Mu Nianci continued, “Great Song has lost half of our empire to the Jin and so many Han have been tortured and slaughtered by them. Doesn’t that bother you at all? You…you…” She stopped here and could not go on. Following that, she threw the golden seal on the floor and was about to leave when Wanyan Kang called out, “Sister, I’m wrong, come back.”
Mu Nianci stopped and turned, “What?”
Wanyan Kang said, “When I am freed from the burdens as Jin Ambassador, I won’t go back to the Jin, alright? I will live a carefree and simple life with you, which is much better than having to suffer in silence like now.”
Mu Nianci sighed and was silent. Ever since she sparred with Wanyan Kang and fell for him deeply, she had viewed him as an upright and just hero. She thought that there must be some reason that Wanyan Kang did not want to acknowledge his real father. When he became the Jin Ambassador, she thought of an excuse for him…that he was secretly spying for the Song and would Eagle Shooting Hero
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help crush the enemy for the Song. Who would have guessed that it was all wishful thinking on her part; Wanyan Kang was nothing more than a greedy and shameful traitor. She was heartbroken and felt dejected.
Wanyan Kang asked in a low voice, “Sister…what’s wrong?” Mu Nianci did not reply.
Wanyan Kang asked, “My mother told me that your adoptive father is my real father. I did not have a chance to clarify it before they both died. I have been really confused all along. My birthright and origins cannot be so simply or haphazardly defined right?”
Mu Nianci was secretly comforted and thought to herself, “So he is not clear about his birthright.
He cannot really be blamed then.” Out loud she said, “Don’t mention anything about taking the golden seal to Prime Minister Shi anymore. I will find Sister Huang and ask her for the dagger to save you.”
Huang Rong had actually thought of returning the dagger to Mu Nianci but when she heard what Wanyan Kang said about aiding the Jin, she was fuming and thought, “Father hates the Jin, let him stay here for a couple more days then.”
Wanyan Kang continued, “The pathways in this manor are bizarre, how did you find your way through?”
Mu Nianci replied, “Luckily there were two masters secretly directing me, though I don’t know who they are and they do not want to reveal themselves.”
Wanyan Kang sighed deeply, “Sister, I’m afraid that you’ll be discovered the next time you come here. If you want to save me, then help me find a certain person.”
Mu Nianci replied angrily, “I’m not going to find any Prime Minister for you.”
Wanyan Kang replied, “Not the Prime Minister, but help me look for my teacher.”
Mu Nianci replied, “Ah!”
Wanyan Kang continued, “Take my belt with you and use a knife to carve ‘Wanyan Kang is in danger at Guiyun Manor [Cloud Manor] located on the west bank of Lake Tai’ on the gold buckle.
After that, go to Suzhou and travel thirty li north to a deserted hill. Find nine human skulls there and stack them together into a pyramid, with five skulls at the base, followed by three in the middle and one on top. Lastly, place the belt under the top skull.”
Mu Nianci was puzzled and asked, “Why?”
Wanyan Kang replied, “My teacher is blind, but when she finds the belt and feels the carvings, she will come and save me. Therefore, you must carve the words deeply.”
Mu Nianci asked, “Isn’t your teacher ‘Eternal Spring’, Taoist Qiu? How can he be blind?”
Wanyan Kang answered, “No, it’s not Taoist Qiu, it’s my other teacher. After you place the belt, you must leave immediately. My teacher has a weird temperament; if she finds you near the skulls, 392
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she might harm you. She is highly skilled and can save me. You just have to wait for me in front of the Xuan Miao Monastery in Suzhou. ”
Mu Nianci said, “You have to swear that you will not acknowledge the enemy as your father and betray your people.”
Wanyan Kang refused and replied, “After I find out the truth about everything, I will then act according to my morals. What use is it to force me to swear now? If you are not willing to save me, then so be it.”
Mu Nianci replied, “Alright! I’ll help you seek help.” With that, she removed Wanyan Kang’s belt.
Wanyan Kang asked, “Sister, are you leaving? Come over and let me kiss you.”
Mu Nianci replied, “No!” With that, she stood up and headed for the door.
Wanyan Kang said, “I’m afraid that they might kill me before my teacher arrives and then I’ll never get to see you again.”
Mu Nianci’s heart softened; she gave a long sigh and walked back into his arms, allowing him to kiss her on the cheek a few times. Then suddenly she beat on his chains and said, “If you do not walk the right path in the future, I cannot do anything but blame myself for my ill fate and will die in front of you.”
Wanyan Kang wanted to cuddle and sweet-talk her a while, half hoping that she would change her mind and agree to take the golden seal to Prime Minister Shi. Then he felt her body shaking and her breathing was harsh, signaling that she was upset. He had not expected her to say anything like that and was shocked for a moment. Mu Nianci stood up and walked out of the door.
When she came out, Huang Rong again guided her and Mu Nianci ran till she saw a wall leading to the outside of the manor. Before she left, she called out softly, “Since senior does not want to show him or herself, this junior will just have to look to the sky and express my gratitude.” With that, she kneeled on the ground and kowtowed three times. She heard a gentle giggle and a clear voice spoke out, “Ah, I cannot accept this!”
When she raised her head, she only saw stars in the sky and the empty surroundings. Mu Nianci was puzzled and thought that the voice sounded like Huang Rong’s, but how could she be here and how would she know the way around this confusing place? She pondered this matter as she walked along but was not able to come up with an explanation. After walking about ten li [5km / 3+miles] from the manor, she decided to rest under a large tree and wait for the boat that would take her to Suzhou the next day.
Suzhou is a busy city in the Southeast and although it isn’t comparable to the capital of Hangzhou, it is still a prosperous and booming place. The Song officials in the South also ruled the territory of Jiangnan and had almost forgotten about the suffering of the people under the Jin in the North.
Since the cities of Suzhou and Hangzhou were rich and prosperous it gave rise to a saying ‘Heaven above, Su Hang below’ indicating the importance and grandeur of these two cities. Actually, the River Huai was the source of wealth and also a symbol of beauty for these two cities in the south.
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Mu Nianci admired the colorful scenery in the city before settling down at an inn. Then she carefully started to carve the words Wanyan Kang had told her onto his belt. She thought about how recently the belt had left its owner and prayed for Wanyan Kang’s safety, hoping that the belt would return to its owner once more. She secretly wished that Wanyan Kang would come to his senses and marry her and that she would personally help him put the belt on. After day daydreaming awhile, she placed the belt beneath her robe and couldn’t help thinking, “This belt is like his arm, wrapping around my waist.” She immediately blushed and didn’t dare think more. After eating a quick bowl of noodles, she saw the sun moving to the west and she hurriedly traveled towards the north, following Wanyan Kang’s instructions to find his teacher.
The road on the hill was deserted and Mu Nianci felt uneasy when she heard weird sounds made by the birds and the sun had begun to set as well. She left the main path and went to the valley on the other side of the hill to search for the skulls which Wanyan Kang had asked her to search for. As it slowly turned to night she was still unable to find them. She mulled over the matter and decided to continue the search the next day. With that, she went to see if there was any place nearby in which she could seek shelter for the night. She ran up a mound, looked out into the distance and spotted a manor to the west. She was relieved and immediately rushed there.
As she approached the place, she realized that the manor was actually a rundown temple and there was a signboard above the door, which read ‘Temple Earth’. She pushed open the door gently and the door gave a creak before falling down, blowing up a pile of dust. It was then that Mu Nianci realized that it was an abandoned temple and no one lived there. She walked into the hall and saw cobwebs on the statutes of mother [tu di po] and father [tu di gong] earth. She pressed on a table and gave it a blow but found that the table was still sturdy and did not break. She found some hay to clean the table with and went on to place the broken door back into position. She ate some dried food before lying on the table and slept with her travel-bag as her pillow. She could not help but feel heartbroken and ashamed when she thought about Wanyan Kang’s personality and tears rolled down her cheeks. But when she thought about his gentleness and honeyed words, she felt a hint of warmth in her heart. She thought about many things and tossed what seemed a million times before she was finally able to fall asleep.