Dr. Pete Harrison

It's a weird dream because it's just like a sci-fi romance. If i'm good at describing and elaborate the surrounding, I might write a short novel of all my dreams.

The story began with me and a girl in one room. I don't know why we were there but the girl seems to know everything she done. I sat on a sofa next to where she was standing and i saw she was holding a remote control. In front of us there was a big flat screen tv. The girl started to press something on the remote control and on the screen appeared an images; a pretty lady or maybe a robot or a machine. The image started to say, "you are only allowed to use the control at 2300 hours. Please try again later."

The girl seems frustrated and she started to press the button which i guess she tried to change the timer to 2300 hours. Few attempted yet the image still repeating the same sentences.

Not long after that, I saw somebody walked toward the room so I quickly told the girl to hide the remote. We were lucky because 2 girls opened the door and they were surprised to see us there. With a nervous laughed i lied to them that i just want to take a rest because i felt sick.

While i talked, a guy appeared from nowhere; he wore a doctor uniform. Hmm....maybe he is a scientist and everybody called him Dr. Harrison. The girl that was with me in the room at the first time went out and left me with 2 girls and Dr. Harrison. One girl sat next to me and touched my forehead, "i guess you're really sick." Then Dr. Harrison said, "Come, have a lunch with me. I can see that your face looks pale."

I have no choice but to follow him. All the way to cafeteria, I just kept my mouth shut and walked with my head down. My mind wandered and I made my own speculation that he gave me a lunch treat because he wanted to interrogate me. I bet he did that to everyone.

After that incident, I always tried not to bump into him, or if I saw him walked in front of me, I will turned a corner and runaway from him. Until 1 time I really had no choice but to walk passed him; that time he stood on the corridor with someone; they seems to discuss something. So i greeted him, "Good morning Dr. Harrison." and hurriedly passed him. He looked at me with his forehead wrinkled but he didn't answer me.

Few moment later, I saw him waited for me in one corner and he blocked my way. He opened his mouth, "Rule No. 1 : Never ever call me Dr. Harrison, just call me Pete. And this rule is strictly for you only. Rule No. 2 : You have to go out for dinner with me tonight." I tried to protest and he quickly added, "Rule No. 3 : No objection or else you need to pay for our dinner." When i tried to open my mouth, he stopped me by saying,"so see you tonite." and he raised his left hand and walked away. I could hear he laughed.

For dinner, he brought me to a small restaurant, we sat at the corner far from other people. He began to say, "You're so hard to understand." I looked up at his face before i dropped my face again, didn't dare to say anything. I don't know why I'm so scared of him, it seems like i tried to confess a big sin. So he continued, "I realized other people tried to impress me, if they had a chance, they will try to stay near me but you, everytime you saw me, you will run away." He studied my face and I still didn't say anything. And then he said,"The more you tried to run away from me, the more I want you to be next to me. So you must give up coz i won't let you go."

Then *thumppp....* i accidentally dropped the glass and woke up just to see the water bottle next to my bed dropped to the floor. :P

Frustrated??

This week is a happy week for me. Tomorrow we don't have to come to work. Yay! Oh yea...speaking of frustration...actually I'm talking about facebook games; Ninja Saga. :P I thought that once I reached level 20 then i can straight forward upgrade to become a Chuunin but in fact, I need to 'sit' for the Chuunin test. ZzzZzz....4 types of test...I only managed to pass the first test which is a writing test. And for another 3, I'm not sure when can i complete the test. Haiz~ I tried to find some information about these test, and some of them said that you need to be very strong. Hmm....strong mean, you need to buy the good weapon and skills using real money. ZzzZzz....

So i guess, I need to plan for strategy...hmm....it's okay...I think I will start playing MapleStory again.

Hmm....what I'm gonna do tomorrow since tomorrow is a rest day? Wash my cars, clean the aquariums, do the laundry and maybe I will go out? Hahahaha...

I'm craving for some good books now....I feel weird when i dont read anything. I tried to look for "Me and Mr. Darcy" but it is out of stock. ZzzZzz...

Oh yeah....I havent told about my dream lately. It was a weird dream, I was walking on the bridge with a faceless guy. We saw a couple quarreled not far from us and I saw myself holding the faceless guy's hand...I mean tightly...then I rested my chin on his left shoulder and said, "last time we also always quarrel like them, right?" Then he smiled at me and squeezed my hand.

Hahaha.....nonsense. Orait....time to go. Ciao!

Is it emo?

I don’t know what happen to me these few days. I always wake up around 2 am – 3 am despite I sleep at 1 am.

Last night we were having dinner at RH. I sat together with Sharon, Angela, Ju, and some other people that I forgot the name. The foods were okay....but this morning Alex told me that last night was the worst dinner he ever had. Well....the ginseng soup was okay...so I have no comment to this. Apart from that, at least our table won the lucky draw. :P

After dinner, we went to Hijau, oh...orait....I ordered Blood Mary and the taste was gross. Next time I will make sure that I won't other the same drink. Few hours inside Hijau, my mind wandered around. I preferred listening rather than talking, after all I had nothing to say. A few times the singers approached us and greet us friendly. Hmm...they paid for that...

Oh..okay...we forget about that for now. Yesterday I learned few new words that I rarely use; 1. Absurb = Ridiculous, 2. Indulgence = Hobby, 3. Ostentatious = Show-off, 4. Ditch = Leave, 5. Utterly = Completely, 6. Conspicuous = Obvious.

So next time i will make sure to use these words often. :P

Oh yea....yesterday I talked to Siput regarding my emo day. Normally I will try to avoid the conversation, it is maybe because I tried to forget the past. After few years, this is the first time I talk about the issue. But I don't feel like to write about it here either. :P

Last week we had CNY holiday. I spent 4 days to read Twilight Saga. 1 book for each day. Reading Bella's perspective really annoyed me. I really hate Bella, I always think of her as a stupid gal and wish that if I was inside the book myself, I bet I will slap her face. She can't control her 'lust' toward Edward which made me really sickin' tired of reading her part. But, after I read the partial Midnight Sun from Edward's perspective, it really changed me. Oh okay....I was being biased with Bella. She deserved Edward's love. :P Edward saw her as a very interesting gal, she is a shy gal, matured, brave and not selfish. And...she will protect the one she loved. Orait.....Bella wins.

When i read the books from 2 different character's perspective, it made me think, oh...this is the reality. This is how we think toward other people and this is how other people think of us. The thing that made me feel uneasy was when we stayed near someone who can read people's mind. Actually before I read Twilight Saga, I already think about this. That's why when i was alone, I restrained myself from gossiping (in my mind) other people. Oh....and also restrain myself from having fantasy with someone I know. Normally the guy in my imagination will have no face. :P Eww......Just imagine if someone like Edward is around us, and he can read our mind. And let say if i can read people's mind, I also do hope someone will never ever having me in their fantasy. eww.....

I shared this interest with Siput. We discussed about each characters; well, it's not like you like the movie because the actors or the actresses are cute. My bf mistook me by this. Well....it annoyed me when he said, "Yea...a lot of people love that movie. The actor is cute. They also wish that their boyfriend is a vampire." Ewwww.......irritating! I'm not talking about the movie...I'm talking about the books!!! I preferred the books rather than the movies and I don't expect the characters will be that handsome or pretty. I just like the characters for whoever they are. Hmm.....It's hard to explain. My bf doesn't understand me, which make me seldom sharing anything with him anymore. I'm being unfair but yea... *shrug*

My favorite characters are : 1. Edward - because the way he loves Bella and the way he protects Bella, besides, mind reading is quite interesting. Oh, I considered him as a strong guy which can control himself....well....if I'm a vampire, maybe I can restrain myself from eating human; hmm...just imagine that I'm on diet. Wakakakaka....
2. Carlisle - first of all, unique name. :P Then his personality and also very supportive. 3. Seth - i love this wolf so much, I can imagine him as a cute boy and also as a cute wolf...I bet if he is in front of me, I will always hug him (he in wolf form)...remind me of Shuu (in One Piece). Oh...okay....I think despite he is still young, but he is the most rational people in the book. And he also very loyal to his friend. Yerp...he is Edward's best friend, after they fight the vampires together make their relationship become close. I understand how Seth's feeling when he reluctant to fight against Cullens. The best scene (my imaginary) ever in the book was when Seth and Edward fighting Victoria; the time when both of them surround by Victoria and her mate, Seth's tail touched Edward's back. Victoria thought that Edward will be killed by the wolf. Hahahaha....*hugged Seth tightly* :P. 4. Alice - The one and only female character that I like. I always imagine her as a cute gal with agility; so energetic. And she is very optimistic. especially the time when she keeps asking Edward, "so when can i talk to bella?". 5. Benjamin - this vampire has the same character with Seth (but i don't feel like hugging him since he is not a wolf.:P). I cannot imagine his face and since he only appears in Book 4, so he's not so famous. He has his own standpoint and his power consider powerful too. 6. Jasper - I imagine his face differently. I like him because of his interesting history. He is the most experienced fighter in Cullen. So....that's it.

So...between Vampire and the wolf...which one I like? I choose Vampire (this is not because of what my bf thought "all the gals want to become a vampire"). It's nothing to do with their beautiful appearance but because they never sleep. Hahahaha....Wow...if i have that power (errr....not the insomnia...i hate being tired due to lack of sleep)..i'm sure many things can be done. I like to learn many things, and sometimes once i start reading/doing something, I cant stop myself until I have to force myself to sleep. I need to get some rest for tomorrow activities.. So troublesome i guess.

This is all about Twilight Saga huh? Yea....coz recently I read the books. Anyway, I'm gonna buy a new book since I finish with all the series. Maybe today I need to go to the bookstore? I'll think of it later.

I'm In Love???

Oh....okay.....this will sound so ridiculous....I'm in love again....with....something that doesn't exist. Hahahaha.....It's quite embarrassing actually and my friends (Panda, Lon, etc) told me that this is really ridiculous. Haiz~

Okay....here we go....yesterday I bought dvds....Twilight, New Moon, Post Grads, Fairy Tooth.....and i watched Twilight and New Moon. Oh...alright...I don't like the actors (I mean I'm not interested with the actors) but I do like the characters...especially all the Cullen family. They are the vampire but they never make humans as their prey. It's kinda like a vegetarian vampire. Lol! Well....I like the idea. And...I like Edward Cullen....coz....I do wish I have a soul-mate like him. Yerp...that's true, I always wish I have someone that can always protect me....coz I always feel that I'm a very independent person. I do everything according to myself....it seems like I dont need a guy in my life. In fact I'm still searching for my soul-mate, at least my true soul-mate.

I always wish I have someone that can control me, that can be jealous of me, that can scold me whenever i do wrong, that can protect me....

What a nice day~

Today is a nice day....All big bosses not around (going for holiday) and my boss is/was busy with outside matter. :P

Waaa.....I read the One Piece manga episode 574. So sad.....Ace gonna dies. Noooooooo!!!! Please don't make this happen. Why everything that I read were so sad?

And then i received an email from bro' asking me to help him on his assignment. ZzzZzz... C Programming!!! How many years already since i taking my degree....How can i remember all those things? And some more C Programming....what the heck?!!! Errr....C and C++, is that the same? :P Coz last time I took C++.

And bro said he gonna back to hometown. Nooooooo!!! I thought my CNY holiday will be a "holiday" for me....seems like I have to cope with him and his assignment. *bleh*

Noon time later, I plan to go to Post Office, after that go to the bank to bank in the money and after that will go to bookstore....yay! Hope there's another new story book.....and I also thinking of buying dvd. Haven't decide what movie I want to watch yet.

Twenties Girl

Today I just come back from traveling. Nothing much happened while traveling and i was glad that my 'presentation' consider as successful. I was introduced to my ex-student which become one of the admins.

Before the presentation, I did have butterfly in my stomach but once I talked, I couldn't stop myself. :P It was lucky that I did do some revision coz some of the 'audience' did ask the questions which i can answer perfectly (i guess).

Wow, I couldn't believe my own ears when i heard myself said "leaf sampling, normally we will carry out once our palms reach the age of 30 - 36 months which is why we didnt do any leaf sampling here since our palms are still very young. But we did do this leaf sampling but in our other estates." Wow!

But I must remember this : Sub-soil method for manuring is for flooding area, and broadcasting method (normal method) is for normal area. Err....what is sub-soil method actually? Sometimes I feel like I am just like Emma Corrigon.....I am the professional, I am the high level executive and must act professional, I must give my confident face and don't worry, they won't ask me "what is sub-soil mean?", coz we all know what is sub-soil mean (which is...I don't. :P).

When I talked in front, I couldnt stop thinking that (my instinct) some of the audiences must be admired me, admired my style. I am just like a superstar in my own small world. Which remind me of "do not wish to be somebody else coz you don't have any ideas what is their life looks like." That's true, some people might admire me, but they don't have an idea of my life. I wish I am not me, I wish that I am one of the heroins in Sophie Kinsella's books. Sometimes I do look like one of them except that I never find my hero...or maybe not yet? Awww c'mon.... I will never find my hero. *sobs....sobs....*

Oh yea...we had nice foods....we had prawns (big prawns), we had BBQ, and the auntie was forcing me to eat 3 big scoops of rice. After that I really couldn't get up. Lol! After the presentation, we having 1 more round of eating. Lol! If everytime like this, I bet I will become fat!!! (Nnnnnyyyyyoooooo)

And talking about a book that i read lately (err....actually I just finish it today), Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella. Wow.....fabulous...marvelous....superb!!! Err....any other word to describe the book? I cannot compare the book with "Can You Keep A Secret?" Both are the best from S.K. While "Can You Keep A Secret?" is more to romance, Twenties Girl is more to ghostly bonding? Err....is that a correct word....I just suddenly thinking of wanna use that word. Lol! There is romance, there is ghostly, there is a funny part, and there is a sad part which make me cannot stop but cry.

This Twenties Girl, I really can feel the story, yea, the crazy part is when Sadie asking Lara to go straight to the room and ask the guy to go out with her, which is, actually that is not an office but a conference room where people having their meeting and Lara is so 'kewl'...she is brave enough to ask the guy out. Wow....

And another wow again coz at last both of them become a couple (thank to Sadie). But the sad part is when at last they found the necklace (which mean the unfinished business is finish now), and once Lara put the necklace back to Sadie's body, her spirit was gone. It is so sad because before Sadie gone forever, she did many great jobs for Lara. Just suddenly like that, Lara becomes glamorous and famous. And the part where Lara and Sadie didn't talk for 3 days, and Lara tried to look for her everywhere until she found her painting which is become so famous. And at last she found Sadie at Jazz festival, and the part when Sadie said, "I miss you." *cries* And the time when Ed Harrison confessed that he loves Lara. *Awwww*

I dont care with the 'romance' part, I dont care with Ed's part, what touched me is Sadie and Lara part. I can imagine them; I can imagine how Sadie gone.

Really got some morale in that story; appreciate the elders. (I miss my late grandpa and my late grandma....I always dream of them....they are one of the best things in my life).

And quote of the day : "Life is like escalator....You must move on....just enjoy the view while you move on."

Another quote : " There are other men, there are other countries, there are other lives to live." <-- This quote really gives me strength. Even if I cannot find my hero, it's ok...I still need to move on....

Wow...enough with the emo!! Okay..i really need to go...or else I will never stop crying later (not about the 'hero' but about Sadie and Lara).

Monday Blues

It's Monday again... As usual, early morning feel so lazy to wake up to work (but so weird because on weekend i can wake up as early as 5am!). Today got nothing much to do, but I just make myself busy, reading some revision books just to prepare myself for the possibility tomorrow. Oh yeah...tomorrow will travel again, but this time I asked M to go along with me. Well...at least I got friend. Hehehe....

Boss seems to notice my 'hardworking' today coz he didn't even bother to disturb me. Well....that's a good thing also...and he didn't know that i just pretending only. :P

Afternoon time, after lunch, I'm suppose to take a nap but my brain so hyperactive; dunno why suddenly I figure out why they call the frond as frond 9, frond 17, etc. Because each frond will produce 8 spirals. Make sense right? :P

And....the TE is stand for Trace Element.....meaning the micro-nutrients. And another thing is, I need to make sure that I remember that K is stand for Potassium and P is for Phosphorus.

It seems like I will sit for important exam and today I need to do the revision. ZzzZzz... The fact is, there will be no exam for me but I'm the one that gonna give a test. :P

And now, talking about weekend.....Last weekend I was busy with my The Sims 3. Well, at least I 'build' 3 houses. The old character (Jack Harper) seems like missing in action once I added a new character. ZzzZzz....I tried to look for him everywhere, even I tried to 'ask' his gf, and she said that she is single. So where is my Jack Harper gone? No choice, I have to get a new Jack Harper with no skill and he found his wife. After settle down with Jack Harper (now no more Jack Harper coz after he married to this wife, his family name was changed to Grandell), so I created a new gal character.

This gal named Charlene will max all the skills and will complete all the quests before she settle down her life. And her house....is actually my dream house. Wait until I get the photo shot, then I will paste it here. The house mix with modern house and chinese house. In the middle, there is a small garden + pond. There's a bridge too. But the house is quite big for a single person like Charlene. Lol!

Oh yea....I also watched One Piece. I dont want to comment much about One Piece coz I plan to make a synopsis for every episodes that I watch. Which mean I need to re-watch it again later. I'm so sad, to think of Ace gonna dies while Luffy cant save his own brother even the thing happen in front of him. Haiz~

Oh yea....talking about 'dream'. I had this funny dream....On Saturday night, dunno why I dream of the snake. So many snakes and 1 of the snakes climb my leg....and that actually wake me up!!! In reality, I even tried to push the snake away from me and pheww....that was a dream!!!

And last night I dream of snakes + crocodiles. I tried to run away from the snake (okay....a snake only...but that snake even can jump and fly. ZzzZzz), and then suddenly I walked on a flooding area.....1 guy told me that the place was actually full with crocodiles...and I saw 2 small crocodiles bite him. ZzzZzz....

So, that's all for today... Ciao.. :P

Piss Off!!

These few days, I was really pissed off with some of the staff. But by the time I write this blog, the feeling was gone. So I'm not gonna talk about it anymore.

Anyway, yesterday I learned 2 new words : suan = sour; and tian = sweet. Lol! Okay, forget about it.

Oh yeah....yesterday D.D (my old friend cum my ex-classmate) called me, many things happened these past few years, and many things changed too. He told me he is married. Oh...okay... And when we talked, it just like our old times, and he told me, "We are getting matured" and I added, "And getting old...."

It just he is not meant for me...so yeah...(full stop).

Another thing also, I bought a new story book from Sophie Kinsella, "Twenties Girl". I plan to read the book next week while traveling.

And....(Lol! Seems like these will never end...) I also started to learn to play piano again. Still in progress and I need to learn the basic again. Haiz~ The most important thing is, I must learn how to remember the code and where they are located on the staff. Err.....I don't know the specific term for those things. Hehehehe...

Anyway...for trebble clef : FACE....and Every Good Boy Does Fine?

And for bass clef : All Cow Eat Grass? and err.....I havent come out with another clue... :P

Memoirs of IMH (Mental Hospital)

Record I

Patient A: "So how... this book not bad ya?"

Patient B: "Excellent! Astounding work.. No nonsense shit, sharp and concise to the point. But there's a major flaw in this piece of art too many character names to remember!!!"

Nurse: "Hey! Can the two of you..put the telephone book back to the original place?"


Record II

One doctor asked a patient: "If I were to cut one of your ear off, what will happen to you?"

Patient: "Then I will not be able to hear...."

Doctor: "Hmm.. that's normal...So if I were to cut your other ear off, what will happen to you?"

Patient: "Then I will not be able to see..."

The doctor became nervous and asked: "Why would you not see then???"

Patient: "Because my spectacles will drop down..."


Record III

IMH has an old lady who wears black everyday, carries a black umbrella and squats @ the entrance to the IMH everyday without fail, rain or shine.

The doctor wanted to administer treatment for her and decided to start by understanding her behaviour.

So, the doctor also wear black and carries a black umbrella; squatted outside together just next to her, rain or shine, everyday without fail.

So...days goes by...the two of them squatted side-by-side w/o a single exchange of words..for one solid month...

One fine day..the old lady finally broke the silence and asked the doctor: "Err...Excuse me! Are you also a mushroom?"


Record IV (the best)

A nurse saw a patient writing a letter.. She got curious and went to take a peek.. But the patient didn't wanna let her see.

Nurse (unable to contain her curiosity): "Who are you writing to?"

Patient : "I'm writing a letter to myself..."

Her curiosity grew and she thought to herself (Why would someone write a letter to himself?)

So she asked again: "So...what's written inside?"

Patient (got impatient): "You crazy ah? I haven't receive the letter, how would I know??"


Record V

Two patients escape from the IMH. They climbed up a tree and one of them fell from the tree and started rolling on the ground.

After a while, the patient rolling shouted to the top: "Hey! How come you are not coming down yet?"

The patient ontop replied: "No..no...I can't...I'm not ripe yet"


Record VI

One patient visited the doctor: "Doc...how? I think I'm a chicken since I was born..."

Doctor: "Woah! that's very serious...Why do you only come and seek treatment now?"

Patient: "Because my family needs me to hatch the eggs..."


Record VII (Perfect)

One truck driver was doing his usual delivery to IMH.. He discovered a flat tyre when he was about to go home after unloading the stuff.

He jacked up the truck and took the flat tyre down. When he was about to fix on the new tyre, he accidentally dropped all the bolts into the drain.

The truck driver was very sad as he can't fished the bolts up; started to panic.

Coincidentally, one patient walk past and asked the driver what happened.

The driver thought to himself, since there's nothing much he can do, he told the patient the whole incident.

The patient nonchantly replied: "can't even fix such a simple problem...no wonder you are destined to be a truck driver..."

he goes on explaining:

"You just have to take one bolt each from the other 3 tyres and fix it onto this tyre. Drive to the nearest workshop and replace the missing ones"

The driver was very impressed and asked "You're so smart but why do you stay in IMH?"

Patient replied: "I stay here because I'm crazy not STUPID!"

The Book & The Sword (Part 1-2)

** 2 **

The Wudang kung fu sect to which Lu belonged, one of the most famous, stressed the use of Internal Force Kung Fu. In his prime, Lu had roamed China fighting for justice, and had become a famous member of the Dragon Slayer's Society, a secret anti-Manchu organisation whose power and influence had been widespread during the reign of Yong Zheng, the former Emperor. But the society had been rigorously suppressed, and by the seventh or eighth year of Emperor Qian Long's reign, it had disintegrated.

Lu fled to the border areas of China. The Manchu court dispatched men to look for him, but he was quick-witted and a good fighter and managed to avoid capture. Working on the principle that 'small crooks hide in the wilderness, middling crooks in the city and big crooks in officialdom', Lu eventually made his way to Commander Li's household and set himself up as a teacher.

From that day, Lu began teaching Yuanzhi the basic techniques of the Wudang School's kung fu style, known as Limitless Occult Kung Fu. He taught her control of her emotions and thoughts, the ten Tapestries and the thirty-two Long-arm Blows. He trained her to use her eyes and ears, and showed her the use of hand darts and other hidden projectiles.

More than two years passed. Yuanzhi, hard-working and clever, made fast progress. Her father, Commander Li, was transferred toGansu province as military commander at Anxi, one of the major towns in the northwest border regions, bordering on the great desert of central Asia. His family, including Lu, went with him.

Another two years passed as Lu taught Yuanzhi the Soft Cloud sword technique and the secret of the Golden Needles. She did as her teacher had ordered, and did not tell a soul that she was learning kung fu. Every day she practised by herself in the rear flower garden. When the young mistress was practising her kung fu, the maids did not understand what they saw, and the menservants did not dare to watch too closely.

Commander Li was a capable man, and he advanced steadily through the ranks of officialdom. In 1759, the twenty-third year of the Emperor Qian Long's reign, he distinguished himself in the battle of Ili, in which the largest of the tribes in the Muslim areas was defeated, and received an Imperial decree promoting him to the post of Commander-in-Chief of Zhejiang Province in the southeast.

Yuanzhi had been born and raised in the border areas of the northwest, and the prospect of travelling to new and beautiful lands filled her with excitement. She pressed her teacher to come as well, and Lu, who had been away from the central areas for a long time, agreed with pleasure.

Li Keshou went ahead with a small escort to take up his post and left his chief-of-staff and 20 soldiers in charge of his family who were to follow him. The officer's name was Deng, a vigorous and energetic man in his forties who sported a small moustache.

The entourage consisted of more than a dozen mules and a few horses. Madame Li sat in a mule-drawn carriage, but Yuanzhi couldn't bear to be cooped up and insisted on riding. Since it would have been improper for the daughter of a high official to be seen riding in public, she changed into boy's clothes which made her look so extraordinarily handsome that she refused to change back into her normal attire no matter what anyone said. All Madame Li could do was sighed and let her daughter do as she pleased.

It was a deep autumn day. Lu rode far behind the group looking at the passing scenery as the colours of late afternoon merged into evening. But there was little to see around the ancient road except yellow sand, withered grasses and the occasional crow flying homewards. A breeze sprang up from the west and Lu began to recite:

"His body and name scarred by a hundred battles; the general approaches a bridge across a river; and turns to look back 10,000 miles; at the dead men left behind. Cold are the waters of the River Yi And the whistling west wind, Full of cloaks and crowns like snow. The hero's song of lament has not yet ended....."

"The poet Xin Jiaxuan could have been writing of my own feelings," he thought. "He was much like me when he wrote it, watching China fall to the barbarian tribes, with no way of knowing when the old days would return. No wonder he sang such a sad song."

The entourage crossed the summit of a hill. Looking at the darkening sky, the mulemen said that another three miles would bring them to Twin Pagodas, a large town, where they planned to spend the night.

Just then, Lu heard the sound of galloping hooves and saw far in front two magnificent chestnut horses racing towards them through a cloud of dust. The two riders flashed by, one on either side of the line of mules, and were gone. Lu slapped his horse and caught up with Yuanzhi.

"Did you get a good look at those two?" he asked in a low voice.

"Were they bandits?" she replied excitedly. She would have liked nothing better than for them to be outlaws bent on robbery, giving her a chance to display the skills she had worked so hard to attain over the past five years.

"It's hard to say," said Lu. "But judging by their ability in the martial arts, they wouldn't be ordinary highwaymen."

"Are they kung fu masters?"

"From the way they ride their horses, I'd say it's unlikely they are novices."

As the entourage neared the town, two more horsemen galloped past.

"Mm, this is very strange," mused Lu. The country was desolate and the evening mist was thickening. He wondered why anyone would set out on a journey at this time of day.

Not long after, the muletrain entered the town. Officer Deng led them to a large inn and Yuanzhi and her mother were shown to one of the best rooms. Lu was given a smaller room, and after he had eaten dinner, a servant lit the lantern. All was quiet, and he was about to go to sleep when a dog barked. From far away he heard the faint sound of galloping horses approaching and he thought again about the four riders they had passed on the road.

The clip-clop of horses' hooves came closer and stopped right in front of the inn. There was a knock on the front door and Lu heard a servant open it and say: "You've been riding hard. There's food and drink prepared for you."

"Go and feed the horses quickly," said a rough voice. "We must start out again as soon as we've finished eating."

Lu considered the situation. Groups of men hurrying northwest, and judging by the way they rode, all of them experts in the martial arts. In all his years in the border areas, he had never seen the like of it. He slipped quietly out of his room, crossed the courtyard and went round to the back of the inn.

"All right, you say the Young Helmsman is very young," he heard the rough-voiced man say. "Do you think he will be able to control all the brothers?"

Lu followed the voice and stationed himself underneath the window.

"He'll have to," he heard the other say. "It was the old master's wish whether the Young Helmsman likes it or not."

The man had a deep, sonorous voice, and Lu could tell his Internal Strength was profound. Not daring to make a hole in the window paper to peep through, he continued to listen from where he was, breathing as lightly as he could.

"Of course," the rough-throated one replied. "But we don't know if the Young Helmsman will be willing to do it."

"You don't have to worry about that," said the other. "He'll follow the old master's wishes."

He said the word 'follow' with a peculiar southern Chinese accent, and Lu's heart jumped. "Where have I heard that voice before?" he thought. He sifted through his mind, and finally remembered that it belonged to his old friend Zhao Banshan, whom he had known 20 years before in the Dragon Slayers' Society. Zhao was about 10 years younger than he, but the two had often trained together, and had a great respect for each other. Lu had heard no news of him since the Dragon Slayers' Society had broken up and he was delighted at chancing upon an old friend in such an unlikely place. As he was about to call out to Zhao, the light in the room was suddenly doused and a dart shot out of the window.

But it was not aimed at Lu. A figure shifted in the shadows nearby and caught the dart, then stood up, about to challenge the dart thrower. Lu leapt over and whispered fiercely: "Don't make a sound! Come with me." It was Yuanzhi.

No one chased them. Lu pulled Yuanzhi into his room and under the light saw an expression of such eagerness on her face that he was both angry and amused.

"Yuanzhi, do you know what sort of men they are? What were you doing trying to pick a fight with them?" he asked sternly.

"What were they doing shooting a dart at me?" she replied defiantly.

"If they aren't outlaws, then they are secret society men," he said. "One of them I know, and his kung fu would not be weaker than mine. Travelling through the night as they are, they must be on very urgent business. That dart was not meant to injure you, it was just telling you not to be nosy. If he had really wanted to hit you, I doubt if you would have been able to catch it. Now go and sleep."

They heard a door open and the sound of horses' hooves as the two men galloped away.

The next morning, the muletrain started out again, and travelled ten miles in just over two hours.

"Look, teacher," said Yuanzhi. "There's someone coming."

Two chestnut horses galloped towards them, and because of the previous night's incident, they paid particular attention to the riders. The horses, fine and spirited, were identical. Even stranger, the two riders were also identical. Both were aged about 40, tall and thin with faces as yellow as wax, sunken eyes and long slanting eyebrows: the effect was frightening.

As they passed by, the two men glanced at Yuanzhi with their strange eyes. She reined in her horse and stared back belligerently, but they took no notice and raced on westwards.

"Where did that pair of ghosts come from, I wonder," she said.

Lu glanced back at the receding figures. "Aha, it must be them," he cried.

"You recognize them?" she asked excitedly.

"They must be the Twin Knights of Sichuan. Their surname is Chang, but everyone calls them Black Death and White Death."

Yuanzhi laughed. "They've got good nicknames. They look like a couple of skeletons."

"Little girls shouldn't make jokes about other people," said Lu. "They may be ugly but they are skilled fighters. I've never met them, but from what I've heard, they travel the country fighting evil and doing justice. They are widely known as outlaws, but they steal only from the rich and help the poor. They have made a great name for themselves."

"But if they are identical, why are they called Black and White?"

"From what I've been told, the only difference between them is that one has a black mole in the corner of his eye, and the other doesn't. There's probably no one better at Black Sand Palm Kung Fu than those two."

"What are they doing in the border areas?" Yuanzhi asked.

"I have no idea," Lu replied. "I've never heard of them operating out here before."

As he spoke, they heard more horses coming towards them. This time, the riders were a Taoist priest and a hunchback dressed in brightly-coloured clothes. The priest had a longsword slung across his back. His face was pale and sickly and he had only one arm: his left sleeve was tucked under his belt.

Seeing the hunchback's ugly face and his garish attire, Yuanzhi laughed. "Teacher," she shouted before Lu could stop her, "Look at the hunchback!"

The hunchback glared at her angrily and as he passed, stretched out his hand to grab hold of her. The priest seemed to have guessed what he would do, and stopped the hunchback's hand with a flick of his horse whip. "Tenth Brother," he growled, "Don't make trouble."

Lu and Yuanzhi looked back and saw the two horses breaking into a gallop. Suddenly, the hunchback did a reverse somersault off the back of his horse, and with three steps covered the distance to Yuanzhi. Yuanzhi's sword was in her hand, but the hunchback did not attack her. He grabbed the tail of her horse, and the animal, which was galloping along, reared back on its hind legs with a loud scream. The hunchback's strength was frightening: the horse had not pulled him forward an inch. He chopped at the horse's tautly-stretched tail with his right hand, and snapped off the end as if with a knife. The horse lunged forward, and Yuanzhi was almost thrown. The hunchback turned and ran off swiftly. In a second, he caught up with his horse, still galloping westwards, leapt onto its back and soon disappeared from view.

"Teacher!" Yuanzhi called out in a plaintive voice. Lu frowned and was about to berate her. But seeing her eyes glistening with tears, he stopped himself.

Later, they heard a shout from behind: "Weiyang...Weiyang."

Yuanzhi was mystified. "What's that?" she asked.

"It's the call of a bodyguard agency shouter," he said. "The agencies hire out bodyguards or escort goods and people, especially on long journeys. Every bodyguard agency has a different call, and they use it to let both outlaws and friends know who they are. The bodyguard agency business is based seven parts on goodwill and three parts on fighting ability. If the head of an agency is generous and creates a lot of goodwill, he will gain many friends, and his business will prosper. Outlaws will hear the call and let them pass without attacking. 'Being friends is better than being enemies,' as the saying goes. Now, if you were to try the bodyguard agency business...ha! With all the people you have annoyed in less than half a day, you would have trouble travelling an inch, even if you were ten times the fighter you are now."

"Which bodyguard agency's call is that?" she asked, ignoring his teasing.

"The Zhen Yuan Agency from Beijing, probably the biggest in north China. The head of the agency is 'North China Earth Shaker' Wang Weiyang. He must be seventy by now, but they're still calling 'Weiyang', so he hasn't retired yet. Ah, perhaps he ought to. The Zhen Yuan Agency has been making big profits for 40 years now. That should be enough for anyone."

"Have you ever met him?" Yuanzhi asked.

"I've met him. He uses an Eight Diagram sword and the Eight Diagram boxing technique. In the old days, there was no one in north China who could beat him."

Yuanzhi was elated. "They're travelling very fast. When they catch up to us, you can point the old hero out to me."

"Now why would he come out himself?" Lu said. "You really are a silly girl!"

Yuanzhi sulked. She was always being told off by her teacher. It wasn't fair. She spurred her horse forward and caught up with the carriage, planning to talk to her mother for a while to relieve the frustration. Glancing round, she saw the stub of her horse's tail and shuddered. There was nothing unusual about breaking a spear with one blow, but a horse's tail was pliable. How had the hunchback managed to snap it? She reined in her horse, meaning to wait for Lu to catch up so she could ask him, but changed her mind and galloped up the line to Officer Deng instead.

"Officer Deng," she said, pouting. "My horse's tail looks very ugly."

"I don't know what to do with this horse of mine," Deng replied, guessing her meaning. "He's in a bad mood today and won't do anything I say. You are a good horsewoman, mistress. Perhaps you could help me break him in."

"I probably won't be able to handle him either," she said modestly. The two exchanged horses. Deng's horse was of course very docile.

"Very good, mistress," he complimented her. "Even horses do your bidding."

The bodyguard agency's call came closer and closer, and before long, a muletrain consisting of a score or more heavily laden animals began to pass.

Lu was afraid one of the agency men would recognize him, so he covered the top part of his face with a large fur cap. As the lead escorts trotted past, he heard one of them remark: "According to Brother Han, Brother Jiao Wenqi's body has been found."

Lu's heart missed a beat as he heard the name. Jiao was one of the Six Devils of Guandong and a formidable fighter. Five years before while on an errand to the Muslim regions, Jiao had discovered Lu was hiding in Commander Li's household and had come at the dead of night with two other fighters with the aim of capturing Lu and taking him back to Beijing to claim the reward on his head. After a hard fight, Lu had killed all three and hidden their corpses on a deserted hillside.

Lu looked round at the escort who had spoken, but had time to see only that he had a full beard and a face as black as thunder. Once he had passed, Lu saw he was carrying on his back a red knapsack and a pair of Five Element Wheels, steel rings covered in knives.

"Could it be that the Guandong Devils have become bodyguard agency escorts?" he wondered. Of the six Devils, Lu had only ever seen Jiao, but he knew that the rest were excellent fighters, and that two of them, the Yan brothers, used Five Element Wheels.

Lu thought about the number of top fighters they had met in the past two days and wondered if it had anything to do with himself. From the look of things, the Zhen Yuan Agency men were actually on an escort assignment, so they posed no threat. As to the fighters travelling westwards in pairs, they did not seem to be looking for him. But where were they going and why?

Having exchanged mounts with Officer Deng, Yuanzhi reined in her horse to wait for Lu to pass.

"Teacher," she smiled. "How come no more riders have passed us? I want to see a few more of these heroes."

Her words jogged Lu's mind and he slapped his thigh. "Ah, you old fool," he rebuked himself. "Why didn't you think of the 'Greeting The Dragon's Head Ceremony'?"

"What's that?" she asked.

"It is the most solemn of the ceremonies held by the secret societies to honour an important personage. Usually, the six most senior men in the society are chosen to go to greet the guest, but for really important meetings, 12 are chosen and they go in pairs. Five pairs have passed us now, so there must be still one pair in front of us."

"Which secret society do they belong to?" Yuanzhi asked.

"That I don't know. But if the Twin Knights of Sichuan and that hunchback are members, the society's power and influence must be tremendous. Whatever you do, don't provoke anyone else, do you hear?"

Yuanzhi nodded, and waited expectantly to see who else would pass them by.

The Book & The Sword (Part 1-1)

** 1 **

It was a hot summer's day in June, l754; the eighteenth year of the reign of Emperor Qian Long. In the inner courtyard of the military commander's Yamen in Fufeng in Shaanxi province, a fourteen-year-old girl skipped towards her teacher's study, eager for a history lesson. All was peaceful: not even a thread of cool wind stirred. The girl hesitated, afraid that her teacher had not yet woken from his afternoon nap. Quietly, she circled round to the window, pierced a hole in its paper covering with one of her golden hair clips, and peeped inside.

She saw her teacher sitting cross-legged on a chair, smiling. His right hand waved slightly in the air, and there was a faint clicking sound. Glancing over to where the sound came from, she noticed several dozen flies on a wooden partition opposite, all as still as could be. Puzzled, she looked more closely and noticed a golden needle as slender as a hair protruding from the back of each fly. The needles were so small that she was only able to see them because they reflected the rays of the late afternoon sun slanting in through the windows.

Flies were still buzzing to and fro around the room. The teacher waved his hand again, there was a small noise, and another fly was pinned to the partition. Absolutely fascinated, she ran to the door and burst in, shouting: "Teacher! Show me how to do that."

The girl was Li Yuanzhi, the only child of the local military commander, Li Keshou. Her fresh, beautiful face was flushed with excitement.

"Hmm," said her teacher, a scholar in his mid-fifties named Lu. "Why aren't you playing with your friends? You want to hear some more stories, do you?"

Moving a chair over to the partition, she jumped up to look, then pulled the needles out of the flies one by one, wiped them clean on a piece of paper and handed them back to him. "That was a brilliant piece of kung fu, teacher," she said. "You have to show me how to do it."

Lu smiled. "If you want to learn kung fu, there's no-one better at it within a hundred miles of here than your own father," he said.

"My father knows how to shoot an eagle with an arrow, but he can't kill a fly with a needle. If you don't believe me, I'll go and ask him."

Lu thought for a moment, and then nodded. "All right, come tomorrow morning and I'll teach you. Now go off and play. And you're not allowed to tell anyone about me killing the flies. If anyone finds out, I won't teach you."

Yuanzhi was overjoyed. She knelt before him and kowtowed eight times. Lu accepted the gesture with a smile. "You pick things up very quickly. It is fitting that I should teach you this kind of kung fu. However ..." He stopped, deep in thought.

"Teacher," said Yuanzhi hurriedly. "I will do anything you say."

"To be honest, I don't agree with much of what your father does," he said. "When you're older, I hope you will be able to distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil. If you accept me as your teacher, you must also accept the strict rules of the Wudang Martial Arts Order to which I belong. Do you think you can?"

"I would not dare defy your orders," she said.

"If you ever use the skills I teach you to do evil, I will take your life as easily as turning my hand over."

His face and voice became stern and hard, and for a moment Yuanzhi was frightened. But then she smiled. "I'll be good," she said. "Anyway, how could you bear to kill me?"

First Attempt

Testing....testing.....just created a new blogspot today. From now on I will using this blog to update everything about myself....about my small world. Hehehehe....