Bodies & Blades: A Wuxia Novel by Felix von Falkenlust

Author:Felix von Falkenlust [Falkenlust, Felix von]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: von Falkenlust, Felix
Published: 2022-08-16T18:30:00+00:00

26

Her remarkable hair caught the lantern light to dramatic effect. A portion was arranged at her crown, secured by a gold hairpin of a phoenix design, and the rest flowed freely.

Dressed in the ruqun style, her skirt was a rich yellow veering near orange and tied with a belt of gold-embroidered white. The collar of a sheer white jacket matched the skirt. Over the other layer she wore a long overcoat of thin yellow silk, the edges embroidered with gold thread.

Her face was exquisite and, with the light of the lanterns on her golden hair and flowing silk, she seemed to glow against the blue night.

Yang stared stupidly, his mind struggling to process what he saw. He had seen many foreigners in Chang’an, but none with blond hair. But this woman was not a foreigner. She might not have been Han Chinese, but she was certainly Chinese.

She did not wear her sword. She stood there and stared back at Yang. He knew that, even in his patchwork robe, he was hardly as much of a curiosity as she. At last she spoke, her voice pleasing to the ear and her accent strange.

“You must be Mr. Yang.”

“I am. I take it you are the one called Gold?”

“Yes. Gold Strewn From an Upturned Vessel.”

Yang could not help but smile at the fanciful name.

“Excuse me for asking but . . . Your hair . . .”

“Yes?” She raised her brows, which were also blond.

“Is it natural?”

Gold gave a little laugh.

“It is. But you need not take my word for it. If you beat me, you can prove it for yourself.”

It took Yang a few seconds to grasp her meaning, and then he started.

“I—” He felt as if he had nearly been struck by a sword. “I’ve never seen hair that color. Where are you from?”

“Fuling, in Sichuan Province. Yes, I’m from this country. But some Han might not agree that I’m truly Chinese. I’m a Miao.”

“Miao? But, I’ve seen Miao people before. None of them had hair like you.”

“It’s rare, but every so often one of us is born with blond hair.”

“It’s beautiful.”

“Thank you,” she said simply, resting her hands on the railing and looking down at Yang, who could not help but stare at this unique woman.

“Your people,” he said, his eyes not moving from her, “They use the jian?”

“No, we’re more likely to use a spear than a sword. But one day I was wandering around the mountains, where my tribe lives, when I came upon this old Han man using a jian.

“At first I was afraid, and I almost ran away. But then it became clear that he wasn’t here to harm anyone; he was just practicing. And so I watched, hidden behind a tree. The way he moved fascinated me, and the sword was beautiful. I decided right then and there that I wanted to learn to use a sword.

“I came out from behind the tree. I could hardly speak any Chinese, but I gestured, and eventually the man comprehended what I meant.

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