thanks foxs!
hhrrm I kind of feel bad for ZM. She's giving up so much for WJ...
wow..04-08....4 years just like that..time flies..
Seeing him like that, Zhao Min was scared; she regretted having said such things. “I was just scaring you,” she hastily said, “There is no such thing. You must not take it seriously.”
Staring hard at her, Zhang Wuji slowly said, “You are not afraid of coming to this inn to see my Yifu. You kept saying that you want to confront them directly. Could it be that it was because you knew they are no longer alive?” While saying that, he moved two steps forward until he was less than three feet away from her. He raised his palm high, ready to strike her to her death.
Looking directly into his eyes, Zhao Min gravely said, “Zhang Wuji, let me tell you this: in the matters on this earth, you cannot rashly believe what other says unless you witness it with your own eyes. Furthermore, you cannot let your own imagination run wild. You want to kill me, fine, just do it. But what if your Yifu comes back? How would you feel then?”
Listening to her reprimand, Zhang Wuji was somewhat ashamed; he said, “As long as my Yifu is safe and sound, I’ll consider myself very fortunate. You must not joke about my Yifu’s safety and well-being.”
Zhao Min nodded. “I shouldn’t say those things, I only have myself to blame; you should not feel bad.”
Hearing her admitting her own mistake, Zhang Wuji’s heart softened. Smiling slightly he said, “I was too rude and rash, and thus offended you.” Finished speaking he returned to Xie Xun’s room.
He waited all night, but until dawn neither Xie Xun nor Zhou Zhiruo came back. Zhang Wuji was even more anxious. He took a quick breakfast then had a discussion with Zhao Min about where they would go next. Zhao Min creased her eyebrows and said, “This is really strange. I think we’d better try to overtake Shi Huolong and his company, and think of a way to eavesdrop.”
Zhang Wuji nodded. “Let’s do it.” Immediately they settled their room bills, and left a message with the innkeeper that if Xie Xun and Zhou Zhiruo return, they were to wait in that inn. The inn helper led a pair of red steeds from the stable.
Zhang Wuji saw that the steeds’ hides were smooth and shiny, with long slender legs and strong bodies, the signs of top quality horses. He could not restrain from clucking his tongue in admiration, thinking that these horses must belong to the people under her command who were trailing the Beggar Clan to this place. She must have fetched them when she went out to buy some clothes the previous day. Zhao Min showed a faint smile as she mounted the horse.
Two riders galloped side by side heading south. To the onlookers, their horses looked like dragons, the two riders, a man and a woman, were wearing exquisite and expensive-looking clothes, their appearances smart and beautiful, they must be a young couple from a rich, high-ranking government official’s family who were out travelling.
That day they galloped for more than two hundred ‘li’s [1 li is approximately 0.5 km], and after spending the night en route, they continued their journey at daybreak the next morning. By midday, they felt the north wind was blowing stronger on their backs, with overcast clouds seemingly hanging over close to their heads. After twenty more ‘li’s, big, goose down-like snowflakes started to fall. Along the way, Zhang Wuji did say almost nothing to Zhao Min. Seeing that the snow was getting heavier, he still did not utter a single word from his place in the front. That day, they were actually riding through a remote mountainous path. By nightfall the snow had reached over a foot deep, although their mounts were divine steeds, they could not go further. Zhang Wuji realized the sky was getting darker and darker. He stood on the saddle and looked around, but did not see a single building; he was indecisive.
“Miss Zhao,” he said, “What do you think? I am afraid our horses won’t be able to take it anymore if we hurry along.”
With a cold laugh Zhao Min said, “You only know the horses won’t be able to take it anymore, but you don’t care whether the people will live or die.”
Zhang Wuji was regretful; he thought, “I have Jiu Yang Shen Gong [divine energy from the Nine Yang Manual] in my body, I don’t feel weary or cold. In my eagerness to save people, I am being inconsiderate towards her.”
Traveling a little bit more, he suddenly heard a cracking noise, a roebuck fled from their left, running toward the mountain. “I’ll catch it for our dinner,” Zhang Wuji said.
Leaping down from his saddle, he followed the roebuck trail on the snow, chasing it straight down the mountain. After circling a small hill, under the dim evening fog he saw that roebuck was running straight into a cave. Exerting his strength, he flew like an arrow toward the roebuck, and caught it by the back of its neck before it entered the cave. The roebuck turned its head around trying to bite Zhang Wuji’s wrist. Zhang Wuji exerted all his strength to his fingers and ‘crack’ he snapped the roebuck’s neck.
He noticed that although the cave was not too big, it could easily give shelter to the two of them for the night. Carrying the roebuck, he returned to Zhao Min and said, “There is a cave over on that side, let us spend the night here. What do you think?”
Zhao Min nodded, but suddenly she blushed. Raising the reins, she steered the horse toward the cave.
Zhang Wuji led the horses towards the slope and tied them underneath two big pine trees, to protect them from the snow, and then he looked for some dried branches to build a fire on the cave entrance. The cave was clean, with no trace of filthy animal excrement inside. Looking toward the inside, all he could see was impenetrable darkness. Thereupon he skinned the roebuck, washed it with snow, and roasted it on the fire.
Zhao Min took her mink fur coat and spread it on the ground. Under the blazing fire, the cave was as warm as springtime. Zhang Wuji happened to turn his head around. Under the flickering fire light, he saw her pretty face was even more stunning. They looked at each other and smiled; it was as if the hunger and cold of the day melted in that one smile.
When the roebuck was done, each of them ripped the hind leg and ate. Zhang Wuji heaped more firewood to the fire. Leaning against the wall of the cave he said, “Why don’t you sleep?” Zhao Min smiled sweetly. Leaning against the opposite wall, she closed her eyes. Zhang Wuji’s nose caught an intermittent whiff of fragrance coming from her body. He saw her cheeks were rosy, and he felt a strong urge to kiss her, but he held back the thought and closed his eyes to sleep.
They slept until midnight when suddenly they heard hoof beats from a distance. Zhang Wuji woke up with a start. Cocking his ears he could hear four horses coming from the south running to the north. The snow was still falling heavily outside the cave. He thought, “In the middle of the night, under a heavy snowfall, rushing along braving cold weather, they must have an extremely urgent matter to attend.”
The sound hoof beats suddenly stopped as they came near to their place. A moment later the hoof beats started again, surprisingly, the sound turned toward their cave. Zhang Wuji was alarmed, “This cave is remotely located on the back of the mountain, if I did not chase that roebuck, I would not have found this place. How can they find their way over here?” But immediately he realized, “That’s right, we left our tracks on the snow. The tracks must still be visible although it has been snowing heavily for half a night.”
By now Zhao Min was awake; in a low voice she said, “Perhaps some enemy are coming. Let us hide and see what kind of people they are.” As she was saying that, she grabbed some snow outside the cave and quenched out the fire with it.
Last edited by foxs; 03-05-08 at 09:51 AM.
Yeah, it does seem that ZWJ does a lot of eavesdropping.
hahah poor wuji.. always getting a bit of a hard time from you guys (the readers)
he is just a young man with no real male role model to follow and no experience of his own.. but atleast he controls his emotions and thoughts most of the time..
but yea.. i mean, he had no real master.. his father died when he was young.. its a bllody good thing that he hasnt become one of those revenge crazy nutters we have seen in other novels.. I think his reactions and interactions to things around him a very natural and very cool!
thanks Foxs_
I tell you 007 has nothing on Wuji in earsdropping..hahaha
THanks Foxs_
what's good about wuji is that he is an ordinary person (albeit with extraordinary abilities) thrust into a situation which he actually doesn't want but he does it so damn well.
you're right 007 should have read on wuji before he started his career
By that time the sound of hoof beats ceased, but they heard four people walking on the snow toward the cave. In a short while they have came within a dozen ‘zhang’s away [1 zhang is approximately 10 ft or 3.3 meters] from the cave mouth.
In a low voice Zhang Wuji said, “These four people’s movement is very agile, they must be very high skilled martial art masters.” If they went out to cave to seek hiding place, they would definitely be detected by these four people. Without argument Zhao Min pulled his hand to enter further into the cave.
The deeper they went, the narrower the cave became, but surprisingly the cave was very deep. About a ‘zhang’ later there was a bend on the passageway. Suddenly they heard one of the people outside say, “There is a cave here.”
The voice sounded very familiar to Zhang Wuji, since it belonged to his Si Shishu [fourth martial (younger) uncle] Zhang Songxi. While he was pleasantly surprised, the other man said, “The hoof prints and footprints are indeed heading towards this cave.” It was Yin Liting.
Zhang Wuji was about to call when Zhao Min reached out to cover his mouth. She whispered in his ear, “It would be very awkward if they saw you and I in this cave together.”
Zhang Wuji realized she was right; Zhao Min and he did not do anything shameful, but if the various martial uncles saw a young man and young woman pair sleeping together in a cave, how could they explain? Moreover, Zhao Min was a Mongolian princess who had held Zhang Songxi, Yin Liting, and the others captive at the Wan An Temple, where they were disgraced. It would be extremely awkward if the enemies meet here. He thought, “I’ll wait until Zhang Sishu [fourth (younger) uncle Zhang, Yin Liushu [sixth (younger) uncle Yin] and the others leave the cave, and then I’ll appear alone and meet them; and thus avoiding this awkward situation.”
He heard Yu Lianzhou’s voice saying, “Uh! There is a remnant of some firewood in here. Hmm, and some blood-soaked roebuck skin too.”
Another voice responded, “My heart has always been disturbed. I hope nothing bad happened to Qidi [seventh (younger) brother].” It was Song Yuanqiao’s voice.
Learning that his four martial uncles, Song, Yu, Zhang and Yin, were going out at together to find Mo Shenggu, and hearing from the tone of their voices, Zhang Wuji deduced that his Qi Shishu [seventh martial (younger) uncle] must have met some powerful enemy; he was somewhat anxious.
He heard Zhang Songxi laugh and say, “Da Shige [first martial (older) brother] always takes a good care of Qidi, just like when he was the inexperienced, teenage martial brother; while in fact, for the past few years Mo Qixia [seventh hero Mo] has earned an awe-inspiring fame for his fighting prowess. He has early on surpassed his own former prestige. Even if he met a powerful enemy, Qidi alone would not necessarily be unable to deal with it.”
Yin Liting said, “I do not worry over Qidi as much as I worry over that child Wuji. His whereabouts is unknown. Currently, he is the Ming Cult Jiaozhu. A tall tree invites strong wind. A lot of people want to deal with him. Although his martial art skill is high, he is too naďve, he does not understand the sinister crisis of the Jianghu. I am afraid he might fall into some villain’s wicked scheme.”
Zhang Wuji was touched, thinking that his martial uncles’ kindness to him was very deep; they kept thinking about his safety all the times. Zhao Min put her mouth on his ear and whispered, “I am a villain and at this moment you have fallen into my wicked scheme. Do you know it?”
He heard Song Yuanqiao say, “Qidi is heading north to look for Wuji. Apparently, he has picked up some scents on his whereabouts. Only, the eight-character message he left in a hurry in that Tianjin’s inn is confusing.”
Zhang Songxi said, “’A change in our Sect, needs to be taken care of urgently’. [men2 hu4 you3 bian4, ji2 xu1 qing1 li3 – eight characters] Could it be that there is a scum in our community? Could it be that that child Wuji …” Speaking to this point, he suddenly stopped. His voice was filled with deep anxiety.
Yin Liting said, “This child Wuji is not the kind who would corrupt his own Sect, I am sure of that.”
“I am afraid that little witch Zhao Min is too treacherous for him,” Zhang Songxi said, “Wuji is still too young and hot-blooded; he might be seduced by a pretty face like his father, who in the end brought ruin and shame upon himself …”
Four men no longer talked; they all sighed deeply. A moment later, Zhang Wuji heard the sound of flint as they lighted the wood to build a fire and cook their meals.
The fire light reached the back of the cave. Although they were hidden behind the bend, Zhang Wuji was still able to see Zhao Min’s face vaguely. Her expression showed resentment and anger; he thought Zhang Songxi’s words earlier must have angered her very much. Zhang Wuji understood her resentment, yet he was also startled, “What Zhang Sishu said is reasonable. My mother did not do anything evil, yet my father was implicated by her actions. This Miss Zhao has killed my Biaomei, disgraced my Tai Shifu [grand master] and my numerous martial uncles. But how can she be compared to my Mama?” Thinking to this point, his heart was thumping madly, he thought, “If they find out Miss Zhao and I are in here, the entire water of the Yellow River would not wash me clean.”
He heard Song Yuanqiao speak with a trembling voice, “Sidi [fourth brother], there is suspicion in my heart, but I feel uncomfortable to say it out loud. I am afraid I am offending our own deceased Wudi [fifth (younger) brother].”
Zhang Songxi slowly said, “Is Dage [first brother] afraid that Wuji might suddenly harm Qidi?”
Song Yuanqiao did not answer, but although Zhang Wuji could not see him, he thought that Song Yuanqiao must have nodded his head slowly.
He heard Zhang Songxi continue, “This child Wuji is honest and generous. Reasonably speaking, that is very unlikely. I only worry that Qidi is hot-tempered and acts rudely. He might force Wuji and put him into a difficult position. Add to the fact that little witch Zhao Min is very crafty, she might incite those two against each other. If that happens, then … then … Ay, a man’s heart is unfathomable, the matters of this world are difficult to predict. Till from the ancient times, it is difficult for a hero to resist a beautiful face. I only hope Wuji will be able to control his emotions well when facing important matters.”
“Dage, Sige,” Yin Liting said, “You are talking empty talk, isn’t that a groundless fear? [lit. 杞人忧天 – the man of Qi fears the sky falling] Qidi might not necessarily face a grave danger.”
“But after seeing the sword Qidi used to carry, I cannot help but feel fearful and apprehensive; I can’t eat and sleep in peace,” Song Yuanqiao said.
“This matter is very unclear,” Yu Lianzhou said, “For people like us, martial arts practitioners, we can’t casually leave our weapon anywhere. Let alone this sword was given by Shifu. The sword exists the person exists, the sword perished, the person …” Speaking to this word ‘person’, he suddenly stopped; he could not endure to say the word ‘perishes’.
Hearing that Mo Shenggu abandoned the sword given by his master and that his four martial uncles suspected he had something to do with it, Zhang Wuji was very concerned, but he was also angry.
A moment later, he faintly smelled a whiff of aroma coming from inside the cave, mixed with the smell of wild beast. Apparently, the cave was very deep and either at that moment there was a wild beast hiding inside, or the cave was actually some wild beasts’ den. He was afraid that Song Yuanqiao and the others might also smell the aroma and investigate and then he would be found out. Without daring to open his mouth, he pulled Zhao Min’s hand, quietly taking her deeper into the cave. He stretched out his left hand forward to guard against bumping into some protruding rocks.
thanks you fox_S i just started in on this translation not too long ago and i must say this is a magnificent novel i highly appreciate the lengths at which you go to translate this wonderful novel! just out of curiousity how many more chapters do you have to do?????and any plans on doing another novel after doing the hsds book 4?Zhao min is indeed awesome while zhou zhirou is sipping vinegar all the time; i think it was her who desecrated wuji's biaomeis tomb by knocking over the plaque saying my beloved wife!!!![on a side note it seems everyone here wants to pretend they have never seen even one heavenly sword dragon saber adaption which i find quite amusing im pretty sure most everyone on this thread has allready watched at least one adaption if you like wuxia novels you are sure to have watched every wuxia series you could get your hands on! [its a conspiracy]
nice one fox_S...thanks a lott! i always enjoy when ever wudang heros n zhang san feng come into picture!
yea zhang san feng could have a cool wuxia novel of his own if he wasnt a stupid celibate taoist... . .
Hello James or Foxs!
Do you guys know if there are still any 'missing' chapters not bridged between Book 1 and here?