Moon River

The First Meeting

Hundreds of years ago, before Guilin No. 9 Senior High School was built, and the time when fishing along the Li River was the main source for locals' dinner, the moonlight still rose above the Li River with the Guilin Mountains cascading the horizon.  King Wang ruled the villages along the Guilin Mountains. He was no friend to the locals nor did neighboring kingdoms adored him. For the safety of his only son, he locked him in his palace, to never step foot outside of it. Bored one night and yearning to see what lies behind those palace walls, the young prince, Wang Qingshan, sneaked out of the palace with some old clothes. The forest was pitch dark, but the moonlight on the Li River guided his way to somewhere he has longed for in his short nine years of living. He hurried around and spotted a fire in the opening. Running around to where? He had no idea. All he could hear were the crickets, the waves, and a little girl practicing martial arts near the river. He spotted an older man, perhaps her master or father, walking towards her and telling her to take a rest. The young girl and her master noticed the young prince's bright eyes out in the forest. The young prince emerged from the dark forest. Alarmed, the girl was ready to fight him and is in defensive mode.

Her father calmly said, "Yue yue, don't be alarmed." She bowed to her father. "Son, what is your name?" He asked while looking at the young boy.

While overlooking at the river, he nervously answered, "My name is Li Shan. Yes, Li Shan."

"Interesting...son. Where do you come from at this time of day?"

"Uhh, master. I come from passed the mountains. I'm here to visit my Uncle and wanted to explore." Qingshan quickly answered the man. He hesitantly looked around. "Uh, can I practice with you?"

"Sure...son." the old man answered while patting his beard.

Qingshan stood next to the girl and they both followed her father, their master.

She whispered, "Past the mountains are dangerous for someone who doesn't know how to fight. Pssh, look at you. Your moves are weak." Qingshan started to feel a little timid. Indeed she was very articulate with her moves. He can tell she has been practicing longer than he has.

"Don't you know there are bad guys. The King cares about no one who looks like you and I." she continued to grunt while practicing. "AHH!" she stopped in her tracks and both Qingshan and her father looked at her in dismay. "Shan brother. We can be brothers! You can be my disciple." The girl has been practicing for a long time and has always yearned to have a disciple.

"But I'm sure I'm older than y—" he defended himself.

"Say no more! It's a pact. My name is Jiang Ying Yue. This is my father and Master Jiang" she replied as she bowed to him.

Born on a dark night, the moon's reflection shined so bright the night Ying Yue was born. Her sweet and loving mother passed away when she was only five and her father has been raising her alone ever since. A group of rebels, from past the mountains, came to their village and executed some villagers, including her mother. Her father was a renowned and respected master of their village and was out that unfaithful afternoon. The King only blamed the villagers for not protecting themselves. Ever since witnessing her mom's passing at a tender age, Ying Yue has gotten thicker skin in taking care of herself and her father. That night she asked her father to teach her how to fight so if one day someone was to attack her village again, she would be ready for anything.

Qingshan bowed to her too and looked over at his new master.

"Master Jiang." he bowed again. He felt a little scared for running away from home, but somewhere in his heart, he felt like Ying Yue and Master Jiang were good people to him. They continued to practice and joke as the  moon soon set and the sun soon rose. Perhaps saying the lie was not too bad.