Chapter 319: Father’s View on Love
How cold it was outside. The moment he returned home, he felt how warm it was.
Back home.
It felt like a fulfilling day, but also quite exhausting.
In front of The Emperor, even if one did nothing, one would still feel exhausted.
However, Jiang Changtian was a man of strong execution; as long as he felt something was useful, he was willing to do it.
Upon returning home and seeing Xia Mei, Jiang Changtian felt his whole being relax.
He felt very at ease.
The smile on his face was not as brilliant as it was outside; instead, his cheeks shifted slightly, revealing faint little dimples.
The smile at this moment was actually not as good-looking as his daytime smile, and even a bit silly, but it made people feel happy.
“What are we having for dinner?”
“Knowing you’d definitely want a bowl of hot noodle soup when you got back, I used the wild onions and greens Mianmian planted. They grew quite well, and adding them when making the noodles makes it very fragrant.”
It was noodles again.
But on a cold winter night, being able to eat a bowl of hand-pulled noodles made by Xia Mei was already the greatest happiness.
At dinner, Mianmian and Brother Chong waited obediently for Father (Uncle Jiang) to eat together.
Jiang Changtian first ate a bowl of hot noodle soup. With the hot soup as a base, he began to ask how the two children had been doing.
He asked Cong Geer first.
“I went to the Star-Gazing Pavilion these past few days. It’s quite good. I like it there, and the books I read there are very interesting. Uncle Jiang, if I were to become a Star-Gazer in the future, would that be alright?” Zi Congheng asked tentatively.
Jiang Changtian and Qin Luoxia were both stunned.
Qin Luoxia knew what a Star-Gazer was because she had heard her daughter talk about it several times after coming home.
Her daughter had even sent letters to the Star-Gazer in Jingzhou before.
To be honest, she didn’t understand why anyone would be willing to do such boring work.
However, matters like choosing a career felt like big issues to Qin Luoxia. She might not understand them, so she looked at her learned husband.
Jiang Changtian was also slightly surprised.
He thought of Cong Geer’s background. Asking him to take the imperial examinations and become an official seemed a bit difficult for him.
It wasn’t feasible right now either.
He himself did not come from an imperial examination background, and he didn’t feel the need to force the younger generation.
“That is possible, but do not rush to make a decision. You are still young. Just watch and learn for now. If you come into contact with other things in the future and want to do something else, that is fine too. After all, there are many choices in life.”
Zi Congheng nodded, a smile appearing on his face, looking quite happy.
He knew Uncle Jiang would agree; Uncle Jiang was an open-minded elder in some respects.
Then, Jiang Changtian asked Mianmian how her studies with Censor He were going.
Mianmian also replied excitedly, “I’m learning very well! Master didn’t have time to teach me directly, so he let his advisor, Mr. Dongfang, guide me.”
“Oh? And what have you learned?” Jiang Changtian asked curiously.
“A lot!”
Mianmian counted on her fingers as she shared.
“You must memorize the regulations and detailed rules well. Either be the one who makes the rules, or learn to break the rules and reasonably exploit loopholes.”
“Before doing bad things, you must check if anyone is around. Success comes from secrecy.”
“If you want to exterminate someone’s nine clans, you must first check their genealogy in case you are their relative too.”
“When deciding how to convict someone, you can make the other party prove they are innocent; it’s much simpler than you proving they are guilty.”
“When scolding someone, you must be righteous and confident. Even if you aren’t making sense, speak loudly. You’ve already scolded them anyway.”
“Generally, you cannot convince the other party in an argument, so the only purpose of arguing is to make the other party unhappy.”
“Also, you must not fear the powerful and dare to fight against treacherous officials. If you can’t beat them, say they are powerful; if you can’t outmaneuver them, say they are treacherous. Slap labels on them, then attack…”
At first, Jiang Changtian listened with a pleasant expression, nodding slightly.
By the end, his face had turned a bit green.
Qin Luoxia had been holding a ladle to serve soup, but now the handle of the ladle was bent.
Cong Geer silently pulled the bowl in front of him closer.
“There’s so much more! I’ve discovered that my teacher knows so much. I’m going again tomorrow,” said Mianmian, full of a thirst for knowledge.
Jiang Changtian held down Xia Mei’s hand and said calmly, “Let’s teach her properly, don’t use violence. If you hit her, you’ll feel sorry for her in a moment. Or, let me do it; my strength is lighter!”
Jiang Mianmian sprang away from the table… What’s wrong? You asked me to study and improve. I’m learning so seriously, and you’re still not satisfied… These are all philosophies…
Then she was tripped by the “unaware” Cong Geer and didn’t get away…
Mianmian looked resentfully at Brother Chong’s long legs.
Being long-legged is no big deal!!
Then she was kept behind.
Father couldn’t bear to hit her either.
Father prepared to reason with her again.
Mainly because Mianmian’s face looked too much like Princess Huiyun.
Her personality was a bit similar too.
They were exactly the same.
This gave Jiang, the old Father, a bit of a heart attack.
He looked down on his own birth mother from the bottom of his heart.
He was very worried that Mianmian would become like her grandmother in the future.
But compared to the education of exterminating families and nine clans, it was probably better for the little girl to follow Princess Huiyun.
Besides, the Princess had gone to cause trouble for the consort these past two days. She would probably be sent back soon and would still come looking for Mianmian.
Jiang Changtian felt that one couldn’t guard against a thief for a thousand days. It was better to educate her first and seize the initiative. Although the child was young, some things needed to be said first.
So, after dinner.
The family solemnly had after-dinner snacks and tea.
Physical education must be grasped, and ideological education must also be grasped.
Parents raising children worry about them even when they are eighty—whether they will be depressed, whether they will have dementia, and whether they will have no one to take care of them.
Mianmian took a sip of the little milk tea; it was sweet, milky, and tasted very authentic.
Because she was at home, she sat on the warm couch, legs crossed, acting obediently.
There was a charcoal brazier in the room, so it wasn’t too cold; covering herself with a thin blanket was enough.
And it was the kind of tea-brewing around a stove.
However, their home was still not as impressive as the Princess’s Mansion. The Princess Mansion had floor heating directly; it was too awesome.
Their floor heating relied entirely on manually burning stoves; the main features were that it wasted people, firewood, and materials.
Jiang Changtian saw that both children were seated.
Cong Geer had an indifferent look on his face. On the surface, the child looked very cold, but in reality, he was a child who valued relationships deeply. His indifference was just an expression of someone who cared too much and didn’t want to easily form connections or social interactions with others.
Cold on the outside, warm on the inside.
But Mianmian was the opposite; Mianmian was warm on the outside and cold on the inside. Jiang Changtian felt that his little daughter looked very lively, but in reality, it was the opposite—her inner heart was very lonely. She seemed to have a barrier with everyone, as if she had a barrier against the entire world, and was somewhat out of place.
But regardless of whether they were warm on the outside and cold on the inside, or cold on the outside and warm on the inside, Jiang Changtian decided to fulfill his duties as a Father today and must teach the children his views on love.
Although it seemed a bit awkward for an elder to talk about this, when he thought of his own muddle-headed mother, he decided to take it as a warning and had to teach them.
Jiang Changtian began, “I want to talk to you about the dangers of falling in love.”
Mianmian:??
Zi Congheng:???
Mianmian saw Father’s serious expression and thought to herself, Father is quite progressive. Doesn’t ancient times forbid free love? It’s all about the parents’ orders and the matchmaker’s words.
But thinking about it, forbidding free love might go against human nature. Even with parents’ orders and matchmakers, they would still let people meet and interact; it couldn’t really be a blind marriage. Besides, if there really were no free love, there wouldn’t be stories like The West Chamber or Zhuo Wenjun selling wine.
“If you see someone, feel love at first sight, like them, and become deeply immersed in it, that is a very terrible thing.
If you blindly like someone, firstly, you will become stupid.
Once a person becomes stupid, they are easily deceived and lose money. They are easily hurt; fools are always getting hurt, sacrificing themselves and their whole family to give, which is the extreme of stupidity.
Secondly, you will become annoying, suspicious all day long, and spend every day thinking about what the other person is doing, what they haven’t done, feeling inferior, always feeling that you are not worthy of the other person, and from then on, you will stop progressing and stagnate.
Thirdly, it will shorten your life. In love, you don’t eat well or sleep well, which affects your physical health and longevity. In love, you try every possible way to cause trouble; if you don’t court disaster, you won’t die, but one day you will court your own death.”
Qin Luoxia listened in fear. Is the danger of love really that great? Fortunately, she didn’t just fall in love with anyone; she only loved her own husband.
Jiang Mianmian: …Alright, alright, wait for me to get a notebook to write this down.
Zi Congheng looked at Uncle Jiang. If in the future, Mianmian never finds a partner and never gets married, he wondered if you would be anxious and regret it. He would wait and see.
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