Ode to gallantry, p.16
Ode to Gallantry, page 16
"Clan-Leader, did the assassin startle you?" asked Bei Haishi as he rushed up to the bed.
"What assassin?" asked the young man, totally stumped. "I did not see any."
By then, Zhan Fei had already regained consciousness, having been given aid by one of the skilled pugilists in the clan. As he was brought into the room, he recalled the rules that the clan had laid down regarding traitors who defied their superiors and started rebellions. The punishment for individuals who engaged in such acts was the harshest of the lot, for it entailed having the perpetrators stripped naked and tied to the 'Platform of Punishment' (Xing2 Tai2 Shi2) in the backyard so that the ants and insects of the ground, as well as the bald eagles of the air, would bite and peck them at will. This would usually translate into eight or nine days of sheer torture before death could occur.
Despite using all his strength earlier, Zhan Fei had failed to kill the clan-leader. Instead, he had been thrown out of the room by a pure and rich stream of internal strength. His right arm broken and his body racked with internal injuries, he had hoped for a quick death. However, he soon found himself being taken into the clan-leader's room. Now, he listened to the goings-on with bated breath. As soon as the clan-leader uttered the words "send him to the Platform of Punishment, so that he may receive the Divine Punishment of Eternal Happiness (Chang2 Le4 Tian1 Xing2)", he would lift his head and run it into the wall at once.
"Did the assassin enter the room through the window?" asked Bei Haishi.
"I was in a hazy daze," answered the young man. "My body felt terribly uncomfortable and my heart beat so quickly that I thought I would die from it. I do not think that anyone came in."
Zhan Fei was surprised: Could he really have been so confused that he did not know I had hit him? But the girl knows that I was the one who did it, so she will eventually reveal the truth.
Sure enough, Bei Haishi reached over and pinched Shijian several times on the waist and the shoulder, using his internal strength to unblock her acupoints. "Who sealed your acupoints?" he asked.
"He did!" answered Shijian, pointing to Zhan Fei.
Bei Haishi looked at Zhan Fei and frowned.
Zhan Fei sneered in return. Just as he was about to let out a few curses before death came upon him, he suddenly heard the clan-leader say: "It was I ... I who asked him to do do."
Shijian and Zhan Fei could hardly believe their ears. They stared blankly at the young man, wondering what his words meant.
+ + +
Although the young man did not understand all the things that had occurred and were still occurring around him, he could sense that the situation had taken a very serious turn. Since the people treated him with an immense amount of respect, they would certainly deal unfavourably with Zhan Fei if they knew that he (Zhan) had restrained Shijian and struck him (the clan-leader) with the palm. Therefore, the young man told the lie in an attempt to help Zhan.
As for the reason behind his concealing the truth on behalf of Zhan, he was in fact unable to articulate even half of it. All he could sense was the extreme discontent and indignation that pushed the older man into hitting him. It was really something that the man could not control at all.
Furthermore, the hot and cold streams of energy in the young man's body had been surging in conflicting directions at that time and causing him terrible discomfort. When Zhan Fei struck, his palm had landed right on the Shan Zhong acupoint of the young man, the very centre of energy in the human body. The extraordinary power of that strike, as well as the sheer coincidence in its timing, had somehow caused the disparate yin-yang energies that had resulted from training in the eight yin and the eight yang channels to merge into one. With water and milk blended, there was no longer any separation between the cold and the hot streams of energy. Consequently, the young man's internal strength had seen an unexpected increase in power. Yet, he had absolutely no idea that this energy had thrown Zhan Fei out of the window. All he knew was that the bone-chilling cold in his body had become refreshingly cool, while the roasting heat had become pleasantly warm. There was an indescribable comfort in his limbs and bones. Then, the coolness and the warmth faded away, leaving his entire body filled with so much pure energy that he could not help but call out loud.
When the Incense-Master of the Hall of the Ferocious Tiger Qiu Shanfeng entered the room, the young man had thrown up all the blood that had formed clots inside his body. Almost at once, his spirit had been lifted. Not only his body had become stronger and more vitalised, his mind had become more alert as well.
+ + +
Noticing Shijian's untidy clothes and hair, as well as the panicky expression on her face, Bei Haishi and the others soon guessed what was going on. They knew that their clan-leader had always been very fond of women and given to lust, so they were certain that he had had the evil thought of violating Shijian as soon as his illness took a turn for the better. Thus when Zhan Fei passed by on patrol, the clan-leader simply called him into the room and ordered him to seal Shijian's acupoints. However, Bei Haishi and the others were unable to figure out how Zhan Fei had offended the clan-leader to the point of being thrown out of the window.
By and by, they guessed that Zhan Fei had probably reacted with a little hesitation when ordered to strip Shijian naked. However, Zhan Fei's accomplishment in martial arts was way beyond that of the clan-leader, so "being thrown out of the window" was probably just Zhan Fei's way of appeasing the clan-leader's anger. After all, there was an eight or a nine to ten chance that he (Zhan) had thrown himself out by his own will.
The men could tell that Zhan Fei's injuries were not light. In addition, the thorns on the rose bushes left bloody scratches all over his head, face and arms. The men were somewhat saddened by the sight, but no one dared to comfort Zhan Fei or ask after him, for fear of incurring the clan-leader's wrath.
Everyone saw the situation before them in this way, so no one dared to mention the assassin again.
When Incense-Master Qiu Shanfeng of the Hall of the Ferocious Tiger recalled how he had just put a damper on the clan-leader's affairs, he began wondering if the clan-leader would turn against him in accusation then and there. After all, Zhan Fei's case was an example of what the clan-leader could do to those whom he was dissatisfied with. Since it was always better to be tactful, Qiu bowed and said, "Clan-Leader, please rest. Your subordinate takes his leave."
The other men followed, leaving the room one after another.
Bei Haishi found the expression on the clan-leader's face quite unusual, so he reached a hand out in concern and said, "I will take your pulse again."
The young man offered his hand in response, allowing Bei to check his pulse.
When Bei placed two of his fingers on the young man's wrist, he suddenly felt a massive tremor running up his own arm. Half of his body went numb, while the remaining three fingers on his hand became limp. Bei's initial shock quickly gave way to delight. "Congratulations, Clan-Leader!" he declared in a loud voice. "This is a joyous occasion indeed, for you have finally mastered the divine skill that surpasses all!"
The young man was baffled. "What ... what divine skill that surpasses all?" he asked.
Thinking that the young man was unwilling to share the information, Bei Haishi did not dare to mention it again. Instead, he said, "Yes, yes ... your subordinate was uttering sheer nonsense. Clan-Leader, please do not take offence." He gave a slight bow and left the room.
With all the men gone within moments of one another, only Zhan Fei and Shijian remained.
Although Zhan Fei was seriously wounded, the men had left him in the room because no one knew how the clan-leader was going to deal with him. The clan-leader had not issued any commands, so no one had dared to take Zhan away for treatment.
The broken arm caused Zhan Fei so much pain that his forehead was dotted with cold sweat. When his hearing told him that his colleagues were already far away, he ground his teeth in anger and said, "If you want to torture me, get on with it quickly. He who is surnamed Zhan is not a true man if he begs even once for mercy."
"Why would I want to torture you?" asked the young man in surprise. "Hmm, your arm is broken, so it must be set. Once, when A'Huang fell into a hole and broke a leg, I was the one who had it set." The young man had lived with his mother on an isolated and barren hill, so he had to do everything himself. Although he was very young then, he could grow vegetables, hunt, cook and repair the house in an orderly way. When the dog, A'Huang, broke its leg, he had it bound up with a wooden stick as a splint. More than ten days later, he had been surprised to find the leg completely healed. Thus, when he finished speaking, he began looking to the left and the right, seeking a wooden stick that he could use as a splint for Zhan Fei's arm.
"Young Master, what you are looking for?" asked Shijian.
"I am looking for a wooden stick," answered the young man.
Suddenly, Shijian took two steps forward and fell to her knees. "Young Master," she said, "I beg you to have mercy on him. You ... you deceived his wife, so he cannot be blamed for being resentful. Besides, he did not injure you. Young Master, if you really want to kill him, just do it with a stab of the sabre. Please, I beg you, do not torture him." She felt that being beaten to death with a wooden stick was a lot more painful than being killed with a single stab of the sabre, so she could not bear to see it happen.
"What do you mean 'deceived his wife'? asked the young man. "Why should I kill him? Are you saying that I am about to kill someone? How can a person be killed?" Realising that there were no wooden sticks in the room, he picked up a chair and pulled hard at one of its legs. By then, the proverbial water and fire had come together; the yin and the yang had harmonised. With the mastery of this particular set of internal strength cultivation techniques, came an amazingly high level of physical strength. The young man was completely unaware of the limits in exerting his strength, so the moment he pulled at the chair, a loud crack was heard. The leg of the chair was broken. Yet, the young man did not know that he had become stronger than before. "This chair is not firm," he muttered. "Would a person who sits on it not have a great fall? Elder Sister Shijian, what are you kneeling? Get up quickly."
Then, he walked up to Zhan Fei and said, "Do not move!"
Although Zhan Fei had spoken his stand in a tough and stubborn manner, the sight of the young man breaking the chair with one pull told him with the latter's internal strength was indeed rich and vigorous beyond compare, just like the earlier incident when his arm was broken and his body was sent flying out of the window with one shake. Hence, Zhan Fei could not help but tremble involuntarily as he eyed the chair-leg in the young man's hand and thought: He will not hit me with the chair-leg, of course. A-yo! He must be thinking of pushing it into my mouth, down my throat and all the way to the stomach, so that I will neither die nor live!
The Clan of Eternal Happiness had many cruel forms of torture, one of which did indeed entail the pushing of a wooden stick into the offender's mouth, down his throat and all the way to the stomach. This unbearably painful punishment, which did not cause immediate death, was called 'Opening the Mouth to Laugh' (Kai1 Kou3 Xiao4).
When Zhan Fei thought about this particular type of torture, he became frightened out of his wits. Thus, when he saw the clan-leader approaching, he raised his left palm and sent it suddenly towards the latter.
Yet, the young man did not know that Zhan intended to hurt him. "Do not move, do not move!" he said, stretching out a hand to grab the man's left wrist.
Almost immediately, a tingling numbness ran through half of Zhan Fei's body and rendered him immobile.
The young man placed the chair-leg beside Zhan's broken arm. Then, he turned to the maidservant and said, "Elder Sister Shijian, do you have a belt(8) or something? Bind him up!"
"Are you really setting the bone for him?" asked Shijian, greatly surprised.
"Bone-setting is bone-setting," answered the young man with a smile. "Could there really be anything 'real' or 'false' about it? Look at how pained his expression is. How can it still be a joke?"
Although Shijian believed only half of what he said, she went off and found a belt. Returning to the two men, she glanced at the younger one before binding Zhan Fei's broken arm up in anxiety and fear.
"Wonderful!" said the young man with a smile. "You bound him up very well, much better than what I did with A'Huang's broken leg."
Zhan Fei thought: This thieving clan-leader is excessively ruthless and sinister. I do not know what strange and new ways he will use to torture me. When he heard 'A'Huang's broken leg' being mentioned again, he could not help but ask: "Who is A'Huang?"
"A'Huang is my pet dog," answered the young man. "It is a pity that he is missing."
Zhan Fei erupted in anger at once. "A true man can be killed but not humiliated!" he roared. "Kill me if you want. Why take me as a beast?"
"No, no!" said the young man quickly. "I was just making a mention. Big Brother, do not be angry. I made a mistake, so let me apologise." He clasped his fists and raised them as he spoke.
Zhan Fei knew that the young man had a formidable level of internal strength, so he thought that the latter's apology was only a pretext for doing him harm with another energy attack. After all, the young man had always been arrogant and rude. It was already extremely rare for him to talk to his subordinates in a kind and friendly manner, so how could he be expected to offer any apologies?
Hence, Zhan Fei moved sideways to avoid the young man's clasped fists, his eyes glaring at the latter to see what vicious schemes he had up his sleeve.
"Big Brother, you are surnamed Zhan, are you not?" asked the young man. "Big Brother Zhan, please return to your quarters and rest. I, Gouzazhong, am not good with words. Do not take heart if I have offended you."
Zhan Fei was shocked: What ... what does he mean by 'I, the bastard'? Is that a new roundabout way of heaping verbal abuse on others?
As for Shijian, she thought: Young Master's mind was clear for a while, but it has become muddled again in the twinkling of an eye. Yet, she could see the young man's eyes looking straight ahead with his brows were furrowed in deep thought. Then, she threw glances at Zhan Fei in a bid to get him to leave quickly while he could.
"Young Shi, I do not need you to play up to me," said Zhan Fei in a loud voice. "So, you want to have me killed. I cannot escape anyway. Since I have already accepted my fate a long time ago, I do not wish to live any longer. Why are you not having me killed quickly?"
"Your muddle-headedness is really funny," said the young man in amazement. "Why do I want to have you killed? When my mother told me stories, she would always say, 'Only bad people will kill others. Good people do not kill.' I am certainly not a bad person. Although you have broken your arm, you are still a big-sized man. How can I even succeed in killing you?"
By then, Shijian could no longer stop herself from interrupting the conversation. "Incense-Master Zhan, the Clan-Leader has already shown mercy to you," she said. "Why are you still not leaving?"
Zhan Fei lifted his left hand and rubbed his head: Is this little thief muddle-headed, or am I confused?
"Hurry, go!" said Shijian again, stamping her foot. "Go quickly!" Then, she pushed Zhan Fei out of the room.
The young man burst into laughter. "This man is quite interesting," he said. "He was actually convinced that I was going to have him killed, as if I was a terribly evil fellow who enjoyed killing people most."
This was the first time since serving the clan-leader that Shijian had seen him showing sudden kindness and pardoning a subordinate who offended him. Furthermore, the benefactor of his mercy was Zhan Fei, who had defied him and made an attempt at assassination -- offences that really could not be pardoned. Hence, Shijian could not help but react in delight. "You are a good man, of course," she said with a smile. "A very great and good man indeed. Only a good man would rob another of his wife and break the couple up ..." At this point, there was a tinge of bitterness in her voice. Yet, she was still not bold enough to speak without restraint before someone as impressive and powerful as her clan-leader. So, she simply clammed up.
"Are you saying that I have robbed another man of his wife?" asked the young man in surprise. "How was the robbery done? Whatever did I do it for?"
Shijian became angry and snapped: "If you are a good man, why are you still talking about such obscene things? You cannot pretend to be prim and proper even for a moment, for the tail of the fox has been revealed in the twinkling of an eye. I say, dear Young Master, if you want to pretend to be a good man, I would appreciate it if you can do it for a while longer."
The young man did not understand her words at all. "What ... what did you say?" he asked. "I really do not understand why I robbed the man of his wife. Do teach me!" By then, he felt as if his entire body had an infinite amount of energy to give out, for his eyes were filled with a greatly-energised glow.
Shijian found his comments increasingly outrageous, so she soon became very frightened. She started stepping backwards until she reached the entrance of the room. If the clan-leader pounced on her, she would be able to run away. Yet, in reality, she knew that if he had really wanted to violate her, how could she have escaped from his clutches of evil? When such instances of danger came up in the past, she had relied entirely on the threat of suicide and the resolute refusal to accede to his demands before the chastity of her body could be preserved.
Now, seeing the violent and beast-like glow in his eyes, she did not dare to utter another word of sarcasm. As her heart thumped wildly, she spoke in a trembling voice: "Young Master, your body has not ... has not recovered in full. It is better to rest a while more."
"So I will rest a while more," said the young man. "When my body has recovered in full, what will happen then?"
Shijian's face turned totally red. As her left foot stepped through the doorway, she heard him muttering to himself: "I really do not understand anything that is happening. Sigh, you look as if you are terrified of me."
