After Transmigration, Her Whole Family Are Villains - Chapter 172
Standing at the entrance to welcome guests was Jiang Feng.
Today he was smiling rather foolishly.
He gave people the impression that Commander Jiang might be quite gloomy, a melancholic beauty.
But Commander Jiang’s eldest son seemed a bit dim-witted, with a silly grin and a foolish look.
Jiang Feng loved lively atmospheres.
Every day, besides practicing swordplay and braiding his sister’s hair, he enjoyed going to train troops.
Because there were many people.
Having many people around made him feel secure.
It felt full of positive energy.
He would smile happily whenever he saw living people.
His smile made everyone think he was a bit simple-minded.
Shouldn’t a true big shot maintain a poker face regardless of emotions?
In short, everyone’s assessment of Commander Jiang’s eldest son was that he was rather simple.
Even when he killed Xiao Fenxian, people thought he was foolish – such a beautiful woman, why kill her without a word? He could have played with her first.
Many nobles beat their chests in regret, cursing, “Jiang Feng, you idiot! You dolt!”
Today, coming to attend the birthday celebration of Commander Jiang’s eldest son Jiang Feng, they saw him in person.
Indeed, he was quite foolish.
Smiling like a big idiot, wasting such a handsome face.
Jiang Feng did have some resemblance to Commander Jiang, with similar eye corners and lips, but overall he looked more like his mother.
Commander Jiang’s face could topple kingdoms, while Jiang Feng’s face was simple and honest.
Jiang Feng was very happy.
He knew others were mocking him.
But he didn’t mind.
He knew his father was ostensibly gathering wealth, but actually trying to make him happy.
Since he had told his father his secret, his father had become much more understanding towards him.
This was his father’s indulgence.
His father knew he was tired of loneliness.
He liked lively atmospheres.
The more people, the better – it felt festive.
He didn’t care that people said celebrating one’s birthday so grandly at such a young age would shorten his life.
Having died before, he wanted every day of his life to be brilliant.
The days of death were infinitely long, while the days of life were numbered.
He heard that Mianmian had also prepared a birthday gift for him, specially training her song and dance troupe to perform.
He didn’t understand why Mianmian called those singers and dancers a “troupe.”
Perhaps children just liked round, group-like things.
Today’s feast was still carefully prepared for him by Little Jiang Yu.
Little Jiang Yu really had a talent for cooking. In the past, he had always longed to eat outside, but now that he had the chance to eat out, he realized that the best food was still at home.
Thinking about it this way, Shao Xia wasn’t losing out. Although his sister had a bit of a temper, was a bit slow-witted, spoke harshly, and looked fierce, she could cook delicious food.
Then he thought that if Shao Xia took his sister back to the capital in a few years, there would be no more such delicious food at home. He would miss it… If they could invite Shao Xia’s family to live together, it would be quite lively and nice.
That way, his sister wouldn’t have to leave home.
With Little Jiang Yu’s personality, Jiang Feng was very worried she wouldn’t be able to survive in a big clan.
Although judging by Shao Xia’s character, his family should be decent.
Because he didn’t want his sister to marry out, he suddenly wanted his brother-in-law’s family to all come live with them. Who could make their daughter’s husband and his family all live nearby? Under heaven, only the emperor had such power.
Jiang Feng thought about it and strangely had this idea.
Then he was somewhat shocked, feeling this thought was a bit treasonous.Visitt nov𝒆lbin(.)c𝒐/m for the l𝒂test updates
But then he thought, wasn’t he already a rebel? It was right for a rebel to think this way.
So on his birthday,
Jiang Feng, an older youth still unmarried and without a partner, also developed a grand ambition.
In order to be able to have his future brothers-in-law live nearby, he had to work hard to rebel.
The guests had mostly arrived.
Those who should come had all come.
This time Gong Qichi also came.
He brought General Zi’s adopted eldest son, Zi Wenxin, to attend the feast.
It was Jiang Feng’s first time meeting Zi Wenxin. He had met Zi Ganjiang before and had a good relationship with him.
When his sister got married, Brother Ganjiang had come to the wedding feast and given a gift.
Zi Wenxin looked refined and cultured, like someone with a bright future.
It was hard to believe he was a rebel; he looked more like a young nobleman.
This generation of rebels generally had rather outstanding appearances.
Gong Qichi, a homegrown former top scholar of the imperial examinations, on the other hand, looked travel-worn. In the time since they last met, several more fine wrinkles had appeared at the corners of his eyes, and his eye bags were deeper, making him look sleep-deprived.
Gong Qichi had originally thought that by giving Brother Changtian more responsibilities, he would have a busier and more difficult life.
After all, in this rebellion, Jiang Changtian hadn’t moved at all, just guarding Ming County.
For a normal amnesty, becoming a county magistrate would be quite an achievement.
Gong Qichi strongly recommended promoting him to Commander, advancing two ranks at once.
In officialdom, going from county magistrate to commander was something some officials might not achieve in a lifetime.
He had Brother Changtian come to the provincial capital as well.
With his great talent, it would be a waste for him to remain in a small county.
Before coming, Gong Qichi had long night talks with Jiang Changtian, pouring out his heart and sparing no effort to analyze the complexities of the provincial capital for Brother Changtian, sharing his experiences word by word.
He never imagined that when he saw Brother Jiang again,
Dressed in fine silks and satins, he looked even younger and more beautiful, his skin whiter and more delicate.
He looked more like an official than the local officials of the provincial capital.
The way he smiled and spoke, his subtle expressions, his movements – if you said he was a newly appointed commander, people would doubt it. How could he have such an official manner without decades of immersion in officialdom?
This person must have been born wearing an official’s hat and started training from birth…
If Gong Qichi didn’t believe in Brother Changtian’s nature, he would have been completely deceived by this mansion, beautiful maids – oh, there were no beautiful maids – mansion plus not-so-beautiful maids, this opulence, this colorful scene.
He would have suspected that Brother Jiang had become corrupt and degenerate.
Fortunately,
Seeing Brother Jiang again, apart from looking even younger, his sincerity remained.
Brother Jiang was still Brother Jiang, unchanged.
Thinking about it, it wasn’t easy.
The provincial capital was surrounded by wolves, with covetous eyes all around. This provincial capital was a huge whirlpool, certainly not as relaxed as Ming County.
Brother Jiang must be trying to probe the enemy’s situation, actually using his son’s birthday celebration as an excuse to invite all these people.
This was a feast of Hongmen.
But don’t worry, with him, Gong Qichi, here, he would have Brother Jiang’s back at the critical moment.
Presenting gifts, entering the door.
Taking a sip of tea.
Oh my, this tea is not bad, quite fragrant.
Another sip, ah, really good, aromatic.
Yet another sip, there’s even a sweet aftertaste.
Eating some snacks.
Crispy and chewy, with a perfect balance of salty and sweet, very savory.
Eating another piece.
…
Zi Wenxin was the eldest among General Zi’s adopted sons.
He had heard Ganjiang speak of the Jiang Family before.
People like Gong Qichi, and they themselves, were the core members of the Zi Family.
The Jiang Family was considered a later addition to their ranks.
During a rebellion, it’s impossible to be enemies with everyone. The main enemy is the imperial court, and they need to assimilate some other forces.
Basically, everyone puts on a false front, much of it is just for show, they don’t interfere with each other, just using each other’s names.
They come together due to aligned interests.
In the end, there will be disputes.
A snake picked up on the road, who knows if it will bite you back when spring comes next year.
This Commander Jiang was someone both Zi Ganjiang and Gong Qichi spoke well of.
But Zi Wenxin remained skeptical.
Gong Qichi was so brainless as to leave their young master in someone else’s home.
No wonder a top scholar like him ended up in their rebel den.
What kind of brain did he have?
His heart was too big.
Anyway, Zi Wenxin had never thought highly of Gong Qichi from beginning to end.
Unfortunately, his adoptive father said that although Gong Qichi was sometimes a bit stubborn, he was a man who got things done and was very useful, telling him to put aside his prejudices.
He couldn’t do anything about Gong Qichi, but he had never liked Commander Jiang, whom Gong Qichi recommended.
It wasn’t specifically targeted at Commander Jiang, but he felt that anyone who wasn’t part of their core group couldn’t be good.
However, this Commander Jiang must have something special about him.
After the young master went to the Jiang Family and returned, he became much more talkative, no longer silent until he spoke and then killing a bunch of people with his words, he became much more normal.
His adoptive father said after meeting Jiang Changtian that he was a very interesting person.
He even sent an old, perverted nanny to the Jiang Family.
Having heard so much about him, they finally met face to face.
The moment Zi Wenxin saw Commander Jiang’s face, he finally understood what his adoptive father meant.
It was hard to judge.
Although his adoptive father was greatly talented, he was also partial to good looks.
Not lustful or desirous, but purely appreciative of beautiful things and people.
Just like these adopted sons of his, each one with a good appearance, his adoptive father cultivated them well, teaching them according to their talents, feeding them well, taking meticulous care of them.
Zi Wenxin suspected that if not for the age difference, his adoptive father would have wanted to adopt another son.
This Commander Jiang’s appearance was truly outstanding.
Seeing Commander Jiang’s face,
Zi Wenxin even understood why his adoptive father wanted to send an old nanny to teach their daughter.
Could it be that he simply thought their daughter was beautiful and wanted a beautiful daughter-in-law, wanting to hold beautiful grandchildren?
Come to think of it, following his adoptive father’s line of thought, it was probably exactly like that.
Zi Wenxin found it hard to judge, difficult to sum up in a few words.
Let’s wait and see, he thought.
He was also pulled in to help by Gong Qichi, who said he was worried his good brother might be bullied, so he came to back him up.
Tsk, his good brother with his rosy lips, white teeth, and delicate skin, with that warm smile – which part of him looks bullied? You, on the other hand, wow!
It had been a long time since he’d really looked at Gong Qichi.
Zi Wenxin didn’t like him much, so he rarely looked at him closely.
Looking again, he was suddenly startled – when did he age so much?
Compared to that elegant top scholar he first met, he was now a completely different person.
He felt inexplicably guilty; Mr. Gong had indeed worried himself sick over them.
Watching Mr. Gong there, eagerly eating as if he’d never seen food before, Zi Wenxin felt guilty again. Had they perhaps been too hard on Mr. Gong?
…