The Wife is First

Ch68 - Cooperation

In this way, a muddleheaded, half-willing and half-unwilling Jing Shao swore to be brothers with the Huainan King. The three of them sat in the green bamboo pavilion for the whole afternoon, as if they had known each other all along. They covered topics from the treasure sword to the art of war, from culinary delicacies to beauties, from street talk to poetry and song, all the way until sunset; only then did they say goodbye to each other. Gu Huaiqing told them that he was staying at Wading Water Courtyard, so if the two had time, they could look for him. 

Looking at the backs of the two people as they left, Gu Huaiqing stood with his hands behind his back, and a smile gradually formed on his face. Cheng Wang and his husband each had their strong points. They may be nothing to worry about if they were separated, but together, they were the perfect combination. One who was academic and one from the military, one bravely charging ahead and the other planning the schemes. If these two became enemies, he was afraid it would be very troublesome.

“Wang Ye, will you return to Danyang tomorrow?” an imperial guard led a horse over and asked.

Danyang City was the main city of the Huainan fiefdom, neither far from nor close to Pingjiang.

“No; you send the news back.” Gu Huaiqing stretched and smiled. “Things aren’t urgent, so just have them deal with it.” 

Hearing this, the bodyguard choked on his saliva for a moment. “Things aren’t urgent, so just have them deal with it.” If the matter wasn’t of utmost urgency, he wouldn’t need to bring the message to Pingjiang! If Lord Huaixiang heard this, he would probably faint from anger again.

Jing Shao and his Wang Fei walked back. It hadn’t felt like it when they first came here, but on the way back, they found that this road was really quite long. It was late and there was nowhere to hire a sedan chair. The two walked for a while on the limestone path. Mu Hanzhang was a little tired. Jing Shao touched his face and bent down to carry him.

“Get up, I’m all right. It would be improper for you to carry me on your back.” Mu Hanzhang looked around and saw that all the vendors on the street had closed their stalls. The road was empty, and only the street of musical establishments on the other side of the river still bustled with noise.

“Hurry and climb on, or else I’ll have to carry you in my arms,” Jing Shao said, about to stand up and pull Mu Hanzhang into his embrace.

Mu Hanzhang was helpless, and could only get onto his back. It felt very awkward as he wrapped his arms around Jing Shao’s neck; he felt embarrassed and at a loss.

Jing Shao hitched up those slender legs, stood up, and walked slowly down the limestone path that was lit up by the setting sun. The light reflected off one side of the Qingshui River, which was quiet and serene. Jing Shao adjusted the person on his back and patted his butt to console him.

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

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“He is the hardest to figure out.” Jing Shao rubbed his face against the cheek resting on his shoulder. “He does as he pleases, and he’s two-faced; he flips between good and bad as fast as you can flip through the pages of a book. Maybe he just thinks it’s fun.”

“En…” The man on his shoulder gave a vague response, as if still thinking.

“Did you notice something?” Jing Shao gently jostled the man on his back.

Mu Hanzhang pondered how to best express it. “He’s experienced, knowledgeable and extremely capable. He also looks very easy to get along with, and often has a smile on his face; a person like that is often very appealing.” 

Jing Shao nodded. The Huainan King was indeed that sort of person, and truly was worthy of being called “experienced, knowledgeable and extremely capable.”

The southwestern and southeastern vassal regions had been placated. The Huainan King had always seemed content with his own lot, and no one could find fault with him. Given Emperor Hong Zheng’s temper, however, Huainan’s vassal state would also be withdrawn sooner or later. Moreover, the battles they had fought this time had gone so smoothly, and Jing Shao was afraid it would engender some sense of arrogance in the imperial court; after a year at most, they would definitely order the withdrawal of the vassal state. If Jing Shao could cooperate with the Huainan King to put on an act of fighting a war and draw it out, not only would he be able to retain military power, he could also seize the opportunity to obtain money toward helping Jing Chen ascend the throne, and save some silver in the process.

“When dealing with a tiger, it’s better to be cautious.” Mu Hanzhang knew of Jing Shao’s plan, and gave him a timely reminder.

“I’ll handle it properly.” Jing Shao nodded. Regarding the risk that the other side posed, he would still be able to prevail. Joining forces with Gu Huaiqing was something he had planned a while ago. Although that man was treacherous and fickle, he was a man of great wisdom. Right after that, Jing Shao said with a smile, “Tigers won’t necessarily hurt people. Look at Xiao Huang.” 

When he mentioned the little tiger, Mu Hanzhang couldn’t help laughing. As long as he gave this silly little thing some dried meat, it would probably even be willing to let him use its fur as a blanket.

The setting sun shone on the two people, casting a long shadow on the limestone path.

The next day, the two went to Wading Water Courtyard. They brought along a treasure sword from the Southeast King and dragged the little tiger out with them.

The little tiger didn’t want to go out. It was so cold; it should just stay in the house and sleep around the heater. Mu Hanzhang scratched Xiao Huang’s head. This little guy became listless as soon as it got on the carriage. It was probably afraid of the cold. 

“How can it be cold with such thick fur?” Jing Shao pinched the fur on the little tiger’s neck. The fur was soft and thick, yet it got cold?

“It’s said that even lions are afraid of the cold. The Huainan King’s animal park must be very warm.” Mu Hanzhang touched the tiger cub’s head. The reason why they were taking Xiao Huang along was that Gu Huaiqing had said yesterday that he was rearing a lion in Wading Water Courtyard. He had just bought it from an overseas merchant this year. Jing Shao and Mu Hanzhang would be returning to the capital soon. Before that, they had to discuss some things with the Huainan King, and Xiao Huang was an excuse to go visit him the next day.

Wading Water Courtyard was the largest garden in Pingjiang City. There were many pavilions  in it, but the most important thing was that there were hot springs here.

“This is the tiger cub you’re raising?” Gu Huaiqing smiled and reached out to touch Xiao Huang’s head. 

“Wawu!” Xiao Huang responded angrily and bared its teeth, refusing his touch.

“He is rather robust.” Gu Huaiqing laughed unconcernedly and brought them inside. “The lion I’m raising doesn’t like the cold, so I put it in a warm room.”

It was called a heated pavilion, but it was actually an entire courtyard with a roof and full of green grass, flowers and trees. There was a hot spring pool in the middle. The mist was thick and warm. However, there was a fence not far from the entrance which prevented people from entering. A little lion about Xiao Huang’s size was sleeping inside, and several rabbits were hiding far away on one side to eat grass.

“If we put them together, I’m afraid they’ll start fighting.” Mu Hanzhang looked at the little tiger who put its paws up on the fence and stretched its neck out to gaze inside inquisitively, and then looked at the lion cub sleeping inside. He really felt that his tiger would lose in a fight. 

“They’re still young, they won’t be able to fight to the death.” Jing Shao was quite curious to see what would happen when the two encountered each other, and grabbing the little tiger, he threw it in.

“Wawu!” The little tiger was suddenly thrown over the fence. Startled, it stumbled a little, before it crouched on the ground curiously and gazed at the little lion that wasn’t far away.

The little lion opened its eyes. When it saw the foreign intruder, it slowly raised its head but didn’t get up as it stared vigilantly at Xiao Huang.

“Things like these should be raised in the wild; there’s no meaning in raising them to become house cats.” Gu Huaiqing took them to another heated pavilion for tea. 

“We are leaving for the capital the day after tomorrow,” Mu Hanzhang said in a warm voice.

Gu Huaiqing placed a whole tea set in front of him. He didn’t have servants perform the task, but steeped, infused, tasted, and presented the tea himself. His motions were fluid like water and practiced, and it was quite enjoyable and pleasing to watch him. He handed two cups of tea to the two people in front of him. When he heard Mu Hanzhang’s words, his movements didn’t stop as he said, “This time, you have performed a great service in quelling the rebellion. You should be more careful when returning to the capital.”

The two people looked at each other; praising them for rendering a great service but advising them to be careful, so to say, was to show his good intentions.

“Elder brother.” Jing Shao was silent for a moment, before straightforwardly calling out to him. “Since we have made a vow, I will be direct: Now that the southeast and southwest have been destroyed, what is elder brother’s plan?” 

Gu Huaiqing bowed his head and made a cup of tea for himself. Hearing that, the corners of his lips curved up and he chuckled. He didn’t answer, but asked another question in return, “What is second brother’s plan?”

Talking to intelligent people saved time. The three couldn’t help but smile at each other.

“Although Huainan is small, our ancestors have managed it for many years, so we are still strong,” Gu Huaiqing said, turning his eyes to Mu Hanzhang. Looking at his handsome and gentle face, he couldn’t help smiling evilly; the more he spoke,the more indecent he became. “The capital isn’t very peaceful right now. If younger brother can’t bear with it anymore, it’s better to come stay with me.”

Hearing this, Jing Shao slammed the cup down heavily on the table. “Was our fight yesterday not enough for you?” 

Gu Huaiqing rubbed his still bruised chin and smiled, but didn’t say anything.

“If elder brother also can’t bear things here, you should come to the capital to stay with us,” Mu Hanzhang said with a gentle smile.