I Became the Older Brother of the Heroine in an Abusive Novel

When Jun Huailang left Consort Shu’s room, he happened to see Jinbao walking towards the west hall holding a large box full of things.

Jinbao quickly trotted over and saluted Jun Huailang with a smile and a series of auspicious words.

Jinbao had lived in Mingluan Palace for a while now. Although the eunuchs and maids still avoided Xue Yan, they were all kind. Jinbao had always been clever, he had taken to this place like a fish to water. Now the only person he was afraid of was Xue Yan himself.

But that one…… who wasn’t afraid of him? It was only the immortal-like Lord Heir who wasn’t afraid.

Hearing Jinbao’s greeting, Jun Huailang couldn’t help crooking a brow. He asked with a smile, “You’re carrying so many things, where did they come from?”

Jinbao immediately replied, “It’s from Diancui-gugu![1] She specially came over today to see what was missing in His Highness’s room. His Highness’s situation… this servant wouldn’t dare trouble her! But Gugu insisted on taking a look. Only after I refused a few times did she drop the subject and let me go to the storeroom to choose some things. But she said that the New Year is coming soon and she still needs to see if anything is lacking in His Highness’s storeroom to avoid the end of the year rush…”

Jun Huailang’s heart sank. This was surely another move by Diancui. Even if she was Consort Shu’s most trusted maid, to give items from Consort Shu’s personal treasury to Xue Yan was overstepping her power. What’s more, Diancui didn’t like Xue Yan and avoided him as if he were a snake or scorpion. Why would she take the initiative to go to Xue Yan’s territory and repeatedly request access?

Her request must have an ulterior motive.

Jun Huailang turned it over in his head until he formed the beginnings of a plan.

The people in Consort Shu’s palace may not all be Diancui’s pawns, but they all obey her orders and must curry favor with her. Those people were not trustworthy. But Jinbao followed Xue Yan and had no connections to Diancui.

“Does your master treat you well?” Jun Huailang asked.

Jinbao felt bitter in his heart. Being treated well or not didn’t matter, what was important was that his life and the lives of his whole family was in the hands of that master!

But Jinbao quickly smiled and said, “Fifth Highness is naturally good to this servant, heaven and earth as my witness!”

Jun Huailang smiled and said, “I know you are clever. At the moment, there is someone who wants to harm your master. I need you to do a small task.”

Hearing this, Jinbao felt even more bitter. Why do these young masters all want me to do things for them?

It’s not enough to have one ask him to risk his life, now here comes a second one. Before following Xue Yan, everyone knew Jinbao was craven and cowardly trash. Why is he now being forced to take on such big responsibilities?

However, this second master was different from the first one. The previous one was a ruthless person who could kill his whole family. But the lord in front of him was gentle and kind hearted. He spoke in a considerate tone. How could Jinbao refuse?

Even at the risk of death, he had to do it.

On the heels of the Emperor’s birthday came the eleventh month. The weather in Chang’an was at its coldest, and the nights stretched longer and longer as the winter solstice approached.

Jun Linghuan was in the palace everyday under the care of elderly maids. With all the leisurely time, she started to learn embroidery. Jun Linghuan was quite interested in this activity and after some time she produced many embroidered pouches.

……It’s just that the quality was subpar. The stitches were crooked and it was impossible to tell what was depicted in the embroidery.

Jun Linghuan was obsessed with them, and Jun Huailang would never ruin her interest. On a rest day, he specially called Xue Yan and Xue Yunhuan to Jun Linghuan’s room so they could choose an embroidered pouch that Jun Linghuan had made. 

Xue Yunhuan was full of interest as he looked over the pouches. He reached out and rubbed Jun Linghuan’s head. “Linghuan-meimei, this tiger is beautifully embroidered, it’s so lifelike.”

Jun Linghuan batted his hand away unhappily and said, “What tiger, it’s a kitty!”

Xue Yunhuan had a look of enlightenment on his face. “Oh, it’s a cat? It has such a fierce face, I couldn’t tell!”

Jun Linghuan was so angry that she wanted to jump on him and hit him.

“Your Sixth Prince-gege[2] has poor eyesight,” Jun Huailang soothed. “How does it look like a tiger? He’s never seen one before.”

Jun Huailang believed in her brother’s words without fail. She held out the pile of embroidered pouches for Jun Huailang to pick one for himself.

Jun Huailang took the top one. A crooked, colorful duck was embroidered with crude stitches on the surface of the pouch. 

“What is this?” Jun Huailang asked.

“It’s a mandarin duck!” Jun Linghuan said proudly.

Xue Yunhuan laughed loudly at the side. Jun Huailang stayed composed. With a gentle smile, he said to her, “It really is a mandarin duck. Linghuan’s embroidery is beautiful.” Then Jun Huailang raised his head and glared at Xue Yunhuan, forcing Xue Yunhuan to hold back everything he had been about to say.

Xue Yunhuan muttered to himself, No one in my entire life has dared wrong me. Only this spoiled and proud Jun heir and that condescending evil star dare. 

He suffered the most grievances in Mingluan Palace but he also loved staying here the most. It was strange.

Meanwhile, Jun Linghuan brought the pile of pouches to Xue Yan.

This Fifth Prince-gege didn’t like to talk or laugh. He sat nearby everyday, silent and imposing, which made people scared. But her brother said that Fifth Prince-gege was a good person and she trusted her brother the most, so she wasn’t afraid of him.

“Fifth Prince-gege, I’ll give you one too!” Jun Linghuan said cutely, acting like she was the most generous person in the world. 

Xue Yan glanced down and saw the little hand holding three or four pouches. Each of them were oddly shaped and the decorative designs on them were a complete mess. The embroidered designs couldn’t be deciphered, only lumps of thread could be seen.

Out of the corner of his eye, Xue Yan saw the crude mandarin duck pouch in Jun Huailang’s hand. He watched as Jun Huailang untied his purse from his body. It was an azure Suzhou embroidered[3] pouch sewn with Hetian jade thread. He poured out all the incense pills inside and put them in the crude mandarin duck pouch.

Jun Huailang handed the Suzhou embroidered pouch over to Fuyi and tied the garish and crude pouch at his own waist. His robes today were pale in color, the bright red pouch hanging at his waist looked rather out of place.

But his eyes were soft and indulgent. That seemingly cold and indifferent appearance was so gentle that anyone could drown in the warmth.

Next to him, Xue Yunhuan pointed at Jun Huailang and laughed. He said that the duck was exquisite and unique. Hanging the fragrance pouch on his body was like finishing the eyes on a dragon painting.[4] Jun Huailang did not get angry. He scolded Xue Yunhuan with a few words, but his expression was still soft as he turned and praised Jun Linghuan’s embroidery.

Xue Yan looked away. His chest felt hot and his heart raced inexplicably. He felt agitated and wanted to press a hand down on his chest to forcefully control his restless heart.

Rationality stilled his hand while it was halfway up. Xue Yan paused for a moment, shifted his hand, and landed on a pouch in Jun Linghuan’s hand. But as fate would have it, the pouch he took hold of had what seemed to be a bird on it — a mandarin duck.

“This mandarin duck is beautifully embroidered,” he praised, trying to cover it up.

Jun Linghuan smiled bashfully. “It’s not a mandarin duck!” She rolled her eyes and said softly, “It’s a duckling!”

Beside them, Xue Yunhuan cackled so hard he beat the couch. Xue Yan gave him a cool look but said nothing.

They stayed in Jun Linghuan’s room for a while. When the time came for the noon meal, they took their leave. After Xue Yunhuan and Xue Yan left, Jun Huailang looked at the remaining pouches left on the table pensively. 

He thought back to what he had told Jinbao the other day. According to his instructions, if Diancui made any moves in Xue Yan’s place, he already had a perfect rebuttal. But if she left some evidence behind, it would be even more foolproof.

He remembered that when he first came to the palace, Consort Shu was worried he was lacking things. She specially ordered the palace servants to send him many items. Diancui had not been there that day so everything was arranged by Zheng Guangde. Zheng Guangde was overly extravagant, he had people carry in a huge mess of items and forced them all on him.

Each side hall had its own small storehouse. Jun Huailang remembered that there was a unique item when he checked inside his storehouse.

There were a few incense pills from the western regions beyond Yumen Pass. Although the fragrance was light and ethereal, it was extremely long-lasting. Just brushing against the incense would leave behind a scent for half a month. This incense pill was perfect for an imperial concubine. A lingering fragrance that could leave traces near the Emperor and keep her on his mind.

But Consort Shu didn’t like this faint fragrance, so she sealed it in a storeroom for many years.

Jun Huailang pondered for a while, then looked at Jun Linghuan.

Jun Linghuan was still sitting at the edge of the table, lovingly picking up her pouches one by one. The more she looked, the more accomplished she felt. But after admiring them for a while, she thought of something, sighed, and flopped down on the pile.

“Gege,” she said. “What a pity they can’t all be worn.”

Jun Huailang’s plan took shape in his mind. He cleared his thoughts, smiled, and asked, “Why can’t they be worn?”

Jun Linghuan emphasized, “There are so… many!” She gestured with her hands.

Jun Huailang smiled gently. “But there are many geges and jiejies[5] in the palace. The winter solstice is coming soon. Linghuan can give everyone a present you made personally, how’s that?”

Jun Linghuan’s eyes lit up immediately.

“Okay!” She jumped off the chair, eager to get her sewing basket again. “There are many pretty jiejies in Mingluan Palace, Linghuan has to make a few more!”

Jun Huailang shook his head, smiling. His gaze landed outside the window in the direction of the main hall.

Meanwhile, Xue Yan returned to the west side hall. He looked at the pouch for a long time. 

When Jinbao came to pour tea, he glanced over cautiously and his eyes were instantly burned by the hideous mess of stitches.

This…… what is this? What a waste of good satin!

Seeing that Xue Yan wasn’t paying attention to him, Jinbao quickly finished pouring the tea and turned around to slip away. But before he could take two steps, Xue Yan made a sound.

“Come here,” he ordered, without lifting his eyes from the pouch.

Jinbao turned around as if he had been pulled by reins attached to his neck. He pasted on a flattering smile and returned to Xue Yan’s side. “What is Your Highness’s order?”

Xue Yan spread the pouch on the table and asked, “What is embroidered on this?”

……. This was truly a difficult task for Jinbao. 

He screwed up his face and looked at it for a long time, then tentatively guessed, “Is it… a duck?”

But Xue Yan looked up and gave him a warning glare. He said coldly, “It’s a mandarin duck,[6] remember that.”

Notes:

[1] 姑姑 means paternal aunt, but can also be used to address older women. In this story, most of the character use “gumu” for blood related & “gugu” for not blood related aunties.[2] 哥哥 older brother, can also be used to address older men of the same generation not related by blood.[3] 苏绣 one of the oldest embroidery styles in the world, known for its vivid and elegant designs. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzhou_embroidery[4] 画龙点睛 lit. to paint a dragon and dot in the eyes; the finishing touch. The idiom comes from a legend involving this famous artist https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhang_Sengyou[5] 姐姐 older sister, can also be used to address older girls who are not related by blood. Here they are referring to the eunuchs and maids that serve in Mingluan Palace.[6] 鸳鸯 mandarin ducks represent marital happiness since they are said to mate for life.