Chapter 2
Merciless Gold Sword
The middle-aged merchant seemed to have forgotten that he’d already drank his three cups in advance, laughing and raising the cup before him, “To predestined affinity…”
The blue-garbed young man shook his head and interrupted flatly, “I’m quite willing to listen to Brother’s second reason. This first reason, by the looks of it, was nothing much to start with!”
The middle-aged merchant was taken aback. “Wh… what? Dear brother means that use meeting by chance today and taking to each other like old friends right away, is… is not worth downing three cups of wine?”
The blue-garbed young man said, “That’s not what I meant.”
“The middle-aged merchant said, “Then…”
The blue-garbed young man said, “What I mean is, us brothers meeting all the way till now without even thinking to ask each other our name is not like Brother says, some hard to come by predestined affinity.”
The middle-aged merchant blinked, somewhat puzzled. “Then what’s it like?”
The blue-garbed young man said, “Ought to say that there is no need!”
The middle-aged merchant couldn’t understand what the young man was getting at. He opened his eyes wide. “No…
“No… need?”
The blue-garbed young man smiled. “Yes, Brother ought to understand why I say there’s no need!”
The middle-aged merchant cocked his head and thought about it, then suddenly understood and nodded repeatedly. “Right, right right!”
The blue-garbed young man smiled. “Now Brother understands what I mean?”
The middle-aged merchant nodded. “Yes, yes, I understand dear brother completely now. They say that: when friends meet, they have an intimate understanding, a person’s surname…”
The blue-garbed young man shook his head. “That’s not what I mean.”
The middle-aged merchant was stumped again. “Then…”
The blue-garbed young man smiled as he looked at him and slowly said, “What I mean by there’s no need, is that we already knew long before who each other is, there’s no need to ask each other!”
The middle-aged merchant was dumbfounded and got a bit tense. “Dear brother is saying we… we’ve met… met somewhere before?”
The blue-garbed young man cleared his throat and continued, “Ever since I entered the Pass I’ve had I don’t know how many meetings such as this, it’s just too bad none of these friends’ capacity for liquor is a match for yours, brother. They only coveted Sword King Palace’s reward of 10,000 taels of gold, every time trying to get me drunk , but in the end it was them who ended up falling over drunk. A person being able to hold his liquor well sometimes can have a lot of advantages…”
The middle-aged merchant’s face went completely white.
The blue-garbed young man coughed again. “When I was still outside the Pass I heart that there were three people in the Central Plains who could really drink. Besides Sword King Palace’s head steward, Merciless Gold Sword Ai Yifei, one friend was called Dagger Within a Smile, named Sheng Jian. The other’s name is not known, but everyone calls her Sister As You Wish. These three apparently can hold their liquor even better than me. I heard that and was not particularly convinced. So, this time when entering the Pass and into the Central Plains, in addition to some personal matters, I also hoped to have the chance to meet these three people and test their capacity for liquor.”
The middle-aged merchant’s mouth twitched, but he didn’t say anything.
The blue-garbed young man picked up his cup and took a drink. “What’s a pity is that, half a year ago some news that didn’t make one very happy spread, saying that Sword King Palace had actually posted a reward of 10,000 taels of gold to capture me alive! A person considered that important by the Sword King Palace can’t be a bad thing, it’s just that because of this, it seems I won’t have the chance to test liquor capacity with that Head Steward Ai!”
The middle-aged merchant’s voice quavered, “I think I haven’t fooled you, dear brother. I’m none other than Sheng Jian, but please… please… dear brother, go easy on me, let me… let me… explain.”
The blue-garbed young man laughed. “Brother Sheng, there’s nothing for you to explain. Gold is something everyone loves. If the places were revered, I might just be tempted as well. Besides, finding you, Brother Sheng, to drink with you, was one of my three great wishes. I, Shen Wuhai, of course won’t regard you like I did the Four Gentlemen!”
Dagger Within a Smile Sheng Jian really never dreamed that the Killer Star before him who killed without batting an eye would spare his life once he saw through his identity and bad intentions. He promptly raised his cup and said, “Many thanks, dear brother, for not killing me. I will definitely think of a way to repay dear brother’s great kindness. Now, let me first propose a toast to you, dear brother, to express my thanks!”
Shen Wuhai raised his cup as well, laughing, “The one you should thank is yourself.”
Sheng Jian was stumped. “Thank myself? How… how is that?”
Shen Wuhai laughed. “Because you’re the first to hear my name without thinking of running away or thinking to attack me first.”
Sheng Jian wanted to fill his cup but found the wine pitcher was empty, so he looked up and asked, “Dear brother, would you like to drink some more?”
Shen Wuhai shook his head, smiling. “I’ve drank enough already. Brother Sheng, your tolerance for liquor has done me in, it’s much greater than mine.”
Sheng Jian shook his head. “That’s just dear brother being polite. Though I can drink two cups, I’m nowhere near that of Sister As You Wish. If you have the chance in the future, you two ought to have a go at it.”
Shen Wuhai’s eyes shone. “Then does Brother Sheng know where Big Sister As You Wish is currently?”
Sheng Jian laughed, “That woman’s alluring name has spread far and wide. Ordinarily she avoids pursuit from those playboys of the white and black paths. She doesn’t have a fixed abode, her whereabouts are very secretive. Trying to find out that woman’s whereabouts is really harder than reaching the sky…”
Shen Wuhai shrugged. “In that case, I’ll just have to wait till later to find an opportunity.”
Sheng Jian said, “However, “for you, dear Brother Shen, the situation is a bit different. If you really want to find this woman, I know a way to get her to drop in for a visit on her own.”
Shen Wuhai said, “What way?”
Sheng Jian said, “This way couldn’t be simpler, I just don’t know if you’re willing to do it or not.”
Shen Wuhai said, “Might as well let me hear it.”
Sheng Jian lowered his voice, laughing, “If dear brother can just stay here a few more days, let everyone know that the Killer Star has arrived in Changsha, then I guarantee you that woman will run over here immediately!”
Shen Wuhai was a bit surprised. “Huh? You mean… this woman has also been moved by Sword King Palace’s offer of 10,000 taels of gold?”
Sheng Jian said, “What’s so strange about that, this woman has always been more interested in gold than in men, and she believes that so long as she runs into you one day, Sword King Palace’s 10,000 taels of gold will be hers for the taking!”
Shen Wuhai nodded and revealed a faint smile. “From what Brother Sheng says, my earlier guess is probably correct.”
Sheng Jian said, “What kind of woman do you imagine her to be?”
Shen Wuhai said, “I always supposed this woman, though called Sister As You Wish, is very likely not very old, and perhaps quite attractive.”
Sheng Jian said, “Dear brother, you suppose correctly! As for the woman’s age, very few people know, but for men that’s not that big a deal. If a woman makes a man think of her age, that woman won’t be popular among men anymore. As for how attractive she is, I can’t think of an appropriate analogy to describe it, but I wager it far exceeds your imagination!”
Shen Wuhai smiled but said nothing.
Sheng Jian continued, “What do you think, are you willing to try my way?”
Shen Wuhai thought a moment and nodded. “I’ve already decided I must meet this woman no matter what. If there’s no better way, then I’ll just have to do it this way…”
Sheng Jian bowed forward and said in a low voice, “I know you might be worried, dear brother, that once word gets out it might draw Head Steward Ai out at the same time. This time you can rest at ease, leave everything to me. I’ve already thought of another ingenious plan that will guarantee that when the time comes, the only one who will find you, dear brother, is that woman!”
Shen Wuhai went “Oh” and looked up. “What ingenious plan?”
Sheng Jian glanced behind him, then stuck his finger in some soup and wrote two lines of words on the table. Then he looked up and asked, “
“Is this plan ingenious or what?”
Shen Wuhai gently cleared his throat, “All I can say is that Brother Sheng is very fortunate.”
Sheng Jian listened to this somewhat at a loss, then his eyes suddenly went wide? “Fortunate? What do you mean by that, dear brother?”
Shen Wuhai stood up slowly. “Because ever since I entered the Pass, of everyone who’s harbored evil ideas against me, Shen Wuhai, and lived to tell the tale, Brother Sheng, you might just be the first!”
Sheng Jian shrank back and cried out in shock, “No, no, dear brother, listen to me…”
Unfortunately Shen Wuhai didn’t listen to what he had to say.
As soon as he said the word “me”, this Killer Star’s hand went to his shoulder like a bolt of lightning.
Fortunately the Killer Star stood by his words. Though he struck fast, the force of it was extremely limited. At a glance it looked like an old friend clapping another on the shoulder. He pulled his hand back and laughed coldly and turned around and went downstairs.
※ ※ ※
The lie, in the end, was confirmed.
Despite the fact that the reason the Killer Star, who had blood on his hands, had come to Changsha remained a mystery, it was absolutely the truth that the frightening Killer Star had come to Changsha.
Myriad Blessings Loft’s waiters were the best eyewitnesses.
Though these waiters had suffered their fill of false alarms that day, they also came into a tidy some of money.
Because the blow to the shoulder that Dagger Within a Smile Sheng Jian suffered that day was a heavy one, when he was sent over to the inn across the street he was still fully conscious.
Because the waiters treated him so well, not only did he not ask for the extra money he’d paid back, he gave every one of them a few extra taels of silver.
After word got out, Myriad Blessings Loft’s business got even better.
Every customer who came to drink more or less came with the same goal, which was the hope of learning from the waiters what had happened in the restaurant that day.
But by the time the waiters were browbeaten enough to finally spill the story, very few people believed it.
Because in everyone’s mind the coldblooded Killer Star, even if he didn’t have three heads and six arms, at the very least have an intimidating, frighteningly fiendish appearance. Who would believe it when you said this Killer Star was actually just a mild-mannered, refined, handsome young man?
At nightfall on the fourth day, thirteen travel-worn and weary riders wearing swords suddenly arrived in Changsha.
Though the thirteen riders had endured a long, hard journey, none of them looked the least bit fatigued. Aside from the leader, who was a bit older, around fifty, with an expressionless face and wearing a black cloak, the other twelve riders were all around thirty, big burly men, each more brave and heroic looking than the last, eyes gleaming, pressing heroic spirit. It looked like they were quite accomplished masterhands when it came to swordsmanship. As expected, Merciless Gold Sword had led the twelve Brocade Swordsmen, same as before, from Yueyang after learning the news.
This head steward of the Sword King Palace seemed to have already heard a summary of the whole story, therefore after entering the city he didn’t even inquire around but went straight to the Gathered Worthies Inn diagonally opposite Myriad Blessings Loft.
Sheng Jian’s injury had not completely healed.
So, after Merciless Gold Sword arrived with his twelve swordsmen, he could only force himself and his weak body to receive the head steward’s visit in the little room at the back of the inn that smelled of medicine.
The result of their conversation was disappointing.
Because Merciless Gold Sword only wanted to know one thing: where did Killer Star go that day? But all that Dagger Within a Smile could tell him was the conversation they had had that day when they were drinking.
The waiters of Myriad Blessings Loft knew what quite well what the two of them had talked about that day when they drank. By now everyone knew, so saying it again was just a waste of words.
Poor Merciless Gold Sword, running all over the place for months, and every time he gets somewhere all he sees is a corpse. This time he finally managed to find a living witness, only come to find out that in the end it all led to nothing.
After a long silence, one of the swordsmen suddenly cut in with a question, “From what Mr. Sheng just said, you two fell out at the end because Mr. Sheng proposed a plan and wrote it in two lines on the table with your finger, intending that, given the circumstances, it would be better for you to come up with a plan to help him meet Sister As You Wish, but unexpectedly, that boy thought it was a trap, so he hit you with a palm strike and injured you. Is that right?”
Sheng Jian said, “Yes.”
The swordsman said, “Mr. Sheng, what were the two lines you wrote?”
Sheng Jian said, “The gist of what I wrote was this: Given that murder outside the city, the Sword King Palace men would arrive sooner or later for sure, so I advised him that the best thing was to find a spot to hide inside the city and don’t show yourself for a while, wait for your esteemed palace to come, then I will think of a way to send you all away with an excuse. Then he can stay there in peace and wait for that woman to show up. But that boy suddenly turned hostile, thinking I was trying to trick him and use this opportunity to report yo your esteemed palace’s men and thus collect the reward for 10,000 taels of gold…”
The swordsman frowned and asked nothing further.
The other swordsmen all inwardly shook their heads and heaved a deep sigh, feeling that this Dagger With a Smile, Brother Sheng, was really as smart and as cunning as the rumors had it, an exceedingly calculating character. The swordsmen couldn’t help but think to themselves, Brother Sheng, you really are too naive. That plan even a three-year-old could figure out, yet you really wanted to make Killer Star fall for it? That you still have a life today is really letting you off lightly, Sheng.
Merciless Gold Sword seemed to think of something, suddenly looking up at him. “When he struck you, did you notice what move he used, what school or sect’s martial arts it most closely resembled?”
Sheng Jian gave a wry smile. “Steward, you really give me too much credit, with my level of martial arts, I was struck completely dumb by the suddenly turn of events…”
Merciless Gold Sword thought about it and agreed that for Dagger Within a Smile, that question really was asking too much, so he modified it, “Then, before the falling out, did he happen to let slip any hints about his intentions, what his goal was for coming to Changsha?”
Sheng Jian shook his head. “No.”
Merciless Gold Sword sighed faintly, evidently having run out of questions to ask. Since there was nothing left to say, naturally he could only take his leave.
He turned to go and looked at the swordsmen behind him, as if wondering whether any of them had any suggestions to put forth.
The swordsmen looked at each other, but no one opened their mouth.
Sheng Jian, lost in thought for a time, suddenly looked up and, hesitating, said, “Though that boy didn’t say what his aim was, from what I observed, I’d say that kid looked to be just happening to be passing through Changsha…”
Merciless Gold Sword went “Oh” and said, “Why do you say that?”
Sheng Jian gave a smug smile, “He was just loafing around the city. I tailed him for a while before walking up and befriending him, followed him for a long time. He came in from the north gates, passed by several inns, and I saw that he didn’t so much as glance at them, so you can see that he never intended to stop and rest in the city…”
Merciless Gold Sword nodded. “Hmm, seems that might be possible.”
Sheng Jian smugly continued, “Of course that’s just my guess, but if my guess isn’t wrong, we ought to be able to roughly guess from his previous route where he might be headed next!”
Merciless Gold Sword’s eyes shone. “In your estimation, Brother Sheng, where do you think he might be headed?”
Sheng Jian hesitated, thinking. “He came from Yueyang, of course he won’t go back there. That much ought to be a given.”
Merciless Gold Sword said, “Of course.”
Sheng Jian continued, “By the same token, we can assume it’s much more likely he’ll continue heading south rather than head back north.”
Merciless Gold Sword thought about this. “Head south?”
Sheng Jian continued, “Head south from here.”
Merciless Gold Sword suddenly jumped up. “Right! The Two Elders of Mount Heng!”
Sheng Jian looked up, puzzled. “Two Elders of Mount Heng?”
Merciless Gold Sword said, “Yes, the pair of brothers on Mount Heng who hold themselves aloof from the world, they must be that guy’s next target to harm. We must think of a way at once to stop him, any delay and I fear we’ll be too late!”
With that, he made a cupped fist salute and hurriedly said, “Many thanks Brother Sheng for showing the way out of this maze, I take my leave now. If the Two Elders of Mount Heng are fortunate enough this time to escape that murderous God of Plague, it will be all thanks to you, dear brother. I’ll call on you again another time to thank you!”
※ ※ ※
The sky was gradually darkening.
All was peace and quiet again inside the room.
Sheng Jian saw his guests off, despite his injury, and he saw off the smile on his face.
By now Merciless Gold Sword and those twelve Brocade Swordsmen ought to be long gone, and Dagger Within a Smile shut the doors and windows tight after they left and faced a lone lamp alone, quietly lost in thought, not moving a muscle the whole time.
From the pulsing lampflame he seemed to be seeing a real life scene.
Before the hut of the Two Elders of Mount Heng, Merciless Gold Sword and the twelve swordsmen dismounted from their horses, faces sweaty, and discovered that the two elders were casually playing weiqi inside their hut.
※ ※ ※
Knock!
Knock!
Just then, from outside came a suddenly light rapping on the door.
Sheng Jian snapped out of his reverie, composed himself, and looked up and asked, “Who is it?”
From outside a low voice, “Master Sheng, have you not retired for the night?”
Sheng Jian heard it was a waiter’s voice and relaxed. He called out grumpily, “Didn’t I tell you all when I saw my guests off earlier not to come here again tonight unless there was something wrong?”
The waiter said, “In answer to Master Sheng, it’s like this, His Excellency Bai has just arrived in the western side court and heard that Master Sheng was staying here and he couldn’t be happier…”
Sheng Jian was taken aback. “His Excellency Bai?”
The waiter said, “Yes, he says you two have not seen each other in years, it’s a rare treat to run into you today, so he’s ordered food and drink prepared and has specially invited Master Sheng to come chat with him…”
Sheng Jian said, “Where is this Excellency Bai from?”
The waiter said, “I’m not sure.”
Sheng Jian said, “About how old does he look?”
The waiter said, “In his twenties.”
Sheng Jian heard this and was stumped again.
Excellency Bai? Only in his twenties? That had him stumped! He was confident in his memory, but he could not think at the moment when he had ever made a friend like this!
Had that boy mistaken him for someone else?
When he still hadn’t responded, the waiter suddenly coughed softly, as if he wanted to say something but didn’t dare open his mouth.
Sheng Jian hurriedly asked, “Did this Excellency Bai give you any other instructions, and could you tell me directly what they were?”
The waiter said, “Yes, he said Master Sheng has a large circle of friends and so might have forgotten about him.”
Sheng Jian said,” Yeah, at the moment I can’t quite recall him.”
The waiter said, “So, he guesses that Master Sheng might very well not be willing to honor him with your presence.”
Sheng Jian said, “You can tell him that I’m not feeling well, I’ve been taking medicine the past few days.”
The waiter said, “I’ve already told him that Master Sheng is not feeling well.”
Sheng Jian said, “What did he say?”
The waiter said, “He said he knew.”
Sheng Jian said, “Oh!”
The waiter said, “He said… cough cough… that Master Sheng had better think it through. If you don’t go he will leave, because his time is very precious.”
Sheng Jian was dumbstruck!
What kind of talk was that?
Who in the world would invite someone over like that?
He’d originally had no intention of going, but this piqued his curiosity. He rather wanted to see who this kid really was.
