jdhmnovel Chapter 311 The Growing Up of an Older Father
Chapter 311 The Growing Up of an Older Father
Jiang Xiwen seemed to know what her father was thinking, but she didn't know whether she should tell him the truth.
"Father, how did His Majesty the Emperor find out...?"
"Hey~ Minister Wu is no pushover. The Fourth Prince still wants to use his princely status to act arrogantly outside. How could we possibly give him that opportunity?"
"Yes, then perhaps Father-in-law will stay in Linhai County for a few more days? That way we can properly entertain him," Dong Jin said, seeing through his wife's thoughts.
"It seems unlikely that it will be possible. Judging from Minister Wu's words, he will probably set off tomorrow, no, at the latest the day after tomorrow."
After the river patrol was over, if it weren't for the need to personally bring the Fourth Prince back to the capital, our boat would have turned back long ago.
"We've already wasted some time; I'm afraid we won't stay in Linhai County for a few more days."
Jiang Xiwen was somewhat disappointed: "Father, the officials from the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of War just arrived today and need to rest. It's almost midnight now, so I suppose they won't be setting off immediately tomorrow."
"How about this, you come back to the county government office with us today, and have a meal with your parents-in-law tomorrow. It'll be a good opportunity for us to get together."
Jiang Wenqing glanced at Huangfu Zhongwen and told his daughter and son-in-law to wait.
"Brother Huangfu, my daughter and son-in-law want me to go back to the county government office with them, what do you think..."
"Brother Jiang, please make yourself at home. Tonight, Commander Zhang and the others will be guarding the previous official ship. We will also go back to the ship to stay. Tomorrow we will rest and make some purchases, and then set off early the day after tomorrow."
"Okay, okay, I'll go back to the ship tomorrow night and meet up with you guys, hahaha."
After confirming the date of the official ship's return journey, Jiang Wenqing returned to the Dong family home with Steward Wen and Mr. Sun.
After returning to the Dong family home, Jiang Xiwen changed out of her colorful clothes and instructed the servants to prepare a room for Jiang Wenqing to rest.
During this break, Dong Jin accompanied Jiang Wenqing for a walk and conversation in the courtyard.
"Father-in-law, there is something we need to tell you."
After hesitating for a while, Dong Jin decided to tell them that the Fourth Prince Zhao Hongsheng's target might be Jiang Xiaoqi.
After he finished speaking, Jiang Wenqing didn't react for a long time.
Dong Jin thought his father-in-law was probably angry again, but when he looked up, he saw Jiang Wenqing looking blank.
"Father-in-law? Father-in-law?"
"Oh? Oh, I'm fine. You didn't tell anyone about this, did you?"
"No, at first this was just a guess by Xiwen and me. It was only at the banquet tonight that the Fourth Prince asked about Mingfei indirectly, and that's when we confirmed our previous guess."
We were initially quite worried, but Lord Wu acted so quickly. Now that he's brought the Fourth Prince back to the capital in time, we can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Jiang Wenqing breathed a sigh of relief: "This matter must not be mentioned to anyone else, not even in-laws."
Dong Jin quickly agreed. This would indeed damage his brother-in-law's reputation. Even if the Fourth Prince hadn't succeeded, wouldn't any elder protect their child if they encountered something so disgusting?
It's the same with daughters, and it'll be the same with sons too.
At this moment, Jiang Wenqing seemed even more impressive in his son-in-law Dong Jin's eyes. His father-in-law had indeed changed a lot since becoming an official, and he could no longer look at him with old eyes!
After the father-in-law and son-in-law finished their conversation, Jiang Xiwen came over to inform them that the room was ready.
"Father, you must be tired from your long journey. Please get some rest."
"Okay, you two must be tired today, go and get some rest."
That night, Jiang Wenqing tossed and turned, unable to sleep, a rare occurrence for him.
The fourth prince is under house arrest for an indefinite period. What if the emperor decides to release him someday?
Lord Wu held a high official position and was a confidant of the emperor, so the fourth prince dared not do anything to him.
What about my own family? My uncle is only a fourth-rank official, and although the Liu family is powerful, there is still a gap between us.
The highest-ranking official among the family's members who passed the imperial examinations is only the sixth rank, while the rest are all seventh rank.
With such a family background, how could they possibly ensure the safety of their children?
Unless one's family members all hold high enough official positions and important enough roles in the court.
The Chiang family had become a powerful force; even if they couldn't achieve that, they needed to have the strength to confront powerful figures.
But now, the Jiang family has neither power nor strength. They only have a few minor officials to spare for the big Zhou dynasty, which is far from enough!
Jiang Wenqing rarely uses his brain to think about so many things, but now that he's doing it, he can't stop, which has led to him becoming more and more alert and suffering from complete insomnia.
As dawn broke, Jiang Wenqing yawned and sat up in bed, quickly washing his face.
After washing up and leaving the room, I saw Dong Jin directing the servants to move things.
Upon seeing his father-in-law, Dong Jin hurried forward to greet him. "Father-in-law, why are you up so early? Did you sleep well last night?"
Jiang Wenqing shook his head with a wry smile: "What have you been busy with so early in the morning?"
"Oh, these are all local products that my parents brought back for my grandparents. Father-in-law, you're boarding the ship back to Beijing tomorrow, please take them with you!"
"I'm sorry to have troubled you, my in-laws. I brought some local specialties with me, but I guess that incompetent fourth prince threw them away long ago. I'm penniless now. I'll give you a gift in return when I return to the capital."
"What are you saying, Father-in-law? You were on official business and Linhai County was not originally on your itinerary. You came here by chance."
Besides, Mingfei has sent quite a few things over the past six months, many of which are for my parents, so it's only right that the Dong family should reciprocate.
It's just that Mingfei's whereabouts are uncertain, so we couldn't send it out. My father-in-law's arrival was just in time, so he took it back to the capital.
Mingfei will be taking the provincial examination next year and the metropolitan examination in the capital the year after. We'll meet there then, and you can give him the document you gave him then.”
"That's true. This child is really a worry. He's traveling, but who knows where he's ended up?"
He used to send letters back occasionally, but lately there's been no news at all. But that's alright; if we can't find him, no one else can either.
Dong Jin knew, of course, who the "others" Jiang Wenqing was referring to was. He didn't say much at this moment, but simply ordered people to load the things onto the cart, waiting for Jiang Wenqing to return to the official ship in the afternoon so that they could be transported together and loaded onto the ship directly.
When Jiang Wenqing isn't being silly or playful, his appearance is quite convincing. Dong Jin thinks his father-in-law has a great image, and his daughter Jiang Xiwen feels the same way.
At least when dining with his in-laws, he had the air of an official. Of course, it was extremely rare for him to have such an air without putting on airs.
When they left the Dong family's house, Jiang Wenqing produced a fishing rod from who-knows-where and gave it to Dong's father as a farewell gift.
“My dear in-law, this is the last fishing tackle I brought from the capital. Once Ah Jin is promoted and returns to the capital, we will go fishing together on the Grand Canal.”
"Very well, very well, I appreciate your kind words, my dear in-law. I will definitely go with you on that day!" Master Dong happily accepted the offer.
Butler Wen VS Mr. Sun: Where did you get the last set of fishing gear, sir?