Chapter 1: Grandpa Lives Between Heaven and Earth
Now, Qin Zhonghai, unwilling to implicate Lu Yun, rode away alone on horseback. Fearing that Lu Yun would search everywhere and find him again, he hid deep in the forest. Only after Lu Yun had gone far did he finally mount his horse and depart. He had only one thought in his mind: even if he died alone on the road, he could not drag down his old friend. No matter how Lu Yun shouted and called out, he remained silent, neither responding nor answering.
The north wind was fierce, the weather cold, and the snow grew heavier. In the depths of night, Qin Zhonghai set out alone on the road. His injuries were severe, his high fever persisted, and his wounds had already festered and rotted. After traveling half a li, he felt his strength failing. Several times the strong wind nearly blew him off his horse. Knowing he would eventually be thrown from the horse’s back, he untied his belt and firmly bound himself to the horse. But this exertion of his hands caused his shoulder bones to ache terribly, making him feel faint.
When life had reached such a state, it was a matter of taking one step at a time—if he could live even a moment longer, it would be his good fortune. Qin Zhonghai didn’t care where he was heading; he only knew that the farther from Beijing he went, the greater his chances of survival.
In a daze, he passed mile after mile. Qin Zhonghai had long since lost consciousness and no longer knew where he was. Traveling deep into the night, the wind grew fiercer and woke him from the cold. Opening his eyes, he saw only pitch darkness all around, no stars visible. Apart from the howling wind and snow, there was no other human presence. Qin Zhonghai squinted his eyes and saw that the horse, which had been his companion in this desperate situation, was now sleeping by the roadside, truly being terribly lazy. In his heart he cursed: “Damn your grandmother! I’ve fallen to such a wretched state, and you, this thieving beast of a horse, still dare to slack off!” He lightly kicked the horse’s belly with his right leg, and the horse immediately neighed once and continued forward.
Qin Zhonghai didn’t care where it was going; he only knew the situation was urgent and he absolutely could not linger in the Beijing area, lest he implicate his colleagues. But after traveling through the night, his belly was gnawing with hunger, so he reached into the saddlebags beside the horse’s belly to fumble around, and found a cold steamed bun. Qin Zhonghai carelessly bit into it a few times, but his hands were powerless, and with a slight shake, the bun fell to the ground. With his severe injuries, Qin Zhonghai was unable to pick it up, and in his confusion, he lost consciousness again.
And so, half-dead and half-alive, he traveled for several days and nights. Qin Zhonghai neither drank water nor ate food, nor did he dismount to rest, hanging on the horse like a corpse. In the past, Western Xia warriors would not fall from their horses even when dead—now Qin Zhonghai was using this for his escape, and it proved quite useful.
One dawn, Qin Zhonghai lay on the horse’s back, his breath as faint as gossamer. In his confusion, he heard the sound of bustling voices, as if he had reached some kind of marketplace. Suddenly, someone reached out to stop the horse and shouted loudly: “Brother! Are you dead?”
Qin Zhonghai was vigorously shaken by that person and slowly came to consciousness. He lifted his head and groaned: “You… you… who are you?” That person shouted: “Who am I? I should be asking who you are! Where are you going, you consumptive?”
Qin Zhonghai struggled to lift his head and asked in confusion: “I… where am I?” That person gave a laugh and shouted: “You’re at the Yellow River!”
Qin Zhonghai was startled: “The Yellow River?” He looked into the distance and saw great waters rolling muddily eastward—he had indeed reached the banks of the Yellow River.
It turned out that the man who stopped Qin Zhonghai was a boatman. That day, seeing a lone horse traveling to the ferry with no passenger on its back, he found it quite strange. When he came closer to look, he was shocked to see a half-dead person hanging on the horse’s back, so he quickly reached out to stop it—this was how he encountered Qin Zhonghai.
That person saw Qin Zhonghai’s face weathered by wind and frost, his shoulders faintly bleeding, and his left leg severed. His heart filled with sympathy, so he asked: “Brother, your injuries are not light. Do you want to dismount and rest?” Qin Zhonghai was burning with fever all over his body, his mind nauseated, wanting only to find a warm place to lie down. Hearing these words, he gently nodded. That person said no more and untied the binding rope around him. As soon as the rope loosened, Qin Zhonghai’s body immediately fell and tumbled into that person’s arms.
That person held Qin Zhonghai and saw his injuries were so severe, feeling shocked in his heart: “How could this person, so severely injured and disabled, be traveling in the harsh winter? This is truly strange and peculiar.” The crowd of boatmen at the ferry saw Qin Zhonghai’s haggard appearance and missing left leg, and they too looked on with surprise. Everyone whispered among themselves, all guessing at his origins.
That person held Qin Zhonghai and saw him gasping continuously, as if he might stop breathing at any moment. He quickly fetched some wine and poured it into his mouth. Qin Zhonghai’s physique was much more robust than ordinary people, and even while injured and ill, he could still eat and drink. After being fed several mouthfuls of strong liquor, he slowly regained consciousness. He struggled to sit up and gasped: “Thank… thank you…”
That person frowned: “Brother, with such severe injuries, shouldn’t we find a doctor to take a look?” Qin Zhonghai knew he was a criminal wanted by the court and definitely could not show his face, so he just shook his head. That person gave a laugh: “Brother, don’t be stubborn! Don’t let yourself actually die here through some mishap—when that happens, we’re neither relatives nor friends, so don’t expect me to collect your corpse!”
Though these words were harsh, they were undoubtedly the truth. Qin Zhonghai sighed and looked toward the rolling great river, thinking: “Now I’m neither dead nor alive, and I’m a criminal wanted by the court—what should I do? I can’t return to the capital, and I shouldn’t drag down my old friends… what am I to do in the future?”
His heart turned sour, feeling all thoughts turn to ash. Suddenly, a flash occurred in his mind, and he thought of Fang Zijing.
Qin Zhonghai took a deep breath, and a fierce flame arose in his heart: “Master! How could I forget Master? Our Master is a great rebel against the court—that dog Jiang Chong is nothing in his eyes. Now that I’ve become a small rebel, I should go seek refuge with him.” These past few days he had been in a daze, spending most of his time unconscious, his mind never clear. Now, seeing the Yellow River, his spirits somewhat recovered, and he calculated his future course of action.
Qin Zhonghai supported himself on that person’s shoulder and gasped: “Where is your boat headed?” That person said: “I’m currently going toward Shandong—do you want to board?”
Qin Zhonghai’s master was known as the “Nine Provinces Sword King” and had always been without fixed residence. In recent years, he had wandered the four seas, his whereabouts quite elusive. But when Qin Zhonghai was young and practiced martial arts with his master, they had lived in Lanzhou for a while. If luck was not bad, he might be able to encounter him. He coughed and said: “Are there boats going to Gansu?” That person laughed heartily: “You’re in luck. This year is warmer, and the Yellow River waters haven’t yet frozen—there might still be boatmen running that route.”
Qin Zhonghai found several taels of broken silver from his bundle and pressed them into that person’s hand: “Please help me inquire—fifty taels of silver for this trip.” That person was startled: “Fifty taels? So much?”
Qin Zhonghai was too weak to speak further and had already sat down on the ground, casually waving his hand to urge him to handle the matter.
With a great reward, there must be brave men. That person went to the ferry and shouted a few times. In less than half an hour, a boatman came over to discuss terms. Qin Zhonghai had no strength to haggle and quietly instructed: “Travel to Lanzhou, provide me three meals daily—fifty taels of silver.” The boatman was overjoyed upon hearing this and quickly said: “Agreed! Agreed!” Ordinarily, even if they loaded a full boat of cargo, twenty taels of silver would be considered too much. With Qin Zhonghai being so generous, the boatman was naturally overjoyed beyond expectation, immediately moving him into the boat cabin and preparing a soft bed for him.
Qin Zhonghai’s high fever had not subsided, and he had no time to worry about the horse Lu Yun had given him, so he carelessly gave it to that helpful person from before. That person, having shown kindness, unexpectedly received such a great benefit, and naturally thanked him profusely, even escorting Qin Zhonghai all the way to the boat cabin before waving goodbye. In Qin Zhonghai’s time of trouble, being able to meet this kindhearted person meant his luck wasn’t entirely exhausted.
The weather was harsh and cold, and the boat traveled upstream westward, heading straight for the Shaanxi-Gansu route. For three consecutive days, Qin Zhonghai relied on the boatman to prepare his meals and purchase medicine along the shore. Finally, he managed to overcome that high fever, surviving the most critical ordeal. He had retrieved his life from the gates of death, but after the torment of illness, his body had become much thinner, and his face had grown a full beard, making him look like a completely different person.
Qin Zhonghai knew his shoulder blades had been pierced and not half his martial arts remained, but his nature was extremely strong-willed. In this adversity, he refused to bow his head and accept his fate. Whenever he had free time, he would practice internal energy in the cabin. But no matter how he practiced, his body still couldn’t generate half a bit of strength. Every time his internal energy reached the Jianjing acupoint, his body would be wracked with excruciating pain. Forget about wielding a blade in combat—even in daily life, he could only lean against the cabin wall and walk with difficulty. When eating, his hands would tremble as if he were suffering from apoplexy. The boatman, who had originally been very attentive, gradually grew cold after seeing his disability. When called upon, he would only respond after being called a hundred times. Qin Zhonghai saw this and naturally felt angry in his heart, but at this time his limbs were powerless, unlike his former robust strength, so he could only endure being manipulated by others.
After several days of boat travel, it was near the year’s end. There were even fewer boats traveling back and forth on the river. That night, they reached a small town and the boat docked. Qin Zhonghai ordered the boatman to buy some wine and food. He gave him ten taels of silver to go out, but only three coins were returned—the rest had been pocketed by the man. Qin Zhonghai was too lazy to ask questions and drank outside the cabin. Wine entering his sorrowful heart was particularly intoxicating—after drinking only half a pot, he was already quite drunk.
Drinking until midnight, the snow grew heavier, and ice blocks on the river continuously struck the boat hull, making thumping sounds. Qin Zhonghai gazed at the ice and snow on the great river, his heart filled with infinite melancholy. Thinking of this day last year when he was still the commanding general escorting the princess for marriage, compared to his current lonely desolation, he couldn’t help but sigh.
Qin Zhonghai had always been optimistic and cheerful by nature, brave and fond of fighting. Throughout his life, he had never known the word “fear”—on the battlefield leading his soldiers into battle, in taverns drinking until dead drunk, he had never experienced worry. But in these past few months, first discovering his connection to the court rebels, then becoming embroiled in Liu Jing’s treasonous conspiracy, finally reaching today when his martial arts were completely destroyed and he wandered the rivers and lakes alone. Thinking of Liu Angtian’s advanced age, and how he had left the capital without even being able to say a proper farewell, not knowing if he could see him again in this lifetime, his eyes suddenly reddened and he could no longer contain himself, staring blankly as tears fell.
Qin Zhonghai lifted the wine bottle and drank carelessly. His hands trembled powerlessly, and with each sip, most spilled from the bottle’s mouth. He looked at the rolling Yellow River and sighed in his heart: “I don’t know what evil star I’ve offended—in less than a month, I’ve been destroyed alive into this ghostly appearance. Sigh…”
Thinking of his anger, he couldn’t help but roar loudly: “Damn your grandmother!” He hurled the wine bottle toward the water below, but his hand was powerless and the bottle couldn’t reach far, falling along the gunwale into the river. Seeing himself so useless, Qin Zhonghai felt both angry and hateful in his heart, so he just returned to the cabin and slept sullenly.
The river water gently lapped against the boat hull. Qin Zhonghai wrapped himself tightly in a cotton quilt and lay with his eyes open, staring blankly at the cabin ceiling. Soon he heard the boatman untying the mooring rope, and the boat slowly left shore, heading toward the river’s center. Seeing that this boatman was usually lazy but tonight was suddenly diligent, he thought that since it was near year’s end, the boatman must be homesick and wanted to finish this business early so he could return home for New Year.
Thinking of the approaching New Year made his heart ache again. Every holiday season, he spent it in foreign places—sometimes in military camps, sometimes on the road—never knowing the taste of family reunion. He shook his head and thought: “If I had known it would be like this, I should have found a good girl to marry back then, sparing myself this loneliness.” But now, with his severed leg and disabled limbs, severely injured and dispirited, what woman would want to marry him? It seemed he was destined to be a bachelor.
Lost in thought, the cabin suddenly shook as if struck by something. At this time, the weather was harsh and cold, and the river surface was full of floating ice blocks. It was probably river ice hitting the boat that caused the loud noise—nothing to be alarmed about. Just as he was about to close his eyes and sleep again, he suddenly felt the boat shake as if someone had leaped aboard.
Qin Zhonghai was greatly startled. At this moment, if outsiders suddenly boarded the boat, there was definitely treachery afoot. Though his martial arts were lost, his experience remained. He immediately sat up and thought: “This is bad—I might have boarded a pirate ship!” At this time, in the dark night with fierce wind, and in the harsh winter, if someone boarded the boat at midnight, the visitors were definitely not good people. It might be that the boatman had colluded with bandits—that would be terrible indeed. Qin Zhonghai thought of the boatman’s usual demeanor and grew increasingly worried.
Light footsteps sounded on the deck. Qin Zhonghai listened carefully and detected multiple footsteps—the visitors numbered as many as seven or eight people. Knowing his life hung by a thread, he hurriedly crawled up, grasping his steel blade and hiding behind the miscellaneous items in the cabin.
He heard someone say: “Li Laowu, you said this sheep is quite fat—is that true or false?” The boatman laughed: “Nonsense. He paid fifty taels of silver right away—you tell me if that’s fat or not?”
Qin Zhonghai suddenly understood, thinking: “Damn! I was so generous with my spending—no wonder it attracted murderous intent.” The saying goes, “wealth should not be displayed”—Qin Zhonghai carried several hundred taels in bank notes from Lu Yun, making him quite wealthy. Combined with his physical weakness and severe illness, when people saw this, how could they not want to take desperate risks? Qin Zhonghai secretly regretted and cursed his own carelessness. The problem was that in the past his martial arts were too strong—he was always the one troubling others, never had anyone dared to make moves on Master Qin. It was because of this that he finally fell into the bandits’ trap during the weakest time of his life.
In this crisis, Qin Zhonghai’s mind raced, trying to find a way to escape. He thought: “Money and possessions are external things. These small bandits only want money and have no grudge against me. Later I’ll hand over all the silver I have—perhaps I can keep my life.” He tremblingly removed his upper garment, wearing only pants, to show he had no hidden weapons, then took out all his silver and possessions and placed them on the deck.
He looked down at his steel blade and couldn’t help but sigh softly. At this time, his martial arts were completely lost, so weapons were useless to him. But having practiced martial arts for many years, having a blade for protection made his heart much more at ease. He hid the steel blade in the pile of miscellaneous items in case of emergency.
Footsteps approached, and the boatman entered first. Seeing that Qin Zhonghai was already sitting upright, he couldn’t help but be startled: “You’re awake?”
Qin Zhonghai was a fourth-rank palace official who carried a blade. Throughout his life, he had seen countless great battles, fought against ten thousand enemies on the battlefield, and slain enemy chiefs—he could be called one of the rare tiger generals of the current dynasty. But now, fallen on hard times, what other way was there to save his life except to obediently bow his head? Qin Zhonghai grunted and thought: “Dead bastard, if your grandfather still had his martial arts, I’d kill all you small bandits even in my sleep.” But at this time, his life was in others’ hands—how could such words leave his mouth? So he just nodded.
The boatman looked at him and said: “Why did you strip off your clothes?” Qin Zhonghai pushed the silver forward: “Everything I have is here. If you gentlemen want to take the money later, please help yourselves.”
The boatman was secretly amazed, thinking: “Here’s a sensible one—saves us some trouble.” While speaking, a large group of bandits had also entered the cabin. Everyone saw him stripped of his upper garment, sitting on the ground by himself, as if he already knew he was about to be robbed, and they were all surprised.
Qin Zhonghai coughed and pointed at the bank notes on the ground: “With New Year approaching, you gentlemen have come here in the cold night—it’s been hard work. This bit of money is a small token of my appreciation, please take it to buy drinks.” The boatman smiled: “You’re quite generous.”
Qin Zhonghai gave a dry laugh: “Within the four seas, all are brothers. If you gentlemen need money, and I happen to have some extra silver, how could I selfishly keep it all? Please accept it!”
The boatman gave a sinister laugh and stepped forward to take the bank notes from the ground, then began counting them. After counting for a long while, he nodded: “This fellow really has money—he’s carrying a full five hundred taels in bank notes!” The bandits on both sides were overjoyed: “Now we’ve really struck it rich!” Ordinary merchants traveling rarely carried more than a hundred taels or so. To encounter a fat sheep like Qin Zhonghai was something that might not happen once in ten attempts. Everyone looked at the bank notes with smiles spreading across their faces, clearly delighted to their hearts’ core. Qin Zhonghai sat on the deck and also gave a couple of dry laughs.
The boatman weighed the silver in his hand and nodded with satisfaction: “Five hundred taels—not bad at all. Now that we’ve gotten the money, what should we do with this person?” One bandit said: “Since we’ve taken his money, we should send him on his way!”
Qin Zhonghai was greatly alarmed. At this moment, he was disabled and would have difficulty even walking—how could he swim? Moreover, it was now deep winter—if they threw him into the water, even if he didn’t drown, he would freeze to death. Despite his usual great courage, he now panicked and quickly said: “I’m somewhat inconvenienced in my condition—please, boat boss, do a good deed and put me ashore!” Two bandits saw his severed leg and disability, and if they threw him into the water, they might harm his life, so they nodded: “Even thieves have their code—we’ve taken the man’s money and shouldn’t harm him. Let’s put him ashore.”
The boatman grunted and lifted the cabin curtain with his hand, but saw the river with surging waves and distant mist. To dock would definitely require extra effort, which made him feel annoyed. With his lazy nature, he shook his head and said: “My wife is waiting for me to return for New Year—I don’t have time to delay.” Hearing this, Qin Zhonghai was greatly alarmed and said in a trembling voice: “Boat boss, you… what do you mean by this…”
The boatman gave a sinister laugh and pointed toward the cabin door: “Cripple, considering you were straightforward, I’ll leave you a whole corpse. Jump into the water yourself!”
Qin Zhonghai was both shocked and afraid, and bowed with clasped hands: “This gentleman, I’m ill and really can’t swim. Please put me ashore—I’ll burn incense and pray for you day and night, thanking you for your life-sparing mercy.” The boatman yawned: “Stop your nonsense—who wants you to burn incense or worship Buddha? Hurry up and jump into the water—I’m still in a hurry to travel!”
Qin Zhonghai was both anxious and angry, thinking: “Good bandit—once the money is in hand, you immediately turn your face and refuse to acknowledge people.” The boatman saw he still wouldn’t move and raised his blade threateningly: “Get up quickly! Stop dawdling here!” Qin Zhonghai sighed. He reached out to support himself against the cabin wall, wanting to struggle to his feet, but with his severe injuries, his whole body was weak, and for a moment he stumbled and couldn’t stand up.
The boatman said coldly: “Get up quickly—I don’t have time to waste with you.” Qin Zhonghai lowered his head and gasped: “My leg hurts terribly—I can’t stand up.” The boatman sneered: “I saw you go to the boat’s stern to relieve yourself last night—how can you not stand up? Stop playing dead!” Saying this, he kicked Qin Zhonghai in the buttocks, his attitude extremely arrogant.
Qin Zhonghai had originally intended to die quietly, but being kicked by this man, he couldn’t help but fly into a rage. His eyes blazed with fury as he glared straight at the boatman. The boatman saw his eyes full of killing intent and noticed the fierce tiger tattooed on his back, and couldn’t help but feel frightened. But then he thought that no matter how fierce and ruthless this person looked, he was just a disabled cripple—why should he fear him? Immediately he shouted: “Boy, dare to glare at your grandfather? Want to die?” He slapped him across the face, hitting Qin Zhonghai squarely on the cheek and knocking him to the ground.
Though Qin Zhonghai was someone who could bend and stretch, when in his life had he ever been so despised? After several humiliations, his heart was both pained and hateful, momentarily triggering all kinds of sad resentment. He was so angry his whole body shook, thinking: “You can kill me or rob me as you please, but treating me with such contempt—what do you take me for? Damn your grandmother! If I, Qin Zhonghai, don’t kill one or two of you, I won’t be able to swallow Meng Po’s soup!” His eyes blazed with three thousand zhang of fury, his silver teeth ground to bits, his whole body trembling uncontrollably.
The boatman thought he was afraid and shouted: “Useless! If you don’t crawl up, don’t blame grandfather for beating you!” Qin Zhonghai lay on the ground, neither responding nor answering. The boatman cursed a few times, then found a wooden club from the back of the cabin and beat Qin Zhonghai’s body randomly, shouting: “Cripple! Crawl out for me quickly!” Qin Zhonghai lowered his head and took the beating, considering himself already dead and paying no attention.
The bandits saw the two dragging things out and felt impatient, urging: “What are you doing? Just kill him with one knife and be done with it! You can’t even handle a cripple!” The boatman retorted: “Damn! If I kill him and the cabin is full of blood, will you clean it for me?”
The bandits heard his lazy tone and couldn’t help but spit and curse: “You’re both lazy and wicked—you can’t even be a proper bandit. What a waste!” In the midst of everyone’s cursing, they each walked out of the cabin, too lazy to care anymore.
The boatman, ridiculed by his companions, was naturally both ashamed and angry, directing all his rage at Qin Zhonghai. He raised the club and beat him fiercely, roaring: “Dead fat pig! Crawl out for me quickly!” Qin Zhonghai held his face and rolled on the ground to dodge, when suddenly a stick struck his forehead. Qin Zhonghai immediately screamed and fainted.
The boatman threw down the wooden club and frowned: “Damn, now I’ve killed him—I’ll have to carry him out!” Being lazy by nature, seeing Qin Zhonghai’s large and robust body, knowing it would definitely take effort to carry him, he sighed long and short, placed his hands under Qin Zhonghai’s armpits and pulled with all his might. But Qin Zhonghai was truly large, and after the boatman took only a few steps, he was already gasping and exhausted, unable to move.
The boatman wiped the sweat from his forehead, bent down and hoisted Qin Zhonghai onto his back, cursing: “Dead pig, full of fat, growing so big for what…” The boatman was lowering his head and complaining when he suddenly heard a cold laugh from his back: “Damn bandit! I grew so big just to give you a blade!”
The boatman hurriedly turned his head and saw Qin Zhonghai lying on his back, holding a steel blade in his hand, his tiger eyes blazing with an extremely fierce expression. The boatman was scared out of his wits, realizing Qin Zhonghai had been feigning unconsciousness. Just as he was about to beg for mercy, Qin Zhonghai had already gripped the steel blade and stabbed down with all his might. The blade handle came down with his body weight, and in a spray of fresh blood, the boatman’s organs were pierced through. He died on the spot and fell to the ground together with Qin Zhonghai.
Qin Zhonghai still had a fierce gleam in his eyes and laughed coldly: “Bastard thing, today I’ll let you see a real demon!” Saying this, he stuck out his tongue and licked the fresh blood on his hand, like a fierce ghost seeking vengeance.
The bandits waited for a while but didn’t see the boatman come out. Everyone felt strange and shouted: “Li Laowu! We don’t have time to waste with you—come out quickly!” The bandits called several times but heard no response, so they drew their blades and entered the cabin to investigate.
Everyone entered the cabin and saw Qin Zhonghai and the boatman lying face to face, both motionless, as if sleeping. The bandits were puzzled, not knowing what trick Li Laowu was playing. One person shouted: “Laowu! Didn’t you want to throw him in the water? Why are you sleeping?” After calling twice and seeing the two completely motionless, a tall, sturdy bandit walked over and crouched between the two men, turning the boatman’s body upright: “Li Laowu! Get up quickly!”
Now everyone could see clearly—the boatman’s face was turned up and his body was covered in fresh blood. He was already dead. The tall bandit was startled and hadn’t yet figured out what happened when suddenly Qin Zhonghai sat up and stabbed him in the heart. Though this blade lacked strength, its positioning was extremely precise, striking exactly between two ribs into the heart. Without much effort from the hand, it could penetrate deep into the heart—this was impossible without many years of blade technique foundation. The bandit wanted to cry out but had lost his voice. He waved his hands a few times and fell to the ground.
The bandits were greatly shocked and cried out: “The bastard is killing people!” With two companions dead in succession, the bandits were both shocked and angry, and were about to draw their waist blades to retaliate.
Though Qin Zhonghai had lost his martial arts, his reflexes were still extremely quick. Seeing everyone’s bodies move slightly, he immediately rolled to the ground. Knowing his hands were powerless to fight enemies, he put the steel blade in his mouth and stared at the bandits like a vicious dog.
The bandits saw his strange appearance and felt secretly afraid. One person mustered courage and shouted: “Everyone attack!” With shouts rising, everyone drew their steel blades and hacked at Qin Zhonghai. Qin Zhonghai’s eyes were red with killing—he only wanted to fight to the death. With the steel blade in his mouth, he charged at the bandits like a wild dog.
One person roared: “The cripple still dares to act wild!” In furious anger, he swung his blade at Qin Zhonghai, but the cabin space was narrow and the man’s martial arts were poor. His blade strike was too forceful and actually hit the cabin wall. Qin Zhonghai saw an opportunity and rolled along the ground, crashing into that bandit’s legs.
The man’s center of gravity was unstable and immediately fell. Qin Zhonghai pounced on him, pressed his right knee against the bandit’s waist, bit tightly on the blade handle, and used force to slash across the bandit’s throat.
In that man’s screaming, fresh blood splattered throughout the boat cabin, and another bandit died on the spot.
The bandits were shocked and furious, simultaneously raising their blades to chop down. Qin Zhonghai rolled under the table in response. Though he only had one leg remaining of his two, this foot was intact and was the only usable limb among his four extremities. He roared wildly and kicked out with his right foot, knocking over the oil lamp on the table. The lamp fell onto miscellaneous items and immediately caught fire. The flames spread and instantly affected the boat body. The bandits were alarmed and quickly retreated.
Qin Zhonghai lay on the ground with the steel blade in his mouth, turned his head to glare at the bandits, continuously growling low in his throat like a wild beast. The bandits saw him lying prone on the ground, covered in blood all over, with a hideous and terrifying tattoo on his back. For a moment they were scared out of their wits and cried: “This is a ghost!” In great alarm, they fled straight toward the cabin exit. Qin Zhonghai crawled rapidly with three limbs in pursuit to the cabin door, but by this time flames had sprung up at the cabin door, blocking his path.
Qin Zhonghai naturally couldn’t chase out either. Those few bandits, seeing him stop, didn’t dare to fight anymore and just boarded their boat, raised anchor, and fled in panic, not even caring about their companions’ corpses.
With his shoulder blades pierced, his left leg severed by punishment, three of his four limbs disabled, Qin Zhonghai nevertheless relied on his desperate madness to actually kill three bandits for burial with him. He relaxed his mouth and released the steel blade, and amidst the blood covering his body, he couldn’t help but burst into loud laughter. He roared at the sky and shouted: “Come on! Come over! You treacherous ministers and thieves, why don’t you come kill me? Haha! Haha!”
The boat body was on fire, and the flames were uncontrollable, spreading to his eyes in an instant. Qin Zhonghai now had a crazed appearance and suddenly laughed wildly: “Even if I die, I will die in the Yellow River! I absolutely won’t die together with you bunch of petty thieves!” In his roaring voice, he raised his head and rammed it against the cabin wall. Blood flowed freely from his forehead, but the wall didn’t break. Qin Zhonghai screamed wildly and rammed again with force. With a loud crack, he smashed a large hole in the wall planks, his body tilting forward and falling straight into the river.
It was deep winter at night, with nothing visible all around. The river water was like ice. Qin Zhonghai soaked in the river water, feeling his whole body trembling, his breathing involuntarily becoming rapid. In an instant, numbness reached his waist.
The river water surged and his body actually floated up. Qin Zhonghai knew death was imminent—he would either drown or freeze to death. But somehow, his heart felt only complete tranquility. He looked up at the sky full of stars and reflected on this life. Though he couldn’t claim to be an invincible hero, it had been wonderfully varied and thoroughly exhilarating! He let out a wild howl, instantly stirring his heroic spirit, and sang loudly:
Grandpa lives between heaven and earth!
Killing bandits and officials, playing with life!
What can the King of Hell do to me?
And how about Guanyin Bodhisattva!
Cannot bear the world’s unjust affairs,
Only because my nature is unyielding throughout life!
Raising my blade to kill at will following my heart,
What harm if I die tomorrow?
Qin Zhonghai laughed heartily and shouted loudly: “Jade Emperor, watch carefully! I, Qin Zhonghai, am coming!”
The river water carried him drifting with the current. He felt his body growing colder and colder. Knowing he couldn’t hold on much longer, he slowly closed his eyes and quietly awaited death’s arrival.
Just as he was about to lose consciousness, suddenly a great wave struck and actually lifted him into mid-air. Qin Zhonghai kept his eyes tightly closed but a smile appeared at the corners of his mouth: “Heaven finds me displeasing—even before death it wants to give me more suffering.” As he thought this, his body fell from mid-air, and with a pain in his body, he seemed to have crashed onto solid ground. Qin Zhonghai was startled—he was in the river, so how could he suddenly reach the shore? Could it be he had arrived at the Dragon Palace at the bottom of the river? He opened his eyes to look and saw that he was lying on a piece of ice.
Qin Zhonghai looked up at the sky and laughed loudly: “Heaven! You won’t let me die, will you? Could it be that in your mysterious divine will, you still want me to accomplish some great undertaking? Haha! Haha!” He laughed joyfully, but two streams of clear tears rolled down his cheeks.
The cold wind struck. Qin Zhonghai’s upper body was bare and he shivered continuously. Gradually, drowsiness grew thick. He knew that if he slept now, he would die on these drifting river waters, but his heart was full of self-destructive thoughts and he didn’t care about tomorrow’s affairs at all. With a grunt, he closed his eyes directly and fell into deep sleep.