e tea and eat something? Don’t be worried about the boat being small; even if more people came, it still wouldn’t sink.” She gently paddled the boat, approaching the willow tree. Extending her delicate hand, she retrieved the golden abacus and the soft whip. She casually played with the abacus a bit, striking it and causing a series of clanging sounds.

After listening for just a brief moment, Duan Yu delightedly said, “Miss, you are playing the song, ‘Gathering Mulberries’, right?” As it were, when she started to play with the abacus, her fingers danced across it both quickly and slowly, with force and gently. She used a rhythm that was unexpectedly two strains from the gentle, easy song, ‘Gathering Mulberries’. Ah Bi smiled beautifully. “Young master, you have a thorough understanding of music. Why don’t you come play a melody as well?” Duan Yu saw that she was innocent, friendly, and unpretentious. Smiling, he said, “I don’t know how to play the abacus.” Turning his head, he said to Cui Baiquan, “Mr. Huo, this young miss is beating out such a lovely melody on your abacus.”

Cui Baiquan forced out a smile. “That’s so, that’s so. This young lady really is a proper person. Even such a vulgar object as this possession of mine becomes a musical instrument in her hands.” Ah Bi said, “Aww, I’m very sorry, yeah? Does this belong to Mr. Huo? This abacus is made exquisitely. You must have a lot of money at home. Even your abacus is made out of gold! Uncle Huo, lemme give it back to ya.” Holding the abacus in her left hand, she stretched her arm out towards him, but Cui Baiquan was on the shore and unable to receive it. He really could not bear to part with this old friend of his, which had never left his side for an instant in many years. With a leap, he too jumped into the boat, stretching out his arm and receiving the abacus. Leaning his head slightly, he shot a glance at Jiumozhi. A gentle, amible smile was on Jiumozhi’s face the entire time, without the slightest hint of anger.

With her left hand, Ah Bi held the tip of the whip, using the five fingers of her right hand to strap the other end around her hand. She scratched the whip with her fingernail, instantly creating a series of crystal clear ‘ding’, ‘ling’, ‘dong’, ‘long’ sounds. It was as though she were testing out a new pipa instrument. A weapon which had done battle all across the land, competing against both heroes and villains, once more became a musical instrument in her tender, pure white hands.

Duan Yu cried out, “Brilliant, brilliant! Miss, why don’t you play a song for him?” Ah Bi said to Guo Yanzhi, “Does this soft whip belong to you, sir? I very rudely toyed around with a bit. I’m so very sorry. Why don’t you come on the boat as well? In a bit, I’ll peel some fresh crimson water chestnuts for you to eat.” Guo Yanzhi held a deep and abiding hatred for the entire Murong family for the death of his master. But seeing this innocent, unaffected maiden speak and smile so sweetly, he couldn’t release upon her the anger and hatred he felt. He thought to himself, “Since she’s invited me onto the boat, I might as well go. At the very least, I’ll kill some of their people and so avenge my benevolent master’s death.” He immediately nodded and also jumped onto the boat.

Ah Bi carefully coiled up the soft whip, then handed it to Guo Yanzhi. Pulling at the oars, the boat began to move westwards.

Cui Baiquan and Guo Yanzhi exchanged a few glances. They thought to themselves, “Today, we are entering a tiger’s den. Who knows if we will live or die? The Murong family’s techniques are very sinister and deadly. This girl appears to be gentle, kind, and sweet; she doesn’t seem to be putting on an act. But who knows if this is a trick by which the Murong family uses to deceive their enemies? After we lower our guard, perhaps they will make their move.”

The boat glided across the waters. After making several turns, they arrived at a particularly large lake. As far as the eye could see, mist covered the surface of the water, which stretched out unendingly in every direction. Guo Yanzhi was secretly apprehensive. “This large lake is probably Lake Taihu, the Grand Lake. Neither I nor martial-uncle Cui know how to swim. All this little girl needs to do is overturn the boat, and the two of us will become food for the turtles and the fish. How could we possibly gain vengeance?” Cui Baiquan had thought of the same thing. He decided that if he could get his hands on the oars, it wouldn’t be an easy task for the girl to overturn the boat even if she wanted to. He said, “Miss, let me help you row the boat. Just tell me what direction we should go.” Ah Bi smiled. “Aww, I vould not dare! If the young master found out, he’d berate me for slighting our guests.” Seeing that she was unwilling, Cui Baiquan became all the more suspicious. He laughed, “To tell you the truth, we want to hear you, young miss, display your consummate skills in playing songs on the soft whip. We are unrefined people, but young master Duan here is a thorough expert in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.”

Ah Bi glanced at Duan Yu. She laughed, “My playing is so poor, how can it be considered a consummate skill? This young gentleman appears to be very refined. He’ll laugh’n’laugh’n’laugh some more. I aint gonna!”

Cui Baiquan took the soft whip from Guo Yanzhi and put it in her hands. “Play, play!” At the same time, he took the wooden oar from her hands. Ah Bi laughed. “Alrighty! Could you lend me your golden abacus again as well?” Cui Baiquan felt extremely apprehensive. “Can it be that she has some underhanded plot in taking both of our weapons?” But at this point in time, he could not credibly refuse, and could only hand the abacus over to her. Ah Bi put the golden abacus on a wooden plank in front of her. She held the handle of the soft whip in her left hand, then gently stepped on the tip of the whip with her left foot, pulling it taut. The five fingers of her right hand plucked rapidly in succession, immediately generating a tinkling sound from the soft whip. Although the sound wasn’t as clear and strong as that of a pipa instrument, it was still very bright and crisp nonetheless.

While she was playing the soft whip with the five fingers of her right hand, she managed to simultaneously stretch her fingers out and play with the golden abacus. The clanging sound of the abacus beads, when combined with the tinkling sounds from the soft whip, became even more clear in their harmonizing. Just at this moment, a pair of swallows flit past them overhead, heading westwards. Duan Yu thought to himself, “The Murong family lives at the ‘Basin of Swallows’. I would imagine there must be many swallows here.”

Ah Bi began to sing. “Two divinities appear at an auspicious hour, and a thousand families once more see the graceful dancing of a pair of swallows. The nest of the phoenix is certainly near, for why else does the river mist follow us even now? As messy as a rich lady’s boudoir, flying low over the green shores, drawing a picture with gentle strokes, singing a song of the turning of this world. For whom do I come, and for whom do I depart? My master’s benevolence is as priceless as a string of pearls.”

Hearing how graceful and supple her voice was, Duan Yu couldn’t help but be moved. He thought to himself, “If I stayed in the southern lands of Dali all of my life, how could I have heard such a celestial melody? ‘For whom do I come, and for whom do I depart? My master’s benevolence is as priceless as a string of pearls.’ Young lord Murong must be an extraordinary person to have a servant girl such as her.”

After finishing her song, she returned the soft whip and abacus to Cui and Guo. She laughed, “Please don’t mock me for my poor singing. Master Huo, just paddle towards the small harbor towards our right!”

Cui Baiquan felt relieved after she returned their weapons to her. He immediately complied and paddled the boat towards the harbor. The surface of the water was covered with water lotuses. If it hadn’t been for her guidance, he never would have discovered that there was a way in. After paddling for a while longer, Ah Bi said, “Paddle in that direction, please.” Here, the surface of the water was covered with water chestnut leaves. The crimson water chestnuts surged up and down with the waves, forming a stupendously colorful sight. Ah Bi casually plucked a few of the water chestnuts out from the water and offered some to each person.

Although Duan Yu could move his arms, after having his major acupoints sealed, he couldn’t exert the slightest bit of strength. He couldn’t even peel the chestnut. Ah Bi laughed. “Young gentlemen, you aren’t from Jiangnan and you don’t know how to peel chestnuts. Lemme help ya!” She peeled many chestnuts in a row and placed them in his palm. Duan Yu saw that the skin of the chestnuts looked bright and clean, and put them in his mouth. They tasted savory, crisp, and outstandingly sweet and clear. He laughed, “The tastes of these chestnuts are clear and not dirty at all, just like the song you sang, miss.” Ah Bi’s blushed slightly. She laughed, “This is the first time I’ve heard anyone compare my singing to these water chestnuts. Many thanks!”

Before they finished paddling past the pool of water chestnuts, Ah Bi directed them to make another course change, having the small boat pass through a pond of reeds and wild rice. By now, even Jiumozhi was beginning to feel suspicious. He secretly began memorizing the twists and turns they made, so as to not get lost on his way out. But as he stared at the lake, all the water chestnuts, lotus leaves, and reeds looked identical. Moreover, once the wind blew, the shape and configuration of the chestnuts and leaves would suddenly change. Even if he really did memorize how everything looked, in a blink of an eye it all would look differently. Jiumozhi, Guo Yanzhi, and Cui Baiquan continuously cast side-glances at Ah Bi, trying to discern from her eyes how she was managing to discern where they should go. But all she did was cheerfully and carelessly pick chestnuts and play with the water before casually pointing out where they should go next. It was as though these countless complex interlocking channels, which were almost like a chessboard, were as familiar to her as the lines on the palm of her hand, something which she knew since birth and had no need to memorize.

And so, twisting and curving, they paddled for almost four hours. Off in the distance, green willows could be seen growing thickly, revealing a corner of upturned eaves. Ah Bi said, “Go there! Master Huo! You must be tired, after helping me row for half a day!” Cui Baiquan smiled wryly. “As long as there are red water chestnuts to eat and beautiful songs to hear, even if I rowed for another eight or ten years, I wouldn’t be tired.” Ah Bi clapped her hands and laughed. “You just wanna listen to songs and eat chestnuts? Easy breezy! Just don’t leave this lake for the rest of your life, yeah!”

Hearing her say the words, ‘Don’t leave this lake for the rest of your life, yeah’, Cui Baiquan couldn’t help but feel startled. He cast her a side glance, but saw her smiling cheerfully, without any malicious undercurrent at all. Still, he couldn’t help but continue to feel uneasy. Ah Bi took over the wooden paddle, and begin to row them towards the copse of willows. A large pine tree branch, carved into the shape of a ladder, touched the water’s surface. Ah Bi fastened the boat to the branch. The melodious call of little birds could be heard above them. Imitating the sound of the birds, Ah Bi also let out a few calls, before turning and laughing, “Please come ashore.”

As they left the boat, four or five rooms could be seen, scattered alongside the river and constructed upon an area that seemed like an island or a peninsula. The rooms were small and exquisitely constructed, appearing very refined and proper. Above the house was a plaque with two words written on it: “Zither Melody”. The calligraphy of the plaque was extremely natural and unrestrained. Jiumozhi said, “Would this place be the Canhe Manor of the Basin of Swallows?” Ah Bi shook her head. “No. This is the place which the young master has given us to live in. It’s a very small place and totally unsuitable for receiving guests. But you, master monk, said that you wanted to visit the mausoleum of old master Murong. This is something which I don’t have the authority to allow. Please wait here for a bit while I go and consult with my elder sister, Ah Zhu.

Listening to her words, Jiumozhi felt unhappy and his face sunk. He was the national protector and dharma king of Tibet, an extremely venerated and respected personage. Not only was he greatly respected and honored in Tibet, if he were to pay a visit to the imperial courts of the Great Song, Dali, or the Western Xia, the monarchs of each kingdom would personally receive him with great courtesy and proprietry. Moreover, he was a bosom friend of Mr. Murong and personally came to pay his respects to him. Since young master Murong was unaware of this, he could not be blamed for leaving. But for this underling to not invite him to the main hall and receive him with proper ceremony and instead take him to the living quarters of the servants was simply too infuriating. But, seeing the smiles and laughter on Ah Bi’s face, it didn’t seem as though she had the slightest intention of disrespecting him. He thought to himself, “This little girl doesn’t know anything. Why should I lower myself to be bothered by her?” After this thought, he became calm and good-tempered again.

Cui Baiquan asked, “Who is this elder sister Ah Zhu of yours?” Ah Bi smiled, “Ah Zhu is simply Ah Zhu. She’s a month older than me, so puts on the air of being my elder sister. I don’t have the option to not call her elder sister, since she’s a month older than me after all. But you don’t need to call her elder sister Ah Zhu, because if you do, she’ll become all the more giddy and happy.” As she chirped and tittered in her gentle, clear voice, she led the four of them into the house.

Arriving within the main hall, Ah Bi bade them sit. A male servant served them green tea and pastries. Duan Yu, holding the teacup in his hand, smelled a fragrant, aromatic scent. He removed the lid on his teacup and saw extremely fine grains of jade-green tea leaves floating on top of the tea. They appeared almost like little pearls rolled into slender hairs. Duan Yu had never seen anything like them before. Taking a sip, he felt as though his mouth was filled with a delicate fragrance which soaked into his tongue and his saliva. Jiumozhi, Cui, and Guo, seeing how strange the tea looked, did not dare to drink. These pearl-shaped tea leaves were a special local product grown in mountain peaks nearby Lake Taihu. Later generations gave it the name, “Bi Luo Chun” tea, meaning “Jade-Green Spirals of Spring”. During the Northern Song dynasty, it didn’t have such a refined, elegant name yet. The local people called it “Xia Sha Ren Xiang”, or “Extremely Scary Fragrance.” This was supposed to mean that the tea was so fragrant and rapturuous, it would scare people who tasted it. Jiumozhi had always resided in the western regions and in Tibet, and was used to drinking bitter-tasting black brick tea. Now, seeing this jade-green tea that had hair-like things in it, he couldn’t help but suspect it was poisoned.

Four different types of light refreshments were served. Rose pine nut candies, soft fuling [a type of edible fungus] cakes, jade green sweetcakes, and dumplings filled with ham and powdered lotus. Each pastry appeared elegant and was properly made, appearing so lovely that they appeared as though they weren’t meant to be eaten, but toys to look at and play with instead.

Duan Yu praised, “These delicacies are so delightfully made that they must taste wonderful as well. But how can anyone bear to eat them?” Ah Bi smiled a little. “Young gentleman, please feel free to eat. We have more.” Duan Yu began to eat, and each time he ate one, he would praise it. Jiumozhi, Cui, and Guo still did not dare to eat. Duan Yu felt some suspicion in his heart. “This Jiumozhi fellow claims to be an old friend of Murong Bo. Why is he afraid to eat? Moreover, it doesn’t appear as though they are very hospitable in welcoming him either.”

Jiumozhi’s patience was truly impressive. He waited until after Duan Yu had eaten all the dishes, tasted all the tea, and praised everything profusely before saying, “Miss, can you please go and inform your elder sister, Ah Zhu?”

Ah Bi smiled. “Ah Zhu’s hamlet is four-nines away by water. We won’t be able to make it there tonight. The four of you, please take a rest here tonight, and tomorrow morning we will go to the ‘Waterside Pavilion of Fragrant Sounds’.” Cui Baiquan asked, “What do you mean by ‘four nines away’?” Ah Bi replied, “A ‘nine-waterway’ is nine li in length, two are eighteen li, and four would be thirty six li. Just use your abacus and you’ll be able to calculate it.” As it turned out, in the Jiangnan region, when people discussed the distance of a journey or a road, they counted them by ‘one-nine’ and ‘two-nines’.

Jiumozhi said, “Miss, if this is the case, why didn’t you take us directly to the ‘Waterside Pavilion of Fragrant Sounds’? Wouldn’t that have been quicker?” Ah Bi laughed. “No one ever comes here to chat and gossip with me. I’m so bored, y’know? Finally, some guests came over, isn’t that great? No matter what, I gotta get y’all to stay here a night, yeah?”

All this time, Guo Yanzhi was controlling his temper and not speaking. Now, he suddenly rose to his feet and shouted, “Where do the family members of the Murong family live? I, Guo Yanzhi, did not come to the Canhe Manor to drink tea or eat delicacies, much less to serve as a diversion for you to relieve your boredom. I came here on a mission of killing and vengeance, to bleed and to die. Since I, the one surnamed Guo, came here, I had no intentions of leaving. Miss, please go convey the word that I am the disciples of Ke Baisui, of the ‘Hidden Ox’ sect, and have come to avenge my master!” After he spoke, he flashed his whip. With a cracking sound, a red sandalwood tea table and a mottled bamboo chair were shattered into many pieces. Ah Bi seemed neither startled nor angry. She said, “There’s plenty of heroes and valiant men who have come to visit the young master, at least several every month. Lots of those respected sirs came with such tyrannical, angry, and ferocious attitudes, but this little girl hasn’t heard of…”

Before she finished her words, an old person with silver hair and a grey beard walked out holding a walking stick. This person said, “Ah Bi, who is kicking up such a ruckus out here?” This person was speaking in perfect, pure, unaccented Mandarin.

Cui Baiquan rose up from the chair, and both he and Guo Yanzhi stood straight and erect. He shouted, “In whose hands, exactly, did my martial-brother Ke Baisui perish?”

Duan Yu saw that this old person was hunched over, with a face full of wrinkles. If he wasn’t ninety, he had to be at least eighty. He said in hoarse voice, “Ke Baisui, Ke Baisui, right. A man a hundred years of age should’ve died long ago!” [Baisui, his name, literally means ‘a hundred years old’; this is a play on words.]

Ever since Guo Yanzhi arrived at Suzhou, his every waking moment was consumed with the thought of going to the Murong family and getting into a big battle, with lots of killing and chopping to avenge his master. But, after Jiumozhi took his weapon away from him, his drive was snapped. Then, after meeting such an innocent, lovely lass as Ah Bi, he was unable to vent his anger out on her. Now, hearing that old man speak so rudely, he lashed out with his soft whip to strike the old man on the back of his heart. He saw that Jiumozhi was seated at the west seat of honor. In order to prevent him from helping out, Guo Yanzhi launched this attack of his from the east.

He didn’t imagine that Jiumozhi would stretch out his arm and pull the whip towards him from far away, as though by magnetic force. He said, “Hero Guo, we have come from afar and are guests. If there’s anything you have to say, just say it. There’s no need to use force.” He rolled the soft whip into a coil, then returned the weapon to him.

Guo Yanzhi’s face was suffused with red. It wouldn’t be good for him to refuse, but it would also be embarassing for him to accept. After a moment, he thought to himself, “Today, the most important thing is avenging my master. I can suffer some momentary humiliation in order to keep my weapon in my hands.” He reached out and accepted it.

Jiumozhi said to the old man, “Elder benefactor, might I inquire as to what is your respected name? Are you a relative of Mr. Murong, or a friend?” The old man cracked a smile. “This old fellow is an old servant of the master. What ‘respected name’ might I have? I heard that you, great master, are a dear friend of our passed away master. Might I ask what instructions you have for me?” Jiumozhi replied, “My business can only be divulged to the young master himself.” The old man said, “That’s unfortunate. The young master left just two days ago. No one knows when he will be back.” Jiumozhi asked, “Where did the young master go?” The old man inclined his head, then stretched out with a hand and knocked on his forehead. “As to this, I’m old and muddle-headed. I think he said he was going to the Western Xia. He also said something about the kingdom of Liao, and maybe Tibet as well. Or it could be Dali.”

After hearing this, Jiumozhi felt displeasure in his heart. During this era, the world was divided into five nations. Aside from the nation of the Great Song where they currently were, this old man had named all four of the other countries as possible locations. He knew that this old man was only pretending to be muddle-headed. He said, “Since this is so, I won’t wait for the young master to return. Old steward, I’d like to ask that I be taken directly to Mr. Murong’s mausoleum to pay my respects, and give thanks for our old friendship.” That old man’s hands waved violently. “I can’t make this decision on my own, and I’m not the steward.”

Jiumozhi asked, “Then who is the steward of your venerable manor? Please invite him out for us to meet.” That old man nodded repeatedly. “Great, great! Let me go invite the steward.” Turning around, he shuffled his way out while mumbling to himself, “In this day and age, there’s all sorts of bad people in the world. They dress up as monks and Taoists and beg for alms. What haven’t I seen? I won’t be tricked!”

Duan Yu burst out in laughter. Ah Bi hurriedly said to Jiumozhi, “Great master, please don’t be angry, old Uncle Huang is an old muddle-head. He thinks he’s very clever, but whenever he speaks he can’t help but offend people.”

Cui Baiquan tugged on Guo Yanzhi’s shirt-sleeves. Walking to one side, he said in a low voice, “This evil baldy claims to be an old friend of Mr. Murong, but these people here clearly are not treating him like a respected guest. Let’s not act too rashly and figure out exactly what is going on first.” Guo Yanzhi replied, “Yes!” They returned to their original seats. But Guo Yanzhi’s original seat had already been shattered by him into many pieces, leaving him no place to sit. Ah Bi carried her own seat over towards him. She said with a smile, “Great Hero Guo, please sit!” Guo Yanzhi nodded. He thought to himself, “Even if I am able to totally eradicate the entirety of the Murong family, I must spare this little girl.”

Ever since that old man entered, Duan Yu felt that something felt off and was unnatural. But as to what exactly was wrong, he could not say. He carefully examined the pavilion’s furnishings, furniture, scenery, calligraphy and paintings hanging on the walls, then looked at Ah Bi, Jiumozhi, Cui Baiquan, and Guo Yanzhi. He couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary, but more and more he felt as though something was off.

After a long time passed, the sound of footsteps could be heard, and a thin old man of fifty years or so entered. His skin was sallow in color, and a straggly mountain-goat like beard could be seen on his chin. He looked extremely shrewd and capable. The clothes he wore were very tasteful. On one hand, he wore a marble ring. Evidently, this was the steward for the Murong family. The skinny fellow bowed towards Jiumozhi and said, “This humble servant, Sun San, pays his respects to everyone. We feel extremely honored, venerable sir, that you wish to pay your respects before the mausoleum of our late master. But with our young master having left, there is no one to welcome you properly, much to our shame. I will simply convey your kind intentions to our young master, once he returns.”

At this point, Duan Yu suddenly smelled a light fragrant scent. His heart swayed. “Strange, strange.”

Earlier, when that old male servant had come to the room, Duan Yu smelled a fragrant scent. The fragrance seemed vaguely familiar to the scent which Mu Wanqing’s body also had. Although it was very different, both were feminine smells. Originally, Duan Yu thought that this fragrance was coming from Ah Bi, and so did not think too much of it. But as soon as that old servant left the room, the fragrance disappeared. But as soon as the self-claimed ‘Sun San’ entered the room, Duan Yu once again smelled this scent. Duan Yu suddenly understood that the reason he felt awkward earlier was because he smelled the fragrant scent of a seventeen, eighteen year old girl on the body of an eighty, ninety year old man. He thought to himself, “Can it be that in the inner pavilion is grown some sort of strange flowers or remarkable grass, and so anyone who comes here from that pavilion is covered by that scent? The other possibility is that both that old servant and this skinny fellow are actually women in disguise.”

Although the scent made Duan Yu feel suspicious, it was very light and nearly unnoticeable. Jiumozhi and the other two didn’t smell the fragrance at all. The only reason Duan Yu himself was able to notice it was because he and Mu Wanqing underwent a rare life-and-death situation together at the mountain cliff. Nobody else would pay any attention to this faint, virginal smell, but to him this scent made a deep impression within his heart and his very bones. It was a much stronger scent to him than that of musk, white sandalwood, or flowery perfume. Although Jiumozhi possessed an extremely deep reservoir of internal energy, he had strictly followed Buddhist prohibitions against sexual encounters all his life. Rosy cheeks and verdant temples were nothing more to him than skeletal bones and colorless skulls. Fragrant powders and rouge were even less to him. He had no idea that men and women had different scents.

Although Duan Yu suspected that Sun San was actually a woman in disguise, he couldn’t spot a single flaw or giveaway. Not only did this person have the bearing and demeanor of a man, his shape and his voice weren’t womanly at all. Suddenly, he thought to himself, “If a woman is imitating a man, she can’t fake his Adam’s apple.” He secretly glanced at Sun San’s throat, but saw that his goat-like beard perfectly covered his larynx. Duan Yu rose to his feet. He pretended to examine the calligraphy and painting on the walls, and casually strolled past Sun San’s side. He snuck a side-glance, and saw that Sun San’s throat didn’t have the slightest bulge at all, and that his chest seemed full and plump. Although Duan Yu still couldn’t be absolutely certain that Sun San was a woman, such a skinny man definitely should not have so much flesh and muscle on his chest. Duan Yu, having discovered a secret, felt very amused. “There’s a lot more to be played out in this drama. Let’s see what she has planned next.”

Jiumozhi sighed, “I met with your deceased master by the boundaries of Sichuan. We discussed martial arts and very much admired each other’s abilities, and became friends. I wouldn’t have imagined that the heavens themselves would be envious of his talents and leave such a useless, mediocre fellow as myself alive, while taking the life of your deceased master and sending him to meet Buddha in the Western Paradise. The only reason I have left Tibet and come to the Central Plains is to pay my respects before his mausoleum, due to our ancient friendship. It does not matter whether or not someone is here to welcome me properly. Steward, I would simply like to trouble you to lead the way.” Sun San wrinkled his forehead, as though he felt extremely awkward. “This…this…” Jiumozhi said, “I don’t know if there is some difficulty in my request, and humbly request your instruction.”

Sun San said, “Great master, since you are a bosom friend of my deceased master, you surely must know his temperament. My deceased master hated when people came to pay visits to him. He said that of those visitors who came to the manor, if they didn’t come on a mission of vengeance, then they came to try and convince him to take them on as a student. A level below this would be those who came to beg for money, or try to cause trouble and pilfer something from us. He said that monks and nuns were even less trustworthy…ack, sorry!” As he said this, he suddenly seemed to realize that with these words, he must have offended Jiumozhi. He hurriedly pressed his hands over his mouth.

The manner in which she acted was totally in accordance with that of a young maiden. Her round eyes widened, and the black pupils of her eyes spun. Although she quickly drooped her eyelids down, Duan Yu, who was paying close attention, couldn’t help but feel a sense of glee. “Not only is Sun San female, she’s a young girl.” Casting a side-glance at Ah Bi, he noticed a trace of a sly smile tugging at the corner of her lips. He no longer had any more doubt in his heart. “S