Chapter 42

Because Shen Cui had used the kitchen for a while, there wasn’t much time left for Zhou Shi to prepare dinner.

She made a large bowl of shredded cabbage with pork, her own homemade sauce meat, leftovers from lunch, and a plate of steamed buns.

If it were to entertain guests, the meal would indeed be somewhat simple and couldn’t be compared to the daily meals of the Wei family.

However, Wei Shu had lived in the Qingzhu Academy for several years, where the food was only slightly better than here, so he didn’t mind.

With her brother present and in the capacity of an investor, Shen Cui felt somewhat embarrassed to let Wei Xi drink her own dumpling soup in front of him.

But the task time was running out due to the game of hide-and-seek led by Luo Buyu, leaving little time left.

Shen Cui was hesitating, but Wei Xi spoke up first, “I was outside for a while and caught a chill. If there’s some soup to drink, that would be great. Could you serve me a bowl?”

Obviously, Wei Xi had seen the familiar pot and knew that Shen Cui had made the same dumpling soup as last time.

Wei Xi rarely took the initiative to ask for food or drink. Even when he was still at home, although the family hired a skilled chef to supplement his diet, he rarely praised the food.

Wei Shu was surprised, and he also said, “What soup are you so eager to have? Can you serve me a bowl too?”

When this was said, Luo Buyu and Mu Er Pang, who had been smiling awkwardly, both laughed, leaving Wei Shu even more puzzled.

“You’re family, Wei Gongzi, there’s nothing you can’t have!”

Luo Buyu hurriedly agreed, then turned to Shen Cui.

He still wanted to avoid this bowl of soup tonight. Shen Cui was formidable, but she wouldn’t really make Wei Shu drink this soup, would she?

After a moment of thought, Shen Cui actually uncovered the pot.

Like last time, the pot contained a miserable-looking, sticky green mess.

Before Wei Shu could say anything, he stared at it in disbelief.

However, years of good manners prevailed, and Wei Shu didn’t make any outbursts or exaggerated actions!

Shen Cui didn’t care whether he was shocked or not. She uncovered the pot and gestured to the others.

Wei Xi and Mu Er Pang handed over their bowls, and Luo Buyu also obediently followed suit.

After serving them all, Shen Cui turned to Wei Shu, “Would Master Wei like to try…?”

Wei Shu immediately shook his head and said, “No, no, I… I had a full lunch, so I’m not very hungry.”

He wasn’t a member of the academy, and Shen Cui didn’t insist. Instead, she temporarily moved Zhou Shi out of the list of odd jobs in the academy and waited quietly for the bonus from the dumpling soup.

This time, luck wasn’t on their side, and the bonus from the dumpling soup went to Luo Buyu instead of the two children.

Top of Form

After seeing his charm increase by 1 point, Shen Cui didn’t let the others continue drinking. She sighed and resigned herself to finishing the rest of the pot, eating all that was left.

Wei Shu really had no appetite, so he put down his chopsticks and said to the others, “I came here this time for another matter. Yunchuan took the lead in the county exam and obtained the top score!”

As he spoke, Wei Shu raised his chin with pride, his gaze falling on Shen Cui.

In the eyes of his stepmother, his good friend’s lofty ambitions had been suppressed for many years without any results. Therefore, she had dared to treat him so disdainfully in the past! But today is different since Yunchuan showed a progress.

Wei Shu was somewhat looking forward to Shen Cui’s reaction, expecting a mixture of surprise, anxiety, uneasiness, and regret. But to his disappointment, Shen Cui remained composed.

Shen Cui was not surprised at all. This was the original plot of the book, and compared to later accomplishments like becoming the top scorer in the imperial exam, a mere top score in a county exam was not worth mentioning. Why would she be surprised?

Moreover, Wei Xi was not resentful or upset about being ostracized by the people in the academy, so she didn’t need to pay attention to this county exam.

Shen Cui smiled politely, “Yunchuan is diligent and studious, so it is natural for him to achieve good results!”

Mu Er Pang also joined in the laughter. “Right! This is what big brother deserves!”

He was genuinely happy for his older brother. However, after reading for some time, he had learned that the county exam was just the beginning. And being taught by Lao Buyu to control his emotions, he knew he shouldn’t show too much excitement over a small achievement, so Mu Er Pang’s joy seemed quite restrained.

It was Mrs. Zhou’s reaction that Wei Shu expected. She was so excited that she almost couldn’t hold onto her chopsticks. After taking several deep breaths, she smiled and asked, “How is my husband at the academy? Did he say when he will be back?”

She was not a talkative person, but she asked two questions in a row to Wei Shu, who she was meeting for the first time, showing her excitement.

Although Wei Shu felt disappointed and puzzled by Shen Cui’s reaction, he didn’t show it and relayed the message from Mu Yunchuan.

“Yunchuan is doing well. However, the provincial exam is in April, so he said he will return after that.”

Since the county exam had just passed, it meant that Mu Yunchuan would not be home for at least two more months. Naturally, Mrs. Zhou was disappointed, but the provincial exam was a big deal, and it was not uncommon for people to be away from home for three to five years for such exams.

Since she had married Mu Yunchuan, she had already made this preparation. Therefore, Mrs. Zhou forced a smile at Wei Shu, thanking him for delivering the message.

After dinner, Shen Cui and Mrs. Zhou cleared away the dishes, while the others, including Wei Shu, stayed in the academy.

It was time for Lao Buyu to teach Mu Er Pang.

The ten or so discounted enlightening books purchased by Shen Cui had already been used by Lao Buyu to teach Mu Er Pang once. Now, Mu Er Pang began to study the classics, such as the “Classic of Filial Piety,” the “Great Learning,” and the “Doctrine of the Mean.”

Different from the previous enlightening books, these required more time to memorize every word and sentence.

The evening was dedicated to Mu Er Pang, and Wei Xi did not participate, but instead took pen and ink to sit at the desk and write.

“Don’t you know your own situation? Aren’t you afraid of damaging your eyes by writing at night?” Wei Shu lectured as he sat beside Wei Xi, who was alone and writing.

Seeing Lao Buyu teaching Mu Er Pang next to him, both of them were extremely focused and serious. Wei Shu felt somewhat sympathetic for Wei Xi, who was sitting alone on the side. So, he lowered his voice and whispered to Wei Xi, not very pleased, “Is this what you wanted?”

Seeing Wei Xi ignore him, Wei Shu used a folding fan to block his writing. “I’m talking to you!”

When Wei Xi moved his hand away, Wei Shu noticed that he was writing a letter home.

Because he had been away for many years, Wei Xi had not been very close to his family. After returning to his hometown, Wei Xi had only added a few words when he sent letters home with Wei Shu.

This was the first time Wei Shu saw himself writing a letter home.

“Oh, you were writing home? No wonder you were covering it up,” Wei Shu couldn’t scold him anymore and changed the subject. “But your eyes are important. Our former scholar used to burn the midnight oil with a lamp and ended up damaging his eyes. Your eyes are already not good; it’s not good to do this.”

This was indeed a caring remark. Wei Xi put down his pen and said, “My eyes do feel uncomfortable at night. But the candles here are different. Reading and writing under this candlelight is different.”

Earlier, Shen Cui had accumulated 750 shopping points in the system, and her account had exceeded 1,000 points. Naturally, she was not stingy with Wei Xi. Thinking that he usually did not stay with Mu Er Pang at night and that he really needed it, she bought him a special candle as well.

Wei Xi had always known about his poor night vision, which meant he had half the amount of study time as others. After receiving this candle and discovering its usefulness, Wei Xi naturally cherished it very much. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have hidden away earlier and remembered to bring the candlestick with him.

Wei Shu really didn’t think much of the quality of the grass stage troupe, whether in terms of food or other items. Compared with the Wei family, let alone compared with the Qingzhu Academy, they were completely different levels.

Especially after hearing Shen Cui’s indifferent reaction to Mu Yunchuan’s achievement, he felt annoyed. He lightly scoffed, “Just a candle, a few pennies on the street. How different can it be?”

As he spoke, he reached out to pick up the candlestick and examine it closely.

Wei Xi blocked his hand and then directly blew out the candle.

Now, there was only light in the other corner where Mu Er Pang and Lao Buyu were.

Wei Shu also realized that his younger brother was not happy.

It was understandable. After not seeing each other for half a month, Wei Xi had been smiling at him all day, forgetting his stubborn and sensitive nature.

After all, there were outsiders present, and the two brothers did not argue. They just left the hall early and went to the room to rest.

The student dormitory where Wei Xi was located was actually just a normal room.

In the room, there was a long kang (heated brick bed), with two quilts on top, one was a blue silk quilt that the servants of the Wei family had sent to Wei Xi, and the other was a plain cotton quilt that Mu Er Pang had used for his nap here.

The two quilts were placed together. Wei Shu frowned and said, “When I used to rest in your courtyard at home, you wouldn’t let me, saying you didn’t like others touching your bedding. How come you don’t have that ‘dislike’ here? I wonder what they’ve given you to eat to cloud your mind?!”

Wei Xi was about to take out the quilt from the cabinet for him when he was asked this question. He asked in surprise, “When you were at home, you also didn’t like me touching your books. But when I came here, I found out that the books you brought were all read by Mu Yunchuan. In your words, you always talked about him, Mu Yuchuan… Could it be that Mu Yunchuan also gave you some kind of mind-altering drug?”

Wei Shu was taken aback by this remark. “Yun Chuan… Yun Chuan is different from others.”

Wei Xi immediately replied, “My Teacher, my senior brother, and Mrs. Mu are naturally also different from others.”

The two brothers looked at each other, Wei Shu glared at Wei Xi, and they both snorted before going to wash up and sleep, no longer speaking.