Hua Hua You Long - Volume 1 - Chapter 6.1

Chapter 6- Small Window and Warm Screen[1]
After a few consecutive days of overcast, Tong’an finally bestowed clear skies. The beautiful sunlight splayed down on every nook and cranny of this ancient city filled with exorbitant and grandiose edifices strewn at random, even further underscoring the city’s magnanimity and grace, and at the same time dressing up the small courtyard near Yue Long Bridge in which Lu Cang temporarily resided to be even more elegant and refined.
“Big Brother Lu, are you finished?”Xi Zhen sat upright in the parlour as he called smilingly to Lu Cang, who was changing in the inside chambers.
“Yeah, let’s get going now,” Lu Cang answered, briskly walking out of the bedroom as he tightened the knots of his outer robe.
Today was the day of the sixth round of the Assembly of Heroes. In other words, as long as he could defeat today’s opponent, he could forever escape from the grasp of that freakishly mutated Jing and return to his free life as the king of the mountain bandits in Hangzhou.
Unexpectedly, the pretty youth Xi Zhen he had met only yesterday came early in the morning and said he wanted to go to the Assembly of Heroes together with him, making a few sprouts of pleasantness rise in Lu Cang’s chest. On the eve of the match that would determine his fate for next ten years of life, he was immensely nervous. Having someone to accompany him eased his nerves a bit.
“Big Brother Lu…” Flashing Lu Cang an attractive smile, Xi Zhen appeared indescribably innocent and cute.
Way lovelier than a certain freak. Grumbling in his mind, Lu Cang and Xi Zhen left the house together, heading towards the contest grounds in eastern Tong’an in quick strides.
“Big Brother Lu, I’m going first. Good luck to you today!” At the arena doors, Xi Zhen waved to Lu Cang. He smiled like a flower, then walked towards the platform for his division.
Lu Cang also gave a slight smile, waved back, and then took wide strides in the opposite direction towards his own division’s platform on the other end. Before he could get to the platform, he heard deafening gongs, drums, applause, and cheers emanating over in waves. This platform seemed much livelier than any other.
He squeezed his way to the front of the crowd and looked up onto the stage. On the platform was a middle-aged man perched majestically and imposingly in the centre while a youth with blood trickling down the corner of his mouth lay by the man’s foot, obviously injured from receiving defeat in the last round.
“This round’s winner is Tian Nan Sect’s[2] Luo Dong Xia[3].” The presiding officer’s voice was monotonous yet clear. On the corner of that man’s mouth hung a wisp of a pompous smirk; he was clearly very pleased with his victory. His eyes searched the surrounding audience below, unexpectedly pausing for a few seconds as his they fell coldly on Lu Cang’s face. Before Lu Cang could react, the man had already withdrawn his gaze, leaping off the stage as if nothing had happened and stalked towards the designated area for rest.
The competitions proceeded. Before long, it was Lu Cang’s turn—his first opponent caused a bit of a difficulty, but was evidently a notch below him in skill. After he won an expected victory, he stepped off the stage.
He wiped away the sweat on his forehead as he thought to himself, if I win just one more round I’ll be able to squeeze into the top one hundred rankings, and then escape that freak’s entanglement. His worn body seemed to regain the spirit of battle at the very thought. He clenched his fists, telling himself that no matter what, he had to win this fight.
“.......The next round: Tian Nan Sect Luo Dong Xia, Cang Ying Sect Lu Cang......” hearing his own name, Lu Cang stood up straight away, but saw the middle-aged man jump onto the stage one step ahead of him.
The man scrutinised the Lu Cang perched silently before him for a moment, then suddenly threw his head back and burst into laughter. “Cang Ying Sect[4]? Alright then, Hero Lu from Cang Ying Sect...hahaha...” The people below also exploded into uniform laughter.
Cang Ying Sect was originally Lu Cang’s random creation, but he didn’t expect it to become the butt of his opponent’s joke. He was naturally a bit embarrassed. Forcefully calming himself, he raised his folded fists[5] in respectful greeting. “My name is Lu Cang, please give me instruction, good sir[6].”
Not wasting another word, he struck the preparatory pose with his sword. Then, a blinding slash of the blade. He attacked.
The middle-aged man chuckled.  With a flash, he effortlessly dodged Lu Cang’s offence. His long sword left its sheath, pointing straight for the spot between Lu Cang’s eyebrows.
Lu Cang locked his brows in concentration. This man’s skill was definitely above his own, but not by much.
Evidently there will be an intense and bitter battle today. But no matter what, he had to defeat this man and rise to the top one hundred. Since he already made his decision, Lu Cang no longer held back, and unfolded the entirety of his kung-fu, devoting it all to a chance of victory.
“Who did you arrange for?” Jing frowned as he asked General Mu Yue beside him.
“As Your Majesty ordered, I arranged for someone whose kung-fu was only a slight notch above Lu Cang’s, Luo Dong Xia. He’s from South Yard[7], but no one in Jianghu knows him,” Mu Yue answered respectfully. Though he didn’t agree with Jing spending this much attention on this little plaything, he was not bold enough to disobey the dictatorial Jing.
Jing nodded. As he watched Lu Cang gradually become incapable of keeping up with Luo Dong Xia’s moves and fall behind, a wisp of a smile floated onto the corners of his mouth.
Lu Cang gritted his teeth, determined to throw off his lagging predicament, and yet his opponent controlled the situation like a cat toying with a mouse. Lu Cang silently mourned his own misfortune. It just so happened that at the most imperative moment, he met such a strong opponent! He was so sapped of hope that he didn’t even have the strength to cry.
If I can’t win....if I can’t win...doesn’t it mean that I’ll be trapped in that small room for the rest of my life, waiting for that bastard to mess around with me?!
Lu Cang tightened his jaw, sweat pouring down like rain, and yet he refused to relent, defending against his competitor with his life.
A streak of iciness abruptly flitted across the middle-aged man’s eyes. His form suddenly changed, his figure launching off towards the sky. The sword in his hand became a web of silver wires, instantaneously ensnaring Lu Cang within.
Lu Cang gave a mental cry of alarm—this was definitely this man’s exclusive killing attack. It seemed that the man had grown impatient and wanted to speedily finish him off. Lu Cang’s chest burned with anxiety. A stream of strength from who knew where lead him to raise his sword, leaping off the ground as if his body had a separate consciousness...
Fly and turn, drive the sword, stir the qi—
That afternoon in the yard, that pair of hands that gripped his own...flew across Lu Cang’s mind like lightning. He executed the move that Jing taught him without thinking.
His sword, as if an invincible force, broke into the tight web of sword strokes, and in the instant that Lu Cang lost focus of his senses, victory was sealed. Luo Dong Xia let out a pained scream; his right arm had already been stabbed through by the sword’s qi[8]. His own weapon fell to the ground with a clang.
The arena was silent. Nobody could clearly discern how exactly Lu Cang turned defeat into victory, flipping the tables around when all seemed lost.
The presiding officer and Luo Dong Xia’s faces were whiter than paper...
“...This round...goes to...goes to Lu Cang...” The officer’s voice trembled dangerously, unable to fathom this turn of events. The two’s match had been pre-planned; this sort of outcome was unexpected indeed.
Behind the curtains.
A chill flickered across Jing’s beautiful, piercing eyes. Yet he suddenly began to laugh, his laughter ringing loudly, completely devoid of any disappointment or failure.
“Your Majesty, your humble servant miscalculated and used an unfitting person—please punish me, Your Majesty...” Mu Yue felt as if his heart froze over with Jing’s laughter, and quickly knelt down to beg his own punishment.
But Jing shook his head.

“Then...how should Luo Dong Xia be punished?” With Jing’s personality, this Luo Dong Xia probably won’t escape with his life.
“Forget it.” Another shocking decision. Mu Yue raised his head, surprised, but found Jing to be all smiles and radiance. “To lose under my sword move, I’d say he’s justified...”
“Ah...” Mu Yue still stood, stunned, while Jing had already floated out into the hall, leaving Mu Yue only an elegant outline of his back.
Jing left the closely-guarded gate tower by himself and squeezed into the crowd...
Across a long distance, the two had an almost telepathic connection. Two pairs of eyes lit by complex emotions clashed in midair.
As Lu Cang focused on that pair of eyes so beautiful no words could describe, pride flashed past his own eyes.
From now on, I won’t be tied down by you anymore...
Seeing Lu Cang’s expression of pride and relief, Jing once again smiled an unsettling smile. His figure suddenly blurred. In the matter of a breath, had already swept past the people crowding together like bees in a hive, and perched in front of Lu Cang.
“Congratulations!” He smiled sincerely, clouding Lu Cang’s judgment of his true intentions.
“...Wait for me at home...” Jing said once again in a lowered voice, not waiting for Lu Cang’s reply.
Lu Cang was just about to speak, but heard someone calling his name from behind. He turned his head.
He saw Xi Zhen grinning brightly behind him. “Big Brother Lu, you won? Congratulations!” Xi Zhen was still adorable, but Lu Cang didn’t have the attention to spare him right now. However, when he turned around again, that lean, graceful figure had already disappeared. All that was in front of his eyes was an endlessly stirring tide of people...
“Big Brother, what’re you looking for?” Xi Zhen asked him, puzzled.
“No...nothing...” Lu Cang hurriedly covered up his anxiety and shook his head, though incapable of straightening out the trance-like and perplexed thoughts in his head. 
You really think you could escape me this easily...
Past wave upon wave in the ocean of people, on the not-so-far-away street, a smile with a tinge of demonic flashed upon Jing’s lips. He proceeded towards Yue Long Bridge at a leisurely pace, walking towards that small house and yard that was tainted by Lu Cang’s and his lust in every corner.
Finally escaping Xi Zhen’s enthusiastic clinginess after dinner, Lu Cang dragged his fatigued body back to his temporary house. The second he stepped into the bedroom, Lu Cang saw Jing sitting with his head propped up by the elbow on the edge of the bed. The refined embroidery of plum blossoms on the bed curtains set off his splendid features. It was so sublime a scene that it took away one’s breath.
“You’ve returned?” Hearing the footsteps behind him, Jing turned around, stood up, and advanced towards Lu Cang.
“You won...you’re almost free...” Jing had donned a light, watery green robe, which, if nothing, exhibited his extinguished elegance even more. An alluring smile hung on his face as he slowly approached. Because of the shapeless tension that Jing exuded, and also due to of his own exhaustion, Lu Cang involuntarily fell into the chair below the window.
Lu Cang had thought Jing would definitely manoeuvre some sort of scheme to make him stay. He stopped in disbelief, not having expected Jing to keep to his word and not knowing how to react.
“This is the antidote to azure night.” Jing reached into his robe, pulling out a crimson pill.
Lu Cang could only stand there and stare dumbly at his nearing figure, still unable to muster an appropriate reply.
Jing came to a stop in front of him and suddenly smiled—a smile like the oblivion of a fallen immortal floating down to the clouds, smashing down on Lu Cang’s chest like a heavy hammer.
Could I really leave? Could I really stop being this man’s sex slave and pursue my own happiness?
Lu Cang couldn’t believe that he could have this kind of good luck. It was hard to believe, and at the same time there was an indefinable sort of emotion coiling up in his chest, making his heartstrings surge and fold like a thousand waves, perplexing to the extremes.
“What? So elated you forgot how to speak?” On the other hand, Jing was as mischievous as usual, and began to tease Lu Cang again.
“What’re you blabbering about? Quick, give me the antidote.” Lu Cang swiftly pushed away the strange brew of emotions, put on a serious face, and reached out his hand for the antidote.
Jing pulled back his hand out of Lu Cang’s reach all of a sudden. “What’re you doing...” Lu Cang grumbled discontentedly. But the next second, Jing open his mouth and stuff the antidote inside.
“You...” Lu Cang knew that Jing wouldn’t just hand him the antidote so easily, but this sort of expected slyness still incensed him nonetheless.
“If you want it, come get it yourself!” With the antidote in his mouth, Jing’s words were a bit slurred, but Lu Cang still managed to make out his meaning.
“Impudent!” Though he had done every humiliating thing possible with Jing, Lu Cang still ended up flustered and blushing at Jing’s brazenness.
“Then you really don’t want it...” Jing pretended to turn around and leave. Lu Cang grabbed him right away...
Steeling his nerves, Lu Cang thought, I’ve already been done in by you, what does a kiss matter?

[1] Small Window and Warm Screen- Just to clarify, screen is a folding screen (Asian room divider, you can say). Also, two other things concerning the title of this chapter. Firstly, it sounds sort of strange in English and I’d have to say it doesn’t sound exactly strange in Chinese but still slightly awkward (but passable). Secondly, I checked a few sources and all of them for some reason have the chapter titled 小楼屏暖 but then later, also 小窗屏暖. I translated the second version because there’s no direct translation for the word 楼 in English (it’s a building with two or more stories).
[2]天南门 (Tian Nan Sect)- Literally, Sect of Southern Sky. There are a handful of ways to name a kung-fu sect, but most just boil down to being a “sect” in English. The organisation is slightly different for each one. For instance, a 门 (门 men= door), as seen here, is a very basic sect that’s probably not very powerful. A 帮 (bang) is a gang, which is what thieves or bandits would name themselves. A 派 (派 pai= as a noun, a certain school or style) is usually a higher-prestige/power sect, possibly with a long history and legacy (for instance, the renowned Emei nuns are known as峨嵋派). There’re a lot more, but just know that I’m pretty much going to stick with the translation “sect” for all of them.
[3] 罗东侠 (Luo Dong Xia)- his name Dong Xia. Sort of funny. Dong means east and Xia means a chivalrous person.
[4] 苍鹰(Cang Ying)- Lu Cang made up a sect by adding his own name 苍(cang, meaning deep blue) to 鹰 (eagle) because he’s not from a specific sect. However, unfortunately, the phrase for the insect “fly” (苍蝇) is also pronounced the same way.
[5] Folded his fists- refer to Chapter 4 footnote 15 for detailed description and explanation.
[6] 大侠- Originally, Lu Cang calls Luo Dong Xia “hero” or “chivalrous man” (大侠) here , but I changed to sir because it’d make more sense in English. Lu Cang only calls him this out of respect (it’s quite common), and especially because Luo Dong Xia is his senior in age.
[7] 南厂(South Yard)- In Chinese history, there been East Yard (and West Yard during Ming Dynasty only), which are both special forces organisations (same idea as FBI). I’m guessing the author didn’t want to infringe upon history, so she made up South Yard.
[8] Sword qi- in the world of kung-fu novels, swords are considered rather special weapons. Qi can be manipulated to extend over any weapon. However, there’s a vague idea that swords can morph your qi into a different, stronger form if manipulated correctly. Powerful swords are sometimes considered to have their own qi.