Flower Stealing Master

Chapter 1019: Requesting a Return

“Ah, are we going to rest here for a night?” Cheng Yaojia said with a troubled expression, hesitating as she spoke, “Didn’t you say earlier that you would… let us go by tonight?”

Song Qingshu smiled and replied, “I did say that, but back then it was just you. Now, your husband has openly clashed with the envoy of the Qing Dynasty. I need to communicate with the envoy on the Qing side and do my part; otherwise, if I let you go privately, where would he put his face?”

“Ah,” Cheng Yaojia’s small mouth slightly opened, her face filled with worry, “What if the Qing side doesn’t agree to let us go?”

“It will be a bit troublesome. At worst, I can make some concessions privately. I believe he should be willing to give me some face,” Song Qingshu answered.

“Wouldn’t that mean you have to sacrifice a lot?” Cheng Yaojia asked hesitantly. Being kind-hearted, she always felt that she owed him a lot.

Song Qingshu looked at her delicate face with a playful expression: “What, do you want to repay me?”

Cheng Yaojia’s face turned red, and she shyly lowered her head: “The Marshal’s kindness to us as a couple, Yaojia is willing to be a cow or a horse in the next life to repay you.”

Song Qingshu pretended to frown: “Madam, that’s not very considerate of you. I helped you, and not only do you not thank me, but you also curse me. What does that mean?”

Cheng Yaojia became flustered and quickly waved her hand: “I didn’t curse you!”

“You said you would be a cow or a horse to repay me, but I don’t farm, so what do I need cows and horses for? I am now the highest commander of the Jin state, and you want me to be a farmer in my next life? Isn’t that cursing me?” Song Qingshu said with a hint of mockery at the corner of his mouth.

Cheng Yaojia couldn’t help but chuckle, realizing that he was teasing her on purpose. She raised her head and met Song Qingshu’s gaze, her heart racing in surprise, and quickly lowered her head again, whispering, “Marshal, you always like to make such jokes.”

Song Qingshu felt a surge of joy at her shy demeanor and laughed, “Even if Madam didn’t curse me, there’s still a problem. I’m not a believer in Buddhism; talk of the next life or reincarnation is too abstract. For you to say you’ll repay me in the next life feels a bit insincere.”

“Then… what do you want?” For some reason, even though this person looked rough and was far from handsome, Cheng Yaojia found chatting with him very enjoyable, unlike the restraint she felt with her husband. Moreover, her heart raced whenever she spoke to him, as if she had returned to the time when her husband was courting her in Niujia Village. Although she vaguely felt something was off, she couldn’t help but continue the conversation.

“The next life is too far away; how about we change it to this life?” Song Qingshu said with a grin, staring at her.

“This life?” Cheng Yaojia’s heart skipped a beat. She thought to herself, how could this be? She was already a married woman; how could she entangle herself with another man?

“In this life, I am already married, so it would be inappropriate for me to promise anything to the Marshal,” Cheng Yaojia bit her lip and said.

“Does Madam mean that if she weren’t married in the next life, she could dedicate herself to me?” Song Qingshu followed her words.

Cheng Yaojia’s face instantly turned red: “I… I didn’t mean that.”

“Then what does Madam mean?” Song Qingshu pressed further.

“I…” Cheng Yaojia was momentarily at a loss for words. After thinking for a while, she could only say, “I don’t know how the Marshal wants me to repay you in this life?”

She had made up her mind that if he made any excessive demands, she, as someone who would not be ungrateful, absolutely could not agree to them.

“I want…” Song Qingshu deliberately elongated his tone, drawing Cheng Yaojia’s heart in. After a long pause, he continued, “I haven’t thought it through yet. I’ll tell Madam when I’ve figured it out.”

“Well… alright then.” Cheng Yaojia secretly let out a sigh of relief. Although she vaguely felt that the demands the other party would make in the future would definitely not be easy to fulfill, it was still great to get past this hurdle. At worst, after rescuing her husband, she and her husband could return to Jiangnan and never set foot in the Central Plains again, avoiding any dealings with him. 

Song Qingshu knew he had teased her enough. If he continued like this, with Cheng Yaojia’s refined and noble temperament, it would be bad if she really got angry: “You should go rest in the room first. I’ll head over to the west courtyard to find Suo Etu and inform him about things here.” 

“Huh? I’m going to rest in your room?” Cheng Yaojia thought this was out of the question. Even if he didn’t do anything to her, staying together would ruin her reputation completely. 

“I meant for you to rest in the room next door,” Song Qingshu pointed to the house next to his bedroom, “I’ve already instructed the maid to prepare it for you.” 

Cheng Yaojia felt embarrassed; it turned out he was truly a gentleman, and she had underestimated him with her petty thoughts. 

Suddenly, Song Qingshu laughed again: “Of course, if the lady is willing to come to my room, I would welcome that as well!” 

Cheng Yaojia finally couldn’t stand his teasing anymore. Blushing, she lifted her skirt and ran back to her room, slamming the door shut with a bang. Leaning against the door, her chest rose and fell rapidly. 

Watching Cheng Yaojia run away with her skirt in hand, Song Qingshu couldn’t help but think of the poem written by Li Yu when he was having an affair with his little sister-in-law: 

The bright flowers fade, the moon dims, veiled in light mist.

Tonight is a fine night to slip away to my lover.

Silken socks tread the fragrant steps,

One hand lifting my golden-threaded shoes.

At the southern side of the painted hall, I see him—

The one I’ve always nestled against, trembling.

It was hard for your servant to sneak out here…

So let my lord cherish me as he pleases.

“Simply resembles it!” Song Qingshu chuckled before turning to head towards the west courtyard. 

Song Qingshu didn’t come to the west courtyard to discuss anything about letting Cheng Yaojia and her husband go. Now that he was the top figure in the Jin court, if he wanted to let two people go, even if one of them was an assassin, why would he need to explain to anyone else? 

He came to the west courtyard to rescue Shuang’er. Originally, he planned to directly ask Suo Etu for Shuang’er. From his perspective, someone as shrewd as Suo Etu would never offend a hotshot like him for the sake of a deceased sworn brother, Wei Xiaobao. If he asked for Shuang’er, Suo Etu would most likely give her to him as a favor. 

However, there’s a rule in the officialdom: it’s impolite to not reciprocate a gift. If the other party gave him a woman, he theoretically needed to return the favor by giving Cheng Yaojia back to him. 

Of course, Song Qingshu was unwilling to sacrifice Cheng Yaojia. After thinking it over, he felt that directly asking for her would be too troublesome, so he chose a more straightforward method—running to the west courtyard to rescue Shuang’er. 

He stealthily infiltrated the west courtyard, found the room he had scouted during the day, and seeing no one around, Song Qingshu quietly climbed through the window like a weasel. 

Who would have thought that as soon as he landed, a cold light flashed before his eyes.