Shadow in the Green City
The cloudless sky does nothing to conceal the bright full moon. This is a night that will yield few shadows for you. You hear the sound of a small gong from inside the compound going off three times – once slow, twice fast. It is the third watch of the night, signifying that the time is now an hour past midnight. You had been lying in wait for half a day in the woods outside Qingcheng, carefully noting whatever movements of disciples you could see while awaiting night’s arrival. Now, it is time for you to act.
Four Qingcheng disciples stand guard at the main gates, but you are not going to walk up to them. The trees grow so closely to the walls that the branches hang over them. This would never be allowed in any of the Tang fortresses; when you had travelled along for inspections with Shun, you noticed that the soldiers would clear the surrounding area of foliage to ensure full visibility. Of course, you haven’t heard of any martial arts school being built like a fortress.
You make your way from tree to tree, keeping an eye out for the tell-tale glow of lanterns carried by patrolling disciples. At this hour of the night they will be less alert, but if you are caught out in the open that will jolt them awake rather quickly. Finding a suitable branch, you run along it and take a leap, landing on the roof of one of the buildings. Pressing yourself close to the roof’s surface, you crawl carefully into a shadowed area and survey the compound. It is far larger than you had expected. Finding the dungeon in this complex will be harder than you thought.
The patrols are not too difficult to avoid; most of the disciples on patrol are slack and unfocused. It is only to be expected; many of them wear the robes of fresh students, and they are not actually expecting any intruders. They do little more than walking from point to point while conversing with each other or singing to while away the time. You dart from shadow to shadow with ease, running silently across the paved stones. Peeking through windows and scouting the buildings slowly and cautiously, it takes another two hours until you finally locate what seems to be the entrance to the dungeon. The sound of the fourth watch rings throughout the compound. In two more watches dawn will come.
You make your way down the stairs. At the end of it, you find two disciples sitting around a table playing dice. There are four cells across from them; only one is occupied. You see Master Yao, dishevelled and gaunt. The closest disciple has his back to you. Cloaked in the shadows a mere arm’s length away from the disciple, you watch quietly as he throws the dice with a cheerful yell, and then groans in disappointment. Picking up the gourd of wine by his side, he takes a swig, before passing it to his friend who proceeds to do the same. They repeat the action twice more, throwing dice and drinking wine. They seem to be holding their liquor rather well; no point waiting to see if they’ll drink themselves under the table.
You palm the satchel of laxative powder in your hand. Deftly, you drop its entire contents into the open gourd. Then, you head up and out of the dungeon to lay in wait by the entrance.
As expected, it does not take long for the two disciples to abandon their post, heading for the nearest latrine with their agonized cries. You take the opportunity to slip back into the dungeon; you will have to act quickly before they stagger back here.
Master Yao’s eyes are closed; he is in meditation. You glance at the table; the keys are not here. The disciples must have brought them along when they ran out.
Approaching the cell, you pull down your mask and rap the wooden bars gently.
The old physician opens one eye and stares at you.
“So, you did die from the Southern Maniac’s training after all. I suppose my sins are such that I will be haunted till the end of my days by my failures. On the bright side, the end of my days approaches fast,” says Yao.
“I’m not a ghost, master,” you chuckle. “It’s been a while. You look older.”
“Hmph,” snorts Yao, “and here I was thinking that I have finally seen a real ghost. Do you know that I have an exorcist friend, yet I have never personally met any spirits of the deceased? You disappoint me by coming back as flesh and blood, Jing.” Despite his words, however, he is smiling faintly.
“I wish we could have met in better conditions, master, but time is short. Where is Cao’er?” Her absence in the dungeon is palpable; if she is not held together with Master Yao, then your problems have just compounded.
“She is being held in better conditions in the main living quarters,” replies Yao promptly. “Will that be harder for you to reach?” You give it some thought. “Perhaps. It depends on the layout, and how many people are in the main quarters.”
“I am afraid I do not have any idea about that,” says Yao. “I try not to spend too much time in Qingcheng. You can see why,” he smiles, as he raises his manacled arms.
“Master, what happened here?” you ask. “What went wrong with Song Jiangke?”
Yao just sighs, stroking his beard. “It is a long story. I had hoped that you would be here when Song finally called me back to Qingcheng, but as luck would have it, your destiny was someplace else. I would not have been caught otherwise. Very well, let me explain. It will be a rather long story.
I will start at the beginning. Five years ago, before we met, I was called to heal Qingcheng’s Song Lingshu from a terrible injury. There was a horse-riding accident, if I recall correctly. When I had finished with the treatment, I requested my price. That would be the father, Song Jiangke. Even then I could tell that he was afflicted by a fatal disease, though he did not know it yet. Song refused to pay the price. He is… was… an arrogant man. Throwing a bag of taels at me, he called upon his disciples to draw swords. At that time, I decided to leave. I knew that he would begin suffering from the symptoms in a few years... I knew that then he would call on me again. If he thought that he could scare me off once, he would think that he could do it a second time. And so, I bided my time and waited.
When the call came, I answered. I treated his disease. I cured it, in fact, after some tremendous work. Then, I demanded his daughter’s life. The daughter for the father, the father for the daughter. It is only fair, is it not? As I expected, Song refused to pay, even resorting to threatening me again, using the exact same tactics. I left, again. Then, I came back to assassinate the both of them.”
Yao smiles wanly. “As you have undoubtedly heard, I only succeeded in killing one of the Songs. In the process he managed to raise the alarm and deal me a serious injury. I severely underestimated his prowess. Thanks to my quick thinking I managed to flee the compound, but they eventually tracked me back to the hut. There, Cao’er and I were captured. Miss Song has turned out rather upset about her father’s death. It is a pity... were you here with me, we might have succeeded in killing the both of them and escaping.”
Your nails bite into your palms as you clench your fists tightly. “Master Yao,” you whisper angrily. “Are you telling me you purposely put yourself and Cao’er at risk because you wanted to take your payment in a hurry?”
“I have waited five years,” says Yao calmly. “That is much more than I give most people. I will not let Qingcheng think they can push me around and treat me like their personal physician by abusing their greater strength.”
“But you could have waited a bit longer. There was no point in doing things so recklessly just because of your principles!“
“Then why are you here, running around Qingcheng without permission in the middle of the night? If you are caught you would put Cao'er in further danger. Xu Jing, do not presume to lecture me about recklessness,” replies Yao in that same quiet tone. You feel as if you had been doused in icy water. With a shamed bow, you lower your head as you calm down slightly. “I am sorry, master. I spoke out of hand.”
Yao sighs wearily. “I know that you are concerned over Cao’er’s safety, and mine. I have made mistakes and erred in my judgment over the many years I have lived. At my age I am well aware of my faults and my sins. I will admit as much; I killed Song Jiangke over my pride, and nothing else. I should not have done so – I should have thought of Cao’er’s wellbeing.”
“A price is a price, master. It had to be paid.”
“If that is so, will you claim the remaining price for me? Will you balance the world?” says Yao, staring at you.
“If you order me to kill Song Lingshu, I will,” you say quietly.
“It is not an order. I am asking if you are willing to perform my duties for me.”
“I am perfectly willing to, master, but first I must get you and Cao’er out of here. It would be foolish to assassinate her while the both of you are still in Qingcheng’s custody.”
Yao laughs softly. “Your time spent with the Maniac hasn’t left you untouched. Jing, it is impossible to get both Cao’er and I out of here.”
“I may seek Emei’s help, since they have offered. Failing that, I will just return the next night to free the both of you.”
Yao’s steady gaze wavers for just a moment. “Emei? You have spoken to Abbess Miecao?”
You shake your head. “No, I spoke with one of their junior nuns.”
Yao leans back, stroking his beard. “I see. Jing, I am giving you my last request as your master. Kill Song Lingshu tonight, and bring Cao’er with you when you leave. The former is optional, but I will beg you to do at least the latter.”
“What is your reason for asking that this be done tonight?” you ask. “Can this not wait?”
“Can you be sure that your infiltration will go as smoothly tomorrow? Or the day after?” retorts Master Yao. “You have made it this far, but there is no certainty that things will not go wrong the next time before you even step foot into the compound. No, I want you to capitalize on your current advantage and get Cao’er out of here.”
“At least let me find a way to unlock your cage-“
“Do not bother,” snaps Yao. He stretches his legs, showing you his ankles. “They cut my tendons to stop me from using my inner strength to escape. It will take at least two more days for me to heal them. By then the Emei nuns will come for me. I will leave with them.”
You blink, surprised at his words. “Are you saying that Emei will come to rescue you?”
“If you get Cao’er out of here and keep it a secret from the nuns, they will likely rescue me instead.” Seeing that you are about to open your mouth and ask for more information on this strange turn of events, Yao grumbles. “I have no time to explain all of my dealings, boy! Now, will you do it, or will you not? If you are not going to rescue your senior, I will shout for help immediately.”
You take a step backwards. Has the old man gone insane? “Look, perhaps you are not thinking clearly, master. If I kill Song Lingshu and rescue Cao’er, it is going to create a big uproar when they discover the deed tomorrow. You’ll be lucky if they don’t kill you outright. They might even increase the patrols. How would the nuns help you then?”
“I have a plan, but that is something for the elderly to pull off. Any reckless meddling on your part would only make things worse. It is none of your concern. Your main concern lies with Cao’er. That is what I am tasking you with. I had hoped that you take care of her for life, but if you cannot do that, at least take her away from this place. Now, go. If you do not, I will call for help.”
***
A. You pretend to agree with Master Yao, but in actuality perform a hasty retreat. He must have gone mad from imprisonment. You'll need to approach this differently.
1. You head towards Emei with the knowledge that you have, seeking their help now that Yao has said that they would come to aid him. They should be more willing to help you out since they're already planning to do something that seems to aid you.
2. Yifang should still be in Chengdu; you will find her and ask her to take you to Song Lingshu. Perhaps you can blackmail the new head of Qingcheng or otherwise sway her position with what you’ve learnt tonight. Sparing Master Yao from execution seems to be a hard deal to make, but you will try your best.
3. You will perform Master Zhang’s challenge, utilizing his reputation to force a confrontation. That seems to be a more direct and bloody way of solving things. A good fight is all you want and need.
***
B. You do as Master Yao says, and proceed to the main living quarters. There you will find Cao’er and get her out of Qingcheng, but before you do that, you may want to deal with Song Lingshu.
1. You will kill her, as Master Yao suggested. She would not be expecting a second assassin now that Yao and his apprentice are imprisoned. It should be trivial, particularly at this time of the night. She’ll never see it coming.
2. You will sneak into her chambers and instead proceed with a mixture of intimidation and negotiation, masked anonymously. Even if she’s the head, she’s still a sheltered girl of your age. This way you have the psychological advantage, instead of seeking an audience with her from a position of weakness tomorrow.
3. You ignore Song Lingshu and merely concentrate on getting Cao’er out, not out of any fear of failure, but because you do not want to antagonize Qingcheng any more than is necessary. They will not be grateful to you for not antagonizing them since they would never know, but it’s the thought that counts.
