Chapter Fifty-Five
"No, absolutely not! Don’t you dare give it to me!" Jiang Hanhai waved his hands frantically, his heart pounding with fear. After all, what good could possibly come from inside a coffin?
"Marquis Yongning, are you sure you don’t want it?" Xie Jincheng raised an eyebrow and asked again.
"No, no!" Jiang Hanhai shook his head like a rattle-drum.
"What should we do? He doesn’t want it." Xie Jincheng pointed at the chubby Jiang Yu, who was sound asleep inside, and turned to Xu Heming.
"You take him home," Xu Heming replied with utmost seriousness.
"Then why don’t you keep him in your manor?" Xie Jincheng retorted, displeased.
"Can’t afford to raise him," Xu Heming answered without hesitation.
"Seriously? That’s the most half-hearted excuse I’ve ever heard!" Xie Jincheng scoffed, finding Xu Heming’s response utterly shameless.
"Well, I’m saving up to marry my future wife. Every coin in my estate will belong to her."
"Come on, Xu Heming, do you really think I’m as gullible as this fool here? Since when is the An Estate so poor that you can’t even afford a dowry?" Xie Jincheng rolled his eyes in disbelief.
"Not enough for the betrothal gifts. Care to chip in?" Xu Heming smirked at him.
"What kind of noble lady are you marrying that requires mountains of gold and silver?" Xie Jincheng gave him a skeptical look, wondering why he seemed like an easy target for such nonsense.
"Are you two seriously discussing marriage in front of… this thing?" Jiang Hanhai couldn’t fathom why they were talking about weddings before a coffin. What kind of bizarre hobby was this?
"Listen, Old Jiang, let’s not stand on ceremony. Are you really sure you don’t want what’s inside? They say good things should be shared—don’t blame me later for not offering." Xie Jincheng teased the timid Jiang Hanhai.
"No, no! If you like it, just take it!" Jiang Hanhai, already terrified, didn’t dare glance inside the coffin. The mere thought of bringing it home made him shudder. If Xie Jincheng wanted it, he was welcome to it.
"Old Xu, you’re my witness. If Marquis Yongning comes asking for it later, I’m not giving it back!" Xie Jincheng chuckled.
"Fine, then I won’t hold back." With a mischievous grin, Xie Jincheng bent down as if to fish out the "treasure" from the coffin.
Xu Heming stepped aside, watching with amusement.
Hearing the rustling behind him, Jiang Hanhai grew even more uneasy and couldn’t resist stealing a glance.
He saw Xie Jincheng nearly halfway inside the coffin and immediately whipped his head back, muttering under his breath, "The wronged have their avengers, the sinners their judges—this has nothing to do with me! Keep that thing far away, don’t let me see it!"
Just then, a soft murmur came from the coffin, like a sleepy grumble tinged with annoyance.
Jiang Hanhai froze. That voice… why did it sound familiar?
Before he could figure it out, Xie Jincheng straightened up, holding a "treasure" in his arms—a plump little bundle wrapped in brocade, cheeks rosy from sleep. It was none other than his son, Jiang Yu.
"Well, Old Jiang, you said it yourself—he’s mine now. Oh my, what a chubby, hefty little treasure! Perfect for a household mascot." Xie Jincheng stifled a laugh, bouncing the chubby child in his arms for effect.
Jiang Yu was jostled awake, his bleary eyes blinking open to see Xie Jincheng holding him and his own father standing nearby with a look of utter bewilderment. His lips quivered as he mumbled sleepily, "Dad... Uncle Xie... What are you doing here?"
Jiang Hanhai's eyes nearly bulged out of his head, his finger trembling as he pointed at Jiang Yu. "You... you... how did you end up in there?!"
It suddenly dawned on him—the little hand he'd glimpsed earlier, the ominous thud—it was all the doing of this mischievous brat!
He’d been thoroughly fooled by his own son, Xu Heming, and Xie Jincheng!
A mix of lingering fear and irritation washed over him, his face flushing red and pale in turns.
"Hahaha!" Xie Jincheng could no longer hold back, bursting into laughter. "Marquis Yongning, you said you didn’t want this treasure. Well, I’ll be taking him home with me!"
Xu Heming, equally amused, shook his head and leaned over to peer into the coffin.
Sure enough, his own troublesome son, Xu Qingshi, and Xie Jincheng’s son, Xie Yanzhi, were curled up at the other end, their heads nestled together, fast asleep.
Xu Qingshi even smacked his lips softly, clearly lost in some pleasant dream.
"Xu! Heming!" Jiang Hanhai finally snapped out of his daze, realizing he’d been the butt of their jokes all along, and his face burned with humiliation.
Xu Heming straightened up, his smile unwavering but his tone carrying a hint of smugness. "As I said, I can’t afford to raise him. Such a handful should be taken back by Marquis Yongning himself for proper discipline."
He paused, then glanced at the other two "culprits" in the coffin and said to Xie Jincheng, "Minister Xie, shall you take these two 'treasures' as well, or shall I deal with them myself?"
Xie Jincheng looked at his son and the young master lying side by side in the coffin and sighed in exasperation. "Oh no, my humble home couldn’t possibly accommodate His Highness the Young Master. You’d best handle this yourself, Your Highness."
By now, the laughter and chatter had fully roused Xu Qingshi and Xie Yun, who rubbed their eyes and sat up, blinking in confusion at the three adults surrounding the coffin.
"Father?"
"Dad? Uncle Jiang?"
Xu Qingshi took one look at his father’s half-amused, half-exasperated expression and immediately sensed trouble. He scrambled out, stammering, "Father, we were just curious... about what this black box was for. It’s a bit hard, but surprisingly comfortable to sleep in... so we... we climbed in to try it out... and then we fell asleep..."
Xie Yanzhi nodded frantically beside him, his face pale with dread as he realized the mess they’d made.
Xu Heming studied the terrified expressions of his son and his two companions, then glanced at Jiang Hanhai, who was fuming beside them, and Xie Jincheng, who was thoroughly enjoying the spectacle. With a sigh, he flicked each of them lightly on the forehead.
"Such recklessness! How dare you crawl into any strange place? Do you have any idea how worried everyone was?"
Though his tone was stern, there was no real anger in his eyes—only exasperation and relief at having found them safe.
The scene of the scolding, set against the backdrop of the massive coffin, was both absurd and darkly comical.
Jiang Hanhai snatched his still-drowsy son from Xie Jincheng’s arms, torn between doting and fury, and finally settled for a gruff huff. "You’re in for it when we get home!"
Xie Jincheng, meanwhile, slung an arm around his son’s shoulders and chuckled. "Alright, alright, at least they’re safe. But Your Highness, your family’s storeroom... is certainly unique."
Xie Jincheng's tone was dripping with playful sarcasm.
Xu Heming rubbed his temples, feeling a vein throbbing at his forehead.
Wei Jing'an walked out of the palace in a daze, his mind clouded with confusion—why had the Emperor chosen to act this way?
