Chapter 155 Green Vines: Face-Off
Interrupted by the surprising commotion, Feng Luodi quickly withdrew her hand from Situ’s clutches as he was momentarily distracted. Hiding her hands in her sleeves again, Feng Luodi turned to look in the direction of the commotion. In the empty space four tables away from where they sat, a young girl that had been singing for the restaurant had her hands held in the grip of a young man dressed lavishly.
“Miss, I’ll guarantee you a life of riches as long as you return with me to my residence. You’ll never have to spend your days singing in places like this again.” His words further cemented his image of a playboy.
Feng Luodi frowned. Is this the dramatic scene where a damsel is bullied by a rich playboy?
Snippets of conversation from the surrounding patrons floated into her ear. As expected, the bully was the son of a rich man in the province. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and acted as he wished, often at the expense of others. However, his family was rich and had connections with the local authorities, lending him protection from the laws of the province.
As the crowd watched, the bully’s words gradually became more uncouth and derisive. The girl’s cries were filled with desperation, but nobody, not even the owner of the restaurant, stepped forward to help her. All her friends stood aside with the crowd, afraid of the bully and his henchmen who stood around him, glaring at the crowd. Feng Luodi’s frown deepened, and just as she was about to step forward to intervene, she remembered Situ’s words about her being a troublemaker. An idea came to mind and she decided to get Situ to take care of the matter. She cast a look at Situ and saw cold rage written plainly on his face, his eyes burning with the desire to toss the bully out of the window.
Feng Luodi cocked her head. Situ is indeed a man with a cold facade but a warm heart.
However, a scream came from the bully before Situ could act, echoing within the refines of the restaurant. Feng Luodi spun around to see the bully clutching the side of his face, a trail of blood running from the corner of his lip. The bully choked on something and opened his mouth to spit out a bloodied tooth.
Someone did it before we could! The thought flashed through Feng Luodi’s mind as she scanned the crowd. Who could have done it? Her eyes settled on a young man dressed in a shirt the blue of a lake, his hair tied up high but without any adornments. The man had a baby face, completed with thick brows and doe-like eyes. He looked young and lively, but the trace of mockery in his smile betrayed his age, adding hints of maturity to him. He fondled with a teacup in his right hand, while a knife was held in his left. For some reason, the knife captured the attention of Feng Luodi immediately.
The knife was smooth and shiny, almost iridescent in its beauty. It was shaped in the curve of a crescent moon, and its edge could almost be felt from despite the distance between them.
“The knife is beautiful!” Feng Luodi exclaimed.
Situ snorted. “That’s the Crescent Blade.”
Feng Luodi turned towards him, surprised. “You recognise it?”
A cold smile lifted the lips on his face. “It’s the beloved blade of Lu Buping of the Demonic Sect.”
“That man is Lu Buping?” Feng Luodi was surprised once again, quickly turning to get another good look at the man with smiling eyes. This is the rumoured murderer of the fifteen county magistrates, Lu Buping? He looks so harmless! It was not long before Feng Luodi quickly retracted her opinion of Lu Buping.
Enraged, the bully quickly ordered his attendants to give Lu Buping a beating. The man did not even unsheathe his knife; all he did was to swing the blade, still sheathed, in the direction of the attendants and a gust of wind knocked the attendants onto the floor. His movements were quick and decisive, with a certain fluidity to them; Feng Luodi was entranced.
The bully’s face darkened when he saw his men defeated in one fell swoop. When a few kicks did not elicit any positive response from his attendants that lay groaning on the floor, the bully tried to reach for the young singer again. Just as he moved, a bunch of chopsticks flew through the air and stopped him in his tracks. The bully looked at the chopsticks that drew a clear line before him and swallowed audibly, knowing that they were mere inches away from riddling holes on his body. Knowing that he had bumped into a skilled martial artist, the bully quickly turned tail and fled down the stairs. The attendants jumped to their feet and followed after their master.
Seeing the chopsticks fly out from her side, Feng Luodi turned to Situ only to see him casually sipping his tea, as if nothing had happened. On the other hand, Lu Buping was trying to console the crying girl.
“Hey now, the bad guy’s gone; there’s no need to cry anymore. It’s not good to cry when you have such a pretty face.”
Feng Luodi’s lip twitched. Why does that sound so familiar? That tone…
The girl stopped sobbing and bowed at Lu Buping, her face an ashen white. Lu Buping waved her thanks aside and dug out a pouch of silver1 for the young girl. “Go home. Do something else that doesn’t need you to entertain guests; the outside world is full of dangers.” He shot a look at the owner of the restaurant. The girl nodded profusely and was a mess of gratitude and relief.
After the girl turned to leave, Lu Buping turned to the owner with a smirk on his face. “How’s it going to be? Do I need to pay for the furniture that has been destroyed?”
“No, no.” The owner bowed his head. “Please enjoy your meal, young hero. I shall not disturb you anymore.” He too quickly turned and fled the scene. The commotion was over, and the crowd returned to their tables. Looks were thrown in the direction of Lu Buping, the man and his smiling face obviously the subject of discussion.
The dishes that Situ had ordered came to the table, and Situ immediately got started. Feng Luodi had assumed that Situ was trying to keep a low profile so as to not startle Lu Buping, and she dug in as well. But before she could put food into her mouth, a shadow fell across their table. Feng Luodi looked up to see Lu Buping’s baby face with a huge grin stamped on it, two rows of white teeth showing themselves.
“Greetings, my beauty.”
Feng Luodi was surprised by the words that came out of Lu Buping’s mouth. It’s just like Gan Qingjia! Before Feng Luodi could give an appropriate response, Lu Buping had turned to Situ, the grin on his face widening.
“It must be you who’d intervened just now. That was some impressive technique.”
Situ ignored him, calmly pouring himself a cup of wine. Feng Luodi saw the smile on Lu Buping’s face freeze for a second, but he quickly threw aside his embarrassment. “Let me introduce myself. My name is Lu Bu…”
Feng Luodi interrupted loudly before he could finish his sentence. “It’s an honour to meet you, young hero. Please have a seat.” She pushed a chair towards him, glancing around the restaurant to make sure nobody had heard Lu Buping’s name. The commoners of Dingtao are mostly convinced that Lu Buping is the murderer of the fifteen county magistrates; the very mention his name would have probably incited a mob to lynch him right there and then.
Lu Buping sensed that Feng Luodi did not want him to speak his name and frowned, his feelings hurt. Is my name that horrible? I’m not even allowed to say it! Naturally, Feng Luodi did not know of his inner thoughts and merely handed him a pair of chopsticks and a cup of wine. Lu Buping took a sip of wine, but before he could continue, Situ had spoken up.
“Young hero, do you not know of the news that Lu Buping is the murderer of the fifteen county magistrates of Dingtao?”
Feng Luodi was surprised at Situ’s directness. She quickly turned her attention toward Lu Buping. The man was evidently taken aback, confusion quickly welling up in his eyes.
“I killed fifteen county magistrates?” His reaction looked genuine.
Situ shrugged, immediately shirking responsibility. “That’s what everybody says; the governor seems to agree with it as well.”
Lu Buping smiled incredulously. “I have been righteous and direct my whole life; who is slandering my name behind my back?”
Only then did Situ glance at him. “No idea.”
Lu Buping laughed in anger, his big eyes fluttering as he blinked repeatedly, at a loss for words. Feng Luodi quickly poured him another cup of wine, suddenly deciding to herself that Lu Buping could not be the murderer. She had only just put down the flask of wine when another cup appeared in front of her. The hand that held the cup was chiselled and defined, the long and slender fingers distinctively Situ’s. As expected, Feng Luodi looked up to see the sour face of Situ.
Feng Luodi smiled and filled his cup as well.
Only then did Situ’s face relax somewhat. He took another look at the stunned Lu Buping and spoke slowly. “The governor wants to invite you to the yamen; what do you say to that?”
Lu Buping’s face darkened. Why will I go to the yamen if I’m the murderer? However, a look at Situ’s expression changed his mind. “Who are you?”
Situ looked at Feng Luodi. For a moment, Feng Luodi was confused. Why is he looking at me? It took her a while before she remembered that Situ’s Talisman of Arms2 and Imperial Token3 was kept with her. Quickly taking it out for Lu Buping to have a look, Feng Luodi kept it again.
Lu Buping was surprised at Situ’s identity. “My greetings, Master Situ. If that is the case, I shall go to the yamen to prove my innocence. Who knows, I might even uncover this bastard who’s trying to frame me.”
Feng Luodi smiled at his words. Lu Buping was an interesting character; he had the charisma and independence of a man of the jianghu, and the honesty of a good man. Of course, the sliver of viciousness and pride underneath the surface added to her impression of him. It has been a long while since Feng Luodi had met anyone new that she admired, and she took the liberty to observe Lu Buping.
To tease girls was a favourite pastime of Lu Buping, and he addressed Feng Luodi as “beauty” as often as he could, his tone playful and teasing. While Feng Luodi was not a woman whose beauty caught the attention of people at first glance, but the way she carried herself set her apart from other women. A third of her was gentle and the other parts proud, the two dispositions mixing together to form a special sort of charisma. It was what drew her looks from time to time.
“May I ask for your name, young miss?” Lu Buping smiled his now signature grin, obviously already forgetting his current identity as a murder suspect.
“Feng Luodi.” Feng Luodi smiled lightly and nodded at him.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Feng.” Lu Buping’s grin widened, wanting to move closer to Feng Luodi. “This lucky opportunity I have to meet you today is something that I will never forget.” His words were sweet and natural.
However, his sentence had barely ended when he felt a killing intent landing on him. He was a practitioner of the martial arts and it made him extremely sensitive to such things. He looked up to see the murderous look in Situ’s eyes. He blinked in confusion for a few seconds before finally realising what he had done to deserve it. Oh, the beauty is already taken, huh?
Situ’s voice sounded as if it came from the depths of a glacier. “Stay away.”
Feng Luodi was confused. Was that for me, or Lu Buping?
There were three kinds of main currency used in Ancient China: Bronze Coins, Silver, or Gold. The kind of Silver Taels you normally see in shows are worth A LOT, and most people dealt in small amounts of silver, usually kept in pouches. ↩ A talisman that signified the authority of a commander of the army, and was used to command the army. ↩ A token that symbolised Situ’s assignment and position granted by the Emperor.