Chapter - 369 East And West are Forever APart Like Orion And Antares (3)

On the next day, in front of everybody Han Qianye first explained the agreement of the past, cornering Yang Jiaozhu so that he could not deny his promise, and then he presented his request. To everybody's surprise, he wanted to fight against Yang Jiaozhu inside the 'bi shui han tan' [bluish green water cold pool] on the BrightnessPeak to decide victory or defeat.

As he said that, everybody was shocked. The water of 'bi shui han tan' was really cold, penetrating the bones. Even in the heat of the summer nobody dared to enter in, much less in the middle of the winter?

Although Yang Jiaozhu's martial art skill was high, his water skill was only so-so. If he went into the 'bi shui han tan', , he would be frozen to death, or drown to his death inside the water without even contending in martial arts. At that moment, all warriors and heroes in the Sheng Huo Ting [holy fire hall] opened their mouths to denounce the young man."

"That was a very difficult dilemma," Zhang Wuji said, "Once a word left a real man's mouth, four horses would not be able to chase it. Yang Jiaozhu had made a promise to that man surnamed Han that he would let his son or daughter to pick the way they would fight. That Han Qianye Lao Qianbei [senior, older generation] picked water battle; reasonably speaking, Yang Jiaozhu could not refuse."

Zhao Min reached out to the back of his hand and pinched it lightly; she laughed and said, "That's right! Once a word left a real man's mouth, four horses would not be able to chase it. What kind of man was the Ming Cult's Jiaozhu? How could he swallow back his words, break his own promise to the world? Once he gave his consent regarding other people's matters, then he should fulfill his promise."

She was saying that to Zhang Wuji, reminding him about the oath of honor between them; but of course Xie Xun did not know that. "That's exactly so," he said, "That day Han Qianye clearly said, 'I am going up the BrightnessPeak alone, I am not hoping to go down this mountain alive. The heroes and warriors can simply kill me; nobody in the Jianghu will find out. I am only a nameless lowly character. What difference does it make if there is one less of me? If you want to kill me, go ahead.' When everybody heard what he said, they could not say anything anymore.

Yang Jiaozhu was silent for half a day before he finally said, 'Han Xiongdi [Brother Han], I have made an agreement with your honorable father. A hero must be frank; I already lost this duel. I am going to comply with whatever you have in mind.'

Han Qianye flipped his wrist and produced a brilliantly gleaming dagger; he pointed the dagger to his own chest and said, 'This dagger is Xianfu's [late/departed father] legacy; I am only asking Yang Jiaozhu to kowtow three times to this dagger.'

As the warriors heard him, there wasn't anybody who was not angered; how could a Ming Cult's Cult Leader take this humiliation? But Yang Jiaozhu has admitted defeat; according to the Jianghu custom, he had no choice but comply with the opponent's wishes.

The situation was clear; Han Qianye came staking everything he got, as soon as Yang Jiaozhu kowtowed three times, he would immediately thrust the dagger into his own chest to avoid being killed by the warriors of the Ming Cult.

In that instant, the main hall was awfully quiet. The Brightness Left and Right Emissaries, Xiao Yao Er Xian [Xiao and Yao, two immortals], White-browed Eagle King Yin Er Ge [second (older) brother], Peng Yingyu Heshang [Buddhist monk], and the others are all excellent strategists, but facing this difficult problem, they were at their wits' end. It was obvious to them that Han Qianye intended to humiliate Yang Jiaozhu the same way his father was forced to fall on his knees; and then he would kill himself.

In this critical moment, Taj-kis suddenly stepped forward and said to Yang Jiaozhu, 'Father, he is a good and filial son; but don't you also have a good and filial daughter? This Master Han is seeking revenge on behalf of his father, so it is only appropriate if your daughter fight him on your behalf. The older generation dealt with the older generation, the younger generation deals with the younger generation; no confusion in generational gap here.'

Everybody was surprised, 'Why did she call Yang Jiaozhu 'tie-tie' [dad, father]?' But straight away they understood, 'She is pretending to be his daughter to help him out of this distress.' They also thought, 'Looking at her pretty and delicate features, does she know martial arts? Even if she does, her skill is certainly not too high, so to have a water battle in the 'bi shui han tan' is even more out of question.'

Yang Jiaozhu has not replied, Han Qianye has already laughed coldly and said, 'It's certainly all right if Miss wants to fight on behalf of your father; but if Miss loses, I am still going to insist that Yang Jiaozhu kowtow three times toward my Xianfu's dagger.' He has noticed that Taj-kis was a pretty and delicate girl, of course he did not consider her a threat to him.

Taj-kis replied, 'What if Sire loses?'

Han Qianye said, 'You want to kill me or chop me, it's entirely up to you.'

'Good!' Taj-kis replied, 'Let us go to the 'bi shui han tan' then.' As she said that, she had already preceded him walking toward the pool.

Yang Jiaozhu hastily waved his hand, 'No,' he said, 'This matter does not have anything to do with you.'

'Father,' Taj-kis replied, 'Don't you worry.' And she respectfully knelt down to him. It was as if with this kneeling down, she acknowledged Yang Jiaozhu as her Yifu. Yang Jiaozhu saw that she had high confidence; other than that, he did not have any other idea. Hence, he was obliged to listen to her proposition.

Immediately everybody went to the 'bi shui han tan' on the northern side of the mountain. By that time the northern wind was blowing intensely, as we arrived by the pool side, the cold air attacked us furiously. Those whose internal energy was somewhat lower had already felt discomfort. The water in the pool had turned into ice for quite a while, below the surface the water looked deep blue, we could not see the bottom.

Yang Jiaozhu did not want Taj-kis to risk her life for him, he boldly said, 'Dear Daughter, I accept your good intention, but let me fulfill Han Xiong's wish.' As he said that, he took off his outer garment, and with a single dagger in his hand he was ready to jump in; this time he had made up his mind not to back off.

Taj-kis smiled and said, 'Father, your daughter grew up by the sea; since I was little my water skill has been very good.' Immediately she unsheathed her sword and leaped to the middle of the pool. Standing on the ice she turned her sword to make a circle about two feet in diameter. With her left foot she treaded on the ice, 'crack!' the round ice broke and she jumped into the water."

At that moment a gust of sea breeze from the north brushed their clothing. Xie Xun continued his narration, "Each time I recalled the scene by the 'bi shui han tan' that day, it always seems like yesterday to me. Taj-kis was wearing a lavender gown. Standing on the ice that day, she looked like the 'ling bo xian zi' [Immortal/Deity/Goddess Ling Bo]. Silently and instantly she disappeared into the water below; the crowd of warriors was amazed.

As Han Qianye watched the way she entered the water, the haughty expression on his face disappeared. He followed, jumping into the pool with the dagger in his hand.