They travelled on for another six days. On the morning

of the seventh day, they spotted dark clouds in the

distance.

"Is that a storm brewing?" Chen asked.

The girl studied the horizon. "They're not rain

clouds," she said. "It's dust from the ground."

"How could there be so much?"

"I don't know. Let's go and look!" They spurred their

horses forward, and as the swirling dust cloud rose

before them, they began to hear the sound of metal

clashing with metal drifting over towards them. Chen

reined in his horse.

"It's an army," he said. "We must get out of the way

quickly." They turned and rode off east, but after a

while, another dust cloud arose in front of them and a

column of mounted troops appeared. Amidst the dust,

Chen saw a huge flag inscribed with the name of

General Zhao. Having already clashed once with Zhao's

armoured troops at the Yellow River crossing, he knew

them to be formidable fighters, and he motioned to the

girl with his hand and galloped off southwards.

Luckily, both their horses were swift, and after a

moment's hard riding, the armoured column had dropped

far behind.

The girl looked anxious. "I hope our army will be able

to hold their own," she said. Chen was just about to

say something comforting when horns sounded in front,

and rank upon rank of soldiers appeared over a rise.

To the left, there was a thundrous ground-shaking roar

and a vast carpet of cavalry moved across the hills

towards them. With one sweep of his left arm, Chen

swung the girl onto his horse and took out his shield

to protect her.

"Don't be afraid," he said. The girl, still hugging

the little deer, looked round at him and nodded. "If

you say there's no need to be afraid, then I won't

be," she said. As she spoke, her soft, orchid-like

fragrance, enveloped him, and feelings of tenderness

rose within him despite the danger of their situation.

With enemy troops advancing from the east, north and

south, Chen urged the white horse westwards as her

chestnut horse followed along behind. After a while,

they spotted Manchu troops ahead of them once more.

Very worried, Chen spurred the horse up onto high

ground to get a better idea of the Manchu positions

and to look for a gap through which they could escape.

But he could see at a glance that they were completely

surrounded by the Manchu army. To the west, beyond the

thousands of Manchu foot soldiers in close ranks

protected on both flanks by cavalry, was the Muslim

army, also an imposing force with a forest of spears

and scimitars rising above the striped gowns of the

warriors. The two sides had halted, obviously in

preparation for battle, and Manchu officers rode back

and forth making final prepartions. The huge army

gradually became deathly quiet. Chen and the girl had

by this time been noticed, and several soldiers

approached to question them.

"The gods have conspired to deliver us into the hands

of the Manchus," Chen thought. But the idea of dying

with the girl beside him gave him a strange pleasure.

He grasped the Pearl Strings in his right hand, the

reins in his left, and shouted: "Let's go!"

The horse galloped off towards the end of the Manchu

lines, and in the blink of an eye, had passed three

companies of troops. Rank upon rank of armoured

soldiers, bows at the ready, passed before them, and

Chen knew that with one word from the Manchu

commanders, he and the girl in his arms would

immediately become the repositories of a thousand

spears and ten thousand arrows. He pulled the reins in

tightly and slowly cantered along, not even glancing

at the soldiers.

The morning sun had just risen, and as they rode

towards it, the troops stared in shock at the girl's

glorious beauty, her hair, face, arms and gown

splashed with pale sunlight, and each one, whether

general or trooper, found his heart thumping

furiously. They watched as the two gradually rode off

into the distance.

Even General Zhao, who was in personal command, was

overcome by a feeling of calm and peace, and he knew

he was in no mood for killing. Looking round, he found

all his officers and underlings likewise had

expressions of serenity on their faces. They had

already replaced their swords in their scabbards, and

were obviously awaiting the general's order to retire.

"Return to camp," Zhao said in a far-away voice. The

order was relayed back, and the tens of thousands of

soldiers turned and went back to their camp site more

than ten miles away beside the Black Water River.

Chen was covered in a cold sweat and his hands shook

with fear, but the girl looked un-worried, apparently

unaware of the great danger they had passed through.

She smiled at him and leapt over onto the back of the

chestnut horse.

"That is our army in front," she said. Chen put away

his shield and galloped towards the Muslim lines. A

small detail of cavalrymen rode out to meet them,

shouting and cheering as they came, then jumped off

their horses and bowed before the girl. The officer in

charge walked over to Chen and bowed before him too.

"Brother, you have endured great hardship. May Allah

the true God protect you," he said.

Chen bowed in return and thanked him. The girl rode

straight into the Muslim ranks without waiting for

Chen. She obviously commanded a degree of respect, for

wherever the chestnut horse went, the soldiers made

way for it with cheers.

A brigade commander invited Chen to the barracks to

eat and rest, and Chen told him he wanted to see the

tribe's leader, Master Muzhuolun.

"The Master has gone to observe the enemy's strength,"

the commander replied. "When he returns, I will

immediately inform him." Following the long journey

and the tense encounter with the Manchu army, Chen

felt worn out, and after he had been shown to a small

tent, he immediately slept.

Some time after noon, the commander returned to say

that Muzhuolun was now not expected to return until

evening. Chen asked him who the white-gowned girl was.

The commander smiled. "How could anyone be more

beautiful than she?" he said. "We are having a

love-match meeting tonight. Why don't you come along,

brother? You will be able to meet our leader there."

Chen did not press him further. Towards evening, he

saw the young warriors donning their finery, each face

alive with excitement. The desert evening sky slowly

deepened in colour and a thin crescent moon rose above

the horizon. Chen heard the sound of music strike up

and soon afterwards, the commander came into the tent.

"The new moon has risen," he said, taking Chen's hand.

"Let us go, brother!" The two walked towards a huge

bonfire where the young Muslim warriors were

gathering. All around, people were roasting beef and

mutton, and preparing various delicacies while others

played musical instruments. A horn blew, and a group

of people emerged from a large tent near the bonfire,

among whom Chen recognised Muzhuolun and his son, Huo

Ayi. Chen decided he would wait until the official

ceremony was over before revealing himself, and turned

up the collar of his gown to hide his face.

Muzhuolun motioned to the crowd, and they all knelt

down and prayed to Allah. When the prayer was ended,

he spoke.

"Those brothers who have already taken legal wives, I

am afraid I must ask you to go and stand guard," he

said. "Let your younger brothers have a pleasant

evening."

Three columns of warriors formed up. Huo Ayi,

flourishing his sabre, led them off into the darkness.

Having lived many years in the Muslim regions, Chen

knew that although marriages were arranged by parents

according to various considerations of wealth and

property, the procedure was still much more liberal

than that of the Chinese. The love-match party was a

tradition among the Muslims that had been passed down

for many generations at which young, unmarried boys

and girls could seal their romances and become

engaged. The initiative was taken by the girl, who

would place a belt round the neck of her chosen boy

and lead him to dance.

After a while, the music became softer in tone. The

tent door flaps parted and out came a large group of

young Muslim girls who sang and danced their way

towards the bonfire. They all wore colourful clothes

and small caps laced with gold and silver threads

which sparkled brightly in the firelight. Chen noticed

two beautiful girls walking over to Muzhuolun, one in

yellow, the other in white, and with a start, he

recognised them as Huo Qingtong and the girl who had

brought him to the Muslim camp. Under the moonlight,

they both looked extremely graceful and attractive.

The two girls sat down, one on either side of

Muzhuolun.

A thought suddenly struck Chen. "The girl in white

must be Huo Qingtong's younger sister. No wonder I

kept thinking her face was familiar: it's the same

face as that on the jade vases, although the drawing

does not even come close to reproducing her real

beauty."

His heart began to thump wildly. From the day he had

first met Huo Qingtong, his love for her had begun to

grow, but the familiar closeness between her and Lu

Feiqing's pupil had convinced him that she already had

a suitor. Also, having spent the past few days with

such a matchless beauty, his romantic thoughts had

turned completely towards the white-gowned girl.

The music stopped, and Muzhuolun's voice rang out

clearly: "The prophet Mohammed teaches us in the Koran

in the 190th verse of the second chapter: 'Fight in

the cause of Allah those who fight you', and in the

39th verse of the 22nd chapter: 'To those against whom

war is made, permission is given to fight because they

are wronged, and verily, Allah is most powerful for

their aid.' We are being oppressed and Allah will

certainly assist and protect us." A thunderous cheer

went up from the crowd. "Brothers and sisters!" he

shouted. "Enjoy yourselves fully!"

Singing and laughter rose all about, accompanied by

the music of Horse Head fiddles. Cooks distributed

roast meat, honeymelons, dried grapes and horse milk

wine among the throng. Everyone held in their hands a

small bowl made out of salt rock in which they rubbed

the roast meat. After a while, the new moon rose up

into the sky and the merry-making became even more

intense. Some of the young girls jumped up and danced

over to the boy of their choice, took the embroidered

belt from their waists and placed it round the boy's

neck, then led him off to dance near the bonfire.

Chen had grown up in a world of strict conventions and

had never before seen an occasion of such open-minded

and unrestrained merriment. With the singing ringing

in his ears and emotions swirling through his heart,

he found his face beginning to flush after only a few

cups of horse's milk wine.

The music stopped momentarily, then started again,

even faster than before. Everyone looked curiously

towards Muzhuolun, and following the direction of

their gaze, Chen saw the white-robed girl had stood up

and was floating gracefully towards them. The crowd

was greatly excited and a hubbub of discussion arose.

Chen heard the cavalry commander beside him say: "The

Fragrant Princess has chosen a lover. But who could

possibly be worthy of her?"

That his beloved younger daughter had found a boy she

loved was a great surprise and a great joy to

Muzhuolun. He watched her intently with tears

glistening in his eyes.

Princess Fragrance glided round and round, passing

along the edge of the circle that had formed. In her

hands, she held a brilliantly-embroidered belt and she

softly sang:

"Please come out,

You who picked the snow lily for me.

I am searching for you,

You who saved my little deer."

The words hit Chen's ears like a clap of thunder. A

white hand touched his shoulder and the embroidered

belt fell around his neck. The Princess tugged gently

and Chen, scared out of his wits, followed her. The

crowd cheered, and all around him people started

singing.

In the hazy moonlight, Muzhuolun and Huo Qingtong

failed to recognise Chen, and walked forward to

congratulate him along with the others thinking he was

an ordinary Muslim. Suddenly, they heard three blasts

from a distant horn, the signal for danger, and the

crowd immediately dispersed. Muzhuolun and Huo

Qingtong returned to their seats. The Princess took

Chen's hand and led him off to sit at the back of the

crowd. Chen felt her soft body leaning towards him,

and a light fragrance entered his nostrils,

intoxicating his senses. He truly could not tell if he

was in a dream or in heaven.
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