Chapter 104

Chapter 104

Wang Qing burst into Ding Mountain Fort, where there were five or six hundred households. The stage stood in the wheat field east of the fort. The singing girl had not yet appeared; around the stage, thirty or four tables on all four sides were ringed with people throwing dice and gambling. The names of the dice games were many:

Six Winds, Five Pips, Fire-Burned Fur, Red Hollow

Then there were those tossing coins, squatting on the ground in some twenty clusters. Their games also had many names:

Pure Chaos, Three Backs, Eight Forks

The dice-players were shouting their numbers, the coin-tossers calling out sides; some mingled laughter with cursing, some fought in earnest. Those who lost stripped off their clothes and shoes, even pawning garments, to try for a win—neglecting work, forgetting food and sleep, only to lose again. The winners strutted proudly, swaggering east and west, prowling north and south, looking for another round to play. Their purses, sashes, and sleeves were stuffed with silver and cash, yet when accounts were settled at the end, they had won little—for the riggers and the cutpockets had skimmed the top. But enough of the gambling scene. There were also village women and farm wives who had abandoned their hoes and watering, coming in twos and three and groups, lifting their dark mud-like faces, showing their gold-like teeth, staring blankly, waiting for the singing girl to appear. They were all born of mothers and fathers like her—so why was she so beautiful, and why did so many people come to gaze at her? At this time, not only people from nearby villages but city folk as well had come out to watch, trampling ten or more acres of green wheat into nothing.

But let us not dwell on these details. Wang Qing had been watching idly for a while, when the sight stirred his itch to play. Inside the stage area, in the crowd, there was a big fellow with both hands leaning on a table, sitting on a stool. The man had round eyes, a broad face, wide shoulders, and a narrow waist. On the table lay five strings of cash, a dice bowl, and six dice, but no one had come to gamble with him. Wang Qing thought to himself: "Since I got into that legal trouble until now, it has been over ten months since I last had a go at this game. Brother Fan Quan gave me a silver ingot the other day to buy firewood with—I'll use it as my stake and throw a few rounds with this fellow, win a few strings of cash to buy fruit on the way back." At once Wang Qing took out the silver, tossed it on the table, and said to the man, "Let's have a casual throw." The man glanced at Wang Qing and said, "Come on then, if you want to play." He had barely finished speaking when a man pushed forward from the crowd at the front table—tall and large, looking much like the man seated there. He said to Wang Qing: "Baldy, that ingot of his—how can he stake it? Give me the silver. I have cash here. If you win, you only need to add twenty cash per string." Wang Qing said, "Excellent!" He bet two strings with the man, who had already deducted twenty cash from each string in advance. Wang Qing said, "Fine!" Then he arranged with the big man to play Red Hollow. After only two or three rounds, another man pressed forward to stake and wait his turn. Now Wang Qing was a seasoned gambler from the Eastern Capital. He could read the dice bowl, knew how to dodge and manipulate the throws, was cunning and deceitful, and could collude with the stakeholder to cheat. The cutpocket, taking advantage of the commotion, slipped over to another table. The man who had come forward said Wang Qing was throwing too fiercely, took his stake back, and only skimmed the house's cut for the big man. Wang Qing won two strings in a row in one breath, got hot, and threw with growing confidence—three reds, four clusters, he kept throwing them out. The man, desperate to recoup his losses, threw only the worst hands—a collapsing Little Four that never let go. Wang Qing threw a nine, and the man somehow turned up a reversed eight. In less than two hours, the man's five strings of cash were gone entirely. Wang Qing threaded two strings with a rope and set them aside, intending to find the man to redeem his stake, then bound up the three remaining strings. Just as he was about to shoulder the cash, the loser shouted, "Where do you think you're taking that money? It's fresh from the furnace—too hot to handle!" Wang Qing flared: "It's what you lost to me—what kind of bird-shit talk is that?" The man glared with his round, fierce eyes and cursed: "Dog spawn! You dare insult your lord?" Wang Qing cursed back: "Country bumpkin! I'm only afraid you'll punch me in the belly and your fist won't come out—that's why I'm taking the money!" The man raised both fists and struck at Wang Qing's face. Wang Qing dodged sideways, seized the man's hands as they came, drove his right elbow into the man's chest, and hooked the man's left foot with his right foot. The man had brute strength but knew nothing of throwing technique—he crashed backward, face up, back on the ground. The onlookers all laughed. The man tried to struggle up, but Wang Qing pressed him down and hammered away at his most vulnerable spots. The cutpocket who had been there earlier came over but neither mediated nor helped—he simply snatched all the cash from the table and made off. Wang Qing, in a fury, abandoned the man on the ground and strode after him. Just then, a woman burst from the crowd and shouted: "You there—have some manners! I am here!" Wang Qing looked at the woman. She was thus:

Her eyes were large and fierce; her brows coarse and full of killing intent.

Her body was coarse and clumsy, with no trace of graceful charm;

Her face was thick and rough, relying entirely on powder and grease for cover.

Unusual hairpins stuffed her head; fashionable bracelets bared both arms.

She often moved stone mortars, mocking others for panting in breathlessness;

She regularly lifted well-curbs, boasting that her strength cost her nothing.

She had no idea how to thread a needle—but kicking and punching were her specialty.

The woman was about twenty-four or twenty-five years of age. She took off her outer jacket, rolled it into a ball, and tossed it onto a table. Beneath it she wore a close-fitting jacket with narrow sleeves like arrow shafts, a short jacket of parrot-green, and over that a pair of wide-legged purple silk trousers. She stepped forward, raised her fists, and came at Wang Qing. Wang Qing saw that she was a woman, and also noticed that the moment she raised her fists she left herself wide open. He meant to toy with her, deliberately refraining from using a quick throw. He too drew up his fists, set his guard, and opened his stance to grapple with the woman. Behold:

He planted his feet in the Great Four-Level stance, she kicked up with the Double Flying Kick.

The Immortal Points the Way, Laozi Rides the Crane.

Twisting phoenix elbow, she advanced toward his heart; a cannon to the forehead threatened his brow.

She raised her heel and stamped the crouching dragon; he twisted his wrist and grasped the sky pouch.

The woman there executed the "Covering the Head and Scattering Flowers";

The man here performed the "Circling the Waist and Threaded Lasso."

The two were like folding fans fluttering in the wind; in no time, like a sudden rain that hastens the fall of blossoms.

By this time the singing girl had already gone on stage to perform her comic play. When the crowd saw this man and woman grappling, they all rushed over, surrounding the two in a ring to watch. The woman saw that Wang Qing could do nothing but parry and block, having no skill at pressing in. She spotted an opening and used the "Black Tiger Steals the Heart" move, driving a fist straight at Wang Qing's chest. Wang Qing shifted his body to one side; the woman's blow landed on empty air, and she could not pull her fist back in time. Wang Qing seized the moment, caught her, and with a single throw sent her crashing to the ground. Just as she hit the floor, he smoothly scooped her up again in his arms. This move was called "Tiger Embracing the Head." Wang Qing said, "Don't dirty your clothes. Don't blame me for the rough treatment—you came looking for me." The woman showed no trace of shame or anger. On the contrary, she praised Wang Qing: "Well done! Excellent boxing and kicking! You really have strength in your joints!" The men who had lost their money and been beaten, along with the two fellows who had snatched the cash, pushed through the crowd and advanced together, shouting: "You donkey-fucking, cocksucking dog spawn! How dare you throw our sister?" Wang Qing shouted back in defiance: "You filthy, stinking village turtle who lost his own money and had his cronies steal mine—and now you spew filth at me!" He rushed forward and swung his fists. Then a man burst from the crowd and stepped between them, blocking one and a half men and six fists, calling out in a loud voice: "Elder Brother Li, don't be disrespectful! Second Brother Brother Duan and Fifth Brother Brother Duan, don't throw your punches either! We're all from the same soil—if there's something to say, say it properly!" When Wang Qing looked, it was Fan Quan. The three men indeed stopped their hands. Fan Quan quickly bowed to the woman. "Greetings, Third Sister." The woman also returned the courtesy and asked, "Is Elder Brother Li a relative of the theatre manager?" Fan Quan said, "He's my cousin." The woman said, "Truly outstanding boxing and kicking!" Wang Quan said to Fan Quan, "I can't stand it—that scoundrel lost his own money, yet he had his cronies snatch mine." Fan Quan laughed and said, "This is Second Brother and Fifth Brother's trade. Why did you go and make trouble with them?" Over there, Duan the Second and Duan the Fifth stared with their four eyes at their sister. The woman said, "For Manager Fan's sake, let's not quarrel with him. Bring that ingot of silver here!" When Duan the Fifth saw his sister urging him, and considering that his sister was a formidable woman, he said, "I lost it myself," and had to produce the original ingot of silver and hand it to his sister, Third Sister. Third Sister gave it to Fan Quan and said, "Here's the original silver. Take it!" With that, she pulled Duan the Second and Duan the Fifth along, parted the crowd, and left. Fan Quan also took Wang Qing and went straight back to the thatched farmstead.

Fan Quan reproached Wang Qing: "For the sake of your mother, I've shouldered a sea of risk to keep you here. If an amnesty comes, I'll make arrangements for you again. But how can you be so restless! Duan the Second and Duan the Fifth are the most cunning and vicious; that sister, Duan San-niang, is even more treacherous. People have given her the nickname 'The Tiger's Lair.' How many sons of good families has she lured and ruined? When she was fifteen, she married a husband. That husband was truly a muddle-headed fool—in less than a year, she roasted and killed him. Relying on her strength, she and Duan the Second and Duan the Fifth specialize in going out to pick fights and stir up trouble, earning that ill-gotten money. Which village in the neighborhood doesn't fear them? They take in those singing girls specifically to lure people into gambling. Which table isn't a trap of theirs? Brother, why did you go there looking for trouble? If your identity is exposed, the disaster for both of us will not be small." Wang Qing was left speechless by Fan Quan's words. Fan Quan rose and said to Wang Qing, "I have to go to my duty at the prefecture. I'll come see you again tomorrow."

Let us not speak of Fan Quan entering Fangzhou City. We shall tell instead of that day, Wang Qing, resting as evening fell. Nothing worth recounting happened that night. The next morning, having just finished washing and dressing, he was told by a farmhand: "Old Duan the Elder has come to see the young master." Wang Qing had no choice but to go out and greet him. The old man proved to be a weathered fellow with a wrinkled face and silver whiskers. After the exchange of courtesies, host and guest took their seats. Old Duan the Elder looked Wang Qing over from head to toe and said, "Truly a man of imposing stature!" Then he asked Wang Qing where he was from, how he had come here, what relation Director Fan was to him, and whether he had ever taken a wife. Wang Qing found the questions suspicious, so he fabricated a string of lies to fend them off: "This one is from Xijing. Both my parents are dead, and my wife has also passed away. Director Fan and I are maternal cousins. Last year, Director Fan came to Xijing on official business and saw that I was all alone with no one to look after me, so he brought me here. I know a bit of boxing and staff fighting. Later, when a suitable opportunity arises, I intend to seek a position here in this prefecture." When Old Duan the Elder heard this, he was overjoyed. He asked Wang Qing's year, month, day, and hour of birth, then took his leave.

After some time had passed, and Wang Qing was still feeling uneasy, someone pushed open the door and entered, asking, "Is Director Fan here? And is this Master Li?" The two men stared at each other in mutual bewilderment, each thinking: "We have met before." No sooner had they exchanged greetings than they were about to question each other when Fan Quan arrived. The three sat down. Fan Quan said, "Master Li, what brings you here?" Hearing this, Wang Qing suddenly remembered: "He is Li Zhu, the fortune-teller." Li Zhu also recalled: "He is from Dongjing, surnamed Wang, and once came to me for a divination." Li Zhu said to Fan Quan, "Director, I have never before had the honor of visiting you. May I ask—do you have a relative called Master Li the Eldest?" Fan Quan pointed at Wang Qing and said: "This very man is my cousin, Master Li the Eldest." Wang Qing took up the thread and said: "This one's original surname is Li. The Wang was my maternal grandfather's surname." Li Zhu clapped his hands and laughed. "My memory serves me well! I said he was surnamed Wang—we met before at the front of Kaifeng Prefecture in Dongjing." Wang Qing saw that he had revealed the details and lowered his head without a word. Li Zhu said to Wang Qing: "Since we parted, I returned to Jingnan, where I met a remarkable man who taught me swordsmanship and the subtle art of Ziping's fate-calculation. That is why people call me 'Golden Sword Master.' Recently, hearing that Fangzhou is a lively place, I came here to ply my trade during the festival season. The Duan brothers, knowing I possess swordsmanship, asked me to teach them the art of combat, so they have kept me in their household. Just now Old Duan the Elder returned and asked me to calculate your destiny. Where could one find such an excellent set of birth characters? In days to come, your fortune will be beyond all reckoning. At present, the Red Phoenix star shines upon you—there should be a joyous occasion. Third Sister Duan and Old Duan the Elder are overjoyed and wish to take you as their son-in-law. I have come here today, on this auspicious date, to act as matchmaker. Third Sister's birth characters are most auspicious for a husband. I have just cast the horoscopes: a copper basin and an iron broom—a perfectly matched couple. Arrange it so that I may drink a cup of the wedding wine!"

Fan Quan listened to all this, pondered for a while, and thought to himself: "That Duan family is cunning and stubborn. If they refuse this match, or if some trouble should come of it, the harm would be no small matter. I had better make the best of the situation." So he said to Li Zhu: "So that is how it stands! I am obliged to Old Duan the Elder and Third Sister for their kind intentions. It is only that this cousin of mine is rough and uncouth—how could he make a suitable bridegroom?" Li Zhu said: "Ah! Director, you need not be so modest. Over there, Third Sister cannot stop praising the young master!" Fan Quan said: "Then it is settled, and most excellent! I may act as go-between on his behalf." He took from his side a five-tael ingot of silver and presented it to Li Zhu, saying: "The village has nothing worthy to offer. Please accept this small token to cover tea and fruit. When the matter is concluded, I shall reward you handsomely." Li Zhu said: "How can I accept this?" Fan Quan said: "I am ashamed, truly ashamed! Only one thing: Master, do not mention that he has two surnames. In all matters, I trust you to handle things with care." Li Zhu was a star-reader and diviner; having received the silver, he thanked Fan Quan and Wang Qing profusely, then went back to the Duan family estate to make his report. What did he care about one surname or two, good people or bad? He played the busybody matchmaker, cheating them of wine and food and pocketing their copper cash. Moreover, Third Sister Duan herself had set her heart on the man she fancied. The whole family feared her in daily life—even Old Duan the Elder dared not cross her. And so this matter was settled as soon as it was proposed.

Li Zhu went back and forth between the two families as a go-between, hoping to negotiate a larger bride-price so that the Old Man of the Moon might prosper. Fan Quan, however, feared that a lavish betrothal ceremony would attract unwanted attention from the authorities, and after some discussion both sides agreed to dispense with all formalities. Duan the Elder, being a frugal man who managed his household with care, was all the more pleased and at once chose an auspicious day for the wedding. He selected the twenty-second of that month, slaughtered sheep and pigs, caught fish and frogs, and prepared nothing more than big bowls of wine and large platters of meat. He invited a few male relatives and female kin to partake of the wedding feast, but the music of flutes and drums, the wedding candles in the bridal chamber—all of these were dispensed with entirely. Fan Quan had a new set of clothes made for Wang Qing and delivered them to the Duan family's estate. Then, having business with the local authorities, Fan Quan took his leave first. Wang Qing and San-niang's exchange of bows and the nuptial rites were likewise carried out in a perfunctory manner. Duan the Elder spread the feast out on the thatched hall, where some twenty-odd relatives, together with his own son, the new son-in-law, and the matchmaker Li Zhu, drank wine all day long, not dispersing until dusk. Those relatives who lived nearby all took their leave and departed; those who remained because they lived too far away to return that same night were Uncle Fang Han and his wife, younger cousin Qiuxiang and his family, and Duan Er's brother-in-law Shi Jun and his household. The three men rested in the eastern wing outside; the three women, all rather forward sorts, brought some food and wine to warm the bridal chamber for Wang Qing and San-niang. Laughing and chatting merrily, they drank another round before finally putting things in order and retiring. Then the servant girls and old nurses came to the bridal chamber to make the bed and fold the quilts, invited the new master and his lady to rest, pulled the door shut from outside, and discreetly went their separate ways.

San-niang had been out in public since she was young, and besides, she was a woman of experience—a practiced hand—who felt no particular shame or modesty. At once she took off her hairpins and rings, then slipped off her jacket. Wang Qing was a dissolute fellow, and since his brush with the law he had gone without a woman for a dozen months or more. San-niang, though she had thick eyebrows and large eyes and could not compare with the dainty and slender Niu-shi in allure and grace, stood before the lamp with her chest bared, untying her red undergarment and revealing her snow-white, full, milky breasts. Wang Qing's lust was stirred at once, and he moved to embrace the woman. San-niang slapped him across the face with the palm of her hand and said, "Don't be such a pest—what's the rush?" The two then embraced and got into bed, slipping beneath the quilt to share the pillow and their pleasures. Indeed:

One was a village woman who had lost her virtue; the other a convict who had dealt in violence. Both had faces three inches thick, and feet a full ten inches long. One panted and gasped for real, like an ox bellowing by the willow trees; the other feigned coy and stammering speech, exactly like an oriole warbling among the flowers. With no silk stockings on, two bare feet showed at the shoulders; with her golden hairpin askew, a cloud of dark hair piled beside the pillow. They had yet to swear oaths of eternal devotion, yet they managed a thousand tender entanglements; there was no bashful shrinking from the clouds and rain, yet they worked ten thousand bewitching wiles.

That night, outside the bridal chamber, there was yet another matter that set mouths agape with laughter. The wives of Fang Han, Qiuxiang, and Shi Jun were all young women, and their faces were flushed red from drinking. Instead of going to sleep, they pulled the wives of Duan Er and Duan Wu aside and stole quietly outside the bridal chamber, pressing their ears to the partition wall to eavesdrop. Every sound from within was heard by them in perfect detail. Wang Qing was a seasoned rake, well versed in the arts of the bedchamber, and seeing that his wife was eager, he exerted himself to the utmost to please her. The group of women outside, listening as things grew most intense, found that their undergarments were soaked through without their even realizing it.

The women were there jesting and teasing, pinching and poking one another, when Duan Er rushed in and shouted, "How can this be! How can this be! You have no idea of the danger, still playing and laughing here!" The women all broke into a cold sweat, but could find no way to deal with the situation. Duan Er cried again, "Sister, San-niang, get up quickly! A disaster has taken to your bed!" Duan Sanniang was at the height of her pleasure and instead rebuked Duan Er for the intrusion. From the bed she answered, "What matter could there be in the middle of the night, that you should make such a fuss?" Duan Er shouted again, "The fire is singeing the bird's feathers! You still don't know whether you're dead or alive!" Wang Qing, whose mind was already on urgent matters, told his wife to get dressed, and they went out together to ask what had happened. The women all scattered. Wang Qing had just stepped through the doorway when Duan Er grabbed him by the hand and pulled him to the front hall, where Fan Quan was wailing and lamenting, like an ant on a hot pan, not knowing which way to turn. Presently Duan the Old Master, Duan Wu, and Duan Sanniang all arrived. It turned out that Huang Da, from Gongjia Village east of Xin'an County, had recovered from the wounds he had received in the beating. He had learned where Wang Qing's actual whereabouts were and had gone last night to report to the prefect of Fangzhou. The prefect, Zhang Guxing, issued an official document and dispatched a constable with local soldiers to arrest the criminal Wang Qing, along with Fan Quan who had harbored him and the entire Duan household. Fan Quan, having a good relationship with the prefecture's clerk Xue Kongmu, had secretly received advance word of the matter. Abandoning his family, he had fled here in an instant, and in a moment the government troops would be upon them! They would all face prosecution! The people stamped their feet and beat their breasts, as if a chicken coop had been overturned, and in their panic they cursed Wang Qing and shamed Sanniang. Just as they was in an uproar, from the east wing of the hall emerged the fortune-teller "Golden Sword Gentleman" Li Zhu, who stepped forward and said, "If you gentlemen wish to escape disaster, you must listen to my words." The crowd rushed forward to press him with questions. Li Zhu said, "Since matters have come to this, of the thirty-six strategies, running away is the best." The crowd said, "Where shall we run?" Li Zhu said, "Twenty li west from here stands Fang Mountain." The crowd said, "That is where bandits roam." Li Zhu laughed and said, "How dull you all are! Do you still want to be law-abiding citizens?" The crowd said, "What do you mean?" Li Zhu said, "Liao Li, the chief of Fang Mountain Stockade, is an old acquaintance of mine. He has five or six hundred men under him, and the government troops cannot capture him. There is no time to lose—quickly pack your valuables and go there to join his band, and you will escape this calamity." Fang Han and the five other men and women, fearing that their relatives might be implicated and arrested in the future, and further urged on by Wang Qing and Duan Sanniang, found no alternative but to take this path. They gathered whatever valuables the manor had and packed them up at once, while at the same time lighting thirty or forty torches. Wang Qing, Duan Sanniang, Duan Er, Duan Wu, Fang Han, Qiu Xiang, Shi Jun, Li Zhu, and Fan Quan—nine persons in all—dressed themselves properly. Each girded on a waist sword and took a broad sabre from the weapon rack. They called together the manor retainers, and those willing to go numbered over forty, all properly bound and prepared. Wang Qing, Li Zhu, and Fan Quan led the way, while Fang Han, Qiu Xiang, and Shi Jun escorted the women in the middle. Fortunately, the five women all had hoe-like feet, yet they could keep pace with the men. Duan Sanniang, Duan Er, and Duan Wu brought up the rear, setting fires at both the front and back of the manor. With a shout, the crowd seized their weapons and swarmed westward in a body. The neighbors and nearby villagers, who had always feared the Duan family as they would tigers, now saw them marching with torches and weapons and not knowing what was happening, all shut their doors—not one dared to bar their way.

Wang Qing and his party had traveled barely four or five li when they encountered the constable and local soldiers, who had come with Huang Da to capture them. The constable stepped forward, but Wang Qing's blade flashed and fell, cutting him in two. Li Zhu, Duan Sanniang, and the others surged forward, scattering the soldiers. Huang Da too was killed by Wang Qing.

Wang Qing's party arrived at the foot of Fang Mountain Stockade in the fifth watch of the night. Li Zhu proposed that he should go up the mountain first to plead with Liao Li before bringing the rest of the group up to join the band. The patrolling outlaws below saw the torches flickering wildly at the foot of the mountain and went to report to their chief. Liao Li suspected it was government troops. He had long despised them as useless, so he hastily rose, donned his armor, took up his spear, opened the stockade gate, assembled his men, and marched down the mountain to repel the enemy. Wang Qing saw fires flare up on the mountain and many men descending, and made ready for action. Liao Li came straight down to the foot of the mountain and saw many men and women, at once judging that these were not government soldiers. Liao Li leveled his spear and roared, "You pack of birds—why have you come to disturb my mountain stockade and stir up trouble on the head of the presiding deity?" Li Zhu stepped forward and bowed, "Your Majesty, it is your humble brother Li Zhu." He then briefly recounted Wang Qing's crimes, his killing of the camp warden, and his slaughter of the government troops. When Liao Li heard Li Zhu speak of Wang Qing's prowess and the aid of the Duan brothers, he thought, "I am only one man—I fear I will be bullied by them in days to come." He turned his face coldly to Li Zhu and said, "My small domain cannot accommodate you." When Wang Qing heard these words, he reflected to himself, "There is only this one master in the stockade. If I first eliminate this man, what trouble can the outlaws be?" He leveled his broad sabre and charged straight at Liao Li. Liao Li flew into a rage and raised his spear to meet him. Duan Sanniang, fearing Wang Qing might come to harm, leveled her broad sabre to aid him. The three fought more than ten rounds, and among the three, one fell. Truly, earthen pots are always broken at the well, and strong men must perish before the arrows. As for which of the three fell, listen to the explanation in the next chapter.