Chapter 267: Childish (Edited)
Author: White Pear Flower
Raws: https://book.qidian.com/info/2386994/
Translated by Gumihou
Proofread by Pill Bug
Gumihou: Right, first things first. AR Qiuning was so peppy in this chapter that I wanted to kick her teeth in. What in the freaking shit…
The next day, around noon.
Jin Fengju finally returned to the Quanzhou residence.
However, the once elegant and dashing young Marquis now appeared dark and thin. Dressed in a set of armour that was so stained with blood and mud that even the servants guarding the gate did not recognise him. [1] However, he strode by so quickly and confidently that they did not manage to stop him at all.
When one of them finally gathered enough awareness to go after the ‘intruder’, the other guard grabbed him, hissing, “Hey, isn’t that our Young Marquis?”
[1a] “No way, is that really the Master?”“Of course! Can’t you recognise his face?”
[1a] While the two guards continued to hiss at each other, Jin Fengju had already reached the inner court where he found Yue Lan and Cui’shi speaking with Fu Qiuning. A few of the younger maids were also in the courtyard playing a small game with each other.
When they saw a formidable and imposing general walking in, the maids were so startled that they hurriedly tried to stop him, saying, “Who are you? If you have military-related reports, you should naturally go to the yamen first. Why did you barge in here?”
They only realised they had scolded their own master after the words had burst out of their mouths.
Inside the house, [1b] Fu Qiuning paused in the middle of her embroidery. When she looked up, several of the maids had already rushed out. Fu Qiuning gritted her teeth. Did these maids have a death wish? Why would these women rush outside at the first sign of danger? Also, what were the guards doing? This would be the second time they allowed an intruder in without alerting the people inside.
The person who strode grandly into the room did not quel the fire in her heart.
Jin Fengju grinned and said, “What’s wrong? Don’t recognise me? I rushed back on a fast horse all the way. Jian Feng, quickly pour me a cup of tea.”
Jian Feng quickly saluted him before rushing to make a fresh pot of tea.
“… …”
“Aren’t you curious what happened? About how I end up looking like this?”
“Isn’t it because you’ve been battling pirates? Or are you trying to tell me that you have really been fishing every day?”
For some reason, Jin Fengju laughed heartily at that. [2]
Instead of entertaining [2] this weird behaviour, Fu Qiuning said, “Qiu Yu, have someone prepare hot water for the Young Marquis’s bath.”
Jian Feng happened to enter the room with a pot of tea. Jin Fengju looked at the delicate teapot and tiny teacups shook his head and laughed, “My throat is smoking right now, do you think I still have the time to enjoy tea?”
With that, he grabbed the teapot and tipped it to his mouth. [2a] Fu Qiuning watched in fascination as Jin Fengju choked and coughed while the delicate little teapot cracked under his grip. She said nothing as the maids started shrieking and Jian Feng screamed for someone to bring ice, ice water, warm water and other things.
[2a] Once the final shard of teapot had been swept away, and Jin Fengju had downed at least two bowls of water, he sat down and wheezed slightly.“… …”
“… …”
[2a] Fu Qiuning calmly allowed the silence to build. Let the man experience maximum shame, she had no intention of helping him navigate through his own folly.Finally, Jin Fengju opened his mouth and said, “On my way here, I saw the body of an Eastern Barbarian in the street. When I asked around, they told me that pirates had broken into the yamen last night and that two pirates died, with one injured. What happened? Where is the injured pirate?”
When Fu Qiuning heard this, she smiled and said, “Rejoice, Young Marquis. I am sure Lord Husband is more than happy to know that we have this fellow to thank for.”
Fu Qiuning lovingly stroked the cat who was snoozing beside her.
Jin Fengju frowned as he listened. [2b] His frown deepened as he stared at the cat that was being stroked and pampered by his beloved wife. How could Fu Qiuning bestow her attention on another male when he was in the room?!
Suddenly, Jin Fengju stood up and said, “Where is this injured pirate? I want to interrogate him. It’s a hidden danger for there to be pirates in Quanzhou City, even if their numbers are small.”
Perhaps feeling a little bolder with Fu Qiuning around, Concubine Cui [3] quickly grabbed onto Jin Fengju, beamed and said, “Surely there is no need for my lord to hurry? The maids are preparing the hot water now. Lord Husband ought to clean up and see the children first before interrogating that despicable pirate. Otherwise, wouldn’t the children be frightened if they saw you like this?”
Jin Fengju’s forehead bunched together even more as he said sharply, “There is a priority to everything. If there is even a single pirate left in the city, it could lead to a bloodbath. How can I take my time about such a thing?”
Yue Lan looked like she was about to say something as well. [3a] The shy-looking concubine whispered, “Elder Sister, since it is for our safety, the Master must be anxious to extract information from those barbarians.”
“Oh, oh my, this lowly concubine is too stupid. Of course, Master would be anxious to question the prisoner. Goodness, Master might not even be able to eat if he did not do this first!”
[3b] Fu Qiuning watched as the two women put on that little performance. For some reason, Jin Fengju kept glancing over at her. While it was unpleasant to be in the centre of this performance, it would be even more unpleasant to be complicit in it. Therefore, instead of saying anything or even averting her eyes, Fu Qiuning just continued to enjoy the show as she stroked her favourite cat.“Hmph, as expected. Qiuning understands me best. You all stay here with Madam. I shall be back soon.”
He left after leaving that cryptic remark and flashing Fu Qiuning a smile.
[3c] As for Concubine Cui and Yue Lan, they all beamed desperately at him, hoping that he would divert some of his attention to them.In the silence that followed after, Yue Lan smiled gently at Fu Qiuning, “Madam indulges the Master too much.”
“In what way did I indulge the Master?” [3d] said Fu Qiuning curiously, wondering what they would say.
Yue Lan and Concubine Cui were stumped by this short answer. They smiled determinedly at her for a moment before Concubine Cui sighed and said, “No wonder Lord Husband dotes on you so. Speaking of which, I see that the Master truly treats Madam as a true confidante. If it were Second Madam Wan, she would have kept the Master and made him explain himself…”
When Fu Qiuning did not react, Yue Lan quickly interjected to say, “We do not mean anything by it. Please do not take our words to heart.”
Fu Qiuning allowed them to talk themselves into a frenzy before saying, “There is no need to say more. I understand everyone’s position. We are, after all, in the same boat.”
Eventually, Concubine Cui and Yue Lan left, but Jin Fengju had yet to return.
Instead, Jin Changfeng and Jin Zhenyi came into the room [4]. They found Fu Qiuning sipping a cup of tea, enjoying the final moments of peace and quiet before the hurricane decided to return.
Jin Zhenyi spoke up first, “We heard that Father had returned. Why haven’t we seen him yet?”
“Your father is at the woodshed,” said Fu Qiuning.
[5] The children looked startled. They exchanged a look for a long moment before Jin Changjiao stepped forward to say with shining eyes, “It’s fine, I’m sure Mother has her reasons. Mother, I respect you.” [5] Jin Xiunan gave her sister a pained look, “I’m sure that’s not it…”Whatever Jin Xiunan thought, she did not sound sure at all.
Meanwhile, Jin Zhenyi was sniggering behind his hand while Jin Changfeng looked just as pained as Jin Xiunan.
Fu Qiuning had some idea what the children were thinking, and she nearly laughed out loud at the thought. Still, it was best not to let this misunderstanding continue.
“Your father is interrogating the pirate that is being held there.”
“Ah!” for some reason, Jin Changjiao’s face turned bright red.
Jin Zhenyi burst out laughing.
“Hahaha! Sister, you’re thinking that Mother had locked Father in the shed, right? Right? Hahahaha!!”
“Youu!!!” [5a]
Jin Changjiao lunged at Jin Zhenyi, who danced out of the way quickly. For a moment, everything descended into chaos as Jin Changjiao chased after Jin Zhenyi.
The merriment was interrupted by a voice from outside. It was Jian Feng.
“Second Miss? Why are you sitting here? Do get up quickly.”
The children flashed a profound look at each other and Jin Changjiao ran out. Sure enough, Jin Xiuzhen was sitting just outside the door.
“It’s really you! Well, come in,” said Jin Changjiao.
Jin Xiuzhen said nothing. [6]
“Second Miss, since you have come, take a seat,” said Fu Qiuning.
Jin Xiuzhen stepped inside. Her eyes were red as she choked out, “Mother, little Flowerball is dead, I… I didn’t take good care of her-”
Unable to stand it anymore, she squatted down and cried.
[6a] What could one say to make a child feel better about the death of a pet?Jin Changjiao actually approached Jin Xiuzhen to pat her awkwardly on the shoulder. The people inside the room were so distracted by the grief-filled Jin Xiuzhen that they missed Jin Fengju’s approach until his voice boomed, “Is that Xiuzhen? What is it? Why are you crying like this?”
Jin Fenju was drenched in sweat and still covered in dirt. He had not taken off his armour yet. It was possible that he couldn’t do it without help. Unwilling to make trouble for Jiang Wanying, Fu Qiuning said, “It’s nothing. You should go take a bath quickly, or else you will get a rash from steeping in those dirty clothes.”
Jin Xiuzhen’s crying had suddenly stopped.
[7] Jin Fengju snorted, “If it’s nothing, then she shouldn’t bawl her head off like this. It’s unseemly.”“M-my kitten is d-d-dead,” she choked.
Jin Fengju suddenly laughed and said, “What? Truly? [7] All that fuss for a dead vermin? Tch,”
The air suddenly felt much colder than before.
Behind Fu Qiuning, Jian Feng and Yu Jie frantically shook their heads at him. Yu Jie was even making slashing motions at her neck.
It was only then, that Jin Fengju finally realised his monumental mistake. What was he thinking? Fu Qiuning had a fondness for these vermins, and she even kicked him out of bed because she was so fond of one in particular!
Moreover, she viewed those beasts with an even more favourable eye after that monster in her lap killed two of those Eastern Barbarians and maimed a third. He had seen those scratch marks. That was no ordinary cat.
In the end, all Jin Fengju could do was raise his hand and laugh loudly, saying, “Alright, alright, I admit that it is wrong of me for… for being so insensitive. Qiuning, ah, you comfort Xiuzhen for me. I really need to go wash up. My body is really stinky. I’ve travelled so much in the past, and except for that time in Yangzhou, nowhere else has given me as much trouble as this. Just look at how dark I’ve become from the sun. The emperor wouldn’t even recognise me if he were here.”
Even as he babbled, he quickly edged out of the room and Jian Feng hurriedly led him towards the bathing chamber in the backyard.
[Gumihou: Establish Concubine Cui (Not Cui’shi) and Yue Lan’s characteristics a little so that it is not just a double whammy of ‘blablabla we are tots idiots bla’]
[1] Emphasise the uselessness of the guards. They were pretty useless in the previous chapter after all. [1a] Realistic answer from Idiot 2 [1b] Reiterate the uselessness of the guards. Also, if you had just experienced an attack, the F would you rush outside the moment you heard a commotion? [2] Jin Fengju going lmao and lolol while Fu Qiuning going ‘… …’ [2a] However, Fu Qingning snatched it away and said, “This is scalding hot water. Even the master shouldn’t risk burning his tongue…”
Let’s just allow this to happen. It’s funny.
[2b] Why is JFJ being suddenly not afraid of cats? [3] Cui’shi, why are we calling her Cui’shi now? Let’s stick with Concubine Cui. She’s your woman Jin Fengju. You had a kid with her. [3a] Fu Qiuning interrupted with a smile, “Don’t stop him. Let him go. Otherwise, if he can’t extract any information from the interrogation, he might not even be able to eat.”The above line is to show that, but of course, darling Qiuning is the only one who understands her man~ like, bro, seriously?
[3b] Let’s just enjoy the show [3c] Come now, let’s show what having lots of women in your life is really like [3d] Delete 80 words of ‘wow, this is so totally not me bragging, but like I’m totally the best, pfft’“I understand what you mean, sister. There’s no need to say it. Yes, these past few days have become hot again. Who would have thought the weather in the south would be so humid and hot? I wonder if you all are not used to it…” She skillfully changed the topic.
Gumihou: … in what way is that ‘skillfully’?
Jiang Wanying: About as skillfully as one would smash a chicken’s head in with the back of an axe
Fu Qiuning: … Thus speaketh the God Creator of this world
[4] Children being actual children who understood that their father was actually an ass. [5] I cringed at this lame joke. This comedic moment is so forced that I’m embarrassed for White Pear FlowerAt least try to make it more subtle
[5a] Also deleted: “…I can’t believe you’ve been with me for so many years and have forgotten my temperament.”Like, ma’am, I think you’ve forgotten your own temperament.
[6] Deleted 80 words of transparent ‘like, I am so, so much better than ur mom’ descriptions [6a] Deleted 80 more words of ‘like, I am so, so much better than ur mom’Also, what is this shit: After all, she was Jin Fengju’s daughter, even though she was raised by Jiang Wanying, she probably inherited some of her father’s traits.
[7] Showcase JFJ’s incredible lack of sensitivity.
