Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Late that night, the inn did indeed erupt in commotion.

This was Chen Shu’s first time down the mountain, on her own without her senior brother or senior sister. Her nerves were already frayed by the day’s tumultuous events, making deep meditation elusive. She had only just managed to achieve a semblance of quiet sitting on the old, creaking wooden bed when piercing neighs shattered her calm. Getting up for water, she heard the constant clamor from the courtyard outside her thin wall. It was loud enough to be distracting but remained indistinct – a persistent intrusion that began after the horse cries and refused to fade, grating like the buzzing of mosquitos whether she focused on it or not.

Finally, after a heavy, booming crash, the entire inn plunged back into silence. Chen Shu had managed restraint until then, but the abrupt quiet proved too tantalizing. Curiosity overpowered her; she padded over and pushed open the wooden window.

The night air was clear as water. Across the distance, she could see the stable in the rear courtyard had a large hole torn in its wall. The churned mud lay in utter disarray, chaotically stamped with countless hoofprints. The courtyard gate stood wide: one half hung askew against the stone wall, the other lay broken off, its remaining stump swaying slowly back and forth in the moonlight as if just flung violently against the stone with enough force to raise a cloud of dust.

Chen Shu stared blankly for a long moment, murmuring to herself, “…Is it always this chaotic down the mountain?” Before she could dwell further, a knock sounded at her door, accompanied by the faint flicker of candlelight leaking beneath it.

“Chen Shu?” The voice beyond the door was familiar, probably Yun Shen’s. Receiving no answer, he gave another patient rap and called out more insistently, “Chen Shu? Answer if you hear me!”

Chen Shu snapped out of her daze. Hastily, she closed the window. “I’m here! I’m… I was meditating!”

She hurried over to the door, fumbling with the latch before pulling it open. Yun Shen stood outside as expected, half his face illuminated by the warm glow of his candle. His expression was utterly serious.

“Why didn’t you answer? Is something wrong?”

“I was meditating,” Chen Shu explained. Seeing his frown deepen without an ounce of softening, she stuck her tongue out sheepishly. “Alright, fine! I couldn’t meditate… I was too busy watching the commotion outside – what happened in the courtyard?”

“A band of mounted bandits rode in, stole some things, and fled,” Yun Shen stated, lifting the candle to peer more carefully into her room. “The main thing is you’re unhurt. Mounted Bandits usually strike once and move on; they won’t be back tonight. I won’t keep you; try to rest.”

“What could happen to me?” Chen Shu scoffed, utterly unfazed. Instead of answering his concern, she slipped past him, craning her neck to peer down the pitch-black hallway. Scattered slants of moonlight and feeble torchlight filtering through windows barely illuminated a few guests shuffling about.

“Were they robbed? I didn’t hear anyone breaking in!”

The few men who had been conversing in hushed tones seemed to hear her question, entirely unguarded, and abruptly stopped their discussion, all turning their heads to look at both of them.

One of them stood closer, his figure familiar. Upon a second glance, who could it be but that Inn boy from downstairs? He approached them, offering Chen Shu a reassuring smile, and said, “It’s not that anyone broke in; those vicious bandits were crafty and didn’t dare enter the guest rooms. They robbed the fine horses in the stables. The matter is settled now. The inn is discussing with several guests how to report this to the authorities or hire some heroes to deal with the bandits. Guards will be posted for the rest of the night, so please rest easy.”

“She’s not worried about encountering bandits at night,” Yun Shen declared, stepping forward with his long legs to block half of Chen Shu’s view. He gave a light chuckle and answered the Inn boy on her behalf. “With this young lady’s ‘bravery,’ she’d probably be delighted to run into those mounted bandits again.”

Unaware of the sarcasm in his words, Chen Shu peered around his shoulder and the wall, nodding vigorously at the Inn boy in excitement. “Yes! You really don’t need to worry. If more bandits come, and you truly cannot hold them off, just call for me! After all, I’ve cultivated for many years, and while I may not have much else, dealing with a mere few horse thieves is no trouble for me!”

The Inn boy dared not agree, nor contradict the esteemed guest. He stammered wordlessly, but when he glanced up at Yun Shen, he saw Yun Shen’s gaze remained entirely fixed on Chen Shu—even as he’d answered, he hadn’t looked away for a moment.

Even among traveling companions, be they old and young, or showing mutual care, such tension was rare. Thus the Inn boy drew his own conclusion, smiled again, and said, “What you say is true, miss. It’s just that the bandits have fled far away, and the inn’s resources are limited. Whether it’s the guests’ horses or the ones that belonged to the inn, nearly all were taken. Even if we were to pursue them now, it would be too late.”

Who could have foreseen that after all his carefully crafted words, after pleading for so long, Chen Shu only caught the tail end of his sentence? Her eyes brightened immediately as she exclaimed, “That’s right! Why not pursue them now? These mounted bandits are robbers and plunderers, doing despicable deeds. Why hasn’t anyone chased them down to teach them a lesson?”

Yun Shen finally cast a light glance at the Inn boy before turning back to answer Chen Shu word for word. “Didn’t you hear the innkeeper say they’ve fled far away? The horses are stolen! Where would you chase them, and how?”

“Who needs horses?” Chen Shu patted her chest and flashed the Inn boy a smile. “Normally, I fly on my sword, traveling thousands of miles in a day. What use are horses? Sir, if you’re willing, I shall go now and retrieve all the goods stolen by those mounted bandits!”

Poor Inn boy! Not only had he suffered a robbery at the inn that day, but now he had to deal with Chen Shu deep into the night. His strained smile was barely sustained, but the darkness saved him, for Yun Shen held only a faint candle whose weak flames illuminated her face directly. Yet she showed no fear at all, merely gazing intently at Yun Shen, awaiting his next words.

“I was saying, there’s no need to go to extremes—” Yun Shen continued, one hand holding the candle forward so the glow fell upon her. Her expression held no trace of anxiety; she stared unflinching at Yun Shen, anticipating her reply. “But venturing alone into a bandit camp in the dead of night? I know you, miss, possess remarkable skill and formidable swordsmanship. But I am nothing but a frail scholar—I dare not fly among the clouds; I cannot leap rooftop to rooftop. I fear I cannot accompany you.”

Only now did Chen Shu notice the stern chill in Yun Shen’s tone—it seemed genuine. Curious and undaunted by the flame, she stretched her neck, rising onto her toes to sneak a closer look at him.

“Has Brother Yun grown angry?” she asked.

Before her words faded, Yun Shen’s expression remained austere, betraying no anger. “Why would I be angry? If merely stating the facts counts as anger, then this useless and frail reputation clings to me of my own doing. What concern is it of yours?”

“I heard you don’t want me to pursue those bandits,” she pressed on anyway. “But why is that? Is fighting bandits and doing good deeds not honorable? If I lost my sword, I’d also want a kind soul to recover it for me!”

“Though bandit-fighting is indeed good and righteous,” Yun Shen lifted a finger toward the uncomfortable Inn boy, “this host is already seeking righteous heroes. If none are found, the authorities will handle it. And you, a swordsman from the Jianghu’s wild reaches, who knows only the sword and not the ways of the world—how can you tell whether these bandits are simple looters or seeking revenge? How will you know whether captured bandits deserve imprisonment or execution? To whom must they be sent? So why rush to display your might? If you saw two dogs barking at each other on the street, would you also step in to judge their dispute and impose order?”

“Why not?” Chen Shu asked, genuinely curious. “Don’t you like dogs?”

The candle flame flickered faintly. Yun Shen paused; though he was eloquent, he found no rebuttal for a moment, letting Chen Shu continue. “Besides, doing good deeds is about acting with a clear conscience. If I mess up with good intentions, I deserve punishment. If everyone acted with such timid hesitation as you described, how could I ever emerge from the mountains to search for my sword? Or how could you roam the realm?”

“I don’t need to roam the realm,” Yun Shen uttered dismissively.

“Fine, you don’t need to,” Chen Shu insisted firmly. “But if you wish to sever our partnership over this, I won’t stop you. I’ll simply bid you safe travels and remember yesterday’s kindness. If fate allows our paths to cross again someday, I would repay it.” With that, she turned to the Inn boy to ask about the bandits’ whereabouts.

It goes without saying that the Inn boy, having witnessed the entire quarrel without interjecting once, was thoroughly stunned. He barely managed to snap out of it. Uncertain if he actually believed Chen Shu’s words or simply wanted to smooth things over and end the ruckus in the corridor so late at night, he cried out, “Oh, miss, if you truly wish to help… We still have two old horses harnessed to a carriage at the yard. These are usually for transporting esteemed guests. They’re worn out and spooked, unlikely to endure much…”

“Where are they?” asked Chen Shu.

“In the back courtyard—”

Before the Inn boy finished, Chen Shu spun toward Yun Shen and declared: “I’ll drive you there in this carriage—that should settle it!” She then flew forward, seized Yun Shen, and hauled him through a window despite her slender arms and legs—dragging the fully grown man away into the moonlight. The Inn boy stood stunned in the corridor, the account books and keys he’d been holding clattering to the floor. When he stumbled to the window to peer out, the carriage in the courtyard had already begun to move.

Under the moonlight, one could not make out whether Yun Shen had been forcibly bundled into the carriage. But the figure holding the reins was unmistakably small, her hair tied in a ponytail. It was clearly Chen Shu.

The two aged horses let out a long whinny as Chen Shu cracked her whip randomly through the air — whap-whap! Though they were ancient and had been panicked moments before, with this crack, they surged forward more spiritedly than the finest blood steeds, charging from the inn gates as if possessed. The Inn boy, now gaping by the window, recalled how these tired horses trudged slowly even when transporting guests. He had never seen them race at such speed! As the carriage careened straight toward the inn’s already shabby outer fence, he awoke to the massive problem he’d brought upon himself.

In desperation, he opened his mouth to yell “Stop!”, but the command died in his throat before it ever escaped.

He saw: the carriage aimed not for the fence but over it — and soared into the vast, unbounded sky.