The end of Vol.1!
***
45 days before the miraculous return of the Vermillion Bird team,
The very next day after their departure from Mount Emei, in the afternoon.
From a petite jade cottage halfway up a foothill of Mount Emei,
A wisp of white smoke danced merrily as it curled up towards the sky.
It had been a while since smoke last puffed out from the cottage. Like the smoke blowing from an elderly man's pipe as he lay on the windy porch, the hazy white smoke drifted leisurely into the sky. At the trailing end of that smoke, a young man was currently humming a tune as he cooked rice. It was his first time cooking in quite a while too. For the past five months, others had done the cooking, preparing meals and setting the table. But with their departure, he now had to make his own food again.
A tantalizing aroma wafted, tickling his nose delightfully. For now, there was still plenty of meat hunted by his departed disciples during their mountain training, and mounds of wild mountain vegetables they had gathered. He had the foresight to impose triple the usual ration on them for the 10 days leading up to their departure. Now he was reaping the rewards of that gluttony.
From behind the cheerfully humming youth setting the table, the raspy voice of an elderly man, hale despite his age, called out.
"Ryu-yeon-ah!"
As Bi Ryu-yeon turned around, he silently stared back at his master's face with an inscrutable expression . Tilting his head at a skewed angle, his gaze raked over the old man's entire body as if to pierce right through him. The master felt a mix of irritation and stuffiness at his disciple just standing there, squinting and eyeing him wordlessly.
"Why are you staring at me like that? How rude… Did you really think my looks are that comical?"
That was his way of saying 'stop staring'. But then…
"Did you bathe?"
Bathe? It seemed he was asking if master had washed himself clean. The random, eccentric question escaped Bi Ryu-yeon's lips. Judging by his tone, it wasn't because he smelled anything unpleasant. He was simply seeking confirmation.
"Oh? You could tell? Yes, I scrubbed up a bit more thoroughly yesterday. Don't you think my White Beard looks even whiter and fuller today? Last evening I went down to the valley stream to give it a good soak and rinse off the grime."
The master boasted proudly about the trivial affair. Here, what he referred to as his "White Beard" was the sobriquet for his beard. Being a fervent admirer of Guan Yu1's beautiful beard in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, he harbored ambitions of becoming the second coming of the "Lord of Magnificent Beard".
Thus, his master placed particular importance on his beard's upkeep. His waist-length white hair and eyebrows, combined with the elegant beard reaching his chest – they were his pride and joy. So whenever any major event or occasion came up, he fussed over it like a father preening his child. Ultimately, this was the ridiculous fellow who even named his own beard! Its designation – the White Beard! Giving your own body part a related appellation, such whimsical antics befitted his eccentric nature.
"Why make such a big fuss over it? Getting all narcissistic in your old age…"
"I'm making a grand comeback after all this time! Of course I need to leave a lasting impression. Good looks paired with polished, refined charm directly correlates with popularity. I'm just managing my public image, that's all."
"Huh?"
"Ah, nevermind. Just ignore that and move on."
The master seemed to hesitate over something unsavory. Failing to smoothly gloss over it, he switched topics instead. Though for Bi Ryu-yeon, this change of subject was hardly welcome news.
"Speaking of, what's up with you lately? You're usually nowhere to be found, always wandering around, but today you even cooked the meals. Is the sun rising in the west or something? Have you ditched your usual rogue ways?"
Bi Ryu-yeon bristled slightly.
"Oh, nothing special. Just had some free time for a change… And what rogue ways? I'm not some cheating housewife or anything…"
The suspicious look master gave him made Bi Ryu-yeon uncomfortable. Especially considering his recent focus on skincare, it felt like a fatal blow.
"Haven't you been pretty negligent these past five months? Shirking your duties, has anything happened meanwhile? Grown one of these at least?"
Crassly raising his pinky, master waggled it in front of Bi Ryu-yeon's face. But Bi Ryu-yeon adamantly shook his head in refusal. Seems master harbored some absurd suspicions, but Bi Ryu-yeon had no desire to suffer losses over baseless doubts.
"No, no women or anything. Please don't get the wrong idea."
"If it's not a woman, then what? You've been out all night quite often, camping somewhere else. While meals have been served regularly, they weren't cooked here but brought from elsewhere. And the taste didn't match your cooking. I can forgive all the alcohol offerings, but those dishes were unmistakably crafted by a woman's hand. So spill it, confess."
Cold sweat beaded Bi Ryu-yeon's brow. To cover for his frequent outside nights and absences, he had been plying his master with alcohol. But it seems that excuse has reached its limit now.
"I already told you, it's not women! Stop making baseless accusations…"
As Bi Ryu-yeon bristled slightly, trying to casually brush it off as nothing, his master cut him off mid-sentence.
"Oh? Then what's that?"
"Huh? What is?"
"That thing poking out of your left side over there."
In that instant, Bi Ryu-yeon's nerves expanded tautly enough to play like the strings of a zither.
"W-What do you mean? There's nothing there!"
"Don't try to pull the wool over my eyes. Speak the truth when asked nicely."
"Why are you always so suspicious? If I weren't your cherished disciple, I wouldn't even be here. It's just some padding poking out, that's all… Just some stuffing…"
But the clothes Bi Ryu-yeon currently wore were plain hemp, lacking any padding. Then as he hastily turned away, trying to fumble for an excuse, something suddenly popped out from his bosom. It was a betrayal. The goddess of fate had betrayed him.
*Thud*
A heavy sounding thump heralded the falling of beautiful silk brocade – a coin purse as people called them. It was quite an expensive looking one at that, vibrantly red and exquisitely embroidered. Clearly a luxury item beyond Bi Ryu-yeon's means given his current living conditions. Naturally, its origins and contents became suspect to master immediately.
A gleam flashed in the old master's eyes. That fiery gleam reflected the awareness that his sharp senses had just captured the sound of money hitting the floor…
'Maybe my hearing really is better in my old age…'
Bi Ryu-yeon inwardly grumbled as he scrambled to find a way to smooth things over. But master's voice turned stern and overbearing, demanding an answer or else he would resort to force. Still lacking the ability to withstand master's might, Bi Ryu-yeon found himself in a quandary. For he had yet to complete the final level of his secret arts, leaving him pathetically inadequate to handle master's coercion.
"I'm telling you, this is nothing! Just a small token of gratitude, gratitude. A little gesture to show their feelings for me."
"That's pretty hefty for a mere gesture…"
Master still eyed him suspiciously. Bi Ryu-yeon bristled under that piercing gaze. Flustered inside, he desperately needed to resolve this situation somehow. For the sake of a brighter tomorrow!
"Look, there were these folks desperate to get stronger. They kept bugging me about it. Somehow, they got wind that I'm your disciple and pretty skilled. They clung to me, crying and begging until I couldn't say no. You know I've got a soft spot! So, I agreed to help them get stronger. As your disciple, I couldn't just ignore them, right? But, as always, to grow stronger, they needed to go through some ordeals first, right?"
"So then what?"
"Ah, so I made a request to someone I knew. Please help make these people stronger! And you know what, the people I asked were so grateful they even stuffed this money into my hands as thanks!"
"Huh? Shouldn't you be the one paying and expressing gratitude if you made the request? Why would the requester pay you back and thank you instead? You asked them for help so you should be the one showing appreciation, no?"
"Well how would I know the details? They just told me stuff like, we're so grateful to you and you deserve blessings for doing such noble deeds! Please accept this small token… Consider it information fees or whatever. They said if I help provide trials for them to overcome they would contribute substantially, then slipped this money to me covertly. They were truly big-hearted people. And when I firmly declined, saying how could I possibly accept money for helping make some people stronger, they insisted on giving it to me. So left with no choice, to avoid being rude by refusing them further, I accepted this. I thought I could use it to purchase some premium Jade Dew Wine as atonement for neglecting you these past months too, master."
"Jade Dew Wine!"
Despite some lingering doubts, drool pooled in master's mouth at the mention of premium wine. Bi Ryu-yeon's ploy seemed successful.
"Yup, that Jade Dew Wine! And a 20 year vintage top-notch one at that. It's quite pricey, you know… To think I haven't been filial to you recently either, so today I wanted to at least make up for it a little at least. I've already placed an order at Red Rudder so I'll pick it up when I go shopping for tonight's supper."
"T-Twenty years!"
At the mention of 20 years, master's eyes grew wide as he audibly swallowed his drool. Jade Dew Wine was his favorite liquor, but too expensive for frequent indulgence. The ones he occasionally had were at most 3 years aged. A 20 year vintage? When had he ever gotten to sample such a treat? Known as the best wine in Emei, no, all of Sichuan Province – Red Rudder Inn's secret jade dew, 20 years aged, represented the pinnacle of quality.
The aging method was an utmost confidential secret of Red Rudder Inn, never divulged publicly. They said its flavor was so sublime it could even nullify Emei Sect's harsh prohibitions against alcohol. Many Emei disciples had secretly gone down the mountain, lured by its irresistible aroma and taste, only to get caught and punished at the Disciplinary Hall. Though primarily a female sect, Emei Sect had started accepting male disciples too as its influence grew. While still subordinate to the female disciples, these males wielded considerable might, by no means to be taken lightly even by other major sects.
Such iron-willed cultivators breaking sect rules and risking harsh penalties just to secretly sample this ambrosial wine – it was a well known fact such incidents still frequently occurred. And now, a 20 year vintage jade dew? For his master who loved liquor even more than rice, such a premium wine was a god-sent temptation indeed.
Seeing his master's delighted smile and satisfied nods, Bi Ryu-yeon decided the crisis had passed and surreptitiously wiped his brow. He seemed to have successfully smoothed things over. While Jade Dew Wine was quite expensive, compared to the efforts made to gloss over the past days' events, as well as yesterday's affairs, this felt almost cheap. Though in truth, a 20 year vintage represented the creme de la creme, so as expected of Sichuan's best wine, its price was astronomical. In monetary value, a single bottle equaled several gold leaf banknotes . For ordinary people, even a taste of such a wine would likely remain out of reach their whole lives.
The only reason Bi Ryu-yeon made that slight fuss over compensation was because he had no plans to actually buy any Jade Dew Wine from Red Rudder Inn in the first place. That didn't mean he had deceitfully extorted master though. He fully intended to present his master with a bottle of the 20 year vintage. Thanks to his pleasant (?) conversations during yesterday's encounter with his acquaintances, he had obtained a bottle already. Here, pleasant conversation referred to the amiable exchange of ideas through considerate dialogue.
***
"Please go ahead, master."
After setting the table, Bi Ryu-yeon promptly ushered his master to start eating before he could ponder further. Keeping the other party occupied with a steady stream of tasks was usually best in such situations.
"Alright, alright."
Seemingly letting it slide, his master nodded along at first. But then his eyes abruptly sharpened, having caught on to something.
"Oh, Yeon-ah, you've got some red stains on your sleeve there."
Just as his master indicated, some crimson blotches marked Bi Ryu-yeon's sleeves which he had used to hold the table corners as he laid out the dishes. Spotting them, his master questioned Bi Ryu-yeon about it.
"Ah these? I got them a bit dirty while engaging in amicable dialogue to exchange ideas with some unpleasant people. It's nothing."
"Is that so? To me it looks more like splatter from smashing someone's face in."
"Surely you can't be implying that!"
Bi Ryu-yeon flashed an innocent, radiant smile.
"Hmmm… Really?"
Seeing his master still eyeing him suspiciously despite his bright smile, Bi Ryu-yeon felt somewhat vexed.
'Always so doubtful just because you're old now…'
He cursed inwardly but couldn't voice it aloud.
"Remember to treat them gently if you beat someone up. When you hit them, their bruises won't fade for 2-3 months afterwards."
For his master to use the word 'gently', signs of the apocalypse indeed. What place did concepts like 'moderately' or 'appropriately' have in master's dictionary? Not a hint of the word 'extent' or 'degree' either. After nearly 10 years together, Bi Ryu-yeon understood this well. Master's current advice likely wasn't his true feelings – probably just putting on appearances before his disciple. While disgruntled over such facts, Bi Ryu-yeon politely answered.
"Yes, master."
"Good, good. And the braised potatoes?"
"Of course I've prepared them, master."
"Great, let's go up then, shall we?"
Wearing a vibrantly pallid(?) expression, master spoke cheerfully. The two ascended the porch where a refreshing mountain breeze blew. Setting the table down, they began their lunch beneath the open skies. Autumn was nearing its end. This took place the day after the Vermillion Bird team left Mount Emei, in the afternoon within a petite jade cottage halfway up a foothill.
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Guan Yu was a Chinese military general, warrior, and diplomat who lived in the late 100s and early 200s CE. He was one of the key followers of Liu Bei, a powerful warlord during the Three Kingdoms period of China when several states competed for power and prominence. Guan Yu is known by many different names, including Yunchang, Guang Gong, and Guandi. Since his lifetime, Guan Yu has been deified into the Chinese god of war and is remembered as one of the five greatest military men of Classical China, known as the Tiger Generals. Guan Yu's apotheosis was carried out through various means, including his popularization through romanticized novels such as The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, published in the 14th century.[ ]
Apparently, the reason behind bruises on Tiger Bone and Dragon Bone's leaders was because of our MC here ????