Youthful Glory

Back in Pang Mountain, Ming Tan had once had a fleeting thought cross her mind, but it vanished as quickly as it came. After all, she never imagined that the small jade token on her waist pendant had already been lost long ago.

But now, it seemed—

She lowered her gaze, carefully placing the pendant back into its box while recalling the events that had transpired at Hanyan Temple.

The blood in the chamber, the fire that had consumed Hanyan Temple, and the subsequent series of unusual incidents in the capital...

She calmed her mind, piecing together the fragments of memory.

...

By the time she returned to Prince Dingbei's Manor, Ming Tan had pieced together a plausible sequence of events. Little did she know, her speculation was remarkably close to the truth.

Today, military affairs kept Jiang Xu occupied, and he sent word that he wouldn’t be returning for dinner.

Ming Tan had originally planned to ask him about it over the meal. Now, the table full of dishes she had prepared went to waste.

Preoccupied with her thoughts, she had little appetite. After sipping a bowl of soup, she had the rest cleared away for the servants to share.

After her evening bath, Ming Tan paced restlessly around the room.

She had already searched through the hidden pouch Jiang Xu kept at home, but the item wasn’t there—likely carried on his person.

Lost in thought, she circled the room, absently nibbling on her finger as if pondering something grave.

Finally, movement sounded outside the courtyard.

Ming Tan turned and hurried to greet him, but halfway through the outer chamber, she paused. Retreating hastily, she settled back onto the soft couch in the inner chamber, picking up a book and propping her head up, feigning absorption in its pages.

Moments later, Jiang Xu entered.

"Husband, you're back." Ming Tan set the book aside, feigning mild surprise.

Fresh from her bath, her dark hair cascaded over her shoulders, and the crimson ruqun she wore accentuated her snow-white skin. Indoors, she wore only wooden sandals, curled up on the couch with her bare feet exposed, her pale toes fidgeting nervously.

Jiang Xu undid the ties at his sleeves, casting her a glance.

Struggling to maintain composure, she slipped on her sandals and approached him with practiced ease, her voice soft and tender as usual. "You must be exhausted today. I’ll have water prepared for your bath to ease your weariness. Afterward, you can have some supper. The rations at the camp are poor, and the nights are chilly this season. I’ve specially prepared ginger-infused chicken congee to warm your stomach and ward off the cold. Have a bit more later."

As she spoke, she deftly assisted him in undressing, her movements smooth and unhurried.

Jiang Xu seemed none the wiser, responding with a faint hum as he gazed down at her. "Consort is most thoughtful."

Hearing this, Ming Tan felt an inexplicable pang of guilt, her hands faltering slightly before she steeled herself and continued loosening his garments.

The maids soon brought in hot water, and the bathing chamber filled with a hazy mist.

Once Jiang Xu had stepped into the bath, Ming Tan finally relaxed, slipping out quietly—and discreetly pocketing the hidden pouch from his clothes.

She rifled through it as she returned to the inner chamber, quickly retrieving the small black jade token. Hurrying to her dressing table, she retrieved the waist pendant she had brought back earlier.

The pendant was heavy, while the token felt almost weightless in comparison.

Her heart raced, her hands trembling slightly.

Slowly, she aligned the black jade token with the gap in the pendant—her pupils dilating abruptly—

It fit!The small crack on the jade pendant perfectly matched the notch on the tassel ornament. This meant the black jade in her husband's possession was indeed hers—she hadn't been mistaken!

Ming Tan turned hurriedly, but before she could take a step, she collided with a firm, warm chest.

Unbeknownst to her, Jiang Xu had draped a sleeping robe over himself and stood silently behind her, water droplets still glistening on his skin.

She froze momentarily, instinctively hiding the small jade pendant behind her back, her heart nearly stopping from fright.

Yet Jiang Xu merely glanced indifferently at the dark pouch she'd left on the desk.

Following his gaze, Ming Tan suddenly felt a pang of regret. With a dejected sigh, she relinquished the pendant, extending it back toward him.

Just as Jiang Xu reached to take it, Ming Tan remembered something—

Wait, why should she feel guilty? This black jade was rightfully hers! Shouldn't he be the one explaining why he'd kept it all this time?

With this realization, Ming Tan straightened with newfound confidence. She raised her hand abruptly, causing Jiang Xu's outstretched fingers to grasp empty air as they paused midair.

Tilting her chin up, she tapped the jade against his chest and demanded righteously, "Husband, shouldn't you properly explain the origins of this black jade? You've known all along that this was mine, haven't you?"

"..."

"So this is why you've been sneaking around?"

"Who—who's sneaking around!"

"Hmm. I wonder who pretended not to notice my return." Jiang Xu's gaze swept over her coolly.

Before entering, he'd seen Ming Tan's silhouette darting about in the candlelight—clearly intending to greet him, then inexplicably scurrying back to curl up on the daybed.

When he found her coiled there, he'd assumed his little Consort wanted to ask a favor, perhaps attempting seduction. He'd even prepared to reluctantly indulge her. Apparently, he'd overestimated the situation.

Exposed, Ming Tan flushed with embarrassed irritation.

"If you wanted to know something, you could have simply asked. No need for such elaborate measures."

"I intended to ask directly, but I feared making assumptions and causing misunderstandings... I wanted to confirm it was my jade first," Ming Tan muttered under her breath.

She'd embarrassed herself enough before her husband. If she'd spun some grand narrative without verification only to discover the jade wasn't hers, what a ridiculous blunder that would have been!

Moreover, her husband claimed this jade had saved his life. To wrongly claim being someone's savior—if it turned out to be a mistake, even without his mockery, she'd want to crawl into a hole!

After listening, Jiang Xu remained silent for a long moment before unexpectedly ruffling her hair, smoothing the strands afterward.

"No misunderstanding. The Consort truly is my lifesaver," he admitted plainly.

Ming Tan's head snapped up.

Meeting her gaze steadily, he recounted the incident at Hanyan Temple and the later danger in the woods.

......

Dazed by the revelations, Ming Tan finally pieced things together: "So I saved you twice?"

"Mn."

"Then why didn't you say so at Mount Pang?"

"You didn't ask."

"......"

Ming Tan opened her mouth, but found no rebuttal.The maid brought in some late-night snacks, and Ming Tan sat at the table to dine with Jiang Xu. Yet, she still found his earlier words unbelievable, lost in thought for a long while without coming back to her senses.

She found it incredibly hard to believe that she and her husband had so many connections even before they had met.

Thinking this way, many things she hadn’t pondered deeply before now seemed to have an explanation.

For instance, why had her husband rescued her when she fell into the water during the Lantern Festival? And how had he known she was the young lady of Jing'an Marquis Manor, directly sending her back to the estate…

So, from beginning to end, her husband had been aware of this.

At this thought, Ming Tan’s emotions grew complicated.

After the lights were extinguished and they retired to bed, Ming Tan tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

Jiang Xu pulled her into his arms. “Sleep early. Don’t you have to visit the Empress in the palace tomorrow?”

“But I can’t sleep.”

“Why can’t you sleep?”

Ming Tan nestled against his chest, hesitating for a long while before finally whispering, “Did Husband know from the start that I was your savior?”

“……”

Truthfully, it wasn’t from the very beginning—he had only recalled it after seeing her face at Lingmiao Temple. But Jiang Xu didn’t deny it. If he had, her sharp mind would likely have soon realized his lack of motive for saving her during the Lantern Festival.

For some reason, by now, he no longer wished to dwell on why he had married her in the first place.

But while he didn’t want to pursue it, Ming Tan desperately wanted an answer. After hesitating, she softly asked again, “Then, did Husband marry me to repay a debt of gratitude? Were all your kindnesses to me also because you wanted to repay me?”

She wasn’t foolish. Given his power and his relationship with the Emperor, if he hadn’t been willing to marry her, the Emperor would never have casually issued an imperial decree for their marriage.

Jiang Xu remained silent for a long time.

So long that Ming Tan thought he wouldn’t answer. Then he spoke: “Not entirely.”

These three words carried many meanings.

When he married her, it hadn’t been solely out of gratitude—more so, it had been due to considerations regarding Jing'an Marquis Manor. At the start of their marriage, his tolerance might have stemmed from that sense of obligation, but now he knew clearly that wasn’t the case.

Ming Tan had braced herself for this, so the answer didn’t leave her utterly disheartened.

She forced herself to calm down and accept this fact. After a moment of silence, she couldn’t resist asking again in a small, reluctant voice, “Then, among the other reasons Husband had… was there even a small part because you liked A Tan?”

Some things seemed difficult to put into words. Jiang Xu lifted her slightly, sealing her lips with his own, delving deep inside, answering her with action rather than words.

Ming Tan was kissed breathless, whimpering as her cheeks flushed crimson. Only when Jiang Xu released her did she gasp for air, pressing against his chest with damp, upturned eyes meeting his steady, unwavering gaze.

“What do you think?”

His voice was low and rough, the answer in his eyes far too obvious.

Ming Tan’s ears burned, suddenly too embarrassed to shamelessly press him to say it aloud.

In truth, this was enough for her. So what if it began with gratitude? At least there was that bond between them. Besides, her husband now cared for her beyond mere repayment—he liked her too. They had a long, long time ahead, and she believed he would come to love her!

Jiang Xu’s desire had been stirred, and soon he leaned over her soft body again, his warm breath trailing downward, igniting flames wherever it lingered. The bed curtains soon echoed with ambiguous gasps and delicate moans.After a long while, just as their passion was at its peak, the tent suddenly fell silent for a moment.

"Are you on your period?"

Ming Tan nodded honestly.

Jiang Xu's eyes were still tinged with red, his voice low and restrained: "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

Ming Tan replied innocently, "Husband didn't ask."

"..."

So this was where she had been waiting for him.