Seeing tears brimming in her eyes, Li Mochou thought she was worried about her daughterâs safety. So she urged, âGuo Fu Ren [Madame Guo], your daughter is only a month old. Sheâs gone through quite a catastrophe but not even a single hair on her head is damaged. She was born as pretty as a doll [jade snow]. Even a she-devil, who killed people without batting an eye like me, likes her very much. She must have been born with a lucky life⌠the life that will change misfortune into fortune. And for all that, you can be at peace. Let the two of us go look for her together.â
Huang Rong wiped away the tears with her shirt sleeve and thought that what Li Mochou said was quite right. She also thought, âHonesty is the best way. Later on, Iâll let people think badly of me but I wonât think badly of people.â Then she stretched out her hand to unseal Li Mochouâs âJade Pearlâ point [Xuan Ji] again and said, âLi Dao Zhang [Sister Li] is willing to go find my daughter with me, Iâm very grateful. But if you have an important matter to attend to, I can see you later.â
Li Mochou said, âWhat important matter? The most important thing is to find this little baby. You wait a minute!â Having said that, she rushed to the big hole inside a big tree and untied a rope on a leopardâs foot. Then she slapped its behind and said, âOff you go.â That leopard let out a low roar and quickly disappeared into the long grass. Puzzled, Huang Rong asked, âWhat did the leopard do?â With a laugh, Li Mochou said, âThat was your daughterâs âwet-nurseâ.â
Huang Rong smiled faintly and the two people headed back into town. Then they saw Guo Fu standing at the road that led into town. She was waiting impatiently for her mother.
Seeing Huang Rong, Guo Fu jumped up with joy and called out, âMa [Mother], little sister wasâŚâ She cut herself off in mid-sentence when she unexpectedly saw that standing behind her mother was Li Mochou and she couldnât help being frightened. She prepared herself to fight. In past times, sheâd heard Wu Di Xiong [The Wu Brothers] say that Li Mochou killed their mother, so in her heart this was the most evil person on earth.
Huang Rong said, âLi Dao Zhang [Sister Li] is helping us search for your little sister. What did you say about your sister just now?â
Guo Fu replied, âMei Mei [Sister] was kidnapped by Yang Guo. And he also snatched my little red horse. You look at this sword.â Having said that, she raised a bent sword to show her mother and said, âHe used his empty shirt sleeve to strike it. The sword hit the corner of a wall and it turned out like this.â
Huang Rong and Li Mochou asked at the same time, âUsing his shirt sleeve?â
Guo Fu replied, âYes, it was really weird! Who would have thought heâd learned a devil Kung fu.â
Huang Rong and Li Mochou looked at each other in amazement. The two of them naturally knew that a person with extremely profound internal energy could definitely turn silk into a stick, or use a soft material to strike a hard object. However, even if such a renowned and talented master could be found, he would still need thirty or forty years of practice to reach that level. At a very young age, Yang Guo surprisingly had reached this high stage. And this was extremely rare. As Huang Rong heard that her daughter was taken by Yang Guo, she felt quite relieved. Li Mochou, on the other hand, thought to herself, âThis boyâs marvelous Kung Fu must be the result of learning from my masterâs Jade Heart Manual. Right now I have Guo Fu Ren [Madame Guo] with me. If I help her get her daughter back, she will help me snatch the manual. Iâm the first disciple of the sect. Even though Shi Mei [Apprentice Sister] was Masterâs favorite, sheâd already broken the sectâs rule. How could I let the manual fall into a manâs hand?â And with this thought, she felt herself quite righteous.
Huang Rong had tracked down Yang Guoâs direction and said, âFuâer, you donât have to go back to the Peach Blossom Island anymore. Weâll go find Yang Da Ge [Big Brother Yang] together.â
Guo Fu was very pleased, and said, âOkay, Okay!â But then when she thought that she would have to see Yang Guo, her face turned completely pale.
Huang Rongâs face was grim and she said, âWhen you see him again; donât ask him if heâs forgiven you. You have to sincerely take the blame and apologize.â
In her heart, Guo Fu didnât want to submit so she said, âWhy do I have to do it? Isnât he the one kidnapping Mei Mei [Sister]?â
Huang Rong simply rephrased Li Mochouâs words and said, âIf he really had an evil intention, do you think your sister would still live today? Also, if he didnât just hit your sword but rather aimed at your small head, donât you think right now this would be quite a pretty scene?â
Hearing her motherâs words, Guo Fu still couldnât help but shiver inside. She secretly thought, âIs that to say heâs really shown mercy?â But since she had been spoiled since she was little she still argued, âHeâs snatched my sister away; naturally he is on his way to the Passionless Valley!â
Huang Rong shook her head and said, âNo, he would definitely go back to Mount Zhongnan.â
Guo Fu pursed her lips and said, âMa, you are actually helping him! If he really had a good intention, why wouldnât he bring Mei Mei back to us in Xiangyang? For what reason would he have to take her to Mount Zhongnan?â
Huang Rong sighed and said, âYou and Yang Da Ge [Big Brother Yang] grew up together. For all that you still donât understand his character! Heâs always been arrogant and heâs never taken kindly to insults. You cut off his arm. He could have taken your life but he didnât have the heart to. But for this matter, he also wouldnât back down. He took your sister away to make us worry. When time passes and his anger disappears, heâll just bring your sister back to us. Have you understood? You accused him of stealing your little sister so he simply did it to show you that he could!â
Huang Rong returned to the small restaurant that they just visited. She borrowed stationary and penned a short letter. Then she gave the store partner two silver coins for him to deliver the letter to Guo Jing in Xiangyang.
That man said, âGuo Da Sha [Hero Guo] protects our borders and keeps our mind at ease. He really is our peopleâs Buddha. If we little people can help in anyway, weâll not hesitate.â He was not willing to take the money. He picked up the letter and happily left. Guo Fu saw that many people revered her father like this; she was very pleased in her heart.
The three people bought mules and set out toward Mount Zhongnan. Guo Fu didnât like Li Mochou and they rarely talked on the way. When she bumped into Li Mochou by chance and couldnât avoid talking, her expression would turn cold. They started traveling in the morning and stopped at night to rest. The journey was smooth. But this afternoon, while the three of them rode in a line, they saw someone speeding her horse towards them.