Book 24
If he was cooperating with Kou Zhong, Hou Xibai might suspect that after rescuing Cao Yinglong, Kou Zhong might abandon his partner and left on his own. But Hou Xibai believed from the bottom of his heart that Xu Ziling was not that kind of person. Yet this kind of faith practically did not have any reason behind it; it was purely a feeling when someone met someone else, although oftentimes it was not too reliable.
Therefore, Hou Xibai was sure that Xu Ziling must have met some trouble. Secretly raising a mouthful of true qi, he inserted the Fan of Beauty into his belt, and said with a smile, “Going by Long Shu’s suspicious character, since you knew that there exist the Eight Moves To Break The Lotus, unexpectedly you are unwilling to obtain clear understanding but want to leave immediately instead. I wonder what could be more pressing than this?”
An Long crossly said, “Xianzhi is acting as if you don’t know how to write the word ‘dead’. But everything that has been happening tonight is very strange; everything is beyond my expectation. If Xianzhi is willing to tell me where you got the information, perhaps we could strive to have real cooperation.”
Hou Xibai was greatly astonished; from what Xu Ziling told him, An Long should not have this much time, he should be rushing back to perform his sorcery on Cao Yinglong. How could he leisurely waste his time by chatting with him now?
On the surface, however, he remained calm and composed. “Surely Long Shu is joking?” he said, “In vain Xiaozhi always showed utmost respect to you. You have secret ties with Yang Xuyan, and are trying in vain to scheme against Shi Shi’s beloved daughter, yet now you say you want to cooperate with me; it is indeed the greatest absurdity in the world.”
An Long flashed his trademark fake smile across his face, while secretly gathering up his power. He said, “Xianzhi, you surely don’t know how to differentiate good from bad; who said I was going to harm Shi Dage’s beautiful daughter? Whom did you hear it from?”
Hou Xibai was about to speak to taunt him, to stall for time, when suddenly alarm went off in his heart; turning his head to the left, he saw hidden among the trees in the dark, at the part of the garden where the moonlight did not shine, a big and tall man.
An Long was actually a step ahead of him in term of reaction; when he saw the man, his face revealed a shocked expression. Evidently he recognized the man.
The man walked out of the shadow. He had an overbearing, looking-down-on-the-world – demeanor around him, his expression cold and detached, his forehead high, his nose straight, with a mixture of healthy, robust lines on his rectangular face, giving up the impression that he was a man with extraordinary unswerving determination, as well as subjectively obstinate; an awe-inspiring man.
From his comparatively darker complexion from the average men and his exceptionally good shape, Hou Xibai knew right away that he must be the master of Duzun Bao Xie Hui, whose might shook Bashu.
This martial art master, who shared the same fame as the ‘Heavenly Saber’ Song Que, only cast a glance toward Hou Xibai, his burning gaze fell on his sworn brother An Long, as he spoke indifferently, “Where is Cao Yinglong?”
Even Hou Xibai could not imagine that Xie Hui would be this blunt and get right to the point [orig. to open the door and see the mountain], without leaving anything.
An Long laughed aloud and said, “Did I not explain clearly just now that Cao Yinglong’s affair has nothing to do with me, An Long, at all?”
The murderous aura in Xie Hui’s eyes was burning brighter; staring hard at An Long, he said, “If I did not remember the brotherly love between us, I would have made my move before you even finished speaking half a sentence. After the wear and tear and your current loss of power, I guarantee that you won’t last long. And now, let me ask you again, remembering our extraordinarily old friendship; An Long, you don’t want to force me.”
Hou Xibai had never thought that Xie Hui would be this overbearing and tyrannical; he inwardly thought that if he were An Long, he would be at a loss to know what to do as well.
Who would have thought that An Long heaved a deep sigh, nodded his head dejectedly, and said, “I know that Er Di’s [second (younger) brother] kindness to Ol’ An does not need to be mentioned, but this matter is related to San Di [third (younger) brother]. Moreover, it has direct relationship with the Xie Wang [demonic king] Shi Zhixuan. If Er Di is drawn into this matter because of an outsider, it is really not worth it.”
Xie Hui’s face showed that he was slightly moved; turning his head around, he looked at Hou Xibai.
Inwardly Hou Xibai thanked the Heaven and thanked the Earth; raising his cupped fist, he spoke respectfully, “Two gentlemen, Qianbei, have important matter to discuss, Wanbei certainly does not dare to remain here to disturb you. Please!”
With that, he slipped away.
Cao Yinglong slowly rose; he finally discovered the Persian Beauty Lian Rou, who was standing against the wall, with a pondering-deeply expression on her face.
Xu Ziling’s true qi within his body has circulated to its peak; as fast as lightning he swept Cao Yinglong away.
The standing-against-the-wall Lian Rou spun around, raised her right hand, and shot a streak of white light toward Cao Yinglong, while rushing toward the exit at the same time. Her movements were fluid, as fast as lightning.
If Xu Ziling did not guard against her at all, this moment he would have been caught off guard, and when rescuing Cao Yinglong, he would have been forced to move away from the exit.
However, the attack was exactly what he wanted. Utilizing his ability to take a breath while sweeping high in the air, he produced a possibility amidst this impossible situation, by changing direction from going straight ahead to moving sideway, while sending out a finger energy at the same time to strike the white light.
The most mischievous thing was that while he was soaring out and his right palm was blocking Lian Rou’s escape path, his mouth was crying out, “Don’t go!”
How could Lian Rou know that he had such ability to take a breath midair and change direction? Relying on her superior qinggong, she was also able to change direction midair, but definitely not like Xu Ziling, who was able not to reveal the slightest sign in his shenfa, who could change just as soon as he wanted to change. In her shock, she could only retreat in a flash.
‘Ding!’
The white light was hit by the finger wind and was knocked against the wall. Turned out it was the dagger that Lian Rou used just now when she threatened to kill herself. While she was facing the wall, she stealthily pulled it out of its sheath on her thigh, and hid it in her hand.
Cao Yinglong was a Jianghu veteran; as soon as he regained his consciousness, he swept over toward Xu Ziling.
Success or failure would be decided in the blink of an eye.
‘Creak!’
The lid opened, ready to welcome the escaping Lian Rou.
The tip of Xu Ziling’s toes tapped the ground, he moved toward Cao Yinglong, stretched out one arm to grab his thick waist, and sent out a spiraling energy. The two men spun swiftly like a cyclone, and then taking the opportunity while the enemy had not grasped the situation inside the cellar, they flew toward the exit, and suddenly shot out of the wooden chest. Under Zhu Mei and the Tall and Short, two Generals’ blank stare, and before they found their voices to shout, they already broke through the roof and disappeared.
The bright moon was hanging high in the sky.
From somewhere in the distance, Hou Xibai flew over and called out, “Follow me!”
Inside an ordinary house at the east side of the city, only after finished listening to Xu Ziling’s explanation did Cao Yinglong realize what happened to him. Naturally he shed tears of gratitude, and was even more remorseful of what he had done in the past.
Hou Xibai flew in through the window and said, “There shouldn’t be anybody following us.” And then he turned toward Cao Yinglong and asked, “Cao Dangjia is all right?”
Evidently Cao Yinglong was still quite wary of him, he hung his head down. While blushing with shame to conceal the contradicting reaction in his heart, he sighed and said, “I am now an ordinary man, Hou Gongzi should not call me that.”
Xu Ziling caught everything with his eyes, his heart was moved, recalling that because Cao Yinglong was very familiar with Shi Zhixuan’s conduct, he was unable to trust the person Shi Zhixuan selected as his disciple either, so inwardly Xu Ziling was on guard as well. However, without drawing support from Hou Xibai’s power, he could forget about rescuing Cao Yinglong this time.
Signaling Xu Ziling with his eyes, Hou Xibai said, “I am going outside to be on the lookout; if we want to slip away, it would be best to do it tonight.”
Finished speaking, he flew out the window.
Although Xu Ziling did not trust Hou Xibai, he could not help feeling heartfelt appreciation toward his elegant demeanor and consideration toward other people.
Cao Yinglong started, “This time …”
Xu Ziling cut him off, “The most important thing right now is how Cao Xiong could avoid the enemies and go back to see your wife and daughter for the last time. Cao Xiong, what’s your plan?”
Cao Yinglong dejectedly said, “I have lost confidence; I no longer dare to have such a presumptuous wish.”
After muttering to himself irresolutely for half a day, Xu Ziling took out a mask that he had never used before from his bosom, and handed over to Cao Yinglong. He said, “If you could shed your mortal body and exchange your bones to become another man, get rid of your usual walking gait and mannerism, perhaps you can still accomplish your wish.”
Taking the mask in his hands, Cao Yinglong examined it carefully. His body shook severely, while a ray of hope returned to his eyes. With amazement in his voice, he said, “Unexpectedly there is such a fine work of art in the world. I guarantee that after putting it on, even the subtle changes of the muscles on my face will be seen through, so that nobody will doubt it.”
Xu Ziling spoke indifferently, “This is Lu Miaozi’s refined work.”
From the masks he received from Lu Miaozi, he gave one to Ba Fenghan, and now, for righteousness’ sake, he gave another one to Cao Yinglong, hence he only had three masks remained: the Yue Shan, the scar face hero, and the dry, yellow-faced one.
Cao Yinglong revealed a turns-out-it-was-from-Lu-Miaozi’s-hand, no-wonder-it-is-so-ghostly-crafted-divine-work sudden change in his demeanor; stuffing the mask into his bosom, he said in low voice, “I am saved! But we must never let Hou Xibai know. Don’t look at him now assuming an air of complete indifference toward me, I dare to bet my head that after this is over, he will come looking for me, and will use sinister means to get everything out of me.”
Xu Ziling nodded and said, “It’s always better to be a bit more careful.”
After discussing how they were going to get away, Cao Yinglong spoke in low voice, “Not only by nature Shi Zhixuan is sinister, he also has enormous ambition. For example, he painstakingly groomed two disciples to accomplish his two greatest dreams: to unify Jianghu and to unify the demonic way. Therefore, this man Hou Xibai is not simple at all, you must never trust him.”
Frowning, Xu Ziling said, “Since that’s the case, why would Shi Zhixuan pit these two disciples against each other? They might massacre one another, furthermore, they might hinder each other.”
Cao Yinglong said, “Shi Zhixuan is someone who is difficult to measure, not many people can really understand him. Just by looking at how he deliberately leave the ‘Immortal Print Scroll’ in the secluded forest of the small valley instead of giving it directly to his two disciples, we know how unfathomable he is. In my opinion, it may be that he found it difficult to decide whom he should give it to. Thereupon he let them fight until you die, I live, to see who will be eliminated. In their conduct, the people of the demonic schools have never taken human emotions and morality into considerations.
Listening to that, Xu Ziling’s heart grew cold. Seizing this opportunity, he asked, “The Eight Major Martial Art Masters of the Demonic Way, aside from Zhu Yuyan, Shi Zhixuan, An Long, Pi Chen, Zuo Youxian and You Niaojuan, six persons, who are the other two?”
Cao Yinglong replied, “There’s one that I know, which is the Eastern Tujue Xieli Khan’s Junshi Zhao Deyan. Within the demonic schools, this man has lofty status; he is revered as the ‘Mo Shuai’ [Demonic Commander]. His demonic skill is extremely outstanding, barely second only to Zhu Yuyan and Shi Zhixuan. As for the last person, his identity is very mysterious. One time Shi Zhixuan inadvertently leaked out that this person was cultivating some kind of formidable gongfa in secret, but he did not say who.”
Finally Xu Ziling was able to ascertain the real identity of Zhao Deyan, whose martial art skill could properly approach Bi Xuan’s level. Inwardly he thought that no wonder he was able to make the wind and create the rain, to stir up the peoples from the outside to come into the Central Plains to create havoc.
With a light gust of the wind, Hou Xibai returned through the window. “We don’t have much time,” he urged, “We still need to go to An Long’s old shop to take advantage of the festivities.”
And then his countenance changed slightly, “I wonder if gentlemen smell a whiff, which seems to be here but seems to be far away – of fragrance? This is the first time that I caught this kind of fragrance. I already smelled it a while back, but I thought it was Lian Rou’s scent that was rubbed onto Cao Xiong. But this one does not disperse even after a while, obviously something is not right, I am afraid it might divulge our whereabouts.”
Cao Yinglong raised his left sleeve and sniffed, and his right sleeve and sniffed, but due to the great loss of his power, he couldn’t smell any odor.
But Xu Ziling was showing dread; he said, “Luckily Hou Xiong is perceptive, otherwise we would fall victim of the yaonu’s trick. The scent ought to be coming from the hair. I wonder if Hou Xiong has any good suggestions.”
Hou Xibai said, “At least until just now, the enemy has not followed the scent to this place. Actually, Rou yaonu does not need to hurry, she could not have imagined that coincidentally there was someone like me who has great experience with all kinds of fragrance nearby, hence she would carryout her scheme leisurely. There are many ways to get rid of the scent, however, since time is pressing, we could play some tricks on Cao Xiong’s hair, I guarantee we will be able to cover the fragrance that the yaonu put in there.”
Xu Ziling quietly exchanged a glance with Cao Yinglong, and said, frank and straightforward, “Hou Xiong, please do your trick.”
At the same time, he was crying, ‘Formidable’ inwardly. It should be noted that with the current scent, Xu Ziling had to concentrate his mind before he was able to barely catch a little. To follow a trail relying on such a faint scent in the bustling evening brimming with all kinds of flowery fragrance, the smoke and the fire, was certainly easier said than done. Yet Hou Xibai was able to, justifiably, find a way to put some scent on Cao Yinglong, so that wherever Cao Yinglong went, Hou Xibai could easily follow his trails and catch up with him. At that time, no matter with what kind of method he was going to deal with Cao Yinglong, Xu Ziling would be forever in the dark.
This moment, both Xu Ziling and Cao Yinglong were unclear whether the scent on Cao Yinglong’s hair was put there by Lian Rou, or whether it was Hou Xibai himself doing his trick.
From his bosom, Hou Xibai took out a small box. When he opened it, they saw a white powdery fragrant thing, which smelled like some kind of jasmine, with much stronger scent than the previous one, but there was also an indistinct hard-to-describe unusual scent in it.
If he had used this strange fragrance straight from the start, Xu Ziling would definitely be suspicious.
Hou Xibai muttered softly, “If Cao Xiong has a hat, I could put a bit of this onto the hat, then the other scent will be completely covered. As long as you are traveling like this, the enemy would lose the means they are depending on to follow your trail.”
Xu Ziling and Cao Yinglong were stunned; they both wondered inwardly whether they were using Xiaoren [little/lowly person] mentality in measuring Hou Xibai’s noble belly?
Reaching into his bosom, Cao Yinglong took out a hat, which he then put on his head. Hou Xibai casually took a pinch of the powdery stuff and sprinkled it on his hat. He said with a smile, “I know Cao Xiong has a doubting heart toward Xiaodi, but I swear that I am absolutely not a despicable Xiaoren who take advantage of someone else’s precarious situation. For Xiaodi right now, the most important thing is not to let the ‘Immortal Print Scroll’ fall into Yang Xuyan’s hands. Otherwise, the first one to lose his life would be Xiaodi.”
Xu Ziling praised him inwardly; it was people like Hou Xibai, who know how to balance the pros and cons and consider the advantages and disadvantages, who could successfully accomplish great undertakings. He was doing his utmost to save Cao Yinglong, it would only be proper for Xu Ziling to do his utmost to help him in return.
He was just hoping that Shi Feixuan did not misjudge him.
In terms of speech and demeanor, Hou Xibai was talented, outstanding, distinguished and accomplished, confident and at ease, and scholarly. Even if he had to fight him in a life and death battle, it would still be difficult to loathe him.
Xu Ziling was about to speak, suddenly he heard an unusual noise.
Hou Xibai and Xu Ziling were alerted at the same time. It was when Cao Yinglong noticed their expression did he begin to understand that something was amiss.
It was not a man-made noise, but some cat-like animal that was good at soaring and leaping; when it landed on the roof, it created a very subtle noise, brimming with a lithe and springy feeling.
Hou Xibai and Xu Ziling had a sudden understanding at the same time; the enemy was relying on this animal with acute sense of smell to follow their trail to this place.
The exotic animal swiftly circled around the roof overhead before leaping out of the courtyard.
Hou Xibai’s heart was moved, he said, “It loses the trail.”
Looking at the hat on Cao Yinglong’s head, Xu Ziling said, “We still have a chance to slip away.”
Laughing calmly, Hou Xibai said, “We don’t need to slip away. Come with me.”
The place they were staying was actually Hou Xibai’s study room. Hou Xibai moved one of the bookshelves away to reveal the entrance to yet another room. Unexpectedly it was a hidden sunroom where scrolls of painting were spread everywhere, but it was dry and clean and tidy.
Hou Xibai had just returned the bookcase back to its original place to seal the entrance when there was a sound of rustling sleeves overhead. From the noise, it sounded like – if there were not ten enemies, then there were at least seven or eight enemies.
The three held their breath and quieted their qi, while inwardly were a bit tense.
It was a case of ‘he who comes is surely ill-intentioned, no-one well-meaning will come’. The enemy was aware that there were martial art masters such as Xu and Hou, two men, around, yet they still dared to pursue to this place, hence they must have enough confidence that they would be able to deal with them.
Moreover, because Cao Yinglong was involved, the two could not simply break the siege and escape, therefore, if they were discovered, the situation would be difficult to imagine.
Hou Xibai’s move was definitely an extremely brilliant one; he was playing a mind game against the opponent.
Anybody who was following the trail to track down a target, if the trail was suddenly cut off, there were only two possibilities. One was that the target was not hiding in the place they ought to hide; two was that the target has gotten rid of the clues being pursued. So now the enemy might search the house inside and outside, and because the scent inside the house has been concealed, the enemy might think that they were only passing through this place, or perhaps they already left.
Hou Xibai and Xu Ziling completely focused their attention to listen attentively, ready to gain the initiative by striking first at any moment, killing the opponent as they were caught unprepared.
A tender, soft, and sweet-sounding female voice on the roof said, “This time Princess Rou’s Persian raccoon dog might have lost the trail.”
Stunned, Hou Xibai whispered, “That’s really strange! Unexpectedly it’s Meiji Sina, one of the Four Big Chiefs of Ba Meng [Sichuan Alliance].”
Xu Ziling’s heart was moved; he immediately realized why Hou Xibai felt strange.
The three major powers of Sichuan were Duzun Bao, Chuan Bang, and Ba Meng.
Ba Meng was the alliance of local ethnic minorities, which was formed to counter the Han power, with the Qiang, Yao, Miao and Yi, four major ethnic groups as the core. The Four Big Chiefs were the Qiang’s Hou Wang [monkey king] Feng Zhen, the Yao’s Meiji [lit. beautiful woman/concubine] Sina, the Miao’s Da Lao [lit. big old] Jue Luofeng, and the Yi’s Feng Jiang [wind general] Chuan Mouxun.
It was not surprising for the Eastern Tujue to have relationship with the Sichuan Alliance, because in Sichuan Bashu, everybody wanted to get fat, and the Eastern Tujue’s Tong Xie Hu would not be an exception.
The strange thing was, with the Meiji Sina’s status, why would she personally track down Cao Yinglong? Where did his value lie?
Another gloomy, old and decrepit male voice said, “As long as Xu Ziling is still in Bashu, he won’t escape our five-finger enclosure. Mengzhu [alliance master/leader] has promised that dead or alive, he will be sent to Guanzhong.”
The three looked at each other in astonishment; turned out they did not after Cao Yinglong, but Xu Ziling.
From the tone of this man’s voice, they could guess that evidently Ba Meng was leaning toward the Li Clan of Guanzhong, so much so that even the Western Tujue also had the intention of repairing their relationship with the Li Clan. Otherwise, they could not possibly notify the Ba Meng immediately to capture Xu Ziling as soon as they discovered him.
There was no eternal enemy in politics.
In the wake of the Li Clan’s continuously growing and changing power, it was difficult for the Li Clan and the Eastern Tujue to rekindle their former good relation.
The Eastern Tujue has always been superior to the Western Tujue. In order to remedy this disadvantageous position, the Western Tujue could only draw support from the most powerful military group in the neighboring area, and the Li Clan was their only choice.
In just these few words, Xu Ziling immediately grasped the tangled and complicated situation of Bashu today; he also knew that he was in a danger zone, and could lose his life any moment.
Laughing tenderly, Lian Rou said, “Da Gong [lit. big duke, or simply ‘honorable gentleman’] must be a bit more careful; Xu Ziling is well-known for his craftiness. Da Gong spoke with such confidence, if he is still able to slip away, others might laugh up their sleeve.”
Hou Xibai closed his eyes and muttered, “Hearing the voice is just like seeing the person. The Persian beauty is indeed distinct.”
Just by looking at his enchanted-like expression, one would know that he was painting a picture of the Persian beauty with the raccoon dog in her arms as he imagined it in his mind.
From what Lian Rou said, Xu Ziling knew that the one boasting shamelessly was the Miao’s Da Lao Jue Luofeng; he thought that since there were Lian Rou, Sina and Jue Luofeng, three persons, the two of them could forget about taking Cao Yinglong breaking out through the window.
Sina said, “Strange! How come Xiao Li [little raccoon dog] chased to this place and suddenly could not continue chasing? Whose house is this? Must be a scholar or some elegant people. Were it not for neighboring people are out to enjoy the excitement of the Lantern Festival, we would not be able to get a clear picture in seeking our target.”
Lian Rou sighed and said, “Just consider that kid lucky. It’s no fun staying here, let’s go.”
The sound of rustling sleeves went away.
The three persons heaved a sigh of relief at the same time.
Hou Xibai asked Cao Yinglong, “Cao Xiong, where do you want us to take you?”
Cao Yinglong replied, “As long as we can reach the Muxing Street at the north side of the city, I have confidence that I will be able to escape.”
Blowing out a mouthful of air, Hou Xibai delightedly said, “Currently, the most difficult thing is leaving the city. If only inside the city, I guarantee we can do it.”
Turning toward Xu Ziling, he asked, “After that, should we go to An Long’s old shop at the south side of the city to try our luck?”
Xu Ziling smiled, “Of course,” he replied.
Hou Xibai sighed and said, “Ziling is indeed a true friend.”
Answering the call, Bu Tianzhi came into Kou Zhong’s cabin. This ‘man of wind and cloud’ [idiom: influential figure] whose prestige rose abruptly like a shooting star was staring blankly by the window, silently looking up at the full moon hanging high in the middle of the sky. It appeared that he had a load on his mind, or perhaps the beautiful scenery touched his heart deeply.
His magnificent back, showing his broad shoulder and narrow waist, carried the as-steady-as-the-mountain imposing manner, creating fear and reverence in Bu Tianzhi’s heart, so that momentarily he did not dare to speak to disturb the peace, afraid that he might disrupt his train of thought.
After a good while, Kou Zhong murmured quietly, as if he was speaking to himself, “I want to take a trip to the Song Family of LingNan. Zhi Shu, please make the arrangement for me. After eliminating Shen Lun, I will immediately set out on my journey, while the rest may return to Peng Liang.”
Bu Tianzhi could feel the determination in his voice, he knew that it would be difficult for him to persuade Kou Zhong otherwise, hence he had no choice but to say, “Let Zhi Shu accompany you then.”
Kou Zhong shook his head and said, “I have another important matter I need to entrust to Zhi Shu.”
Slowly turning around, he handed the bamboo tube containing the treasure map that Cao Yinglong handed over to Xu Ziling, and then Xu Ziling passed on to him – to Bu Tianzhi’s hands. After explaining everything clearly, he said, “Zhi Shu must retrieve everything as quickly as possible, and then keep it in a secret yet convenient place so that it can be used any time. This can be considered an ill-gotten wealth, I do not want to use it to finance our military, I only hope to use it to rebuild the people’s homes.”
Full of appreciation, Bu Tianzhi said, “Shao Shuai’s decision touched me very much.”
And then he could not help asking, “Why does Shao Shuai appear to have a heavy load on your mind tonight?”
Kou Zhong looked up at the bright moon in the sky, and slyly said, “My mood is much better now. Having Li Shimin as my adversary, what regret do I have in my life?”