Chapter 79
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Jiang Juan focused on explaining himself, unaware of how ambiguous his words sounded.
Xue Fangli lowered his eyelids, “No matter how much force, you won’t break?”
Jiang Juan nodded and hummed, “You’re holding so lightly, haven’t you eaten enough or are you just not capable?”
“…”
Xue Fangli’s clear-boned fingers suddenly pinched his chin, lifting Jiang Juan’s face. The young man’s eyes were innocent, but his mouth was truly aggravating. Xue Fangli said coldly, “If you can’t speak properly, don’t speak.”
Jiang Juan: “Huh?”
He barely made a sound before he was kissed forcefully. Jiang Juan then understood what he meant, but it was too late. In the midst of the kiss, he could only helplessly endure Xue Fangli’s breath.
This time, as Xue Fangli pressed against his waist, he used a lot of force, his palm kneading repeatedly. The scorching temperature made Jiang Juan feel like he was about to melt.
“Stop, don’t touch my waist.”
Jiang Juan turned his head, panting, starting to push Xue Fangli’s hand away. But Xue Fangli asked, “If not your waist, then where?”
Anywhere but his waist. It was too ticklish. Jiang Juan grabbed his hand, placing it on his chest, pleading, “Rub here.”
The thin silk revealed the softness underneath. Xue Fangli’s fingertips pressed lightly, as if they could touch the delicate skin. He kneaded a few times absentmindedly, then stared at Jiang Juan’s red, soft lips and spoke slowly.
“I am rubbing your chest. But what about you?”
Jiang Juan blinked, looking at him blankly. Xue Fangli lowered his head, his hand still kneading, then kissed him again.
“Give me a kiss is enough.”
At a teahouse.
“Second Young Master, you finally decided to go out after resting for a few days.”
In a private room, Jiang Nian took a sip of tea and heard his maid, Dian Cui, say this. He just smiled at her, “I wasn’t in a good mood these past few days.”
Dian Cui knew why he wasn’t in a good mood. She also knew why their young master was in a bad mood.
—After the banquet at the Eldest Princess’s residence, the young master’s reputation plummeted, and he was often talked about. So he decided to shut himself away.
“It’s good to go out and relax.”
Dian Cui comforted him with a few words and poured him some more tea. Jiang Nian didn’t bother to explain anything to her.
The reason he went out was not just to relax; he had his own matters to attend to.
In his previous life, this summer was not peaceful. There would be floods in Jiangnan, followed by peasant uprisings, throwing the entire situation into chaos.
What Jiang Juan needed to do was “predict” this disaster and then spread the news through the beggars.
In his memory, after the ancestral worship, the Eldest Prince would take charge of governance. He would send Marquis Anping to handle the flood, and Jiang Nian planned to go south with the Marquis, creating the illusion that wherever he went, the rain would stop.
By then, whether it was the court or the rebels, they would all respect and revere him. In the past, he was just the gentle and courteous Second Young Master Jiang. From then on, he would be a revered living Bodhisattva.
He would cleanse his reputation, stand at the top once again, and trample his brother underfoot!
Thinking of this, Jiang Nian curled his lips. He inadvertently looked up and frowned, “Why are there….. so many young ladies and madams here today?”
This restaurant usually did have female patrons, but the storyteller’s tales were often quite racy, so most women would avoid them. But today, the majority of the guests were women.
Hearing this, Dian Cui also found it strange. She looked around and recognized many familiar faces.
“Young Master, isn’t that Miss Cui? The eldest daughter of the Minister of Personnel. Ah, and with her are Miss Gu from the Vice Minister’s residence, and Miss Kong from the Minister’s residence…”
The more ladies Dian Cui recognized, the more shocked she became. They were all daughters of officials, a scene reminiscent of their outings during the Qingming Festival.
“Why are so many young ladies here?”
Dian Cui murmured, and Jiang Juan was also puzzled. Just as he was about to ponder it, he heard a loud “bang” as the storyteller struck the table and dragged out his voice, “Today, we will tell the story of Cui Yingying and Zhang Sheng.”
As soon as he finished speaking, there were sighs of discontent from the audience. The storyteller smiled wryly and said, “Ladies, I know what you want to hear, but I have been telling that story for several days now. How about we change to a new story?”
“But we came here to hear you talk about the Prince and his Royal Consort.”
Jiang Juan’s heart skipped a beat at the mention of “Royal Consort.” He looked over and saw that it was Miss Cui from the Minister’s residence who spoke. Her words were met with much agreement.
“That’s right, we didn’t come to hear about Cui Yingying.”
“Sir, please tell that story again.”
“Yes, sir, we don’t want to hear about Cui Yingying today. We only want to hear about Prince Li, the Royal Consort, and Marquis Anping.”
The story of Prince Lie, the Royal Consort, and Marquis Anping?
Jiang Nian frowned, sensing that something had happened recently. But because he had been staying indoors, he knew nothing about it. After thinking for a moment, he told Dian Cui, “Quickly go and find out what has happened to the Marquis in the past few days.”
Dian Cui responded, “Yes, Young Master.”
She hurried off, while Jiang Nian took another sip of tea. His hatred for Jiang Juan was so deep that just hearing his name made his face twist in anger.
Before long, Jiang Nian forced himself to calm down. The storyteller, with a helpless smile, agreed, “Alright, I’ll tell it again.”
“That day, I was in the middle of a story, and suddenly a young man from a private room on the second floor spoke up. He was extremely rude and said…”
The storyteller vividly recounted the events that had happened in the restaurant before—how the unknown young man rudely interrupted him, acting unreasonably and even threatening to throw the storyteller out. But then Marquis Anping stepped in to stop him, revealing the young man’s identity: he was Prince Li’s Royal Consort!
Seeing the Royal Consort being humiliated, Prince Li also took action, severely punishing Marquis Anping. But the situation took a sudden turn.
Marquis Anping, who accused the Royal Consort of bullying, had actually snatched a woman’s jade pendant and smashed it. The authorities were called to the restaurant!
As for the Royal Consort’s rude interruption, it turned out to be because the story was a malicious rumor, and the Royal Consort was trying to stop it out of kindness.
The twists and turns of the story left the female patrons in shock, and they could only sigh in the end, “There was such a thing?”
“Sir, that sentence—did the Prince really say, ‘In my residence, even if my Royal Consort tells me to leave, I must obey’?”
Hearing someone ask him, the storyteller smiled slightly, “He truly said it. How could I dare to change the Prince’s words?”
Indeed, no matter what, the Prince was like a living Yama. The storyteller had the courage to tell his story but would never dare to speak falsely. Once they confirmed the authenticity of the Prince’s words, the restaurant fell silent for a long time before someone murmured, “The Prince is really henpecked.”
But precisely because he was afraid of his wife and loved him deeply, compared to his usual ruthless and violent behavior, the contrast made people even more envious. The young ladies sighed endlessly.
“I heard people say recently that the Royal Consort of the Prince’s residence is quite capable, managing to keep Prince Li in line. I thought it was just nonsense, but it turned out to be true?”
“I also heard that Prince Li dotes on him so much that he doesn’t even let the Royal Consort set foot on the ground. Whenever the Royal Consort goes out, he wears a veil hat, not letting anyone take a good look at him.”
“This…”
The women exchanged glances and finally sighed in unison, “The Prince really loves his Royal Consort.”
“Sir, please tell it again.”
Someone, whose lead was unknown, clearly enjoyed the story and asked for a repeat. Others chimed in, “Yes, sir, please tell it again. This time, more about the Prince and the Royal Consort.”
“Yes, especially about how the Prince fears his Royal Consort!”
The restaurant was filled with laughter and chatter. The usually feared Prince gained recognition for doting on his Royal Consort. The storyteller, hearing their requests, could only shake his head helplessly and start over.
With a snap of his fingers, the storyteller began from the beginning. Jiang Nian bit his lip, forcing down the hatred and jealousy toward Jiang Juan, and focused on the part about Marquis Anping.
The Marquis had smashed a woman’s jade pendant, which led to a lawsuit, and he was detained for three days.
How could this happen???
Jiang Nian was unsettled, gulping down several cups of tea but still unable to quell his anger. He felt suffocated.
What a disgrace, truly a disgrace.
The Marquis’s actions not only embarrassed himself but also brought shame to Jiang Nian!
Taking several deep breaths, Jiang Nian could no longer sit still. If not for waiting for Dian Cui, he would have immediately gone to find a beggar and spread the news, then returned home.
Fortunately, it wasn’t long before Dian Cui returned, having hurriedly gathered the day’s information. She anxiously said, “Young Master! Young Master—! Something terrible has happened!”
Jiang Nian’s eyelid twitched, and Dian Cui, trembling, said, “The Marquis, the Marquis was detained by the authorities for three days, and when he was released, he went mad!”
Jiang Juan abruptly stood up, not noticing that in the private room opposite him, someone suspiciously lifted a teacup.
“…So that’s the restraint they were talking about.”
Gu Yunzhi murmured to himself. The Prime Minister’s Madam sitting across from him glanced over, coolly asking, “What are you muttering about?”
Gu Yunzhi quickly sat up straight, smiling obsequiously, “Nothing, nothing. Madam, please continue listening. I see you are enjoying the story. Don’t mind me.”
Gu Yunzhi was famously henpecked. Outside, he was the elegant and dignified Prime Minister Gu Yunzhi. But at home, he was terrified of his wife, which was why he was spending his day off accompanying her to the restaurant to listen to stories.
But today’s story was indeed interesting. One sentence, in particular, struck a chord with Gu Yunzhi.
—”Marquis, you should know that in the Prince’s residence, if my Royal Consort tells me to leave, I must obey.”
To be honest, Gu Yunzhi felt the same way when he was at home. His wife pointed, and he followed.
At that moment, Gu Yunzhi felt a strong sense of camaraderie with Prince Li, almost as if they were long-lost friends.
The Prince was also henpecked.
But fearing one’s wife was good.
Whenever Gu Yunzhi acted stubborn, his wife would twist his ear and scold him harshly. Now that the Emperor had made up his mind to crown Prince Li as the heir, knowing that he was afraid of his wife made things easier.
In the future, if things got difficult, they could always complain to the Royal Consort.
Thinking of this, Gu Yunzhi let out a sigh of relief, and the worries about the Crown Prince’s appointment dissipated.
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Obrigada pela tradução!🥰😘