Chapter 27: A Nest of Sick Chickens
Jiang Lili groggily opened her eyes and was immediately startled into full wakefulness by a painting hanging in the room.
A landscape painting was suspended in her room. The mountains were towering, with sharp brushstrokes, and between them, rivers flowed with such force that it seemed to capture a dynamic and grandiose scene.
Jiang Lili was mesmerized by it with just one glance, feeling as though she had been drawn into the painting.
Even the red sun at the top of the scroll, combined with the faint greenish glow emanating from the mountain stones, made the whole scene seem so lifelike.
Jiang Lili was stunned. Even as an amateur, she could tell this was an awe-inspiring masterpiece.
She recalled how she had asked Xin Che the previous day to help her clean up the painting materials but had not yet had a chance to tell him she wanted Madam Yang to paint it.
She had heard that the prince was talented in both civil and military arts, but she hadn’t expected his skills to reach such a shocking level. The painting, completed overnight, was so vivid and captivating.
Thinking about how she had told Xin Che she was in a hurry, Jiang Lili wondered if this painting had been completed by him overnight.
“How embarrassing,” she muttered, quickly getting out of bed, washing up, and then rushing out of the room to knock on Xin Che’s door, only to find that he wasn’t in his room.
As she turned around, she saw Xin Che approaching with a food basket.
“You’re awake? You should eat something,” he said.
His eyes were still bright, but the slight dark circles beneath them revealed that he hadn’t slept much.
Jiang Lili followed him into the room and pointed to the landscape painting on the wall. “Did you paint this?”
“Yes,” Xin Che replied, placing the dishes from the food box on the table with a light laugh. “Miss Jiang, are you satisfied?”
“Very satisfied!” Jiang Lili nodded enthusiastically, then felt a little guilty. “You didn’t sleep at all last night?”
Xin Che noticed what Jiang Lili was thinking and said, “I’ve spent many years on the border, often marching at night. Painting is much easier than fighting, so it’s no trouble at all.”
Seeing Jiang Lili’s thin face, Xin Che urged her to eat her breakfast.
“Once the painting dries in the air, I can burn it for your mother. You don’t have to worry about it now.”
Jiang Lili could already smell the aroma of the wontons on the table, and she swallowed hard. Indeed, now that the urgent matter was settled, she could finally enjoy her meal.
Without worrying about manners, Jiang Lili dug into the wontons.
Xin Che sat across from her, watching her cheeks puff as she ate, and couldn’t help but smile. His expression softened.
He stayed with her for a while, but then Cheng Jiayu came to find him. “Young Master Xin, the items you asked me to buy are here. Would it be convenient for you to take a look now?”
Cheng Jiayu immediately regretted his words. Was it a bad time?
Jiang Lili waved her hand. “Go ahead, go ahead. I’ll send the food box to the kitchen aunt later.”
Xin Che wiped the smile from his face and followed Cheng Jiayu out.
After finishing her wontons, Jiang Lili shared the good news with Zhang Xiaopang.
[Jiang Lili: Xiaopang, do you have a picture of the painting your company’s competitor gave to their project manager? What does it look like?]
After a moment, Zhang Xiaopang sent a picture.
[Zhang Xiaopang: This is what the project manager posted on their WeChat Moments (picture).]
Jiang Lili opened the image, then glanced at the landscape painting hanging in front of her. She broke into a wide smile.
She snapped a photo of the landscape painting and sent it to Xiaopang.
[Jiang Lili: It should be dry by tonight. Just wait for it!]
Zhang Xiaopang, upon receiving the picture, was so excited he sent over a series of animated stickers.
[Zhang Xiaopang: Sister Li, where did you get this painting from? It completely outshines that so-called master!!!]
[Zhang Xiaopang: A painting of this level? I can’t even afford to price it! And this is just a photo—can’t imagine how stunning the real thing must be.]
Jiang Lili couldn’t help but laugh at Xiaopang’s comment about “not being able to afford it.” She wondered if she should give Xin Che a modern gift in return, but after thinking for a while, she still couldn’t decide what to send.
[Jiang Lili: Zero cost, it’s the prince’s painting, free labor.]
[Zhang Xiaopang: Thank you, brother-in-law, for the generous gift!]
Jiang Lili was taken aback. So now she was being called “sister-in-law”?
[Jiang Lili: Stop joking around! Be careful, or I’ll tear up the painting!]
…
After finishing her breakfast and lunch, Jiang Lili went to find Guan Yue. She had rested for a few days at the mountain stronghold, and she would have to leave according to the plan the morning after tomorrow.
After finalizing the plans for the morning departure, Guan Yue handed Jiang Lili a copper key. “This is the key to the storeroom.”
Jiang Lili took the key, surprised. “For me?”
As they walked toward the storeroom, Guan Yue explained, “The reason we managed to seize all of Xu Youshan’s treasures is largely thanks to your brave effort to delay time.”
“The gold, silver, and jewels we stole—I’ve kept a portion as rewards for the brothers who did the heavy lifting, but the rest is for you.”
Jiang Lili felt deeply moved. Back when she was in school and often went hungry, Guan Yue would always share snacks with her, showing great care.
“These things in the storeroom are like our shared property as sisters. You’re leading this stronghold now, and you’ll definitely need silver for various matters.”
“Girl, you should think about yourself more! You’re in the toughest situation right now!” Guan Yue urged as she pushed Jiang Lili into the storeroom. “Take it! You’ll need silver on your journey!”
Jiang Lili glanced around the storeroom. “I’ll just take some silver to carry with me. The gold and jewels won’t be useful on the road and will just be a hassle.”
Guan Yue thought for a moment. “How about we move some of the valuable items to Xiaopang? That way, you can access them anytime. Honestly, with all these treasures in one place, I’m not entirely at ease.”
Jiang Lili agreed, so she communicated with Xiaopang and arranged for some of the treasures to be moved.
*
After a good day of rest, on the third morning, the chief of the Guan family stronghold allowed the exiled prisoners to have their meal, then instructed the second-in-command to hurry the group to a quarry about seven miles away to gather stones.
“Move faster!”
The exiled prisoners were blindfolded and brought to the quarry site. After the mountain bandits removed the burlap sacks from their heads, they handed them tools for stone collection.
For the past few days, they had been confined to the stilt house in the stronghold. Occasionally, they were sent in batches to work in the fields—loosening soil and watering crops.
However, they were fed well at every meal, and at night, they were allowed to rest indoors, sleeping on straw.
At this point, the exiled prisoners seemed in much better spirits than when they first arrived.
On the other hand, the ten bailiffs who had been sent with them were mostly in poor condition—spiritless, with some even sniffing. Only two or three appeared to be in decent health.
“Ah-choo—”
“Cough, cough, cough—”
The bailiffs had been confined together, and even though they hadn’t caught a cold on the city gates that day, it seemed they had now been infected.
As they wobbled along, carrying stone-collecting tools, they looked like a group of sick chickens, with none of the former arrogance they had when they were chasing the exiled prisoners.
The exiled prisoners kept their distance from the bailiffs, fearful of catching whatever illness they had.