A couple of days later, Shizun found him outside doing laundry at the river early one morning just an hour after dawn, the air still crisp and the sky stained with rose and gold. Binghe was scrubbing and beating clothes on a flat rock at the river's edge, his sleeves pushed up past his elbows.
"I have to go out on missions for at least the next few days," his Shizun said, as he sat down on the grass next to where Binghe was working. "Hunting. I have a series of quests… missions planned out. A number of towns have asked our sect for help with marauding demons or angry spirits. Also, there is a trading company that is pleading for assistance in dealing with bandits along a major trade road, away from any villages or towns to care, with no sects taking responsibility to help so far."
Luo Binghe straightened up from his laundering, but his teacher waved blithely for him to continue. After wringing out an outer robe he added it to a basket and selected a finer, more diaphanous outer layer to launder. He crumbled a powdery bath bean on top of the robe, and it foamed gently as he scooped some water over it.
Hesitantly he asked as he scrubbed the delicate fabric, "These missions are too important or too dangerous for disciples to be sent on? Can this disciple not be of any assistance to Shizun?"
His teacher, disappointingly to Binghe's heart, shook his head. "No, this master must complete them personally, and no assistance is required. I must earn… good reputation for Qing Jing Peak. I want you to simply concentrate on your extra studies and your martial practice, while I am gone. Study hard, Binghe, there is not much time left before the conference."
Binghe nodded obediently as he murmured agreement.
Lately Shizun had him memorising demonic bestiaries and rare herbal compendiums, which he would test him on over meals. Theoretically he was rewarded with sweets if he did well on these quizzes, but Binghe was the one cooking them so he could secretly eat as much tanghulu and osmanthus jellies in the kitchen as he wanted; he thought perhaps Shizun hadn't thought that part through. The real reward was an extra half shichen of time spent with his Shizun, being questioned and praised and fussed over, so he was indeed studying hard, staying up late to memorise texts.
"Then, should this disciple pack master's qiankun pouch for him with supplies? Can your Binghe supply you with some extra meals, perhaps? How long will you be gone for, Shizun?"
"Mn, that would be pleasant," his teacher hummed approvingly. "I will be leaving around midday, after I've spoken with the hall masters, so there is time yet to prepare supplies. I will probably be gone for at least a few days, but no more than a week, hopefully. I will do as much as I can, but I shall definitely return with a week or more to spare before the Immortal Alliance Conference. Now, I thought I might tell you a story this morning, as there won't be a chance to do so this evening since I shall be gone, and the rest of the day you will of course be busy with lessons."
Binghe gave him a shy smile. Shizun had given up his preferred practice of sleeping in as long as possible just to come out and tell a story to him! "This Emperor would be honoured to hear another tale."
His heart was full, but his hands were scrubbing laundry. Binghe mourned the unromantic image he must be presenting. His Shizun, meanwhile, was half-reclined in the grass, long dark hair waving in the gentle morning breeze, green robes as perfect as spring bamboo, skin soft and… perfect.
Really, everything is perfect! Binghe insisted to himself. He looks like an immortal fairy, blessing the earth with his presence, while I look like the lowly son of a washerwoman that I am. Well, I'm not ashamed of cooking and cleaning and looking after my… my… Shizun. Like a good wi… disciple should. Don't think about that, he's watching you! Stay calm! Pure thoughts only!
He angled his body carefully away from his teacher, and when he glanced back again from his washing to check, his Shizun, thankfully, was staring up at the clouds and the silvery-green pine needles of the overhanging yin shan tree.
"Once upon a time," his Shizun began, "there was a mighty king named Arthur, who had many fine warriors called to his service, each of whom were regarded as equal in rank to each other, no matter that they may vary in their bravery or purity or strength at arms. Each warrior, of course, hoped still to distinguish themselves with acts of noble courage. At a new year's festival, the king and his court were celebrating and getting ready for a feast when a strange cultivator appeared. He was a giant of a man, dressed all in green and riding a green horse."
"A green horse? A demonic steed?" Binghe checked.
"I don't know! The story doesn't say, forgive this master. I cannot add to the story what isn't there; this master can only adjust small things without… ruining the story. But a green horse was certainly an odd sight to the king and his assembled warriors, though it was not as odd a sight as the Green Warrior himself. He was unnaturally tall, and armed with a beautiful axe, certainly a spiritual weapon of great value! Claiming everyone there was too weak to be worth duelling, he issued instead a 'friendly' challenge to all the warriors of the court: any warrior who wished to might take up the Green Warrior's own axe and strike its owner a single blow, but the Green Warrior would return in a year and a day to have his turn returning a single blow."
"He sounds a lot like Sha Hualing," Binghe observed, disapprovingly. He beat some laundry on the rocks with extra vigour. "Insulting everyone and issuing a 'friendly' challenge that is obviously a trap of some kind. As if he has the right to set terms in the first place!"
Is the green representing our peak, in the story? Shizun said the Green Warrior was a cultivator, but he's acting and sounding more like a demon. He scrubbed faster, uncomfortable with more parallels with himself.
"Did Binghe not admire Sha Hualing at all?" his Shizun asked, evidently curious. "She was very pretty, despite being a demon."
Binghe scowled. "She may have had a pretty face, but her heart was black and dishonourable. This disciple does not see anything to admire in someone who led such an unprincipled attack that… harmed many on this peak." Especially you, Shizun!
"Hmm. Well, there's something in that; any man or demon who chose her for her looks would be wise to always keep her deceptive nature in mind. Now, back to the story!
"Gawain, the youngest warrior in the court and the nephew of the king, bravely – or foolishly – took up the challenge. For since none of the king's warriors had trusted the Green Warrior's worrisome challenge and volunteered themselves, the king himself was just about to take the wager lest his court lose face and be thought lacking in honour or courage. Young Gawain could not bear to see his uncle put himself at such risk, and hastily stepped forward to accept the challenge in his place."
"I like this Gawain," Binghe said approvingly. "Am I Gawain-laozong?" He'd stepped forward to face one of Sha Hualing's demons, after all!
Shizun said nothing, but the smile on his face looked approving and proud. Binghe straightened up briefly in pride, beaming back at his teacher happily before returning to his self-appointed laundry duties.
If I'm Gawain, Binghe mused to himself, a noble marshall in the court who is surely either a prince or a duke, then Shizun is either King Arthur or the Green Knight. Probably the latter, with all that green!
"The Green Warrior handed over his axe and meekly bowed his head, and brave Gawain-laozong chopped off the stranger's head with a single blow!"
"Ha!" Binghe interjected happily.
Shizun smiled, and waved his fan lazily. "But that is only the start of the tale, for the giant warrior picked up his severed head off the ground and said, 'My turn, a year from now, at the Green Temple!' and he rode off on his horse without the slightest qualm, leaving his axe behind."
"Well, poor Gawain seems doomed," Binghe sighed unhappily. "Still, one hopes that this is a story with a happy ending, all the same. Not like the tale of the Little Fish-Demon."
"Don't we all hope for a happy ending?" his Shizun mused. "I used to enjoy reading tragedies and drama, but I can't bear them any longer."
His teacher gave a brief shake of his head as if to chase away some bad thoughts, before smiling and returning to his tale. "So, Gawain tried to put it out of his mind and went on many adventures, but as the end of the year drew close he, being an honourable man, took up the Green Warrior's axe and made his way to the Green Temple to while away the days before his vow came due, awaiting his fate. Nearby the temple he found an impressive manor, and sought accommodation there from its lord and his beautiful wife.
"The lord offered Gawain a bargain while he was his guest; he need not pay anything for his stay, but whatever the lord hunted during the day he would give to Gawain, and anything at all Gawain gained in the course of that day he must give to his host. Gawain agreed to honour his host's request."
Binghe snorted. "Was Gawain-laozong not at all suspicious of that odd request? Any sensible cultivator would be, especially after the bargain the Green Warrior offered!"
"Well, he was a rather young cultivator," his Shizun said, with an indulgent smile, "and not always as perceptive or insightful as he should have been of suspicious signs."
Huffing, Binghe tried to hide his scowl, turning back to his laundry. I'm very perceptive, and doing my best to be insightful! he protested to himself. I would not be fooled.
"The first day the lord hunted a deer which he gave to Gawain. Gawain, meanwhile, had spent his day inside the manor, fending off the amorous advances of the lord's wife."
"Shameless!" tutted Binghe, embarrassed.
"When the lord returned that evening Gawain gave the lord what he'd received that day – a single kiss! No explanation was offered for how he'd gained it, but luckily the lord asked no awkward questions."
"He's shameless too?" Binghe said, less certain this time. His eyes were firmly on his laundry, his cheeks pinking up. Is Shizun going to… narrate a yellow book story?! About two men kissing? Oh, please don't! Please do!
With a muffled snort of laughter his teacher continued the tale. "On the second day the lord offered a mighty boar, and Gawain gave in return two kisses, having fended off the lady as courteously as he could."
Three tales now of untrustworthy or unworthy wives, Binghe noted to himself, blushing.
"On the third day, the wife pleaded again for Gawain's company in her bed but was again steadfastly refused. She also offered Gawain a gift of a gold ring, which he also rejected, citing his honour forbade accepting such a present. However, she next untied a sash from around her own waist and offered it to him; a beautiful green sash with gold embroidery that shimmered in the light."
She's getting undressed! Binghe thought, faintly. Will Gawain undress for the lord, next?
Shen Qingqiu's voice rose to a high falsetto as he spoke the lady's words. "'Oh noble marshall, go not to your doom like a lamb to the slaughter, take my magical sash and you shall be protected from all physical harm. In exchange I shall ask for only three willingly-granted kisses, surely that is not too much to pay for such a powerful treasure?' And so Gawain was tempted into giving her the kisses she craved in exchange for the magic sash."
"Was Gawain married?" Binghe asked.
His Shizun looked thoughtful. "No, I don't think so. It's a tale I learnt long ago as a sickly child, spending all my time reading old stories from other lands, so I may have parts of it wrong, but I don't think he was? Perhaps he was too young or pure-hearted."
Binghe snorted his disapproval. Pure-hearted cultivators should not be kissing married women! Or lords… But his own Shizun was said to frequent brothels in the past…
He slapped more clothes down on the rock angrily, thinking of who his teacher might have kissed in the past.
"That night the lord of the manor received three kisses in exchange for the fox he'd hunted… but no mention was made of the sash, which Gawain kept hidden."
"Dishonourable," Binghe muttered. "I don't like being Gawain any longer."
He kind of wished that Gawain had undressed for the lord. He tried not to think about it. Gawain was too shameless and dishonourable. He wiped a little cooling water on his pink cheeks.
"No-one's perfect, Binghe," his teacher chided. "Now, a couple of days later Gawain went to the Green Temple, which was inside a deep, dark cavern, and handed over the axe to the Green Kni… Warrior. He bent his neck as bravely as he could, awaiting the fateful blow. Gawain flinched at the first swing, so the Green Warrior mocked Gawain's courage. Ashamed, Gawain stayed still for the second blow, but the Warrior held back his strength and again the blow fell short, as the axe stopped just above his neck, as the Warrior claimed he was just testing Gawain's nerve this time. Angrily, Gawain demanded the Green Warrior stop shaming him and strike properly, and the third blow fell with the full power of the Green Warrior's mighty arms. Yet it gave only the slightest scratch to his skin. To Gawain's relief the sash had saved him, and the game was ended."
"Gawain never got three blows," Binghe muttered. "The deal was for one. Demons don't play fair."
"In the story he's not stated to be a demon… but neither does he seem completely normal, given he survived having his head cut off and could reattach it," his Shizun explained. "In the end, the Green Warrior laughingly revealed himself as the lord of the manor Gawain had stayed at–"
"I knew something was odd about that!"
"–and he explained that he was disguised with illusions by a powerful female cultivator's seals – not his wife, by the way, just someone who knew him, but I left her out of the story – who wished to test the honour of King Arthur's finest warriors. The cut on Gawain's neck was given as a rebuke to him for concealing the gift of the sash. Still, they parted on amicable terms, and Gawain got to return to court with the sash as a glorious memento of his adventure and bravery, and also a reminder of his shamefully broken promise. The end!"
"You can't end it like that, Shizun," Binghe chided with a smile. "You have to promise this Emperor another story tomorrow."
Bell-like laughter was his reward for his flirtatious teasing joke, and Binghe smiled more broadly to hear it.
"Well, when I return in a week or two I shall tell you another, I promise. I've been trying to think of the best ones for… for you. Perhaps the tale of how King Arthur gained his remarkable sword and his throne, or a tale of Guanyin's determination and kind heart, or the mighty but doomed warrior Achilles…"
"My mother used to tell me tales about the compassionate Guanyin," Binghe said, and his eyes misted up and he blinked rapidly as he wrung out the last of the laundry.
"Then that is the tale I will share next time," his Shizun said, his voice soft and gentle. He rose to his feet and smoothed out his robes. "It is a good one, and very appropriate. Did you learn anything from today's tale?"
"Hmm, well, this disciple thinks today's main theme was about keeping your word and accepting your fate bravely. I don't think Gawain even needed the sash, since it was all just a test, but he couldn't have known in advance that he would survive the axe blow. And fidelity is important in the tale of course, but this one wonders if perhaps that's all part of the general theme of being honourable in both word and deed, or if being a loyal spouse is the point?"
"Mn. Good." His Shizun's reply was approving, but annoyingly vague.
"There was another nobleman in your story again today, Shizun," he observed tentatively, "since Gawain-laozong was the king's nephew. A duke, or a prince? That also seems to be a repeated theme?"
"Binghe should read a book on etiquette and precedence while this master is gone, if this topic is of interest to him," his Shizun said. "Such things are important for those of noble blood or any who interact with the higher levels of society. It would be best if you are well-rounded in your education; you never know when such etiquette lessons may come in useful."
Lost in thought, Binghe nodded.
That evening, with the bamboo house painfully empty and quiet with his Shizun off on his quest to earn surely unneeded reputation for Qing Jing Peak, Binghe recorded the story and observations he'd gleaned that day, as well as making a few extra notes on his investigation progress.
Results of careful questioning of Mu-shishu: no muteness should result from Without-A-Cure, however, interruptions to thoughts may potentially occur as a result of blocked meridians. Drinking White Snowflower Cleansing Tea had no effect on Shizun – it should have counteracted Purple Bloom of Silence or Mother-in-Law's Tongue, if they were the main ingredients in any concoction causing his unusual muteness. No changes to Shizun's behaviour noted afterwards.
Asked Ning-shijie if she knows Shizun's family origins – unknown. (Did not mention royalty!) She advised talking to Zhangmen-shibo if possible, but he is too busy to meet with me right now. Resume pursuit of possible lead of hidden noble origins for Shizun after conference is over. An illegitimate prince, perhaps? An out-of-favour prince born from a shameful alliance might be cursed with all kinds of things to stop him from trying to claim his place at court!
He drafted out a new section in his notes for 'Ongoing Themes' and added:
Royalty/nobility, unfaithful/unworthy spouses, keeping promises, defying/accepting fate, silence/secrets as curse/causing suffering, Shizun/me as characters in the stories, making deals.
He wanted to add 'love' but the story of the Green Warrior didn't lend itself well to that theme. Blushing as he thought of young Gawain kissing the disguised Green Warrior, he added tentatively to his list one last item: unconventional/forbidden love?