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Thursday, September 18, 2014

Cold Sands (Beyond the Frore Dunes) - ch4

Translator: ayszhang
Proofreaders: Red & Mion Sakamaki


Here is chapter 4 fresh from the oven!  Happy eating~  
We look forward to reading your comments. :)


IV Life-or-Death

“Watch out!”

Xie Zhen pushes me away with surprising speed, and I feel the arrow tip graze my cheeks, my eyes tightly shut by instinct. The path below is covered with rocks, and immediately I get knocked off balance.

White waves wash across the surface of the river, and the ripples sting my eyes.

Wait! I can’t swim! Help-

But there’s no time to panic. The next moment I’m tumbling down into the river. Splash. The freezing water instantaneously starts to tunnel into my mouth, nose and ears; I can hear the water’s sly chuckle. I can’t think anymore with my body numb in the cold. I can only hear shouts and the bubbling from my own mouth. Hopeless, I close my eyes and feel myself suffocating slowly.

If I knew this would happen, I wouldn’t have slacked off during swimming lessons.

My vision dims. My body feels light and all around me darkness and water envelop me.

♚♔

I painstakingly open my eyes. Thank goodness it’s not too bright.

A hand is gently wiping my forehead. I try to speak and the hand stops and then helps me sit up.

It’s a young, fair girl of about fifteen. She hands me a bowl of water with a kind smile. Right in time for my parched throat. I take it and feel much better after downing the bowl in one go.

I sit up straighter and observe my surroundings. I’m lying in a pelt tent, and it’s only after feeling the soft fur underneath me with my own hands that I’m convinced this is reality. I pinch my arms and face and scratch my legs and can’t help but let out a breath of relief.

I didn’t die; I came back alive.

Turning around, I see her beaming brighter than the sun.

“You…saved me?”

Once I speak, I notice my voice is so raspy I can barely hear it myself.

She nods and smiles but does not speak. Then she pulls the covers up, motioning me to lie back down. I feel a little uneasy and refuse to. A bold voice call from outside the door while we are disputing.

“Has the young man awoken?”

The girl gets up and lifts the curtain up. A person enters, back bent, and only after do I see who it is. A tall, buff and bearded man of about fifty walks in and smiles kindly at me. Both he and the girl are dressed in Yan attire, but they look like people of Rui to me.

“Good that you’re awake,” he says as he sits down. “That branch of the Rope Hill Creek may be narrow, but it’s a lot deeper than you think.”

Memories of that night come rushing back.

“Thank you for saving my life,” I say, my head lowered respectfully.

The man pauses then laughs, “Hearing your accent; you’re not from ‘round here, are you?”

I nod and watch for their response.

“We’re not either. In fact, we only moved here recently,” he continues. “Excuse me for asking, you look like you’re from the city, what brings you all the way out here?”

I take a big breath as I consider. They don’t look like they’ve got anything to do with the military so I answer. “I’m originally a soldier of the Rui army. I had no choice but to escape after being captured by the Yan troops, and I fell into the river when they caught up to me where the river splits.”

The man listens in silence and ponders on it before responding. “We used to reside close to the borders. Who knew when the Yan invaded the whole place’d be abandoned by the troops? Me and my daughter escaped with the other refugees and started a nomadic life here.”

He looks as though he’s in pain and falls silent. The girl quickly pats him on the back gently, eyes brimming with tears.

“Blood washed the streets. Corpses everywhere. Her poor mother was killed right in front of her. Since then she can’t speak no more,” he says sorrowfully. “Ah, this cruel world.”

Guiltily, I drop my gaze too.

I know Great Rui’s military situation hasn’t exactly been, ahem, temporary but even so, being in the capital, I’ve never thought life in the frontiers would be like this. Even the battlefield it’s not as awful as this.

“That’s enough stories for one day, I think,” he says, wiping his eyes. He then turns around and says to the girl, “Bring the porridge in and feed the young man.”

I suddenly think of the other men.

“Mister, would you happen to know where the Great Rui army is stationed currently?”

He shakes his head.

“Young man, don’t take this the wrong way but why do you even bother? There’s no way Rui’s going to win with the Yan troops this far in.” He sighs. “Listen to a word of advice. You’re still young and got a whole life ahead of you. Run while you still can, lad, because soon this place won’t be safe either.”

I notice there’s more than meets the ear and question. “What do you mean it won’t be safe, mister?”

“The Yan troops just went by. I’m afraid it’ll be another bloodbath tonight.”

My breath stops and my heart beats wildly.

'Rope Hill Creek will fall, at the latest tomorrow night.'

I can almost hear Murong Yu’s words out of nowhere. I quickly glance outside only to view a red sun unhurriedly sinking to the west, nearly disappearing into the dusky horizon. My stomach tightens. I roll over to get off the bed; the wounds on my back start burning right away. I can’t help but cry out in pain and the man and the girl rush to prop me up.

“You can’t keep up like this, young man,” he says as he forces me to lie back down.

“Don’t you worry about that sort of stuff anymore,” he continues to comfort me. “Like they say, rather be a dog in a peaceful era than a man in a warring one. In these chaotic times, we can only hope to stay alive. You wanna go back but maybe they think you’re dead already.”

Getting up just now took a lot of energy and left me huffing and puffing on the bed.

All of a sudden, the stillness returns, only the sound of my breathing resonates. I quietly watch the red sun gradually disappear, leaving just a brilliant twilight against the darkening canvas. The clouds that are dyed with vivid purples and reds contrast the green trees and yellow sand, painting a beautiful portrait of the frontier.

I start to reflect on all the things that happened the past few days. Not only did I go through imprisonment, torture, jailbreak and drowning—all of which I had only escaped by a hair’s breadth—I also got involved with an impossible person like Murong Yu. What lousy luck!

Has Rope Hill Creek fallen already?

From the confident and assured look he had, chances are, most likely… I don’t even want to consider.

The words of my saviour ring in my ears. He’s right. Must I really go back?

As for Great Rui, I’ve already done and given everything I could for it. Though I haven’t done much for it, I haven’t sold it out either. There’s no one in that place who cares for me. The water of the womb is not worth a penny to those so-called family members of mine.

I shut my eyes tight and grip onto my blanket.

Maybe it’ll turn out well if I just leave like this.

To the Great Rui court, I’ve sacrificed my life for the country; to the empress dowager and Uncle, I’ve died in the war; to Murong Yu, I’ve gone back to Great Rui and will never be on his mind again. Three birds with one stone—good for me and for everyone else.

I take a deep breath and make a solemn decision: to leave this instant.

Or going AWOL, however you might call it.

I can move around by myself by the time the sun sets thanks to my good foundation. I insist on leaving, not wanting to drag this night out longer than needed. The man, not able to dissuade me, accompanies me along with the girl to the ferry of the distributary.

The dock is busy and well-lit by candlelight even at this hour. Ships and boats of all sizes shuttle to and fro; armed soldiers of Great Rui, from the looks of their armour, are also pacing the banks. For a country with highly developed waterways, it’s natural for security to be amped up during times like these.

I’ve already planned it out on the way here: avoid the capital as much as possible and travel via waterway to the south. When I get there the world will be what I make of it.

I’m already feeling psyched imagining my life in the near future. Hee hee.

Once I board I lean against the side of the ship pretending to doze off. I lift up my bamboo hat a bit and observe the other passengers. They all appear to be ordinary commoners but at a second glance, I find a few military men in disguise. Whether or not you are a soldier can be told from merely your posture and the vibe you give off.

I sigh softly and pull my hat further down. Looks like I need to be extra careful.

Out of nowhere, someone barks from the banks. “Move aside! Let us on for inspection!”

My stomach tightens, and I look up only to see a couple of Great Rui soldiers coming on board.

Why such lousy luck?

My palms become clammy with sweat. I bite down contemptuously; I might still have a chance to escape if I was on land but now on water it’d be impossible, even if I had wings.

I stand quietly near the bow. After checking everyone else, the soldiers approach.

“Let’s take a look at your face.”

A soldier reaches out to lift off my hat which I block with a raise of my hand.

“Officer, sorry about the inconvenience but I’ve unfortunately contracted an acute disease recently. Please excuse me.”

The soldier lingers for a moment and then snaps. “We have orders to inspect every single person that boards a boat. I don’t care whether you contracted a disease or not. Even if your old man died, we’d need to inspect his coffin!”

His harsh words left no room for compromise. I purse my lips. Some soldiers can’t do shit on the battlefield but sure can bully innocent commoners.

I’ve been in the army for a couple of years now, and it’s not unlikely that I’ll be exposed through my speech and gestures. Realising this, fear strikes me and I lean in closer to talk, but he flips my hat off before I get my lips open.

“I knew somethin’ was fishy ‘bout you. Noticed you when you got here.” The man hugs his arms with a sullen look. “Commoners don’t hold themselves like that. You’ve got to be a soldier.”

The soldiers behind him rush forth, causing the boat to rock. The man grabs my collar and interrogates. “What are you doing here? Speak!”

Countless possible solutions whiz through my mind in one moment.

“Sir, I believe this man’s a spy,” one of his men says.

The man stops then leers. “That’s right; he came from the other side of the border, right?”

My hands curl up in a fist. My heartbeat starts quickening.

What do I do? What do I do?

Instantaneously, without giving me any time to react, he binds my hands behind my back.

“Get going!” he hisses.

I lift my head up and stare angrily at him all while struggling to get loose, but he just chops the side of my neck. There’s a dull pain and my world goes black. Pain digs into my back. For some reason, my strength ebbs and I crumple over.

♚♔

I’m freezing cold. Amidst the haziness, water swims up my nose, and I cough violently. Only after several tries do I get my eyes open.

“Still playing dead, I see.” Someone kicks me hard. “Get the fuck up!”

I frown from a splitting headache and a drowsy consciousness but struggle to get up nonetheless. I can’t help but moan after taking in my surroundings.

Another motherfucking prison cell!

After prying myself out of the jaws of a tiger, I end up in the home of wolves; I think all the bad luck I’ve collected from my past eight lives is coming onto me now. I get captured for no rhyme or reason just when I decide to leave for good—what kind of sick joke is this?

I instinctively rub my aching neck. “Where am I?” I ask.

“You’re a spy, how could you not know where you are?” The guard stops in front of me. “You better start talking now.”

I quickly glance up and the soldier is indeed clad in Great Rui armour. “Watch who you’re calling a spy! I’m a deputy general under General Zhou.”

He wavers momentarily then quickly recovers. “General Zhou’s Deputy General should be with General Zhou, naturally. Don’t try to fool me!”

“I was captured, for god’s sake, and just escaped!”

He seems surprised.

I glower and spit each word out. “Listen carefully. I was taken prisoner by the Yan and was escaping just now. Doesn’t matter if you believe me or not but I wanna see the general. He gets to decide what to do with me, got it?”

His expression changes drastically and veins start bulging out on his forehead. He lowers his head, holding onto his whip and pondering for quite a while. He then locks me in a cell and goes away, emotionless.

Tired and cold, I flop onto the ground, sighing.

There is no way of knowing if a soldier would still be on your side once they’ve been captured. I only wanted to stall by asking to see the general. Mercy isn’t expected from him if he finds anything fishy about you. He wouldn’t for my uncle’s sake either.

I tilt my head up and stare at the spotty wall in front of me. A heavy feeling emerges from the bottom of my heart. It’s kind of vague, kind of unreconciled.

After an extensive time, when the torches on the wall burned nearly all their fuel, when the black shadows seem to merge with the wall, no one comes and not even the slightest footstep or word can be heard.

I close my eyes, curl inward and bury my face in my knees.

So cold. So cold. So tired. So tired. So tired I can’t even speak or breathe. So tired I just want to fall into deep sleep right this instant.

This is Great Rui, yet I can’t feel a single shred of warmth.

Silence and tranquility surround me. There’s nothing but endless black; it’s as if I’ve gone into another reincarnation cycle.

“Han Xin.”

My eyes shoot open and I see a figure standing outside my cell door through the hazy darkness. The voice didn’t sound like the General but familiar nonetheless. I take a closer look—it’s Xie Zhen.

He unlocks the door, sneaks in quietly and crouches down beside me.

I stare at him blankly. “You’re back?”

I see his head nodding weakly but his face remains in the dark. His body is tense and his right hand hidden in his sleeve, even trembling a little.

“Must be nice having a dad like that. You get back, nothin’ happens, but when I get back I get mistaken for a spy.” I turn the other way and watch the torch burn shakily and the flames dance lifelessly as our two silhouettes flicker in and out of existence.

Xie Zhen’s face pales as he lifts his head out of the shadows. The muscles on his face are kind of twisted up and appear extremely eerie in the gloomy prison.

“Just spit it out,” I groaned as I rubbed my forehead. “You might not get the chance once the general sees me.”

He drops his head down again as if trying hard to suppress something. I get impatient—since when has he been such a fuss?

A forbidding spark zooms across my eyes. He lays a chilly dagger on my neck with a flick of his wrist. “Don’t move.”

A cold-blooded blade lies between me and him and blocks off our words. The metal sends chills down my spine, and a sheen of cold sweat gathers on my back. Minutes tick by.

“It wouldn’t have had to come down to this, Han Xin, if you hadn’t come back,” he says through closed jaw.

Something clicks in my head and chuckle amusingly. “Xie Zhen, are you afraid I won’t keep your secret?”

He remains silent but I already know the answer from his eyes.

“That night, after you fell into the river, the Yan caught up to us and we thought, hell, if we’re gonna die anyway why not give it a shot? Then we all jumped in.” He presses down on the dagger. “I guess it wasn’t our time yet. We were rescued by Great Rui patrols.”

I look straight at him and scoff. “Right, so then you thought, since I already fell in the river the chances of me surviving are so slim no one would ever know about your betrayal. Who knew I would suddenly pop back outta nowhere and that just made you boil with worry. And you thought, why not just get rid of him altogether, right?”

He scowls. “You’re too smart, Han Xin, too smart for your own good.”

A gust of wind comes out of nowhere and blows life back to the torches, lighting up half of his face. Murderous intent is thick in the air.

I glance up and chuckle. “And here I was wondering what’s taking General Zhou so long. I guess he wasn’t even notified.”

He cracks a pained smile. “Rope Hill Creek’s gonna fall with or without me. General Zhou’s already decided to abandon this place, retreat and fortify South Hill Pass as the last stronghold.”

He opens his mouth again but stops, the hand holding the dagger slightly quavering. “I don’t wanna kill you, Han Xin. We were good buddies, getting into shit together back in the capital, but now…I have no other choice but to…”

I look at him steadily. “If I promise not to rat you out would you testify for me that I’m not a spy?”

He hesitates then shakes his head. “No, I wouldn’t. I can’t have any loose ends.”

I can’t help but laugh grimly. “You’re Xie Yun’s son, after all, cruel and cold-blooded just like him.”

Despair seems to flash in his eyes and his hand pushes down harder on the blade. I can already feel a wet trickle down my neck.

His eyes suddenly widen. “I’m sorry, Han Xin!”

“The wall has fallen! The wall has fallen! The Yan have broken in! The Yan-” Panicked shouts come from outside the prison.

Xie Zhen quickly laps into a panic and glances away. I seize the moment and push the dagger away. The next thing I know my neck is stinging with pain. He turns back around in a hurry and does the only thing he can at the moment—he raises the dagger once more and swings it at me.

The blade flashes white.

I’ve been crouching and my legs have gone so numb that I can’t dodge it. I clearly hear the sound of the dagger burying into me. It hurts as if a thousand blades have pierced through my chest.

The taste of iron gushes into my mouth. He pulls the dagger out in a rush and blood goes flying, covering my vision in a coat of crimson.

My strength seeps away as if being sucked out from me and I crumple onto the cold floor, limbs limp. Xie Zhen shakes nervously and drops the dagger. Sharp clangs ring throughout the cell. I watch as he trips over his own feet while scurrying out of the cell in such a hurry that he forgets to lock the door.

A chill slowly creeps up on me. Only thing I can feel now is my consciousness turning blurry as if I’m floating on nothingness, rocking back and forth, drifting off to some unknown place.

My luck’s probably run out. I’m afraid this is the end, my friend.

I want to laugh but I’m so weak that I can’t muster the strength to do so.

How…pathetic, dying at the hands of your own countryman.

Faces flash across my eyes: Empress Dowager, Uncle, Aunt…Cousin…my gang of scoundrels…. I bet if I really died right now no one would be sad; no one would cry at my grave or burn incense for me.

Pathetic, that’s how I feel.

They wouldn’t weep for me even if I died. The past twenty years of my life has just been a big fat joke. As long as Great Rui stands, they can still go on being their gracious empress dowager or majestic emperor or honourable minister while I haven’t even gotten the chance to see my parents’ face or hear their voices.

“Parents….” My mouth painstakingly forms the words. “Dad…Mom….”

I don’t know anymore; all I see is red. Finally, along with the chill that seeps into me endlessly, a heavy black curtain finally drops in front of my eyes.

After maybe a thousand years, or maybe just a cup of tea’s worth of time, I think I hear someone yell on the brink of unconsciousness.

“There’s someone here….”

I only spot a blurry figure amidst the haziness and the next moment I fall into a warm embrace.
__________________________________
Dairytea's comment:  We're taking a break from Cold Sands next week, but we have something else in store for you then, which I know a number of people have been waiting for. *wink, wink*
Creative Commons Licence
Cold Sands - English Translation by ayszhang is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

71 comments:

  1. This is hilarious!
    Thank you very much for translating!!!

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    1. XD I know he cracks me up too. Thanks for reading and commenting~

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  2. Thank you so much :)

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  3. Thank you!!! I have fallen in love with this story already/ Thank you for picking it

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    1. 8) Thanks for reading and commenting (and falling in love)

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  4. I love this story and your translations for it. Thank you!

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    1. Thanks for reading and commenting :3 Im glad you like it!

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  5. What? He didn't die? Just kidding. Thank you!

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    Replies
    1. What? Of course not! (he is our protagonist after all) XD
      Thank u for reading and commenting

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  6. Ahhhh!!! This. Is. Awesome.

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  7. thank you ILOVE this novel

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    1. You're welcome :3 Thanks for reading and commenting~

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  8. This upcoming surprise better be a Love Late update. :P


    Thank you very much~~~~

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    1. ;) Who knows~
      Thanks for reading and commenting

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  9. Thank u very much for the update I love this novel very much, It full of surprises and who is that man? Now I am very curious, I really can't wait for the next chapter but I have to wait for 2 week so long T_T

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    1. You're welcome ~ It's definitely filled with twists and turns XD
      Patience, my friend, patience ;) Thank u for reading and commenting

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  10. Eeep! Love you lots~ Thanks for this! < 33

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    1. Yay~ I'm glad you like it! Thank you for reading and commenting :3

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  11. han xin... be sure to curse then laugh maniacally after you triumph over that said friendtraitor of yours...

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    1. XD I like you!
      Thank u for reading and commenting :))

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  12. gah. maybe I should've waited before I started reading this one. The suspense is gonna kill me especially when there won't be a chapter next week. >o<

    Great story though :)

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    1. D: I'm sowee. I want to update every week too but dairytea has to....*gets glared at by dairytea*...*backs away*
      psst thanks for reading and commenting though! *runs away*

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    2. x_____X *dies of anticipation*

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    3. so we do get one this week? :DDD

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    4. One chap...but not of Cold Sands *runs away*

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    5. ... =_____= *throws rocks at you* ...

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  13. Thank you!Thank you!!!! I can't wait next chapter!who is it,i wonder?ha ha ha :P Good job.You're the BEST.

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    1. Who might it be?? Dun dun dun!
      Thanks for reading and commenting :))

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  14. O I am so impatient right now to know who is the person that give a warm embrace to our cold Han.
    thank you for translating love you XD

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    1. Its good to see u again :) thanks for reading and commenting

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    2. If we play twenty guesses I would say his Prince char... *cough* The prince Murong Yu. I'm right?

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    3. *glares at persse* sh! top secret

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  15. Hi, I just found out about you guys translating this novel and I'm loving the novel already! I love Han Xin's train of thoughts. Slightly reminds me of Li Qing of Mo Flower. They are both hilarious. ^^ Can we read the raw online? Or if it does, do you have the link? Thanks for the update.

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    1. Helloo~thank u for reading and commenting. Im glad you like the novel so far :)
      Yes you can. There are several links, heres one. Let me know if you cant access it.
      http://xixin.blog128.fc2blog.us/blog-entry-146.html

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    2. Thanks for the link. And it's working well. Oh my, I see that there is already a progress on the next chapter, can't wait to read the translated version 2 weeks from now. Have a great weekend!

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    3. I'm glad it's working! :)
      Thank you, hope you have a good weekend too~

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  16. Thanks for the new update, hope to find another soon

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    1. thank u for reading and commenting :)) ch 5 will be up oct 2nd

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  17. Oh, my, how unlucky indeed, poor poor Han Xin, he just wants to live a quiet life. And he is a positive guy too. Nice cliff hanger, you did in on purpose! But I am happy to know about the surprise...


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    1. Thanks for reading and commenting~
      I swear it wasnt my idea for such a cliffhanger D:
      Yesh, I'm sure we are all happy about the *cough* surprise :3

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  18. Oh I love this one... And I wish I didn't found it now but much latter! I can tell that it will be an addicting story. And I love Han Xin it's a fighter, not giving in and a little mad around the edge. Smart, Cynical, jaded but heroic with pride and having sense of moral and loyalty. So far so good!

    How long is the novel? It's completed in Chinese?

    Thanks for sharing such a nice work... I wish I could read Chinese. And thanks for your hard work and carry it on please!! <3

    Persse. ^^

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    1. Yays~A new reader :) I totally get you - I hate waiting for the novel to be finished D:<
      There's 41 chapters, 1 Prologue, 1 Epilogue, and 2 Extras. And it's complete in Chinese. It's a pretty old novel, completed in 2006 i believe. Took me until 2010 to find it, then 3 more years to decide to translate it, then almost another year to get it up online ^_^;;
      You're very welcome. I hope you can stick with us until the end (because I am hell bent on finishing this translation! D<) And thank u for the comment - I love long comments :D

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    2. I'm really happy that you decided of sharing it with us. It's really great to do it especially when you have already read it. It must be tedious some time to do it, you must really love this story. I don't know what give you the need to do it but thanks for it!!

      And don't worry when I like a story even I became a little obsessive and stick (even if like M.L. Rhodes it's now 4 years!!!) I will stay. If I can help in anyway ask me I will help I wish I could help to translate it but alas I can't read Chinese. And if not for a handful of you, who translate such fine work, me and other would never know what we are missing.

      Persse. ^^

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    3. Oh and is there any Illustrations with the novel, like in the Japanese BL Novel? If yes, where can I found them?

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    4. Yes it was because of this book that i decided that not all BL are bad d (cuz as a guy i dont like characters that are portrayed to be too effeminate and/or weak) Wow :) im so honoured to have an awesome reader like you :) You can help out by getting your friends to read it and promote bl in general. Spread the love~~
      No unfortunately :(

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    5. Lol no need to ask I'm BL loving in short I almost only read M/M novel. And there is a lot of novel where there is strong characters with good story (who is not a lot)... I don't really like novel where their is 90% sex and only 10% story. If I wanted porn I wouldn't read it. ^^

      But I found that it's almost (not all the time) in Japanese novel where you see the weak and effeminate characters they thinks like heterosexual couple outline there is to be in the story the man (semen who is generally older) and the woman (uke the younger). Their is some good one but not a lot.

      I'm more American or English author like Megan Derr, M.L. Rhodes and other (western novel, we say that when it's not Asian, no? Sorry I'm French myself so I don't know how to explain it correctly.)

      (If you want some good read: M.L. Rhodes - Draegan Lords series but it's 4 years that I wait for the vol 04; Mel Keegan - Dangerous Moonlight; B.A. Stretke - Signed and Sealed; Angel Martinez - Gravitational Attraction; Megan Derr I love almost all her work.)


      But with some of the Chinese novel I have had some good surprise. So for now I'm fan!

      Persse. ^^

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    6. Salut :) j'habit a vancouver XD thats about as much french as i can manage from what they taught at school. Anyhoo! Wow 8) french is such a beautiful language.
      I agree many japanese stories have that setting and so do many chinese stories. But after i got into it i did find many awesome stuff :) A manga called Undergrand hotel is really awesome in that sense strong-,strong. Awesome plot too.
      Oooh thank you for therecommendations :) will definitely check them out.

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    7. Yep UH is good but I found Sen weak minded... Don't misunderstand me, I love this yaoi but sometime I wanted to hit him and tell him "wake up dumbass!!". I have yaoi who are cult for me, that I love: Totally Captivated (it's Korean); Viewfinder; Haru wo Daite Ita; Crimson Spell; Love Mode.

      Now when I talked of "Japanese novel where you see the weak and effeminate characters" It's for the novel. I love yaoi(manga) more that the Jap novel. But their is novel like "S"(who I love); Only The Ring Finger Knows (5 vol very sweet); Sleeping With Money (funny). Their is other but they didn't leave much of an impression on me.

      Alors comme ça tu es Canadien? Not French Canadian? Moi je vie dans le Nord de la France. To bad we could have talked in French!! lol

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    8. "Too bad"... Oh and if you Liked UH from the same mangaka you have to read: Mukizu ja Irarenee; Neji no Kaiten. I like SADAHIRO Mika her work are good with hard story.

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    9. Oui, je suis canadien plus precisement sino canadien. Je ne parle pas tres bien francais...T_T mais je comprends mieux. Parce que nous parlons anglais a Vancouver et a l'ecole nous etudions un peu le francais. Excuse my bad French D:

      Yeah agreed. I liked UH mainly cuz of Sword <3 But the ending...there couldn't have been a better ending in my opinion. I've been waiting for the sequel Kiss and Kill to come out TAT

      Oh my o.o so many things to read now D< damn school! I'd have to wait until winter break to catch up on all that. You're very interested in Asian literature eh? :D I speak Korean as well as Japanese but I havent found many Korean mangas out there so I definitely need to take a look at Totally Captivated.

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    10. Yes I was very bad at English when I was at school (Tu es meilleur en français que je n'étais en anglais. J'étais vraiment nul!!!!) Anyway I liked manga like Naruto, yaoi and other but the trad in French is more slow than in English(and the yaoi in French was not as popular) so I start reading them in English.

      At first it was hard but with the help of the picture I could more or less guesses what it say... And little by little I could read in English. The first "Book" I really read In English was a Jap BL Novel. And after that I read all M/M e-book that that sounded good and now I rarely read anything In French.

      Totally Captivated is an yaoi(manga) who was trad in English their is 6vol. Their is no sex scene in it but I love it! Oh and in BL novel you have also to read "Like A Love Comedy" he is good if you have an E-mail I can do links like for the pdf so you can DDL it.

      Persse.^^

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    11. Oui oui, SVP. ays.zhang@gmail.com. merci beacoup~<3

      Merci TUT je veux ameliorer mon français a l'avenir. But you are so awesome! You could do some translation from EN->FR so more french speakers can access it!

      PS we should chat on something else 'cause comments take so long ;) email me your skype or whatever

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  19. Thankyou for translating this ;D Love it <3

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  20. wow..this chappy is longer than the previous ones!! THANKS FOR THE HARDWORK!!
    i'll set aside the assignments first for this...hahaha XD
    -mao

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    1. Hello Mao OvO//~ I think the rest of the chapters are around this length. THANK YOU FOR READING AND COMMENTING :DD
      I think internet novels (and their translations) are the main causes of the modern phenomenon of procrastination *serious look*
      >_< I feel super-duper honoured to hear that though

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  21. Sorry here the good one there was an error with the other one. http://www.solidfiles.com/d/7ab99ba21e/Mu_Yun_Lan_Qing_-_Cold_Sands_01-04.pdf

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  22. <3333 Thank you on behalf of the other readers :)))

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  23. Thank you so much for this translation. The story is to interesting so far and I am excited to see how the characters will develop. Looking forward to the next chapter. Thanks again!

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    1. :) Thank u for reading and commenting! Ch 5 of Cold Sands should be posted a week from now (but dairytea and I have to finalise on what we want to do for the month of October ;))

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  24. I love your writing style! It's exciting and all these cliff-hangers just makes me "AND THEN? WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?"

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  25. >O< Thank you~~~ I must give the credit to the author tho hahaha

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  26. This is really interesting. Oh, I really really need to go to sleep but just one more chapter...ah!

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  27. >_< Get some rest and continue tomorrow!

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