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

“He’s much more abominable than Yang Jian,” said Cleats hatefully. “He betrayed the Clan Lord when he was most weak and hurt, when he needed help the most.”

Little Gao understood. “When you two returned from Chang’an, not only was the Lion Clan hall already destroyed, but Cai Chong had also turned on you.” Little Gao sighed. “Those two days must have been very difficult.”

“Yes. Very difficult.”

“But no matter how difficult the days are, they will pass.”

“Yes.” Cleats repeated Little Gao’s words like a puppet: “They will pass.”

Suddenly, an indescribable expression of bitterness and grief shone from his eyes. It was the look of someone sinking down into quicksand, sinking so deep that they could never escape.

Little Gao suddenly felt a sinking feeling.

—Cai Chong betrayed Zhu Meng at his greatest time of need, and yet Zhu Meng still had let him live happily and freely in the world?

This wasn’t Zhu Meng’s style.

Little Gao looked at Cleats’ eyes, and very slowly asked him, “You don’t dare to tell me, do you?”

Cleats suddenly seemed anxious. “Don’t dare to tell you what?”

Little Gao gripped his shoulder forcefully. “Has your Clan Lord already fallen victim of some murderous scheme?”

“He hasn’t.”

“He really hasn’t?”

“He really hasn’t.” Cleats seemed to be trying to put on a cheerful expression. “Your servant can take Young Master Gao to see him right now.”

Part 4

A withered forest packed with snow, a hideous looking crag.

In front of the crag burned a fire, and sitting on top of the crag was a person.

It was a person who seemed to have lost their essence, like a vulture who for a very long time hasn’t seen a corpse.

The flames flickered on the person’s face.

It was a face filled with loneliness, hopelessness and sorrow. The thick brows were furrowed in anxiety, and the exhausted eyes, sunken deeply into the cheekbones, gazed fixedly into the fire, as if they expected a miracle to spring forth from the flames.

It was Zhu Meng.

“Fierce Lion” Zhu Meng had always been a strong and courageous person, a true man that no one could knock down.

Cleats prostrated himself before the stone. “Reporting in to Clan Leader. The person Clan Leader most wants to see is now here.”

**

Little Gao did not shed a tear.

Tears filled his eyes and threatened to roll down, but he did not shed a single one.

He hadn’t shed tears for many years.

Zhu Meng had raised his head and looked at him blankly, as if he had no idea who was standing in front of him.

Little Gao hung his head.

Now he understood the look of despair in Cleats’ eyes. He didn’t understand how the heroic man who that day in Red Flower Bazaar had on horseback slain a man in the blink of an eye, could possibly be knocked down as easily as this.

“Little Gao, Gao Jianfei.”

Zhu Meng suddenly let out a savage shout, then leaped down from the rock, rushed forward and embraced Little Gao.

In this moment, it seemed as if he was suddenly full of vitality again. “I knew you would come, and here you are.”

He held Little Gao tightly, his face pressing against Little Gao’s.

He laughed, a hearty laugh at the top of his lungs, just as he had laughed that day in Red Flower Bazaar when he had beheaded his opponent.

But Little Gao suddenly realized that his face was wet.

—Was someone shedding tears? Who was shedding tears?

**

“The wanderer sings three songs, he doesn’t sing sorrowful melodies,

In the world of mortals, there are already too many sorrowful things.

The wanderer sings a song for the king, urging the king not to shed tears, if some injustice exists in the world of men, drink to excess, brandish a blade and sever heads.”

Part 5

An iron spear and a copper pot. A pot of unfiltered rice wine.

A fire.

Cleats hung the pot over the fire with the spear to heat the wine. Cold wind whistled through the branches of the pine trees. The wine was not yet hot.

But Little Gao’s blood was hot.

“Zhuo Donglai,” said Zhu Meng. “That bastard really is a freaking character.” He had already drunk three pots full of wine. “Even though he attacked my old lair, I have to admire him.” As his belly filled with the rice wine, his heroic spirit began to rejuvenate. “But admire or not, sooner or later the day will come when I’ll cut off his head and use it as a chamber pot.”

Little Gao looked at him for a long time. “Why haven’t you gone after him yet?”

Zhu Meng suddenly stood up, then slowly sat down again, his face once again covered with a look of despair and sorrow.

“I can’t go now,” said Zhu Meng. “If I go, she’ll be dead for sure.”

“Who will be dead? A woman?” (3)

Zhu Meng shook his head. He said nothing, but instead took a drink.

“Is it also because of her that you don’t kill Cai Chong?” asked Little Gao.

Zhu Meng shook his head again. After a long time, he responded in a hoarse and broken voice: “Do you know how many people that little son of a b*tch took with him?”

“How many did he take?”

“All of them.”

“All of them?” Little Gao was shocked. “Don’t tell me all the disciples of the Lion Clan are following him?”

“Other than Cleats, they were all bought over by him. These past few years, he’s been managing the funds for me. All of the wealth going in and out of the Lion Clan went through his hands. I never payed any attention to it.”

“So you think that going after him would be useless, because he has more men than you.”

Zhu Meng didn’t admit it. It seemed the heroic spirit just recently awakened by the strong alcohol had suddenly vanished again.

He held the wine bowl with two gaunt hands, drinking one mouthful at a time of scalding liquor. Other than the bowl of wine, it seemed he didn’t care about anything in the world.

Little Gao felt stabbed to the heart.

He suddenly realized that not only had Zhu Meng’s appearance deteriorated, his heart had also begun to rot.

Before, if he knew someone who had betrayed him still walked the streets waiting to assassinate his friends, even a thousand men and horses couldn’t protect that person. He would ride on horseback, brandishing his blade, to find that person and behead them.

—Maybe that was one of the main reasons why the disciples of his clan had betrayed him.

Who in Jianghu would be willing to follow a leader who had lost their courage?

Little Gao truly could not understand how such a strong and stalwart man could change in this way. And how could he change so quickly?

He didn’t ask Zhu Meng.

Zhu Meng was already drunk. He got drunk much more quickly than before.

It seemed that his mighty bones only had a layer of thin flesh on them. Now that he was drunk, he looked like the skeleton of a fierce lion.

Little Gao couldn’t bear to look at him again.

The firelight still flickered as Cleats continued to heat wine. Cleats didn’t look at him. His eyes were yet again filled with that look of hopelessness bitterness and pain.

Little Gao stood up and walked over, and handed him his bowl of wine.

Cleats hesitated, but finally drank a mouthful.

Little Gao took the iron spear from him, and then poured another bowl of wine, drank it, and sighed. “I didn’t misjudge you. You really are a good friend.”

“Your servant is not the Clan Lord’s friend.” Cleats’ expression was very solemn. “I’m not worthy.”

“You’re wrong. In this world, you might be his only true friend. And only you are worthy to be his friend!”

“Your servant isn’t worthy,” Cleats said again. “I don’t dare to think in that way.”

“But you are the only person who stuck with him.”

“That’s because my life belongs to him. Your servant will follow him forever.”

“But look at what he’s become.”

“It doesn’t matter what he becomes, he’s still my Clan Lord,” said Cleats resolutely. “That will never change.”

“Seeing him change so much, aren’t you hurt in your heart?”

Cleats didn’t say anything.

Little Gao poured another bowl of wine, watched Cleats drink it, then let out another sigh. “I know that your heart must feel as bad as mine. And you must also hope that he can pull himself together again.”

Cleats said nothing.

Little Gao stared at him. “Unfortunately, I can’t think of any way to help him.”

Cleats drank another bowl. This time he had poured it for himself.

Little Gao also drank another bowl, then in a loud voice said, “You can’t think of a way, but I can think of a way.”

Cleats suddenly lifted his head and stared at Little Gao.

“But first you must tell me, how come he is acting like this?” Little Gao was also staring at Cleats. “Is it really because of a woman?”

“Young Master Gao,” Cleats said, seemingly on the verge of tears. “Why do you have to ask me about this?”

“I have to ask. To cure a sickness, you must first determine the cause of the illness.”

Cleats had seemed ready to speak out, but he suddenly shook his head forcefully. “Your servant can’t say. Dares not say.”

“Why?”

Cleats simply sat down and put his head in his hands, ignoring Little Gao.

—Why had Zhu Meng changed in this way? Was it really because of a woman?

—Who was this woman? Where was she? Why didn’t Cleats dare to talk about it?

**

The night grew deeper, colder. The fire was dying.

Struggling a bit, Cleats stood up and then quietly said, “Your servant needs to find some more firewood for the fire.”

Before he could walk off, Zhu Meng, dreaming drunkenly, let out a roar.

“Die Wu, you can’t go.”(4) He shouted again hoarsely. “You’re mine, no one can take you away from me.”

This roar seemed like a whip slashing at Cleats’ body.

He suddenly began trembling.

Zhu Meng turned over and continued sleeping. Little Gao barred Cleats’ way, grasping his shoulders.

“It’s Die Wu, it’s definitely Die Wu,” he said. “Zhu Meng must have changed in this way because of her.”

Cleats lowered his head, and at long last admitted that this was the truth.

“Is she still in Luo Yang?” asked Little Gao

“She’s not. When your servant and the Clan Leader were returning from Chang’an that night, people attacked the Lion Clan Hall in the middle of the night. Cai Chong was on duty, and because of his laxness, the enemy succeeded easily. Not only did they burn down the Lion Clan hall, they killed more than forty of our brothers, and then just swaggered off.”

“They were definitely sent by Zhuo Donglai.”

“They must have been,” said Cleats. “Not only were they professionals, they also were very familiar with our internal situation.”

“The Lion Clan must have been infiltrated by some of Zhuo Donglai’s men.”

“Therefore, some people suspect that Cai Chong intended to betray the Clan Leader all along. Others say that he was lax in his watch and feared punishment by the Clan Leader, and so therefore betrayed him.”

“Did Die Wu go along with Cai Chong?”

Cleats shook his head. “Miss Die never liked that idiot, how could she go along with him?”

“Don’t tell me she was kidnapped by Zhuo Donglai’s men? He wants to use her as a hostage to threaten Zhu Meng?”

Cleats sighed. “It’s for this very reason that the Clan Leader isn’t willing to go to Chang’an to settle accounts with Sima.”

“Even if Cai Chong hadn’t gone against him, he still wouldn’t go?”

“Most likely not. If the Clan Leader went to Chang’an,” he said sadly, “those bastards would probably bring out Miss Die immediately and put her to the sword.” He yet again seemed to be on the verge of tears. “The Clan Lord told me before, as long as Miss Die is able to live a good life, he can deal with any sort of suffering.”

“So it’s because of this Miss Die that your Clan Leader has become so depressed, not willing to do a single thing. And Cai Chong can strut around the streets doing whatever he wants.”

“Your servant never thought the Clan Leader would become so infatuated with a woman. Even in my dreams I never imagined it.”

At first, Cleats thought that Little Gao would find the whole thing very ridiculous. Pitiful and ridiculous.

But he was wrong.

He suddenly noticed that Little Gao’s eyes were also filled with sorrow; he stared blankly out into the darkness.

—A nameless woman, a romantic love that could never be forgotten.

Of course, Cleats didn’t know about this. After a long time he heard Little Gao speaking in a soft and sentimental tone: “Your Clan Leader hasn’t changed. He’s still a man. Only true men can care about others. If he didn’t care at all about the lives of others, you wouldn’t stick with him.”

“Correct.” Cleats seemed afraid to say more. But after a few moments, he gathered his courage and said, “Young Master Gao, there’s something your servant would like to say to you.”

“Go ahead.”

“Everyone should care about others. But to torment oneself because of others isn’t correct. Doing that will only cause the people you care about to be hurt and disappointed.”

Little Gao gave a forced laugh, and then changed the topic.

“There’s a spot over there that’s protected from the wind. I’m going to sleep a bit. You should sleep as well.”

**

The world was silent. The only sound that could be heard was the crackling of the dead firewood.

Cleats placed a thick felt blanket onto the rock and rolled Zhu Meng onto it, then covered him with two more felt blankets. Afterwards, he laid onto the cold rock next to Zhu Meng and fell asleep, shrunken up like a shelled shrimp.

Before daybreak, the cold woke him, and discovered that Little Gao had already awakened.

In the dim early-morning light, he could see Little Gao washing his face with snow. And it looked as if he was unwrapping the bundle he always carried.

Cleats couldn’t see if it was a sword inside the bundle, let alone what the sword looked like.

He didn’t dare to look closely.

He pretended that he didn’t see anything at all.

But his heart pounded, pounded oh so quickly.

Part Six

By the time Zhu Meng woke up, the sky was bright. Cleats had woken earlier, and was boiling water at the fire.

Little Gao was gone.

Zhu Meng sat up, looking around with bloodshot eyes. Little Gao was nowhere to be seen.

He let out a low animal-like growl from his throat.”

“He left too?” he asked Cleats. “When did he go? Where did he go? Is he coming back?”

“Your servant must report to Clan Leader, when Young Master Gao left, he didn’t say anything, and I’m not sure where he went. But Clan Leader should be able to figure it out, because Young Master Gao is Clan Leader’s friend.”

Zhu Meng had grown listless from sorrow and disappointment, but when he heard these words come forth from Cleats’ mouth, he suddenly roused himself. His bloodshot eyes shone as he rose to his feet.

“You’re right. I definitely should know where he went. Cleats,” he said in a strong voice, “We must go too.”

“Yes.” Cleats’ spirit also seemed to be roused, and there were tears in his eyes as he said, “Your servant already prepared everything. Your servant has always been ready. Your servant has been waiting all day.”

**

(1) These are all geographical references. Here are links if you would like more information. Tiger Cage/Hulao pass: Guanzhong Plain: Sixteen Prefectures: Jiangnan region:

(2) This is a cool idiom which literally translates something like “from seas into mulberry fields.

(3) I fudged a bit in the translation because in spoken Chinese there is no distinction between “he” and “she.” When you refer to someone, it’s generally not clear which gender you’re talking about unless you specify.

(4) This name is comprised of two characters. The first character 蝶 “die” is from the word “butterfly.” In case you’re not familiar with Chinese pronunciation, it’s not pronounced like the English word die, but phonetically like “dyeh.” The second character 舞 “wu” means “dance.” So her name literally could be translated “Butterfly Dance.”