Flower Stealing Master

Chapter 1069: A Thunderclap from Out of the Ground

Song Qingshu suddenly thought of something and said with a strange expression, “You just said that your relationship with Duan Zhengchun was just a cover, but Wang Yuyan is Duan Zhengchun’s daughter. Did you two take your charade too far?”

He couldn’t help but think of a joke from his past life: the most beautiful women in the novel Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils generally come from only two sources—Duan Zhengchun’s $perm or Li Qiushui’s egg. Wang Yuyan possessed both; no wonder she could bewitch Duan Yu.

“Who told you Yuyan is Duan Zhengchun’s daughter?” Li Qingluo roared.

“Then whose daughter is she?” Seeing her intense reaction, Song Qingshu was dumbfounded.

“Of course, she’s my husband’s daughter,” Li Qingluo said irritably.

“Are you really sure?” Song Qingshu was momentarily stunned by this counterintuitive statement, thinking, “Why isn’t it following the original story? This butterfly effect is really huge.”

“How could I not be sure?” Li Qingluo frowned, clearly not understanding his doubts.  

“Uh, what I mean is, sometimes pregnancy calculations aren’t that accurate…” Song Qingshu had always wondered about something: if a woman $lept with different men on two consecutive days and ended up pregn@nt, how could she be sure who the father was? In various movies and TV shows, women always seemed to know who the father was, but was that really possible in reality?

Upon hearing Song Qingshu’s question, Li Qingluo turned pale, grabbed a pillow from the bed, and threw it at his head, angrily saying, “I haven’t even let that Duan guy near me, how could I be pregn@nt with his child!”

“Huh?” Song Qingshu was dumbfounded. This plot was getting more and more out of control. However, knowing Li Qingluo’s personality, she probably wouldn’t lie. He couldn’t help but sigh that even a seasoned womanizer like Duan Zhengchun could have his mishaps. Thinking of Dao Baifeng’s cu©k0ldry, Song Qingshu suddenly felt a little sorry for Duan Zhengchun.

 “Believe it or not, besides my husband, you are my only man.” Li Qingluo froze as soon as she said this, unable to understand why she had deliberately explained it this way.

Song Qingshu raised an eyebrow and couldn’t help but whistle, “Then you’ve hit the jackpot!”

Li Qingluo glared at him fiercely, “Vulgar and shameless!”

A hint of ambiguity suddenly appeared on Song Qingshu’s face as he pointed to the sheets beneath her, “Vulgar? I wonder who was more viscous just now.”

“You!” Li Qingluo abruptly stood up. Having lived as a virtuous and innocent woman all these years, she had never heard such frivolous words. A murderous glint flashed in her eyes, but as soon as she stood up, a tingling sensation shot through her lower abdomen, her legs buckled, and she immediately lost her balance and fell to the ground.

“Madam’s legs are weak,” Song Qingshu said with a smile, embracing her full, warm b0dy.

 “Isn’t this all your doing!” Li Qingluo blurted out, then immediately realized her words were inappropriate; they sounded more like flirtatious banter between lovers. She quickly pushed him away and sat back down on the bed.

Seeing her growing anger, Song Qingshu decided not to provoke her further and quickly changed the subject: “Since nothing happened between you and Duan Zhengchun, why did Qin Hongmian send her daughter to kill you time and time again?”

“She’s stupid!” Li Qingluo scoffed. “She thinks Duan left her because of my interference, but little does she know that Duan needs the Baiyi forces behind Dao Baifeng to solidify the Duan family’s throne. He’s already taking a huge risk by having affairs behind Dao Baifeng’s back; how could he dare to actually marry another woman?”

Song Qingshu secretly admired her. Li Qingluo truly lived up to her reputation as the White Lotus Holy Mother and the daughter-in-law of the Wang family of Linchuan; her vision was far beyond that of ordinary women in the martial arts world.  

In his previous life, when reading Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, he was utterly perplexed as to why Duan Zhengchun, a prince, couldn’t marry his many beautiful women, instead ruining their lives. After arriving in this world, especially after entering the courts of the Jin and Qing dynasties, and diligently studying the political situations of each country, he finally understood the situation in Dali.

Although the Duan family of Dali was renowned, power in Dali was still held by several ethnic minorities, with the Baiyi tribe being the most powerful. It could be said that whoever gained the support of the Baiyi tribe could become the emperor of Dali.

As the daughter of the Baiyi chieftain, and given the Baiyi’s monogamous system, how could Duan Zhengchun dare to bring his mistresses home?

“Alright, I’ve said what I needed to say. What do you intend to do with me?” Li Qingluo said rather coldly.

“Uh, I’ve always admired Yue Fei. Since you’re his relative, why would I make things difficult for you? You should stay here and recover from your injuries,” Song Qingshu said with a forced smile.

 “Take off your cl0thes,” Li Qingluo said expressionlessly.

“Ah, you still want more?” Song Qingshu looked at her in surprise.

“Want more my foot!” Li Qingluo immediately retorted angrily, “I just don’t want to be wrapped in a blanket all the time!”

His gaze fell on her. She was completely wrapped in the blanket, revealing her fair, delicate shoulders and pink neck, which was even more alluring than if she were naked. Song Qingshu couldn’t help but swallow, suddenly feeling a heat rising in his lower abdomen.

He wasn’t a beast after all. He knew that unless he f0rced her, she would never agree. He suppressed his lustful thoughts and took off his cl0thes, draping them over her shoulders.

“You can get lost,” Li Qingluo said coldly, her eyes lowered.

Song Qingshu gave a wry smile. No matter what, he had gotten the better deal, so being scolded a few times wasn’t a big deal.

“Wait!” Li Qingluo suddenly called out to him as he reached the door.

 “What is it?” Song Qingshu’s heart leaped with joy, and he turned to look at her.

Li Qingluo hesitated, and after a long pause, stammered, “You…you and Yuyan, is there anything between you?”

“Does Madam want us to have anything?” Song Qingshu asked with a smile.

Li Qingluo’s face turned cold: “From now on, you are not allowed to have any feelings for Yuyan!”

Song Qingshu raised an eyebrow: “Madam only forbids me from having feelings for Yuyan, does that mean I can have ‘feelings’ for Madam?” He deliberately emphasized the word “feelings,” his tone quite ambiguous.

“Get out!” Li Qingluo responded with a pillow.

Song Qingshu smiled wryly, took the pillow, and returned to his room. He found a young girl propping her chin on her hand, dozing off at the table—it was none other than Mu Wanqing!  Song Qingshu felt a pang of guilt and was about to carry her to bed when Mu Wanqing, hearing the door open, groggily looked up and asked, “Why are you so late?”

The question was so natural, like a wife greeting her late husband. Song Qingshu felt a warmth in his heart, but dared not tell her the truth lest he hurt her feelings. He simply replied, “Her injuries are quite serious, so it took her a while.”

“Oh, you must be very tired. Go to sleep, it’s late,” Mu Wanqing said naturally. They had already slept in the same bed, and although they hadn’t gone all the way, they had done everything else they should and shouldn’t have.

“Okay!” While he had felt intense pleasure with Li Qingluo, he felt only lust, not love. But with Mu Wanqing, it was different; he felt genuine tenderness.

“I’m going to kill that woman!” Suddenly, Mu Wanqing’s expression changed, and she drew her sword, ready to rush out.

 “What’s wrong?” Song Qingshu quickly stopped her.

Mu Wanqing bit her lip, her eyes filled with grievance. After a long silence, she finally said, “You smell like her.”

Song Qingshu’s scalp tingled; he immediately sensed the atmosphere of a chaotic battle. However, at this point, he could only grit his teeth and explain, “I had to save her, so of course I had to come into contact with her. It’s inevitable that I’d pick up her scent.”

“Then what about your clothes?” Mu Wanqing pointed to his clothes, tears welling in her eyes.

Song Qingshu inwardly cursed himself. It was all his fault for still being shocked by the information Li Qingluo had given him, causing his reaction to be a beat slower than usual, resulting in such a basic mistake.

“When I was healing her, her clothes were soaked with sweat. To prevent her from being exposed, I put my clothes on her.” He made up a plausible reason on the spot.

“Why are you so nice to her!” Mu Wanqing didn’t doubt his words, but she couldn’t help feeling jealous.

 “Actually, it’s like this…” Song Qingshu understood the danger of saying too much; if she continued to press him, he would inevitably give himself away. He quickly changed the subject, recounting how Yue Fei was Li Qingluo’s aunt’s husband.

After finishing, Song Qingshu sighed, “Wanqing, Yue Fei is a hero to all Han people, and I have always greatly admired him. How could I possibly bear to hurt his relative now that I’ve encountered her?”

Hearing his words, Mu Wanqing’s expression changed several times. Suddenly, she sighed softly, “But I’m not Han…”

Song Qingshu then realized that neither Mu Wanqing’s biological father nor her adoptive father was Han; one was from the Dali Duan family, and the other from the Western Xia Mu family.

“Your mother is Han, so you’re half Han too,” Song Qingshu quickly comforted her.

“Song Lang, if you knew my mother’s background, you probably wouldn’t like me anymore,” Mu Wanqing suddenly sobbed.

 Seeing her burst into tears for no apparent reason, Song Qingshu immediately panicked and hurriedly wiped away her tears. “What’s wrong? Did I do something to upset you?”

“Don’t you admire Yue Fei the most?” Mu Wanqing sobbed.

“Is there a problem with that?” Song Qingshu asked hastily.

“My mother’s surname is Qin,” Mu Wanqing cried even louder.

“So what if her surname is Qin?” Song Qingshu was still completely confused.

“The Qin of Qin Hui.” Mu Wanqing looked at him with teary eyes, her voice soft but like a thunderclap.

“Ah?” Song Qingshu was stunned. He never expected that she could be related to Qin Hui.

“Is your mother Qin Hui’s daughter?” Song Qingshu asked tentatively.

Mu Wanqing shook her head. “No, but they are all from the Qin clan. When Qin Hui died, the Qin family declined. To avoid persecution by political enemies, the remaining members of the Qin family all migrated to Western Xia.”