in2ebook Chapter 305 The Jiang Family
Chapter 305 The Jiang Family
"Who? Who did you say you saw?" Jiang's mother's triangular eyes drooped, and she looked sharp and mean.
Sister-in-law Jiang said, "Third son's wife, the woman from the Si family who eloped with third son."
"Nonsense, she's long dead."
Of course, Jiang's mother didn't believe it. She was the one who personally threw her third son's wife out. When that woman left the Jiang family, she was barely recognizable as human; even a beggar would find her unworthy.
The only thing waiting for the third son's wife was death; how could she possibly still be alive?
Sister-in-law Jiang was still shaken: "Mother-in-law, I really saw her. Who else in the world could have such a beautiful face besides her sisters? How could I be wrong?"
That's true; that woman was extremely beautiful. After arriving in Kyoto, they had seen many beautiful noble ladies, but in terms of looks, none of them were as stunning as that woman.
Thinking of Si Mutong's appearance, Jiang Dalang unconsciously licked his lips.
Mr. Jiang pondered, "Logically speaking, even if they were her sisters, they should be in Lingnan. How did they end up in the capital?"
“I don’t know either, but I’m sure I couldn’t have been wrong,” said Sister Jiang. “Today, the Wan family said some important person had come, and I originally wanted to go and see what was going on, but when I got there, the important person was already preparing to leave. When I looked closer, I realized that the important person was actually… her…”
Jiang's mother still refused to believe it, but Jiang's father thought for a moment and then said.
"I heard that the Si family used to be quite influential. How about this, let someone investigate the situation."
They couldn't go to Kyoto, but asking around wouldn't be difficult.
The news arrived quickly.
The Marquis of Anle's family had its title restored at the beginning of the year, and the Marquis's wife, three daughters, and a young master had all returned.
Mr. Jiang couldn't believe it and asked, "Weren't there two young ladies and two young masters? How come there are three young ladies and one young master?"
The man said, "They are the three young ladies. I heard they are triplets, and they look exactly alike. But I've never seen them, and I don't know anything else about them."
Upon receiving this news, the entire Chiang family felt a heavy weight on their shoulders.
"I can't believe this woman is still alive!" Jiang's mother was so angry that she had a headache. "She's even the daughter of a marquis. If she knew we existed, who knows what she would do?"
Jiang Jianchun scoffed, "So what? We're Third Brother's family. How could he let others bully us?"
Mother Jiang was displeased by this and jumped up, cursing, "Third brother, my foot! You treat him like a younger brother, but has he ever treated you like an older brother? If he cared about that little bit of family affection, why would we be living here? Why can't your own brother come back?"
Originally, when the Jiang family was brought to Kyoto, Prince Ning learned that they were his adoptive parents and family, so he specially arranged a residence for them to live comfortably in Kyoto, and would occasionally go back to see them.
But the Jiang family was restless, flaunting their adopted son's status as a prince. Jiang's mother and sister-in-law were alright; aside from being blinded by wealth and refusing to pay for their meals and purchases, they didn't cause much trouble.
But the three men were different; they frequented brothels every day. Having lived in the village their entire lives, they were all shifty-eyed and unsophisticated, and the women in those brothels kept them entertained.
Jiang's mother would frequently cause trouble for Prince Ning, who could only offer advice and try to appease her by sending her more money and jewelry. He also kept the money from Jiang's father and two elder brothers, preventing them from indulging in drinking, gambling, and prostitution.
However, while Jiang's father and Jiang Jianchun quieted down their grumbling, Jiang Jianxia, the second son, did not.
He has a violent temper and previously had a wife, whom he beat to death. He came to Kyoto, and indeed, he was hoping to find a wife.
But the Jiang family were the adoptive parents of Prince Ning, and he was Prince Ning's sworn brother. How could he possibly look down on ordinary people? Even decent families, upon learning of the Jiang family's sordid nature, would not want their daughters to marry into such a family and suffer.
After a while, Jiang saw that Xia had not been able to get married and had no money to go to such places for pleasure, so he started harassing the local women who were good-looking.
He would verbally harass and physically assault anyone in the neighborhood, whether it was a daughter getting married or a woman with a full head of hair and a clean face.
One day, he saw a beautiful young girl selling vegetables and he actually kidnapped her and took her as his own.
This girl was a woman of strong character. After being humiliated, she learned that the other party's backer was Prince Ning. Feeling that she was powerless to appeal, she actually took a rope and hanged herself from a tree outside the Dali Temple.
This caused a huge uproar, and Prince Ning could not tolerate it, so he immediately ordered Jiang Jianxia to be arrested.
Even after being arrested, Jiang Jianxia showed no remorse and said to the constables who arrested him, "Do you know who I am? I am the second brother of Prince Ning. When I see Prince Ning, I will make you pay!"
Prince Ning was not going to let his subordinates suffer. He had Jiang Jianxia beaten until he behaved himself before he began the trial.
However, Jiang's mother, feeling sorry for her son, came and made a scene, threatening to hang herself. On one hand, she said that the woman was shameless and had seduced Jiang Jianxia, and on the other hand, she said that Prince Ning was heartless and could even harm his own brother.
Regardless of what Jiang's mother said, Jiang Jianxia was ultimately flogged fifty times and exiled to a harsh, cold place for life, where he was forced to serve corvée labor for the rest of his life and could not return.
Jiang's mother was punished with ten strokes of the cane for disrupting court proceedings and provoking the investigation.
However, the punishment of caning for Jiang's mother was borne by Prince Ning on her behalf.
After this incident, Prince Ning ordered the Jiang family to move to the outskirts of the city and had them watched over at all times to prevent them from causing any more trouble, and to forbid them from setting foot in the capital.
Therefore, the Jiang family was extremely dissatisfied when the Prince of Ning was mentioned. They felt that the Jiang family had raised the Prince of Ning, but the Prince of Ning could not treat them well, which was really despicable.
Now they've learned that the third son's wife is still alive and has even transformed into the daughter of a marquis. How could they possibly afford to offend her?
Everyone panicked.
It was Jiang's father who said, "It's alright. Jianqiu doesn't remember anything from the past. She doesn't remember us, and she certainly doesn't remember that girl from the Si family!"
Jiang's mother was uneasy: "He must really not remember, otherwise, given his temperament, he would never agree to marry someone else."
Father Jiang nodded: "Yes, he wants to marry the daughter of the Princess's family. What is this daughter of a Marquis's family? Anyone would know how to choose. Jian Qiu isn't stupid!"
Everyone felt a little relieved.
Sister-in-law Jiang was still worried and said, "But, although the third son doesn't remember the past, what about the young lady from the Marquis's mansion? Since she's alive, she can't possibly have forgotten. Sigh, if I had known, I wouldn't have kept this from the third son."
When they were found, Prince Ning questioned them carefully. But they only said that they were Prince Ning's former family and that they had never married.