A crowd had already gathered at the entrance of the Zhuo manor, gazing at Yu Qingchuan and the woman before him.
Sun Qin, his former fiancée.
"Qingchuan, I was wrong..." Sun Qin said tearfully, kneeling before Yu Qingchuan.
Yu Qingchuan was taken aback and quickly helped Sun Qin up, sighing, "What's past is past, let's not speak of it again."
"Then will you still accept me? I've been cast out..." Sun Qin choked out.
Yu Qingchuan blinked, took out two hundred-tael silver notes from his sleeve, and handed them to Sun Qin. "This is all I can give you. Take the money, find a good man, and live a good life."
"You refuse to take me back?" Sun Qin asked, her face filled with grievance.
Yu Qingchuan said solemnly, "Why must you do this? Reconciliation is impossible between us."
"You clearly look down on me! It was your incompetence back then that made me unable to stay! Don't I have the right to pursue a better life?" Sun Qin cried.
Yu Qingchuan sighed, "Of course you have the right, but you've made your choice. There's no going back for us. I'm sorry."
"You're clearly feeling guilty, so you're giving me money to send me away!" Sun Qin complained.
Yu Qingchuan shook his head, "I merely cherish the past affection between our families..."
Sun Qin started to cry and make a scene right there, "Now that you've become the esteemed Hero Yu, by the side of Marquis Anguo, famous and renowned, you look down on me, your betrothed since birth!"
Yu Qingchuan's face instantly contorted with distress.
The four Tianshan swordsmen behind Yu Qingchuan were indignant, "You are utterly shameless! You abandoned our Sixth Brother, and now you're back causing trouble!"
"It was he himself who was useless back then, unable to keep his own woman!" Sun Qin said, clutching the silver notes, still unwilling to give up.
The surrounding onlookers pointed and whispered. Though they disdained Sun Qin's snobbery, they cast complicated glances at Yu Qingchuan.
Confusion, disappointment, contempt...
"He already has a wife, why should he take you in?"
A gentle voice came from within the manor. To the astonishment of all, Tamamo no Mae glided forward, walked up to Yu Qingchuan, and clasped his arm.
"Who are you?" Sun Qin asked, shocked and enraged.
This woman was ten, no, a hundred times more beautiful than her!
Yu Qingchuan was also utterly bewildered.
"I am Tamamo no Mae, from the land of Izumo. Last night, Qingchuan and I exchanged vows, and we have shared intimacy. I am his rightful wife. You no longer have any claim to be his wife."
As Tamamo no Mae spoke, she nimbly snatched the two silver notes from Sun Qin's hand and shoved them back into Yu Qingchuan's. "This money should be used to build our love nest. You're not worthy of keeping it either!"
"You vixen!" Sun Qin flew into a rage and lunged at Tamamo no Mae, intending to fight, but was held back by the Tianshan swordsmen.
Yu Qingchuan was a bit stunned, but he still stood in front of Tamamo no Mae.
"Isn't that the foremost talent from Izumo who appeared at the Jiangnan Spring Banquet? Hero Yu is truly fortunate!" The surrounding commoners could not hide their envy.
Sun Qin burst into wails on the spot.
"Marquis Anguo has ordered Sun Qin's expulsion! She is forbidden from approaching Hero Yu Qingchuan ever again! Any further disturbance will result in immediate delivery to the authorities!"
A shout came from the Zhuo manor guards, who rushed out and dragged the crying,闹腾 Sun Qin away.
"Alas, I've caused trouble for Marquis Anguo again!"
Yu Qingchuan looked dejected and led everyone back to apologize to Liang Xiao.
Liang Xiao and the accompanying Tianshan swordsmen were all inside the inner courtyard.
Liang Xiao said sternly, "Sixth Brother, don't be a softy. You and she have long since severed ties. It's simply the Gongyang clan trying to make a move on you, or at the very least, damage your reputation and consequently mine!"
"Understood!" Yu Qingchuan nodded solemnly, then remembered something and chuckled, "So Marquis Anguo has been watching from the shadows?"
Liang Xiao curled his lip, "Do I look like that kind of person?"
The Tianshan swordsmen around them sighed with regret, "Not at all..."
Everyone inside had seen it just now. He didn't look like that kind of person at all. He *was* exactly that kind of person!
Yu Qingchuan was speechless. Under Liang Xiao's direction, he took Tamamo no Mae back.
Returning to Tamamo no Mae's residence, Yu Qingchuan sighed, "Why must you do this?"
"You still look down on me, a fallen blossom tarnished by the Emperor..." Tamamo no Mae said with a hint of sadness.
Yu Qingchuan repeatedly shook his head, "That's not what I meant! I just didn't expect you to be willing to ruin your reputation for me. Why put yourself through such hardship!"
Tamamo no Mae looked at Yu Qingchuan in surprise, her pupils trembling slightly.
After a long moment, Tamamo no Mae smiled beautifully, "What hardship is there? Do you think I'm too poor, and you should live in luxury, spending tens of taels on just three meals a day?"
Yu Qingchuan gazed at Tamamo no Mae silently, increasingly unable to fathom this woman. He felt as if he couldn't hide anything from her.
"I'll eat what you eat. I was once just a pawn; I'm not as noble as you imagine. So, how will you treat me?" Tamamo no Mae said earnestly.
Yu Qingchuan took a deep breath and sighed, "I will take responsibility for what I must, and I only hope you won't be so impulsive in the future."
Tamamo no Mae tentatively asked, "Even if I am a fallen blossom?"
Yu Qingchuan nodded gravely, "That doesn't matter!"
Tamamo no Mae was both surprised and delighted. She couldn't help but clasp Yu Qingchuan's hand and said coquettishly, "Actually, I'm still pure. It's true that Masamune Ito was going to give me to Marquis Anguo, or other important figures! If you don't believe me..."
Yu Qingchuan's expression changed, and he quickly backed towards the door, "I truly don't understand you anymore, I'm afraid of you! After this matter is settled, I will send you back to Tianshan!"
"Why?" Tamamo no Mae asked, confused.
"A woman like you is not someone I deserve, nor someone I should covet. Since you wish to submit to Great Qian, then go and reside in Tianshan!"
Tamamo no Mae's eyes turned resentful, and she feigned displeasure, "I won't go! If you want to send me away, I'll cry and make a scene at your doorstep like that Sun Qin~"
"Please, stop playing with me! I'll go find Marquis Anguo!" Yu Qingchuan fled in disarray, leaving only Tamamo no Mae's bell-like laughter behind him.
After hearing Yu Qingchuan's report, Liang Xiao and Zhuo Zifang fell into a brief silence.
Jian Qinwan, Yue Lian, and the Tianshan swordsmen looked on with bewildered expressions.
Could it be that even this ultimate honest man had a chance at love...
Seeing a good deed and falling in love at first sight?
"What does Marquis Anguo think?" Yu Qingchuan looked to Liang Xiao for help.
Liang Xiao curled his lip, "You should ask yourself what you think."
"Me?" Yu Qingchuan was stunned for a moment, then trembled, "I've been completely manipulated by her. I can't control a woman like that!"
Liang Xiao smiled, "You're worried she's faking it, right?"
Yu Qingchuan nodded repeatedly, "Let's have a different junior sister guard her..."
"Sixth Brother, how old are you?" Liang Xiao asked.
"Thirty..."
"And have you started a family and career?" Liang Xiao asked again.
Yu Qingchuan shook his head.
Liang Xiao then said with a serious expression, "Actually, I suspect she might just be testing you, which in turn tests me. Perhaps she has some valuable intelligence hidden. But I can't bring myself to have an honest man like you try to subvert her."
Yu Qingchuan chuckled, nodding happily, "Let the junior sisters do it then!"
Liang Xiao's expression instantly changed. He smiled, "Since this woman claims to fancy you, regardless of whether she's faking it or not, you're not losing out since she's so beautiful! How about this, if you're interested in her, take her back to Tianshan to get married. I don't believe she'd dare to cause trouble in Tianshan. As long as you're not by my side, you don't have to worry about her obtaining my intelligence."
Yu Qingchuan panicked on the spot, clutching Liang Xiao's hands, "Marquis Anguo, how can you bear to abandon me?!"
Everyone: ...
Jian Qinwan, Yue Lian: ???