When the
peony flowers were in full blossom in the courtyard, May had already quietly
arrived with the rowdiness of the people.
w.a.n.g Yun
Feng’s medicines were already replaced with tonics, apart from the ingredients
having changed, the taste was as bitter as before.
The
injuries of numerous secret guards in the residence had also almost completely
healed, on top of that flower thief Zhuang Sheng who looked for trouble where
there is none, and picked gra.s.s where there’s no flower, and the drunkard who
wished for the whole world to be in chaos, day and night the residence was in
general turmoil, very lively.
These two
days Xia Ling Mei had released Fei Dao who had returned having lost weight, at
the same time bringing news for her from the Xia family.
Obviously,
w.a.n.g Yun Feng this imperial censor officer good at plotting again displayed his
skilful sharp tongue that right and wrong is black and white, unaware of how he
convinced Xia Ling Mei’s father, making the other person write a letter to her,
forcing her to have no choice but to stay by w.a.n.g Yun Feng’s side.
A few days
ago, Xia Ling Mei had stayed at w.a.n.g residence for her own safety, and now, she
had been ordered by the patriarch of the Xia family, not only did she have to
protect herself, she also had to protect w.a.n.g Yun Feng.
At a time
when she didn’t know, w.a.n.g Yun Feng had already launched his net, trapping Xia
Ling Mei in the middle of it, not allowing her to leave.
Xia Ling
Mei was extremely angry.
She and
w.a.n.g Yun Feng had been entangled for so many years, amongst these were
quarrels, kindness and enmity, which of the elders in the Xia family did not
know, did not understand. Back then she had forced w.a.n.g Yun Feng to write the
divorce doc.u.ment, it also determined back then the connection of marriage
between Xia family and the w.a.n.g family would not be broken, therefore they
would maintain a tacit manner to her unilateral decision.
Right now,
w.a.n.g Yun Feng took the initiative, Xia family’s response ought to bewilder Xia
Ling Mei.
“Remember
when we were younger, mine and yours favourite thing to do when the moon was at
its highest was to go down to the nine bend stream and light coloured lanterns.
At the Dragon Boat Festival, there were countless rainbow coloured dragon wax
boats meandering down from the top of the river, the dim flames clearly looked
like a moving fire dragon, even lighting up our galaxy.”
Xia Ling
Mei folded the letter into her sleeve: “Such a long time ago, apart from you no
one remembers.” Throwing a handful of fish bait into the pond, watching the red
and white koi under the hazy light competing for the bread. Waiting until the
plate of fish bait was finished, she then tilted her head to ask: “What did you
do to convince my father, to allow you to make use of the Xia family
connections to protect you thoroughly? Don’t tell me that nonsense that it’s an
imperial matter that everyone has a responsibility to, that lecherous emperor
allowed you to supervise officials not permit my Xia family to investigate
corruption and bribery. What’s more don’t throw out your zombie face, don’t
think I won’t get a confession from you just because you won’t talk, when
necessary I will beat you up that you would be looking for your teeth all over
the floor.”
w.a.n.g Yun
Feng coughed, if she didn’t say he was indeed planning to get away with it by
playing deaf-mute, considering it he said: “Actually I didn’t do anything
particular, I only said one thing.”
“What?”
w.a.n.g Yun
Feng turned to face her, carefully observing her expression: “I said, I want to
take Xia Ling Mei as my wife.”
Xia Ling
Mei was sluggish, she asked incredulously: “What did you say?”
w.a.n.g Yun
Feng remembered her expression in his mind, sighing obviously and unable to
supress the faint disappointment in his heart: “Don’t be sceptical, it’s just
as you think. The same words, I’ve said to your father for seven years, he also
turned me down seven times.”
Xia Ling
Mei narrowed her eyes: “The first year after you wrote the divorce doc.u.ment,
you shamelessly said you wanted to marry me?”
w.a.n.g Yun
Feng hung his head, the rim of his eyes reddening: “I didn’t write that divorce
doc.u.ment.”
“But from
the moment you married me, you always wanted to divorce me.” Xia Ling Mei
smiled grimly. Fei Dao flew over from the high wall, spinning in a circle on
top of both their heads, dropping on to Xia Ling Mei’s shoulder. The person and
pet stared at him like some sort of monster: “First you cold-bloodedly divorced
your wife, then hypocritically returned as a prodigal son. I say, Lord w.a.n.g,
w.a.n.g Yun Feng, you regard yourself as the lecherous emperor inside the imperial
palace, punishments and rewards are gifts from the emperor, let those who
comply with me thrive and those who resist me perish.! On what basis do you
think a woman you divorced would marry you again? On what basis are you
determined Xia family will surrender to common customs, once again marrying
their daughter off to you an ungrateful man? Do you think you’re the
reincarnation of Pan Yue, or do you think of
yourself as a rare genius loved by all, flowers would blossom if you looked at
them?”
w.a.n.g Yun
Feng pursed his lips, quietly he said: “I want to look after you.”
The person
and the bird placed both hands on their hips: “This lady does not need your
care.”
“You can’t
wander the Jianghu for the rest of your life, even if father-in-law… Uncle Xia
doesn’t say it, they all really worry about you. Moreover, the Jianghu is
dangerous, you are a young lady who should stay in her room, if you carry on
like this it would only effect your reputation.”
The person
and the bird both leaned forward, quite angry against a common enemy, she spat
out: “None of your G.o.dd.a.m.n business.”
w.a.n.g Yun
Feng widened his eyes, no matter what he did not imagine an educated and
well-balanced woman of the Xia family would actually say such an extremely
vulgar thing: “You…” His heart struggled for a bit, “Your business is my
business. Why do you not believe a thing I say? Is it because I owe you first?
Or is it because you’ve decided I have no feelings towards you? They say a day
together as husband and wife means hundreds of years of devotion, you and I for
three years, not talking about a hundred years, we ought to have half a
lifetime. Do you dare to say you so easily forgotten our innocent childhood
from when we were young? Do you dare to say I’ve never shown you the tiniest
bit of sincerity? Do you dare say, in those three years, I’ve never thought on
behalf of you, ached for you, for you…” He did not finish speaking, he only
felt his body was light, the view in front of him changed `plonk`, innumerable
amount of water rushed in his eyes, nose and ears, choking he couldn’t stop
coughing, his body couldn’t help sink down.
Xia Ling
Mei standing by the pond still had her leg raised, and with Fei Dao the two of
them watched the flopping man in the pond, laughing deviously: “I think you
need to clear your head, don’t imagine love is reciprocated it’ll burn your
brain.”
Fei Dao raised
its wings, mockingly calling out: “That time you speak of, this lady has not
remembered from the start. What hundred years of devotion? What innocent
childhood?
What sincerity? Did we have days like that? You must have mistaken
the person.”
Fei Dao `ka`,
like it was in distain.
Xia Ling
Mei nodded her head: “You must have remembered the wrong person, you must know
there are many sisters in the Xia family, the one who grew up with you is not
limited to me Xia Ling Mei, also Xia Ling Shu, Xia Ling…Wo.”
w.a.n.g Yun
Feng sucked in a breath, water surging to be the first to enter his throat, as
he was befuddled, he only had the time to see Xia Ling Mei heartlessly turn
around, leaving without even looking back.
Xia Ling
Mei mood was very bad with this information, inside w.a.n.g residence she couldn’t
release her emotions.
“Really,
lady pushed the master into the pond yesterday night.” Xiu Yu was very worried
when she heard the gossip.
Hei Zi
jeered: “The lady is too soft. How is kicking him into the pond enough, at
least she should have tied Lord w.a.n.g’s legs to two boulders, let him directly
drown in the pond and become fish bait.”
“Alas, that
is murder. If it was me, I would get him drunk and kick him in, make is
absolutely impossible for people to figure out who killed him.” This was the
drunkard.
Bai Zi was
suspicious, Juan Shu was angry, Bai Yan cracked melon seeds between his teeth.
Bai Zi: “If
she killed the master, what would the lady do?”
Juan Shu
snorted: “Be a widow.”
Bai Yan
drew out his sword: “Kill her, make them ghosts husband and wife.”
Xiu Yu
walked away angry, Hei Zi sneered, the drunkard belched.
Ying s.h.i.+
carrying tea walked by: “What are you doing?”
Everyone:
“Gossiping,”
“Oh,” Ying
s.h.i.+ bypa.s.sed the long hallway, “I’m going to present tea to the lady, the
matchmakers have delivered a big pile of people portraits, for the lady to pick
a husband.”
Xiu Yu
gladly and diligently followed: “The lady is finally remarrying?”
“Yes, the
lady said she is finally starting to yearn for love, while she still has a
little thought of love, she needs to quickly find a suitable man to marry, next
year we can wait upon a little master.”
A little
master, Xiu Yu salivated. The group of people diligently followed behind, like
a long queue going to watch and gossip.
Inside the drawing
room of the rear court, a group of all kinds of meddling women were standing in
a group, holding tea, face filled with a good-natured smile, inwardly no one
knew each other’s strength against each other.
Xia Ling
Mei sat at the front, Zhuang Sheng sat nearby with one leg over the other, the
two people with a roll of a portrait in their hands, looking at it horizontally
or vertically or slanted, eyebrows raised, noses wrinkled, this expression was
already exhausted. Each portrait placed down, some of the matchmakers sitting
down would laugh happily, some would be worried.
“My lady
has said, if the other person is an official, she doesn’t want anyone below
fifth rank, she doesn’t want those who use their family wealth to buy a t.i.tle,
she doesn’t want anyone who isn’t the son of the first wife, she doesn’t want a
bachelor who has children, she doesn’t want anyone who already has over two
concubines and maids, finally, she doesn’t want
anyone below fifth rank official, if the other person is a Jianghu person, even
if they are a fifth rank official she doesn’t want him. She doesn’t want
criminals, she doesn’t want those with damaged bodies, if their appearance
isn’t adequate she doesn’t want them, she doesn’t want a homeless drifting with
the wind, she doesn’t want someone who only knows how to fight and kill without
the ability to support his family. Apart from these, those from merchant
families will not be considered, normal civilians are not included in this
range of choices, don’t even think about those who will stop a re-marriage,
without exception those with brothers in their residence who has committed
murder are not wanted…”
Zhuang
Sheng switched one leg over the other before continuing, taking a sip of strong
tea, sighing in despair: “Why don’t you just tell us directly what you want.”
Xia Ling
Mei tossed the portrait in her hand onto the pile of waste papers, rubbing her
eyes, eating a piece of pastry: “Actually my requirements aren’t much, I only
need someone who can enter the imperial court and fight in the mountains, able
to venture the Jianghu’s fires and waters, on the outside he’s a upright
n.o.bleman gentle as a jade, inside he’s a respectful and virtuous person who
thinks of his wife as the sky. Strive for self-improvement, brave and astute,
fair and reasonable, gentle, modest and courteous, speak cautiously and acts
quickly, capable of versatility, and have great ambitions, a visionary and
sagacious…”
“And so on,
“ Zhuang Sheng shouted, “Are you looking for a husband, or looking for a
national hero?”
“Relatives
of the emperor also will not pa.s.s?” a certain matchmaker quietly said.
Xia Ling
Mei laughed: “There are also vermin within the emperor’s relatives.”
“Then
influential families?”
“There are
also immoral and despicable people.”
“Then
official aristocratic families?”
“There are
also refined sc.u.ms of society.”
“Jianghu
hero?”
“A fool can
be found everywhere.”
Everyone
heaved a sigh.
Some
matchmakers held their breath, maliciously asking: “This marriage is a
two-sided matter. Lady for you to make so many requests is also expected, but, if
there is such a man willing to propose marriage, what can we use on behalf of
this lady? Us matchmakers have drank many cups of tea, so far we still don’t
know this lady’s background, talent and learning, and the amount of dowry.”
“Ah,” Xia
Ling Mei used her circular fan to fan herself twice with cold air: “The Xia
family one of Beding city’s influential family, not speaking of my father’s
honour, talking only about our younger generation, amongst the five wives, six
daughters are of the first wife, three married an official above fifth rank,
one Princess, one Imperial Consort; five sons of the first wife, three cultural
officials above fifth rank, two military officials above fourth rank. Amongst
them there are also twelve b.a.s.t.a.r.ds, nine of those are civil and military
officials above sixth rank, the remaining three are still minors; fifteen women
born of a concubine, eight has married, eight married officials above sixth
rank, the other seven remain at home.”
She raised
her eyebrows, a dignified woman remain peacefully in her room and a heroic charming
and agreeable woman of the Jianghu, where there is water there is fire, fire
contaminated with smoke, carrying a serene charm to attract people.
Zhuang
Sheng held his breath, glancing over, at the door Gu Lang was drooling, w.a.n.g
Yun Feng outside of the courtyard had a pale complexion, his body on the verge
of collapsing.