Soft and plaintive the ospreys cry upon the river isles;graceful is the modest maiden — a worthy match for a gentleman.Slender the water-weeds, gathered from left and right;day and night he seeks her in waking and in dream.Restless in yearning, he tosses and turns;slender the water-weeds, gathered from every side —the noble maiden shall be wooed with harp and lute,and when the rites are complete, with bells and drums shall she be gladdened.
Wu Tong, having heard thus, beheld the young man's lost and wandering look,and could not help but laugh beneath his breath.He said, "So — has thy heart been taken?"
Wang Yun answered not, yet he inclined his head.Wu Tong asked, "And is the lady perchance Qiu Ting?"
Wang Yun bowed his head once more. "It is she! Yet how should the daughter of a gang-lord deign to look upon a rootless orphan such as I?" Having spoken, he sighed long and deep. In his breast a hundred feelings surged at once.
He said within himself:"Orphaned from infancy, cast adrift upon the rivers and the dusty roads of Jianghu — though I have honed a measure of sword-craft, in truth I am but a floating weed without root or soil. How should I dare raise my eyes to a maiden of such birth and grace? Were I to speak of betrothal unbidden, would it not invite the world's derision?"
Wu Tong beheld the gloom upon his brow and laid a palm upon his shoulder."Brother Yun," he said, "if thy will is firm, then I shall speak for thee — only say the word."
At these words, joy like sunlight broke through cloud within Wang Yun's breast. A warmth surged upward, for Wu Tong — who had treated him since youth as a brother of blood — now offered to stand for him in this matter of a lifetime. Wang Yun's throat tightened; his eyes grew hot with tears. He knelt and cried:
"To be born is a debt to one's parents; to be understood is a debt to one's brother. This grace I shall remember to the last breath. Permit thy younger brother to kneel!"
He bowed to the earth — thrice.
Wu Tong hastened to raise him up.He saw the tears trembling in Wang Yun's eyes, and his own heart was moved. He knew the young man to be one of deep loyalty and true affection. If this marriage could be sealed, it would settle a stone long pressing upon the youth's heart.
"Marriage," said Wu Tong, "is in reason first declared to one's parents. Since thine are no more, let thy elder brother first present thy will to Master Qiu. Shall it be so?"
Wang Yun bowed his head. "A wanderer such as I deserves nothing — all must trouble Brother Tong to act."Though he spoke in modesty, the fire of hope had already been kindled within his breast.
Wu Tong's resolve was set. "To contrive is man's part; to bring to pass is Heaven's. What is writ in the dark of fate may yet be revealed in daylight. Perhaps this match is decreed between you."
At that moment Li Qian came forward and said with a smile,"Brother Tong, I have words for you alone."She had long discerned Wang Yun's hidden affection for Qiu Ting,and seeing that her husband meant to play the go-between,she wished to confer with him in private concerning the manner of approach.
Wang Yun, reading the moment, withdrew with courtesy.Yet within his chest his heart beat like a war-drum —hope and trepidation wrestling beneath the same rib.
Before long, night lanterns were lit and the banquet made ready;the company took their seats.
Master Qiu, the gang-lord, lifted his cup and declared aloud:"Today that deputy of the Flying Sand Gang sought trouble without cause.Thanks to Vice Lord Qiu, Lord Wu, and the young hero Wang,the matter was subdued.Let us first raise a cup to these three."
Cups rose; wine was drunk; the hall grew warm with cheer.
That day Madam Qiu was full of delight. With smiling eyes she addressed Wang Yun:"Sir Wang — I am the humble wife of the lord of this house.Long have I heard of your repute; this day I behold your bearing with my own eyes.It is the old wife's good fortune to receive you as a guest.With my lord, I offer this poor cup to you."
Wang Yun rose and bowed deeply."I dare not accept such honor. To behold the elders this day is already a grace beyond measure."
Inwardly he rejoiced —for Madam Qiu's voice was mild and her manner kind,and thus his confidence grew a little more.The three exchanged wine;Wang Yun, stealing a glance toward Qiu Ting,beheld her eyes lowered and her cheeks stained with rose —and his heart swayed as though unmoored.
Then Li Qian spoke, saying:
"Master Qiu, I — Li Qian — am wife to Lord Wu of the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness.Permit me to speak plainly.Your noble daughter is fair of countenance and gentle of virtue —truly the model of a well-bred maiden.Young Lord Wang is gallant in spirit and upright of heart —a hero among youths.That these two should meet beneath this roof is fate;in talent and beauty they match without flaw —a peerless pair."
She paused; seeing the lord and his lady wear faces of quiet pleasure, she continued:
"Yet Wang's father and mother have returned to dust;he wanders the realm alone and has none to speak for him.Lord Wu, therefore, takes the place of elder brother and father alike."
Wu Tong then rose to follow the thread of her speech:
"A man grown must take a wife;a maid grown must be given in marriage —thus runs the order of Heaven and men.Young Wang, having found within his breast the stirrings of true regard,is yet helpless and bereft of kin.I, Wu Tong, having taken him as brother in life,cannot draw back in the hour that decides his life.Thus I, in his stead, present myself to beg this marriage on his behalf.If any rite be lacking in haste,let the gifts and ceremonies be gathered hereafter in due form.
Young Wang is a phoenix among men;your noble daughter a jewel of a maiden.Heaven has made them one accord — a perfect union of jade and pearl.I entreat Master Qiu to grant this match,and fulfill the happiness of these two."
Though lord of the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness,Wu Tong spoke with humble bearing and unfeigned sincerity;each word rang from the heart like iron struck on stone.Wang Yun, hearing these words, felt his blood surge —his hands clenched of their own will till the nails bit into the flesh,and yet he felt not pain.
Master Qiu, having heard all, laughed aloud:
"That Lord Wu should come in person to plead for Young Wang —this speaks of true sincerity.Truly, Loyalty and Righteousness lie not in banners and words alone."
He shifted his gaze to his daughter, and his voice softened with paternal warmth:
"Ting'er — Young Wang is a hero among the youth of this age,and the famed Lord Wu himself stands as his advocate.Such a favor Heaven rarely grants twice.This father of yours has chosen your husband for you —well or ill?"
At this Qiu Ting lowered her head; a deep crimson stole across her cheeks.Long since had she held quiet admiration for Wang Yun's chivalrous heart.Now, questioned before all, her shame burned so fiercelythat she could scarcely raise her eyes.
In a voice soft as a mosquito she murmured:
"You have already spoken, Father —why ask me still?"
No sooner had the words escapedthan she fled behind her mother's sleeve in modest confusion.
Wu Tong saw that the matter was sealed.He called out, "Brother Yun — make thy bow to thy new mother and father!"
Wang Yun rose, moved past the tables,and stood before Master Qiu and his lady.His eyes brimmed; two hot tears broke loose and fell.
In a trembling voice he cried:
"Wang Yun bows to Father and Mother-in-law!"
And thereupon he knelt, touching brow to ground three times.That bow was not only reverence to elders —it was gratitude offered to fate itself.An orphan of the roads, and yet this night Heaven granted him union and home —it was as though living within a dream.
When he had finished his bows,Master Qiu and his lady raised him up with their own hands, saying:
"To be granted such a dragon among sons-in-law by Lord Wu and his lady —this favor we shall remember to our heart's core."
Master Qiu beheld the pair before him —jade and gold in perfect accord —and a long breath stirred within his breast.
He recalled then the son of Liu Tong of the Flying Sand Gang,that wastrel Liu Yan —a swaggering cur who idled his days,bullying the weak beneath his father's shadow.How could such a creature ever be worthy of his jewel of a daughter?
But Wang Yun — fair of form, famed for valor,a youth whose chivalric name had already flown far across the rivers and lakes —such a one might rightly be called a son of the eastern couch.
And so he vowed in silence:"This marriage shall be wrought in full splendor.My daughter shall go forth in honor beneath Heaven's eyes."
Meanwhile the cups passed without cease,laughter rolled across the hall,and joy swelled like a rising tide.
Wang Yun and Qiu Ting, though few words passed between them,met each other's gaze again and again in stolen moments —and in those unspoken glancesa thousand tender meanings flowed and returned.
That night, the bright moon hung high and pure,as though lending witness and blessingto the joining of two fated hearts.