English Novel : 7 Killers (From Chinese novel )

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Re: English Novel : 7 Killers - Chapter 6

Unread post by novel » 28 Dec 2015 14:02

Chapter 6 – A dragon amongst men

Part 1

A long time passed. His whole body had begun to grow numb, and his hands were ice cold. It was at that time that he suddenly heard the sound of footsteps.

The footsteps were very light, and the person seemed to be walking very slowly. He could feel their every step in his tingling muscles.

Who was this person?

Was it Madam Lovesickness, or Tang Qing?

Whoever it was, they certainly would not be bringing good times with them.

The sky was bright.

The early morning sun shone in through the door, casting the shadow of the person into the restaurant. It was very long, and it seemed to be in the shape of a woman.

After a while, he was able to see the person’s feet.

The shoes were soft and decorated with green flowers. The feet were dainty and delicate.

Liu Changjie sighed. He knew who the person was.

“Since when did you start lying on tables this way?” Her voice was general quite pleasant, but now it carried a mocking tone, as acidic as an unripe plum. “Is it because your ass is swollen from being spanked?”

Liu Changjie could only laugh bitterly.

The voice continued, “I remember you were always the type to brag until you’re blue in the face. But how come it’s your ass that’s black and blue instead of your face?” [1]

He laughed. “Even if my ass was twice as swollen as it is now, it still wouldn’t be as big as yours.”

“Look, pal,” she laughed, “at a time like this you still dare to be obstinate? Aren’t you worried I’ll punch your face until it’s black and blue?” [2]

“I know you couldn’t bear to,” he smiled. “Don’t forget that I’m your husband.”

As it turns out, the woman was Hu Yue’er.

She crouched down, took hold of his chin, and stared into his eyes.

“My poor little husband, who was it that beat you up this way? Tell me.”

“You’re getting ready to go vent your anger on her for me?”

“I’m getting ready to go thank her.” Hu Yue’er suddenly twisted his nose. “Thank her for teaching you a lesson, you disobedient bastard.”

He laughed. “When a wife wants to curse her husband, she can say anything she wants, but she shouldn’t use the word bastard. After all, it implies bad things about the wife.”

She bit her lip. “If I really was mad,” she said hatefully, “I could turn you into a cuckold if I wanted to.” [3]

She seemed to be getting angrier and angrier. She twisted his ear violently. “When you left, did you wear extra thick clothes? Answer me!”

“I didn’t.”

“Did you go ask for the super sharp sword?”

“I didn’t.”

“Did you take care of Tang Qing first?”

“I didn’t.”

“Did you do anything according to plan?”

“I didn’t.”

She bared her teeth. “Other people thought things through so carefully for you, why do you always ignore everyone?”

“Because ever since I was young, I’ve never been an obedient kid. When people tell me I can’t do something, that’s exactly what I want to do.”

She laughed coldly. “You think you’re so amazing, don’t you? That nobody else can compare to you.”

“It doesn’t matter,” he smiled. “What you wanted me to do here, I did.”

“You still dare to talk this way?”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“Why don’t you go find a mirror and have a look at your ass?”

“Somebody spanking your ass is one thing,” he said steadily. “Accomplishing a mission is something else.”

“Correct. You had the duck in your hand ready to eat, but sadly it flew away.” [4]

“It didn’t fly away.”

“It didn’t?”

“The only thing that flew away were some feathers. I still have the skin and bones.”

Hu Yue’er seemed shocked. “Are you saying that woman took away an empty box?”

He smiled. “The only thing inside was a pair of old, stinky socks.”

She seemed thoroughly surprised. She couldn’t help but chuckle, and then lightly kiss Liu Changjie’s face. “I knew you were an amazing man,” she said sweetly. “I knew I wouldn’t pick my husband incorrectly.”

He sighed. “It seems like a man does need to live up to expectations,” he said quietly, “otherwise he might really become a cuckold.” [5]

Part 2

Sunlight shone in through the small window, onto Liu Changjie’s chest. Hu Yue’er’s face also lay on his chest.

A bare chest might not seem like much, but it carried a certain kind of charm.

Just like his personality.

He carried a strange type of charm that made it difficult for people to judge how powerful he truly was.

Hu Yue’er gently stroked his chest, and in a voice as low as a dream said, “Do you want more?”

He didn’t shake his head; he simply lacked the energy to move.

Hu Yue’er bit down on her lip. “In these few days away from me, you definitely were with other women.”

“No, I wasn’t.” Liu Changjie really didn’t feel like speaking, but this kind of accusation couldn’t go unanswered.

She wasn’t convinced. “If you weren’t, then how come someone wanted to spank your ass?”

He sighed. “If I was, how could she possibly be willing to spank me?”

She still wasn’t convinced. “You didn’t make any moves on Madam Lovesickness?”

“No.”

She laughed. “Only a ghost would believe you.”

“Why don’t you believe me?”

“If you really weren’t with any women,” she said regretfully, “then how come right now you’re like a rooster that just got beat in a cockfight, completely useless?”

He laughed. “Who do you think I am, some kind of superman?” [6] He let out a sigh. “I also get tired sometimes and need sleep.”

It looked like she was finally somewhat convinced. “Why aren’t you sleeping, then?”

“With you here at my side, how could I sleep?”

She sat up, her eyes widening. “Are you trying to make me leave?”

“That’s not what I meant,” he replied. “Although, you really should go.” In a soft voice, he continued, “When he finds out that the box Kong Lanjun took back is empty, Dragon Fifth will definitely come looking for me.”

“He can find this place?”

“He can find any place.”

She seemed to hesitate, starting to get the feeling that this small tavern wasn’t a safe place after all.

“Okay, I’ll go back,” she said, finally agreeing with him. “But you…”

“I’ll just wait here obediently,” he said, “and bring back good news as soon as I can.”

“Are you confident you can handle Dragon Fifth?”

“I’m not.” He laughed. “But, I also wasn’t confident that I could handle Madam Lovesickness.”

**

Hu Yue’er finally left.

Before departing, she had twisted his ear and warned him three times in a row: “If I hear anything about you messing around with other women, I will beat your ass until you have eight butt-cheeks.”

When a woman falls in love with a man, she can’t help but turn herself into a rope, fastened around the man’s ankle.

Now, Liu Changjie could finally breathe easily. He really wasn’t a superman, and he definitely needed some sleep.

And finally, he did.

When he awoke, it was dark outside the small window. Evening had arrived.

A breeze blew in through the window, carrying the fragrance of wine.

The fragrance was that of authentic Red Daughter wine. This type of small tavern wouldn’t carry this type of wine. [7]

Liu Changjie’s eyes flickered. “Whoever is outside drinking, I don’t care who you are, come on in! And don’t forget to bring that wine in with you.” [8]

And suddenly someone was knocking on the door.

“The door is unlocked. Just push it open.”

The door slowly opened and a person entered, carrying a copper pot in one hand and two drinking bowls in another. It was the man who had gone looking for Duqi and the others.

“I am Wu Bu’ke,” he said humbly. He smiled. “I came especially to pay a visit. I knew your Excellency was resting, so I could only wait outside warming the wine.”

Liu Changjie looked at him. “Did Dragon Fifth send you?” he said coolly.

Wu Bu’ke smiled and nodded. “The Young Master is respectfully waiting for Mister Liu’s arrival.”

“Sadly I can’t even stand up right now, let alone go meet him.”

Wu Bu’ke smiled. “The young master is aware that Mister Liu was offended by someone. Therefore he sent along something special so your majesty could vent his anger.”

“Oh? What is it? Where is it?”

Wu Bu’ke turned his head and made a beckoning motion toward the door. A woman slowly walked in, as beautiful as a peacock, carrying a wooden plank in her hand.

It was Kong Lanjun.

Her peacock-like arrogance was gone, and now she looked like a defeated chicken.

She walked in with head lowered, handed the wooden plank to Liu Changjie, and quietly said, “I used this plank to beat you, thirty times. Now you … you might as well return the favor.”

He looked at her, and let out a long sigh. “Young Master Dragon Fifth really deserves to be called a dragon among men,” he said quietly. “Otherwise, he wouldn’t have so many people willing to devote their lives to him.”

Part 3

Soft lamplight filled the elegant room. On top of the small red-brick oven was a copper pot, from which emanated the fragrance of wine.

Standing there heating the wine was the green-robed middle-aged man with white stockings.

Dragon Fifth lay on a leopard skin blanket, which was spread on a short, narrow bed. His eyes were closed peacefully.

The weather was warm, and the small oven burned brightly, but as for these two people, there was not an ounce of warmth to be felt between the two of them.

It was only the two of them in the room, waiting for Liu Changjie.

On the table were spread out several delicate appetizers [9] , and there was a chair for Liu Changjie.

Was there anyone else under heaven who could sit down to eat and drink with Dragon Fifth?

There was a knock at the door, and then Meng Fei entered. The elegant room was obviously located within his manor.

“He’s here.”

“Ask him in.” Dragon Fifth’s eyes were still shut. “Alone.”

**

As soon as Liu Changjie entered, Meng Fei shut the door.

The green-robed man, middle-aged man was so focused on heating the wine that he didn’t even spare a glance for Liu Changjie.

But Dragon Fifth had already sat up, a strange expression on his pale-white face.

“You didn’t do any more work than necessary.” He smiled. “In martial arts and in women both, you didn’t do any more work than necessary.”

He obviously hadn’t finished his thought, so Liu Changjie waited for him to continue.

“In fact, you were able to handle a woman that I was incapable of handling.”

Liu Changjie maintained his silence.

He wasn’t sure what Dragon Fifth was getting at. And when it came to this aspect of dealing with women, a man normally wouldn’t be quick to reveal the details.

Dragon Fifth continued, “To trick Qiu Hengbo and Kong Lanjun is not easy, but you did it.”

Liu Changjie finally laughed. “I did it for you.”

Dragon Fifth looked at him, and then finally smiled broadly. “It seems you’re not only intelligent, you’re also very cautious.”

Liu Changjie let out a breath. “I must be cautious.”

“The hare is in hand, you’re worried I’m going to throw you in the cooking pot?”

Liu Changjie replied, “‘Put away the bow once the birds are all killed, kill the hounds for food once all the hares are bagged.’ I understand the meaning of the saying.”

“But you’re not just a hound for hunting rabbits, you’re a person who can accomplish things. I often have use for people like you.” [10]

Liu Changjie let out a soft breath. “Thank you very much.”

“Sit.”

“I’d rather stay standing.”

Dragon Fifth laughed again. “It seems Kong Lanjun didn’t hold anything back.”

Liu Changjie laughed bitterly.

“Do you want the hands she used to deliver the beating?” asked Dragon Fifth.

“I do.”

“It’s an easy matter,” he replied coolly. “I can have her two hands put in a box and delivered immediately.”

“But, I’d rather have her hands attached to her body.”

He smiled. “That’s also easy. When you leave, you can take her with you.”

Liu Changjie shook his head. “I like to eat eggs, but it doesn’t mean I want to carry a hen around with me.”

Dragon Fifth laughed for the second time. “Well then I’ll tell you where the chicken coop is. If you want to eat an egg, you can go there any time.”

Liu Changjie laughed bitterly. “Sadly, this particular egg is not only picky, it’s also sitting on a wooden plank.” [11]

Dragon Fifth laughed for the third time, heartily.

It seemed he was in a very good mood this day; he had laughed more times than any other day before.

When Dragon Fifth finished laughing, Liu Changjie slowly said, “I think you forgot to ask me about something.”

“There’s no need to ask. I know you succeeded in your task.”

“That was the correct box?”

Dragon Fifth stared at him. “It was.”

“Are you sure?”

“Very sure.”

They both had strange expressions in their eyes. It seemed as if the question Liu Changjie had asked was superfluous.

Dragon Fifth generally did not like people who spoke superfluously, and yet he didn’t seem to be annoyed.

Liu Changjie laughed. “If it was the correct box, then what was inside the box must also be correct.”

From within his robe he pulled out a bundle, wrapped in purple satin. The bundle was tied up and sealed with an ingenious knot. “This is what I took from the box. The original seal hasn’t been touched.”

“I can tell that she personally tied this Lovesick knot.”

A Lovesick knot that has been tied well is not easy to untie.

Dragon Fifth extended two fingers, and with a light twisting motion, untied the knot.

He smiled. “If you want to untie a Lovesick knot, this is the only method you can use.”

“I have another method,” said Liu Changjie.

“Oh, what?”

“A blade.”

No matter how tangled the Lovesick not, one slice of a blade would definitely open it.

Dragon Fifth laughed for the fourth time. “Your method is definitely the most direct and thorough.”

“That is the only type I use.”

Dragon Fifth smiled. “If the method is effective, then one type is enough.”

**

Inside the bundle was a small pile of silk cotton. Wrapped inside the silk cotton was an emerald-green bottle made from jasper.

Dragon Fifth’s eyes shone, and a strange flush filled his pale, white face.

Obtaining this bottle had not been easy.

The price he had paid to get it was extremely high.

His hand trembled involuntarily as he stretched it out.

Who would ever have imagined that Liu Changjie’s hand would shoot out like lightning and grab the bottle, then throw it as hard as he could toward the ground. There was a “peng” sound as the bottle smashed into countless pieces. Scarlett-colored medicine oozed out onto the ground like fresh blood.

Meng Fei’s face went yellow in fear. [12]

Dragon Fifth’s face was filled with shock. “What is the meaning of this?” he shouted.

“Nothing special,” said Liu Changjie calmly. “It’s just that, finding an employer as good as you isn’t easy, so I don’t want you to die.”

“What are you talking about?” Dragon Fifth said furiously. “I don’t understand.”

“You should be able to figure it out.”

“I can see that the medicine is real. I can smell it too.”

The liquid medicine was scarlet and diaphanous, and as soon as the bottle shattered, its fragrant odor had filled the air.

“It might not be fake, but there is definitely poison mixed in.”

“How the hell could you tell that?”

“Based on two things.”

“Tell me.”

“Everything went much too smoothly. It was too easy.”

“That’s not enough of a reason.”

“The Madam Lovesickness that I met, she was an imposter.”

“You’ve never seen her before, how could you know whether she is real or not?”

“Because her skin was too rough. A woman who rubs honey oil over her body every day could not possibly have skin that rough.”

“So these are your two reasons?”

“A reasonable deduction could be made from one point, let alone two.”

Dragon Fifth suddenly closed his eyes, unable to make any more refutations. Because at this exact moment, the diaphanous medicine suddenly began changing color from scarlet into sickening, deathly black.

Some poisons only take effect when exposed to the air.

At this point, anyone could see that the medicine in the bottle had been mixed with poison, deadly poison.

Dragon Fifth’s face was ashen. He stared at Liu Changjie for a long time, before finally saying, “In my entire life, I’ve never said ‘thank you.’”

“I believe you.”

“But right now, I have no choice but to thank you.”

“And I have no choice but to accept.”

“But I still don’t fully understand…”

Liu Changjie interrupted him, “You should be able to understand. Qiu Hengbo knew that you were sending me, so she set you up. She let me succeed on purpose, in order to deliver the bottle of poisoned medicine to kill you.”

Dragon Fifth’s expression changed. “She … she wants to kill me? But why?”

Liu Changjie sighed. “Who can possibly understand the thinking of a woman?”

Dragon Fifth closed his eyes, appearing to be exhausted. Sorrow can be very exhausting.

“You forgot to ask me something else,” said Liu Changjie.

Dragon Fifth laughed bitterly. “My thoughts are troubled. Just say what you want to say.”

“The fact that you sent me on this mission… Is it true that only the four of us in this room knew about it?”

“That’s correct.”

“Then how did Madam Lovesickness find out?”

Dragon Fifth’s eyes shot open, filled with an expression as sharp as a sword. And the tip of that sword pointed at Meng Fei’s face.

Meng Fei looked sick to his stomach.

“When you beat me up,” said Liu Changjie, “everyone thought that I hated your guts. Only Meng Fei knew what was going on behind the scenes.”

“It wasn’t Meng Fei,” said Dragon Fifth suddenly.

“How do you know?”

“If there is Dragon Fifth, there is Meng Fei. He is alive today only because of me. My death wouldn’t benefit him in any way.

Liu Changjie was lost in thought for a while. Finally he nodded. “I can believe that. He should know that this world will never have another Dragon Fifth in it.

Meng Fei knelt, tears streaming down his face.

They were tears of gratitude, gratitude for Dragon Fifth’s faith in him.

Liu Changjie slowly continued. “If it wasn’t Meng Fei, then who was it?”

Dragon Fifth, didn’t respond, nor did he ask any further questions.

The two men’s gazes were already fixed on the face of the green-robed man with white stockings.

Part 4

The fire in the stove was weakening. The wine was already warm.

The green-robed man with white stockings was taking the wine from the large copper pot and slowly pouring it into a wine jug.

His hand was stable, not even a drop spilled out.

His face was completely devoid of emotion.

Liu Changjie had never in his life seen someone as calm and collected.

He couldn’t help but admire him.

Dragon Fifth looked at him, an expression of sorrow on his face. It appeared to be for the man.

Liu Changjie let out a long sigh. “At first I wasn’t willing to suspect you, but now I have no choice.

The green-robed man put the wine jug onto the table, not even glancing at Liu Changjie. [13]

“But other than Dragon Fifth, Meng Fei and myself, no one know the secret but you.”

It seemed as if the green-robed man didn’t hear a word. He tested the temperature of the wine and then began pouring it into wine cups.

Not a drop of wine spilled out.

Liu Changjie continued, “The carriage driver knew I was working for Dragon Fifth because he was your man. Perhaps he learned the secret while passing your message to Madam Lovesickness. You couldn’t deliver the message yourself because you’re always with Dragon Fifth, and could never find an opportunity.”

The two wine cups were full.

The green robed man put down the wine jug, his face still completely devoid of expression.

“That day you suddenly appeared at the farm house was because you wanted all along to silence the witness, so you were keeping an eye on him. His sudden greediness just gave you a good opportunity to kill him.”

The green-robed man didn’t say a word, as if he felt it was beneath him to offer any explanation.

“I thought about it a lot,” continued Liu Changjie. “And there really is no one other than you who could have revealed the secret.”

He let out another long sigh. “But I never imagined that someone like you would betray a friend.”

“He’s not a friend,” said Dragon Fifth suddenly.

“He’s not?”

“No.”

“Is he a benefactor?”

“Not that either.”

Liu Changjie didn’t understand. “If he’s neither, then why is he following you around like a slave?”

“Do you know who he is?”

“I can’t say for sure.”

“Well, there’s no harm in taking a guess.”

“In the past, there was an amazing young hero. He made his first kill at the age of nine. At seventeen he was already making a name for himself in the martial world. By twenty he was famous. He was the leader of the Seven Sword Schools’ Kongtong Sect, his sword skill was very high, and he was unequalled in his time. He was called ‘Best Blade under Heaven.’”

“You’re right. He is Qin Huhua.”

Liu Changjie let out a breath. “But it seems he’s changed.”

“You don’t understand why one of the most talented and popular heroes of the past would now be following me around like a slave?”

“I don’t. I don’t see how anyone could understand.”

“In the world, there is only one type of person that could make him change in this way.”

“What type of person.”

“An enemy.”

Shocked, Liu Changjie said, “He is your enemy?”

Dragon Fifth nodded.

Liu Changjie was even more confused.

“In his entire life, he was only defeated three times, and those three times were all by my hand. He swore an oath to kill me, but he knew that there was no way that he would ever be able to defeat me.”

“Because you are still young, whereas his martial arts have already passed their peak.”

“And also because each time I defeated him, I used a completely different technique, so there was no way for him to figure out my martial arts.”

“Therefore, the only way for him to figure out a way to defeat you would be to follow you around constantly and study you, hope to discover a weakness.”

“That’s correct.”

“So you allowed him to follow you!”

Dragon Fifth laughed. “There really is nothing more exciting or delightful than this kind of thing.”

Other than a threat to his life, there really were very few things in the world that Dragon Fifth found exciting.

“Of course, there was a condition,” said Dragon Fifth.

“That he be your slave?”

Dragon Fifth nodded. With a smile, he said, “Getting Qin Huhua to be your slave is something no one could imagine possible, don’t you think?”

“And so you think the arrangement is delightful.”

“Not to mention that until he’s confident enough to make another move, he will do everything he can to protect me. He doesn’t want me to die under anyone’s hands but his own.”

Liu Changjie sighed. “You really shouldn’t have let him in on the secret about Madam Lovesickness.”

“I don’t have any secrets from him, because I trust him. He isn’t the kind of villain who reveals confidential matters.”

Not many people completely trust their friends. To find someone who will completely trust an enemy is even more inconceivable.

“Dragon Fifth is worthy of his name,” said Liu Changjie, “but this sadly, this time he really made a mistake in judging character.”

Dragon Fifth sighed and then laughed bitterly. “Everyone makes mistakes. Perhaps I overestimated him, and underestimated you.”

Liu Changjie laughed coolly. “It seems he also underestimated me.”

“He thinks that the only person in the world worth paying attention to is me.”

Qin Huhua raised his head and stared at Dragon Fifth. Even though there was no expression on his face, within his eyes shone forth a fearful, cutting look. Speaking very slowly, he said, “Do you believe him?”

“I have no choice.”

“Very well.”

“Are you ready to make your move?”

“I’ve been studying you carefully for four years, your every act and every move. I haven’t let anything slip.”

“I know.”

“You’re a difficult person to understand. You rarely give people opportunities to see you, and rarely take action.”

“If you usually don’t take action, people will be shocked when you do. When you don’t take action, you are as quiet as a lone mountain. When you do take action, it is fast as a meteor.” [14]

Qin Huhua stood there quietly, himself looking as unshakable as a mountain. Slowly, he said, “When I was young, I revealed too much about my abilities. And yes, my martial arts really are past their peak. If I can’t defeat you right now, there will be fewer and fewer opportunities later.”

“So you were already prepared to make your move?”

“Correct.”

“Good. Very good.”

Qin Huhua continued, “This is my fourth battle with you, and it will be the last. Having been able to fight with you four times, regardless of who wins or who loses, I am able to die without regret.”

Dragon Fifth sighed again. “I originally had no intention of killing you, but this time …”

“If I’m defeated this time, I have no intention of going on living.”

“Very well. Go get your sword.”

“My technique has changed. You already know me so well, there’s no way I could defeat you with a sword.”

“What will you use?”

“In my hands, anything under heaven can be turned into a deadly weapon.”

Laughing heartily, Dragon Fifth said, “Being able to fight with you these four times has really been one of the greatest pleasures in my life.”

His laughter suddenly ceased.

The room was filled with a deathly silence. Even the sound of breathing could not be heard.

The wind blew on the chrysanthemums and gingko plants outside the window. The chrysanthemums were silent, but it seemed like the gingko plants were sighing.

The clear autumn weather suddenly seemed to be filled with the harsh cold of winter.

Qin Huhua stared at Dragon Fifth. His pupils constricted, and the veins on his forehead bulged. It seemed he was gathering all the power in his body, in preparation for an all-out attack. [15]

Anyone could see that when he made his move, it would be heaven-shaking.

But no one would have expected that he would use two fingers to pick up a chopstick, which he casually stabbed toward Dragon Fifth.

He had filled himself with the power to fight a tiger, but this move looked like it wasn’t strong enough to poke through a piece of paper.

Dragon Fifth’s expression was grim. The chopstick was light, but he knew that in reality it was heavier the Mount Tai.

He, too, picked up a chopstick, and pointed it out at a slanting angle.

There was a table between the two of them, so Dragon Fifth didn’t stand up.

The chopsticks in their hands danced back and forth, faster and faster. It looked almost like some type of child’s game.

But Liu Changjie could see that this was no game.

The variations in the movements of the chopsticks were ingenious, almost impossible to describe. It was as if an entire ocean had been placed into a millet seed. The tangible became intangible; within every variation there were countless more variations. Every stab seemed to contain the power to crack gold and stone.

In the eyes of others, this battle might not seem very dangerous, but as he watched, Liu Changjie felt shaken to the core.

Qin Huhua really did deserve the title “Best Blade under Heaven.”

And Dragon Fifth really was an extraordinary talent, the type of person the martial world might not see again in a hundred years. His ability was shocking, and he clearly was unparalleled.

Suddenly, the two swiftly moving chopsticks connected and stopped moving.

The expressions on their faces grew more and more grim. A short time passed. Sweat beaded on their foreheads.

Liu Changjie noticed that the small bed Dragon Fifth was sitting on had began to sink down, and Qin Huhua’s two feet were slowly being embedded into the stone floor.

The two men were clearly using all the power in their bodies. The fearful level of this power was beyond imagination.

Yet the chopsticks in their hands did not snap.

Ivory chopsticks like this should snap, but instead, they appeared to be softening.

The chopstick in Qin Huhua’s hand suddenly began to bend like a noodle. Sweat dripped off his face. Suddenly, he let go of the chopstick, and his entire body flew backward into the wall with a bang.

His body knocked a huge hole into the brick wall, after which he fell to the ground, blood oozing from his mouth. His breathing had stopped.

Dragon Fifth immediately laid back down in the bed, closing his eyes. His pale face exuded exhaustion and weakness.

At this exact moment, Liu Changjie made his move.

His empty palm suddenly dropped down like lightning, seizing Dragon Fifth’s wrist.

Dragon Fifth’s expression changed, but he didn’t open his eyes.

Meng Fei’s face paled, and he tried to leap out through the hole in the wall. But there was someone outside. A fist smashed into Meng Fei’s face, knocking him to the ground.

The fist was quick and fierce. Not many people could knock down Meng Fei with a single fist.

It was “Mighty Lion” Lan Tianmeng. [16, 17]

**

Dragon Fifth’s pale face was completely devoid of color.

Liu Changjie grasped his wrist, and as fast as lightning sealed thirteen of his acupuncture points.

Dragon Fifth’s eyes were still closed. He sighed lightly. “So, it turns out I not only underestimated you, I also misjudged your character.”

“Everyone makes mistakes. You are just a person.”

“Did I make a mistake in laying the blame on Qin Huhua?”

“That was probably your biggest mistake.”

“You knew who he was, and you knew he wouldn’t let me fall into anyone else’s hands. So to take action against me, you first needed to borrow my hands to get rid of him.”

“I was a little worried about how to deal with him, but what I was worried about most was you.”

“So you wanted to borrow his hands to make me use up my power.”

“When the sandpiper and the clam fight each other, it’s the fisherman who benefits. I just used the old ‘kill two birds with one stone’ method.

“The poison in the bottle, was that also you?”

“Actually, no.”

“You’ve been plotting against me. Why would you save me?”

“Because I don’t like being used by other people. And even more than that, I don’t like being Qiu Hengbo’s tool. I wanted to use my own two hands to capture the divine dragon.”

“Are you one of Qiu Hengbo’s subordinates?”

“No.”

“You seek revenge?”

“No.”

“Then what do you want?”

“I was sent by ‘Power of Hu’ Patriarch Hu. To bring you to justice.”

“What crime did I commit?”

“Don’t you know?”

Dragon Fifth sighed. His eyes were closed, and he also closed his mouth.

Liu Changjie said, “The chief constables in the southern seven provinces and the northern six all want to make a move against you. But they know that dealing with you is not an easy matter. Even I wasn’t very confident. I had to get you to trust me, so that’s why I saved you.”

“You’ve said enough,” said Dragon Fifth coldly.

“You don’t want to hear any more?”

Dragon Fifth laughed.

“It seems,” said Liu Changjie, “you’re not inclined to even look at me right now.”

Lan Tianmeng suddenly spoke up. “Actually, the person he doesn’t want to look at is me, not you.”

“Correct,” said Dragon Fifth. “Villains like you who forget what is right at the sight of profit… I’m afraid one more glance will pollute my eyes.”

Lan Tianmeng sighed. “You’re wrong. I’m not going against you for money. I’m going against you for the sake of justice.” [18]

“You’re also one of Power of Hu’s men?”

Lan Tianmeng nodded. Turning to face Liu Changjie, he said, “You didn’t know either, did you?”

Liu Changjie didn’t

“But,” continued Lan Tianmeng, “I knew about you a long time ago.”

“From the very beginning?”

“Before you came, Power of Hu had already instructed me to take care of you.”

Liu Changjie laughed bitterly. “You took care of me very well.”

Lan Tianmeng sighed. “When I beat you up that night, I was a little too hard on you. But, I was acting against my emotions, because I definitely couldn’t let him suspect you. I think you can understand my predicament.”

“Of course I understand.”

Lan Tianmeng’s face widened with a smile. “I knew you wouldn’t blame me.”

“I don’t blame you.” He smiled and stretched out a hand. “We’re family, and all of this is part of our duty. Even if you beat me harder, it wouldn’t matter. We’re still friends.”

Lan Tianmeng laughed heartily. “Ok. Let’s be friends.”

Laughing, he extended his hand and gripped Liu Changjie’s.

And then his laughter died. His face distorted. He could hear the sound of bones being shattered.

At this exact moment, Liu Changjie twisted his wrist, breaking it, and then smashed a fist into bridge of his nose.

It wasn’t that Lan Tianmeng didn’t see the fist coming, it was that Liu Changjie’s technique was too ingenious, and his speed incredible.

After receiving Liu Changjie’s iron-fisted strike, the lion-like old man fell down onto his back.

Liu Changjie didn’t stop. Fists descended like rain onto his chest and sides. He smiled. “You hit me, I didn’t blame you. If I hit you, you shouldn’t blame me. If if I beat you a little harder than you beat me, I know you won’t take it to heart.”

Lan Tianmeng couldn’t open his mouth.

He bit his teeth together, unwilling to call out. When he had beaten Liu Changjie, Liu Changjie had also been unwilling to call out for mercy.

Even though Dragon Fifth’s eyes were still closed, a small smile crept onto his face.

He was not only Lan Tianmeng’s friend, but also his benefactor. And yet Lan Tianmeng had betrayed him.

Forgetting what is right at the sight of profit, biting the hand that feeds you. People who do these things deserve punishment.

And Lan Tianmeng was receiving his.

Though the fists beating Lan Tianmeng were Liu Changjie’s, they might as well have been Dragon Fifth’s.

**

The only thing to be heard in the room was the sound wheezing.

By the time Liu Changjie finished, Lan Tianmeng was no longer a mighty lion, but a beaten stray dog.

“What you owe me, I’ve taken back.” Liu Changjie stroked his fist, a strange expression flickering in his eyes. “What I owe, it’s time to give back.”

“What do you owe?” asked Dragon Fifth.

“No one can live alone in the world,” said Liu Changjie coolly. “If you want to live, you have to accept the good grace of others.”

“Oh?”

“It’s the same with even you. If you want to eat, you need others to plant crops. When you are born, the hands of others than deliver you. Without the good grace of others, you wouldn’t be alive, not even for a day.”

“So, everyone owes a debt to someone.”

Liu Changjie nodded.

“And can you repay your debt?”

“This debt is not easy to pay back. But as long as you’re alive, if you can do something to help the world, then the debt can be considered paid.”

Dragon Fifth laughed coldly.

“Did you know,” asked Liu Changjie suddenly, “Power of Hu has wanted to meet you for a very long time?”

“I’ve wanted to meet him, too,” laughed Dragon Fifth. “For a long time.”

Liu Changjie sighed. “You both are not easy people to meet. To arrange a meeting has been difficult.”

He sighed again. He sighed because his heart was filled with complicated emotions.

Dragon Fifth closed his eyes again. “I knew for a long time that we would meet eventually, but I never imagined it would be like this.”

“There are many things in the world that we can’t imagine.”

He suddenly lifted up Dragon Fifth. “Even you can’t imagine them. Because, you’re not a divine dragon, you’re just a person, that’s all.”

__________

(1) Okay, this is one of those clever Chinese plays on words that can’t be translated into English. She uses an expression in Chinese, 打肿脸充胖子, that means to go beyond your means to try to impress others. However, the characters that make up the expression literally translate as “to hit your own face until it is swollen,” the idea meaning to make your face puffy so that you look more imposing to others. Then she asks him why his butt is swollen and not his face. It’s pretty clever, but doesn’t translate well. If you translate the actual meaning of the phrase, then the joke doesn’t make sense. If you translate the phrase literally, it also doesn’t make sense. I tried to translate it in a similarly idiomatic and sarcastic way.
(2) The clever wordplay continues here, because the word in Chinese for obstinate literally means “to have a hard mouth.” Then she threatens to beat another part of his body until it’s swollen, and it just so happens to use the same character for mouth. In an attempt to have a similar continuity of wordplay, I’m adjusting the translation a little bit.
(3) Okay, I tried to keep the feeling of the original, but it’s literally impossible to translate the wordplay here. She starts by calling him 王八蛋 wang ba dan, which is a pretty common epithet usually translated as bastard. Then he responds by saying, “you shouldn’t use the characters 王八 wang ba when cursing your husband.” This is clever because 王八 carries the meaning of a man whose wife is cheating on him (a cuckold.) Then she responds by saying, “if I was really mad, I really could give you a green hat to wear.” As I’m sure most of you know, in Chinese culture, if a man wears a green hat it implies that his wife is cheating on him.
(4) The literal expression is to have a cooked duck in hand, and then it flies away. It implies that you seem to have an assured victory, and then suddenly and unexpectedly you lose.
(5) Here again he uses the phrase “wear a green hat.”
(6) The literal word he uses is “iron man,” but in this context I think superman I a better choice.
(7) This is a real type of rice wine called 女儿红 nu’er hong. According to Wikipedia it “originates from Shaoxing, in the eastern coastal province of Zhejiang. It is made of glutinous rice and wheat. This wine evolved from the Shaoxing tradition of burying nu’er hong underground when a daughter was born, and digging it up for the wedding banquet when the daughter was to be married.” Here’s the link to the Wikipedia article: http://goo.gl/5gsU7W
(8) He actually addresses the person as “friend,” but I couldn’t figure a good way to squeeze that word in as well and have it flow well. The literal translation is, “friend who is outside drinking wine, no matter who you are, please come in all of you, and don’t forget to bring in the wine.”
(9) Here again is the word 下酒菜, which literally means dishes to be eaten when drinking alcohol. I’m translating it as appetizers.
(10) I think the meaning comes across pretty easily here, even though it’s wordplay based on Chinese expressions. It starts out with Dragon Fifth saying something based on the expression 狡兔死,走狗烹 jiao tu si, zou gou peng. It translates literally as “the crafty rabbit is dead, boil the running dog.” The idea is that after your hunting dog has captured the rabbit, you can cook it for food. Then Liu Changjie responds with the full expression飞鸟尽,良弓藏;狡兔死,走狗烹. Apparently this expression comes from Records of the Grand Historian by Sima Qian. They two halves can stand alone: http://goo.gl/tvnkex and http://goo.gl/suWeJB . The whole exchange is even more clever because 走狗 zou gou is also a common expression to mean flunky or lackey, and has been used repeatedly throughout the story to describe Dragon Fifth’s followers.
(11) Clever wordplay based on the expression “to pick a bone out of an egg,” which means to find fault in others. What Liu Changjie literally says is, “this egg not only has a bone in it, it also has a wooden plank.” I changed it a bit so that it (hopefully) makes sense in English.
(12) I left out a small detail, that Meng Fei is standing by the door. But I couldn’t figure out a good way to include it without breaking the flow. As some of you might know, it’s easy to change almost anything into an adjective in Chinese, but it doesn’t work that way in English. The original actually says, “Standing-by-the-door Meng Fei, suddenly looked sick.”
(13) In the original Chinese, he is referred to as the “green-robed, white-stockinged man” or the “green-robed, white-stockinged, middle-aged man.” But, repeatedly using so many adjectives sounds kind of silly in English so I’m omitting some of them.
(14) The Chinese contains two cool expressions back to back. My version is a relatively direct translation of the meaning of the phrases. A more literal translation would be, “if one wishes to act, the action will shock people, quietness is like a lofty mountain, action is like a meteor.” The first expression is a twist on a set phrase in Chinese with basically the same meaning, except instead of talking about taking action, it’s talking about singing.
(15) The original uses an expression that basically means to put all your eggs in one basket.
(16) His nickname here is indeed different from his first introduction, in which he was called “Lion King.” This new nickname literally just means “male lion,” but that sounds kind of lame in English so I’m taking an alternate meaning of the first character for this version.
(17) There’s an additional line of text I’m leaving out. After introducting Lan Tianmeng, he repeats himself by saying, “this person who knocked down Meng Fei with one punch, is Lan Tianmeng.”
(18) Here, he uses an expression that literally means, to place loyalty or righteousness above family.


novel
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Re: English Novel : 7 Killers - Chapter 7

Unread post by novel » 28 Dec 2015 14:03

Chapter 7 – Capturing the dragon empty handed

Part 1

Power of Hu was obviously just a person too.

But he was a very extraordinary person. In his life, he had accomplished many extraordinary things.

When he first started to roam Jianghu, people were already calling him “the Fox.”

Of course, other than his fox-like craftiness, he was also as patient as a camel, as hardworking as a farm ox, as vicious as a bird of prey, as nimble as a pigeon, and as sharp as a sword.

Sadly, he had already grown old.

His vision had grown dim, his muscles slack, his reflexes slow. He also had contracted a serious case of rheumatism, and had spent years bed-ridden, to the point where he could no longer even stand up.

Luckily, his intelligence had not grown dim, and was in fact sharper than ever. His method of handling affairs was also more prudent and careful than ever.

So down to this day, he still commanded much respect.

**

It was an ancient hall, spacious and tall, yet filled with an unspeakable gloominess.

The tables and chairs were also archaic, the color of the paint fading away. When wind blew into the hall, it carried along dust, which settled onto everything, including guests.

The wind blew.

Liu Changjie helped Dragon Fifth brush the dust off of his body, then muttered, “They really should clean this place up.”

Dragon Fifth looked at him. “You have dust all over yourself, too.”

Liu Changjie laughed. “I don’t care. Some people are destined to roll around in mud and dust.”

“And you’re one of those people?”

Liu Changjie nodded. “But you aren’t. Patriarch Hu isn’t either.”

“Do you really need to compare me to him?” asked Dragon Fifth coolly.

“You two are basically the same type of person,” said Liu Changjie. “Inherently superior.”

Dragon Fifth said nothing.

The large hall was once again silent. The wind blew the paper windows, which sounded like the falling of leaves.

Autumn was dying, and soon it would snow.

“Is the master here?” called out Liu Changjie.

“Yes.” The doorman was old. “Wait in the hall, I’ll notify him you’re here.”

The old man had a full head of white hair, and his face was covered with scars. It was safe to assume this man was Power of Hu’s partner, and that they been through hell and high water together.

As such, he wasn’t very polite. But, Liu Changjie was willing to forgive him, and waited in the main hall. He waited for a very long time.

And Hu Yue’er?

She should know that Liu Changjie was here. Why didn’t she appear?

Liu Changjie didn’t ask. Actually, there was no one to ask even if he wanted to.

He had been to this place twice, and had only ever seen three people here. Power of Hu, Hu Yue’er, and the old doorman.

But, if you think you could come and go as you please in this place, you would be wrong, and you would pay dearly.

And the meaning of “pay dearly” is, you would pay with your life!

Patriarch Hu’s career had spanned decades, and it was hard to say how many criminals he had apprehended.

It was even harder to say how many people sought revenge against him. Many of those people had come to this place to try.

And of the people who had come, not one had ever left alive.

**

The moonlight was beginning to fade, and the hall grew gloomier and gloomier.

Patriarch Hu still hadn’t appeared.

Dragon Fifth could not help but laugh coldly. “It seems he really is arrogant.”

“You’re not the only arrogant person in the world,” replied Liu Changjie coolly. “In any case, if I were you, I wouldn’t be anxious to see him.”

“Isn’t he anxious to see me?”

“He doesn’t need to be anxious.”

“Because I’m like a fish in a net?”

“In his eyes, you’re a poisonous dragon.”

“Oh?”

“He is a very cautious person. Without checking everything thoroughly, he would never come to see you.”

“Check what?”

“Check to see if the poisoned dragon really has become a fish, and then check to see if the fish is useful.”

“Check with who?”

“Who understands you the best? Who knows the most about this whole matter?”

“Lan Tianmeng?”

Liu Changjie smiled.

“He’s here too?” said Dragon Fifth.

“I think he just arrived.”

Dragon Fifth was again silent.

And at that moment could be heard the hoarse, smiling voice of an old man. “My apologies for keeping you waiting so long.”

Part 2

In the long, wide hall were several arched doors covered with screens, separating the hall into five areas.

Liu Changjie and Dragon Fifth were in the first area, and the voice emanated from the last.

They could see a pale, emaciated old man, wrapped in a fox-fur robe, sitting in a large wheelchair.

Behind the chair, pushing it forward, was the old doorman, and Lan Tianmeng.

Suddenly, a clanging sound rang out, and four sets of iron bars fell down, covering the arching doorways, completely cutting off Liu Changjie from Patriarch Hu.

The bars were as thick as a child’s arm. Even a thousand men and horses together would have a hard time getting past them

Liu Changjie didn’t care. The first time he was here, he had seen the same thing. The one who cared was Dragon Fifth.

It wasn’t until this moment that he truly understood how cautious and careful Power of Hu was. There really was no one who could compare.

Liu Changjie had already stood up, and bowed, smiling.

“Master, are you well?”

Power of Hu’s eyes narrowed into lines as he laughed. “I’m very well. You are well. We’re all well.”

Liu Changjie smiled. “There’s only one person who isn’t well.”

Power of Hu said, “Heaven’s net is wide meshed, nothing escapes it. The way of Heaven is fair, but the guilty will not escape. [1] I always knew that eventually he would end up like this.” Smiling, he continued, “And I didn’t misjudge you, either. I knew you wouldn’t disappoint me.”

Liu Changjie glanced at Lan Tianmeng and laughed. “Everything that happened, you already told the master?”

Lan Tianmeng rubbed the scabs on his face and laughed bitterly. “If you had hit any harder, I’m afraid I wouldn’t have been able to tell him anything.” [2]

Power of Hu laughed loudly. “As of now, you two can finally call it even. Don’t put these things to heart.”

He suddenly waved a hand and turned his head. “Remove these things.”

“These things” were the four sets of iron bars.

When the scar-faced old doorman hesitated, Power of Hu’s eyebrows furrowed. “Don’t forget, Master Liu is our brother. There should be no obstacles between brothers.”

“What a good set of brothers,” said Dragon Fifth with a dark smile. “One is a lacky, the other is a fox.”

Power of Hu’s facial expression didn’t change. With a smile, he said, “Don’t forget, only brothers like us continue to live. People like you will be sent to death without a proper burial, one by one.”

**

The iron bars were gone.

Power of Hu said, “Give the package to Master Liu. And bring the poisonous dragon to me. I want to have a look.”

The old man immediately brought forth a package wrapped in brocade cloth. Inside the package was a set of green clothing.

It was the same set of clothing Liu Changjie and Hu Yue’er had worn the night they professed their love for each other. It still smelled like her.

Power of Hu said, “Before she left, she especially requested to leave these for you.”

Liu Changjie’s heart skipped a beat. “She … where did she go?”

A sad expression fell onto Power of Hu’s sallow, hoary face. “A place where everyone goes to.”

“A place that you can never return from?”

“The moon has phases of darkness and light,” said Power of Hu. “And people have partings and reunions. [3] You’re still young, you should be able to accept this.”

Liu Changjie grew stiff.

Could Hu Yue’er really be dead?

She was constantly giving him instructions, telling him to be safe and stay alive, how could she be the one to die?

How could she have died so suddenly, so early?

Liu Changjie didn’t dare believe it, didn’t want to believe it.

And yet, he couldn’t deny it.

Power of Hu sighed again, looked more aged and haggard than before. “From the time she was small she had a foul disease, difficult to treat. She knew that she could pass at any time. She hid the truth from you all this time, and the reason she would never marry you was because she didn’t want to break your heart.”

Liu Changjie didn’t move, didn’t say anything.

After all, he was not a passionate and impulsive youth, ready to burst out with emotion. He stood there stupidly, as if he had turned into stone.

Lan Tianmeng also sighed. “I always tell people not to drink, but right now …” A wine jug appeared in his hands, and he walked forward. “You really should have a drink or two…”

The wine was already warmed.

It seemed he had prepared it especially for Liu Changjie.

For someone whose heart has already been broken, what other comfort in the world is there than drinking?

But why drink?

When wine penetrates the restless heart, will it not turn into tears of lovesickness?

And yet, why not drink?

The happiness that comes with being drunk is always a good thing.

Liu Changjie suddenly grabbed the wine jug. Laughing reluctantly, he said, “Have a drink with me.”

“I don’t drink,” said Lan Tianmeng. He gave a forced laugh. “The blood in my mouth still isn’t dry, I shouldn’t drink even a drop.”

“Even if you don’t want to drink, you still have to drink.”

Lan Tianmeng stared, shocked.

“Even if you don’t want to drink, you still have to drink.” What did this mean? Who would have thought that Liu Changjie had even more shocking plans in mind?

He suddenly tilted up the wine jug, aiming to pour the wine into Lan Tianmeng’s mouth.

Lan Tianmeng’s face twisted.

The scar-faced old man’s face also twisted.

Only Power of Hu remained expressionless. He waved his hand, and three dots of light shot forth like cold stars, toward Dragon Fifth.

Dragon Fifth’s acupuncture points had been sealed, and he had just been dragged over by the old man like a dead fish.

But, as soon as the three dots shot forth, his body flew into the air.

He looked like a divine dragon soaring in the heavens.

Power of Hu, normally as cold as deadwood and as solid as a rock, looked shocked.

There was a tinkling sound, and sparks showered across the room as his hidden weapons weapons embedded themselves into limestone floor.

And then, there was another tinkling sound. Lan Tianmeng’s fist shot out, not to strike Liu Changjie’s face, but to shatter the jug of wine.

The wine in the pot splashed out, flying like sparks, splattering all over his face and into his eyes.

It was as if he had been struck by the most dreadful hidden weapon in the world. He cried out hoarsely and, rubbing his eyes with his hands, charged wildly away.

Could it be that the wine in the jug was poisoned?

Liu Changjie had already completed the task assigned by Power of Hu. Why would he order someone to poison him to death?

And how could the prisoner captured by Liu Changjie, the completely immobilized Dragon Fifth, suddenly fly into the air like a divine dragon?

Part 3

There was no wind.

Outside the window, leaden clouds filled the skies like a huge ink painting. [4]

The sad and shrill shrieking had ceased.

As soon as Lan Tianmeng charged forth, he had reached the stone steps leading outside. And then he fell, and his powerful, stalwart body shriveling and drying up.

As soon as Liu Changjie saw him fall, he turned his head. Dragon Fifth had floated back to the ground.

Power of Hu sat there, unmoving. His expression had returned to normal, and he was muttering under his breath.

“Seven steps. He only made it seven steps.”

Liu Changjie let out a soft sigh. “The poison was very powerful.”

“I mixed it myself,” said Power of Hu.

“For me?”

Power of Hu nodded. “You’re going to be sorry.”

“Sorry?”

“The flavor of the wine was very good.” His eyes seemed to carry a look of sorrow. “It was too good for Lan Tianmeng.”

“Oh.”

“He was not a good person, his death was also too good.”

“Death is death…”

“There are many types of death,” interrupted Power of Hu.

“And his death, what type was it?”

“His death was happy.”

“Because it was quick?”

Power of Hu nodded “The faster you die, the less pain there is. Only good people deserve this kind of death.”

He lifted his head and stared at Liu Changjie. A strange smile appeared on his face, and after a while he said, “I always thought you were a good person, so I mixed the poisoned wine especially for you.”

Liu Changjie laughed. “Hearing this, it seems I should havefer thanks.”

“You definitely should thank me.”

“But, you forgot about something.”

“Oh, what?”

“You forgot to ask me whether or not I wanted to die.”

“When I want to kill people,” said Power of Hu coolly, “I never ask whether or not they want to die. I only ask whether or not they deserve to die.”

Liu Changjie sighed. “It makes sense.”

“And so, you should be dead now.”

“But I’m not. Is it because I’m not a good person?”

Power of Hu laughed. “You definitely aren’t.”

“If I was a good person, I would never have realized that you wanted to kill me.”

“How did you figure it out?”

“I knew from the very beginning.”

“Oh.”

“From the very beginning I suspected that the true criminal was not Dragon Fifth, but you.”

“Oh.”

“Mainly because all these cases cropped up after you retired. Dragon Fifth isn’t scared of you at all. If he was really the perpetrator, he wouldn’t need to wait for your retirement.”

“This line of reasoning isn’t enough.”

“Among these cases, every single one was carried off perfectly. Not one clue was left behind. Only a true expert on crime could be so efficient.”

“Dragon Fifth isn’t a true expert?”

“He isn’t.”

“How can you tell?”

“Because I am an expert. I can tell.”

“You were sure about this?”

“No, so I had to get some evidence.”

“And so you went after Dragon Fifth.”

Liu Changjie nodded. “That also made you trust me, and let your guard down. Otherwise I wouldn’t be able to get close to you.” He laughed. “If I didn’t bring Dragon Fifth here with me, would you have called for the bars to be removed?”

Power of Hu sighed. “I really did misjudge you. You really aren’t a good person.”

“And I didn’t misjudge you at all.”

Power of Hu laughed again, but the laughter didn’t reach his eyes.

“What kind of person am I, then?” he said with a smile. “Can you really tell?”

“No one can match your caution and intelligence,” said Liu Changjie. “But sadly, you are too ambitious for your own good.”

Power of Hu sat listening.

“When you started your crime spree, maybe you intended to stop. But after you started, you couldn’t. You just couldn’t be content with what you had.”

Power of Hu looked at him, his pupils two tiny dots of ice.

“And so your crimes grew greater and greater, more and more. You knew that it was dangerous, but you also knew that even though you were retired, they would eventually come to you for help.”

He seemed to be somewhat caught up with emotion. “Once a person receives a free meal from the government, they will never be able to get the taste out of their mouth.” [5]

“And so,” said Power of Hu, “I definitely needed to find some to be a scapegoat, and take the blame for all the cases.”

“Because if you cleared all the cases, then you would be able to get away scot free.”

Power of Hu smiled. “It seems you really are an expert.”

“But there was still something I couldn’t figure out. Why did you pick Dragon Fifth?”

“You couldn’t figure it out?”

“Anyone else you picked as a scapegoat would have been easier to handle than Dragon Fifth.”

Power of Hu glanced at Dragon Fifth. He had sat down in the most comfortable seat he could find.

He seemed very calm and relaxed, as if this matter had nothing to do with him.

Power of Hu sighed. “I shouldn’t have picked him. He really is too difficult to deal with.”

“But you had no choice.”

“Oh? Why?”

“Because you weren’t the only person to make the decision.”

“Oh.”

“You have a partner, a person who had long ago decided that Dragon Fifth needed to die.”

“When did you figure that out?”

“When I arrived at Madam Lovesickness’s place.”

“Don’t tell me my partner is Qiu Hengbo?”

Liu Changjie nodded. “She shouldn’t have known that I would go after for her. And yet she was prepared all along, waiting for me.”

“And you suspect that I told her?”

“The only people who knew about it, other than me, were Dragon Fifth, Qiu Huhua and Hu Yue’er.”

“And, of course, you wouldn’t tell her.”

“Neither would Dragon Fifth or Qin Huhua.”

Power of Hu couldn’t deny this.

“So I thought about it a lot, and decided that there was only one way for Qiu Hengbo to find out—if you two had been collaborating all along.” He laughed again. “Furthermore, I might not be a good judge of people, but six plus one is seven. Even I could calculate this debt.”

Power of Hu frowned. He didn’t understand.

“I already knew that Qiu Hengbo’s secret cave was guarded by seven people. But Hu Yue’er only told me the names of six people. That day at the inn in the Qixia Mountains, I only saw six people.”

“You saw Tang Qing, Shan Yifei, Soul Enticing Lao Zhao, Iron Monk, Li the Mastiff, and the hermaphrodite?”

Liu Changjie nodded. “So I thought it was very strange. Where was the other person?”

“And now you figured it out?”

“After thinking about it, there’s only one explanation.”

“Which is?”

“She never talked about the seventh person, because I know that person.”

“And who is it?”

“If it isn’t Wang Nan, then it must be Hu Yue’er.”

Wang Nan was the man at the farmhouse, pretending to be Hu Yue’er’s greedy husband.

“I obviously knew that Wang Nan isn’t a real country bumpkin, and he’s also not a real constable.”

“You knew all about him?”

“It’s because I didn’t know that I was suspicious.”

Power of Hu sighed. “You thought things through very thoroughly. Even more thoroughly than me.”

“There’s also some things you haven’t figured out.”

“Many things.”

“Such as?”

“You didn’t really capture Dragon Fifth?”

“You yourself said he is not an easy person to deal with.”

“He didn’t really kill Qin Huhua?”

“Qin Huhua is his very good friend, in fact, his only true friend. He wouldn’t kill this type of friend.”

“So everything was just an act, played out for Lan Tianmeng?”

“I realized early on that you definitely would have an undercover agent next to Dragon Fifth.”

“So you intentionally allowed Lan Tianmeng to return first and tell me everything he saw.”

“I beat him up a bit, not to vent my anger, but to get you to trust me.”

Power of Hu laughed bitterly. “I really never imagined that you and Dragon Fifth would work together to put on such a show.”

“Now can you imagine it?”

“After you saw Qiu Hengbo, you never met with him, did you?”

“No.”

“Then, how did you plan everything out?”

Liu Changjie laughed suddenly. “Do you know why I purposely pissed off Kong Lanjun?”

Power of Hu shook his head.

“Because I wanted her to take the empty box back.”

“What secret was in the box?”

“Nothing special, just a script.”

“The script to your little act.”

“I knew Kong Lanjun would take the box back to Dragon Fifth, and that he would look at the script and be willing to play along.” He continued, laughing, “You clearly didn’t misjudge him, and neither did I. However, it seems he is much more intelligent than either of us imagined. His acting was much better than mine.”

“You forgot one of the roles,” said Dragon Fifth, suddenly.

“Qin Huhua,” said Liu Changjie with a smile. “He acted very well too.”

“But he was worried,” replied Dragon Fifth.

“Worried that my plan wouldn’t work?”

Dragon Fifth nodded.

“But you went through with it,” said Liu Changjie.

“That’s because he was the only one who was worried.”

“You weren’t worried?”

Dragon Fifth laughed. “I don’t have very many friends, and there aren’t very many people who I’ve misjudged.”

“What kind of person do you think Power of Hu is?”

“His greatest weakness isn’t a greedy heart.”

“What is it?”

“An evil heart.”

“Your perception is more accurate than mine.” He sighed, and turned toward Power of Hu. “If you hadn’t been so eager to kill us, we might still not be sure of your guilt!”

“You’re sure now?”

“Without a doubt.”

“But it seems you’ve forgotten something,” said Power of Hu.

“What’s that?”

“The thief used flying skills to enter the Prince’s private compound. I’m a paralyzed cripple.”

Liu Changjie laughed.

“You don’t believe me?” asked Power of Hu.

“If you were me, would you believe?”

Power of Hu looked at him, looked at Dragon Fifth, and then laughed. “If I were you, I wouldn’t believe.”

This time when he laughed, the laughter reached his eyes. The laughter in his eyes was like that of a crafty fox, or a poisonous scorpion. He turned his head toward the old man and said, “Do you believe?”

“I believe.”

“You believe that my two legs are completely numb?”

“Yes.”

“Where are your blades?”

“Here.”

The old man’s face was expressionless as he slowly stretched out his hands. He flipped his hands over and two blades appeared. They were not long, but appeared to be extremely sharp.

With a smile, Power of Hu asked, “Are your blades sharp?”

“Very sharp.”

“If sharp blades like yours stab someone’s legs, would it hurt?”

“It would hurt very much.”

“And if they stabbed my legs?”

“It wouldn’t hurt.”

“Why not?”

“Because your legs are crippled.”

“Are you sure?”

The old man said, “Let’s try.”

His face was still expressionless. His hands shot forth and the blades flashed, stabbing directly into Power of Hu’s legs. The foot long blades were embedded all the way to the hilt.

Crimson blood flowed down. Power of Hu continued to smile. “If it’s true, then I have no pain.”

The old man lowered his head. The wrinkles on his face distorted. He sighed and slowly said, “It’s true. I always believed.”

Power of Hu lifted his head, smiling, and looked at Liu Changjie and Dragon Fifth. “What about you two? Now do you believe?”

There was no response. And no need for a response.

The wind outside blew, bringing with it the faint scent of osmanthus flowers.

Dragon Fifth sighed lightly. “It seems like it might rain tonight,” he said lightly.

He stood up slowly and, flicking the dust off his garments, turned his head and left. Liu Changjie watched him go, and sighed. “It will definitely rain tonight,” he murmured.

He also walked away. When he reached the door, he turned his head and said, “I don’t want to get wet, but I should go.”

Power of Hu smiled. “I don’t want you to get wet either. You’re not a good person, but you’re not that bad either.”

“There’s one more thing I want to ask you.”

“Go ahead.”

“You have a good reputation, a good position. Many people look up to you, and you have lived a comfortable life.”

“That’s the result of my years of hard work.”

“I know.” He sighed. “And it’s because I know that I don’t understand.”

“What don’t you understand?”

“You struggled hard all those years to reach this day. You have everything, and you’ve already grown old. Why would you do this thing?”

Power of Hu was silent for a while. Finally, he said, “At first, I didn’t understand either. Why would a person who grows older become more greedy? It’s not like you can take the money with you to the coffin.”

“And do you understand now?”

Power of Hu nodded slowly. “I now realize that the reason old people become greedy is that they see things more clearly, and they realize that nothing in the world is more real than money.”

“I still don’t understand.”

Power of Hu laughed. “When you live to be my age, you will understand.”

Liu Changjie hesitated. He was outside the door now, but he couldn’t help from looking back again. “What about Yu’er?”

“You want to see her?”

He nodded. “Whether she is dead or alive, I want to see her again.”

Power of Hu closed his eyes. “Sadly,” he said, “whether she is dead or alive, you can’t see her.”

**

The wind blew in again, bringing with it a fine mist of rain.

Power of Hu opened his eyes, and looked at the blades embedded in his legs. Suddenly his whole body writhed in pain.

The rain was cold, very cold.

“Autumn is deep. It’s only going to get more and more cold,” Power of Hu muttered to himself. Suddenly, he grabbed the blades in his legs and pulled them out.

__________

(1) These two lines are quotes from Laozi.
(2) The word used in Chinese is actually “scar.” But sometimes this word is also used to describe scabs. The narrative isn’t very clear about how much time has passed, but I don’t think it has been long enough for scars to for, so I’m translating it as scab.
(3) In Chinese it’s pretty clear that he’s offering words of comfort regarding someone who has died. But I think it’s doubly meaningful because her surname is the character for moon.
(4) The specific kind of painting that is referred to here is this type: http://goo.gl/J1X3uV
(5) There’s a play on words here that doesn’t translate well. The word for “free meal from the government” would be translated character-by-character as “public door meal.” So the full literal translation is, “once a person eats a public door meal, they will forever imagine going out through that door.”

novel
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Re: English Novel : 7 Killers - Chapter 8

Unread post by novel » 28 Dec 2015 14:03

Chapter 8 – Heaven’s net is wide meshed, nothing escapes it

Part 1

The rain was cold, light and thin.

Long thin strands of rain fluttered amongst the parasol trees in the courtyard. The rain entangled parasol leaves and gloomy hearts alike. [1]

Dragon Fifth had reached the end of the long outer corridor, but he didn’t walk out. He, too, was reluctant to get wet.

Liu Changjie walked up and stood behind him.

Dragon Fifth knew Liu Changjie was there, but he said nothing. Neither did Liu Changjie.

They stood there quietly at the end of the corridor, watching the rain fall on the parasol trees in. They stood there for a long time.

“Power of Hu really is cruel.” Dragon Fifth let out a long sigh. “He is not only cruel to others, he is cruel to himself.”

“Perhaps because he is at the end of his road,” said Liu Changjie indifferently.

“And because he is at the end of the road, you’re going to let him go?”

“I’m also a cruel person.”

“No you’re not.”

Liu Changjie laughed, but it wasn’t a happy laugh.

Dragon Fifth looked back at him. “At the least, you will let him maintain his reputation.”

“Because his reputation wasn’t stolen. He earned it through suffering and hard work.”

“I can see that.”

“I don’t have any personal animosity toward him. I don’t want to see his reputation ruined.”

“But you’re not bringing him to justice. You’re not making him return the things he stole.”

“No. I don’t need to.”

“Don’t need to?”

“He is a very intelligent person. I don’t need to make him. He should come to me himself to resolve the issue.”

“And so you’re waiting here for him to come.”

Liu Changjie nodded.

“And the case is still not closed.”

“Not yet.”

Dragon Fifth muttered to himself for a moment, then said, “If he’s willing to return the stolen property, willing to solve all the problems himself, then the case will be closed.”

“No.”

“Why?”

“You should know why.”

Dragon Fifth turned his head and gazed at the distant, dark clouds. After a long time he quietly said, “You can’t let Qiu Hengbo go.”

“I can’t.” His face suddenly was filled with a very solemn look. “No one can violate the law, or universal truths. Anyone who breaks the law must be punished.”

Dragon Fifth looked back and stared at him. “Who are you, really? Why are you investigating this matter?”

Liu Changjie didn’t reply.

“You obviously are not who you say you are,” said Dragon Fifth. “But you also don’t want to sell yourself out.”

Liu Changjie said nothing.

“Both Power of Hu and I investigated your background, yet neither of us found anything to indicate you were lying.”

“You really don’t understand?”

“I really don’t.”

Liu Changjie laughed. “When I encounter something I don’t understand, I use a special method to deal with it.”

“What method?”

“When I don’t understand something, I don’t think about it. At least temporarily.”

“And afterwards?”

“Whatever the secret it is, it will be revealed eventually. You just have to wait patiently, and eventually you will figure it out.”

Dragon Fifth said nothing.

Maybe he couldn’t stop thinking about it, but he could stop asking.

The rain fell in sheets, twilight grew deeper and deeper.

Light footsteps could be heard.

Then a hand was visible, carrying a lantern, walking slowly down the gloomy corridor.

The lamplight revealed a head of white hair, and the face of Power of Hu’s faithful follower, the old doorman.

His face was expressionless.

He had long ago mastered the ability to conceal sorrow within his heart.

“The two guests have not left yet?”

“We haven’t.”

The old man nodded his head. “Of course the two guests aren’t gone. However, the master is gone.”

“He’s gone?”

The old man stared at the curtains of falling rain. “A storm may arise from a clear sky. People have mornings and evenings, disaster and happiness. I never thought that the master’s sickness would flare up again so suddenly.”

“He died of sickness?”

The old man nodded his head. “His rheumatism had long since seeped into his marrow. He’s been a cripple for a long time, and to keep living down to this day hasn’t been easy.”

His face was completely expressionless, but within his eyes could be seen a strange expression. It was hard to say if he was grieving for Power of Hu, or begging Liu Changjie not to reveal his master’s secret.

Liu Changjie looked at him, and finally nodded his head. “Very well. So he died of sickness. I saw long ago that the disease was getting very serious.”

An expression of gratitude filled his eyes, and he sighed. “Thank you. You really are a good person. The master did not misjudge you.”

Sighing again, he slowly turned and walked away down the corridor.

“Where are you going?” asked Liu Changjie.

“To announce the master’s death.”

“Where will you make the announcement?”

“At Madam Autumn’s.” The man’s voice was filled with resentment. “If it wasn’t for her, the master’s illness might not have been so bad. Now that the master is gone, I will definitely make sure she knows.”

Liu Changjie’s eyes shone. “Don’t tell me she will come here to pay her respects?”

“She will come.” He spoke one word at a time. “She must come.”

The rain outside the corridor grew thicker and thicker.

The old man walked out of the corridor, and the lantern in his hand was instantly extinguished by the rain.

It seemed he didn’t notice. Carrying the extinguished lantern, he slowly walked off into the darkness.

Night had fallen, enveloping everything in blackness.

After his crooked, emaciated frame disappeared into the night, Dragon Fifth let out a sigh. “It seems you were correct. Power of Hu didn’t disappoint.”

Liu Changjie also sighed.

“But,” Dragon Fifth said, “I still don’t understand why Qiu Hengbo ‘must’ come.”

“I don’t know either.”

“So you’re not going to think about it?”

Liu Changjie laughed. “Because I believe that in the end, all secrets will be revealed.”

He turned and stared at Dragon Fifth. “There’s an expression I think you should never forget.”

“What expression?”

“‘Heaven’s net is wide meshed, nothing escapes it. The way of Heaven is fair, but the guilty will not escape.’” His eyes shone in the darkness. “Whoever commits crimes, they should each and every one forget about escaping justice.”

Part 2

Dusk.

There is dusk every day, but every dusk is different.

Similarly, every person dies, and yet there are many types of death. Some people die bravely and with honor, others die in an ordinary and humble way.

Power of Hu’s death was neither ordinary nor humble.

Many had come to his mourning hall to pay respects. [2] Some were his disciples and friends, others merely came to because of his reputation. There was one person missing.

Madam Lovesickness had not arrived.

Liu Changjie wasn’t anxious. He hadn’t even asked about her.

And he hadn’t stopped Dragon Fifth from leaving. He’d known all along that Dragon Fifth would leave, the same as he knew Qiu Hengbo would arrive.

Dragon Fifth seeing her would only complicate matters. [3]

Qiu Hengbo would come, so Dragon Fifth had no choice but to leave.

When seeing Dragon Fifth off, he’d taken him to the end of the corridor and said, “I’ll definitely come looking for you.”

“When? When will you come?”

Liu Changjie laughed. “When it’s time to drink, of course.”

Dragon Fifth laughed. “I always drink at Heavenly Fragrance.”

**

The mourning hall had been set up in the spacious, ancient main hall.

Liu Changjie was nowhere to be seen, only the white-haired old servant, along with effigies of a virgin boy and a virgin girl, keeping vigil over the coffin.

The night was deep.

Eerie lamplight shone onto the exhausted face of the old servant. He himself looked like an effigy.

Mourning couplets, written on strips of white cloth, were hung all about, and there were piles of paper effigies of houses, horses, ships, and other lucky objects.

These things had been gathered in preparation to be burned on the nights of “Receiving the Third” and “Accompanying Night.” [4]

The effigy of the horse cart was remarkably true to life. It had a man leading the horses, a man driving the cart, even extra helpers, horse tackle and whips. Their livery and their faces were all extremely lifelike. It was unfortunate that Power of Hu couldn’t see them.

The night wind was dull and desolate, the lamplight flickered, and then the shadow of a visitor floated into the room.

The visitor was wearing mourning clothes on top, and underneath, the dark clothes of someone who wishes to remain hidden at night.

The old servant raised his head and glanced at him. The man knelt down, and the old servant knelt alongside. He kowtowed, and the old servant kowtowed with him.

When a famous hero of the martial world like Power of Hu passes away, it’s relatively common for unknown figures of the Jianghu world to come in the dead of night to pay respects.

It wasn’t an unusual thing, and was nothing to be shocked about or to even ask questions about.

And yet, this night visitor asked, “Master Hu is really dead?”

The old servant nodded his head.

“But the old man was fine just a few days ago. How could he suddenly pass away?”

“A storm may arise from a clear sky,” said the old servant gloomily. “People have mornings and evenings, disaster and happiness. These matters, no one can predict.”

“How did the old man pass?” It seemed this passing visitor was very interested in Power of Hu’s death.

“He died of sickness. He had a very serious disease.”

The visitor let out a long sigh. “I didn’t see the old man for such a long time. I had no idea I would never see him again.”

“Sadly, you were just a bit too late.”

“Would it be possible for me to pay homage to his remains?” It seemed this visitor couldn’t let go of the idea of seeing Power of Hu.

“No.” The old servant’s response was very direct. “Others can. You can’t.”

The visitor seemed shocked. “Why not?”

The old servant lowered his head. “Because he didn’t know you.”

The visitor seemed more shocked. “How do you know that he didn’t know me?”

“Because I don’t know you,” replied the servant coldly.

“So you know everyone he knew?”

The old servant nodded.

The visitor also lowered his head. “And if I’m set on seeing him?”

“I know that you don’t want to see him,” was the cold response. “The person who wants to see him is someone else.”

The visitor frowned. “Do you know who does want to see him?”

The old servant nodded again. With a cold laugh, he said, “I’m only confused about one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“Madam Autum doesn’t think the master is dead, so she wants to see his corpse. Why didn’t she come herself, instead of sending a Five Gates thief like you to harass his spirit?”

The visitor’s face changed. His hands flipped out to reveal a pair of poison-coated deerskin gloves.

The old servant refused to look at him.

The visitor laughed. “Even if I’m just a Five Gates thief, I can still take your life.”

It seemed he really was ready to spring to action, but at that exact moment, a cold laugh could be heard. “Shut your mouth and get out of here. Get the hell out!”

**

The voice was mesmerizing, as mesmerizing as if it had emanated from heaven.

A third person could not be seen in the mourning hall, and it was impossible to tell where the voice came from.

The old servant did not seem shocked at all. His face was completely expressionless. “So you finally came,” he said coldly. “I knew you would come.”

Part 3

The visitor backed up step by step, until he was gone from the mourning hall.

Left behind was only the white-haired, haggard old servant, illuminated by the desolate, eerie lamp.

And then, the entire mourning hall was filled with a voice.

“Justice of Hu.” She was addressing the old servant by name. “Since you knew I sent him here, why wouldn’t you let him see the master’s remains?”

Justice of Hu’s reply was just as clear-cut. “Because he’s not worthy.”

“And me? Am I worthy?”

“The master predicted that you wouldn’t believe he was really dead.”

“Oh?”

“Therefore, he instructed me to wait for your arrival before sealing the coffin.”

“Don’t tell me he wants to see me one more time, too?” She was laughing.

Her laughter was both beautiful and sinister.

As the laughter was ringing out, the paper effigies suddenly shattered into millions of pieces. [5]

Countless shreds of paper flitted about the mourning hall like colorful butterflies.

And within the flying butterflies, a person floated down, looking like a beautiful white flower that had just bloomed.

She wore a long, snow-white robe, and her face was covered with a white gauze veil. Her body looked like a white cloud that in an instant alighted in front of Justice of Hu.

His face was still completely expressionless—he’d known Madam Lovesickness would arrive.

He’d known long ago, and had been waiting for her for a long time.

“Can I look at the master’s remains now?”

“Of course you can,” said Justice of Hu calmly. “Who knows, perhaps the master really did want to see you one more time.”

**

The coffin was not sealed.

Power of Hu lay quietly within, seeming more serene and peaceful than he had in life.

Perhaps it was because he knew that no one in the world would ever again be able to force him to do things against his will.

Madam Lovesickness finally let out a soft sigh. “It seems he really is gone.”

“It seems you’re happy he went first.”

“Because I know that dead people can’t take anything with them when they go.”

“He’s definitely not taking anything with him.”

“If he’s not taking anything with him, then he should leave those things for me.”

“What should be given to you has already been given.”

“Where?”

“Right here.”

“And why don’t I see anything?”

“Because what you promised to bring to him, is not here.”

“Even if I brought it, he couldn’t see it.”

“I could see it.”

“Unfortunately, I didn’t promise you. Hu Yue’er isn’t your daughter!”

Justice of Hu said nothing.

“Where are the items?”

“Right here.”

“I still don’t see anything.”

“Because I don’t see Hu Yue’er.”

Madam Lovesickness laughed coldly. “I’m afraid you’ll never see her again.”

Justice of Hu also laughed coldly. “In that case, you’ll never see the things you want.”

“At the least, I can see one more thing.”

“Oh?”

“At the least,” she said coldly, “I can see your head fall to the ground.”

“Sadly, my head isn’t worth even one coin.”

“Worthless things are sometimes very desirable.”

“In that case, come get it whenever you want.”

Madam Lovesickness laughed. “You know very well that I’m not going to kill you.”

“Oh?”

“As long as you have at least one breath left, there’s still a way for me to get you to tell the truth.”

Her hand suddenly flicked out like an orchid.

Justice of Hu didn’t move.

Another hand suddenly shot out like lightning to meet hers.

There was no third person in the hall, so where did the hand come from. Could it be that it came from within the coffin?

The hand did not shoot out from the coffin.

It was neither a dead hand, nor a hand made from paper.

The effigies were already shattered into the countless shreds that still fluttered about like butterflies.

“I was also waiting for your arrival.” From within the fluttering butterflies appeared a smiling face.

Liu Changjie laughed.

But within his laughter could be heard an unspeakable pain.

Because, the energy of his palm strike had already lifted up Madam Lovesickness’s gauze veil. He could finally lay eyes on her face.

From the very beginning, he would never have been able to guess that this gloomy, mysterious woman, was actually Hu Yue’er.

Part 4

Dragon Fifth was wrapped up in a marten coat, reclining on the long, narrow couch. He stared at the deadwoods outside the window and muttered, “How come it hasn’t snowed at all this year?”

No one responded to him, and he didn’t expect anyone to.

Qin Huhua didn’t speak very often.

When a person begins to talk to oneself, it indicates that they are beginning to grow old.

Dragon Fifth had heard this saying before, but forgot who said it.

“Don’t tell me I really am growing old?”

He felt at the wrinkles in the corners of his eyes, and suddenly an indescribable feeling of loneliness welled up from his heart.

Qin Huhua was warming wine for him.

He seldom drank wine, but lately he had been drinking two cups every day.

—When will you come?

—When it’s time to drink, of course.

Suddenly, the light sound of footfalls could be heard from outside. A waiter appeared, wearing dark green clothes and a small cap. He carried a small platter, upon which was a soup bowl, covered.

Dragon Fifth turned his head and suddenly laughed. “Are there three hands in the soup bowl this time?”

**

It was Liu Changjie.

Smiling, he lifted the lid of the soup bowl and said, “There’s only one hand in here, a left hand.”

Inside the soup bowl was the paw of a bear, which Dragon Fifth had ordered earlier, and had been slowly cooked for an entire day.

The wine was warmed.

“I knew you would come,” laughed Dragon Fifth. “You came just at the right time.”

Qin Huhua had already filled two cups.

“You’re not drinking?” Liu Changjie asked him.

Qin Huhua shook his head.

He glanced at Liu Changjie and then turned his head, his face expressionless.

Liu Changjie gazed at him and suddenly thought of the white-haired, haggard old servant, the man with a face like a dead tree, Justice of Hu.

Every time he looked at Justice of Hu, he couldn’t help but think of Qin Huhua.

Could it be because they were the same type of person? Anyone who tried to guess their thoughts from the expressions on their faces, would never succeed.

What was Liu Changjie thinking now?

He was smiling, but the smile was dim, just like the overcast weather outside.

“This really is good weather for drinking.”

Dragon Fifth looked back at him, smiling. “So I prepared a pot of wine, especially for you.”

Liu Changjie drank a cup. “And it’s good wine.”

He sat down, and his smile brightened a bit. A cup of quality wine will always brighten the spirits.

Dragon Fifth stared at him. “You just arrived?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“I thought you would arrive a few days ago.”

“I … I arrived late.”

Dragon Fifth laughed. “Arriving late is better than not arriving at all.”

Liu Changjie sat silently for a long time, thinking.

“You’re wrong,” he said suddenly. “Sometimes not arriving at all is actually better.”

He obviously was not talking about himself.

“Who are you talking about?” asked Dragon Fifth.

Liu Changjie drank another cup. “You should know who I’m talking about.”

“She really appeared?”

“Yes.”

“You saw her?”

“Yes.”

“And you recognized her?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t tell me she really was Hu Yue’er?”

Liu Changjie downed his fifth cup. “She obviously wasn’t the real Hu Yue’er.”

“You’ve never seen the real Hu Yue’er, have you?”

Liu Changjie nodded, and finished his sixth cup.

Dragon Fifth continued, “She abducted the real Hu Yue’er and used her to blackmail Power of Hu, then impersonated her to meet with you.”

Liu Changjie downed the seventh cup. “Do you want to know what happened to her in the end?” he asked suddenly.

“Not really.” He was smiling, but the smile was even more gloomy than the weather outside. “I knew a long time ago what kind of person she is.”

“But you don’t know what happened to her in the end.”

“I don’t need to know. A person’s nature will dictate their end.” He forced out a laugh. “Heaven’s net is wide meshed, nothing escapes it. The way of Heaven is fair, but the guilty will not escape. I haven’t forgotten this.”

Liu Changjie wanted to laugh, but couldn’t. He had drunk all the wine in the jug.

Dragon Fifth drank a cup. “I never could figure out what kind of person that old man was.”

“You mean Justice of Hu?”

Dragon Fifth nodded. “I actually suspected that he was the real Power of Hu.”

“Ah?”

“In fact, I even suspected that they were the same person.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Did you ever hear the story of a person in Jianghu called ‘the Ouyang Brothers?’”

“I have heard.”

“The Ouyang brothers weren’t actually two people. He was a man whose name was ‘the Ouyang Brothers.’”

“Yes, I remember.”

“The Ouyang Brothers was actually one person. Couldn’t it be possible that Power of Hu was actually two people?”

Liu Changjie finally caught on.

“Did you ever think of that possibility?” asked Dragon Fifth.

“Never. The relationship between two people can rarely be understood by a third party.”

He couldn’t help but glance once more at Qin Huhua. What exactly was the relationship between him and Dragon Fifth? Was there something more than met the eye?

He sighed. “In any case, we will never know the answer to the mystery.”

“Why?”

“Because Justice of Hu also didn’t leave the mourning hall alive.”

Justice of Hu “also” was gone.

Did the word “also” contain another meaning? Were there other people who “also” died in the mourning hall?

Dragon Fifth didn’t ask.

He didn’t want to ask, and couldn’t bear to ask.

“In any case, the case is finally closed,” he said. He extended the wine jug, which had just been replenished, and refilled Liu Changjie’s cup.

Liu Changjie downed another. “I never could have imagined that the case would be closed in this way.”

“How did you think it would end? Did you really suspect me from the beginning?”

Liu Changjie didn’t answer his question. Instead, he said, “You’re fundamentally a very suspicious person.”

“Why?”

“Because down to this very moment, I can’t see through you.”

“And what about you? Who can see through you?” Dragon Fifth laughed. “I always thought it was strange. Why could Power of Hu and all his people not learn the truth about you?”

Liu Changjie laughed. “Because there’s no truth to learn.”

Dragon Fifth stared at him. One word at a time, he said, “Can you finally tell me… Who are you?”

“You and Power of Hu both went to that little town,” said Liu Changjie coolly. “You both investigated me.”

“And we both found out nothing.”

“Of course you didn’t.” He smiled. “It’s because I was born in that little town, and I lived a very normal life.”

“And now?”

“Now I’m just a local constable there.”

A look of shock covered Dragon Fifth’s face.

“A person like you, just a local constable from a small town?”

Liu Changjie nodded. “You couldn’t learn anything about my history because you never imagined that I really was just a small-town constable.”

Dragon Fifth let out a long sigh, and then laughed bitterly. “I definitely never imagined.”

“You both only met me because my superiors ordered me to get involved with the case. Otherwise you would never have known that there was a person like me in the world.”

“Are you telling the truth?”

“You don’t believe me?”

“I believe you. But there’s still something I don’t understand.”

“What’s that?”

“A person like you, why would you choose to be a local constable?”

“I’ve always done whatever I feel like doing.”

“You always wanted to be a constable?”

Liu Changjie nodded.

Dragon Fifth laughed bitterly. “Some people want to be famous heroes. Some people want to have a high position and a handsome salary. Some people seek fame and some people seek riches. I’ve seen all these types of people before.”

“But you’ve never seen a person who wanted to be a constable?”

“There are definitely not very many people like you.”

“There are plenty of famous heroes in the world, so there should definitely be some people like me, people who are willing to do that which other’s won’t do, or aren’t willing to do.” He smiled, and this time it was a happy smile. “In the end, there have to be constables. And if a person can do what they want to do in life, shouldn’t they be happy?” [6]

__________

(1) This a type of tree you see mentioned in literature a lot apparently. http://goo.gl/7Cc8PJ
(2) What I’m translating as “paying respects” literally means to offer sacrifices to the dead. I’m sure most of you know that in Chinese culture this involves kowtowing, burning incense or money, etc.
(3) The Chinese here is (in my opinion) really vague (a key characteristic of Chinese sometimes). The direct translation would be “to see something bothersome, is not as good as not seeing it.” The underlying meaning is my translation…
(4) These are names of different days associated with traditional funeral customs. I couldn’t find any information about official English translations, so these are my personal translations.
(5) There is an additional line that I’m leaving out. It describes the paper effigies shattering, “as if there were an invisible fire that just exploded.” It just sounds weird in English…
(6) The literal translation of his final line of dialogue is: “No matter what, being a constable is a job that people do, if a person lives in this world, and they do what they want to do, shouldn’t they be content?” It seems pretty eloquent in Chinese, and I wanted the English to carry that same flavor.


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