The Golden Cane and the Wild Rose - Chapter 51

Chapter 51

“Why did you suddenly decide you want to marry me?”

“It’s not sudden at all. I’ve been looking for a spouse for a long time.”

“Gu Hongfei was one of the people you were considering.”

“Yes, is that a problem? I met him before I met you, and he fit my criteria.”

“Then why did you choose me now?”

“Oh, you’re asking on purpose!”

“I don’t know, Ah Ran. I really don’t know why you decided to marry me. I need to make sure you’re making the right choice, so you don’t regret it later.”

“How can a lifelong decision be based on just one thing? It’s because you meet my standards and you’re the person I love. If I had to pick one reason, it’s that you love me enough too, so I won’t regret it.”

“Is it because I jumped into the sea to save you that you feel I love you enough?”

“Isn’t it?”

“Isn’t it?”

Jiang Musheng didn’t answer directly. Instead, she said, “Ah Ran, I think you’re still too young. You’re only one year older than Xueyu.”

“But I’m an adult. We can wait for the legal age, unless you don’t want to marry me.”

“Ah Ran, we’re both women. Hong Kong doesn’t issue same-sex marriage licenses. If we were to marry, it would be an invalid marriage.”

“Oh.”

“…I see.”

“I didn’t think about that. Maybe I really was being impulsive,” Yun Ran said, her voice filled with disappointment.

“Ah Ran, don’t be discouraged. If Hong Kong won’t recognize it, we can find a country that does and get a license there. We can get married in a few years, if you still want to.”

“Musheng, why do you keep saying things like that? Of course I still want to. I’ll still want to in a few years. But at least what you said this time is better than last time; you’re finally not telling me to go find someone else.”

“Ah Ran, I think you might be feeling this way out of gratitude for me saving your life.”

“But you’ve saved me a few times before, and I didn’t want to marry you then.”

Jiang Musheng was momentarily speechless.

“Are you really not trying to give me your heart in return for me jumping into the sea to save you?”

“That event was a catalyst. I want to give you my heart. Are you unwilling to accept?”

“I…”

“You’re so strange. Before, when I wanted to leave, you wouldn’t let me go. Now that I want to marry you, you’re full of doubts. You don’t trust me.”

“Ah Ran, it’s not that I don’t trust you. I just feel you’re still young, you haven’t met enough good people, and you don’t have enough dating experience…”

“But you don’t have any dating experience either, do you?” Yun Ran interrupted her. “So some things don’t necessarily grow with age. Unless you think you’ll find someone better than me, and you want to marry them instead.”

Jiang Musheng said, “Ah Ran, you know that’s not what I mean.”

“I know. Then do you know what I mean?”

“I do.”

“I’m afraid you don’t fully understand, so let me make it clear: I’m serious about marrying you. I want to have a real home, with you.”

“Okay.”

“I want you to remember that. Always remember.”

“I will.”

“Can Xueyu and I come back now?”

“Wait a little longer. Let me get everything perfectly prepared.”

This was Jiang Musheng’s bottom line. No matter how much she missed them, she didn’t want to put her lover or her sister in a dangerous situation.

“Okay, I won’t pressure you. You must be tired. Get some rest. Goodnight.”

Yun Ran hung up the phone.

Jiang Musheng put the phone down, but she couldn’t rest. She got up, left her room, and knocked on Zheng Hangyi’s door.

Zheng Hangyi was about to turn off the lights and go to sleep, but he still got up to open the door and let Jiang Musheng in.

Jiang Musheng came in, clearly with something important to discuss.

“What’s wrong, Musheng?” Zheng Hangyi asked, trying to sound energetic.

“Ah Ran and Xueyu want to come back to Hong Kong.”

“That’s a good thing! It means they miss you. Let them come back.”

“I still feel there are some security risks.”

“Are you talking about your uncles and cousins?”

Jiang Musheng nodded.

“What are you planning to do?”

“We managed to talk some sense into Jiang Jiaming today. Maybe we can convince Second Uncle’s family. As long as we give them some benefits, what do you think, Hangyi?”

“I think that’s a good idea. There are no eternal enemies, only eternal interests. Once you’ve settled Second Uncle’s family, the others won’t dare to act rashly. They’re all conservatives. All these years, Jiang Jiaming has been the one at the forefront, leading the charge. If Jiang Jiaming switches sides, they’ll be out of ideas.”

“Then I’ll go talk to Second Uncle’s family tomorrow.”

The next day, Jiang Musheng and Zheng Hangyi went to Second Uncle’s house and found that Jiang Jiaming had been obediently staying at home. Second Aunt was ill, and Second Uncle was old, which was why she had been able to convince Jiang Jiaming not to be cannon fodder the day before.

When Jiang Jiaming saw her, his first reaction was anger and excitement. He clenched his fist, but when he remembered that she might be a woman, he couldn’t bring himself to strike. He just asked in a hostile tone, “Did you come here to laugh at our family?”

Jiang Musheng said, “No.”

Zheng Hangyi said, “Jiaming, ask yourself, what did Musheng ever do to wrong you? You almost killed her several times before. What did she ever do to you?”

Jiang Jiaming didn’t say anything. In the past, he had been blinded by jealousy and hatred, always feeling that Jiang Musheng had stolen what was rightfully his. But after returning this time, he saw his parents’ condition and was finally willing to listen to what they had to say. Their words were almost identical to what Jiang Musheng had told him: don’t be impulsive again, don’t be cannon fodder, and don’t make them bury their own son.

“Tell me, did Musheng ever hurt you?” Zheng Hangyi asked.

Jiang Jiaming shook his head.

“Did Musheng ever target you?”

Jiang Jiaming opened his mouth, wanting to talk about being exiled, but then he thought that although it was called exile, he hadn’t been restricted in any way when he came back. He swallowed his words.

He shook his head again.

“Let me ask you this: did you have anything to do with Musheng’s leg injury?”

“Yes,” Jiang Jiaming admitted honestly. “But I didn’t mean to back then. So many people were targeting Jiang Musheng. I just happened to be at the front, and I was pushed, which made me push him off the platform.”

“So Musheng never wronged you, but you wronged her, right?”

“What’s right and what’s wrong? What are you here for today? To hold me accountable?” Jiang Jiaming jutted out his neck, with a shameless, deadbeat expression.

His mother reached out to stop him. “Jiaming, calm down. Don’t talk like that.”

His father, meanwhile, personally poured them tea and said with a smile, “Musheng, Mr. Zheng, Jiaming already knows he was wrong. Please don’t hold it against him.”

“Second Uncle, don’t worry. We’re not here to cause trouble today.”

The elderly couple immediately felt relieved.

Only Jiang Jiaming was still stubbornly trying to save face. He stuck out his neck and asked, “If you’re not here to cause trouble, then what are you here for?”

“Cousin, you haven’t found a job since you came back, have you?”

Jiang Jiaming refused to admit it. “I haven’t looked. I’ve been busy taking care of my parents since I got back. I haven’t had time to look for a job. Besides, if you hadn’t refused to give us anything back then, I wouldn’t be jobless, would I?”

“Jiaming,” his mother pulled on his arm. “You have to be fair. Your cousin gave us a business space before, but we didn’t run it well.”

“That’s because he deliberately gave us a business that was hard to run.”

Jiang Musheng smiled. “Cousin, then I’ll give you a good business. You won’t have to do anything. You’ll just wait for the dividends. How does that sound?”

“Such a good thing exists?” Jiang Jiaming didn’t believe it.

Jiang Musheng said, “It’s not all good. You’ll have to run around with us.”

“It’s like the job of a head of security, but you’ll get the benefits of an owner,” Zheng Hangyi explained bluntly. He wasn’t like Musheng, who considered Jiang Jiaming’s self-esteem.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Jiaming didn’t get angry. He even thought about it seriously for a moment and said, “I can do that.”

“But is it really that simple?” Jiang Jiaming still felt it was too good to be true.

Jiang Musheng said, “That’s all you’ll need to do. But Second Uncle and Second Aunt will also need to put in a good word with the other uncles and cousins. It’s a peaceful time now, and we can all make money together. There’s no need to be fighting and killing.”

“Then why do you still need me to be the head of security?”

“To ensure everything is foolproof. If there are any extremists hiding among them, I can’t be unprepared.”

Jiang Jiaming finally felt quite lucky. He truly wasn’t suited for Jiang Musheng’s position. It was too much to worry about. Being the head of security was great, and it would also allow his parents, who had worried about him for so many years, to live out their old age in peace.

With the deal settled, Jiang Jiaming chased after them to see them off as Jiang Musheng and Zheng Hangyi were leaving.

“Wait, I have one more question,” Jiang Jiaming said, looking down and scratching the back of his head.

Jiang Musheng saw his awkwardness and knew what he was going to ask. Too many people had asked the same question in recent days.

“I know what you’re going to ask. You’ll have your answer in two days.”

“Then when do I start my job?”

“Tomorrow.”

News of Jiang Musheng’s visit to Jiang Jiaming’s family quickly spread among the other branches of the Jiang family. With the persuasion of Jiang Jiaming’s parents, many were willing to continue working with Jiang Musheng. First, it was peaceful, and second, making money was easier. He who wishes to wear the crown must bear its weight. One cannot be too greedy.

Many others remained neutral, waiting to see the final outcome.

There were still a few families who were strongly against her. They were unwilling to let Jiang Musheng continue to be on top of them, and regardless of whether Jiang Musheng was a woman, they wanted to overthrow her. They planned to kill her, and to do it cleanly. If they were unlucky enough to be caught, they would just find someone else to take the fall and give them a good sum of money.

The time had come. Jiang Musheng announced in the newspapers that she would be holding a press conference today, but she didn’t reveal the purpose of it.

She had two goals: one was to announce her female identity, and the other was to announce the establishment of the Hong Kong All-Female Business Association.

She sent invitations to Ms. Qin and Mrs. Ling, and although Concubine Xu had not given a clear answer, she sent her an invitation as well.

That night, Ah Ran called her and asked, “Can Xueyu and I finally come back now?”

Jiang Musheng said, “You can.”

Yun Ran sighed and said, “It’s a shame. By the time Xueyu and I get back, it’ll be too late to attend your press conference.”

That was exactly what Jiang Musheng wanted. She was worried that there might be some problems at the press conference, and it would be safer for Ah Ran and Xueyu if they couldn’t make it in time.

At that moment, the governor and Cecilia also saw the news in the paper that Jiang Musheng was holding a press conference.

Although Cecilia didn’t say anything, she couldn’t help but wonder why Jiang Musheng hadn’t invited her.

The governor asked, “Cecilia, do you really not want to go?”

Cecilia stubbornly said, “What’s the difference between me going and not going? She’s already united with the others without me. She’ll definitely be able to start the association.”

“What if you had this invitation?” The governor pulled out a deep blue, gold-embossed invitation from somewhere.

Cecilia couldn’t hold back any longer. She snatched it from her father’s hand and tore it open.

The next day, Jiang Musheng and Zheng Hangyi got up early to prepare for the association. Jiang Jiaming also kept his word and showed up early to serve as their head of security.

To ensure safety, Jiang Musheng wore a bulletproof vest and told Zheng Hangyi and Jiang Jiaming to wear one too. Jiang Jiaming refused and casually gave his to Alan, who also refused to wear it.

Jiang Musheng threw the vest back at Jiang Jiaming. “Your parents don’t want anything to happen to you. Put it on.”

Jiang Jiaming reluctantly agreed. “Fine. How many bad things have you done for you to be so afraid that someone will try to kill you at a press conference?”

Jiang Musheng looked at him and said coldly, “You wanted to kill me before. Did I do anything bad to you?”

Jiang Jiaming choked on his words.

“I was wrong before. Can we stop bringing up the stupid things I did?”

“We can, but only if you don’t do any more stupid things in the future,” Jiang Musheng said.

“Fine,” he said.

When they set off, Yun Ran and Xueyu were also ready, taking the first ferry back to Hong Kong.

Everyone watching the press conference was also ready.

Only Cecilia was still unsure. She touched the invitation that Musheng had sent and was still hesitating.

For the past few days, she had been thinking about her true feelings for Musheng and whether they had changed since she found out she was a woman.

But she couldn’t figure it out.

The only thing she could confirm was that she still couldn’t completely let go. She couldn’t help but worry about her, worried that something would happen to her, and worried that she would regret not going.

At the breakfast table, she looked at the time. The press conference should be starting soon. She was late.

“Cecilia, I actually hope you’ll go,” her father suddenly said to her.

“Why?” Cecilia was a little surprised. She had thought her father would have a huge problem with Jiang Musheng, but it seemed he didn’t.

“Musheng’s proposal is beneficial for your future development, Cecilia. I think this is a very good opportunity for you.”

Cecilia suddenly understood. Before, she had only been thinking about her feelings. She hadn’t even considered the aspect of benefits.

“So, you think I should go?” she asked her father.

“Go, my dear.”

Cecilia didn’t even finish her breakfast. She got up and left. As soon as she was out the door, a convoy of armed police that her father had arranged started to follow her, maintaining order. Her father had arranged everything.

On the way to the press conference, she asked herself if she hated Jiang Musheng. The answer was no, she couldn’t hate her. Jiang Musheng had never done anything inappropriate to her. When faced with her romantic advances, she had always directly rejected her, never giving her any false hope. The only thing she had done was hide her gender.

But hiding her gender was out of necessity.

She was an adult and had to be responsible for her own feelings.

“Do you still like Jiang Musheng now?” she asked herself.

She found that she couldn’t answer that question. She just felt a sense of relief, no longer obsessively pursuing Jiang Musheng.

The reason she was going now was probably because of the benefits her father had mentioned. It was a good thing for her. Maybe there was a little bit of her love for Jiang Musheng mixed in there.

She had never planned on dating or marrying a woman, so she would probably slowly forget about Jiang Musheng.

However, she didn’t regret ever liking Jiang Musheng, not one bit.

Jiang Musheng arrived at the press conference. All the important figures she had invited were already there, except for Concubine Xu. Many reporters had also come; it seemed every media outlet in Hong Kong had sent a reporter. Before the conference had even officially begun, reporters were already taking pictures, their flashlights constantly flashing.

Jiang Jiaming had fully embraced his role as the head of the security team and was doing a good job of maintaining order.

Jiang Musheng had saved a seat for Cecilia, but she hadn’t arrived yet. She didn’t know if she would.

Zheng Hangyi leaned over and asked, “Are we not starting yet? Are you waiting for the governor’s daughter?”

Jiang Musheng didn’t deny it. “We’ll wait five more minutes.”

She wasn’t confident in Cecilia’s feelings for her, but she was confident in the power of benefits and human nature. As long as Cecilia didn’t hate her to the core, there was a great chance she would be persuaded by the governor to attend.

“Four more minutes.”

“Three more minutes.”

“One and a half more minutes.”

Zheng Hangyi was bored and kept announcing the time.

“Hey, Cecilia is really here!” Zheng Hangyi said in surprise. He watched as a group of heavily armed police officers made a path through the crowd and entered the center of the venue to maintain order. Cecilia walked in front of them, being escorted.

“Cecilia, over here, please have a seat,” Jiang Musheng said with a smile.

Cecilia walked over, feeling a little strange, but she also had a smile on her face and formally shook hands with Jiang Musheng.

It was as if they were two complete strangers.

“Thank you for honoring us with your presence, Governor’s daughter,” Zheng Hangyi said with a chuckle.

Cecilia didn’t respond to him.

Jiang Musheng tapped the microphone and announced, “The press conference is officially beginning.”

The reporters below were all on high alert, with their cameras ready and their mouths twitching, ready to ask questions at any moment.

Jiang Musheng said, “Thank you all for coming to this press conference. I’m sure you are all wondering about the purpose of this event.”

“Yes, Mr. Jiang, what is the purpose of this press conference?” a reporter quickly asked.

“There are two purposes. The first is to address the recent rumors about my gender in Hong Kong.”

The reporters all held their breath. One of them, a quick thinker, asked, “Then are you here to debunk the rumors?”

“Not exactly. I’ve always wanted to find a serious occasion to tell everyone that I am, in fact, a woman.”

“What…?”

“Is Mr. Jiang joking?”

“No.”

The reporters fell silent, and no one asked any questions. They all still found it unbelievable that Jiang Musheng was a woman.

Jiang Jiaming, who was maintaining order with the police, was equally in disbelief.

He silently cursed himself, feeling like a terrible person for how he had treated Jiang Musheng in the past. His life motto was to never hit women.

In the midst of the silence, Zheng Hangyi spoke.

“Alright, Musheng. Now everyone knows your true gender. You said there were two purposes for this press conference. What’s the other one?”

Jiang Musheng said, “The other purpose is that I want to lead the creation of a Hong Kong All-Female Business Association. The members who have agreed to join so far, besides myself, are Ms. Qin Yu, Mrs. Ling, and the governor’s daughter, Cecilia.”

…

After she finished explaining the details and plans for the association, she invited the members to speak and answered reporters’ questions. The press conference lasted for over two hours.

After it ended, many reporters, especially the female ones, still wanted to ask more questions, but they would have to wait for the next opportunity.

Jiang Musheng solemnly thanked Ms. Qin and Mrs. Ling for attending and arranged for someone to escort them back. Finally, she turned to Cecilia and said, “Cecilia, thank you for coming.”

“I only came because I think this association is a good idea, and I didn’t want it to fail.”

“Thank you.”

“Are you done thanking me?” Cecilia said in feigned anger.

“I’m done.”

“Then I’m leaving,” Cecilia said, turning and walking away with a flourish.

Jiang Musheng didn’t move. Zheng Hangyi ran after her. “Cecilia, I’ll walk you out.”

Jiang Musheng took Jiang Jiaming and the other bodyguards to the pier to pick up Yun Ran and Xueyu. Soon, they arrived.

The pier was already filled with people, some going to the mainland, and many there to pick up others.

As the boat got closer, a smile appeared on Jiang Musheng’s lips. Alan’s eyes widened. She thought she saw Miss standing at the front of the boat and felt a secret excitement.

Jiang Jiaming stood on the side, idly wondering what he should call Jiang Musheng from now on.

The boat got closer and closer.

It docked.

Ah Biao protected Yun Ran and Xueyu from behind, ensuring they got off safely.

The crowd was bustling, and as soon as Yun Ran got off, she was pushed into Jiang Musheng’s arms. She leaned in and quickly gave her a kiss on the lips.

Jiang Jiaming, watching from the side, felt uncomfortable and got a wave of goosebumps. He found it sickeningly sweet.

When Xueyu got off, she stumbled forward, but Alan caught her.

“Alan, you’re back too!”

“Yes, Miss. I can protect you again.”

In the massive crowd, Jiang Musheng shielded Yun Ran, and Alan protected Xueyu. Ah Biao saw Jiang Jiaming and, thinking he was a threat, squeezed through the crowd and picked him up by the scruff of his neck.

“Let go of me! Jiang Musheng and I are in the same boat now. If you don’t believe me, ask her!”

But the crowd had already swallowed them up. Jiang Jiaming was punished by Ah Biao all the way until he was rescued outside the pier.

Yun Ran leaned into Jiang Musheng’s embrace and whispered, “He used to treat you so badly. It’s a good thing Ah Biao taught him a lesson.”

Xueyu, meanwhile, was talking to Alan, telling her about her experiences in Hong Kong and the people she had met.

“Hey, look,” Yun Ran said, pointing at Xueyu and Alan.

Jiang Musheng said, “Ah Ran, you saw it too?”

Yun Ran smiled without a word, slipping her hand into Jiang Musheng’s coat and tracing circles on her chest.

Jiang Musheng caught her mischievous hand and said, “Let’s go home.”

“We’re going home,” Yun Ran said, her hand clasped in Jiang Musheng’s. She yelled to the others.

“We’re going home!” Xueyu also said to Alan.