Chapter 649 - 238: Changsi
Chapter 649: Chapter 238: Changsi
Chen Song rolled up his sleeves and cursed. "You brat! I didn’t do anything. How did I make him suffer?"
Yao’an followed behind De’an into the courtyard, turning back to shout at his father. "Dad, can’t you figure out such a simple question? My brother means that his lack of talent for studying is entirely to blame on your bad genes. If you were a scholar with a degree like Mr. Zhao, maybe my eldest brother would have been influenced by you and passed the exam to become a scholar by now."
"You bastard, you’re actually mocking your father! Even families that have been poor for eight generations can produce an Advanced Scholar. If you can’t pass the exam, just look for the reasons within yourself. To think you’re blaming your father—look how capable you think you are!"
Even after scolding them, Chen Song still felt annoyed. He turned to his wife and daughter and said, "Although I have no talent for studying, I still have strength and decent martial arts skills. But that boy hasn’t even learned that much from me. It just shows that he’s lazy."
Xu Su Ying quickly nodded. "Right, right, right. Everything you say makes sense. It’s all De’an’s fault. This foolish boy doesn’t work hard to improve himself and always blames us."
As she spoke, she grabbed Chen Wanqing and led her toward the backyard.
At first, Chen Song felt his wife’s words made perfect sense. But after thinking about it carefully, he sensed a hint of sarcasm. He quickly chased after her. "Wife, what exactly did you mean by that? Explain it to me..."
This was the first night Chen Wanqing and Zhao Jing had moved from Yulan Hall to Dark Aroma Garden. Zhao Jing didn’t return to the courtyard until an hour later.
By this time, Chen Wanqing had already washed up and was lying in bed. Hearing the maid greeting him, she threw on her clothes and prepared to get up. However, Zhao Jing pushed open the door and walked in first.
"Wanqing, don’t move. The wind is blowing fiercely outside, and I’m afraid the temperature will drop tonight. I’ll come talk to you after I wash up. Hurry and go back to bed."
Chen Wanqing lay back down for a while before Zhao Jing emerged from the washroom, looking fresh and clean. He took off his shoes, got into bed, and said to Chen Wanqing, "The wind is biting cold. It looks like the weather will change tomorrow."
"I heard Grandmother say that it hasn’t snowed once in Capital City this year. With this change in weather, I’m afraid it’s going to snow." She looked troubled. "I originally planned to go buy some return gifts for Aunt and my cousins, but with one thing after another, I still haven’t managed to go."
"You’re heavily pregnant, so don’t go in person. Have the nanny find out their preferences and let Mother or the steward go out to buy them. As long as your intentions are there, it’s fine. They know you’re heavily pregnant and won’t be overly demanding."
"That works too. It’s just that I feel we’ve received so many things from them, and if I don’t sincerely prepare a return gift, it feels impolite..."
After exchanging a few words about the gifts, Chen Wanqing asked Zhao Jing, "Why did Grandfather call you to the study?"
The old man was usually incredibly busy; he didn’t even have time to teach his own biological grandsons. Even though Eldest Uncle and Third Uncle had been back for days, she hadn’t heard of him meeting them privately. Yet, today, he had met Zhao Jing alone...
Zhao Jing lowered his voice. "Grandfather asked me about my time at the Imperial College, and I told him the truth. He then tested my academic knowledge and finally picked out a few books for me."
"Where are the books? Why didn’t I see them?"
"They’re on the table. When I came back, it was so cold that I casually rolled them up and tucked them into my sleeves. You just missed them."
It was getting very late. The couple kept their voices down, whispering about this and that under the covers, before eventually falling asleep to the howling wind outside.
The next morning, they woke to find the wind outside blowing even harder than the night before. The cold wind howled past, carrying sand, gravel, and leaves that slapped against people’s faces with a painful SMACK.
An experienced older female servant looked at the sky and said, "The weather is terribly damp and gloomy. My old legs ache fiercely with every movement. I’m afraid it’s going to snow today."
Chen Wanqing didn’t know if it would snow, but she worried that if it did, traveling would be inconvenient. Because of this, she hurriedly sought out her mother and brought up her desire to prepare return gifts.
Xu Su Ying said, "Don’t buy things for them. Your aunt, uncle, and cousins don’t lack anything you could buy. Didn’t you make clothes for your grandmother before? She loved them. How about this: make some shoes, sew a few pairs of socks, or embroider some pouches for your aunt and uncle, and send those over."
These small items were simple to make. Even with embroidery, they could be finished in three to five days.
"If you really feel the gifts are too meager, you can go to the kitchen to stew some soup or make some pastries to send them. That’s even easier. You won’t even need to do it yourself. Just stand in the kitchen and give a few instructions; that will be enough to show your filial piety."