The Heavenly Sword & the Dragon Sabre – Chapter 30 – Part 9

After a while the small boat rowed back, and seated within was none other than Xiaozhao. She beckoned and said, “Order Leader Zhang,¹ please all of you come aboard the flagship. The Persian Ming Order would never dare harm you.” Zhao Min asked, “Why not?” Xiaozhao replied, “You will know when you come over. If there were any intent to harm you, how could Xiaozhao face Order Leader Zhang with a clear conscience?”

Xie Xun spoke suddenly. “Xiaozhao, so you have become the leader of the Persian Ming Order?”

Xiaozhao lowered her brows and did not answer. After a moment two great crystalline tears gathered in her eyes and rolled down cheeks white as jade, and then the tears came faster, falling in strings.

In an instant a hum rang in Zhang Wuji’s ears, and he guessed seven or eight parts of what had happened, cause and consequence. His heart ached with grief and gratitude both, and he said, “Xiaozhao, you have done all this for my sake!” Xiaozhao turned her face away, not daring to meet his gaze.

Xie Xun sighed. “Daiqisi has a daughter such as this. She has not shamed the name of the Purple-Robed Dragon King for a lifetime. Wuji, let us go.” With that he leapt into the small boat. Zhou Zhiruo followed, holding Yin Li in her arms, and sprang across. Zhang Wuji, carrying Zhao Min, entered the boat as well.

Eight sailors put about the bow and rowed towards the great ship. When they were still a hundred-odd feet from the flagship, the Guardian Kings all bowed in welcome to their new leader.

The party climbed aboard the great ship. Xiaozhao gave a few quiet orders, and at once attendants came forward bearing face-cloths and food with the utmost deference, then escorted each guest to a cabin to change out of wet clothing.

The cabin assigned to Zhang Wuji was exceedingly spacious, aglow with the lustre of pearls and jewels, furnished with many rare treasures. He had barely dried the seawater from his body when, with a soft creak, the door opened and Xiaozhao entered. She carried a set of short trousers and jacket, and a long gown, and said, “Brother Order Leader, let me help you change.” Zhang Wuji’s heart gave a bitter twist. “Little sister, you are the Persian Order’s leader now. I am your subordinate, in a sense. How can I still ask this of you?” Xiaozhao begged, “Brother Order Leader, let this be the last time. After today the two of us will be separated east and west, ten thousand li² apart, with no day of meeting. Even if I wished to serve you once more, I could not.”

Zhang Wuji was heavy with sorrow, and could only let her help him change as she had always done, fastening his buttons and tying his sash. She took out a comb and arranged his hair. He saw her eyes bright with tears, and suddenly his heart stirred. He drew her slight, delicate body into his arms. Xiaozhao gave a soft cry and trembled. Zhang Wuji pressed his lips to hers in a long kiss, and said, “Little sister, at first I blamed you for deceiving me. I never thought you would treat me so well.”

Xiaozhao rested her head against his broad chest and said in a low voice, “Brother Order Leader, I did deceive you once. My mother was originally one of the three Sacred Maidens³ of the Persian Order, sent to the Central Lands to accumulate merit so that she might return to Persia and succeed as leader. But after she met my father, she could not master her feelings, and was forced to break the Order’s rule and marry him. My mother knew her offence was grave. She passed to me the Seven-Coloured Gem Ring of the Sacred Maidens and bade me make my way to Bright Peak to steal the manual of the Great Shift of Heaven and Earth.⁴ Brother Order Leader, in that matter I was deceiving you all along. But in my heart I have done you no wrong. For I never wished to become the Persian Ming Order’s leader. All I wanted was to be your little maid, to serve you all my life and never leave your side. I told you so, didn’t I? And you promised me too, didn’t you?”

Zhang Wuji nodded, holding her light body on his knees, and kissed her again. Her warm, soft lips were wet with tears, sweet and bitter at once.

Xiaozhao went on, “I memorised the manual of the Great Shift of Heaven and Earth, but never with the intention of betraying you. Had today not driven me to the end of all roads, I would never have revealed it.” Zhang Wuji said softly, “I know everything now.” Xiaozhao said in a low, distant voice, “When I was small, I saw my mother live in fear day and night, her heart full of dread. She hid her fine looks and disguised herself as a hideously ugly old woman. She would not let me stay with her, but left me to be raised in other people’s homes, coming to see me once every year or two. Only then did I understand why she had been willing to risk such danger to marry my father. Brother Order Leader, had things not come to this pass today, I would rather not be the leader of the Order, nor empress of the whole world. I would only be yours.”

Her cheeks flushed crimson as she spoke. She threw her arms about Zhang Wuji’s neck and said in a gentle voice, “Brother Order Leader, it was always my intention that no matter whom you married, I would never leave your side. I would be your little maid all my life. As long as you let me serve beside you, you could take several wives, and I would love you still, for ever and ever. My mother was willing to marry my father rather than remain leader, and did not fear being burned to death. I am exactly the same.”

Zhang Wuji felt the slender body in his arms grow suddenly warm. His heart stirred, and then he heard Daiqisi’s voice from outside the door. “Xiaozhao, if you cannot master your desires, you will be the death of Order Leader Zhang.”

Xiaozhao’s body trembled. She said, “Brother Order Leader, do not think of me hereafter. Miss Yin has been with my mother for many years. Her devotion to you runs deep. She is a true match for you, and she will never deceive you.” Zhang Wuji said in a low voice, “I shall remember you for ever and ever. The night before last I dreamed I married my charming little sister. I shall keep dreaming that dream.” Xiaozhao said tenderly, “Brother Order Leader, I wish you would hold me now, and the two of us leap into the sea together, and sink to the bottom and never rise.”

Zhang Wuji’s heart twisted with pain. He felt that such an end would be the cleanest release of all. He held Xiaozhao tight and said, “Very well, little sister! The two of us shall leap into the sea together and never rise.” Xiaozhao said, “Could you bear to leave your sworn father? Could you bear to leave Miss Zhou, Miss Zhao?” Zhang Wuji said, “I have thought it through. In this world, the only two I cannot bear to leave are my sworn father and my little sister.” A light of joy shone in Xiaozhao’s eyes, but then she shook her head with sudden resolve. “I cannot bring about my mother’s death. And you cannot bring about your sworn father’s death.” Zhang Wuji said, “Then let us fight our way out, seize one or two Guardian Kings, and force them to take us back to Spirit Snake Island.”

Xiaozhao shook her head sadly. “They have learned their lesson this time. Xie daxia, Miss Yin, and the rest: at this moment every one of them has a Persian blade at his throat. The slightest move from us, and they die on the spot.” With that she opened the cabin door. Daiqisi stood at the entrance, and behind her two Persians held drawn swords. The two Persians bowed to Xiaozhao in salute, but the points of their swords never left Daiqisi’s back.

Xiaozhao walked proudly up to the main deck, and Zhang Wuji followed. Sure enough, every one of Xie Xun’s party had a Persian warrior behind him with a drawn sword. Xiaozhao said, “Order Leader Zhang, the Persians have a salve that heals wounds. Please use it on Miss Yin.” She spoke several sentences in Persian, and the Merit Guardian King⁵ brought out a small pot of ointment and handed it to Zhang Wuji.

Xiaozhao added, “I shall have men escort you all back to the Central Lands. This is where we part. Xiaozhao, in Persia, shall pray for Order Leader Zhang every day, for your health and prosperity.” Her voice broke as she spoke. Zhang Wuji said, “You are in a realm of wolves and tigers. Be careful in all things.” Xiaozhao nodded and gave orders to her subordinates to ready a boat. Zhao Min saw that both their faces were still wet with fresh tears, their eyes red, and her own heart ached for Zhang Wuji.

Xie Xun, Yin Li, Zhao Min, Zhou Zhiruo and the rest crossed over one by one. Xiaozhao handed both the Dragon-Slaying Dao and the Heavenly Jian to Zhang Wuji, gave a sad smile, and raised her hand in farewell.

Zhang Wuji did not know what to say. He stood stock-still for a moment, then leapt into the other boat. From the great ship came the deep moan of a horn. Both vessels hoisted sail and drew apart. They saw Xiaozhao standing at the bow, gazing fixedly at the boat in which Zhang Wuji sat.

The sea between them widened and widened, until Xiaozhao’s ship became a dark speck, and then the sea was utterly dark, the long wind sweeping the sail, and still it seemed to carry the sound of weeping.

Footnotes

1. 教主 – jiàozhǔ. The title of the leader of the Ming Order, literally “Order Master.” ↩

2. 里 – lǐ. A Chinese unit of distance, approximately one-third of a mile. ↩

3. 圣处女 – Shèng Chǔnǚ. The Sacred Maidens of the Persian Ming Order, women of pure virtue chosen to lead the Order. ↩

4. 乾坤大挪移 – Qiánkūn Dà Nuóyí. The Great Shift of Heaven and Earth, the supreme secret art of the Ming Order, capable of redirecting force and reversing the trajectory of attacks. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

5. 功德王 – Gōngdé Wáng. The Merit Guardian King, one of the eleven Guardian Kings of the Persian Ming Order. ↩