Chapter - 323 Shocking And Dreadful (7)

Xiao Longnu strolled casually to the brook and she too took a few mouthfuls of water. In the crystal clear running water of the brook was an image of a girl in white, a picture of beauty, an image of the Ling Bo Goddess. Xiao Longnu's heart felt empty and she forgot about her state of mind for the moment and plucked a flower from the brook's bank. She placed it into her hair above her ear and stared at the reflection in the water, her mind a blank.

The two men were drinking and glancing over at her at the same time. Seeing that it appeared that she was preoccupied by something else and looked as if she had completely forgotten about her intentions, the two signaled to each other with their eyes and quietly got up. They silently made their way behind Xiao Longnu and moved away slowly. After looking back a few times to see her still standing by the brook, the two quickly sped up their steps and ran. Not long after, they came to a main road.

The two of them thought that this time, they'd finally managed to escape her; but Zhen Zhibing took a glance over his shoulder and saw otherwise. Xiao Longnu was still following them.

Zhen Zhibing's face became grey and called out, "Alas, it's no use! Apprentice brother Zhao; just let her do what she wants!" He stopped running.

Zhao Zhijing was furious and shouted, "You deserve to die; why should I die with you?" He pulled his arm to take him with him but Zhen Zhibing did not want to run anymore. Zhao Zhijing was frightened and angry at the same time; he raised his palm and struck his face.

Zhen Zhibing said angrily, "Hitting me again?"

Xiao Longnu felt that it was extremely odd when she saw the two of them suddenly start to fight once again.

Right at this time, two horses came galloping towards them. The riders were Mongolian dispatchers. A thought came into Zhao Zhijing's head and he quietly said, "Snatch the horses! We'll pretend to fight but don't let Xiao Longnu know what we are going to do." He then chopped forward with a palm. Zhen Zhibing raised his arm to block and sent out a palm of his own. Zhao Zhijing took a few steps back and the two gradually moved towards the centre of the road. With the road blocked, the Mongolians reigned in their horses and shouted. Zhen and Zhao suddenly leapt up and pulled the Mongolians to the ground. They then mounted the horses and galloped north.

Both these horses were top class steeds and they galloped with great speed. When the two turned back to see that Xiao Longnu was no longer behind them, they finally managed a sigh of relief. After traveling over thirty li (15km / 9+miles) or so, they reached a three-forked road.

Zhao Zhijing said, "She saw us head north, we'll change directions and head east instead." He pulled his reigns to the right and they headed along the easterly road. By nightfall, they had reached a small town.

After running all day, the two were extremely tired and hungry. They immediately found a restaurant and ordered a plate of beef and a few jin (grams) of pancakes.

Zhao Zhijing sat down and calmed himself. But fear still lingered in his heart as he recalled the day's events. Xiao Longnu had been following them all day yet why had she yet to make a move on them? Zhen Zhibing's face was grey as ash, his head was lowered and it seemed that his mind drifted away. The beef and pancakes soon arrived but just as they were picking up the chopsticks to eat, sounds of horses neighing and people shouting arose from outside the restaurant.

Someone shouted, "Who do those horses belong to? Why are they here?" There was a Mongolian accent behind those words.

Zhao Zhijing stood up and went to the entrance. He saw a Mongolian Sergeant with a group of seven or eight soldiers pointing at the horses that Zhao Zhijing and Zhen Zhibing had ridden. The waiter at the restaurant was frightened and bowed to the Mongolian as he said, "Sir…Sir!"

Zhao Zhijing's anger had been building up all day after being chased by Xiao Longnu, he longed for a release to his tension; when he saw the Mongolians, he immediately went up to them and shouted, "The horses belong to me! What about it?"

The Sergeant said, "Where did you get them from?"

Zhao Zhijing said, "They're mine! What is it to you?"

By this time, all the land to the north of Xiangyang had fallen into Mongolian hands, all the Han were being oppressed by the Mongolians. Who would dare raise their voice to a Mongolian like this? The Mongolian saw that Zhao Zhijing looked a bit shifty and he had a sword at his waist, he was suspicious of him and said, "Did you buy them or steal them?"

Zhao Zhijing shouted, "What are you talking about? I reared these horses myself."

The Sergeant signaled with his hand and ordered, "Get him!"

Seven or eight armed Mongolians encircled them.

Zhao Zhijing placed his hand on his sword handle and shouted, "What's your problem?"

The Mongolian Sergeant laughed coldly and said, "Horse thief! You've really got guts, these horses belong to the Mongolian army, are you going to admit now?" He then went up to the horses and moved their tails to the side to reveal a Mongolian brand. All Mongolian horses had a brand on them to distinguish which camp they belong to. Zhao Zhijing stole these horses from some Mongolians, how would he know about this? When he saw the mark he became silent but continued to argue, "Who said they belong to the Mongolian army? I like to mark my horses, is that a crime?"

The Sergeant was furious; throughout his travels to the south he had never met such a brazen fellow. He took a step forward and reached out to grab Zhao Zhijing by his clothing. Zhao Zhijing bent his left arm and grabbed the Mongolian's wrist. Then he sent out his right palm and grabbed the Mongolian from behind before lifting him up and swinging him around his head three times before throwing him. The Sergeant was tossed away and landed in a porcelain shop. Non-stop sounds of smashing were heard as shelves of porcelain plates and bowls came crashing down. The sharp debris sliced up the Mongolian Sergeant and he was bleeding all over. He was unable to get up amongst the debris. The other soldiers went to help him; some moved the shelves and debris away while others helped him up. They no longer cared about trying to capture the horse thief.

Zhao Zhijing laughed out loud and walked back inside the restaurant to continue his meal. However, all the towns shops had closed and were boarded up as a result of the clash and all the customers that were in the restaurant had long ago cleared out. Everyone thought that with the Mongolians' malicious nature, surely they would be back to wash the town in blood. Zhao Zhijing had a few more bites of his food when the owner of the restaurant came up to him and suddenly dropped to the floor and started to bow to him. Zhao Zhijing knew that owner was afraid of the trouble that he would bring so he stood up and laughed, "Don't worry, we've eaten enough, we'll go immediately."

The owner's face became even greyer with fright and continued to bow to him.

Zhen Zhibing said, "He's afraid that once we've left, the Mongolians will be back for us." He had always been a thoughtful and a strong man; it was only because of his mad love for Xiao Longnu that led him to his actions. His method of approach to everyday problems surpassed Zhao Zhijing in everyway and it was because of this that Ma Yu, Qiu Chuji and the others wanted to pass on the sect's leadership to him. He suddenly had a thought and said, "Bring me the best food and wine, we'll take responsibility for what we've done, why are you afraid?" The owner picked himself up and agreed compliantly before giving out orders to bring them food and wine.