To Travel by the Edge of a Creek

The sun gradually rose above the horizon, and the desert regained its scorching heat. 

“A Ling.” Shangguan Qing saw Jiang Ling’s eyelids twitch, like she was about to wake up, and called to her softly. 

A Qing. Jiang Ling heard Shangguan Qing’s light call and struggled to wake up. 

Jiang Ling found herself laying flat on a woolen blanket, her chest covered in gauze and her body draped with clothing. The area around her was concealed beneath a crude tent, shielding her from the harsh sunlight as a gentle glow filtered through the cloth. 

She went to prop herself up with both arms, but her back cried out with a burning pain, hurting her so much that she laid back down again. 

“Don’t move. Your back was burned from the lightning. When you were asleep just now, my shimei helped bandage it for you.” Shangguan Qing said. 

“Where are we?” Jiang Ling tilted her head, but could only see Shangguan Qing sitting cross-legged beside her with her left arm in a sling; she was injured as well.  

“We’re still at the little oasis. The surrounding area was scorched by the lightning those hateful sand bandits brought down. Anyone who moved would be blown up. I can’t believe we were fooled by them! My shixiong is fine, but many of our shidi and shimei were injured. You were struck by the lighting and your wound isn’t light, but it shouldn’t leave a scar once it heals.” The wound on Jiang Ling’s back was not small. Shangguan Qing frowned. She did not want Jiang Ling to be scarred. As soon as they returned, she would find the best medicine for her. 

“What about you? How is your arm?” Jiang Ling was concerned about Shangguan Qing’s injuries. 

“It’s nothing. In the chaos, the sand bandits took advantage of my impaired visibility and slashed my left hand, but don’t you worry, they didn’t damage any of my meridians[1]. I’ll be fine after a few days, and my shixiong is helping me get revenge.”

Just then, a person’s shadow appeared outside the tent. 

“Shimei, may I come in?” It was Shen Xiuqi. 

Shangguan glanced at Jiang Ling. The clothing on Jiang Ling’s body was simply draped over her back and the bandages on her shoulder were exposed to the air. She reached out and pulled a blanket over Jiang Ling to cover her. 

“Come in.” Shangguan Qing called. 

Shen Xiuqi entered the tent. When he saw that Jiang Ling was awake, he breathed out a sigh of relief. 

“How was it?” Shangguan Qing asked. 

“The goods were stolen, but the silver liangs[2] on us are fine. Some of the rations were stolen, but we were very fortunate that the horses were scared away by the lightning, so the sand bandits could not steal them. At present, they are all accounted for.”

“Then, what’s our plan now?” Jiang Ling asked. This was the most Jiang Ling had heard Shen Xiuqi speak. 

Shen Xiuqi continued: “The guide fled, but he had already clearly shown us the route. We need another three days before we make it to Xiyu. There may be a few more stop points on the way, but you both are injured and the environment too damaging, so it isn’t appropriate to travel further into the desert. If we continue from here, the rations may not be enough. It is only a day’s journey to return, so there should be some rations left.”

Jiang Ling and Shangguan Qing both nodded, agreeing with Shen Xiuqi’s analysis. 

“We are not actually engaging in trade on this journey, so the loss of the goods is a small matter. When the time comes, you and the others who are injured will take two days of rations and rest here for one day. Then, once you feel more rested, you can return to Zhangye. The head of the sand bandits has already been dealt with, and the remaining bandits will not return so soon after this recent plunder. I will leave three shidi to protect you and continue forward with the uninjured disciples.”

This was likewise Shangguan Qing’s first time hearing Shen Xiuqi speak so many words, and her eyes rounded into saucers. 

“It will be as Shen-shixiong says.” Jiang Ling knew that Shen Xiuqi’s plan was the most optimal one. This way, they would not hold up their main task and the injured disciples could receive timely treatment. In her current condition, she would not be able to show off her skills again. 

“Mm, you both rest first. I will arrange the rest myself.” Thus stated, Shen Xiuqi turned and left. 

Two people remained in the tent, both of their eyes wide. 

“It’s like your shixiong was switched out for someone else.” Jiang Ling was incredulous. This Shen Xiuqi was like an entirely different person. 

“I think so, too.” 

Once Shen Xiuqi made his arrangements, he found Shangguan Qing and Jiang Ling and bid them farewell before taking a group of disciples to continue their journey deeper into the desert. 

Because of the burn on her back, Jiang Ling could only lay motionlessly. The other disciples all had different types of injuries and everyone took care of each other. In this little oasis, a day passed peacefully. 

Another central plains trade caravan passed through during that time frame. When they heard of the unfortunate encounter and saw that many people in their party were covered in wounds, they lent them generous aid and bought them another day of rest time. 

Shangguan Qing wanted to pay them back with silver, but the caravan’s leader smiled and said: “This little brother has good intentions, but recompense is unnecessary. Conducting business in this way brings good karma. If we run into troubles on the way back, we hope you will lend us a hand.”

Shangguan Qing said: “Even through storms of fire or water[3], without hesitation.”

The group accepted the favor and rested for another day. Jiang Ling’s burn had just about entirely scabbed over, and if she gritted her teeth and bore with the pain, then she could sit up. Shangguan Qing brought her a turquoise-colored robe, “Your old robe is covered in blood and has a big hole ripped out of it, so I’ve already thrown it away. Change into this new one.”

“Mm.” Jiang Ling gritted her teeth and changed into the new robe. During the past few days, Shangguan Qing had always been taking care of her, so she did not want to show her agony lest Shangguan Qing, who was also among the wounded, waste more energy on her. 

Jiang Ling stood up and moved about. As long as her movements were not too large and did not pull on her wound, she had no significant issues. 

The group decided to set off for Zhangye at dawn on the third day. 

“Sss.” The movement to mount the horse was too large, which tore at her scab. Jiang Ling hissed softly from the stinging pain. 

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. Let’s set off ba.”

They traveled for half a day and had already passed through the vast swaths of yellow sand to the Gobi desert. While some plants grew sparsely in the Gobi, the surroundings were still withered and dry, with no signs of life. The crushed stones on the ground were baked in the sun, the heat forming rippling patterns in the air. 

As they were traveling, the originally vicious sun was suddenly weakened. Jiang Ling raised her head to look. The sand filling the sky covered the sun in a sheer veil, rendering it indistinct. 

“There’s so much sand in the wind, enough to blot out the sun.” Jiang Ling, who had not lived in Xibei, did not realize the danger. 

“A Ling, hold on. We need to ride back quickly, a sandstorm’s coming.”

A disciple from their group grumbled, “Heavens above[4], why are you always making things difficult for us!”

“Stop complaining. Quickly, let’s go back! Jia![5]” Shangguan Qing cracked her reins, spurring her horse forward as the others fell in behind her. 

Jiang Ling’s horse followed behind. The sand in the air became more and more dense, to the point where she had no choice but to cover her face with the red silk to shield herself. 

Shangguan Qing turned her head back. In the distance, a massive wall of sand was already charging toward them and would soon overtake them. Shangguan Qing had to think of another plan. Nearby, she saw a boulder as tall as three men, “Quickly, hide behind that boulder. Have the horses surround us.”

The group directed their horses toward the boulder. 

“A Ling, over there!” Shangguan Qing yelled to Jiang Ling. 

Jiang Ling nodded and spurred her horse over. At that moment, a fierce gale carrying a broken piece of stone struck Jiang Ling’s horse on its head. The horse was frightened and stopped listening to Jiang Ling’s commands, running off into the sandy wind in a panic. 

“A Ling!” Shangguan Qing watched as Jiang Ling’s horse had panicked and taken off into the wall of sand, disappearing without a trace. 

Jiang Ling’s horse carried her further and further away. 

“A Qing!” Jiang Ling was enveloped in a thick curtain of blowing sand and cried out with difficulty. The only response she received was the howling of the wind in her ear. With the whipping of the sand, she could only shut her eyes and hold on tightly to the horse’s neck, leaning over to shield herself. 

With these successive, violent changes, Jiang Ling’s already wounded back split open, fresh blood gradually dying the fabric crimson. 

After an unknown amount of time had passed, the horse slowly stilled, falling to the ground and struggling twice before it stopped moving at all. Jiang Ling was flung into the sand. She had no choice but to crawl behind the horse, curl herself up in a ball, and calmly wait for the sandstorm to pass. 

The sandstorm gradually started to lighten after about an incense stick’s worth of time, and the sun started to viciously bake the ground once again. Jiang Ling staggered to her feet. Standing in the middle of this desert, gazing around at dunes after dunes, Jiang Ling felt a tide of despair wash over her heart. I have not accomplished anything on this journey, Jiang Ling confessed to the desert around her. She mocked herself, every word shifu said was true: I am naïve. 

No, she could not give up like this. She would die here, in this barren place. She had to keep moving. 

She searched the horse’s body and found that there were enough rations left for two days. There was also a woolen blanket in the saddle bag which she could use to cover herself at night. She guessed that it was about midafternoon[6]. There were no trees in the surrounding area. She raised her head to look at the position of the sun and reckoned that she was somewhat westward. The horse could not have run too far, so if she was not incorrect in her bearings, she could walk out of the desert into the Gobi in not too long. Once she was in the Gobi, she should be able to find the route without too much difficulty. 

She picked up her sword and used the blanket to bundle up the rations and water onto her back, then set off in the direction of which she was certain. 

It was just that, the conditions of the desert were unimaginably treacherous. Without a fire, it was immensely difficult to withstand the cold of the night. Jiang Ling bundled herself up in the blanket tightly, and using her internal force and breathing, was able to pass the first night. 

At the beginning of the second day, when the temperature was gradually increasing again but was not at its stifling peak yet, Jiang Ling continued her journey forward. After walking for another half a day, all that was within her sight was still yellow sand, without a sign of the Gobi. Jiang Ling started to doubt whether or not she had chosen the wrong direction. When she took the last drink of her water supply, she still had not left the desert. She was certain that she had picked the wrong direction at the outset and had walked deeper into the desert. 

The wound on her back was soaked in her sweat. It itched and ached. Being severely dehydrated, Jiang Ling’s were pale. Her face was peeling from the blistering sunlight. The dune in front of her became two in her eyes. Jiang Ling herself did not know how much longer she could keep going. She could only keep walking forward, walking until she exhausted her strength and could not walk any longer. 

At last, she saw something green, something like an oasis, in the distance. Jiang Ling felt a joy in her heart and hurried toward the oasis, but the sand beneath her feet was soft. She sank into the dune, the scorching particles making her unable to open her eyes. 

Translator Notes: 

Our girl Jiang Ling really going through it.

I have just about finished up my semester and managed to pass my courses (somehow). Updates will be at 12:00 EST Sunday, until I finish translating the novel. Then, updates will be every day. 

Based on the chapters out on gongzicp, the main novel seems to be finished, for a total of 71 chapters and 1 mid-serialization extra. We may be getting some extras later, but the translation is a long way off from there. So far, the author has stated that they don’t have a Weibo, so all chapters/extras will likely be available on gongzicp. 

Since the novel length is reasonable, I should be able to complete the translation for the whole novel, probably by the end of the year? We will have to see, I guess.