Chapter 179: Hello Chang’an
"IF YOU LIKE THE TRANSLATIONS, CONSIDER SUPPORTING US ON PATREON ads free with exclusive updates."
**Chapter 179: The Young Master's Overconfidence**
When Chang Shi arrived at Ming Jin's residence, a disheveled maidservant stumbled out of the room, nearly crashing into her.
"How dare you!"
One of Chang Shi's attendants harshly scolded the maidservant.
The maid, terrified, immediately kneeled, saying, "... Madam, please forgive me!"
Chang Shi glanced at the maid's untidy clothing and hair, then heard the sounds coming from within the room. Her face darkened, and she quickly walked inside.
As soon as she entered, she saw Ming Jin pinning another maidservant down on the bed. The maid was crying and pleading, "Please, Young Master, spare me!"
Putting everything else aside, the fact that they were at Dayun Temple, a sacred Buddhist place, and that Holy Emperor was here praying, meant that if this affair were to spread, the young master would at most be reprimanded and confined. But for the maidservants, this could cost them their lives!
"Spare you?" Ming Jin pressed the maid harder, grabbing her hair as his eyes darkened. "It’s a blessing that I even want you! And you dare to ask me for mercy?"
"Don’t think I don’t know... how you lowly women have been gossiping about me, saying that I’m incapable of fulfilling my duties as a man!"
The maidservant shook her head, tears streaming down her face. "I didn’t, I never said such things!"
"Did you dare or did you not?" Ming Jin, already furious, pulled harder on the maid's hair, a sinister smile playing on his lips as he gritted his teeth. "You’re lucky today... Let’s see if you’ll be willing to try again!"
With that, he began to tear at the maid’s skirt.
"Scoundrel! What are you doing!"
Chang Shi’s furious voice cut through the room.
Ming Jin froze at the sound and turned to see her standing there.
Chang Shi’s face was clouded with rage. "Get out! All of you!"
Taking this opportunity, the maid scrambled off the bed, not bothering to wipe her tears. She hurriedly bowed to Chang Shi and quickly exited the room.
Chang Shi spoke sternly, "Make sure you control their tongues."
The attendant responded, "Yes," and as she left, she closed the door behind her, hiding the scene inside from view.
Ming Jin stood up, his robe half-unbuttoned, and looked at his mother without a hint of shame. Instead, he asked indifferently, "Why did you come here, Mother?"
Chang Shi stepped forward, raised her hand, and *slap*—a loud slap echoed through the room.
Ming Jin's face turned sharply to one side from the impact, and his already unsteady stance faltered.
"I’m asking you what kind of nonsense you’re doing!" Chang Shi’s voice trembled with anger.
Ming Jin let out a strange laugh, then turned back to face her. "Didn’t you see it yourself, Mother?"
"You..." Chang Shi’s face twitched with fury. "Do you even know where this is? Didn’t the last punishment teach you anything? If you cause trouble again now, who do you think will protect you?"
"Did I want to come here?" Ming Jin’s face showed his long-suppressed frustration. "First, it’s the royal tombs, now I have to stay here for three days, running around all day, unable to sleep properly, and forced to eat this bland, barely edible food... If you really cared about my health, why did you force me to come here?"
That was not even the worst of it—what he couldn’t tolerate were the strange looks the other young men gave him!
Although the details of his injury had been suppressed within the estate and hadn’t spread widely, most of the young men who had been at the stables that day knew about it, and it was impossible to keep it hidden!
He couldn’t stand how those people must have been privately mocking and speculating about him.
This was about his face, his dignity as a man. How could he not care?
"Why did I force you to come here?" Chang Shi pointed outside with a trembling hand. "If you’re not blind, you should be able to see how your two younger brothers are now following your father around. If you keep acting like this, don’t be surprised if the title of heir to the Marquis's estate is given to someone else tomorrow!"
"The heirship has nothing to do with whether I come to the royal tombs," Ming Jin sneered. "Don’t you understand where the real problem lies?"
"If I can’t carry on the Ming family bloodline, then no matter how good I look as the heir, or how close I am to Father, what use is it?"
"What Father cares about most is whether I can continue the family line!"
With those words, Ming Jin, faced with Chang Shi’s furious expression, finally exploded and let out all the frustration he had been holding in.
"Mother only knows how to scold me for not being competitive, but I remember it well: it was you who had people kill my children three times!"
Hearing this, Chang Shi’s lips trembled.
"You still have the nerve to bring up that matter... You’re the heir to the Marquis of Ying’s estate, and you haven’t even married a proper wife yet! If you father a bunch of illegitimate children with women who are either servants or prostitutes, what will happen to the Ming family’s reputation? What good marriage could you possibly secure?"
"I’ve done all of this to clean up your mess. Everything I’ve done, I’ve done for you!"
Ming Jin’s eyes glinted with a sarcastic smile. "You make it sound so good... But if you hadn’t kept insisting on controlling everything, wanting to find a noble family for me, turning your nose up at every eligible girl, I wouldn’t have been delayed in marrying a wife until now! If I were already married and had children, would I be worrying about keeping my position as heir just because I got injured?"
"So, this is what you call 'doing it for my good,' Mother?"
In the end, everything happening now was caused by his mother, who always wanted to control everything!
Looking at her eyes, which now glinted with hatred, Chang Shi clenched her trembling fingers and said coldly, "Am I too picky, or is it your infamous reputation that has caused all the difficulties in your marriage negotiations... How did I end up with such a useless, disgraceful son?"
Since marrying into the Ming family, she had always tightly controlled everything. The one thing she couldn't control, the one thing that had eluded her, was having a son who didn't live up to her expectations.
If only she had a normal son, even if he were mediocre, as long as he was obedient, she wouldn’t be so anxious and scheming in her later years to secure her position. But she had no choice. She could only pin all her hopes on this unsatisfactory son of hers.
Perhaps Ming Jin was right. As the heir of the Marquis of Ying’s estate, all he needed was the ability to carry on the family bloodline...
As long as he could bear her a grandson, whether he lived or died would no longer matter to her!
Chang Shi closed her eyes in frustration and said, "I will find a good physician to heal your injury... Before that, just stay put and don't cause any more trouble for me."
Ming Jin's face suddenly turned red with anger. "No need to trouble yourself, Mother. After a month of rest, my injury is already healed!"
Chang Shi sneered at him.
Talking back like this wouldn’t solve anything.
If he could show the same determination in other matters, she wouldn’t have to worry so much.
Without saying another word, Chang Shi turned to leave, taking her attendant with her. She ordered that Ming Jin’s maids be dismissed, leaving only a young servant to attend him.
Fuming with rage, Ming Jin began smashing everything he could find in the meditation room.
Eventually, he turned to the trembling young servant kneeling beside him. "What are you standing there for? Go bring me my medicine!"
The servant hesitated, remembering how Madam had forbid the use of that medicine after her discovery. "But Madam forbade it after last time... She said you should not take it again..."
"What, are you afraid of my mother?" Ming Jin walked toward him, bent down, and gritted his teeth, "Do you believe I could kill you right now and feed your body to the wild dogs in the back mountains?"
The servant’s face turned ashen, and he quickly slapped himself twice. "I was wrong, I spoke out of turn!"
Ming Jin coldly stared at him. "Where’s the medicine?"
The servant scrambled to retrieve a porcelain bottle from the chest and handed it to Ming Jin with both hands.
Ming Jin poured out two pills and swallowed them, tossing the bottle back to the servant as he sat back down on the bed.
The medicine had a remarkable effect of revitalizing one's vitality. Soon, Ming Jin felt a surge of heat throughout his body, and his lower abdomen began to stir.
He knew very well that he had a natural talent in this area. He had always been exceptional, and with the aid of the medicine, there was no way he would fail now.
He understood his own body. The things that grew on him couldn’t be judged by outsiders or those physicians!
He was confident that after a month of recuperation, a quick test with the two maidservants would prove that he had regained his vigor and dispel any rumors. He would restore his dignity and face.
The growing heat inside him made Ming Jin even more confident, his only frustration being that his mother had taken the two maids away.
Not long after, a young servant entered with a folded letter in his sleeve. "Young Master, this letter was secretly given to me by the young miss of the Feng family. She asked me to pass it on to you."
"The Feng family?" Ming Jin frowned, trying to recall who it was.
Ah, it was the granddaughter of Madam Jie, Feng Min.
Once he placed the name, a shy and timid young girl's face appeared in his mind.
So, she was here at Dayun Temple as well.
Ming Jin took the letter, unfolded it, and read through it.
The young lady expressed concern for his injury, though she seemed unaware of the full details. Like most people, she only knew that he had been hurt during the Mid-Autumn festival at the Furong Garden stables.
Aside from her words of concern, she also asked if he would be going to the back mountains to pick chrysanthemums the next day.
Ming Jin instinctively asked, "Pick chrysanthemums?"
The servant quickly explained, "Holy Emperor has ordered the abbot to set up a prayer ceremony at the Spirit Hall. I heard that the young masters and ladies from noble families will be going to the back mountains early tomorrow morning to pick chrysanthemums to offer at the Spirit Hall."
Picking chrysanthemums around the Festival was a tradition, and with the prayer ceremony being held, the noble young men and women were expected to participate in this symbolic act of devotion.
Ming Jin seemed to think of something, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Alright, then. I’ll join in the fun tomorrow."
...
In the afternoon, Chang Sui’an arrived at Dayun Temple.
Having just returned from the Xuanzhe camp, he had been thinking of his father, who was still out on military duty. On his way back to the city, he decided to stop by the temple to offer a prayer and light some incense.
He arrived only to learn that the Emperor's party was here for the prayer ceremony, and his younger sister was also present.
Chang Sui'an found Xi'er and learned that his sister was currently at the heavenly maiden Tower, so he went to find her. However, he was stopped outside the tower by the warrior monks.
When Ming Luo saw the situation, she approached and saw the tall, broad-eyed young man bowing respectfully to her. "County Princess Ming, I heard that my sister is inside the tower praying for my father. May I go in as well?"
Since they were both children of the Chang family, sharing the same father, it seemed reasonable that he should be allowed to enter. If he could join her, it would also spare his sister from being lonely inside.
Ming Luo’s expression remained serious as she responded, "It’s a good thing that Young Master Chang is so sincere, but the Tower is different from other places. The prayer ceremony inside began yesterday, and if it’s interrupted halfway, it could affect the meaning and the outcome of the prayer."
Her aunt had instructed that no one should disrupt the ceremony over these three days.
Chang Sui'an understood. This meant that his sister could not come out, and he could not go in.
He didn’t press the issue and simply nodded, looking toward the tower.
Ming Luo added, "There is also another prayer ceremony at the Spirit Hall. If Young Master Chang wishes to stay and pray, you may go there instead."
Naturally, Chang Sui'an wanted to stay. He genuinely wished to pray for Chang Kuo, and he also wanted to wait for his sister.
He nodded, "I understand. Thank you, County Princess Ming."
He gave her a polite bow. "I appreciate you taking care of my sister these past few days."
Although they were both from the Ming family, this County Princess Ming seemed fair and strict, quite unlike Ming Jin and the others.
He remembered that his sister had once said that women had it harder in this world than men. For this County Princess Ming to have become an official, it was no easy feat, and for that alone, she deserved respect.
Thus, he treated Ming Luo with extra courtesy.
Jiantong felt some relief at hearing this. It seemed that the young master was maturing.
Ming Luo nodded slightly, about to leave, when she heard the young man speak again, "May I trouble you to pass on a message to my sister? Please tell her that I am here, and that I will be waiting for her here for the next few days, so she doesn't have to stay inside the tower alone."
The young man paused mid-sentence and quickly waved his hand, "No, never mind. She must have missed me terribly after all this time. If she knows I’m here, she might not be able to stay in the tower, and that wouldn’t be good."
Jiantong was left speechless.
It seemed that the young master was a bit overly confident.
Ming Luo nodded with a simple "Hmm," not listening to any further ramblings from Chang Sui'an, and turned to go back into the tower.
Chang Sui'an, missing his sister, stood outside for a while before reluctantly leaving and heading to the Spirit Hall.
On the way, he encountered Cui Lang.
"Brother Sui'an!" Cui Lang exclaimed with joy, almost moved to tears at the sight of him.
At first, he had accompanied the royal entourage to the royal tombs for ancestor worship. He thought all his friends would be going too, but to his surprise, neither his teacher nor Qiao Yubai nor, most importantly, Qiao’s young lady had attended.
When he finally arrived at Dayun Temple, he had hoped to meet his teacher, but his teacher was inside the tower and couldn’t come out. He was left alone, feeling miserable with no one to talk to.
But luckily, heaven had sent Chang Sui'an to him!
Cui Lang clapped his hand on Chang Sui'an’s shoulder, complaining, "If no one had told me in advance, I wouldn't have been stuck here all this time without anyone to talk to. I've been talking to cows every day!"
He was no longer the same Cui Lang he used to be. The spoiled friends he had before couldn’t keep up with his new level of maturity.
Chang Sui'an listened to his complaints and then asked, "Is General Cui here at the temple as well?"
After all, he was also now a member of the Xuanzhe army and should report to his superiors here first.
"My eldest brother?" Cui Lang replied. "He returned to the city early this morning. Seems like he had some urgent business."
Cui Lang didn’t know that Cui Jing had received secret orders to leave the capital.
Chang Sui'an didn’t ask any more questions and accompanied Cui Lang to the Spirit Hall.
As they were entering the hall, they encountered Prince Rong’s heir, Li Lu.
(End of chapter)
►►CLICK HERE FOR ADVANCE CHAPTERS◄◄
Comments
Post a Comment