The Tongzhi 1 's residence employed a highly skilled cook surnamed Huang, who was renowned for his delicious dishes. He had originally ...
The Tongzhi1's residence employed a highly skilled cook surnamed Huang, who was renowned for his delicious dishes. He had originally worked at a well-known restaurant in Luoyang called 'Xi Xiang Feng2'. Impressed by his cooking, Jiang Hongjin invited him to work as a chef in his household. He offered Master Huang double the restaurant's wages, and the job was relatively easy. At the time, Master Huang's family urgently needed money, so he had no reason to refuse.
One day, Master Huang's wife, Lu Shi, came to the Jiang residence to find him. With tears streaming down her face, she said, "Dear, what are we going to do? Ah Qing has been captured by people from the gambling house." Huang Qing, Master Huang's only son, loved gambling. Although Master Huang's wages should have made life in Luoyang quite comfortable, having such a gambling addict for a son had dragged the whole family down.
Master Huang hurriedly asked, "How much has he lost this time?" When he heard that the debt had reached three thousand taels of silver, he nearly collapsed to the ground.
Seeing that Master Huang seemed unwilling to act, Lu Shi grabbed his arm and said, "You can't just ignore this! If you don't do something, Qing-er will lose his life!"
With reddened eyes, Master Huang exclaimed, "Do something? How do you expect me to handle it?" Even if they sold all their family assets, they still wouldn't be able to raise enough to pay off the debt.
Lu Shi cried uncontrollably. "We only have this one son. If we don't help him, are we supposed to watch him lose his life? And who will take care of us and handle our funeral rites in our old age?" Huang Qing had been married before, but his wife could not endure his abuse and ran away with someone else. As a result, he still had no children.
With no other option, Master Huang took leave and went to the gambling house. The gambling house had made it clear that if the money weren't raised within three days, they would chop off Huang Qing's hands and feet.
Just as the couple were deeply worried, Yang Duoming came to their door. His request was simple: he wanted Master Huang to find a way to make Jiang Hongjin take the medicine he had provided.
Master Huang was obviously no fool. There was no way he would have refused.
Yang Duoming said, "Don't worry, it's not poison—it won't kill him. It will just make Jiang Hongjin suffer for a while." The fact that Madam would use such a method against Jiang Hongjin showed just how much she hated him. Yang Duoming had no idea why, but he was certain that the more Jiang Hongjin suffered, the better—no question about it.
Seeing that Master Huang was still refusing, Yang Duoming smiled and offered, "If you agree, I can make Huang Qing quit gambling."
Master Huang asked in shock, "Is what you said true?" He only had this one son—how could he bear to let him die? Of course, the fact that he had only one son, whom he had indulged in everything since childhood, was also why he had developed such a lawless temperament.
Yang Duoming smiled. "It depends on whether you dare to take the risk."
On the one hand, there was the possibility of his son being killed by the gambling house, and on the other, the temptation of his son turning over a new leaf. Master Huang was bound to be tempted. Still, he didn't quite believe it. "How can I trust you?" If his son could truly reform, he would be willing to die without regret.
Yang Duoming smiled as he said, "You can give it a try." This man's son was just a hooligan. Give him a harsh enough lesson, and he would surely behave.
In the end, Master Huang agreed to Yang Duoming's request. However, as a precaution, he fed the tampered late-night snack to a cat first. After waiting a while and seeing that the cat was unharmed, he then served the snack to Jiang Hongjin.
Jiang Hongjin never expected that Master Huang would be so bold and reckless as to drug him. Therefore, he happily finished the entire bowl of late-night supper.
Just as Jiang Hongjin put down the bowl, an old maid came over and said, "Second Master, Madam asks when you will return to the inner quarters." Yurong would usually urge him to return to the inner courtyard, unless she were on her period.
A flash of irritation crossed Jiang Hongfu's eyes. "There are still matters to handle, so I won't be going back to the inner quarters today." This feeling of being forced to sleep with a woman was truly unbearable.
The next day, when Master Huang delivered breakfast to Jiang Hongfu, he saw that Jiang Hongfu looked healthy and flushed, and the worry weighing on his heart finally eased. However, feeling guilty, Master Huang used the excuse that his elderly father in the countryside was gravely ill and needed filial care, and submitted his resignation that very day.
Although Jiang Hongjin liked Master Huang's cooking, he couldn't stop him from fulfilling his filial duties. For a scholar, reputation was of the utmost importance. If word got out at this time, it would surely be used by political enemies to attack him.
When Huang Qing was sent back, he was missing an arm, and his whole appearance looked like a ghost. From his terrified expression, one could imagine the severe suffering he had endured in the gambling den.
The couple packed up their valuables, sold their house as quickly as possible, and then left Luoyang with their son. After what Master Huang had done, how could he dare to return to his hometown?
Yan Xi said to Yang Duoming, "Boss, the Huang family is heading towards An County. Boss, should we silence them?"
Yang Duoming shook his head. "Don't create unnecessary bloodshed. If my guess is correct, this Huang fellow is probably heading to Shaanxi." Once the matter comes to light, Master Huang would surely be torn to pieces by Jiang Hongjin. By fleeing to the northwest, Jiang Hongjin wouldn't be able to find him.
After speaking, Yang Duoming shook his head again. "He's practically confessing without even being interrogated. If he had stayed at the Jiang residence, who would have known he was the culprit?"
Yan Xi asked curiously, "Boss, what did you give Jiang Hongjin to eat?" Since Jiang Hongjin didn't die, it couldn't have been poison.
Yang Duoming replied, "You don't need to know. Anyway, I can handle things here. Go back to Haocheng; I'll return shortly." There were still many matters to attend to in Haocheng. Once Yang Duoming confirmed that Jiang Hongjin had fallen for it, he could leave.
Yan Xi didn't press further and nodded. "All right, I'll head back soon." Although Luoyang was prosperous, he preferred Haocheng. In present-day Haocheng, you would never see nobles and officials beating commoners. Yan Xi himself had once been an ordinary man, forced by circumstances to become a bandit, so he deeply hated those powerful people who bullied others.
On the fifth day after taking the medicine, Jiang Hongjin noticed something was wrong with his body. At first, he thought it was just fatigue and even felt relieved that he didn't have to deal with Yurong. However, after three consecutive days of feeling this way, he began to worry.
Yurong bluntly told him, "If you're sick, go see a physician—why hide it?" After consummation, she had already confirmed that Jiang Hongjin simply didn't like her, not that he was incapable. Nevertheless, his attitude left her resentful. So she always spoke harshly to him. Jiang Hongjin, on the other hand, preferred women like Yuchen—refined and ethereal like an immortal—and looked down on Yurong's vulgarity. This created a vicious cycle, and the couple truly came to detest each other.
Jiang Hongjin glared coldly at Yurong and left the main courtyard. Before he could even see a physician, rumours had spread throughout Luoyang, claiming that Jiang Hongjin was impotent, just like a true eunuch, and even stating that he was the submissive one. While it wasn't uncommon for noble young men to keep male companions, for him to be the one who was pressed down3 would make him the object of public ridicule.
Since all scholars cared about their reputation and dignity, someone like Jiang Hongjin would naturally value his good name even more. Otherwise, he wouldn't have retreated in the face of Yurong's mere threat.
When Yurong went out socialising, she noticed that everyone's expressions were off. In the past, people would have fawned over her and showered her with praise, but this time, the ladies all looked at her with faces full of sympathy.
After returning home, Yurong immediately sent people to find out what had happened. When she learned of the rumours outside, her face flushed red with anger. "Investigate at once and find out who's behind this." Once she found out who was behind the rumours, she would definitely not let that person off the hook. No matter how bad her relationship with Jiang Hongjin was, to outsiders, they were one and the same. If Jiang Hongjin lost face, she would too.
Although Jiang Hongjin and Yurong came from powerful backgrounds, their footing in Luoyang was still shallow. The web of relationships in Luoyang was also intricate and tangled; it would be impossible to find the person behind the scenes in just one day.
Yurong and Jiang Hongjin were not like ordinary married couples; there were basically no taboos between them. When Jiang Hongjin returned that evening, Yurong directly told him about the matter: "Did you offend someone?" The grudge must be significant; otherwise, that person wouldn't have spread such vicious rumours.
Jiang Hongjin was utterly baffled. "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Yurong was furious. "I'm talking nonsense? The rumours have already spread everywhere— even the street sweepers know that you're impotent, and that you're even being dominated by men?"
After hearing her words, Jiang Hongjin's face turned ashen. "Who spread these rumours? Say it—who?" No matter who it was, he would make them pay for using such despicable methods.
Yurong replied irritably, "How would I know? I had people investigate, but they couldn't find anything. But you really haven't been looking well lately. Should we get a physician to take a look at you?"
Those words struck right at Jiang Hongjin's heart. He responded coldly, "My body is perfectly fine." He had just been feeling a bit unwell lately.
Yurong was usually fierce, but seeing Jiang Hongjin looking like he could devour someone, she didn't dare say more. If he went mad, she would be the one to suffer.
After putting in some effort, Jiang Hongjin quickly discovered that the rumours had been spread by two hooligans. However, those two were no longer in Luoyang, and the trail ended there. Knowing his own body best, Jiang Hongjin had a faint feeling that something was wrong. Yet he lacked the courage to invite a physician openly, so he disguised himself and went to seek out the best physician in Luoyang.
After taking his pulse, the physician's expression grew grave. To be cautious, he checked the pulse again for a while. Withdrawing his hand, he sighed and asked, "Young master, have you offended someone?"
Jiang Hongjin's face turned pale. "Mr Physician, what's wrong with me?"
There were only the two of them in the room. The physician did not hide anything, explaining directly that Jiang Hongjin had taken a secret drug that had rendered him impotent. The physician sighed. Such a vicious act could only have been carried out by an enemy filled with irreconcilable hatred.
Upon hearing this explanation, Jiang Hongjin felt as if all the blood in his body had frozen. Impotent? How could he live with such a reputation? "Mr Physician, could you be mistaken?"
The physician shook his head. "Very few people can make such a drug." Whoever Jiang Hongjin had offended must be extremely powerful.
After a while, Jiang Hongjin finally calmed down and asked, "Mr Physician, can this be cured?" Since the illness was caused by a drug, it should be treatable.
The physician regretfully said that he could not cure it. This drug was similar to one that causes infertility—once taken, even immortals would struggle to treat it.
Jiang Hongjin had no idea how he had made it back home.
Footnotes Full List
- 同知 (tóngzhī): government sub-prefect
- 喜相逢 (xǐ xiāng féng): Joyous Reunion
- 压 (yā): (slang) to be the dominant/top partner in a sexual context; here implying a submissive role when reversed
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