HBBMAWH Chapter 50

"You're awake."

A grumbling voice woke him up.

Xia Jue opened his eyes and saw the blue sky and white clouds above, a gust of wind brushing his cheeks. A few petals fell, landing on his eyebrows, tickling him.

He reached out, picking up the petals from his eyebrows, memories flooding back. He—He was attacked by someone!

No, someone wants to kill him! He was running for his life—for his life!

Xia Jue shouted, "Don't kill me!"

"Who wants to kill you?"

A pair of azure eyes suddenly appeared in front of him. Xia Jue was stunned; his eyes were tinted with a bit of green. A foreigner? In recent years, many foreigners had crossed the seas to the Chen Dynasty, and he had seen them in the capital too.

However, the young man's facial features were distinctly Chen Dynasty, without a trace of foreign influence. Upon closer inspection, the hint of green in his eyes disappeared without a trace.

Was he mistaken? Where was this place? Who is this person?

"Young Master, don't run around!" Hong Yu chased after him with smoking mugwort, "smoke it again to remove the bad luck. The Young Master has met the officials twice, so he must have attracted evil spirits!" "

"Didn't I bathe with grapefruit leaves?" Yan Cai reluctantly stretched out his arm, allowing Hong Yu to smoke mugwort on him, his face stretched so long that you could hang an oil bottle on it.

"Why don't you smoke him too? He seems pretty unlucky," Yan Cai pointed to the person who had been in a daze all this while.

Xia Jue looked at them warily, stepping back again and again.

"Who are you people?"

"Your lifesavers," a slightly cold voice came from behind. Xia Jue turned abruptly, seeing a man sitting under a tree on a stone bench, writing, with various books scattered on the stone table. The man continued, "My wife saved you, and you're not grateful, shouting without manners."

Xia Jue blushed deeply, "You saved me?"

"More precisely, it's my compassionate and benevolent wife," Jiang Manyue put down the pen and glanced over his way.

From his implication, Xia Jue understood one thing: In other words, if it weren't for his wife, he wouldn't have saved anyone.

"Who is your wife? I want to thank her properly." Xia Jue straightened up and said politely. His etiquette was flawless. His manners were impeccable, scoring full points in etiquette while maintaining his dignity.

Neither servile nor overbearing. Indeed, he was the Third Prince, who, despite being unassuming, had shone brightly in the struggle for the throne and gained many followers.

"The one in front of you is my wife." Jiang Manyue put down his pen and walked over. "He's called Yan Cai, and I am his husband, Jiang Manyue. I thought you wouldn't be of much use when you were picked up. You can't work, you just eat a lot, but my wife, with his compassionate heart, insisted on bringing you back. You should thank him a lot."

Yan Cai felt a twinge of guilt. Although he did the heavy lifting, the decision to save the person have come from Jiang Manyue. After learning about Xia Jue's identity, it was up to Jiang Manyue to decide whether to save him or not.

In case they saved someone they shouldn't have; it could lead to trouble.

Initially, Xia Jue was slightly surprised, but he quickly hid that surprise. Fine gentlemen were not uncommon in the capital, but they were mostly kept as male pets or concubines. It was the first time he had encountered a man who was addressed as a wife.

The name Jiang Manyue sounded somewhat familiar. Xia Jue couldn't quite recall; it seemed like he had heard of it, yet it didn't leave much of an impression. Observing the demeanor and actions of this person, he seemed different from those in the small county. His accent was also the official dialect of the capital, indicating that he probably grew up there. And his demeanor suggested he was a gentleman from a prominent family.

But he hadn't seen him before.

Originally, he was the most inconspicuous one. Even if he had seen this person before, he was definitely not the protagonist. Naturally, he would not have introduced himself, so he could not remember this person clearly.

"Thank you for saving my life. I, Xia—" Xia Jue paused and corrected himself, "I, Wang Yu, am deeply grateful and will surely repay your kindness today."

"Just remember that." Jiang Manyue finished speaking, then casually walked away with Yan Cai.

"Don't get distracted, it's time to eat."

"Oh, okay."

That person, somewhat reserved, was also called over for the meal. Yan Cai glanced at him with some curiosity. Wow, there's quite a bit of etiquette in eating; even the way he holds his chopsticks looks elegant. He leaned in to Jiang Manyue's ear and said, "Look at him, he's indeed the prince you mentioned. Eating with small, measured bites, so proper and princely, truly imposing."

"Don't look at him, look at me, your husband," Jiang Manyue glanced at Xia Jue, unimpressed, then picked up a chicken leg for Yan Cai's bowl, "You should eat well during meals, eating heartily is the way to go."

Jiang Manyue ate quickly, yet his manner was not rough but rather refined, blending a peculiar mix of boldness and gentleness. He possessed both the freedom of a soldier and the elegance of a scholar. Indeed, Jiang Manyue is pleasing to the eye no matter how you look at him.

In contrast, he himself was only rough.

Cough... Perhaps he had been thinking too much, Yan Cai choked.

When Xia Jue settled in their house, the two of them accepted him naturally without asking any questions. At first, Xia Jue had thought for a long time about how to respond if they ask questions, but in the end, he didn't get to use any of it.

Yan Cai scratched his head. Jiang Manyue had made Xia Jue's origins clear; there was no need to ask further.

He's just the Emperor's son, the Third Prince. Without a powerful mother in the palace, he isn't favored much, and the Emperor doesn't pay much attention to him. But since the Emperor's health declined, he seems to think better of this prince.

​At least he is no threat. He has no powerful mother-in-law, no imperial favor, and no favor from the ministers of the court.

So, the Emperor changed his attitude towards him, growing old and finally remembering this son he had never paid attention to, rewarding him with a few things.

Then, he disappeared after narrowly escaping an assassination attempt during a hunting trip.

There was nothing particularly surprising about it; Yan Cai lost all curiosity. Being chased was nothing new; he had experienced worse. Those who chased him were much more brutal than those who chased Xia Jue. There was a bigwig in a base who believed his life ability could grant immortality and wanted to capture him, cook him and eat him.

Did they think he was Tang Sanzang? However, that bigwig died, and no one talked about capturing him and eating him again.

Initially, Yan Cai hadn't thought about it. After enduring a month of torture from both zombies and pursuers, he finally figured it out.

He took the initiative to find that bigwig in the base who wanted to eat him for immortality. He didn't do much, just voluntarily cut a piece of flesh from himself for that bigwig. The bigwig died after eating it.

After that, no one coveted him again.

Moreover, what use is a prince? In their household, he's utterly useless—can't farm, can't cook, can't clean—absolutely worthless.

Yan Cai couldn't stand watching someone freeload around the house doing nothing, so he directed Xia Jue to start doing chores.

Xia Jue never imagined that after escaping death, he would end up as a mere servant, sweeping the floor. However, he dared not leave now. Those assassins wouldn't rest until they had his head.

He hadn't found anyone he could trust.

Xia Jue reluctantly did the work, and Yan Cai felt like he was at a loss. That idiot couldn't even sweep the floor properly. What use was he? This floor-sweeper was thoroughly unsatisfactory.

But the food here was truly delicious, and Xia Jue's appetite grew. Unexpectedly, the cooking here was even better than in the palace. His previous daily meals were of the lowest quality among the palace princes, inferior to many high-ranking eunuchs.

Yan Cai brewed some tea and brought it to the study. Xia Jue, sweeping outside, caught a whiff of the tea and couldn't help but remark, "Smells really good." This tea was even better than the palace's.

Upon closer inspection, it was even better than his father's.

Yan Cai scraped a glance at the so-called prince who couldn't do chores well, ate a lot, and didn't pay rent, and he lost all interest.

"Find Hong Yu; she'll brew some for you." They never treated this tea as precious at home, even though it commanded a high price outside, and many tea enthusiasts couldn't buy it despite offering a hefty sum.

Yan Cai set limits. You can't overwork yourself every day. Tea plants don't need to be exhausted, the land doesn't need to be fertilized, and abilities don't need— Yan Cai paused. Oh right, abilities are indeed endless, as long as he continues to cultivate.

Priceless but unavailable, yet it was just an ordinary thing in their home.

During this time, Jiang Manyue was organizing his books and took out the Four Books and Five Classics, which he hadn't touched in a long time. Yan Cai had once tried reading them with him but quickly felt dizzy after a few pages. What the heck was all that 'zhī hū zhě yě' stuff? It was giving him a headache.

Jiang Manyue said he wanted to try things he didn't have a chance to do in his previous life. Yan Cai knew exactly what he meant; Jiang Manyue had told him a long time ago.

And the entire people of Qingqu knew why Jiang Manyue was sent there. Yan Cai certainly supported him. So, he was also considering moving all their business to the capital.​

​Yan Cai had to keep an eye on his tea mountain and chili garden in Qingqu; this was his livelihood and couldn't be abandoned.

Yan Cai was still considering how to make a living after arriving in the capital.

Jiang Manyue, reading while speaking, said, "In the capital, there are many wealthy and prestigious families. For them, no price is too high. They pursue not affordability but status."

Status... Yan Cai lay on the table, contemplating his background. The mischievous baby, crawling on the desk, saw his father's big face pressed against the table and also approached. He accidentally kicked Yan Cai's face.

Fortunately, it was the baby's foot, not smelly. Yan Cai picked up his naughty son and patted the mischievous feet.

"They don't mind expensive things, right?"

Jiang Manyue thought for a moment. His stepmother, in order to compete with another minister's wife, forcibly raised the price of a pearl hairpin from one hundred to one thousand taels.

"They don't mind expensive things." Not only do they not mind, they practically spend money without blinking.

"How about we set up a shop like this? I'll only focus on growing vegetables and fruits. Let's open a store that specializes in selling out-of-season produce. We can sell them at a higher price, with a daily limit. We won't sell more than that."

"Out-of-season?" Jiang Manyue pondered for a moment before understanding what out-of-season meant. "It's a good idea, but you'll tire yourself out. And it's not worth it."

Jiang Manyue turned to him and said, "These good things are better left for our own consumption. Since they're expensive, let them be exorbitant. If a three-year-old Lingzhi mushroom or a ten-year-old ginseng can become several hundred years old... you don't need to work so hard."

As Jiang Manyue spoke, he got up and reached for a box on the bookshelf.

"I've always forgotten to give this to you."

"What's this?" Yan Cai was curious.

"All my belongings."

"You still have belongings you haven't given me!?" Yan Cai's focus clearly differed from his. "No, wait, I thought you were broke now." After all, he had given Chen Nan several tens of thousands, and he thought Jiang Manyue was out of money.

"So, is this your secret stash of money?"

"I forgot..." Jiang Manyue was sweating profusely. he genuinely forgot,  so when they moved to the foot of the tea mountain, he casually left it in the study without even glancing at it. "These are all the land deeds and property deeds from my family in the capital... These are all my shops, left by my mother. Now, I'm handing them all over to you to manage."

Yan Cai was stunned. That was a lot of money. Was he going to transform from a peasant farmer to a wealthy landlord overnight!?

Yan Cai also thought of another question.

"Jiang Manxing is your own brother. You didn't give him a share of all these shops? Wow, you're such a scheming brother."

Author's note: 

Yan Cai's disdain: A scheming brother.

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