e land features in the desert.” Old man Ji trembled slightly, saying, “How did… did you know that the map was in the hands of the little girl?” Chen Dahai answered, “This thing is absolutely true. If you can find the map and return it to me, I will reward you handsomely.” As he spoke he took out two silver ingots from his bosom and placed them on the table. Illuminated by the firelight, the ingots sparkled brightly.
Old man Ji thought deeply for a second, then shook his head slowly, saying, “I’ve never seen it before.” Chen Dahai replied, “I want to take a look at the things that that little girl left behind.” Old man Ji stammered, “This… this…” Chen Dahai raised his left hand and grabbed his silver-hilted dagger, and stuck it into the wooden table, saying, “What’s so this and that? I’ll go inside and take a look myself.” As he spoke he lighted a candle made from mutton fat, pushed the door open and entered the room. He entered old man Ji’s bedroom first. Seeing that the furnishings looked unfamiliar, he causally rummaged through several boxes and baskets before moving to Li Wenxiu’s room.
He saw the clothes which Li Wenxiu had removed in a hurry, and said, “Ha, she died after reaching maturity.” This time he conducted his search very carefully, and even rummaged through the clothes Li Wenxiu wore as a child. Although she could not fit into these clothes because she had grown up, she still kept them intact for they were sewn by her mother. As soon as Chen Dahai set his eyes on those colourful clothes, he vaguely recalled the scene from a decade ago, where he had pursued her in the great desert. Joyfully he cried out, “Yes, yes, it is her!” But he had already ransacked the room, even cutting open the linings of all the clothes, yet he was still unable to find the map. When Su Pu saw him ruining her belongings like that, he pulled his sabre out several times, wanting to strike, but each time he was restrained by A’man.
Old man Ji looked out of the corner of his eye at Li Wenxiu occasionally, only to see her gazing into the fire, seemingly oblivious to Chen Dahai’s savaging. Old man Ji felt sadness in his heart, “But what can she do when faced with the sword of this violent visitor?” Li Wenxiu looked at the expression of Su Pu’s face, and felt miserable yet heartened, “He has always remembered me; he actually dares to pull out his sword and duel with that man just to protect my belongings.” But she was also perplexed, “This evil bandit said that I stole his map, what exactly is that map?” That day, before Li Wenxiu’s mother died, she had stuffed a map into Li Wenxiu’s clothes. But the circ.u.mstances were pressing, and she did not have time to explain before mother and daughter parted ways forever. The men from Jinwei Protection Agency spent the last decade searching for her everywhere, but Li Wenxiu herself was completely unaware of all this.
Chen Dahai spent a long time rummaging through the room, but his efforts were fruitless, making him extremely discouraged. Suddenly he asked sternly, “Where is she buried?” Old man Ji was froze for a moment, then said, “Somewhere far, far away.” Chen Dahai removed a iron spade from the wall, ordering, “You take me there!” Su Pu stood up, and yelled, “What are you going there for?” Chen Dahai answered, “Why should you care? I’m going to dig open her grave to take a look, who knows, she might have brought the map with her into her grave,” Su Pu positioned his sabre horizontally, barring the doorway, crying out, “I won’t let you touch her grave!” Chen Dahai raised the iron spade, and struck Su Pu’s head, shouting, “Get lost!” Su Pu dodged to the left, and sent his sabre outwards. Chen Dahai threw the iron spade aside, and pulled out the long sword hanging from his waist. There was a clang as sword and sabre clashed. Each man leapt backwards one step, then immediately launched their attacks, fighting each other.
The hall of this cottage was small, and as the sword and sabre swung everywhere, old man Ji and A’man retreated to the sides, their backs against the walls. Only Li Wenxiu remained standing at the windows. A’man dashed over, and pulled out the daggers which Chen Dahai had stuck into the table, intending to aid Su Pu. But as they were in the thick of the battle, she did not have the chance to interfere. By this time, Su Pu had inherited all of his father’s skills, the steps of his swordplay permutated continuously, and his strokes were fierce and powerful. At the beginning, Chen Dahai was on the losing end, and was secretly shocked, “Who would have thought that the martial arts skills of this Kazak lad are on par with the excellent pugilists from the Central Plains?” At that moment, he felt a gust of wind breeze past his back. A’man had tried to launch a sneak attack on him by throwing a small dagger at him. Chen Dahai dodged it by moving to the right. Chi! Su Pu’s sabre had cut an opening in his left arm. Chen Dahai was extremely furious. Swish! Swish! Swish! With three successive strokes, he displayed his famous skill, the Green Python Swordplay.