Chapter 219 — Advance and Retreat (Bonus Update, Begging for Pink Votes)

In the span of a few breaths, the onlookers had formed a ring around Ji Yong and He Yu.

The He family guards drove the crowd back. "What are you looking at? Never seen a fight before?"

One of the women laughed. "I've never seen such handsome young gentlemen fight!" This set off a wave of laughter among the spectators.

The He family guards looked a little embarrassed, but their manner of shooing people away was no longer as overbearing as before.

The Ji family guards, seeing that the He family guards merely stood by and watched without stepping in to help, knew they must be acting on He Yu's instructions. Ji Yong and He Yu were old friends who visited each other often, and for the moment the guards could not make sense of the situation, so they dared not step in rashly. They could only let the two of them—neither of whom packed any real punch—grapple together, trading punches and kicks.

After a few exchanges, both had run out of strength and sat on the ground gasping for breath.

Ji Yong asked He Yu, "What the hell did you hit me for?"

He Yu glared at Ji Yong. "Didn't you say the Fourth Miss of the Dou family would definitely marry Wei Fan? How is it that the Marquis of Jining has become Dou Juan's second son-in-law? And I hear it was you who went to Shuntian Prefecture to help get the marriage certificate issued?"

It seemed the story of the Dou sisters swapping husbands had already spread.

At the mention of this, Ji Yong's temper flared.

He gave a cold laugh. "Why ask me? Go ask Wei Fan! If he won't acknowledge the match, do you think I could force him into it?"

He Yu said nothing.

Ji Yong staggered to his feet and walked toward his carriage, looking somewhat dazed and disheartened.

He Yu caught up, slung an arm around his shoulder, and said, "Forget it! I just felt stifled. Let's go have a drink?"

Ji Yong nodded. He took the handkerchief handed to him by Zixi and wiped his nose carelessly. "You didn't mess up my face, did you? I have to report for duty at the yamen tomorrow..."

He Yu's eyes flickered. "A real man—a few scars on his face only make him look more manly!"

Ji Yong spat. "Then let me make you a bit more manly. How about that?"

He Yu chuckled. "I'm a married man. No need for me to fuss over such trifles anymore. But you still have to find yourself a wife, don't you?"

"A wife..." Ji Yong murmured, a little distracted.

Dou Yan would never pay him any heed again, would she?

Just thinking about it made his heart ache unbearably.

How had things come to this?

All he had wanted was for her to live better. Why did she always think he was meddling?

Ji Yong suddenly felt at a loss.

He Yu, walking along with an arm still around his shoulder, saw that Ji Yong looked somewhat dejected and was suddenly seized with a mischievous urge. He winked at Ji Yong and said, "Want me to play matchmaker for you? She's quite good—looks, character, talent, all excellent. Come to my house one day and I'll point her out to you. If you're satisfied, I'll have my father speak to yours..."

Ji Yong snapped back to his senses, knocked He Yu's hand off his shoulder, and said irritably, "Just mind your own business! What are you sticking your nose into?"

"I wouldn't call it sticking my nose in," He Yu said, unconvinced. "You're not getting any younger. Careful—I'll be dandling my son on my knee while you're still all alone. Still, I think that fellow Wei Fan is a real piece of work. Even if things didn't work out with the Fourth Miss of the Dou family, there was no need to go marry the Fifth Miss! How is the Fourth Miss supposed to hold her head up after this? Say—should we go pay that Wei Fan a visit..."

The two, arms around each other's shoulders, gradually walked off into the distance.

The guards of the He and Ji families followed silently behind them as they all left Heming Temple Lane.

※※※※※

Song Yan sat beneath the soft glow of a sheep-horn lantern, rubbing a small slip of paper between his fingers. His expression was somewhat strange.

Now that Tao Jun had visited Seventh Master Dou at Longhua Temple Lane, the Dou family would surely send someone before long to investigate his background.

Was this a case of trying to be clever and only making things worse?

The fearsome reputation he had deliberately cultivated in the past to intimidate his father had now become an obstacle between him and Dou Yan.

Still, the matter was not without a solution.

Didn't Dou Yan herself have plenty of rumors attached to her name?

It would all depend on how he explained things to Seventh Master Dou then.

With this thought, Song Yan took two bottles of the imperial-bestowed Ganlu Bai and went to see Shao Wenji, the Chief Commander of the Jinwu Guard.

Who would have thought that Dong Qi, the heir of the Earl of Huichang, would also be there.

Song Yan handed the wine over to Shao Wenji's servant with perfect ease and said with a smile, "I had thought I wouldn't be on duty tonight and wanted to have a few cups with Lord Shao, but I was afraid Lord Shao would be too tightfisted to spare any. So I simply brought my own wine. What luck that Lord Dong is here as well—Lord Shao, do us the honor of drinking a couple of cups with us?"

What sort of man was Song Yan?

He had always shown his superior the utmost respect. Shao Wenji would have to be mad to slight Song Yan's face.

Since Song Yan was being so generous, Dong Qi naturally could not afford to be timid either.

The two smiled and agreed, and they took their seats on the kang according to host and guest.

Song Yan noticed a brocade box sitting on the kang table.

Dou Qi had presumably come to bring Shao Wenji gifts.

As heirs of noble houses both, Dou Qi and Song Yan might differ in temper, one hot and one cold, but they were alike in their mastery of the social graces; within the Jinwu Guard they kept strictly to the chain of command and earned high praise from their colleagues.

Song Yan simply pretended not to see.

Compared with the others, his and Dou Qi's gifts to their superior seemed far more generous, for by reason of their birth their gifts were the offerings of friendship, whereas the gifts of others were mere flattery of a superior...

Since they were in the secondary palace, the servants soon brought out several dishes, though they were no more than cold items like peanuts and stir-fried peas, hardly a match for the drinking snacks prepared by the serving women of the Yingzhengguo Estate or the Huichangbo Estate; yet in the secondary palace this already counted as great luxury.

Song Yan, giving every face, took the initiative to pour wine for Shao Wenji and Dou Qi.

This was precisely what Shao Wenji admired most about Song Yan.

"You have come at just the right time. Jinyun and I were speaking of the duties of these past days." He could not help saying to Song Yan with a smile, "His Majesty has decided to return to the palace on the twelfth. For the next few days you and Jinyun will be responsible for guarding His Majesty's person."

Jinyun was Dou Qi's courtesy name.

Dou Qi bowed respectfully to Shao Wenji: "I shall obey your instructions, my lord." Yet joy was hard to conceal between his brows.

Clearly his gifts to Shao Wenji had been given precisely in pursuit of this.

Song Yan did not know whether to laugh or to cry.

When the Emperor returned to the palace, the twelve imperial guard divisions would line the route all the way; because their numbers were great and they belonged to different garrisons, the commanders of the twelve divisions would first meet together to fix who would be on duty along the road, and would also send men to patrol the places the Emperor would pass.

Patrol duty would certainly not put one in the Emperor's presence and in the spotlight, but if he wanted to slip back to the capital without a sound, having Shao Wenji send him on patrol would be ideal.