The next day, Zhou Shuren took Mingqing out for a social event, leaving Zhulan and the two children at home. The Wu and Li families were also busy, with relatives visiting in droves. They made breakfast and hurried back home, as there was no need to bring food back home anymore.
Xue Han embroidered a handkerchief, "Mom, my family should know that Dad passed the exam and became a scholar!"
Zhulan put down the thread she had divided, "Yes."
Ming Teng held the biscuits in his fat hands, "Grandma, are we going home?"
He liked Pingzhou very much. There were several dishes for every meal in Pingzhou. There were even more dishes when his grandfather was taking exams. He had snacks every day and ate many delicious foods that he had never eaten before. He didn't want to go home.
Zhulan, "You don't want to go home? You don't want Mingyun, you don't want your parents?"
Ming Teng said simply, "My parents are eating and drinking well at home, so I don't have to worry about it, and I don't want to worry about my eldest brother either."
I force him to study every day. Life is so carefree without his elder brother around.
Ming Teng glanced at his grandmother and added, "And my parents won't miss me either."
Zhulan, "... ..."
This is true. Li herself has a bad temper and can't stand her son's temper. The eldest son tolerates Li, but adding Ming Teng is a bit beyond his tolerance. These two people really don't think about Ming Teng. This child who cheated his father is also a pitiful child.
Xue Han was amused by her nephew, "You don't want to go home? We all go back and leave you alone in Pingzhou?"
Ming Teng said pitifully, "Grandma, can't we not go back?"
"cannot."
Ming Teng covered his head with his fat hands, got down to the ground, put on his shoes, and ran away quickly. Zhu Lan didn't understand, "What happened to him?"
Xue Han suppressed her laughter, "Mingyun assigned him to trace the red characters, but he had so much fun these days that he forgot about it. He knew he had to go home, so he hurried to catch up."
Zhulan, "... ..."
This kid went around in circles, largely because he didn't finish his homework. He was probably afraid of being punished by Mingyun when he returned!
In the afternoon, Zhou Shuren and Mingqing came back. Zhulan looked at Zhou Shuren carrying a gift box and asked, "What did you buy? Who are you going to give it to?"
Zhou Shuren pointed at the gift box and said, "I didn't buy it. Shi Qing gave it to me. Not only did he give it to me, but Ming Qing also gave it to him."
Zhulan put on her shoes and went downstairs, "How did you run into him?"
Zhou Shuren motioned Zhulan to look at the gift box and continued, "Our schedule has always been under their control, so it's too easy for them to find us. I gave it as a gift, mainly to Wu Ming. Ming Qing and I were also there, so we got the gift for free."
Zhulan has opened the gift box, which contains a pair of jade bracelets. Zhulan picked them up and played with them. "This Mr. Shi is not a simple man. He knows our family's affairs very well. He knows that it is better to give it to me than to you. By the way, is it necessary to spend so much money on this gift? The Shi family is a royal merchant, so they should not try to please a scholar in advance. It would be reasonable if Wu Ming was a juren. He is young and promising. Isn't it too early now?"
Zhou Shuren had worked as a jeweler before, so he knew a lot about the value of jewelry. He estimated the value at a glance. The price of this pair of jade bracelets was about thirty taels. Zhou Shuren took the bracelets from Zhulan and put them back. "It's a pity that he still doesn't understand. I just hope you can take the jewelry I bought."
Zhulan laughed. Shi Qing gave her jewelry. She was Shi Qing's elder in age. This gift was for elders, and there was no other meaning. But Zhou Shuren was still unhappy. Shi Qing also gave it to Ma Tizi. "He values Wu Ming. Could it be that Wang Ru said something?"
She really has no confidence in Wang Ru anymore. Without the cover of words, real contact can only be solved by chance. Wang Ru is really stupid. It is not impossible that she is courting death!
Zhou Shuren explained, "I have been in Pingzhou for so long, and I have been asking about the Shi family. The imperial merchant sounds very high-ranking, but in fact it is the money bag of the superior. The Shi family's backers are fierce, and it is said that they take away most of the silver earned every year. The son of the Shi family was unwilling to be controlled all the time, so he boldly made reforms. Rather than saying that the stepmother wanted to kill Shi Qing to avenge her son, it is better to say that someone used Shi Qing's stepmother to kill him. After experiencing death, Shi Qing dared not act rashly, so he had to avoid the Shi family to build his own network. Wu Ming, no matter what, Shi Qing should have investigated it clearly, and it was because he was optimistic that he sent a heavy gift in advance."
Zhu Lan followed Zhou Shuren's words and said, "He is holding Wang Ru in his hands, but he actually wants to use Wang Ru as a trump card and throw her away when necessary, right?"
Zhou Shuren drank tea and said with amusement, "It's interesting. The novel is really too one-sided. Even if Wang Ru hadn't asked for his life-saving grace in advance, Mr. Shi still felt that Wang Ru was not as good as himself. He would never show mercy when he needed to use her. This is reality. It's impossible for Mr. Shi, who hopes to kill his eldest brother and become the only son of the Shi family, to be in love."
Zhu Lan could no longer read novels directly, because the people she interacted with were all real people. "However, no matter how powerful Wu Ming is, it may take him many years to get a high position. Can Shi Qing afford to wait?"
Zhou Shuren, "Shi Qing is not that old, right? It's a pity that he is a businessman, otherwise he could have taken the imperial examination with such aspirations."
Zhu Lan asked, "Did Wu Ming accept it?"
Zhou Shuren smiled and said, "Yes, why not? Wu Ming has adapted well. When he becomes a juren, more people will come to him to seek asylum and give him gifts. Now he doesn't have to promise anything, so it's no big deal."
Zhulan closed the gift box and said, "No wonder they say that a scholar is poor and a juren is rich."