A Quick Exit

Without skipping a beat, Xiaoqing rapidly continued, "Please forget Yuanzheng; he does not deserve a highborn lady like you to lower herself. And let us love in peace."

Uttering a last heart-broken sigh, she made a low bow and turned to go, tears trickling down her cheeks and her eyes fixed dramatically in the distance.

There was a chorus of sympathetic murmurs from the crowd; carried away, some even clapped, as if Qingqing were an actress performing a tragedy on stage.

"Ah, a beautiful story of young love! How tragic!" sniffed a young woman with a snub nose, visibly moved.

An old man shook his head wisely. "What lengths women go to for love."

"The vixen, trying to come between a husband and wife! A hussy, I say," grumbled a housewife.

Stunned, the woodcutter stood motionless until she yanked him along impatiently, sobbing gently all the while.

"You--" Mao Xiang started after her but the crowd came forward to meet her menacingly. Her maid pulled timidly at her elbow. "Miss, I don't think it's a good time to pursue this! You can tell your venerable father about this when you get home."

"Let them alone, Miss, you should let bygones be bygones." shouted the fishwife, and a farmer's wife carrying a bundle of turnips called out, "Ah Miss, I understand the agony; I felt so angry when the man I loved married someone else! But it's no use making a fool of yourself for nothing. Let it go, Miss, let it go and move on. You find a nice gentleman who's highborn like you, more suited to your class."

"It's not the poor chap's fault either," an old tea seller added, "He knows he's not of your station. Just forget them, Miss. You look foolish throwing tantrums like this, and it only shows badly on you."

There was a general clicking of tongues, and sighs of sympathy. The turnip seller started telling everyone about her trials in love at the top of her voice, while the fishwife lamented the poor young couple, and men shook their heads over cliched statements on how terrifying rejected women were.

Mao Xiang stamped her foot. "You dare! You dare spread gossip about me!"

The maid tried to distract her. "Miss, don't trouble yourself with what a few people say. If you want to get your pressed powder from the Chrysanthemum Pavilion we had better go before they close."

Mao Xiang snatched her sleeve impatiently from her. "Do you think I'm stupid?" she snapped. "Chattering all day in my ear like a magpie. I should have you beaten for presuming to order me around like this."

She made as if she was about to slap the maid, who winced. Mao Xiang fumed helplessly for a while, watching as the crowd talked about her to her face; then she swung round. "I don't want to waste more of my time on you, or I would surely make you pay for this. Well, take it that it's your lucky day. If I hear any of this slanderous gossip again I'll have your tongues cut out! Peasants!"

She swept off with as much dignity as she could muster.

Once they were in the alley and out of sight from the main street Xiaoqing let go of his arm and pushed him away, dusting herself off with an expression of disgust. "You do smell, even though I hate to agree with anything that cursed woman says." she muttered.

"Well," she said, looking pointedly at him. "Aren't you going to thank me? I practically humiliated myself to get you out of trouble. Your wife! Oh, Heavens help me. I, Xiaoqing, haven't went to such lengths for revenge before." She fanned herself.

Yuanzheng loked at her with raised eyebrows. "I didn't ask you to intervene."

Xiaoqing whirled around with an outraged expression. "And he says that! And he has the cheek to answer so! So you were going to kneel and beg her for mercy?"

Deeply insulted, she made to flounce off, muttering savagely under her breath. Unexpectedly, Yuanzheng caught her arm.

"I was, though it felt like cutting my arm off. For that, I do owe you thanks. However questionable your method was."

He paused."It was more satisfying that I could have imagined, to see Miss Mao at a loss for once."

Xiaoqing couldn't hide a smile. "You're welcome," she purred. "Am I not brilliant? Did you see the look on that arrogant wench's face? Ah, the townsfolk will be talking about this for days. She won't dare to come out for a while, it'll be too embarrassing. Serve her right, the bloated cockroach."

Unable to conceal her pleasure, she strutted ahead of him, gloating. "And she won't dare to complain to her father, if I'm not wrong. It's too humiliating and confusing even to explain. Who asked her to go out of her way to make trouble for me, anyway? Someone had to take her down, and I, Xiaoqing, was the perfect choice. Brains, beauty, and a heaven-sent gift for acting."

Yuanzheng had to smile as she turned to him, face beaming with satisfaction. "Was I not convincing? The people clapped for me just now. I think if I'd gone on that fishwife would have shed tears for me. If I'd stayed any longer the crowd would have gone to war for me. Ah, Qingqing, you haven't lost your touch yet!"

"Still, you need to be careful. You're not from around here, Miss, or you'd be more cautious of offending the Mao family.'

Exasperated, Qingqing jabbed a finger at him. "Oh, stop worrying so much, you killjoy. Do you think I really can't handle Mao Xiang and her entire clan if I want to?"

Her voice changed suddenly; teasing, flirtatious. "Or can it be--are you concerned for me?"

Yuanzhen looked wryly at her, unimpressed. "There's no one around, you can stop acting now."

Disgruntled, Xiaoqing dropped her bantering tone and walked beside him. "Do you think the roast chicken stall is still open?"

Taken by surprise, Yuanzheng laughed out loud. "Roast chicken? Is that still on your mind, after all that?"

"Of course, you blockhead," Qingqing said impatiently. "I came to town for that. And I got held up by that stupid Mao Xiang, and rescuing you. In fact--"

She shrieked and leaped backwards, crashing into Yuanzheng, as she was pelted by a hail of rotten radishes from around the corner.