Extra five: A lifetime of love

"I place this life of mine in your hands, miss. Sorry for the trouble of looking after it."

Ji Hanchu's first days in Seven Stars Valley were not particularly peaceful.

Closed to outsiders, Seven Stars Valley had welcomed its first "live-in son-in-law," and one from the Central Plains at that. He was already an object of considerable curiosity, and with the little mute spreading stories everywhere, unafraid of stirring up trouble, the rumors about Ji Hanchu grew ever more outlandish and romantically suggestive.

Half true and half false, the rumors claimed that he had originally been the scion of a distinguished family, only to be bewitched and lured back by their little junior sister Red Adornment, betraying his clan and his principles in a grand, earth-shaking affair worthy of the muddleheaded, benighted emperors in storybooks.

The benighted emperor had no idea he had become one. He merely thought Seven Stars Valley was extraordinarily lively. Everyone he met looked at him as though he were some rare treasure, and whenever they passed him, they smiled without a word, studying him with meaningful looks.

After enough of this, it really did make his hair stand on end.

So Ji Hanchu simply shut his doors to visitors.

But a single door could not contain the enthusiasm of the martial brothers. Half the people in Seven Stars Valley who wanted to meet Ji Hanchu came for the gossip about him and Red Adornment; the other half came for his saber skills, which were rumored to rival even Kaiyang's.

The first to arrive was Tianshu's second disciple, Red Adornment's second senior brother.

Her second senior brother was plump, with a benevolent smile, bearing an eighty-percent resemblance to the Maitreya Buddha enshrined in a temple hall. He called on Ji Hanchu most courteously and, after a cup of tea, stated his intention-he wanted to compete with Ji Hanchu in the art of poisoning.

Ji Hanchu said, "I'm a physician. Poisoning isn't my forte."

Her second senior brother looked troubled.

Clutching his ample belly, he wore a worried frown for so long that Ji Hanchu could hardly bear it. Just as Ji Hanchu was about to offer some comfort, he suddenly raised his head, his eyes shining brightly.

He slapped the table, scattered his carefully prepared poison into his tea, and said, "How about this? I'll drink this stuff, and you see if you can save me. If you bring me back alive, you win. If you can't, you lose. Deal?"

"..."

Her second senior brother boldly cupped his hands. "Come on, I'll drain mine first as a mark of respect!"

The cup of poison went down his throat in great gulps before Ji Hanchu could stop him.

The contest ended with Ji Hanchu spending six full hours finally snatching her second senior brother back from the King of Hell.

The second visitor was Tianxuan's disciple.

Tianxuan had an eccentric, sinister disposition, and each disciple he took was stranger than the last. Unfortunately, this visitor was the strangest of all. Though unmistakably a man, he dressed as a young woman, with sultry eyes, a soft, seductive voice, and an intonation that wound through a thousand turns like a song.

At the sight of Ji Hanchu, he flicked the red handkerchief in his hand and flung himself straight toward Ji Hanchu's arms, looking ready to burst into tears. "My darling, how long you've kept me waiting!"

"..."

Red Adornment watched him with a smile and stepped forward, carrying the Bone-Setting Whip.

"Move aside." She pushed Ji Hanchu behind her. "I'll handle this one."

The third visitor was Kaiyang's disciple. There was nothing showy about him. With a miaodao strapped to his back, he stood quietly before the door, yet a biting chill seemed to rush toward them.

Kaiyang's disciple said, "Fight me."

Red Adornment asked, "What if he wins?"

"He can be Kaiyang."

Red Adornment said, "No!"

Ji Hanchu asked, "What if I lose?"

Kaiyang's disciple said, "Let me have Red Adornment."

Ji Hanchu said, "No!"

Kaiyang's disciple frowned and reached behind him to draw his miaodao. The wind from its blade was icy and fierce, carrying a faint scent of cold iron and a chilling killing intent.

"Why make such a fuss?" he said. "If you lose, let Red Adornment take over, and I'll fight her next. I've wanted to experience the power of the Bone-Setting Whip for ages anyway. You'd both better understand this: here in Seven Stars Valley, our Kaiyang lineage is the true head of Seven Stars Valley. No one can surpass us. Tell your master to stop showing off in front of mine."

Red Adornment spat, "Pah!"

Every one of the Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper was strange and eccentric. Only Kaiyang lived like an ordinary saber-wielding wanderer. Though the seven lineages each specialized in different arts, he insisted on proving himself the "head of Seven Stars Valley," and even his disciples were fanatical about it.

In Tianshu's words, he lived in the most vulgar fashion imaginable. Whenever he raised his saber to challenge some expert, it was as though the words were written plainly across his face: "Look, I'm that idiot who insists on fighting for some bullshit title of 'number one under heaven.'"

Red Adornment turned, took both Ji Hanchu's hands, tightened his cuffs for him, then placed the Star Pendant in his palm with the utmost care.

"Ji San." She pointed at Kaiyang's disciple. "Beat him up!"

After the fight, Kaiyang's disciple left with his saber on his back.

Red Adornment fetched a needle and thread from the room and called sincerely after his retreating figure, "Senior brother, why not compete in needlework? I guarantee he's absolutely no match for you at this."

Kaiyang's disciple stumbled.

Holding the needle, Red Adornment laughed until tears came to her eyes.

The amusement had put her in an excellent mood, but she still drove every disciple who came to challenge him out of the house. When others continued to provoke them, she simply scattered Rebirth all around the perimeter. The poisonous powder turned to smoke upon contact with water, and once inhaled, it remained incurable.

She declared that if anyone else came near, she would splash tea straight at them. She would not spare even the Heavenly King himself any face.

She loved tormenting Ji Hanchu; that did not mean she enjoyed watching others torment him.

With that, peace finally returned.

It was nearing sunset. After eating, Red Adornment and Ji Hanchu had nothing to do and climbed onto the roof. Ji Hanchu sat while Red Adornment rested her head on his lap, savoring the tranquility in perfect comfort.

"Keep your distance from Kaiyang's lineage from now on, understand?"

It was not just Kaiyang. His disciples were all the same, each intent on having Ji San take over the position of "Kaiyang."

How very amusing. They had not even bothered asking whether she agreed.

Red Adornment hooked her fingers around his hand, stroking the lines of his palm, and said softly, "You attract not only women's attention but men's too. Perhaps I should simply hide you away, where no one but me can see you."

Ji Hanchu considered for a moment. "That would be fine."

"I didn't know they'd be so interested in you." Red Adornment closed her eyes, letting all her weight settle against Ji Hanchu. Wrinkling her nose, she said jokingly, "If I'd known, I certainly wouldn't have let them come. All this needless trouble."

Ji Hanchu said, "It's all right. This isn't the only time there's been trouble."

Red Adornment opened her eyes.

Meeting her gaze, Ji Hanchu realized that his words could be taken the wrong way. Afraid she would misunderstand, he hurried to explain, gathering the long hair away from her face to reveal her fair features, then lowering his head to look into her eyes.

"Everything that happened before, whether it involved Aunt Hongxiu or the Yin family's disciples, whether at Fishing Slumber Cottage or There Is an Inn-as long as it concerns you, I don't consider any of it trouble. Red Adornment, I'm willing to keep going to this 'trouble' for you forever."

He thought that would suffice, but Red Adornment did not answer. Instead, she froze briefly, then stared blankly at him.

Ji Hanchu traced her delicate eyebrows with his fingertip and gently brushed the space between them. "I was wrong. Don't be angry."

Red Adornment abruptly sat up, gripping his shoulders tightly. Staring straight at Ji Hanchu, she asked, "You remember?"

The sudden burst of delighted surprise in her eyes stung Ji Hanchu's own. Once, he had felt that this "hope" of hers scorched his heart. Looking back now, he had merely drawn a circle on the ground and made it his own prison.

Those memories were so wonderful. How could he bear to discard them?

Ji Hanchu's eyes were bright and clear, like sunlight breaking through clouds. He nodded in acknowledgment. "Yes."

Red Adornment reached up with her other hand to pinch his chin. "When did you remember? Everything, or just a little?"

Ji Hanchu showed none of the somewhat reserved bearing he maintained before outsiders. He let Red Adornment knead and mold him as she pleased, watching her with smiling eyes. "Unless I'm mistaken, it should be everything."

Red Adornment sprang to her feet, nearly knocking Ji Hanchu off the roof.

"You sneaky Ji San! When did your memories come back? You didn't even tell me?" Bending down, she patted his cheek. "What mischief were you secretly plotting? Confess. Who taught you to be so quietly wicked?"

Ji Hanchu caught her arm and pulled her into his embrace.

Red Adornment followed the motion and landed in his arms, surrounded by the fragrance of medicinal herbs. Cupping Ji Hanchu's face, she pecked him on the lips. "Now that you remember everything, do you still love me?"

Ji Hanchu said helplessly, "You already know the answer."

Red Adornment's face blossomed into a smile. She held Ji Hanchu, her heart pounding. "Ji San, I truly feel fulfilled now. Even if I died, I'd have no regrets."

"Don't talk nonsense. With me here, you won't die."

In his heart, he had already prayed for a hundred years-a hundred years that belonged to them.

The evening clouds glowed vermilion, spilling their splendor across the mortal world. In the dusk, they held each other quietly, their silhouettes stretching long beneath the eaves.

Before long, Ji Hanchu seemed to remember something. He reached out and lifted Red Adornment's wrist. A jade bangle of excellent quality circled her fair wrist. It was the love token he had given her, and a keepsake left by his father.

He had always remembered how, during that year he lay bedridden, he had drifted between lucidity and confusion. With a bowl of medicine, Ji Zhiyuan had swept away every trace of his past love, yet certain things had stubbornly remained in his mind.

He would hurt. He would think of getting better quickly. There was even a mad thought that grew like a thicket of thorns, winding around his heart, urging him, You might as well die too. Someone is still waiting for you underground.

He had thought it a hallucination born of prolonged illness, until the day he stood in the long pavilion, pondering why a heart-wrenching pain always lingered within him, refusing to be forgotten. A figure suddenly appeared behind him without warning, and he plunged into unexpected darkness. After that, he awoke in a shabby inn, opening his eyes to a lovely young woman in red.

"You're awake, Third Young Master Ji?"

"My surname is Grand, and my given name is Mama."

"What else could a man owe a woman? What do you say, Third Young Master Ji?"

When he first saw her, he had not actually understood his reaction. He had only felt his heart thrown into utter confusion, like a little deer crashing wildly about, impossible to call to a halt or turn back.

Only later had he understood that the feeling of crashing headlong into a wall came from falling in love with her at first sight for the second time.

The sun sank behind the mountains, its lingering glow stretching on.

There, in that dusky golden light, Ji Hanchu placed a kiss on Red Adornment's forehead with the utmost care.

Just as he had at the beginning.

"I place this life of mine in your hands, miss. Sorry for the trouble of looking after it."