“Oh, it’s you, Dalang! Come in quickly. Your grandmother has been looking forward to this day for so long. She’ll be overjoyed,” Madam Du said, eyeing Jiang Changyang with a seemingly warm but superior and critical gaze. He resembled Duke Zhu more closely, even sharing an identical chin, but his facial features were far more refined, and he was taller. He lacked the brutish roughness she had imagined. However, his attire irritated her at first glance. Was he trying to flaunt his recent promotion and rewards? Who was he dressing up for?
Madam Du glanced at the large chest carried by his servant and inwardly fumed, silently cursing him as an uncouth bumpkin showing off. In contrast to Madam Du’s scrutiny, Jiang Changyang merely gave her a cursory look, cupped his hands, and said, “Madam Du.” Then he closed his mouth and walked inside without a sideways glance.
Feeling uncomfortable, Madam Du turned her attention to Jiang Changyi behind Jiang Changyang. She asked gently, “Yier, where did you meet up?”
“We met on the way back,” Jiang Changyi replied cautiously, his gaze falling on Madam Du’s elaborate attire. He asked softly, “Mother, did you have guests earlier?”
Madam Du responded with regret, “It was Prince Min. He just left. If you had arrived a bit earlier, you could have met him.” Her tone implied that the Zhu Duke’s mansion was of great importance, as if Prince Min had come specifically to visit.
Jiang Changyang remained expressionless, seemingly deaf and blind to the conversation as he followed the servant leading the way.
Jiang Changyi, however, displayed surprise, curiosity, and disappointment on his face. “His Highness Prince Min?”
Madam Du affirmed with an “Mm,” taking in all the emotions on his face. She turned back to Jiang Changyang, “Dalang, you should stay with us for a while this time. Our family needs to reunite properly. It’s a pity your father and second brother just left on a long journey. Otherwise, we would certainly have a reunion dinner tonight.”
Jiang Changyang replied coolly, “Since the Duke and Second Young Master are not home, I’ll just see the Old Madam and leave. There’s no need to prepare dinner, Madam.”
Hearing his words, which seemed to draw clear boundaries, Madam Du’s mood soured. She still had several matters to investigate, such as who was responsible for the events at the hunting party and this morning, and she needed to prepare gifts for Prince Min. She also wondered if the person before her was a hypocritical and vicious individual. Naturally, she had no desire to properly entertain Jiang Changyang. With a forced smile, she escorted him to the Old Madam’s quarters, signaled her trusted informants to listen and watch carefully, and quickly found an excuse to slip away.
After paying his respects, Jiang Changyang opened the large chest of clothing materials, silks, and medicinal herbs, presenting them to the Old Madam as filial gifts. He explained that he hadn’t visited earlier because he hadn’t achieved success or fame and felt embarrassed to come.
The Old Madam examined him up and down. Apart from his somewhat flamboyant attire, she couldn’t find much fault with him. He had a commanding presence and appeared poised. Her mood, which had been soured by Duke Zhu’s disobedient and unfilial behavior, brightened considerably. She warmly invited him to sit beside her and, gumming her toothless mouth, asked him various questions. Jiang Changyang patiently answered, making the old lady laugh heartily.
Jiang Changyi, sitting alone below for a while, grew bored and found an excuse to slip away. He hadn’t gone far when he saw his half-sister Jiang Yunqing hurrying over with two maids. Jiang Yunqing, who had always been on good terms with him, quickly greeted him and whispered, “I heard he’s here. Madam asked me to come and pay my respects. How is it?”
Jiang Changyi smiled, “He’s wearing a vermilion robe with a golden sword at his waist, even his bootstraps are gold. He brought quite a few gifts for Grandmother. She’s delighted talking to him now. Perhaps we should go in later.”
Jiang Yunqing agreed, “You’re right. It would be boring to just sit there now. Brother, how far did you escort Father and Second Brother? Why didn’t you come home earlier? Prince Min came earlier. It would have been great if you were here.”
Jiang Changyi’s face showed no joy. He simply said, “I saw them off at the Golden Light Gate, then went to the West Market to buy two books. What did Prince Min come for?”
Jiang Yunqing hesitated, “I’m not sure. I only heard he came to see Father. Perhaps it’s good news?” She looked around, moved away from the maids, and whispered to Jiang Changyi, “Some say you’re cunning. Yesterday, when Father was reprimanded, you ran off to avoid trouble, keeping yourself clean without even pleading for him. You’ve been out these past few days.”
Jiang Changyi’s face turned pale as he looked at Jiang Yunqing in shock. Jiang Yunqing winked at him and said cheerfully, “Second Brother, let’s go in.”
Jiang Changyi composed himself and smiled gently, “Let’s go.”
As they reached the doorway, they heard a sharp sound. They hurried across the threshold, nearly colliding with someone. Jiang Yunqing, encountering such a reckless person in the Old Madam’s quarters for the first time, stepped back, ready to scold. Then she realized the person was tall and wearing the vermilion robe Jiang Changyi had described, with a gleaming golden sword at his waist. She quickly swallowed her rebuke and looked up with a sweet smile. At the same time, Jiang Changyi spoke, “Big Brother, this is Yunqing.”
Jiang Yunqing was about to greet Jiang Changyang, but he didn’t even glance at her. He snorted and strode away with an angry expression, not looking back even as he reached the courtyard gate.
“What happened?” The siblings looked at each other in confusion and quickly walked inside. They saw a wet patch on the ground, the Old Madam lying crooked on her couch, her chest heaving with anger as she glared fiercely at the chest of goods Jiang Changyang had brought. Her old face was twisted with rage.
The siblings, both respectful of the Old Madam, dared not ask questions. They pushed each other forward until Jiang Yunqing forced a laugh and went to massage the Old Madam’s legs, “Grandmother, would you like to lie down?”
The Old Madam suddenly raised her head, her voice shrill, “I’m not dead yet! Are you all just waiting for me to die?”
Jiang Yunqing didn’t dare speak and quickly stood up. She and Jiang Changyi stood at attention on either side. After a while, the Old Madam grumbled, “Someone come and throw these things out the main gate! Who needs his worthless goods? They’re not fit for people to eat or use!”
Jiang Changyi was shocked, “Grandmother, you can’t! What did Big Brother do to anger you?”
The Old Madam didn’t answer, only pounding on the couch, “A bull doesn’t know its horns are curved, a horse doesn’t know its face is long! Does he think he’s so great that our whole family has to rely on him? I’m not dead yet, your father’s not dead, and you’re all still alive and well! This kind of unfilial wretch, how dare he call himself your big brother?! Throw it out, throw it out!” She said, beating the maid carrying the chest with her cane.
Jiang Changyi and Jiang Yunqing shared the same thought: how could they throw these things out? It would only invite gossip from others. So they decided that Jiang Yunqing would comfort the Old Madam while Jiang Changyi went to fetch Madam Du.
Meanwhile, someone had already informed Madam Du of the situation. When she heard about it, she couldn’t stop smiling. She excitedly patted the maid who brought the news, “What exactly happened? How did they start arguing after just a few words?”
The maid looked confused, “This servant doesn’t know. At first, they were quite affectionate and happy. As they talked, the conversation turned to the Anxi Protectorate and then to Madam Wang. Then the Young Master said something I couldn’t hear clearly, but the Old Madam suddenly became furious. She threw a cup and scolded the Young Master for being unfilial and disrespectful. She also said something about Madam Wang and Fang Bohu. The Young Master didn’t say anything, just got up to leave with a grim face. This made the Old Madam even angrier, telling him to take his things with him, but the Young Master told her to throw them away.”
Madam Du was silent for a moment, then said softly, “I’ve been dealing with family matters here and have reached a crucial point. I absolutely cannot see anyone. As for the Old Madam’s side, do as she instructs. Don’t upset her, follow her orders strictly. Anyone who dares to disobey the Old Madam, I’ll skin them alive.”
The maid understood and left to carry out the instructions. Outside, she saw Jiang Changyi approaching from a distance. She took a detour to avoid him. Within two cups of tea’s time, the chest Jiang Changyang had brought was unceremoniously thrown out, attracting onlookers. Worst of all, the fine silks, once thrown out, appeared to be old stock – not only lackluster but also moth-eaten. The medicinal herbs were infested with insects as well.
After more than half an hour, Madam Du, with a stern face, directed people to retrieve the items. By early the next day, many households in the capital had heard that Jiang Changyang had a falling out with the Old Madam of the Duke’s mansion. In her anger, she had thrown out the gifts her grandson had brought. Madam Du, caught in the middle, was in a difficult position, unable to offend either side and could only try her best to mediate.
One version of the story began to circulate: Jiang Changyang, still harboring resentment over the past grudge between his mother and the Zhu Duke’s mansion, had always been dissatisfied with them. As soon as he received his new title and rewards, he rushed to show off and deliberately brought inferior gifts, infuriating the Old Madam to the point where she disowned him as her grandson and fell ill from anger. Some even brought up the incident of Jiang Changzhong’s disgrace and being sent to the army, speculating that Jiang Changyang might have been behind it.
With the deliberate spreading of these rumors, by noon that day, the news had reached far and wide. Unclear about the situation, she instinctively felt that Jiang Changyang was being wronged. After discussing it with Madam Chen, she dressed in men’s clothes and, accompanied by Shuer and Gui, went to look for Jiang Changyang at Qujiang Pool’s Lotus Garden. Upon arrival, they learned that Jiang Changyang had been summoned to the palace early in the morning.
Mudan secretly worried if this might be related to the recent incident. Seeing her concerned expression, the gatekeeper hurriedly invited her to wait inside. Mudan thought that given the current situation, it wouldn’t be appropriate for her to be seen waiting at his home while he was away. She declined, saying, “I’ll take a walk around Qujiang Pool and come back in half an hour.”