[21] 命犯: In fengshui, if you 命犯 a certain thing, it means that it brings (usually negative) consequences into your life. You’re usually born with it (ie. the time at which you were born determines what you 命犯)

[22]喝凉水也会塞牙: Usually, water doesn't get stuck between your teeth when you drink it. Describes someone having absolutely rotten luck.

[23]Zhang Chengling says 面口袋 here, which can mean either a flour sack (the more common usage) or a pocket sandwich kind of pastry (a more anachronistic usage)

[24] It's a 箫, you know, the one Lan Xichen plays.

[25] Literally translates to “isn’t a vegetarian”; monks, known for their compassion (and are therefore ‘soft’), are usually vegetarian. To say someone “isn’t a vegetarian” means they’re the opposite: they’re capable enough to not be a pushover.

[26] There are two ways to read his name: “Que” or “Qiao”, but I’ve chosen the more common pronunciation.

[27] 上下其手 means being in cahoots with someone and manipulating a situation for selfish benefits, but 上下 literally means “upper” and “lower”.

[28] Priest describes this as “pi-li-pa-la”, which is onomatopoeia for the crackling of firecrackers but also the commotion from a scuffle.

[29] In case you’ve forgotten about its previous appearance in Chapter 12, it’s a martial art move of the Cherry Blossom Pole (梅花樁) kungfu style.

[30] 好剑 (good sword technique) and 好贱 (how sleazy of you) sound the exact same in Chinese (hao3 jian4).

[31] The scapulas

[32] Fan Kuai: A Western Han military general most well-known for his involvement in the Feast of Hong Men, where he saved the life of future Han dynasty Emperor Liu Bang.

[33] 千年王八万年龟: The Chinese soft-shelled turtle (王八) is also the term for “bastard”, and tortoises are known for their longevity.

Chapter 51: The Past

“Back then, Rong Xuan and I, and a few others, were still in our youth and thought ourselves to be rather capable. As birds of a seedy feather, we often drank together and exchanged techniques. Rong Xuan was the most skilled among us, with the most instinctive sense of comprehension. One day, after drinking, Rong Xuan suddenly started to philosophise: if men who lived on this earth did not accomplish anything great and simply lived a quiet and obscure life, wasn’t it a regrettable loss?”

Long Que was still speaking at an extremely slow pace. On top of that, for every bit he spoke, he had to pause for a while; he might have been too weak, or those events might have been too distant in the past and required detailed recollection. Ye Baiyi’s face revealed nothing, but Wen Kexing quietened down and, for once, was listening with rapt attention.