Chapter 9
Swordsmen Gather
It was the kind of smile that’s intention could never be concealed. Seventh Master Luo’s intent had clearly already been seen through by the Killer Star.
From that smile he seemed to hear his adversary say, “How are you compared to the Four Gentlemen?”
“Compared to the Lake Tai Fisherman Recluse?”
“Compared to the Lordson of Jinling?”
“How are you compared to your Head Steward Ai in front of you?”
This maternal granduncle’s heart immediately turned cold. He knew that if the Killer Star wanted to attach, even a few more swordsmen would not be enough to protect him.
But his face had already sank. Everyone knew he had something he wanted to say, and they were waiting for him to say it. In this situation he couldn’t very well not say it.
Luckily he had another special skill.
He coughed repeatedly and put on an angry face and said gravely, “This old fellow of course does have a view!”
Shen Wuhai smiled. “What view?”
“Whether that kid is let go or not is none of this old fellow’s business, that’s for Steward Ai to decide, it’s not this old fellow’s place to put down the sacrificial meat tray and take over the kitchen. But today someone has assumed my identity and bumbled in here and nearly grievously wronged me. I must know who he is!”
He fully expected that being like a tiger’s head with a snake’s tail, randomly coming up with this hasty excuse would get him out of this predicament.
But Shen Wuhai instead made him hit a snag.
Shen Wuhai smiled at him. “Now let me answer you, maternal granduncle! You can not release him, but no one can know who he is! Nevermind that you’re the maternal granduncle, even the maternal granduncle’s granduncle can’t know!”
The mood in the parlor became tense.
Merciless Gold Sword’s hands were sweating, and his grip on the hilt of his sword tightened.
Though he was a Sword King Palace man, right here, right now, he bitterly hated that meddlesome Seventh Master Luo even more than Shen Wuhai or the fake Seventh Master Luo did.
But even so, he was still a Sword King Palace man.
Not just anyone could be the Sword King Palace’s head steward.
He wasn’t ready to give up this lucrative post.
As long as he wasn’t willing to give up this job, he couldn’t afford to offend Seventh Master Luo.
If Seventh Master Luo ordered him to do something now, he would have no choice. Even if it was to kill the Killer Star, if the order issued from this maternal granduncle’s mouth, he would have to comply.
Hew knew Seventh Master Luo’s temper better than anyone.
So he was sweating more than anyone.
He knew what Seventh Master Luo was going to command next, because Seventh Master Luo had no more leeway left to move.
What the Killer Star had said was too nasty!
It is said that men strive to save face, the Buddha strives for a stick of incense. Given that Seventh Master Luo was not content to be second place in the Guan-Luo region in either prestige or position, if he just took that kind of talk and did nothing, once word got out, how would he be able to conduct himself?
It was getting dark outside.
It was about time to light the lamps.
※ ※ ※
An attendant came out with a storm lantern in hand right on time.
This waiter seemed particularly happy today, humming a little ditty as he walked through the courtyard.
Of course he knew who was staying in this rearmost compound.
That was probably why he was so happy today.
The swordsmen of Sword King Palace’s uniforms were divided into five colors by rank, but no matter which rank of swordsman it was, if they came to Tong Pass they would never stay at any other inn.
Especially the highest-ranked Brocade Swordsmen, they were First Inn’s old customers, and they were the attendants’ favorite customers.
When he saw the Brocade Swordsmen he could not only call them out by name, he even knew the names of the girls each of them preferred.
The Brocade Swordsmen received much better service than ordinary guests.
To the extent that then guests’ tips added up didn’t equal even one Brocade Swordsman’s tip.
The last two days his luck had been bad, a damn shriveled-ten had cost him two months of wages, and he ended up owing Scabby Wu twelve and a half strings of cash.1
He was just worrying, not know what he should do, when unexpectedly his savior stars suddenly dropped from the sky.
Now, with these swordsmen here, all his problems were solved.
By this time tomorrow he could be sitting at the table again. As long as he waited on these masters well, what was twenty or thirty strings of cash to him?
When an attendant was happy, his mouth became more relaxed as well.
Delicate and charming, charming and delicate!
Aiyo, my little darling…
Unexpectedly, before his ditty was through a voice suddenly called out from the dark behind the artificial mountains in the rock garden, “Get out!”
In his enthusiasm, the attendant didn’t hear it clearly and thought someone was cheering. He stopped at once and with a smile declined humbly, “Oh no, no, Master, you’re laughing at me!”
He suddenly recognized the caller as Master Jing, who called on Miss Xiaohong.
He hurriedly went over and, keeping his voice down, said, “Miss Xiaohong just arrived. She asked if Master Jing had come this time. I said yes, and she was happy… I already arranged a room in the western side court for you… She’s over there… just waiting for you, Master Jing.”
Swordsman Jing hauled off and slapped him.
The attendant staggered, stumbled back a few steps, and fell on his butt. The storm lantern in his hand tumbled down and went out.
He sat up and cried out in shock, “Master Jing, what, what was that for?”
Swordsman Jing went over and pointed the tip of his sword at the attendant’s chest and seethed in a low voice, “If you say what you just said again, anywhere, I’ll have your life! You hear?”
“I… I… hear.”
“Now get the hell out of here!”
“Yes sir, Master Jing.”
※ ※ ※
It was getting darker inside the parlor.
However, though the light in the parlor was feeble, with everyone’s exceptional eyesight they could still see each other’s face clearly.2
Shen Wuhai’s smile had not disappeared this whole time.
He was still looking at Seventh Master Luo.
Seventh Master Luo was still looking at him.
The only thing different was that Seventh Master Luo wasn’t smiling.
This period of calm had been maintained for a long time. For Merciless Gold Sword and the swordsmen, this was a very trying moment.
Ever since Shen Wuhai had made this maternal granduncle hit a snag they had been waiting for the granduncle to speak.
But, strangely enough, this maternal granduncle had not said anything yet, turning over who knows what thoughts in his mind.
Shen Wuhai suddenly sighed softly. “Face is a real killer…”
It wasn’t clear what he meant by suddenly blurting that out.
But there was one in the parlor who knew what he meant.
Seventh Master Luo’s eyes shifted and he suddenly threw his head back and laughed.
Merciless Gold Sword’s expression changed quickly.
The swordsmen’s faces also changed expression, and everyone couldn’t help but take a step forward.
Because everyone had noticed that when Seventh Master Luo laughed his eyes were looking at the roofbeam above him and not at the Killer Star at the entrance.
When Seventh Master Luo laughed and didn’t look at the person, you didn’t need to ask to know what was going to happen next.
But, contrary to expectations, after laughing, Seventh Master Luo said only, “Alright, alright, just consider it me being meddlesome.”
Then he turned and strode out of the parlor.
This sudden turn came on really too abruptly!
Who would have guessed that the storm that had been brewing for so long would be over after just a few peals of thunder?
Shen Wuhai nodded, and as if talking to himself he sighed and said, “No wonder Seventh Master Luo has enjoyed such a great reputation for so long and has been able to live to such an advanced age! Truly, hearing about something a hundred times is not as good as seeing it once. It’s really admirable.”
Merciless Gold Sword stood there stunned. It was a while before he came back to his senses.
He couldn’t believe that Seventh Master Luo had really left the parlor. He looked around a bit, then finally blew a deep sigh of relief. He turned to Shen Wuhai with a wry smile. “Ole Brother, do you stand by what you just said?”
Shen Wuhai nodded and slowly turned around and went over to the fake Seventh Master Luo in the other room and used his message transmission skill to say, “Fella, listen up. My detention by the Sword King Palace is all part of my painstaking plan. In a minute I hope you won’t still insist, friend. As for my purpose, it’s a long story and it’s not convenient to tell it here. Once this matter is finished I will have my own way to escape, so please rest assured, friend. After you leave, you can disguise yourself and head to the Good Faith Escort Agency of Zhenjiang and look for Chief Escort Zhao there, who will arrange everything for you. Within a year at most, half a year at the soonest, I will hurry over to Zhenjiang to see you. Now, just pretend that you didn’t hear anything. It’s gonna take some more finagling to keep these guys from getting suspicious.”
He stood there bolt upright. Looking at his back from a distance it looked like he was facing a righteous, loyal friend. For a time he seemed pent up with emotion, as if he didn’t know what to say.
When he finished, he sighed softly and said slowly, “Friend, you must think it strange, how could a man in good health abandon his life and instead on running down the road to death? Now, I might as well tell you the truth, friend. It’s not that I don’t fear death. On the contrary, I’m scared as hell of death, and because I fear death I don’t want to die right away.”
He sighed again. “The biggest mistake you made, friend, was overestimating me and underestimating the Sword King Palace’s swordsmen. Of course, regardless, I’m grateful for your kind intentions, friend. And it’s precisely because I’m grateful for your kind intentions that I put forth that condition just now to let you go. Now, I don’t have anything left I can say. Thousands and thousands of words it would take, but I just have one more sentence: I hope you will excuse me for my own bottled-up troubles, friend, and not make this any more hard on me.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo hung his head silently and said nothing.
Shen Wuhai turned to Merciless Gold Sword. “Alright, light the lamps!”
A swordsman lit the lamps and the parlor was brightly illuminated.
Shen Wuhai said, “Now, if I could venture to trouble Steward to ask all eleven swordsmen to enter the parlor.”
Merciless Gold Sword didn’t seem to understand what he meant.
Shen Wuhai said, “Because I don’t want this fella to become a sword-slain ghost once he exits the main gates of this inn.”
Merciless Gold Sword said quickly, “On that, Ole Brother, you can rest assured.”
Shen Wuhai looked sidelong at him and said, “Oh, really? Then if I were to pledge to you, Head Steward, that I would escort this fella out and that I would return afterward, Head Steward, would you be able to rest assured?”
Merciless Gold Sword’s expression changed, hurriedly putting on a smile. “Since Ole Brother has instructed it, I will respectfully obey.”
Saying that, he promptly turned and said, “Zhiyi, call them all in here.”
The six swordsmen scattered around outside heard the summons and immediately ran in with their swords in hand. They were unaware that the tense atmosphere in the parlor had already been dispersed. Only when Mastermind Star Fang Zhiyi gave them a meaningful look did they one by one return their swords to their scabbards.
Shen Wuhai counted to make sure all eleven swordsmen were present, then moved to the side to let the fake Seventh Master Luo out of the room.
The fake Seventh Master Luo left, then Shen Wuhai kept his promise and allowed Merciless Gold Sword to once again seal his acupoints.
And so a crisis was averted.
※ ※ ※
Shen Wuhai’s guess was not a bit wrong. The impostor Seventh Master Luo was indeed a young lad. Because once the impostor Seventh Master Luo exited the main entrance of the inn, he resumed his original appearance.
Unfortunately, Shen Wuhai only guessed that bit right.
Once out of First Inn he turned right, down a dark, narrow alley. Though dark and narrow, the end of the alley led to a good place.
Behind it was Tong Pass’ most famous pleasure quarters: Myriad Blossoms.
The main street was quiet, the little alley more so.
The fake Seventh Master Luo walked quietly down the alley. Standing not far from the end of the alley was a person.
This person stood, not moving, like a stone tablet before an ancient grave.
The fake Seventh Master Luo walked toward the person, seemingly not a bit surprised.
Two black shadows finally converged.
The one standing guard in the dark said, “How did it go?”
The fake Seventh Master Luo smiled, “Things are progressing very nicely. You could say much better than expected.”
The person said, “Even Seventh Master Luo didn’t recognize you?”
The fake Seventh Master Luo smiled, “What kind of performance would it be if he could recognize me?”
The person said, “That kid never doubted your identity?”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “If he had, he wouldn’t have let so many secrets out. It’s just too bad you weren’t there to see how awkward and hard up our Head Steward Ai was, you’d have laughed till your sides split. I almost couldn’t hold it in myself…”
The person asked quickly, “What secrets did that kid let out?”
The fake Seventh Master Luo suddenly sighed. “This Killer Star really is frightening, if I told you the secrets it’d give you a scare.”
The person said “Oh” softly, and an intimidating light gleamed in his eyes.
Eyes that shone like that in the dark were a terrifying sight, it made one instantly think of a ravenous wolf spotting its prey in the wilderness.
If the fake Seventh Master Luo told the secrets it really might scare him, but that’s clearly just they were looking forward to.
Because he at at the Sword King Palace’s table. In the palace he rarely showed himself and very few people knew his name, but his position was not below that of Merciless Gold Sword. Many of the Sword King’s very important measures were advocated by him. This self-injuring confidence game was his masterpiece. As far as this head strategist of the Sword King was concerned, the most alarming a secret the fake Seventh Master Luo told, the better.
Just then, a flickering light suddenly appeared at the mouth of the alley, accompanied by the sound of wooden clappers banging.
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “Ah, uh oh, someone’s coming.”
The person said, “It’s alright, it’s just a glutinous rice dumpling soup vendor. No one lives down this alley, he won’t come in here.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo’s eyes shifted, as if he’d just thought of something. He pointed at the other end of the alley and whispered, “Have you been back there?”
The person said, “Yes.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “When you went, was that Xiaohong I called on last time there?”
The person said, “Yes.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “Then let’s go inside, get a room, order some food and wine, and drink and chat! Seeing that dumpling soup vendor made me remember that I haven’t eaten anything yet tonight.”
The person said, “You get to the most important part and you suddenly shut up, you trying to keep me in suspense?”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “I would never keep you in suspense, my stomach really is terribly hungry. You know how I am about that, I can bear anything, anything except hunger…”
The person coughed. “Of course I know how you are.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “Then let’s go, it’s spacious in there, it’s no good talking standing out here.”
The person stood to the side. “It’s this way.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “It’s this way—this way where?”
The person said, “To Intoxicating Beauty. I’ve already booked you a room, because I know when you do things, ole brother, you can’t be without that.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo was taken aback. “Where—where did you hear that? I asked about Myriad Blossoms’ Xiaohong, who told you I wanted to go to some Intoxicating Beauty?”
The person said, “It was my idea.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “Why are we going to Intoxicating Beauty and not Myriad Blossoms?”
The person said, “Because we can’t go to Myriad Blossoms tonight.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “Why not?”
The person said, “Xiaohong already has a client.”
The fake Seventh Master Luo breathed a deep sigh of relief. “I thought it was something big, it’s just that. Ai, Ole Brother you really are something, of course a girl like Xiaohong has a constant stream of clients, you really are ignorant!”
The person said, “You know full well that the miss has a client and you still want to go?”
The fake Seventh Master Luo said, “Heh, that’s easy, whoever the client is just drive him out. I don’t believe me, Shang Sanlang, in Tong Pass…”
The person glanced at him sidelong, and said plainly, “Why don’t you ask who the client is first?”
The fake Seventh Master Luo started. “Who is the client?”
The person said, “You really can’t guess? Or you want to force me to say it?”
The fake Seventh Master Luo’s eyes suddenly widened. “Is it—is it our old chief?”
Notes
- Shriveled-ten translates 癟十, a term for a ten in Pai Gow, the lowest you can get since the last digit is 0.
- In wuxia fiction, martial artists have better eyesight and hearing than ordinary people because their internal energy boosts it. So you will often see them described as having a certain gleam in their eyes that gives them away as a martial artist. They will sometimes be described as having protruding temples as well, again from their internal energy. They can also call out louder and longer than normal people.