The Legend of the Condor Heroes

Original translation by

SunnySnow

Guo Jing and Huang Rong went to the back of Prince Zhao's palace and leaped over the wall into the courtyard. Huang Rong whispered to Guo Jing in a soft voice:

"Your 'light body' Gong Fu is excellent!"

Guo Jing crouching by the foot of the wall watching out for any movement in the courtyard felt ecstatic at hearing such praise from her.

After a moment they heard some footsteps approaching – two men were laughing and talking as they walked towards them. One man was saying, "What do you think the prince has in mind with the young lady?"

The other man laughed and said, (not sure of this translation) "It's obvious isn't it? This type of pretty woman, after giving birth who would give her another glance?"

The first man retorted, "With your dirty mind, you had better be careful that the prince doesn't cut your head off. This girl, although her face is pretty, she cannot compare to the princess."

The second man exclaimed, "This peasant(??) girl! How can you compare her with the princess?"

The first man replied, "The princess, you said she (??)…" He suddenly stopped, coughed twice and changed the subject(?) saying, "The prince really suffered a loss at the hands of that big fellow today, you better be careful not to give him any cause for offence or you are sure to get a real beating!"

The second man said, "If the prince tries to beat me, I'll simply dodge – and return with a kick…"

The first man laughed, "Stop talking ****(?)"

Guo Jing thought to himself, "So, that "Yuan Yan Kang" already has a pretty sweetheart no wonder he cannot marry the Mu girl. But if this true, then he shouldn't have even taken up the challenge in the first place let alone grab her shoe. Why would he want to concern himself with other people's affairs? Could it be that if a person is not willing to agree then he would use force to coerce them?

At this point the two men had walked very close (to Guo Jing and Huang Rong). One was carrying a lamp and the other a basket of food. They were dressed as servants, wearing green clothes and caps. The man with the basket laughed and said, "Talking about other people I fear that someone has already become very hungry, we had better deliver these vegetables quickly!"

The other man replied, "How can he win a young girls heart if he doesn't gain her sympathy?" Both men laughed as they walked away into the distance.

Huang Rong became very curious. She whispered to Guo Jing, "Let's go and see what type of pretty girl they are talk about".

Guo Jing asked, "What about getting the medicine, isn't that more urgent?"

"I want to see the girl first!" said Huang Rong stubbornly and she started off after the two servants.

Guo Jing thought, "What's so interesting about seeing some girl? Really strange."

What he didn't know was that invariably when a woman hears about another beautiful woman, they will never be satisfied until they have seen them with their own eyes. If the women that hears about this other woman is herself especially beautiful, then all the more is the desire to see that other woman so she can compare herself to her! Guo Jing however did know enough about girls to know that they can be extremely difficult at times so he had no alternative but to follow.

The Zhao residence was huge. Guo Jing and Huang Rong followed the two servants for quite sometime before arriving in front of a big house. At the entrance stood a few guards with weapons in their arms. Guo Jing and Huang Rong hid behind a corner and heard the two servants whispering something to the guards before the guards opened the door and allowed them in. Huang Rong picked up a stone and flung it at the torches to put out the lights, before pulling Guo Jing with her to follow the servants in. Huang Rong was so swift that she and Guo Jing overtook the servants and were in front of them. The servants and guards didn't notice that they slipped in and cursed and joke while starting the fire for the torches again. They entered a large room, before opening a small door at the corner and walked in. Guo Jing and Huang Rong followed them in silently and noticed rows of iron bars, forming a large prison cell. Behind the bars sat a woman and a man.

One of the servants lit a candle and placed it on the prison table. Under the candlelight, Guo Jing saw the man's face which was anxious and furious; it was none other than Mu Yi. A young girl was sitting beside him and it was his daughter, Mu Nian Ci. Guo Jing was suspicious and thought, "How did they end up here? Ah, it must be WanYan Kang who captured them. What does his intend to do with them? Does he love this lady or not?" The two servants took out some wine and dishes from their basket and pushed it into the cell.

Mu Yi picked up a plate of snacks and flung it out before yelling, "I have already fallen into your trap, kill me if you want to. Why pretend to be so nice?"

Amongst the commotion, the guard outside suddenly said, "Greetings, little prince!"

Guo Jing and Huang Rong exchanged glances and hurriedly hid behind the door, only to see WanYan Kang rushing in and scolding, "Who made Hero Mu angry? Let's see whether I will break your legs when we leave later."

The two servants were frightened and dropped on their knees, "We dare not."

WanYan Kang answered, "Hurry up and get lost."

The two servants replied, "Yes, yes." And turned to leave, but when they reached the door, they stuck their tongues out at each other, made funny faces and left.

WanYan Kang waited till they close the door, before saying gently, "I invited Hero Mu and Miss for something else, please don't get offened."

Mu Yi was furious, "You lock us up here like prisoners, and you dare use the word 'invite'?"

WanYan Kang said, "I'm so sorry. Please bear with it for the time being, I'm really sorry."

Mu Yi retorted angrily, "You can use this to cheat a three year old. I've seen enough of vicious officials."

Wanyan Kang tried to speak out several times but was shut up by the angry Mu Yi. Yet, he still remained good natured and laughed joyfully without a tint of anger.

Mu Nian Ci listened to the argument and whispered to her father, "Father, let's hear what he has to say."

It was then that Mu Yi grunted before becoming silent.

Wanyan Kang said, "Your daughter has rare talents and beauty. I'm not blind so how can I possibly not like her?"

Mu Nian Ci blushed deeply and lowered her head.

Wanyan Kang continued, "However, I am the eldest son of Prince Zhao and my family rules are very strict. If people know that I marry a commoner, my father will be furious and will face a lot of trouble."

Mu Yi replied, "Then what do you plan to do?"

Wanyan Kang replied, "I was thinking of letting Hero Mu and Miss stay here for a few days to recover from any injuries, before going back. After a year or half, when the situation is better, I will either go and ask for your daughter's hand in marriage or Hero Mu you send Miss to me so as to complete the marriage. Isn't this a perfect solution?"