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The Book and The Sword

金庸

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The Book and The Sword 

Copyright Graham Earnshaw 1995



PART SIX

** 1 **

After two days and nights of being starved, frightened and angered, Qian Long's 
resistance was virtually worn away. On the morning of the third day, a boy 
appeared and said: "Master Dongfang, our master invites you to come and talk 
with him."

Qian Long recognized the boy as Chen's attendant, and he followed him down to 
the floor below.

As he entered, Chen, smiling broadly, advanced to greet him, and bowed. Qian 
Long returned the bow, and the two sat down. Xin Yan served some tea.

"Bring some titbits to eat," Chen ordered. A moment later, Xin Yan carried in a 
tray on which was placed plates of spring rolls, prawns, chicken and ham. He set 
out two sets of bowls and chopsticks and poured wine for them both.

"Please forgive me for not being able to see you sooner. I had to go to visit a 
friend who was wounded," said Chen.

"It is nothing."

"There is something I wish to talk to you about, but please eat first," Chen 
added. He chose a morsel from each plate, then put down his chopsticks and 
watched Qian Long wolf down the food.

When he had finished, Qian Long sat back, unspeakably contented, and raised his 
tea cup. He looked closely at the tiny Dragon's Well tea leaves and took a 
leisurely sip, savouring the feeling of the liquid seeping into his stomach.

Chen walked over to the door and pushed it open. "All the others are downstairs 
standing guard. There could not be a more convenient place for us to talk. No 
one will hear us," he said.

Qian Long's expression hardened. "Why did you have me brought here?" he asked. 
"What is it you want?"

Chen stepped forward and stared into his face.

"Do you still not recognize me, brother?" Chen asked after a moment's silence. 
The words were soft, the tone intimate, but they hit Qian Long's ears with the 
force of a clap of thunder, and he jumped. An expression of deep sincerity on 
his face, Chen slowly extended his hand and took Qian Long's.

"We are blood brothers," he said. "There is no need to continue the deception, 
my brother, I know everything."

Chen pulled on a chord beside a painting hanging on the wall and the painting 
rolled up to reveal a mirror. "Take a look at yourself," he said.

Qian Long stood up and gazed at himself in the mirror, wearing Chinese clothes: 
his face contained not the slightest likeness to a Manchu. He looked at Chen 
standing beside him, and had to admit that despite their difference in age, 
their faces were similar. He sighed and sat down.

"Brother, we were not aware of the situation before," said Chen. "We even took 
up arms against each other. The spirits of father and mother up in heaven must 
have been heartbroken. Luckily neither of us was hurt and nothing happened which 
cannot be rectified."

Qian Long felt a rasping dryness in his throat and his heart beating rapidly. A 
moment passed. "I asked you to go to Beijing with me to work, but you refused," 
he said finally. Chen turned and gazed out at the great river without answering.

"With your scholastic abilities," Qian Long continued, "what reason would there 
be for not promoting you? Such a situation would be of great benefit to our 
family and to the nation, to both you and I. Why be so disloyal and unfilial as 
to continue with this criminal course of action?"

Chen spun round. "I have never accused you of being disloyal or unfilial, or of 
acting criminally, and yet you accuse me of these things."

"Hah!" replied Qian Long. "It is true that ministers must be completely loyal 
to their emperor. But since I am already emperor, how could I be disloyal?"

"You are obviously a Chinese and yet you submit to the Manchus. Is that 
loyalty? When our father and mother were alive, you never attended to them 
properly. Is that filial behaviour?"

Beads of sweat dripped off Qian Long's forehead. "At the time, I did not know," 
he said quietly. "I first heard about it when the former leader of your Red 
Flower Society, Master Yu, visited me last spring. Even now, I'm not sure 
whether I believe it."

"Look at yourself," Chen said. "What resemblance is there to a Manchu? How can 
you have any further doubt?"

Qian Long brooded in silence.

"You are Chinese. The homeland of the Chinese people has fallen into the hands 
of the Manchus, and you yourself lead them in the oppression of our people. Is 
that not disloyal, unfilial and criminal behaviour?"

For a moment, Qian Long was at a loss for a reply. "And now I have fallen into 
your hands," he finally said, haughtily. "If you are going to kill me, then kill 
me. There is no point wasting words."

"But we made a pact on the embankment at Haining that we would never do anything 
to hurt one other," Chen replied softly. "How can I go back on my word? And 
anyway, now that we know we are blood brothers, we have even less reason to do 
each other harm." A tear trickled unbidden down his cheek.

"Well, what do you want me to do? Do you want to force me to abdicate?"

"No," said Chen, wiping his eyes. "You can continue to be emperor. But as the 
wise, enlightened founder of a new dynasty."

"Founder of a new dynasty?" Qian Long echoed in surprise.

"Yes. You will be a Chinese emperor, not an emperor of the Manchus."

Qian Long suddenly understood. "So you want me to drive out the Manchus?" he 
said.

"Yes, you will be emperor just the same, but instead of being regarded as a 
criminal and cursed by future generations, why not establish an outstanding and 
rejuvenating dynasty that will last?"

Chen saw from Qian Long's expression that his words were having the desired 
effect.

"Being the emperor you are at present, you are simply basking in the glory of 
the former Manchu rulers," he continued. "What is so special about that? Look at 
that man."

Qian Long went over to the window and looked down in the direction Chen was 
pointing, and saw a peasant in the distance hoeing the ground.

"If that man had been born in the Imperial Palace and you had been born in his 
farm house, he would be emperor, and you would have no choice but to hoe the 
field."

Qian Long started at the novelty of the idea.

"A man is born into the world and his life is gone in a flash," said Chen. "If 
you achieve nothing worthwhile, you decay and rot like grass and trees without 
leaving a trace behind. The emperors of the past who established their own noble 
dynasties were truly great men. Even a Tartar such as Genghis Khan could also be 
considered to be outstanding."

Every word stabbed deep into Qian Long's heart. If, he thought, if I really do 
as he says and throw the Manchus out and restore the Chinese homelands, I would 
truly be the founder of a dynasty and a man of greater achievements than any 
emperor before me.

Just as he was considering an answer, he heard the sound of dogs barking in the 
distance. Seeing Chen frown slightly, he looked out and spied four massive 
hounds galloping towards the pagoda with two figures following.

In the wink of an eye, they reached the base of the pagoda and there was a 
sharp challenge from below. Qian Long and Chen, in the second-highest storey of 
the thirteen-storey pavilion could not hear distinctly what was said, but they 
saw the two new-comers and their dogs charge into the pavilion. A moment later, 
there was a loud whistle indicating danger.

Seeing help had arrived, Qian Long was overjoyed. Chen looked around carefully, 
but could see no other signs of movement: the two intruders were alone.

He heard the shouts of youngsters mingling with the barks and growls of the 
dogs, indicating Zhou Qi and Xin Yan on the second floor were doing battle with 
the animals. All of a sudden, there were two screams, and two swords were hurled 
out of the window. Just then, 'Crocodile' Jiang wielding his mighty iron oar 
chased the four dogs out of the pagoda and began beating them mercilessly. 
Someone on the sixth floor and gave an ear-splitting whistle. The four dogs 
turned and raced away.

Noting the intruders had reached the sixth floor, Chen realised it meant 
Twelfth Brother, Ninth Brother and Eighth Brother had been unable to stop them. 
He groaned inwardly.

Suddenly, he saw 'Mastermind' Xu leap out of the seventh floor window onto the 
narrow roof pursued by a tiny old woman with a head of white hair and a sword 
slung over her back.

"Watch the dart!" Xu yelled with a wave of his hand, and his opponent hastily 
withdrew. But it had been merely a feint, and Xu took advantage of the trick to 
escape round the corner.

The old woman chased after him.

"Watch out!" Xu yelled.

"You bastard monkey," the old woman cursed. "You can't fool your grandma 
again."

She made a grab for him, but this time, it was no feint: a piece of tile Xu had 
picked up from the roof hurtled towards her. Unable to avoid it, the old woman 
blocked the tile with her hand and it shattered. The Twin Knights, standing 
guard on the eighth floor, appeared to be fully occupied dealing with the old 
woman's partner, for they gave Xu no help. Xu's kung fu was no match for the old 
woman's, and after a few moves, he was forced to dodge out of the way again.

Qian Long watched with pleasure as the two new-comers fought their way up, but 
Chen also seemed strangely unconcerned. He pulled a chair to the window so that 
he could sit and observe the battle. There were only two of them, he thought. In 
the end, they could not overcome all the Red Flower Society's fighters.

Then he heard the sound of more dogs barking in the distance intermingled with 
shouting and galloping horses.

Footsteps sounded on the stairs and Xin Yan raced in.

"The guards outside report that more than two thousand Manchu troops are 
approaching, heading straight for us," he told Chen, using the Red Flower 
Society's secret language.

Chen nodded and Xin Yan raced back downstairs. Qian Long did not understand what 
Xin Yan had said, but seeing Chen's anxious expression, he knew it was unwelcome 
news. He looked into the distance and spotted amongst the maple trees a white 
flag on which was written one large word: "Li". Overjoyed, he realized Commander 
Li had come to save him.

Chen leaned out of the window and shouted: "Brother Ma, retreat into the pagoda 
and prepare the bows and arrows!"

Suddenly the old woman rushed into the room with the heroes close behind. Lord 
Zhou attacked her with his great sword while Chen pulled Qian Long into a 
corner.

Xu motioned some of the others to guard the windows, and Chen shouted: "Throw 
down your sword and we'll spare you!"

The old woman could see she was surrounded, but she continued to fight, 
completely unafraid.

"I've seen her sword style somewhere before, I'm sure," Zhou Qi said to Xu.

"Yes, I thought it was familiar too," he replied.

The old woman forced Lord Zhou back a pace, then shouted at Qian Long: "Are you 
the emperor?"

"Yes, I'm the emperor," he replied hastily. "Are all the rescue forces here?" 
The woman leapt onto the table, then with her sword pointing straight out, flew 
at him like a great bird, thrusting the blade at his heart. The heroes had 
assumed she was one of Qian Long's underlings come to rescue him, and were 
caught completely unaware by this fast move. But Chen, who was standing by Qian 
Long's side, thrust his fingers at a Yuedao point on the old woman's arm. Her 
blade slowed, giving Chen time to draw his dagger and place it in the way of the 
sword. The two blades clashed, then both retreated two paces. Chen pulled Qian 
Long back and placed himself in front of him, then saluted.

"What is your honourable name, Madame," he asked.

"Where did that dagger of yours come from?" she replied.

Chen was surprised by the question. "A friend gave it to me," he said.

"What friend?" the woman demanded. "You are a servant of the Emperor. Why would 
she give it to you? What is your relationship with Master Yuan, the Strange 
Knight of the Heavenly Pool?"

"He is my teacher," said Chen, answering the last question first.

"So that's it," the woman said. "Your teacher may be peculiar, but he's an 
upright gentleman. How could you have dishonoured him by becoming a running dog 
of the Manchus?"

"This is our Great Helmsman, Master Chen," 'Iron Pagoda' Yang shouted. "Don't 
talk such nonsense."

The old woman's face took on a puzzled expression. "Are you the Red Flower 
Society?" she asked.

"Correct," said Yang.

She turned on Chen. "Have you surrendered to the Manchus?" she screeched in 
rage.

"The Red Flower Society is just and upright. How could we bend our knees before 
the Manchu court?" he replied. "Please sit down, madame. Let us discuss this 
calmly."

Her expression softened slightly. "Where did your dagger come from?" she asked 
again.

Having seen her kung fu style, and hearing her questions, Chen had already 
almost solved the puzzle.

"It was given to me by a Muslim friend," he said. The exchange of presents 
between boys and girls was not an ordinary thing, and Chen was unhappy about 
discussing the matter in front of everyone.

"Do you know Huo Qingtong?" the old woman demanded. Chen nodded.

"It was Sister Huo Qingtong who gave it to him," Zhou Qi interjected. "Do you 
know her? If you do, we're all on the same side!"

"She is my pupil," the old woman said. "Since you say we are all on the same 
side, what are you doing helping the Emperor, and stopping me from killing him?"

"We caught the Emperor," said one of the Twin Knights. "If he is to be killed, 
it will not be you who does it."

"Huh!" the woman exclaimed. "You mean you caught the emperor and brought him 
here?"

"This is a misunderstanding, Madame," said Chen. "We invited the Emperor to 
come here. We assumed you were palace bodyguards coming to rescue him, that is 
why we tried to obstruct you."

The old woman went over to the window and stuck her head out. "Come down, 
husband!" she shouted at the top of her voice. An arrow shot in through the 
window from below and the old woman grabbed it by its tail, then turned in one 
movement and threw the arrow so that it implanted itself in the table top.

"You untrustworthy rascal," she screeched at Chen as the arrow quivered. "What 
is the meaning of this?"

"Please don't be angry Madame," replied Chen hastily. "Our brothers at the base 
of the pagoda are not yet aware of the situation." He walked to the window 
planning to tell the heroes to stop firing and saw that the pagoda was already 
surrounded by Manchu troops.

"Third Brother," he said to 'Buddha' Zhao. "Tell the others to guard the 
doorway, but not to go outside." Zhao nodded and went downstairs.

"You must be Madame Guan," said Lord Zhou to the old woman. "I have long 
respected you."

Madame Guan nodded slightly.

"This is Lord Zhou Zhongying," said Chen to her.

"Ah, I have heard about you too," she said, then suddenly screeched out: 
"Husband, come down! What are you doing?"

The others all jumped at this unexpected outburst.

"Your husband is fighting with Priest Wu Chen," said Lord Zhou. "Let's go and 
explain the situation to them quickly."

Chen motioned to the Twin Knights to guard Qian Long, and the rest raced up the 
stairs to the thirteenth floor.

"Husband!" Madame Guan shouted. "They're the Red Flower Society!"

Her husband Bald Vulture, locked in fierce combat with the Taoist priest, 
started in surprise, and hesitated in his attack. "Really?" he said.

There was a laugh from above their heads and Master Lu Feiqing dropped to the 
floor.

"Excellent swordsmanship, excellent," he chuckled, nodding appreciatively at 
both Bald Vulture and at Priest Wu Chen.

"Do you recognize me?" he asked Bald Vulture.

Bald Vulture looked at him closely for a moment, then gave a shout.

"Ah! You're 'Hidden Needle' Lu," he exclaimed.

"That's right," Lu smiled.

"What are you doing here?" Bald Vulture asked.

Lu turned without answering and bowed before the old woman. "Madame, it has been 
many years since I last saw you, but your kung fu is better than ever!"

"Ah," exclaimed Bald Vulture again, staring at Lu's blade. "That's a very 
precious sword you have there!"

Lu smiled. "It belongs to someone else," he said. "I'm just using it 
temporarily." But let me introduce you. He introduced all the heroes, to 'Bald 
Vulture' Lin and his wife Madame Guan, the Tianshan Twin Eagles.

"I thought you two were living happily in the Tianshan mountains," Lu said. 
"And here you are, trying to kill the Emperor."

"You have all met my young pupil, Huo Qingtong," replied Madame Guan. "This 
affair started with her. The Emperor sent an army to attack the Muslims, but 
they couldn't match the Manchu troops' strength and lost some battles. Later, 
the Manchu grain supplies were ransacked..."

"That was the Red Flower Society," interrupted Lu. "They did it to help 
Muzhuolun."

"Mm, I heard about that," said Madame Guan. She glanced at Chen. "No wonder she 
gave you that dagger."

"That was before. We met when they came to recover their sacred Koran."

"You also helped to get that back. The way the Muslims talk of you, you're all 
great heroes!" Her tone suggested she disagreed. "After the Manchu troops lost 
their grain, they also lost a battle and Muzhuolun suggested peace talks. But 
just as the truce talks were getting started, the Manchu general got hold of 
some rations and attacked again."

"Manchu officers have no sense of honour," said Lu, shaking his head sagely.

"The ordinary people of the Muslim areas have been brutally treated by the 
Manchu troops," Madame Guan continued. "Master Muzhuolun asked us to help. We 
originally didn't want to have anything to do with it...."

"It was you!" Bald Vulture butted in accusingly. "Now you're trying to feign 
innocence."

"What do you mean, me? Look at the way the Manchus are burning and pillaging 
across the Muslim lands, oppressing the people. Don't you care?"

Bald Vulture grunted in indignation and was about to argue further when Lu 
raised his hand.

"You two are just the same as ever," he said with a smile. "As soon as you open 
your mouths, you're arguing. Don't take any notice, Madame, please continue."

She eyed her husband distastefully, then said: "We first thought of 
assassinating the Manchu general, Zhao Wei, but there wasn't much point in 
killing one general, because the Emperor would just send another and it would go 
on for ever. So we decided to kill the Emperor instead. We went to Beijing, but 
heard on the road that he had come down south. We followed him out of Hangzhou 
with our dogs using the tunnel you used to bring him here. At the time, we were 
very puzzled as to why the Emperor would suddenly want to travel around in 
tunnels."

"What? So you captured the Emperor?" said Bald Vulture. Chen nodded. "You did 
pretty well," Bald Vulture commented.

Suddenly, there was a roar from the Manchu troops around the base of the 
pagoda.

"I'll go and tell the Emperor to shut them up," said Xu, and ran downstairs. A 
moment later they saw Qian Long stick his head out of the window on the seventh 
floor and shout: "I'm here!"

"There's His Highness!" called Bai Zhen down below and the troops all 
prostrated themselves on the ground.

"I am all right up here!" Qian Long added. "There is no need for such noise." 
There was a pause, then he added: "All of you retire thirty paces!" They 
complied immediately.

"Seventh Brother directs the Emperor and the Emperor directs the troops," said 
Chen with a smile. "That's much better than charging out and killing and 
slaughtering. The Emperor is the most precious object under heaven. It is better 
to use him than to kill him." The others laughed.

'Leopard' Wei, who was watching the Manchu soldiers withdraw, saw several men in 
their midst with hunting dogs on leashes.

"Ah, I was wondering how they found their way here," he said. He took a bow 
from one of the attendants, and shot off two arrows, and there were two long 
screams and two of the dogs fell to the ground, dead. A roar went up from the 
Manchu troops, who speeded up their retreat.

"Master Lu, Lord Zhou," said Chen. "Please entertain the Twin Eagles while I go 
downstairs and have another talk with the Emperor."

As Chen reached the seventh floor, the Twin Knights and Xu bowed to him and 
retired. Qian Long was sitting despondently in a chair.

"Have you made a decision yet?" asked Chen.

"Since you have caught me, you might as well kill me if you are going to. What 
is the point of talking?"

Chen sighed. "It is such a pity," he said.

"What's a pity?"

"I have always thought of you as an extremely talented man and have pride in 
the fact my parents gave birth to such a good son, my brother. But..."

"But what?"

Chen was silent for a moment. "But although outwardly you appear to be a man of 
courage, you are virtually hollow inside. Not being afraid of death is the 
easiest thing in the world. But the formation of a grand designs, the making of 
great decisions, that is something that can only be done by a man with true 
courage. That is precisely what you are incapable of doing."

Qian Long was silent, but he appeared to be moved by Chen's words.

"All you have to do is to decide to restore the Chinese nation and we unruly 
fighters will immediately follow your every instruction," Chen added. "I can 
strike my chest and guarantee that they will not dare to do anything 
disrespectful towards you."

Qian Long nodded several times, but there was still an area of doubt in his 
mind which made it impossible for him to speak out. Chen guessed his thoughts.

"All I want is to see you throw the barbarian Manchus out of China," he said. 
"Then I will be content," he said. "Then I will ask you to allow me to retire to 
the seclusion of the Western Lake and live out the rest of my life in peace."

"What sort of talk is that?" said Qian Long. "If this Grand Design was 
achieved, your assistance would be required in planning affairs of state."

"We are getting ahead of ourselves," replied Chen. "But once the Grand Design 
has been completed, you must allow me to retire."

Qian Long slapped his hand down on the table. "All right," he said. "We'll do 
as you say."

Chen was overjoyed. "You have no further doubts?" he asked.

"None. But there is one thing I would like you to do for me. Your former Great 
Helmsman, Yu Wanting, had several items stored in the Muslim areas and said 
they were proof of my birth. Go and get them so that I can see them. Only then 
will my last doubts disappear. Then we will discuss detailed plans."

Chen felt this was reasonable. "All right," he replied. "I will start out 
tomorrow and get them myself."

"When you get back, I will assign you to the Imperial Bodyguard, then promote 
you to be commander of the Beijing garrison," said Qian Long. "I will gradually 
transfer the military power in every province into the hands of Chinese we can 
trust. I'll make you Secretary of the Armed Forces with orders to disperse the 
key Manchu Banner units, and then we can act."

Chen knelt down and performed the ritual act of obeiscence of a vassal before 
his Lord, but Qian Long hurriedly helped him up.

"An oath must be sworn in front of the others over this," Chen said. "There 
must be no reneging."

Qian Long nodded.

Chen clapped his hands once and ordered Xin Yan to help Qian Long change back 
into his original clothes.

"Please ask everyone to come to pay their respects to the Emperor," he said.

The heroes crowded in. Chen told them Qian Long had agreed to chase out the 
Manchus and restore the Chinese throne, then swore in a clear voice: "In 
future, we will assist Your Highness, and together plan the Grand Design. If 
anyone should reveal this secret, he will be damned by heaven and earth."

He drank a draught of a specially prepared brew of Covenant Wine to seal the 
pact, and Qian Long did likewise.

"Bald Vulture, Madame Guan," said Lu. "Come and drink a cup of the Covenant Wine 
as well."

"I have never believed the word of any official, so why should I trust their 
leader?" said Bald Vulture.

His right hand suddenly struck the wall, smashing a section of it to rubble and 
pulled out a brick. "Whoever breaks the covenant, betrays his friends, and 
destroys the Grand Design will be crushed like this!" he shouted harshly, and 
with one movement of his hand, the brick broke into a thousand pieces which 
tumbled to the floor. Qian Long looked at the hole in the wall and down at the 
smashed brick in fright.

"Even though you decline to join the vow, we are all friends," said Chen. "But 
I trust Your Highness will not vacillate and forget the covenant established 
today."

"Please rest easy over that," replied Qian Long.

"All right. Let us escort His Highness out," said Chen. Wei raced out of the 
pagoda and shouted: "Come and meet His Highness!"

Half-suspicious, Commander Li and Bai Zhen ordered the troops to move slowly 
forward, afraid that this was yet another Red Flower Society trick. Suddenly, 
they saw Qian Long emerge from the pagoda and prostrated themselves on the 
ground. Bai Zhen led a horse over and Qian Long mounted.

"I have been drinking and composing poetry with them here," he said to Bai 
Zhen. "I wanted a few days' peace and quiet and you had to make a mountain out a 
molehill and rob me of my pleasure."

The heroes returned to the pagoda.

"We are extemely happy to have met you all today," said Bald Vulture. 
"Especially Lord Zhou, whom we have respected for so long, and Master Lu, whom 
we have not seen for many years. But now my wife and I have some other minor 
affairs to deal with, and will take our leave."

Madame Guan pulled Chen over to one side. "Are you married?" she asked.

Chen blushed deep red. "No," he replied.

"Are you engaged?"

"Not engaged either," he said. Madame Guan smiled to herself. Then she suddenly 
screeched: "If you are ever so ungrateful as to turn your back on the one who 
gave you that dagger, I will never forgive you." Chen was so shocked by the 
outburst he was completely lost for a reply.

"You scorpion!" her husband shouted from the other side of the side of the 
room. "What are you lecturing that young man about? Let's be going!"

Madame Guan turned round, emitted an ear-splitting whistle and four dogs raced 
out of the trees. The couple bowed before the heroes and took their leave.

"Let us go back upstairs to talk," Chen said. They followed him back up to the 
top floor of the pagoda.

"I promised the Emperor that I would go to see my teacher and collect two 
important items from him," said Chen. "But let us first go to Heaven's Eye 
Mountain to see how Brother Wen and Brother Yu are doing and then make further 
arrangements."

They left the pagoda and Master Ma and his son returned to Hangzhou by 
themselves while the rest of the heroes galloped off westwards.

** 2 **

The trees on the hillsides were dense and dark. It was already deep autumn and 
Heaven's Eye Mountain was covered in fiery-red leaves and yellowing grass. 
Lookouts sent word of the approach of Chen and his comrades and Zhang Jin and 
the other heroes came down to greet them.

Luo Bing was not among them, and Chen's heart missed a beat, afraid that 
something had happened to her.

"Where's Fourth Sister?" he asked. "And how are Brother Wen and Brother Yu?"

"They're fine," Zhang Jin replied. "Fourth Sister said she was going to get a 
present for Fourth Brother. She's been away two days already. You didn't meet 
her on the road?"

Chen shook his head. "What present?"

Zhang Jin smiled. "I don't know. Fourth Brother's wounds have healed well, but 
he spends all his time in bed moping. Then Fourth Sister came up with this idea 
of going to get him a present. I wonder who will lose out as a result?" The 
others laughed.

They made their way up the mountain and entered the courtyard of a large 
mansion. Wen Tailai was lying dejectedly on a rattan couch. They told him 
briefly about what had transpired and then went to the room next door to see 
'Scholar' Yu.

As they stepped inside, they heard the sound of sobbing. Chen walked over and 
pulled aside the bed curtain to reveal Yu lying face-down on the bed, his back 
shaking uncontrollably. Even girls like Luo Bing and Zhou Qi rarely cried, and 
they were shocked and embarrassed by his behaviour.

"Fourteenth Brother," Chen said quietly. "We've come to see you. How do you 
feel? Are your wounds very painful?"

Yu stopped crying, but did not turn over. "Great Helmsman, Brothers, thank you 
all for coming to see me. Forgive me for not getting up to greet you properly. 
My health has improved a lot over the past few days, but my face has been burnt 
so badly, it's so ugly that I cannot face anyone."

Zhou Qi smiled. "What does it matter if a man has burn marks on his face?" she 
said. "Don't tell my you're afraid you won't be able to find a girl willing to 
marry you?" Some of the heroes laughed at her lack of restraint.

"Brother Yu," said Lu Feiqing. "Your face was burnt while saving myself and Wen 
Tailai. When people hear of this act, do you think there is anyone who would 
not proclaim you to be a hero? What need is there for such distress?"

"You are right, uncle," said Yu, and burst into tears again.

The heroes returned to the main hall. Chen and Xu talked together in low tones, 
then clapped their hands and the heroes stood up.

"Brothers," said Chen. "So far, things have gone very well for us. But in the 
future, we will face even tougher problems. I will now give you your 
assignments. Ninth Brother, Twelfth Brother, you two go to Beijing and see what 
you can find out about the Emperor's plans and if he intends to break our pact. 
This will be extremely difficult to execute. You must both exercise great 
caution." Wei and Shi nodded.

"Now, the Twin Knights," Chen continued. "Please go to the Southwest and make 
contact with the fighters in Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou provinces. Eighth 
Brother, you go to Anhui and Jiangsu provinces, Priest Wu Chen to Hubei and 
Hunan. Thirteenth Brother and Brother Ma in Hangzhou will contact people in 
Zhejiang, Fujian and Jiangxi, while I would like to ask Master Lu to deal with 
Shandong and Henan. I would like Lord Zhou, Master Meng, Brother Xu and Mistress 
Zhou Qi to handle the northwest provinces. Fourth Brother and Fourteenth Brother 
will remain here convalescing with Fourth Sister and Tenth Brother to look after 
them. Xin Yan will accompany me to the Muslim areas.

"I am not asking you to begin preparations for an uprising, but simply to 
improve relations with members of the fighting community in all areas and to 
provide a basis on which we can act later," he added. "Absolute secrecy is 
essential, so do not reveal anything to anyone no matter how close or respected 
they are."

"We understand," they replied in unison.

"In exactly one year's time we will all gather in Beijing. By that time, Fourth 
Brother and Fourteenth Brother will be fully recovered and we can begin the 
great task!"

Cheers arose from the heroes. They followed Chen out of the hall, elated by the 
prospect of the future.

Only Zhang Jin, assigned by the Great Helmsman to stay at Heaven's Eye 
Mountain, was unhappy. Wen guessed his thoughts, and went over to speak to Chen.

"Great Helmsman, my wounds are almost healed, and although Fourteenth Brother's 
burns are serious, he is recovering quickly," he said. "It is a bit much to ask 
us to stay cooped up here for a year. The four of us would like to accompany you 
to the Muslim regions. The trip would also help to take Fourteenth Brother's 
mind off other things."

"All right, we'll do it that way," Chen agreed. Zhang Jin ran joyfully in to 
tell Yu the news.

Lord Zhou took Chen aside. "Great Helmsman," he said. "The fact that we have 
discovered through Master Wen that you and the Emperor are blood relations is a 
matter worthy of great rejoicing. I would like to add to it one more happy 
event. What do you think?"

"You wish to hold a wedding for Seventh Brother and Mistress Zhou, is that 
right?"

"Exactly," Zhou replied, smiling.

Chen walked over to Zhou Qi, his face wreathed in smiles, and bowed before her. 
"Mistress, congratulations," he said.

She blushed deeply. "What do you mean?"

"I should call you Seventh Sister. Seventh Sister, congratulations!" He clapped 
his hands loudly and the heroes immediately fell silent.

"Just now, Lord Zhou told me he wants Mistress Zhou Qi and Seventh Brother to 
be married this evening. So we have something else to celebrate!"

The heroes cheered loudly and congratulated Lord Zhou and Xu. Zhou Qi hastily 
made for her bedroom in embarrassment.

"Tenth Brother!" Wei called to Zhang Jin. "Stop her. Don't let the bride 
escape!" Zhang made as to grab her and Zhou Qi chopped out with her left hand to 
fend him off.

"Help!" he cried in mock surprise, dodging to one side. "The bride's attacking 
me!"

A laugh escaped from her as she charged out of the hall.

Just then, there was the sound of bells outside and Luo Bing ran in carrying a 
large box.

"Oh good, everyone's here!" she cried. "What's happened to make you all so 
happy?" She looked enquiringly at Chen.

"Ask Seventh Brother," said Wei.

"What's happened, Brother Xu?" Luo Bing asked, but Xu was speechless for a 
moment. "Mm? That's strange. Has the Kung Fu Mastermind gone silly?"

'Crocodile' Jiang dodged behind Xu and held up his thumbs and made them bow to 
each other. "The Mastermind is getting married today," he said with glee.

"Oh, how awful, how awful!" Luo Bing exclaimed, absolutely delighted.

The others laughed. "What do you mean, awful?" asked 'Pagoda' Yang.

"If I'd known, I could have brought a sheep and some nice things back with me. 
As it is, I have almost nothing to give them as presents. Isn't that awful?"

"Will you let us all see what you've brought for Fourth Brother?" Yang asked.

Luo Bing smiled and opened up the box. Glinting inside were the two jade vases 
which the Muslims had sent to the Emperor along with their request for a truce.

"Where did you get them?" the heroes asked in astonishment.

"I was chatting with Fourth Brother and mentioned how beautiful the girl on the 
vases was, but he didn't believe me..."

"I'll bet Fourth Brother said: 'I don't believe she is more beautiful than 
you.' Am I right?" interrupted Xu.

Luo Bing smiled but did not answer. "Did you go to Hangzhou and steal them from 
the Emperor?" Xu asked.

Luo Bing nodded, very pleased with herself. "I got them so Fourth Brother could 
have a look. The Great Helmsman will decide what should be done with them after 
that, whether we should keep them or return them to Sister Huo Qingtong." Wen 
examined the vases and tutted in admiration.

"I was right, wasn't I?" asked Luo Bing. Wen smiled and shook his head. Luo 
Bing started, then realised her husband meant that the girl on the vase could 
not be more beautiful than she was. Her cheeks flushed.

"The Emperor has many top fighters around him and such precious items as these 
vases must have been very well guarded," said Priest Wu Chen. "How did you 
manage to steal them?"

Luo Bing told them how she had slipped into the Yamen, grabbed a eunuch and 
forced him to tell her where the vases were, slipped poison into the food of 
some of the guards, and made cat noises to distract the rest, then grabbed the 
vases. The heroes praised her artistry, all except Lu Feiqing.

"Fourth Sister," he said. "You are very brave, but was it wise to take such a 
risk alone just for the sake of a remark you made to Master Wen? As it happened, 
the Imperial bodyguards were fully occupied that particular night searching for 
the Emperor. If they had been there, things could have turned out differently."

"Yes," Luo Bing replied, then turned and stuck out her tongue at Wen.

The wedding ceremony took place amidst great merriment, and the next morning 
the heroes made their way down the mountain, wished each other well, and went 
their separate ways.

Chen and Lord Zhou were both heading for the northwest and Chen suggested they 
travel together. But Zhou said he wished to take advantage of their presence in 
the south to visit the Shaolin monastery in Fujian province whose style of kung 
fu was related to his own. So taking his wife and his assistant Meng with him, 
he headed south.

Chen, Wen, Luo Bing, Xu, Zhou Qi, Zhang Jin, 'Scholar' Yu and Xin Yan travelled 
north through Nanking. By the time they had crossed the Yangtse, Wen had 
completely recovered and Yu was progressing well. As they continued north, the 
weather became cooler, the grass and trees turned yellow as early winter set 
in. After passing through Kaifeng, Yu was well enough to ride a horse, and the 
eight of them galloped together along the highway. The north wind blew angrily, 
throwing dust and sand into their faces.

Wen, riding the white horse, galloped ahead of the others and stopped at an inn 
in a small village and told the servants to kill a chicken and prepare a meal, 
Then he sat down near the door to await the arrival of his friends. He ordered a 
pot of tea and wiped his face with the hot flannel brought out to him. Suddenly, 
a figure darted out from a room on the eastern side of the inn but immediately 
withdrew on catching sight of Wen.

About an hour later, Chen and the others rode up and Wen quietly informed them 
of what had happened. Xu looked round towards the room and saw a section of the 
window paper was wet with a black eyeball in the centre which immediately 
disappeared. He smiled.

"It's a novice," he said. "As soon as he starts, he reveals himself."

"Go over and see him," Chen said to Xin Yan. "If he has financial problems, 
lend him some money."

Xin Yan went over to the room and said in a loud voice: "All streams under 
heaven have the same source, Red Flowers and green leaves are all one family."

This was the Red Flower Society members' catch-phrase for identifying 
themselves to other members of the fighting community. Even if the other party 
was not an associate of the Red Flower Society, as long as he knew the phrase 
and asked for help, he would receive it. But all was quiet in the room. Xin Yan 
repeated his call, and the door creaked open and a figure dressed in black with 
a large hat pulled down low came out and gave him a letter.

"Give this to your Master Yu."

Xin Yan took the letter and the figure rsn out of the inn, jumped onto a horse 
and galloped away. He gave the letter to Yu who opened it and found the 
following written inside:

"What do ugliness and beauty have to do with true love? I will follow you even 
over a thousand mountains and ten thousand rivers. And tell your Great Helmsman 
that the Three Devils of Guandong are on their way to the Muslim regions to get 
their revenge on Huo Qingtong for killing their martial brother." Recognising 
the calligraphy as being that of Li Yuanzhi, he frowned and handed the sheet to 
Chen.

Chen studiously ignored the first sentence, which obviously dealt with private 
romantic affairs. But he immediately informed the others of the news about the 
Three Devils of Guandong.

"They are tough fighters," said Wen. "I wonder if she can handle them?"

"We once watched Mistress Huo fighting with that Guangdong Devil, Yan Shizhang, 
and she proved herself to be a little better than him," Xu replied. "But if the 
Great Helmsman hadn't stepped in to save her, I'm afraid she would have fallen 
victim to his evil tricks."

"The eldest of the Devils, Tang Yilei, is very strong, a formidable man," said 
Wen.

"Since the Three Devils are already on their way, it would be best if someone 
went on ahead on Sister Luo Bing's horse," Xu suggested. "From the look of 
things, the military situation in the Muslim regions is tense, and Master 
Muzhuolun and his people must be busy making defensive preparations. We 
shouldn't let Mistress Huo be caught unawares by the Three Devils." Chen knew he 
was right, and he frowned silently.

"Great Helmsman, I think it would be best if you went on ahead," said Xu. "You 
speak the Muslim language, your kung fu is good, and the Three Devils have 
never seen you before. If General Zhao Wei has not withdrawn by the time you get 
there, you can also help the Muslims."

"All right!" said Chen after a moment's hesitation.

** 3 **

Chen was extremely concerned at the news that the Three Devils of Guandong were 
out to get Huo Qingtong. The image of her gradually disappearing into the dust 
of the Great Desert forced its way into his mind once more, but remembering how 
familiar she had been with Master Lu's pupil, he decided that he was fooling 
himself about her feelings for him. But he was unable to forget her image.

The white horse was extraordinarily fast, and in less than two days he arrived 
at Jiayu Fortress, the western end of the Great Wall. He climbed up onto the 
battlements and looked out at the Wall snaking away into the distance, holding 
at bay the great wilderness. He felt a sense of excitement at the thought of 
once more entering the border regions, and followed custom by throwing a stone 
at the wall. The sandstorms outside the Wall were perilous, the way would be 
hard, and according to tradition, if a traveller threw a stone at the wall as he 
passed through the Jiayu Gate, he would be able to return alive.

He travelled by day, rested by night. After he had passed the Jade Gate and 
Anxi, the desert changed colour gradually from pale to dark yellow, and then 
slowly turned to grey as he skirted the Gobi. The region was uninhabited, 
containing nothing but endless expanses of broad desert.

He passed through the Stellar Gorge, the main link between Gansu Province and 
the Muslim regions. It was already winter and the first accumulations of snow 
coud be seen along the gorge, providing a thrilling contrast of black and white.

"What a perfect place for an ambush," Chen thought.

That night, he lodged in a small hut and the next day found himself at the edge 
of the Gobi desert. The Gobi was as flat as a mirror, completely different from 
a sandy desert with its rolling dunes. Gazing into the distance, it seemed to 
him as if the sky and earth touched one another. All was silent, and it seemed 
as if he and his horse were the only beings in the universe.

The As he rode, day after day, he considered the problem of how to find Huo 
Qingtong. As a Chinese, the Muslims could suspect him of being a spy, so to 
gain their confidence he would have to resort to deception. He decided to 
disguise himself as a Muslim, and at the next settlement, bought a small 
embroidered cap, a pair of leather boots and a striped gown. Riding on, he found 
a deserted place and changed into his new clothes, burying the old ones in the 
sand. He looked at his reflection in a nearby stream and was so pleased with his 
appearance as a young Muslim boy that he let out a laugh.

But he met no Muslims on the road. The Muslim villages and dwellings he came 
upon were all burnt to the ground, obviously the good work of General Zhao Wei's 
army. He decided he was unlikely to meet any Muslims on the main highway, so he 
cut off south, and headed into the mountains. In such desolate wilderness, there 
was little chance of finding any settlement, and after three days, his dry 
rations were finished. But luckily, he managed to catch and kill a goat.

Two days further on, he met a number of Kazakh herdsmen. They knew that the 
Muslim army had retreated westwards in the face of the Manchu force, but had no 
idea where it had gone.

There was nothing for it but to continue west. Chen gave the horse its head and 
made no attempt to divert it. For four days he covered more than a hundred 
miles a day with nothing but sand and sky before his eyes.

On the fourth day, the weather turned hot. The burning sun scorched down on 
both man and horse. He wanted to find somewhere shady where they could rest, but 
wherever he looked there was nothing but sand dunes. He opened his water flask, 
drank three mouthfuls, and let the white horse drink the same amount. Despite a 
terrible thirst, he did not dare to drink more.

They rested for two hours, then started out once more. Suddenly, the white 
horse raised its head and sniffed at the wind, whinnied loudly, then turned and 
galloped off south. Chen gave it its head. Soon, sparse grasses began to appear 
on the sand dunes around them, then green grass. Chen knew there must be an 
oasis ahead, and his heart leapt. The white horse too was in high spirits and 
its hooves flew.

After a while, they heard the sound of running water and a small steam appeared 
before them. Chen dismounted and scooped up a mouthful of water. As he drank, 
he felt a coolness penetrate to his lungs and noticed a slight fragrance to the 
water. The stream was full of little pieces of ice which jostled each other, 
emitting a crisp jingling noise, like the music of fairies. After drinking a few 
mouthfuls, the white horse gave a whinny and gambolled about happily for a 
moment.

Having drunk his fill, Chen felt relaxed and content. He filled his two leather 
water flasks. In the midst of the sparkling ice fragments, he spotted flower 
petals floating past, and realized it must be flower beds further upstream which 
made the waters so fragrant.

"If I follow the stream up," he thought, "I may come across someone who can 
tell me where Huo Qingtong might be." He remounted and started along the bank.

The stream gradually widened. In the desert, most rivers and streams are larger 
close to their source as the water is soaked up by the desert sands and 
eventually disappears. Having lived many years in the Muslim areas, Chen did not 
consider it strange. The trees along the banks of the stream also increased in 
number and he spurred his horse into a gallop. As they turned a bend in the 
stream round a hill, a silver waterfall came into view.

Chen felt invigorated by the discovery of such a gorgeous place in the midst of 
the barren desert, and was curious to know what vistas would present themselves 
above the waterfall. He led the horse round and up, and as they emerged from a 
line of tall fir trees, he stopped in amazement.

Before him was a wide lake fed by another large waterfall at its southern end. 
The spray from the cascade spread out in all directions, combining with the 
sunlight to create a glorious rainbow, while a profusion of trees and flowers of 
many colours surrounded the lake and reflected in its turquoise-green waters. 
Beyond was a huge expanse of verdant grass stretching off to the horizon on 
which he could see several hundred white sheep. A high mountain rose into the 
clouds from the western bank of the lake, the lower slopes covered in green 
foliage and the upper slopes in brilliant white snow.

He stood staring at the scene for a moment. The sound of small birds singing in 
the trees and ice slabs in the lake jostling against each other combined with 
the roar of the waterfall into a work of music. Looking at the surface of the 
lake, he suddenly noticed a circle of small ripples, and a jade-white hand 
emerged from the water followed by a dripping-wet head. It turned and saw him, 
and with a shriek disappeared back into the water.

In that moment, Chen had been able to see that the head belonged to an 
extremely beautiful young girl.

"Could there really be such things as water spirits and monsters?" he wondered. 
He pulled out three chess pieces and lodged them in his palm just in case.

A string of ripples stretched across the surface of the lake northwards, then 
with a splash, the girl's head re-emerged amidst an outgrowth of flowers and 
bushes. Through a gap in the leaves, he could see her snow-white skin, her raven 
hair splayed out over the surface of the water and her eyes, as bright as stars, 
gazing across at him.

"Who are you?" a clear voice asked. "Why have you come here?"

She spoke in the Muslim language, and although Chen understood, he was unable 
to answer. He felt dazed, as if drunk or in a dream.

"Go away and let me put my clothes on," the girl said. Chen's face flushed and 
he quickly went back into the trees.

He was extremely embarrassed and wanted to escape, but he thought he should at 
least ask the girl for news of Huo Qingtong. For a while he was undecided. Then 
the sound of singing, soft but clear, floated over from the opposite side of the 
lake:

"Brother, brother, passing by, Please come back Why have you run off so fast 
Without a word?"

He walked slowly back to the lake and, looking across, saw a young girl dressed 
in a brilliantly white gown sitting bare-foot on a bed of red flowers by the 
water's edge. She was slowly combing her long hair, still covered in beads of 
water, as flower petals drifted slowly down onto her head. He marvelled that 
such a beautiful girl could exist.

The girl smiled radiantly and motioned with her hand for him to come over.

"I was passing this way and felt thirsty," Chen said in the Muslim language. "I 
chanced upon a stream and followed it here. I did not expect to run into you, 
miss. It was an unintentional error. Please forgive me." He bowed as he spoke.

"What is your name?" she asked.

"I am called Ahmed."

This was the most common name among Muslim men, and the girl smiled again.

"All right," she said. "Then my name Ayesha." This was the most common name 
among Muslim women. "Who are you looking for?"

"I have to find Master Muzhuolun."

The girl looked startled. "Do you know him?"

"Yes, I do," said Chen. "I also know his son, Huo Ayi, and his daughter, Huo 
Qingtong."

"Where did you meet them?"

"They travelled to the central plains to recover the sacred Koran and I 
happened to come across them there."

"Why are you looking for Master Muzhuolun?"

Chen recognised the note of respect in her voice. "Is he of the same tribe as 
you, miss?" The girl nodded.

"They killed a number of bodyguard agency escorts while recovering the sacred 
Koran, and friends of the escorts are now seeking revenge. I want to warn 
them."

The girl had had a smile constantly playing around her lips, but now it 
disappeared. "Are the men that are coming to take revenge very terrible?" she 
asked. "Are there many of them?"

"No, not many. They are good fighters, but as long as we are prepared, there is 
nothing to fear."

The girl relaxed and smiled again. "I will take you to see Master Muzhuolun," 
she said. "We will have to travel for several days." She began to plait her 
hair. "The great Manchu army came and attacked us for no reason and all the men 
have gone away to fight. My sisters and I have remained here to watch over the 
livestock."

As she talked, Chen gazed at her in wonder. He could never have imagined such 
jade-like beauty, even in his wildest dreams. Such a scene, such a situation 
was simply not of this world.

The girl finished combing her hair, picked up an ox horn and blew several notes 
on it. A short while later, a number of Muslim girls on horse-back galloped 
towards them across the pastures. She went over and talked with them while the 
other girls weighed Chen up, very curious as to who he was. She then walked over 
to a tent pitched between the trees and came back leading a chestnut horse 
carrying food and other essentials.

"Let's go." She mounted in one effortless bound, and rode off ahead of him 
heading south along the course of the stream.

"How did the Chinese people treat you when you were in the Chinese areas?" she 
asked as they rode along.

"Some well, some not, but mostly well." Chen replied. He wanted to tell her he 
was himself Chinese, but her complete lack of suspicion somehow made it 
difficult for him to do so. She asked about what the Chinese regions were like. 
Chen chose a few interesting stories to tell her, and she listened enthralled.

As the sky grew dark, they camped for the night underneath a huge rock by a 
river. The girl lit a fire, roasted some dried mutton she had brought and shared 
it with Chen. She was silent throughout, and Chen did not dare to speak, as if 
words would desecrate the sacred purity of the scene.

The girl began telling him about her youth, how she had grown up as a 
shepherdess on the grasslands, and how she loved flowers more than anything in 
the world.

"There are so many, many beautiful flowers on the grasslands. As you look out, 
you can see flowers stretching to the horizon. I much prefer to eat flowers than 
mutton."

"Can you eat flowers?" Chen asked in surprise.

"Of course. I've been eating them since I was small. My father and my elder 
brother tried to stop me at first, but when I went out by myself to look after 
the sheep, there was nothing they could do. Later, when they saw that it did me 
no harm, they didn't bother about it any more."

Chen wanted to say that it was no wonder she was as beautiful as a flower, but 
he restrained himself. Sitting beside her, he became aware that her body exuded 
a slight fragrance, more intoxicating than that of any flower. Light-headed, he 
wondered what lotion she used that was so fragrant. Then he remembered the rules 
of etiquette and discreetly moved to sit a little further away from her. The 
girl saw that he had noticed the fragrance and laughed.

"Ever since I was young, my body has given off a fragrance," she said. "It's 
probably because I eat flowers. Do you like it?"

Chen blushed at the question and marvelled at her simplicity and frankness. But 
gradually, his reticence towards her faded.

The girl talked of shepherding, of picking flowers and looking at stars and of 
the games that young girls play. Since leaving home, Chen had spent all his time 
amongst the fighting community and had long ago forgotten about these child-like 
matters. After a while, the girl stopped talking and looked up at the Milky Way 
sparkling its way across the heavens.

Chen pointed up. "That constellation is the Weaving Girl star," he said, "and 
that one on the other side is the Cowherd Star."

She was fascinated by the names. "Tell me the story about them," she said, and 
Chen told her how the Cowherd and the Weaving Girl fell in love but found 
themselves separated by a silvery river, the Milky Way, and how a stork built a 
bridge across to unite them once a year.

The girl looked sombrely up at the stars. "I have never liked storks before, 
but seeing as they built a bridge to bring the Cowherd and the Weaving Girl 
together, I have changed my mind. From now on when I see them, I will give them 
something to eat."

"They may only be able to meet once a year, but they have done so for hundreds 
of millions of years. They are much better off than we ordinary people, doomed 
to die after a few decades," Chen replied. The girl nodded.

The desert had grown very cold with the coming of night and Chen went to look 
for some dead wood and grass to build up the fire. Then they wrapped themselves 
in blankets and went to sleep. Despite the distance between them as they slept, 
it still seemed to Chen that he could smell the girl's fragrance in his dreams.

Early next morning they started out again heading west, and after several days 
arrived at the banks of the Tarin River. That afternoon, they chanced upon two 
mounted Muslim warriers. The girl went over and spoke with them and after a 
moment the Muslims bowed and left.

"The Manchu army has already taken Aksu and Kashgar, and Master Muzhuolun and 
the others have retreated to Yarkand," she reported to Chen. "That's more than 
ten days's ride from here."

Chen was very concerned at the news that the Manchu forces had scored a 
victory.

"They also said that the Manchu troops are so numerous that our army's only 
option is to retreat and stretch their lines of communication. When their 
rations are exhausted, they will not have enough strength left to fight."

Chen decided the Muslim force would probably be safe for a while using this 
strategy. Once Qian Long's order to halt the war arrived, General Zhao Wei 
would retire with his troops. Huo Qingtong was now far away from central China 
and had the protection of a large army, so there was no longer any reason to 
fear the vengeful Devils of Guandong, Tang Yilei and his two friends. With that 
thought, he relaxed.

They travelled by day and slept by night, talking and laughing as they went. As 
the days passed, they became closer and closer, and Chen found himself secretly 
hoping that the journey would never end, that they could continue as they were 
forever.

One day, just as the sun was about to disappear beneath the grasslands, they 
heard a bugle note, and a small deer jumped out of a spinney of trees nearby. 
The girl clapped her hands and laughed in delight.

"A baby deer!" she cried. The deer had been born only a short time before and 
was very small and very unsteady on its feet. It gave two plaintive cries and 
then leapt back into the trees.

The girl watched it go, then suddenly reined in her horse. "There's someone 
over there," she whispered.

Chen looked over and saw four Manchu soldiers and an officer carving up a large 
deer while the fawn circled around them making pitiful cries. The dead deer was 
obviously its mother.

"Goddamn it, we'll eat you too!" cursed one of the soldiers, standing up. He 
fixed an arrow on his bow and prepared to shoot the fawn which, ignorant of the 
danger, moved closer and closer to him.

The girl gave a cry of alarm. She jumped off her horse, ran into the trees and 
placed herself in front of the fawn. "Don't shoot, don't shoot!" she cried. The 
soldier started in surprise and took a step backwards, dazzled by her beauty. 
She picked up the fawn and stroked its soft coat. "You poor thing," she crooned. 
She glanced hatefully at the soldier, then turned and walked out of the trees 
with the fawn.

The five soldiers whispered amongst themselves for a moment, then ran after 
her, shouting and brandishing their swords. The girl started running too and 
quickly reached Chen and the horses. The officer barked out an order and the 
five fanned out around them.

Chen squeezed the girl's hand. "Don't be afraid," he said. "I'll kill these 
villains to avenge the death of the fawn's mother." She stood beside him, the 
fawn cradled in her arms. Chen stretched out his hand and stroked the animal.

"What you doing?" the officer asked haltingly in the Muslim tongue. "Come 
here!"

The girl looked up at Chen, who smiled at her. She smiled back, confident that 
they would not be harmed.

"No weapons!" the officer shouted, and the other soldiers threw their swords to 
the ground and advanced. Strangely, despite the usual preference of soldiers for 
young maidens, they seemed cowed by her glowing beauty and made for Chen 
instead. The girl cried out in alarm, but before the cry was fully out, there 
was a whooshing sound and the four soldiers flew through the air, landing 
heavily on the ground some distance away. They grunted and groaned, unable to 
get up, for they had all been touched on Yuedao points. The officer, seeing the 
situation was unfavourable, turned and fled.

"Come back!" Chen ordered. He sent his Pearl Strings flying out and wrapped 
them around the officer's neck, then sharply pulled him back.

The girl clapped her hands and laughed in delight. She looked over at Chen, her 
eyes full of admiration.

"What are you doing here?" he asked the officer in the Muslim language. The 
officer clambered to his feet, still dazed. He looked around and saw his four 
comrades lying morionless on the ground and knew he was in trouble.

"We, General Zhao Wei, soldiers, orders, here, we here," he replied.

Well said, thought Chen. "Where are the five of you going? You'd better tell me 
the truth."

"Not cheat," the officer said, shaking with fear. "Orders, go, Stellar Canyon, 
meet people."

His stuttering Muslim speech was unclear and Chen switched to Chinese. "Who are 
you going to meet," he asked.

"A deputy commander of the Imperial Guard."

"What is his name? Give me the documents you are carrying."

The officer hesitated then pulled an official document from his pocket. Chen 
glanced at it and noted with surprise that it was addressed to "Deputy Commander 
Zhang Zhaozhong".

Master Ma Zhen took Zhang away to discipline him, he thought. How could he be 
on his way here?

He ripped the letter open and read: "I am delighted to hear you have received 
Imperial orders to come to the Muslim regions, and have sent this detachment to 
meet you." It was signed by General Zhao Wei.

If Zhang is coming at the Emperor's command, he must have been entrusted with 
passing on the order to retreat, Chen thought. I shouldn't interfere. He gave 
the letter back to the officer, released the paralysis of the four soldiers, 
then rode off with the girl without saying another word.

"You are very capable," the girl said. "Such a man as yourself would certainly 
be very well known in our tribe. How is it I have never heard of you before?"

Chen smiled. "The little fawn must be hungry," he said. "Why don't you give it 
something to eat?"

"Yes, yes!" she cried. She pured some horse's milk from the leather gourd into 
her palm and let the fawn lap it up. After a few mouthfuls, the fawn bleated 
mournfully. "She's calling for her mother," the girl said.

** 4 **

They travelled on for another six days. On the morning of the seventh day, they 
spotted dark clouds in the distance.

"Is that a storm brewing?" Chen asked.

The girl studied the horizon. "They're not rain clouds," she said. "It's dust 
from the ground."

"How could there be so much?"

"I don't know. Let's go and look!" They spurred their horses forward, and as 
the swirling dust cloud rose before them, they began to hear the sound of metal 
clashing with metal drifting over towards them. Chen reined in his horse.

"It's an army," he said. "We must get out of the way quickly." They turned and 
rode off east, but after a while, another dust cloud arose in front of them and 
a column of mounted troops appeared. Amidst the dust, Chen saw a huge flag 
inscribed with the name of General Zhao. Having already clashed once with Zhao's 
armoured troops at the Yellow River crossing, he knew them to be formidable 
fighters, and he motioned to the girl with his hand and galloped off southwards. 
Luckily, both their horses were swift, and after a moment's hard riding, the 
armoured column had dropped far behind.

The girl looked anxious. "I hope our army will be able to hold their own," she 
said. Chen was just about to say something comforting when horns sounded in 
front, and rank upon rank of soldiers appeared over a rise. To the left, there 
was a thundrous ground-shaking roar and a vast carpet of cavalry moved across 
the hills towards them. With one sweep of his left arm, Chen swung the girl onto 
his horse and took out his shield to protect her.

"Don't be afraid," he said. The girl, still hugging the little deer, looked 
round at him and nodded. "If you say there's no need to be afraid, then I won't 
be," she said. As she spoke, her soft, orchid-like fragrance, enveloped him, and 
feelings of tenderness rose within him despite the danger of their situation.

With enemy troops advancing from the east, north and south, Chen urged the 
white horse westwards as her chestnut horse followed along behind. After a 
while, they spotted Manchu troops ahead of them once more. Very worried, Chen 
spurred the horse up onto high ground to get a better idea of the Manchu 
positions and to look for a gap through which they could escape. But he could 
see at a glance that they were completely surrounded by the Manchu army. To the 
west, beyond the thousands of Manchu foot soldiers in close ranks protected on 
both flanks by cavalry, was the Muslim army, also an imposing force with a 
forest of spears and scimitars rising above the striped gowns of the warriors. 
The two sides had halted, obviously in preparation for battle, and Manchu 
officers rode back and forth making final prepartions. The huge army gradually 
became deathly quiet. Chen and the girl had by this time been noticed, and 
several soldiers approached to question them.

"The gods have conspired to deliver us into the hands of the Manchus," Chen 
thought. But the idea of dying with the girl beside him gave him a strange 
pleasure. He grasped the Pearl Strings in his right hand, the reins in his left, 
and shouted: "Let's go!"

The horse galloped off towards the end of the Manchu lines, and in the blink of 
an eye, had passed three companies of troops. Rank upon rank of armoured 
soldiers, bows at the ready, passed before them, and Chen knew that with one 
word from the Manchu commanders, he and the girl in his arms would immediately 
become the repositories of a thousand spears and ten thousand arrows. He pulled 
the reins in tightly and slowly cantered along, not even glancing at the 
soldiers.

The morning sun had just risen, and as they rode towards it, the troops stared 
in shock at the girl's glorious beauty, her hair, face, arms and gown splashed 
with pale sunlight, and each one, whether general or trooper, found his heart 
thumping furiously. They watched as the two gradually rode off into the 
distance.

Even General Zhao, who was in personal command, was overcome by a feeling of 
calm and peace, and he knew he was in no mood for killing. Looking round, he 
found all his officers and underlings likewise had expressions of serenity on 
their faces. They had already replaced their swords in their scabbards, and were 
obviously awaiting the general's order to retire.

"Return to camp," Zhao said in a far-away voice. The order was relayed back, 
and the tens of thousands of soldiers turned and went back to their camp site 
more than ten miles away beside the Black Water River.

Chen was covered in a cold sweat and his hands shook with fear, but the girl 
looked un-worried, apparently unaware of the great danger they had passed 
through. She smiled at him and leapt over onto the back of the chestnut horse.

"That is our army in front," she said. Chen put away his shield and galloped 
towards the Muslim lines. A small detail of cavalrymen rode out to meet them, 
shouting and cheering as they came, then jumped off their horses and bowed 
before the girl. The officer in charge walked over to Chen and bowed before him 
too.

"Brother, you have endured great hardship. May Allah the true God protect you," 
he said.

Chen bowed in return and thanked him. The girl rode straight into the Muslim 
ranks without waiting for Chen. She obviously commanded a degree of respect, for 
wherever the chestnut horse went, the soldiers made way for it with cheers.

A brigade commander invited Chen to the barracks to eat and rest, and Chen told 
him he wanted to see the tribe's leader, Master Muzhuolun.

"The Master has gone to observe the enemy's strength," the commander replied. 
"When he returns, I will immediately inform him." Following the long journey 
and the tense encounter with the Manchu army, Chen felt worn out, and after he 
had been shown to a small tent, he immediately slept.

Some time after noon, the commander returned to say that Muzhuolun was now not 
expected to return until evening. Chen asked him who the white-gowned girl was.

The commander smiled. "How could anyone be more beautiful than she?" he said. 
"We are having a love-match meeting tonight. Why don't you come along, brother? 
You will be able to meet our leader there."

Chen did not press him further. Towards evening, he saw the young warriors 
donning their finery, each face alive with excitement. The desert evening sky 
slowly deepened in colour and a thin crescent moon rose above the horizon. Chen 
heard the sound of music strike up and soon afterwards, the commander came into 
the tent.

"The new moon has risen," he said, taking Chen's hand. "Let us go, brother!" 
The two walked towards a huge bonfire where the young Muslim warriors were 
gathering. All around, people were roasting beef and mutton, and preparing 
various delicacies while others played musical instruments. A horn blew, and a 
group of people emerged from a large tent near the bonfire, among whom Chen 
recognised Muzhuolun and his son, Huo Ayi. Chen decided he would wait until the 
official ceremony was over before revealing himself, and turned up the collar of 
his gown to hide his face.

Muzhuolun motioned to the crowd, and they all knelt down and prayed to Allah. 
When the prayer was ended, he spoke.

"Those brothers who have already taken legal wives, I am afraid I must ask you 
to go and stand guard," he said. "Let your younger brothers have a pleasant 
evening."

Three columns of warriors formed up. Huo Ayi, flourishing his sabre, led them 
off into the darkness.

Having lived many years in the Muslim regions, Chen knew that although 
marriages were arranged by parents according to various considerations of wealth 
and property, the procedure was still much more liberal than that of the 
Chinese. The love-match party was a tradition among the Muslims that had been 
passed down for many generations at which young, unmarried boys and girls could 
seal their romances and become engaged. The initiative was taken by the girl, 
who would place a belt round the neck of her chosen boy and lead him to dance.

After a while, the music became softer in tone. The tent door flaps parted and 
out came a large group of young Muslim girls who sang and danced their way 
towards the bonfire. They all wore colourful clothes and small caps laced with 
gold and silver threads which sparkled brightly in the firelight. Chen noticed 
two beautiful girls walking over to Muzhuolun, one in yellow, the other in 
white, and with a start, he recognised them as Huo Qingtong and the girl who had 
brought him to the Muslim camp. Under the moonlight, they both looked extremely 
graceful and attractive. The two girls sat down, one on either side of 
Muzhuolun.

A thought suddenly struck Chen. "The girl in white must be Huo Qingtong's 
younger sister. No wonder I kept thinking her face was familiar: it's the same 
face as that on the jade vases, although the drawing does not even come close to 
reproducing her real beauty."

His heart began to thump wildly. From the day he had first met Huo Qingtong, 
his love for her had begun to grow, but the familiar closeness between her and 
Lu Feiqing's pupil had convinced him that she already had a suitor. Also, having 
spent the past few days with such a matchless beauty, his romantic thoughts had 
turned completely towards the white-gowned girl.

The music stopped, and Muzhuolun's voice rang out clearly: "The prophet Mohammed 
teaches us in the Koran in the 190th verse of the second chapter: 'Fight in the 
cause of Allah those who fight you', and in the 39th verse of the 22nd chapter: 
'To those against whom war is made, permission is given to fight because they 
are wronged, and verily, Allah is most powerful for their aid.' We are being 
oppressed and Allah will certainly assist and protect us." A thunderous cheer 
went up from the crowd. "Brothers and sisters!" he shouted. "Enjoy yourselves 
fully!"

Singing and laughter rose all about, accompanied by the music of Horse Head 
fiddles. Cooks distributed roast meat, honeymelons, dried grapes and horse milk 
wine among the throng. Everyone held in their hands a small bowl made out of 
salt rock in which they rubbed the roast meat. After a while, the new moon rose 
up into the sky and the merry-making became even more intense. Some of the young 
girls jumped up and danced over to the boy of their choice, took the embroidered 
belt from their waists and placed it round the boy's neck, then led him off to 
dance near the bonfire.

Chen had grown up in a world of strict conventions and had never before seen an 
occasion of such open-minded and unrestrained merriment. With the singing 
ringing in his ears and emotions swirling through his heart, he found his face 
beginning to flush after only a few cups of horse's milk wine.

The music stopped momentarily, then started again, even faster than before. 
Everyone looked curiously towards Muzhuolun, and following the direction of 
their gaze, Chen saw the white-robed girl had stood up and was floating 
gracefully towards them. The crowd was greatly excited and a hubbub of 
discussion arose. Chen heard the cavalry commander beside him say: "The Fragrant 
Princess has chosen a lover. But who could possibly be worthy of her?"

That his beloved younger daughter had found a boy she loved was a great 
surprise and a great joy to Muzhuolun. He watched her intently with tears 
glistening in his eyes.

Princess Fragrance glided round and round, passing along the edge of the circle 
that had formed. In her hands, she held a brilliantly-embroidered belt and she 
softly sang:

"Please come out, You who picked the snow lily for me. I am searching for you, You 
who saved my little deer."

The words hit Chen's ears like a clap of thunder. A white hand touched his 
shoulder and the embroidered belt fell around his neck. The Princess tugged 
gently and Chen, scared out of his wits, followed her. The crowd cheered, and 
all around him people started singing.

In the hazy moonlight, Muzhuolun and Huo Qingtong failed to recognise Chen, and 
walked forward to congratulate him along with the others thinking he was an 
ordinary Muslim. Suddenly, they heard three blasts from a distant horn, the 
signal for danger, and the crowd immediately dispersed. Muzhuolun and Huo 
Qingtong returned to their seats. The Princess took Chen's hand and led him off 
to sit at the back of the crowd. Chen felt her soft body leaning towards him, 
and a light fragrance entered his nostrils, intoxicating his senses. He truly 
could not tell if he was in a dream or in heaven.

** 5 **

All eyes turned in the direction from which the horn blast had come. Two Muslim 
guards rode up and reported to Muzhuolun: "The Manchu General Zhao Wei has sent 
an envoy who requests an audience."

"All right," replied Muzhuolun. "Bring him here." The two riders galloped off, 
and returned with five other riders who dismounted about a hundred feet from the 
crowd.

The Manchu envoy was robust man and walked towards them with powerful strides. 
But his four attendents made the Muslims jump in surprise. All four were 
giants, a good two heads higher than ordinary men, and their bodies were broad 
and thick.

The envoy strode up to Muzhuolun and nodded at him. "Are you the head of the 
tribe?" he asked arrogantly. The Muslims were outraged, and several of the 
younger warriors drew their sabres. The envoy ignored him.

"I am under orders from General Zhao Wei to give you an ultimatum," he 
announced loudly in the Muslim tongue. "If you know what's good for you, you 
will surrender immediately, in which case your lives will be spared. Otherwise, 
our two armies will meet at daybreak the day after tomorrow and you will be 
completely annihilated. It will be too late then for regrets."

The crowd of Muslims sprang to their feet in rage, but Muzhuolun, with a wave 
of his hand, ordered them to be seated and turned to the envoy. "You come 
without reason or justification and kill our people, steal our property. The 
True God on High will punish you for your dishonourable behaviour. If you want 
to fight, we will fight. Even if our army is reduced to only one man, that man 
will still never surrender."

The Muslims raised their sabres and repeated his words in unison: "If you want 
to fight, we shall fight!" they roared. "Even if our army is reduced to only one 
man, he will never surrender!" The mood was sombre but determined. The Muslims 
knew the Manchu force was powerful and that in a battle to the finish, the 
chances were they would lose. But they were loyal believers in Islam, they loved 
freedom and would be no man's slave.

The envoy looked about him and sneered. "All right," he said. "The day after 
tomorrow, each and every one of you will die." He spat savagely onto the ground 
in a calculated insult, and three young Muslims leapt towards him. "Today, you 
are an envoy, so you will be allowed to leave safely," one of them shouted. "But 
when we meet on the battlefield, we will not be so polite."

The envoy's mouth twisted in anger, and his four giant attendants roughly 
pushed aside the three Muslim boys and took up positions around him.

"Ha!" The envoy cried in contempt. "You useless scum! We'll give you a taste of 
our Manchu skills!" He clapped his hands and one of the four giants glanced 
round and strode over to a poplar tree nearby to which several camels were 
tethered. He grasped its trunk in his arms and after a few rigorous shakes, 
pulled the tree bodily from the ground. Then he snapped the reins of one of the 
camels and gave it a kick on its rump, sending it racing away in great pain. 
When the camel was more than a hundred feet away, another of the giants sprinted 
after it and in a moment caught up with the animal. He swung the huge camel onto 
his shoulders, ran back towards the bonfire and set it back on its feet, then 
stood proudly beside it. "Huh!" exclaimed the third giant in contempt, and drove 
a fist at the camel's head. The animal swayed unsteadily and crashed to the 
ground. The fourth giant grabbed hold of its two hind legs and swung it round 
and round above his head, then with a shout let it go. The camel fell to earth 
sixty or seventy feet away.

The giants, known as the Four Tigers, were quadruplets, and their mother had 
died giving birth to them. Their father was a poor hunter in the forests of 
Manchuria, and with his wife dead, he had no milk to feed the four babies, but 
soon after, he heard a mournful cry outside in the forest and found a female 
tiger caught in a trap. He and a companion were tying the animal up when he 
happened to notice three tiger pups lying close by. In a flash of inspiration, 
he killed the pups and took the tiger back to his hut where he reared her, 
feeding her meat every day, and milking her to feed his four sons. From the 
start, they were uncommonly big and strong, and became more so as they grew. The 
only problem was that they were a little stupid and impetuous.

The Muslims were startled by this amazing show of strength, but unwilling to 
appear weak before the enemy, they roared out their defiance.

"What are you doing, killing a good camel? Are you inhuman?" someone shouted. 
The envoy curled his lips into another sneer. The crowd became even more 
incensed, and it looked as though he would be mobbed.

"So you're going to bully an envoy, are you?" he shouted.

Muzhuolun restrained the crowd with difficulty. "You are an envoy, but you 
ordered your men to kill one of our camels, which is a great insult," he said. 
"If you were not guests here, I would not let you get away with it. Leave 
immediately."

"Do you think we Manchus are afraid of you scum?" the envoy shouted. "If you 
have a reply, give it to me to pass on. I'm sure none of you would dare to go 
and hand it to General Zhao Wei personally." Another roar went up from the 
Muslims.

Huo Qingtong jumped to her feet. "You say none of us would dare to go to see 
General Zhao Wei. Huh! Every single person here would dare, men and girls 
alike." The envoy looked stunned for a second, then threw back his head and 
roared with laughter. "If any of these girls didn't die of fright on seeing 
General Zhao Wei, I would be amazed."

"Don't underestimate us," replied Huo Qingtong angrily. "We will send someone 
back with you immediately. Pick someone yourself. Whoever you choose will go. 
You will see what spirit we followers of Mohammed have," The Muslims roared 
their approval and everyone began shouting "Choose me! Choose me!"

"All right," said the envoy coldly. He wanted to find the weakest, most useless 
girl who would immediately burst into tears so that the Muslims would lose face 
completely. His eyes roved over the crowd, searching back and forth, and 
suddenly lit up. He walked over to Princess Fragrance and pointed at her. "Let 
her go!" he said.

The Princess glanced at him and slowly stood up. "For my tribe, for my brothers 
and sisters, I would go anywhere without fear. Allah the true God will surely 
protect me," she said.

Her apparent weakness had given way to calm dignity. Faced with her stunning 
beauty, the envoy involuntarily lowered his eyes, and he felt a tinge of regret 
at his choice. Muzhuolun, Huo Qingtong and the other Muslims, although proud 
that she had not displayed weakness, were nonetheless anxious. Huo Qingtong was 
particularly worried. Her sister knew no kung fu, and could not be allowed to 
enter the Tiger's Lair unprotected. "She is my sister," she said. "I will go in 
her place."

The envoy laughed. "I always knew the word of a girl could not be relied upon. 
If you don't have the nerve, why bother sending anyone? War or surrender, I can 
take the message for you."

"If we meet on the battlefield and if you don't run away, I'll let you see 
whether us girls are useless or not," said Huo Qingtong, livid with anger.

"I would naturally be merciful with a beauty such as you," he replied, smiling. 
The Muslims gnashed their teeth at his insolence.

"Sister, I will go," the Princess said to Huo Qingtong. "Don't be afraid." She 
pulled Chen up by the hand. "He will go with me."

In the light of the flames from the bonfire, Huo Qingtong suddenly recognised 
Chen and stared at him in shock. Chen surreptitiously motioned with his hand 
indicating that she should not reveal his identity yet, then turned to the 
envoy.

"We mean what we say," he said. "I will go alone with her to see General Zhao 
Wei. Unlike you, we do not require four giants to protect us. What use are these 
giants anyway?"

"A camel can carry a load of thousand catties, but a man can only carry one 
tenth as much," added the Princess. "Should the man ride the camel or the camel 
the man?" A great laugh went up from the crowd at this taunt.

"What are they laughing at?" one of the four giants asked the envoy.

"They say that you are useless even though you are large and strong."

Incensed, the giant beat his chest with his hands. "Who dares to match himself 
against me?" he roared.

"What use are you?" the envoy said to Chen. "You've just a little stripling. 
Even if you were ten times stouter, you would still not be as strong as he."

Chen decided this envoy needed to be cut down to size to save the face of the 
Muslims. He took three steps forward.

"I may be the most useless member of our tribe but I am still better than you 
Manchus," he said. "Tell those four hulks to come over here."

By this time, Muzhuolun had also recognized Chen. "Daughter, look who it is!" 
he cried to Huo Qingtong in surprise and joy. The girl did not answer. Muzhuolun 
looked over and saw her eyes brimming with tears, and realised both his 
daughters were in love with the same man. He wondered how Chen had met his 
younger daughter.

Next to the giants, Chen looked like a small child. He had come forward, the 
Muslims decided, for the honour of the Princess and the tribe, but was obviously 
no match for the giants. Chen raised his hands to the crowd.

"Brothers," he said. "These Manchurians are useless. Let me deal with them by 
myself."

The envoy translated his words to the four giants, who angrily sprang forward 
to grab Chen. Chen stood solid, smiling faintly, and the envoy hurriedly 
restrained the four.

"Since this gentleman wants a contest, there will be no blame if anyone gets 
hurt," the envoy said to Muzhuolun. "It must be one against one, no-one else is 
allowed to interfere."

Muzhuolun grunted once.

"What fun is there in one to one?" said Chen. "Tell the four of them to come at 
once."

"How many will there be on your side?" the envoy asked.

"How many? Why, just myself of course." A murmur ran through the crowd: he had 
gone too far this time.

The envoy laughed coldly. "Are you Muslims really so formidable? First Tiger," 
he said to the largest of the four giants. "You first." First Tiger strode 
forward. "You will take it in turns to punch each other. Neither is allowed to 
block or retreat. The first one to fall loses."

"One is not enough," Chen said. "If we are going to fight, let them all fight 
together."

The envoy began to suspect Chen had some plan worked out. "Don't worry," he 
said. "If you beat this one, the others will come after you of their own 
accord."

Chen smiled. "All right. It's all the same to me." The giant ripped off his 
upper clothing, exposing ranks of huge, rippling muscles. Huo Qingtong glanced 
furtively at her sister and saw her gazing intently at Chen, her eyes full of 
adoration and love. Huo Qingtong sighed and looked over at Chen, and as their 
eyes met, he smiled warmly. She blushed and looked away.

"We will draw lots to decide who strikes first," said the envoy.

"You are the guests. You may go first," replied Chen. He took two steps towards 
the giant and thrust out his chest, "Hit me!" he said.

"Please come over here," the envoy said to Huo Qingtong. "We two will act as 
judges. Whoever moves his feet, uses his arms to deflect a blow, bends or 
dodges away will be considered the loser."

Huo Qingtong walked over and stood with the envoy as Chen and the giant faced 
each other, less than an arm's length apart. The huge crowd stood silently 
about them, watching intently.

"The Manchurian gentleman strikes the first blow," the envoy called out. "The 
Muslim gentleman will strike the second blow. If both are still all right, then 
the Manchurian gentleman will strike again followed by the Muslim gentleman. 
Right! The Manchurian shall strike!"

The silence was broken by the sound of First Tiger breathing deeply. Joints all 
over his body cracked loudly as he concentrated his strength. Suddenly, the 
right side of his chest bulged outwards and his right arm swelled to almost 
twice its normal size. Chen leaned slightly forward. "Punch me," he said.

Several Muslim men moved behind Chen to catch him. Muzhuolun and Huo Qingtong 
silently prayed to Allah, but Princess Fragrance was unworried. If Chen said he 
was unafraid, there was certainly nothing to be afraid of.

The giant crouched slightly, then with a mighty roar slammed his right fist at 
Chen's chest. But at its maximum extension, the fist only lightly grazed the 
lapel of Chen's gown. Dumbfounded, the giant stared at Chen, neglecting even to 
withdraw his fist.

"Is that it?" Chen asked. The giant blushed deep red and hastily retracted his 
arm.

To the crowd, it looked as if the blow had struck home, and they were puzzled 
that Chen seemed unaffected. Muzhuolun and Huo Qingtong, however, knew that he 
had made use of Inner Strength Kung Fu to draw in his chest. Huo Qingtong smiled 
brilliantly and breathed a sigh of relief. The envoy, also a kung fu expert, 
scowled in annoyance.

Chen smiled. "Now it's my turn," he said.

"Go ahead!" First Tiger roared. He thrust out his hairy chest and Chen's fist 
shot out and punched it lightly. The giant felt no pain, but was aware of a 
great force pushing him backwards and put all his weight into countering it by 
leaning forward. Suddenly, Chen withdrew his fist, and with no time to stabilise 
himself, the giant toppled forward and crashed to the ground in a cloud of dust. 
All this took place in the blink of an eye. There was a stunned silence for a 
second, then the crowd erupted in applause and laughter. The envoy rushed over 
to help First Tiger who was wailing as blood poured from his mouth: two of his 
front teeth had snapped off.

Seeing their brother injured, the other three giants charged at Chen with a 
single howl of rage. Chen skipped around behind Third Tiger and shoved him at 
Second Tiger. Fourth Tiger lunged at Chen with his arms out-stretched, but Chen 
ducked down and ticked his armpit as he passed. Fourth Tiger was very ticklish, 
and he immediately rolled into a ball, laughing hysterically.

Chen danced amongst the four, making them look foolish without even hitting 
them. The envoy could see that Chen was a martial arts master and tried vainly 
to stop the fight. But once roused, the four Tigers were impossible to stop. 
They closed in on Chen again, First Tiger from in front while the other three 
closed off his line of retreat behind. Chen waited until First Tiger was within 
arm's length then toppled him over backwards with a push, grabbed his leg and 
hurled him away so that he landed head-first in the hole where the tree he had 
up-rooted had stood.

Fourth Tiger roared and kicked out with his right leg, but Chen grabbed his 
trousers and shirt, lifted him up and with a solid kick sent him flying through 
the air. The giant landed with a thump on the corpse of the camel he had himself 
killed.

While Fourth Tiger was still in the air, Second and Third Tiger charged at Chen 
from opposite directions. Chen waited until they were almost upon him before 
leaping out of the way, and the two giants smashed into each other and toppled 
like a great pagoda to the ground. Before they could clamber to their feet, Chen 
tied their two queues together, then with a laugh, he walked back to Princess 
Fragrance's side. The Princess clapped her hands in delight as the other Muslims 
cheered and shouted.

The Four Tigers picked themselves up and the envoy rushed over and struggled to 
undo the knot in Second and Third Tigers' hair. The four giants looked across 
at Chen, not in hate but in respect. First Tiger raised a thumb in Chen's 
direction.

"You're good," he said. "I concede defeat." He bowed, and the other three 
giants followed suit. Chen hurriedly returned the compliment. Seeing their 
simple nature, he began to rather regret the way he had played with them.

Fourth Tiger suddenly ran over and brought back the camel's corpse while Third 
Tiger led their horses over to Muzhuolun.

"It was wrong of us to kill your camel," he said. "We give these four horses to 
you in compensation." Muzhuolun declined the offer with thanks.

The envoy was extremely embarrassed by this turn of events. "Let's go!" he 
shouted to the Four Tigers and leapt onto his horse. He turned to Princess 
Fragrance.

"Do you really dare to go?" he asked.

"What is there to be scared of?" she replied. She walked over to Muzhuolun. 
"Father, write out a reply and I will deliver it for you." Muzhuolun hesitated. 
If she didn't go, the whole tribe would lose face, but if he let her go, he 
would worry endlessly. He motioned Chen over, and led him by the hand into the 
tent with Huo Qingtong and her sister following behind. Once inside, Muzhuolun 
immediately hugged him.

"Great Helmsman," he said. "What fortuitous wind is it that has blown you 
here?"

"I was on my way to the Tianshan Mountains on personal business and heard some 
important news which I wanted to pass on to you. By coincidence, I met your 
daughter, who brought me here." Princess Fragrance was dumb-struck at hearing 
her father call Chen 'Great Helmsman', and seeing the shocked expression on her 
face, Chen said: "There is something I must apologise for. I did not tell you 
that I am Chinese."

"Great Helmsman Chen is a good friend of our tribe," Muzhuolun added. "He 
recovered our sacred Koran for us. He has saved your sister's life and recently 
intercepted the Manchu army's rations which slowed their advance and gave us 
time to collect our forces. The favours he has rendered us are truly 
uncountable." Chen modestly declined the compliments.

"I don't blame you at all," the Princess said with a smile. "I'm sure you 
didn't tell me who you were because you did not want to bring up all the things 
you have done for us."

"That Manchu envoy was unforgivably arrogant," said Muzhuolun. "It was 
fortunate that you intervened, Great Helmsman. You certainly deflated his pride. 
He chose my daughter to be our envoy. What do you think we should do?"

Chen was reluctant to meddle in the affairs of the tribe. "I come from the 
interior of China and know nothing of the situation here, sir," he said. "If you 
decide that she should go, then I will do my utmost to protect her. If you feel 
it would be better for her not to go, then we will think of some other way to 
deal with him."

"Father, you and my sister worry everyday about the affairs of the tribe," 
Princess Fragrance interrupted. "Making one trip as an envoy is no big affair. 
And if I don't go, the Manchus will laugh at us."

"I am just afraid that they will want to harm you, sister," said Huo Qingtong.

"Every time you go out on the battle field you risk your life, so it is only 
right that I should risk my life this once," the Princess replied. She looked at 
Chen. "He is so capable, if he goes with me I won't be the slightest bit afraid, 
not at all."

Huo Qingtong could see how deep her sister's feelings were for Chen, and an 
inexpressible emotion swept through her heart.

"Father," she said. "Let her go."

"All right then, Master Chen, I entrust my young daughter to you." Chen blushed 
and Princess Fragrance's eyes, as bright as autumn rain, gazed up at him. Huo 
Qingtong looked away.

Muzhuolun wrote out a reply which said simply: "We will fight. Allah will 
protect us." Chen nodded his head in approval. Muzhuolun handed the note to 
Princess Fragrance, then kissed her cheeks.

"Allah will protect you, sister," said Huo Qingtong. "I hope you come back 
soon." The Princess hugged and thanked her. A feast was organised to entertain 
the Manchu envoy, after which there was music and dancing to see off the guests, 
then the envoy raised his hand and galloped off with Princess Fragrance and the 
others following behind. Huo Qingtong watched the seven figures disappear into 
the darkness and felt a great emptiness in her chest as if her heart had 
disappeared with them into the infinite desert.

"Your sister is very brave," Muzhuolun said. She nodded, then suddenly covered 
her face and ran inside the tent.

** 6 **

They galloped for most of the night, and arrived at the Manchu camp at dawn. 
The envoy ushered Princess Fragrance and Chen into a tent to rest then went off 
alone to see General Zhao Wei. As he bowed before the general, he noticed a 
military official seated beside him wearing the uniform of a Deputy Commander of 
the Imperial Bodyguard.

"My report, General," he said. "I delivered the ultimatum and their reply was 
perverse. They refuse to surrender and have sent someone to present you with 
their answer."

Zhao Wei grunted. "These people are truly ignorant unto death," he said, and 
turned to one of his attendants. "Prepare for an audience," he ordered. Horns 
blew and drums rolled and all the senior officers of the army gathered in the 
great tent. Then three hundred armoured troops formed two lines outside and the 
Muslim envoy was summoned.

Princess Fragrance walked fearlessly in ahead of Chen. The officers recognized 
them instantly as the two they had seen the day before crossing their lines, 
and all felt surprised. Zhao Wei had planned to overawe the envoy with a show of 
military might, and was taken aback for a moment when a beautiful girl appeared. 
Princess Fragrance bowed before the general, then took out her father's note and 
offered it to him with both hands.

One of Zhao Wei's bodyguards moved forward to accept the letter. As he neared 
her, he was overwhelmed by her sweet fragrance and lowered his head, not daring 
to look at her directly. His eyes lighted on her flawless white hands, and he 
stood stock still, completely flustered.

"Bring the letter here!" Zhao Wei shouted.

The bodyguard started in fright, then stumbled and almost fell. The Princess 
placed the letter in his hands and smiled at him. The bodyguard gazed at her, 
oblivious of all else. Only after Princess pointed at Zhao Wei and gave him a 
slight push, did he go and place the letter on the table in front of the 
general.

Zhao Wei was furious at the sight of his bodyguard so spell-bound. "Take him 
out and behead him!" he roared. Several soldiers ran forward and dragged the 
bodyguard outside the tent, and a moment later, a bloody head was brought in on 
a plate and presented to the general.

"Put it on public display!" Zhao Wei ordered, and the soldiers began to retire. 
But the Princess was heart-broken at the sight of such cruelty and at the 
thought that the bodyguard had died because of her. She took the plate from the 
soldiers and gazed at the head, tears falling one after another down her cheeks 
onto the floor.

The officers in the tent were by now completely carried away by the sight of 
her, and any one of them would have willingly died for her. "If she cried before 
my head, would not death be welcome?" they thought. Suddenly, the soldier who 
had performed the execution, greatly distressed at the sight of her crying, 
shouted: "I did wrong to kill him. Don't cry!" He slashed his sword across his 
own neck and fell to the ground, dead.

Princess Fragrance became even more upset. Chen was uneasy about the situation: 
an envoy should not cry in such a fashion, and he leaned forward to comfort 
her.

Zhao Wei was a man of great cruelty and brutality, but even his heart softened 
at the sight of her tears. "Bury these two properly," he said to his attendants. 
He opened the letter and read it with a grunt.

"Right," he said. "We fight tomorrow. You may leave."

"General," the officer sitting next to him suddenly interrupted. "I think this 
girl may be the one the Emperor wants."

Chen's attention had been directed entirely at Princess Fragrance, but hearing 
the officer speak, he looked up and saw it was Zhang Zhaozhong. At the same 
instant Zhang also recognised Chen, despite his Muslim disguise.

They stared at each other, amazed at finding the other in such a place.

"Well, Great Helmsman," Zhang said, and laughed coldly. "Fancy meeting you 
here."

Chen grabbed Princess Fragrance's hand and turned to leave, but as he did so, 
Zhang bounded over and struck out at him with all his might. Chen picked the 
Princess up in his left hand, deflected Zhang's blow with his right and charged 
out of the tent with Zhang close on his heels. None of the other officers or 
soldiers intervened to stop Chen. All were dazzled by the Princess, and 
considered this Imperial Guardsman was interfering in matters that should not 
concern him.

Chen ran for their horses, and as Zhang closed in, he threw six chess pieces at 
him. "I'll keep him busy," he shouted to Princess Fragrance. "You escape on the 
horse!"

"No, I'll wait for you to beat him."

Chen had no time to explain, and dumped her on the saddle of the chestnut horse 
as Zhang dodged the projectiles and attacked again. Not daring to face him head 
on, Chen crouched down underneath the white horse and punched it in the belly. 
The horse kicked out with its back legs in fright, straight at Zhang, who just 
managed to jump clear.

"Go!" shouted Chen as Zhang grabbed for Princess Fragrance, and her horse leapt 
forward just in time. Chen knew he was no match for Zhang on equal terms, so he 
drew his dagger and thrust out with it. Zhang caught his wrist and the two fell 
to the ground, rolling together, neither daring to let go of the other.

The officers crowded out of the tent to watch, and the Four Tigers, who had 
great respect for Chen and were annoyed at the way he was being treated, ran 
over to help him.

Chen's strength was fading as he grappled with Zhang, and when he saw the four 
giants running over he thought: "Oh no, this is it." But instead of attacking 
him, the four grabbed Zhang and pinned him to the ground, shouting: "Get away!" 
All Zhang's skill was not enough to counter the immense strength of the Four 
Tigers, and Chen leapt to his feet, mounted the white horse and galloped off 
after Princess Fragrance. Zhang stared after them helplessly as they disappeared 
into the distance.

The two horses raced like the wind and were soon beyond the army's furthest 
guard posts. Chen's fight with Zhang had been short but extremely intense, and 
after riding on for a while, he gradually felt his control slipping. Princess 
Fragrance saw he was in difficulty, and noticed his wrist was covered in black 
and purple stripes.

"They won't be able to catch us now," she said. "Let's dismount and rest for a 
while." Chen fell off his horse, and lay on the ground, shuddering and gasping. 
The Princess pulled a container of sheep's milk from her leather satchel and 
rubbed some onto his wrist. Chen gradually recovered, but just as they were 
getting ready to start out again, they heard the sound of galloping hooves and 
saw several dozen soldiers riding after them. They leapt onto their horses 
without bothering to pick up their belongings and sprang forward. A moment 
later, Chen noticed a dust cloud rising in front, and cursing their bad luck, 
galloped on ahead of the Princess. As they rode closer, he saw that there were 
only seven or eight riders in the group ahead, and his anxiety eased. He reined 
in his horse and took out his Pearl Strings to prepare for the riders as they 
closed in.

Suddenly, one of the riders shouted: "Great Helmsman, how are you?" Chen looked 
through the dust and saw it was a hunchback.

"Tenth Brother!" he yelled, overjoyed. "Come here, quick!" As he spoke, the 
first arrow from the pursuing Manchu troops flew towards them.

** 7 **

"Enemy soldiers are chasing us," Chen shouted. "Hold them off for a while!"

"Excellent!" Zhang Jin exclaimed. 'Leopard' Wei galloped up as well and the two 
charged at the Manchu horsemen. As Chen watched in surprise, Wen, Luo Bing, Xu, 
Zhou Qi, and Yu Yutong galloped passed him with cries of greeting on their way 
to engage the Manchu troops. Xin Yan raced up behind, leapt off his horse and 
kowtowed before Chen.

"I have arrived, master," he announced, standing up.

Wen and the others quickly killed or dispersed the Manchu troops, but in the 
distance they could see a much larger force heading towards them. They rode back 
to Chen.

"Which way shall we go?" Wen asked.

Chen looked at the size of the pursuing enemy force and decided it would be 
best to try and lead them away from the main Muslim army to the west.

"South," he said, pointing with his hand. The others complied automatically. 
They were all riding good horses, and slowly drew away from their pursuers as 
they galloped across the featureless desert stretching out about them. Chen 
wondered why General Zhao Wei would send such a huge force after the two of 
them, and suddenly recalled Zhang Zhaozhong's remark: "I think this girl is the 
one the Emperor wants." As he considered the significance of this, he noticed 
another column of soldiers riding round to head them off from the south. The 
heroes reined in their horses, uncertain of what to do.

"We must make some sort of cover quickly, and wait until dark to escape," said 
Xu.

"Yes," Chen agreed. "Travelling across the desert in daylight is impossible." 
They dismounted and used their weapons and bare hands to dig a large hole in the 
sand.

"You go in first, sister," Luo Bing said to Princess Fragrance. But not 
understanding Chinese, she simply smiled back and made no move.

The Manchu troops gradually closed in upon them, and Luo Bing grabbed Princess 
Fragrance and jumped into the hole with the rest close behind. Wen and the 
other heroes had brought bows and arrows with them and they quickly fired off a 
volley of arrows, downing a dozen or so soldiers. As one column of Manchu troops 
galloped up to the mouth of the hole, Wen shot an arrow at the commander which 
hit him in the chest, passed right through him and flew on for several dozen 
yards further before falling to the ground. The other soldiers were so 
frightened by this demonstration of power that they turned and fled.

The first attack had been beaten back, but looking round them, the heroes saw 
they were completely surrounded.

"This hole is deep enough, but we should start making it bigger," Xu said. 
Seven or eight feet below the loose sand was firm earth, and Chen and the others 
dug away at the sides, piling the sand up on top as a defensive wall.

Zhang Jin pointed to the dead Manchu soldiers lying just beyond the hole. 
"Let's go and collect their weapons," he suggested to Xin Yan. The two leapt out 
of the hole and collected seven or eight bows and a large batch of arrows from 
around the corpses.

Only now did Chen have a chance to introduce Princess Fragrance to the heroes. 
When they heard that she was Huo Qingtong's sister, they all welcomed her, but 
the language barrier made it impossible for them to talk to her. Chen rested for 
a while, and gradually his strength returned. He ordered the other heroes to 
keep a close watch on the Manchu forces and told them they would try to break 
out after nightfall.

** 8 **

Chen had been surprised to see 'Leopard' Wei, whom he has sent along with 
'Pagoda' Yang to Beijing to discover what the Manchu court was up to. "What are 
you doing here, Ninth Brother?" he asked. "And where is Twelfth Brother?"

Wei jumped down from the edge of the hole to report to the Great Helmsman.

"Twelfth Brother and I went Beijing as ordered, but for a long time we 
discovered nothing," he began. "Then one day, we happened to see that traitor 
Zhang Zhaozhong and Master Ma Zhen in the street."

Chen nodded. "So they went to Beijing," he said. "I was wondering how Zhang 
managed to escape. Master Ma told us he would take him back to Wudang mountain."

"Have you seen Zhang recently?" asked Xu, who was listening.

"Just a short while ago. He is very dangerous." Chen told them what had 
happened at the Manchu camp.

"Master Ma and Zhang were walking alone talking animatedly, and they didn't see 
us," Wei continued. "We suspected they may have joined forces against us, and 
carefully followed them to a house in an alleyway. We waited until after dark, 
but they didn't come out again, so we decided to go in to have a look. We two 
are no match even for Zhang by himself, let alone he and his martial brother 
together, so once over the wall into the courtyard, we lay dead still, not 
daring to even breath. After a long time, we heard talking in a room nearby and 
went across to investigate. Through a crack in the window, we saw Master Ma 
lying on a kang while that traitor Zhang paced back and forth. The two were 
arguing. We didn't dare to look for too long and squatted down to listen. It 
seems Zhang had insisted he had to go to Beijing to sort out a few private 
financial matters before he could go to Wudang Mountain, and Master Ma had 
agreed. A few days after they got there, the Emperor returned to Beijing as 
well. Zhang said that the Emperor had ordered him to go to the Muslim regions on 
important business."

"What important business?" Chen asked quickly.

"He didn't say exactly, but he apparently had to go and look for someone." Chen 
frowned. "Master Ma spoke to him very sternly and told him he should 
immediately resign from his official post, but Zhang said he could not refuse an 
Imperial edict. If he did, he said, he was afraid the whole of Wudang Mountain 
would be stamped flat by the Emperor's troops. Master Ma told him that the whole 
country was under the heel of the Manchus, and that by comparison the 
destruction of Wudang Mountain would be nothing to grieve about. The more they 
argued, the more adamant they both became. Eventually, Master Ma jumped off the 
kang, absolutely furious, and shouted: 'I promised our friends of the Red Flower 
Society!' to which Zhang replied: 'Those rebellious bandits. Why take them 
seriously?' Then there was a metallic sound as if Master Ma had drawn his sword. 
I had a look through the window crack and saw Master Ma with sword in hand, his 
face black with rage, as he roared: 'Don't you remember our teacher's last 
wishes? You ungrateful pupil! You are truly shameless, becoming a running dog of 
the Manchu court. I will fight you to the death.' Zhang appeared to soften. He 
sighed and said: 'If that's the way you feel, we'll leave for Wudang Mountain 
tomorrow.' Master Ma then resheathed his sword and went to sleep on the kang 
while Zhang sat on the chair nearby. He appeared undecided about something. His 
body shook slightly. Twelfth Brother and I were worried he would discover us, 
and wanted to wait for him to sleep before leaving. Almost an hour passed, but 
still he didn't sleep. He got up several times and then sat down again. Finally, 
he bit his teeth together and said softly: 'Brother Ma.' Master Ma was by this 
time sleeping very soundly and snoring slightly. Zhang quietly walked over to 
the kang..."

Princess Fragrance suddenly let out a scream. She didn't understand what Wei 
was saying, but she could feel the dark, sinister tone of his voice, and was 
terrified by it. She took hold of Chen's hand and snuggled up to him. Zhou Qi 
glanced at her in hatred.

Wei continued. "Zhang went to the kang, then lunged forward and sprang back 
again. Master Ma gave a wail of agony and jumped up, blood pouring from both his 
eye sockets. Both his eyes had been gouged out by the dog-hearted traitor."

Absolutely enraged, Chen leapt up and slammed his fist into the side of the pit 
sending sand flying in all directions.

"I swear I will kill that traitor," he said through clenched teeth. Princess 
Fragrance had never seen him so angry, and she tugged on his sleeve in fear.

Wei's voice shook as he went on: "Master Ma went silent. His face looked 
horrible. He walked slowly towards Zhang, then suddenly kicked out with his leg. 
Zhang leapt out of the way, and Master Ma's foot slammed into the kang. Zhang 
looked a little shaken, and tried to get out, but Master Ma made it to the door 
first and stood straining his ears to hear Zhang's movements. Zhang suddenly 
laughed, and Master Ma kicked out with his left leg in the direction of the 
sound. But Zhang stuck his sword out in front of him and Ma's leg hit the blade 
and was cut clean off." Zhou Qi ground her teeth and stabbed the walls of the 
pit with her sword.

"By this time, Twelth Brother and I could stand it no longer. We burst through 
the window into the room and fought with Zhang for only a second before he 
escaped, probably scared that we were not alone. We chased after him, but 
Twelfth Brother was hit by his golden needles, and I had to help him back into 
the house. I tried to stop Master Ma's bleeding, but he died after saying only a 
few words.

"What did he say?" asked Chen. A cold wind suddenly blew down on them and they 
all shivered.

"He said 'Tell Brother Lu and Yu Yutong to avenge my death!' Just then, some 
people outside who had heard the fighting started shouting, so I helped Twelfth 
Brother out and we returned to our lodgings. The next day, I went back to have 
a look and saw Master Ma's body had already been taken away. Twelfth Brother had 
been hit by five golden needles, but I extracted them for him and he's now 
convalescing in Twin Willows Lane in Beijing.

"Zhang said the Emperor wanted him to come to the Northwest to look for 
someone, and I thought perhaps it could be your teacher, Great Helmsman. I 
remember you said once that there were two important items relating to the 
Emperor being kept by your teacher, Master Yuan. So I came out with the others 
to warn him."

"How is Twelfth Brother?" Chen asked.

"His wounds are serious, but luckily not fatal," Wei replied.

By now, the cold wind was blowing hard, and thick, leaden clouds were gathering 
above them.

"It's going to snow soon," Princess Fragrance said, and moved even closer to 
Chen.

Zhou Qi could control herself no longer. "What did she say?" she demanded.

Chen was surprised by her outraged tone. "She said it's going to snow."

"Huh! How would she know?" She paused for a moment, then suddenly added: "Great 
Helmsman, just who it is that you love? Sister Huo Qingtong is a nice girl and I 
won't allow her to be cheated."

"Mistress Huo Qingtong is indeed a nice person and we all have a great deal of 
respect for her...." Chen began.

"Then why did you cast her aside as soon as you met her beautiful sister?" Zhou 
Qi interrupted.

Chen blushed, and Luo Bing came to his rescue. "The Great Helmsman, like the 
rest of us, has only met Sister Huo Qingtong once. She is just an ordinary 
friend. You can't start talking about whether he loves her or not."

"What are you supporting him for?" Zhou Qi demanded, even more agitated. "She 
gave him an antique dagger, and the way the Great Helmsman looked at her, it 
was plainly a case of love at first sight....."

Princess Fragrance listened to them talking excitedly and looked on with her 
big round eyes, full of curiosity.

"Mistress Huo Qingtong already had a suitor before she met me," Chen said. 
"Even if I had such an intention, what would be the point of unnecessarily 
making things difficult for myself?"

Zhou Qi stared at him in surprise. "Is that true?"

"Why would I deceive you?"

"Well, that's all right, then," she said, immediately changing her tone. "You 
are a good man. I was wrong to accuse you. I'm sorry." The others laughed at her 
frankness. Zhou Qi took Princess Fragrance's hand and squeezed it. Suddenly, 
they felt a wave of coldness on their faces and looked up to see snow flakes as 
big as goose feathers floating down towards them.

"You were right," she said. "It's snowing!"

"If we don't get reinforcements to rescue us, we are going to die here," said 
Luo Bing.

"Master Muzhuolun will certainly send out scouts to look for his daughter and 
the Great Helmsman when they fail to return," Xu replied.

"I`m sure they have," Chen said. "But we have come so far south, I'm afraid 
they may have difficulty finding us."

"Well then, we will have to send someone out to get help."

"I'll go!" volunteered Xin Yan.

Chen thought for a moment and then nodded. He asked Princess Fragrance to write 
a note to her father, and Xin Yan took a writing brush and some ink from his 
knapsack and gave them to her.

"Take Sister Luo Bing's white horse," Chen said to Xin Yan. "We will make a 
diversionary attack to the east, and you can make a break for it to the west." 
He then gave him directions to the Muslim camp. On the signal, the heroes leapt 
out of the pit and charged eastwards with shouts and battle cries leaving only 
Zhou Qi and Princess Fragrance behind. Xin Yan led the white horse out of the 
hole, jumped onto its back and galloped off westwards. The Manchu troops loosed 
off a few arrows but none came even close to hitting him. Once the heroes were 
sure Xin Yan had escaped, they retreated back to the pit.

By this time, the snow was falling heavily and the ground about them had been 
transformed into a vast white carpet. They settled down for the night, but all 
slept badly except for Princess Fragrance was still fast asleep when dawn broke. 
Her hair and shoulders were covered with snow which shuddered slightly as she 
breathed. Luo Bing laughed gently. "This child is not the least bit concerned," 
she said.

Time dragged by and Xu frowned deeply. "Why is there still no sign of a rescue 
attempt?" he asked slowly.

"Could Xin Yan have met some trouble on the road?" said Wen.

"What I'm worried about is something else," replied Xu.

"What is it?" Zhou Qi demanded. "Stop mumbling and get on with it."

"Great Helmsman, who makes the decisions in the Muslim camp?" Xu asked. "Master 
Muzhuolun or Mistress Huo Qingtong?"

"Both, apparently. Master Muzhuolun discusses everything with his daughter."

"If Huo Qingtong refused to send out soldiers, then... things would be 
difficult," Xu continued. The others saw what he was getting at.

"How could you say such a thing about Sister Huo Qingtong?" Zhou Qi demanded, 
jumping up. "Doesn't she already have a suitor? And even if she was jealous of 
her sister, would she refuse to save the man she loved?"

"When women become jealous, they are capable of anything," answered Xu. Zhou Qi 
began shouting angrily, and Princess Fragrance woke with a start. The heroes 
had only met Huo Qingtong once and although she seemed nice, they knew very 
little about her. Xu's words seemed not unreasonable.

** 9 **

After breaking out of the ring, Xin Yan followed the route Chen had indicated, 
galloped to the Muslim camp and presented the letter to Muzhuolun. The old man 
had been frantic with worry, and jumped up joyfully as he read his daughter's 
note.

"Call the troops together!" he ordered.

"How many Manchu troops were there surrounding you?" Huo Qingtong asked Xin Yan.

"Four or five thousand altogether."

Huo Qingtong bit her lip and paced from one side of the tent to the other, deep 
in thought. Horns sounded outside as the soldiers began to gather, and Muzhuolun 
was just about to go out to join them when Huo Qingtong suddenly turned to him.

"Father, we can't go," she said.

Muzhuolun looked at her in astonishment, uncertain if he had heard correctly. 
"What....what did you say?"

"I said we can't go."

He was about to fly into a rage, but then remembered how clear-thinking and 
intelligent his daughter usually was. "Why?" he asked.

"Zhao Wei is a very capable general. He would not dispatch four or five 
thousand troops just to capture our two envoys. It must be a trap."

"Even if it is a trap, how can we stand by and let the Manchus kill your sister 
and our Red Flower Society friends?"

Huo Qingtong hung her head and said nothing. "I am afraid that if we go, we 
will not only fail to rescue them, but will sacrifice several thousand more 
lives as well." she said finally.

Muzhuolun slapped his thigh in exasperation. "But she is your own flesh and 
blood!" he cried. "And we owe Master Chen and the others a great debt. Even if 
we died trying to save them, what would it matter? You....you...." He was both 
angry and hurt by his daughter's ungratefulness.

"Father, listen to me. It may be possible to save them and win a great victory 
as well."

Muzhuolun's expression changed immediately. "Well, why didn't you say so 
earlier, child?" he said. "How can we do it? I will do whatever you say."

"Father, are you truly willing to do whatever I say?"

"I was talking nonsense a moment ago. Don't pay any attention. How should we 
proceed? Tell me quickly!"

"Well, give me the Command Arrow. I will command this battle." Muzhuolun 
hesitated for a second then handed it to her. Huo Qingtong knelt to receive it, 
then prostrated herself on the ground, praying to Allah.

"Father," she said when she stood up. "You and Brother must follow my orders."

"If you can save them and beat the Manchus, I will do anything," he replied.

"All right, then it is settled." She walked out of the tent with her father and 
over to the troops, already waiting in ranks with their commanders.

"Brothers!" Muzhuolun called out to them. "Today, we will fight the Manchus to 
the death. The battle will be commanded by Mistress Huo Qingtong."

The soldiers raised their sabres and roared: "May the True God protect her and 
lead us to victory!"

"Right," said Huo Qingtong flourishing her Command Arrow. "Everyone return to 
their tents to rest." The commanders led their troops away. Muzhuolun was too 
stunned to speak.

They went back inside the tent and Xin Yan prostrated himself before Huo 
Qingtong and kowtowed frantically.

"Mistress, if you don't send troops to save them, my master will surely die," 
he pleaded.

"Get up. I didn't say I wouldn't save them."

"There are only nine of them, of whom your sister does not know kung fu," he 
cried. "But the enemy is numbered in thousands. If we delay even for a moment, 
they will be, they will be..."

"Have the Manchu armoured troops charged them yet?" Huo Qingtong interrupted 
him.

"Not when I had left, but I'm afraid they will have done so by now." Huo 
Qingtong frowned silently. Xin Yan cried even more mournfully and Muzhuolun 
paced about the tent, uncertain of what to do.

"Father, have you ever seen a wolf trap? A piece of mutton is fastened to a 
metal hook, the wolf bites on it and pulls and the trap snaps shut. Zhao Wei 
sees us as the wolf and my sister as the mutton. No matter how brave the Red 
Flower Society fighters are, they could not stop four or five thousand 
determined soldiers. That means that Zhao Wei has purposely decided not to order 
an attack." Muzhuolun nodded. "The Manchus let this young man out on purpose to 
get us to send a rescue force. Otherwise how could he have made it alone through 
so many troops?"

"Well, let us attack Zhao Wei's forces from the side and catch them unawares," 
he replied.

"They have more than forty thousand troops while we only have fifteen 
thousand," she pointed out. "In a pitched battle we would certainly lose."

"So from what you say, your sister and the others are bound to die," Muzhuolun 
exclaimed. "I cannot bear to lose your sister, and I refuse to leave our 
friends in danger. I will take five hundred men with me. If we can rescue them, 
it will be because of Allah's help. If we cannot, then we will die with them."

Huo Qingtong said nothing.

Xin Yan began frantically kowtowing before her once more, his forehead striking 
the ground heavily. "If our master has done anything to offend you mistress, 
please forgive him," he cried.

Huo Qingtong realised he suspected her motives. "Don't talk such nonsense," she 
said angrily.

Xin Yan looked startled for a second, then jumped up. "If you are determined to 
be so cruel, I will go and die with my master," he said. He ran out of the tent, 
leapt on the white horse and galloped away.

"We must go and help them!" Muzhuolun pleaded.

"Father, the Chinese have a saying that it is better to rely on a good plan 
than on bravery. We are out-numbered, so we must make use of surprise if we are 
to gain victory. We must beat Zhao Wei's trap with a trap of our own."

"Really?" said Muzhuolun, only half believing her.

"Father!" she exclaimed, her voice shaking. "Don't say that you suspect me 
too?"

Muzhuolun saw the tears brimming in her eyes and his heart softened. "All 
right," he said. "We will do as you say. Now send out the troops immediately."

Huo Qingtong thought for a moment, then said to an attendant: "Strike up the 
drums." The drums rolled and the commanders of each of the military units 
entered the tent. By now, the snow was falling thickly outside the tent and was 
already several inches thick on the ground.

Huo Qingtong flourished the Command Arrow and announced: "The first unit of the 
Green Flag Brigade will go to the western side of the Great Gobi Quagmire, and 
the second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth units of the Green Flag will gather 
together the local herdsmen and farmers around the other sides." She gave the 
commanders their orders and the units departed one by one. Muzhuolun was unhappy 
that some of their best troops had been sent off to do construction work rather 
than being sent to the rescue.

"The first, second and third units of the White Flag Brigade will go to Yarkand 
City and to the Black River, and will make various preparations as I will 
indicate," Huo Qingtong continued. "The first unit of the Black Flag and the 
Kazakh unit will go up into the hills along the Black River. The Mongol unit 
will station itself on Yingqipan Mountain." She gave each commander his 
individual orders, after which they bowed and left.

"Father, you will command the forces to the east. Brother, you will command the 
forces to the west, I myself will command the second unit of the Black Flag 
Brigade and coordinate things from the centre. The general campaign plan is like 
this..." She was just about to explain in detail when Muzhuolun stopped her.

"Who is going to rescue your sister and the others?" he demanded.

"The third unit of the Black Flag will ride in from the east to save them. The 
fourth unit of the Black Flag will do the same from the west. When you meet 
Manchu troops you must do as I indicate in these orders." She quickly wrote out 
two notes and handed them to the commanders. "Your units must have the best 
mounts available," she added. The two Black Flag unit commanders bowed and 
retired.

"You have sent thirteen thousand of our best soldiers off to do unimportant 
work and two thousand young boys and old men to effect a rescue. What is the 
meaning of this?" Muzhuolun demanded.

"My plan is to...." Huo Qingtong began, but Muzhuolun angrily cut her off.

"I don't believe you any more! You love Master Chen, but he loves your sister, 
so you intend to let both of them die. You.... you're heartless!"

Huo Qingtong almost fainted from shock. Muzhuolun stared at her for a second, 
then stormed out of the tent shouting: "I will go and die with your sister!" He 
leapt onto his horse and galloped away into the desert, brandishing his sabre.

Her brother saw how distressed she was and tried to comfort her. "Father is 
very confused," he said. "He didn't know what he was saying. Don't worry."

** 10 **

Xin Yan rode back to where Chen and the others were waiting, crying all the 
way. The beseiging Manchu forces did little to stop him as he passed, loosing 
off a dozen or so arrows as a matter of form only. He jumped off the white 
horse, led it onto the pit then sat down and began sobbing loudly.

"Don't cry, what's the matter?" Zhou Qi asked.

Xu sighed. "Is there any need to ask? Huo Qingtong refuses to send troops to 
rescue us."

"I kowtowed before her...I pleaded..." Xin Yan sobbed. The others were silent.

Princess Fragrance asked Chen why he was crying. Not wishing to hurt her, he 
said: "He couldn't break through to get help." The Princess took out her 
handkerchief and gave it to him.

The morning of the third day dawned with the snow still falling heavily and the 
Manchu forces showing no signs of attacking. Xu was greatly puzzled. He turned 
to Xin Yan and said: "What questions did Mistress Huo Qingtong ask you?"

"She asked how may Manchu troops were surrounding us and whether the armoured 
units had attacked yet."

Xu was excited. "We're saved! We're saved!" he exclaimed happily. The others 
stared at him uncomprehendingly.

"I was stupid to have doubted Mistress Huo Qingtong," he said. "Truly small-
minded. She is much, much wiser than I."

"What?" asked Zhou Qi.

"If the Manchu armoured cavalry attacked us, would we stand a chance?"

"Hmm," Zhou Qi replied. "Yes, it's strange."

"And even if they didn't have armoured cavalry, if so many thousands of 
soldiers charged at once, could the eight of us hold them off? We would be 
trampled to mincemeat." The others agreed the Manchus had been remarkably 
restrained.

Chen suddenly understood. "Yes, that's it!" he cried. "They have held back on 
purpose in the hope of luring the Muslim forces in to try and rescue us. But 
Mistress Huo Qingtong has guessed it and refused to be tricked."

"Whether she's tricked or not, we're still finished," commented Zhang Jin.

"No, we're not," Chen replied. "She is certain to think of a way out."

Their spirits were suddenly revived, and leaving two of the heroes to keep 
guard, the others settled down to rest at the bottom of the pit
  
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