Chapter 7 – The Lion Clan Hall of Copper Camel Alley (1/2)

Part 1

The sixth day of the second month of the lunar calendar.

Luoyang.

Luoyang was the location of the capital of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Western Jin Dynasty, the Wei State during the Warring States period, the Sui Dynasty, the Later Tang Dynasty, and seven others. To its east lay Tiger Cage Pass, to the west the Guanzhong Plain, to the north the Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures, to the south the Jiangnan region.(1) Its palaces and watchtowers were magnificent.

Emperor Song Taizu’s birthplace of Jia Ma Ying, the Temple of Eastern Greatness built during the later Tang Dynasty, Fu Fei from the “Rhapsody of the Goddess of Luo” by the poet Cao Zhi, Laozi’s ancient residence in Copper Camel alley, the ancient bridge “Spring Waters under Tianjin,” are all still there.

But Gao Jianfei’s spirit was not there.

He hadn’t come to visit these ancient and famous places. He’d came for one place, one person. He wanted to find the Lion Clan hall, Zhu Meng’s Lion Clan.

And he found it.

The Lion Clan headquarters was located in Copper Camel alley, the same area as Laozi’s ancient residence. It occupied almost the entire alley.

Little Gao found it very quickly.

In his imagination, the Lion Clan hall was an ancient and immense building. Even if it was not extremely imposing and beautiful, it would definitely be spacious and open, emanating loftiness, just like Zhu Meng himself.

He was correct. The Lion Clan hall really was like that. But there was one thing that he never imagined: that this ancient, immense, spacious building would be burned into rubble.

Other than a few rooms in the back, the Lion Clan hall, which had dominated Luoyang for so many years, had been completely destroyed by raging fire.

**

Gao Jianfei’s heart sank.

The wind cut like a knife. The frigid breez tossed some of the debris about in the rubble. Was it the remains of a wooden beam, or of a person’s bones?

The Lion Clan hall, which in the past had constantly burst with visitors like snow in a snowstorm, was now devoid of even a single human shadow.

Copper Camel alley, a place filled with ancient legends and modern-day heroes, was now only filled with misery and somber melancholy.

Time brings great changes (2), and the affairs of people are in constant flux, but this type of change was too quick and too horrible.

—When did it happen? How did it happen?

—The daring, energetic and exceedingly proud Zhu Meng, his disciples, and his veteran experts… where had they gone?

**

Little Gao thought of Zhuo Donglai, about his methods, about his sinister and ruthless cool-headedness.

And now, he couldn’t help but think about all the things that had happened that day in the snow-filled Red Flower Bazaar, all the details.

And he suddenly understood why Zhuo Donglai let Zhu Meng go that day.

With Zhu Meng in Chang’an, the defenses of the Luoyang headquarters would definitely be lax. His best opportunity was to dispatch people at double speed to launch a surprise attack.

Zhuo Donglai would certainly have been waiting for an opportunity like this for a long time.

The moment that he raised his glass to toast Zhu Meng, the surprise attack forces were most certainly already on their way.

And this was the result of that surprise attack.

During the exact time in which Zhu Meng felt the safest and most victorious, he had actually already been vanquished.

And this time his defeat was utterly brutal.

**

Little Gao’s hands and feet were freezing.

He couldn’t imagine how Zhu Meng would be able to handle such a massive strike, but he believed that he couldn’t be completely knocked down.

As long as Zhu Meng lived, he couldn’t be defeated by anyone.

And now the only thing Little Gao could think about was that Zhu Meng must be racing back to Chang’an to get revenge. And Zhuo Donglai would most definitely be waiting for him to return, a trap ready to be sprung.

If Zhu Meng had already reached Chang’an, then his chances of returning alive were small.

Anyone attacked in such a vicious way would definitely be filled with impatient fury and carelessness.

And the slightest bit of carelessness could lead to a fatal mistake.

Zhuo Donglai’s plans were never the least bit careless, and when he thought about this, Little Gao’s heart became cold. At that moment he made a decision.

He would return to Chang’an as quickly as possible. Whether, Zhu Meng was dead or alive, he would return.

If Zhu Meng was still alive, maybe he could help his friend.

He still had his two hands and a sword and his own life.

If Zhu Meng had already died under Zhuo Donglai’s hands, then he could collect his friend’s corpse, and then do everything in his power to seek revenge.

Regardless of anything, Zhu Meng was the only person who had ever considered him as a friend.

In fact, Zhu Meng was his only friend.

He didn’t completely understand the meaning of the world “friend,” because he had never had a friend before.

But he had spirit.

The spirit of chivalry, the spirit of courage, the spirit of brotherhood and loyalty.

—Because the world has people with this spirit, justice can prevail over evil, and humanity will continue to exist forever.

But unfortunately, at this moment, no matter where Gao Jianfei wanted to go, it would be very difficult to do so.

Part 2

What moments ago had been a quiet alley without a soul in it, was suddenly full of people.

A person wearing brown clothes appeared; no more than four feet tall, with a horse-like face nearly one foot wide. His eyebrows looked like two brooms tied together by a knotted piece of rope.

He did not appear to be very old, but had an air of maturity. The narrow eyes under his dense brows glittered. As soon as he caught sight of Little Gao, those eyes fixed onto him like nails.

Little Gao had seen this person before.

When you see a person like this, it’s hard to forget them.

Little Gao remembered that he had been selling sliced rice cakes on the street outside the alley. He had been using a long, sharp, thin knife to cut the date-flavored sweet cakes.

The knife was currently sheathed at his waist.

It wouldn’t be difficult to use this knife to cut a person into pieces.

**

As soon as he appeared, the alley suddenly filled with noise and people. It seemed as if everyone that had been outside on the main street suddenly entered, just like tidewater. And Little Gao was submerged.

Little Gao felt like he had suddenly walked into a lively temple fair. Every direction was filled with people, all kinds of people. Not even a drop of water could get through. One could not even move.

He wasn’t really sure how to deal with the situation, because he had never encountered anything like this before.

The cake-seller had originally been right in front of him, but now he was nowhere to be seen.

He was too short, and to find him would be really difficult. But, if he wanted to use his knife to stab someone from within the crowd, it would be easier than cutting a cake.

Little Gao didn’t want to be near a knife like that.

He had to find the man. It was obvious that he was some sort of leader.

“I want to buy sliced sweet cakes!” he suddenly called. “Whoever was selling the cakes, where did you go?”

“I didn’t go anywhere,” came the reply, a deep husky voice. “I’m right here.”

The voice came from behind Little Gao. He turned around, but still couldn’t see the man.

But he heard him call out again, and then he realized that he couldn’t see him because he still hadn’t lowered his head.

A person that short, in a crowd, can’t be found unless you drop your head down.

“Can you see me?” asked Little Gao. “I still can’t see you. How can we do business?”

“The problem is easy to solve.”

Little Gao suddenly squatted down. He couldn’t see the faces of the others in the crowd, but right in front of him was the long, wide horse-like face.

“Now we can do businesses, right?”

The man smiled, and the corners of his mouth nearly reached his ears. “You really want to buy sliced sweet cakes?”

“Other than buying cakes, is there any other business to discuss? Any other business to do?”

“No, there isn’t.”

“Then I’ll just buy some sliced sweet cakes.”

“How much do you want to buy?”

“How much can you sell?”

“As long as you pay the price, I can sell any amount.”

“How expensive are your cakes?”

“That depends.”

“Depends on what?”

“Depends on the person.”

“Depends on the person?” Little Gao didn’t understand. “Selling sweet cakes depends on the person?”

“Of course it depends on the person. The price of the sweet cakes is determined by what type of person wants to buy.”

Adjusting the price based on the customer is definitely one of the secrets to successful business.

“For some people who want to buy sweet cakes, I sell them at two coins per half kilo. For other people, I won’t sell for even five hundred gold bars. Because I don’t like the way they look.”

“What about me,” asked Little Gao. “Do you like the way I look?”

The man examined him for a long time, from top to bottom. The narrow eyes underneath his heavy brows glittered like knives. “Did you come from Chang’an.”

“Yes.”

“What’s in that cloth package of yours? Is it a sword?”

“Yes.”

“The reason you came from Chang’an … is it Great Master Zhu of the Lion Clan?”

“Yes.”

The man suddenly smiled again, revealing a set of ghastly white teeth. “Then I don’t think we can do business.”

“Why?”

“Because dead people can’t eat sweet cakes, and I don’t sell sweet cakes to dead people.”

**

Little Gao’s palms had already started sweating, a cold sweat.

If the people crowding in all directions suddenly pressed forward, they could easily crush him to death, and he would be powerless to stop them.

He could hear that some of the people in the crowd were breathing heavily from excitement. People usually get excited before killing.

The crowd began to press forward, and the cake-seller had already drawn the knife from his waist.

Little Gao suddenly realized something. The most frightening thing in the world is people; when manpower is pooled together, it is more frightening than any powerful thing in the world.

But he was still able to keep his cool. Because he could see that all these people were members of the Lion Clan. Like him, they had all stood by Zhu Meng. So he said, “I’m here from Chang’an, and my bundle does contain a deadly sword, but I’m not here to kill Zhu Meng.”

“Who are you here to kill?”

“I’m here to kill the same people as you. Because I’m the same as you, I’m a friend of Zhu Meng.”

“Oh?”

“I’m Gao, Gao Jianfei.”

“Are you the Gao Jianfei who wants to gradually fly?”

“Yes. You might as well go ask Zhu Meng if he has a friend like me.”

“I don’t need to ask.”

“Why?”

The cake-seller’s narrow eyes suddenly shone with a crafty smile. He laughed at Little Gao.

“You think I don’t know that you’re Zhu Meng’s friend?”

“You know?”

“It’s because I know that I’m going to kill you.”

**

Little Gao’s back suddenly dripped with cold sweat.

The crowd once again began to surge forward. The cake-cutting knife was sharp, but in this short moment, he still had a chance to break the hand holding the knife, smash the nose in the middle of that horse-like face, and wipe the crafty, evil expression from those two eyes.

But he couldn’t act rashly.

He could kill the man, but not the tide of people around him, not completely.

If he used this flitting moment to kill the man, then he would most likely be chopped to pieces by some other random blade.

The cake seller laughed again, a sinister laugh. “You’re not dead yet, why haven’t you made a move?”

Before he finished his sentence, Little Gao, who had been squatting in front of him, suddenly stood up. He stood up and then shot straight up, as if a giant hand had just grabbed his collar and lifted him up, like a hand picking a green onion out of the ground.

This was a lightness kung fu not often seen in Jianghu, a unique skill used to escape death.

Unfortunately, he was no bird, and didn’t have wings.

His body relied on the strength of a single breath to fly up. As soon as the breath expired, his body would fall again, and when he fell he would descend back into the crowd of people.

He understood this.

He knew that the people below him had already drawn their weapons, and were ready to kill. They were just waiting for his power to be exhausted and for him to fall. And then, even if he drew his sword and killed some people, he too would inevitably die among the blood and corpses.

He didn’t want that to happen, and he also didn’t want to see the horrific sight of blood and flesh flying in every direction.

But he didn’t die.

At that exact moment, he suddenly saw a long rope flying toward him.

He didn’t see where the rope flew from, or whose hands it was in.

But luckily, he saw it, and was able to grab it.

The rope was pulled forward, pulling his body forward as well.

It pulled him along like a kite, flying higher and higher.

It seemed like the person pulling the rope was moving forward. Little Gao couldn’t see the person, but he could hear a very familiar sound.

It was the sound of cleats running on snow.

Little Gao suddenly felt a warmth in his heart.

It was as if he could see a person, wearing a pair of cleats, grasping the tail of a horse, flying behind the horse like a kite.

It was as if he could see the person riding the horse, emanating an awe-inspiring and heroic spirit.

He’d known all along that Zhu Meng could not be knocked down by anyone.

Part 3

“Young Master Gao, I never thought you would come.” Cleats had stopped running. He knelt onto the snowy ground. “The Clan Lord said you would come looking for him, but I didn’t think Young Master Gao would really come.”

It took quite a bit of strength for Little Gao to pull this faithful friend up from the snowy ground and onto his feet.

“The one kneeling should be me,” he said to Cleats. “You saved my life.”

Cleats dried a few hot tears that had forced their way out of his eyes, and once again his expression became stern.

“Your servant realized much earlier that Cai Chong would not let any of the Clan Leader’s friends go free,” said Cleats. “Almost all of the them have already met disaster under his treacherous hands. He hasn’t let a single one escape, not even friends from distant places.”

“Cai Chong is that cake-selling freak?”

“Exactly.”

“He clearly isn’t really a cake seller,” said Little Gao. “Who is he, exactly?”

“He’s the same as that joker named Yang. He used to be one of the Clan Lord’s trusted aides.”

“And just like Yang Jian, he betrayed the Clan Lord?”