Chapter 21: Emerging From the Cage

A flash of sabre light. But what it chopped wasn’t a human head. It was the zither strings!

Why did he chop the zither strings in half?

Grandmaster Zhong lifted his head up, staring at him in shock. Not just shock. Anger.

The sabre had been sheathed again. Fu Hongxue had already sat down. In the darkness, his pallid face appeared as though it had been cut out of marble. Firm. Callous. Noble.

Grandmaster Zhong said, “Even if my zither music is not pleasing to your ear, the zither is blameless. Sir, why don’t you directly chop my head off?”

Fu Hongxue said, “The zither is blameless, but the man is blameless as well. It is better for the zither to snap than for the man to perish.”

Grandmaster Zhong said, “I don’t understand.”

Fu Hongxue said, “You should understand. But there really are many things which you don’t understand.”

He coldly continued, “You make others realize how short life is, how death is unavoidable. But you don’t know that there are many ways of dying.”

Death could be both lighter than a feather as well as heavier than Mt. Taishan. How could Grandmaster Zhong not understand this?

Fu Hongxue said, “Since a person is alive, even if he must die, he must die with glory and honor, before he can die at ease.”

If a person cannot do well that which he likes to do in life, how can he die at ease?

The meaning of life always lay in struggling and fighting to endure. Only when you understand this point will your life no longer be meaningless. The sufferings of mankind await mankind to solve for itself.

“But my life is now nothing but shame.”

“Then you should think of a way to do something meaningful, something to wash away your shame. Otherwise, even if you die, you will still die shamefully!”

Death cannot solve any problems. Only cowards who can’t handle setbacks will use death to escape.

“I definitely have not given up any less of myself to this sabre than you have to your zither. However, I haven’t gained the comfort and the glory which you have gained. All I have gained is hatred and scorn. In the eyes of others, you are a god of the zither, but all I am is an executioner.”

“But you are still going to continue living?”

“So long as I can keep on living, I will definitely keep on living. The more others want me to die, the more I want to keep on living.” Fu Hongxue said, “Life isn’t necessarily shame. Death is!”

Light shone from his pale white face, making him seem all the more dignified and noble. An almost godlike nobility.

He was no longer that poverty-striken, blood-splattered, frustrated executioner. He had already found the true meaning of life. He had found it from another person being unable to endure the travails of life! Because the more powerful the attacks another launched on him, the more powerful his counterstrike was. The power from this counterstrike of his finally enabled him to release himself from the cage he had put himself into! Gongzi Yu definitely had never imagined this happening!

Grandmaster Zhong had never imagined it either. But as he watched Fu Hongxue, the shock and anger in his eyes disappeared. There was only esteem left.

A lofty, unique character was as worthy of respect as a lofty, unique skill with the fine arts.

He couldn’t help but ask, “Do you also want to do a meaningful thing which will wash away your shame?”

Fu Hongxue said, “I am trying my hardest as we speak.”

Grandmaster Zhong said, “Aside from killing people, what else have you done?”

Fu Hongxue said, “I have at least proved to him that I have not surrendered, nor have I been defeated by him.”

Grandmaster Zhong said, “Who is he?”

Fu Hongxue said, “Gongzi Yu.”

Grandmaster Zhong let out a long sigh. “For a person to have a zither-playing servant such as that man, he must be an extraordinary character!”

Fu Hongxue said, “He is.”

Grandmaster Zhong said, “But you want to kill him?”

Fu Hongxue said, “Yes.”

Grandmaster Zhong said, “Killing is also a meaningful act?”

Fu Hongxue said, “If this man remains alive, others shall be miserable and be coerced and bullied. In a case such as this, my killing him is a meaningful act.”

Grandmaster Zhong said, “Why haven’t you done this yet?”

Fu Hongxue said, “Because I can’t find him.”

Grandmaster Zhong said, “Since he is an extraordinary character, he must be very famous. Why can’t you find him?”

Fu Hongxue said, “Because although his name is famous all the world over, very few people have a chance to see his real face.”

This was also very strange. The more famous a person was, the fewer the people who could actually meet him.

This point, at least, Grandmaster Zhong should understand. He, too, was famous all the world over, but there were very few people who could meet him.

But he didn’t say anything. Fu Hongxue didn’t want to continue speaking either. All the words that should have been spoken, were spoken.

Fu Hongxue rose to his feet. “I only want to let you know that although this is a good place, this isn’t the place where we should stay.”

Thus, the outside was totally dark, he didn’t want to stay. As long as his heart was bright and guileless, why fear the darkness? He slowly walked out. Although his walking gait was still as clumsy and ugly as ever, his spine was as stiff and straight as a ramrod.

Grandmaster Zhong looked at his departing back. He suddenly said, “Wait.”

Fu Hongxue halted.

Grandmaster Zhong said, “Do you truly want to seek out Gongzi Yu?”

Fu Hongxue nodded.

Grandmaster Zhong said, “In that case, you should stay here. I’ll leave.”

Fu Hongxue’s features changed. “Why? You know that he will come here?”

Grandmaster Zhong did not respond. Instead, he hurried out in front of Fu Hongxue.

Fu Hongxue said, “How do you know? Who, exactly, are you?”

Grandmaster Zhong suddenly turned and looked back at him, chuckling. “Who do you think I am?”

His smile was strange and mysterious. His body suddenly disappeared into the darkness, becoming one with the night.

Only his voice could be heard coming from afar. “As long as you wait here patiently, you will definitely find him.”

“Who do you think I am?”

Can it be that he wasn’t the real Grandmaster Zhong? Was he actually Yu Qin? Otherwise, how would he know about Gongzi Yu’s travel information?

Fu Hongxue couldn’t be sure. He had never seen the real Grandmaster Zhong, nor had he seen Yu Qin.

Was Gongzi Yu truly going to come here? He couldn’t be sure of this either, but he had already decided to stay. This was his only lead. No matter what, he couldn’t let it slip.

The night became even darker. No sound could be heard in the empty mountains. No sound at all is actually a very terrifying sound. It would actually become difficult for a person to sleep under these circumstances.

Fu Hongxue had already lain down, but lying down wasn’t the same as falling asleep. There were no lights in the small cabin. Aside from a zither, a table, and a couch, there was nothing in the room at all. He was hungry and tired. He very much wanted to sleep. Over the years, the pain of insomnia had tormented him greatly. A peaceful night’s sleep was already a luxurious extravagance for him. Why was it so quiet? Why wasn’t there even the sound of the wind? There was only the sound of him coughing a few times. He even wanted to begin talking to himself, saying a few things to himself. Just at this moment, he suddenly heard a clanging sound in his dreams.

It was zither music! The zither was on the table in front of him. Aside from him, there was no one else in the room.

No one was playing the zither. How could it make music?

Fu Hongxue only felt a cold feeling rise up his back. He couldn’t resist turning around and staring at the zither on the table. Cold starlight was shining on that zither.

The zither sounded again. A ‘gong’ note, followed by a ‘shang’ note, a ‘gong’ note, a ‘chi’ note, a ‘gong’ note, and a ‘yu’ note.

Who was strumming the zither strings? Was it the spirit of the zither? Or was there a ghost in the room?

Fu Hongxue suddenly jumped up and saw a faint black shadow outside the window. Was it a human shadow, or a spectre? If a man was outside the window, how could he strum the zither on the table? Fu Hongxue laughed coldly. “Excellent finger strength.”

The shadow outside the window seemed to be startled. It quickly retreated.

Fu Hongxue was even quicker. He didn’t seem to prepare to move at all, but his body had already shot out.

The person outside the window somersaulted into the air, disappearing into the darkness.

The blank mountains were lonesome. The dark night was cold and silent. Fu Hongxue went forward for a bit longer, but couldn’t see anybody. But when he turned around, he saw a light.

The light flickered like a will’o’wisp. The light was in the window. Who lit a light in the room?

Fu Hongxue stopped using his lightness kungfu. He slowly walked back. The candle light didn’t disappear. It was right on the table. But the zither on the table had been broken, broken perfectly and evenly in half, as though it had been severed by a sharp blade.

There was no one in the room, but there was a short note pressed underneath the zither.

“If you do not leave by this evening, you shall become broken like this zither.”

The words were written very well, very elegantly. It was clearly authored by the same person who left the first note beneath the zither earlier.

Where did he go?

Fu Hongxue sat down. He faced the severed strings and the lonely light. His eyes suddenly shone with light as well. Only ghosts could come and go so easily and quickly. He never believed in ghosts. If there were no ghosts in the world, then this room must have hidden tunnels and false walls. Quite possibly, they were right in front of them. He couldn’t be considered an expert in this field, but he understood it. He knew a little about all of the various tricks and schemes which existed in the martial world. Although the study of secret mechanisms is a very complicated one, it wouldn’t be too difficult to discover a false wall or an underground tunnel in such a small cabin.

Had Gongzi Yu already arrived? Did he come from the tunnel?

Fu Hongxue closed his eyes and held his breath. First, he let his heart calm down. Only then could his senses become truly keen. And then, he started to search.

He couldn’t find anything.

If you do not leave by this evening, you shall become broken like this zither.

If I can’t find you, you will find me. Why shouldn’t I just wait for you here, and see how you intend to break me like the zither?

Fu Hongxue slowly sat down, making the lantern slightly brighter. Light could always stir a man to wakefulness and vigor. Sleep and him simply were not destined to be.

Sometimes, he couldn’t fall asleep when he wanted to. Sometimes, he wanted to sleep but must not sleep.

The man who broke the zither could once more enter from via the secret tunnel at any time and break him like a zither!

Was this person Gongzi Yu or not? What type of person was Gongzi Yu?

Fu Hongxue tightly gripped his sabre in his hand, that pitch-black sabre. He lowered his head, staring at his sabre. He felt as though he himself were slowly sinking down, sinking down into that pitch-black sheath. He suddenly fell asleep.

The night was deep and dark. A single light. Heaven and earth seemed at peace, without calamity, without blood, without sound.

When Fu Hongxue woke up, he was still perfectly seated on the chair. He didn’t know for how long he had been asleep. The first thing he did when he awoke was look at his sabre. The sabre was still in his hand. The pitch-black sheath glimmered with light underneath the lantern. Perhaps he had simply closed his eyes and dozed off for a moment. He was simply too tired. He wasn’t a man made from iron, after all. This sort of thing was hard to avoid. So long as his sabre was still in his hand, he feared nothing. But by the time he lifted up his head, he sunk down again, sunk down into an icy lake. He was still on the chair, his sabre was still in his hand, but he was no longer in that crude cabin in the mountains.

The first thing he saw was a painting, a four-foot, seven inch long painting, suspended from the wall in front of him.

This room naturally wasn’t only four-feet, seven inches wide. Aside from this painting, the snow-white walls also had all sorts of weapons hanging down from it. Amongst them were giant stone weapons which men had used to hunt with, in the times before copper and iron were discovered. There were weapons which soldiers had used during the Warring States period, such as pikes and lances. There was the ‘Green Crescent Blade’ which the legendary war god, Guan Yu, had used. There were also extremely rarely seen weapons of the martial world, such as curved scimitars and tiger-straddling baskets.

But the most common weapon was still the sabre.

Broadswords, double sabres, goose-plume sabres, demon-headed sabres, golden-spined mountain cleavers, Buddhist monk’s sabres, nine-ringed sabres, violet fish-scale sabres ... it seemed as though there was even an extremely long Demon Decapitating Sabre of Heaven’s Monarch.

But what shocked Fu Hongxue the most was that there was also a pitch-black sabre! It looked just the same as the one he wielded. The hundreds and thousands of weapons actually hadn’t yet filled the wall. From this, one can imagine how large the room was. But the floor was covered with a very complete velvet carpet, making the room seem undescribably warm and comfortable. Everything in the room had been selected with the greatest care. In his entire life, Fu Hongxue had never been in such a magnificent, luxurious place.

Right now, he wasn’t sure how he had arrived here. This wasn’t a dream, but it was much more bizarre and absurd than the bizarrest, absurdist of dreams. His sabre-gripping hand was ice cold. The hilt had been soaked by the cold sweat from his palm.

But he didn’t cry out in alarm, nor did he run away. He still quietly sat in this chair, not even moving. Someone was able to quietly, stealthily bring him to this place. Naturally, it would have been easy to kill him. Since he was still living, why flee? Why move?

From outside the door, someone loudly laughed, “Young master Fu, what good self-control you have!”

The door opened. The one who laughed loudly was actually Grandmaster Zhong.

Only, this Grandmaster Zhong’s appearance had changed a bit. The cloth robes he had worn were now replaced by a golden mantle, his white hair had darkened somewhat, and his wrinkles had lessened somewhat as well. He looked at least ten or twenty years younger.

Fu Hongxue only coldly glanced at him, not showing the slightest bit of surprise, as though he had long since calculated that this person would be here.

Grandmaster Zhong bowed to the floor. “This humble one is Yu Qin. I pay my respects to young master Fu.”

So he was Yu Qin. So he was Gongzi Yu’s Yu Qin. The zither-playing servant in the marketplace was nothing more than an actor playing a minor role. That play had been put on for Fu Hongxue’s benefit. Fu Hongxue had never seen the real Yu Qin. Naturally, that play had seemed extremely real. Could it be that the entire purpose of that play was to get Fu Hongxue to listen to that heartrending music, to make him feel downcast and to pull out his sabre and chop his own head off? Right now, if he were to draw his blade, he naturally wouldn’t be cutting his own neck.

Seeing the sabre in his hand, Yu Qin stopped far away. He suddenly said, “What is this place? How did I get here?”

He chuckled, then continued, “These two questions should have been asked by young master Fu. But since you do not intend to ask, then it falls upon me to ask.”

He asked the questions. Naturally, he would answer them as well.

Unexpectedly, Fu Hongxue coldly said, “This is a good place. Since I am already here, why would I need to ask too many questions?”

Yu Qin was startled, then said, “Young master Fu, you really do not wish to ask?”

Fu Hongxue said, “No.”

Yu Qin looked at him. Hesitatingly, he said, “Young master Fu, do you want to kill me with a chop of your sabre, then leave through this door?”

Fu Hongxue said, “No.”

Yu Qin said, “Can it be that you don’t wish to leave, young master Fu?”