Chapter Twelve: Ma Wencai’s Drunken Revelry

Xie Daoyun nodded. "Very well, I will write the letter to Nanjing at once!"

By the time Wang Lantian awoke, it was already evening. Seeing that he was out of danger, Liang Zhu and I went together to the dining hall for dinner, while Xie Daoyun and Acheng stayed behind to tend to him.

When we arrived, the dining hall was already deserted. Of course—it was after sunset. Usually, we finished dinner before the sun had even set.

After dinner, to my surprise, Zhu Yingtai insisted on coming to my room. I knew she was worried about Ma Wencai. I shook my head inwardly, thinking: Why bother? She clearly cares for him, so why resort to this whole runaway bride act? In ancient times, marriage was about growing to appreciate one another without weariness. There was no need for love to be tempestuous or grandiose.

Liang Shanbo wanted to accompany Zhu Yingtai, but she firmly refused. I thought that was right—this was their secret, so why should Brother Liang meddle?

As we pushed open the door, a strong smell of alcohol hit us. Ma Wencai lay slumped over the table, drinking furiously. The room was in utter disarray, as if ransacked. I saw tears welling in Zhu Yingtai’s eyes. She hurried to the table and snatched the bottle from Ma Wencai’s hand. "Stop drinking, Wencai."

Ma Wencai slowly raised his head, his eyes vacant as he looked at Zhu Yingtai, his tone filled with helplessness. "Zhu Yingtai, are you happy now? Are you pleased to see me, Ma Wencai, with a sword held to my neck? Are you secretly delighted?"

Zhu Yingtai shook her head innocently. "I’m not, really I’m not..."

Suddenly, Ma Wencai stood up and swept all the empty bottles off the table onto the floor. His hands trembled as he gripped Zhu Yingtai’s shoulders. "You say you’re not? Why? Why treat me like this? You trample on my dignity, expose my wounds, insult my character. Yingtai, from the very beginning, how have I treated you? Tell me, why do you do this? Speak!"

Tears glistened in Zhu Yingtai’s eyes. She dared not meet Ma Wencai’s fierce gaze, simply shaking her head. "I... I didn’t mean to, Wencai. I’m sorry, I really didn’t. Please believe me..."

"Enough!" Ma Wencai swept his arm and flung Zhu Yingtai harshly toward the door. She gasped in pain. I quickly stepped forward to help her up. "Yingtai, are you alright?"

She shook her head, tears flowing down her cheeks.

Good heavens, what on earth was going on between these two? How was I supposed to handle this?

"Get out," Ma Wencai growled with his back to us. "You remember this, Zhu Yingtai—if it weren’t for my mother, I wouldn’t let anyone who insults Ma Wencai off so easily."

"Ma Wencai, I don’t know what’s happened between you and Yingtai, but please don’t go too far." I helped Yingtai up. "Come on, I’ll take you back."

"Get lost!" Ma Wencai’s voice rang out again as we stepped outside.

Halfway there, Yingtai wiped her tear-streaked eyes. "Brother Yiqing, please don’t tell Shanbo about this. I don’t want him to worry."

Well, Zhu Yingtai’s feelings for Liang Shanbo were truly deep. I could only agree.

Back in the room, Ma Wencai lay motionless on the table, apparently asleep. The place was a mess. Sigh, I was the most pitiful—always left to clean up the mess. I stood by and shot Ma Wencai a fierce glare, though thinking about it later, it was pointless—he had no idea I was glaring at him.

Having shared a room with Ma Wencai for a few days, I had come to understand his character a bit. He was proud and arrogant; you couldn’t belittle or insult him, but you also couldn’t flatter him excessively. A truly difficult man.

I cleaned the room once more and was just about to lie down when I heard Ma Wencai murmuring on the table, "Mother, don’t go. Wake up, mother, don’t leave me, don’t abandon me alone. I’m so scared... Wencai is so scared..."

I sat on the bed, stunned for a moment. I hadn’t expected Ma Wencai to utter such vulnerable words. Then I saw his arms flailing, as if trying to grasp something invisible. I quietly approached and gently patted his shoulder. "Brother Wencai, wake up. Come to bed and rest."

"Ah!" Ma Wencai suddenly clutched my waist and buried his head against my chest, startling me into a sharp cry. His head rubbed against me as laughter spilled from his lips. "I’ve caught you, mother, I’ve caught you. You won’t leave now, you won’t abandon me..."

Mother? Could his mother possibly be as slender as I am? Was he joking?

I was held tight, unable to move. A man’s strength was not always a blessing. Pouting, I stood there foolishly, robotically patting his back.

I knew his mother was everything to him. Zhu Yingtai must have benefited from that, which was why he had forgiven so much. Now even in his dreams, he called out to his mother. Sigh, how old is this boy? Was it because he grew up motherless?

Perhaps I patted too hard or something, but Ma Wencai woke. He looked up at me and shoved me away. "You... what are we doing?"

I shook my head and sat back down on the bed. "How would I know? You suddenly hugged me and called me mother. Brother Wencai, I’m a man, you know."

He cleared his throat but said nothing, not even undressing before slipping under the covers. After a while, I heard two words from beneath the quilt: "Sleep!"

Fine, sleep then. If not for you, I’d have been visiting the realm of dreams long ago.

The next day, only four people attended class: myself, Wang Lantian, Liang Shanbo, and Zhu Yingtai. Hah, did even Xun Jubao betray us now? "Shanbo, why isn’t Jubao here? Has he become one of Ma Wencai’s lackeys?"

"No," Liang Shanbo explained, "Jubao is in his room. Ma Wencai declared today that a real man shouldn’t attend class. Jubao said no matter what, he intends to be a man."

I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. "Jubao really lacks confidence. Does he think Ma Wencai’s mere words can turn him into a woman?"

Zhu Yingtai shook her head helplessly.

"Teacher, I’ll go fetch them back!" Liang Shanbo was eager to act as mediator again.

"No need," Xie Daoyun smiled calmly. "Even if only one person is willing to learn from me, I will teach wholeheartedly."

"But teacher..." Liang Shanbo hesitated.

"Hmm? Shanbo, speak freely if you have something to say."

"I have an idea that will surely bring them back to class." As usual, Liang Shanbo was scheming.

Indeed, his plan was a good one.

Outside, Ma Wencai and his group were staging a sort of rebellion. The crowd was formidable. "Young master, young master," Ma Tong hurried over, out of breath. "Bad news! The women have all stopped working! Look, they’re all over there, listening to Xie Daoyun’s lecture!"