Chapter: 061 out of 513 – The role of the supporting male and female characters (2)
Feiwan Courtyard.
Marquis Moyu was leaning against the side of the bed and his long eyelashes were lowered. His expression actually looked somewhat lonely.
After Ji Man untied her hair and freshened up, she sat down on the bed and asked, “My lord, what’s wrong?”
Ning Yuxuan opened his eyes. He actually looked somewhat childish as he asked, “Sangyu, tell me. Who’s better looking, me or Ning Mingjie?”
This… Ji Man secretly rolled her eyes, then she said, “The marquis’s cousin has always hidden his face behind a mask, so naturally it’s my lord that’s better looking.”
Hadn’t Nie Sangyu previously said several years ago that in terms of appearances, Ning Mingjie resembled a piece of white jade more? But, she couldn’t say these words. She was afraid that Ning Yuxuan would choke her to death in a fit of anger.
“If he took off his mask, then I won’t be as good looking as him?”
She didn’t know what was wrong with Ning Yuxuan. Why was he quibbling over a minor detail?
Ji Man lightly smiled and said, “The marquis is the best looking person in this servant’s eyes. Isn’t there such a saying? “My wife said that I was more handsome because she was partial towards me. My concubine said I was more handsome because she felt reverence and fear towards me.”*
* (T/N: These lines are from an ancient Chinese text, Strategies of the Warring States, that contains anecdotes of political manipulation and warfare. For a little extra background, Zhou Ji, the person who originally asked this question, knew that he wasn’t more handsome than the person he was comparing himself to. He was using this question as an example to show the emperor that these types of people wouldn’t necessarily give him a truthful answer.)
After Marquis Moyu fully contemplated these words, his face sunk and he said, “Are you saying that you’re flattering me because you’re scared of me?”
Ji Man innocently blinked her eyes. Her eyes were thoroughly bright as if they were filled with sparking, translucent snowflakes.
Seeing this sight, Ning Yuxuan slightly lost control of his senses and couldn’t resist pulling her arm to draw her closer to him. He carefully looked at her eyes.
The eyes were the windows to a person’s soul. Ji Man knew that she should be displaying intense feelings in her eyes, and then she should pretend to suppress those fake feelings. When this man saw those feelings, he would know that he was in her heart and would be more softhearted towards her in the future.
But, this was something only a leading actress could pull off. Ji Man could only try her best. She didn’t know what Marquis Moyu saw in her eyes, but his expression became much better. He gently pushed her away and said, “Did you change the incense that you were using in your room?”
Changing the topic? Ji Man raised her eyebrows, then she climbed onto the bed and obediently lied down next to him. She yawned and said, “The previous type of incense always smelled stale, so I had Muxu replace it with an incense that has a fresh and clean smell.”
Marquis Moyu was silent for a while, then he said, “I like the previous type of incense better.”
A marquis was a marquis. He was so unreasonably overbearing. He was even insisting that she uses incense that he likes. Ji Man secretly rolled her eyes and brightly smiled as she said, “This servant will have it changed back tomorrow.”
“En.”
After Marquis Moyu had been silent for a while, Ji Man closed her eyes. This person hadn’t done anything all along, so she could peacefully go to sleep.
Just as Ji Man was about to fall asleep, she heard these words by her ear, “Today, Wen Wan was praising Mingjie. She said he had exquisite Chinese chess skills and was cultured and refined.”
Ji Man opened her eyes and helplessly listened.
Marquis Moyu had been feeling uncomfortable because he was suppressing words that he wanted to say, and so he found a person to say these words to.
“She’s not from an aristocratic family, so she’s used to behaving casually in front of me and doesn’t know the rules. The women in the inner court aren’t allowed to be too close with other men… Even though they weren’t that close…”
The normally solemn Marquis Moyu was currently the embodiment of a chatterbug. He longwindedly talked without stopping.
“My lord, are you feeling jealous?” Ji Man straightforwardly interrupted him.
Marquis Moyu paused before lightly snorting once. It could be counted as tacitly agreeing.
“Madam is definitely feeling jealous and that’s why she deliberately got close with another person,” Ji Man said. “Although this method cause her to slightly break the rules, it’s only because Madam really cares about you.”
Ning Yuxuan’s expression significantly improved. He glanced at Nie Sangyu and said, “You really know how to speak.”
Ji Man shrugged and said, “The marquis’s cousin is truly as cultured as jade and as fragrant and beautiful as orchids. He’s very good-looking, has a good personality, and doesn’t have a temper. As a gentle person without a wife or any concubines, he’s a highly eligible bachelor. It’s very normal for the marquis to feel pressured.”
Ning Yuxuan’s recently improved expression blackened again. He tilted his head as he looked her and said, “Does Ning Mingjie have this many good qualities in your eyes?”
“Aren’t these just publicly recognized facts?” Ji Man said, “Madam can’t be blamed for wanting to be closer to him. He’s a pretty good man. My lord, if you don’t keep a closer watch on Madam, it’s possible that Madam’s heart will change.”
The original novel’s female lead had also really liked the supporting male character. She was just reminding him in advance.
However, the murderous sentiment in Ning Yuxuan’s eyes thickened. One hand wrapped around Nie Sangyu’s neck as he lightly said, “Nie Sangyu, I’ll say it one more time. I don’t want to hear you speak badly of Wen Wan again.”
The pressure around her neck was somewhat scary. Ji Man’s face had also frozen. She nervously laughed and said, “This servant misspoke. My lord, pretend that you didn’t hear anything. Please let go of this servant.”
His hand let go of her neck, but Marquis Moyu’s anger didn’t disappear. Why had he thought that Nie Sangyu had recently become better? Wasn’t she still slandering Wen Wan behind her back? Wen Wan had such deep feelings towards him. It wasn’t possible for her heart to change!
However, he wasn’t home during the day. If Wen Wan wanted to spend time with Ning Mingjie, she would have plenty of time. As the time increased… inevitably…
After Ning Yuxuan thought things over, he softened his tone as she said, “Sangyu, starting from tomorrow, go to the southern courtyard more often. If Madam wants to spend time with Ning Mingjie, there’s no reason why you can’t follow them. If she asks, you can tell her that I ordered you.”
It wasn’t enough that he was using her as cannon fodder. He also wanted her to play the role of surveillance camera. Ji Man was so angry that she almost couldn’t breath, but outwardly, she could only brightly smile and say, “Sure.”
Translator Ramblings: Even though Ning Yuxuan’s behavior isn’t good, I feel it’s overshadowed by how awesome Ji Man is. I love the way she answer his question of who’s more attractive. She changes his question from asking about an opinion to answering it as if there’s only one unchangeable truth; Ning Mingjie is more attractive and clearly the most eligible bachelor.
