Jiang Mansion
Whoosh, whoosh.
In the cold wind, the tattered and half-fallen flag swayed weakly.
Beneath the blood-red clouds, the endless valley was covered with layers of corpses, and the stench of decay mixed with the smell of blood permeated the air.
"Father!"
"elder brother!"
Li Wan stood amidst the remains and broken armor, shouting desperately, but the only response was the piercing cawing of crows searching for food.
After searching for days and nights, she turned over one cold corpse after another and saw countless faces, some pale, some bloody and mutilated.
Among them, she found her childhood playmate from Niutian Village, saw the newlywed husband of the older sister from the neighboring village, the uncle who stole two of her family's geese when the family divided their property, and the local thug who always harassed her...
Whether they were close to her or those she had once despised, they all died in this brutal war.
Finally, she saw a pair of familiar cotton boots, which she had sewn while staying up all night before her father and brother joined the army.
Overwhelmed with grief, she staggered toward them.
Suddenly, a bloody hand reached out from the pile of corpses and gripped her ankle tightly.
Li Wan lowered her head, meeting a pair of bright, bloodshot eyes filled with resentment...
"ah!"
Li Wan woke up with a start, her whole body drenched in cold sweat, her ankles trembling slightly as if still warm from the strong hand.
"The girl is awake."
The maid Xiuzhu walked around the lotus-embroidered Shu screen and entered the room carrying a copper basin and a handkerchief.
Seeing Li Wan's pale face, he asked worriedly, "Are you feeling unwell, Miss?"
"It's nothing."
Li Wan shook her head, took the damp handkerchief handed to her by Xiuzhu, and wiped away her cold sweat.
Xiuzhu felt relieved. The girl had been frail since childhood and had been confined to her room, eating only herbal medicine. Many doctors predicted that she would not live to adulthood.
Sure enough, the young lady fell seriously ill with a cold the month before last, and the household was preparing for her funeral. The master was furious and punished Xiu Tao, the young lady's personal maid who had served her for many years, and replaced her with Xiu Tao.
Unexpectedly, the girl suddenly recovered overnight.
The master and mistress were overjoyed and ordered the servants to take good care of them.
Seeing the girl get out of bed with ease and apply face cream in front of the mirror, Xiuzhu was completely relieved.
"Miss, let me help you with your makeup."
"No need, I can do it myself," Li Wan waved her hand.
Xiuzhu withdrew her hand. Since recovering from her illness, the young lady had been willing to do everything herself, and the servants in her room had all gotten used to it.
"Has Father returned to the manor?" Li Wan asked.
"Master returned early from his shift and is waiting for you to have dinner together in the front hall."
"good."
Li Wan simply tied her hair up in a bun, looked up, and couldn't help but look at the woman in the mirror again.
She was illiterate and didn't know how to describe the woman's beauty. She only knew that although the woman's features resembled her own, her eyebrows and eyes were more delicate, her skin was tender and white as snow, and her waist was slender enough to be grasped in one hand.
She was truly a beautiful and charming noblewoman.
She was just a simple, uncultured village girl from a mountain village called Niutian Village on the border of the Great Jin Kingdom, dressed in coarse linen and with little literacy.
In the 26th year of Jian'an, the Great Jin State went to war with its neighbor, the Northern Qi State.
In the dead of winter of the twenty-seventh year of Jian'an, all men on the border of Jin were forcibly conscripted, including her father and brother.
A month later, the two countries fought their final battle at Yugu Pass. The Great Jin suffered a crushing defeat, with 120,000 soldiers being massacred, including her father and brother.
After the war, she found the remains of her father and brother in the sea of corpses and buried them. Not long after returning to the village, she was killed by a cold arrow that came from an unknown place.
When she opened her eyes again, she found herself back four years in the past, now the legitimate daughter of the Minister of Revenue, named Jiang Feiwan.
Li Wan was in a daze. In her previous life, at this time, the war had not yet begun. She was still in Niutian Village, far away from the capital, living a life of farming and weaving with her father and brother.
Father, brother.
Li Wan's eyes stung with tears. She wondered how they were doing in the village, and whether they had another "Awan" by their side.
She raised her hand and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with her sleeve. In any case, it was good that they were alive.
“Miss, you…” Xiuzhu hesitated as she saw Li Wan’s actions, then handed her a brocade handkerchief and whispered, “Miss, please call me when you use the handkerchief, so as not to get your dress dirty.”
Li Wan was stunned for a moment before realizing that ladies from respectable families did not wipe their faces with their sleeves, but rather with such expensive silk handkerchiefs.
She had no memory of Jiang Feiwan, and in the first few days after arriving, she was so frightened that she didn't dare to say a word.
Even though she has been living the life of a noble lady for a month, deep down she still has the mannerisms of a coarse country girl.
Fortunately, Minister Jiang indulged and spoiled her, and never suspected her in the slightest.
After Li Wan finished packing, she led Xiu Zhu out of Changfu Garden, where she lived.
The early winter morning light was slightly chilly. Li Wan, wearing an embroidered light blue cloak, walked through the long covered corridor.
Outside the corridor, artificial hills rise in verdant layers, and winding streams meander around. Even though she had seen them many times before, she was still amazed by the scenery of the mansion. It was like a fairyland she had never seen before, leaving her both amazed and uneasy.
"Wan-jie'er has arrived."
The old woman guarding the door lifted the curtain, and a warm breeze wafted in from inside.
The main hall was elegantly furnished, with a round rosewood table in the center, covered with a dazzling array of celadon bowls and plates, steaming gently rising from them.
At the head of the round table sat Jiangnan Yue, the Minister of Revenue, and his wife, Madam Zou.
"Father, Mother."
Li Wan was not used to the way noble ladies bowed, and her movements were very stiff.
"Please sit down." Jiang Nanyue was dressed in the official robes of a second-rank court official. He had a short beard and thick eyebrows. His originally serious face softened considerably when he saw his daughter.
"Wan'er, the master has been away on official business for several days and has been thinking of you a lot. As soon as he returned, he ordered the kitchen to prepare your favorite dishes."
Ms. Zou smiled and said that she was slightly plump, wearing a crimson-purple brocade cotton shirt with gold thread, and a red gold hairpin on her head, which made her look rich and gorgeous.
Some time ago, Li Wan learned a lot about the Jiang family and knew that Jiang Feiwan was not Zou's biological son, but was born to Jiang Nanyue's first wife, Chen. Chen died shortly after giving birth to Jiang Feiwan. Two years later, Jiang Nanyue remarried Zou, who gave birth to his legitimate son, Jiang Feiche.
Remembering her younger brother whom she had only met once, Li Wan asked casually, "Isn't my brother going to eat?"
“Your younger brother is still studying in the palace, so there’s no need to wait for him.”
When Ms. Zou mentioned her son, a look of pride appeared on her face.
Although she was a second wife, the original Chen only gave birth to one daughter before leaving. Her son, Che'er, was born as the eldest son of the legitimate wife and the future master of the Jiang family.
Moreover, Che'er has been ambitious since childhood. Now, at only fourteen years old, she has already entered the palace as a companion to the princes, making her quite famous among the noble ladies in the capital.
Li Wan had no idea what was going on in Zou's mind. After politely asking her question, she was drawn to the dishes on the table.
Even though these were Jiang Feiwan's favorites, Li Wan didn't mind. Compared to the wild vegetables and coarse rice she used to eat, these were delicacies from land and sea.
When she first arrived at the Jiang residence, she was weak and couldn't swallow her food, her mouth watering constantly. Now that she has recovered, she looks forward to mealtimes every day.
Looking at the tender, glistening venison on the table, I couldn't resist picking up my silver chopsticks, adding a slice, and putting it in my mouth.
After swallowing the venison, she realized that Minister Jiang and Madam Zou had not yet picked up their chopsticks. Moreover, in wealthy households, servants had to serve the dishes to them before they could take any more food.
Li Wan looked at Jiang Nanyue and Zou Shi with a guilty conscience.
Fortunately, they were talking and didn't notice such a small matter. Only the old woman behind her quickly put a few more slices of venison into Li Wan's plate, afraid that she had neglected to serve her master well.
"Master, how did the inspection in Zhou County go? Why are you two days late?" asked Madam Zou.
Jiang Nanyue put down his teacup and sighed softly, "Indeed, some unexpected things happened. The magistrate of Linan County embezzled disaster relief funds. After being discovered, he resorted to desperate measures and brought his servants to surround us officials in the county government office."
"It was so dangerous!" Zou almost overturned the teacup in her hand.
Zou's soft gasp caught Li Wan's attention. Although she didn't understand what they were talking about, she realized that it would be inappropriate to just keep eating at this moment, so she quickly put down her chopsticks.
Jiangnan Yue thought his daughter was worried about him, so he comforted her, "Don't worry, fortunately Xie Qi, the Vice Minister of War, arrived in time to help us get out of trouble and even beheaded the magistrate of Linan County on the spot."
Jiang Nanyue appeared calm on the surface, but in reality, he was still trembling with fear when he thought about the scene. If Xie Qi had arrived even a moment later, they would probably have lost their lives there.
The debt I owe Xie Qi this time is probably impossible to repay.
Ms. Zou clasped her hands together, "Thank Buddha, thank goodness..."
"Smack!"
A sudden, abrupt slamming sound rang out, causing the celadon bowls and plates on the table to clang loudly.
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw that Li Wan had stood up excitedly, her cheeks flushed red.
"Who? Who did you just say?"
At this moment, she no longer cared about etiquette or respectful titles; just that name alone made her blood boil, and she wished she could tear that person to pieces.
The maids and servants in the room all held their breath, and even the crackling of the silver charcoal in the stove seemed to stop.
Zou's clasped hands froze in mid-air, and Jiang Nanyue also paused noticeably.
Li Wan's chest heaved violently, her palm clenched into a fist as she slammed her hand on the table. She asked, word by word, "Is it the eldest son of the Marquis of Ningyuan's mansion, named Xie Qi, courtesy name Yanjin, who topped the imperial examination in the seventeenth year of Jian'an... that Xie Qi?"
Others: ...
Zou was the first to come to her senses. When she saw Li Wan's flushed face, she immediately understood and quickly pulled Li Wan to sit down.
"It's him, it's him! Sister Wan, don't get excited, take care of yourself."
She looked at Jiang Nanyue and said with a smile, "I didn't expect that Miss Wan, who has been living in her boudoir for so long, would also know the name of Young Master Xie. I have seen this person from afar, and I could tell from his figure that he was extraordinary. Isn't that right, Master?"
Jiangnan Yue stroked his beard. Xie Qi was indeed one of the best young men in the dynasty. Putting aside his noble birth, his talent, wisdom, and martial arts were all top-notch. However, his scheming and cunning were too much to guess.
Seeing that Jiang Nanyue remained silent, Zou said meaningfully, "I heard from Consort Hui in the palace that Princess Heshun is fond of him, so he must be a talented man."
Talented, my foot!
Li Wan pinched her tiger's mouth hard to hold back from cursing out loud.
How did a country girl like her know about the high and mighty Young Master Xie?
In his previous life, the name of General Xie Qi was known to everyone in the Great Jin Kingdom.
At the beginning of the war between the Great Jin and the Northern Qi, Xie Qi, as the commander of the Jin Lin Army, won many battles and drove the strong Northern Qi army to the outside of Yugu Pass in less than a year.
With victory in sight, the people of Jin, though helpless against the court's sudden conscription, still held onto hope.
Unexpectedly!
In the final battle, the Jinlin Army was completely annihilated, with 120,000 soldiers losing their lives at Yugu Pass.
After the war, the imperial court issued a letter of apology, and only then did people learn the reasons for the defeat.
On the eve of the great battle, Commander-in-Chief Xie Qi learned of the death of his beloved. Overwhelmed with grief, he disregarded national affairs and the war situation and committed suicide to follow his lover.
The Jinlin Army was leaderless, which allowed the Northern Qi to take advantage of the situation and annihilate them.
Does such a selfish and capricious person, who only cares about his own romantic relationships, deserve the title of "talented man"?
For the sake of a woman, he disregarded the lives of countless soldiers. Does he deserve the title of "general"?
They don't even deserve to be called human beings!
Li Wan trembled with hatred, wishing that if Xie Qi were in front of her right now, she would pounce on him and rip out his heart, liver, and lungs with her bare hands, then throw them to the dogs!
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