Chapter 78 The more you give in, the more you will be forced to take action
After dark, Jiang Shen and Xie Yun returned.
As soon as the two entered the gate, they were blocked by Jiang Rui. He pestered them with questions, eager to know whether they had won the favor of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. In his heart, he hoped that they would make a fool of themselves in public.
Just as he was thinking this with glee, the butler came over and took the two of them to the study.
Jiang Cheng wants to meet two people.
After arriving at the study, Jiang Cheng first asked about the situation at the banquet and who was coming.
In addition to the newly-passed candidates, Qi Wuhan, Marquis of Jin'an, Gu Jincheng, the eldest son of the Marquis of Changxing, Cui Yan, the eldest son of the General's Mansion, and Pei Qian, the second son of the Duke's Mansion, were all present.
The prince had spoken to these people. He talked to Jiang Shen about the academy, asked how many students there were now and whether the old tutor was in good health. He also talked to Xie Yun about the customs and habits of his hometown. He spoke in a friendly and approachable manner, without any airs at all.
Anyone who has spoken to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has been impressed by his broad mind and insights.
Xie Yun was also a little surprised. He didn't expect that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had such a rich reserve of knowledge. Although he had never been to Jiangnan, he was able to describe the scenery and local customs of Jiangnan.
He had previously thought that a pampered person like the prince might not even have such basic common sense as "rice is grown in the ground". After this conversation, his impression of the prince was completely changed.
The whole banquet was full of joy, without even a single incident.
There was nothing rude in the two men's responses to the prince.
Jiang Cheng also felt relieved and asked Xie Yun to go and rest first. He wanted to talk to Jiang Shen alone, so Xie Yun took his leave first.
Just as he came out of the yard, he was startled by a sudden voice behind him.
"Cousin Yun,"
Jiang Lan had just shouted when she felt Xie Yun stiffen for a moment, as if frightened. She stopped talking and asked him to calm down first. Xie Yun quickly recovered and turned around to grin at Jiang Lan, "Sister Lan, you scared me to death."
“.…..”
Jiang Lan didn't know how to respond to this.
Xie Yun walked to the side again and waved for her to come over, as if he wanted to talk to her in private. Jiang Lan left Gui'er where she was and walked over. Xie Yun first assured her that he had not told anyone about her and Qi Wuhan.
After the banquet, when the two left together, Xie Yun casually asked Jiang Shen what he thought of Qi Wuhan.
He had heard of the Marquis of Jin'an before when he was at home. He had become a god of war at a young age and thought he was an extremely arrogant person. But the last time he met him at the mansion, he seemed to be an easy-going person. He also took good care of the two of them at the banquet today and was a warm-hearted person.
Jiang Lan was very grateful to him for speaking well of Qi Wuhan in front of her elder brother, and she couldn't wait to know what her elder brother thought.
Xie Yunxian comforted her, "Sister Lan, don't worry."
It seems her eldest brother's view is not optimistic...
"What did big brother say?" Jiang Lan asked nervously.
Xie Yun shook his head and said, "Nothing."
Jiang Lan became even more nervous and felt that saying something would be better than saying nothing.
"Has the Marquis offended Cousin Shen before?" Xie Yun guessed.
Jiang Lan shook her head. The two had never met before, so she thought that was the only reason. She explained tactfully that Qi Wuhan might have acted a little ostentatiously before, which led to some gossip.
Xie Yun didn't know what kind of gossip it was. To be honest, he hadn't paid much attention to the other party before. Even the title of God of War was mentioned by others, and he just heard it casually and didn't take it to heart.
Seeing that Jiang Lan was too embarrassed to go into too much detail, he probably guessed what kind of gossip it was. It was nothing more than a common problem among men, that they liked to have affairs with other women. He held his chin in his hand and thought about it, looking confused. He asked again, "Sister Lan, do you really like him?"
Jiang Lan nodded seriously.
"What will you do if he marries three wives and four concubines in the future?" Xie Yun sighed, feeling sorry for Jiang Lan. He felt that she deserved someone better and was not worthy of such a fickle person. He also didn't understand why Jiang Lan was so determined to marry him even though she knew he had such a problem. He felt that with her personality, she shouldn't put herself in such a difficult position.
Seeing that he seemed to have misunderstood, Jiang Lan explained for Qi Wuhan, "He's not that kind of person." After a pause, not wanting to reveal the reason for his behavior, she added seriously, "I believe him."
Seeing her determination, Xie Yun couldn't bear to pour cold water on her anymore, so he comforted her warmly, "If you can't live with him in the future, Brother Xiaoyun will support you, and we won't be bullied."
Jiang Lan felt a little amused and grateful, and her mood was a bit complicated.
When Jiang Shen came out, he was surprised to see Xie Yun and Jiang Lan waiting for him outside.
When Jiang Shen looked at Jiang Lan, he seemed to be hesitant to speak.
Xie Yun yawned and looked very sleepy. He said he would go back and rest first, and then left.
Jiang Lan also realized that her elder brother wanted to talk to her alone, so she suggested going for a walk to the front.
The two of them walked forward slowly for a few steps. Jiang Lan found a topic to start the conversation and asked him how many glasses of wine he had drunk today. She could still smell a hint of alcohol, and Xie Yun also had the same smell on him.
Jiang Shen replied that he only drank two cups and not more.
"Cousin Yun drank two more glasses than me. He has a good alcohol tolerance."
Maybe it was because of the alcohol, but Jiang Lan felt her brother was talking more, making her feel closer. She wondered if she should take this opportunity to confess...
When she was silently mustering up the courage to speak, Jiang Shen spoke first.
"Big brother hopes you can find someone who is devoted to you and can take care of you for the rest of your life."
Jiang Lan's heart skipped a beat. Her elder brother wouldn't tell her this for no reason. Did something happen at the banquet?
"Brother, I..." She took a deep breath and mustered up the courage to speak.
When she heard the next sentence, she stopped there in a daze, at a loss as to what to do.
"Cousin Yun is a good person and is good to you. He is trustworthy." Jiang Shen also stopped and felt that it was not appropriate to say such words. After all, marriage is a matter of parents' decision and he, as an older brother, should not interfere.
After coming to her senses, Jiang Lan asked if anything happened at the banquet. Jiang Shen said no, but his tone was a little evasive. She knew that something must have happened, but he refused to say. Xie Yun probably didn't know either, otherwise he would have told her long ago. Then she could only ask Qi Wuhan.
"Brother, Cousin Yun is a brother to me, just like you. I want to marry the person I love." She said seriously.
Jiang Shen didn't insist on forcing her to be with Xie Yun. Of course, she had to be willing to do so. He asked her to go back and rest early, and reminded her to think carefully about her lifelong affairs.
On the way back, Jiang Lan looked at the moon in the sky, and a faint sadness welled up in her heart.
She originally thought that the biggest difficulty would be getting her father's consent. If her eldest brother also opposed it, the difficulty would more than double, becoming extremely difficult.
She was confident that she could convince her father because he would weigh the pros and cons, but her eldest brother, who was upright and clear about right and wrong, would not do that.
…
The next day, Jiang Lan got up and waited for Yuanbao to appear. She had no appetite for breakfast. After breakfast, Yuanbao finally flew over.
She couldn't wait to open the small bamboo tube that Yuanbao brought, pour out the note inside, and after opening it, she saw a location written on it.
Just as she was about to go out, the housekeeper came to report that Mrs. Du had arrived.
Jiang Lan was a little surprised. She felt that the other party must have something to ask for at this time. As the saying goes, one does not visit a temple for no reason.
She asked Qing'er to find the black-armored guard who was guarding the house, and asked him to go to Huajian Cottage and tell Qi Wuhan that she would go there in the afternoon.
Ever since the Zhang family hosted a dinner, Mrs. Du has not visited again. She suddenly came today. Jiang Lan wondered if it was because of Mrs. Zhang?
When Jiang Lan came over with the housekeeper, she noticed at first glance that there was a young girl standing next to Mrs. Du. She had her head slightly lowered and didn't look like a maid from her dress.
Mrs. Du also had no daughters, and only gave birth to two brothers, Zhang Kui and Zhang Hua.
Jiang Lan probably guessed the other party's identity. After paying her respects to Mrs. Du, she also paid her respects to the young girl, who also returned the greeting.
"Isn't your mother back yet? Why are you, an unmarried girl, allowed to meet guests? What's the etiquette?" Mrs. Du didn't even introduce the young girl's identity to Jiang Lan first. As soon as she opened her mouth, she accused Jiang Lan of not knowing the etiquette in the manner of an elder.
"My mother hasn't recovered yet and needs some time to recuperate." Jiang Lan replied politely, neither humble nor arrogant.
In Madam Du's eyes, he looked frivolous and disrespectful to his elders. She curled her lips in dissatisfaction and said, "I heard that Brother Shen came back a few days ago. Why didn't he come out to see the elders?"
It turned out that they were coming for her elder brother.
Jiang Lan looked at the young girl again and had a bad feeling.
"My eldest brother went out early in the morning and is not at home. Please forgive me, aunt." Jiang Lan made up an excuse, not wanting her eldest brother to be distracted by this matter.
Mrs. Du curled her lips in dissatisfaction and asked in a strange tone, "You went to the Prince's Mansion yesterday, where are you going today?"
Jiang Lan understood. It turned out that he knew that her elder brother had gone to the Prince's Mansion yesterday, so he came to visit today.
"Big brother didn't say anything. He must have gone to visit a good friend. I'm afraid he won't be back until very late."
When Mrs. Du heard that this meant they were going to send her away, she glared at Jiang Lan with disgust, but as the real business had not yet been done, she temporarily suppressed her dissatisfaction and introduced the identity of the young girl to Jiang Lan.
"This is your cousin, she just came from Xuzhou. You are a girl and have no one to keep you company in the mansion, so let her keep you company."
After giving a brief explanation, Mrs. Du stood up and prepared to leave, but was stopped by Jiang Lan.
Mrs. Du's face changed, and her crow's feet wrinkled with anger. "How dare you, a junior, block the way of an elder? Do you know the rules?"
"My aunt just said that she wanted my cousin to keep me company. Does that mean she wants my cousin to stay here?" Jiang Lan was still maintaining outward courtesy at this time, intending to communicate calmly.
Mrs. Du said in the tone of an elder, "I have already discussed this with your mother. It's settled."
"I haven't heard mother mention this before. It's better to wait for father to come back and ask him clearly. After all, if my cousin is an unmarried girl living in the mansion, I'm afraid people will gossip about her." Jiang Lan put away the polite smile on her face, and her tone and expression remained calm.
"When will it be your turn to call the shots in this mansion? Even when your mother is not around, it's not your turn to act tyrannically," Mrs. Du sneered, "You are indeed born of a mother but not raised by her."
Jiang Lan's expression suddenly turned cold, there was no need to be polite anymore.
"Last time my aunt invited us to dinner, I saw that the house was quite big. How come there's no place to stay now? If my cousin really has nowhere to stay, I'll go talk to my father, and he'll pay for the travel expenses and send two people to escort my cousin back."
Mrs. Du was so angry that she raised her hand to slap Jiang Lan. Jiang Lan stepped aside and asked someone to show her up. Mrs. Du left angrily with gritted teeth, and the expression on her face looked as if she wanted to eat someone.
Jiang Lan knew that she had thoroughly offended this so-called aunt this time. Within a couple of days, all sorts of gossip would spread about her being disrespectful to her elders. Not only was she disrespectful to her elders, she had even kicked them out. It was simply outrageous...
She was depressed for a moment, then she realized that she was too polite and should have kicked the person out directly.
Some people will become more demanding the more you give in to them. You must not indulge such people, otherwise they will only ask for whatever they want and be greedy in the future.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
