, who was that ‘Demon-Subduing Kick the Dipper Stance’ kicking at? Who was that ‘Lion Seizes the Rabbit’ seizing?”

Zhang Wuji had been disposed to think the best of everyone, and so had not given Chen Youliang’s stratagem deeper thought. At Zhao Min’s prompting, a flash went through his mind, and a cold sweat broke out on his back. He said in a trembling voice, “He… he was kicking at Elder Zheng, who lay on the ground. His hand was reaching for Miss Yin.”

Zhao Min gave a radiant smile. “Exactly! He kicked Elder Zheng flying towards Xie daxia, then seized Miss Yin, she who has been your childhood sweetheart and with whom you shared the biting-hand oath, and pushed her towards Xie daxia too. That brief delay would give him a chance, and perhaps he might escape with his life. Although Xie daxia’s divine skill is unmatched and he holds a treasured dao in his hand, so that such a scheme might not succeed, there was no other way open to him. If I had been in his place, I could only have done the same. I have been trying to think of another plan, but even now I cannot devise a better one. That the man could contrive such a scheme in an instant, he is truly a remarkable person!” As she spoke, she could not help praising him again and again.

The more Zhang Wuji thought about it, the colder his heart grew. The world’s hearts were treacherous and deceitful. He had experienced enough of that since childhood, but seldom had he met one as formidable as Chen Youliang. After a moment he said, “Miss Zhao, you saw through his scheme at a glance. You are more remarkable than he is.”

Zhao Min’s face fell. “Are you mocking me? Let me tell you, if you fear my wicked heart, you had best avoid me from a great distance.” Zhang Wuji laughed. “There is no need for that. You have already used many tricks on me. I shall be on my guard against you in all things.” Zhao Min gave a faint smile. “Can you guard against me? How is it that you did not even know I had put medicine on the wound on the back of your hand?”

Zhang Wuji started in alarm. Indeed he felt a slight numbness and itching in the wound. He tore off the handkerchief at once and held the back of his hand to his nose. “Aiya!” he cried. He knew it was Flesh-Rotting Ointment²² that had been applied, a corrosive salve used in external medicine to dissolve dead flesh. Though it was not a poison, applied to the hand it would cause the tooth-marks she had bitten to rot all the deeper. The ointment had a faint sharp scent of its own, but Zhao Min had mixed some rouge into it and then bound his hand with her own handkerchief. The fragrance covered the medicinal smell and prevented him from noticing. Zhang Wuji hurried to the stern of the boat and poured some clear water to wash it clean. Zhao Min followed behind, smiling as she helped him wash. Zhang Wuji gave her shoulder a light push and said angrily, “Stay away from me. Why play such a nasty trick? Does it not hurt?”

Zhao Min laughed. “Truly a dog biting Lü Dongbin,²³ not knowing a good heart when it sees one. I was afraid the pain would be too much for you, so I used this method.” Zhang Wuji paid her no heed. He went back into the boat’s cabin in a huff and closed his eyes. Zhao Min followed in. “Young Master Zhang!” she called. Zhang Wuji pretended to be asleep. Zhao Min called twice more. He started to snore. Zhao Min sighed. “If I had known this, I might as well have applied poison and taken your worthless life. That would be better than being ignored by you.”

Footnotes

1. 蛛儿 – Zhū’ér. “Spider Girl.” The nickname of Yin Li, daughter of Yin Tianzheng and member of the Tianying Order. She bore an unrequited passion for Zhang Wuji. ↩

2. 九阳神功 – Jiǔyáng Shéngōng. Literally Nine Yang Divine Skill. A legendary internal cultivation method emphasising pure yang energy, capable of granting extraordinary martial prowess. ↩

3. 韩夫人 – Hán Fūrén. Lady Han. The honorific address for Jinhua Popo, who uses the alias of Han Qianye’s widow. ↩

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

5. 冰火岛 – Bīnghuǒ Dǎo. Ice Fire Island. The remote volcanic island where Xie Xun, Zhang Cuishan, and Yin Susu were stranded for ten years. ↩

6. 中原 – Zhōngyuán. The Central Plains. The heartland of China and the centre of the jianghu. ↩

7. 义父 – yìfù. Sworn father. A man who has taken a child as his own by oath rather than by blood. ↩

8. 屠龙刀 – Túlóng Dāo. The Dragon-Slaying Dao. A legendary weapon forged from the Heavy Iron Sword, said to contain the secret to overthrowing the Yuan Dynasty. ↩

9. 谢三哥 – Xiè Sān Gē. Third Brother Xie. A term of address indicating Xie Xun’s rank among sworn siblings. ↩

10. 成昆 – Chéng Kūn. Cheng Kun. The mastermind behind much of the tragedy in Xie Xun’s life, who slew his family and framed him for murder. ↩

11. 丐帮 – Gài Bāng. The Beggars’ Guild. The largest and most powerful martial organisation in the jianghu, whose members beg for a living and swear allegiance to their Guild Chief. ↩

12. 灵蛇岛 – Língshé Dǎo. Spirit Snake Island. The island stronghold of Jinhua Popo. ↩

13. 武林 – wǔlín. The martial forest. The community of martial artists and their organisations. ↩

14. 巨鲸帮 – Jùjīng Bāng. The Jujing Guild. One of the factions allied with the Tianying Order. ↩

15. 江湖 – jiānghú. The rivers and lakes. The circuit of martial artists living outside ordinary society. ↩

16. 公子 – gōngzǐ. Young master. A polite form of address for a young man of good family. ↩

17. 明教 – Míng Jiào. The Ming Order. A secret religious martial order devoted to the Manichaean faith of Light. ↩

18. 大侠 – dàxiá. Great xia. A title of respect for a renowned martial artist of outstanding virtue. ↩

19. 狮子搏兔 – Shīzi Bó Tù. Lion Seizes the Rabbit. A Shaolin fist technique in which overwhelming force is brought to bear on a small target. ↩

20. 降魔踢斗式 – Xiángmó Tī Dǒu Shì. Demon-Subduing Kick the Dipper Stance. A Shaolin fist technique combining a kick with an upward reaching hand-strike. ↩

21. 少林派 – Shàolín Pài. The Shaolin Order. The oldest and most renowned martial order, based at Shaolin Monastery on Mount Song. ↩

22. 去腐消肌膏 – Qùfǔ Xiāojī Gāo. Flesh-Rotting Ointment. A corrosive salve used in external medicine to dissolve dead flesh. ↩

23. 吕洞宾 – Lǚ Dòngbīn. Lü Dongbin. One of the Eight Immortals of Daoist legend, known for his benevolence. The phrase “a dog biting Lü Dongbin” means failing to recognise a benefactor. ↩