The Deer and The Cauldron

[crydee]

Thanks Foxs.....! I think ZKS going to meet his end soon.....You talking about going against WXB here..LOL

[smurf120]

I think its Chen Jinnan who is lucky this time to have WXB eavesdropping - even with the bunch of the other guys out there, they may not have the gumption to fend off these two in any reasonable way.

ZKS is so incredibly petty.

[Ace High]

Thanks Foxs.....! I think ZKS going to meet his end soon.....You talking about going against WXB here..LOL

But also WXB's teacher, who have an unquestioned loyalty towards ZKS's father.
WXB will probaly pull out something out of his bag of tricks and defeated ZKS. But when WXB about to kill ZKS, Chen Jinnan will surely prevent it.

[kyss of the sword]

wonderful translation. this is getting exciting,

[Grundle]

But also WXB's teacher, who have an unquestioned loyalty towards ZKS's father.
WXB will probaly pull out something out of his bag of tricks and defeated ZKS. But when WXB about to kill ZKS, Chen Jinnan will surely prevent it.

This is one aspect of Yi Qi I could never understand. When someone so obviously acts like a douchebag, and because of their father's status they become untouchable.

[tweety365]

Looking at this scene from another perspective, to win in politics, one needs to weed out the enemies and sometimes the enemies are those close to you. ZKS's older brother is the heir. Hence, getting rid of CJN is a perfectly logical act, even if it is not a wise one since they haven't beaten the Qings yet. Right now, they need talented people like CJN to help with the rebellion. ZKS should try to get rid of CJN later. I also think ZKS's actions are ruthless, sneaky and unheroic. However, lots of WXB's acts toward his enemies are like that as well. And people like CJN who are foolishly loyal always annoy me.

Thanks foxs!

[foxs]

Bchin, Wandering, Anh, you are welcome. Ace, definitely. What else did he have other than prestige (and perhaps good looks)? Crazee, classic case, isn't it? Sablemagi, I like your idea about Jiu Nan making her appearance ... She was the Zhu family Chen Jinnan was talking about. Sky, Crydee, Smurf, I agree. Too bad it is not his time yet ... Kyss, thanks for the compliment. Grundle, Tweety, I also cannot stand people like that. Take Yue Fei, for example. He died, for what? If he lived, he could do a lot more for the country and the people. Others might praise him as loyal to the end, in my book however, he was stupid. I am not talking about 'afraid of death' here. More like 'die with a purpose'. Sorry if I offend anybody, just my 2 cents ...

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He saw Feng Xifan thrust his sword swiftly forward, a powerful strike, Chen Jinnan raised his sword to block, two swords immediately stuck together. Zheng Keshuang waved his saber in diagonal chop, Chen Jinnan leaned sideways to evade. Zheng Keshuang’s saber swept across, ‘rip’ he made a long cut on Chen Jinnan’s left leg.

“Ah!” Chen Jinnan cried out; the sword in his hand jerked upward. Feng Xifan seized this opportunity to thrust his sword forward and hit Chen Jinnan’s left shoulder.

Chen Jinnan was drenched in blood as he fought desperately; it was hard for him to stay standing, step by step he moved toward the door, with the intention of rushing out to make his escape. Feng Xifan understood his intention, he rushed toward the door first. “Rebellious thief,” he said with a cold laugh, “You are still thinking of escaping today?”

Wei Xiaobao was hoping Feng Xifan would walk toward the coffin, so that he could thrust his dagger through the coffin and kill him just like the way he killed the lama at the inn. This move, called ‘stabbing people from behind partition board’ [ge ban ci ren], was his entire life’s special skill, it far surpassed the martial art master’s special skill ‘striking ox from behind the mountain’ [ge shan da niu]. But Feng Xifan was fighting farther and farther away, how could he stab him?

“Rebellious thief,” Zheng Keshuang shouted, “Still not throwing down your sword and letting your hands be bound?”

Seeing how critical the situation was, Wei Xiaobao decided that even if he had to lose his life today, he had to save his shifu. Tightening up his throat, he made three loud ‘zhi, zhi, zhi’ noise.

(Book note: Zheng Chenggong [another title of Koxinga] fathered Zheng Jing and the others, ten people. Zheng Jing became the Ming Dynasty’s Yan Ping Jun Wang during the first year of Kangxi’s reign. He fathered Zheng Keshang, Zheng Keshuang, and the others, eight people. Keshang was the oldest, born of a concubine, and was Chen Yonghua’s son-in-law. Later on he became the Jian Guo [country supervisor] heir apparent. The second son Keshuang became Feng Xifan’s son-in-law. When Zheng Keshang succeeded to the throne, he was barely twelve years old. Our book has these matters only as background, increases their age considerably, hence there are discrepancies with historical fact.)

When Feng Xifan and the others, three people heard it, they were startled. “What is it?” Zheng Keshuang asked. Feng Xifan shook his head, but his hand did not slow down the least bit. Wei Xiaobao cried ‘zhi, zhi, zhi’ again three times. Zheng Keshuang was afraid of ghost, he was trembling with fear. Suddenly he saw the coffin lid opened, a burst of white dust flew out. Immediately the three of them felt their eyes were burning, while an unbearably pungent smells assaulting their noses.

What happened was that usually before the body was entered into the coffin, the coffin would be lined with a large quantity of lime. When Gao Yanchao purchased the coffin, it was already loaded. This moment Wei Xiaobao grabbed a handful of lime and scattered it out. Feng Xifan knew it was not demon or ghost, he quickly jumped over with closed eyes, and leaned forward to thrust his sword into the coffin. ‘Pop!’ the tip of the sword stabbed the coffin’s lid; while he was about to pull the sword to stab again, suddenly he felt pain on the right side of his chest. He knew he had fallen into the enemy’s trick; hastily he leaped back to evade, but his back heavily crashed onto the wall. His martial art skill was superb, with his left hand pressed against the wound on his chest, he brandished the sword in his right hand so that ‘wind and rain could not penetrate’, as a shield in front of his body.

It was actually Wei Xiaobao from inside the coffin launching his move ‘stabbing people from behind partition board’. As soon as his attack succeeded, he leaped out of the coffin, clenching the dagger tightly in his hand. He saw Feng Xifan, Zheng Keshuang and Chen Jinnan, three people, were brandishing their saber and swords randomly with their eyes closed tight. He noticed that although Feng Xifan was hit by his dagger, it was not a fatal wound. He wanted to seize the opportunity and gave him another stab, but Feng and Zheng, two people moved their sword and saber in a very tight formation. He really did not dare to recklessly charge forward. The timing was critical, if he waited too long, those two would have wiped the lime from their eyes, and if they could see, it would be really bad for him. Without any definite plan, he simply grabbed another handful of lime, and as soon as he saw either Feng Xifan or Zheng Keshuang to wipe their eyes, he would simply scatter the lime onto them. Scattering the lime was another special skill in which he was an expert.

After only throwing several times, Feng Xifan had already figured out the direction of the lime; with the move ‘thirsty horse rushing to the spring’ he thrust this sword straight forward. Wei Xiaobao was greatly shocked; hastily he ducked down. ‘Pop!’ the sword pierced the coffin. Wei Xiaobao crawled and rolled away toward the door.

Feng Xifan raised his sword and hacked down on the coffin several times, he still thought the enemy was inside. Actually, based on his martial art cultivation, he would have detected Wei Xiaobao’s extremely clumsy exit immediately, but because his eyes were suddenly blinded and his chest wounded, for a moment his mind was in disorder. Moreover, he knew Chen Jinnan’s martial art was extraordinary, not inferior to his own at all; with a powerful enemy on the side, his situation was incomparably treacherous. In his fright, he did not realize that Chen Jinnan’s eyes were also blinded. He only wished to kill the enemy who attacked him sneakily, and made a quick escape.

After stabbing the coffin several times, he felt that he was piercing an empty coffin. With a move ‘thousand rocks vying to be the most beautiful’, the tip of his sword stabbed in a flower pattern to shield around his body. He heard to his left there was no sound of weapons splitting the air, immediately he leaped to the left. As soon as his shoulder bumped onto the wall, he stood leaning against the wall. Because of this excessive use of strength, the wound on his chest was bleeding profusely.

He tried to open his eyes a slit, the lime immediately entered his eyes, the pain was difficult to bear. Afraid that he might be blind permanently, he did not dare to open his eyes anymore. With his back against the wall he moved step-by-step, thinking that as long as he followed the wall, he would eventually find the door; as soon as he was out, the terrain would be spacious, then he would have a better chance of escaping.

Wei Xiaobao was standing at the door. Seeing Feng Xifan started to move, he knew his intention; Wei Xiaobao wanted to wait until he reached the door and then give him a stab, but remembering this man’s martial art skill was too high, even if he succeeded in stabbing him, at the point of death he might strike with his sword, and then Wei Xiaobao’s little life would inevitably be in danger. Thereupon he quietly inserted his dagger about two cun into the doorframe. Seeing Feng Xifan was no more than two chi from the door, he suddenly called out in shrill voice, “I am he …”

Before the word ‘here’ left his lips, Feng Xifan had already moved very fast. His sword slashed down, ‘dang!’ the sword met the dagger, and broke into two. The other half flew up and slash Feng Xifan’s forehead before falling down to the ground. Wei Xiaobao had already hidden by the clay-walled shed with heart thumping wildly.

He heard Feng Xifan’s roar and saw him dashing out. Wei Xiaobao returned to the door and saw Chen Jinnan and Zheng Keshuang were still brandishing their sword and saber randomly. With the powerful enemy gone, he did not care much about the Second Young Master of the Zheng Family. “Shifu,” he called out, “I have chopped that ‘One Sword without Blood’ so that now his entire body is full of blood; he has already escaped without a trace. Please come out.”

Chen Jinnan was startled. “Who is it?” he asked.

Wei Xiaobao replied, “It’s your disciple Xiaobao.”

Chen Jinnan was greatly delighted; he held the sword across his chest, no longer brandished it.

Wei Xiaobao called out, “Zhang Dage, Li Erge, Wang Sange, you have arrived! Very good, very good! This stinky fellow surnamed Zheng has not put down his weapon and surrendered, let’s come together and chop him down into pieces!”

Zheng Keshuang was shocked; he did not know that Wei Xiaobao was bluffing. “Shifu, Shifu!” he called out. But did not hear Feng Xifan’s replying. After slight hesitation, he tossed his saber aside.

“Kneel down!” Wei Xiaobao shouted. Zheng Keshuang bent his knees and kneeled on the ground. Wei Xiaobao laughed aloud. He picked up the saber and lightly pressed it against Zheng Keshuang’s throat. “Stand up!” he shouted, “Turned right, walked three steps, crawl up, get in!”

For each sentence Wei Xiaobao shouted, Zheng Keshuang followed his order, trembling with fear, until finally he crawled into the coffin. Wei Xiaobao laughed aloud, stepped forward, and pushed the coffin lid. He picked up the bundle of the sutra and slung it over his shoulder. “Shifu,” he said, “Let’s quickly wash your eyes.” Pulling Chen Jinnan’s hand, he led him out of the clay-walled shed.

They only walked for seven, eight steps when he saw Gao Yanchao lying by the flower terrace. Wei Xiaobao was startled, and rushed forward to help him up.

Gao Yanchao said, “Helping Zongduozhu is more important, subordinate only have my acupoints sealed, otherwise I am fine.” Chen Jinnan stooped down and massaged his back and his waist for a moment, the acupoints were immediately opened.

“What happened to Zongduozhu’s eyes?” Gao Yanchao asked.

“Lime,” Chen Jinnan replied.

“We must wash it with vegetable oil,” Gao Yanchao said, “Don’t use water.” Pulling Chen Jinnan’s hand, he quickly walked back to the house.

“I’ll be right there,” Wei Xiaobao said. He returned to the clay-walled shed, picked up the axe, and pounded seven, eight nails into the coffin’s lid. “Zheng Gongzi,” he said, “Just lay down and rest for several days. Consider yourself lucky, the ten thousand taels you owe me, I write off at one stroke, you don’t have to pay it back.” With another laugh he walked back into the main hall.

He saw Gao Yanchao had finished washing the lime off Chen Jinnan’s eyes with vegetable oil; he had also tended the injury on Chen Jinnan’s body. Feng Jizhong, Qian Laoben, Priest Xuanzhen, and the others were lying across the floor of the main hall, Chen Jinnan was in the process of unsealing everybody’s acupoints.

Turned out Feng Xifan launched a surprise attack. Not only his martial art skill was high, he also caught everybody off-guard. Before Feng Jizhong and the others were able to pull themselves together, he had already sealed their acupoints one by one. They were extremely enraged, but in front of the Zongduozhu they did not dare to curse.

Gao Yanchao told them how by using a trick Wei Xiaobao managed to inflict heavy damage to Feng Xifan; immediately everybody was in high spirit. They said that since that servant was so crafty and evil, they hoped that the lime would blind his eyes permanently.

Chen Jinnan’s eyes were still red and swollen, tears still streaming down his face. With a serious expression he said, “Qian Xiongdi, Gao Xiongdi, go wash the lime from Zheng Er Gongzi’s eyes, and invite him here.” Qian and Gao, two people complied.

“Ah!” suddenly Wei Xiaobao cried out and pretended to faint, his eyes were tightly shut.

Chen Jinnan reached out with his left hand to held Wei Xiaobao’s arm. “What happened?” he asked.

Wei Xiaobao said, “I … I was … scared … scared really bad just now, I was afraid they were going to kill Shifu … now … now my limbs feel weak …”

Chen Jinnan lifted him up and sat him on a chair. “Just rest for a moment,” he said.

What happened was: Wei Xiaobao knew that scattering lime on people’s eyes was a really low act; for this very reason Mao Shiba had given him a good beating in the past. Although the other warriors praised him for his resourcefulness, he thought that as his subordinates, naturally they wanted to flatter him. Shifu was a great hero, great warrior, ten times more so than Mao Shiba, he would surely give him a serious criticism. Thus Wei Xiaobao might as well pretend to faint in front of him, so that he would not punish him, or even if he did, he would be somewhat lenient.

Qian and Gao, two people rushed into the hall in a hurry; they said, “Zongduozhu, we did not find Zheng Er Gongzi; he must have left.”

Chen Jinnan frowned. “He left?” he asked, “And not in the coffin?”

Qian and Gao, two people looked at each other in dismay. There was indeed a coffin in the clay-walled shed, but how could the Second Young Master of the Zheng Family be in it?

“Let’s go take a look,” Chen Jinnan said. He led everybody toward the clay-walled shed.

Wei Xiaobao was greatly anxious, he had no choice but to follow them. His hands rubbed his own buttocks while saying in his heart, “My buttocks, oh my buttocks, if Shifu heard that I forced that stinky fellow into the coffin, you, my old friend, will unavoidably receive several flogging; I am truly sorry.”

When they got to the clay-walled shed, they saw the floor was covered with lime and blood, but indeed neither Zheng Keshuang’s body nor his shadow was around. Chen Jinnan clearly heard Wei Xiaobao forcing Zheng Keshuang to enter the coffin, but at this moment the coffin lid was firmly nailed down. His suspicion arose. “Xiaobao,” he asked, “Did you nail Zheng Er Gongzi inside the coffin?”

Seeing Shifu’s ill expression, Wei Xiaobao hummed and hawed. “I did not,” he said, “Perhaps he was afraid Shifu would kill him, he nailed himself inside the coffin.”

“Rubbish!” Chen Jinnan shouted, “Quickly open the coffin, don’t let him die of suffocation. Hurry, hurry!”

Qian Laoben and Gao Yanchao picked up the axe and chisel, and busily pried the coffin nails out. When they opened the lid, sure enough there was someone lying inside.

“Er Gongzi!” Chen Jinnan called out, and reached into the coffin to help the person up.

“Ah!” when everybody saw the person, they all cried out in alarm. Chen Jinnan quickly let go and retreated two steps back. The person fell back into the coffin.

“It’s Guan Fuzi!” everybody shouted in one voice. In that split second, everybody was able to see clearly that the person in the coffin was indeed Guan Anji.

[Anh Nam]

Thanks Foxs

[wandering]

thanks again. I don't know how you can translate so fast.

[tweety365]

thanks again. I don't know how you can translate so fast.

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. I think foxs had already translated a bunch of chapters prior to posting the 1st chapter. Hence, he is able to keep up a steady pace and holding out on us greedy readers. Smart thinking, foxs .

[crazee]

“It’s Guan Fuzi!” everybody shouted in one voice. In that split second, everybody was able to see clearly that the person in the coffin was indeed Guan Anji.

Eh ? A magical feat ? How come the zheng fellow becomes Guan Anji ??

Thanks Foxs....no doubt about it you're fast...

So I guessed it right heh heh heh....XB the ghost what more tricks have he in his sleeves ??

[9Dragons]

I think you meant mallet/hammer instead of axe.

Chen must have been blind before entering the clay-walled shed. Blinded by their treachery and by not seeing his subordinates lying on the floor? I don't know too much about washing lime, but vegetable oil sounds pretty messy.

[smurf120]

I think water would cause the lime to dissolve but vegetable oil will bind it away? To my previous comment, I think ZKS is really petty to be jealous of other people's loyalty instead of cultivating people who would be loyal to him. Their largest group in the Central Plains is Heaven Earth Society, if he kills their leader he turns the entire contingent into Civil Warfare.

Agree Chen Jinnan is quite misguided.

[aliderhamy]

Thanks Foxs

Really enjoyed this part.

[crazee]

I think water would cause the lime to dissolve but vegetable oil will bind it away? To my previous comment, I think ZKS is really petty to be jealous of other people's loyalty instead of cultivating people who would be loyal to him. Their largest group in the Central Plains is Heaven Earth Society, if he kills their leader he turns the entire contingent into Civil Warfare.

Agree Chen Jinnan is quite misguided.

Lime...calcium Carbonate mixed with water is caustic, causes burn.

Yes... Rather shallow thinking for a emperor wannabe. If he had the material he would had won over Tian Di Hui and be their leader. Stupid too...don't you people agree ?
I suppose China's history is made up of lots of such characters including emperors and that was one of the reasons of the turbulent history of ancient china.

Chen Jinnan is also another classic of blindly loyal warriors in the history of China...anyway I get my history lessons from novels and limited history ...it does not make me an expert but I suppose it pretty close as the turbulent times shows.

Maybe heros seems more heroic when they are blindly loyal ???

[9Dragons]

In a life-death duel, I would have dispatched that rotten and dishonorable ingrate first. Allowing him to take cheap shots is as good as delivering your life to them.

Sources say to rinse with water. Internet is such a powerful tool.

[smurf120]

I find the safety tips highly in conflict with one another regarding quicklime:

http://www.lime.org/documents/lime_b...recautions.pdf

Product Safety

Care should be taken to avoid accidental mixing of quicklime and water (in any form, including chemicals containing water of hydration) to avoid creating excessive heat. Heat released by this reaction can ignite combustible materials or cause thermal damage to property or persons.

Lime dust can be removed from vehicles using rags dampened with dilute vinegar. After applying dilute vinegar, vehicles (especially chrome surfaces) must be washed with water.

First Aid
The Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the specific lime product should always be consulted for detailed first aid information. The following guidelines are general in nature.
If skin contact occurs, brush off dry lime and then wash exposed skin with large amounts of water. If skin burns occur, administer first aid and seek medical attention, if necessary.

If lime comes in contact with the eyes, they should first be flushed with large amounts of water. Seek medical attention immediately after administering first aid.

For inhalation, remove exposed person to fresh air. Seek medical attention immediately after administering first aid.

For further steps, consult the MSDS and follow the instructions of medical personnel.
------------------------------------------------

I think using oil was a better call since mixing water and quicklime will cause burning.

[Grundle]

The reason they mention large quantities of water is so that the chemical can be diluted and removed as quickly as possible. The larger volume of water you use the quicker you are diluting and removing the chemical. Unfortunately this does not stop any chemical reaction that occurs as a result of contact with the water. This in fact could cause burning, from the acidity of the product of the reaction.

Chemically speaking, oil is actually a much better medium to use when cleaning out the eyes from lime, because it is inert to the lime -- e.g. no chemical reaction will occur, AND lime is insoluble in oil. This insolubility means that it will not dissolve in the oil, but the oil can still be used as a wash to carry the particulate away from the eyes.

I hope that clears it up.

[crazee]

from the acidity of the product of the reaction.

I hope that clears it up.

Friend...its an alkali...opposite of Acid. lime powder with water creates caustic soda...remembered that from my chemistry class.....yes it burns like acid too on skins..

[tweety365]

Wow, didn't think there would be such a big discussion regarding lime in this translation. But it's cool. I learn something new.