Flower Stealing Master

It had been over a hundred years since the founding of the Great Song Dynasty. The Zhao descendants had multiplied and spread over generations, and the number of imperial clan members with royal blood now numbered in the tens of thousands. Naturally, the related affairs were countless. To manage this situation, the Song Dynasty established the Imperial Clan Court (宗正司) to oversee the various branches of the imperial clan, with a member of the Zhao family often serving as its head.

To stand out among tens of thousands of clansmen, this Zhao Shicheng was clearly an exceptional individual.

It was evident that Lu You both wanted to see Tang Wan and was torn with indecision. Song Qingshu, pretending not to understand the situation, urged, “Brother Lu, since they’ve so earnestly invited us, why not go take a look?”

“All… alright.” Lu You had been struggling with the choice. Hearing Song Qingshu’s words, he comforted himself: *I’m not deliberately going to disturb her…Brother Song insisted on going…*

Led by the maidservant, Song Qingshu and Lu You soon arrived at a painted pleasure boat. The lady they had seen earlier was gently pouring wine for an elegant, middle-aged scholar beside her. Hearing their approach, she instinctively turned her head for a glance. Seeing that it was Lu You entering, her wrist trembled, spilling wine from the pot and soaking the scholar’s clothes.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…” The lady hurriedly pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the scholar’s garments.

“No matter.” The scholar stood up, shook out his clothes, and smiled wryly at Lu You. “Brother Lu, my apologies. I need to go change my clothes. Please forgive the discourtesy.”

In his heart, Lu You wished the man would leave and never return, but his words remained courteous: “Brother Zhao, you’re too kind.”

Watching from the side, Song Qingshu secretly curled his lip. These two were outright romantic rivals, yet here they were putting on such a show of politeness. At the same time, he admired their integrity. Whatever their true feelings, they at least behaved as true gentlemen, with great poise.

Whether by accident or design, Zhao Shicheng took the maidservant with him when he left. Thus, only Song Qingshu, Lu You, and Tang Wan remained in the boat. Though there were many servants outside the boat, they were some distance away. As long as they kept their voices low, no one outside could hear what was said inside.

Song Qingshu couldn’t help but marvel at this man Zhao’s magnanimity…to allow his wife to be alone with her former lover!

In truth, when he had first read this poignant love story in his previous life, besides feeling sorrow for Lu You and Tang Wan, he had also been filled with admiration for the other protagonist, Zhao Shicheng. He, too, had deeply loved Tang Wan. After encountering Lu You by chance at Shen Garden, he had graciously allowed his wife to catch up with her ex-husband. Not long after, Tang Wan had died of melancholy, and Zhao Shicheng had never remarried for the rest of his life. He was truly a gentleman as gentle as jade.

For this reason, Song Qingshu had just carefully observed this world’s Zhao Shicheng. His face was like a jade crown, his temperament refined. Particularly, the faint, subtle smile at the corner of his lips gave one a feeling like a spring breeze.

But to his surprise, this Zhao Shicheng was also an expert. Though he concealed it well, he could not escape Song Qingshu’s discerning eye.

Even by wulin standards, Zhao Shicheng ranked as a first-rate expert…at the very least, his martial arts surpassed Lu You’s.

That he knew martial arts was not necessarily a big deal, but his deliberate concealment was somewhat suspicious. Song Qingshu was certain that neither Lu You, nor the man’s wife, nor his servants and maids had any idea he could fight.

“Wan-mei…” Lu You could no longer restrain his longing. He called out hesitantly.

Song Qingshu raised an eyebrow. Recognizing that his presence here was now inappropriate, he pretended to admire the scenery of Shen Garden and walked to the far side.

“Sir Lu, please mind yourself. I am now Madam Zhao,” Tang Wan said expressionlessly, her tone cool.

Sensing her coldness, Lu You gave a bitter smile. “Does he… does he treat you well?”

“My husband treats me very well. Sir Lu need not concern himself,” Tang Wan replied, still distant.

Lu You’s heart ached. Smiling bitterly, he said, “I know you’re still angry with me… but a mother’s command cannot be disobeyed…” His words were sincere, and tears glistened faintly in his eyes.

Tang Wan immediately cut him off: “Why bring up these old matters? I am now married to another, and you have taken a new wife. Is there any point in discussing this further?”

Lu You was thunderstruck. His face turned deathly pale. Only after a long moment did he exhale: “You’re right. It’s meaningless.”

Seeing that he could barely stand, Tang Wan pressed her lips together and turned her face away, ultimately saying nothing more.

“Lu has matters to attend to at home. I’ll take my leave.” Lu You clasped his hands, and without even calling for Song Qingshu, turned and walked away, lost and dejected.

Song Qingshu nodded to Tang Wan and followed Lu You out. As he left, he glanced back toward the neighboring room. *So this Zhao Shicheng couldn’t quite trust his wife alone after all…*

“Brother Lu! Brother Lu!”

Lu You was walking as if fleeing, extremely quickly. Song Qingshu, unable to openly use Qinggong in public, could only trot after him, finally catching up with difficulty.

“My apologies for making a spectacle of myself before Brother Song,” Lu You said, finally rousing somewhat when he saw Song Qingshu.

“This thing called love has broken the hearts of countless lovelorn men and pining women for a thousand years. Why would I laugh?” Song Qingshu sighed softly.

“Though there is a lovelorn man here today, I see no pining woman,” Lu You said with a bitter smile. “But she is now living a happy, fulfilling life. I should be glad for her.”

Song Qingshu shook his head. “Brother Lu misunderstands Miss Tang. If she truly regarded you as a stranger, why were her hands, hidden in her sleeves, clenched so tightly that her nails nearly pierced her palms? Clearly, Miss Tang was also striving to suppress the turmoil in her heart.”

“Truly!” Lu You was overcome with a mixture of surprise and joy. Knowing that Song Qingshu’s skill would not err, he excitedly turned to go back.

But Song Qingshu stopped him. “Brother Lu, have you thought this through?”

“Thought what through?” Lu You was bewildered, clearly not following.

Song Qingshu had to spell it out for him: “The two of you now…one is married, the other is married. If you go back now, it will surely cause an uproar. If you are truly determined to reclaim your beloved, then as your brother, I will accompany you without a second word to take her back. Never mind that Zhao Shicheng is merely Southern Song imperial clan…even if he were Zhao… were the Crown Prince himself, I wouldn’t hesitate.”

Song Qingshu had initially wanted to say even if the man were Zhao Gou himself, he’d still take her. But then he remembered that Lu You was, after all, a subject of the Southern Song and had always been loyal to the emperor and his country. There was no need to clash with him over this.

Then he shifted his tone: “But taking her back is the easy part. The difficulty lies in what comes next. Under the censure of all sides, can you protect her? Your mother has never been on good terms with her; she will certainly not allow you to reunite. What will you do then? And there is another question: if Miss Tang returns, where does that leave your current wife?”

Song Qingshu had already learned from Lu Guanying that after Old Madam Lu had forced Lu You to divorce Tang Wan, she had remarried him to the daughter of the Wang family.

“If Brother Lu has the courage to face all this, then I will go and take Miss Tang back for you.” Having said this, Song Qingshu quietly watched Lu You, awaiting his decision.

Hearing this analysis, Lu You stood frozen in place. It wasn’t that he didn’t know these problems…it was that his subconscious had deliberately avoided thinking about them.

In truth, he knew very well that he couldn’t solve a single one of them. In that case, what was the point of going back?

Thinking of the sweetness of their past love, and then of the helplessness of their present separation, Lu You’s heart surged. Suddenly, he drew the sword from his waist and inscribed on the nearby stone wall the poem that would echo through the ages…*”Phoenix Hairpin”:*

“Soft, rosy hands;

Golden rattan wine.

Spring floods the city…willows brushing palace walls.

The east wind turns cruel,

Affection turns thin.

A heart full of sorrow,

Years of lonely wandering.

Wrong…wrong…wrong!

Spring remains as ever;

But I am wasted away,

Tear-stains soaking through the gauzy silk.

Peach blossoms fall

By the quiet pond and empty pavilion.

Our oath in the mountains still stands,

Yet no brocade letter can be sent.

No…no…no!”

Witnessing the birth of this legendary scene, Song Qingshu sighed with emotion. Yet at the same time, he reflected: *The surface cause of this love tragedy was Lu You’s mother’s interference, but the real reason was that Lu You was not strong enough…neither in resolve nor in power. If he had truly been strong enough, none of those problems would have been problems at all.*

*Now, with so many beloved women by my side, the difficulties I face will be a hundred or a thousand times greater than those between Lu You and Tang Wan. Only by becoming the most powerful man in this world can I protect those I love and prevent such tragedies from befalling us.*

After inscribing the poem, Lu You could not bear to stay another moment in Shen Garden. He dragged Song Qingshu away hurriedly. Because of encountering Tang Wan, he was unwilling to return to the Lu residence and face his mother and the others. So he sent a servant back to report, while he himself found a random tavern by the roadside, ordered the strongest liquor available, and began drinking with Song Qingshu.

Knowing how deeply he suffered, Song Qingshu said nothing to comfort him, only silently keeping him company in his cups.

What they did not know was that shortly after they left Shen Garden, Zhao Shicheng received urgent official business and departed first. Tang Wan stared blankly in the garden for a long time before finally leaving with her maidservant. But as she was leaving Shen Garden, she happened to see the poem Lu You had left on the wall.

Tang Wan was thunderstruck. She coughed up a mouthful of blood. Enduring the agony of a heart being cut to pieces, she had her maidservant fetch brush and ink, and on that same wall, she left her own response:

“The world grows cold,

Human hearts turn to stone;

At dusk, rain scatters blossoms all too easily.

The morning breeze dries

The remnants of my tears.

I try to write what weighs on my heart,

Murmuring alone beside the tilted railing.

Hard…so hard…so hard!

People part,

Today is not yesterday;

My ailing soul sways like a swing’s rope.

A horn’s call chills the night

As darkness deepens.

I fear someone asking after me,

So I swallow my tears and feign a smile.

Hide…hide…hide!”

After finishing the inscription, Tang Wan seemed to lose her very soul. She let her maidservant support her as she departed.

*****

Drowning sorrows only deepens sorrow. Lu You and Song Qingshu drank together, and before they knew it, night had fallen outside.

Most of the tavern’s patrons had already left. Song Qingshu smiled wryly. “Brother Lu, it’s time to go home.”

Great poets and literati have always possessed astonishing capacity for alcohol, and Lu You was no exception. The two had drunk a full twenty-eight jars of wine. Fortunately, Song Qingshu’s skill had reached the acme of perfection…with a slight exertion of his inner energy, he could dispel the effects of the alcohol. Otherwise, he truly could not have out-drunk this human anomaly before him.

“I don’t want to go back…” Lu You muttered. Then with a thud, he collapsed unconscious across the table.

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