The Young Lady of the General’s House

Chu Xiuming had agreed to go but for such a position as his, he still had to submit a request for a decree permitting his return to the Capital. As the Emperor was eager for his return, this decree was quickly issued. And for Chu Xiuming’s peace of mind, the Emperor also sent wagons of provisions.

However, along with these wagons several civilian officials also arrived. They were said to assist Chu Xiuming settle various matters so after his departure the border town wouldn’t be in disorder. But to say bluntly, they were here to take over the control of the town. All of them were civilian officials due to Chu family’s status amongst military officials.

Chu Xiuming dutifully expressed his gratitude. The civilian officials didn’t meet sudden deaths like what the Emperor was afraid of, Chu Xiuming even prepared accommodation to keep them. And keeping them well he did, as well as keeping pigs. They never lacked food and clothing, they just couldn’t go out. Their monthly report to the Court were written under the eyes of several sturdy men, please write well, we will help you bring it to the relay station.

Even without Chu Xiuming’s order, border town residents had been keeping an eye on them. They were not stupid, they had been hating the Emperor since the siege by the Barbarians. In their eyes, even if Chu Xiuming was ‘raising an arm calling out’ and ‘uncover the banner and arise’, they would still support him.

T/N – It means even if Chu Xiuming wanted to start a rebellion, they would still support him.

(振臂一呼 = to raise one’s hand and issue a rousing call) (揭竿而起 = cutting wood to make weapon, raising a pole as banner, to rebel, to incite an insurrection)

Zhao-momo managed to collect more than ten carriages of things. As they set off, looking at the train of carriages following each other, Shen Jin felt like she was being slapped on the face. She thought Fujun was poor after spending so much during the emergency. He was not poor at all….. he was a bit too wealthy?

That time she was in Chu Xiuming’s arms, she was very carefully trying to tell Chu Xiuming that Moonlight brocade, Floating-light brocade and so on were too expensive. Chu Xiuming ruthlessly sorted her out, “Don’t worry, even if I am poor, there is still money to keep a rabbit.”

She was so shocked that she got up, “You are killing my rabbits?”

“Why do I want to kill your rabbits?” Chu Xiuming grabbed her back into his embrace.

“Didn’t you say a rabbit?” Shen Jin pursued, “But I have a nest of them, and there will be rabbit babies.”

Chu Xiuming was speechless, but there was no good in explaining that by the rabbit in his sentence, he didn’t mean Shen Jin’s rabbits in particular.

He smiled, “If I had no money, how was I able to set up the flowing banquet then?”

Shen Jin blinked, “Oh.” She had forgotten that, then she remembered the accessories. Shen Jin adjusted to a more comfortable position in Chu Xiuming’s arms, closed her eyes and slept.

Chu Xiuming looked at her, he wasn’t sure whether to sigh because she was too relaxed, or to sigh because she was too muddle-headed. She always focused on things that she shouldn’t. However she smelled very nice, Chu Xiuming closed her eyes and slept as well.

Zhao-momo arranged one more maid for Shen Jin. She looked young, weak and thin. She was named An Ning following An Ping’s name. An Ping seemed to know her, she even let go of her position besides Shen Jin. An Ping now paid more attention to taking care of Shen Jin’s stuff, and when Shen Jin went out it was An Ning who followed her.

At first Shen Jin didn’t know what was going on, but later she saw An Ning lifted the half-person tall stone lion at the entrance with one hand, she now saw An Ning in different light.

Shen Jin silently told Chu Xiuming. “Such a big stone, and she lifted it so easily.”

Chu Xiuming’s hand was stroking her back, he had been very busy lately so he could only talk to Shen Jin at night time. He liked listening to her because he could be amused without spending mental energy, it made him very relaxed.

“Do you think she could lift a person?”

“Four or five rough adult men is not a match for An Ning.” Chu Xiuming said with closed eyes.

Shen Jin’s eyes lit up, she laughed, “Fujun you are really good.”

“When can I get the fan glove you are making for me?” Chu Xiuming wasn’t that easy to coax, just two words of ‘really good’ was insufficient. Early on he had heard from Zhao-momo that Shen Jin had picked material and threads to make him something.

Shen Jin didn’t even remember where she chucked the stuff in, “Sleepy, go to sleep.”

“Before we get to the Capital, I expect to see the thing Niangzi is making.” Chu Xiuming didn’t drag the talk, he just gave her a deadline.

T/N – Niangzi 娘子 = Wife, or polite form of address for a woman. It’s also in the title of this novel ‘Jiangjun Jia de Xiao Niangzi’

Xiaobudian had grown a lot, Shen Jin could no longer hold it up. Chu Xiuming said Xiaobudian could still grow some more, it would be taller than Shen Jin when it’s standing.

After the preparation finished, town affairs were all handed to Chu Xiuyuan. Chu Xiuyuan grew up under the eyes of the guardsmen and with this surname they were naturally willing to submit to him, he had military advisors in residence, the town residents had gone through critical moments with him, and Chu Xiuyuan himself was not conceited person. With Chu Xiuyuan staying at the border town, even if the Emperor sent more people, the most they could become was a few extra mouths to keep like pigs.

When it was time to start the trip, Zhao-momo had collected some more things. The Emperor was afraid Chu Xiuming would ran away so some special guards were sent to pick them up. These guards were then ordered to carry things for Zhao-momo. Chu Xiuming could then leisurely hit the road with only 20 something of his own people.

The guards sent by the Emperor were members of the trusted inner circle, many of them were illegitimate sons or brothers of newer officials of the Courts. Legal sons wouldn’t have been allowed the hardship of working outside, while illegitimate sons had to go through some hardships if they wanted to make something of themselves.

T/N – I read 旁系 = side relations are like cousins, uncles, aunts, etc, but here it is contrasted with 嫡系 with the 嫡 means children from legal wife, so I take it means children of concubines.

Nevertheless even for illegitimate sons, they had never worked this hard. Chu Xiuming treated them like rough job servants, and even better was these servants brought their own food and didn’t need to be paid.

The biggest deceit was, Chu Xiuming was completely different from the rumours, he was refined and handsome even if cold, he’s not an inch like a border guarding general who had killed countless enemies! Talking about sophistication, he was more sophisticated than them.

Chu Xiuming’s own 20 plus people were much more relaxed than them. Not having many things to do apart from guarding the General and his Furen, they spent their time hunting game meats to supplement the meals.

At the beginning Shen Jin sat in the carriage, but Chu Xiuming took her to ride on the horseback, so she wore riding clothes everyday for convenience. They were not in a hurry to enter the Capital, everyday they travelled when it was not too hot. She had no stress, often had a lot of game meat, unexpectedly she had grown a bit taller during the trip.

Xiaobudian didn’t stay in the carriage all day long either, it liked to follow the horses. The horses for an unknown reasons were a bit afraid of it. Xiaobudian turned smarter, it usually chased after the Capital guards’ horses, lucky they were quite good riders otherwise they would have fallen upside down.

Shen Jin felt bad for this, she had An Ping give them meat jerky and so on, and firmly scolded Xiaobudian. “Don’t make trouble, they are protecting our stuff, how if they fall off the horses? Not just them broken, the stuff will be broken too. If broken, no bones for you…..” Xiaobudian who was being scolded non-stop crouched on the floor with front paws covering it’s ears.

When she started the scold the guards were a bit touched but at the end they became sullen, did she mean they were less important than the goods. Actually they thought too much, Shen Jin didn’t mean it, it’s just a matter of speech.

Everyone in town knew Chu Xiuming spoiled Shen Jin, now the guards learned it as well. Everytime they came to a bustling place they would stop for a few days so Chu Xiuming could take her around, and when they hunted something he would specially prepared something for her.

Once they saw Chu Xiuming casually ate the roasted rabbit leg that Shen Jin couldn’t finish. They were dumbfounded, even in the poorest families the men would eat first and the women received the leftovers. Nothing like this one who finished his wife’s leftover, especially as he had a high and powerful status.

The General was so casual about it and border town people also didn’t make a fuss as if there was nothing unusual. The Momo besides Furen then said a few words, but instead of admonishing, she was just telling Furen not to forget the hawthorn balls.

Shen Jin didn’t like sour taste, she liked sweet and sour but it had to be sweeter than sour. In the past she was not this picky. At Rui-wangfei’s place she could eat the best fruits, but back in Chen-cefei’s courtyard the fruits given to them were not as good. Not the worst, as there were lesser concubines than them, but certainly not the best. The bottom line was, fruits were limited. Shen Jin was not picky because there was nothing to pick from.

There were not as many varieties of fruits at the border town, but due to the environment factor the fruits were all sweet. Shen Jin liked the fruits so much that Zhao-momo and An Ping thought she was happy to eat everything. Only now they found out it’s not true.

Chu Xiuming liked to spoil his wife, along the way he bought her new things to eat without any care to the price. Since Shen Jin found they didn’t lack money, she ate whatever she liked, sometimes she got too greedy.

Zhao-momo couldn’t bear her disappointed face, but the result of her ‘one eye open, one eye closed’ policy was ‘upper spits, lower pours’ that Shen Jin had to recuperate for 3 days. Since then Zhao-momo bought some hawthorns and asked a doctor to make hawthorn balls. Everytime she ate a bit much, Zhao-momo would watch her taking hawthorn balls.

T/N – ‘upper spits, lower pours’上吐下泻 = vomit and diarrhea.

Hawthorn balls were not medicine but good for health so noone said it was not good, but Shen Jin suffered as she really didn’t like sour. Zhao-momo had deliberately asked the doctor not to put sugar or honey inside, hoping Shen Jin would limit herself rather than eating the balls.

For this matter Chu Xiuming didn’t stand on Shen Jin’s side, he even helped Zhao-momo watching Shen Jin to make sure she took hawthorn balls.

It was already the beginning of autumn when they finally reach the Capital. As this was a personal matter so Emperor Cheng didn’t make scene of it, there was no fanfare to welcome them. Many people was stunned by Chu Xiuming’s outstanding appearance, they didn’t think he was Count Yongning until the carriages drove into Yongning Mansion. The rumours had been very successful.

For the sake of image Emperor Cheng had ordered the Mansion to be renovated. Chu Xiuming wasn’t shy about making demands either, so the Count’s Mansion in Capital had become more luxurious and magnificent than the General’s Mansion at border town.

Chu family stayed at the border the whole years, but there were still people stationed in Yongning Mansion. Didn’t matter whose people they were, noone dared to mistreat Chu Xiuming and others.

Turned out Yongning Mansion didn’t lack servants. The maids at the Main Courtyard were all beautiful, the curvy ones, slender ones all available. Originally they were not willing either because of the rumours, but meeting Chu Xiuming in person make them blushed, and their movement became more graceful and alluring.

The carriage stopped right in front of the entrance of the Main Courtyard, Shen Jin was sleeping that time. Chu Xiuming didn’t even look at the servants, he directly picked someone up from inside the carriage.

The person was tightly wrapped in a large cloak, she wriggled a little like silkworm coccoon. A white and tender hand came up from under the cloak, the hand patted Chu Xiuming’s shoulder a few times, he adjusted the position and the hand was withdrawn. The person in the cloak moved, a pair of embroidered shoes embedded with pieces of jade appeared, swayed a little and went back to sleep.

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T/N – Here we are in the Capital, I feel the plot is thickening.