I’m currently reading Ninefold Flute《九轉簫》by Dongfang Yu 東方玉. I’ve had a few of his novels for years but never got around to reading them. He’s one of those authors who was really popular during his time but then later ignored or slighted by critics. I’ve seen comments by readers and critics that are kind of dismissive; I get the impression that his work is kind of generic and mediocre. But I am researching for my Writer’s Guide to Wuxia and I knew that Dongfang Yu wrote about “palaces” 宮, one of the many organizations commonly seen in wuxia fiction, so I decided to read one of his books. Another reason I had stayed away is I heard he liked to use disguises for his characters, and that is my most hated trope. It’s so lazy. You think it’s one character, than tada! Turns out it was someone else, but they had a mask on or makeup that was so lifelike it looked exactly like the other person. It’s really common in wuxia, but I was trying to avoid it.
So I decided on Ninefold Flute, which was published from April 20, 1967 to April 23, 1969 in China Times newspaper. Dongfang Yu was a mainstay of this paper for most of his career. This was the same paper in which Gu Long first published Horizon, Bright Moon, Sabre《天涯‧明月‧刀》 in 1974. But it only ran for 45 installments before it was pulled from the paper, apparently because of reader complaints due to how different the writing style was. This was the first and only time such a thing happened to Gu Long, and it was a heavy blow to him. The last installment ran on June 8, 1974. Two days later, on June 10, 1974, Dongfang Yu’s novel Seven Steps Startle the Dragon《七步驚龍》began. According to Gu Long’s student Ding Qing, it was another famous author along with reader complaints that caused the novel to be pulled. Given that Dongfang Yu’s novel started just two days later, the assumption is that Dongfang Yu was the author who pressured the editor to pull Gu Long’s novel.
Anyway, back to Ninefold Flute. The title of the novel references the nine rounds of refinement used in making certain Daoist elixirs of immortality, but it also references nine tunes played on the flute in question. This is a vertical flute 簫 (xiao) as opposed to a transverse flute 笛 (di). 簫 can also refer to panpipes, but that’s not the instrument in question here.
It’s pretty good so far. The excerpt I have translated below is a scene from chapter 1. Let me give you the setup before this scene.
The novel opens with Miracle Doctor Xue, standard archetypal wuxia character, the incredible doctor. Ofen they have eccentric rules or principles, like they never cure anyone, or insist on curing everyone they meet! In this case, Miracle Doctor Xue’s thing is you have to teach him a martial art technique as payment in order for him to treat you. And it has to be a good one.
So one day this guy shows up, turns out to be Black Revenant Roving Dragon Sang Jiu in the exceprt below. He’s carrying a little boy in his arms, and he’s traveled a long distance to reach the doctor. The boy has been critically wounded (or is ill, it’s not specified). The doctor takes a look, feeling the boy’s pulse and so on, but in the end he concludes that the boy is beyond help, sorry. Sang Jiu is not willing to take no for an answer. He’s traveled all this way and heard such good things about Doctor Xue. But the doctor is insistent. Finally, Sang Jiu leaves a black metal flute on the table and goes over to write a character “Jiu”, 九 (nine), which is his name, for the doctor to see once he leaves. Then he snatches the doctor’s daughter who’s just come in the room to tell her daddy it’s bedtime.
The doctor is alarmed of course, and under duress, he agrees to help the boy (both boy and the daughter are around five or six years old). He says he can cure the boy, but it will take a year of treatment. So Sang Jiu agrees, but insists on taking the daughter with him as security. He says for the doctor to meet him at Tianjin Bridge a year from now to make the exchange.
That’s the very first scene of the novel. Immediately after that is the scene translated below.
A curve of new moon hung aslant in the sky. Who knows who it was who compared it to long, arching, moth-like eyebrows of a lovely woman. If they were moth brows, then it must have been when the woman was angry! Look, her curved brows, aren’t they arched up? Along with her sparkling starry eyes twinkling, she seems to be pouting prettily!
A dim, hazy night, the mountains a blurred silhouette. This was at the foot of Mount Dengwei, famous for its plum blossoms, the perfect place for literati to enjoy the blossoms!
It was the start of the second month, thousands of plum blossom trees were already giving off tender shoots. It wasn’t the time for enjoying plum blossoms, but right now there was a large figure here strolling in the moonlight.
It was an old man in a long blue-cloth gown. He held a soundly sleeping little girl in his arms as he walked quickly with light, easy steps. When he reached the foot of the mountain his steps slowed. He was none other than Black Revenant Roving Dragon Sang Jiu, who had just come out from Xue’s medicine hut!
Passing by this place made him think of that day ten years ago. It has also been a dark, overcast night. He had happened by this place and had found the violent, vicious Dragon Gate Eccentric Five of the jianghu here seeking revenge on Miracle Doctor Xue. Their reason was that Miracle Doctor Xue had cured a critically wounded person, the very enemy of the Dragon Gate Eccentric Five, and so their wrath was shifted onto Miracle Doctor Xue.
Miracle Doctor Xue’s martial arts was not weak, but how was he any match for the Eccentric Five? At that critical moment, he himself appeared and wounded the Eccentric Five, but their fiendish hearts were not stayed and they wanted him to state his name. He left, and in the sand he left the word “Jiu”, so that they could decide amongst themselves if they had what it took to get revenge…
His weather-beaten, swarthy face split into a thread of a smile and he mumbled, “Xue Daoling ought to know by now who this old fella is!”
Time to head back. Thousands of miles running about in the wilds from Tianjin Bridge, now he could rest. Next year on this day, Xue Daoling will come to Tianjin Bridge and look for him.
Starting next year it would be ten years he had been raising that child, the sole flesh and blood of Mr and Mrs. Fan… If not for the Fans, there would be no Black Revenant Roving Dragon in the jianghu…
With thoughts surging in his mind, he made to leave.
Suddenly he heard a woman’s voice from behind say, “Hey! Is that Old Sir Sang up ahead? Wait a minute!”
The voice was delicately and charmingly crisp and sweet, but on this dark, quiet night, especially in this deserted wilderness, to suddenly hear it made one’s hair stand on end.
Black Revenant Roving Dragon mind jolted. Who could that be? She was actually calling for him!
Black Revenant Roving Dragon Sang Jiu was a master of the art of disguise. For thirty years his fame had rocked the light and dark paths of the jianghu, no one had ever seen his real face. Or else they wouldn’t call him “Black Revenant Roving Dragon”.
“Roving Dragon” was an allusion to the phrase “the wondrous dragon’s head is seen but not its tail”,1 and also included the meaning of drifting about and wandering.
Now, to have someone call him “Old Sir Sang”, how could he not be surprised?
He turned his head to look, and in the dreary, hazy night there was a figure a few staves away, lithely, gracefully walking over. It was a delicate, fragile, slim woman.
With Roving Dragon’s ears and eyesight, forget people, even a fluttering flower or falling leaf would be clear to him from a couple dozen staves away. But this svelte woman was only a few staves away and he could still not make her out. If she had not called out, he wouldn’t have known there was someone behind him!
Black Revenant Roving Dragon Sang Jiu suddenly spun around, his bright shining eyes shooting out an intimidating stare in the dark night. At the same time he spun around, a gust of redolent air assailed him, and the figure who had been a few staves away was not right in front of him! He could see clearly now that the pretty figure before him was a girl in palace dress of about twenty-two or three years old. Long hair draping over the shoulders, long skirt dragging the ground, she looked like a drifting rosy cloud, her curved brows like the hook of a new moon. Her glittering eyes like the stars in the sky. The springy skin of her fair face as comely and charming as a flower, and her lovely smile. But behind her smile there seemed to be something hidden, so that one could not fathom her intentions.
Black Revenant Roving Dragon was slightly stunned and he was suddenly felt on guard.
Given the movement of the girl in palace dress, she was a top master of the martial world, but he had been roaming the jianghu for decades and had never heard of such a pretty young girl.
Especially her palace dress. This was not only not seen in the jianghu, even in among the common folk you wouldn’t find someone dressed like this! For the moment, the truly awe-inspiring famed, seasoned old hand of the jianghu Black Revenant Roving Dragon was befuddled. Frowning, he asked, “Miss, were you calling for me?”
The palace girl with a winsome smile said, “Aside from Old Sir Sang, who else is here?”
Roving Dragon said, “Does Miss know this old rotter?
The palace girl gave a lovely smile. “Oh, who doesn’t know of the celebrated Old Sir Sang?”
Roving Dragon said, “Miss is no ordinary person, please forgive this old rotter’s poor eyes, but who are you, Miss?”
The palace girl eyed him becomingly and gave a soft chuckle. “Since Old Sir Sang doesn’t know, then no need to ask!”
Roving Dragon said, “This old rotter would not have ventured to ask, but Miss called for me, there must be something you want, so this old rotter could not but ask.”
The palace girl winked at him and sneered, “Old Sir Sang is quite the smooth talker!”
Roving Dragon couldn’t tell her background, and was even more puzzled at her purpose in coming. His eyes widened despite himself. “This old rotter waits respectfully for Miss to state her purpose.”
A queer gleam flashed across the palace girl’s eyes. “Old Sir Sang has just come from Spring Fragrance Valley?”
Roving Dragon heard “Spring Fragrance Valley” and felt a jolt surge through him. Spring Fragrance Valley was the secluded abode of Mr. and Mrs. Fan. It was a very secret mountain valley, aside from the Fans, only he knew of it.
His… a thought jolted him and he unconsciously stared heard at her and said gravely, “Yes, this old rotter has come from Spring Fragrance Valley, how did Miss…”
The palace girl didn’t wait for him to finish but suddenly snickered, “What Spring Fragrance Valley, worthless foul slave girl, it ought to be called Spring Stank Valley, Spring Stank Valley!”
Roving Dragon looked at her and his mind was jolted. Her hateful, venomous, vicious gaze was enough to kill a person with one glance!
Of course he knew that when she said “worthless slave girl”, she was referring to Sister-in-law Fan.
Spring Fragrance Valley had been discovered by Mr. and Mrs. Fan, and so their names were used to name the valley.
Since the palace girl cursed Spring Fragrance Valley as Spring Stank Valley, it was clear she had some grudge with Sister-in-law Fan.
He had thought it bizarre that Mr. and Mrs. Fan had suddenly been murdered without rhyme or reason. It seemed fishy, and now this mysterious woman’s sudden appearance made him even more suspicious. He had to ask, “Did Miss know little brother Fan Chunhua?”
The palace girl heard the name Fan Chunhua and couldn’t repress a laugh. She looked up and said, “Of course I knew him, I just went to retrieve his body when I discovered carved on rock face the words:
‘I’ll return in ten years and swear to get revenge for my old friend.’
Below that was the word “Jiu”. I thought and thought, the only person in the jianghu who is that brash and bold would have to be Black Revenant Roving Dragon Sang Jiu!”
“Went to retrieve his body” gave him some food for thought!
Black Revenant Roving Dragon cocked his bushy eyebrow. “Has Miss been following this old rotter?”
The palace girl’s voice was charming, “Yeah! I saw you had made a tomb for Fan Chunhua and erected a tombstone, and I was very angry that you actually buried that foul slut with him, so I dragged that foul slut out of the tomb and tossed her in the gorge. At the same time I discovered that that little bastard’s body wasn’t in the tomb, so of course he hadn’t died and you, Old Sir Sang, must have taken him away. So you left that message about revenge in ten years, and so I went looking for you.”
She said it in such a charming, gentle manner, so crisp and clear. But every sentence in Roving Dragon’s ears was like an iron hammer pounding his heart, one heavy blow after another. He was more and more furious with every sentence. Experience told him that right now he had to remain calm, because he had to know the full story of what was going on. After she spoke, he couldn’t help but glare at her, so angry his eyes looked about to pop out, and he looked to the sky and laughed wildly. “So it was you who killed Mr. and Mrs. Fan?”
The palace girl curled her lip and snarled, “What mister and missus, it was that foul slut who seduced Fan Chunhua to make him elope with her…”
Black Revenant Roving Dragon suddenly pressed forward a step, keyed-up. “Why… did you kill Mr. and Mrs. Fan, you… speak!”
The palace girl’s youthful face suddenly took on a peculiar smile, and she slowly raised her jade hand and brushed back her hair. In a soft voice she said, “How about I tell you a story?”
Black Revenant Roving Dragon controlled his raging temper and thought, “She suddenly wants to tell a story, it must be about Mr. and Mrs. Fan’s death.” He nodded. “Speak!”
The palace girl said calmly, “In our palace there was a flowering peach tree. I remember ever since I was young I had never seen it bloom, until one spring day it suddenly was full of blossoms. But when time came for it to bear fruit, there was only one peach. Every day I went to look at it. I watched it slowly turn from green to red, watched it get bigger and more plump. I often thought, that peach must be as sweet as honey, it must be so delicious. But it was on a branch at the top of the tree, and I was only nine at the time, my lightness skill only about three-tenths mastered, so naturally I couldn’t leap up to the branch to get it.”
Black Revenant Roving Dragon was impatient at her talking about something completely unrelated, but he kept his cool and listened.
The palace girl said, “One day, Master pointed at the peach and said to me and my junior sister, who was one year younger than me, ‘Whichever of you two can say what method to use to get the peach down will get to eat it.’
“I thought, Master is testing our martial arts ability. Master normally told us of many martial arts of our sect, so I spoke up first and said, ‘I’d use our “Distance Plucking” and wave my hand and it will fall down.
“Junior Sis heard that and pouted her little mouth as if to say ‘I knew that too.’
“But I had said it first, so I was proud of myself. Who knew that Master would smiled and say, ‘You can only say it, but you can’t do it, so what use is that?’
“I was stunned, and before I could open my mouth, Junior Sis cut in, ‘Master, I’d use our “Pierce the Clouds, Shoot the Moon” technique and use a rock to hit the tree branch and shake it off, then I’d use “Light Parting, Clutching Shadows” footwork and catch it.’
“What’s so special about that? Whatever she said I could do too, I was better than her after all, but Master just smiled and nodded.”
Black Revenant Roving Dragon’s heart suddenly went cold. The techniques the palace girl named, “Distance Plucking” and “Light Parting, Clutching Shadows”, were martial arts moves that had only been heard about in the martial world but had been lost. Just who was this woman?
The palace girl continued, “I was so furious. Master had already promised Junior Sis to give the peach to her, but she had to get it herself using the methods she had just mentioned. Junior Sis wasn’t happy about that, but she picked up a rock and threw it at the tree branch. I was so mad I was seeing red and thought, ‘If I can’t eat it, there’s no way I will let you eat it’, so I furtively picked up a larger rock, raised my hand, and threw it at the peach. With the result that that large, plump peach was smashed into a pulp. I was so unspeakably happy when I smashed that peach, it was even better than if I had eaten it…”
Black Revenant Roving Dragon now understood.
The palace girl said, “That evening, I was still angry thinking about it. Smashing the peach meant no one could eat it, but I wanted no one to ever eat one again. So I quietly got up, took my sword, and dug the peach tree up, roots and all, then hacked at it wildly until it was chopped up into little pieces. When I looked back I saw Master just standing there quietly behind me, and I was very afraid. But this time, my master praised me, ‘A person who’s thinking of ruling the jianghu must have a ruthless, venomous heart and a pair of ruthless, vicious hands in order to accomplish it. This is where your junior sister is inferior to you.’”
The palace girl let out a charming chuckle, eyelids fluttering flirtatiously as she looked at Roving Dragon. “My story is finished, I think Old Sir Sang probably understood it? I’ve tracked and searched for thousands of miles, all just to dig up the peach roots!”
Black Revenant Roving Dragon trembled inwardly. Where in the world was there a master with such a student? No wonder this woman was so vicious and ruthless!
Her slender jade finger, along with her charming smile, pointed at the little girl in Roving Dragon’s arms.
Roving Dragon had been worried about the heavy dew at night, so he had covered the child under some clothes, so the palace girl of course didn’t know that he was carrying Miracle Doctor Xue’s daughter. Roving Dragon was so furious, how could he still hold himself in check. His large round eyes glared and he raged, “Such a venomous girl. This old fella worried he wouldn’t be able to find the killer, but tonight, I will get revenge for Mr. and Mrs. Fan.”
The palace girl arched her beautiful willow brow, still with that charming smile. “Oh, Old Sir Sang, why so angry, I just killed Fan Chunhua and that worthless foul slave girl. Add you, Old Sir Sang, and that little bastard tonight, and it’s still just four people. The number of people you have killed in the jianghu, Old Sir Sang, is likely many many more!”
Her tone was bold, as if Roving Dragon was already doomed to die for sure!
The name Black Revenant Roving Dragon Sang Jiu struck fear into both the light and dark paths of the jianghu. He didn’t expect the girl in palace dress to take him as some ordinary trifle, not worth taking notice of. But he knew his opponent was not at all ordinary. Naturally anyone who dared to look for him was up to no good. He suddenly took two steps back and set Zhuzhu down gently beneath a large tree.
His massive frame stood straight, eyes gleaming violently, and he bellowed in a stern voice, “This old fella doesn’t bow to evil, please make use of whatever ability you have and let’s see if this old fella’s life will be added to the tally or not.”
His whole life he had braved he didn’t know how many dangers but he had never been as cautious as he was being tonight. When he bellowed he already concentrated his qi into his acupoints and stood trembling, on guard.
The palace girl laughed icily. “I wouldn’t say it if I couldn’t do it. Once you receive one move you will know what I mean.”
She raised her palm and chopped down. Her palm strike didn’t whoosh through the air with an audible sound, and there was no surge of stealth force, it was just came on with a light whisk.
Black Revenant Roving Dragon’s expression was grave, his eyes focused on his opponent. He boomed, “Very good!”
His right hand raised, force storing up in his the center of his palm, and his gigantic hand faced the palace girl’s strike and pushed forward.
The palace girl seemed not to want to meet his palm head-on. Right before their palms collided she pulled back and suddenly contracted her wrist and recalled her palm strike.
Black Revenant Roving Dragon wasn’t about to let her back out. With a violent bellow he stole forward, palm striking out like lightning
His strike was swift and fierce, the force of his palm surging out like an angry tide as it cleaved the air. But just at that moment, he suddenly felt a stream of hidden force pressing his chest and belly. He was shocked, but it was already too late to retract the force of his palm strike.
He was force back half a step at an angle and quickly shot out his left palm to block the hidden force.
But the path of his force had all come from his right palm, so when his left palm met the enemy it was weaker, and he felt the palace girl’s stream of hidden force ram against his palm with unparalleled strength that he almost couldn’t block.
When the palace girl had retracted her palm and sent out the stream of hidden energy, she knew that Roving Dragon would take that opportunity to advance. She seemingly was unwilling to meet his palm force head-on and lightly, nimbly dodged with some odd footwork to avoid Roving Dragon’s palm strike. She laughed charmingly, then suddenly stole in, and the palm she had retracted struck Roving Dragon head-on like a flash of lightning.
At this moment Roving Dragon just happened to take half a step back and his left palm blocked her surging hidden force, and his right hand that missed was about to pull back, and before he even had time to think, he shouted heavily and swiftly countered.
There was a soft “pow” as their palms struck true. Two streams of internal palm force flowed and surged, blowing a gust of wind for eight paces and blowing the sleeves of their robes with a flapping sound.
The palace girl moved straight back with mincing steps four or five spans.
Black Revenant Roving Dragon always prided himself on his ample internal strength, but this time he too was moved back three or four steps. With every step, a footprint a finger-width deep was left in the ground, and when he came to a stop his head of short hair was standing on end and still quivering.
Their exchange of blows happened much faster than it was described, at lightning speed, and with this retreat they were both shook by the other’s martial arts ability.
Black Revenant Roving Dragon were wide like the bottoms of bronze bells and he threw his head back and laughed maniacally. “No wonder you were bragging, you really are the only masterhand I have encountered in some twenty-odd years!”
Saying this, his voice suddenly became grief-stricken, “Little Brother Fan, if your spirit can hear this, I swear I’ll cleave this monstrous woman in two!”
As he raged with hate his eyes went red, his left hand formed a swordfinger seal, his right hand slightly raised, and he leapt up, surging toward the palace girl.
The palace girl snickered, “You’re dreaming!”
She lightly fluttered up and soundlessly met him. With their fight, every move was a potential fatal blow. Black Revenant Roving Dragon used his famed supreme skill “Black Revenant Roving Dragon Palm”, sleeve raising, palm flying, each strike like a gigantic axe cleaving a mountain, an iron hammer battering a cliff, astonishingly powerful. The palace girl’s fingers spread they were like a whisk or a swat, seemingly splendidly light and airy, but actually it was a cunning technique and incredibly vicious.
In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged a dozen blows.
The palace girl chuckled charmingly, “Black Revenant Roving Dragon, is that all you’ve got?”
Roving Dragon boomed, “Girl, hand over your life!”
His palm strike suddenly became swift and fierce, left swordfingers, right palm, striking out together in unsurpassed fierce attack.
The palace girl laughed, “Old Sir Sang, be careful!”
As she laughed she dodged wildly, such bizarre footwork, fluttering light and airy like a butterfly threading in and out of flowers, flashing in from the afterimage of Roving Dragon’s palm!
Roving Dragon exerted all his force and suddenly saw a pair of slim, fair palms slowly reaching out and waving in front of him. His was shocked had no time to block, and then the fair hands disappeared, and he only felt an invisible pressure on his chest penetrating through his body.
He suddenly found it hard to breathe, and he couldn’t draw up any qi. He staggered back a step and involuntarily fell sitting on the ground.
The palace girl didn’t give him another look but suddenly turned, her sad eyes brimming over like limpid pools of autumn water, they faintly shot out a hateful look and raised her flowing sleeves and went right for the child sleeping soundly under the large tree.
Black Revenant Roving Dragon watched in horror and roared, “You can’t harm her…”2
With all his strength he leapt up from the ground. But with that shout and leap, the breath of qi he had managed to force up abruptly dispersed, and he dropped with a bang to the ground and was unconscious.
The palace girl looked back with a faint smile. “Old Sir Sang, see you again?”
Her voice still so charming and gentle, so sweet and crisp, the slim and delicate figure walked away unhurried and left the foot of the mountain.
In the night, there came her sweet, pleasant, plaintive voice singing, “Flower Washing Stream in Flower Washing Valley, Flower Washing Palace in Flower Washing Valley; the palace girls daily wash the flowers, they blossom and fall in the bitter spring breeze…”
Notes
- Meaning that one is secretive and mysterious and does not reveal their true self, or the true situation is not revealed.
- I can’t express this in English, but him and her sound the same in Chinese but are written with different characters. The text writes “her”, but there’s no way for the palace girl to know he is saying “her” and not “him”. She still thinks it’s the son of the Fans that is sleeping under the tree.