Chapter 55
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Jiang Juan fell silent.
Not long after, the eunuch led someone over. Jiang Juan glanced at Jiang Nian, then lowered his head, trying hard to minimize his presence.
Seeing this, Xue Fuying misunderstood and smiled, asking, “Do you want to eat crab?”
Jiang Juan said “Ah” and noticed a steamer in front of him with several crabs steamed to a perfect red.
Jiang Juan liked eating crab but found it too troublesome. He was about to shake his head when Xue Fuying personally picked a crab for him. “Try it.”
“This is green crab, best eaten in April. The crab meat is sweet and the crab roe is savory.”
Jiang Juan was tempted, but his laziness overcame his cravings. He used his chopsticks to poke at the crab a few times before looking up, only to find Su Feiyue still watching him. Su Feiyue asked, “Why aren’t you eating?”
Jiang Juan: “No…”
Saying he didn’t want to eat wasn’t polite, and saying he was too lazy wasn’t any better. After some thought, Jiang Juan solemnly replied, “I don’t know how to eat it.”
Jiang Nian happened to walk over at this moment. He glanced at the crab in Jiang Juan’s bowl and smirked.
Typical country bumpkin.
How embarrassing!
Such an answer was unexpected to both Su Feiyue and Xue Fuying. They were stunned for a moment until a clearly defined hand reached out, taking the crab from Jiang Juan’s bowl. Jiang Juan quickly said, “Your Highness, crab is cold in nature, you shouldn’t eat too much.”
Xue Fangli methodically took out scissors, not even looking up as he replied, “Understood.”
Su Feiyue and Xue Fuying exchanged glances and each took a crab from the steamer.
For a while, the table was silent. Jiang Nian stepped forward and knelt properly to salute, “Jiang Nian pays respects to the Princess, the Prince Consort, the Prince, and the Royal Consort.”
As his words fell, there was still silence.
Jiang Nian knelt beside them, and no one responded or told him to rise. Remembering the scolding he received from the Eldest Princess before the banquet, Jiang Nian didn’t dare to look up but wasn’t surprised by the situation.
The Eldest Princess and Prince Consort clearly intended to ignore and neglect him.
After all, they favored Jiang Juan more, but now that Marquis Anping had unilaterally annulled the engagement and sought a royal marriage decree, it was only natural for the Eldest Princess and Prince Consort to be angry with him.
In fact, it wasn’t just Jiang Nian who thought this.
Jiang Juan also believed that the Eldest Princess and Prince Consort were giving the protagonist shou a hard time since they were antagonists who disliked the protagonist.
No one spoke, and Jiang Nian continued to kneel, his face showing no resentment, appearing extremely humble and obedient, trying to reduce the Eldest Princess and Prince Consortt’s displeasure.
He didn’t know how long had passed, but his legs were becoming numb when he finally heard someone speak at the table.
“Done, eat it.”
Xue Fuying pushed a small plate towards Jiang Juan. The crab shell had been cracked and cut open, revealing the tender crab meat and roe.
At the same time, Su Feiyue also handed over a crab he had prepared. He glanced at the plate Xue Fuying had pushed over and smiled at Jiang Juan, saying, “One or two, it’s all the same. Since you haven’t had it before, you should eat another.”
Jiang Juan: “?”
He looked at Su Feiyue and Xue Fuying, then at the crab, feeling deeply confused.
So they weren’t intentionally ignoring the protagonist shou?
They were just too busy preparing crab for him to notice the protagonist shou?
Jiang Juan: “…”
If the protagonist held a grudge against him, he really couldn’t complain.
But having someone else prepare crab for him was genuinely enjoyable.
Jiang Juan bit his chopsticks, feeling extremely conflicted, when suddenly his face was pinched. Forced to let go of the chopsticks, someone fed him a piece of crab meat.
Jiang Juan chewed a few bites of the crab meat, which was indeed fresh and sweet. He didn’t need to turn around to know it was His Highness feeding him—after all, His Highness was quite fond of doing so.
Indeed, it was Xue Fangli. He glanced at Xue Fuying and Su Feiyue, who had peeled crabs for Jiang Juan, and, maintaining his composure, moved aside to feed Jiang Juan the crab meat he had prepared.
The crab was so delicious, and with someone peeling it and feeding him, Jiang Juan struggled for only a couple of seconds before giving in.
If he was going to be held in contempt, so be it; respecting the food was most important.
At this moment, Jiang Nian also came to a realization.
The Eldest Princess and Prince Consort showed no sign of disdain for Jiang Juan despite his claim of not knowing how to eat crab. Instead, they personally peeled the crab for him to taste.
Why were they so kind to Jiang Juan?
The marriage agreement was like this. Compared to himself, they favored Jiang Juan more, and it was evident even now. He had knelt for so long, and the Eldest Princess and Prince Consort didn’t even tell him to rise, possibly because they were occupied with peeling crabs.
What made him less deserving than Jiang Juan?
Why was Jiang Juan favored more than him?
Regarding the marriage agreement, Jiang Nian had previously inquired with his father, Minister Jiang. Although he knew the reasons, the Eldest Princess and Prince Consort’s attitude towards Jiang Juan still filled him with jealousy. He always felt that Jiang Juan didn’t deserve it.
—Jiang Juan merely benefited from his maternal grandfather’s influence, who had once saved the Prince Consort’s life by chance.
Jiang Nian took a deep breath to calm himself. At this moment, Su Feiyue recalled he needed to summon Jiang Nian and glanced over, “Are you the Second Young Master of the Minister’s residence?”
Jiang Nian: “My father is Jiang You.”
Su Feiyue responded with an “Mm,” and Xue Fuying also looked over, surprised, “How could it be you?”
Jiang Nian’s heart skipped a beat. As expected, Xue Fuying’s next words were, “I remember you. During the greeting, you were looking around, showing great ignorance of etiquette.”
Su Feiyue smiled slightly, seemingly unsurprised, “According to what I’ve heard, you are described as kind and gentle. I thought to myself, even if you are kind and gentle, it is merely superficial. And indeed, it is.”
The Prince Consort’s words revealed his disdain for Jiang Nian. Jiang Nian, intending to refute, thought better of it, given that both the Eldest Princess and Prince Consort already disliked him. He swallowed his response and accepted it.
This was indeed the first time Jiang Nian had been evaluated in such a manner, and it was impossible not to be affected.
If not for their role in raising Marquis Anping and Marquis Anping’s high regard for them…
Jiang Nian suppressed his discontent and replied slowly, “What the Prince Consort says is correct. Jiang Nian does have many shortcomings and cannot be considered kind and gentle.”
Su Feiyue nodded, “You admit to having many shortcomings? It seems you have reflected on yourself. What are these shortcomings? Please, tell me.”
Jiang Nian was momentarily taken aback. He initially thought it was just modesty, but he genuinely believed that although his intentions were not always perfect, there were no significant flaws.
However, with the Prince Consort asking, Jiang Nian had no choice but to say, “I have not fully mastered the etiquette.”
“Not fully mastered?” Su Feiyue repeated with a smile. “Is that all?”
“I think you don’t understand etiquette at all!”
Su Feiyue suddenly turned confrontational. “Regarding the marriage, it should follow the parents’ orders and the matchmaker’s words. Yet, you privately decided on a lifetime commitment with Jiang Juan. Is this your idea of not fully mastering etiquette?”
When the Prince Consort posed such questions, Jiang Juan had anticipated them. He composed himself and replied softly, “We intended to inform our elders, but at that time, neither the Prince Consort nor the Eldest Princess were in the capital, and we… were not in control of our emotions.”
“Such a convenient excuse,” Su Feiyue said. “I’ll ask you three questions.”
“Who is Jiang Juan to you?”
“…My younger brother.”
“And what is his relationship with Zhaoshi?”
Jiang Nian’s eyelashes fluttered as he explained, “Prince Consort, when the Marquis made his vow to me, he promised to annul the engagement, which is why I agreed to him.”
Su Feiyue remained unmoved and snorted coldly, “Promised to annul the engagement. This means you were aware of the existing engagement between them.”
Jiang Nian stiffened and reluctantly nodded, “I am aware, but…”
Su Feiyue did not listen to his explanation. “Here’s the third question. Knowing that your younger brother—Jiang Juan—and Zhaoshi are engaged, and that Zhaoshi is infatuated with you, how could you not avoid him?”
Jiang Nian forced a smile and said, “I did try to avoid him. But how can I be completely indifferent after knowing him for so many years? He and I are destined not to be together, but he is still a friend.”
Su Feiyue spoke word by word, “Tried to avoid him? Your avoidance seems to be a boat ride together today and a picnic invitation tomorrow. Zhaoshi says that you two were entangled, and all the fault lies with him, but I see otherwise.”
“He is stubborn, but you also intentionally seduced him!”
Su Feiyue made it clear without any pretense.
In reality, Jiang Nian had always told himself this about the Marquis, Jiang Juan, and himself.
He had tried to avoid him—when the Marquis invited him, he didn’t go every time. He had refused multiple times, and the Marquis became dejected, so Jiang Nian had to accept another invitation to consider the feelings of his friend.
He didn’t want to, but he couldn’t bear to see the Marquis in distress.
As for Jiang Juan and the Marquis’s engagement—since the Marquis was infatuated with him and had promised to break off the engagement with Jiang Juan, Jiang Nian believed he had done nothing wrong, and had no transgressions or improprieties.
But today, these grandiose justifications were ruthlessly dismantled by the Prince Consort. The term “intentional seduction” hit Jiang Nian like a slap in the face!
“Kind, gentle, and dignified,” Su Feiyue repeated the terms the Marquis used to describe Jiang Nian, “Is someone with such a devious mind really deserving of these descriptions?”
Throughout, Su Feiyue used no vulgar words, but Jiang Nian felt each word like a sharp blade, piercing him deeply.
He thought no one would discover his little tricks, yet they were exposed, and his flaws were laid bare for all to see.
“Seduction of a younger brother’s fiancé—Truly, the Jiang family has raised a fine son!”
Su Feiyue said, “In your Jiang family, your father favored you, neglecting your proper upbringing. Now, it seems, it falls to me, an outsider, to correct you—Have you ever apologized to your younger brother for taking his fiancé?”
“Obviously not,” Su Feiyue continued. “Since that’s the case, rather than waiting for a better day, better to do it today. Apologize to him.”
Apologize?
When Jiang Nian heard this, he turned pale, nearly collapsing.
How could he apologize?
He could not apologize.
If he did, it would mean admitting that he was aware of the engagement between the Marquis and Jiang Juan, and not only failed to avoid it but maintained contact under the guise of friendship, and even… intentionally seduced.
Jiang Nian was in utter turmoil, while Jiang Juan, who had been robbed of his fiancé, was currently being fed crab meat by His Highness was shocked. He hadn’t expected the Prince Consort’s demand for an explanation would come in this form.
Xue Fangli, throughout this uproar, remained indifferent, as it was, in his view, it was the Marquis’s favor by withdrawing from the engagement. From beginning to end, he focused solely on feeding Jiang Juan crab meat, not even casting a glance elsewhere.
Seeing Jiang Juan choking, Xue Fangli raised a hand to pat him lightly and said faintly, “Why are you in such a rush? No one is fighting with you.”
Jiang Juan was not anxious, but terrified.
The Prince Consort’s words were indeed quite harsh. After such humiliation and being forced to apologize by the protagonist shou, Jiang Juan felt that he would at least be marked down as an enemy by the protagonist shou today.
Thinking this, no matter how delicious the crab was, Jiang Juan couldn’t help but frown. He instinctively edged closer to Xue Fangli.
Xue Fangli glanced at him and slowly raised his head.
Jiang Nian was kneeling on the ground, trembling all over, as if he couldn’t bear any more torment and would collapse at any moment.
This second son of the Jiang family, with grand ambitions but insufficient cunning, was ultimately just one word: foolish.
What was he so afraid of?
The faint scent of herbs wafted in, and Xue Fangli stopped looking at Jiang Nian. He looked down again, noting that Jiang Juan was clinging to him and gently gripping his sleeve. Although Jiang Nian was the one being forced to apologize, the air around him was filled with a sense of despair.
After observing for a few seconds, Xue Fangli directly pulled him over and held him in his arms.
Jiang Juan looked up at him and, unusually, did not struggle. He leaned back, completely like a limp fish.
—For some reason, Jiang Juan felt that His Highness was very reliable and felt exceptionally safe in his embrace, especially at a moment like this when the protagonist shou was holding a grudge.
Different fates for the same surname, Jiang Juan felt a bit more at ease, while Jiang Nian remained in turmoil.
Su Feiyue asked him, “Second Young Master, you’ve heard, apologize to your younger brother.”
Jiang Nian clenched his fists. He could not apologize, as doing so would mean admitting to the accusations.
In his previous life, he was self-disciplined and righteous, ending up dejected. Why should he not follow his desires in this life?
Hadn’t Heaven given him this chance to make up for the regrets of his past life?
Why should he apologize?
Why should he?
Marquis Anping’s lack of affection for Jiang Juan and his insistence on breaking the engagement should not be blamed on him.
Thinking of this, Jiang Nian kept his lips tightly shut.
He resisted apologizing but did not intend to confront them head-on. Thus, Jiang Nian slowly raised his head, and tears began to stream down his face, as if deeply aggrieved and the situation had countless hidden truths.
This tactic worked on Marquis Anping and Jiang Nian’s friends. As long as he displayed this enduring and wronged expression, they would be compelled to do anything for him. However, it was useless against Su Feiyue.
Su Feiyue looked at him and said with understanding, “It seems you don’t want to apologize.”
Jiang Nian, with tears streaming down his face, shook his head, “Prince Consort, I…”
Whatever he had to say, Su Feiyue was not interested in hearing, and lacked the patience to listen. Moreover, there was another person who had run out of patience.
Xue Fangli lazily spoke, “Second Young Master, I advise you to apologize sooner rather than later.”
He had not wanted to intervene, but whenever Jiang Nian was involved, Jiang Juan became particularly flustered. Xue Fangli had no choice but to step in.
What was there to be afraid of?
No matter how much he reassured the youth, the fear remained. He had to step in himself.
Xue Fangli said with a half-smile, “If the Prince Consort hadn’t reminded me, I might have forgotten to make you apologize.”
“I don’t care about his engagement with the Marquis, but since you’ve spoken so much ill of him in front of me, you should apologize, don’t you think?”
Jiang Nian froze, and Xue Fangli continued, “I had merely been warning you before, but today I’ve suddenly decided to settle these old scores with you.”
“There’s another matter that makes me sick every time I think about it. Second Young Master, does the Marquis know that the one you’re infatuated with is actually—”
“Your Highness!”
At that moment, Jiang Nian broke into a cold sweat, his heart almost stopping, as Xue Fangli had hit him right in the most hidden and loathed part of his heart.
The matter of his infatuation with His Highness was something he did not want to admit, especially not to Marquis Anping.
He didn’t want to apologize, nor did he wish for this to be made public. The thought of it being revealed was even more shameful than the Prince Consort accusing him of intentional seduction.
Because his sincere heart had been trampled on harshly.
It was the most humiliating experience of his life, an irreversible event even if he lived again, and it was something he would clench his teeth over when he thought about it in the dead of night.
“I apologize.”
Jiang Nian said word by word, “I am willing to apologize.”
Despite his reluctance and resistance, Jiang Nian had to face Jiang Juan, who had been betrothed to Marquis Anping. There could be no further complications.
No matter how well Marquis Anping treated him, he could not tolerate having someone else in his heart, especially after investing so much effort, he could not let it all be for nothing.
It was just an apology. Just a simple apology.
If he endured it, it would pass. In the future, he would reclaim all the shame, one by one.
Thinking of this, Jiang Nian took a deep breath and said to Jiang Juan, “I am sorry for you.”
“You and the Marquis have an engagement. I should have avoided suspicion and not gotten too close. I…”
He was apologizing to Jiang Juan, but his face showed no remorse, and even a hint of resentment appeared as he looked at Jiang Juan.
His hatred for Jiang Juan was so great that even he couldn’t control it. Despite having so much more than Jiang Juan, he couldn’t help but envy him.
Just like at this moment.
He was envious of Jiang Juan having support.
He was so envious, truly envious.
But no matter how envious he was, it was useless. Marquis Anping was not present; he should face punishment after confessing to the Prince Consort. If Marquis Anping were here, he would likely protect him and attempt to intervene.
Jiang Juan had what he had, but he was still envious.
Xue Fangli said calmly, “If you keep looking at him like that, do you believe I will have your eyes gouged out?”
Jiang Nian’s eyelids twitched, and he hurriedly looked down, feeling a chill inside.
Xue Fangli added, “You truly lack manners.”
After saying this, Xue Fangli glanced at the guards, who immediately moved toward Jiang Nian.
In the next moment, someone grabbed Jiang Nian by the hair. Before he could even scream, he was roughly slammed to the ground, lying there in utter humiliation with his scalp throbbing in pain.
Xue Fangli said expressionlessly, “Continue apologizing.”
Jiang Nian trembled as he spoke, “Bro—ah!”
Before he could utter another word, he was yanked up by his hair again. His eyes reddened, and if the tears he shed before were just for show, this time they were real and flowed endlessly.
“Second Young Master, who are you apologizing to?”
Xue Fangli’s tone was nonchalant, but his voice was chillingly cold.
Jiang Nian, through his tears, said, “Brother—”
Xue Fangli smiled and said, “Wrong.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the guards showed no mercy. They pressed Jiang Nian down again, and with a loud thud, his forehead hit the ground hard. The impact made him dizzy, and he struggled to stay upright.
“Who are you apologizing to?”
Jiang Nian realized something and, moving his lips, quickly corrected himself, “Your Royal Consort! It’s Your Royal Consort! I am apologizing to Your Royal Consort.”
Xue Fangli smiled regretfully, “So you do know.”
“Continue.”
This time, the guards finally released Jiang Nian’s hair and stopped pulling him down. Jiang Nian collapsed on the ground, exhausted from the ordeal. Even though his apology lacked sincerity, his suffering was genuine, making his next words sound heartfelt.
Jiang Nian, with his hair in disarray and his forehead marked with blood, knelt on the ground, looking utterly miserable. He gazed up at Jiang Juan and tearfully said, “…I’m sorry, Your Royal Consort. I shouldn’t have failed to avoid suspicion with Marquis Anping, and I shouldn’t have spoken ill of you to His Highness.”
“It was my fault. I was wrong…”
“I truly was wrong.”
Jiang Juan looked at him, but seemed somewhat distracted.
The situation unfolded as expected, with the protagonist shou being humiliated at the banquet. However, it wasn’t entirely as expected, because ultimately, the Prince Consort and the Eldest Princess were giving Jiang Juan an explanation, and Xue Fangli was supporting him.
Jiang Juan was supposed to have lost his dreams due to fate’s whims, but right now, his mind was occupied with other thoughts.
When did the protagonist shou speak ill of him to His Highness?
Why was His Highness seeing the protagonist shou behind his back???
Author’s note: His Highness is focused on supporting the salted fish roll.
The salted fish roll grasped the key point and began to get angry: ??? When did you see him behind my back???
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