Chapter 196

At that moment, the shopkeeper, leading his assistants, was bringing the food and dishes in a steady stream; seeing this sudden change, he was so frightened his soul fled his body, standing there like a wooden chicken.

Feng Yi, however, acted as if nothing had happened, speaking calmly: "What are you looking at? Just serve the dishes!"

The shopkeeper saw the girl lying flat on the ground, stiff and unmoving; he stepped forward to check her breath and pulse, finding none—clearly she was dead—yet this person still wanted to drink and eat. He thought, 'This is a great bandit!' He hastily ordered his assistants to bring the food and drink, not daring to disobey, while he himself slowly retreated toward the stairway.

Feng Yi's eyes were extraordinarily sharp—observing all six directions and hearing from eight—seeing the shopkeeper's expression change, fearing he might report to the authorities and cause unnecessary trouble, he murmured, 'Shopkeeper, you'd better not meddle.'

The shopkeeper halted his steps, swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and said in a trembling voice, 'Sir, you possess great skill and could simply leave, but you have killed someone—how can my humble establishment bear responsibility for that?'

Feng Yi heard this and found it reasonable; in a glance, he saw the girl's eyeballs twitch slightly. Her eyes were closed, yet the eyeballs moved, visible through the eyelids.

'This little girl is quite clever.' Feng Yi laughed, saying, 'While eating, how can one kill? I don't want to spoil my appetite.'

Having said that, he set down his wine bowl, slowly rose, bent over, and pulled the girl's jade-white wrist to feel her pulse.

The shopkeeper said, 'There is no pulse; she has breathed her last.'

Feng Yi gave a slight smile, gently circulated his inner energy, and thrust it toward the girl's wrist pulse, only to feel a surge of inner energy from within her body rebounding—clearly she was using inner energy to resist.

Feng Yi feigned astonishment, saying, 'Oh dear, this girl's pulse is chaotic and throbbing wildly; clearly her qi and blood are insubstantial, yet her pulse is full and moist—this is a sign of deviation into demonic cultivation, indicating she has little time left!'

As soon as he spoke, two patches of rosy color appeared on the girl's purplish face; she opened her mouth and shouted, 'It's you who's deviated into demonic cultivation and has little time left!'

Seeing the girl return from death, the shopkeeper and his assistants were all stunned like wooden chickens.

Feng Yi, however, wore an anxious expression and asked, 'How could this be?'

Without further ado, he seized the girl's other hand, seemingly to take her pulse, but actually used inner energy to strike her meridians.

The girl, her wrist held by his fingers, could not resist; she felt a mighty inner force surge into her, as if a red-hot iron rod were stirring back and forth inside her body—an agony beyond imagination. She desperately used inner energy to oppose it, yet could not utter a word.

Feng Yi still wore a sighing expression as he said, 'It's over, it's over; this girl alternates between life and death—this truly is deviation into demonic cultivation. What can be done?'

The girl herself clearly understood her condition; where could there be any sign of deviation into demonic cultivation?

In fact, the girl had pretended to reach out to steady Feng Yi's shoulder, but between her fingers she held a fine needle coated with deadly poison, intending to stab him; unexpectedly, Feng Yi's body erupted with a surge of thick true qi, which blasted her away.

Knowing she was no match, fearing he would strike again, she simply employed the 'Turtle Breath Technique' to feign death.

Feng Yi appeared to have done nothing, yet easily resolved it; however, if it had been someone with slightly lesser martial skill, they would have fallen prey long ago, so he naturally wanted her to suffer a bit.

Yet the girl had schemed against herself, unknown to others; Feng Yi, a grown man openly disciplining a girl, would look unsavory, so he pretended to be treating her illness.

The girl suffered great pain, yet saw Feng Yi's handsome eyes gleam, his mouth curling in a half-smile; she knew his intent, her inner strength unable to endure the torment, she suddenly pursed her lips and burst into loud sobs, crying while shouting, 'You bully me! You bully me!'

The shopkeeper and his assistants, seeing her tear-streaked face like pear blossoms in rain, secretly despised Feng Yi for quarreling with a little girl.

'Miss!' Feng Yi then released his grip, speaking calmly, 'Over the years, you are the first person daring to scheme against me—you have quite the nerve!'

The girl sobbed, 'My phosphorescent needle isn't even the most deadly; I still have many hidden weapons I haven't used.'

Feng Yi's two eyes flashed like lightning onto her face, and he slowly said, 'Indeed, you are a disciple of Ding Chunqiu!'

The girl immediately jumped in fright, stopped crying, let out an 'eh,' her face full of surprise, and said, 'How do you know?'

Feng Yi asked, 'Where is he?'

The girl stammered, unable to answer.

Feng Yi thought, 'She must be A Zi—no doubt she hasn't even had time to hide from Ding Chunqiu, yet how could she know!'

He no longer questioned her, returned to his seat, poured a bowl of daughter's red wine, and faced the table full of dishes, eating heartily.

Seeing him ignore her, the girl gave a muffled 'hmm,' turned over, wanting to sit up from the ground, but could muster little strength; she could not help but frown, secretly thinking, 'This person's martial arts are indeed high—hmph, if I learned the Dissolving Skill, let's see if you dare to use inner force against me!' She then said, 'May I ask your esteemed name, elder brother?'

Feng Yi saw that she at least knew etiquette this time, yet still gave no answer; he picked up a piece of spare rib, placed it in his mouth, and chewed audibly.

The girl then took a silver ingot from her sleeve and gave it to the shopkeeper, who was about to reach out but suddenly withdrew, saying, 'Miss, one ingot of gold is already more than enough; I dare not ask for any more silver from you.'

The girl said in a coquettish voice, 'That's a separate matter; I now wish to treat this sir to food and drink—may I not?'

The shopkeeper saw her sly smile, her big eyes dark and glossy, full of cleverness; recalling how just earlier a wine customer had his teeth knocked out by her chopsticks, his heart gave a sudden jolt, and he hastily reached out to take it, saying, 'I dare not, I dare not!'

The girl said, 'Don't let anyone else come up!'

The shopkeeper bowed to the ground, saying, 'Yes, yes, I respectfully obey the miss's orders!' Having said that, he lowered his head and walked out.

The girl saw him fearing her and giggled incessantly.

Feng Yi saw her swaying like blossoms, a strange glint flashing in his eyes, and thought: 'No wonder this lass could make You Tanzi the ultimate foot‑licker, but this time the Villa of Gathering Virtues was razed by Xiao Yuanshan, leaving no survivors; thus the one who licks her feet is gone too, which is also pointless.'

The girl snorted, 'It's just playing with you—why are you getting angry? Still calling yourself a man of honor?'

Feng Yi saw her pretty face puffed with anger, her little mouth pouted, not very pleased; her anger revealed a charming loveliness, and his heart stirred: 'This lass is indeed beautiful enough to dispel fatigue.'

The girl saw his eyes fixed on her, her face suddenly flushed, and though she felt a hint of sweetness, she said, 'Let me sing a little song for you, to make amends—would that be alright?'

Feng Yi glanced at her and said, 'Let me tell you frankly, I am not a good person; if you play with fire and burn yourself, you'll regret it too late.'

The girl's two eyes formed crescent moons, and she laughed, saying, 'You're quite interesting—who would say they're not good? I think your martial arts are truly superb; perhaps they could be compared with my master's!'

Feng Yi heard this, furrowed his brow, and asked, 'What is your surname and given name?'

The girl replied, 'My surname is Duan; just call me A Zi.'

At that time, during the Northern Song dynasty, rites and laws were strict; even among those of the jianghu, it was extremely rare for a woman to reveal her name directly to a strange man.

Her behavior—whether it showed the Star‑Sucking Sect's bold abandon or her own free‑spirited nature—Feng Yi could not say.

While pondering, A Zi shifted her breath, her pain lessening; she rose, poured herself a cup of wine, drank it in one gulp, and said, 'Elder brother, you said I resemble someone you know—who is it?'

Feng Yi saw her drinking heartily, his brows relaxed, and said, 'Do you know Qiao Feng and A Zhu?'

A Zi hearing this, retorted, 'I have a sister named A Zhu; I also know that Qiao Feng is soon to be the chief of the Beggars' Gang, and I have heard his name in the jianghu—do you know them?'

Feng Yi also wondered, 'Could it be that you don't know them?'

A Zi's expression lit up with delight, and she said, 'I don't know them, but your expression shows you certainly do!'

Feng Yi couldn't help feeling a bit confused.

She bears the surname Duan, obviously having met Duan Zhengchun and Ruan Xingzhu; yet without Qiao Feng and A Zhu, how did she come to recognize them?

Little did she know that A Zi's recognition with Duan and Ruan had nothing to do with Qiao Feng and A Zhu, and would not change whether they went to or avoided the Small Mirror Lake. The only connection was that, at the moment of their recognition, A Zhu happened to overhear the basis of their recognition and learned her own origins.

A Zi smiled enchantingly, poured another cup of wine, drank it down in one gulp, and said, 'Just where do I resemble the person you know?'

(Note: The original list ended at line 60; line 60 is the final translation above.)

After two cups of wine went down her throat, her cheeks were as if rouged with red jade cosmetic, making her look especially charming and alluring.

Feng Yi's restless heart leapt involuntarily, and he said, "Just as clever and lovely, just as beautiful!"

A Zi's face flushed, she thought: "He's so bold, daring to say such frivolous words to me."

But in her life, no young man had ever praised her looks to her face.

During her studies at the Star Lodging Sect, her senior brothers all regarded her as a lively, mischievous little girl; when she grew a bit older, her master, the Star Lodging Old Freak, looked at her with a strange gaze, sometimes reaching out to touch her face and chest, which frightened her, so she stole the "Divine Wood King Cauldron" and fled to the Central Plains.

Last year she ran to Small Mirror Lake, where she happened to see Chu Wanli, the guard of Duan Zhengchun, fishing; she threw a stone to break his line, causing a conflict, but Chu Wanli, seeing she was a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl, didn't hold it against her—yet she became even more vicious, taking the fishing rod from his hand and repeatedly stabbing to death several fish over the next days.

Chu Wanli said, "Since you won't eat them, why kill them for no reason?"

A Zi, however, threw his fishing rod into the water; Chu Wanli saw his trusted weapon tossed, and in shame and anger he lashed out—only to be entangled by her fishing net.

Later Duan Zhengchun appeared, scolded A Zi soundly and threw her into the water; unexpectedly she held her breath and feigned death, and Ruan Xingzhu rescued her, only then realizing she was his daughter.

Afterwards A Zi finally learned her origins; the three of them spent a few peaceful days at Small Mirror Lake, but Qin Hongmian and her daughter came rushing over, shouting for a fight, though Ruan Xingzhu eased the hostility with a few words praising her sister's beauty.

But A Zi was by nature restless, finding it boring, and adding her insult to Chu Wanli, Duan Zhengchun's retainers all looked at her unfavorably, so she soon sneaked out again.

At that moment a clamor rose from downstairs; several constables came up with a thudding sound, the leader shouting, "Who goes there?"

One of the attendants pointed at A Zi and said, "It's him." It turned out to be the drinker whom A Zi had injured.

A Zi laughed, "You really don't know good from bad!" The constable chief, upon seeing her appearance, gave a gulp, swallowed saliva, and his eyes rolled about.

He noticed A Zi's speech had a slight retroflex, speaking Jiangnan dialect with imperfect articulation, yet clear and soft, with a certain charm; his heart stirred, he couldn't help but go mad, shouting loudly, "Officials seize the person, idle folk stand aside! Seize them!"

One constable shook his iron chain, which clattered as it looped toward A Zi's neck.

A Zi laughed, "Help! Help!" She swayed and already hid behind Feng Yi.

Feng Yi felt surprised, not expecting her movement technique to be its own school; though lacking special variations, it was extremely quick to initiate, and the constable's chain immediately missed.

The drinker again said, "They're in league together."

Though his words were leaky, they were still clearly audible.

This constable, accustomed to bullying, saw Feng Yi's refined bearing and didn't take him seriously, shaking his chain again to try to capture both of them.

Feng Yi had not wanted to intervene, but had no choice; he suddenly stretched out his chopsticks, which happened to clamp the middle of the iron chain.

He sent internal energy through; the constable's hands went numb, the chain slipped from his grip, Feng Yi loosened his chopsticks, and the chain fell to the ground.

This scene startled everyone; the chief constable thought he had run into a tough opponent.

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A Zi lightly tapped her left hand against the inside of her right sleeve, and a burst of emerald-green light shot toward the group of constables.

Feng Yi saw her method of launching hidden weapons was extremely vicious; the constables could not dodge, and he immediately struck out with a palm, causing this cluster of green needles to be enveloped by an invisible force and hang in midair.

This left even A Zi stunned; it was practically a divine technique.

Feng Yi withdrew his palm, with a tinkling sound, the poisonous needles all fell to the floor; he glanced at the constables and said, "Still not leaving?"

The constables, still not seeing clearly, also knew the needles were poisoned; this person had saved their lives, and they all rushed downstairs in a swarm.

The drinker followed closely behind; just then came a swish, a needle struck his back, with a thud he collapsed and died.

It was actually A Zi who fired another poisonous needle; the poison on it was extremely lethal, sealing the throat upon contact with blood, instantly taking his life.

Feng Yi saw her ruthlessness and his heart chilled: "No matter how beautiful she is, her sting is too poisonous; she is not like Li Mochou, who is innately proud—this is someone who will stop at nothing to achieve her goal; using her to relieve boredom would require growing two extra heads." He coldly said, "You hit him—shouldn't you report to the authorities? Why kill him?"

A Zi pouted, "What's the difference between such a fool and an ox or horse? Killing him is no different from slaughtering livestock."

She said it offhand, as if it were self-evident.

Feng Yi said sternly, "Then if I killed you, what would you be?"

A Zi's heart pounded involuntarily, she startled for a moment, a surge of resentment rose to her chest, and she said, "You saw it—he's clueless, bringing people to capture me. Just now he said you and I are accomplices; if it weren't for your high martial skill, if we were caught by the officials, would we have any good fortune?"

You are a great master, a great hero, a great magnate—too lazy to stoop to the level of this dumb ox, losing your stature!

But I am merely a wandering little girl; do you think I want to wear men's clothes? No, it's just to avoid trouble!

Hmph, yet some people are blind; besides, you study martial arts—isn't it to kill people? On what grounds do you act so fierce toward me?"

A Zi is not naturally cruel and vicious; it's only because she grew up in the Star Lodging Sect, accustomed to wicked and vicious deeds, deeming it proper—even teasing Chu Wanli and being punished by her father, she still felt no fault.

She was used to doing as she pleased; today, for some reason, hearing Feng Yi's words made her feel greatly wronged, she spoke these sentences and couldn't help but redden her eye rims.

Feng Yi heard this and reflected: since taking up martial arts, I rarely kill lightly; those I strike down harshly are mostly evildoers who commit myriad evils and harm heaven and reason; yet even so, I have also harmed many ordinary folk. Being alive today is indeed thanks to martial arts!

Having been immersed in Buddhist and Daoist scriptures, he bears the air of an enlightened sage who accepts fate; now, having eaten and drunk his fill, he immediately rose, about to leave.

Having been immersed in Buddhist and Daoist scriptures, he bears the air of an enlightened sage who accepts fate; now, having eaten and drunk his fill, he immediately rose, about to leave.

But then came a sudden clamor from outside, someone shouting, "It's here, it's here!"

A loud voice bellowed, "Damn it, this little junior sister really can run!"

Then came two crackling sounds, and the attendant exclaimed "aiya," as if he'd been slapped.

Feng Yi heard the footsteps muddled on the stairs, there were a dozen or so; from the voices he could tell they were members of the Star Lodging Sect who had once robbed him and Huang Shang and others.

Feng Yi already disliked this bunch and didn't want to shield A Zi; he leapt backward, burst out the window, and landed on the wine shop.

A Zi heard the voices of her fellow sect members; her face turned deathly pale, she turned and saw Feng Yi had already flown out the window; without bothering to grab her raincoat, she hurriedly followed, and upon landing she saw Feng Yi's silhouette had already vanished behind the house.

She landed on both feet, intending to dissipate the momentum, but with an "aiya" her foot slipped and she nearly fell.

The heavy rain came quickly and went quickly; by now it had become a fine drizzle; with her lightness skill, jumping a two-story building would not be difficult.

But A Zi had just been dealt with by Feng Yi; her meridians were shaken, her internal breath disordered, causing her to sprain her ankle; yet she dared not linger, hobbling along on one leg.

Feng Yi heard A Zi's cry, but since he didn't want to have further dealings with this trouble-maker, he paid no attention, gathered his breath and hurried westward, running over ten li in one go before slowing his pace.

Afterward he went northwest another hundred-plus li; it was already late, and in a town he found an inn to eat and rest.

After he washed his face, he held a pot of tea and strolled slowly into the courtyard; only to see several tables of people drinking and eating in the hall, one table actually occupied by a few monks.

Feng Yi, holding the tea pot, pretended to take a walk; unintentionally he observed the bearing of those few, while the others he did not recognize.

One of them was thin and wrinkled, his eyes shining with spiritual light—none other than Xuannan, the chief monk of the Dharma Monastery whom he had met once at the Manor of Gathered Virtues; he thought, "What are these monks doing here?"

Before his thought finished, he heard a voice say, "Amitabha!"

Xuannan had already risen, walked toward Feng Yi, greeted him with a salute, and said: "Feng donor, hope you have been well!"

Feng Yi returned the salute, saying: "You're too polite."

He thought: "This old monk is indeed extraordinary; he actually heard my footsteps."

Actually, Xuannan hadn't heard his footsteps; he had seen his person, yet heard no footsteps, which aroused his suspicion; furthermore, he hadn't used a disguise, so upon looking he immediately recognized him.

Xuannan then pointed to another old monk and said: "This is my junior brother, Xuantong."

Xuantong pressed his palms together and said: "I have long admired Hero Feng's superb martial arts; meeting today, our affinity is deep!"

Feng Yi saw his dignified face, white beard fluttering, exuding authority, and laughed: "Master, you overpraise him." He thought: "I have personally seen ten members of the Xuan generation of Shaolin Temple; the sect's foundation is indeed extraordinary!"

Only Xuannan said: "Sir, could it be that you too have come to seek the Murong of Gusu?"

Feng Yi turned his thoughts, immediately understood: the matter concerning Murong Fu was known to Shaolin; his appearance in Jiangnan would naturally make them suspect, so he said: "Could it be that Murong Fu is nearby?"

"I don't know!" Xuannan shook his head and said: "Our temple twice sent people to Yanziwu, hoping he would come to our temple to settle the matter regarding the death of my junior brother Xuabei, but we never saw the Murong donor."

This time, I and my junior brother Xuantong, acting on the abbot's order, were about to go to Jiangnan's Yanziwu to present the Murong donor's residence with a third invitation; meeting you here is also fate.

Saying this, he took out a large red invitation and respectfully handed it over.

Feng Yi was puzzled; wasn't it to invite Murong Fu?

Why send me an invitation? Upon looking, I saw the invitation read: "Abbot Xuanci of Shaolin Temple, with palms together, respectfully invites all heroes under heaven to attend the Laba Festival on the eighth day of the twelfth month, to come to Shaolin Temple on Mount Song to celebrate, to forge good karma, and to respectfully observe the magnificent manner of the Gusu Murong's \"using their own method against them. \""

Feng Yi immediately understood, laughing: "The Murong family hides and avoids people; this time Shaolin widely sends out hero invitations—if Murong Fu doesn't come, the Gusu Murong need not stay in the jianghu. This tactic is indeed brilliant!"

Xuannan said: "In the jianghu, rumors abound that many heroes have perished under the divine skill of the Gusu Murong, \"using their own method against them. \""

My junior brother Xuabei passed away at the Body-Jie Temple in Dali Kingdom; I don't know if it's related to the Gusu Murong. From our abbot, senior brother, downwards, everyone harbors doubts, but we dare not blame the Murong family lightly; thus we respectfully invite the Murong donor to visit our temple, certainly not intending to offend.

Feng Yi waved his hand, saying nonchalantly: "Master, you are still too modest. If it were someone else possessing your temple's strength, the Murong family wouldn't even need a second invitation; they would have long since flattened Yanziwu!"

Feng Yi's words are not nonsense; it's just that the Shaolin monks have good tempers—if others were deceived by the Murong family, had kin possibly killed by them, and repeatedly asked you to come explain, yet you never showed up, they would have already overturned the Murong family.

For example, the cause of the so-called Apricot Forest incident in Wuxi.

That was because the Beggars' Gang, due to Ma Dayuan's death, came in force to Jiangnan to seek revenge on Murong Fu, but instead ended up revealing Qiao Feng's origins, shifting suspicion onto him.

Otherwise, given Murong Fu's continual absence, the Beggars' Gang led by Qiao Feng would have long since razed his grounds to the ground.

The low-ranking monks of Shaolin Temple don't know the inside story, so they're not too bothered; but Xuannan and Xuantong are quite indignant—Murong Bo deceived the abbot, senior brother; now Murong Fu is deeply suspected of killing my junior brother Xuabei, yet he hides and avoids people, giving no explanation, which is indeed rude.

But they emphasize winning people over with virtue, so such talk is not appropriate to echo.

Yet hearing a "heehee" laugh, someone coldly said: "Those with great ability are just fine; acting arbitrarily and domineeringly, no one dares to speak against!"

(End of chapter)