The Big Head Ghost was about to call her, but changed his mind at the last moment. “She came to see the Eagle Hero; perhaps she has something to say to him,” he thought. The Shi Brothers did not know Guo Xiang to begin with, so they did not say anything either.

Guo Xiang was following about ten feet behind Yang Guo. However, Yang Guo and the eagle moved faster and faster like a speeding horse; a moment later Guo Xiang was far behind. All she could see was Yang Guo’s sleeve floating in the wind; the distance between them was getting greater and greater. Guo Xiang used her family’s lightness skill with all her might but very soon all she could see was two spots on the horizon. She anxiously cried, “Hey, wait for me!” She lost her concentration and fell onto the snowy ground. She was upset and started to cry.

Suddenly she heard a gentle voice saying, “Why are you crying? Who bullied you?”

Guo Xiang looked up and saw that it was Yang Guo. She did not know how he could get back that fast. She was both surprised and happy, but also embarrassed. She searched for her handkerchief to dry her tears but it was gone. She thought it fell to the ground because she was running frantically.

Yang Guo groped in his sleeve pocket and produced a handkerchief which he held between his thumb and index finger and asked with a smile, “Are you looking for this?” Guo Xiang saw that it was her own embroidered flower handkerchief so she said, “It is you who bully me.”

“How did I bully you?” Yang Guo asked.

“You took my handkerchief away, didn’t you bully me?” Guo Xiang answered.

Yang Guo laughed, “You dropped it yourself and I was kind enough to pick it up for you. How could you say I took it away?”

Guo Xiang also laughed, “I was behind you, so how could you have picked it up? Obviously you took it from me.” Actually Yang Guo was aware that Guo Xiang was following them. He wanted to test her skills; so he intentionally ran faster. He thought this young girl’s martial arts seemed to come from a famous expert. After she fell he was afraid she might be injured, so he took a detour around her and saw a handkerchief several feet behind, so he picked it up.

Yang Guo smiled, “What’s your name? Who’s your master? Why are you following me?”

Guo Xiang countered, “What’s your great name? You tell me first then I’ll tell you.”

Yang Guo had been unwilling to even reveal his face for the past decade, so obviously he was not going to tell a stranger his name. He said, “Young lady, you’re a strange one. If you won’t say it, then never mind. Here’s your handkerchief.” He waved his hand slightly and the handkerchief spread out and flew steadily to Guo Xiang.

Guo Xiang found it fun and took it, saying, “Eagle Hero, what skill is this? Can you teach me?”

Yang Guo saw that she was young and innocent and his repulsive mask did not scare her, so he thought, “I must scare her a bit.” He suddenly said sharply, “You’re very daring. Why aren’t you afraid of me? I’m going to hurt you now.” He stepped forward and raised his hand as if about to strike.

Guo Xiang was shocked but recovered quickly and laughed, “I’m not afraid. If you really want to hurt me, would you say it first? The Eagle Hero is chivalrous and valiant, why would you want to hurt a little girl like me?”

For someone past caring about worldly affairs, even if a great man praised him sincerely, he would not care. Although he was not desperate to be praised, when he heard Guo Xiang earnestly complimenting him, he smiled, “You don’t know me, and how do you know I won’t harm you?”

Guo Xiang said, “Although I don’t know you, I heard a lot about your great deeds at Fenglingdu last night. I said to myself, ‘I must definitely meet such a great hero.’ So I followed the Big Head Ghost here to find you.”

Yang Guo shook his head, “I’m no hero. After you’ve seen me you’ll know that my fame is exaggerated.”

Guo Xiang quickly said, “No, no! If you’re not a hero… then who is?” After she said this she realized she said something wrong – it implied her father was not on the same level as he was. So she said, “Of course there’re several great heroes apart from you, but you’re definitely one of them.”

Yang Guo thought, “You’re just a teenager, how can you know about the great men of the time?” He smiled, “So who are those heroes?”

Guo Xiang felt that his tone was quite dismissive of her statement, so she said, “OK, I’ll say it. But if I’m right, you’ll take me to catch that “Nine-Tailed Fox”, OK?”

Yang Guo said, “OK. Name me a few.”

Guo Xiang said, “OK. There’s one hero who defends Xiangyang and repels the Mongol invaders with all his might to protect the people. Is that a great hero?”

Yang Guo held up his thumb and said, “Correct! Hero Guo Jing can be counted.”

Guo Xiang continued, “There’s also a female hero who protects the people, defends the country, is really intelligent and predicts like the Gods. Is she a great hero?”

Yang Guo said, “You mean Madam Guo – Chief Huang? Hmm… she can be considered a great hero too.”

Guo Xiang said, “There’s also an old hero who’s a master of the Five Elements and the Divine Flicking Finger and is a great prodigy. Is he considered a great hero?”

Yang Guo said, “This must be Island Master Huang, a senior in the Wulin community. I’ve always respected him.”

Guo Xiang saw that he knew the three people she mentioned so she was quite pleased with herself. She said, “Then there’s yet another, he commands the Beggars’ Sect, kills the mighty enemy, serves the country and the people, and toils laboriously. Is he considered a great hero?”

Yang Guo said, “Are you referring to Chief Lu Youjiao? Although his martial arts are not that fantastic and he never accomplished much, but based on you saying he ‘kills the mighty enemy, serves the country and the people’, he can be counted as a great hero too.”

Guo Xiang thought, “You’re so great yourself and your standards are so high; if I continue then you may not agree. Moreover after Father, Mother, Grandfather and Uncle Lu, I can’t think of anyone else.”

Yang Guo saw her hesitating and thought, “Uncle Guo, Aunt Guo, Island Master Huang and Chief Lu are all very well-known heroes. It’s nothing strange for this young lady to mention them.” He said, “If you can name one more correctly, I’ll take you to the Black Dragon Marsh to catch the “Nine-Tailed Fox”.”

Guo Xiang wanted to mention her brother-in-law Yelu Qi but felt that although his martial arts were high, he did not qualify to be a ‘great hero’ yet. Her martial brothers Wu Dunru and Wu Xiuwen were even worse candidates. She was greatly troubled when she suddenly thought of something and said, “OK, here’s one more: he helps people in trouble, protects the weak and is widely praised – the Eagle Hero! Whether he is to be considered a great hero is for you to decide.”

Yang Guo said, “Young lady, your words are very amusing.”

Guo Xiang said, “So are you taking me to the Black Dragon Marsh?”

Yang Guo laughed, “Since you called me a great hero, how can a great hero disappoint the young lady? Let’s go.”