by Jin Yong
Huang Rong’s left hand shot up and struck at his eyes with two fingers, but Sha Tongtian was too fast and grabbed her left wrist as well. Huang Rong struggled to free herself, but try as she might she was not able to. Instead she shouted, “Shameless!”
Sha Tongtian asked, “What’s shameless?”
“Big men bullying a girl and trying to take advantage of her!” she replied indignantly.
Sha Tongtian was surprised at this comment. He was after all a famous elder martial artist and this did appear to be a case of the strong bullying the weak. He relaxed his grip and said, “Go into the hall and we will talk.” Huang Rong saw she had no alternative but to enter the Hall.
“Before we do any talking let me cut this filthy tyke down to size first!” Hou Tonghai angrily demanded as he raised his fists to strike.
Peng Lianhu stopped him, cautioning, “First we need to find out who her Shifu is and what school she belongs to.” He could tell from her fighting style and appearance that she must be from a great school. It would be better to find out who she was before doing anything too hasty. Hou Tonghai
didn't pay any attention to him and launched an attack at Huang Rong.
She stepped aside and responded, “So you really want to fight eh?”
“You're not going to get away”, Hou Tonghai retorted. He was afraid that if she did get away he
would never be able to catch her again.
“If you want to have a little competition with me, that’s not a problem.” she said as she took up a full wine bowl from the table and placed it on her head. She then grabbed another full wine bowl in each hand and continued, “Do you dare to take up this challenge?”
Hou Tonghai was suspicious, “What kind of mischief is this?”
Huang Rong looked around at the assembled guests and smiled as she said, “This big-horned uncle and I have no deep grievance. If I am able to defeat him, what happens then?”
Hou Tonghai angrily stepped forward and yelled, “You defeat me? Listen you smelly little brat, this is a carbuncle not a horn. Take a good look and stop spouting crap!”
Huang Rong didn't pay any attention to him and continued addressing the others. “Let him and I compete with three full bowls of wine each. Who ever is the first to spill a drop will be considered the loser, is that fair enough?” She had seen Liang Ziwong, Peng Lianhu and Sha Tongtian in action and knew that she would be no match for any of them in a fight. However if this three horned dragon, with more teasing, can be enticed to fight using lightness skills and quick wits she will have the advantage. If you were to compare true martial ability she may not be his equal but she thought, “Right now my only chance is to play the fool and hope they don't find me a threat and let me go.”
Hou Tonghai yelled, “Who wants to play monkey tricks with you!” and with that he launched another fierce attack.
Huang Rong again dodged still holding the wine and laughed, “Ok! I'll hold the three bowls of wine and you can attack without any bowls. Let's compete!”
Hou Tonghai was more than twice as old as she. Although his name was not as famous as that of his martial brother Sha Tongtian, he was still a fairly respected member of the martial arts world. To receive such a taunt in front of his peers was enough to make him even angrier. Without further thought he grabbed three bowls of wine, placing one on his head and the others in his hands. He bent his left leg and sent a vicious kick towards Huang Rong with his right.
Huang Rong laughed, “Well done! This shows the talents of a true hero.” She then began to display her ‘Lightness’ qing gong by moving all around the room. Hou Tonghai launched a series of kicks at her but she was able to avoid them all. Everyone began to roar with laughter seeing such a ridiculous fight.
Huang Rong kept her upper body completely steady as she glided about the room. Lumbering behind her, taking large steps was Hou Tonghai. She began spinning as she moved, her skirt forming a circle, as she alternated between dodging and attacking. She tried to use her elbows to knock over one of Hou Tonghai's wine bowls; however he was always able to avoid her attacks.
Liang Ziwong thought to himself, “This girl's kung fu is certainly considerable; but all things considered, she is still no match for brother Hou. However who wins and who loses is of no concern to me.” His main concern was for the treasured medicinal herbs in his storeroom, so he turned and headed out the door to find the thief.
He thought, “The four medicines listed on the prescription, ‘Dragon's Blood’, ‘Pseudo Ginseng’, ‘Bear Gallbladder’ and ‘Myrrh’ are the same as those the Prince ordered to be bought up. Those herbs are nothing special and not very expensive, so their loss is minimal; but what does concern me is what else he may have taken while he was in there.
o0o
Guo Jing was beginning to lose consciousness as the snake squeezed tighter and tighter. From the smell and the feel of the snake's breath on his face he knew its head must be getting closer. If the snake was able to bite him he would surely die. The snake’s body was already brushing against his mouth. His body was immobile, held fast in the snake’s deadly vice-like grip. His left hand, which was desperately trying to hold back the snake, was growing weaker. The only thing that he could move was his head and mouth; so he opened his mouth and bit hard into the snake’s neck.
The snake began to writhe and squeeze even tighter as it felt pain from Guo Jing’s teeth. Guo Jing felt a gush of snake blood flow into his mouth. It tasted extremely bitter and was hard to bear. He didn't know if it was poisonous or not but he was too afraid to let go and spit it out. He feared that he might not get a second chance to bite the snake again so he had no option but to swallow. He also thought that the more blood the snake lost the more strength it would also lose and would eventually loosen its grip. He redoubled his efforts to suck out the snake’s blood and continued to swallow. After continuing this for a while his stomach became full and the snake did gradually begin to loosen its grip. Finally, after a few spasms, the snake loosened its grip entirely and moved no more.
Guo Jing was by now exhausted and had to lean heavily against the table to remain upright. His first thought was to flee; however both his legs were still numb from the lack of blood flow so he was forced to wait for the circulation to reach all of his limbs again. After a few minutes he felt his body getting hotter as if he was burning up. He was very worried but after a short while he found that he could move again. However the feeling of extreme heat still coursed through his body. When he pressed the back of his hand against his cheek it felt burning hot.
The packets of medicine were still safely in his coat. “Now that I have the medicine I can help Wang Chuyi. Mu Yi and his daughter, though innocent of any wrong doing, were locked up by Wanyan Kang and are likely to be killed. I must help them escape before I leave.” With this thought he left the storeroom and, after looking for the right direction, headed off to the prison where Mu Yi and his daughter were being held.
When he arrived at the prison he saw a group of guards patrolling and keeping a close watch. Guo Jing waited a time but found no way to get in as they had the first time. He went around to the back of the building and waited for a guard patrol to go past. Then he leaped lightly onto the roof of the building wall, then quietly into the courtyard within. Leaning against a wall he listened for the presence of soldiers. When he was sure that the coast was clear he whispered quietly “Elder Mu, I've come to help you get out of here.”
Mu Yi was shocked. “Kind Sir, who are you?” he asked.
Guo Jing replied, “Junior's name is Guo Jing.”
Mu Yi vaguely heard the name Guo Jing, but after the events of the past day and being weak from injuries, it didn’t register at first. Then the two words 'Guo Jing' hit his brain like a thunderclap. With a trembling voice he asked, “What? Guo Jing? Your...your...surname is Guo?”
Guo Jing replied, “Yes, junior is the one who fought with the young prince earlier today in front of the arena.”
Mu Yi asked, “
What is your father's name?”
“My late father's name was Xiaotian.” When Guo Jing was young he didn't know his father’s name. It was only later after Zhu Cong taught him to read that he was able to learn his father's name.
Eagle Shooting Hero 255
Mu Yi's eyes filled with tears. He raised his head and said softly, “Heaven, oh Heaven!” He reached his hands through the bars and tightly held Guo Jing’s hand.
Guo Jing could feel Mu Yi's hands trembling and at the same time felt tears dropping onto his hand. He thought to himself, “Elder Mu is very grateful that I’ve come to rescue them.”
He quietly whispered, “I have a sharp knife which I am going to use to cut away the lock and then both of you can come out. Earlier I heard the young prince talking. I know he is trying to deceive you, please don't trust him!”
Mu Yi however asked, “Your mother. is her surname Li? Has she passed away or is she still alive?”
“Oh!” Guo Jing asked surprised, “How do you know my mother’s surname? My mother is in Mongolia.”
Mu Yi became even more excited when he heard this. He continued holding Guo Jing's hand.
Guo Jing said, “Let my hand go so that I can cut off the lock.”
Mu Yi held Guo Jing's hand as if it were the most precious treasure in the world. He was afraid if he let it go he would lose Guo Jing so he continued to hold fast, sighing, “You...you have grown up into such a big man. Ai! I only have to close my eyes and I can see your father, now long departed from this world.”
“You knew my father?”
“Your father was my sworn brother. We swore to help our fellow countrymen.” At this point his throat became choked with emotion and he was unable to continue. When Guo Jing heard this, he found his eyes becoming moist with tears as well.
Mu Yi was in fact Yang Tiexin. During the battle with the government soldiers he suffered a deep spear wound in his back. He managed to cling to a horse and was carried for several li before he finally lost consciousness and fell off into a clump of bushes. The next morning, when he awoke, he crawled to a nearby farmer’s hut where he remained for over a month recovering. By then he could struggle out of bed with the aid of a walking stick. The village nearby was called Lotus Pond village and was only about fourteen to sixteen li [7-8 kilometers /4-5 miles] from his own Ox Village. Luckily the farmer’s family was very kind and took care of him as he slowly recovered. However he was worried about his wife and wanted to go back and look for her in Ox Village. Since he was afraid that government soldiers might still be there searching for him, he waited until midnight before returning to his old house to look around.
When he arrived there he saw the door ajar which made him fear that the worst had happened. He pushed it open and walked in. He looked around and saw things were very much as they were the night that they had to flee. There were some half finished clothes that his wife, Bao Xiruo, had left lying on the bed. On the wall, where his two family spears usually hung, one was missing, probably taken by one of the soldiers that night. That left one, looking as if, like himself, it too had had lost its partner/wife. Apart from that, nothing else was disturbed and everything was covered by a thick layer of dust...
When he went over to his sworn brother’s house, it too was much the same as the night they left. He thought about the old wine seller Qu San with his incredible martial arts skills and wondered if he might be able to help him find his sworn brother's family and his wife. However, when he went to the wine shop he found it was locked up and no one was there. Yang Tiexin (now disguised as Mu Yi) made inquiries amongst his acquaintances in Ox Village but they all said that after the soldiers had left there had been no news of Guo or Yang.
He went to Red Plum village to ask about his wife at his father-in -law’s house only to find that his father-in-law had died of shock shortly after hearing the news of the soldiers attack. Yang Tiexin wanted to cry, but had no tears left to shed. Dejected, he returned to Lotus Pond village and the farmer's family who had cared for him.
However, as the saying goes, ‘Troubles never visit in isolation’. An epidemic of plague had broken out and one by one the farmer's family was stricken. After only a few days six of them died leaving only a newborn baby girl alive. Yang Tiexin was duty bound to care for her so he made her his adopted daughter and took her with him on his quest to find Li Ping and Bao Xiruo. Since one was halfway to the northern steppe and the other already in the north what chance did he have of finding them?
Yang Tiexin didn't dare use his real name since he was a wanted man hunted by government soldiers. So he 'split' the character of his surname, ‘Yang’ in half and used the left side to form the new character ‘Mu’ for his assumed surname and the right half to form the character ‘Yi’ for his personal name.
[Translators Note: The character "Yang" is made up of the character "Mu" or wood and "Yang" for the sound. The whole character actually means Poplar Tree as well as being a surname. The "Mu" of his assumed name actually means solemn and has another part of a character on the right side. The "Yang" character is pronounced as "Yi" by itself and means "Change" as well as other meanings. This is coincidently the same "Yi" as the "Yi Jing" or "I Ching" - classic of changes. I'm sure there are quite a few allusions in this simple name change from which those who know Chinese history and culture well could have hours of fun analyzing. Also it is a common fact that when a man is forced to alter his name he is reluctant to lose touch with the original name, so the name Yang Tiexin choose is not in keeping with custom. Anyway - on with the story!]
After ten years of fruitless searching the ‘Rivers and Lakes’ region [Jianghu] his adopted daughter Mu Nianci had grown like a flower into a lovely young woman. Yang Tiexin thought that his wife had likely died at the hands of marauding soldiers by now. But he still held out the hope that heaven was not blind to the sufferings of man, and that Guo Xiaotian's wife had given birth to a son (Guo Jing) who was alive. As soon as Mu Nianci was of marriageable age he stuck his spear into the ground, erected a banner proclaiming a competition to win the hand of his daughter and waited with the hope that Guo Jing would one day come and win her hand in marriage, thus fulfilling his hope and pledge to become the father-in-law of his sworn brother's son.
Although many tried, no Guo Jing was among them; after the better part of a year, his hope of finding Guo Jing began to fade. Now he would have to be content to find any man of good character and martial ability to marry his adopted daughter. Then, suddenly, on this one day, they encountered embarrassment at the hands of Wanyan Kang, help from a heroic stranger and by nightfall to find out that the heroic stranger is none other than Guo Jing. How could he help but be overwhelmed with emotion?
Meanwhile, Mu Nianci began to grow impatient listening to them talk about the past. She wanted Guo Jing to help them escape first and then, when they were safe, talk over old times at leisure. Then she had a sudden thought, “If we leave now, I will never see 'him' again!” As soon as the thought came to her, she hurriedly pushed it aside. Guo Jing was also thinking that getting everybody out was the most important thing so he slowly raised his golden knife ready to strike the lock and cut it open.
Suddenly a glint of light appeared under the door and the sound of many footsteps could be heard approaching. Guo Jing quickly slipped behind a door just as the prison doors were pushed open and in marched several people. Through the crack in the door Guo Jing could see the person in front was a bodyguard carrying a lantern. Behind him was the Prince’s Consort, Wanyan Kang's mother.
She asked the bodyguard, “Are these two the people whom the young prince imprisoned?”
The bodyguard replied, “Yes.” confirming it was them.
She then ordered the guard on duty, “Release them immediately.”
The bodyguard hesitated, reluctant to obey the order so she said, “If the young prince asks why you released them, tell him I ordered it; now quickly open the lock and free them!”
The guard dare not refuse the o
rder any longer and opened the lock freeing them. The consort then produced two ingots of silver from her cloak and passed them to Yang Tiexin saying softly, “Please go safely!”
Yang Tiexin didn't take the silver but just stared at her without so much as a blink. The consort assumed from his stare that he was angry with her and felt remorse for what they had suffered. In a gentle voice she apologized, “Please forgive us, my son, by his disgraceful behavior, has wronged both of you most gravely today.”
Yang Tiexin stared at her a while longer before slowly taking the silver and putting it in his robe without a word. He then took his daughter's hand and walked out of the prison.
The bodyguard called after him. “Hey you scum, don't you have any manners? When our lady saves your life you should get down on your knees and kowtow to show your thanks!” But Yang Tiexin kept on walking as if he had not heard.
Guo Jing waited until they had closed the door. Only when he heard the consort was far enough away did he emerge from hiding and look around. By then there was no sign of Yang Tiexin or his daughter. He thought that they must have left the palace by now so he had better return to the ‘Fragrant Snow Hall’ and pull Huang Rong away from her listening so they could hurry back with the medicine for Wang Chuyi. As he rushed off following the winding path he saw two figures carrying red lanterns coming directly towards him in what seemed a great hurry. Guo Jing tried to hide behind some decorative rockery but he was too late, he had already been spotted.
“Who's there!” shouted one man as he dashed forward with his hands raised in a claw stance.
Guo Jing could only raise his arms to block the strike. In the light of the two lanterns he was able to clearly see that his attacker was none other than Wanyan Kang!
As it turned out, the bodyguard, after releasing the prisoners, had hurriedly reported the consort's actions to the young prince. Wanyan Kang was shocked when he heard this.
