Chapter Ninety-Six: The Heavenly Mountain Song Festival

Li Chongyuan said in a low voice, "I only wanted to find the Dark Mysterious Sword, cut the iron chain, and rescue you from here. I never imagined that this sword would be tied up in so many other matters."

Qubeiyuan said, "If you ever do find the Dark Mysterious Sword, my own affairs will matter little. But you must remember this: you must take out the Turtle-Back Diagram and find a way to return it to the imperial court. Such a thing, left among the common people, does more harm than good. If it falls into the hands of an ambitious man, there may yet be fresh bloodshed under heaven. If the court possesses the Turtle-Back Diagram, then it can naturally seek advantage and avoid harm. I do not care whose family rules this land; what matters is that the people may live in peace and work in contentment. Since you call yourself a knight-errant, you must judge the world’s good and evil with your heart and measure it with your sword. You must take the fate of all under heaven as your own responsibility."

Li Chongyuan bowed deeply and said, "Thank you for your teaching, Master. I will keep it in mind."

By the time Li Chongyuan and Lin Qingli had brought her back to Bright-Mind Cave, night had already fallen completely. From far away they could see the room blazing with lamplight, and they could hear Lan Wutong’s bright, bubbling laughter. They slipped quietly through the door and saw the people of the Seven Caverns of Mount Tianshan gathered around Li Chongjun, listening as Lan Wutong enthusiastically recounted the strange customs and peculiar habits of the Miao lands. Their faces were full of wonder and delight. Even Li Chongjun wore a smile he had not shown in a long time. Seeing his happiness, Zilan felt deeply comforted.

Lan Wutong caught sight of them from the corner of her eye and did not greet them. In the Miao lands, she said, young men and women, whenever the weather was clear, would gather by a small river to sing love songs. The men would sing a few lines, then the women would answer with a few lines. If the man could sing well enough to delight the woman, she would tell him where her bamboo house stood. At midnight, the man would go and sing beneath the bamboo house. When the woman heard that it was he, she would open the window and let him in for a clandestine meeting. At dawn, the man would climb back out through the window.

Such words made everyone’s hearts race and their faces warm. On Tianshan, strict propriety between men and women was a matter of rigid observance, and Zilan in particular blushed scarlet. But Wu Ge was a foreigner, hot-blooded and uninhibited by nature, and at once cried out, "Then let Senior Sister Zilan and Senior Brother Li Ji sing a love duet!" The room erupted in applause.

Zilan could not withstand the repeated teasing and cajoling, and so she could only sing a song softly and alone. Her voice was gentle and melodious:

"Green is my collar,
Long is the yearning in my heart.
Though I do not go to you,
Why do you send no word in reply?
Green is my sash,
Long are my thoughts of you.
Though I do not go to you,
Why do you not come?
I pace and wander
At the city walls,
And for one day without seeing you
It feels like three long months."

This song came from the Zheng section of the Book of Songs, a piece praising the mutual affection of young men and women. In ordinary times Zilan only dared to hum it under her breath.

When she finished, the others applauded and called for more. Zilan, helpless, blushing all the while, sang another Zheng song, "The Coquettish Boy":

"That charming boy,
He will not speak to me.
Because of you,
I cannot even eat.
That charming boy,
He will not eat with me.
Because of you,
I cannot rest."

It was plainly a girl’s song of longing for the young man she loved. Everyone clapped and laughed, urging Zilan to sing yet another, but no matter what, she absolutely refused.

Rolling her eyes, she noticed that Lan Wutong was watching her with a wicked grin. She immediately cried, "This little girl comes from the Miao lands; singing love songs is her specialty. Why not have her sing instead?"

Lan Wutong was so sweet, so playful, that everyone adored her. At once the crowd turned its attention to her. And Lan Wutong, being the sort who became even livelier when a crowd gathered, did not demur. She stood and said, "By our Miao custom, if I sing one song, you must answer with one. If you cannot, then you must drink a large bowl of wine. Will that do?"

The room roared its approval. Everyone thought that since they had studied the Book of Songs, it would not be hard to recite a few Zheng, Daya, or Xiaoya verses at will.

Lan Wutong sang with a smile:

"Oh brother,
The more I think of you, the harder my heart grows,
The more I think of you, the more this illness clings to me.
I take up a mirror and look,
And half my face has gone pale."

Her voice was sweet and crisp, utterly lovely to hear. But the lyrics were something no one had ever heard before. In the Central Plains, culture prized restraint; love, longing, and such sentiments were rarely displayed openly. Yet Lan Wutong sang them so naturally and boldly that everyone’s heart stirred.

Lan Wutong paused, and seeing that no one could answer her song, she laughed. "Since none of you can answer, I suppose I’ll just sing the rest myself. Just don’t try to cheat when it comes time to drink!"

And with that she sang out boldly:

"Little sister,
The more I think of you, the more vexed my heart becomes;
Half a bowl of rice is hard to finish,
Eating is like swallowing sand,
While wine and meat taste like salt.
Little sister,
When will I sit together with you as one family?
Even cold water over rice would taste sweet.

Little sister,
The more I think of you, the more my heart burns;
I cannot bring myself to tea or food,
Eating is like swallowing sand,
While wine and meat taste like medicine.
Brother,
When will I sit together with you as one family?
Even cold water over rice would make my heart glad."

This Miao love song, a duet of men and women, she sang through to the end by herself.

The crowd burst into noise and applause. Most of the people of Tianshan were young; human beings are driven by food and desire, and in everyday life they all kept their feelings buried deep in their hearts, never daring to show them. Yet now, stirred by Lan Wutong’s song, each was reminded of his or her own secret longing.

Wu Ge was a foreigner and knew nothing of so many Central Plains restrictions; he immediately shouted that it was marvelous.

Among the members of the Spirit-Channel Pavilion there happened to be a foreign woman as well. She was a girl of the northern tribes with silver hair, blinking jewel-green eyes and a face bright as flowers. Her name was Ariana, and in ordinary times she was closest to Wu Ge. The Tianshan sect imposed many restrictions on relations between men and women, but because foreign customs and Han customs were so different, no one ever interfered with these two.

Ariana’s heart was moved by Lan Wutong’s singing. Unable to restrain herself, she quietly came to Wu Ge’s side and took his hand. When Miao Wushuang saw this, she did not wish to let them run wild and break the rules, nor did she wish to pour cold water on the gathering while spirits were running high. So she simply rose and slipped away.

When Miao Wushuang had been present, everyone had not dared to act too freely because of the awe her rank inspired. Now, seeing her leave, and with Ariana leading the way, they all crowded together beside the people they secretly favored.

Eyes met, full of tenderness. In the dim candlelight, Hong Mochou rested her head against Du Xin’s chest while Du Xin gently stroked her hair, the two holding one another in an embrace. In ordinary times such a scene would have been unthinkable, almost a violation of heaven’s order, yet tonight it seemed utterly natural, as though it had simply flowed there of its own accord.

Lan Wutong cried out, "You’re all so busy with brothers and sisters and sweethearts meeting one another that you’ve forgotten the rules: lose the song, and you drink! Have you forgotten? Drink, drink!"

Only then did everyone come to their senses and laugh, shouting, "Right, right! Drink! Drink!" At once, except for Li Chongjun, who was still recovering and too badly injured to drink, everyone in the room downed a full bowl of wine without hesitation.

Wu Ge, however, refused to drink. "If it’s singing, I can’t compete with you," he said, "but if it’s dancing, you may not be better than Ariana and me!"

Lan Wutong was overjoyed. "Oh! You know how to dance too? Hurry, let us see it!"

Wu Ge took out his lute, plucked it a few times, and the instrument gave forth a wonderfully pleasing sound. Ariana glided to the center of the room and began to dance the Whirling Dance of the Western Tribes, her pale yellow brocade dress spinning upward like a round silk canopy.

Halfway through the dance, Wu Ge leapt into the circle, playing as he danced with Ariana. Her graceful figure, joined to his strong, ringing steps, made the fierce Whirling Dance blossom into something richly sensuous, full of exotic charm.

When the dance ended, Lan Wutong took the lead and cheered loudly.

Just then Miao Wushuang, who had been worrying anxiously outside the window, seized the chance to return to the room. She feared that Lan Wutong might yet launch into some mischievous new love song; if someone could not help himself and caused a scene, the Tianshan sect would lose face indeed. So she hurriedly said, "Lan Wutong, it’s very late now. Don’t sing any more love songs. Why don’t you tell everyone a story instead?"

Lan Wutong smiled. "The love songs of the Miao lands are as countless as the stars, and the stories are as abundant as the wildflowers on the mountains."

Someone called out, "With so many stories, when would you ever finish? Better tell us something strange and amusing so everyone can have a laugh."

Lan Wutong smiled. "Since this young gentleman has asked, then I’ll tell you about a peculiar trade from the Miao lands. Even we would keep our distance from the people who work in it."

Li Chongjun said, "Your Golden Silkworm Sect is skilled in poisons and sorcery; if others keep their distance from you, that makes sense. But for you to keep your distance from others—now that is curious."

Lan Wutong said, "What’s so curious about that? Even you would keep your distance if you saw them. That trade is called corpse-driving. They drive corpses along the road. Tell me, isn’t that frightening?"

The room fell into astonished silence. Most of those present had wandered the jianghu and had seen much of the world, yet they had never even heard of such a thing. All at once they leaned forward, listening intently as Lan Wutong continued.

Seeing everyone listening with such rapt attention, Lan Wutong was secretly pleased. She did not begin at once. Instead she lifted her teacup, took a sip, and shook her head. "The tea is good, but a pity it has gone cold." Several little attendants hurried forward, took the cup away, poured out the cold tea, and scrambled to fill it with fresh hot tea.

Lan Wutong smiled and drank a mouthful of the hot tea before setting herself to speak in earnest. "In this world there are the Three Teachings and the Nine Trades, the Five Elements and the Eight Livelihoods. The most honorable are those who read the classics and devote themselves to scholarship. The richest are those who buy low and sell high in business. The most carefree are the righteous wanderers of the jianghu. The most pitiful are those who live on bran and wild greens and become beggars. The most despicable are the thieves who slip through doors and pry open locks. And the most eerie of all are the ghostly professions that straddle the worlds of yin and yang."

Someone asked, "Sister Lan, what are these ghostly professions of yin and yang?"

Lan Wutong slapped the table with a crack and cried, "A fine question!" Her voice was still sweet and crisp, yet she deliberately put on a solemn, veteran expression, one hand on the table and the other on her hip, standing with all the airs of a storyteller in a teahouse in the capital.

The room roared with applause. Lan Wutong blinked in puzzlement. "What are you applauding for? For his question, or for my telling?"

Everyone laughed. Someone shouted, "Both! Both!"

Lan Wutong laughed too. "That’s a phrase I like. In this world, few things are as rare as the words ‘both are good.’ Only when both are good can there truly be universal joy."

The room burst into laughter once more.