Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain by Jin Yong (34 page)

"I was outside Uncle Pastoral's room with the parcel in no time, but found all the lights had been extinguished in his room. The door and windows were securely fastened. As the whole matter might fall through any minute, tarrying was therefore out of the question. Immediately, I cried through the window, 'Father! Father!' No response came from the inside, which set me wondering, 'He is so martially accomplished, he should be awakened even from a deep sleep. He is most probably feigning.'

"The more I turned over the matter in my mind, the more panic-stricken I became. I began to feel that the acolytes of the Dragon Lodge were already there, lying in ambush, ready to spring up and charge, forcing me to hand them the poniard. At length, I knocked on the door, blurting out, 'Father! My father wants me to return the parcel to you. We have another urgent matter to address, and cannot help your esteemed self. Your humble son-in-law has not opened up the bundle.' I knocked on the door a few more times, but there was no response. It was deadly quiet inside. I grew desperate. I whipped out my broadsword, prised the door open with it, and forced an entry into the room. Then I lit the candle. I was immobilized with fear. Uncle Pastoral was lying stone dead on the bed, with an arrow piercing his heart; the same kind of arrow most often used by me. My bow was sitting on top of his quilt. His face was contorted with fear, as if he had set eyes on some formidable demons before breathing his last.

"I was stunned for a while, not knowing what to do. I found all the doors and windows securely fastened and could not understand how the culprit had made his entrance into the room, and also how he had later managed to leave. I raised my head to scan the ceiling and found all the tiles intact. The culprit could not have broken in from the rooftop either.

"While I was trying to solve the puzzle, the footsteps of several persons suddenly came from the gallery. As it was my arrow which had snatched Uncle Pastoral's life, I could never hope to escape if I were to collide with these people entering the room. Thereupon, I speedily snatched my bow from the quilt. Just as I was about to pull out the arrow from his heart, my eyes caught two articles looming in the light, lying on his bed. I was given a terrible fright. My hand trembled, causing the candlestand to slip from my hand. The light went out instantaneously.

"You would not guess what had caught my eyes on the bed: the poniard was one of the two articles, while the other was the dead baby, interred a while before by Sister Sign. I momentarily believed that the baby begrudged having died unjustly, and had crawled out of the grave in order to take to life anew. I panicked and, without further thought, I snatched the poniard and took to my heels. However, I retraced my steps on reaching the door as something suddenly dawned on me. I made my way back to Uncle Pastoral's bed and stretched my hand out to grope under the bedding. There it was: I had hold of the white paper. I surmised that the paper must be connected in some way with his death. I at once tucked it inside my garment. Just as I was about to pull free the arrow lodged in his chest, I was aware of the steps fast approaching. In no time three men were at the door. I cried out silently 'The door is barred. Peace Tao is doomed!'

"In a flurry of desperate activity, I crawled under the bed after failing to discover any other hiding place. In no time, three men pushed open the door and entered the room. They were none other than Uncle Valour and the Brothers Curio and Radiant.

"Uncle Valour cried out, 'Brother! Brother!'

"There was no answer. Thereupon, Uncle Valour ordered Brother Radiant to light a candle. On finding, once the light was brought in, Uncle Pastoral had died through injustice, they would certainly conduct a search. And that surely would be the end of me. I resolved to rush out of the room while it was still shrouded in darkness.

"Uncle Valour and Brother Curio are both fighters par excellence: I could never beat them together. By taking them by surprise, I might perhaps be able to damage their defense. I had to decide immediately what steps to take. Delaying further was inconceivable. Instantly, I crawled stealthily to the edge of the bed. Just as I was about to spring up, I was restrained suddenly by an arm. I collided with a face. It turned out that somebody had already hidden himself under the bed.

"Before I could cry out in alarm, the stranger reached out his hand and locked me on the Pulse Gate on the wrist. I kept silent and heard him whisper into my ears, 'Keep quiet. Let us escape together.' I felt relieved. But at that particular moment, a light came flashing over my eyes. Brother Radiant was seen re-entering the room, carrying a lantern.

"Thereupon, the stranger threw a clandestine weapon and with a pop out went the lantern. He then reversed his hand to wrench the poniard from my grip. With a turn, I speedily rolled out from under the bed and dashed from the room. The stranger came racing after me. Uncle Valour flung out his fist, crying, 'Ganef!' He was an accomplished fighter. The stranger stood little chance of getting away. I skulked back to my room feeling humiliated. I woke my father up. We both fled from the Tian premises immediately. We pursued our flight through the night.

"These are all the events of the incident. It was Uncle Pastoral who handed me the iron casket. He asked me to bury it in a place beyond the Pass and I discharged his wishes accordingly. When the Uncles-at-arms and Brothers-at-arms of the Dragon Lodge saw the arrow lodged in Uncle Pastoral's chest, they no doubt suspected me of being the culprit. I do not blame them for that. I wish I knew who the person was that was hiding under the bed, so that I could ask him to support me. Well, even if I cannot locate that person, I still do know who the real culprit was. You must all look at this paper, the very same note Uncle Pastoral tucked away under the bedding upon my entry into the room. He feared his enemy might do harm to him, and he therefore strung his bow and aimed the arrow at the window, awaiting the arrival of his enemy. His enemy did eventually appear, but Uncle Pastoral failed to rid himself of his tormentor."

At this point, Peace took from inside his breast an exquisitely embroidered pouch, which, needless to say, had been embroidered by Sign. The Company could not help turning round to steal a glance at Curio, who was furious, his eyes ready to dart fire. The remaining members of the Company tried hard to swallow their smiles. Presently, Peace undid the sac and produced a white paper. He had intended to hand it to Tree, but he wavered for a moment and instead he passed the parchment to Orchid.

Orchid, after receiving the white sheet which was folded diagonally several times, unfolded it. She let out a faint cry on reading two lines of characters written in dark, bold ink: "Congratulations to Pastoral, the veteran fighter, on your retirement and sword-sealing; wishing you also the double blessing of prosperity and longevity. With respects from Fox Hu, the novice and the younger one awaiting yet your tutelage." These two lines of characters were executed with vigour, identical to the calligraphy on the visiting card delivered by the twin varlets a while before. It was, after all, the handwriting of Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain. Orchid held the white paper with trembling hand, muttering to herself, "Could it be him?"

Valour then took the white parchment from Orchid. After studying it for a while, he confirmed, "This is indeed the handwriting of Fox. After all, we have incorrectly blamed Peace."

Valour suddenly wheeled round and said, looking at Hawk, "Sir Hawk, why were you hiding under my Brother Pastoral's bed? Were you there to spy for Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain?"

Valour's question gave everyone a start; neither Curio nor Radiant could make sense of it. On the night in question, the man hiding under the bed had immediately taken to his heels after having had a few bouts with Valour. Thereafter, Valour, Curio and Radiant had tried to establish the identity of the stranger, but they were unsuccessful. Why did Valour suddenly point to Hawk and challenge this old enemy of his to a battle?

Hawk only let out a cold laugh, uttering not a word. Valour then continued, "On the night in question, I did not have the opportunity to behold the face of the gentleman under the bed in the dark, and yet the martial ability of this Master commanded my profoundest respect. The three of us, Uncle and Nephews, failed to apprehend him, and have never been able to establish his identity. We must therefore consider ourselves truly incompetent. As luck would have it, when I was given today the opportunity of battling man to man on the snowy ground with Sir Hawk, I found him to profess the same prowess and feats as the gentleman under the bed that day."

Radiant knew his Uncle Valour was waiting for some encouragement before he would be able to continue.

Thereupon, Radiant darted a question at him, "Uncle, Who was the gentleman under the bed?"

Valour's eyebrows immediately shot up and he blurted out loudly, "What a shame that Sir Hawk, such a dignified and imposing figure as an Imperial Guardsman, should have reduced himself to the wretched state of a petty burglar, sneaking into houses and performing insignificant tasks like a dog thief or a chicken thief!"

* * *

Hawk passed this off with a squall of laughter, saying, "Brother Valour, what a thorough reprimand! What a straightforward admonition! You are correct in singling my humble self out as the one hiding under Pastoral's bed on the night in question. You are also right in denouncing me as burgling like a dog thief or a chicken thief." Then putting on quite a complacent look, he continued, "But take note that I conducted myself like a petty burglar only as ordered by the Imperial Decree!"

The Company found it strange that Hawk should utter such nonsense. However, having further reflected that he was by profession an Imperial Guardsman, it could have been the case that he had indeed been there to deal with the Dragon Lodge at the behest of the Imperial Court. When fighters of the Dragon Lodge, who were all men of wealth with family, heard this, a feeling of distress descended upon them. Fortune, a man possessing great fame and wealth in Guangdong and Guangxi Provinces, was attacked with a feeling of acute uneasiness.

Seeing that his words had awed the Company into submission, Hawk began to feel more elated. Thereupon, he addressed the group pompously, "As events have taken such a turn, I might as well share what I know with you all, as later on I may have a favour to beg of you. Here is an article which, I believe, none of you may have set eyes on before."

At this, he fumbled inside his bosom and retrieved a large yellow envelope marked "Confidential Edict" on the outside. He opened the flap and took out a sheet of parchment, and recited aloud, "Hawk Liu, Principal Imperial Guardsman, is ordered by a confidential edict to execute without further ado the decree entrusted to him by Sai the Commissioner." Having finished his recital, he laid the yellow paper on the table, inviting the others to inspect it closely.

On seeing the red seal affixed to the yellow paper, Fortune, Century and the others, who were already very well informed on worldly matters, knew immediately that this was indeed a confidential decree issued at the behest of Sean Sai, Commissioner of the Imperial Guardsmen. Commissioner Sai was known to be the champion of the Manchurian warriors, to whom Emperor Qianlong always entrusted heavy responsibilities.

Hawk continued, "Brother Valour, there is no need for you to fix your gaze and blow your whiskers at me. To begin with, it was your esteemed Brother Pastoral who first played a part in this whole matter. One day, Commissioner Sai invited us eighteen guardsmen to dinner at his residence. Our friends outside conferred on the eighteen of us the title 'Eighteen Champions of the Imperial Court'. We were actually more like a three-legged cat, a long way from deserving the epithet 'Champions'. But as our friends chose to bestow such a title on us, lavishing such respect on us, there was nothing we could do about it.

"The minute we arrived at his home, Commissioner Sai informed us that he would introduce to us a celebrated figure of the Martial Brotherhood. We hastened to ask who the personage was, but the Commissioner only smiled, offering no answer. In the middle of the feast, he brought someone in from the inner room. His back was as straight as a ramrod. He carried himself briskly and his eyes darted penetratingly. His airs and appearance certainly bespoke an accomplished fighter of the Martial Brotherhood. Though he had turned greyish at the temples, he was still handsome and dashing. He must have at one time been a handsome man. Commissioner Sai presently announced, 'Brothers, this is Brother Pastoral, Grand Master of the Northern Branch of the Dragon Lodge, a famed character of the Martial Brotherhood.'

"We were all surprised by his words. Pastoral Tian as a famed figure should come as no surprise to anybody. Nonetheless, the Dragon Lodge did not involve themselves with imperial administration, and we began to wonder what honour the Commissioner could have brought upon himself to persuade Pastoral to accept his invitation. During the feast, we took turns to offer him drinks. Brother Pastoral was most polite and amiable, conducting himself with the usual formalities. In the course of the evening, never once did he mention his reason for journeying to the capital. It was only after the banquet was over, when Commissioner Sai invited the group to have tea in the side chamber, that the two of them began to steer their conversation to the purpose of Pastoral's visit.

"Even though Brother Pastoral belonged to the outlawry, his service and fealty to the Emperor and to the country were in no way less staunch than ours.

"The reason for his making the trip to the capital was to proffer a great treasure to the Imperial House. As to this great treasure, it comprised the gold and precious stones looted by the bandit Li Zicheng in Peking. According to Brother Pastoral, retrieving this treasure would necessitate piecing together two clues. One of the clues rested in the Dashing King's military blade which was in the safekeeping of his Dragon Lodge; and he had the poniard with him then. As for the other clue, obtaining it might present some difficulty. It was a map showing the location of the hidden treasure, which had been handed down from generation to generation to members of the Miao Family, who distinguished themselves in the Miao's Swordplay. The map alone would not provide the key to the treasure, while the poniard by itself would not establish the location of the fortune either. If one managed to get hold of both the poniard and the map at the same time, then retrieving the treasure would be as simple as finding something in one's own cloak.