Chapter 147: Commander Jiang
“The green is elegant, calm, and quiet; the red robes are light, then deep.” (Note 1)
Jiang Changtian, dressed in red robes, had become Commander Jiang.
The Commander of Jingzhou.
A rank of approximately the fifth grade.
At first, the title of Commander was literally about managing horses.
It was roughly the same as the Keeper of the Heavenly Horses.
Later, the position of Commander evolved to manage military and taxation affairs.
Of course, when the Imperial Court offered amnesty, they only gave the title; it was impossible for them to actually provide soldiers or supplies.
Magistrate Huang felt a surge of joy; now that Lord Jiang had been promoted, could he finally have his position as Magistrate back?
However, when he looked up, he saw Eunuch Duan—whom he had meticulously served for the past two days, going so far as to offer to wash the man’s feet—chatting with Commander Jiang with a smile, his old waist bent.
His attitude was so respectful and fawning; didn’t he say his back hurt and he couldn’t bend over?
“Commander Jiang is truly young and promising.” The young Eunuch Duan praised the young Jiang Changtian with a sincere smile.
He thought to himself, this is the person Grand Attendant Yan told him to look after. Grand Attendant Yan didn’t want it made public, fearing his own status as a eunuch would hinder the other’s advancement.
This Commander Jiang was indeed worthy of being a friend of Grand Attendant Yan; in this remote, backwater place, he had managed to thrive on his own.
Moreover, this face—to put it bluntly—if he were to enter the palace, Grand Attendant Yan might not even have a chance.
A man could actually be described as stunningly beautiful.
Furthermore, there was a slight sense of familiarity, and an inexplicable, imposing air of nobility.
Standing there, he looked more like an Heir than Heir Han, who was sitting on the high platform.
Aunt Yin felt a tinge of nostalgia upon seeing the young Eunuch Duan; he was a newcomer to the palace, still full of life.
However, a eunuch of this age surely could not have met the Grand Princess.
And it was even less likely he had met Master Jingjue.
Seeing the myriad of expressions on Heir Han’s face on the high platform, Aunt Yin thought that what was meant to come would eventually come.
Jiang Mianmian watched the excitement from Great-Aunt’s arms.
Hearing others call Father ‘Commander Jiang’, she felt the title sounded quite nice and had a sense of prestige.
Father had been promoted again.
Rebelling against the Imperial Court, yet getting promoted by the Imperial Court.
It was truly… impressive.
Heir Han’s body stopped shaking, but his hands couldn’t help but tremble slightly, swaying as if they were no longer under the control of his brain.
His pupils had returned to normal, but his hands felt as if they were extra appendages, with nowhere to rest.
He used to complain that his Mother, the Grand Princess, was too cold and heartless towards him; was he not born of her?
But his Father comforted him, saying his Mother’s appearance had been ruined, she was in a bad mood, and didn’t want to see anyone; it wasn’t personal, as she didn’t even see his Father.
In his memories, the number of times he had seen his Mother could be counted on one hand.
And when he did see her, she was always veiled; but after all, she was his Mother, so how could he not remember what she looked like?
The Jiang the Second before his eyes actually looked very much like his Mother.
He suddenly remembered that when he was very young, he had once heard servants gossiping about his Mother in the manor.
They said the Grand Princess was beautiful, amorous, and had confidants all over the world.
He was very angry and told his Father, and after that, he never saw those servants again.
But now, encountering a face that resembled his Mother so much, and thinking back to what he had encountered when he went to the Jiang Family, he felt uneasy.
Heir Han suddenly thought of an absurd possibility: could this Jiang the Second be the child of his Mother, the Grand Princess, and The Former Crown Prince’s tutor, Grand Tutor Jiang Bai?
The Grand Tutor had pretended Jiang the Second was a child of their kin and brought him home, which was why Old Madam Jiang thought Jiang the Second was the child of a mistress, detested him, mistreated him for years, and even accused him of being unfilial and brotherly.
But then he thought again: no, that’s not right. He and Jiang the Second were about the same age; could his Mother have given birth to two children at the same time?
If Jiang the Second was the son of the Grand Princess, then who was he?
Besides, he didn’t look like his Mother.
His Father always said he resembled his Father, but did he really look like his Father?
Heir Han had not expected that what he thought was a trip for pleasure would turn into a journey to discover his origins.
Having comfortably been an Heir for decades, who would want to unravel the mystery of their own birth?
Therefore, his hands kept trembling, but he said nothing.
As usual, he smiled with a somewhat roguish air.
He didn’t even dare to look at Jiang the Second too much.
He tried hard to distract himself.
As a result, he saw the heroic woman in red beside Jiang the Second.
Both of them were dressed in red.
Compared to Jiang the Second’s appearance, anyone else would be eclipsed.
The woman in red had long legs and a slender waist, her smile bright, cheerful, and generous.
Standing beside Jiang the Second, she was not in the least bit inferior; on the contrary, there was a beauty in their harmony.
Jiang the Second’s beauty was somewhat gloomy and sharp, while the woman was bright, gentle, carefree, and very tolerant.
Watching them stand together, one felt that Jiang the Second was the one being taken care of.
Heir Han didn’t dare look at Jiang the Second, yet he accidentally became lost in thought while looking at the woman beside him.
How could there be such a woman? In terms of looks, she wasn’t as delicate as many other young ladies, nor did she have the fine brows and eyes of that type; her face was a bit round, and she was a bit too tall, but she just radiated a sense of total security.
He just felt she was gentle, beautiful, and comforting.
Especially the way she looked at Jiang the Second; her whole person became even more beautiful and gentle, and the deep affection could actually be seen.
Her eyes were very proud, overflowing with enthusiasm, and she was incredibly radiant.
Even a man as stunningly beautiful as Jiang the Second could not overshadow her charm.
Instead, it set her off, giving her a unique kind of beauty.
For a moment, Heir Han felt that all the women he had met before were merely vulgar and common; the woman before him was the true beauty. Every single point about her was exactly what he liked.
It seemed that all he had been searching for was a proud and generous woman like this to accompany him until old age.
Heir Han was like one possessed, staring blankly at the woman.
The crowd watching the excitement looked at Commander Jiang with his wife, feeling envious and jealous.
Especially the women, who all felt that if they were the ones standing beside Commander Jiang, they would surely be just as bright and beautiful.
Commander Jiang was so gentle; every action he took towards his wife showed careful protection.
Jiang Wan saw Meng Shaoxia walk up to Jiang Yu without any hesitation and speak to her. The two seemed very familiar; Jiang Yu didn’t know what to say, and actually patted Meng Shaoxia on the chest with her hand, appearing very unrefined.
Jiang Wan’s heart surged; she felt that what belonged to her had been stolen, and by someone she looked down upon.
Madam Wu watched the pair of lovers walking hand in hand in the public eye. Jiang the Second must really love his wife; his gaze was sincere, and his eyes were full of light when he looked at her.
She never thought that one day she would envy a country woman she had looked down upon.
In this world, a woman’s honor comes from men.
If the husband is honored, the wife is honored.
She once firmly believed that her husband was just down on his luck, and one day he would surely return in glory.
But now, it seemed increasingly hopeless.
She couldn’t help but look at Heir Han on the high platform, appearing arrogant and like a righteous gentleman.
…That night.
Retiring for the night.
Madam Wu dismissed one of the wet nurses. There were originally two, but one of them stopped working properly once they arrived at the villa, constantly finding faults.
Madam Wu didn’t dare keep such a person, so she naturally dismissed her.
With only one wet nurse left, she slept somewhat restlessly.
She woke up in the middle of the night, thinking of checking on the child, but when she opened her eyes, she saw her husband sitting in front of her with a sinister expression, which gave her a fright.
“Sheng-ge?” Madam Wu saw that his eyes looked wrong and called out cautiously.
But she saw him suddenly reach out with both hands and grab her throat. While choking her, he asked viciously, “Did you sneak out today? Did you go to see Commander Jiang or Heir Han?”
Madam Wu couldn’t breathe from the choking and struggled desperately.
Finally, she grabbed a jade pendant and smashed it against him with all her might, which finally brought Jiang Huaisheng to his senses.
Jiang Huaisheng touched his head, and seeing the red marks on his wife’s neck, he was shocked.
He couldn’t believe he had done this.
He said anxiously, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Jinger, I didn’t mean to hurt you. I was dreaming; I don’t know how I got up.”
Madam Wu was terrified and curled up in the corner of the bed, shivering.
She was too terrified.
She never thought that the husband she shared a bed with would actually try to strangle her to death, and that he was just dreaming?
“Husband, let us separate.” Throughout their drifting journey, leaving their hometown, Madam Wu had never thought of separation.
Hearing Jinger’s words, Jiang Huaisheng felt a great terror spreading; he had been betrayed again.
He knelt before Jinger on the spot: “Didn’t you say we would never abandon each other, that we would grow old together and spend our whole lives together? Why do you want to leave me? Now everyone says I am the unfilial son who killed his Mother, but I did it for you! Jinger, do you dislike me because I don’t look good anymore? Do you dislike the scar on my face? You can look at my left side; you don’t have to look at the right side.”
Madam Wu, however, cried even more fearfully; that wasn’t it, that wasn’t it.
But Jiang Huaisheng wouldn’t listen to her explanation at all, continuing to talk and talk.
…That night.
At home, the promoted Commander Jiang still had to bring foot-washing water for his wife.
Qin Luoxia was a bit shy, but remembering the Great-Aunt’s teachings, she sat calmly and watched her husband carefully rub her feet.
She had large feet and had not had them bound, but their shape was very beautiful; the arches were comfortable to hold, and her calves were very well-proportioned, with that toned, muscular look.
Qin Luoxia knew her husband was in a very good mood, because he washed her feet very carefully and massaged them with great focus.
The intimacy belonging to the couple spread.
Jiang Mianmian lay on the bed; she had grown up and was no longer a baby of a few months, so she couldn’t put her feet in her mouth to chew on anymore.
But sometimes she still kept the habit of bending her feet while lying in bed.
After washing up, Great-Aunt lifted the bed curtain and came in, only to see the little one playing with her feet.
Aunt Yin brought a handkerchief to wipe her hands to prevent her from sucking on them again.
Seeing the Great-Aunt, Jiang Mianmian rolled over and got up, wanting a hug.
She liked the Great-Aunt’s embrace. Although Aunt Yin was also old, she was different from other old ladies; Great-Aunt didn’t use hair oil, and her hair was always washed very clean and fresh.
Her body was also very clean and fresh, without any strange smells.
It was quite comfortable to sleep next to her.
Great-Aunt would coax her to sleep, patting her, and fanning her when it was hot. Now, the spoiled Jiang Mianmian couldn’t fall asleep on her own without someone coaxing her.
She lay there, feeling the ‘Great-Aunt-brand’ electric fan—which was in night silent mode—and asked her curiously, “Great-Aunt, you said Father was promoted; does that mean we have to move to the Prefecture City?”
Aunt Yin shook her head and said, “I don’t know about that; it depends on your Father’s decision.”
Lying down as well, the couple also asked the same question; Qin Luoxia asked her husband, “Husband, you’ve been promoted, so are we moving to the Prefecture City? If we go to the Prefecture City, what about the wild chickens and horses we’re raising? Does the Prefecture City have such a large forest?”
Jiang Changtian smiled and said, “The Prefecture City probably doesn’t have forests. If Sister Xia doesn’t like it, we’ll just stay here. This is our home. At worst, we’ll just occupy more space and more forest.”
Qin Luoxia had her own secret thoughts. In just this small county town, there were so many women calling out her husband’s name, and quite a few who dressed up gaudily to ‘accidentally’ encounter him.
Those people were of too low a caliber, dressing scantily to try to entrap him, and her husband was so scared he would just dodge them.
But if they went to the Prefecture City, and there were the formidable women Aunt Yin spoke of—those who could lower their pride and also had noble status—it would be hard to avoid them.
She still needed to work hard and have abilities that others couldn’t reach so that she could walk with her husband for a long, long time. Aunt Yin said that if you want to have mutual respect, you must first be able to walk side by side. If her husband walked fast and far, and she remained standing in place, she would be left behind sooner or later.
Aunt Yin said that marriage and handling affairs were the same.
Qin Luoxia deeply agreed. Lying next to her husband to sleep, she also pondered how she could do better. Really, thinking of those gaudy, enchanting women, she wished she could give them all a good beating.
Jiang Mianmian lay next to Aunt Yin to sleep, wondering how she could sneak out to play tomorrow and avoid a beating.
“Note 1: From Wang Wei’s ‘Red Peony'”
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