Chapter 34: Meeting Again

Zhao Ti heard the neighing of a horse and felt a surge of joy, thinking to himself that he should go find the owner to inquire about buying or selling; if possible, he could ride the horse straight to Dali.

He walked forward slowly, observing the courtyard as he went, and saw it was a standalone house, which made him puzzled; although this place was remote, the courtyard was built not far from the road, hardly looking like a secluded retreat, so what kind of person would live here?

Thinking as he walked, he reached the door, reached out, and knocked on the door knocker, but there was no movement inside.

He knocked a few more times with greater force, then asked aloud, "Is the master at home?" Still, no one inside replied.

Zhao Ti pondered for a few breaths, then pushed with force, only to find the door was barred from within, not left ajar as if the owner had departed, causing him to frown.

"Master, please open the door, or if this door gets pushed broken, I won't pay for it," Zhao Ti said, narrowing his eyes.

A crisp, indignant shout came from inside the courtyard: "Who is it? If you break the courtyard gate, you must pay double; do not think you can escape."

Zhao Ti smiled and said, "Someone is here, so why pretend no one is?"

That crisp voice replied, "My master lives in seclusion and sees no outside guests; leave quickly."

Zhao Ti said, "I just want to ask for directions and inquire about some matters; once done, I will leave."

The crisp voice inside drew nearer: "What directions do you seek? This is a hermit's dwelling; if you wish to find a village or town, just follow the road; sooner or later, you will surely find it."

Zhao Ti rubbed his chin: "I also wish to buy some things from the master; I wonder if you would sell to me?"

At that moment, a "clack" sounded inside as the wooden bolt was drawn, and the two courtyard gates swung wide open; a young maid with hanging hairpins stood inside with hands on her hips: "What do you want to buy? My master's house is neither a shop nor a market; if the master gets angry, I fear you will have to bear the consequences."

Zhao Ti smiled, shifted his steps as if gliding, slipped past the maid, and headed toward where he had heard the horse neigh: "Let me see this horse; I wonder if this horse is for sale?"

The maid was instantly stunned and hurriedly said, "You want to buy a horse? This horse is not for sale!"

Zhao Ti went straight to the stable; upon arriving close, he saw a horse's head poking out from within; its pair of horse eyes gleamed, and as it glanced about, it appeared magnificent and extraordinary.

He walked around to the front of the stable door and saw it was indeed a jet-black steed, majestic and high-spirited; at that moment, it stamped twice on the ground with a "tap-tap," then pawed the ground twice toward him.

Zhao Ti could not help but praise it as a fine horse, yet why did this horse look somewhat familiar? Upon closer inspection, he realized it was the mount of the black-clad, masked maiden he had met earlier in Danhua Town.

Zhao Ti raised an eyebrow; that maiden was most likely Mu Wanqing, and since Mu Wanqing was here, did that not mean the Great Black Forest, some dozen li away, was the entrance to the Valley of Ten Thousand Venges?

He looked at the horse and pondered: Had Duan Yu not yet come to borrow a horse to save Zhong Ling? Was he stuck in the Langhuan Fudi, unable to tear himself away and unwilling to leave?

The maid then chased after him: "You..." Before she could finish speaking, a series of urgent sounds suddenly came from the distance outside, as if many people were closing in from all sides.

The maid's face instantly changed; just as she turned to run back into the inner courtyard, she saw a maiden walking out along the stone path inside.

This maiden had a slender and graceful figure, wore black clothing, and had her face covered with a light veil; yet her eyebrows were like distant mountains holding dark green, her pair of eyes were bright as lacquer, her skin was white as jade, and her hands wore thin silk gloves.

She first glanced at the outer courtyard gate, then walked over to the horse and said to Zhao Ti, "Who are you?" Her voice was somewhat soft and pleasant, but her tone was cold and devoid of any warmth.

Zhao Ti smiled slightly: "Miss, you do not recognize me; we met before in Danhua Town, when you rode your horse into the town."

The maiden gazed at him: "It is you? What are you doing here?"

At that moment, those sounds outside the courtyard had reached the wall, rustling and whispering, yet revealing no heads.

Zhao Ti said, "My companion and I were originally traveling through Wuliang Mountain; who knew we would encounter Wu Zhiren fighting and clashing, and we became separated and lost, thus arriving here; seeing a courtyard gate, I intended to ask for directions and, by the way, buy a horse to continue my journey."

The maiden gave him a cold look for a few breaths and said, "Leave."

Zhao Ti glanced at the black horse under the stable: "I wonder if Miss will sell this horse? I am willing to pay double the price; can Miss part with it?"

The maiden said indifferently, "I will not kill you; leave quickly, do not wait for me to change my mind, for then even if you beg for mercy, I will take your life."

Zhao Ti shook his head: "Miss, what are you saying? If you will not sell the horse, simply say you will not sell; why resort to taking a life? My life, no matter who wants it, I will absolutely not give it."

The maiden frowned, and with a "clang" drew her long sword: "Will you leave or not?"

Zhao Ti curved his lips: "I will leave; Miss, please sheath your weapon."

He walked out with his hands behind his back; at that moment, he was less than three feet from the maiden when suddenly he smelled a fragrance, neither orchid nor musk; though the scent was not very strong, it was deep and lingering, sweet and cloying, causing his heart to stir.

When he reached the wooden gate ahead and was about to step out, suddenly two staffs carrying forceful wind struck toward his face from outside the gate.

Zhao Ti quickly jumped backward and shouted loudly, "Who is outside? Why ambush?"

No one spoke outside; he turned to look at the maiden, who was also looking at him, her eyes unmoving.

Zhao Ti scratched his head and muttered to himself: "The maiden inside told me to leave quickly, yet people outside are ambushing and not letting me go out; what should be done?"

The maiden spoke: "This person entered to ask for directions; this matter has nothing to do with him; tell him to leave."

There was no response from outside; Zhao Ti lifted his step and walked outward again; this time, a flash of cold light appeared as two steel hooks hooked at him from left and right; he immediately retreated five or six steps and cursed at those outside: "Where did you thieves come from? Why ambush your Young Master without cause? Do I have a grudge with you? Do you wish to kill the innocent?"

His face grew somewhat gloomy; although upon first seeing the black horse he had determined the maiden was Mu Wanqing and had thought of Zhang Liqing sending people from Suzhou to pursue and kill, he had not expected to run into this situation at this very moment.

Just now, upon arriving at the stable, he had heard the distant sounds, but by then it was impossible to leave; if he exited this courtyard, those who had come would not let him go and would surely engage in combat.

At that moment, an old voice from outside said, "This fellow is slick and powdered; he must be that wench's lover, trying to trick us into letting his lover escape; where in the world is there such a beautiful thing!"

Zhao Ti angrily said, "I have never known this master; do not slander my character outside; if you have the courage, come inside and speak!"

Zhao Ti turned and sat on the steps beneath the house; the maiden walked over coldly, completely ignoring those outside, and stared at him, saying, "Are you with them?"

Zhao Ti said, "Miss, what kind of words are these? Did we not meet in Danhua Town? Do you not know in your heart whether I am with them or not?"

The maiden was silent for a few breaths: "Do you know Wu Gong?"

Zhao Ti said, "I have learned a few flashy moves; otherwise, I would not dare to travel abroad to roam the mountains and rivers and admire the scenery; it is merely crude skill, not worthy of the great hall."

His earlier dodging of the staffs and steel hooks and jumping backward was something difficult for anyone who was not a Wu Zhiren to achieve in terms of reaction speed; an ordinary person would have been struck long ago.

The maiden's pair of eyes fixed on him; suddenly she pointed her sword at him: "You are lying!"