Chapter 2 - Repaying Kindness

Repaying Kindness

“What living dead? Do not make assumptions.” Jiang Honghao frowned and said, “King Qiyang is just unconscious. I heard that he was awake for a long time a few days ago. He is receiving excellent treatments. Soon, he will be able to stand on his own feet.”

Mu Mingtang became speechless after hearing that. Even though she lived in Jiang’s house for almost a year, she didn’t get opportunities to connect with the outside world. She was originally the daughter of an ordinary family in Xiangyang, and she was not knowledgeable about high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital. So, she could only accept Mr. Jiang’s words reluctantly.

However, the truth was opposite to what Mr. Jiang said. They knew that King Qiyang’s situation was not good.

Although King Qiyang was also a prince, he was the biological son of the late Emperor. The current Emperor was his uncle. Even though he was the legitimate heir to the throne, his mental state had been unstable. Sometimes he was mentally stable, and sometimes he was not. When he became mentally unstable, he intended to harm people. Even his biological father, the late emperor, was almost poisoned by him. Because of that, the former Emperor passed the throne to his younger brother before his death.

Unfortunately, King Qiyang’s illness became worse after his father’s death. There were rumors in the capital that all the people who served the Lord Qiyang’s residence were killed by King Qiyang. As a result of that incident, caretakers were replaced by sergeants.

According to rumors, there was an unwritten rule in the army. As long as anyone can live in King Qiyang’s mansion for six months, he will be promoted and given a hundred liang[1] of gold. However, even if the imperial court offered a heavy reward, no one was willing to take care of King Qiyang. It was said that King Qiyang once joined the army and had the name of ‘God of Killing’[2]. Later, the killing was too heavy, which made him worse. He became so half-dead and crazy.

Mu Mingtang’s mind began to fill with rumors about King Qiyang that she had heard. She couldn’t tell whether they were true or false, yet at least she knew that trained professional soldiers could not escape from King Qiyang. So, how can a weak woman survive under his hands?

It was in vain that I survived such a disaster, and now I have to die under King Qiyang’s hands. Mu Mingtang thought anxiously.

So, she took a step forward and said: “Father, I am grateful to you and mother for saving my life and giving me a home. However, I am not expecting to live a glamorous life. I do not deserve to be a princess. Originally, I am an ordinary girl from an ordinary family. So, let me be a servant girl to serve the Jiang family. I am willing to be a cow and horse”[3] . “What words are you uttering? You are my adopted daughter, the second miss of the Jiang family. How can you be a servant girl? Don’t listen to rumors outside and make assumptions. King Qiyang was the biological son of the former Emperor. After the marriage, you will enjoy all the blessings of a princess. Before the accident, he had made great contributions, and the noble women in the city rushed to recommend themselves. How lucky you are. As your father, I’ll support you.”

Xie Xuanji, who hadn’t spoken for a long time, looked at Mu Mingtang and said: “What my father-in-law said is correct. After my father ascended the throne, he worked hard day and night to live up to the trust of the former Emperor. Over these years, the country has become politically peaceful, and people are living well. The only thing we can’t rest assured of is my cousin King Qiyang’s situation. He is the only blood left by my uncle. He has reached the age of marriage, yet he has never had a wife and concubine around him. My father-in-law took the initiative to marry the second young lady to the king of Qiyang, which was a great relief for my father. After you marry him, take good care of your cousin. In the future, the royal family will not mistreat you.”

Such a scheming man, Mu Mingtang could clearly see what was happening now. No matter what, Jiang Mingwei was the biological daughter of the Jiang family. So, now she, the adopted daughter, was just a speck of dust on their feet.

Mu Mingtang was very self-conscious and avoided Xie Xuanji from the moment Jiang Mingwei appeared. But at this time, hearing Xie Xuanji’s words, Mu Mingtang couldn’t help looking at him.

It’s ironic. The person who was her fiance three or four days ago now told her in front of her father that she should take good care of his half-dead cousin.

How stupid am I. I know that Xie Xuanji has no feelings for me, but I played as Jiang Mingwei for a long time. I thought at least he would give me some face. How can he watch me going to hell? They all are shameless. I only want to live a long, safe and stable life. Why is this happening to me?

Mu Mingtang gritted her teeth and blamed herself.

She knelt and kowtowed to Jiang Honghao: “Father, thanks to your kindness, you saved me once, so why not save me again? If it was someone else, this daughter would not say a word. But King Qiyang is not an easy-going person. Everyone knows that he is moody and angry. When he is mad, he will not be able to tell the difference between the enemy and me. I heard that he has no maids by his side, all of them are soldiers in the army. Even the carefully selected soldiers can’t control him. So, how can your daughter protect herself when she goes there? This daughter doesn’t want to die. Father, I beg you, be kind and save your daughter’s life!”

After looking at Mu Mingjian for a while, Jiang Honghao’s heart filled with a bit of sympathy. But he immediately thought of the benefits that Jiang’s family will get after giving away Mu Mingtang. That moment’s soft heart immediately froze into ice, indestructible.

I cannot be soft-hearted in this matter. Jiang Honghao thought.

“Mingtang, your father knows you are afraid, but the rumors are not credible. Those words are just rumors spread by idlers. King Qiyang is a hero among people. He is recovering from his illness. After you marry him, take good care of him. Do not think too much.”

Jiang Honghao saw that Mu Mingjian wanted to refuse, so he cut off what she wanted to say: “You cannot make a joke in this matter. The Emperor knows that the Jiang family is willing to share his majesty’s burden. The decree has been spread all over the court and the public. If you refuse, it will be a disaster. Not only you would be punished but also the whole Jiang family. Show kindness and gratitude.”

Kindness and gratitude? Mu Mingtang’s heart was cold when she heard such words. She didn’t want to die. She just wanted to live. Was it still her fault? She understood that Jiang Honghao was determined to sell her. No matter how much she begged and how low she was, Jiang Honghao would not change his mind.

King Qiyang was the direct son of the former emperor. The late emperor did not pass the throne to his son but left it to his younger brother. And King Qiyang was still half-alive, and his life was hanging by a thread. No matter how you look at it, the emperor cannot sleep peacefully.

Mu Mingtang didn’t know whether King Qiyang’s current appearance had anything to do with the emperor and him ascending the throne.

So when Jiang Honghao stood up and said he was willing to marry his second daughter to King Qiyang, the Emperor was happy. Mu Mingtang was not originally from the Jiang family and was an orphan without any background. The Jiang family will not betray the emperor, even though they adopted Mu Mingtang. In addition, the emperor did not give up on treating his nephew for many years. So, if King Qiyang could not survive, nobody could blame the Emperor.

If the Jiang family pleases the emperor, the Emperor will naturally give Jiang Honghao a face. Jiang Honghao has been in the position of the deputy envoy of the third division for many years, and he might be able to become the top leader this time.

From this marriage, the Emperor will get a name, the Jiang family will get benefits, and Jiang Maingwei will have a bright future. Everyone will be happy thanks to Mu Mingtang’s sacrifice.

Mu Mingtang’s blood began to boil. She was in the Jiang family for a year and a half. She did her best to please everyone. Yet, what did she get in the end? If someone raises a dog for a year, it will not be killed by the owner.

It seems that I’m not even equal to a dog.

Her personality was not similar to Jiang Mingwei. Yet she did her best to act as Jiang Mingwei. She cut her feet and shoved herself into Jiang Mingwei’s shoe. That was because she wanted to live.

But today, reality is placed in front of Mu Mingtang. They have never regarded her as their daughter or not even as a person. She was just Jiang Mingwei’s stand-in. Now, the original one was back, so the fake one was to be discarded.

Jiang Honghao saw Mu Mingtang kneeling on the ground and didn’t speak for a long time, and he couldn’t bear it after all. If Xiangyang[4] hadn’t been destroyed, if she hadn’t been exiled to the capital, Mu Mingtang would have been a darling who was raised in a deep boudoir, carefree and held in the palm of her parents’ hands.

What parent would want to watch their young daughter marry a half-dead lunatic? Jiang Honghao sighed in his heart, softened his voice, and said, “Your sister came back a few days ago, so we couldn’t organize a proper birthday banquet for you. I will give you a birthday gift.”

Jiang Honghao thought Mu Mingtang would be happy to hear that. But she didn’t say a word and suddenly got up.

Jiang Honghao frowned. Didn’t she understand the rules? When her father talked to her, it was fine if she didn’t answer, yet she stood up on her own?

Jiang Honghao’s face changed slightly. Mu Mingtang hooked her lips and smiled, looked at Jiang Honghao, then turned to Xie Xuanji and said, “Pride and deceive the world[5], I didn’t understand these two words when I learnt them before, but today I can see a living example.”

Jiang Honghao became furious: “How bold are you! Jiang Mingtang, what are you talking about, why don’t you kneel down and apologize?”

“A birthday? Makeup birthday gift? Put away your hypocrisy, I’m not called Jiang Mingtang, and my birthday is also not in June. That is Jiang Mingwei’s birthday, and my birthday has already passed.”

What? Not in June? Her birthday has already passed? Jiang Honghao could not speak.

Only then did Jiang Honghao remember that he didn’t seem to have asked when Mu Mingtang’s birthday was, not only him, but no one in the Jiang family cared.

“You keep saying that this marriage is for my own good. If it is that good, why don’t you let your own daughter marry King Qiyang? I don’t want to hear your hypocritical sophistry. If you want to flatter your boss, you flatter your boss. If you want to sell your daughter, you sell your daughter. If you have to make excuses for ‘I’m doing it for your own good, don’t you feel ashamed to say it yourself?” Mu Mingtang asked.

Jiang Honghao was the deputy prime minister and the head of the family. At home, even Mrs. Jiang dared not defy Jiang Honghao by a word. No one has ever dared to point at Jiang Honghao’s nose and scold him for being hypocritical.

Jiang Honghao was furious, slapped the table hard, stood up, and shouted, “The Jiang family has adopted you to provide you with brocade clothes and jade food. Is this how you treat your savior? Do you think you will marry a noble without being my daughter? Are you worthy?”

“Yeah, I’m not worthy. So, did I beg you to adopt me? Did I beg you to marry King Jin?” Mu Mingtang completely abandoned the disguise and stared at Jiang Honghao without dodging. She could not pretend to be a soft person.

Mu Mingtang had been pretending for too long. To repay her kindness and to keep her hard-won stable life, she tried her best to please the Jiang family. But now she found that no matter how much she pretended to be, the Jiang family would never treat her as a person, so why would she have to work hard and endure cowardly? Jiang Honghao was about to send her to the tomb of the living dead for promotion. Could it be that she was still grateful, thanking the Jiang family for making her a princess?

Mu Mingtang pulled off the hairpin that belonged to Jiang Mingwei’s style, threw it to the ground, and said: “My father said that in life, you could owe anything, but you can’t owe kindness alone. After that, I will break it in two and never owe each other again.” The slender hairpin fell to the ground and shattered with a click. Jiang Honghao was so angry that Mu Mingtang dared to say such things in front of him.

“Don’t we owe each other again? How can you say that? The Jiang family has shown so much kindness to you. Are you blaming us because you could not marry King Jin? Sure enough, you are still coveting Mingwei’s things.” Jiang Honghao said with a gloomy face.

Mu Mingtang didn’t intend to speak again. But after hearing Mr. Jiang’s words, she felt like she was burning all over the body.

Mu Mingtang pointed at Jiang Honghao, and cursed angrily: “You bastard, I covet Jiang Mingwei’s things? Do you really think your house is made of gold, and everyone wants to curry favor with you? I said those words, but I have to rely on the Jiang family to live, and I have to flatter you. What are you staring at?  Do you think Mrs. Jiang, your two concubines, and the servants of the Jiang family really think you are good when they praise you? But clean your eyes and look in the mirror, you are just a hypocrite who sells women for glory, what a villain!”

Jiang Honghao couldn’t utter a single word. He was boiling with anger. Seeing that, Xie Xuanji stood up and wanted to teach Mu Mingtang a lesson. Mu Mingtang turned around immediately, he glared at Xie Xuanji, raised his eyebrows, and said, “What do you want to do? You really deserve to be the sage of love, and you have no regrets when your fiancée escaped from the marriage. I really admire you. I wish you and Jiang Mingwei a long life together and you will never be separated for a lifetime!”

“You are vulgar and ignorant, I don’t know what you mean.” Xie Xuanji looked at her with a frown.

Mu Mingtang used to treat him as his fiancé, so she naturally pleased him everywhere, but now she is about to be his sister-in-law, how can she  become afraid of him?

“Haaaa…..I’m vulgar, I’m vulgar and ignorant? Then what about you? I treated you with sincerity, but you gave me to other men, haaaa…….Let ‘s see!” Mu Mingtang sneered and said.

After saying that, Mu Mingtang tried to go out. But Xie Xuanji, who was insulted, suddenly pulled her back. Mu Mingtang panicked and screamed:

“King Jin, what are you trying to do to your sister-in-law? You said just now, that the Emperor had given a marriage edict for Prince Qiyang and me. Prince Qiyang is your cousin. Then I’m your prospective sister-in-law, so treat me with more respect. If you move again, I’ll go to the Zongren Mansion and sue you for bullying your sister-in-law!”

End of Chapter 2

Translator Notes:

1. An old Chinese unit of weight equal to ¹/₁₆ catty and equivalent to a little more than an ounce avoirdupois / called also tael.↵

2. 杀戮之神 – God of killing – bloodlust person who kills people without mercy↵

3. willing to be a cow and horse – 甘为牛马 – used to describe people who are sincere and committed workers and are ready to do all the work given to them. The term originated from earlier days when people used horses as their beasts of burden to carry loads. The horses were loaded indiscriminately and still they would carry the load without disobeying their master.↵

4. Xiangyang – Xiangyang County was first established at the location of modern Xiangcheng in early Western Han dynasty and the name had been used continuously for more than 2,000 years until 20th century. In the final years of Eastern Han dynasty, Xiangyang became the capital of Jing Province (ancient Jingzhou). Today, it is the second largest city in Hubei by population. ↵