Ch 77: The Regent’s Farmer Husband

The person he had thought about day and night, the one who had filled him with worry, was suddenly standing right before him. Jiang Ji froze only for a moment before rushing forward and throwing his arms around him, holding him tightly.

In the next instant, his waist and back were embraced as well. Jiang Yan wrapped him in a tight hug, his arms locking firmly around him.

Their heads rubbed together, each burying their face in the other’s neck, breathing in that familiar scent they had missed so much. It brought a deep sense of comfort and peace.

“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t be back for another two days?” After holding him for a while, Jiang Ji loosened his arms and pulled him inside, looking him over from head to toe. “You’re not hurt, are you?”

“I’m not hurt. Don’t worry.” Jiang Yan looked at him with smiling eyes. Jiang Ji was wearing his sleep clothes, his hair loose and slightly messy. He had clearly been about to go to bed.

“As long as you’re not hurt.” Jiang Ji let out a breath of relief and looked at him again.

Jiang Yan had clearly rushed back without rest. He looked tired. His complexion was somewhat worn, red veins showed in his eyes, and short stubble covered his chin where he had not had time to shave. His silver armor was dusty and faintly stained with blood.

But his eyes were bright, filled with warmth, and the corners of his mouth lifted in a broad smile.

Jiang Ji touched the armor on his chest and patted it lightly, looking up with a grin. “Jiang Yan, you look really handsome in armor.”

Jiang Yan’s gaze darkened slightly. His throat moved as he swallowed. He lifted a hand to touch Jiang Ji’s face, then suddenly held the back of his head and leaned down to kiss him.

Jiang Ji closed his eyes and tilted his head up, his hands cupping Jiang Yan’s head as he returned the kiss with equal passion.

Their lips pressed together urgently, with no technique at all, guided only by instinct as they confirmed each other’s presence.

The longing and worry that had built up over more than two months melted into that deep kiss.

“We’ve been traveling day and night to get here. I’m practically rotting in my own sweat. I need to wash up right away.”

Footsteps and Lu Wen’s voice sounded outside the house. Jiang Ji patted Jiang Yan’s shoulder to signal that someone was coming.

But Jiang Yan simply wrapped an arm around him and pulled him into the room. The door shut behind them, and Jiang Yan pressed him against it and kissed him again.

Jiang Ji was slightly surprised by Jiang Yan’s intensity, yet he indulged him willingly. In truth he was happy. It seemed Jiang Yan had missed him very much too.

His own heart was racing with excitement. Now that there were no more reservations, he kissed him even more deeply, pouring all the longing he felt into the kiss.

“Young master ran off as soon as he came in. He probably couldn’t stand all the dust and went to wash up first,” someone said outside.

Several people walked to the east wing. Lu Wen stepped inside and looked around. “See? The young master isn’t here.”

Lu Jiu noticed Jiang Ji’s door was closed and quickly pulled the others along. “Let’s go, hurry and wash up.”

Inside the room, both men heard Lu Jiu and the others leaving, but neither paid any attention. Translated on Hololo novels. They continued kissing intensely, like two beasts parched for a long time, drawing strength from each other.

Jiang Yan’s armor was hard and pressed painfully against Jiang Ji, but he didn’t care. He wrapped his arms around Jiang Yan and kissed him fiercely.

After a long time, they finally separated, breathing heavily but still not letting go. Their faces remained close as they brushed and pecked at each other’s lips.

“Jiang Yan, you finally came back.” Jiang Ji touched his face gently, tracing every inch with his fingers. “I missed you so much.”

Such direct expression of emotion made Jiang Yan’s chest burn with warmth. He lowered his head again and kissed the man in his arms, answering him through his actions.

“I missed you too,” Jiang Yan murmured between kisses. Under Jiang Ji’s influence, the words came naturally. “Very much.”

Jiang Ji’s eyes curved with happiness as he hugged him and kissed him again.

After quite a while, they finally stopped. Their lips were red, as though stained with rouge.

Once their breathing steadied, Jiang Ji looked at his armor and said, “You must be tired. Take the armor off and wash up so you can rest.”

Jiang Ji helped him remove the armor. It was extremely heavy, weighing thirty or forty jin.

In this hot weather they still had to wear it while moving around, their bodies soaked in sweat. But they couldn’t go without it. They were fighting a war, and Jiang Yan had already survived an assassination attempt. For safety, Chen Feng and the others never allowed him to take the armor off, even during the journey back.

Jiang Yan sniffed his own sleeve and frowned.

Jiang Ji laughed when he saw the expression. “Come on, go wash.”

“Alright.”

Jiang Ji fetched him clean clothes and undergarments. Jiang Yan lit a lantern and carried it with him as they headed toward the back courtyard.

“Didn’t you say the Prince Qi was captured? Where is he now?” Jiang Ji asked.

Jiang Yan paused, glanced at him, and replied, “They’re taking the road through the neighboring county. A general is escorting him. Chen Feng and Lu Wu went along as well. I came back to see you. I can stay for at most two days before I have to leave and rejoin them on the way back to the capital.”

“So soon?” Jiang Ji stopped walking and looked at him, frowning slightly. “You can’t stay a couple more days?”

Jiang Yan stopped as well and explained, “I’ve been away from the capital for more than half a year. I have to return and handle many matters.”

Jiang Ji understood the reasoning. He sighed. After all, his lover was the Regent.

“Alright then. Go wash first.”

Just then the door of the main house opened. Zhao Ru had heard the noise and stepped outside. Hearing their conversation, she said in surprise,

“Jiang Yan is back?”

“Auntie, it’s me. I’m back,” Jiang Yan said as he quickly walked over.

“It’s good that you’re back, good that you’re back.” Zhao Ru held up the lamp and looked him over carefully from head to toe. “You’re not hurt, are you?”

“No, don’t worry.”

“That’s good.” Zhao Ru glanced at the clothes in Jiang Ji’s hands. “Are you going to wash up?”

“Yes. I just got back and I’m covered in dust.”

Zhao Ru looked at her son for a moment and smiled. “Alright then, go. After you wash up, get some good rest. Whatever there is to talk about can wait until tomorrow after you’ve slept.”

“Okay. You should rest too.”

The two of them walked into the back courtyard. The kitchen beside them was lit, and Sister Guihua was inside boiling water for them.

Lu Jiu, Lu Wen, and two personal guards were sitting at the doorway chatting. They stayed in the front wing rooms. Their armor had already been removed, and they were dressed in black training clothes.

When Lu Wen saw his lord, he asked in confusion, “Young master, I thought you had already come to bathe. Why are you only coming now?”

Lu Jiu coughed lightly. “The young master must have been talking with Young Master Jiang Ji.”

“Oh.”

When Guihua heard Jiang Ji’s voice, she came to the doorway and said, “Young master, please talk to them. They wouldn’t even wait a moment. Two of them already carried cold water and went to bathe. The well water is so cold. What if they catch a chill? They should at least mix it with hot water.”

Lu Jiu turned around and said, “Sister-in-law, we martial artists are strong. It’s not easy for us to catch a chill. We usually bathe in cold water.”

Guihua sighed. “You’re only saying that because you’re young.”

“Sister Guihua already boiled the water, so you should just use the warm water and relax a bit,” Jiang Ji said with a smile. Then he looked at Jiang Yan. “You shouldn’t use cold water. Use warm water.”

Jiang Yan nodded. “Alright.”

Lu Wen was shocked to see how obedient his prince was. He was about to say something, but Lu Jiu quickly covered his mouth.

“Listen to Young Master Jiang Ji. We’ll use warm water too,” Lu Jiu said, then called toward the kitchen, “Thank you, sister-in-law.”

“It still takes the young master to keep you all in line,” Sister Guihua said with a laugh.

“Have you all eaten dinner tonight? Are you hungry? Should I cook you some noodles?” Jiang Ji asked.

Lu Wen’s eyes instantly lit up. “Young Master Jiang Ji, do you still have those noodles you packed for the young master before?”

Hearing that, Lu Jiu and the other two guards also looked over.

Lu Jiu had never eaten them before and asked, “Do you have them? I heard they’re really delicious, but I never got to try them.”

Lu Wen was talking about the instant noodles Jiang Ji had packed for Jiang Yan before.

“You want those noodles?” Jiang Ji asked.

“Yes, yes,” Lu Wen and the others nodded eagerly.

“Alright, wait here. I’ll go get them.” Jiang Ji called into the kitchen, “Sister Guihua, fry a few eggs for them, boil half a pot of water, and wash some water spinach or lettuce. I’ll cook noodles for them.”

“Alright!”

Jiang Ji took a small basket and two small bowls and went into the nearby storeroom. Naturally there were no instant noodles stored there. Translated on Hololo novels. He directly exchanged twelve packs through the system, removed the packaging, and placed the noodle cakes into the basket. The seasoning packets were opened and poured into the bowls, and the empty packaging was returned to the system for recycling.

Once the water boiled, Jiang Ji added the noodle cakes and vegetables, then the seasoning. Soon the noodles were ready. He filled a large bowl for each of them and placed two fried eggs on top.

Sister Guihua looked at the noodles with curiosity. She had never seen anything like them. “Young master, when did you make these?”

“I made them casually when I had some free time before.”

“Oh, I see.” Sister Guihua didn’t doubt him. The young master was capable of many things. If he said it, she believed it.

“Alright, they’re ready. Come get them yourselves,” Jiang Ji said.

Lu Wen and the others were already gathered around the pot. As soon as they heard him, each grabbed a bowl and a pair of chopsticks and started eating.

Lu Jiu slurped a mouthful of noodles, and his eyes lit up immediately. “This smells amazing.”

“See? Didn’t I say it was good?” Lu Wen said.

“Yeah, it’s really good.”

None of them bothered going to the dining hall next door. They simply squatted at the doorway and ate.

Jiang Yan was hungry too and sat on a small stool eating.

Jiang Ji turned to Sister Guihua and said, “It’s late. I’ll watch things here. You should go back and sleep.”

“It’s alright. I’ll wait until they finish and wash the bowls,” Guihua said.

Lu Jiu quickly said, “Sister-in-law, go to sleep. We’ll wash them ourselves later.”

Guihua smiled. “It’s only a few bowls. I’ll finish quickly. You’ve all been traveling hard. After you eat, hurry and wash up and get some rest.”

Before long, the two men who had gone to bathe earlier came out.

One of them laughed and said, “We could smell it all the way from the bathhouse!”

They came over, grabbed bowls, and began eating. The group ate quickly, finishing even the soup. Those who finished first went to bathe.

After a while, Jiang Yan also went to bathe.

Jiang Ji sat at the kitchen doorway and asked Lu Jiu, “None of you were injured, right?”

“No. Only Lu Wen scraped his arm a little,” Lu Jiu replied. “The young master planned everything very carefully. Prince Qi had secretly trained five thousand soldiers and had also won over the ten thousand troops stationed there. The young master transferred thirty thousand troops from two southern provinces and captured them all in one move.”

“The bows you designed, Young Master Jiang Ji, played a huge role. Our range was farther than theirs. We wiped out seventy or eighty percent of their strength without much effort. The bed crossbows were also very effective during the siege. Later, when Prince Qi saw the situation turning against him, he tried to escape. He had dug a tunnel leading outside the city, so it took us some time to find it.”

“Didn’t they say he was also secretly mining iron?” Jiang Ji asked.

Lu Jiu nodded. “Yes. We’ve taken over and sealed the iron mines. The officials there were dismissed and investigated. The garrison there has already been replaced. Most of our time afterward was spent handling the aftermath and calming the people.”

Jiang Ji nodded.

When Jiang Yan finished bathing and came out, Jiang Ji patted Lu Jiu on the shoulder and stood up.

“You’ve all worked hard. Finish washing up early and get a good night’s sleep.”

“Alright.”

Jiang Ji returned to the room with Jiang Yan. Jiang Yan changed into his sleep clothes and lay down on the bed. Just as he was about to blow out the lamp, Jiang Ji stopped him.

“Wait, don’t blow it out yet.”

Jiang Yan turned to look at him.

“I want to look at you properly,” Jiang Ji said.

Jiang Yan’s heart softened. He lowered the mosquito net and lay down, turning on his side so they faced each other.

Jiang Ji simply gazed at him quietly, reaching out to touch his face.

“You’ve lost a lot of weight.”

Jiang Yan avoided the deeper reason and said lightly, “The food over there wasn’t very good.”

Jiang Ji laughed softly. “Tomorrow I’ll cook you something delicious.”

“Alright.” Jiang Yan looked at him with gentle eyes, his arm around Jiang Ji’s waist. “You’ve lost weight too.”

Jiang Ji curled his lips in a half-joking, half-serious way. “Mine’s just because I missed you so much. Lovesickness. It nearly killed me. I missed you until I got thin.”

Jiang Ji was always this straightforward, sweet words flowing as if they cost nothing.

Jiang Yan stroked his face, his voice full of concern. “I’m sorry. I made you worry.”

Jiang Ji blinked and widened his eyes slightly. “It’s normal to worry. You worry because you care and because you love someone. But did you miss the point? It’s not meant to make you feel guilty. The important part is that I missed you. Got it?”

Jiang Yan said softly, “I missed you too.”

Jiang Ji smiled and kissed him lightly on the lips. “That’s better. Feelings need to be communicated. If you say it out loud, I can truly feel it. When you’re happy, I’m happy too.”

Jiang Yan’s lips curved into a small smile.

“I heard before that you were pretty lively when you were little, but after you grew up you became more reserved and kept everything inside,” Jiang Ji said quietly. “Jiang Yan, I hope that from now on, whatever happens, we can tell each other. Alright?”

“Alright.”

The two of them looked into each other’s eyes. After a while, they ended up kissing again.

This time the kiss was gentle and warm.

His beloved had returned safely. The anxiety that had hung over his heart finally settled. Held in each other’s arms, within reach, the quiet warmth between them spread like soft bubbles in the air.

“You must be tired. Go to sleep. Don’t think about anything.”

“Alright.”

Jiang Ji climbed up, leaned over to blow out the lamp, and the two of them fell asleep holding each other.

A peaceful, solid sleep.

For both of them.

…

The next morning, Jiang Ji’s internal clock woke him on time.

When he opened his eyes and saw Jiang Yan beside him, the corner of his lips lifted. Nothing could be more wonderful than that moment.

He didn’t move, afraid of waking Jiang Yan. He wanted him to sleep a little longer.

So he simply watched him quietly.

Jiang Yan had been working nonstop for more than two months. His complexion looked a bit worn, faint dark circles under his eyes. The stubble on his chin hadn’t been shaved yet.

Even so, his features were still firm and handsome.

Just looking at him made Jiang Ji feel happy.

When daylight fully filled the room, voices from the west wing could be heard. Jiang Nan and Jiang Bei had heard that Jiang Yan had returned and wanted to run over to see him.

“Brother Jiang Yan is back? Let’s go see him!”

Zhao Ru quickly stopped them. “Don’t go disturb them. Jiang Yan came back very late last night. Let them sleep a bit longer.”

“Oh.” Jiang Bei said. “The door’s closed. They’re not awake yet. Then should we wait until breakfast?”

“We’ll eat after they wake up.”

“Oh, alright.”

The courtyard became quiet again.

Jiang Yan opened his eyes.

“Did they wake you? It’s still early. Sleep a little more,” Jiang Ji said.

Jiang Yan kissed Jiang Ji lightly on the forehead. Translated on Hololo novels. His arm tightened around him, pulling him closer, his chin rubbing lightly against Jiang Ji’s head as he let out a relaxed breath.

Jiang Ji hugged him and kissed his neck.

Jiang Yan’s body suddenly stiffened.

The stiffness was so obvious that Jiang Ji noticed immediately. He looked up at him.

“What’s wrong?”

Jiang Yan mumbled vaguely, “Nothing.”

Jiang Ji raised an eyebrow and lifted his leg slightly, instantly understanding. When he had first woken up earlier, he had been the same way, though it had already settled down by now.

He laughed quietly and whispered, “Need some help?”

“…No.”

Jiang Ji kissed his lips. Knowing Jiang Yan wanted to wait until marriage, he smiled.

“Then take care of it yourself.”

Jiang Yan: “……”

Jiang Ji climbed out of bed, took out a pack of wet wipes, and placed them on the bedside table next to the dry tissues.

“No need to rush. Take your time. These are wet wipes. They’re convenient for cleaning your hands or body.”

Jiang Yan: “……”

Jiang Ji changed his clothes and went outside, thoughtfully closing both the bedroom door and the outer door behind him.

Jiang Yan: “……”

Jiang Yan picked up the wet wipes and looked at them. More than half the pack was already gone. He raised an eyebrow.

Jiang Ji went to the back courtyard to wash up. Jiang Bei saw him and squatted beside him.

“Big brother, where’s Brother Jiang Yan?”

“He’s still sleeping. Let him sleep a bit longer.”

“Oh.”

After a little more than a quarter of an hour, Jiang Yan came out.

The two of them met at the corner of the corridor.

Jiang Ji looked at him and smiled, asking softly, “Were the wet wipes useful?”

Jiang Yan paused, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“You seem to use them quite often,” he said in a low voice.

Jiang Ji: “……”

Oh?

That sounded like a challenge.

He wasn’t the least bit intimidated. Raising his eyebrow, he replied,

“I’m healthy.”

Jiang Yan curled his lips slightly and looked at him with a half-smile.

“That’s good.”

“Don’t worry,” Jiang Ji said, patting Jiang Yan on the shoulder. “I’ll make sure you’re happy.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” Jiang Yan replied.

Each of them secretly making their own little plans, they exchanged a smile.

🌾🌾🌾🌾🌾