Plan B
Mandarin Ducks 11
【Congratulations to the Host on completing the mission. Memories have been blurred. The Host has currently earned a lifespan value of 152 months. As the duration of your stay is variable, I will return to greet the Host when there is a mission.】
“Alright. What about my companion?”
【The Host need not worry. This one has already handled it.】
Qiu Qingqing was still fast asleep. Su Xin looked at her terrible complexion, caused by a lack of sleep and rest, and sighed with some emotion.
“This is probably what a good friend is,” she thought. “This friendship is truly worth it.”
Qiu Qingqing woke up at dusk, feeling a bit dazed to see Su Xin sitting by her bed.
“Ah Xin? What are you doing sitting here?”
Su Xin breathed a sigh of relief internally. It seemed Qiu Qingqing didn’t remember what had happened before.
“Nothing much. Just looking at you.”
“Look at the sky. How did I sleep for so long?”
“Who knows? Now that you’re awake, go make dinner. I’m so hungry.”
“Alright.” Qiu Qingqing sat up in bed, retied her hair, and walked out the door in her slippers.
While Su Xin folded the quilt, Qiu Qingqing went downstairs to the kitchen.
Qiu Qingqing sighed faintly in her heart. Sometimes, Su Xin was really quite easy to fool.
Fourteen, you should have explained it to me clearly.
【This matter was sudden.】
In that case, doesn’t this mean I have no way to be with her, face to face and mutually guarding?2
【That is not within our scope of responsibility. Besides, you have attained the compensation for your wish.】
When exactly will I be able to let her know?
【When she calls a stop.】
I understand.
Qiu Qingqing turned on the faucet and began to wash the vegetables, the icy water slipping through her fingers into the sink.
They were a rather special case, but definitely not the first of its kind that Fourteen knew of.
The outcomes for those people had been a mix of good and bad, but Qiu Qingqing felt that she was already more than halfway to success.
She just needed to help Su Xin get over that hurdle in her heart. And once the day came when her memories were restored, all the problems laid out before them should split open upon meeting the blade’s edge3.
Just after finishing dinner, Su Xin received a message from Fourteen.
【Host, a new mission has been accepted. Commencing transport shortly.】
Bring it on, bring it on.
The icy lake water spread, bit by bit.
From her limbs to her mouth and nose, making it impossible to breathe.
Sinking, sinking.
The floating white clothes swayed like a phantom.
Su Xin burst out of the lake water, collapsing on the bank and coughing violently.
【Mission: Achieve kindness severed and righteousness cut off4 with Liu Yunyi, and make him apologize.】
Understood. Let me catch my breath first.
Su Xin climbed out of the water. The spring cold was biting, making her shiver uncontrollably.
She wrung out her clothes and hair a little and began to sort out her thoughts.
The owner of this body was named Xu Jinyan5, the third daughter of a wealthy family, who had committed suicide by throwing herself into the lake.
The story was very cliché.
The rich young lady and the poor scholar—a timeless topic of discussion from ancient times to the present.
All the daughters of the Xu family were beautiful. Xu Jinyan, the third daughter, had a clear and elegant beauty. While not the vibrant and rich beauty of her second sister, nor the sweet and charming prettiness of her fourth sister, she was like a pure and graceful orchid. Just standing there, slender and delicate, she put people at ease.
She fell in love with a poor scholar.
The scholar was the nephew of the teacher6 at the local private school7. Both his parents had passed away, making his background quite pitiful.
But he was hardworking and ambitious, with excellent literary talent and a handsome face.
The scholar’s name was Liu Yunyi8, which was also an extremely pleasant-sounding name.
Xu Jinyan lost her soul to him, and the two of them made a private decision for their whole lives9.
But this matter was discovered by the Xu family, who forcibly beat the mandarin ducks with a stick10.
No matter what was said, Xu Jinyan refused to separate from him, insisting on marrying him.
Liu Yunyi swore before the Xu family that after he finished his exams and passed11, he would definitely return to marry Xu Jinyan with an eight-bearer sedan chair12.
The Xu family was half-believing and half-doubting.
Master Xu was also a sharp-minded man. As a merchant, he knew how to weigh pros and cons.
The future of a scholar was simply too uncertain. Perhaps this man would one day gain appreciation from someone important and then rise straight up to the blue clouds13.
It wasn’t as if there were no late bloomers. The one group you couldn’t afford to offend was scholars.
So Master Xu thought, what’s the harm in giving it a try this one time? Liu Yunyi was good-looking and talented. If he went to attend the examinations14 this time and actually passed, then wouldn’t having him as a son-in-law bring the family even more glory?
But Master Xu also kept a backup plan. What if he failed?
Therefore, he didn’t agree to their union. He only told Liu Yunyi to go, and that before he returned, he would not marry his third daughter off.
However, the time limit was only three years.
Xu Jinyan took out her private savings and pawned her jewelry, giving it to Liu Yunyi as travel money for the road to the capital so he could attend the examinations.
If Liu Yunyi truly passed and was a man of sentiment and honor, then this would be a wonderfully happy affair.
But if it had truly been a happy affair, Xu Jinyan wouldn’t have needed to commit suicide by throwing herself into the lake.
That year, they parted ways under the willow tree, reluctant to leave each other. Xu Jinyan broke off a willow branch to see him off15, and after Liu Yunyi left, she spent her days consumed by longing.
This wait lasted for three years, and the time limit was about to be reached.
Xu Jinyan waited from the age of fifteen to eighteen. She was already considered a woman who was marrying relatively late; even her younger sister was already married.
Day after day of waiting and hoping, Xu Jinyan thought that even if Liu Yunyi didn’t achieve any official rank, as long as he returned, she would still be willing to marry him.
There was still no news from Liu Yunyi.
The road to the capital was so long; who knew what might have happened along the way.
The Xu family had many speculations. Some guessed that Liu Yunyi had encountered bandits on the road and had already lost his life. Others guessed that he was afraid of losing face by returning a failure, so after getting the money, he didn’t go to the exams at all but ran off to some other place.
No matter what others said, Xu Jinyan remained steadfastly in her room, waiting every day for the man who was supposed to marry her to return.
The closer it got to the time limit, the more severe the mockery from others became.
Every day, Xu Jinyan would wash her face with tears16 while telling herself that Liu Yunyi would definitely come back.
He hadn’t met with a mishap, and he wouldn’t run away.
The day before, Master Xu told Xu Jinyan that she could find another family to marry into, and that he was in the process of selecting candidates for her.
Xu Jinyan was unwilling. She said the three years were not up yet; there was still one day left.
Even though she herself knew the possibility was minuscule, she still held on.
“He won’t be coming back. I just received news from someone.”
“That person came from the capital. I often do business with him. He told me that Liu Yunyi had already passed the exam and become the Tanhua17 a year ago and was now an official in the imperial court.”
When Xu Jinyan heard this news, her face first lit up with joy, but then it suddenly turned deathly pale.
He had already become the Tanhua a year ago, so why didn’t he return home in brocaded robes?18 Why didn’t he come to marry her as he had promised?
“A year… a whole year.”
“He has long since married the current dynasty’s princess and become an Imperial Son-in-Law19 that everyone envies.”
Xu Jinyan collapsed weakly to the floor, hearing her father’s sigh.
“This should count as a losing business deal, I suppose. That man has no conscience. Even if he didn’t consider the love that led you to privately pledge your lives to each other, he didn’t even consider the kindness we, father and daughter, showed him by providing his travel funds to the capital. Forget about any repayment; he didn’t even send back a single message.”
“Now, he can’t be spoken of in the same breath as before. He’s an Imperial Son-in-Law and a government official. If we were to try and get some benefit from him, I’m afraid we’d be struck back with a rake20. After all, the princess wouldn’t be happy that her husband has an old flame like you.”
“Jinyan, you’re not young anymore. If you don’t marry soon, it will be too late. Haven’t you suffered enough gossip and pointing fingers these past few years? Your father has already looked at a few families for you. Just stay at home obediently for the next few days.”
Xu Jinyan cried and begged. She couldn’t believe her lover was truly so cruel, that he would forget their oaths of the mountains and vows of the seas21 and throw himself into wealth and splendor, so thin in affection and meager in righteousness22.
Father is just trying to make me give up hope… Xu Jinyan wanted to deceive herself like this, but found she couldn’t.
Although Master Xu was a merchant, he was a man who valued sentiment and righteousness greatly. His reputation in the local area was excellent; there was absolutely no need for him to spin a lie to deceive her.
Although Xu Jinyan accepted this heartbreaking fact, she could not accept the fact of having to marry someone else.
Her heart was still filled with Liu Yunyi; she did not want to marry another.
So she threw herself into the lake to prove her heart’s resolve, and thus, Su Xin arrived.
“Tsk, how foolish.” Su Xin shook her head. Women, especially women of ancient times, had only one man in their hearts. Once abandoned, they wanted to die.
However, it seemed this was the only method Xu Jinyan had to escape the fate she did not want to face.
She was merely a merchant’s daughter; she had absolutely no way to take revenge on the fickle and ungrateful lover in her heart.
The difficult one to deal with wasn’t the Imperial Son-in-Law, but the princess.
How could a princess possibly allow some woman from who-knows-where to compete with her for her husband? If she were the peaceful and tolerant type, she might perhaps allow her to enter the manor as a concubine23. But if she encountered a princess with a fiery and extremely possessive personality, then she could basically just wait for death.
Moreover, what Xu Jinyan hoped for in her heart was one life, one world, one pair24 with Liu Yunyi. They didn’t need to be too wealthy; Liu Yunyi could teach, and she would assist her husband and teach her children25 at home. A simple life, not one where she would be some concubine.
Su Xin slowly walked towards the back door of the house. Thankfully, the original owner still remembered the kindness she was shown and hadn’t had her brain fried by certain things. The wish she made wasn’t for revenge on that man, or for him to marry her, but for kindness severed and righteousness cut off.
【This Host can rest assured, this one will definitely not accept any missions for you that involve conquering men. There is a Host who is very skilled in that area; we can just leave it to her.】
Master Fourteen, you’re so considerate.
【It is what this one ought to do.】
Tsk, this girl’s personality is still too soft. Even after all that, she still couldn’t make a ruthless wish, only asking that scumbag to apologize.
The problem now was how she could get to the capital, meet Liu Yunyi without taking risks, and make him apologize.
And the most crucial point: how to escape being married off?
Although Master Xu hadn’t finalized a candidate yet, their family was, after all, a prominent household in the area. Marrying her off would be an easy matter. And whether for the sake of his reputation or his daughter’s future, there was no way Master Xu would let her continue to stay at home, let alone allow her to run off to the capital.
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