Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain by Jin Yong (35 page)

"Even though we had sold our service to the Imperial House, we sprang originally from the Martial Brotherhood. On hearing the words 'Miao's Swordplay', we thought to ourselves, 'That Gilt-faced Buddha, Phoenix the Knight-errant, the Invincible Under the Sky, is such an audaciously daring fighter, who would dare challenge him?' Seeing the reluctant expressions on our faces, Brother Pastoral said, wearing an encouraging smile, 'Had I not already formulated a plan to deal with Phoenix, I would not have journeyed here to trouble you.' Thereupon, Commissioner Sai hastened to press him about the plan. Brother Pastoral then detailed everything, causing us all to nod approvingly and laud the idea. I am not going to reveal to you the details of his marvellous idea, but you will certainly learn more about it when the time comes.

"Brother Pastoral took leave of the capital the following day. Commissioner Sai entrusted us with the mission and we were to execute the plan at his behest. All the while he was turning the business over in his mind, he had the feeling that Brother Pastoral, who himself was neither interested in establishing himself with the Imperial Government, nor in amassing a fortune, was yet proffering a gift worth a fortune all for nothing. Could it be true that there really were selfless people like him? He suspected there must be some hidden motive behind the scene. Thereupon, he dispatched several aides to make discreet enquiries outside the capital. Soon after I had left the capital, I heard about Brother Pastoral's forthcoming retirement and Sword-sealing Ceremony; hence I prepared a gift and went to his home to offer him my congratulations.

"Brother Pastoral was overwhelmed on seeing me. My honouring him with a visit was what he had been eagerly seeking. Then he asked me to have some business quietly resolved for him. Brother Fortune, I hope you will not be offended when I now reveal the secret. He wanted me to get word to the Imperial Government to throw you into prison on a trumped-up charge and have you locked up for at least a few years."

Fortune gave a start; his hair was standing on end. Then he emitted in a trembling voice, "Brother Pastoral was such a character after all. It was indeed my good fortune to have run into Sir Hawk, who knew distinctly what was right and what was wrong, and therefore took it upon himself to act mercifully. I will certainly reward him handsomely in due course."

Hawk answered, his face wreathed in smiles, "It is very kind of you to say so. I then asked Brother Pastoral what enmity there was between him and Brother Fortune. He told me he had no old debts to settle with you. But, as Grand Master of the Northern Branch of the Dragon Lodge, he was due soon to hand over the poniard when his term for its safekeeping expired. This was an established practice of their Dragon Lodge. He was to adhere to the rule strictly without further ado. And yet he was afraid that, once the poniard had fallen into the hands of Brother Fortune, he would have to go to much trouble before recovering it from him.

"I could not help growing increasingly suspicious. I avoided giving a definite yes or no, neither committing myself to assist nor turning down his request. All the while, I stood aloof, subjecting him to my careful scrutiny.

"After the banquet was over, the time came for Brother Pastoral to hand over the poniard. He could not find an excuse to put it off. I thought that I could perhaps help him out then. If I hid the poniard away quietly, he certainly would not be able to produce it. Though Brother Pastoral would be annoyed, there would be nothing he could do then. It would also provide me with an opportunity to render distinguished service to repay the Imperial Benevolence. How could I afford to let the chance slip from my fingers? Thereupon, I stole into Brother Pastoral's room. As I was about to rummage for the poniard, there suddenly came footsteps from outside the door. Brother Pastoral was returning to the room. In a flurry of desperate activity, I quickly hid under the bed

"Brother Pastoral entered the room. He opened the trunk and took out the iron casket. Suddenly he cried out in alarm, 'Where is the poniard?' His voice was infused with genuine fear and he was not feigning surprise. It seemed as if the poniard had been stolen. Thereupon, he summoned his daughter and asked her about the poniard. Miss Tian also knew nothing and she too became worried. Presently, Brother Valour announced his presence. A row between the Brothers-at-Arms over the transmission of the Grand Mastership ensued immediately, and the illicit affair of Brother Curio and Miss Tian was also mentioned in the course of their argument. After a while, Brother Pastoral told Brother Valour to fetch Brother Peace.

"Brother Pastoral handed the iron casket to Brother Peace, ordering him to bury it in the land beyond the Pass. I caught every word under the bed and thought to myself that Peace, the fool, was going to be taken in very easily.

"After Peace had taken his leave, Brother Pastoral thumped on the bed and began to sigh. He muttered to himself, 'Gully, the unbeatable! Phoenix, the invincible!' At that time I had no idea who Gully was. I realized that Phoenix must be the one who had made away with the poniard. Later I found out that Brother Pastoral's fear stemmed from his having received a visiting card from Fox, Gully's son, and thus he had realized that his days were numbered.

"It so happened that the poniard was also missing at the time, which made it the more impossible for him to flee, leaving matters unresolved.

"Presently, Miss Tian entered the room and said, 'Father, I have discovered the whereabouts of the poniard.' Brother Pastoral leapt up, crying, 'Where is it?' Miss Tian moved a few paces closer and whispered in his ears, 'It was stolen by Brother Radiant.' Brother Pastoral immediately asked 'Really? Where is he? Where is the poniard?' Miss Tian answered, 'I saw him bury the poniard in a certain place.' Brother Pastoral responded enthusiastically, 'Good. You should go and dig it out immediately.' Miss Tian then said, 'Father, there is one thing I want you to do, and I hope you will not blame me for this.' Brother Pastoral asked, 'What is it?' Miss Tian then replied, 'Persuade Brother Radiant to come here. I shall be hiding behind the door. You must ask him if he has made away with the poniard. When he admits he was in the wrong, I shall thrust a Lethal Dart in his back.'

"I told myself that this was a cruel maiden," continued Valour. "Brother Pastoral immediately answered, 'At the most I shall beat him severely and cripple him. There is no need to dispatch him.' But Miss Tian insisted, 'If you do not accept my way, I will not fetch you the poniard.' Brother Pastoral pondered for a while, and then said, 'All right, you fetch me the poniard quickly. Deal with him in whatever way you like.' Thereupon, Miss Tian turned around to leave the room. I did not know at the time what animosity there was between this young lady and her Brother-at-Arms. Having now heard the story from Brother Peace, I begin to realize that Miss Tian was intending to murder Radiant to silence him. Poor fellow that he should have been there to see a maiden interring an illegitimate son."

At this moment, the Company all directed their gaze at Radiant. His face was ashen and his eyes were blinking nervously.

Hawk soon picked up his tale: "I decided I might as well lie down under the bed to await this murder. Also, I still had to wait for the poniard. Added to that, how could I make my exit with Brother Pastoral lying awake in his bed? After a short while Miss Tian retraced her steps to the room, in a great hurry and she broke out in a trembling voice, 'Father, he has already dug up the poniard. It was extremely stupid of me. I was but a minute too late. He ... He ... also ...' Fear and fury mingled in Brother Pastoral's breast. He asked, 'What did he do?' His daughter had been meaning to tell him, 'He has also dug up the body of my child!' But she was too ashamed to say these words, and was silent for a few moments. Afterwards, she cried, 'l shall go and fetch him!' She at once ran outside, but tumbled to the ground on reaching the threshold, a result of severe panic.

"Hiding under the bed I was provoked by a rankling anger. The poniard was still nowhere to be found. I had been meaning to take the first opportunity to extinguish the candle, and run from the room under cover of darkness. On seeing his daughter trip, Brother Pastoral could not help heaving a deep sigh, but made no attempt to clamber from his bed to raise her from the ground. After getting back on her feet, Miss Tian leant upon the door post, and panted a while before taking to her heels again.

"Brother Pastoral then got up to close the windows. He sat down on a chair, resting his sword on the table while holding the arrow in his hand. His face was ashen, wearing a most terrifying look. I was also gripped by a feeling of acute uneasiness. He might turn against me the minute he found me out. I might not even be able to stay alive as I was not as martially accomplished as he.

"Brother Pastoral remained deadly motionless in the chair. He looked like a rigid corpse, and yet his eyes held a flickering gleam. It seemed as though his heart were weighed down by a great anxiety. It was deadly quiet outside. A few barking sounds were heard coming faintly from a distance, echoed immediately by a dog in the vicinity. Suddenly the nearby barking tailed off to a whine, and then stopped abruptly, as if someone had delivered a lightning blow to the brute. Brother Pastoral started. Soon came a knocking on the door. There was only a very short lapse between the barking and knocking. The dog must have been over a hundred yards away. It took the visitor less than a moment to reach the entrance after slaughtering the animal on the way.

"Brother Pastoral posed his question to the visitor in a low tone, 'Fox, so you have finally arrived?'

"The stranger outside replied, 'Pastoral, do you recognize my voice?'

"Brother Pastoral turned deadly pale instantly and he quavered, 'Phoenix! Phoenix the knight-errant!'

"The man at the door replied, 'It is I!'

"Brother Pastoral demanded, 'Phoenix the Knight-errant, why are you here?'

"The fellow on the other side of the doorway responded, 'I am here to deliver some goods!'

"After wavering for a few moments, Brother Pastoral laid down his arrow and threw open the door. A lanky man, with a waxen complexion, came striding into the room.

"I stole a close look at his appearance from under the bed and thought to myself, 'This man goes by the sobriquet the Invincible Under the Sky and is an ultimate fighter of the Martial Brotherhood. He looks imposing without having to puff himself up. His bearing awes others into submission.' Phoenix laid down on the table two articles which he was carrying and said, 'Here is your poniard and here is your grandson.' The slender parcel was, after all, a dead baby.

"Brother Pastoral trembled and slumped in the chair. Phoenix the Knight-errant remarked, 'Your protege buried the poniard secretly while your daughter interred an illegitimate son, both keeping you in the dark. But I saw all this. I have dug up both objects to return them to you.' Brother Pastoral answered, 'Thank you. Our ... our house is beset by misfortunes.' Phoenix the Knight-errant's eyes turned red immediately, and tears were on the verge of flooding out. However, he speedily assumed a threatening expression and demanded, 'How did she meet her death?'"

Suddenly there came a crashing sound. The tea bowl slipped from Orchid's hand, smashing to smithereens. She had always carried herself in a quiet and demure way. But for some unknown reason, these words instantly undermined her composure. Lute, her maid, immediately took out a handkerchief and wiped the tea from her clothes. Lute addressed her mistress in a whisper, "Madam, go inside and take a rest. Do not listen any more." Orchid answered, "No, I shall listen to his story until the end."

Hawk cast her a glance and then continued: "Brother Pastoral said, 'She caught a cold one day and started coughing. I sent for a doctor to tend to her. The doctor diagnosed her as having only a slight flu; nothing serious. One prescription would have been sufficient to set her perspiring and the temperature would then have gone away. But she found the medicine too bitter and poured away the entire concoction. She also refused to take any food, hence she started to grow increasingly weak. I summoned several doctors, but she still refused to take either medicine or food. She simply refused to heed any advice.'"

At this, Orchid started to sob quietly. Hawk and the others found this rather strange, not knowing who the woman was that had refused both medicine and food. They did not know how she was related to Pastoral, to Phoenix and to his daughter. Century, Peace and the Dragon Lodge cohort took her to be the woman that Pastoral had taken to wife on the death of his first spouse. They failed to see why Phoenix the Knight-errant should show his concern for this woman. Neither could they understand why Orchid had become saddened by this part of Hawk's narration. Thereupon, they thought to themselves, "Could it be possible that Pastoral was related to the Miao Family? How come we have never heard anything before about that?"

Hawk continued, "While still hiding myself under the bed, I failed to understand at all to whom they were referring. And I thought to myself that Phoenix had come here making all speed, and yet his only business was inquiring about the health of a sick person. Was not the person who refused to take either food or medicine petty? Phoenix the knight-errant then went on and asked, 'Did it not seem as if she had lost interest in living?' Brother Pastoral answered, 'Later on, I went on my knees, imploring her to take both food and medicine, but she remained adamant, despite my begging and entreating her incessantly.'

"Phoenix the knight-errant asked, 'What were her parting words?' Brother Pastoral answered, 'She asked me to have her body cremated, and then to sprinkle the ashes on the driveway so that people would trample on her.' Phoenix the Knight-errant started at this, bawling, 'Did you carry out her instruction?' Brother Pastoral answered, 'I had the body cremated, but the ashes are still here.' At this, he stood up and retrieved a tiny porcelain jar from the inner side of the bed. He placed the container on the table.

"Phoenix the knight-errant gazed at the porcelain jar. Grief and wrath were visible on his face. I stole one glance at him. Afterwards, I dared not look at his face any more.