Chapter 26 Chapter 26 “I thought that my whole life would be…
Just as Ji Yang stepped into the study, a soft call suddenly came from the door.
"The whiter it is."
It was Yin Shuang's voice.
She stood in the corridor, holding a black food box, and carefully handed it over: "This is the midnight snack that our girl asked Wanniang to prepare. She said that the governor has been tired these past few days and she was worried that he would be hungry tonight."
Yue Bai took the lunch box and glanced at the delicate plum blossom seal on the lid. He nodded slightly, his voice softening slightly, "Thank you, Madam, for me. I'm sorry to bother you, Wanniang... You should all get some rest early, too. You've all been suffering lately."
Yin Shuang smiled and shook her head, but her tone was light: "Our girl can hold on." After that, she turned and left.
Yue Bai watched her leave and took the food box into the house.
Ji Yang was flipping through the incomplete map manuscript on his desk. He looked up at the noise and asked calmly, "What's going on?"
Yue Bai put the food box aside: "This is the midnight snack prepared by my wife."
Hearing the word "midnight snack," Ji Yang's eyes paused, and a flash of light suddenly appeared in them, but he quickly suppressed his emotion and said in a neutral tone, "Leave it there."
He paused, brushed his sleeves, sat down, and raised his hand, saying, "Come, grind the ink for me."
Yue Bai stepped forward to serve, and the scent of ink grew stronger.
Ji Yang was silent for a moment, his wolf-hair brush in hand, staring at the blank white paper, his knuckles twitching slightly. He had never been good at drawing. From a young age, he'd read military texts and written orders, each stroke a command. Now, facing a sheet of paper, he hesitated as to how to begin.
He was silent for a long time, then finally picked up the brush, held his breath, and concentrated, and let the tip of the brush move, sketching out a...strange-shaped hairpin stroke by stroke.
He frowned slightly when he saw it and put down his pen in disgust.
Yue Bai came over to take a look and couldn't help laughing: "Commander, I only just found out today that you have painting skills."
Ji Yang snorted coldly, raised his hand and hit him with the pen: "You are the only one who talks too much."
After saying that, he crumpled the drawing into a ball and threw it aside.
"Let's go find big brother."
As the night deepened, the lights in the mansion became sparse.
Ji Yang walked through the corridor with swaying bamboo shadows and entered Ji Xu's courtyard.
The lights here were shining with a soft glow. Ji Xu happened to walk out of Ji Yunfan's room. Turning around, he saw his brother standing in the yard with his hands behind his back. The moonlight was shining on his handsome face, but his expression was rarely hesitant.
Ji Xu raised his eyebrows and smiled: "Zisu, it's so late, do you have any difficult matters to talk to me about?"
Ji Yang looked straight at him and said in a deep voice, "I do have something to talk to you about."
His tone was as calm and cool as ever, but the calm composure between his brows had slightly loosened.
Ji Xu looked at him, raised his eyebrows and said, "Then come over here and talk."
The night wind is clear and the silver light shines into the courtyard.
Ji Xu, wearing a dark blue coat, brought Ji Yang to the stone table under the old locust tree in the yard. Someone had already prepared tea on the table, and the fragrance was slowly rising.
Ji Yang was still a little uncomfortable when he sat down. He tapped his fingers on the stone table and was silent for a moment. Then he coughed dryly and said casually, "Brother, you know... Jiang Ci... I do owe her something about this matter. So, since her birthday is on the third day of August, I wanted to give her a gift."
Having said that, he paused, scratched his head, and looked like he didn't know where to start.
Ji Xu took a sip of tea and looked at him with a half-smile, but his eyes were as clear as a mirror: "You just want to say that you want to give her a gift, but you don't know what to give her, right?"
Ji Yang smiled awkwardly and said nothing.
Ji Xu raised the corner of his lips and said slowly, "Why not give her a set of jewelry? Most women like these things, but the ready-made ones out there look tacky. Why don't we customize a set to show our dedication?"
Ji Yang's eyes lit up and his brows relaxed a little, as if his heart, which had been hanging for a long time, had finally found a place to rest.
"Brother, you really do understand." He let out a long breath, "I just went into a jewelry store on the way and looked around for a long time but couldn't find anything. If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have known how to start."
Ji Xu chuckled, picked up the teacup and took a sip, then spoke gently, "Since you're interested, I'll draw a pattern for you and have it sent to a jewelry shop tomorrow. It will be custom-made according to the pattern, so it's unique and decent."
Ji Yang stood up, clasped his fists and bowed, his expression solemn: "Then I'll have to trouble you, big brother."
Just as he was about to leave, he paused as if remembering something and said, "Afan is already eight years old. I plan to find him a martial arts master to teach him some moves. I have to march and won't have much time to take care of him. I'm relieved that you can teach him. In the future, I hope he can support half of Dongyang for me."
Ji Xu was startled when he heard this, then laughed and said, "Why do you have to let Afan support you? Can't you give birth to a child yourself?"
These words were said calmly, but they were like a stone dropped into a pond. Ji Yang was stunned on the spot, his ears quickly turning red. He stammered, "I... I haven't... thought that far yet."
After saying that, he lowered his head and brushed off the dust that was not on his body at all, as if to cover up something, then turned around and left quickly.
The next evening, it was already dark and the rays of sunlight began to pour down from the west, casting a gentle golden glow on the paper spread out on the desk in the house.
Jiang Ci finished the last stroke cleanly and neatly. She rolled up the water control map she had drawn, carefully put it into a bamboo tube, and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Finally finished the painting."
She slowly stood up, raised her hand and gently rubbed her shoulders and neck, which were sore from sitting for so long, and looked out the window. The evening breeze blew the shadows of the trees in the courtyard.
Beside the table stood a glutinous rice lotus root served in a porcelain bowl. It was just made by Wan Niang in the afternoon. She said it tasted sweet and refreshing, and was perfect for relieving fatigue in summer.
Jiang Ci said to Yin Shuang, "Go find a food box and I'll take it to Big Brother. He's the one who got me in jail, and I haven't thanked him in person yet."
"Miss, how about I go with you?" Yin Shuang had just changed into new clothes and wanted to go with them.
Jiang Ci smiled slightly and said, "No need, I can go alone." His tone was gentle, but with an unquestionable calmness.
Wanniang carefully placed the food bowl into a clean food box, wrapped it in a handkerchief, and handed it to Jiang Ci: "Then come back soon, young lady."
Jiang Ci nodded in agreement, carrying the food box and went to Ji Xu's yard.
At that moment, Ji Xu sat in his study, brush in hand, sketching a pattern for women's jewelry on rice paper. Several sheets of paper lay beside his desk, his lines smooth and delicate, his brushstrokes imbued with his characteristic calm and restrained demeanor. Bai Yang, from outside, reported, "Master, the Second Madam has arrived."
Ji Xu paused, hesitated for a moment, then carefully covered the unfinished blueprint with a clean piece of paper, straightened his clothes, stood up and said, "Please ask her to come in."
The two sat opposite each other at the stone table in the yard.
Jiang Ci put down the food box, stood up and bowed, his expression solemn: "Thank you for saving me that day, big brother. If it weren't for you, I'm afraid I would have died long ago."
Ji Xuwei waved his hand, his tone light but sincere: "Sister-in-law, there is no need to be so formal. Since you have married into the Dongyang Marquis Mansion, you are a member of the Ji family. It is my duty to protect you."
These words were spoken gently, but with silent firmness.
After a moment of silence, Ji Xu asked softly, "What about you? Do you hate Shen Ru'an for what she did? Have you ever thought about revenge?"
Jiang Ci lowered his eyes, his fingertips stroking the edge of the food box, and spoke slowly: "If you ask me if I have thought about it, yes, of course I have. I have also thought about it over and over again, why did she want to harm me, why did she want to kill me, and how should I repay her."
She raised her eyes, her gaze clear but devoid of hatred. "But then I realized she's General Shen's only daughter, and General Shen guards Xiling, the crucial point between Old Xiliang and Dongyang. If I were to strike back rashly, I'd probably anger her father and cause a commotion on the border. Dongyang has Hanbei to the north and Old Xiliang to the southwest. If the situation gets turbulent, the people will suffer."
"So, I can't hate her. Since she's going back, I'll just let it all go with the wind."
She spoke each word calmly and with restraint.
Ji Xu looked at her, lost in thought for a moment. This woman was gentle, sensible, and well-mannered. He whispered, "You're too kind. You'll suffer in the future."
Jiang Ci smiled slightly, his eyes gentle. "But if I act impulsively, the loss I suffer will only be greater, won't it? The first lesson I learned in Zichuan is that no matter how painful it is, I must first calm myself and protect those around me. Now that my eldest brother knows her true face, we just need to be on guard."
Ji Xu looked at her, the soft light in his eyes sank, and finally he said softly: "She was not like this before."
Jiang Ci didn't respond, but simply opened the food box and pushed the bowl of glutinous rice and lotus root over to him: "This is newly made by Wan Niang. I saw you liked it last time. Why don't you try Wan Niang's cooking today? I'll just borrow your flowers to offer to you."
Ji Xu was startled for a moment, then chuckled softly, "Then I'll respectfully obey your command."
A gentle breeze blew through the courtyard, and the last ray of sunlight in the sky faded into the night. The two sat facing each other, feeling peaceful.
The tea under the stone table had grown slightly cold, and the cool breeze blew through the leaves, making a rustling sound.
Ji Xu moved the teacup on the table with his fingertips, a smile on his lips, and spoke softly, "I heard that Zichuan has beautiful scenery, the people there are generous and straightforward, and Liangzhou is wealthy. If you're willing, why not tell me about Zichuan, Liangzhou, and your family?"
Jiang Ci was stunned for a moment, then smiled, the smile spreading from his eyes, with a hint of warmth and brightness.
"My eldest sister has a naughty personality. She never liked playing chess, calligraphy, or painting since she was little. She preferred swordplay and wall climbing. She often got into trouble and got scolded, but my father doted on her the most." Jiang Ci's eyes curved as he spoke. "When I was little, I often hid behind her to watch her play. Later, when my father punished her to copy books, she even dragged me along to copy with her."
"There's also a little sister, the same age as Afan, who pesters me for preserved fruit all day long. Sometimes she pesters me to read to her from a storybook before bed. She forgets everything she hears, but she never gets tired of reading it ten times."
"My father..." She paused, her voice so gentle it almost melted into the night. "He was a very patient man, strict in his administration, and loved his people like his own children. He treated us sisters with a certain sternness, yet also a certain kindness. He taught me to read and write, and often told me about the current situation of the four-way division of the world. Others laughed at me for being a girl and thinking these things were useless, but I knew he wanted me to be able to see the essence of things."
She spoke slowly, with a smile on her lips.
"Outside Zichuan City, the hilltops are covered with Duruo in spring, looking like a rosy sunset from afar. Sometimes, walking outside the city in the early morning, you'd see small animals poking their heads out from the forest, gray and frightening." Her eyes seemed to truly reflect the sea of flowers. "Back then, the sky was high and the wind was pure. I always felt that as long as I was in Zichuan, nothing was impossible."
"I also thought that I would never leave Liangzhou in my life."
Her eyes were bright, and she seemed to have been freed from a serious illness, with a hint of the gentleness that blended the agility and calmness of a girl.
Ji Xu did not interrupt her, but just listened quietly, with a rare peace in his eyes.
He also smiled and sighed softly, "I'm actually a little envious of you. You have parents and sisters, and a family like that... Zisu and I have lived in the mansion since we were young. Although we have no worries about food and clothing,... after all, we lack those worldly touches you mentioned."
Jiang Ci turned his head and glanced at him, then said softly, "In fact, no matter how far one goes in life, what one misses most is the person in whose arms one slept as a child, or the tree under which one one caught insects."
Her tone was calm, but it seemed to pull his thoughts into the distance - the days when they, brothers, were growing up happily.
At this time, outside the courtyard, the shadows of bamboos were sparse and slanted, and the night was quiet.
Before Ji Yang had even finished his steps, he had just entered the courtyard when he heard a burst of laughter spilling through the green bamboo. Standing at the door, he peered through the gaps between the bamboos and saw two people sitting opposite each other under the lights in the courtyard.
She smiled as she spoke, her eyes dancing, and her lips etched with a tenderness and brightness he had never seen before. It was a quiet joy that grew from the depths of her heart, requiring no pretense or restraint.
He had never thought that she would smile like this. He had never seen it before.
He suddenly realized that she had never been so relaxed since the moment she stepped into Fengdu.
Since we got married, I have only spoken a few words to her, and most of the time I have spoken to her were orders, doubts, and suspicions from a condescending attitude.
He was wary of her, and when he saw her, he kept thinking about the nightmare of his three years as a hostage, and he always resisted getting close to her. He never really saw who she was.
But Ji Xuneng is capable.
He could listen to her talk about family matters, let her let down her guard, talk about her hometown, her sisters, the flowers and mountains, and her father.
Ji Yang frowned slightly, and suddenly a sense of inexplicable bitterness arose in his heart.
As he looked at his elder brother, his heart suddenly trembled - it had been a long time since his elder brother had talked and laughed with others so freely and happily.
He couldn't help but blame himself. He usually led troops outside and rarely returned home to have a heart-to-heart talk with his elder brother. Now that he saw that Jiang Ci could make his elder brother smile like this, he felt a little more relieved.
Several emotions intertwined in my heart, and a twisted feeling was stuck in my chest, neither moving up nor down.
Ji Yang was silent for a moment, lowered his head and put down the jewelry albums he had brought with him. Just as he was about to leave, he heard Ji Xu's voice behind him: "Since Zi Su is here, why not take your wife back?"
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