Chapter 187

When Shen Cui had a serious expression on her face, her sharp and beautiful features made it clear that she was not someone easy to get along with.

The maid who was answering was suddenly frightened and stopped speaking, her eyes turning red involuntarily.

Zhou Shi hurriedly said, “Mother, please don’t be angry. I just thought that by telling you, I would only make you worry for nothing. Especially since Mu Er Pang will be taking the imperial examination in a few months. This kind of situation…”

Seeing that she had scared them both, Shen Cui softened her expression and said, “I understand, we all understand. I’m not angry with you.”

Just like how she wouldn’t think to inform Zhou Shi if she was feeling unwell due to the climate, Zhou Shi wasn’t a doctor, and knowing about it would only cause unnecessary worry.

Similarly, in Zhou Shi’s eyes, Shen Cui wasn’t a doctor either.

Strange illnesses that even renowned doctors in the capital couldn’t solve, telling her about it would only make her worry in vain.

Shen Cui didn’t insist on Zhou Shi giving her the purse of money again.

Instead, she directly took it and said, “I’ll accept this money. As for your earlier suggestion of staying with me for a while, go back today and pack your bags. Tomorrow, we’ll go to the pawnshop together and finalize the new location for the academy. As for Yunchuan…”

Shen Cui having been the head of the family for so many years, everyone in the academy looked up to her, and Zhou Shi always listened to her.

So, even though the topic changed suddenly, Zhou Shi immediately nodded in agreement, and added, “I’ll talk to my husband about it. He’ll agree if he wants to come.”

In the past, Zhou Shi wouldn’t have made decisions for Mu Yunchuan and would have said that she needed to discuss it with him.

With the confidence she showed just now, it’s evident that her situation is indeed not good, so Mu Yunchuan tends to go along with her in such small matters.

Shen Cui nodded and didn’t say much more.

She personally escorted Zhou Shi out of the inn.

After they left, Mu Er Pang, who hadn’t said much before, sighed and also looked worried.

Shen Cui waved her hand at him. “Your sister-in-law is right. Your imperial examination is a big deal that concerns your entire future. Don’t think about anything else for now. As for her health… I’ll find a way.”

The immediate solution was, of course, to immediately establish the regulatory device for the “rule shield” in the academy, like before, by registering Zhou Shi as a miscellaneous worker in the academy system— Zhou Shi wasn’t someone taking the imperial examination path, so she couldn’t become a candidate.

Of course, the academy could only shield a portion of the rules, not completely eliminate the impact of the rules on Zhou Shi.

It could only temporarily slow down Zhou Shi’s rapid weight loss.

To completely free Zhou Shi from the shackles of the rules, they would still rely on the “Bone Cleansing Pill” after passing the exam.

So the best scenario would be to ensure that Mu Er Pang passed the exam, and the other students in the academy also had impressive rankings.

In this case, with a surplus of shopping points, Shen Cui could allocate some to buy a “Bone Cleansing Pill” to save Mrs. Zhou’s life.

Mu Er Pang had unconditional trust in his mother, and he exhaled a long breath, saying, “Since Mother said so, then I won’t worry unnecessarily. I’ll go back to my room and continue studying.”

After he left too, Shen Cui’s face darkened again.

She picked up the pillow on the bed and punched it twice, gritting her teeth as she communicated with the system in her mind: [In the original plot, Zhou Shi didn’t die at this point, so is this darn rule messing with the plot again?]

In the original plot, when Mu Yunchuan was accumulating experience in the Hanlin Academy, Zhou Shi was indeed still trapped in the Mu family’s backyard.

Knowing this beforehand, Shen Cui could then feel at ease letting Zhou Shi stay by Mu Yunchuan’s side.

After all, according to the progress of her own chubby son’s exams, by the time Zhou Shi’s ‘deadline’ arrived in the original book, Mu Er Pang would have already completed his mission.

The system sighed along, explaining that by advancing the drought disaster and Zhou Shi’s death plotlines, next year, Mu Yunchuan would be dispatched for disaster relief.

Upon his return, Zhou Shi would have already passed away due to illness, and others naturally wouldn’t blame Mu Yunchuan for anything.

They would only say that Zhou Shi had no luck. At that time, they could arrange a good marriage for him.

Even if all of our cultivated subjects excel in the imperial examination and palace examination, they still wouldn’t be able to match Mu Yunchuan’s speed of promotion.

Shen Cui responded with a discontented “Hmm,” saying, “Earlier, when we helped Little Xi brew medicine, you asked me what I was thinking at the time. I said I would tell you later. Now I’m telling you.”

Shen Cui : ….. …. ..

After a while, the system was at a loss for words.

Struggling for a moment before finally saying its customary phrase, “Host, you really dare to think!”

“Don’t worry about whether I dare to think or not, just tell me if it will work or not!”

“Right now, it definitely won’t work. But when the first cultivated subject passes the palace examination and is listed on the rankings, reaching the level after passing, and my energy acquisition is sufficient, then it will definitely work.”

“Earlier, you said the system is above the rules.” Because she was in a bad mood, Shen Cui made a sarcastic remark.

“After all, I am an extraneous consciousness. I still need to gather enough energy from this plane in order to confront the rules of this plane head-on.”

However, in the end, this matter wasn’t the fault of the system.

Shen Cui exhaled a breath and said, “Well, if it works then it works! Let’s wait until the students finish their exams first, and then we’ll proceed that way.”

………

Before it got dark, Zhou Shi returned home just before the city gates closed and immediately began packing her luggage.

This simple task didn’t require the help of maids, especially since they had to prepare dinner.

When Mu Yunchuan returned home from his duty, the two maids had just finished preparing dinner and brought it into the main hall.

Seeing him return, one maid went to the kitchen to bring the dinner over, while the other went to fetch hot water to help him wash his face and hands.

Mu Yunchuan wiped his face with a warm towel, revealing a hint of tiredness.

As he wiped his hands, he asked, “Where is Madam?”

The maid replied, “Madam was invited by Old Madam to stay with her for a while. Madam is currently inside packing her luggage.”

Knowing that his stepmother and Zhou Shi had indeed developed a genuine relationship, Mu Yunchuan wasn’t surprised.

He nodded slightly and then asked, “How is Madam’s mood?”

“Ever since she met Old Madam and Second Master, Madam’s smile hasn’t left her face. Just now, when we left the room, I heard Madam humming a tune while packing her luggage.”

Mu Yunchuan’s expression softened slightly.

Earlier, shortly after his marriage to Zhou Shi, they spent little time together due to being separated by distance.

Naturally, there was no deep emotional connection, but rather a sense of gratitude from Mu Yunchuan towards Zhou Shi for her selfless dedication.

However, people are not made of stone.

Over the past three years of living together day and night, their relationship naturally grew stronger.

Mu Yunchuan had thought that life would continue to be smooth sailing, but half a year ago, Zhou Shi developed a strange illness and visibly grew thinner day by day.

Although the doctors assured them that Zhou Shi’s health was fine and she had no other ailments, she could feel her increasing weakness.

She didn’t want Mu Yunchuan to worry, so whether in public or private, she pretended not to care, even joking, “In the capital, thin is considered beautiful. At the last gathering of the wives of the Hanlin scholars, they were asking me about my ‘slimming secret.’ Little do they know, I don’t have any ‘secrets.’ I eat and drink just as much as anyone else, but they envy me to death.”

Despite her words, the smile on her face didn’t quite reach her eyes.

To make her happier and also to remind Shen Cui to pay attention to the outside situation, Mu Yunchuan immediately informed Zhou Shi as soon as he knew that Shen Cui and her party had arrived at the outskirts of the city.

He spoke quietly with the maid, but his return home was always at a fixed time, so Zhou Shi busied herself in the house for a while, thinking he should be back soon, and then she came out herself.

When she came out, Zhou Shi saw that Mu Yunchuan had returned, and the maid was standing beside him.

She smiled and asked, “Did Ah Tao tell you?”

Seeing her, Mu Yunchuan’s expression softened a bit involuntarily.

“Mother wants me to move over and stay for a few days, what do you think…”

Mu Yunchuan reached out to her, and Zhou Shi put her hand in his. The two sat down at the table holding hands.

As Zhou Shi expected, Mu Yunchuan did not object.

He just said, “Go ahead, anyway, don’t you also want to see Mother and Er Pang? It’s been three years, staying for a few days won’t hurt.”

As the couple talked, Zhou Shi also conveyed Shen Cui’s message to him, asking him to wait until he was free before paying respects.

Soon, they finished dinner.

Later that evening, because Zhou Shi had been out for half a day, she slept earlier than usual.

When Mu Yunchuan finished reading official documents and returned from the study to the bedroom

She had already fallen asleep, unlike usual when she would wait for him.

He wasn’t annoyed, just looking at Zhou Shi’s increasingly thin face, he tucked the covers around her and looked pensive.

Sitting by the bed for about two quarters of an hour, Mu Yunchuan also went to bed.

He had a dream.

He dreamt that at the beginning of the new year, he was sent by the court to aid disaster relief.

Half a year passed, and upon returning, he found out that Mrs. Zhou was no more in this world.

In his dream, he emotionlessly arranged Zhou Shi’s funeral. Not long after, the Emperor arranged a marriage for him.

He was a rare talent who had achieved top scores in six imperial exams since the founding of the dynasty, and he had meritorious service in disaster relief.

But he was ultimately from a humble background, with no roots in the court.

And that marriage arrangement precisely filled the gap in his background.

Within a few years, he entered the prestigious Imperial Academy and became the foremost rising star of the court.

After studying hard and enduring hardships for half of his life, all he wanted was to make a name for himself in history.

The scene made his heart race.

In the blurry state between dream and wakefulness, Mu Yunchuan vaguely heard a voice saying in his ear: “Don’t let Mrs. Zhou leave home, all of this will come true!”

Mu Yunchuan woke up drenched in sweat from the dream, and upon opening his eyes, he met Zhou Shi’s worried face.

The daylight was already bright, and Zhou Shi had already gotten up, dressed neatly. “Today is your day off, husband, and I wanted you to sleep a little longer. But seeing that it’s time for your appointment with Mother, I wanted to let you know. But no matter how I called you just now, you wouldn’t wake up. Were you having a nightmare?”

Mu Yunchuan nodded, propping himself up.

Usually, after waking up, people gradually forget the dreams they had.

But at this moment, he closed his eyes and recalled the scenes from his dream, which were still vivid.

It made him feel a bit shocked.

Seeing his pale face and the fine layer of sweat on his forehead, Zhou Shi wiped his sweat with a handkerchief, feeling sorry for him. “Are you feeling unwell from official duties? Then maybe I should…”

Seeing Mu Yunchuan silent, seeming genuinely unwell, Zhou Shi spoke while calling two maids in.

She instructed one to fetch a doctor and the other to go to the city gate to apologize to Shen Cui, saying they wouldn’t go to the academy for the time being.

Zhou Shi herself naturally intended to stay at home and take care of the ‘sick’ Mu Yunchuan.

But before she could finish her arrangements, Mu Yunchuan interrupted, “No! You must leave home today!”