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Thread: The Deer and The Cauldron

  1. #1001
    Senior Member crazee's Avatar
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    wow....what a violent scene.
    Imagine such a pretty lady and that power and ruthlessness. Lucky I had am not her subordinate....

    Thanks Foxs... a beautiful update and wow cannot claim it's dry now eh ?? it's bloody heh heh heh
    cheerio..

  2. #1002
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    Isn't this novel a bit tough to translate due to its satire nature with its historical references to the modern China? What is translator's approach? Would you attempt to explain Jin Yong's parodist takes on modern china?

  3. #1003
    Senior Member rati4u's Avatar
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    WXB's imagination is so funny.

    "a bright moonlight illuminating a latrine!"



  4. #1004
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    Default Chapter 20 - Part 3

    Pannonian, thanks for the info. At least the woman did not have any problem. Sky, Crazee, you are welcome. Chowbeng, I really do not know how to answer your question. My approach, if I even have one, is to translate as close as the original, nothing more. I do not even realize if Jin Yong has other motives in writing this story. Ali, Rati4u, this is one of the reason I took this novel: I feel that a lot of details like those were missing from the authorized version.

    -----------------------------------------------------------
    "Mmm," Hong Jiaozhu mumbled; suddenly he slipped down from the chair and sat on the floor. The Blue Dragon Envoy was greatly delighted, he rushed forward. Suddenly he cried out, an object, carrying a strong gust of wind, was flying toward his chest. The Blue Dragon Envoy forcefully raised the dagger in his right hand to chop, the object broke into two pieces. Turned out it was the armrest from Hong Jiaozhu's bamboo chair. The force behind this throw was not a small matter at all, as the bamboo piece was cut, the front section did not fall. 'Stab!' it penetrated the Blue Dragon Envoy's chest, breaking five or six of his ribs, and pierced his lung.

    The Blue Dragon Envoy screamed, but suddenly he stopped; the chi in his lung could not flow up, instantly he was muted. He swayed twice, the pair of daggers in his hands fell down, separately landed on the bodies of two teenage boys. These two teenagers' bodies were numb, they could not move, but actually their minds were still clear, and they could still talk. As the daggers pierced their bodies, they cried out in pain.

    Seeing their Jiaozhu displaying his divine prowess by knocking down the Blue Dragon Envoy, several hundred teenage boys and girls cheered together. They saw their Jiaozhu propped himself up with his right hand, struggling to stand up, but before he could straighten up his right leg, his knees turned soft that he fell down again and rolled away several times. Indeed he had fallen into an extremely difficult situation. This way, everybody knew that Jiaozhu was in the same boat as them, he was also being poisoned that his muscle went soft and his flesh paralyzed.

    Normally, the Cult Leader was an extremely dignified person, even in front of the Cult members very seldom did he ever speak more than a sentence, or laugh more than once. This time unexpectedly he had fallen and suffered disgrace, losing the strength of his entire body.

    Several hundred people in the hall were lying on the floor, but there was one person who was still standing. This person was actually very short, but standing among several hundred people lying on the floor, inevitably he looked like a crane in a flock of chicken. This person was none other than Wei Xiaobao. His nose smelled a burst of faint fragrance, but he felt very calm and relaxed, his entire body felt comfortably warm, a strange good feeling that he could not explain.

    Seeing everybody had fallen to the ground without knowing the reason, he was completely baffled. After staring blankly for quite a while, he reached down to pull Fat Toutuo up and asked, "Fat Revered Monk, what happened to everybody?"

    Fat Toutuo was surprised, "You ... you are not poisoned?" he asked.

    "Poisoned?" Wei Xiaobao was equally surprised, "I ... I don't know." He struggled hard to help Fat Toutuo up, but Fat Toutuo did not have any strength left on his legs, he fell back sitting down on the floor.

    Mr. Lu suddenly asked, "Xu Dage, you ... what kind of poison did you use?"

    The Blue Dragon Envoy's body swayed as if he was drunk; supporting himself on a pillar, he coughed incessantly and said, "What a pity, what ... what a pity I failed within sight of success. I ... I am unfit for anything."

    "Is it 'seven-insect tendon softening powder'?" Mr. Lu asked, "Is it 'thousand-li ecstasy fragrance'? Or is it 'Trans ... transforming blood ... decaying bone dust'?" Successively he mentioned the names of three most debilitating poison. When mentioning the name 'transforming blood decaying bone dust', his voice trembled, as if he was extremely terrified.

    The Blue Dragon Envoy's right lung was heavily injured; his coughing was very severe, he was unable to answer. Mr. Lu asked, "How come Wei Gongzi is not poisoned? Ah! I know!" He suddenly remembered something. These two words 'I know' were shouted really loud. He said, "You have applied the 'hundred flowers snake belly's ointment' on your daggers. Brilliant scheme, brilliant scheme. Wei Gongzi, could you please sniff the Blue Dragon Envoy's pair of daggers? See if you smell flower's fragrance on the blades."

    Wei Xiaobao thought, "The blades are poisonous, I am not going to smell them." He said, "I can smell strong fragrance from here."

    Mr. Lu looked delighted; "That's right!" he said, "When this 'hundred flowers snake belly's ointment' came in contact with blood, it will produce a strong fragrance. Actually, it was a certain sect's secret method to refine spices, when ordinary people smell it, they will feel their spirits invigorated, but ... but we live on this Spirit Snake Island, everybody is used to take the 'realgar medicated wine' to dispel the poisonous snakes. As soon as this fragrance came in contact with the 'realgar medicated wine', it will make our muscles and bones weak for twelve shichen [24 hours]. Xu Dage, what a brilliant scheme. This 'hundred flowers snake belly's ointment' is actually forbidden on the island, turns out you have prepared this in secret for a long time. You must have stopped drinking the 'realgar medicated wine' three, four months ago."

    The Blue Dragon Envoy sat down, he happened to sat on two teenagers' bodies. Shaking his head, he said, "Man proposes but God disposes, in the end I still fell under Hong Antong's evil scheme."

    Several teenage boys shouted, "Audacious mad disciple, you dare to randomly call Jiaozhu's holy name."

    The Blue Dragon Envoy stood up slowly. Picking up a long sword, he walked over toward Hong Jiaozhu step by step. "Why can't I say the name Hong Antong?" he said, "Cough, cough ... after I kill this evil thief ... cough, cough ... does it matter if I call his name or not?"

    Several hundred teenage boys and girls called out in alarm. After a while, the Yellow Dragon Envoy's old voice was heard, "Xu Xiongdi, after you kill Hong Antong, everybody will support you as the new Shen Long Jiao's Jiaozhu. Everybody recite quickly: We will obey Xu Jiaozhu's command, absolutely no double-mind!"

    The hall was silent for a moment, and then several dozen people recited, "We will obey Xu Jiaozhu's command, absolutely no double-mind." Some were confident, some appeared rather hesitant, it sounded rather irregular.

    The Blue Dragon Envoy took two steps forward, coughed once, and swayed several times. His injury was very heavy, but struggled with everything he had, because no matter what, he must kill Hong Jiaozhu first.

    Suddenly Madame Hong giggled and said, “Blue Dragon Envoy, you don’t have any strength left, your thighs does not have the least bit of strength, the blood bubbled up in the pit of your stomach, very soon you will lose everything. You are finished. Why don’t you sit down? You are very tired. That’s right, sit down and rest for a while. Put down your sword. In a moment you may sit by my side, let me cure your injury. That’s right, sit down, put down your sword.” The more she spoke, her voice grew gentler and more flirtatious.

    The Blue Dragon Envoy took several more steps, in the end he sat down slowly. ‘Clang!’ the sword in his hand fell down to the floor.

    Seeing the Blue Dragon Envoy did not have any strength to stand up again, the Yellow Dragon Envoy shouted, “Xu Xueting, you, this traitor, are indulging yourself in wishful thinking, damn it, you want to be the Jiaozhu, just scatter your own urine to yourself, this revolting behavior cannot be tolerated.”

    The Scarlet Dragon Envoy Priest Wugen shouted, “Yin Jin, you are such a despicable, shameless lowly person, you see the wind and set the helm, rocking to the east and sway to the west. As soon as the ol’ Taoist can move my hands and feet, the first thing I’ll do will be to slaughter you.”

    The Yellow Dragon Envoy Yin Jin said, “Why are you vicious? I … I …” he wanted to talk back, but saw that swaying and rocking, the Blue Dragon Envoy struggled hard to stand up. Once again the battle’s outcome was undecided[2], thereupon he shut his mouth.

    In the meantime, the eyes of several hundred people in the hall were all fixed on Xu Xueting. In a soft voice Madame Hong said, “Xu Dage, you are very tired, why don’t you sit down? Just look at me, I’ll sing a little song for you. Just take a good rest, later on I will sing a little song for you every day. Tell me if I look beautiful.”

    “Oh, oh,” Xu Xueting repeatedly mumbled, he said, “You … you are very beautiful, but I … I do not dare to look at you too much …” While saying that, he sat down again, and this time he could not stand back up; however, his mind was still as bright as snow, he realized that as long as he could not stand up, he would not be able to kill Jiaozhu. Among these several hundred people, the Cult Leader’s skill was the most profound, surely he would be the first to have the poison in his system driven out, and then every one of the older brethrens would not be fortunate to escape his evil scheme. Thereupon he said, “Mister … Mister Lu, I can’t move, you must think … think … cough, cough … think of a way.”

    “Wei Gongzi,” Mr. Lu said, “This Jiaozhu is extremely vicious, when the poison in his body is neutralized, he will kill everybody, even you will not escape. Quickly kill Jiaozhu and Madame.”

    Even if he did not say those words, Wei Xiaobao had already understood. Picking up a sword, he slowly walked toward the Cult Leader.

    Mr. Lu added, “This Madame Hong is a fox-spirit, she will completely deceive people, you must not look at her face, don’t look at her eyes.”

    “Yes!” Wei Xiaobao replied. With raised sword he took several steps forward.

    In a soft voice Madame Hong said, “Xiao Xiongdi, tell me, do you think I am beautiful?” Her voice was brimming with overwhelming emotion that can erode the bones. Wei Xiaobao’s heart was moved; he turned his head to look at her.

    The Fat Toutuo shouted loudly, “Wicked demon; don’t look at her!” Wei Xiaobao shivered and closed his eyes tight.

    With a tender laugh Madame Hong said, “Xiao Xiongdi, look at me, turn your eyes on me, open your eyes, look, you can see your reflection in my eyes!”

    As soon as Wei Xiaobao opened his eyes, he saw Madame Hong’s graceful eyes and smiling expression; he could not stop his heart from being shaken. Immediately he raised the sword in front of his chest and walked toward Hong Jiaozhu, thinking, “You are such a beautiful woman, I really cannot kill you, but I simply must kill your husband.”

    Suddenly from his left came a sharp and clear voice calling out, “Wei Dage! Don’t kill him!”

    The voice sounded very familiar. Wei Xiaobao’s heart was shaken. He turned toward the voice and saw a young girl wearing red clothes lying on the ground, her eyebrows were elegant her eyes were gorgeous, she was none other than Xiao Junzhu Mu Jianping. Wei Xiaobao was flabbergasted; not in a million years would he expect to see her in this place. As for why she was wearing the Scarlet Dragon Gate’s red uniform, he did not feel surprised at all. Busily he helped her up and asked, “How can you be here?”

    Mu Jianping did not answer his question, she only said, “By all means, you must not kill Jiaozhu.”

    “Have you joined Shen Long Jiao?” Wei Xiaobao asked in surprise, “How … how come?”

    Mu Jianping’s entire body was so soft as if she did not have any bones; leaning against his shoulder, she put her small mouth close to his ear and said in a low voice, “If you kill Jiaozhu and Madame, I will not live. Those old men hate us to the death, they will definitely kill us all the young people.”

    “I am going to ask them not to harm you,” Wei Xiaobao said, “I think they will consent.”

    “No, no!” Mu Jianping anxiously said, “Jiaozhu has given us poison, other people cannot neutralize it.”

    Meeting with her again after a long separation, Wei Xiaobao was actually very happy, much less she was leaning in his bosom, he could smell her soft fragrance, and heard her tender voice in his ear. He found it very difficult to resist her request, plus he thought that the Cult Leader had forced her to take the poison and nobody else could save her; therefore, if he killed the Cult Leader, he would be killing this beautiful young woman in his bosom, which he must never do. It was a very difficult decision to take. He said in a low voice, “If I don’t kill Jiaozhu, after the poison in Jiaozhu’s body is neutralized, he will definitely kill me.” He was holding Mu Jianping in tight embrace, he said those words in her ear.

    Mu Jianping said, “If you saved Jiaozhu and Madame, how could they kill you?”

    -----------------------------------------------------------
    [2] Orig. ‘not knowing to whom the deer falls’. There is a reference to this phrase back in Chapter 1, which I will revisit later.

  5. #1005
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    Default hmmm

    first

    thanks foxs
    Ali Derhamy

  6. #1006
    Senior Member tweety365's Avatar
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    Thank you, foxs!

    Quote Originally Posted by aliderhamy View Post
    first

    thanks foxs
    LOL, you're unable to nab the 1st post in ASITP, so using Deer & Cauldron?

  7. #1007
    Senior Member SkyWalker's Avatar
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    Thanks foxs.

  8. #1008
    Senior Member crazee's Avatar
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    Wow, WXB's wifes are appearing again.....so touching.

    Thanks Foxs, Looks like our hero is now the only one who can determine the cult's existence.
    cheerio..

  9. #1009
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    Quote Originally Posted by tweety365 View Post
    Thank you, foxs!



    LOL, you're unable to nab the 1st post in ASITP, so using Deer & Cauldron?
    oiy what you say ?

    I been number 1 all over the place meany meany times

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Hd3G...eature=related

    (IR the best in the world)
    Ali Derhamy

  10. #1010
    Senior Member foxs's Avatar
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    Default Chapter 20 - Part 4

    Ali, thanks for your enthusiasm. Tweety, Sky, Crazee, you are welcome.

    ---------------------------------------------------------
    Wei Xiaobao thought she was right, Madame Hong was such a thousand-beauty a hundred-charming woman, no matter what she must not be killed. Before his eyes was an opportunity to set up a great merit, it’s just that inevitably Fat Toutuo, Mr. Lu, Priest Wugen and the others would be killed by the Cult Leader. Priest Wugen was an extremely heroic man, it would be a pity to have him killed. It would be best if he did not kill Jiaozhu and Madame, while saving Fat Toutuo and the others’ lives at the same time. Thereupon he said, “Exactly! Good wife, even if Jiaozhu wanted to kill me, I will definitely save your life.” While saying that, he landed a kiss on her left cheek.

    Mu Jianping was extremely bashful, her face blushed, but her eyes revealed a happy expression as she said in a low voice, “If you set up a great merit, plus you are a young child, how can Jiaozhu kill you?”

    Wei Xiaobao lay Mu Jianping back on the floor; he turned his head and said, “Mr. Lu, Jiaozhu must not be killed, and so is Madame. The inscription on the stone tablet says that Jiaozhu and Madame will enjoy immortal good fortune forever, their long lives will be the same as the heaven’s; how can I dare to harm their lives? The two Seniors’ magical power is extensive, even if I want to harm them, I cannot harm them to their death.”

    Mr. Lu was greatly anxious; “The inscription is a fake,” he called out, “How can you even take it into consideration? Don’t indulge in flights of fancy, quickly kill those two people, otherwise, everybody will die without a burial site.”

    Wei Xiaobao repeatedly shook his head. “Mr. Lu,” he said, “You must not say such a treason talk. Do you have the antidote? We must neutralize the poison in Jiaozhu and Madame’s bodies.”

    In a soft voice Madame Hong said, “That’s right, Xiao Xiongdi, you indeed have excellent knowledge and experience. The Heaven sent such a young hero like you to descend to the world, actually to assist Jiaozhu. For Shen Long Jiao to have such a young hero like you, it is indeed everyone’s good fortune.”

    She appeared to say those words from the bottom of her heart, it was brimming with amazement and high praise. When Wei Xiaobao heard it, he felt an unspeakable joy and comfort in his heart. He laughed and said, “Madame, I don’t belong to Shen Long Jiao.”

    Madame Hong laughed. “Nothing could be easier than that,” she said, “You can join the Cult right now, I can be your sponsor [orig. person who receive and instruct]. Jiaozhu, this Xiao Xiongdi has set up such a great merit for our Cult, which official position should we assign to him?”

    The Cult Leader said, “The White Dragon Gate’s Zhangmenshi Zhong Zhiling has been executed for apostasy, we can promote this young man as the White Dragon Envoy.”

    “That’s great!” Madame Hong said with a laugh, “Xiao Xiongdi, our Cult is headed by Jiaozhu, under him are Blue, Yellow, Scarlet, White and Black, five dragon envoys. To have someone like you, who as soon as you join the Cult immediately becomes one of the five dragon envoys, it is indeed unprecedented, indicating that that Jiaozhu has a very high opinion of you. Xiao Xiongdi, you are surnamed Wei, that much we know. But what is your great name?"

    "My name is Wei Xiaobao," Wei Xiaobao replied, "In Jianghu, people call me the Little White Dragon." He recalled Mao Shiba had fabricated a nickname for him with the thought that if he did not have any nickname, it would not be impressive enough. Who could have thought that the nickname agreed with what had happened today as if by prior consultation?

    "You see, you see!" Madame Hong happily said, "This is the Heaven's plan, otherwise, how can there be such coincidence? Jiaozhu's golden mouth has spoken, definitely he won't renege."

    Mr. Lu was greatly anxious, "Wei Gongzi," he said, "Don't fall into their trick. Even if you become the White Dragon Envoy, if they don't like you and want to kill you, won't it be as easy as turning their hand over? The White Dragon Envoy Zhong Zhiling was the example right in front of our eyes. Quickly kill Jiaozhu and Madame, everybody will support you as the new Jiaozhu of Shen Long Jiao."

    As soon as he said that, everybody was startled. Fat Toutuo, Xu Xueting, Priest Wugen and the others all felt that this idea was extremely unthinkable. But then they had a second thought: if they did not support him to be the new Cult Leader, currently there was no position in the Cult higher than the White Dragon Envoy position. The situation before their eyes was very urgent, the lives of everybody present were hanging on his hand. Only by doing this they would be able to tempt him to kill Jiaozhu and Madame. As soon as the crisis was over, even if they really promote him to become the Cult Leader, he would not escape from everybody's grasp. Thereupon everybody chorused, "Right, right, we will support Wei Gongzi as the Shen Long Jiao's Jiaozhu; everybody will be loyal and devoted to you."

    Wei Xiaobao's heart was moved, he cast a sidelong glance toward Madame Hong. She was half sitting half lying on the bamboo chair, as if her entire body was devoid of any bones. Her chest was moving up and down slightly, her cheeks blushed, her eyes glistened. He mused, "There's nothing fun being the Jiaozhu, but this Madame Jiaozhu is extremely pretty. If I become the Jiaozhu, will you or won't you still become the Madame Jiaozhu?"

    But this thought only flashed through in his mind, immediately he cleared his head, "Each of these people has superior martial art skill, as soon as the poison in their bodies is neutralized, how can I deal with them? It will be 'pulling the plank after crossing the bridge'." As for the matter of 'pulling the plank after crossing the bridge', he had had personal experience with the Tian Di Hui's Green Wood Hall. But Tian Di Hui brethrens were heroes and warrior, after crossing the bridge, they did not pull the plank in a hurry. These Shen Long Jiao fellows, on the other hand, how could they not pull the plank in a hurry? Worse yet, how could they not do it in great delight? Although Madame Jiaozhu was pretty, when all is said and done, his own life was prettier.

    Thereupon he stuck out his tongue and said with a laugh, "I don't want to be the Jiaozhu, by saying that, you are not bringing good fortune to me. Besides, it is treason and heresy. How about this: Jiaozhu, Madame, and everybody here better be reconciled. I want both sides to disregard what had happened today. Mr. Lu, Blue Dragon Envoy and the others have offended Jiaozhu, I am asking Jiaozhu to be magnanimous and disregard their crime. Mr. Lu, take the antidote out, after everybody is cured, won't it be good that we are all friendly toward each other?"

    Without waiting for Mr. Lu to open his mouth, Hong Jiaozhu immediately said, "Very well, let's do it. The White Dragon Envoy is urging us to work together, to let bygones be bygones; I accept the auspicious loyal advice. The matter of everybody rebelled against the authority today, I am willing to forgive and will no longer look into it."

    Wei Xiaobao happily said, "Blue Dragon Envoy, Jiaozhu has agreed, don't you agree that this is wonderful?"

    Realizing that Wei Xiaobao was unwilling to kill the Cult Leader no matter what, Mr. Lu heaved a deep sigh and said, "If that's the case, Jiaozhu, Madame, would you two please make an oath?"

    Madame Hong said, "I, Su Quan, will not look into today's matter. If I go against this oath, let me fall into the Dragon Pool, and be devoured by ten thousand snakes."

    In a low and deep voice Hong Jiaozhu said, "If in the future I, Shen Long Jiao Jiaozhu Hong Antong, ever settle the account with old xiongdi over what had happened today, let the Ol' Hong fall into the Dragon Pool and be devoured by ten thousand snakes, so that even my bones will not survive."

    'Fall into the Dragon Pool and be devoured by ten thousand snakes' was Shen Long Jiao’s heaviest punishment. Jiaozhu and Madame swore this heavy oath, although they were under pressure, they simply could not retract what they had said.

    “Blue Dragon Envoy, what do you think?” Mr. Lu asked.

    Xu Xueting was at his last gasp, he said, “I … I won’t live anyway.”

    “Priest Wugen, what do you think?” Mr. Lu asked again.

    In a loud voice Priest Wugen said, “Let it be so. Hong Jiaozhu was originally our old xiongdi, his literary and martial art skills are ten times better than everybody else. We all originally supported him without half-heartedness. Ever since he took this Madame as his wife, his character underwent huge changes; he only loved to promote young boys and girls and had us, the old xiongdi massacred one by one. The Blue Dragon Envoy was the first to rise in revolt, but he was only striving to survive, without any other motive. Since Jiaozhu and Madame have sworn an oath publicly not to look into today’s matter, no longer recklessly murder old xiongdi, why would we want to rebel against him? Besides, Shen Long Jiao cannot exist without this Jiaozhu.”

    A group of teenage boys and girls shouted loudly, “Jiaozhu will enjoy immortal good fortune forever, his long life will be the same as the heaven's.”

    “Wei Gongzi,” Mr. Lu said, “You have not taken ‘realgar medicated wine’, therefore, you were not poisoned by … and thus have set up the great merit of today. It was the mystery of the underworld, the Will of Heaven. To neutralize the poison, it is very easy. Go outside and scoop up some cold water, bring it here and have everybody here drink some.”

    Wei Xiaobao laughed and said, “Turns out this poison is very easy to neutralize.” He went out the hall, but could not find any cold water. Circling around the hall, he saw a row of twenty stone jars, seven of them were brimming with clear water. Actually, the water was to guard against the bamboo hall catching fire. Immediately he filled a bucket full with water and returned to the main hall. He scooped some water and had the Cult Leader drink it first. Next he gave Madame Hong some water. The third scoop was for Priest Wugen; he said, “Daozhang [priest], you are a hero and a warrior.” The fourth, the fifth were for Fat Toutuo and Mr. Lu. The sixth was for Mu Jianping.

    After drinking the water, they all threw up, and then slowly regained the strength of their hands and feet. After Wei Xiaobao fed several more people, Mr. Lu was already able to stand up and walk, immediately he attended the Blue Dragon Envoy Xu Xueting’s injury, trying to stop his bleeding. Fat Toutuo and the others also took cold water to help the brethrens closest to them. Very soon Mu Jianping was able to help several teenage girls wearing red clothes.

    The hall reeked with vomit, the stench was unbearable.

    Madame Hong said, “Everybody, go back and rest, we will assemble again tomorrow.”

    Hong Jiaozhu said, “I have decided to let bygones be bygones, all xiongdi are partners, you cannot, because of what happened today, strife against each other to carry out a vendetta against our brother. Those who disobey will be severely punished. The youngsters of Five Dragon Gates must not be disrespectful against the Zhangmenshi. In the same way, the Zhangmenshi must not find any excuse to punish the young members of our Gates.”

    Everyone received the order with one voice, but they were still suspicious and jealous, after all, it was very difficult to drive anxiety away.

    “White Dragon Envoy,” Madame Hong said in a soft voice, “Come with me.”

    Wei Xiaobao still did not know that she was calling him, only after seeing her beckoning him did he realize that he had become the Divine Dragon Cult's White Dragon Envoy; thereupon he followed her.

    The Cult Leader and Madame walked side-by-side out of the main hall. Everybody who could move bowed to salute, while shouting with a loud voice, “Jiaozhu will enjoy immortal good fortune forever, his long life will be the same as the heaven's!”

    Following a path laid with dark green flagstones the Cult Leader and Madame left the building and walk to the left. After passing through a sizeable bamboo groove, they arrived at an elevated level ground, where several large bamboo structures were built. A dozen or so teenage boys and girls wearing five different color clothes were on guard duty around the buildings with unsheathed swords in their hands. Seeing the Cult Leader, they all bowed to salute. Madame Hong led Wei Xiaobao into a bamboo building and said to a youngster wearing white clothes, "This is Wei Gongzi, your newly-appointed Zhangmenshi of your White Dragon Gate. Take him to the eastern wing to rest, all of you must serve him well." Finished speaking, she flashed a smile toward Wei Xiaobao and entered the inner hall.

    Several teenagers in white clothes presented themselves to Wei Xiaobao and said, "Young subordinates pay their respect to the Envoy."

    In the Palace, Wei Xiaobao was accustomed to be a chief of the court eunuchs; in Tian Di Hui, he was accustomed to be a Xiangzhu, he did not care in the least bit that people were treating him deferentially; he simply nodded. Several teenagers in white clothes took him to the eastern wing and offered to serve him tea. Although it was only a wing, the room was very spacious; the furnishings were elegant and pure, with gold and jade antiques spread all over the table. Several rolls of calligraphy and paintings were hung on the wall, the bedding on the bed was magnificent, unexpectedly it had a little bit of the Imperial Palace's style.

  11. #1011
    Senior Member tweety365's Avatar
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    Thank you foxs!

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    Quote Originally Posted by tweety365 View Post
    Thank you foxs!
    yes thank you
    Ali Derhamy

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    Quote Originally Posted by aliderhamy View Post
    yes thank you
    Poorly played by WXB. He could have married Madame Hong right then
    and there!

  14. #1014
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    Thanks foxs.

    When does WXB's good fortune end? Everywhere he goes, he gets promoted to a high position without really doing anything. Why can't we all have his luck?

  15. #1015
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    Quote Originally Posted by SkyWalker View Post
    Thanks foxs.

    When does WXB's good fortune end? Everywhere he goes, he gets promoted to a high position without really doing anything. Why can't we all have his luck?
    he has the uncanny luck of being the right person at the right place at the right time.

  16. #1016
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    Default Chapter 20 - Part 5

    Tweety, Ali, Sky, you are most welcome. KChill, Ace, thanks for dropping by. Here is a little bit more. No surprises.

    ----------------------------------------------------
    Those several teenagers in white clothes noticed that it was evident from Madame Hong's speech and expression that she held this Wei Xiaobao in such a high regard, moreover, there had never been any outsider who spent the night in the Cult Leader's 'Immortal Good Fortune Residence'. By enjoying special privilege like this, clearly the White Dragon Envoy's status was above the other four envoys. These youngsters had been on guard duty in here for a while, they did not know about the incident that had just happened in the main hall, but seeing Wei Xiaobao was in such an honored position and was in the Cult Leader's good grace, they all did everything they could to please him.

    That same afternoon Wei Xiaobao asked those several teenagers in white clothes about all kinds of customs of the Five Dragon Gates. Turned out the Divine Dragon Cult was divided into five gates, each gate envoy commanded several dozen of old xiongdi, a hundred teenagers, and several hundred ordinary Cult members. Each Zhangmenshi was originally a veteran martial art expert who had established great service to the Cult. But recently the Cult Leader had thrown his full support to promote some rising stars, often people in their twenties, to hold important positions second only to the Zhangmenshi. Although Wei Xiaobao was very young, nobody showed the least bit of surprise.

    The next morning, Hong Jiaozhu and Madame Hong called for another assembly in the main hall. There was anxiety and uneasy expression on everybody's face. Although the Cult Leader had sworn an oath not to pursue this matter, he was known as extremely shrewd, nobody could guess what kind of formidable method he would use to deal with them.

    The Cult Leader and Madame sat on their thrones. Wei Xiaobao was fourth among the Five Dragon Envoys, he ranked above Fat Toutuo and Mr. Lu. "How is the Blue Dragon Envoy's injury?" the Cult Leader asked.

    Mr. Lu bowed and said, "Reporting to Jiaozhu: the Blue Dragon Envoy's injury is not light, whether his life can be saved or not, at the present it is still very difficult to say."

    The Cult Leader took a deep red small porcelain bottle from his bosom and said, "Here are three 'King of Heaven's Life-saving Pills', give them to him." While saying that, without anybody seeing him raising his hand, the porcelain bottle flew slowly toward Mr. Lu.

    Hastily Mr. Lu reached out to receive it. Lying prostrate on the floor, he said, "Thank you Jiaozhu for your great graciousness." He knew these 'King of Heaven's Life-saving Pills' to be very rare. The Cult Leader had to dispatch his subordinates to gather countless rare drug ingredients and had to refine it before making the pills. Among the ingredients were three-hundred-year old Laoshan [lit. old mountain] ginseng, white bear's gall, snow lotus herb and other especially hard-to-come-by substances. The Cult Leader had spent considerable effort to manufacture the pills, but he managed to produce only around ten pills. With these three miracle cure pills, Xu Xueting's life would definitely be out of danger.

    The rest of the old xiongdi also bowed to express their gratitude; they all thought, "The Blue Dragon Envoy has offended Jiaozhu really bad yesterday by determining to take his life, yet today Jiaozhu bestowed the treasured medicine instead. He has let bygones be bygones indeed." No one did not feel gratified. At first everybody in the hall was in high alert, but now their faces showed smiling expression. Quite a few of them let out a deep breath.

    Madame Hong said with a laugh, "White Dragon Envoy, I heard that on Mount Wutai you saw a stone tablet, on which some writings in tadpole script were engraved?"

    Wei Xiaobao bowed and said, "Yes!"

    Fat Toutuo said, "Reporting to Jiaozhu and Madame: subordinate has made a rubbing of the writings and I have it in here." From his bosom he took out a roll of oil paper and opened it, showing a large sheet of rubbings from the tablet, which he then hung on the eastern wall. The sheet had a black background with white characters, the writings looked extremely strange, nobody recognize the characters.

    Madame Hong said, "White Dragon Envoy, if you know these characters, please read it for everybody here."

    "Yes," Wei Xiaobao replied. With eyes fixed on the rubbing, he loudly recited the writings made by Mr. Lu: "In the tenth month of the Zhen Guan’s second year Jiazi of the Great Tang ..." Slowly he continued reciting from memory. Occasionally he would forget, so he said, "Um, what character is that? It's difficult to recognize. Ah right, must be a 'mo' [devil] character."

    When reciting the part that said 'He will enjoy immortal happiness forever, universal evil spirit will venerate him. His long life will be the same as the Heaven’s, a kind sage of both pen and sword', he changed it to 'He, together with Madame, will enjoy immortal happiness forever, universal evil spirit will venerate them. Their long life will be the same as the Heaven’s, kind sages of both pen and sword.'

    In all honesty, this four-character phrase 'together with Madame' [lian tong fu ren] was rather vulgar; if it was composed by Mr. Lu, he would definitely pick a more elegant wording. But Wei Xiaobao did not have any literary skill, how could he produce any elegant phrase? It was already remarkable that he did not change a four-character sentence into a five-character one.

    When Madame Hong heard this phrase, 'her brows raised in delight, her eyes laughing' as she said, "Jiaozhu, there is indeed a reference on me in the writings of the stone tablet, the White Dragon Envoy did not carelessly make it up."

    Hong Jiaozhu was also very happy; he nodded and said with a laugh, "Good, good! We are fulfilling the Heaven's destiny; the founding of this Shen Long Jiao was actually foretold by the Heaven during the Zhen Guan year of the Great Tang."

    The cult members in the hall shouted together, “Jiaozhu will enjoy immortal good fortune forever, his long life will be the same as the heaven's.”

    Priest Wugen and the other old xiongdi were also amazed, they thought, "Jiaozhu and Madame are fulfilling the Heaven's destiny, we must not offend them."

    Finally Wei Xiaobao recited the locations of the eight copies of the 'Forty-two-chapter Sutra'. Madame Hong gasped and said, "When virtuous ruler arose, it is to the benefit of the common people. No doubt the Heaven has arranged it early on, even a man like Wu Sangui is already mentioned in the Heaven's will. Jiaozhu, these eight copies of treasured sutra belong to our Cult, sooner or later they will be acquired for our Shen Long Jiao.

    The Cult Leader twisted his beard and said with a smile, "Madame is right."

    The people yelled again, "Jiaozhu's long life will be the same as the heaven's, Jiaozhu's long life will be the same as the heaven's!”

    When the shouting subsided, Hong Jiaozhu said, "Now, let us open the Incense Hall to inaugurate Wei Xiaobao as our Cult's White Dragon Gate's Zhangmenshi."

    The opening of the incense hall of Shen Long Jiao was completely different from Tian Di Hui. Wei Xiaobao saw five golden trays on the incense table, each tray had a small snake on it, altogether there were blue, yellow, scarlet, white and black snakes. These five little snakes raised their heads, flicking their tongues in and out, but their bodies were motionless.

    After doing obeisance toward these five 'divine dragons', Wei Xiaobao kowtowed in front of the Cult Leader and Madame, and accepted Priest Wugen and the others' congratulations. Madame Hong poured three cups of realgar wine and had him drink it. She said with a laugh, "After drinking this wine, the divine dragons on this island will know that you are one of our own, hereafter they will not come to bite you." The Cult Leader bestowed him a strand of realgar bead, telling him to hang it next to his skin, so that a hundred poisons would not harm him. Next, the elders and young men of the White Dragon Gate came to pay their respect to their new Zhangmenshi.

    The Cult Leader ordered, "Because the Blue Dragon Gate Zhangmenshi is recuperating from his illness, and Fat Toutuo has set up a merit by making the rubbing of the stone tablet, Fat Toutuo will temporarily handle the Blue Dragon Gate's business. When the Blue Dragon Envoy recovers, he will take over again." Fat Toutuo bowed to accept the order. The Cult Leader continued, "Five Dragon Envoys and Lu Gaoxuan, six people, come to the rear hall to discuss official business."

    Immediately the Cult Leader and Madame rose from their seats and walked toward the rear hall, while everybody shouted loudly to see them off. Priest Wugen, Wei Xiaobao, Fat Toutuo, Mr. Lu and the others followed behind them. It was only then that Wei Xiaobao knew that Mr. Lu's name was Lu Gaoxuan.

    The rear hall was located right behind the main hall. It was not big, with two large bamboo chairs inside, where he Cult Leader and Madame sit. Below the chairs there were five low stools. The three Zhangmenshi sat down. Fat Toutuo also sat down. He said, "White Dragon Envoy, please sit down."

    Seeing Mr. Lu did not have a seat, Wei Xiaobao hesitated a little bit. Mr. Lu smiled and said, "White Dragon Envoy, please sit down. There is no seat for a Cult member without any obligations like me in the 'Hidden Dragon Hall'."

    Wei Xiaobao expected it was indeed the custom; if the Fat Toutuo was not acting on behalf of the Blue Dragon Envoy, he would not have any seat either, thereupon he sat down. Mr. Lu stood up next to the Black Dragon Envoy, a position below him.

    Suddenly Yin Jin and the others, four people, stood up. Wei Xiaobao did not understand what was going on, he also stood up. He heard Yin Jin, Mr. Lu and the others, five people, were reciting, “With Jiaozhu’s treasured teaching ..." Wei Xiaobao immediately followed, "... always in our hearts, we can set up meritorious deed and subdue the enemy, nothing is unachievable!” He still had a child's high-pitched voice, so compared to the five people's voices, his sounded somewhat louder. Only after Hong Jiaozhu nodded did the five people sit down.

    Hong Jiaozhu said, "The writings on the stone tablet reveal that there are eight copies of 'Forty-two-chapter Sutra' scattered around the four directions, yet the Black Dragon Envoy reported that four copies are actually in the Imperial Palace; what's the story?"

    The Black Dragon Envoy said, "It may be assumed that these four books were originally from Shaolin Temple, Mu Palace and so on, which, afterwards, were seized away by the Tatars and brought into the Palace." The Cult Leader hesitated for a moment and did not say anything; the fear on the Black Dragon Envoy's face grew more intense.

    Hong Jiaozhu turned toward Fat Toutuo and asked, "Has your Shixiong sent any news back?"

    Fat Toutuo respectfully said, "Reporting to Jiaozhu: Thin Toutuo once said that at the Banner Commander of Bordered Blue Banner's mansion he had found a little bit of clue, but afterwards he lost track of it."

    Wei Xiaobao's heart was moved, "The Banner Commander of Bordered Blue Banner's mansion?" he mused, "Isn't that the place where Tao Gugu's Shifu went? Turns out Fat Toutuo have a shixiong, who is called Thin Toutuo."

    He heard Hong Jiaozhu said, "Tell him I order him to finish up his investigation as soon as possible, he must not be negligent." The Fat Toutuo repeatedly complied.

    After a while, Madame Hong smiled and said, "The Black Dragon Envoy has sent people into the Palace to fetch the sutra. According to his own explanation, he had spared no effort, but so far he had not succeeded in obtaining even one copy. Perhaps we ought to send someone else whose luck is a lot better to handle this matter."

    The Yellow Dragon Envoy Yin Jin hastily said, "Madame has a wise opinion. Learning from experience, fetching the sutra is a matter of luck, with enormous responsibility. It's not that the Black Dragon Envoy did not try hard and did not want to perform a meritorious deed for Jiaozhu, it's just that from the beginning there are obstacles one after another. Most likely it is because his luck is inadequate, thereupon the treasured sutra cannot be obtained."

    Madame Hong smiled and said, "In your opinion, whose luck is adequate?"

    Yin Jin said, "The one with most luck in our Cult is naturally Jiaozhu, the Senior, himself; next in line would be Madame. However, we must not toil your two honorable selves to go into action personally. The next person with great fortune would be the White Dragon Envoy. He knows the inscriptions on the stone tablet, he has also established a great service. There is a faint red glow at the center of his forehead, a sign that his luck is very big, there is no one among Jiaozhu's subordinate can surpass him."

    The Cult Leader twisted his beard and said with a smile, "But he is a small child, can he handle this great matter?"

  17. #1017
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    first here 2 :P

    I am on a role, thanks foxs... sounds like they allready know WXB has the other 4 books.
    Ali Derhamy

  18. #1018
    Senior Member SkyWalker's Avatar
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    Thanks foxs. Have a great weekend!

  19. #1019
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    Ya, seems like a plot to assign him to take the other books.

    Thanks Fox!

  20. #1020
    Senior Member crazee's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by foxs View Post
    The next person with great fortune would be the White Dragon Envoy. He knows the inscriptions on the stone tablet, he has also established a great service. There is a faint red glow at the center of his forehead, a sign that his luck is very big, there is no one among Jiaozhu's subordinate can surpass him."
    Do I sense jealousy here ?
    I definitely have no doubt our hero can do it.... looks like WXB will also be a high flier in the cult...wow, so young and already is the leader in the palace, Tian di hui, now sheng long jiao....imagine the mosnster he can be if he creates havoc with all his henchmen....
    cheerio..

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