Chapter 132 (Revised)

More than half a year ago, Shen Cui specially took Mu Er Pang back to her parents’ home for the Mid-Autumn Festival before leaving the capital.

At that time, Chen Shi was particularly enthusiastic towards Shen Cui, which made Shen Cui somewhat uncomfortable.

Later, Mrs. Zheng explained that Chen Shi was hoping for Mu Er Pang to achieve success so he could help her eldest daughter find a good marriage.

Now that she had returned, Chen Shi reverted to her previous lukewarm attitude.

Shen Cui didn’t really care about Chen Shi’s attitude, but she was worried about any conflicts at home.

Although she knew Mrs. Zheng could handle it, now that she was aware of the situation, she couldn’t ignore it.

Mrs. Zheng knew she had noticed and didn’t hide it.

She said, “Your sister-in-law was fine. She was just waiting for our Er Pang to make a name for himself this year and then arrange a marriage for our eldest daughter. Didn’t we receive a letter from Mu Yunchuan, who ranked top in the provincial exam not long ago?”

The results of the provincial exam had been out since September of last year, but it took some time for the news to reach the county town from afar.

Mu Yunchuan had achieved an outstanding result, becoming the pride of this small county.

Intellectuals and scholars, when they mentioned being from the same hometown as Mu Yunchuan, were also given some respect.

After that, some families came to the Shen family seeking marriage. Even though people in the county town could easily find out that Mu Yunchuan had no blood relation to the Shen family, they were still considered distant relatives.

They wanted to establish a relationship with the Shen family through marriage.

If they couldn’t climb up, they wouldn’t lose either.

These families weren’t seeking marriage for their best and talented eldest sons or grandsons; they were offering their less useful younger sons or grandsons for the marriage.

Besides, Mu Yunchuan’s own younger brother was also a scholar.

Though he hadn’t achieved anything yet, his talents wouldn’t be too bad.

After all, he was the Shen family’s grand-nephew…

In short, if they couldn’t climb the big one, climbing the small one would still be good.

Earlier, Shen Cui had tried to ask Mrs. Zheng tentatively what they should do now that Mu Yunchuan had succeeded.

At that time, Mrs. Zheng assumed without a doubt that Shen Cui, as Mu Yunchuan’s mother, regardless of blood relation, could benefit from his success just by showing “filial piety.”

She could bask in his glory with a clear conscience!

Now, it seemed like she could indeed benefit from Mu Yunchuan’s success by arranging a good marriage, but she was the first one to disagree!

Why should she bask in Mu Yunchuan’s glory? If those people came to attach themselves to their grand-nephew, she might have even respected them and thought they had foresight.

But the implication behind their words and actions was like they had written off Mu Er Pang compared to his older brother!

Of course, Mrs. Zheng wouldn’t stand for it. She wouldn’t let them bask in that glory!

Those families included quite a few wealthy ones, and even the main family of the Chen family showed interest.

They sent matchmakers to the Shen family.

Seeing Mrs. Zheng’s refusal, they turned their attention to the Chen family.

The Chen family was flattered by all the attention. Chen Shi was particularly influenced by her mother’s words.

After being persuaded a few times, her pride swelled, and she looked down on the Shen family.

But even though the eldest daughter was born by her, she bore the Shen surname, and the Shen family was under Mrs. Zheng’s control.

Chen Shi was upset. She felt that Mrs. Zheng was blocking her daughter’s promising future by interfering with her marriage plans.

Naturally, she wasn’t as friendly towards Shen Cui and Mu Er Pang as before.

After explaining the situation, Mrs. Zheng told Shen Cui not to worry. “She can only put on a show, but she won’t dare to confront me directly. After our Er Pang finishes the exams this year, I’ll arrange the marriage for our eldest daughter. That will put an end to her plans, and she won’t be able to cause trouble anymore.”

After saying this, Mrs. Zheng blew out the candle and urged Shen Cui to sleep quickly.

Although Shen Cui wasn’t too worried on the way back, the carriage ride was still a bit bumpy.

After a tiring journey, she fell asleep quickly beside her mother, listening to her talk about daily life.

After a satisfying nap, Shen Cui woke up to bright daylight.

She had plans with Zhao Lingsheng and the others today. She had been too relaxed last night, thinking that with Mrs. Zheng around and the lively atmosphere at the Shen family’s home, she didn’t need to set an alarm with the system.

She quickly got dressed and left the room to see Mrs. Zheng feeding the chickens in the yard with a small bowl in hand.

“Why are you up so early? Isn’t it rare to come home and not have a lie-in?” Shen Cui asked as she washed up.

What about Er Pang?”

“He went out early in the morning and specifically told me not to wake you up, to let you sleep a little longer. Don’t worry, I didn’t let him go alone. I asked your father to go with him.”

Mu Er Pang was thirteen years old, which was considered an age for independence in this era. It was just that Shen Cui, with her modern mindset, always worried about him.

But when she thought about it, she realized that it might be laughable for a scholar of this age to have his mother accompany him everywhere.

Knowing that Shen’s father went with them, Shen Cui felt reassured.

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Mu Er Pang and Shen’s father arrived at the agreed location early in the morning.

Zhao Lingsheng arrived even earlier than them, apparently also concerned about today’s matters.

Soon after, the other four scholars arrived, and they all went to a stall to have breakfast together and get acquainted.

As Mrs. Zheng had learned, two of the four scholars were older, from the same village as Zhao Lingsheng.

They were distant cousins. The elder one, around twenty, was named He Qing, and the younger one, around seventeen or eighteen, was named He Yan.

The other two were students of Huang Juren, both around fifteen or sixteen.

One was surnamed Huang, named Huang Junping, and the other was named Zhang Zian.

Huang Junping and Zhang Zian didn’t say much after exchanging names.

Worried that the youngsters might feel uncomfortable in the presence of adults, Zhao Lingsheng specially invited Shen’s father to another table for breakfast, giving them space to interact.

As soon as the adults left, He Qing and He Yan opened up.

They both had cheerful personalities, with the simple and genuine demeanor typical of rural folk.

After exchanging names, they voluntarily talked about their backgrounds.

They had not studied under scholars outside but had learned from their grandfather, who had passed the provincial exam.

After introducing themselves, they couldn’t help but make some self-deprecating remarks, saying they knew they weren’t exceptionally talented and had participated in the exams several times before, unsure if they would succeed this time.

Mu Er Pang didn’t look down on them because they had failed the exams before. Instead, he appreciated their straightforwardness and said, “Both of you, He brothers, have broad minds. Just with this attitude alone, you’re better than many others.”

Although He Qing and He Yan were self-deprecating, they didn’t want others to underestimate them.

Especially since Zhao Lingsheng had told them about Mu Er Pang’s background before asking them to form an alliance.

Among the five, Mu Er Pang had the best background. It wasn’t about wealth but the fact that he was backed by the Cuiwei Academy, which produced three successful candidates in a year, and he had an older brother who had ranked top in the exam.

So He Qing and He Yan were somewhat worried that Mu Er Pang might look down on them.

But when they heard Mu Er Pang encouraging them instead of looking down on them, they couldn’t help but smile.

However, at this moment, there was a sneer from the table.

It came from Huang Junping. Seeing the others looking at him, he didn’t falter. He raised his chin and said, “The imperial examination tests true talent and learning. What does it have to do with having a broad mind? You’re still young. I heard you started learning at the age of ten and have only studied for three years… But it’s not good to speak nonsense.”

Huang Junping’s words weren’t entirely wrong in the understanding of people in this era.

But Mu Er Pang had been at Cuiwei for so long that he felt the imperial examination wasn’t just about talent and learning.

It also had to do with temperament, physical fitness, and even luck. Otherwise, just taking Mei Ruochu as an example could refute Huang Junping’s words.

But Mu Er Pang just smiled and didn’t say anything. He didn’t want to bring up his brother from the academy for discussion, as it might seem like he was showing off.

Besides, he was just forming an alliance with these people, not making friends. There was no need to discuss his insights with them.

He only needed to make sure they were honest and reliable. From their current interaction, he could tell that He Qing and He Yan were simple and enthusiastic. Although Huang Junping was arrogant and spoke harshly, arrogance also had its advantages, and such people wouldn’t cheat in the exams.

It was another matter for Zhang Zian, who hadn’t said a word until now, making it difficult for others to gauge him.

Mu Er Pang couldn’t help but look at him.

Zhang Zian noticed his gaze and misunderstood, thinking Mu Er Pang wanted him to help smooth things over. After all, he and Huang Junping were classmates taught by the same teacher, so he felt a sense of duty and obligation.

He cleared his throat and said, “Hmm… the dumplings at this stall are really good! Huang, here, I’ll share two with you. Eat more.”

Eating more meant there was no time to say annoying things.

Mu Er Pang couldn’t help but smile. He could tell that Zhang Zian was a straightforward person who wasn’t good at speaking.

After finishing breakfast, the five teenagers got to know each other’s characters a bit and remembered each other’s faces.

Zhao Lingsheng then took them to the county office to register and receive the floating tickets.

Zhao Lingsheng still had to attend classes at the county school. After completing the procedures, he parted ways with them and agreed to meet outside the exam hall on the day of the exam.

After he left, Huang Junping also left directly, leaving only the four young men.

Shen’s father stood at a distance and didn’t interrupt their conversation.

He Qing and He Yan were about to return to their village. Mu Er Pang had received some harsh words from Huang Junping earlier because of them.

Before leaving, He Qing said to Mu Er Pang, “Brother Mu, keep steady. You will definitely perform better than that Huang Junping!”

Even Zhang Zian, who hadn’t spoken until now, came to him and said, “Brother Huang has that kind of personality. It’s not just directed at you. Don’t take it to heart. Study hard.”

Mu Er Pang nodded and exchanged a few words of encouragement with them before they parted ways.

Returning to Teapot Lane from outside, Mu Er Pang first informed Shen Cui and Mrs. Zheng that he had completed the registration process, then went back to his room, lost in thought.

Mrs. Zheng was most worried about him. Sensing that he wasn’t quite himself, she immediately called Shen’s father into the room and asked what had happened this morning.

Did the registration not go smoothly?

Shen’s father was taciturn and had hardly said a word all morning, but he was reliable.

Although he seemed uninvolved, he had been listening intently.

When Mrs. Zheng asked, he recounted what had happened at breakfast when Huang Junping had spoken harshly to Mu Er Pang.

Mrs. Zheng frowned. “It’s partly my fault. I was only concerned about whether people were reliable, but I didn’t pay attention to their characters. With the county exam approaching, why did that surname Huang criticize Mu Er Pang for no reason during breakfast? If it affects our Er Pang’s mood and performance, I’ll definitely hold his family accountable!”

Shen Cui comfortingly patted Mrs. Zheng’s back, saying it wasn’t that serious.

She knew her son the best. With his innocent heart, he was more open-minded than most adults.

If he really wanted to confront Huang Junping, there were plenty of arguments he could make, but he was too lazy to argue with people. He simply didn’t care.

However, Mu Er Pang did seem more silent than usual after returning.

Sometimes it was inconvenient to ask certain questions directly to the other students.

Shen Cui was more accustomed to checking their mood values in the system, but with Mu Er Pang, she preferred to talk to him proactively.

They talked about everything, without needing the system as a mediator.

Shen Cui told Mrs. Zheng and Shen’s father not to worry and went to see Mu Er Pang herself.

Mu Er Pang was sitting in his room, holding his chin with one hand and the floating ticket with the other, frowning thoughtfully.

Could he have misunderstood something? Was his chubby son really affected by a few harsh words?

As Shen Cui thought about this, Mu Er Pang noticed her entering and asked, “Mom, this floating ticket says I’m ‘short’. Am I really that short?”