The "brother" they referred to was a beau, and after chatting idly with those women for a while, Gu Youyou learned that their encounters weren’t just ones where they met and followed someone after singing a few songs; it was mostly cases of mutual affection. But there were also some spur-of-the-moment matches.
Elbowing through the crowd for a better look, Gu Youyou indeed saw Jin Zijin standing tall and straight like a pine, right over there.
In his eyes was a dangerous anger.
Things have gone too far; he’s definitely going to ’punish’ me when we get home, Gu Youyou thought to herself.
"The brother across the way is so handsome, I don’t care who he belongs to, I want to sing and see how he’ll respond."
A bold girl had already stepped forward.
Gu Youyou panicked, hurriedly squeezing through the crowd to pull her back, shouting, "Mine, mine, that’s mine."
He was already angry, and if these overt love songs embarrassed him further, he would surely flay her alive.
Hearing her anxious voice, the face of the man opposite finally softened a bit.
"Oh, little sister, it’s you. No wonder you looked familiar."
They had seen the people chasing after her earlier.
Someone said sourly, "Young lady, it might not necessarily be yours, you have to sing the right tune to claim him."
Reminded by her, Gu Youyou belatedly realized that she needed to sing the proper tune to lead him away. She had only thought about how he would sing, without remembering she had to sing as well, how embarrassing!
Gu Youyou stood at the forefront, looking at the man across the river.
He was outstanding on his own, but among that bunch of misshapen fruits, he stood out like a crane among a flock of chickens.
No wonder the girls on this side were screaming their heads off.
Seeing the women on this side boldly sizing him up, she suddenly regretted it. Such a good man shouldn’t have been brought out for them to see.
In the midst of her contemplation, he started singing.
His voice was warm as the gentle sun, carrying a trace of silent reproach.
Alright, he was scolding her for being naughty again.
"Green hills face each other on both banks, mandarin ducks mirror each other, too. With a wave of a brush, love and hate hard to describe, how many silent grievances are entrusted to the drifting clouds."
Gu Youyou was stunned; indeed, she couldn’t expect to hear such explicit lyrics from Jin Zijin’s mouth.
He likened them to mandarin ducks, the legendary birds that must fly wing to wing. But how could they fly wing to wing if they stood on opposite banks of green hills?
With a wave of a brush, love and hate hard to describe, how many silent grievances are entrusted to the drifting clouds.
These two lines were a bit odd—did they relate to them?
He really was a bit angry.
Her playful mood faded, she could only gaze at him earnestly and say, "The reeds are lush and the dew turns to frost. May I ask the brother, will you come to the center of the water?"
She couldn’t be bothered to contemplate lyrics, and simply asked him outright.
The crowds on both banks started egging them on, with the men behind him jostling him saying, "The lady is asking you if you’re going to the center of the water or not, go on!"
And the girls beside Gu Youyou whispered prayers, "Don’t go, don’t go!"
Gu Youyou watched him anxiously, seeing that he hadn’t moved for a long time, she couldn’t help but start getting angry.
Clenching her fists in preparation, she glared at him fiercely, thinking: Won’t you give it a try? I’ll kick you under the bed every night.
Seeing the kitten on the other side showing her sharp claws, Jin Zijin’s furrowed brow relaxed.
"Go? Of course I’ll go!" he laughed heartily.
The men around him breathed a sigh of relief, hastily shooing him off the stage.
If he kept standing there, they would end up chasing away their own wives’ affections.
The women stamped their feet, lamenting what a pity it was.
Gu Youyou’s smile blossomed, and she hurried to the river’s edge to find a boatwoman to pole the bamboo raft.
During the lush blooming of spring in March, the waves rippled layer upon layer, much like the waves in her heart.
"I thought you were angry and wouldn’t come, leaving me here looking ridiculous; I already said you were mine."
He said, "Of course I was angry."