Chapter 64

  Half a month has passed since the list was released, and the time seems neither long nor short. At least in this half-month, Xianyi has become accustomed to life in the Jin family's mansion in Heng City. Due to the location of the random garden behind the Jin family's mountain, even the second house is separated by several layers, let alone the first and third houses. Therefore, Xianyi seems to be living in a place that is almost isolated from the world, and she is happy to have peace and quiet. However, as the day of the list approaches, Xianyi knows that her peaceful days are about to end.

  "What great joy! What great joy!"

  Xian Yi lifted her head, put down the fan in her hand, and felt very complicated. She hoped that Jin Fenghua could pass through the levels and rise high, but she was also unwilling to bear the side effects brought by the high rise.

  "What number did our young master get?" Bi Xi asked on behalf of Xian Yi, seeing that she didn't say anything.

  "We ranked 12th in the entrance exam of our institute, and this year it's said that nearly 10,000 people took the exam in our county. The three thousand six hundred rooms in Hengcheng Academy were all filled." The one who came to report was Yan Zongguan's nephew, Yan Shou, also known as "Thin Monkey" because no matter how much he ate, he never seemed to gain weight. He was clever and knew his place, so Yan Zongguan specifically sent him up the mountain to serve under Jin Fenghua, also in order to intimidate the other servants in the garden.

  "Ranked twelfth among tens of thousands of people..." Xian Yi exclaimed, this is almost as good as the top scorer in the previous generation's college entrance exam. Last time, among several thousand children, ranking ninth was already impressive, but this time, with so many people, all from big cities, and still achieving such a result, it can be seen that Jin Fenghua is not just a superficial phenomenon.

  "The houses below have all set off firecrackers, and soon our young master will probably return. The masters of the various rooms are also likely to come over. My little uncle means that Madam may want to go down and prepare." Yan Shou compared with Yan Zongguan looked further and thought more thoroughly. Since Jin Fenghua was a legitimate second son who had been registered, this second house would eventually become Jin Fenghua's property. Not to mention that Jin Fenghua seemed to have a promising future, even if he only became a scholar, the second house still belonged to him according to law. Yan Zongguan could not replace the master and guard this large family business, lest he accidentally raised a prodigal son and the entire second house was destroyed by the other two houses. Who knew what would happen to these generations of slaves in the second house? Therefore, he had always been respectful to Jin Fenghua and Xian Yi, occasionally expressing his loyalty, binding himself and his family to Jin Fenghua's ship.

  Xian Yi also knew it was time for her to make an appearance, so she adjusted her mood, changed into a new set of clothes and got into the sedan chair to head down the mountain. As expected, firecrackers were still being lit outside, and the noise could be heard all the way in the backyard. Xian Yi tidied herself up and waited in the front hall for the other members of the Jin family. The elderly master and mistress wouldn't be able to make it, so the first to arrive from the second house was Dajie Jiang Shi, followed by the second wife of the third house with Jin Dagu. The third house had always been sparse in terms of people, and even after the marriages of the second young master of the first house and the fourth young master of the fourth house, there were only two additional daughters-in-law, making it a bit more subdued than usual for an official family.

  The second lady has always been close to Xianyi, and as soon as she came in, she pulled Xianyi's hand and smiled: "Hua Ge is a good one, you see, these are all the wives of the scholars, how old are they, how old are you?"

  Xian Yi hurriedly pulled Second Madam towards the inner quarters, saying as they walked: "This is all thanks to the elders' guidance. When Husband came to Heng City, no one knew him, but if it weren't for the elders finding connections and getting him into Heng City's best academy, how could he have passed the first round? Besides, Fourth Brother may be young, but he's already passed the child examination, so next time he'll probably pass the imperial examination too. By then, he'll be even younger than Husband."

  The second lady immediately knew that Xian Yi was speaking for her own family, after all, the matter of the academy was something her husband had specially used his connections to help with. Even if it could be said that he had only lent a hand at the last minute, Xian Yi had mentioned her own son and looked so highly upon him, which made her feel even more delighted. A smile naturally appeared on her face: "This little scamp of mine, one moment studying literature and the next practicing martial arts, his father is almost driven to distraction by him."

  "It can't be said that way, maybe the fourth brother is a versatile talent." Xian Yi continued to say, and again made the second lady smile with joy.

  Jiang followed behind the two, and again thought of Tai Po's instructions, feeling more and more uneasy.

  Three people said a few words, and then Yan Shou rushed in again, saying that Jin Fenghua had already entered the second gate. The three of them were delighted, and because Jin Fenghua was not very old, and there was Second Madam sitting in the room, Jiang Shi did not avoid him, but instead curiously looked at the door of the flower hall. She had missed the ceremony where Jin Fenghua and Xian Yi paid their respects to her last time due to a family matter, and for these past few days, she had been hearing about how this young talented man was exceptionally handsome, how he was overflowing with talent, and how he did not abandon his wife who came from a humble background. He even brought his wife into the Jin family of Heng City from her birth father's family, making him a man with feelings and righteousness. As the laughter outside the door grew louder, Madam Jiang's eyes widened more and more. The young man, dressed in a light blue scholar's uniform, holding a sandalwood pendant jade folding fan, walked step by step towards her under the golden sunlight. He was as radiant as a peach blossom, smiling like a summer flower, and his brilliance made people dare not look directly at him. Although he had a delicate face like a lotus flower, the noble and elegant aura around him made it impossible for others to ignore his masculinity. Now, Jiang Shi finally believed that this adopted grandson of the second house was truly one-of-a-kind in terms of appearance.

  "Big sister-in-law."

  Jiang suddenly came to his senses and only then realized that Jin Fenghua had already paid respects to the second mistress, now it was his turn.

  "Third brother." His voice was as soft as a mosquito, Jiang's face burned fiercely, ashamed to want to avoid him, but couldn't bear to leave the original place, and secretly glanced at the young man a few times.

  Jin Fenghua stood up straight, walked slowly to Xianyi's side, slightly close, as if to avoid others, but used a voice that everyone could hear: "Xianxian, you've worked hard."

  Xian Yi glanced at everyone, facing the teasing gaze of Second Madam, and calmly replied: "My husband is truly hardworking."

  The second lady, Zhu, seeing the warmth between the two, smiled and said: "You're all one family, what's the need to talk about hardships? It's just that Huage is young and talented. This time he passed the xiucai exam, and next year when he takes the imperial exam again, he'll surely pass and become a jinshi. Ah, it's our family's great fortune!"

  Jin Fenghua's humble words made Xian Yi's eyes flutter, and the young man in front of her with a bookish air and a gentle demeanor was actually the same person as the one in her memory who was covered in blood and had a fierce glint in his eye. She deeply suspected that if Jin Fenghua wasn't acting at the pinnacle of his craft, then he must have dissociative identity disorder.

  "Alright, you've been out since early morning, take a rest too. Tonight, your Third Grandfather is hosting a family banquet for you, although no external guests are invited, it's all for your sake. Can't be careless just because of temporary success. When you become a high school graduate next year, your Third Grandfather will definitely host a grand feast for the whole clan and relatives from each branch." Seeing that it was getting late, Zhu Shi didn't linger and left. Jiang Shi saw Zhu Shi leaving and had no choice but to stand up and bid farewell, following behind Zhu Shi as they left together.

  Jiang returned her head casually, and saw Jin Fenghua holding Xianyi's hand, laughing and chatting about something, making Xianyi blush with a low smile. The two were very close, and for no reason, she felt a pang of jealousy in her heart. Her husband was clearly older, not to mention that his appearance, talent, and education were not as good as Jin Fenghua's, and even his care and consideration were not as gentle and devoted as Jin Fenghua's. Although everyone knew it was her husband's fault that she couldn't get pregnant, her mother-in-law still felt that the people serving her husband were too few, and if it weren't for her grandmother-in-law intervening, there would probably be more than one concubine and maid in her courtyard.

  Her heart felt suffocated, Jiang's secretly wiped the corner of her eyes and returned to the main house, directly going to the old lady's courtyard. At this time, she went back to guard the empty room alone, fearing that her husband would still be angry with her because of the Golden Phoenix's affair and would indulge in self-pity again. She might as well avoid him for now, wait until he got drunk in the concubine's quarters, then go back to comfort him, not only avoiding a scolding but also getting some sweet talk.

  Mrs. Zhang heard that Jiang had just returned from the second house and rushed to her own courtyard to pay respects, couldn't help but sigh, and said to the old nanny beside her: "I knew it earlier, my eldest grandson has become more and more unlikable over the years, I wouldn't have married Jiang into our family back then, I'm afraid she must be resenting me in her heart now."

  "How could that be? Young Master's wife is your niece, and back then the Jiang family was in a difficult situation. Others may not know, but Young Master's wife must have known. Although she is from the main branch of the Jiang family, she is still just a daughter of the fourth branch, with an incompetent father. She should consider herself lucky to have married into our household. Moreover, even if Young Master is not capable, he is still the eldest son and grandson of the main branch. You are also related to Young Master's wife through her natal family, so as long as she gives birth to a boy or girl in the future, our main branch will not mistreat her." The old servant was getting on in years and chattered on for several sentences, but managed to alleviate some of Zhang's guilt.

  Jiang entered the door and saw Old Lady Zhang and several girls chatting, laughing for a while before letting these young girls leave. Some of these girls Jiang had met before, they were relatives of Old Lady Zhang's natal family, also related to her but already beyond the fifth degree of mourning.

  "It's hard for you too, Grandma knows you're wronged, Grandma will find an opportunity to talk about Xinge (Young Master) later. It's just that between husband and wife, there's no overnight grudge, so put your mind at ease, it's better than letting others take advantage of the situation." Old Lady Zhang said to Jiang Shi as she called her to sit beside her.

  Jiang's eyes welled up with tears again, but in front of her grandmother-in-law, she didn't dare to wipe them away. She could only endure and say: "I understand, daughter-in-law. I shouldn't let Grandmother worry."

  "Ah, both the palm and back of the hand are flesh." After saying this, Old Lady Zhang shifted the topic onto the right track: "How was it? Did you see that young whippersnapper from the second house today?"

  Jiang thought of Jin Fenghua's slightly raised corners of her mouth in the sunlight, and suddenly felt a warmth in his heart, hastily lowering his head to say: "She is a talented person."

  "It's not that there isn't any talent...” Mrs. Zhang thought of the thin descendants of the third branch, and also thought of the many generations of the Jin family, losing out because no one could speak up for the Jin family at critical moments on the imperial court, otherwise her son might not have died so early either.

  "Even the daughter-in-law saw it, and what people outside said was true. The woman in the second house really had a good relationship with her husband's concubine... As for his mother..." At this point, Jiang Shi felt like she was about to spit out blood.

  "It doesn't matter if the feelings are good or not, don't follow that brainless mother-in-law of yours to make a scene. If he likes that servant girl, let him keep her. We're trying to form an alliance, not create enemies. After all, a man's backyard can have more than one woman." Madam Zhang said calmly, taking a sip from her tea cup.

  Jiang suddenly felt a chill in his heart.