The story goes that Minister Meng thought for a long time, and then suddenly he had an idea.
Smiling, the master opened his mouth, saying
“I, the little brother, have to tell you my humble opinions
My daughter is at the age of fifteen this year
Her attitude and appearance are different from those of ordinary people
So we taught her poetry, calligraphy, and rituals
Benefiting from bathing in what contemporary people praise as great sages
Today, I am grateful that you two both became our matchmakers
It is hard to decide the marriage based on personal relationships
Besides, the two virtuous young masters you proposed
Are both perfect in literature and martial arts
Today let’s talk about it like in the previous dynasties
The matter related to marriage is only determined by the heavens
Our little garden is wide enough to ride horses
We planted many willows reflecting green smoke
Let’s hang —an imperial robe given by the emperor on the tree
And let them—drawing a bow to bet who can shoot it off first
As long as he is the one who can put on the court robe
He will be destined to roam romantically in one hundred years of karmic marriage
I do not know whether you two would agree or not
This way—I will not be criticized as biased”
The Minister had not yet finished with his words
The Provincial Administration Commissioner and the Minister of Rites were full of joy:
“Wonderful! Dear master, your ideas are brilliant!”
“Today when we each act as a matchmaker
We worry that both of our proposals will end up in failure
We deeply admire your brilliant wisdom, master
Solving the dilemma, your words hold water
We respectfully ask when the appointment will be made
So that we can go back to let the two families know and wait for your order”
The Minister of the War replied with a smile:
“We plan to test the two young masters on the fourth day of the lunar calendar
Today is the second day of the third month of the spring
I am looking forward to your visit in two days
The two masters stood up and consented
Said goodbye to the Minister and walked out of the hall
Langu gallantly sent them out
And they boarded the sedans leaving like clouds
Minister Meng returned to the central hall
And told his wife Han Suxin about the plan in detail
The whole family of the Minister of War hurriedly began to organize and prepare
To wait for the day to welcome the coming of the robe shooters
Putting aside the hasty preparations of the Meng mansion
Instead let’s talk about how the information was conveyed by Minister Qin
The sedan carried by people was fast
Directly going into the Huangfu mansion
Master Qin entered through the gate of the east corner
Seeing the Commissioner-in-Chief greeting him in front
As soon as he came into the court to greet in a solemn manner
He kowtowed and dared not immediately rise to his feet
While the Commissioner lowered his hands to support Qin by the arm
Provincial Administration Commissioner Qin—did not got up until bowing onto his hands for three times
The Commissioner-in-chief returned to his rightful seat
Master Qin stood by to serve tea
He leaned over and said slowly and clearly:
“My lord, I am here to reply
I read your letter and know your wish
And have just gone to arrange the matchmaking”
Tingshan was very delighted and asked back quickly
“Did Master Langu agree to the marriage?”
The Provincial Administration Commissioner bowed and respectfully repeated the news
Huangfu Jing—full of joy in his heart and beaming
“Since the appointment has been made
Provincial Administration Commissioner, thank you very much for your hard work
The imperial robe shooting bet is really a good thing
Shaohua may not be adequate for competing [1]”
Master Qin stepped forward and praised:
“The young master’s heroic attitude cannot be defeated by others
Even though young master Liu is good at martial arts
Seizing the robe—young master Shaohua will engage with the young Miss Meng for sure”
Master Qin finished his words and stood up
He bid farewell to the Commissioner-in-Chief
Master Qin smoothed down his clothes and bowed onto his hands three times
The Commissioner walked him to the back of warm chamber
Provincial Administration Commissioner Qin once again bid farewell
Waiting for the Commissioner, he walked behind the folding screen
Again, he bowed onto hands three times before leaving
Then he got into the sedan and went back to his house
Let’s go back to Master Huangfu Jing
He left the hall then entered the inner room
The Madam stood up to welcome and sit back together with him
The Commissioner told her the whole situation
Right at this moment, Shaohua came in from outside
After hearing everything, he lowered his head and pondered
The master instructed while seated:
“Son, you can go there tomorrow
A great man—in charge of the nine regions and the four seas
Only relying on talent and scholarship can he spread his name
Winning the robe is not difficult
Not to mention my son comes from a general’s family
The first arrow—should be shot at the leaf on the branch hanging the robe
The second arrow—must be a steady shot at the heart of the coin
The third arrow—if it breaks the red rope, take the robe to wear on your body
You must be careful shooting the three arrows
Do not make a fool of yourself and ruin your reputation
If you lose to Liu Kuibi
Heroes all over the world will laugh at you”
Huangfu Shaohua heard these words
Bowed and smiled, joking that his parents were too strict
“Since Liu Kuibi is invited
Why should we battle against each other?
He and I—originally brothers from two aligned families
How can we turn against each other for marriage?
If either one of us wins big
We will both be ashamed and guilty
I bow to implore you, my father, to understand this truth
Your son, I, refuse to compete for insignificant fame
Even if I went to the mansion of the Minister
I would have to bow my head and yield myself to others”
The young master was about to leave when he finished his words
He infuriated Yin Liangzhen who was next to him:
“Bah, you ignorant boy! Why do you care about our alliance!”
“Your father is the Commissioner of Yunnan
Shouldering great responsibilities as an awe-inspiring guard of the national border
Having begot a twin of you and your sister
Who does not praise him as a wise and virtuous man?
Now in the matter of competing for the imperial robe
How can you let the Liu family take the lead?
How ridiculous—how pitiful—
You are unworthy of being a young gentleman”
While Lady Yin was revealing her displease
The young miss Changhua spoke her piece
Pear blossom-like pink face with a slight smile
Willow leaf-like eyebrows with a slight joy
With her delicate oriole-like voice
She gently opening her fresh cherry-like mouth:
“My worthy brother—the fourth-day appointment cannot be forgotten
You should go to the Meng mansion to win the robe
Those who know you—will praise you for being loyal and helpful to your friend
Those who don’t know you—will laugh at your lack of talent for not daring to go
Your father is the Commissioner-in-chief of Yunnan
He cannot lose his prestige in front of people
If you arrive at the Minister’s mansion on the appointed date
You can first yield to the young master Liu and let him shoot
If all of his three arrows hit the target
It is okay for you to not even participate in the competition
If Kuibi does not win all the shots
My worthy brother, you can show your talent and excel in the field
Yielding to him first leaves him no reason to complain
Each of you is responsible for presenting your own martial arts skills”
When the young miss Changhua finished giving her suggestions
The Commissioner praised it as a good proposal
Upon hearing, the young master said that he accepted the instructions
The sister developed a good plan, and the brother should follow
Now they only needed to wait for the arrival of the appointed date
To go for the competition and bet on shooting the court robe
Let’s turn to Master Gu who left the Meng mansion
He relayed the situation to his clan sister and the young master Liu
The young master from the noble family was prideful
He was ready to shoot the green willow leaf on the appointed date
He practiced horseback riding and bow drawing in advance
Wanting the Meng mansion to choose him to be their son-in-law
Putting aside Kuibi, the son of the Liu family
Let’s turn to the brilliant young master Huangfu
[1] The original text is Shaohua weibi ke tongxing 少華未必可同行. He is being humble and does not actually mean that he would be inadequate to compete. Modesty/humbleness is an important aspect of Chinese culture that can indicate that their skills are so high that there is no need to brag, or that they know how to act in a classy, upright way without showing off.
Here is an error:
Provincial Administration Commissioner Qin—did not GOT up until bowing onto his hands for three times
should be “did not GET up”
Here is a mistake:
One—a suave gentleman adorned with emerald-sleeved garbs and a garland atop his head
The other—a gallant woman suited in embroidered armor and a golden helmet
一個是，金盔繡甲風流客。(男)
一個是，翠袖花冠美貌君。（女）
“emerald-sleeved garbs and a garland atop” is a description for the woman
” in embroidered armor and a golden helmet” is a description for the gentleman