It was the height of summer.
Across Taihu, blue-green waves shimmered. Lotuses bloomed in wild abandon, and lotus leaves stretched on without end.
Deep amid the misty waves, a boatman poled a black-canopied boat, and it swayed its way into Yanziwu.
Two youths sat aboard. They were none other than Qin Zheng and Duan Yu, come from Dali.
Qin Zheng sat on a bamboo stool, leisurely using an earthenware pot to stew the fish and shrimp he had just caught, and said as he worked, "Brother Duan, this is Yanziwu. Murong Fu lives in Canhe Manor just ahead.
"Murong Fu is a royal descendant of the Murong Xianbei. The name Canhe Manor is taken from the Battle of Canhe Slope, the disastrous defeat of the state of Yan, to remind later generations never to forget the restoration of the kingdom.
"The Fu in Murong Fu is the fu of restoring a kingdom."
Hearing this, Duan Yu's expression turned a little odd. "The Murong Xianbei's kingdom fell five or six hundred years ago, didn't it? Back then the ancestors of our Duan clan were still serving as officials in the Central Plains. That family of theirs truly has perseverance..."
Qin Zheng laughed. "What's so strange about that? A rebellion always needs a pretext. If the day comes when I rebel, I'll certainly raise the banner of Restore the Han Royal House. On the grounds of righteous cause, I'll already stand a head above everyone else!"
Duan Yu was faintly stunned. "Great Hero Qin, you aren't even surnamed Liu. Doesn't that leave the name a bit improper, and the claim unable to stand?"
Qin Zheng said, utterly self-righteous, "Although I'm not surnamed Liu, I can create a lord who is. As for whether he's actually a descendant of the old Liu family—you leave that alone!"
Duan Yu burst out laughing at once. "True enough. After all, by then you'll already be in rebellion. This damn well isn't something I can meddle in!
"Ah, how did I come to swear? A sin, a sin..."
As he spoke, he hurriedly chanted Amitabha twice and assured the Buddha that it had been an unintentional fault, that someone had led him astray, and more of the same—words that left the boatman up ahead choking back laughter without cease.
Qin Zheng sighed, helpless. "Alas. If there were a sect called the Infuriating Sect, you would certainly be qualified to contend for the seat of Holy Son.
"When it comes to the skill of infuriating people, among everyone I know, you can at least rank in the top three."
Duan Yu lifted his face in a blank daze. "Who are the other two?"
"One is called Gou Zazhong. The other is Jiu Mengzi of the Huashan Sect. But the two of them have no chance to come and compete with you, so right now you are number one under heaven!"
Duan Yu abruptly realized he was being teased and grumbled in dissatisfaction, "This sort of number one under heaven is the last thing I want..."
As they talked, the boatman poled the boat around the reed beds. With the reeds no longer screening the view, a small island not far ahead was revealed before their eyes.
"Boss, Canhe Manor is just ahead."
"Mm. Pull alongside."
Qin Zheng gazed out and saw four middle-aged men of differing heights standing guard on the bank, each with a weapon in hand, looking drawn up and ready for a fight.
From their faces and dress, they were clearly the Murong family's Four Great Retainers—Deng Baichuan, Gongye Qian, Bao Butong, and Feng Bo'e.
Before the little boat could draw near, Deng Baichuan spotted them. Drawing on his internal energy, he shouted, "Who goes there? State your names!"
Qin Zheng answered in a ringing voice, "Qin Zheng of the Longmen Escort Agency, and Duan Yu, Heir of Dali, have come to pay a visit!"
Deng Baichuan turned and glanced at the other three. "Does Qin Zheng have any ties with our young master?"
Bao Butong said, "Elder Brother Deng, have you forgotten? When Duan Yanqing of the Four Great Evils came looking to make trouble for our young master, wasn't it because he mistakenly believed Qin Zheng and our young master had joined together to kill the other two Evils?"
Deng Baichuan slapped his forehead. "Ah. These past few days I've thought of nothing but guarding against outside enemies, and my brain's hardly been turning. Since they're not with Duan Yanqing, let them come over."
Over these past days, Duan Yanqing had harassed Canhe Manor without cease, leaving the few of them run ragged.
Fortunately, the place was ringed by water on every side, and Duan Yanqing could not come ashore. Otherwise, with martial arts as unfathomable as his, the four of them truly would not have been his match.
Besides Duan Yanqing, the Funiu Sect, the Qingcheng Sect, and the Shaolin Sect had also arrived one after another. They said that people of their sects had been killed by the Murong family's "Using Their Own Methods Against Them," and they had come to demand justice from the young master of the house.
It was just as well that the young master had hurried back in time. Otherwise, in no more than a few days, Canhe Manor would likely have been broken open by them.
Once they had come alongside, Qin Zheng jumped down from the little boat and cupped his hands. "I am Qin Zheng. I heard that someone in Dali impersonated Young Master Murong and enraged Duan Yanqing, Evil Beyond Redemption, so I have come specially to bring word to Young Master Murong, that he may be on his guard."
Deng Baichuan returned the courtesy. "I am Deng Baichuan. Many thanks to Great Hero Qin for the kindness of bringing word. Our young master already knows of this. Please, Great Hero Qin and the Young Prince, come inside and speak of it in full with our young master."
As he spoke, he shot Feng Bo'e a look. Feng Bo'e understood at once and went inside to report to Murong Fu.
By the time Qin Zheng reached Canhe Manor, Murong Fu was already standing before the gate to receive them.
Qin Zheng raised his eyes. The man's face was fair as jade, handsome, elegant, and nobly refined—every inch the young scion of a great house.
Unlike Duan Yu's gentle, delicate grace, Murong Fu's good looks carried a vigorous heroic air. Pride hid between his brows, and those brows swept upward in a slant. He held himself cold and aloof, and in his manner toward others he seemed somewhat distant.
"I have long heard that the Great Hero of Guanzhong is a hero without peer in the world. Seeing you today, your fame is indeed well deserved!"
"Not at all, not at all. It is Young Master Murong who is a dragon and phoenix among men. Looking at you, I find you have quite a measure of an emperor's bearing! Alas—perhaps my skill is crude, and I've misread you."
A gleam flashed through Murong Fu's eyes. "Oh? Great Hero Qin is versed in physiognomy as well?"
Qin Zheng put on a modest air. "A little. Only a little."
"Great Hero Qin is far too modest. Please, come in at once for tea!"
Murong Fu's whole heart was set on restoring the kingdom. Hearing Qin Zheng say he had an emperor's bearing, he could not help the joy that rose in him, and he warmly invited him into the hall.
After they were seated, two maidservants came out to serve tea.
One was sixteen or seventeen, dressed in green. Her skin was lustrous and white as jade, with a tiny mole at the corner of her mouth. She was not supremely beautiful, but her air was clear, elegant, and delicately refined.
The other was a young woman in a vermilion gauze blouse, also a graceful sixteen or seventeen. Her eyes were lively, her face full of a clever, mischievous spirit, and she looked toward Qin Zheng with a smile that was not quite a smile.
"So the Bandit King is the same as an ordinary person after all—one nose and two eyes. Not ferocious and fiendish, the way the legends tell it!"
Qin Zheng shot her a glance. "Miss, I find your looks somewhat resemble an old acquaintance of mine. May I ask whether your surname is Duan?"
A'Zhu's expression changed. Excitement showed at once in her lively eyes.
Others might not know, but she herself knew perfectly well: the character "Duan" was carved, clear as could be, upon her left shoulder!
Bao Butong, beside her, saw that A'Zhu's expression was somewhat strange and spoke. "This Sister A'Zhu of ours was separated from her parents in childhood. It was our Old Madam who took her in and raised her.
"If Great Hero Qin has any clue to Sister A'Zhu's origins, please tell us. I would be grateful beyond measure!"
Qin Zheng said in surprise, "What a coincidence this is. At Little Mirror Lake in Xinyang I have an old acquaintance named Ruan Xingzhu. She is skilled at cooking black-bone chicken feet. Her looks are five or six parts similar to Miss A'Zhu's, her age is just right for her to be Miss A'Zhu's mother, and she once lost a daughter besides!"
Murong Fu smiled. "This is indeed quite a coincidence. In a few days, once our enemies withdraw, I shall take A'Zhu to Little Mirror Lake and see whether we can find A'Zhu's birth parents."
Qin Zheng's brows drew together. "What enemies? Has Duan Yanqing already come looking?"
Murong Fu sighed, helpless through and through. "I will not hide it from Great Hero Qin. Some days ago Duan Yanqing already came beating on our door, insisting that I killed Yue Lao San and Yun Zhonghe in Dali. Truly, I have no way to clear my name."
Qin Zheng spoke, filled with righteous indignation. "Who knows what utterly conscienceless person dared to falsely use Young Master Murong's name in Dali. Still, the crimes of the Four Great Evils tower to heaven. Everyone in the jianghu has the right to put them to death, and even killing them is carrying out Heaven's justice!
"Rest assured, Young Master Murong. I will wait right here. If Duan Yanqing dares come again, I certainly will not spare him!"
At these words, delight filled Murong Fu's face. "Great Hero Qin is zealous for the common good and devoted to righteousness. You are truly worthy of being the Great Hero of Guanzhong, titled by imperial decree. Murong Fu thanks you here!"
"..."
Off to the side, Duan Yu stared dumbstruck. He did not even notice that the teacup had scalded his hand red.
The matter of the impersonation—had it just been bluffed through like that?
Then do I still say the words of apology I prepared beforehand...
Chapter 13