The Young Marquis Regrets Too Late - Chapter 3

Jiang Jingchun was jolted by the sudden stop of the carriage, and before she could react, she had already toppled onto Gu Huaisheng’s lap. If not for him holding her steady, she might have been thrown to the floor entirely.

His large hand firmly gripped her arm. The clean, cold fragrance emanating from him snuck into her senses without warning and caught her off guard.

The unexpected situation startled Jiang Jingchun, and she quickly raised her head to look at him. Their gazes collided. Her hair, which had only been loosely tied, had unravelled with the fall and now cascaded over her shoulders. Her round eyes were wide with panic, and she looked as if she’d committed some grave wrongdoing.

Perhaps because Gu Huaisheng’s expression wasn’t particularly pleasant earlier, Jiang Jingchun was afraid this accident had annoyed him. 

After all, he didn’t seem to like her very much to begin with. 

Her unintentional behaviour must have seemed offensive to him.

Before either of them could say anything, Jiang Jingchun hastily stood up. She looked at Gu Huaisheng with a helpless expression and seemed almost on the verge of tears as she stammered, “Cousin… I didn’t mean to.”

She really was just a child. She claimed to like him, yet when they actually touched, she panicked like this.

The warmth in Gu Huaisheng’s embrace was gone in an instant, before he could even fully react. He wasn’t looking at her when the words she spoke reached him, but he could easily imagine her expression. He smoothed the wrinkles on his robe while indifferently replying, “It’s fine.”

‘It’s fine,’ again…

It seemed that no matter what she did, he never really cared. No matter how hard she tried, she could never stir even the faintest ripple of emotion from him.

A gust of wind slipped in through the window crack, brushing her hair against her cheek and causing a slight itch. Only then did she realise, belatedly, that her hair was still untied.

As she reached up to tidy it, Jiang Runchu dragged her to his side. Jiang Jingchun glared at him in response. 

He scolded her, “Do you still want to trouble your cousin?”

Jiang Jingchun glanced at Gu Huaisheng. His face had already returned to its usual calm—cold and unreadable. She didn’t know what he was thinking right now.

When Jiang Jingchun looked at him, who was cold on the outside and inside, she seemed to become infected by his icy demeanour. She no longer felt like arguing with her brother. She shut her mouth, turned her head away sulkily, and didn’t even bother fixing her hair.

Seeing her like this, Jiang Runchu could tell she was throwing another one of her spoiled tantrums again. He was helpless, as he couldn’t let her return home looking so dishevelled. If their mother saw her like this, who knew what wild thoughts she’d entertain?

He stopped the carriage and called for Huayun to come in and fix her hair.

By the time they returned to the Jiang family residence, it was already late. Jiang Jingchun had gone now at midday, and now, dusk was approaching.

The group headed to Rongde Hall, Old Madame Jiang’s residence, where Madame Jiang and Madame Gu were already waiting for them.

The two women sat in the main hall. Both of them were still beautiful and impeccably maintained, and they showed no signs of their forty-some years of age.

When they heard the commotion outside, they knew Jiang Jingchun and the others had returned. Madame Jiang immediately stood up to greet them. She pulled her daughter to her side and looked her over carefully. Only after confirming there seemed to be no injuries on her daughter did she breathe a sigh of relief.

She chided, “You went out to play polo—how did you end up fighting with someone else? It’s one thing to argue, but how did it escalate to a fight?”

Jiang Runchu, who was standing nearby, felt a headache coming on. No wonder Jiang Jingchun had such a temper. It was entirely their mother’s doing.

Watching the two of them fussing, he said irritably, “She pushed the Lou family’s second miss down the steps. How could she have gotten hurt herself? She injured someone else and wouldn’t even apologise. If Fuyan hadn’t stepped in, she wouldn’t have been able to come home today. She’d have drowned in everyone’s scorn.” 

Hearing his name mentioned, Gu Huaisheng, who had remained silent, lowered his head slightly and said, “It was my responsibility.”

Madame Jiang didn’t take his words to heart. She brushed it off, saying, “It isn’t as if something bad had happened to that person. If she doesn’t want to apologise, then so be it. It’s not a big deal…”

Even Jiang Jingchun felt her mother’s words were somewhat unreasonable. However, when she thought of Lou Yanyan’s underhanded tricks to frame her, she didn’t feel she’d done anything wrong. While hiding behind her mother, she made a face at Jiang Runchu. Her expression said, ‘Yeah, what can you do about it?’ She looked utterly like she was asking for a beating from him.

Jiang Runchu was so infuriated by her behaviour that he choked on his words and couldn’t get them out. His face darkened, and as he couldn’t bear staying any longer, he stormed off after he spat, “You’re just spoiling her!” 

Gu Huaisheng didn’t linger either. 

“I’ll go check on him,” he said before going after Jiang Runchu.

After Gu Huaisheng left, Jiang Jingchun couldn’t help but watch him go. 

After a moment, she released her mother’s hand and also headed outside.

Madame Gu tried to stop her, but Madame Jiang blocked her. 

Madame Gu was left with no choice but to watch helplessly as Jiang Jingchun followed after Gu Huaisheng.

Everyone knew exactly what she was up to. Each time Gu Huaisheng left, she would follow, most likely to pester him again.

Madame Gu knew her son’s temperament better than anyone. He was cold and indifferent—how could he possibly like someone like Jiang Jingchun? 

The more she bothered him, the more he was likely to dislike her.

Madame Gu sat back down in her seat. She couldn’t directly criticise or scold Jiang Jingchun for bothering her son. Saying so would damage both their reputations over a simple matter; after all, they were cousins. Bringing the matter up would only seem unnecessarily suspicious.

Instead, she picked up where Jiang Runchu had left off. She turned to Madame Jiang and said, “It was Xiaochun who pushed that girl down the stairs. You can’t keep spoiling her like this. What would other people think if word got out about what you said earlier?” 

Madame Gu was always blunt. Even she felt Madame Jiang’s earlier words were inappropriate. 

However, with the children present at that time, she couldn’t be too direct. If Jiang Jingchun had overheard, she might have thought Madame Gu had something against her.

In truth, Madame Gu had no issue with Jiang Jingchun herself. Her problem was with Madame Jiang, who had spoiled her daughter beyond reason. She had spoiled a perfectly good child into an unruly girl.

Madame Jiang remained unfazed. She calmly replied, “Loving my child isn’t spoiling her.”

Madame Gu was speechless for a moment. Of course—it would be strange if Madame Jiang actually listened to reason.

Instead, she turned to Old Madame Jiang and said, “Mother, you see how Sister-in-law is. If she won’t discipline Xiaochun, you’ll have to step in.”

Madame Gu had a good relationship with her sister-in-law, but she could never understand why someone usually so sensible could be so irrational when it came to her child. 

It was true that a mother would naturally be protective of her child, but this was unreasonable.

The old madame, who had been resting with her eyes closed, finally spoke. She said, “Send her to me later.”

The old madame was a famously strict elder. If Jiang Jingchun was sent to see her after the earlier incident, she was definitely going to be punished.

Madame Jiang immediately opened her mouth to object, but the old madame merely gave her a look. It wasn’t harsh—just calm and neutral—but it somehow made Madame Jiang’s heart skip a beat.

At nearly sixty years old, the old madame’s hair was fully silver, and her eyes bore the cloudiness of age. Yet despite her aged appearance, she remained sharp and vigorous. Even her speech was steady, without a hint of frailty.

The old madame was a legendary figure in her own right.

Though the Jiang family was well-established, decades ago, they had nearly faced ruin. 

During the struggle for the throne, Old Master Jiang had backed the wrong prince and been exiled to a remote, bitterly cold region. His life of wealth and status turned for the worse. He fell into despair and died of illness in the south, leaving only the old madame and their three children behind.

Old Madame Jiang, as a widow raising three children alone, pulled through by sheer will alone. Years later, her eldest son achieved first place in the imperial examination, and their family finally returned to the capital.

She had endured so much hardship, and the entire Jiang household held immense respect for her because of it.

Even now, when his children were already of marrying age, the current head of the Jiang family still obeyed her every word.

When the old madame spoke, no one would dare defy her. 

Madame Jiang knew it was pointless to argue further, so she reluctantly said, “Alright. I’ll send her over later.”

When Jiang Runchu stormed out, Gu Huaisheng quietly followed after him.

Hearing footsteps behind him, Jiang Runchu turned around and saw Gu Huaisheng catching up.

He frowned and asked, “Why are you following me?”

It was clear that his anger had yet to cool down. Even though he was speaking to Gu Huaisheng, his tone still carried a sharp edge in it.

Gu Huaisheng, however, paid no mind to it. He walked up beside Jiang Runchu, and their paces were leisurely as they strolled side by side.

Gu Huaisheng asked calmly, “Have you heard about the rumours involving your sister from a few days ago?”

Jiang Runchu’s expression darkened. Evidently, he hadn’t. “What rumours?”

Gu Huaisheng explained what Lou Yanyan had done.

“It isn’t as easy as it might seem to determine who was right or wrong in the incident earlier today.”

Even after hearing this, Jiang Runchu’s face remained sour. “Even if Miss Lou instigated something first, she still shouldn’t have acted that way. If she continues behaving like this, what will become of her in the future?”

Gu Huaisheng understood his concern and said no more.

However, Jiang Runchu seemed to suddenly think of something. He squinted suspiciously at Gu Huaisheng and said, “You’re speaking up for her? Don’t tell me you…”

His voice trailed off as he thought back to how Gu Huaisheng had intervened earlier today.

Gu Huaisheng seemed puzzled by Jiang Runchu’s suspicion, and for the first time, a trace of amusement flashed across his usually aloof face. He chuckled softly. “She’s just a child. We’re cousins. What’s so strange about me helping her when she’s in trouble?”

His demeanour was as cold and clear as snow, and his tone was devoid of emotion. He sounded neither sad nor happy, as if he was discussing something trivial, like the weather. 

Though he wasn’t much older than Jiang Runchu, Gu Huaisheng had spent about five years navigating the officialdom. 

In that time, he’d seen all kinds of people and matters.

To him, Jiang Jingchun was just a child—what else could she be?

Children’s affections were fickle. They bloomed and faded quickly. 

From his perspective, her affection for him was more amusing than anything else.

“I treat her no differently from how I treat my other younger cousins. She’s just a younger cousin to me, that’s all.”

What else could she expect from him?

Unbeknownst to them, Jiang Jingchun had followed and overheard everything he said.

Just a child…

Just a younger cousin…

She had known for a long time that he didn’t like her type of person. 

However, hearing it from his own mouth stung in a way she hadn’t expected.

Was she still a child? She wasn’t a child anymore.

She had come of age. Speaking in practical terms, she could already choose a husband now.

Jiang Jingchun felt a dull ache in her chest. It felt as if a heavy wad of cotton had been stuffed inside it and had become stuck. She felt unbearably uncomfortable.

Before she even realised it, something came over her. She stepped forward, walked directly to Gu Huaisheng, and looked up at him with determined eyes.

“Cousin Gu,” she said. “Since you don’t like children, then what kind of person do you like?”