DEMI GODS AND SEMI DEVILS Book 2 of 5 (Shrouding Screen In Suzhou) by Jin Yong

Crazy All Along Part 3

Ah Bi smiled. "Ah Zhu's hamlet is four-nines away by water. We won't be able to make it there tonight. The four of you, please take a rest here tonight, and tomorrow morning we will go to the 'Waterside Pavilion of Fragrant Sounds'." Cui Baiquan asked, "What do you mean by 'four nines away'?" Ah Bi replied, "A 'nine-waterway' is nine li in length, two are eighteen li, and four would be thirty six li. Just use your abacus and you'll be able to calculate it." As it turned out, in the Jiangnan region, when people discussed the distance of a journey or a road, they counted them by 'one-nine' and 'two-nines'.

Jiumozhi said, "Miss, if this is the case, why didn't you take us directly to the 'Waterside Pavilion of Fragrant Sounds'? Wouldn't that have been quicker?" Ah Bi laughed. "No one ever comes here to chat and gossip with me. I'm so bored, y'know? Finally, some guests came over, isn't that great? No matter what, I gotta get y'all to stay here a night, yeah?"

All this time, Guo Yanzhi was controlling his temper and not speaking. Now, he suddenly rose to his feet and shouted, "Where do the family members of the Murong family live? I, Guo Yanzhi, did not come to the Canhe Manor to drink tea or eat delicacies, much less to serve as a diversion for you to relieve your boredom. I came here on a mission of killing and vengeance, to bleed and to die. Since I, the one surnamed Guo, came here, I had no intentions of leaving. Miss, please go convey the word that I am the disciples of Ke Baisui, of the 'Hidden Ox' sect, and have come to avenge my master!" After he spoke, he flashed his whip. With a cracking sound, a red sandalwood tea table and a mottled bamboo chair were shattered into many pieces. Ah Bi seemed neither startled nor angry. She said, "There's plenty of heroes and valiant men who have come to visit the young master, at least several every month. Lots of those respected sirs came with such tyrannical, angry, and ferocious attitudes, but this little girl hasn't heard of..."

Before she finished her words, an old person with silver hair and a grey beard walked out holding a walking stick. This person said, "Ah Bi, who is kicking up such a ruckus out here?" This person was speaking in perfect, pure, unaccented Mandarin.

Cui Baiquan rose up from the chair, and both he and Guo Yanzhi stood straight and erect. He shouted, "In whose hands, exactly, did my martial-brother Ke Baisui perish?"

Duan Yu saw that this old person was hunched over, with a face full of wrinkles. If he wasn't ninety, he had to be at least eighty. He said in hoarse voice, "Ke Baisui, Ke Baisui, right. A man a hundred years of age should've died long ago!" [Baisui, his name, literally means 'a hundred years old'; this is a play on words.]

Ever since Guo Yanzhi arrived at Suzhou, his every waking moment was consumed with the thought of going to the Murong family and getting into a big battle, with lots of killing and chopping to avenge his master. But, after Jiumozhi took his weapon away from him, his drive was snapped. Then, after meeting such an innocent, lovely lass as Ah Bi, he was unable to vent his anger out on her. Now, hearing that old man speak so rudely, he lashed out with his soft whip to strike the old man on the back of his heart. He saw that Jiumozhi was seated at the west seat of honor. In order to prevent him from helping out, Guo Yanzhi launched this attack of his from the east.

He didn't imagine that Jiumozhi would stretch out his arm and pull the whip towards him from far away, as though by magnetic force. He said, "Hero Guo, we have come from afar and are guests. If there's anything you have to say, just say it. There's no need to use force." He rolled the soft whip into a coil, then returned the weapon to him.

Guo Yanzhi's face was suffused with red. It wouldn't be good for him to refuse, but it would also be embarassing for him to accept. After a moment, he thought to himself, "Today, the most important thing is avenging my master. I can suffer some momentary humiliation in order to keep my weapon in my hands." He reached out and accepted it.

Jiumozhi said to the old man, "Elder benefactor, might I inquire as to what is your respected name? Are you a relative of Mr. Murong, or a friend?" The old man cracked a smile. "This old fellow is an old servant of the master. What 'respected name' might I have? I heard that you, great master, are a dear friend of our passed away master. Might I ask what instructions you have for me?" Jiumozhi replied, "My business can only be divulged to the young master himself." The old man said, "That's unfortunate. The young master left just two days ago. No one knows when he will be back." Jiumozhi asked, "Where did the young master go?" The old man inclined his head, then stretched out with a hand and knocked on his forehead. "As to this, I'm old and muddle-headed. I think he said he was going to the Western Xia. He also said something about the kingdom of Liao, and maybe Tibet as well. Or it could be Dali."

After hearing this, Jiumozhi felt displeasure in his heart. During this era, the world was divided into five nations. Aside from the nation of the Great Song where they currently were, this old man had named all four of the other countries as possible locations. He knew that this old man was only pretending to be muddle-headed. He said, "Since this is so, I won't wait for the young master to return. Old steward, I'd like to ask that I be taken directly to Mr. Murong's mausoleum to pay my respects, and give thanks for our old friendship." That old man's hands waved violently. "I can't make this decision on my own, and I'm not the steward."

Jiumozhi asked, "Then who is the steward of your venerable manor? Please invite him out for us to meet." That old man nodded repeatedly. "Great, great! Let me go invite the steward." Turning around, he shuffled his way out while mumbling to himself, "In this day and age, there's all sorts of bad people in the world. They dress up as monks and Taoists and beg for alms. What haven't I seen? I won't be tricked!"