novel
| ← Ch.012 | Ch.014 → |
Xiao Mimi lowered her hands and relaxed. She applauded him and laughed, "Well no wonder that you are a little monster then, you grew up with these people. Do they mention me often?"
He smiled at her: "They told me that when I met you, to be extremely careful and not be tempted to my death. No matter who, friend or family, you would try your siren tricks on them."
Xiao Mimi giggled a few times, then said, "And do you believe their naughty words?"
Xiao Yu'er stared at her as if enthralled: "To be able to meet someone like you, I wouldn't care if I really were lured to my death."
Another enchanting laugh."Oh, little flirt, it is you who are charming me; at this rate, I won't be able to kill you at all."
He laughed back: "Now, are you going to drink with me or not?"
Surprisingly, the winebearer was a young boy. His eyebrows were elegant above clear, clear eyes. And yet he was jaundiced and emaciated, as if his growth spurt had been inadequate. He appeared to be older than Xiao Yu'er, yet his body was quite a bit smaller.
He shrank his neck into a hunched back and carried the platter with both hands, trembling all the while. But his two eyes would constantly flicker back to rest on Xiao Mimi's bosom.
Xiao Mimi laughed and called, "Little pervert, what are you looking at?"
The boy's face reddened and he lowered his head."Nothing, nothing at all."
With a tempting smile, she said, "You wanted to kiss me, is that it?"
He went a deeper shade of red as she said, "Come then, if you want to kiss me then come, what are you afraid of?"
The boy then set down the platter, and embraced her.
All of a sudden she slapped him with the back of her hand, so hard that he rolled on the floor a few times. Xiao Yu'er raised his head in time to see a murderous expression on the boy's face as his back was turned. The hate on his face was terrifying.
Yet when he stood up and faced her, only a pitiable expression could be seen. His cheeks flushed and head down, step by step, he slowly limped out, as if even walking were a difficult task.
"Is that boy one of your concubines?" Xiao Yu'er asked.
Xiao Mimi smiled: "Jealous, are you?"
He merely said, "Ai, this is like destroying a tender young plant."
She bit out, "I insist on torturing him, until he dies." Xiao Yu'er said in surprise, "Why do you hate him so much? He's only a kid!"
Xiao Mimi explained, "He is, but his father...ha, in the whole world, there is not another as vicious and cruel."
"Oh?" Xiao Yu'er laughed."He is crueler than Yin Jiuyou? More vicious than Li Dazhui?"
She pointed out: "So Yin Jiuyou is cruel. Li Dazhui is indeed vicious. But they at least do not hide their brutality. That brat's father, however, would commit the most evil crimes, and people would still praise him as a hero."
Xiao Yu'er rolled his eyes and laughed: "If even you call him evil, this person must really be unforgivable." What his heart was really thinking was: [If she considers him bad, he probably is quite a decent sort. ]
He deliberately refrained from asking the father's name. To his surprise, Xiao Mimi did not mention it either, and merely watched the boy come in again with a fresh platter.
Xiao Yu'er suddenly said, "Before we drink, I just need to freshen up a bit."
"Useless thing, " she scolded him while sipping her wine.
He teased, "When the queen relieves herself, she must have servants to attend to her."(?) He tugged at the boy's hand and ordered, "Come, lead me there."
Xiao Mimi called after him: "Hurry up, or I'll be done eating before you're done. (?) The wine and food are waiting here for you."
The young boy went ahead of Xiao Yu'er, his head lowered and neck shrunk into his shoulders like a turtle. Xiao Yu'er, looking at his profile, seemed to be thinking of something.
The underground palace was clearly designed with care. There was not an inch of excess or waste. He realized that the places for relieving oneself must be in the twists and turns of the long tunnel.
Abruptly he asked the young boy, "Hey, what's your family name?"
"Jiang."
Xiao Yu'er mused, "Your last name is Jiang? What a coincidence. And what's your first name?"
The boy replied, "Yulang."
Xiao Yu'er scrunched his eyebrows together. His eyes darted back and forth. Suddenly he laughed aloud."Strange, this is the underground, but where do all the human wastes go? Is there some sort of tunnel underneath?"
Jiang Yulang answered, "Under here is not a tunnel, but a grave."
"A grave?" Xiao Yu'er repeated."Whose grave?"
"Supposedly the grave of the workers who built this place, " Jiang Yulang responded.
Xiao Yu'er couldn't help frowning. Hurriedly he stood up and remarked, "You know quite a bit, you must have been here for a long time."
"One year, " said Jiang Yulang.
"A year...how did you get here?"
Jiang Yulang answered him, "And how did you get here?"
Xiao Yu'er snorted a laugh: "Hmm, that's right, Xiao Mimi would definitely find a way to get you here." He spoke again: "There must be some sort of underground opening to the surface...would you know?"
"No."
"You haven't tried to find one?" Xiao Yu'er inquired.
"No, " Jiang Yulang said again.
Xiao Yu'er asked him, "Don't you want to leave here? You don't want to go home?"
Jiang Yulang said, "This place is very nice, it's good enough for me."
Suddenly Xiao Yu'er gripped his shoulder and said in a low voice, "You little trickster, I know you're thinking about it, you're always thinking of ways to escape. You can't fool me. If you work with me, we can think of a way out!"
Jiang Yulang's face was expressionless. Flatly he said, "If you are finished, please return to enjoy your wine."
Xiao Yu'er stared at him. For quite some time. Finally he said, each word distinct, "Remember what I said, don't you forget a word!"
Jiang Yulang remained impassive, and led him back, with his head lowered and back hunched. Once again Xiao Yu'er stared at his back, as if contemplating something.
The two of them re-entered. Xiao Mimi laughed: "It appears you had a lot of business to do."
Xiao Yu'er rubbed his stomach, and gave a laugh: "Well, this stomach of mine..."
Jiang Yulang abruptly cut in: "He was lying about relieving himself. He wanted me to conspire with him. He wanted me to tell him a way out of here, and even asked me to escape with him."
Xiao Mimi opened her eyes wide. Coldly she laughed, "Did you really want to leave, Jiang Yu? Forget asking him; I would have easily told you."
Xiao Yu'er did not react, but merely burst into laughter. He said, "I have lived in the Valley of Evil for over a decade. How could this place be harder to escape from? I was only testing this little devil here, do you really believe him?"
She slowly replied, "Actually, it doesn't matter if you lied or not. It would still be useless to ask him. No one knows the exit to this place, except for me."
She patted Jiang Yulang on the head, smiling: "I didn't know you were so honest."
Jiang Yulang blushed. With eyes on the ground he murmured, "I only wish to be by my lady's side. I don't want to go anywhere else."
Xiao Mimi laughed, pleased."You little pervert, go to bed and rest, don't think of silly things now."
He glanced at Xiao Yu'er, protesting: "But he...my lady..."
"You want me to kill him?" Xiao Mimi asked.
Jiang Yulang said, "He...he's too..." Xiao Mimi teasingly tugged his earlobe, and chuckled, "I don't think you should be the one to be jealous. Get out of here."
He lowered his head, turned around, and obediently left. Xiao Mimi didn't spare him another glance; this little devil was nothing to her. No matter what tricks he tried to play, she could see right through him. She only had eyes for another little devil.
With a smile on his face, Xiao Yu'er said, "What a little rascal he is."
Xiao Mimi countered: "If he's a little rascal, you must be even worse."
"You think I can't compare to him?" Xiao Yu'er asked.
Xiao Mimi's eyes crinkled in amusement: "Do you know why I haven't killed you?"
"Because you can't bear to, " he teased.
With a peal of laughter, she admitted, "That's right. I can't bear to kill you right now, I want to see just how good you are. Du Qiaoqiao must have taught you some devilry, and I...I want to try it."
She slowly slid across the soft couch. (?) Desire flushed across her cheeks and forehead. Gently she murmured: "Won't you come over? Are you waiting for me to teach you?"
Xiao Yu'er's eyes darted back and forth, a smile on his face.
Xiao Mimi said in a low voice, "Well? What are you waiting for?"
He said, "It's just that..."
Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by Jiang Yulang rushing in. His face was drained of colour. In a trembling voice he said: "My...my lady, something's wrong!"
"What are you doing?" Xiao Mimi snapped crossly.
Jiang Yulang stammered, "Dead...they are all dead."
Her expression changed."Who is dead?" Jiang Yulang could only say: "You...please come quickly...they...they..." He collapsed on the floor in a dead faint.
Corpses. Everywhere there were dead bodies. The crowd of youths dressed in light robes, not one of them remained alive.
Upon turning their faces, they found that some had exsanguinated from the seven orifices, (1) and some had been mutilated beyond recognition(?). Even Xiao Yu'er, normally calm and collected under most circumstances, felt a chill seep into his heart.
Xiao Mimi stamped her foot in shock and anger: "How...how did this happen?"
Xiao Yu'er's eyes flickered back and forth as he realized: "Perhaps the old monster has secretly arrived."
"Impossible, that is not possible!" Xiao Mimi declared."No one knows about this place."
Although her lips said "impossible", she had already dashed outside. Suddenly she turned back and screamed: "Don't you dare follow, or I'll kill you!"
Xiao Yu'er laughed sarcastically, "Don't worry, of course I know I won't live long if I eavesdrop on your secrets. I still wish to live a while yet..."
No sooner had she rushed out the front door, Xiao Yu'er had reached the back entrance. Although he knew that Xiao Mimi was leaving by the secret entrance, he did not follow to find out where it was. The only reason was because he wanted to spy on another person's secret!
He crouched on the floor, and opened half an eye. He saw Jiang Yulang suddenly arise from his swoon on the ground, and open an eye to survey his surroundings. He did not see Xiao Yu'er hiding there. Xiao Yu'er quietly breathed and did not move.
Suddenly Jiang Yulang called out, "Young master Jiang, Jiang Yu, you can come out now."
Xiao Yu'er's heart jumped. But he gritted his teeth and did not make a sound. Jiang Yulang waited a while, then jumped up. Unexpectedly he became swifter than a swallow in his movements, more slippery than a fish, livelier than a fox. With a flash, he darted into a small door to the side.
The small door was the place where he had taken Xiao Yu'er to relieve himself. Xiao Yu'er had oriented himself properly, and as soon as Jiang Yulang disappeared into the door, he followed and stared at that little door with half an eye.
He saw Jiang Yulang trying to squirm headfirst into the toilet. Xiao Yu'er, also swallow-like in his speed, crossed over. Jiang Yulang had lifted the lid of the toilet and plunged into it.
Suddenly his waist went numb, and the waistband of his pants was grasped by someone. He heard Xiao Yu'er laugh mockingly: "Well well well...trying to escape by yourself, that won't do."
This time his face was truly pale from fear. His voice shook: "Please...please don't kid around with me."
Xiao Yu'er burst into cold laughter: "Who's kidding? Seriously now, what do you think you're doing?"
Jiang Yulang stammered, "I...I just had to use the toilet."
"Dog crap, " Xiao Yu'er said flatly."You don't need to dive into the pile of crap to relieve yourself!"
"I...I wanted to..."
Suppressing his laughter, Xiao Yu'er guessed: "You wanted to eat sh*t?"
Jiang Yulang mumbled, "I heard that feces could be used to cleanse poisons from the body. I am poisoned, so therefore..." Xiao Yu'er chuckled mirthlessly: "You little devil, you've got quite a tongue, but don't think you can fool me. If you don't tell me the truth now, I'll drag you in front of Xiao Mimi. And I'll tell her that you killed all these people!"
Jiang Yulang began to involuntarily twitch, all over his body."No...no I didn't..."
Xiao Yu'er said: "You killed them to divert Xiao Mimi, then you planned to hide in a secret place. When she finally gave up searching for you, you would then sneak out!"
"You...you..." was all Jiang Yulang could say.
Xiao Yu'er added, "What a little fiend; you really deserve to drink the used water from my footbaths. Tell you the truth- I saw through you a long time ago - if you want to escape alive, you'd better be a good boy and co-operate with me."
Jiang Yulang let out a sigh, then said, "All right, you win. You were right, my hiding place is in the pile of crap. I wasted an entire year to dig it."
Xiao Yu'er whistled: "Amazing, that you could have a hiding place here. You're not afraid of the stink?"
"It's not too smelly that I can't use it to save my life, " Jiang Yulang retorted.
"I've seen many villains in my time, " Xiao Yu'er remarked, "but one so patient and ruthless, I have never met before, little devil. I have to say, I can't help but admire you."
Jiang Yulang interrupted him, "Quick, we're running out of time. Let me go, I'll lead you!"
Smiling, Xiao Yu'er let go of his hand and said, "If you clean it up a bit, I'll..."
His words were cut short, Jiang Yulang suddenly kicked out with his two feet. His kicks were truly vicious and accurate; which was surprising since he didn't appear to have such advanced martial arts.
Unfortunately, Xiao Yu'er had already accounted for that possibility. As soon as Jiang Yulang kicked again, the acupoints on his waist were all sealed. The entire lower half of his body was effectively paralyzed.
Xiao Yu'er sneered again: "Didn't I already tell you, you can't trick me. Be a good boy and crawl along now."
Jiang Yulang's voice trembled: "But I...I can't move."
"That's all right, " Xiao Yu'er said."You can't move your legs, but you can pull yourself with your hands!"
Jiang Yulang fell silent and obediently scrabbled along with his arms.
The toilet was already designed with an underground drainage tunnel of sorts. What Jiang Yulang had done was scrape out a little tunnel branching out from it, large enough to accommodate his body. He moved along like a young snake.
Xiao Yu'er plugged his nose and followed. Luckily the stench disappeared after a short distance. He could only smile ironically and say: "And they call me a little monster. I think the little monster is you. Unbelievable, that you could think of this, and do such work in such a place."
The small tunnel was only seven or eight feet long, and at its end there was a tiny room, which was only about seven or eight square feet in size. But inside, Jiang Yulang had set up four or five blankets, two tubs of water, one jar of wine, and a big pile of salted meat, preserved sausages, cakes, and there were also about ten books.
Xiao Yu'er looked and looked. He couldn't help repeating himself: "You sure put a lot of effort into this, you've thought of every detail." Jiang Yulang crouched in a corner, peering at him. His eyes were like those of a snake, they flickered with a poisonous, hateful, and devious light.
Xiao Yu'er looked back at him. He didn't care if Jiang Yulang was a snake or a fox or even a slippery fish. Xiao Yu'er had never been afraid of evil people; the more evil they were, the more interesting he found them.
It was so still and lonely here underground, which was hard to bear, but at least it was safe. He leisurely flung himself onto a blanket and grabbed a sausage for himself. He sniffed at it and took a bite. The taste was pretty good, not bad at all.
Xiao Yu'er joked, "Hiding in a pile of crap, eating sausages in a pile of crap... Jiang Yulang you are really a genius."
Jiang Yulang lowered his eyelids. He mumbled to himself, "Genius! Genius..."
"Carving out a hiding spot from a sewage drain is a pretty brilliant idea, only a really smart person would have thought of it, " Xiao Yu'er praised, laughing."No matter how close an eye Xiao Mimi kept on you, she would never follow you around when you went to the bathroom."
Jiang Yulang said glumly, "That's right, it really is a genius idea. But after coming up with such an intelligent plan, do you know what price I had to pay, what agonies I had to suffer, could you even imagine?"
"Go ahead, tell me, " Xiao Yu'er said."I enjoy hearing of others' miseries."
"All you would know about is the need for secrecy while pretending to defecate and digging this place, " Jiang Yulang spat out."But could you imagine how many times I would have to sh*t in order to dig this kind of a hole?"
Xiao Yu'er agreed, "Hmm, it would take quite a few times."
"Have you ever counted how many times a person goes in a day?" Jiang Yulang went on."How many chances I would have in a year? If you crap too often, wouldn't that make others suspicious?"
Scratching his head, Xiao Yu'er mused, "Mmm...that would..."
Jiang Yulang continued, "Just think of a person, digging like crazy while he was supposed to be crapping. But where would his crap go? Would he just hold it in forever and never go?"
Xiao Yu'er scratched his head again. He could only laugh wryly: "Hmm...that would be quite a difficulty. If you really took a sh*t while you were excused to go to the bathroom, you wouldn't have time to dig your tunnel. But if you spent all your time digging, you wouldn't be able to crap. So what did you do?"
Jiang Yulang laughed bitterly. He said, "What I did, you could never imagine. A fancy lord like you, could never dream of what a slave like me had to go through."
His eyes widened, and he gritted his teeth. The words fell one by one from his lips: "I became like a dog. I crapped as I worked. I couldn't waste a second in the toilet. I learned to strip off my clothes in the shortest time possible, once inside the bathroom. I almost froze to death half the time, but I had to stay there naked. I couldn't dirty my clothes with the sh*t and mud, and arouse suspicion. But my body was covered in it."
His lips stopped moving, and trembled, as if he wanted to vomit. Xiao Yu'er felt a strange emotion in his heart, and he tossed aside his half eaten sausage. He wanted to say something, but after a while, no words came out.
Jiang Yulang's eyes were fixed on the piece of discarded sausage, and slowly said, "Do you know why I'm so scrawny?"
Xiao Yu'er said, "You...ummm...you..."
Jiang Yulang ground his teeth and snarled, "I'm skinny because I was forced to starve myself. To reduce the amount of crap I had to sh*t out every day. To save up food for this place."
His teeth flashed white behind his lips as he gave a shrill laugh: "This was the life of a genius for a year. One whole year living like a dog, to get this place. And you! You haven't done a thing, and you're lying here ever so comfortable."
Xiao Yu'er was still rubbing his head. Suddenly he smiled."You want to know why?"
"Tell me, " Jiang Yulang hissed.
"Let me tell you, " Xiao Yu'er said, laughing, "this is because you are a genius. But I am a genius among geniuses. Someone as brilliant as me, would never be reduced to suffering like this."
Jiang Yulang stared at him for a long while. Finally he lowered his head, muttering, "You're right, I am definitely not your equal. You are brilliant!"
What should have been a compliment, somehow cast a chill through Xiao Yu'er's body when he heard it. It sounded like he was spitting out a vicious curse. This stunted and pale youth, although perhaps not as clever as Xiao Yu'er, was far beyond him in terms of spitefulness and hatred.
This was especially true with respect to patience. Xiao Yu'er could never compare to this child. Patience was a virtue, but sometimes, if used the wrong way, it could be quite horrifying. Xiao Yu'er said no more.
He thought to himself: [If anyone in the world could be considered a rival for me, it would be this little fox. ] But immediately he knew he was wrong. There was still another rival, and quite a formidable one at that!
Before his eyes flashed an image of an elegant, gentle and courteous figure. An ever considerate figure who never lost his temper.
Hua Wuque, a flawless gentleman. (2) He was not the least bit vicious, nor devious in any way. He seemed to be without evil intent. Aside from his martial arts, there appeared to be nothing worth fearing. But the type of person who seemed to have nothing worth fearing, was actually the one you should be most wary of. Hua Wuque was like an ocean, deep and vast, unfathomable.
Xiao Yu'er secretly sighed, and mumbled to himself, "That rascal is really an enigma. Anyone who can puzzle me, is not bad quality at all."
Jiang Yulang looked at him, as if wanting to say something, but he restrained himself.
Xiao Yu'er saw him and laughed: "No, I wasn't talking about you, I was thinking of someone else."
"Oh, " said Jiang Yulang.
Xiao Yu'er mused, "The thing is, he doesn't seem intelligent at all. But no matter how smart you are, or what tricks you use, it's all useless against him. Because whatever strategy you try, he'll never fall for it. In the end, you somehow wind up the loser."
Jiang Yulang laughed indifferently: "I've never met that kind of person before..."
With a chuckle, Xiao Yu'er said, "Just you wait, as long as you live to get out of here, you will."
Despairingly, Jiang Yulang echoed him, "If only I live to get out of here..."
Suddenly his expression changed. His voice cracked: "Oh no."
Xiao Yu'er knew that if he was frightened, it must be something serious. Despite himself, his face also began to drain of colour. He said, "What is it?"
Jiang Yulang stammered, "You...did you replace the cover on top of the toilet after you entered the tunnel?"
With wide eyes Xiao Yu'er admitted, "Oh no, I didn't, I forgot."
His face pale, Jiang Yulang moaned, "When she finds us missing, Xiao Mimi will search everywhere, if she sees this..."
Xiao Yu'er smiled comfortingly, "Maybe you're too obsessive, do you really think she would look for us in the toilet?"
Jiang Yulang countered: "Of course I'm obsessive. Even a little mistake could cost me my life. Have you any idea of the depth of Xiao Mimi's martial arts?"
Xiao Yu'er laughed sarcastically: "It's precisely because I don't know how good she is, that's why I've never dared to cross her...when dealing with someone stupid, it doesn't matter how good their martial arts are. But she, on the other hand, she is a monster."
Sighing, Jiang Yulang explained, "You couldn't even imagine the height of her abilities. According to rumour, she has had more than seven hundred lovers. Among them were disciples of the Famed Seven Swords. If each lover merely taught her a single stroke, that would be enough to make her terrifying."
Xiao Yu'er's eyes darted back and forth. Finally he said, "In that case, we should probably be very careful. I'll sneak out and cover the lid back up."
Jiang Yulang cut him off: "Wait." As he spoke, he was listening with his ear pressed against the dirt wall. After a pause, he turned to Xiao Yu'er, ashen-faced."Sh*t. She's come back."
Xiao Yu'er pressed his ear to the dirt wall as well. Quietly he listened for sounds up above.
Xiao Mimi was indeed raging up there. Her yells of anger and curses were clearly audible, although he couldn't make out her exact words, he could imagine.
Jiang Yulang said, "I've planned for this for so long. I figured that she would never figure out my hiding place. She would think I had escaped somehow. But that toilet cover..."
Xiao Yu'er comforted him, "She's so mad right now, if I were her, the last thing I'd notice would be if the toilet lid was on or not."
"Let's hope that's true, " Jiang Yulang said. He paused, then said, "As long as she doesn't find us, she won't stay long here. And if everyone's dead, why would she stay in this place?"
Xiao Yu'er agreed: "Right, she would surely leave."
"We'd just have to hide here at most for half a month, " Jiang Yulang guessed."By that time she'll have left for sure. Then we can walk out of here, free men, not worrying about her chasing us."
"So you know about the secret exit?" Xiao Yu'er asked.
Smiling calmly, Jiang Yulang said, "There's not a secret in the world that can be kept from everyone."
Laughing, Xiao Yu'er said, "Good. We'll wait our half month. Living underground for half a month, would be rather interesting. I dare say not many people have enjoyed such an experience."
He flung himself down again, winked and laughed: "Only...I do apologize, but I cannot unseal your acupoints."
"You...you really insist on this?" Jiang Yulang said.
Xiao Yu'er explained, "I can't. You and I will be living together day and night, I really have some misgivings. I have to be on my guard."
With a smile he went on, "By the way, I almost forgot to tell you, I sealed your acupoints in such a way that you will not be able to independently unseal them."
This little hole was like a snake's lair, and Jiang Yulang was the snake itself. Sleeping with a snake in its home; most people wouldn't be able to get a wink.
Xiao Yu'er, however, did it easily. He gobbled up his preserved sausage, wolfed down some cake, and washed it all down with a bowl of wine. Cheeks red and belly full, he settled down nicely into a sweet slumber.
There was a torch set into the wall. Its light showed Xiao Yu'er's pink cheeks clearly. Jiang Yulang stared at them for a while. He was secretly counting Xiao Yu'er's breaths. He had already reached four thousand. Xiao Yu'er's breaths were even and deep.
Jiang Yulang had already examined the meridians (?) on his own legs. The bastard wasn't lying, he must have used some bewitched sealing technique from some d*mned sect. Now he was just lying there, sleeping happily, precisely because he knew Jiang Yulang wouldn't dare kill him.
But Jiang Yulang quietly reached out his hands. Xiao Yu'er continued to sleep, and even began to snore lightly.
With eyes fixed on Xiao Yu'er, Jiang Yulang kept stretching his hands forward. Xiao Yu'er's sounds grew louder.
Jiang Yulang's hands suddenly found a book, and rapidly flipped its pages. There was a piece of folded paper sandwiched within the book. Jiang Yulang let out a breath, and took out the paper.
Lightly he set the book back, and carefully folded the paper even smaller. He thought for a bit. In the boots? No. Finally he settled on tucking it into his topknot. Now his pale face shone with a light.
Then he let out another breath, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.
On the instant, Xiao Yu'er's eyes popped wide open. The torch in the wall showed Jiang Yulang's pale cheeks clearly. Xiao Yu'er's face betrayed a mocking smile.
His eyes seemed to say: [You cannot fool me, there is nothing in which you can fool me. ]
Jiang Yulang's breaths also grew even and deep. Silently Xiao Yu'er stood up. He also reached his hands out, and waved them about ten times in front of Jiang Yulang's face. Still Jiang Yulang breathed steadily. He hadn't noticed at all.
The little fox was very exhausted, and had truly fallen asleep. Xiao Yu'er slowly and lightly extended two fingers to pull at Jiang Yulang's hair. However, he had not yet reached the hair when he changed direction. Now the fingers were aimed at Jiang Yulang's "sleep" acupoint.
The sleeping Jiang Yulang suddenly sighed: "If you want to take it, go ahead. There's hardly a need to seal another acupoint."
Xiao Yu'er blinked, then burst into stunned laughter: "Ah, so you weren't asleep."
Jiang Yulang morosely pointed out: "Being with someone like you, how could I sleep at all?"
"But your acting abilities are superb, " Xiao Yu'er complimented him with a laugh."Even I was tricked by you."
"You're not bad yourself, " Jiang Yulang snorted.
Xiao Yu'er laughed out loud: "Excellent! Well then...are you going to let me peek at what's in your hair?"
Jiang Yulang smiled bitterly: "How could I refuse?" Meanwhile he drew out the long piece of paper. His fingertips shook. Obviously the piece of paper was very important to him, but still he took it out. With respect to matters in which he had no choice, Jiang Yulang never tried to resist.
He tossed it to Xiao Yu'er, then sighed deeply: "I must have been really evil in my former life, to be running into you."
Xiao Yu'er's heart was full of curiosity. What secret could be on that paper? By the way Jiang Yulang was acting, this could be no ordinary secret.
His heart hammering, he flipped open the paper. It took no more than a glance- he burst into giggles.
Jiang Yulang stared at him: "Smug, aren't we?"
Xiao Yu'er laughed even harder, "Oh yes, certainly."
"To be able to view this secret, of course you would be smug, " Jiang Yulang growled through gritted teeth."Otherwise, you would never in one lifetime be able to see the treasures this paper has hidden."
Xiao Yu'er gasped, "Oh yes, this paper is truly valuable indeed..." As he spoke, he tore the paper into shreds. Jiang Yulang got the shock of his life. His face went even paler, making him look terrifying. His voice trembled: "You...do you know how much this piece of paper is worth?"
Slowly Xiao Yu'er said, "Of course I know. I've seen this before. Not only that, but I had a copy of my own."
Jiang Yulang was stunned. He repeated, "You...you also had a copy?"
"Not only did I possess a copy, I've also been to the hiding place of the treasure!"
Jiang Yulang's valuable piece of paper, naturally, was identical to the one Tie Xinlan had given to Xiao Yu'er, the treasure map which had cost many lives.
Of course, Jiang Yulang could not know these details, and right now could only stand there in shock."You...you are telling the truth? You have been there?"
"Why should I lie to you?" Xiao Yu'er retorted.
Jiang Yulang's breathing became rapid and shallow. He stammered, "Then...the treasure...who has it now? Where is it?"
His eyes gleaming, Xiao Yu'er said, "You tell me how you got this map, and I'll tell you."
Jiang Yulang's hands twisted tightly on his own clothing. He said, "If I tell you, you will really tell me?"
Xiao Yu'er reassured him, "If you tell me and I don't tell you, then I'm a turtle."
Sighing in relief, Jiang Yulang told him, "I stole the treasure map from my father's study."
"And where did your father get it from?" Xiao Yu'er persisted.
"This I really don't know."
"Hmm, that's right, " Xiao Yu'er muttered, "I heard your father is quite a famous man. This map was probably a gift to him. Little did he guess what a good son he had."
Sighing and shaking his head, he laughed, "Stealing even your father's possessions, this type of filial son is rare indeed."
Jiang Yulang's face did not redden in the slightest. He said, "This is nothing, I..."
Xiao Yu'er cut in: "You wanted the treasure all for yourself, so you stole out secretly, and reached Mount Emei. Who knew you would then fall into Xiao Mimi's hands. Luckily you did, or you may have been dead at this point."
"Why?" Jiang Yulang asked curiously.
Xiao Yu'er went on, "Indeed, it was fortunate that your father had you for a thieving son, otherwise he would have fallen for a big trick."
"Trick?" Jiang Yulang repeated.
"To tell you the truth, " Xiao Yu'er said, "the treasure map was a fake. It is worthless. The maker of the map merely wished any treasure seekers to kill themselves while fighting each other for it!"
Jiang Yulang was completely stunned. After a pause, he mumbled, "And who is the mapmaker?"
Xiao Yu'er said spitefully, "I don't know either. But I will find them. Not for the sake of any greater good, but because this person has tricked me, and so I will make them pay."
Jiang Yulang muttered, "No wonder you asked me where I got the map from, no wonder..."
Suddenly, sounds came up to them through the underground tunnel.
It was Xiao Mimi's voice. She was hollering: "Jiang Yulang, Xiao Yu'er, you little rotten eggs, are you down there?"
Their hands turned to ice. Neither could move.
They heard her peals of laughter: "It doesn't matter if you don't make a sound, I already know you're down there."
Jiang Yulang said, trembling: "She...she's trying to trick us."
Xiao Yu'er disagreed: "I don't think so. Right now she's speaking directly into the toilet hole, or we wouldn't hear her so clearly."
"I told you that toilet cover would get us in trouble, " sighed Jiang Yulang.
Xiao Yu'er also sighed, "That woman is too much."
They heard Xiao Mimi laughing again: "Jiang Yulang, what a genius, what an idea to escape using a sh*t hole."
"Did you hear that, she called you a genius, " Xiao Yu'er teased.
Jiang Yulang asked, incredulous, "How can you even be laughing right now?"
"Think about it, " Xiao Yu'er said."Why shouldn't I be laughing?"
Jiang Yulang said: "Because...because you aren't afraid of her?"
"That's right, " Xiao Yu'er said."No matter how powerful she is, as long as we stay here, she won't dare to come in. And with her temperament, she won't be waiting around out there either."
After reflecting on it, Jiang Yulang also laughed: "Ah, that's right, she doesn't know what we've got in here. She won't take the risk. Even if she waited out there, she won't wait for very long. Eventually we'll get a chance to escape."
Xiao Mimi coaxed: "Come out, you little rotten eggs."
Xiao Yu'er yelled back: "Why don't you come in, you old rotten egg."
She said, "So you're really not coming out?"
"How about you coming in?" he replied.
"You'd rather stink yourselves to death?" Xiao Mimi said.
Xiao Yu'er laughed loudly: "Don't you worry, we won't die of the stench. It's so nice and comfy here, there's sausages, wine, are you sure you won't join us for a drink or two?"
She joked back: "Even if you don't care, I can't bear the smell." In a low voice she added, "Besides, I don't even want you to come back up."
"Really now?" chortled Xiao Yu'er.
Xiao Mimi explained, "If you come back up, I might kill you in a fit of anger. That would be too easy a death for you; I need you to die in a slow agony."
Xiao Yu'er laughed even louder: "And how are you going to make us slowly..." His laughter suddenly died.
She was laughing now: "Go ahead, laugh, little rotten egg, why aren't you laughing?"
Jiang Yulang's expression also changed. The two men yelled together: "Xiao Guniang, Miss Xiao..."
No response came up the tunnel. They looked at each other, their faces the colour of ash.
They heard a rumble, then a "wa la la" clattering and banging cacophony up the tunnel.
Jiang Yulang stammered, "It's over..."
Xiao Yu'er muttered: "Incredible...hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, I should have known she would do this."
"Well, now we don't have to worry about that toilet cover anymore, " Jiang Yulang groaned.
Xiao Yu'er said loudly, "Well, she may have sealed up the entrance to the tunnel, but we could still dig our way out."
Sighing, Jiang Yulang said despairingly, "She meant to trap us in here. She would surely have fixed a metal barrier onto the toilet, or a stone lid or something..."
"So we'll just dig upward in another direction, " Xiao Yu'er stubbornly insisted.
Jiang Yulang pointed out, "When this place was first constructed, it was designed to be water-resistant. Between us and the surface, there is a layer of stone about a foot thick."
A pause. Then Xiao Yu'er released Jiang Yulang's sealed acupoints with a flick of his wrist. He said, "I suppose you won't be trying anything funny..."
Jiang Yulang could only mumble: "Half a month...after that, we'll starve to death in here."
Xiao Yu'er slapped him heartily on the shoulder, then laughed loudly: "Come on, don't give up, we've got at least half a month's life to live then...I should have died so many times before now, this half a month is practically a gift."
Although he was laughing, his laughter was harsh and grated on their ears.
Jiang Yulang had not moved for three hours.
He was just sitting there, staring at nothing, in a daze, thinking about he knew not what. Xiao Yu'er opened the wine jar, and called to him eight times, but was ignored.
So Xiao Yu'er had to drink by himself. He drank a mouthful and laughed. Another gulp, then a sigh. He muttered, "Refusing to drink when at death's door, that person must be an idiot." Jiang Yulang stared at him without a word.
Xiao Yu'er continued to rant: "My only regret is, we're dying a bit too soon. In fact I really regret it now, I should have enjoyed that body of Xiao Mimi's. Ai, to not enjoy the fairer sex, what a positive waste of youth..."
Swaying, he got to his feet, and went to swipe another link of sausage.
Jiang Yulang snapped coldly: "You're drunk."
Laughing, Xiao Yu'er shot back: "Well, drinking yourself to death is a much better way to go than dying of starvation."
Suddenly Jiang Yulang sprang up, and struck out with a palm. His body was light, and his hand was quick- this stroke was meant to take Xiao Yu'er's life!
The torchlight flickered before Xiao Yu'er's eyes. Instantly he shifted and parried Jiang Yulang's palm. Both of them were flung against the earthen wall from the shock.
Xiao Yu'er cried out with bulging eyes: "You...you want to kill me?"
"Of course."
"If you're going to die anyway, " Xiao Yu'er protested, "why bother..."
Jiang Yulang explained, "These supplies would only last me a month. With you, I have one less half month to live. By killing you, I save half a month."
Incredulously Xiao Yu'er sputtered: "You would kill me for one more day of life?"
"I would kill you for one hour's worth!" hooted Jiang Yulang.
Xiao Yu'er snickered: "I knew you were a bad one, but I had no idea just how evil. You have got to be number one when it comes to being evil."
"And you?" Jiang Yulang retorted.
"Compared with you, " Xiao Yu'er asserted, "I'm like an old granny on a vegetarian diet."
He had hardly finished speaking, when his hands flashed before Jiang Yulang. Because this cave was so small, he hardly needed to move before he had reached Jiang Yulang's face.
Perhaps Xiao Yu'er had struck out too quickly, or maybe Jiang Yulang had not anticipated an offensive move from him. In any case, Jiang Yulang had no time to dodge at all before he was soundly smacked. With a "pak" sound, half of Jiang Yulang's face turned crimson, and he crumpled to the floor.
Xiao Yu'er laughingly mocked him: "You might seem quite scrawny, but your cheeks are rather well padded. If I hadn't seen clearly that I had slapped your face, I might have thought I was spanking a cheek from a woman's ***."
His hand on his injured cheek, Jiang Yulang's voice quivered: "You...what are you going to do?"
"Since you want to kill me, can't I kill you?" Xiao Yu'er barked. With the back of his hand, he slapped Jiang Yulang again.
Jiang Yulang's face was now beginning to resemble the underbelly of a dead fish. He trembled: "You and I, we're going to die anyway, why are you..."
Xiao Yu'er laughed out loud."You're right, but you just reminded me, if I kill you, I've got an extra half month to live."
Jiang Yulang lowered his head, whimpering: "I...I deserve to die...it's all my fault..." Without warning he lashed out like a morningstar and launched his head toward Xiao Yu'er's abdomen. Although his head might not be that hard, it certainly had to be a lot harder than a stomach.
Although Xiao Yu'er had been tracking Jiang Yulang's hand and leg movements all along, it was true that he had not been keeping an eye on that little ball of a head. He was knocked into a corner, rather like a baby shrimp, with a curved out middle(?). Clutching his stomach, he could not catch his breath for a few minutes.
Laughing coldly, Jiang Yulang sneered, "I think you know now who deserves to die." He used his full strength to smash his foot onto Xiao Yu'er's chin.
Xiao Yu'er lay there as if unable to raise his head. But when Jiang Yulang Jiang Yulang's foot had just reached his face, Xiao Yu'er's hand which had been clutching his own tummy, flew up. Together his hands reached, as if they were snatching at the embroidered silk ball flung into the air by the minister's daughter. (1) He grabbed Jiang Yulang's right foot, and wrenched it sharply to the left.
Jiang Yulang shrieked in pain, and flipped over his entire body like a fish. He collapsed on the floor, blood pouring out from his nostrils.
Xiao Yu'er immediately jumped on his back and laughed: "Now I really do know who deserves to die."
Wheezing and puffing, Jiang Yulang dragged himself on the floor, panting: "All right, you win, you are stronger than me in all things. But I know you won't kill me. If you had really wanted to, you didn't need to wait until now."
The little rascal was actually trying for pity, trying to flatter Xiao Yu'er. Although this should have been easy to do, Xiao Yu'er was not pleased at all and in fact felt uneasy(?). He knew that Jiang Yulang would love nothing more than to plunge a sharp dagger into his throat, or some other place, some other more vulnerable place. But at this moment he had no dagger, and even if he did it would be useless. When someone else is riding on your back, it's impossible to stab them in the throat.
He was merely waiting for an opportunity, when he could take his time to stab slowly, over and over.
You might not be able to consider Xiao Yu'er the most evil and ruthless person. But at least you could say he was extremely clever. He knew exactly how Jiang Yulang felt. And yet, although he knew Jiang Yulang wanted to kill him, he would still give the rascal chances to kill him. He wanted to see just how Jiang Yulang would try it.
This would certainly be a fun thing to see. And with regard to curious and interesting things, Xiao Yu'er would never pass up an opportunity. Especially when he didn't have long to live.
As he pondered in fascination, he seemed to have forgotten his imminent danger of dying.
Just as he was getting really excited, Jiang Yulang vaulted his body back into an upright position, and flung Xiao Yu'er off his back. Normally, this would hardly be a problem at all, but such a confined space now made it dangerous.
With a "dong" sound, like a drum being struck, Xiao Yu'er's head hit the roof of the cave. Then his body fell to the floor.
Jiang Yulang took a long while to get up. He grabbed Xiao Yu'er's neck and sneered coldly: "I know you won't really try to kill me, but I am really going to kill you."
His fingers dug in forcefully, but Xiao Yu'er did not react.
Jiang Yulang's grip relaxed. He did not wish to kill Xiao Yu'er while he was unconscious. He wanted to see him struggle, wanted to see his expression while he was unable to breathe.
Xiao Yu'er, irritatingly, refused to regain consciousness. Jiang Yulang reached out one hand and grabbed the wine jar which had rolled off to one side. He dumped all of the leftover wine straight onto Xiao Yu'er's head.
Before he was done, Xiao Yu'er's hands suddenly reached in between Jiang Yulang's arms. One fist sailed into Jiang Yulang's throat. Jiang Yulang's face contorted in pain, but he still managed to remember to smash the wine jar on Xiao Yu'er's head.
Of course Xiao Yu'er had predicted this maneuver. He rolled his body to one side, then his foot lashed out and kicked Jiang Yulang in his private parts. The wine jar was smashed to bits. Jiang Yulang was curled up in exquisite agony, unable to move or breathe.
This kick was certainly effective, but also clearly not sportsmanlike. In fact you couldn't really consider it a real martial arts move. Indeed, from beginning to end, neither of them had used proper techniques. Because they were confined in this rat's nest-sized cave, they were unable to use proper martial arts at all. Luckily they weren't fighting for other people to watch, nor were there any spectators.
The torchlight appeared to gradually dim down.
Xiao Yu'er suddenly sprang up, and said, "Oh no."
Jiang Yulang snarled, "What, we aren't in enough trouble, that something more could go wrong?"
Sighing, Xiao Yu'er explained, "Even before we starved to death, we would die from suffocation in here."
Since the tunnel entrance was blocked up, the oxygen in the air was slowly thinning out. The light from the torches would soon extinguish. He felt that his breaths were become stifled, that his eyelids were growing heavy.
Jiang Yulang said in a trembling voice, "I thought of everything, except this..."
Xiao Yu'er said, "Now even if you killed me, at most you would only gain an extra half hour."
Jiang Yulang mumbled repetitively, "Half an hour, half an hour..." His teeth began to chatter. Xiao Yu'er's expression was also despairing, he mumbled to himself: "Suffocating...I wonder how it feels?"
"I've heard that suffocating is the worst, " moaned Jiang Yulang."Before suffocating, people go crazy, they even claw out their own faces!" The only reason why he was going into such detail, was because he didn't like being scared alone, he wanted Xiao Yu'er to share in his misery.
Xiao Yu'er was silent for a bit, then broke into a laugh: "It's all right! I only fear dying too ordinary a death, now at last I have found a unique way! The number of people in this world who have suffocated to death must not be many."
Jiang Yulang disagreed, saying slowly, "It might not be many, but it's also not a small number! The builders of this place, were also buried alive."
Xiao Yu'er winked at him: "Even at this point, you are still thinking of ways to upset me?"
"You are far too calm and happy, I want to see how long your happiness can last, " snarled Jiang Yulang.
"You really hate me that much?" Xiao Yu'er asked in surprise."Hmph!" retorted Jiang Yulang.
"You hate me, because I am better than you in every way, isn't that right?" Xiao Yu'er said.
Jiang Yulang said, "Perhaps you and I were born to be enemies!" When he said this, he had no idea how accurate his words were.
The firelight had weakened still further. Xiao Yu'er saw it grow dim, and mumbled, "Wine! That d*mn wine, was wasted by that d*mn fool." He glanced about. The smashed pieces of the wine jar were quickly drying out on the floor. The odd thing was, the spilled wine itself was not seeping into the earth.
The ground was uneven, of course the wine would flow towards the lowest level. Xiao Yu'er suddenly jumped up, and spilled a tub of water on the floor. The water also followed the wine. He screamed wildly: "Wai, look...look!"
Jiang Yulang mumbled, "What's there to look at."
Xiao Yu'er said: "The water...it's flowing..."
"Of course water flows, and it flows downward, " Jiang Yulang said.
Xiao Yu'er jabbed his finger at a corner of the cave, so excited that he could not speak properly. He stuttered, "Look. The water is flowing in that direction, yet it is not pooling in here."
He continued excitedly: "The water is not pooling here! That means it's flowing outside, where there must be a hole. But we are already underground, how could there be another exit for water to flow outside?"
He stopped talking and snatched up a broken piece of wine jar. He started digging at the corner as though his life depended on it. Jiang Yulang watched him in a daze, his hands shaking.
It was getting even harder for the two of them to breathe. The weak light suddenly went out. They were surrounded by blackness, so complete that you could not see your fingers in front of your face. Jiang Yulang could not see what kind of progress Xiao Yu'er was making, he could only hear him panting for breath. He himself was also panting.
Unexpectedly, there was a "ping" sound, as if a wooden board had split apart. Then Xiao Yu'er cried: "I've dug a hole...it's empty out there!"
His voice trembling, Jiang Yulang said, "You...you're sure?"
Xiao Yu'er ordered: "A flint, light a torch. In the name of heaven, don't tell me you don't have a flint."
But what use was a flint? Xiao Yu'er looked as though he would faint.
However, the torch was lit. Xiao Yu'er's body could not be seen, and in the cave there was suddenly a gaping hole.
Gusts of a damp, stinking breeze was blowing out from the hole.
Jiang Yulang felt his breathing relax and become more easy. He cried out in delight: "Jiang...young master Jiang, brother Jiang."
Xiao Yu'er's voice echoed through the hole: "Quickly, get over here." His voice sounded surprised and wildly happy. Jiang Yulang half rolled, half dived into the hole. Then, he stood there stunned.
They stood in an octagonal room. The eight walls were constructed differently; one of steel, another of bronze, one was stone, and there was even a wall of solid gold.
Thank heaven that the wall they had been facing was made of wood. Otherwise they would most likely have suffocated to death.
In this octagonal room, there were no tables or cupboards. Because they were underground, there were also no spiderwebs. The air came from an unknown source.
The room only contained a collection of knobs(?). Large and small, or different designs. Some were made of metal, others of stone, and of course, some were made of solid gold.
Jiang Yulang could hardly catch his breath. He wailed: "Oh heaven! Heaven...what is this kind of place. You could kill me and I wouldn't come in! And..."
Xiao Yu'er had made several circuits around the room, and was still unsure of what to do next. Indeed, what kind of a place was this? And for what purpose were those knobs intended? He looked and looked, but could not figure out any special purpose. The knobs were lined up one after another, and who knows how much work it took to make them.
Jiang Yulang moaned, "Have you figured it out yet? What kind of a place is this?"
Xiao Yu'er laughed bitterly: "I think the only ones who know are ghosts now."
Jiang Yulang dashed over and wiped at a wall with his sleeve. After a while, he cried out: "Oh my, this wall really is made of gold."
Xiao Yu'er said, "That's not too surprising. What's strange is, this place is ventilated somehow. Unless the maker were crazy, there must be a purpose behind this."
"What purpose?" Jiang Yulang repeated.
Heaving a long sigh, Xiao Yu'er said, "This purpose may be the biggest secret you and I have ever encountered." With one hand he pressed down on a knob.
Jiang Yulang said, "You're going to move it?"
"Could you bear not to?" Xiao Yu'er retorted. He winked at Jiang Yulang, joking: "Maybe this is the gateway to hell, if I twist this knob, I may release its demons."
Gritting his teeth, Jiang Yulang said, "What a good joke, this joke is very funny indeed."
Together they shivered, as with a "jee!" sound, the knob twisted. The stone wall suddenly turned and a door was revealed.
Xiao Yu'er chuckled: "Look, the gateway to hell appears." His chuckles sounded shrill and full of fear, and he knew it.
Jiang Yulang returned to their cave and grabbed a lantern. Xiao Yu'er went ahead with the torch. As they advanced, gusts of a rotting stench floated towards them. Xiao Yu'er had never smelled such decay, and never wanted to again.
Bravely, they continued on. Corpses, inside the doorway dead bodies lay everywhere! Jiang Yulang's hands began to tremble and wouldn't stop. The way they died, and the way they looked, this writer would rather not say. Besides, I don't think I could properly express it, and neither could anyone else.
On closer examination, these were skeletons covered in clothes. Xiao Yu'er trembled and sneezed- before him, a skeleton's clothing had suddenly crumbled to dust.
Xiao Yu'er felt a chill creep through his back. He said, "I'm afraid these people have been dead here for more than ten years."
Jiang Yulang stammered, "I think they...starved to death. Look at them, they must have gone crazy before they died, look at their hands."
Xiao Yu'er thought he would go crazy himself. He looked, and suddenly could not resist the urge to vomit. He threw up all the wine and meat he had eaten earlier.
"I wonder what kind of people these were?" Jiang Yulang mused.
Xiao Yu'er coughed up a final mouthful of spit before he panted: "It seems their clothing was quite rough and common, they must have been the construction workers."
Jiang Yulang sneered, "What a pack of idiots." "Idiots?" Xiao Yu'er echoed.
"If they weren't idiots, why would they build such a secret place? They must have known that after they built it, their lives would be in danger."
Xiao Yu'er asked in disbelief, "You see these people and the horrible deaths they died, and you feel not one bit of pity?"
"Who will pity me if I die?" Jiang Yulang retorted.
Sighing, Xiao Yu'er said, "Wow, I'm really impressed. I have been raised and taught in a gathering place for the villains of this earth, and I can't even compare to you. In fact I think I need to learn from you."
Jiang Yulang ignored him and said, "The strange thing is, Xiao..."
Before he had finished speaking, footsteps sounded from above. They were very slow, yet heavy, as if carrying a huge load.
The hairs shot up on Xiao Yu'er's skin. Even if he were the bravest man alive, at this moment, he could not help being afraid.
Jiang Yulang's hands, of course, were shaking. He said, "This...this..." Although he was spiteful and vicious, his courage was lacking, and he was speechless with fear. With a "dong" sound, the lantern in his hand hit the floor. The footsteps came nearer and nearer.
Xiao Yu'er felt his arms and legs weaken. His torch had also fallen to the ground. Everywhere was darkness, all this d*mned darkness.
The heavy footsteps seemed to crush their courage. They wanted to escape, but could not lift their legs!
Suddenly, an opening appeared from above, and a thread of yellow light shone through. The two of them held their breaths and did not dare to move.
They saw a pair of feet. The feet were small and delicate, and were encased in a pair of embroidered shoes. Above the feet was a green dress. Above that no more could be seen.
They stole a look at each other- almost unable to keep from crying out: "Xiao Mimi!"
This was not a female ghost, but indeed was Xiao Mimi.
They heard her mutter: "You can rest a bit here, this place is not bad, but a bit quiet..."
A person fell down into the room. Who else was that monster trying to kill?
With a chill, they realized this person was already a dead body. One by one, bodies were dropped in.
Xiao Mimi continued speaking: "To be able to rest in such a luxurious grave, I don't think you could have any complaints. Farewell, all of you...I will think of you sometimes."
With a "peng" sound, the opening closed, and once again all was blackness.
Jiang Yulang and Xiao Yu'er stayed motionless for a long time, before they relaxed and took a deep breath. Xiao Yu'er suddenly laughed out loud: "Jiang Yulang, these bodies belong to the people you killed. Aren't you afraid they'll seek revenge?"
Jiang Yulang shot back: "I never feared them when they were alive, why would I start now!"
Xiao Yu'er felt around and found the flint and torch by his feet. He struck up a light. Jiang Yulang's face hardly seemed human. Xiao Yu'er giggled: "If you're not afraid, why does your face look so funny?"
Jiang Yulang snatched up the lantern and dashed back into the cave. Xiao Yu'er hurriedly followed, he did not want Jiang Yulang to seal him inside the octagonal room.
What Xiao Mimi had labeled as a "luxurious" place, Jiang Yulang could not tolerate. He stood off to one side and began to vomit. Mouthful after mouthful.
Xiao Yu'er reflected: "I suspected from the beginning that this place was not made by Xiao Mimi. Women, how could their designs be so grand...now we know that my suspicions were correct."
Jiang Yulang could only say, "Hmph."
Xiao Yu'er went on, "By some odd chance, she stumbled onto this place. But upon seeing all the dead bodies, she did not dare to explore further. She did not know that she had only discovered a part of this underground palace. It could have been the worst part, in fact. The best part may be yet to come."
He sighed, then added: "But then who did construct this place? Who could have been this ambitious?"
Laughing coldly, Jiang Yulang sneered, "At the very least, it wouldn't be you."
Xiao Yu'er made a face at him, and said: "Don't forget, my martial arts are better than yours, I could kill you at any time."
Jiang Yulang sprang backwards a step. His expression changed."You...you..."
Xiao Yu'er laughed merrily, teasing: "But you don't need to get quite so worried, I just want you to have some manners when speaking."
Jiang Yulang stared at him for a while. With his head lowered, he said, "I'm young and I don't know anything. If I have offended you, please forgive me, I...in my heart, I see you as my older brother."
Laughing, Xiao Yu'er said, "Fortunately you aren't really my younger brother."
Carrying the torch, he made another circuit around the octagonal room. With one hand, he touched here and knocked about there, his eyes darting back and forth. He said, "Of these eight walls, only one is made of earth. Seven left, and two are stone and wood. That leaves gold, silver, bronze, steel, and tin."
Jiang Yulang commented, "To use eight different kinds of material to construct eight walls, there must be some kind of meaning."
"Precisely, " Xiao Yu'er agreed."And what kind of meaning would that be?"
Smiling, Jiang Yulang said, "I'm sure I don't know, that's why I'm deferring to you, big brother."
Xiao Yu'er looked at him for a while. Slowly he said, "Listen to me, I want to tell you two things."
"Your wish is my command."
With a fixed stare, Xiao Yu'er declared: "First, never call me big brother again. I find it disturbing."
Surprised, Jiang Yulang lowered his head, and said, "Yes."
"Second, " Xiao Yu'er continued, "you will never again play dumb in front of me. I know you are an intelligent person, very clever, there's no point in pretending to be stupid."
"Yes." Jiang Yulang obediently nodded.
With a smile, Xiao Yu'er spoke again, "Now, what were you saying about the maker's intent?"
Jiang Yulang said falteringly: "I'm not sure if my guess is right...in making these walls, one reason would be to signify that there is something different behind each wall."
"Not bad, " Xiao Yu'er said."And another reason?"
"Another reason, " Jiang Yulang added, "would be related to the knobs. The stone knob was made to control the stone wall. Therefore the golden knob must control the gold wall."
"Excellent, " Xiao Yu'er smiled."Go on."
Jiang Yulang continued: "The wall of wood was where we came from, so there's nothing special behind it. Behind the stone wall was a mass grave, we don't need to go there again. As for the earthen wall, it seems to be solid, so probably there's nothing of interest there. The only remaining choices are the walls made of gold, silver, bronze, steel and tin."
"Just so, " agreed Xiao Yu'er."There must be something interesting behind these five walls." He winked and added, "Here, you choose, which wall shall we explore first?"
"Gold, " Jiang Yulang replied at once.
"Very good, " Xiao Yu'er approved."This time you were honest. I also wanted to try to the gold wall first. Who wouldn't?"
He reached towards the gold knob.
| ← Ch. 012 | Ch. 014 → |