THE SMILING PROUD WANDERER by Jin Yong

Music Score Part 4

More sounds of footsteps came from the distance. It was Lao Denuo and Lu Dayou this time. As soon as Lu Dayou saw Linghu Chong, spending no time greeting the Master, he rushed straight forth toward Linghu Chong and gave a big hug to him while shouting happy words wildly. Then third apprentice Liang Fa and fourth apprentice Shi Daizi came into the temple one after another. After a few moments, seventh apprentice Tao Jun, eighth apprentice Ying Luobai, Yue Buqun's daughter Yue Lingshan, and the new apprentice Lin Pingzhi came all at once.

Seeing his parents' bodies, Lin Pingzhi threw himself onto them and began crying bitterly. All the fellow apprentices felt real sorry for him.

Yue Lingshan was gleefully surprised when she saw that Linghu Chong was all right. But seeing Lin Pingzhi's bitter grief, she knew it wouldn't be appropriate to express her cheerfulness out loud at this moment, so she walked by Linghu Chong and slightly pinched his right hand.

"Are...are you all right?" she whispered.

"I am fine!" Linghu Chong answered.

For the last couple of days, Yue Lingshan had been worried to death about her big apprentice brother, and now when she finally bumped into him all of a sudden, she could no longer control the excitement that had been growing inside her these days. She grabbed onto Linghu Chong's sleeve and burst out crying.

Linghu Chong gently padded her on the shoulder. "Little apprentice sister, why? Did someone pick on you? I'll go whoop his ass for you!" he whispered.

Yue Lingshan did not answer and went on weeping. After shedding some more tears, she finally felt better. Wiping off the tears with Linghu Chong's sleeve, she murmured, "You are not dead. You are not dead!"

"I am not!" Linghu Chong shook his head.

"I heard that you took a palm strike from that Yu Canghai of the Qingcheng Sword School," Yue Lingshan whispered. "That man's 'Heart Crushing Palm' can kill without spilling blood. I've seen him kill many people with my own eyes. I was so scared that...that...." Remembering all the agonizing suffering and torturing she had to go through in the last couple of days, she could not help but start weeping again.

"I was really lucky that his palm strike missed me narrowly. It was such a cool scene earlier when the Master was fighting Yu Canghai and scared him so much that he ran away so fast. Too bad you missed that one," Linghu Chong said with a smile.

"Let's not mention this to any outsiders," Yue Buqun ordered. Linghu Chong and the rest of the apprentices all complied in unison.

Yue Lingshan stared at Linghu Chong through her tearful eyes. Linghu Chong looked so wan and sallow. There was little color in his cheeks. Feeling very pitiful for him, she sniveled, "Big apprentice brother, this time...this time you are so badly wounded. You should have some good rest and recovery once we get back to Mount Huashan."

Seeing that Lin Pingzhi was still sobbing bitterly by his parents' bodies, Yue Buqun said, "Pingzhi, cry no more. We should make arrangements for the funeral now."

"Yes, Master!" Lin Pingzhi stood up and answered. But seeing blood all over his mother's face and forehead, he could not help but shed more tears. "When Mom and Dad passed away, they couldn't even see me one last time. They must...they must have wanted to give me some last words of advice," he murmured, sobbing.

"Apprentice brother Lin," Linghu Chong said, "I was here when your parents passed away. The two of them wanted me to take care of you. That's something I should be doing anyway, there's not much to talk about that. Your father had some other words that he wanted me to pass on to you."