CH 127.2

Jin Wang Dotes on His Concubine Ch 127 Pt. 2

Translated by gingercat

Edited by gingercat

Xiaobao asked Hong Chou to wipe his hands and face with a wet towel, before hurrying over to his younger brother. He stretched out his hand and stroked Erbao’s little head before letting Hong Fei take off his shoes. Then he climbed onto the Kang.

Erbao’s dark eyes followed his brother. Holding a rattle in his hand, Xiaobao shook it vigorously. Erbao was happy to see this and would make cheerful giggles from time to time.

Yaoniang was about to help Jin Wang change out of his clothes, but Jin Wang didn’t let her. He asked the maids to prepare some water before he went into the bathroom himself.

Soon, he returned, having changed into a set of more comfortable clothes. He was dressed in a loose robe with wide sleeves and his long hair draping down his back. Without even bothering to put any socks on, he put on his shoes and came out.

“Are you hungry? Did you eat anything for lunch and was it good?” asked Yaoniang. Worried Jin Wang had yet to eat anything and that he came home hungry after a long day, she was about to call a maid to bring some food.

Jin Wang stopped her and said, “No need. I already ate lunch.”

“Was the food that they provided good?”

A man like Jin Wang would be unable to understand Yaoniang’s concern, but he still told her his thoughts truthfully. Yaoniang sighed and thought it was indeed as she expected. These dishes weren’t simply not delicious, they were more on the unpalatable side. She planned to prepare some dishes for Jin Wang to bring to the office tomorrow. Or should she have someone deliver him a meal?

While she was pondering, Erbao suddenly made a quiet groan. From only hearing this sound, she could tell that he was either sleepy or hungry. But Erbao had just eaten not long ago, so it should be sleepy. Yaoniang carried him in her arms and patted him for a while, then Erbao fell asleep.

It was only shen shi¹ so it was still too early to have dinner. Since it was Jin Wang’s first day on duty, Yaoniang had this matter on her mind the entire day. This was why she and Xiaobao didn’t nap after lunch, so now both mother and son were a little sleepy. Xiaobao laid down next to Erbao, watching his mother caress his younger brother. Not long after, his eyes were shut.

As Yaoniang looked at the two cute little faces, she became more and more sleepy. Soon, she couldn’t resist any longer and fell asleep.

Jin Wang was sitting on the other side of the big Kang, leafing through a book brought back from the Ministry of Works. When he raised his eyes, he saw that both the mother and the sons were fast asleep. He automatically began to flip the pages quieter.

The afterglow of the setting sun sprinkled in through the windows, giving the room a peaceful atmosphere.

Yaoniang couldn’t help herself and had eventually told the story of Boss Mao to Jin Wang.

Worried that he’d think too much, she made preparations in advance. When recounting this matter, she had used a tone that one would use when sharing gossip. As for whether Jin Wang could understand her meaning, this wasn’t something Yaoniang could tell. She could only hope for the best.

After what happened on the first day, Jin Wang was at the forefront of his brothers’ minds.

In their eyes, the fifth brother was putting on airs to gain attention.

Some of them thought to themselves, why couldn’t they think of this method? While the others had a dismissive attitude and only treated it as a joke, wanting to see how long Jin Wang could hold on.

It wasn’t that no one wanted to follow his example, but these princes all placed their faces higher than the sky. If they were to follow Jin Wang’s example, they would only look like a fool trying to imitate him and copying his ideas. 

They couldn’t afford to lose this face.

Because of this, An Wang and the others continued to use a sedan chair to get to work everyday, while Jin Wang walked. The only change was that Lu Wang didn’t use a carriage anymore but switched to riding a horse.

Over these few days, Jin Wang became very well known throughout Qipan Street. The officials in the capital spread the word by mouth that a tall thin man wearing a set of the blue official uniform, carrying a bag in his hand would undoubtedly be His Highness, Jin Wang.

If they met with His Highness on the road, there was no need for them to wait for him to pass. They could simply continue on their way and Jin Wang wouldn’t blame them.

As for how this conclusion that he wouldn’t blame them came about, no one knew. But even when those without good eyes stood in the way of Jin Wang, he didn’t say anything. He only waited quietly for those people to leave before continuing on his way.

People have always been good at describing the things they found unusual. For example, Jin Wang was someone who always wore a cold face and others rarely saw him smile. Yet such a person, with such an identity, did not get angry or offended by the actions of those blind people. Seeing this, others couldn’t help but begin to think of him as a good person.

Thinking back, Jin Wang didn’t seem to have any undesirable qualities, except for always wearing that chilly expression on his face.

Although it had been said that he wasn’t close to women and could be a cut sleeve, it was all gossip. Jin Wang has a favoured concubine and two sons, which was enough to repel the rumours of broken sleeves. As for the other rumours of him being violent with a tendency to kill, wasn’t that a more appropriate description for Lu Wang?

This was all because of Jin Wang’s behaviour as he went to work everyday, dressed in ordinary blue official robes, strolling leisurely on the road. The sack that Jin Wang always held in his hands also aroused the curiosity of countless people.

People began to discuss what could be in the pouch so that Jin Wang would carry it to work every day. Some say inside were the Four Treasures of the Study, but it didn’t seem to look like it from the outside. Others speculated whether it was a spare set of clothes or other miscellaneous things. In short, there were all kinds of guesses.

Until one day early in the morning, someone saw Jin Wang take out a bun from his pouch while walking.

From then on, everyone knew that the bag was filled with food.

Regardless of outside speculation, Jin Wang was soon given his first task after reading over ten days’ worth of books. It was to supervise the renovation of Hui Wang Manor.