Chapter 661 - 242: We Are Still Young
Chapter 661: Chapter 242: We Are Still Young
The old lady was satisfied in her heart, but on the surface, she acted a bit coy. "A married daughter is out of her mother’s hands. If you think it’s fine, then it’s fine. Anyway, no matter what you do, your mother certainly has no objections."
The whole room erupted into laughter. Xu Su Ying clung to the old lady’s arm and leaned against her shoulder, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "You old lady, you’re complaining even while getting exactly what you want."
After the banquet dispersed, Sheng Mingchuan and the rest of the group moved to the floral hall in the front courtyard. This time, aside from idle chatter, the main agenda was to test the younger generation’s academic knowledge.
As the prime target of this academic scrutiny, De’an felt absolutely dead inside, though he still had to maintain a deeply respectful expression on his face. During the banquet held at home a few days prior, he had been subjected to a grueling round-robin interrogation by his three uncles’ colleagues and friends. He had barely survived the ordeal without being roasted alive.
What depressed him even more was that, despite racking his brains, he had only received a rating of "barely passable." Furious, his eldest uncle immediately piled on extra homework and declared that his cousin Yan Lin, who held a post at the Imperial College, would come over to supervise him every single day.
It was the end of the year, and everyone else was relaxing. Even the Emperor was no longer handling official duties. A joyful and lighthearted atmosphere permeated the Capital City. Yet he alone was left out in the cold like a miserable wilted cabbage, working bitterly from dawn until dusk, even though he wasn’t in any rush to take the exams to become a scholar right now.
Making a fool of himself once was bad enough, but at least those men were only his uncles’ friends. The man sitting before him right now, however, was his actual future father-in-law. If he failed to pass the test again... De’an could already imagine how tragic his life would be for the next few years.
But sometimes, a person’s abilities were strictly limited. It wasn’t something that could be drastically improved in a short amount of time just by wishing for it. Therefore, during this round of testing, De’an’s performance remained merely passable at best.
Xu Shiniang and his two brothers sighed heavily, feeling a deep sense of guilt toward Sheng Mingchuan.
Xu Shiniang even said to his old friend, "Why did you choose De’an in the first place? Isn’t Yanhe a much better choice?"
De’an hurriedly interjected. "Uncle Shiniang, Uncle Shiniang, you can’t throw your own nephew under the bus like this!"
Xu Shiniang pointed an accusatory finger at him. "Get out of here! If you had even a fraction of Jing’s academic talent, I would praise you to the high heavens! But just look at your meager skills. You didn’t inherit a single ounce of your mother’s cleverness or eagerness to learn. Tell me, who exactly do you take after to be this dense?"
De’an cast a glance at Chen Song. Chen Song coughed lightly and shrank back, hiding behind the youngest Xu brother.
He refused to take the blame for this. He absolutely refused! He could barely fend for himself as it was. If his son was being subjected to ridicule... well, he could only blame the boy for being such a disappointment.
After that day, true to their word, they piled even more homework onto De’an. His days became as agonizing and bitter as being steeped in a vat of medicine. He wasn’t even allowed to relax for the remainder of the holiday season. If the old lady hadn’t spoken up on his behalf, he wouldn’t have even been allowed to step foot outside the house on the day of the Lantern Festival.
On the day of the Lantern Festival, the entire family was scheduled to attend a royal banquet at the palace.
As luck would have it, it began to snow early that morning. By the time they were preparing to depart at dusk, the snow on the ground was already ankle-deep. Because all officials of the fourth rank and above, along with their families, were required to attend the palace banquet, the streets had been swept completely clean of snow well in advance.
However, the distance from the palace gates to the respective palaces of the Empress and the Empress Dowager was quite long. Moreover, during the New Year festivities, the sheer amount of time spent waiting and performing customary kneeling rituals was exhausting.
Chen Wanqing was pregnant, and the old lady’s stance was that she shouldn’t subject herself to such a grueling ordeal. The palace wasn’t like their own home; it was fraught with hidden dangers at every turn. If they were even the slightest bit careless and something happened to the child, the regret would last a lifetime.
Truthfully, Chen Wanqing wasn’t very keen on venturing out in this weather either. To make matters worse, she had been experiencing bouts of morning sickness over the past two days, and catching even a whiff of any strong scent would make her nauseous. At the palace banquet, even ignoring the heavy aromas of the various rich dishes, she feared she wouldn’t be able to stomach the strong perfumes and incense worn by the female guests. Making a public spectacle of herself by vomiting would be highly improper.
However, she still had her reservations. "The Madam specifically told me earlier that I should go to the palace to enjoy the festivities on the Lantern Festival."
Hearing this, the old lady reassured her. "Put your mind at ease. Your grandmother will smooth things over for you. The Madam is not an unreasonable person. She won’t hold this against you."
"That is good to hear."
Since Chen Wanqing wasn’t going, Zhao Jing decided not to go either.
The old lady had originally wanted him to go along just to make an appearance, but Zhao Jing had his own reasoning. "Grandmother, you just advised my sister that there’s no need to rush things right now. We are still young. There will be plenty of opportunities for us to enter the palace in the future."
Seeing his determination, the old lady didn’t try to force the issue any further. Instead, she gathered the rest of the family and led them into the palace.
Outside the window, the snow was falling heavily with a soft SWISH, showing absolutely no signs of stopping. The silk flowers that had been hung up for the New Year swayed gently on the tree branches. Illuminated by the soft glow of the gauze-covered lanterns, the snowflakes settling upon them reflected a brilliant, multicolored light.
Chen Wanqing stood under the veranda, marveling at the stunning winter scenery of jade-like trees and crystalline flowers. Zhao Jing, however, mistook her wistful gaze for envy toward the others who were able to attend the palace banquet. He gently supported her waist and softly reassured her. "You don’t need to envy anyone else. One day, we will also step through those palace gates openly and honorably. Do you believe me?"
Chen Wanqing knew he had completely misunderstood her thoughts, but she didn’t bother to correct him. "Naturally, I believe you," she replied with a gentle smile. "But you mustn’t rush things either. Just as you said earlier, we are still young. We have all the time in the world, and there will be plenty of opportunities ahead of us."