Reborn Into The Harem Of A Prince From An Enemy Country - Chapter 10

“My, is General Jiang still trying to shield his favorite?”

The Crown Princess sneered as she cast a signal to Ah-Er, who was holding Jiang Yingnan down. Ah-Er immediately released his grip. Even so, Jiang Yingnan could only continue to lower his head and kneel submissively in place.

“General Jiang, if I may speak bluntly, this son of yours has seduced my husband into staying out overnight not just once or twice. He is merely a concubine-born son anyway. If I had such an unprincipled and disgraceful son, I would have had him beaten to death straight away rather than letting him remain in this world to make a spectacle of himself.”

These harsh words filled Jiang Yingnan with burning shame and indignation, driving him to dig his fingernails deep into his own thighs. He had always harbored a sense of inferiority regarding his status as a concubine-born son, and now that he had been branded as a vixen who seduced another woman’s husband, even he began to wonder if he should simply smash his head against a wall and die.

“The Crown Princess speaks out of turn!” Jiang Zhenxiong’s expression turned stern as he retorted in a resonant voice. “His Highness the Crown Prince is wise and brilliant, possessing his own judgment in all matters and people. How could he ever be easily seduced by anyone? He and Nan’er are in a mutual love of their own accord. Since the Crown Princess is incapable of keeping her own husband’s heart, why come to another person’s estate to throw such a tantrum?”

“What… what did you say?!” The Crown Princess flew into a sudden rage. “How dare you, Jiang Zhenxiong! You actually presume to speak to this Princess with such insolence!”

Jiang Zhenxiong sneered. “Your father is the Prime Minister, holding the same first-rank position as this old man. Even if he himself were to stand before me, he would still show me three parts of respect. Your position is slightly elevated above ours simply because you happened to become the Crown Princess, but do you truly expect the Crown Prince to condone you running amok like this in the Jiang estate? You put on such grand airs, do you really think you are an imperial princess?”

“You… you!” For a moment, the Crown Princess was so choked with fury that she almost passed out, yet she could not find a single retort. “Fine! Very well! We shall see about this!”

With that, the Crown Princess turned on her heel and angrily stormed out, flanked by Ah-Da and Ah-Er.

“Nan’er,” Jiang Zhenxiong’s tone softened immediately as he spoke to Jiang Yingnan, stepping forward to help him up. “Get up now… Look at how your face is red and swollen. Did that shrew lay a hand on you? Are there any other injuries on your body?”

“This child is quite alright, thank you for your concern, Father!” A wave of deep gratitude washed over Jiang Yingnan. At least his father stood on his side.

In truth, though he was a concubine-born son, his exceptional intelligence and profound literary talent since childhood had earned him his father’s favor. Jiang Zhenxiong treated him far more gently than he did the legitimate son, Jiang Chengjin. It was precisely because of this that Jiang Yingnan had dared to harbor hope of securing the position of heir to the Jiang estate.

At that moment, Jiang Yingnan’s mother, Lady Ruan, walked over. “Nan’er, Mother wishes to speak with you.”

“I understand, Mother.” Hearing those words, Jiang Yingnan knew that what was bound to happen could not be avoided.

Lady Ruan possessed a gentle and sensible disposition. As Jiang Zhenxiong’s sole concubine, she had enjoyed his deep affection for many years. However, her discipline regarding her younger son, Jiang Yingnan, was far harsher than Jiang Zhenxiong’s; whenever a strict role needed playing, she was invariably the one to take it on.

While Jiang Zhenxiong, still recovering from his injuries, retreated to his quarters to rest, Lady Ruan closed the bedroom doors to have a heart-to-heart talk with her son.

“Nan’er, Mother will not beat around the bush with you,” Lady Ruan went straight to the point. “You and His Highness the Crown Prince share mutual affection, and Mother cannot stop you. But if that is the case, why has he not given you a proper title and married you as a secondary consort? If you continue to remain in this ambiguous, undefined state with him, you truly will become nothing more than a vixen! Do you have any idea how severely this impacts the reputation of the Jiang family?”

Jiang Yingnan lowered his head in silence.

In truth, he had already discussed this matter with Chu Ziqian. Because he needed to remain in the Jiang estate to fight for the heirship, he naturally could not move into the Crown Prince’s estate as a secondary consort. As for the future, Chu Ziqian had promised that once he ascended the throne, he would allow him to simultaneously serve as the head of the Jiang family and an imperial noble consort. Yet, this sounded so fantastical that Jiang Yingnan did not know how to weigh or choose between these prospects for the time being.

Future matters could be dealt with in the future; for now, he absolutely could not leave the Jiang estate.

“Nan’er, kneel down.” Lady Ruan’s expression suddenly turned severe.

“Yes, Mother.” Maintaining his usual obedient demeanor before his parents, Jiang Yingnan had barely settled down when he was forced to drop to his knees once more.

Lady Ruan opened a drawer in the room and pulled out a disciplinary ruler. “Tell Mother the truth. Do you still harbor ambitions regarding the position of the heir?”

“I do not.”

“You lie!” Jiang Yingnan’s momentary hesitation could not escape a mother’s watchful eyes. Lady Ruan brought the ruler down hard across his back.

Several years prior, Jiang Yingnan had already probed his mother’s stance on his quest for the heirship. On that occasion, Lady Ruan had brandished this very ruler, mercilessly beating him to force him to abandon such delusions once and for all.

“Mother told you long ago! You are merely a lowly, concubine-born son. Your father treating you well is your good fortune, but what makes you think you have any right to covet things that do not belong to you?!”

With that, Lady Ruan struck her son several more times, lecturing him amidst the blows: “If you act like this, you will throw the entire Jiang family into chaos and cause yourself, me, and your eldest brother to lose our footing and our livelihood! Do you understand? Do not think your father is gentle with you on ordinary days; if he ever finds out you harbor such illicit ambitions, he will beat you even harder than I am!”

A heavy, suffocating wave of grief welled up from the bottom of Jiang Yingnan’s heart.

Just because he was born a concubine’s son, was he destined to be base from birth? Why was it that he could neither inherit the title of the Jiang family heir nor openly marry the person he loved?

Clearly, he and Chu Ziqian had met and fallen in love first, yet he was forced to watch as Chu Ziqian married the Prime Minister’s legitimate daughter to consolidate his power, reducing himself to a shameful vixen hiding in the shadows.

When he first learned that Chu Ziqian was to be married, he had thrown a massive fit. Chu Ziqian had soothed him with gentle words: “The Emperor has been pressing me far too relentlessly to marry. I have no choice but to take a noble lady as a mere formality. Rest assured, I promise you I will not touch a single hair on her head.”

Only because Chu Ziqian made such a promise had Jiang Yingnan reluctantly backed down.

Yet, precisely because Chu Ziqian conducted himself in this manner, it had thoroughly infuriated the Crown Princess, prompting her to repeatedly seek out Jiang Yingnan to make his life miserable.

“Mother, I truly have no designs on the heirship anymore!” Unable to bear the burning pain any longer, Jiang Yingnan choked out through tears. “You have seen what kind of temperament the Crown Princess possesses. If I am subjected to such bullying merely while staying in the Jiang estate, what would become of me if I went to the Crown Prince’s estate?! I was left with no other choice!”

“If the man you love is so incapable of protecting you, what is left for you to love in him?! Think this through carefully!” Lady Ruan tossed the ruler aside and turned to leave the room.

In that instant, Jiang Yingnan felt overwhelmingly aggrieved, longing for nothing more than to throw his arms around Chu Ziqian and weep bitterly while pouring out all the sorrow pent up in his heart.

Yet, after an incident like this, how could he possibly take the initiative to seek Chu Ziqian out?

He had no choice but to write a letter detailing everything that had occurred today and dispatch a servant to deliver it to the Crown Prince’s estate.

Following that, ignoring the lingering pain from his injuries, Jiang Yingnan sat in a daze, waiting eagerly for Chu Ziqian to come to him.

By evening, he finally received a return letter from Chu Ziqian.

The letter Jiang Yingnan had sent was filled to the brim with densely packed grievances and emotional turmoil, even mentioning that he was willing to give up the position of Jiang heir if it meant they could openly and righteously grow old together.

In contrast, Chu Ziqian’s reply consisted of only a few sparse lines:

“A-Nan, you have suffered a grievance. That woman has always been so arrogant and unreasonable; just bear with it a little longer. Isn’t becoming the Jiang heir your own aspiration? Why utter such willful words merely because of a momentary emotional impulse. She just made a massive scene, so it is inconvenient for me to come see you these days. I miss you.”

This letter struck Jiang Yingnan’s heart, which had still been harboring a shred of expectation, plunging it instantly into an icy abyss.

Were his own aspirations decided by himself, or by Chu Ziqian? Chu Ziqian spoke thus likely only to serve his own ends.

Yet, purely because of the final four words written by Chu Ziqian, Jiang Yingnan found himself utterly unable to find the resolve to make a clean break with him.

He felt truly pathetic and wretched.