American Perspectives: Tournament Shenanigans Pt. 2 ("Love and Redemption" Ep. 5)

 

"Love and Redemption" can be viewed on Viki or Youtube. Dialogue adapted from English Subtitle Translations by "Destined Love Team at Viki.com"

 

Xuanji, Sifeng, Linglong, and Little Six return to Shaoyang Sect.

"Sifeng, you have wonderful foresight," says Linglong.  "You predicted everything.  Tonight, Wu Tong will definitely be bitten to death by bugs, frozen to death, and scared to death by ghosts."

"What happened was due to my weakness," admits Xuanji.  "I've decided to practice more from now on.  I might not get to join the next Hairpin Tournament, but at least I won't be struck by a spell.  Right?" She lightly nudges Sifeng.

He smiles at her.

The four are enjoying a delicious dinner.  "Time flies by so quickly," says Xuanji.  "We are halfway through the Hairpin Tournament."

Linglong quickly stands up.  "I'm angry now that you mention it.  Wu Tong is still in this tournament. But Sifeng will fight him the day after tomorrow.  Sifeng, you have to give him an utter defeat."

"That's because Sifeng is great," says Little Six. "Why are you feeling proud?"

"Am I only allowed to be embarrassed because you lost to Wu Tong, but can't feel proud at all?" Linglong asks.

"I only lost because Wu Tong cheated, all right?" says Little Six.

"I don't want to care about you," says Linglong.

"You think I want to care about you?" asks Little Six.

"I'm leaving!" Linglong dramatically runs out of the room.

"Fine, leave then," Little Six follows her out.

Xuanji smiles at Sifeng awkwardly. "Both of them are like that.  What's wrong, Sifeng?  Why do you look unhappy?"

"I am thinking that time really flies by.  Once the Hairpin Tournament ends, I have to go back to Lize Palace with my master."

"Yes, you have to go back after the Hairpin Tournament.  Can we still meet again?"

"Yes."

Xuanji smiles.

"We will meet again.  We will definitely meet, no matter how hard it is.  Xuanji, just don't forget me."

"I will definitely not forget about you.  Sifeng, do you know?  Everyone has been saying I'm weird since I was young.  No one wanted to be my friend.  Besides Linglong and Sixth Senior Brother, you are the first good friend I've made."

He smiles at her. "You are weird indeed, but I don't care."

Xuanji smiles.

"Oh, right," says Sifeng.  "I have a rare treasure here.  It allows communication with people from far away."  He reaches inside his hanfu.

"Really?" Xuanji holds out her hand.

Sifeng's heart skips a beat.  As he is feeling around his hanfu, he realizes his pouch with his Mother's hairpin is missing.

 

The following morning, Xuanji and Sifeng go looking for the hairpin in the forest.

"Why can't we find it anywhere?" asks Xuanji.  "It's my fault.  If it wasn't to punish Wu Tong, you wouldn't have lost the hairpin that your mother left you."

"It's not your fault," says Sifeng.  He stops and notices something is askew.  "It's bad." He begins to run.

Xuanji runs after him.

The net that Wu Tong had been trapped in is dismantled, on the ground, with no Wu Tong in sight.

Fast footsteps are heard behind them.  Sifeng grabs Xuanji as Wu Tong tries to charge forward.  Sifeng block him with the palm of his hand, sending him flying.  Wu Tong is astounded by Sifeng's unanticipated strength.

"Even if you attack from my back, you won't do anything to me," Sifeng says sternly.

"Don't you think I learned that from you?" asks Wu Tong.

"You hurt someone else first," Xuanji fires back.  "We just want you to repent for your mistakes." She throws a stick at him.

"You don't have to explain," Sifeng says to Xuanji.  He looks at Wu Tong. "You almost hurt Minyan and Xuanji.  Since you've been trapped for the night, and have escaped now, this issue comes to an end."

"An end?" asks Wu Tong.  "I've never been embarrassed to this extent.  Do you think I'll forget about it?  You think I'm really bullied?"

"What do you want?" asks Sifeng.

"I want you to kneel down and apologize to me."

"You..." says Xuanji.

"Let's go," says Sifeng.

"Wait," Wu Tong says before they can leave. He reaches into the belt of his hanfu and pulls out Sifeng's mother's hairpin.

"It's with you!" says Xuanji.  She gets ready to charge him.

"Xuanji," says Sifeng.  He grabs her arm.  "It might be a trap."

"But he..."

"When did you start to care about Chu Xuanji's safety?  You don't even want the item your mother left you?  I remember that falling in love is not allowed in Lize Palace.  You've broken the palace's rules.  I will expose you.  I want you to suffer," growls Wu Tong.

"Sifeng, what is he talking about?" Xuanji looks at Wu Tong.  "I'm telling you, if you break Sifeng's item, I won't forgive you."

Wu Tong laughs.  "The second young lady of Shaoyang looks foolish usually, but you will get angry because of Yu Sifeng?  When did Lize Palace and Shaoyang Sect get so close?"

"I can do what I want with my friends.  Return the hairpin to us." Xuanji stands in front of Sifeng.

Wu Tong examines the hairpin.  "You want this?  Sure.  Ask him to kneel and beg me."

Sifeng steps forward.

"Sifeng..." says Xuanji.

"You are just angry at me for trapping you.  Since you want to vent your anger, return the hairpin to me.  You can beat me up, and I'll never fight back."

"You will not fight back, no matter what?" asks Wu Tong.  "It sounds appealing, but no.  I would have to waste my strength to beat you up.  I want you to kneel down and beg me."

Sifeng stares him down.

"Return the hairpin to us!" says Xuanji.  She charges at him, and he puts his hand around her neck. "Wu Tong, let me go!"

"I am running out of patience," says Wu Tong.  "I will count to three.  If you don't kneel down, you won't even save the girl's face, let alone this hairpin." He holds the hairpin up to Xuanji's face, ready to cut her with it.

"Wu Tong! Don't act recklessly," says Sifeng.

"One."

"Wu Tong, I am the cause of this.  Return the hairpin to Sifeng.  You can scratch my face."

He applies pressure to her face with the hairpin.  "Two."

"Fine," says Sifeng.  "I'll kneel."

"No," says Xuanji.

"Shut up!" snaps Wu Tong.  He turns and laughs at Sifeng.  "I never thought this day would come to Lize Palace's genius disciple.  I really want everyone to witness this.  Kneel!"

Sifeng clenches his fist, shifts the front of his hanfu, and begins to kneel.

Wu Tong laughs with delight.

"No!" says Xuanji.

As he gets to his knee, he watches Wu Tong closely.  As Wu Tong moves the hairpin from Xuanji's face, Sifeng suddenly springs up and flies through the air.

He kicks Wu Tong in the neck, leaving him on his back, sprawled on the ground.  Sifeng grabs Xuanji while Wu Tong is still lying down.  "Let's go."

Wu Tong stands up.  "Chu Xuanji, Yu Sifeng.  You just wait!"  He clutches his chest in pain.

 

Linglong and Xuanji are adorably dressed up as boys, and they're spying on the men's bath house.

"Xuanji," says Linglong, "this is the way you are thinking of stealing the hairpin?"

"No one will notice us if we are dressed like this," insists Xuanji.

The sisters closely watch the men come and go, trying to calculate the perfect time to enter.  They see Wu Tong leaving.

"Which way to the bath?" They overhear a male disciple asking Wu Tong.

"Walk that way from here," Wu Tong points.

They see a leather pouch hanging from his waist, and they are sure it contains the hairpin.

"Look, it's there!" Xuanji points excitedly.

"Be quiet!" admonishes Linglong. "Xuanji, later you will sweep the floor and block Wu Tong's vision.  Leave the rest to me...I will get the hairpin."

"But I..." says Xuanji.

"You can't cast any spells, and my skills are better than yours.  Listen to me. " She puts her hands on Xuanji's shoulders.

Xuanji nods.

They see Wu Tong leaving.  

"He is leaving, let's follow him," says Linglong.

The sisters are trailing him, hand in hand, as he slides open the bath house door, and quickly goes in.

Linglong slowly slides the door open, and she immediately gets an eyeful of naked men.  She is mortified, and quickly slides the door shut.

"What's wrong?" asks Xuanji.

"Xuanji, this is the bath house for male disciples." The sudden realization of what that entails sinks in.  "Everyone is naked inside!"

"Of course," says Xuanji non chalantly.  "They have to be naked to take a bath."

"Girls cannot see their naked bodies!"

"Why is that?" asks Xuanji.

Linglong is now on the spot.  "That...it's because males and females are different.  Do you know that?  Do you know that?  It's bad if word got out that we went into the male bath.  Why don't we forget about it?"

Xuanji isn't backing down.

"It's just a hairpin," Linglong insists.  "Can we give Sifeng another one?"

"That won't do!" says Xuanji.  "Linglong, do you know that this hairpin is the only thing given to Sifeng by his mother?  It's very important to him.  I must get it back.  Wait here.  I'll go."

"No!" says Linglong.

Too late!  Xuanji quickly slides the door open, and walks right in like she owns the place.  Linglong is left waiting outside.

As the men are bathing, Xuanji is pretending to be a towel boy while figuring out which cubby Wu Tong put his items in.  Xuanji is completely unaffected by the nudity, just going about her business.

A disciple approaches her.  "Little Brother, get me a towel."

She quickly hands one to him.

She sees Wu Tong going into a private stall.  Perfect!  She sees his cubby across the room, and quickly, but stealthily, makes her way over.  She rummages through the cubby, finally finding the pouch.  She sees he's getting ready to leave the stall, so she must act quickly.  She assumes she's safe, but he sees her dumping his pouch into her hand.

"What are you doing?" he shouts.

She immediately runs as fast as she can.  He busts out of his stall, and Xuanji is trying to pass all these naked men.  She sees a window, pushes it open, and jumps right out.  She lands on the ground like a ninja.

Linglong watches her sister in amazement.  She runs to Xuanji.  Wu Tong sees Linglong running away, her outfit identical to Xuanji's.  He chases after her.  He blocks her, and pulls her headcovering off.  He slams her into the wall by the neck.

"Chu Linglong?  It's you.  Hand it over."

She looks at him and sees he's only wearing his robe and underpants.  His robe is wide open.  She is shocked and embarrassed.  She screams, and slaps him across the face.

"Stop pretending. Didn't you enjoy yourself at the male bath house?"

"Who did you say went into the male bath house?" asks Linglong.  "Shameless rascal!" she quickly runs away.

He touches his face where she slapped him, and he smiles.

 

Sifeng is in his room, examining his mother's portrait.  He smiles at it.  "Luckily, I still have my mother's portrait.  I have to remember how she looks."  Little Silver Flower, his spirit beast, is on the table, keeping him company.  He pets her head.  "Silver Snake, don't worry.  I will get back the silver hairpin."

"Sifeng!" Xuanji bursts into the room, out of breath.  "Sifeng, look!"  She proudly shows him the hairpin.

He looks down and notices a gash on her leg.  "How did you injure your leg?"  He stands up.  "Here, sit down." He lifts up the bottom part of her outer Hanfu robe.  "Where did you get this injury?"

The cut is right above the top of her boot.

"You got hurt because you went to retrieve my silver hairpin?" Sifeng asks.

"It's fine," says Xuanji.  "I can't feel pain anyway.  Most importantly, I got back the treasure your mother left you."  She puts the silver hairpin in his hand.

"Sifeng, what are you looking at?" asks Xuanji.

Sifeng is very flustered.  "Let me put on some medicine."

"It's fine," Xuanji insists.  "I don't feel pain."

He hesitates, not sure if it's a proper request.  "Roll up your pants," he finally says.

"S-S-Sifeng, why are you stammering?" 

He doesn't answer.  "Roll up your pants so I can apply medicine."

She rolls up her pants, exposing her open cut.

"Stop saying that you don't feel pain and you are fine.  You are bleeding.  Although you don't feel pain, your body will still know it.  Also, that Wu Tong is petty.  You have to avoid him."

"Okay," says Xuanji.

"Right.  How did you find this silver hairpin?  Why are you dressed like this?"

Xuanji looks down at her clothes and laughs.  "I am smart.  I took it when Wu Tong was taking a bath."

Sifeng quickly stands up.  "What?  You went to the male bath house?"  he says with horror.  "How can a girl go inside the male bath house?"

Xuanji stands up.  "But the best time to steal it was when Wu Tong was taking a bath!" she smiles proudly.

"Your leg is injured, sit down."

Xuanji happily sits down.

"Let me ask you.  What did you see?"

"I didn't see anything," says Xianji.  "I only saw many disciples running around naked."

"Don't you know it's bad for a girl if word of this got out?"

"I...but...I saw you taking a bath before.  There was nothing bad about it." 

Sifeng is trying to get his bearings.  "I was bad."

Xuanji gives him a look.

"I mean, I'm different from other people.  If you meet someone, trying to cause trouble, they will spread the news and exaggerate it.  It will be bad for you."

"Before I went in, Linglong told me the same thing," Xuanji sighs.  "She said it's bad and ran away.  Bit Sifeng, what is feeling shy?"

He sits down and sighs.  "Roll them up."

She rolls her pant leg up.

He talks to her as he's applying the ointment.  "Feeling shy is to feel embarrassed.  Feeling ashamed.  Men and women are different.  They will be shy if they touch each other."

"Men and women are different?" asks Xuanji.

"So, you can never touch another man in the future.  Also, see no evil, touch no evil."

"Don't touch a person of another gender in the future.  Sifeng, what are you doing?"  She looks at him, applying ointment on her leg.

He hesitates.

"Sifeng, are you feeling shy now?"

He drops the jar of ointment.  "I'm applying the medicine for you."  They reach down to pick up the jar at the same time and bump heads.  Xuanji looks into his eyes.

The Lize Palace disciples can be heard outside.  Sifeng panics.  "Come here," he whispers.

They enter his room.  Sifeng and Xuanji are in bed, but Xuanji is hiding (fully clothed) under the covers.  Sifeng's back is facing the disciples.

"Sifeng, why are you sleeping so early tonight?"

"Don't move," Sifeng whispers to Xuanji.

Ruo Yu notices some ointment and bloody bandages.  "Sifeng, are you hurt?  Let me take a look."

"I'm fine, it's minor," Sifeng replies.

"Then...why are you sleeping with a robe on?"

"It's cold."

"Let me cover the blanket for you."

Pointing his fingers, Sifeng gets all the candles to go out.

"Sifeng, what's the meaning of this?" asks another disciple.

"I'm going to sleep.  The lights were too bright."

"That's it.  You are the Palace Lord's top disciple.  You can do anything you want without caring about others."

"You are wrong," says a disciple.  "This top disciple does care a lot for someone else.  He only wanted to be friends with some outsiders."

"I heard he even tried to help the two girls from Shaoyang Sect."

Xuanji raises her head.  Sifeng gently, but firmly lowers it.

"He did it publicly."

"I'm sure he had already forgotten all about the palace rules."

"You are right.  Seems like Sifeng is not planning to become Lize Palace's Palace Lord in the future, but to stay in Shaoyang Sect and become their son in law."

"That's enough, stop talking," says Ruo Yu.  "We have important work tomorrow.  Rest early."

The gossipping disciples get to their beds.

Xuanji starts putting her hands all over Sifeng's chest.

"What are you doing?" he whispers sharply.

"Silver Snake stole my hair accessory," Xuanji whispers.

"Don't move," says Sifeng.  "Take your hands off."

Xuanji pouts, turns away from him, and burrows further under the covers.

 

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