Thousand Autumns

—IF YOU BRING UP THE TOPIC OF FABRIC ALTERATIONS, across all of Tongsu County, one would consider He Ji one of the most famous alteration business of them all.

Any outsider would think this. And the owner of He Ji, Su-niang, would think this as well.

She wasn’t very old—she hadn’t even turned thirty yet. Yet she lived as a widow for a little over ten years. Back when she had just married into her husband’s family, hardly two years passed before her husband died of an illness. At that time, Su-niang was pregnant with his child; her parents-in-law felt deeply guilty, and gave her money to open the fabric alterations business. Afterwards, when her parent-in-laws passed away, their family property was passed onto her brother-in-law. A shame that he was incapable, though. After several years, he’d squandered it all. On the other hand, it was Su-niang’s fabric alteration business that became bigger the more that she worked. She did not only open a business in Tongsu County, but she even had a branch of He Ji in the capital of Fengzhou, Liangquan County.

But Su-niang did miss her homeland. Although she had property in Liangquan County, she often remained in Tongsu. Today, Su-niang woke up bright and early to look over one of her stores. The shopkeeper, upon hearing that the business owner was coming, quickly came to welcome her.

At that moment, someone had come in from the outside.

“I’m sorry, keguan[50]. Our owner has come to audit accounts. For the moment, we aren’t...” The shopkeeper quickly approached him and said, smiling.

However, he only said half of what he had wanted to say, before he found himself awestruck by the other man’s facial features and imposing manner and unable to say more.

Yan Wushi frowned. “You aren’t doing business today?”

Su-niang pushed the shopkeeper away and said, sweetly: “We’re open, and we even came to greet you. Where does it look like we aren’t doing business? My employee was improper; allow me to apologize to you on his behalf, langjun. May I ask, what sort of fabric does langjun want to purchase today? We have ready-made clothes here, and many different styles as well. If you’d like to choose the material first, then the fastest we can have it prepared is two days.”

She had done merchant work for over ten years. Her first-hand knowledge and speculations were not like that of usual married women; but who would have thought that upon seeing this person, she felt as if she were looking at the sky from the bottom of a well.

His features and mannerisms were extraordinary. No senior official in their prefecture could even compare, let alone one of their county magistrates.

Merchants starting a business absolutely never have a reason to reject people at their door, especially not such a remarkable character as this one. What young woman would not feel a sudden rush of restlessness at sight of him, or even a sudden affection?

Even Su-niang’s smile had become more distinct at that moment.

Yan Wushi had wanted to pick out two outfits at first, but after hearing her words, instead had a change of heart: “In that case, you must have ready-made women’s clothes, correct?”

“Yes, of course!” Su-niang’s smile did not change, though she couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed deep down.

Such a handsome langjun as this looked quite proud and overbearing. Furthermore, he did not look like someone who could be controlled by the likes of a gentle and docile woman. Yet what was he doing here, personally buying clothes for some young woman?

Half a month earlier, the two of them had left the cave in the mountains and headed south. Up until yesterday, they had reached Tongsu County in Fengzhou, which was not far from Hanzhong, and decided to rest there.

Shen Qiao was of a quiet temperament; if he were left to practice wugong at the inn all day, he would not mind how dull it was. Yan Wushi, on the other hand, went out on his own.

For the purpose of keeping themselves safe, they would naturally refrain from going out at all before arriving at Chang’an. Anyone could see that this was the most appropriate thing to do. But this was impossible right from the start. In order to eat and room somewhere, you’d need to find an inn. If he was going to cower from fright at the smallest possibility of danger, then that wouldn’t be Yan Wushi.

He had wanted to purchase two sets of clothes before, but upon hearing Su-niang’s words, decided to change his mind.

Su-niang asked: “Does langjun wish to buy this for a lover, for his sister, or for his older relatives?”

“What’s the difference?” Yan Wushi asked.

Su-niang laughed: “I can tell that langjun hasn’t ever bought clothes for women before. This matter naturally has quite a lot to know about. If you’re buying clothes for your elders, then the colors shouldn’t be too bright. They should appear somewhat modest. Having fewer embroidered patterns is also a new style now[51]. If you are giving it to your little sister, then you can choose something in a light pink or light blue[52]. The skirts and sleeves can also have designs such as butterflies and roses and such. If this is for an elder, then such designs would be much too frivolous.”

“Then what about for a lover?” Yan Wushi said.

Su-niang repressed her disappointment: “If it’s for a lover, then just pick their favorite color and design. What color does your lover like?”

Yan Wushi gave it some thought. “Sky blue?”

“Sky blue is quite difficult to wear well, unless your lover’s skin is very fair.”

Yan Wushi smiled somewhat. “Their[53] skin is indeed quite fair.”

“Then would you like to purchase something already made, or select some cloth and have something made now?” Su-niang asked. “If you would like something already made, we have all sorts of clothes in any sort of measurement you need. How tall is this young woman?”

Yan Wushi purely wanted to take revenge and have Shen Qiao have a taste of what it was like to be disguised as a woman. But upon hearing Su-niang’s words, he could not help but find it rather interesting.

“They’re shorter than me by about half a head, and are rather thin.”

Su-niang was taken aback. “Shorter than you by only half a head? Then she’s quite tall for a woman! I don’t know if this store has anything in the size that you need. Are you not going to pick the designs then?”

Yan Wushi furrowed his brow. He looked her over once before saying: “Design? In that case, I think the design you’re wearing is quite nice.”

Su-niang’s heart began to beat quickly after he looked her over. At that moment, her eyes began to wander. She bit her lip and laughed as she said: “Does langjun really like the one I’m wearing?”

The two of them stood very close to one another. They were nearly touching.

The shopkeeper and shop assistant remained evidently calm seeing the owner like this. They had already closed the shop’s doors, and kept themselves away in another part of the shop.

Yan Wushi smiled somewhat. He pressed down on her chin and lowered his head so as to look at her closely. It seemed as though he wanted to kiss her.

Su-niang felt as though something were going to happen. Her cheeks became flushed, and her body felt suddenly limp and weak. Even her breath had become hotter.

“A shame that your clothes are so nice,” Yan Wushi said, “yet your face is hardly memorable. It’s an unreasonable waste of good fabric.”

Su-niang’s face became blank. It seemed that she was unable to react. After the man stepped back several steps, she finally came to as though she had just been in a dream. Her face paled, and she began, fuming with rage and through gritted teeth: “We aren’t doing business today! Why don’t you take your leave, langjun!”

What is more intolerable than saying that a woman is ugly? She wanted to tell him to get the hell out, but business people lived by the saying, amiability begets riches. Su-niang did not want to bring any trouble either; less difficulty was certainly better than more. It was just that the design on her chest rose and fell somewhat as she breathed, so it was clear that she was incredibly angry.

Yan Wushi sneered somewhat. “You couldn’t carry it on, and now you’re flying into rage from shame?”

He took out a fairly heavy pouch and set it on the table: “It must not be good for business if you get angry this easily. If you keep on frowning like that for a while, won’t you look much older?”

Su-niang angrily retorted: “You have such a venomous mouth! The way I see it, your lover must have suffered eight lives worth of bad luck to have someone like you favor them!”

Once she said this, she took the pouch with the intent to throw it at him. However, the moment that she took it into her hands, her face immediately changed color.

She saw that the shallow imprint the pouch left upon the mahogany table was the outline of an yin ji[54].

This table was made from wood, and certainly not from that of a wetland. A large rock would not be able to break it in half from being set upon it, much less a bag of silver money. Su-niang knew then that she had run into a man of high ranking. Her expression changed significantly. Finally, she forced her face into a smile: “Great langjun, please have mercy on me. Don’t waste your efforts on a woman like me! If you want some ready-made clothes in sky blue, then I’ll have someone look for some for you!”

Though she said this, deep down within her heart, she had already begun to hate Yan Wushi to death. Over and over, she cursed him, hoping that his lover would remain unsatisfied with him and eventually leave his side.

Yan Wushi naturally could not tell what Su-niang thought. And even if he did, he couldn’t care less. After buying the clothes, he had someone deliver it to the inn, and departed from the shop empty-handed, leaving Su-niang fuming.

The streets in this town were not as lively as that of the capital, but there were some people coming and going. Yan Wushi walked several steps, before suddenly coming to a stop.

He laughed softly, and said: “What little rat is wandering about, afraid of its own tail and refusing to show its face?”

He spoke softly and slowly. Yet to everyone else, it felt as if their ears were suddenly about to burst.

The common people did not understand why; however, after overcoming their shock, they kept their distance without thinking, so as to prevent from inviting disaster to their own selves.

Yan Wushi put his hands behind his back. He looked up and caught sight of the birds flying over the horizon. He looked completely carefree, yet he did not move.

“Before, when we had heard that Yan-zongzhu had been killed at the hands of the five greatest masters, our shizun felt so sorry for you for so long! Who would have thought that Yan-zongzhu was such an extraordinary person that he would live through such an event? It’s truly something to be respected!”

The coquettish laughter was sweet and pleasant to the ear. It was as though both far and near at the same time, drifting about without a resting place. However, an instant after uttering the word respected, a woman dressed in red suddenly appeared on top of the roof on Yan Wushi’s right.

Yan Wushi did not look in her direction. He said, insipidly: “You’re already here, yet you hide your head and tail. Hehuan Sect’s people are quite good at this, it seems. It’s not surprising that you relied on the country of Qi. But now that Qi has been felled, you’ve become stray dogs. Whose house will you run to serve next?”

“Yan-zongzhu, your words are truly ridiculous. Someone could have even thought that Huanyue Sect was noble and virtuous from just that. But the truth is that Huanyue Sect is a slave of Yuwen Yong’s, isn’t it? What a pity that Yuwen Yong’s life won’t be very long. Without your protection, I’m afraid that your disciples and subordinates must seem even more wretched than that of a stray dog!”

A cold laugh accompanied her words. Before Yan Wushi, another person appeared.

If Shen Qiao were here, he would have recognized who it was with a glance.

“If they aren’t capable and need to rely on my protection for everything, then they should save me the trouble and hurry up and die faster for me!” Yan Wushi looked at Xiao Se and shook his head.[55] “And you. My sympathies to Yuan Xiuxiu for taking in an ingrate of a disciple who spends his days fooling about with Sang Jingxing. But Sang Jingxing’s eyes aren’t anything special either. That disciple of his, Huo Xijing. Though his behavior was completely mindless, at least his wugong was somewhat presentable. And here you are. Not only do you have a completely useless brain, even your wugong is completely worthless. Looks like Hehuan Sect is fated to get worse with each generation.”

Xiao Se was enraged, yet he grinned: “Yan-zongzhu, you’re showing off your words so quickly. Hopefully you won’t kneel and beg for forgiveness after!”

With Xiao Se and Bai Rong’s skills together, they could be considered first-class in all of jianghu. If the two of them were to join forces, then with Yan Wushi’s present condition, it would be quite difficult if he wanted to repel them. However, Yan Wushi’s present objective was not fixed on either of them at the moment. Rather, it was on the person slowly approaching him from behind.

“Were you all waiting here this long just for me?”

Bai Rong spoke in a sweet voice: “We heard that Xueting-chanshi met with you once in Weizhou, and lost track of Yan-zongzhu afterwards. Yan-zhanglao[56] said that Yan-zongzhu must certainly have gone to Chang’an, but since you were avoiding your enemies, you would surely not take the shortest route there. Therefore, we took the long way around, and decided to wait a bit in Fengzhou. We didn’t think that things would be just as Yan-zhanglao said!”

“However, Yan-zongzhu, there is no need to be upset. Even if you were to have taken a different route, it would be no use. Hanzhong has the Liuhe-bang’s people, and Yangzhou has Tujue’s people. You’re surrounded no matter where you go. There’s nowhere you can escape to. If you have to blame something, then blame it on the fact that your enemies are just too many. Everyone in the world wants to end you. Even if a god were to come help, it would be no use.”

The person who said this was Yan Shou. He approached them step by step, his pace incredibly slow, and quite firm. His eyes did not part from Yan Wushi even the slightest bit, as though he were a cheetah, prepared and waiting for action from its prey. At any time, he could pounce on him and use his sharp teeth to tear his enemies apart.

Yan Wushi burst into laughter: “God? I’ve never believed in any god!”

The moment he said this, he made his first move![57]