“What?”
Jiang Yankun dramatically threw down the wine cup in his hand, and the sound of shattered porcelain marked the beginning of chaos in the Jiang household. However, amidst the chaos, things were surprisingly well-organized.
Jiang Xinyue remained relatively restrained; she only tightened her grip on the Xuanwu Emperor's finger slightly, then relaxed it after the servant reported that the person had been rescued.
By the artificial lake of the Jiang residence—
Jiang Yunxia, having poured several basins of cold water over herself, was shivering uncontrollably, her lips turning purple.
Jiang Yuncai felt heartbroken as she tried to wipe the icy water off Jiang Yunxia's face with a cloth towel, but Jiang Yunxia dodged her: "No, wiping it off would make it look too fake."
In the middle of winter, it was bitterly cold outside. Jiang Yunxia had pushed herself to the limit, her hair freezing and stiffening, hanging limply behind her.
Hearing the commotion of approaching footsteps, she trembled, her lips quivering, her red eyes and nose making it look as though she had already cried her heart out.
“They all say I’m a shameless whore, comparing me to a prostitute from a brothel. I… I’m a disgrace to the Jiang family. Let me die, let me die!”
“Sister, don’t do anything rash! It’s all my fault. If it weren’t for me being kidnapped, the Su family wouldn’t have used our family’s tainted reputation as an excuse to break the engagement. I’m the one who should die! It’s my fault for dragging you down, sister! I’m the one who should die!”
Although the sisters were acting, their words were filled with genuine emotion. Jiang Xinyue was even afraid they might end up jumping into the lake together, hand in hand, such was the intensity of their performance.
“What fault do you have?”
Lady Ruan was so furious her hands were trembling: “Our Yunxia was perfectly fine, yet these vicious rumors are spreading about her. How is it that Su Erlang is portrayed as flawless, while our Yunxia is labeled as heartless and immoral? This obvious bias against Yunxia and favoritism toward Su Erlang—the Su family really opened my eyes today.”
Lady Sun sobbed, appearing as a weak and ignorant woman.
“Alright, alright…”
Jiang Yankun quickly instructed the maids to wrap Jiang Yunxia in a cloak: “Get Yunxia to warm up and tidy herself. A breach of etiquette in front of the emperor could lead to more trouble.”
The Jiang family, deeply favored by the emperor, also faced envy and malice from all sides. Everyone wanted to take their place.
After the sisters were escorted away, Jiang Yanxi sighed: “Ever since bringing them from Yizhou, there’s been no peace. I’ve always prided myself on being fair and just, so why won’t they leave me alone? If we stay here, it might cause trouble for the emperor and the empress. If it comes to it, I’ll take them away.”
It was common for officials on foreign assignments to bring their families along.
There were pros and cons to this.
Being together as a family, without being separated, was certainly better for Jiang Yanxi’s family.
However, they had only recently arrived in the capital, relying on Jiang Yankun to establish themselves, and had not yet truly rooted themselves.
Originally, Jiang Yanxi hailed from the main branch of the Jiang family and had recently arrived in the capital. He had secured the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites through the influence of his cousin, and later, with the backing of the imperial Consort, he rose to become the Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi within just three years.
While he had impressive political achievements, such as bringing down two corrupt officials, these were not enough to earn the recognition of the aristocratic families in the capital.
Most people believed that the emperor was promoting the Consort’s family.
At this point, they wouldn’t acknowledge that the emperor was a shrewd ruler who skillfully utilized talent.
If Jiang Yanxi truly had talent, then why hadn’t the emperor promoted them in all these years? They must be incompetent—mere gluttons and drunkards.
Therefore, it couldn’t be that Jiang Yanxi was talented; it must be that the Consort was powerful.
This powerful Jiang Xinyue was currently rolling up her sleeves, seated on a palanquin, with thirty guards provided by the emperor trailing behind her, heading toward the Su family in a grand procession.
Seeing this impressive display, the common folk stopped discussing Jiang Yunxia’s affair and instead wondered who the veiled beauty on the palanquin could be.
“Isn’t that a maid from the Jiang family?”
“Which Jiang family?”
"Tsk! Of course, it's related to the imperial Consort. Look at those guards—they're from the palace. Could the Jiang Governor's family have them? The maid leading the way is called Xique; she's a regular at the Five Flavors Pastry Shop. My shop is across from Five Flavors, and she occasionally bought snacks from me, but I haven't seen her since the imperial Consort entered the palace."
"Why is the imperial Consort out of the palace, and with so many guards? Where is she going?"
“You don’t know? I saw the emperor bring her back to her family’s residence this morning. The emperor is currently at the Minister Jiang’s residence! I reckon she’s going to the Su family to cause trouble.”
“This is going to be good. Quick, quick… call our friends to come watch the show.”
At the Su family—
Several servants who had spread the rumors stood in the central hall, vying to take credit: “Madam, you have no idea. People outside are saying that the eldest Miss Jiang has already pledged herself to our Second Master Su. With her reputation ruined, who would dare marry her?”
“I even went to the Jiang family’s gate to spread the rumors. They must have heard it; they’re probably panicking right now.”
“In a couple of days, they’ll be begging our Second Master to take her as a concubine!”
“With that kind of reputation, she’d be lucky to be a concubine. Otherwise, she’ll have to hang herself with a white silk.”
“Bang!”
A loud crash came from the front gate, and the red lacquered door swayed precariously.
Since it was the first day of the new year, many of the guards had taken leave to return home, leaving only two gatekeepers on duty.
They stumbled into the hall, falling to the ground, their eyes swollen from being beaten. Lady Su was startled and frowned, rising to her feet: “Why are you in such a panic? What happened?”
One of the gatekeepers, covering his swollen eye, stammered: “There… there’s a group of people outside, saying they’re here to… to…”
Lady Su was shocked: “To see Second Master Su?”
Could it be that the Jiang family was so furious they had come to their door?
Merchants were indeed crude and shameless, willing to throw away all face to cause a scene.
Well, she’d make sure Jiang Yunxia would never marry, not even as a concubine to her son. Let’s see who could outlast whom.
“No!”
The gatekeeper shook his head: “They said they’re here to see the eldest Miss Su.”
And they looked like they were here to pick a fight.
“Why would they come to see Yue’er?”
Lady Su looked puzzled as she turned to Su Ruyue: “Yue’er, have you offended anyone recently?”
Recently?
That would be the Jiang family.
It was she who had used A’da’s affection for her to trick him into persuading Second Brother to elope with Jiang Yunxia, and even to deflower her.
But A’da was dead, with no evidence left behind. How could the Jiang family come to cause trouble for her?
Second Brother hadn’t even noticed, had he?
