Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain by Jin Yong (12 page)

To this the younger twin responded boldly. "Our Master has instructed us to dispatch a written challenge but has not instructed us to start a fight. We shall let him go as soon as he replaces my pearl." Having said that, the younger lad took one step forward and caught Valour on his left shoulder, slashing it with a whir.

The steward was about to respond to the lad when, from behind his back, echoed a female voice, "Aiya, stop all fighting, please. Stop all fighting, please. I really hate to see people taking to arms." There was a soft spontaneity in her voice that fell with gentle melody on the ears of the Company present. The group assembled could not help but turn their heads around.

A young damsel clad in gamboge was seen smiling from the portal. She had a fair complexion. Her eyes were like limpid pools and she cast a couple of glances at the people assembled. Her looks and manners showed unusual refinement and inexpressible grace. Her brows gave her the air of a literateur. She seemed like an orient pearl or an effulgent jadeite. All those present in the hall were bold and brave members of the Martial Brotherhood, outlaws who had adventured across the kingdom. They seemed to be mesmerized by suddenly chancing upon a damsel as fair and fine as she. They were all captivated by the ethereal grace of her poise, and were quelled by her beauty. They stood uncomfortably, spellbound and enraptured.

Nevertheless, the twins appeared to be totally unaffected by her charm. They took no note of her presence. While Fortune and his party were standing entranced by the damsel, the twins seized this opportunity and quickly cleft every single weapon with a clash and a clang.

"The two little brothers please cease all this," implored the maiden. "How distasteful it is to have wounded people like this."

To this the younger lad remonstrated. "That is because he will not replace back my pearl."

"What pearl?" inquired the damsel.

The younger twin pointed the tip of his sword at the chest of Valour, bent down, and picked up the pearl already broken in half. Then he addressed her in a mournful tone, "See what he has done to my pearl. I want him to repay me."

The damsel moved closer, held up the pearl, and examined it. "Oh, what a prize pearl!" she exclaimed. "I could not afford to repay you either. Why do you not settle it like this?" At this, she turned round to her maid. "Lute, get me the pair of jade stallions and give them to the twins." Lute followed her instruction most unwillingly, remonstrating, "Miss..."

"You mustn't be that niggardly!" reproached the maiden, wearing a smile. "See how exquisitely fine the two little brothers look. The jade stallions can certainly set off to perfection their fine features."

The twins eyed each other. Lute then opened a gilded chest, from which she took two matching embroidered purses, and handed them to her mistress. One purse the damsel opened and from it produced a tiny, jade stallion; embedded in its mouth was a silk filigree, its reins. The damsel then fastened the jade ornament onto the girdle-sash of the younger twin and handed to the elder twin a matching jade stallion which she produced from the other brocaded sachet. The elder lad took the gift and thanked her, paying his respects. The jade stallion, a radiant and glittering statuette, was an exquisitely fine piece of glyptic art. The horse assumed a leaping and prancing stance. Tiny as it was, the miniature was a rarity, succeeding in capturing vividly the elegant prance of a fast-moving steed. The lad loved the stallion, but wavered a moment, wondering who the damsel was. He was pondering whether he should accept a gift worth a fortune. Meanwhile, the younger twin picked the other half of the pearl from the foot of the wall, saying, "This pearl of mine is one of a set as it matches my brother's. Jade stallion or no jade stallion, the imperfection can never be repaired." At this, he felt decidedly unhappy.

It dawned instantly on the maiden that the twins were closely attached to one another; their looks and attire enforced this impression. After all, it might not matter significantly that the pearl was damaged, but what distressed them most was to find their ornamental wear distorted so wretchedly, no longer able to form a set. Thereupon, the damsel picked up the jade stallion, set the two halves of the orient pearl over the orbits of the steed, remarking, "I have an idea: set the eyes of the jade stallion with these two blister pearls. As the pearl emits a glow in the dark, the eyes of the jade stallion will also light up at night. They will look marvellous."

The elder twin was greatly exhilarated. He immediately plucked the pearl from his plait and sliced it into two hemispherical pieces with his dagger. Turning to his twin brother, he said, "Now, our pearls and jade stallions look exactly alike." The younger lad managed to check his anger and brightened up at once. He thanked the damsel whole-heartedly and also paid respects to Valour, saying, "Now, an end to our quarrel."

Valour was badly stained and was consumed with rage, yet he dared not remonstrate at all.

The younger lad then held the hand of the elder twin, both ready to take their leave. Addressing himself to the damsel, the elder twin said, "Thank you for your generous gift. May I know who you are? So that if my Master asks any questions, I shall have for him a ready answer."

"May I know who your Master is?" asked the maiden.

"My Master bears the family name Hu."

At this, the maiden turned pale, observing, "You are then the servants of Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain."

The twins bowed in unison and replied, "Yes, you are right."

The damsel replied in a changed tone, "My family name is Miao. Should your Master ask anything about me, inform him that these two jade stallions are gifts from the daughter of the Gilt-faced Buddha."

At this those assembled found themselves in great discomfiture. The august name Gilt-faced Buddha was known far and wide. It defied all imagination to find his daughter such a winsome, elegant and demure maiden. She was endowed with the deportment of a young lady from a wealthy and aristocratic household. She seemed like an unmarried daughter from an illustrious family of letters. No element of this young lady resembled the daughter of a famed knight-errant among the outlawry. The twins signalled to each other with their eyes. Both put the jade stallions down on the teapoy, spun round and left the hall quietly.

The maiden smiled gently, also uttering not a word. Lute collected the jade stallions, joyfully. She turned to the damsel and said, "You were casting pearls before swine. Imagine: the twins threw away prize gifts like that. If I were in their place, I would...." The damsel interrupted with a smile. "Hush, or we will be taken for doltish mules."

* * *

Suddenly, Tree came swaggering forward, crying out, "Aha, the young lady here is the daughter of Phoenix the Knight-errant. How is your father faring?"

"He is enjoying good health and is prospering. Thank you," replied the maiden. "May I know the name of the monk?"

To this the monk replied, beaming, "The monk goes by the name Tree. May I know your name, young lady?"

The damsel went by the name Orchid Miao, but, when she heard her name being asked, she blushed to her roots, musing to herself, "How could I ever mention my name to strangers?" She evaded the question, replying, "Please make yourselves at home. I, of the younger generation, have to go inside to pay my respects to the wife of the lord of the eyrie." She then drew in the lapels of her garment and bowed respectfully to the group.

The sobriquet of Orchid's father struck all present with awe. None dared show the slightest sign of disrespect. They all returned her bow with humility, remarking to themselves, "It is hard to imagine that a young lady with her background is neither vain nor imposing. She does not seem to harbour any intention of taking advantage of others."

Now that everybody was reseated, Orchid excused herself again before repairing to the inner chamber. Immediately, about seven or eight servants and maids were seen walking through the doorway, carrying chests, trunks, bedding and mattresses. They were assumed to be attendants to Miss Orchid, coming all this way to wait on her. Century, the father, and Peace, his son, eyed each other, both thinking, "If we two were to run into this group of people on the road, we would take them to be the household of a mandarin or wealthy family; we would certainly stage a robbery and attack them. Had this been the case we would surely have ended up in a terrible situation."

Valour pulled his sleeve to wipe the stains of battle from his body. He was thankful that the younger lad had harboured no intention of sorely wounding him, but had only glanced his blade here and there, parting skin, giving him no real cause for alarm. Sign drew closer to assist him and she staunched the bleeding by applying to his wound a styptic concocted specifically for wounds inflicted by edged weapons. Valour ripped open the left lapel of his garment to allow Sign to bind his wounds. Suddenly there came a clanging thud: the iron casket had slipped to the floor. All present sprang up instantaneously, with hands outstretched, ready to seize the treasure case.

Valour was standing closest to the box. He delineated a circle, sweeping out his left hand, barring any attempt to draw any closer. He bent immediately to retrieve the box. The moment he landed his fingers on its lid he felt a sudden jerk on his shoulder, forcing him, in a reflex, to move his steps sideways. When he regained his balance on firm, sturdy feet and with head erect, he found the box already resting in the hands of Tree.

Tree's sudden attack struck all the valiant and courageous outlaws assembled in the hall with awe. He was, after all, an accomplished fighter. All stared hard at him, not daring to utter a sound.

Suddenly, Curio said, "Great Master, the box is the heirloom of our Dragon Lodge. Kindly return it to us."

Tree gave out a laugh. "Well said, well said. You claim this to be the house treasure of your honourable Lodge. Tell me what is inside the casket and how you came by this treasure? As you are the Grand Master of the Dragon Lodge, you should know the answers. Take it, if you can explain everything." Then Tree leant forward, proffering the casket to Curio with both hands.

Curio reddened. He had already reached out his hands for the box, yet he did not dare to receive it. Finding it embarrassing to retract his outstretched limbs, Curio let them hang in mid air, and eventually let them go limp and dropped them to their normal positions. All Curio's knowledge about the receptable was that the late Grand Master had attached great importance to it. The late Grand Master had always kept the casket under the tightest security. Curio had never seen his Master undo the box. He was baffled to know what was inside, not to mention how they had acquired the treasure. Valour and Fortune, both veteran adept fighters of the Dragon Lodge, looked each other straight in the eyes. Both were dumbfounded. Suddenly Radiant broke the silence, volunteering an answer. "Of course we all know what is inside. It is a prize poniard."

Radiant was considered to be only of the second rank in martial ability among the expert hands of the Dragon Lodge and was never in his Master's confidence. Neither was he considered capable. When he gave this answer out of the blue, it shook Valour and his friends, making them all remark to themselves, "What else do you know?"

Tree, however, responded quite encouragingly, "Right you are: it's a poniard. But do you know who the original owner was? And how it came to be in the possession of the Dragon Lodge?"

Valour and the others had all been taken aback by Radiant's brisk reply. They had not expected Radiant to be able to answer the question. Now, they paid him full attention, awaiting a further remark. Radiant turned red on a sudden, but soon regained his pale complexion, remarking vexedly, "Our Dragon Lodge has been handing the poniard down from generation to generation. The person gaining possession of this treasured weapon claims ascendance to the Grand Mastership of the Lodge."

"What you say is correct up to a point." Fortune interrupted at this juncture. "The poniard is the heirloom of the Dragon Lodge, with the Northern and Southern Branches alternately taking responsibility for its safekeeping."

Tree interjected, shaking his head. "You are quite wrong there. I did not expect that you would know the true story."

"Do not tell me that you know it all!" countered Radiant.

"I learned the story twenty years ago," answered Tree. "The vendetta between Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain and the lord of this eyrie sprung from this very treasure. If other parties had not been implicated in the interim, would I, the old monk, have taken it upon myself to invite you all up to this mountain?"

This caused the Dragon Lodge party, Tao Senior and Junior, as well as Hawk and Prime, to shudder, as they all thought, "This old monk had indeed harboured evil intentions towards us. He also had plans to rob the iron casket of its poniard. We have been neatly inveigled into a snare, and will all certainly die." Thus pondering, they heard the sound of a whirr and a slash. A weapon had been whipped out, and was flashing furiously in the air. In no time, there was the clashing and clanging of blade upon blade. Tree was enclosed by the outlaws brandishing their knives and flourishing their swords. Valour and others who had had their weapons cleft by the twins stooped to retrieve their foils, and charged with full force.

Tree turned himself around. Encircled by the outlaws, the old monk took his time. He addressed the group assembled, smiling with an impression of briskness. "Are you going to take up arms against an old monk like me?" The discomfited outlaws stared at him hard, yet none dared to risk another move. They had all drawn closer, and were now able to make out that Tree, wearing a grey beard and with creases in his face, was darting glances that were both lucid and penetrating: the monk was in no way an aged fellow.

Hawk retreated one pace, commanding the others, "First, let us set to and dispatch the old monk. We can sort out our own differences when we get back to the foot of the mountain. We will have plenty of time for that later." Hawk was of the opinion that the longer they were detained on the mountain, the more danger they were in. The outlaws now began to feel uneasy within the confines of the eyrie and felt the truth of Hawk's words. Just as they were about to dash headlong, a deafening sound like an explosion roared from beyond the doorway.