Chapter 6: Misfortunes Never Come Alone

When Yan Chixia regained consciousness, he felt his head heavy and clouded. Groggily, he opened his eyes to find himself covered by a coarse cotton quilt, lying on a warm brick bed. Bewildered, he wondered aloud, “Huh? Where am I?”

No sooner had the words left his lips than a girl’s voice, filled with delight, rang out from beside him, “Brother Chixia, you’re awake?”

The sound was sweet and tender, and Yan Chixia immediately recognized it as the voice of his young neighbor, Peach Blossom. As she spoke, Peach Blossom’s lovely, cherubic face appeared before him.

Her family name was Zhao, and she was five years old this year. Her father, Zhao Dashan, had passed away two years ago. With no siblings, Peach Blossom now lived alone with her mother, Madam Zhao. Seeing her, Yan Chixia couldn’t help but ask, “Peach Blossom, why are you here too?”

“Of course I’m here. Brother Chixia, this is my home!” Peach Blossom replied sweetly, then raised her voice to call out, “Mother, come in quickly! My brother Chixia is awake!”

As soon as she finished speaking, the door curtain was lifted, and Madam Zhao, her face kind and gentle, hurried into the room. She came to Yan Chixia’s side and said warmly, “Chixia, you’re finally awake! You’ve been lying on the bed unconscious for days. I’ve been so worried about you!”

“Ah?” Yan Chixia exclaimed in shock. “Auntie, what did you say? I’ve been unconscious for days? What happened to me? Why am I lying here in your house? I… I… Ah! I remember now—something happened to my father! He’s still lying in the Lonely Mountain Monastery—I have to go and save him…”

As he spoke, Yan Chixia tried to sit up, but his body was so weak that after two attempts, he still could not manage it.

Seeing this, Madam Zhao quickly urged, “Chixia, don’t get up. Just lie still and rest. You haven’t eaten for days and have no strength left. Wait here, I’ll bring you some porridge to eat…”

“No!” Yan Chixia cut her off. “Auntie, I don’t want to eat. I just want to go save my father…”

Sighing deeply, Madam Zhao took his hand in hers, her eyes brimming with tears as she said, “Chixia, my poor child, your father… is no longer in this world. The villagers have already buried him. And your mother… she’s gone too…”

“What?!” Yan Chixia’s mind reeled as if struck by lightning. The world spun around him. He sat bolt upright and cried out, “Auntie, my father and mother… both… both gone? Heaven, Father—! Mother—!” He collapsed back onto the bed, pounding his chest and feet as he sobbed uncontrollably.

Madam Zhao gently stroked Yan Chixia’s tear-streaked face, her voice heavy with grief. “Cry, child, cry your heart out. Only by letting all the sorrow pour forth will you feel some relief…”

Yan Chixia wept as if his heart would break, and Madam Zhao and Peach Blossom wept quietly at his side. For half an hour, he grieved until his tears were spent and his cries faded. Finally, his vacant gaze turned to Madam Zhao, his voice choked with emotion. “Auntie, I remember now. My father was lying in the Lonely Mountain Monastery—he must have been killed by the monster… But how did my mother meet her end at home?”

“Chixia, it happened like this,” Madam Zhao said, wiping away her tears, her voice heavy. “Three days ago—on the day your father had his accident—Stone’s father went up the mountain to gather firewood. Passing by the monastery, he found your father lying there, cold and lifeless. He was so frightened he ran down the mountain to call for help. When the villagers brought you and your father home, your mother was struck dumb with shock. She thought she’d lost both of you and couldn’t bear the blow. She ran straight into the old pagoda tree in front of your house… and died instantly. The villagers wanted to wait until you woke up so you could mourn your parents, but no matter how they called, you remained unconscious. There was nothing they could do. Since both your parents died so tragically, the bodies couldn’t remain at home overnight for fear of bad luck. So the villagers quickly made coffins, laid your parents to rest, and buried them the same day.”

Hearing this, Yan Chixia felt as though his heart were being torn apart. He burst into tears once more, unable to speak.

Madam Zhao continued in a low, sorrowful voice. “Chixia, after your parents were buried, I had planned to bring Peach Blossom and stay at your house to keep you company. But the house was too heavy with grief; I was afraid you and Peach Blossom couldn’t bear it. So I brought you here instead… Chixia, your parents are gone, but from now on, Peach Blossom and I are your family. Don’t worry—I will take good care of you…”

At these words, a warm current of gratitude surged through Yan Chixia’s heart, and he cried out, “Auntie, you are so good to me!”

………………

Under Madam Zhao’s tender care, Yan Chixia’s wounded heart gradually found some solace. Moreover, Li Xiaohu, Zhao Jinsuo, Zhang Shitou, and Chen Xiaobao came to visit him every day, so although he was now an orphan, he never felt lonely…

Four days later was the seventh day after Yan Changshun and Madam Yan’s passing—their first memorial. That morning, accompanied by Madam Zhao, Yan Chixia brought offerings and paper money to the graves of his parents. The moment he saw the new mound that marked their resting place, he let out a heart-wrenching cry of “Father—! Mother—!” and threw himself upon the grave, embracing it as he wept bitterly. Amid his sobs, he swore an oath:

“Father, Mother, I know your deaths cry out for justice… Watch over me from the heavens above—I will destroy the monster that brought this calamity!”

………………

Ever since vowing to destroy the monster, Yan Chixia had brooded constantly over the matter. He wanted to take his “Chixia Sword” to the Lonely Mountain Monastery at once to seek the beast. But his grief for his parents was so overwhelming that he could neither eat nor sleep, and his body remained too weak to climb the mountain.

A month passed before Yan Chixia gradually regained his strength. Burning with the desire for vengeance, one morning after breakfast, he waited until Madam Zhao and Peach Blossom were distracted, then quietly returned home, took up the “Chixia Sword,” and set off for Great Lonely Mountain.

After the tragedy, no one dared venture onto the mountain. A recent snowfall had left the landscape desolate and silent as death. Filled with hatred for the monster, Yan Chixia pushed forward fearlessly, leaving footprints in the snow as he climbed the mountain path.

With the “Chixia Sword” in hand, he pressed steadily upward until he reached the monastery. The temple gates stood half open.

With a creak, Yan Chixia pushed open the timeworn red doors and stepped inside. The moment he entered the courtyard, the memory of his father’s tragic death overwhelmed him with sorrow. He stood there in a daze for the better part of an incense stick’s time… when suddenly, a cold wind swept through, jolting him back to his senses.

“I can’t keep standing here like a fool. I must find the monster and avenge my parents!”

With that, Yan Chixia strode through the monastery, sword in hand, searching every corner. The Lonely Mountain Monastery was small, and it took him little time to scour the place, but there was no sign of the beast. He stopped, baffled: “If the monster isn’t here, where could it be? What should I do now?”

As he stood there, uncertain, his vision suddenly blurred, and before him appeared a wolf-faced, human-shaped monster.

Yan Chixia’s heart pounded with excitement. “So you’ve come at last, monster! Taste my blade—!” he shouted, drawing the “Chixia Sword” and lunging fiercely at the creature.

He had thought that this strike would surely slay the beast, but unexpectedly, the monster raised its palm and, with a resounding smack, knocked the sword clean out of his hand.

“What?” Yan Chixia gasped in disbelief. “How could this be?”

Before he could finish speaking, the monster lunged at him. Unarmed, Yan Chixia knew he stood no chance in close combat. He turned desperately, scrambling to retrieve his fallen sword from the snow. But after only two steps, the monster was upon him, knocking him to the ground…