1、Part BI got up late this morning.Now, Im late.Im sorry. Im late.May I come in?Come in, please.Go to your seat.Why were you late today?I got up late this morning.Dont be late again.When did you go to bed last night?At 11:00.Why did you go to bed so late?I watched a football game on TV.You are a littl
2、e football fan.football fan 足球迷足球迷What did you do last night?I watched a football game on TV.What did you do last night?I read a story book.What did you do last night?I did my homework.What did you do yesterday?I watched a film at the cinema.What did you do yesterday?I did some shopping at the super
3、market.What did you do yesterday?I played the violin in my bedroom.On the fifth day, Wen Chung came to Feng Lis mansion and saw a very worried chamberlain. He asked I havent seen Minister Feng for a few days now. The King is worried and ordered to me to visit. Did Minister Feng come down sick?The ch
4、amberlain said Minister Feng is healthy, but.but.But?Minister Wen is the best friend of Miister Feng. You can say things to him that are not appropriate for us to say. Why dont you try to talk some sense into him?Wen Chung was baffled Sense? Whats wrong with Minister Feng?Minister Feng fell love wit
5、h that little shepherdess. Every morning he leaves with her and dont return until after sundown. He wont permit any guards following him. He will not be bothered even when I have urgent affairs.Wen Chung laughed and thought When Brother Feng was living in the kingdom of Chuh, everyone called him Fen
6、g the Crazy. He never does things like other people.At that time, Feng Li was sitting on a mountain side grassland130 and telling Ah Ching the story of the goddess Hsiang Fei. Ah Ching was sitting close by his side and listened to him intent, her large bright eyese never left his face. Suddenly she
7、said Hsiang Fei is really that beautiful?Feng Li said Her eyes are clearer and brighter than the water in this mountain stream.Ah Ching said Does she have fish in her eyes?Feng Li continued Her skin is like the clouds, but fairer.Ah Ching said Are there birds flying in those clouds?Feng Li continued
8、 obliviously131 Her lips are softer than the petal132 of this flower and redder. Her lips are moist, even more than the dews on this petal. When Hsiang Fei stands next to the river, the beauty of her reflection made all the riverside flowers wilt133 in shame. Even fish dare not swim in water for fea
9、r of rumpling134 her reflection. When her white hand is dipped into the river, it was so soft that it could almost melt into the water.Ah Ching said You saw her, didnt you. How else can you describe her so clearly?Feng Li said I saw her. I saw her very, very clearly.Of course, he was referring to Si
10、 Shi, not the goddess Hsiang Fei.He looked at the north. His eyes looked beyond a wide, roaring river. Is the beauty in the royal palace of Wu. Is she with King Fu Chai? Is she thinking about me?Ah Ching said Feng Li! Your beard is strange, can I touch it?Feng Li thought Is she weeping, or laughing?
11、Ah Ching said Feng Li, you have two strands136 of white beard, just like my goats.Feng Li thought When were separated, she wept on my shoulder. Her tear soaked half of my robe. I never washed that robe. My tears were mingled137 with hers on that robe.Ah Ching said Feng Li. Can I pull out one of your
12、 beard? I will pull gently. You wont feel a thing.Feng Li thought She said she loved riding in a boat and float with the currents. After I take her back, I will not be a court minister anymore. I will ride a boat with her, floating in rivers and lakes, for the rest of my life.Suddenly, he felt a sha
13、rp pain on his chin. Ah Ching pulled out a strand135 of his beard. She laughed prettily138. Suddenly the laugh was cut off and she said Youre here again!A green shadow flashed as Ah Ching shot forward. A green blur139 and a white blur was moving quickly around each other.Feng Li cried gladly Grandpa
14、 Whites here! Its a while before the two combatants slowed down enough for him to get a good look. Then he got a great surprise.The one fighting Ah Ching wasnt human. It was a white ape.The white ape, too, was holding a bamboo stick. The white ape performed intricate sword forms. The whooshing140 so
15、und of the stick signaled the great strength it put into each form. But everytime he attack, Ah Ching was always able to block or redirect each blow and counterattack using even more intricate sword forms.When Ah Ching fought the Wu swordmen, the forms she used were minimal141. Only now Feng Li witn
16、essed the vast skill Ah Ching wielded. He was no expert in swords, but he had looked at the Yueh swordmen train for many years. Now, he realized that the best swordmen of Yueh were but children playing with toys when compared to Ah Ching and Grandpa.The white apes attacks sped up faster and faster.
17、Ah Ching slowed down instead. She stood still, but each time she thrusted with her bamboo stick, the white ape was forced to jump back.Ah Ching forced the white ape three steps, then she pulled back her stick and stood still. The white ape held his stick in two hands and jumped to attack. Feng Li sa
18、w the strength of the attack and cried out Watch out! Ah Chings stick moved too fast to be seen. There were two muffled142 sounds of impact, then the white apes bamboo stick dropped to the ground. The white ape howed and jumped up to a tree. Then it leaped away. The howl was intense, but became mute
19、r as the it went farther away. The howl reverberated143 long after the white ape was gone.Ah Ching turned back and sighed Grandpa broke both of his arms. Now he wont come play with me anymore.Feng Li said You broke his arms?Ah Ching nodded Grandpa is very angry today. Three times, he tried to leap o
20、ver and kill you.Feng Li said in surprise Kill me? Why?Ah Ching shook her head I dont know.Feng Li became scared in secret If Ah Ching didnt stop it, that white ape can kill me, easy as blowing away a pile of ash!The next morning, Ah Ching faced twenty of the best swordmen of Yueh alone. Feng Li kne
21、w that Ah Ching could not teach other people how to use the sword the way she did, so the only way was for the Yueh swordmen to imitate her.The problem was no Yueh swordmen could last three passes from her.Whenever Ah Chings bamboo stick moved, her opponent either lost his sword, or got stabbed in s
22、ome delicate area.The next day, she defeated thirty swordmen. The third day, thirty more lost.The fourth day, Feng Li went to ask her for another lesson, but he could not find her. He went to her home, but the house was empty. Feng Li sent hundreds of his servants and guards into the mountains to lo
23、ok for her, but no one could find any trace of her.The eighty Yueh swordmen didnt learn the true sword skill from Ah Ching, but they saw the smallest portion of the ultimate sword skill. All the swordmen now knew the true height sword skill could go. The eighty swordmen tried to teach the small port
24、ion they could understand to their comrades. Even this pale shadow of a pale shadow of the ultimate skill was enough, Yueh swordmen became invincible.King Kou Chiang ordered Hsieh Chu to forge thousands of sharp swords.Three years later, Kou Chiang attacked Wu. The armies of Yueh and Wu met next to
25、a lake. Five thousand Yueh swordmen marched forward. Wu swordmen met them. Yueh swords flashed and the Wu army was shattered.King Fu Chai retreated to Yu Hong Mountain. The army of Yueh followed. The second battle ensued. The Wu army was again defeated. Fu Chai committed suicide in order to avoid th
26、e cruel fate Kou Chiang had in store for him. Yueh took the capital of Wu.Feng Li led one thousand swordmen and rushed to King Fu Chais resort palace. That was where Si Shi lived. He ran into the palace, shouting Yi Kwan! Yi Kwan!He ran past a long corridor, his footstep echoed clearly. The corridor
27、 was hollow underneath144. Si Shi walked lightly, the rhythm of her steps was more enchanting145 than any music. Fu Chai built this palace, this corridor in order to listen to the melody of her footsteps.At the other end of the corridor, music came, like the sound of a happy mandolin, like the clear
28、 sound of a zither. A soft voice said Shao Bo, is that really you?Feng Li felt blood rushing upward from his chest and shouted Its I. Its I. I have come for you. His own voice seemed like the voice of a stranger, speaking from far away. He ran forward with uneven146 steps.The music came down the cor
29、ridor, a soft body entered his embrace.The spring night was meltingly warm. Flower fragrance147 floated through the curtains, entering the chambers148 of the resort palace. Feng Li and Si Shi talked about their longing149 for each other.Suddenly the sound goat penetrated150 into their awareness151.F
30、eng LI said You cant forget you homeland? You have goats here?Si Shi shook her head. She wondered about the goats, but she couldnt think of anything else in the presence of the man she loved. She held Feng Lis hand, and fiery152 blood flowed faster through their arteries153.Suddenly, the voice of a
31、woman sounded Feng Li! Bring out you Si Shi. Ill kill her!Feng Li stood up. Si Shi felt his palm suddenly turning cold. Feng Li recognized Ah Chings voice. Her voice came from outside of the resort palace.Feng Li was fearful and puzzled. Why does she want to kill Yi Kwan? Yi Kwan had never wronged h
32、er. Then he understood Shes not really a simple village girl. She always liked me. The understanding only made him more fearful.He had gone through many, many difficult decisions as well as dangerous situations. The fear he felt when he was trapped with Kou Chiang in a Wu siege was far less than wha
33、t he felt now. Si Shi felt his palm trembbling and covered with cold sweat.Feng Li was not afraid of his own death. He feared for Si Shi.Feng Li pulled himself under control and said I will go see this person. He released Si Shis hand and walked out of the palace.Eighteen swordmen followed him. They
34、 all heard Ah Chings cry. They were baffled and curious. Feng Li oly saw the clear moonlight outside, but no one was visible. He cried out loudly Lady Ah Ching, please come here. We have things to talk about. But he heard no reply. He waited, but Ah Ching did not come. He ordered one thousand armore
35、d soldiers and one thousand elite154 swordmen to be moved to the resort palace.He returned to Si Shi and held her hands again. He didnt say anything. He was planning as he never planned before Should I let one of the servant maids pretending to be Si Shi and let Ah Ching kill her? Should I commit su
36、icide before Ah Ching so she will spare Si Shi? Should I order two thousand archers155 surrounding this place and shoot Ah Ching full of arrows if she tries to force her way in? Every plan he had was flawed. He also didnt want to kill Ah Ching, who had made the destruction of Wu possible. He stared
37、at Shi Si. Suddenly he felt warmth in his heart Its good that well die this way. At least we spend sometime together before we die together.Hours passed. Si Shi felt that Fengs hand became warmer. He lost his fear and began to smile.The rising sun cast its rays through the window.Suddenly the the so
38、und of a fight came from outside the palace door. Then the incessant156 sound of weapons dropping to the ground. The sound drew closer and closer, like a giant serpent worming its way into the palace. Then the sound of dropping weapons came from the walkways just outside the room they were in. Two t
39、housand warriors were not enough to stop Ah Ching.Ah Chings voice said Feng Li, where are you?Feng Li said calmly Ah Ching, Im here.Before he even finished the word here, the curtain parted and a green shadow came flying in. Ah Ching, dressed in her usual green stood before them. She pointed157 her
40、bamboo stick at Si Shi. She stared at the face of Shi Si, the killing158 rage on face gradually disappeared, replaced with disappointment and self-pity, then it changed to surprise, admiration and finally worship. She whispered There.there really is such beauty under heaven! Feng Li, she is even mor
41、e.more beautiful than you described. Her slender waist turned. With a cry, she flew up through the window. The cry went farther and farther until its reverberation159 was left.The surviving guards ran inside the room. One of them bowed Minister, are you all right? Feng Li merely dismissed them with
42、a wave of his hand. Then he held Si Shis hand and said Lets change into the clothes of commners. Well go rowing a boat upon Lake Tai and never return to this place.Happiness shone from Si Shis eyes. Suddenly she frowned and she reached toward her heart. Ah Chings bamboo stick didnt touch her, but th
43、e pure chi from the stick had reached into her body and did her some slight harm.In the next two thousand years, all people know that the most beautiful image in the world was Si Shi holding her hands in front of her bosom160.Where are they now?King Kou Chiang finally got his vengeance, but somethin
44、g had happened to him during all those years when the only emotion he could feel was hate. Feng Li must have sensed it. He resigned his post and told his buddy161 Wen Chung to resign with him. He said Kou Chiang is someone who you can depend on during hard times, but it will be impossible to share g
45、ood times with him. Wen Chung didnt believe his old friend. He believed that he could finally enjoy the rewards he deserved.Feng Li disappeared from history. Some said that he became a hermit162. Some said that he became a merchant prince who owned the wealth of kingdoms. Si Shi became the Chinese v
46、ersion of Helen, the beauty who destroyed a great kingdom. Some said that Si Shi went with Feng Li and they lived happily ever after. Some said that Si Shi died when Kou Chiangs wife, fearing losing her husband, tied a rock to the womans back and sank her in a lake, gloating Now, you never have to g
47、row old. You can pick the ending you prefer.Kou Chiang became as Feng Li predicted, cruel and merciless. Wen Chung was forced to commit suicide when he was wrongfully charged with treason. The end he inflicted163 upon Wu Tzu-shi became his own end. Kou Chiang became full of pride. He made war with t
48、he great powers of northern China. The wars brought no decisive victory. Then he died. After his death his kingdom fell apart. Eventually, Chuh absorbed the territories of Wu and Yueh. The Yueh people fled south. Over the centuries, they were pushed farther south by the expanding Chinese empire unti
49、l they entered present day Vietnam. They are there still.Recently, an archaeological excavation164 in Hunan uncovered two bronze swords. One of them was thought to be the sword of Fu Chai. The other was attributed to be the sword owned by Kou Chiang. The legends of the precious swords have some basi
50、s in fact. If anyone know more about the archaeological findings, please e-mail me. The swords Fish Intestine and Defeater of Evil were buried with King Ho Lu, Fu Chais father. The locals swore that they periodically saw a white tiger standing upon the tomb of Ho Lu. The white tiger was the symbol o
