Flower Stealing Master

Chapter 1053: Straight to the Point

“The Mu family of Western Xia?” Song Qingshu looked puzzled. “Which Mu family? It can’t be the Mu family of the Mu brothers, Mu Yuqi and Mu Wangrong, from Western Xia, can it?”

Mu Yuqi and Mu Wangrong’s original names were Yeli Yuqi and Yeli Wangrong. However, these nomadic peoples were deeply influenced by Han Chinese culture, and it was common practice in aristocratic circles to adopt Han names. The Yeli family chose the surname Mu.

Song Qingshu knew about these two brothers because half of Western Xia’s power was held by the emperor, and the other half by the tribal leaders. The Yeli brothers were the most powerful tribal leaders, directly or indirectly controlling nearly half of Western Xia’s army. Furthermore, the current Western Xia empress was also from the Yeli family. Song Qingshu, studying the leadership of various countries, naturally paid special attention to them.

“You know them?” Mu Wanqing was also startled, then said with an embarrassed expression, “Mu Yuqi is… he’s my father.”

Now it was Song Qingshu’s turn to be surprised: “Mu Yuqi is your father?”

As if knowing what he was thinking, Mu Wanqing had no choice but to explain, “Back then, Duan Zhengchun abandoned my mother after seducing her. My master… my mother was six months pregnant, and with pressure from her family and elder brothers, she had no choice but to marry Mu Yuqi. However, because my mother had only recently become pregnant with me, Mu Yuqi didn’t suspect anything and instead took great care of my mother and me.”

“But my mother couldn’t let go of that man after all. Every now and then, she would take me to live in seclusion near Dali under the pretext of going on a trip to clear her mind. You probably know what happened after that.” These secrets were too embarrassing and involved her mother’s shameful affairs. If she hadn’t loved Song Qingshu so much, she would never have revealed a single word.

Song Qingshu thought to himself, “Your identity is quite complicated. You’re the daughter of the Prince of Zhennan in Dali, and also the daughter of the General of Western Xia. You could practically make a historical drama about a past life.” 

“And what about Mu Gaofeng?” Song Qingshu continued to ask.

“Recently, something happened in Western Xia. My father… Mu Yuqi was anxious to bring my mother and me back, so he sent his cousin Mu Gaofeng to fetch us. He learned from my mother that I had gone to Suzhou to assassinate someone, so he followed me here and happened to rescue me from Mantuo Manor,” Mu Wanqing replied.

“I see.” Song Qingshu nodded secretly. No wonder Mu Gaofeng was unusually protective of her; she was his niece.

“Brother Song, will you look down on me because of this?” 

Premarital pregnancy was a very serious matter in this world, and illegitimate children were looked down upon by society. Moreover, her mother’s actions were indeed unkind, not only making someone unwittingly become a father but also still clinging to her old flame.

“You’re both the daughter of a great general and a princess of a royal family. With such status, countless men would dream of marrying you. Having you is like killing two birds with one stone; I’m overjoyed, how could I possibly complain?” Song Qingshu quickly comforted her.

Mu Wanqing couldn’t help but chuckle at his words, playfully punching his chest with her small fist: “You’re always so frivolous.”

After playfully teasing each other for a while, Mu Wanqing suddenly remembered something, her expression changing. She gave a coquettish snort: “What a ‘killing two birds with one stone’! These past few days I… I haven’t stopped thinking about you… and yet you’re here fooling around with other women, completely forgetting about me!”

Song Qingshu knew she was referring to Cheng Yaojia and quickly explained: “You’ve misunderstood. She’s already married, the young mistress of Guiyun Manor. It’s alright if you misunderstand me, but…if word gets out, it will ruin her reputation. How will she face the world?”

Because of her mother, Mu Wanqing was quite sensitive about such matters. Hearing him say this, she felt extremely guilty. However, she wasn’t stupid. She quickly recalled the intimacy the two had shown at the inn and asked with some skepticism, “Is that really true? Then why has she been following you?”

“That’s because her husband was captured by the Mongols, and she asked me to help rescue him…” Song Qingshu then explained the whole story to her.

“I see. That’s so pitiful.” Mu Wanqing, outwardly cold but inwardly warm, was actually worried about Cheng Yaojia.

Song Qingshu secretly breathed a sigh of relief, somewhat admiring himself. He hadn’t lied at all, yet he had dissolved her jealousy without a trace. He truly understood the essence of “avoiding the important and focusing on the trivial.” 

“Wan’er, I sense your pulse is weak and disordered. It’s probably due to overexertion. Why don’t you rest for a while?” Song Qingshu said, touching her wrist with a look of pity.

Mu Wanqing, who had been fine, suddenly felt sleepy after his reminder and couldn’t help but yawn. “I’m really sleepy. These past few days, Murong Fu has been chasing me like a nagging ghost, preventing me from getting a proper night’s sleep.”

Song Qingshu frowned and said, “How dare you bully my good Wan’er like this! I should have known better than to let him go in the first place.”

Mu Wanqing smiled sweetly, “Alright, alright, he doesn’t know about our relationship, so it’s not his fault.”

“Didn’t I tell you to reveal my name if you were in danger? Murong Fu and I have some connections. For my sake, he shouldn’t make things difficult for you.” Song Qingshu couldn’t help but gently pinch her nose.

Mu Wanqing blushed, “I’m a young lady, how could I keep talking about men like that?”

Seeing her infinitely shy expression, Song Qingshu couldn’t help but laugh, “But you still brought me up today.”

Speaking of this, Mu Wanqing was still annoyed and couldn’t help but pinch his waist, “It’s all because you heartless thing, deliberately bullying me, that I really had no choice…”

Song Qingshu laughed heartily, repeatedly begging for forgiveness. It took him a long time to coax her back to her senses. Perhaps because she felt so safe by her lover’s side, Mu Wanqing soon fell asleep in his arms.

Knowing that she had been mentally exhausted lately and probably wouldn’t wake up for several hours, he tenderly picked her up and placed her on the bed.

He tucked her in, ki$$ed her, and then Song Qingshu tiptoed out the door.

After closing the door, Song Qingshu’s expression immediately turned cold. He walked straight to the next room, barging in without knocking.

“Ah~” Cheng Yaojia exclaimed, taking several steps back in fright. “You, you…” Whether from fear or something else, she couldn’t get the rest of her sentence out.

Song Qingshu closed the door behind him, then silently walked to the table. Ignoring her, he slowly poured himself a cup of tea and began to sip it. 

Only when Cheng Yaojia became increasingly uneasy did he speak, saying, “Madam is practically a member of the martial arts world. Don’t you know the principle of not listening to what you shouldn’t hear?”

“I…I didn’t hear anything.” Cheng Yaojia looked at the handsome man before her, but suddenly missed the rough-looking, bearded man she had seen before.