Chapter 210

Shen Cui and the others returned earlier than Mu Yunchuan, and Luo Buyu even arrived a step ahead of them—

He wasn’t really close to Ling Qingming, so he went back to Qingzhu Academy for a few days, enjoying the sight of Ling Qingming’s sour face.

He also didn’t want to entertain those strangers who came just because of his reputation.

Of course, more importantly, he was worried about the new students at Cuiwei. What if they arrived early and found the academy empty?

So after sending a message to Shen Cui, he left Yongning County early and returned to the capital.

The result, of course, was that Shen Cui and the others had all returned, but there was still no sign of the new students.

Upon their return, Shen Cui first settled her elderly parents.

She had the elderly couple stay in the east wing, Mu Er Pang and Luo Buyu in the west wing, while she continued to live in the main house connected to the side halls.

Both Mrs. Zheng and Shen’s elderly father were still strong and didn’t suffer from seasickness during the journey.

Therefore, after arriving in the capital, they looked much better than Shen Cui.

After settling their luggage, Mrs. Zheng let Mu Er Pang take Shen’s elderly father out to familiarize themselves with the surroundings.

She assigned him the task of buying groceries in the future.

Meanwhile, she found some cleaning supplies and immediately started cleaning.

Seeing Shen Cui looking pale, she wanted to help, but Zhou Shi chased her out and told her to find a place to rest.

Mrs. Zheng started cleaning the main house first, so Shen Cui was forced to leave and saw Luo Buyu outside.

Luo Buyu, being perceptive, knew that Shen Cui wasn’t used to sailing and would need rest after returning.

So he didn’t say anything but his resentment was written all over his face.

Shen Cui, feeling both amused and helpless, said, “The new students are really coming soon. I’m not lying to you, Master. And as I told you earlier, he might not be easy to manage, and it may take more than a few years to educate him properly. These quiet days you have now might be something you’ll miss in the future…”

Luo Buyu asked, “How could that be?”

“The Headmaster knows that I adhere to the same principle as the old Headmaster of Hongle Academy—teaching without discrimination. Stubborn students need our guidance as mentors even more! The sooner they come to Cuiwei, the sooner I can start teaching them according to their abilities.” Luo Buyu said anxiously, unable to finish his sentence. “Then I have to go and revise the teaching plan.”

……

As for Mu Yunchuan, he returned to the capital a few days later than Shen Cui and the others.

After quickly freshening up at his small residence and hastily eating a meal, he went to the palace to report on his mission.

Naturally, he performed exceptionally well on this task, not only completing his mission but also thoroughly investigating cases of corruption among local officials.

What’s even more amusing is that the officials he accused in his reports were completely unaware, and their reports actually praised him.

After the report, Mu Yunchuan personally submitted the evidence, and Emperor Xi asked him how to deal with these officials.

Mu Yunchuan didn’t say much, simply stating that as someone who had mostly stayed in the Hanlin Academy before, this was his first time handling practical matters.

He would naturally follow Emperor Xi’s orders.

Emperor Xi was very pleased with his performance of handling his own responsibilities.

He put away the evidence in front of him and placed it at the bottom of the memorial.

In fact, Mu Yunchuan had guessed that Emperor Xi would tolerate the situation.

Firstly, the corruption of those officials wasn’t too serious, and Emperor Xihe, having learned the art of governance from a young age, certainly understood the situation better than he did.

Secondly, Emperor Xihe had only been in power for a few years, and there weren’t many capable new people around him.

The ones he relied on were mostly officials from the previous dynasty who had been in power for a long time.

It wasn’t the time to act rashly.

After discussing official business, the emperor and his subject naturally had to talk about other things.

Emperor Xihe first expressed concern for Mu Yunchuan, saying that he looked thinner and had been through a lot.

He then chuckled and mentioned, “Your younger brother performed admirably in this year’s imperial examinations and palace examinations. Why didn’t you mention it to me earlier? If it weren’t for the palace examination, I might not have recognized him, he looks quite similar to you.”

In the imperial court, there are no trivial matters for the royal family, and for the officials serving the royal family, there are no major matters.

Since Emperor Xi specifically brought it up, it was already a sign of favor.

Mu Yunchuan replied calmly, “Even our Elder Minister Shen, allowed his juniors to keep a low profile in the imperial examinations. As a low-born person, I cannot provide much assistance. Furthermore, my younger brother has achieved everything through his own efforts. I don’t want him to be labeled as my younger brother for the rest of his life.”

Emperor Xi smiled and uttered a word of approval, “Good.”

Mu Yunchuan’s response truly satisfied him.

Mu Yunchuan had been a valued and cultivated minister for a long time, and he was destined for greater responsibilities in the future.

As for Mu Hanshan, despite being equally talented and knowledgeable, well… How should I put it? Having a pair of equally promising brothers from the same family might seem like a good thing to others, but for the royal family, it might not be so favorable.

Especially considering Mu Hanshan’s good relations with Mei Ruochu and Shen Aoshuang.

If these individuals were to unite, wouldn’t they potentially become arbiters of the court?

Therefore, Emperor Xi had already investigated and found out that Mu Yunchuan and Mu Hanshan were not born of the same mother, and their relationship could only be described as average.

Today, hearing Mu Yunchuan’s lukewarm response further confirmed his previous speculation, and it alleviated many of his concerns as an emperor.

After chatting for a while, Emperor Xi allowed Mu Yunchuan to rest and granted him half a month’s leave.

As for after half a month, he wouldn’t need to return to the Hanlin Academy to transcribe books.

During this time, Emperor Xi would issue a decree to promote him.

By the time Mu Yunchuan returned home, it was already late at night. Zhou Shi was waiting for him at the door with a lantern.

Seeing each other from across the street, they hurried towards each other. “There are too many mosquitoes at night, why are you still waiting outside?” Mu Yunchuan asked as he approached.

Zhou Shi smiled and didn’t respond to his question directly. Instead, she said, “I’ve prepared supper on the stove. You didn’t eat much earlier, so you should have a proper meal now.”

The couple walked home together without mentioning anything else about resting or dining.

The next day, since Mu Yunchuan didn’t have duty and his new position hadn’t been determined yet, he took Zhou Shi to visit Cuimei.

Although Zhou Shi had already been informed about Shen’s elderly parents moving in with Shen Cui and the others, it was only proper for Mu Yunchuan to personally visit, given the circumstances.

This day happened to be Mei Ruochu and Mu Erpang’s first day on duty.

Early in the morning, Mrs. Zheng was busy ironing their official robes with a hot iron filled with hot water, ensuring that not a single wrinkle remained.

How neat were the clothes? Well, after Mei Ruochu and Mu Erpang changed into them, they couldn’t bear to sit down while eating breakfast and ended up standing to finish their meal.

After arranging their breakfast, Mrs. Zheng and Shen Cui sent them off at the door before returning to finish their own meal.

As they hadn’t finished eating yet, Shen Cui heard a knock at the door.

Before she could react, Lao Buyu leapt up from the table and dashed out.

Upon opening the door, Lao Buyu was disappointed to see that it was Mu Yunchuan and Mrs. Zhou.

However, maintaining his dignified demeanor, he greeted them with a smile, “You’re here so early?”

Mu Yunchuan and Lao Buyu were only acquaintances, but Zhou Shi had been living under the same roof with Lao Buyu for several years, so they had a closer relationship.

She replied with a smile, “My husband returned yesterday, but it was already too late after coming out of the palace. Today, we came specifically to pay our respects to the elders.”

With these words, the couple entered one after the other.

Mu Yunchuan presented his gifts and paid respects to the elders and Shen Cui in turn.

Since Mrs. Zheng wasn’t on good terms with him, she didn’t initiate much conversation with him.

However, Mr. Shen and Mu Yunchuan had some face-saving relationship, so Mr. Shen showed some concern for him.

Mu Yunchuan stayed until mid-morning and then left with Mrs. Zhou before lunch.

After he left, Mrs. Zheng pulled Shen Cui into the house and asked her, “Why do I feel like… Mu Yunchuan seems different?”

As someone who had lived for most of her life, Mrs. Zheng’s intuition was usually accurate.

Indeed, Mu Yunchuan had changed.

It’s not that Mu Yunchuan was particularly warm or friendly towards them today; it’s just that he seemed different from before, not as aloof.

But how should I put it, he seems much more real and alive, not so distant, as if he’s turned into a living, breathing person.

Although Shen Cui understands why Mu Yunchuan has changed, she can’t talk about it in detail with her mother. She just said, “Maybe it’s because he’s experienced a lot, so he’s changed?”

A person’s character will of course change with different experiences, but as the old saying goes, “The leopard cannot change its spots.”

However, Zheng Shi had little interaction with Mu Yunchuan, and they would not have too much contact in the future.

She mentioned it briefly and didn’t worry about it.

In the blink of an eye, from early summer to midsummer, one day Zhou Shi sent a maid to pass on a message, asking Shen Cui to come over.

Zhou Shi had always come to see Shen Cui in person, and it was unusual for her to ask Shen Cui to go over.

Zhou Shi was not the kind of person who would beat around the bush, so something must have happened.

Shen Cui immediately followed the maid.

After arriving at the Mu residence, Zhou Shi sent the maid away and whispered to Shen Cui about a piece of good news—she was pregnant!

She had been married to Mu Yunchuan for many years, with little time together and many separations.

It was normal not to have children, but after she followed Mu Yunchuan to the capital, they were apart for half a year while he was on official business.

After so many years without any movement, she was finally pregnant. Wasn’t that a great joy?!

So she had seen a doctor today, and after confirming it, she dared not move around randomly, but she wanted to share this good news with Shen Cui as soon as possible, so she could only have someone invite her over.

“People say that the child in the first three months is the most timid, so I haven’t even told the maid yet.” Zhou Shi touched her still flat belly, and her face softened a bit.

“There is such a saying. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone when I go back, not even Er Pang.” Shen Cui was genuinely happy for her—not because, as a modern person, she felt that a woman must have children to be complete, but because Zhou Shi really wanted a child of her own.

And with both of them healthy, but still childless after so many years, it was naturally the fault of fate.

Shen Cui was happy for Zhou Shi fulfilling her wish and for fate going against its own rules.

After reassuring Zhou Shi to stay at home and rest, Shen Cui did not stay at the Mu residence and returned after sitting for half an hour.

On such a hot day, she sweated a lot coming and going, but when she came back, she had a big smile on her face. Naturally, others asked her if she had encountered something good.

Shen Cui remembered her agreement with Zhou Shi and didn’t mention anything about the child.

She just looked at Lao Buyu and smiled, saying, “Master, the new student is really coming soon!”