Because his ankle was painful from the stab wound, Jin Duyi was relying on Ying Xiuyang to support him, consequently, both of them were feeling the strain. Jin Duyi thought, 'If we don't dig out of the mountain pass sealed by the avalanche, I am afraid climbing this mountain would be more difficult than ascending to the heavens.' Seeing Yue Mingke's anxiousness, he thought it would be better to use Tie Shanhu to coerce him, to have him implore Yu Luocha that she would send her female troops to open up a pathway.
Murong Chong, however, had another scheme: Yue Mingke was the man most wanted by Wei Zhongxian; not only he was more important than Tie Shanhu, he was also a lot more important than Yu Luocha! Only, Yue Mingke's martial art was superior, a fierce combat with him would be unavoidable. Supposing the three of them fought together, it might be possible to seize him, but it would not be a short battle; if Yu Luocha should appear with her troops, then they would not be able to escape. Therefore, he also wanted to use Tie Shanhu to coerce Yue Mingke.
Yue Mingke followed them to the bottom of the valley. With a cold laugh Murong Chong said, "Yue Mingke, what do you want?"
Yue Mingke looked at Tie Shanhu. Her face was deathly pale, her hair was in disorder, her clothes were tattered; he could not help but feeling extremely grieved. In a loud voice he cried out, "What kind of hero are you, bullying a woman? Let her go!"
"Humph," Murong Chong sneered, "It's easy for you to say! I will let her go if you nicely come with us back to Beijing to face the court."
Yue Mingke took another glance toward Tie Shanhu and grimly said, "Following you to Beijing, that shouldn't be difficult, but how do I know she is not injured?"
Murong Chong stretched out his finger to unseal Tie Shanhu's acupoint. Tie Shanhu called out, "Dage, don't go with him to Beijing!"
Murong Chong laughed and said, "Don't you see? She is not injured at all! We'll make a fair deal, I will definitely not mutilate her to cheat you into entering Beijing."
Yue Mingke rolled his eyes, he thought: 'I have already given the book Military Commissioner left behind to Zhuo Yihang, I have nothing else to worry, I'd better risk my life and come with him to Beijing. Only I do not know whether Shanhu Meimei has fallen under his treachery or not, if he shook her heart using his internal energy, although she might be able to endure it momentarily, but in ten days to half a month, she would die eventually. This cannot be seen clearly. If she is injured, I must try to rescue her and treat her wound immediately.'
"Dage," Tie Shanhu called out again, "Don't fall into his trick!"
Yue Mingke said, "Try taking a deep breath, see if your ribs ache?"
"Ridiculous!" Murong Chong called out, "Do you think I, Murong Chong, am the kind of man who would plot against women and children?"
Tie Shanhu's mind was stirred. She took a deep breath, and then deliberately said, "Seems to be a little bit sore."
Murong Chong's countenance fell, "You are just faking it!"
Tie Shanhu said, "Let me play my flute and have Dage listen to it."
"That's right," Yue Mingke said, "Try playing your flute, by listening to it, I will be able to tell whether you are injured or not."
"Fine," Murong Chong said, "Play then!" He called Jin Duyi, "Come here!" He pulled Tie Shanhu aside and told Jin Duyi, "Watch her, don't let her play any tricks!"
Jin Duyi pressed one hand on her shoulder blade, and pressed the other hand on the middle of her back. Jin Duyi's Venomous Sand Palm was unparalleled under the heavens; although his qinggong was somewhat reduced because of the injury, his palm was still exceptionally powerful. With both hands threatening Tie Shanhu vital points, if she made a slight wrong move, he would immediately send out his power. Even if Tie Shanhu's martial art skill was ten times higher, her internal organs(6) would be shattered by him!
Murong Chong released his grip on Tie Shanhu and pushed her between Jin Duyi and Yue Mingke, while staring at Yue Mingke all the time to guard against any sudden attack; we could say that he was a hundred percent alert. "All right," he said, "Lowly girl, why haven’t you played?"
Tie Shanhu's heart was filled with unbounded grief and hurt, she put the jade flute on her lips and gently blew several notes. The flute sound was very tender, but gradually it went higher and higher. At first the melody carried a joyous feeling, just like a warm sunny day in the spring, when the flowers bloom, when a pair of lovers walk hand-in-hand, whispering sweet words to each other. Yue Mingke could not help but remembering the days when they were travelling together over ten thousand li, when they were trying horses at a suburb in the spring; it was as if his spirit was intoxicated by the melody.
Suddenly the flute changed, as if from the warm sunny day of spring, when the flowers bloom, now it was late autumn, when the trees shook down their leaves, when the lone goose wailed, when the cicadas let out their mournful cry in the winter. Yue Mingke recalled how she wandered in Jianghu, alone and pitiful; his heart was filled with a guilty conscience.
The flute changed again. This time the pitch grew higher, the sound was more mournful, like the cry of the mermaids in the night, or the weeping of the apes of the Three Gorges; within the sorrow, there was a hint of anger. Yue Mingke mused, 'I really should not refuse to marry her, making her so sad.'
The flute changed three times, the sound was thin and clear, graceful like a silk thread floating in the air, beyond anybody's ability to describe it; sometimes it sounded intermittent, sometimes it was continuous, as if it was weeping and complaining, as if listening to someone swallowing his tears like the words in Liu Yong's(7) song: "Holding hands, we look into each other's tearful eyes; Without words, throats choked; As I think of my voyage through a thousand miles of mists and waves, where the evening clouds are somber and the distant skies vast. Lovers have suffered since ancient times, the sorrows of parting. How can I bear further my solitude in this clear autumn season? Where shall I be when I wake up from my drink tonight? Willow banks, the breeze at dawn, and the waning moon!"(8)
The flute sound made everybody sad, even a man with a heart of stone like Murong Chong could not restrain the corner of his eyes from being moist. Yue Mingke felt a chilling pain in his heart, he thought, 'Why does she play such a heartrending tune as if mourning the death of a loved one? Mmm, could it be that she does not want to give me up as I am going to my death? If in one's life one can have an intimate friend, one will have no regrets even in death. Although I am going to die, I am happy. I only hate that she will be lonely for the rest of her life!'
The flute continued. Murong Chong loudly called out, "Stop it! Haven't you played enough?"
Tie Shanhu said in her heart, "Lian Jiejie should’ve heard it by now!” and stopped her playing.
“Yue Mingke,” Murong Chong harshly said, “You have heard it clearly, she does not have the least bit of internal injury.”
“Very well,” Yue Mingke said, “Let her go, I’ll come with you!”
Suddenly Murong Chong laughed, “You have to do what I say first,” he said.
“What is it?” Yue Mingke asked, “You must not raise other complications.”
Murong Chong said, “It’s not a complication at all. I only want you to chop your own right arm!”
“What?!?” Yue Mingke asked in shock.
Murong Chong coldly said, “Your martial art skill is superior, we cannot bind you tight enough, if we seal your acupoint, you might be able to unseal it yourself. We are going on a tens of thousands li journey, your old men won’t want to be inconvenienced by you! You don’t trust me, I also don’t trust you. If you chop your own right arm, everybody will be happy. Ha … ha … are you afraid of pain?”
“Dage,” Tie Shanhu cried out, “Please don’t, please don’t! If you die, I don’t want to live alone!”
“Shanhu Meimei,” Yue Mingke called out, “I appreciate your sympathy. You are still young, you must stay alive no matter what. Go back to Lian Jiejie, don’t mind me.”
“Ha,” Murong Chong said with a cold laugh, “It is truly an eternal affection. How much more the two of you want to say to each other?”
Yue Mingke shouted, “A gentleman’s word is like a fast horse whipped once! I agree to come with you, you must not injure her!”
“Whoever renege his promise, may he be the laughingstock of the Wulin!” Murong Chong replied.
“All right!” Yue Mingke cried out. Grabbing the sword with his left hand, he swung it against his own right arm!
Suddenly there was a blood-curling screech, Yue Mingke cold sword was knocked out of his hand. He looked up in shock, and saw both Tie Shanhu and Jin Duyi rolling on the ground!
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6 Orig. 'Five Zang' and 'Six Fu'. See note 2 of Chapter 10 by Faerie Queenie.
7 A poet of the Song Dynasty (987-1053).
8 I hate translating poems! This is not mine, I found it here: http://www.chinapage.com/poet-e/liuyong2e.html