Fu grabbed the keys, unlocked the latch, and threw the door up. Then he grabbed the spear the soldier had left behind and headed for Malao. But after only two steps, he stopped dead in his tracks. He couldn't believe his eyes. Monkeys were pouring out of the trees, leaping directly onto the heads, backs, arms, and legs of the soldiers on top of Malao. In no time, there was an undulating pile of more than fifty monkeys, clawing, scratching, and biting in unison. The men cried out in pain as more and more monkeys joined the savage attack, all of them abandoning their previous scavenging in the food carts in order to help Malao.
Fu had no idea what was going on, but he wasn't about to get close enough to that pile to find out. Instead, he looked for the skinny soldier with the scrolls and spotted the man standing next to one of the supply carts staring open-mouthed at the monkey pile. Fu ran directly for him.
The soldier saw Fu coming and did his best to brace himself for the attack. He assumed a defensive position with his spear held before him, holding his ground as Fu started swinging. Fu feinted high and swung low with his own spear, bringing one end around behind the soldier's knees. The soldier's legs buckled forward, and before he even hit the ground, Fu swiftly pulled the spear back and swung it up over his head and down, as though he were chopping wood with an ax. The spear shaft connected with the soldier's unprotected collarbone. The spear was strong. The collarbone was not.
The soldier bellowed in pain as he crumpled to his knees. Fu slid one hand up his spear's shaft so that his hands were shoulder-width apart, then lunged forward with the spear before him, parallel to the ground. The shaft connected with the soldier's windpipe, and Fu leaned into it. The soldier toppled over backward as Fu hopped on top of the spear shaft, placing one knee on either side of the soldier's head, pinning the soldier to the ground by his throat. The soldier gasped for air. He was unsuccessful. As soon as the man was unconscious, Fu let up on the spear, spun around, and retrieved all four scrolls from the folds of the soldier's robe.
As he stood, Fu realized something. None of the remaining soldiers had come to aid the scroll-bearer. He looked around and saw that the screeching monkeys were now chasing all the soldiers off into the forest. Fu looked over at Malao and once again could hardly believe his own eyes.
Malao stood firm and straight as blood poured heavily out of both sides of his nose. He pointed at the fleeing soldiers with his arms outstretched, and the monkey troop pursued as if following orders. The five soldiers who had attacked Malao lay at his feet, their bodies scratched and clawed and broken. A large, snow-white, one-eyed monkey sat on Malao's shoulder.
Malao smiled at Fu and laughed out loud as he lowered his arms and relaxed. The monkey seemed to laugh, too. Then it leaned forward as if to kiss Malao's bald head and scampered off into the trees.
“What was THAT all about?” Fu asked Malao, bewildered.
Malao casually leaned his small head back and pinched the bridge of his nose to slow the flow of blood out of his nostrils. “What was what?”
“The white monkey!” Fu said. “All the monkeys!”
“It's a long story,” Malao replied, shrugging his shoulders. “A really long story.”
Fu growled. He took a step toward Malao, then stopped suddenly and looked suspiciously up into the trees behind Malao. Malao giggled.
“Don't be a scaredy-cat,” Malao said. “You can approach me.”
“I'm not afraid,” Fu snapped. “I'm just… confused. Did you command those monkeys to attack?”
“What did it look like?” Malao asked, flashing a devilish grin.
“I'm not in the mood for riddles,” Fu said. “If you're not going to answer my questions, just say so.”
Malao pouted. “Come on, Pussycat. Humor me. I save your life, and this is how you treat me?”
“You know how much I hate your games, Malao. I appreciate your saving me and all, but I'm really not in the mood. I don't want to get angry at you.”
“You appreciate me?” Malao said, grinning wide. He put his hand on his heart. “Really? Brother Fu, I'm touched!”
Fu growled again. “Don't push me, Monkey Brains.”
“That's the Fu I know!” Malao exclaimed. “Welcome back!”
Fu closed his eyes and ground his teeth. “The Fu you know will never be back. I left him at Cangzhen.”
“Whoa, what's with all the drama?” Malao said. “Those villagers must have really worked you over.”
Fu opened his eyes and cocked his head to one side. “How do you know about the villagers?”
“A little bird told me.” Malao smiled.
“Stop screwing around, Malao.”