Chapter 139: Sister-in-law
The road was wide and crisscrossed. Merchants were calling out their wares. People were coming and going.
“Selling cheap, two wen, two wen and you can take this whole basket.”
“Can’t do that, Big Sister, two and a half wen, that’s the lowest.”
“Selling old clothes! Selling old clothes!”
“Selling vinegar! Selling vinegar!”
“Selling fish! Selling fish!”
The sounds of hawking intertwined. Pedestrians moved to and fro.
Seeing the large procession of carriages and horses approaching, the crowd didn’t panic, nor did they scatter like birds and beasts as they did elsewhere; instead, they continued their hawking.
Some vendors selling food even carried their goods forward to sell.
“Selling pancakes! Selling pancakes! Fragrant, oily pancakes!”
“Selling vinegar! Selling vinegar! Drink this vinegar to cure all illnesses!”
“Selling soup! Selling soup! Hot, thick soup!”
The hawking sounds were right in front of them. The horses were getting a bit agitated.
Heir Han in the carriage was curious: were the people in this place not afraid of death? Why didn’t they flee when they saw them, and instead crowded around to sell things?
Did they actually get paid when they sold things?
Weren’t they afraid of being requisitioned by the soldiers?
Then something even more exaggerated happened.
A group of women with faces painted bright red came up, beating gongs and drums.
They were welcoming Heir Han to Ming County for an inspection.
A huge red banner was held high.
It had a line of text written on it.
It was neither refined nor elegant, but it fit the image of the Rebels perfectly.
If one were rebelling, one certainly wouldn’t be cultured; if they were cultured, they would have gone to take the imperial exams instead of rebelling.
But it was also somewhat original.
Just now, he had heard the sound of drums from afar and found it quite interesting.
But up close, he was shocked.
Who were these people? They looked like elderly women in their sixties, some even grandmothers. When they smiled, their front teeth were missing, leaving black holes. Their faces were painted like monkey butts, and they were beating drums on their backs. Their lips were painted thick and red—it was terrifying.
Heir Han really didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
He also felt that this Ming County was truly interesting.
Although the woman leading the drum-beating had a very good figure, Heir Han lost his restless urge. There was no other reason; just looking at that gaudy, red-painted face gave him a fright.
The former County Magistrate was sent to welcome Heir Han.
He had a glimmer of desire in his heart.
What if, just what if he was favored and sat back in the position of County Magistrate?
Perhaps he could even be promoted in the future.
Following the right person was important.
This Heir Han was the Emperor’s own nephew. No matter how awesome Jiang the Second was, he was just an outcast of the Jiang Family.
So, he eagerly sought out this reception task at the first opportunity.
The former County Magistrate, Xiao Huang, knelt obsequiously before the carriage and said carefully: “This official has come specifically to welcome the Heir, awaiting the arrival of the Heir to inspect Ming County.”
Heir Han frowned and said: “You are that Rebel, Jiang the Second?”
“I am the official of Ming County, Xiao Huang, here to guide the Heir.”
Heir Han had heard the drum sounds from afar and felt they were unique, so he had some interest, but he was shocked to see an old man. He had seen too many of these and had no interest.
He directly lowered the curtain.
Magistrate Huang knelt awkwardly on the side of the road and climbed up himself.
It was fine; he was a big shot from the capital. When he took the imperial exams in the capital last time, the Heir was just as high and mighty; even bigger officials didn’t give him face.
In another carriage, Eunuch Duan learned that this was Kaner Village and looked at the village with some curiosity.
This was the place where Grand Attendant Yan grew up. It was indeed extraordinary; even the sound of the drums on the roadside was pleasant, though the makeup was a bit hard to describe.
Meng Shaoxia, on horseback, looked at this somewhat unfamiliar place.
He couldn’t believe this was Kaner Village.
It wasn’t like this when he came before.
There weren’t many people in the village.
It was very quiet.
He only learned that the person who rebelled here was called Jiang the Second when he came to negotiate the amnesty.
He hadn’t connected this person to Jiang Yu.
He felt timid as he approached his hometown; he didn’t know how she was doing now.
The world was so chaotic.
Human life was like blades of grass.
He didn’t dare to think; thinking made his heart ache intensely.
He was not his own master.
Coming again now, things were different.
He had said he would fulfill the three letters and six etiquettes, but now he came alone.
Jiang Yu’s home was so close; maybe she was standing under the tree right now and could see him.
Under the tree, Jiang Yu looked curiously out toward the entrance of the village.
There were so many people.
Her younger sister was counting ants on the side, not curious at all.
She excitedly said to Great-Aunt: “Great-Aunt, they say that after the amnesty, my Father will be a big official in the imperial court, supported by the court. We won’t have to worry about food and drink anymore, right?”
Aunt Yin:…
Technically, that was the case.
But it was more complicated.
Jiang Mianmian sat on a soft cushion and sighed: “After the amnesty, there will be many more leaders, which will be annoying. But it doesn’t matter for Father; he will definitely be able to handle it.”
Aunt Yin nodded, inexplicably understanding the word “leader”—the person in charge, the guide, the manager.
She didn’t know how this little girl’s brain grew.
She also didn’t know how The Eldest Miss’s brain grew.
One was too clear, the other was too muddled.
Both needed to be worried about.
She learned that the person coming was Heir Han, and her heart skipped a beat.
She had specifically mentioned this person to her mistress.
Heir Han was spoiled beyond measure and had a very bad habit: he liked married women.
His original wife had passed away from illness, likely angered to death.
She also specifically instructed Lady Qin not to wander in front of this Heir Han.
The County Magistrate led the way and brought Heir Han to the county office. Heir Han was not polite and occupied the courtyard behind the office directly.
The former County Magistrate, Xiao Huang, felt a bit uncomfortable.
He suddenly felt that something was wrong with him. Although Jiang the Second had taken his position as County Magistrate, he was still respectful to him.
This Heir Han didn’t treat him like a person at all.
Even so, Magistrate Huang still had to politely give up the place.
Magistrate Huang’s wife heard that Heir Han had come and ran faster than a rabbit, hiding early on.
However, some concubines heard that a nobleman had arrived and dressed up instead.
Magistrate Huang’s hat was turning green.
After the long journey, Heir Han saw the few women in the county official’s backyard posturing and felt it was bad luck. Was he someone who would fancy just any crooked melon or cracked date?
Feeling slightly bored, Heir Han thought of visiting the Jiang Family.
He had someone deliver a calling card.
From the moment they learned Heir Han was coming, the Jiang Family had been doing a major cleanup.
Except for the Buddha Hall, which hadn’t been repaired—though Heir Han probably wouldn’t go to the Buddha Hall—every other place had been cleaned and tidied up again.
Except for Jiang Rong, who wouldn’t come out to see people, Jiang Huaisheng had new injuries on his face, but his spirit had improved.
His mother and Princess Huiyun were intimate friends, bosom buddies. With Princess Huiyun’s son arriving in Ming County, their family would definitely be able to turn things around and leave this ghost place.
He had been tortured by his younger brother for this period; he was almost going crazy.
Now he couldn’t wait to leave this ghost place.
Even the usually calm Old Madam Jiang looked incredibly excited, though everyone could understand; being tortured by Jiang Changtian from time to time was enough to drive one crazy.
The person coming wasn’t just a nobleman, but a savior who would lead them out of the sea of misery.
Jiang Wan braced herself to entertain the distinguished guest.
She remembered the last time they had guests, it was those two young masters from the capital; things were different now.
Madam Wu hadn’t seen her husband cheer up in a long time. Ever since his face was injured, he seemed to have been depressed.
Later, after Shushu was born, he was happy, but his mood never lifted.
After experiencing that gloomy day, he was even more dispirited.
Madam Wu hadn’t entered that Quiet Room and didn’t know what happened, but Ronger had been truly scared crazy.
Today he had finally cheered up. Although there were new injuries on his face, his expression was joyful, as if he had returned to the past.
Madam Wu was also very happy.
If the family could return to the capital, they could find a famous doctor for Ronger; perhaps he would recover.
Since a distinguished guest was coming, she also tidied herself up a bit.
She was originally a famous beauty in the capital and had grown up as childhood sweethearts with Jiang Huaisheng. They married naturally, but didn’t enjoy it for many years before following her husband to this remote place.
Thinking of the nobles in the capital, she felt a bit emotional.
Finally, the bitterness was over, right?
Madam Wu combed her hair in front of the mirror. In the bronze mirror was a young woman who had recently given birth, possessing a unique maternal tenderness, fair skin, and a slightly plump figure, but just right.
The clothes were from before she gave birth and were already old, but in this situation, she couldn’t ask for more. Compared to the people outside, it was already extremely good.
She and her husband went to pay their respects to the Old Madam and found that the Old Madam’s spirit had also improved; she had dressed up very carefully.
Seeing the Old Madam like this, Jiang Huaisheng felt emotional. He remembered that when his Father was alive, his mother always dressed like this.
Jiang Wan was also dressed very neatly.
Old Madam Jiang was in a good mood; everything looked good to her, and she didn’t even feel the pain in her hand.
The only thing was that she still found Madam Wu a bit unpleasant, so she said: “A nobleman is coming; you should at least change your clothes. Wearing this looks too shabby.”
Madam Wu blushed with shame at her mother-in-law’s words. Over the past six months, she had been pregnant and giving birth. The new clothes were made when she was pregnant and were too wide. After giving birth, there were many things to do, and she hadn’t had time to make new ones.
Jiang Wan heard her grandmother’s words and, thinking it was her own oversight, quickly said: “Grandmother, Mother still has to hold the baby, and the fabric of new clothes is a bit stiff. Mother is doing it for convenience when holding the baby.”
Old Madam Jiang then nodded and, for the first time, patted Madam Wu’s hand: “It’s been hard on you.”
Madam Wu was pleasantly surprised.
Jiang Huaisheng was also very happy to see his mother and wife and daughter getting along harmoniously.
Heir Han indeed came to visit in person.
His original intention was just to take a look and complete the task.
But when he saw the woman holding the infant, revealing fair fingers, bowing her head to tease the baby, the baby leaning against her firm chest, her smiling with white teeth, her goose-egg face, willow-leaf eyebrows, swan neck, and somewhat plump figure, he chose to stay for a meal.
“Sister-in-law, this child is so beautiful, let me hold her.” Heir Han reached out to hold the infant without avoiding suspicion, and the back of his hand directly touched Madam Wu’s soft body.
When taking the child, his other hand also accidentally grasped Madam Wu’s hand.
Madam Wu was a bit panicked and uncomfortable.
Old Madam Jiang sat in the main hall, her eyes unable to suppress her affection.
Jiang Huaisheng and the Heir talked happily; the Heir actually called him “Big Brother” and called Jinger “Sister-in-law.”
Jiang Wan carefully prepared the meal and the place for the nobleman to rest and change clothes.
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