大唐双龙传 [Da Tang Shuang Long Zhuan] by Huang Yi

[Drak17]

Thanks foxs! Seems like Huang Yi love mansion fights. A Step Into The Past had Xiang Shaolong in the same situation. Lucky this time, the two boys have each other to fend off enemies!

[Komeng]

Thanks foxs

[Jayariyin]

Thanks, foxs.

[BocahTuaNakal]

thanks foxs

[Subudai]

thanks foxs..
can't wait for the brothers to leave Susu somewhere save so they can move on..

[foxs]

HPC, Ysabel, Joaquim, Komeng, Jaya, Bocah, you are welcome. Oh, Joaquim, welcome to the forum. Laoren, that is affirmative, even SLY says so. Sky, I was referring 'only' to their 'servant mentality'. Please spare my life ... Drax, speaking about urban warfare, 'Blackhawk Down' came to my mind. Subudai, I did not realize you guys loathe Susu that much. I only feel sorry for her.

---

The noise outside suddenly died down, even the crackling noise of the fire seemed to disappear; only occasional rustling noise of the sleeve against the breeze was still heard. Apparently Li Mi’s men were conducting thorough search to ensure no one slipped through their net.

The three people knew it was a critical moment, they were so scared that they did not even dare to let even half a mouthful of heavy breathing escaped from their nostrils. Additionally, from time to time there were people raising their torches high to look at the rockery; fortunately no one could ever imagine that there was a dry well inside it.

After nobody knew how long, a gentle and pleasant to hear voice was heard from the edge of the pond, “Still can’t find those two kids?”

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling recognized Li Mi’s voice; immediately in their hearts they did not stop crying out for their Niang.

Luckily the other party was separated by a distance of four, five zhang, plus the three of them were hidden in the well under the fake rock; otherwise, it would be impossible to conceal their presence from this martial art master whose name shook the world.

Zu Junyan’s voice was heard, “They were last seen around this courtyard; that Xu kid was even carrying that precious little maid Susu on his back. And then in the confusion nobody knows where they sneaked out to.”

A loud and clear male voice was heard, “Logically speaking, they must be hiding inside the Mansion; but now all rooms have been burned down, the underground tunnel has also been blocked. Where could they go?”

Shen Luoyan’s tender voice was heard next; she let out a snort and said, “Even if they were able to escape from the Mansion, they can forget about leaving the city.”

While inside the well Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling were busy raining down curses on her, Li Mi spoke indifferently, “In any case, don’t let these two boys escape. If we can’t use them, finish them off with a blade, to avoid a new branch grows out of a knot. Understand?”

Zu Junyan and the other chorused their compliance. The sound of footsteps was getting farther and farther away.

The three people have just breathed a sigh of relief, Shen Luoyan’s sigh was heard, “Shiji, my heart is a bit uneasy.”

It was only then did the three people realize that the man with a loud and clear voice was Li Mi’s other general, Xu Shiji, who also happened to be Shen Luoyan’s boyfriend.

Xu Shiji said, “Luoyan, your wisdom and intelligence have always surpassed others’, you always plan in advance; why are you suddenly sounded so bleak, as if you have lost all hopes?”

Shen Luoyan let out a gloomy sigh again, and gently said, “These two boys’ skill is getting better every day, each encounter is more formidable than the last; even Bai Laoliu [ol’ six], Xie Hei, those kind of martial art masters were sent to the western paradise just in a few encounters with them. Moreover, the cause of their death was because their heart and artery were shattered by their powerful qi. If this time we are unable to hold them down, in the future they will become a disaster for us.”

Listening to his, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling’s heroic spirit swelled uncontrollably; they had just found out that turned out they carried enough weight in the minds of the enemy.

Xu Shiji let out a cold snort and said, “If it weren’t for the fact that our attention was focused on that dead devil Zhai, how could they have the chance to show off? Leave the search to me! Even if they flew to the end of the sky, I will bring their body back for you to see.”

The noises outside died down.

The three people were unable to resist their exhaustion; they fell asleep in each other’s embrace. Finally they were able to accomplish the magnificent feat of sleeping together.

One after another the three of them were awakened by the cold falling snowflakes.

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling have mastered the divine skill of ‘Secret to Long Life’, it was only natural that they were able to withstand the cold. Susu was wearing fur coat, plus she had practiced a little bit of martial art, and on top of that, she put on a cloak, which rendered her cold proof. The unbearable thing was that Kou Zhong, who pressed himself against her back, was emitting a stream on strangely cold qi that made her feel extremely uncomfortable; while on the other side Xu Ziling was emitting an incomparably hot qi. It was as if her body was subjected to a severe winter on one side, and intense summer on the other; half cold half hot. She did not know whether she ought to feel painful or happy.

Xu Ziling was the first to realize this situation; he knew during sleeping Kou Zhong would spontaneously circulate his qi. “Zhong Shao,” he called out softly, “Still haven’t restrained your inner qi?”

Kou Zhong obeyed him and woke up. Susu immediately felt a bit better.

By this time the heavy snow had nearly filled the space above the three people to the brim. Naturally Kou and Xu, two boys had no problem. Automatically the true qi within their body reacted; the breathing from their mouth and nose was severed, they entered the inner-breathing state like a fetus. However, Susu did not have this kind of ability; she felt drowsy very quickly. “I am stuffy!” she moaned.

Xu Ziling was about to push the snow out to let Susu breathe a bit of fresh air. A multitude of footsteps was coming near, someone spoke, “Drain the pond water, I heard they are proficient in breathing-under-water skill, perhaps they are still hiding at the bottom of the pond. Humph! Let me search this pond carefully one more time.”

Recognizing the voice as belonging to Xu Shiji, how could the three people dare to move? Listening to Susu’s breathing that was increasingly short and hurried, the two boys were greatly anxious. If this condition continued, just the sound of her breathing would be enough to alert the enemy; not to mention she might be suffocated to death.

They heard the sound of rushing wind; obviously someone was crossing the pond, flying toward the fake rock.

Xu Ziling was facing Susu. Although he could not see Susu’s expression due to the thick snow above them, from the heaving of her breasts he knew that she was on the verge of taking her last breath, yet for the sake of the two boys, she fought hard to restrain herself. Critical situation gave birth to quick-wittedness; pressing his lips against her fragrant lips, he transferred his true qi to her.

Susu’s tender body trembled a little before calming down. Her icy-cold lips gradually warmed up, as she silently receiving the true qi that made her entire body relaxed.

The three of them felt people were walking back and forth above; hence they were forced to beseech the gods and pray to Buddha that the people above would not step onto the snow covering the hole above their heads; otherwise, they would definitely be able to tell that there was something different with the snow.

‘Crash!’ Someone opened the sluice, with a loud crash the water flowed out of the pond.

Shen Luoyan’s voice was heard from the outside, “I think they have already escaped. With a glance you can already see the bottom of the pond, there is no way anybody could hide in here.”

Xu Shiji clearly shared similar impression; he coldly said, “They must be still in the city, we’ll mobilize our troops immediately to search for them house-to-house, I want to see where can they go?”

A long time after Shen Luoyan and the others left, Kou Zhong was the first to stick his big head out of the snow and happily said, “They are all gone!” Only then did Xu Ziling leave Susu’s fragrant lips and help her to stand up.

Turned out it was already dawn. Heavy snow was still swirling in the air; the Zhai Mansion had turned into broken-roof crumbling-wall ruins after the fire.

Susu has been sitting with bent knees all night long, her legs went numb. Were it not for Xu Ziling holding her arm, she would not be able to stand.

Noticing the slight blush on Susu’s pretty face, plus her bashful demeanor as if she did not dare to look straight at him, Xu Ziling could not help recalling the interlocking of the two sets of lips just now, and some kind of peculiar feeling grew in his originally pure heart.

How could Kou Zhong be willing to let him get away with it just like that? Leaning closer to Susu, he whispered in her ear, “Jiejie was kissed by Xiao Ling, how about letting him marry you?”

“Don’t talk nonsense,” Susu snapped at him, “Xiao Ling was doing that to save my life! How can you say that?”

Kou Zhong slapped his forehead and remorsefully said, “I deserve the scolding! I nearly forget that when sister-in-law is drowning, we must lend a helping hand. [Translator’s note: I believe he was referring to Confucianism restriction in man-woman relationship.] Therefore, in this situation Xiao Ling was also helping Jiejie … hey! There is nothing strange about it.”

Susu turned around planted a very light kiss [orig. the dragonfly touches the water lightly] on Kou Zhong’s lips; she spoke tenderly, “This way I treat you fairly. Don’t laugh at Xiao Ling again.”

While Kou Zhong was ‘as dumb as a wooden chicken’, Xu Ziling said, “Don’t be ridiculous; right now running away for our lives is more important. What should we do?”

At this time the three of them still had the lower part of their bodies hidden inside the snow-covered well, only their upper bodies were exposed outside. While helping Susu brushing off the snowflakes from her beautiful hair, Kou Zhong mused, “Now our hope is on the one called Peipei from the Daiqing Lou [sic. It was ‘yuan’ in previous chapters.] But if we go there to look for her just like this, chances are we are going to reveal ourselves. Besides, at the moment we are not able to move a single step within the city of Xingyang. It would be best if we could find a place where we could hide for his mother’s several days, waiting for the smoke to clear, and then when Shen Poniang [b1tch] and the rest think that we have gone far away, we’ll go to Peipei, asking her to find a way. This way it will be absolutely safe.”

With a bitter laugh Xu Ziling said, “Who dares to offer shelter to us now?”

Susu’s voice was trembling, “They said they are going to conduct house-to-house search, it would be better for us to just stay here.”

Kou Zhong giggled and said, “In this kind of weather, if we stay here, we will either die of the cold, or die of starvation. Ha! Does Jiejie know where that Shen Luoyan’s thieves’ lair is?”

Susu was shocked. “You are not thinking of hiding in her home, are you?” she asked.

Kou Zhong laughed. “Where can we find a hiding place more secure than her place?” he said, “Right now this b1tch is under Li Mi’s order to search for us, she shouldn’t have time to go home to sleep, we will enter by exploiting this weak spot and put up with her place just for a few days. By the time she goes home, it will mean that the search is over, and then we can go to find Peipei.”

Xu Ziling was greatly moved; he nodded and said, “According to reason, Shen Poniang wouldn’t be so bad that she won’t even spare her own thieves’ lair. This plan is certainly feasible.”

Susu still did not feel at ease. “But there other people in her home!” she said in fear.

“Nothing more than several maids, servants and low-grade workers,” Kou Zhong proudly replied, “Do you think she will station a massive military force over there, to guard the lady’s chamber like the battlefield? Ha! Xu Shiji coming is another story altogether.”

Finally Susu was persuaded; she told them where Shen Luoyan’s official residence was located.

The three of them waited until dark. This time Kou Zhong carried Susu on his back. Unleashing their Bird Crossing Technique, they leaped onto roofs and vaulted over walls toward Shen Luoyan’s residence to hide.

[George Harris]

sounds like the start of a nice piece of revenge ... or a tragic screw up! Can't wait to find out! Thanks Foxs this was interesting!

[HPC7595]

Thanks foxs

[SkyWalker]

Thanks foxs.

They're heading to SLY' place. The only person who can help them now is SLY, if she chooses to. I hope they interact soon.

[Ysabelkid]

Thanks foxs

[Laoren]

Thanks foxs. Hahaha they are going into the frying pan

[r_aribawono]

thanks foxs
I hope they hide in SLY house, and later kidnap her together with them when they are fleeing from the city...

[Jayariyin]

Thanks, foxs.

[chualot]

Thanks, foxs

[Komeng]

Thanks, foxs

[BocahTuaNakal]

their martial expertise is getting more and more profound, can't wait their future action. yet most of the time they still act as two small thieves.
thanks foxs

[foxs]

George, Sky, Laoren, Ari, interesting that you guys have totally opposite view of them going into hiding in SLY's house. Again, up to this point of the story, I don't trust SLY, as you said, her allegiance is to Li Mi, and (in this story, not the historical Li Mi) I don't like Li Mi. I mean, he massacred his ex-boss and his entire household, just because he wanted to be the head of Wagang Army? I know that that was what happened during a coup d'etat, but still ... HPC, Ysabel, Jaya, Chua, Komeng, you are welcome. Bocah, you are so right, but that is because they did not know their own ability yet. Hopefully we'll see them exposed to more opportunity to prove themselves later. Anyway, new chapter.

---

Book 5 Chapter 2 – Big Hiding Place in the City

Were it not for Susu had once come with Zhai Jiao to call on Shen Luoyan, even if they had her address in hand, perhaps they would have to waste considerable time before they could find this vicious and merciless beauty’s fragrant residence.

Shen Luoyan’s house was located in a residential area by the eastern city wall, where the buildings were situated next to each other. Including her residence, there were thousands of courtyards surrounded by walls with dark green bricks and dark green roof tiles, linked together by small alleys, taking shape of deep alley between high walls. The alleys were narrow and winding; several hundred streets and alleys winding and turning, criss-crossing each other, and they all paved with large dark green flagstone, which looked virtually the same.

After braving the snow, the three people arrived here and felt that that they were entering a maze; it was difficult to tell one street from another. Particularly during this time of the night, where the only light they could rely on was the dim lantern light coming out from the buildings; it felt even more like entering a ghost area.

But they felt unusually safe instead.

Because in this kind of place, it would be very convenient for them to either fight or stay.

Kou Zhong slipped into an alley and said with a laugh, “That Shen Poniang must have a lot of enemies that she lives in this kind of place that will make people faint with blurred vision.”

Xu Ziling also felt relaxed. While walking and stretching at the same time, he said, “When I first heard that Shen Poniang’s lover [orig. male adulterer] Xu Shiji said that they were going to conduct house-to-house search, he gave me a real scare. Turns out he was just tooting his horn; if he came to this side, we would go to that side. How could he deal with Wulin martial art masters like us?”

Susu was still having a lingering fear, “Can you not be so carried away like that?” she said, “The people of Xingyang are all fervent supporters of Wagang Army. All it takes is just one person spotting us, and I guarantee that he will report it to them … oh!”

Before she finished speaking, Kou Zhong already had his arms around her waist and whisked her up to the roof of a building on the left. Xu Ziling also leaped at the same time.

The three of them lay low on the roof and looked down toward the mouth of the alley some distance ahead. Amidst the swirling snowflakes, all they saw was quiet, silent and lonely footprints.

Susu was baffled, “Is there anybody here?” she asked.

Kou Zhong replied in low voice, “My intuition can’t be wrong. It’s really strange, how come I can’t even see anybody’s shadow, I can’t hear anybody’s voice, but I can feel that there is danger approaching?”

Xu Ziling nodded and said, “I also feel a warning in my heart. Look!”

They saw a squad of about a dozen warriors in dark green clothes, coming from the alley on the other side, along the way they knocked on every door. Needless to say, obviously they were looking for the three people.

Watching these men, the three people felt their scalp went numb. This Xu Shiji apparently someone who did what he said he would. By the time the entire city knew about these three fugitives, they would not be able to move a single step.

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling were not ordinary people, their look was particularly easy to recognize, to conceal it from others would be more difficult than ascending the heavens.

After the search party went far, the three of them cried out inwardly, ‘What a close shave!’ If it were not for the heavy snow, Xu Shiji only needed to send his men to watch from vantage points, while the other team was conducting house-to-house search, and then even if the three people grew wings, it would still be difficult for them to fly away.

But right now the weather was bitterly cold, plus visibility was very low, naturally Xu Shiji’s men only worked halfheartedly.

Gnashing his teeth, Kou Zhong said, “All along we only receive beatings without being able to hit back, greatly damaging our reputation as the Yangzhou’s Two Dragons. Since we have Daiqing Lou’s Peipei as our way out, we might as well strike back without restraint, making his mother’s trouble that will turn the sky and the earth upside down, and thus venting the resentment in our hearts.”

Susu was extremely nervous [orig. a bird startled by the mere twang of a bow]; overwhelmed with horror, she said, “How can you do that? How can you fight them?”

Xu Ziling, however, was greatly excited; he said in a low voice, “If you want to be famous, naturally you must establish your prestige. However, we’d better find a dependable hiding place first before making a grand plan.”

“Jiejie, come!” Kou Zhong excitedly said.

As soon as Susu was perched on Kou Zhong’s back, he brought her soaring into the air like a big bird.

She suddenly had a feeling that she did not have clear understanding of these two brothers of hers. If it were other people, they would either be so terrified that they pulled their heads like a turtle and refused to come out, or with a thousand ways, a hundred plans would try to escape without a trace. How could they be like these two boys, who were fully aware that the enemy’s power was a thousand times, a hundred times bigger than theirs, yet they still had the courage to ‘strike back’, just like striking a stone with an egg?

Looking at Shen Luoyan’s fragrant residence from the outside, there was really no difference from the other houses in the neighborhood, only the door decoration was comparatively more exquisite, unlike the peeling off door and walls of the next door neighbor’s.

But the inside was a different story altogether. Not only it was spacious, elegant and pure, the garden and courtyard were integrated into one continuous entity, the layout gave a beautiful and secluded impression, the building displayed original architecture, and was quite distinctive.

The house was called Luoyan Zhuang [lit. falling wild goose manor], where the manor’s courtyard was dominated by the main residence hall; water and rock in contrast with one another, pathways and winding corridor were running through rock garden, which also function as separator. The winding path went up and down, what is true and what is false engendered one another.

North of the pond was a small two-story building styled as if it was resting on a hilltop, with five continuous pillars over two levels, and overhanging eaves, like butterfly flapping its wings ready to fly; very unique. Shen Luoyan’s boudoir was precisely in that building.

Behind the small two-story building was an artificial stream, with two small bridges connecting the rear court with the maids and servants’ apartments, as well as the storehouse.

Luoyan Zhuang did not cover too large of a land, but it was just like a remote, secluded area; simple and unadorned, yet exquisite, and highly poetic.

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling jumped over the sidewall into the courtyard, momentarily they were staring in awe. It never occurred to them that Shen Luoyan was the type of person who knew how to enjoy life, her dwelling was rather like a ‘Big Hiding Place in the Alley’.

Not too long afterwards, Kou Zhong already gathered the information that the manor only had four young maids, and a pair of husband and wife servants, none of which knew martial art.

The three people finally settled on hiding in a guest room, which seemed like no one has slept in it for a very long time. The most wonderful thing was that this room was already well stocked with everything they needed. The three were not bashful; after drinking enough stolen tea, they fell asleep immediately.

By the time Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling were awakened because they heard unusual noise, the day has already brightened.

Kou Zhong moved away Susu’s arm, which was resting on his chest, walked over to the window, and peeked outside. Turned out it was the only male servant, sweeping the snow on the yard.

Xu Ziling also got out of bed came over to him; he whispered, “The snow has stopped!”

Without averting his gaze, Kou Zhong asked, “Are you hungry?”

“Hungry as hell!” Xu Ziling replied.

Kou Zhong whispered, “We can’t steal food in here, otherwise they will discover us. Let me go out to take care of the food and then I’ll come back!”

Xu Ziling said, “Going to the street could be very dangerous.”

Kou Zhong laughed, “Don’t worry!” he said, “As long as the three of us don’t walk together, it won’t be that conspicuous. I’ll even scout around for the news.”

Xu Ziling knew that Kou Zhong was full of craft and cunning, plus he has been hungry since last night, so after warning him repeatedly, he said, “The sooner you go, the sooner you’ll come back.”

Kou Zhong consented; he then sneaked out of the rear window.

Having nothing to do, Xu Ziling was about to sit cross-legged silently, when from the bed Susu called out, “Li Dage! Li Dage!”

Xu Ziling was startled; he jumped onto the bed to cover Susu’s fragrant lips.

Susu woke up. As soon as she regained her consciousness, her pretty eyes immediately shot a panic-stricken look. When Xu Ziling lifted up his hand, she cried out in low voice, “The enemy’s coming?”

“No!” Xu Ziling shook his head, “But Jiejie was talking in your sleep. I was just afraid you might alert the man sweeping the snow outside.”

Susu was relieved, but then her charming face turned red as she said, “What did I say in my dream?”

Xu Ziling sighed inwardly. “Nothing!” he said indifferently, “It was practically some unintelligible words.”

Susu sat up. Knitting her brows, she asked, “Where is Xiao Zhong?”

After Xu Ziling told her, she began to worry again.

Suddenly there was a sound of footsteps approaching. The two people were scared and busily folded the blankets back to their previous condition, and then they went into hiding under the bed.

They were barely hidden when two young maids came in and started sweeping and dusting, as well as replacing the bedding with a fresh one.

One of the maid said, “Miss has not returned home for eight full days, and last night Longtou Mansion was burned to the ground. And now rumors are flying all around town, making me really worried for Miss.”

Under the bed, Xu Ziling mused that it was other people who should be worried; definitely not that Shen b1tch.

The other maid laughed and said, “Xiao Ju [li’l chrysanthemum], you are worried over nothing. Last night Duke Mi has just deployed the troops to take over Liyang Storehouse. What happened to Longtou Mansion can’t be helped; who told old ghost Zhai to be so stubborn that he adamantly refused to abdicate? Speaking about competence, how could he be Duke Mi’s match?”

Xiao Ju was astounded, “How could Lan Jie [elder sister orchid] know so clearly?” she asked.

Xiao Lan proudly replied, “Naturally somebody told me!”

Xiao Ju laughed and said, “Must be that guy Li Jie, hee … hee … Have you slept with him yet?”

And then chasing and hitting each other the two maids left the room.

[Ysabelkid]

Thanks foxs

[HPC7595]

Thanks foxs

[SkyWalker]

Thanks foxs.

I'll reserve my judgement on Li Mi till he makes an approriate appearance. I don't think I'll like him though.

I have a strong feeling that SLY will switch sides at the last minute. I hope I'm right. If she remains loyal, it'll be a pity because I really like her.