Chapter 243 The Girl in the Painting

"What's wrong with my husband?"

Meng Jinyao looked at him, her eyes full of innocence and her expression blank.

Gu Jingxi's tone became increasingly resentful: "Now that you've married me and become his elder, you're the one who bullies him and gets your revenge. Don't you have any other thoughts?"

Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao immediately understood and couldn't help but laugh out loud, her voice filled with amusement: "My husband is handsome, a pleasure to behold, I like him very much."

"You only like my face?"

Gu Jingxi subconsciously touched his face, feeling a little disappointed. No matter how good one's appearance is, it will fade with age. He was almost thirty years old. How long could he keep this appearance? In another ten or eight years, his face would probably be covered in wrinkles.

Meng Jinyao answered truthfully: "At first, yes. If my husband were ugly, I would probably have chosen Xiu Hong, who is a year older than me. Xiu Wen is a year younger than me. I didn't want to marry a younger brother."

As she spoke, she noticed the man's gaze growing increasingly resentful, and her brows furrowed slightly as she quickly changed the subject: "In short, it all started with his looks, then he was captivated by his talent, and finally won over by his character. I've been to his study and seen his manuscripts; there are quite a few poems and articles. He is indeed as talented and eloquent as the rumors say. He's also quite good at painting."

Upon hearing this, Gu Jingxi smiled and said gently, "The study in Weirui Pavilion? Most of those are works from my youth. Later, I was too busy with official duties to bother with them much."

Meng Jinyao replied, "I can tell that some of the papers have yellowed, so they look quite old."

Besides the fact that the paper showed signs of age, she also noticed a melancholy tone in the writing. It must have been because he was feeling sad after his injury and couldn't show it to others, so he could only express it through writing. Although he didn't write about the incident directly, he expressed his feelings through descriptions of scenery.

Such an outstanding and proud person, yet he has a disease that hurts a man's self-esteem, was abandoned by his fiancée, and was ridiculed by others. How could he not be in pain?

However, in some of his later poems, that melancholy had faded, and he had truly let go of it, no longer caring about it. His words revealed a sense of magnanimity.

Gu Jingxi glanced at her, then suddenly seemed to remember something and asked hesitantly, "Have you read all those articles and poems?"

Meng Jinyao frankly said, "I had nothing to do at the time, so I watched them all."

Gu Jingxi fell silent, a hint of unease flashing across his face. His wife had seen all his youthful thoughts, things even his mother didn't know, and his mood instantly became complicated. Back then, he was young and a little stubborn, but as he grew older, handled more cases, and witnessed the harsh realities of life, he realized they weren't really problems and naturally became more accepting of them.

Meng Jinyao added, "Besides that, I also saw my husband's paintings. He is a very skilled painter."

The paintings were mostly landscapes, but one in particular was quite special. It was dated twelve years ago and depicted a little girl, about four or five years old, wearing a pink dress and with two little pigtails in her hair. Only her back was visible as she chased after butterflies, looking lively and adorable.

She thought to herself that Gu Jingxi must like daughters, otherwise why would he only draw girls and not boys? As for not drawing the little girl's face, it must be because he knew he wouldn't have children, so he didn't draw her.

Gu Jingxi asked softly, "Does Ayao like me like this?"

Meng Jinyao frankly admitted, "My husband is so talented, it's hard not to like him."

Gu Jingxi felt a pang of sadness and murmured softly, "Silly girl."

Meng Jinyao glared at him, dismissively saying, "You're the fool. You're a talented man, and I'm a beautiful woman. I think we're quite a good match. Doesn't your husband like someone like me?"

Gu Jingxi smiled, pursing her lips: "I like it."

“That’s right.” Meng Jinyao said, then couldn’t help but yawn, and then said, “Husband, I’m sleepy. Let’s go to sleep first, and we can talk about it tomorrow.”

Gu Jingxi smiled and replied, "Okay, go to sleep."

-

Qingyuxuan.

Meanwhile, Gu Xiuming returned to Qingyuxuan.

Although Li Wan'er was not qualified to attend the family banquet and did not leave the hospital today, she had heard about the results of the exam. The Marquis of Changxing's mansion was in high spirits this time.

The three sons of the Marquis's family participated in the autumn imperial examination. Two of them passed, namely the eldest son and the second son, but it was her brother Xiuming who failed. This result was unbelievable to her.

When she saw the young man enter the room looking dejected, Li Wan'er waved her hand and sent the maid away. Smelling the smell of alcohol on him, she asked softly, "Brother Xiuming, there's a family banquet today. I figured you can drink, so I had someone prepare some hangover soup in advance. Would you like a bowl?"

Seeing how gentle and considerate she was, Gu Xiuming finally felt some comfort and gently shook his head: "No need, I didn't drink much."

He reached out and grasped Li Wan'er's hand, giving a bitter smile: "Wan'er, you've heard about it, haven't you?"

Li Wan'er nodded gently: "I've heard about it."

Gu Xiuming then asked, "I didn't pass the imperial examination, but my two older brothers did. Do you also think that I'm useless and not as good as my two older brothers?"

“Brother Xiuming, how could you think like that? In Wan'er's heart, you are the best.”

Li Wan'er spoke gently and continued understandingly, "Brother Xiuming, you are quick-witted and no less talented than them. Have you forgotten that outsiders used to say that you were the most talented among the four young masters of the Marquis's mansion? It's just that you are younger than them and have less time to study. They only have the advantage of age and time. If you take the exam again in three years, you will definitely pass."

Gu Xiuming shook his head: "No, it's not because of age."

As he spoke, he gripped Li Wan'er's hand tightly, his face tense, and his eyes filled with deep resentment.

Li Wan'er's hand was gripped so tightly by him that it hurt, and she frowned and cried out in pain, "It hurts."

Gu Xiuming then realized what was happening and quickly let go of her hand. He noticed that the back of her fair hand was red, and he felt a pang of guilt. "Wan'er, I'm sorry."

"It's alright." Li Wan'er quickly shook her head, then asked curiously, "Brother Xiuming, you just said it wasn't because of your age, could it be that someone secretly sabotaged your chances of passing the imperial examination?"

Gu Xiuming's face darkened: "That's exactly it."

Li Wan'er's heart skipped a beat, both shocked and astonished. She knew that the officialdom was corrupt, but she didn't know just how corrupt it was. Her brother Xiuming was the heir of the Marquis's mansion, with the Marquis as his backer. Would an examiner really tamper with the exam papers? Could it be that the Marquis's political enemies couldn't stand it and deliberately sabotaged it?

She asked hesitantly, "Doesn't the Marquis care?"

Upon hearing this, Gu Xiuming's face grew even darker. He gritted his teeth, lowered his voice, and said hatefully, "He's the one who did this. What does it matter to him? He'd love for me to be useless so that someone else can make room for me."