CHAPTER 67

Three heroes discover a dragon; a familiar verse once more appears

AS Cloud Dragon Hua looked at the face of the dead monk he had just killed, he was shocked to see that it was, in fact, the face of a sworn brother, one of the five ghosts of Four Rivers Road in Linan. He felt sad for a while, but then he thought, “Since he is dead, there is nothing to be done about it. Once you’re dead, you can’t come back to life.”

Now this robber had never done anything good in his life. In this story that tells about how Ji Gong passed through his time on earth, there are many loyal public servants, children who respect their parents, and faithful friends who in the end are justly rewarded. There are also grasping officials, lewd outlaws, and all sorts of wicked people who meet the fates that they deserve. People who write books hope that their readers, like the characters in the stories, will turn from evil to do good, but not everyone can be saved.

Cloud Dragon Hua had killed the man with one stroke of the sword, and the woman imagined that he was a good person. “How can I thank you for saving me?” she asked. “My name is Li and my mother’s name is Liu. I had been to visit my mother, and my brother was bringing me back to my husband’s home on a donkey. Just as we passed the temple gate this robber monk surprised us. He tied up my brother and put him in the west room, and then, with the worst intentions, forced me to come to this room. I do thank you for killing this robber. Now I will go home and say a prayer for you.”

Cloud Dragon Hua laughed at that and said, “Let me tell you, little woman, this monk that I killed is no stranger to me. He was called Devil in the Clouds and he was my sworn brother. I did not recognize him and killed him by mistake. Now that he is dead, you need not leave. You will stay here, and after I kill your brother, we will be as man and wife. We can live here in this temple.”

When the woman heard this, she realized that he was not a good person and began to scream again, “Help! Help!”

“If you call out, I will kill you,” said Cloud Dragon Hua.

“Kill me, then,” said the young woman, “and have it over with.”

Cloud Dragon Hua looked at her, and seeing that she was attractive he felt moved by desire. Although she had said, “Kill me, then,” he hesitated.

Outside the window he heard someone laugh. “Our good friend Cloud Dragon Hua! So this is what you are doing. It’s too bad that Elder Brother Yang put out a notice to the Greenwood warning us against darts and dirty pictures. You vulgar creature, a beast with a man’s face! First of all, we must bring an end to your existence!”

When Cloud Dragon Hua heard this, he drew his sword, dashed out, and looked into the courtyard. Outside stood three men watching him. They were, in fact, stout fellows ready to step in on the side of the oppressed. Cloud Dragon Hua’s shame quickly turned to anger. “You rascals dare to interfere with me. Today I will kill you all.” The three men drew their swords and leaped forward, surrounding Cloud Dragon. “The three of them will be too much for me,” he thought. “I must use my poison.” With a twist of his body he broke away and ran out of the temple gate with the three men in pursuit.

Then Cloud Dragon Hua surprised them by taking out two darts. As the first man came leaping out through the temple gate, before his foot touched the ground, he was struck in the upper arm. As the second man followed, the robber hit him in the left shoulder. As the two turned and fell, the third man’s face grew red with anger and he called out, “You have killed two of us, but you will die by my hand or with me!” Then he slashed with his sword at Cloud Dragon, who knocked it aside with his own sword. They continued thrusting, stabbing, and slashing at each other. Hua was hard pressed, but neither had wounded the other.

Suddenly Cloud Dragon Hua turned and ran, but the third man was unwilling to let him go. “Where are you going, Cloud Dragon Hua? Do you think you can escape me?”

When he had gone a little way, Hua turned and shook his hand as if he was about to throw something, and shouted, “Dart coming!” The man dodged, but there was no dart. Again Hua shouted, “Dart coming!” and this time the man was unprepared. The dart struck in a place that his protective clothing did not cover. He let out a cry, spun round, and fell.

Cloud Dragon Hua laughed loudly. “You three!” he exclaimed. “You rascals dared to raise your hand against me! What power did you have? You call yourselves heroes! Now you cannot even find the road to heaven or hell! You dared to anger the man with the poison and he ended your lives!”

As he finished speaking and was about to put away his sword and leave, he heard the sound of a person approaching, and a voice said, “You thing! So this is where you are, Cloud Dragon Hua. This monk has been looking for you for some time and now I have found you. This time you will not escape me!”

Before him, Cloud Dragon Hua saw Ji Gong coming toward him. The frightened outlaw was almost too shocked to move. He shook his head and then ran like lightning, like a shooting star. The monk followed left, right, left, right, his straw sandals making the familiar sound. Cloud Dragon Hua ran on without stopping until nightfall. It was very difficult to get beyond the sound of the straw sandals. At last he stopped, and when he looked around, he did not see the monk. He was exhausted and covered with sweat. There were woods ahead. He went in and sank into a sitting position, leaning against a tree. He let out a sigh and thought, “If I hadn’t been so foolish, I would not have had all this trouble.” He could not sit comfortably, nor sleep, nor stand.

Suddenly he saw in front of him a large gateway with a lantern above it. It was evidently the entrance to a home of wealth. He thought to himself, “Perhaps I can stay there. It will be comfortable and I can get some refreshment. Yes, I will stay there tonight and ask for a meal.” As he approached the gateway and was about to knock, an old man came out with a scholar’s kerchief on his head. He was dressed in a blue robe with a silken girdle. His face was kindly and he seemed to be about sixty years old. He had the appearance of one who had once been an official.

Cloud Dragon Hua approached the old man and raised his clasped hands politely in greeting. “Reverend Sir,” Cloud Dragon Hua said, “I am a traveler who has lost his way to the next inn. I beg you to grant me lodging for the night, and a meal. Tomorrow, early in the morning, I will leave.”

The old man lifted his head and looked at him. “What is my guest’s honorable name and how many are traveling with him?”

“My name is Hua,” answered Cloud Dragon, “and there is only myself.”

“Please come in and sit down,” said the old man. Cloud Dragon followed him inside. Cloud Dragon noticed that the parlor was furnished with great refinement. “Please be seated,” the host said.

“I have not yet heard your honorable name,” said Cloud Dragon Hua.

“My name is Hu,” said the old man. As he spoke, another male member of the household entered the room.

“Yuanwai, sir,” the man who had just entered said to the old man, “the junior yuanwai and many guests are waiting for you to join them at the feast.”

“I’m afraid I cannot keep you company just now,” the yuanwai told his guest. “In a little while we will have time to chat.” Meanwhile, he ordered the servants to give the guest wine and food, saying, “Be careful to see to his wants.”

Cloud Dragon Hua noticed that all the dishes they served were the ones he liked best to eat. Filled with happiness, he ate and drank to his heart’s content, thinking to himself, “The owner of this mansion must have liked my appearance to treat me like this.” His heart overflowed with gratitude. Just as he was thinking this, he heard the sound of footsteps outside.

“Is Yuanwai in the room?” Hearing the gentle tone of the speaker’s voice, Cloud Dragon realized that it was the voice of a young woman, and refrained from answering. Then the bamboo curtain at the door was lifted. A beautiful girl stepped into the room. She was dressed in soft silken garments that seemed to float in the air about her. Looking at her, Cloud Dragon thought, “I have never seen such a beauty in my life before.”

She drew in her breath in a gasp and looked at him as if to ask, “Who let this rough young man in here?” Then, without speaking, she turned and left the room.

Cloud Dragon Hua was, after all, a robber who felt no shame at the thought of destroying the innocence of such a young lady. He stood up, aroused by desire, and followed her out into an inner courtyard and then into the building on the north side.

She looked at him, her eyes filled with tears. “Cloud Dragon Hua,” she said, “you really are very bold! Think about what you are doing! Have you any power to reason at all? Come and look there!” She pointed to the wall.

Cloud Dragon Hua looked and saw the verse he had written about himself long before on the wall of a room in the residence of Prime Minister Qin. “Strange!” he thought. “How did she know I was Cloud Dragon Hua?”

He was about to ask her when the young woman pointed and said, “Look! There is Ji Gong!” Cloud Dragon Hua turned his head and saw the monk approaching. The outlaw was nearly out of his mind with fright.