loyalty. How could I insult my friend’s widow?”

Madam Ma said sweetly and intimately, “If you regard loyalty, then why are you holding me in your bosom…”

At this moment, someone outside the window giggled and said, “Qiao Feng, you’re too shameless! You killed my older sister, and now you’re holding my daddy’s lover, kissing and carrying on a clandestine love affair. Aren’t you ashamed?” It was precisely A’Zi’s voice.

Xiao Feng had a clear conscience, so naturally he didn’t take seriously the talk of an ignorant child. He said to Madam Ma, “Hurry up and say it, who is that Leading Big Brother?”

Madam Ma said intimately, “I told you to look at me, but you turned around. What are you doing?” Her voice was flirtatious.

A’Zi walked into the room, smiled, and said, “How come you’re still not dead? What man would be willing to look at such an ugly wretch?”

Madam Ma asked, “What? You…you say that I look like an ugly wretch? Mirror, mirror, I want a mirror!” Her voice carried extreme panic.

Xiao Feng said, “Hurry up and say it, hurry up and say it. If you say it, I’ll give you the mirror.”

A’Zi easily picked up a bright mirror from the table and aimed it at her. Smiling, she said, “Take a look at yourself. Beautiful or not beautiful?”

Madam Ma looked into the mirror and saw her face entirely covered with bloodstains and dust. Fear, cruelty, malice, hatred, suffering, anger, all kinds of ugly feelings were gathered on her facial features. How was she in the slightest the formerly delicate beauty who attracted people’s tender affections? She opened her eyes wide and never closed them again. She was conceited in her beauty throughout her life, but before she died, she saw herself with such an ugly appearance in the mirror.

Xiao Feng said, “A’Zi, take the mirror away and don’t offend her.”

A’Zi laughed and said, “I want to let her know how ugly she is!”

Xiao Feng said, “It would be terrible if you anger her to death!” He felt that Madam Ma’s body was motionless, and he could no longer hear the sound of her breathing. He hurriedly tested her breathing, but she had already stopped breathing. Xiao Feng was alarmed and shouted, “Aiyo, this isn’t good, her breathing’s stopped!” He shouted out as if he were facing an imminent catastrophe.

A’Zi pursed her lips and said, “Did you seriously like her? Is it worth making such a fuss when this kind of woman dies?”

Xiao Feng said, “What does a child like you know? I wanted to ask her something. She was the only person in the world who knew. If you hadn’t interrupted, she would’ve already said it.”

A’Zi said, “Aiyo, so I was bad again and spoiled your important matters, right?”

Xiao Feng sighed, thinking that a dead person couldn’t come back to life. Getting angry would be useless. A’Zi, this little girl, was arrogant and willful by nature. Even her parents couldn’t control her, let alone other people. On account of A’Zhu, he couldn’t argue with her on anything. Presently he placed Madam Ma on the couch and said, “Let’s go!”

They investigated everywhere. There were no other people in the house. The old maidservant had already fled to whereabouts unknown. Thus, they obtained fuel and ignited a fire in the firewood room. In a moment, the flames rose.

The two of them stood beside the house, looking at the flames coming out from the window. Xiao Feng asked, “Aren’t you going back to where your daddy and mommy are?”

A’Zi said, “No, I’m not going to where my daddy and mommy are. Whenever my daddy’s subordinates see me, they puff their beards and glare at me. I told daddy to kill them all, but daddy was really willful and didn’t comply.”

Xiao Feng thought, “You killed Chu Wanli, so naturally his friends would hate you. How could Duan Zhengchun kill his loyal and devoted subordinates for you? You’re the one who’s acting willfully, yet you say it’s your daddy who’s acting willfully. You’re really a child who talks nonsense.” He said, “Fine, I’m leaving!” He turned around and headed north.

A’Zi said, “Hey, hey, slow down, wait for me.”

Xiao Feng immediately halted his footsteps, turned around, and asked, “Where are you going? Are you going back to your martial master?”

A’Zi said, “No, at this moment I’m not going back to my martial master. I wouldn’t dare.”

Xiao Feng asked, surprised, “Why wouldn’t you dare? What trouble did you get into this time?”

A’Zi said, “I didn’t get into trouble. I took a manual from my martial master. If I return, he’ll snatch it back. After I master it, I’ll return, and when my martial master takes it, I won’t be worried.”

Xiao Feng asked, “Is it a martial arts manual? Since it’s your martial master’s, if you plead with him to let you take a look, he won’t refuse forever. Besides, if you practice it on your own, you definitely won’t be able to understand many parts of it. Wouldn’t it be better to have your martial master give you pointers?”

A’Zi pursed her lips and said, “My martial master said he wouldn’t give it to me, so he won’t give it to me. It’s useless no matter how much I plead with him.”

Xiao Feng really disliked this arrogant, willful, and spoiled little girl. Then he thought that she didn’t need to be entangled with her notorious martial master, the Old Freak of Xingxiuhai, Ding Chunqiu. He said, “Fine, do whatever you want. I won’t care about you.”

A’Zi asked, “Where are you going?”

Xiao Feng looked at the raging flames in the rooms of the Ma house, sighed deeply, and said, “I was originally going to seek revenge, but I don’t know who my enemy is. In my life, this huge revenge can never be sought.”

A’Zi said, “Oh, I understand, Madam Ma originally knew, but what a pity that I angered her to death. From now on, you won’t be able to know who your enemy is. So fun, so fun! Qiao Feng’s fame for fighting prowess is outstanding, but thanks to my punishment, he’s helpless.”

Xiao Feng looked at her sideways and saw that her entire face was full of joy in calamity and delight in disaster. The raging flames shone on her face, making her cheeks seem as red and lovely as apples. Who would’ve thought that concealed underneath those innocent cheeks was vast and limitless malice? In a split second, his hot anger arose, and he wanted to heavily slap her in the face. But he immediately recalled that A’Zhu had pleaded with him before she died, and asked him to take care of her only younger sister in the world. He thought, “A’Zhu only made this one request of me before she died. How can I not comply? Even if this little girl is a huge traitor and evildoer, I’ll do my best to correct her errors. Besides, she’s merely young and ignorant, willful and naughty.”

A’Zi raised her head and asked, “What? Do you want to beat me to death? How come you’re not beating me? My older sister has already been beaten to death by you. So what if you also beat me to death?”

These words pierced Xiao Feng’s heart like a dagger, and his chest ached. He remained silent and turned around uncaringly, taking large strides on the snowy ground.

A’Zi laughed and said, “Hey, slow down, where are you going?”

Xiao Feng said, “I can’t reside in the Central Plains, and I can’t seek revenge for the deaths of my parents. I’m going north of the pass, never to return.”

A’Zi inclined her head and asked, “Which path are you taking?”

Xiao Feng said, “I’m going to Yanmen Pass first.”

A’Zi clapped her hands and said, “That’s great. I’m going to Jinyang, so it just so happens that I’m taking the same path as you.”

Xiao Feng asked, “What are you going to Jinyang for? How can a little girl go alone on such a distant journey?”

A’Zi laughed and said, “Hey, what’s there to fear about a distant journey? I came to this place from Xingxiuhai. Isn’t that even farther away? I have you as a companion, so how would I be alone?”

Xiao Feng shook his head and said, “I won’t accompany you.”

A’Zi asked, “Why?”

Xiao Feng said, “I’m a man and you’re a young girl. Lodging on the journey would be inappropriate.”

A’Zi said, “That’s really a ridiculous argument. I don’t think it’s inappropriate, so why would it be inappropriate for you? When you were with my older sister, didn’t you also travel during the day and lodge at night, one man and one woman, on a long and difficult journey?”

Xiao Feng said in a low and calm voice, “Your older sister and I already had a promise of marriage, so it’s not the same.”

A’Zi clapped her hands, laughed, and said, “Aiyo, I really couldn’t tell, I knew that my older sister was well-behaved, but who would’ve thought that you were just like my daddy, and my older sister just like my mommy? You didn’t worship heaven and earth to become husband and wife, but you already became a pair.”

Xiao Feng shouted angrily, “Nonsense! Until death, your older sister was all along a proper girl, as clear as ice and as clean as jade. I strictly adhered to etiquette and respected her deeply.”

A’Zi said, “What’s the point in scaring me in a loud voice? My older sister was still beaten to death by you. Let’s go.”

When Xiao Feng heard her say “My older sister was still beaten to death by you,” his heart softened, and he said, “You should still return to the Little Mirror Lake and be with your mother. Otherwise, find a secluded place and after mastering the martial arts in that manual, return to your martial master. What’s fun about going to Jinyang?”

A’Zi said in deadly earnest, “I’m not going there to have fun. I have an important matter to attend to.”

Xiao Feng shook his head and said, “I’m not taking you there.” Saying this, he took large strides and left.

A’Zi used her qinggong and chased after him, shouting, “Wait for me, wait for me!” Xiao Feng ignored her and continued on his own.

Not long afterwards, the north wind shifted and it started snowing again. Xiao Feng charged into the wind and snow, taking rapid steps. When he thought of the injustice that had sunk to the bottom of the ocean, and of never being able to seek his huge revenge, his heart naturally became melancholy. But amidst having no alternatives, he abandoned the load of worries in his heart, which was actually a great relief.