18: Chapter 16: Younger Brother 18: Chapter 16: Younger Brother The murmurs of the common folk were indistinct, but Ji Shuran didn’t need to hear them clearly to know what they were discussing.
She looked towards Jiang Li, who was smiling at her with a gentle and sincere expression.
Yet, it was undeniably different from before.
Without waiting for Ji Shuran to speak further, Jiang Li turned to the still dazed Jiang Yuanbai and said, “Father, let’s go inside.”
Jiang Yuanbai finally came to his senses, glanced at Ji Shuran, and nodded to Jiang Li, saying, “Alright.” He then took the lead and walked inside.
The tips of Ji Shuran’s fingers suddenly pinched into her palm within her sleeve—Jiang Yuanbai’s glance clearly showed his dissatisfaction with her.
Without allowing her to say anything, Jiang Yuanbai and Jiang Li had already started walking inside.
She had no choice but to suppress the emotions in her heart and follow them with a smiling face.
Jiang Youyao hurriedly said, “Mother, look at her…”
“Shut your mouth,” Ji Shuran whispered sharply.
After a pause, she continued, “Just now your father was already annoyed.
When we get to the hall, don’t say a single word.”
Seeing that Ji Shuran’s demeanor didn’t seem feigned, Jiang Youyao grew a bit scared.
Even though she felt aggrieved and dissatisfied, she didn’t dare to show it on her face.
Granny Sun, who was standing outside, twisted the handkerchief in her hands nervously, but Yu Xiang, on the other hand, felt a weight lift from her heart.
Madam Liu had left her by Jiang Li’s side not only to take care of her at Green City Mountain but also to ensure that Jiang Li, having just returned to the mansion, wouldn’t be bullied by the crafty servants.
It seemed that a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old girl, after years away from home without strong feelings for her father and living under her stepmother, would inevitably have a hard life.
Yet who could have known that just as they returned to Yanjing, before they even entered the Jiang Family’s doors, Jiang Li had dealt Ji Shuran and her daughter a covert setback.
Jiang Li’s nature was unexpected to everyone; she was not merely tolerant, but also aptly retaliated.
She was an intelligent girl.
Yu Xiang thought that for Ji Shuran to make Jiang Li uncomfortable would not be so simple.
Meanwhile, Jiang Li followed Jiang Yuanbai as they approached the Jiang Family Mansion.
The Jiang Residence, perhaps because it boasted the Grand Secretary Jiang Yuanbai, sought to display the elegance of literati rather than sheer opulence.
Its arrangements were quite scholarly—corridors and pavilions, flowers and eaves, predominantly black and white, simple yet exquisite and ingeniously designed.
Unique, surely it also cost quite a bit of silver, but it appeared much more noble compared to crudely gilded and silver-plated decorations.
Jiang Li even spotted green bamboos planted in a corner of the garden, exuding a reclusive charm.
After all, she was not the real Miss Jiang the Second; everything in the Jiang Residence was completely new to her.
Jiang Li did not intend to hide her unfamiliarity with the Jiang Residence, observing everything as she walked.
To the serving men and maids of the estate, such scrutinizing eyes made it seem that the Second Miss really had spent too much time in the wild, unaccustomed to wealth and luxury.
But to Jiang Yuanbai, it felt quite uncomfortable.
His own legitimate daughter, however lacking, presenting such an unsophisticated air outside was like a slap to the Jiang Family’s face.
Jiang Li didn’t try to hide it, but Tonger walked with impeccable poise, constantly worried about not embarrassing her mistress, deliberately acting very familiar with the surroundings, which caused Jiang Li some amusement.
Upon reaching Night Wind Hall, two slender maids stood at the door, one on each side, dressed in tender yellow daffodil dresses, looking quite lovely.
Seeing Jiang Li and the others approach, the one on the left started smiling even before coming face-to-face, saying, “My lord, madam, the old madam has been waiting for Second Miss to return home, and at last, she is back.”
Jiang Li gave a glance towards both maids.
They were dressed in finery and spoke kindly, indicating they likely held favor with Madam Jiang the Elder.
She responded with a broad smile to the two of them.
Both maids were taken aback.
So much gossip had spread throughout the residence now that Second Miss was returning after many years.
But upon seeing Second Miss herself, they felt she was far from coarse or untamed, even more pleasant and gentle than Third Miss.
Not a crude country girl after all.
With their own thoughts calculated, the two maids didn’t ponder any longer and welcomed everyone in with smiles.
In the scorching summer, the Jiang Residence remained cool, not only due to the many trees and plants in the courtyard but also thanks to the ice in the cellars.
Night Wind Hall was even cooler than the Mansion outside; stepping in, one felt as if it were the temperate climate of March or April—refreshing and very comfortable.
The hall was filled with many people, and as Jiang Li and her entourage entered, everyone except for the person seated at the foremost cushioned seat, stood up.
“Mother, Lili has returned,” said Jiang Yuanbai as he cupped his hands towards the person seated.
The seated person then spoke, her voice was steady, and it was hard to discern any joy or anger as she said, “It’s good that you’ve returned, Second Miss.
Come here so that I can have a look at you.”
Following these words, Jiang Li stepped forward and slowly raised her head.
The elderly woman sitting there must have been beyond her seventy years, her silver hair meticulously combed and gathered at the back of her head, perfectly neat.
She wore a loose green silk robe that seemed quite comfortable, and the jade-colored clasp gave her an added touch of elegance.
Her face, full of wrinkles, seemed old, but her eyes were bright and commanding.
This was a sharp old woman who, despite her age, still dressed tastefully and was probably demanding and strict with herself and others.
She didn’t seem to exude warmth, but she clearly had enough strength to bear the burdens of a mansion.
She was an intelligent and decisive woman.
Indeed, after Old Master Jiang passed away early, Madam Jiang the Elder began her widowhood before forty and, on her own, raised a man who would become the Grand Secretary.
It was no small feat.
Jiang Li had already heard from Tonger that Madam Jiang the Elder was stern in character, but fair in her dealings.
After Ye Zhenzhen’s death and Ji Shuran’s marriage into the family, Madam Jiang the Elder did not neglect Jiang Li.
However, when Jiang Li caused Ji Shuran to have a miscarriage, losing the Jiang Family’s legitimate grandson, Madam Jiang the Elder was disappointed in her.
When Jiang Li was sent to Green City Mountain, Madam Jiang the Elder did not utter a word of objection.
All in all, the relationship between Jiang Li and Madam Jiang the Elder had grown so tenuous that it practically didn’t exist.
As she was reflecting, suddenly there came the sound of disordered footsteps from outside, accompanied by the naïve shouting of a child: “Mother, Grandmother!”
Jiang Li turned her head and saw a servant lady coming in from the door, with a little child in tow, dressed in a fine gold-threaded coat, around five or six years old, porcelain-white and lovely.
As soon as the child entered the room, he wriggled free from the servant’s grasp and ran straight to Madam Jiang the Elder.
Madam Jiang the Elder hastily had her granny assist him up, and the child, knowing his way around, climbed onto Madam Jiang the Elder’s lap, wrapping his arms around her neck.
Suddenly, he turned to look at Jiang Li and crisply said, “Are you the bad person who killed my brother?”
Brother?
Bad person?
At these words, the room fell silent for a moment before Ji Shuran scolded, “Brother Ji, you must not talk nonsense!”
Brother Ji’s lips quivered, and he looked aggrievedly toward Madam Jiang the Elder.
Madam Jiang the Elder didn’t speak; it was Jiang Yuanbai who coughed lightly before saying to Jiang Li, “Lili, this is your younger brother, Bingji.”
Jiang Bingji?
Younger brother?
Jiang Li glanced at the child in Madam Jiang the Elder’s arms and then at Jiang Youyao, whose lips were turned up in a smile, and suddenly it all made sense.
Favored by Madam Jiang the Elder and addressing Ji Shuran as “Mother” confirmed that the rumor of Miss Jiang the Second’s plot against her stepmother’s unborn child, and the subsequent claim that the stepmother could never conceive again, was false.
Indeed, here before her was the legitimate grandson of the Jiang Family Mansion, the son later born by Ji Shuran, the biological younger brother of Jiang Youyao, the sole son of Jiang Yuanbai—Jiang Bingji.
In an instant, Jiang Li connected the dots without anyone having to explain.
No wonder Jiang Youyao dared to brazenly snatch the Second Miss’s marital arrangement; Ji Shuran had given birth to a son, secured her standing, Ye Zhenzhen was thoroughly a thing of the past, and the elder house had completely turned the page.
This was the epitome of having utter confidence!