Flower Stealing Master

Chapter 743: Wanyan Ping

Song Qingshu didn’t dare to ask directly about the Laundry Courtyard. After all, from the way Tang Kuo Bian had spoken that night, it was clear that he was aware of it. Instead, Song Qingshu could only probe indirectly.

Fortunately, Wanyan Gebi never expected her “husband” to be subtly extracting information from her. Unintentionally, she revealed enough: “How is that possible? The Laundry Courtyard is located deep within the imperial palace, and only a handful of people in the entire court even know of its existence. I only learned about it because of you and Ping’er. How could the Song people possibly know?”

“Ping’er?” Song Qingshu was startled. Who was this Ping’er she mentioned? He had no recollection of such a person. Judging from her tone, Ping’er was clearly someone very close to her. Song Qingshu dared not ask and quickly changed the subject:

“I’m not too sure about that. Perhaps the Song people have other sources of information.”

Wanyan Gebi’s expression turned solemn. “We must inform Imperial Brother and Ping’er as soon as possible so they can come up with a countermeasure.”

Song Qingshu quickly interjected, “Don’t worry, when the Emperor’s envoy arrives, I will speak to him.” What a joke! There was no way he would let her inform Jin emperor and that mysterious Ping’er. If he alerted them too soon, rescuing Song Yuanqiao and the others would become much more difficult.

“That works as well,” Wanyan Gebi nodded. She had never been particularly concerned with politics, and soon, her attention returned to her “husband.” “Wogula, let me check your injuries,” she said as she reached out to undo his clothing.

Song Qingshu was instantly alarmed. Although he had prepared for this and had even created fake injury marks on his body, it was one thing to fool Wanyan Liang and the others, but quite another to deceive Gebi, his supposed wife. No matter how skilled his disguise technique was, he could only make his face identical to Tang Kuo Bian’s. As for bodily details, he wasn’t a god—there was no way he could replicate them exactly. There was no way he could fool a woman who had shared a bed with him.

In that split second, Song Qingshu grabbed Gebi’s hand, but in his panic, he couldn’t think of a reasonable excuse to refuse her. He was momentarily frozen.

Wanyan Gebi was puzzled by his reaction, her face gradually showing a hint of suspicion. “You…”
Suddenly, an idea struck Song Qingshu. He gently squeezed the soft hand in his palm and said, “It’s been so long since I last saw you—you’ve grown even more beautiful.”

Wanyan Gebi’s face immediately flushed. However, being a woman of the steppe, though she was more refined and gentle compared to other Jurchen noblewomen, she was still far from the bashful women of Jiangnan. Instead of becoming shy, she simply rolled her eyes at him and said, “You’re injured, and you still have thoughts like that?”

Song Qingshu was dumbfounded. ‘What thoughts? What did I do?’  

Seeing his blank expression, Wanyan Gebi felt she might have been too harsh. She quickly softened her tone and said, “Once you’ve recovered, whatever you want… I… I’ll listen to you.”

Looking at her alluring yet hesitant demeanor, Song Qingshu finally realized she had misunderstood him. He couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly. ‘Great! I was worried about the issue of sharing a bed with her, but it seems like she wouldn’t have let me touch her anyway.’

Just as the atmosphere in the room was growing increasingly awkward, a crisp and pleasant voice called from outside the door: “Sister, I heard Brother-in-law is back?”

Song Qingshu turned in surprise toward the door. Since he was lying in bed, the first thing that entered his view was a pair of exquisite, petite boots. As his gaze moved upward, he saw a pair of long, slender legs that made him inwardly exclaim in admiration. He had encountered countless women in his life, but among them, only Yelu Nanxian could compare to this girl in terms of long, graceful legs.

After recovering from his initial shock, he took the time to observe the newcomer. She was a delicate-looking young girl with a slender frame. Her clear, lively eyes sparkled, exuding charm.

“Ping’er, what brings you here?” Wanyan Gebi greeted the girl with a knowing smile.

“Ping’er?” Song Qingshu was inwardly alarmed. ‘Could this be the Ping’er she mentioned earlier?’ Judging from the way she addressed Gebi as “Sister,” was she actually Gebi’s younger sister? ‘Wanyan… Ping? Could it be her?’

Song Qingshu suddenly recalled the tragic Jurchen girl from ‘The Return of the Condor Heroes.’ In the original novel, the Jin Dynasty had already fallen, which led Wanyan Ping to seek revenge against Yelu Chucai. But now, since the Jin Dynasty was still standing, there was no need for her to transform into an avenger…

He also remembered that in the novel, the moment Yang Guo first met her, he was captivated by her gaze and even felt the urge to k!ss her eyes. Looking at the girl in front of him, he realized that her eyes indeed bore a striking resemblance to those of Xiao Longnu.

“Sister has been worrying about you day and night, barely eating or sleeping. She’s been waiting for you like a starved bird waiting for the dawn,” Wanyan Ping teased as she affectionately wrapped her arms around Wanyan Gebi’s. Suddenly, she noticed Song Qingshu staring at her and blushed slightly. Wrinkling her nose, she huffed, “Hmph, Sister, Brother-in-law isn’t very honest! He’s been staring at me since I walked in.”

Song Qingshu hadn’t expected such a seemingly delicate girl to be so bold. He nearly choked in embarrassment, his face turning beet red.

Wanyan Gebi, on the other hand, was completely unbothered. She playfully tapped Wanyan Ping’s forehead with her slender finger. “You little rascal, always teasing your brother-in-law.”

“Hmph,” Wanyan Ping pouted, breaking free from her sister’s embrace. She took small, quick steps to the bedside and looked down at Song Qingshu. “Brother-in-law, ever since we heard about your accident, Sister has been crying herself to sleep every night. If not for Imperial Brother forbidding it, she would have gone to Kaifeng herself to find you. You’d better not go around flirting with other women and betray her trust!”

From their conversation, Song Qingshu could tell that Wanyan Ping must have often teased Tang Kuo Bian like this, so she likely wasn’t genuinely upset. He responded with a casual chuckle, brushing it off. But for some reason, looking at the proud girl before him, his usual flirtatious nature surfaced. Before he could stop himself, he blurted, “Little girl, you’re still too young to be thinking such nonsense. Your sister is far prettier than you.”

Wanyan Ping hadn’t expected her brother-in-law, whom she was used to teasing, to strike back so sharply. She was momentarily stunned, a strange gleam flashing through her eyes.

Song Qingshu instantly regretted his words. ‘D*mn! I spoke too quickly. Now they might start suspecting something!’

However, instead of getting angry, Wanyan Ping suddenly giggled. “Sister, Brother-in-law must have picked up some smooth-talking tricks in Kaifeng. You’d better keep a close eye on him. Who knows, he might still be daydreaming about some woman he was with over there.”

“Stop spouting nonsense,” Wanyan Gebi scolded, rolling her eyes. “Your brother-in-law is injured and very weak right now. Stop tormenting him, or you might worsen his condition.”

“Fine, fine,” Wanyan Ping huffed. “I get it. You two are so in love. If you keep flaunting your affection like this, I’m going to get sick from all the sweetness.”

She tossed a small box onto Song Qingshu’s bed. “Brother-in-law, this is a thousand-year-old ginseng I sneaked out of the Imperial Medical Bureau. Have Sister make a tonic for you. I have to return to the palace now—there’s still work to do.” Without waiting for them to respond, she hurriedly turned and left.

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