Song Yuner Gives Up Pursuing Lu Xun and Leaves Yancheng

Song Yuner Gives Up Pursuing Lu Xun and Leaves Yancheng is a decisive separation in the struggle surrounding Lu Xun’s loyalties. The action begins with Song Yuner trying to remain near Lu Xun under the guise of caring for him, but ends with Lu Xun explicitly preferring Su Xiangwan’s presence and Song Yuner choosing to leave. Her departure does not erase her attachment; instead, it converts an active pursuit into a controlled withdrawal, giving the sequence its mixture of defeat, self-protection, and lingering hope.

Causes and Immediate Circumstances

Song Yuner remains in Yancheng because Lu Xun has been injured and she claims that she cannot feel at ease leaving him. When Lu Xun instructs Lin Yanche to bring her back, she immediately objects, insisting that she needs to stay behind to take care of him. Her resistance reveals that the proposed departure is not merely logistical. Remaining beside Lu Xun is also her attempt to preserve a place in his life, particularly while circumstances leave him dependent on others.

Lin Yanche counters that Lu Xun already has a woman to care for him. Song Yuner answers that Lu Xun had previously required Su Xiangwan to look after her because Song Yuner had been injured, and she presents this as unfair treatment. Her argument turns care into evidence of emotional rank: if Su Xiangwan’s obligation can be invoked on her behalf, Song Yuner wants the same moral claim recognized in return. The exchange therefore exposes the rivalry beneath the language of duty.

Lu Xun’s Refusal and Song Yuner’s Declaration

Lu Xun does not accept Song Yuner’s attempt to redefine the situation. He reminds her not to forget the original purpose of her visit and warns that distraction may prevent her from accomplishing anything. His faint smile makes the reminder especially controlled: he neither debates her devotion nor rewards it, but redirects her toward the reason she came. In doing so, he denies her the emotional centrality she is trying to establish.

Song Yuner then announces that she has already spoken with Yama and cannot persuade him. Because he wants to protect Su Qingrou in this way, she says that she will let go. The declaration is addressed to both Lin Yanche and Lu Xun, making it simultaneously a concession, an appeal, and a performance of resolve. Her tears show that the decision is painful rather than effortless, while the wording gives her a final opportunity to make her suffering visible to the men whose recognition she wants.

Lu Xun responds without sentimental hesitation. Since Song Yuner has let go, he tells her to go back, adding that having Su Xiangwan beside him at night is enough. The statement closes the practical argument and the emotional competition at once. Lu Xun does not merely say that Song Yuner may leave; he identifies Su Xiangwan as the person whose presence satisfies his need for companionship and care. Song Yuner understands that his thoughts are no longer focused on her, even though his earlier rescue of her had allowed her to believe that some possibility remained.

Departure from Yancheng

Song Yuner finally agrees to leave. Before going, she tells Lu Xun that she will give him time to see himself clearly, a formulation that preserves her belief that his present choice may not be permanent. The line is not a full surrender of hope. It changes her pursuit from immediate pressure to deferred judgment, allowing her to depart while still imagining a future in which Lu Xun recognizes her value.

Her physical exit is carefully shaped as an act of dignity. She bites her lip as though making a difficult decision, then turns around and walks away with her head held high and her chest raised. The posture contrasts with the tears that have just flowed freely. Emotionally, she has been rejected; theatrically, she refuses to leave as a defeated figure. The scene’s value shift is therefore double: Song Yuner loses proximity and influence, but regains control over the manner of her withdrawal.

Su Xiangwan calls out to her as she leaves, but Song Yuner refuses the invitation to speak, saying that she does not want to talk. This final exchange prevents the departure from becoming a reconciliation between rivals. Her silence is a boundary placed at the moment when continued conversation could expose further hurt. Leaving Yancheng thus becomes not only the abandonment of a pursuit of Lu Xun, but also a refusal to remain inside the immediate emotional contest with Su Xiangwan.

Consequences and Narrative Significance

The action confirms Lu Xun’s preference for Su Xiangwan at a moment when Song Yuner has attempted to make herself indispensable. His instruction that Lin Yanche take her away, followed by his assertion that Su Xiangwan is enough, turns private attachment into an observable decision. Song Yuner’s role beside Lu Xun is no longer sustained by proximity, obligation, or the fact that he once saved her. The rescue remains meaningful to her, but it cannot outweigh his present commitment.

The departure also affects Lin Yanche’s position. Song Yuner’s declaration that she will let go is spoken partly for his benefit, and the scene makes clear that her attachment to Lu Xun is entangled with her unresolved connection to Lin Yanche. Her leaving removes one source of pressure from the immediate group, yet it does not make the emotional history disappear. The separation is a release in practical terms and a continuation of emotional debt in psychological terms.

Within the wider pattern of the story, the scene echoes other forms of fear, care, and dependence. Lu Xun’s childhood kidnapping left him resistant to drugs, while Su Xiangwan’s collapse from fever and her frightened plea for reassurance draw Lu Xun into a protective role. Against that background, Song Yuner’s attempt to care for him cannot displace the bond formed through his current relationship with Su Xiangwan. The action’s significance lies in that contrast: care is not treated as interchangeable service, because its meaning depends on who is permitted to remain emotionally present when danger and vulnerability expose the hierarchy of relationships.