"Pull out the saber and hand it over to me!" Tiong Li bellowed.
The officer looked at his superior and Commander Wu Chu nodded. Tiong Li took the saber and as soon as he held it, he was certain that it was the original one. He clashed his saber with it and his saber broke into two easily! Now he was holding the Mestika Golok Naga and he tied its scabbard to his waist. As the commander's son was still in his arms, Commander Wu Chu dared not move.
"Now bring out the princess. Quickly!" "Bring her out!" ordered Commander Wu Chu.
Once again the Tong officer ran and not long after he returned, following a woman who was none other than Sung Hiang Bwee. The princess was still a prisoner because she always refused Wu Chu's wishes and as soon as she saw Tiong Li, she cried and approached him.
"Finally, you've come to save me...!" She was so delighted that she wanted to embrace Tiong Li but the young man said,
"Miss, prepare yourself to leave this place. Please walk behind me," Tiong Li briefly said. Seeing the earnest attitude of this young man who was pointing his saber at Wu Chu, the princess understood the gravity of the situation.
"Alright, taihiap. I'm really glad to see you," she said, then stood behind the young man.
Suddenly, two guards recklessly charged and attacked Tiong Li. Tiong Li swung his saber and a bright flash was followed by the fall of those two, bloodied.
"Once more if anyone moves, I will kill the commander and his son!" Tiong Li warned, also worried because if the numerous troops ganged up on him, although he could kill the commander, he certainly wouldn't have the heart to kill his son and he wouldn't be able to protect the princess!
"Fools! Don't attack!" cried the commander, who was of course worried about himself and his son. "Ciangkun, now you walk in front of me and lead me out of this house. Quick and don't let anyone approach!"
The commander had no choice but to comply and all the guards could only follow, not daring to come too close.
Tiong Li, while carrying the now somewhat calmer child, pointed his saber at the commander's back and Sung Hiang Bwee walked behind him.
Once they arrived outside the gate which would certainly be visible to Siang Hwi, Tiong Li shouted, "Hwi-moi, quickly come here!"
The girl jumped close and all the troops had no time to block her. "Take the princess away from here. Beware, if anyone obstructs or pursues, I will kill the commander and his son!" Tiong Li shouted authoritatively.
"Come, princess!" said Siang Hwi as she took Sung Hiang Bwee's hand and quickly led her away from there. No one dared to obstruct them and no one dared to chase them. In a moment, the two girls' figures vanished into the darkness of the night. Siang Hwi brought the princess out of the city through the wall which she jumped over while carrying the princess, and she quickly led the princess to run towards the Fu-niu-san hills.
Meanwhile, Tiong Li, still carrying the child, asked to be escorted out of the east gate to divert attention. At least a hundred soldiers still followed him at not too close a distance and the commander was still being held in front of him. After getting a little farther from the gate, Tiong Li finally put the child down from his arms and the child was immediately carried by his father!.
"Ciangkun, forgive me. I had to resort to this to free the princess and to take back the Mestika Golok Naga. You have no right to both. If I were you, I wouldn't send people to look for me. Besides being pointless, also if I get angry, maybe an incident like this will happen again. However, I might not release you! Well, goodbye!" Suddenly, Tiong Li leaped and disappeared into the darkness of the night.
"Chase and catch him!" Now the commander was shouting and he himself hugged and kissed his son with relief because his beloved son was safe.
In his rage, Commander Wu Chu ordered that very night to kill So uw C un Ki, the young Kun-lun-pai who had once tried to save the princess. Without much reason, that night Souw C un Ki was killed by the guards in his cell!
-o0o-d.w-o0o-
Siang Hwi led Hiang Bwee to the top of the hill where the Siauw-lim-si temple was located and they were quickly welcomed by Ceng Ho Hwe-shio and led inside. "Young miss, who are you?" the princess asked Siang Hwi.
"My name is The Siang Hwi, miss," Siang Hwi respectfully replied. "And this is Ceng Ho Hwe-shio, the head of this temple who is sheltering and hiding us. Here, you don't need to worry because no one will dare to look inside."
"I'm not worried as long as Tan-taihiap is with me," the princess replied. "Tan-taihiap is incredibly brave and skilled. He dared to capture Commander Wu Chu and forced him to release me. However, how will he be able to free himself from the encirclement of that many troops?"
"Please don't worry, I'm confident that Li-koko can free himself."
"Hmm, what is your relationship with Tan-taihiap, miss?"
Siang Hwi's face turned red being asked like that. "We... we are close friends working together to free you from Commander Wu Chu's residence. That's all, miss. You have had a tiring journey and experienced many unsettling things, please rest and sleep."
"How can I sleep before Tan-taihiap arrives? I have to see him safe first and arrive here," said the princess, and Siang Hwi felt uneasy. From her attitude, it was clear to her that this princess seemed very interested and attentive to Tiong Li. And she had heard from Tiong Li how the young man had once freed the princess from a kidnapper's hands. They already knew each other. It wasn't until early morning that Tiong Li, who had fled from the eastern gate, arrived there. His shadow flashed and suddenly he was in front of the two girls.
"Tan-taihiap.....!" The princess exclaimed happily, getting up and meeting the young man, then without hesitation or shyness, she held both of Tiong Li's hands.
"You made me unable to sleep, worried that you wouldn't be able to escape from their encirclement! How is it, taihiap? Have you killed that damned Wu Chu?"
"No, miss. I have promised to exchange his life and his son's life for you and the Mestika Golok Naga!"
"Ah, what a pity. People like that should just be killed!" said the princess, disappointed. "And when will you take me home to the palace? This time, my father will certainly be very happy and you must not refuse the reward from the Emperor."
"We must not be hasty to leave this place, miss. Commander Wu Chu is certainly mobilizing his troops to pursue us to the border. He may even have contacted Prime Minister Jin Kui to help him capture me if I manage to cross the border. It's best for a few days we stay here."
"Omitohud! Congratulations, congratulations, Tan-sicu. You have succeeded! Indeed, miss, it's best for us to stay here first until the pursuit subsides. Pin-ceng will send disciples to investigate. Once it subsides, then you can leave the temple and return to the south," said Ceng Ho Hweshio, appearing and smiling broadly at Tiong Li.
Tiong Li paid his respects to the old hwe-shio. "If it weren't for lo-suhu's help, all our efforts would have been in vain. Also, Hwi-moi's contribution should not be forgotten, she escorted the princess here without being spotted. You're incredible, Hwi-moi!"
Siang Hwi smiled happily, she knew that her lover was deliberately praising her to please her. "Ahh, I'm just helping you, koko. No need to praise me too much! You are the great one. I didn't expect you to be able to capture them that easily. And you have changed into the clothes of one of the guards. Very funny. Tell me, koko, how did you do it?"
The princess furrowed her brows. She noticed how close the two young people were and from their gazes alone she could tell that there was something between them!
"Yes, tell us, Tan-taihiap. I too want to hear it," she finally said, so as not to feel too left out.
Tiong Li then told about his experience of holding Wu Chu and his son hostage while disguised as a patrolman. All who heard him praised him, even Ce ng Ho Hwe-shio drew a long breath and said, "Omitohud, you are truly extraordinary, Tan-taihiap! Even though I haven't seen it myself, I'm sure you have a very high level of martial arts. If pin-ceng may know, who is your teacher, sicu?" Towards the hwe-shio who had helped him, Tiong Li didn't want to hide his situation. "I have three teachers, lo-suhu. My first teacher is the late Pek Hong San-jin, the second is suhu Thian Kui Lo-jin, and the third Tee Kui Lo-jin."
Ceng Ho Hwe-shio was startled. "Omitohud....! Pin-ceng knows who they are! It turns out sicu is a student of those powerful people. It's no wonder then and pin-ceng feels happy to be able to help their student."
Thus, after staying there for a week and from the hwe-shio who conducted the investigation, it was found that there were no longer any troops looking for them, Tiong Li then invited Siang Hwi and the princess to leave the temple.
They bought three horses with the help of the hwe-shio and they left the temple riding horses. Luckily, Princess Hiang Bwee, even though she was not skilled in martial arts, enjoyed following her imperial father on his hunting trips for wild animals, so she knew how to ride a horse.
-0oodwoo0-
The princess and Siang Hwi shared a room when they were in the temple and in this opportunity, the princess who initially felt jealous of Siang Hwi, heard Siang Hwi's confession that she was in love with Tiong Li. After listening to this confession, Hiang Bwee accepted the reality, she was a princess, she could not just fall in love with every man. For her, her marriage was in the hands of the Emperor and she could not choose her own mate.
The journey went through a wide field and one day they arrived in the Sung Kingdom region. When they were slowly riding their horses because they were tired and looking for a good place to rest, a woman suddenly appeared in that deserted place and obstructed their journey.
Glossary
- Tiong Li: The main character's name.
- Mestika Golok Naga: A precious saber that holds significant value in the story.
- Commander Wu Chu: The commander holding the princess captive.
- Sung Hiang Bwee: The princess who Tiong Li is trying to rescue.
- Siauw-lim-si temple: The safety haven where Tiong Li and Siang Hwi take the princess.
- Ceng Ho Hwe-shio: The head of Siauw-lim-si temple.
- Fu-niu-san: The hills where Siang Hwi leads the princess.
- The Siang Hwi: Tiong Li’s close friend and confidante.
- Pek Hong San-jin, Thian Kui Lo-jin, and Tee Kui Lo-jin: Tiong Li’s martial arts teachers.