Chapter 361 Preparing to Leave Beijing

Both Madam Meng and Meng Dongyuan looked at the servant, waiting for his answer.

Seeing their joyful expressions, the servant replied in a light tone, "In reply to Madam, the Second Young Master is the top scorer in this year's provincial examination."

Upon hearing this, everyone was stunned again, finding it hard to believe. A fourteen-year-old scholar, and the top scorer at that, was an outstanding achievement, proving his quick wit and talent for studying. If he was already the top scorer, it wouldn't be difficult for him to pass the provincial examination in two years.

Meng Chengzhang was also incredulous, his heart pounding. He had a premonition that he would pass the imperial examination, but he didn't think he could get a very good ranking. Although he usually did his homework well and his teachers were very satisfied, there are always people better than you.

Meng Chengxing had just suffered a great blow, and now the servant's words had dealt him another heavy blow. Since childhood, his mother had told him that he was better than his second brother in everything and was the eldest son of the main wife, so his grandmother and father valued him the most and that the Yongchang Earl's Mansion would rely on him in the future.

But ever since his second brother passed the Lingshan Academy's assessment last year while he failed, he realized the gap between them. However, his mother said that perhaps his eldest brother-in-law was helping him behind the scenes, which put his mind at ease.

Now, his second brother is at the top of the list, while he is not on it.

Meng Dongyuan slowly looked at Chengzhang. This was the first time he had taken a serious look at his usually unremarkable second son. Last year, his second son was admitted to Lingshan Academy, which surprised him. But Madam Sun said that Gu Jingxi might have helped him, and he thought that was probably the case. So he never thought that his second son would be more outstanding than his youngest son.

Soon, Meng Dongyuan realized another problem. He had paid a lot of attention to Chengzhang when he was young, but after Chengxing was born, every time he came back from outside, Sun would bring Chengxing to see him. Over time, he basically only paid attention to Chengxing and neglected Chengzhang.

Sun always complained to him that Chengzhang had picked up some bad habits from Ayao, and he was somewhat displeased with it, but after all, he was his son. Even though he didn't like Chengzhang as much as he liked Chengxing, he didn't do anything to Chengzhang.

Looking back now, I realize that the wicked woman, Madam Sun, was trying to sow discord between him and his son, Chengzhang. Madam Sun raised two children, one a troublesome daughter and the other a good-for-nothing son. He had put so much effort into raising them, yet they didn't even pass the imperial examination. On the contrary, Chengzhang, whom he usually didn't pay much attention to, passed the imperial examination and even topped the list. This was no longer a matter of age. Chengzhang was only one year older than Chengxing, so how could there be such a big difference in their ages?

Meng Dongyuan felt resentment towards Sun Shi, which extended to his youngest son. He said in a deep voice, "Chengxing, you should really think about why you failed the exam this time. Learn from your second brother and study harder in the future. Don't let your playfulness ruin your future."

Meng Chengxing suddenly looked up, staring at his father in disbelief. He never imagined his father would speak to him like that.

Although Madam Meng was happy that her other grandson had passed the imperial examination, she still felt sorry for her youngest grandson. She quickly said, "Chengxing is still young. This is just to gain experience. Chengzhang is the older brother and has been studying for longer than Chengxing. There is no comparison between them."

Madam Dong chimed in, "Husband, Mother is right, Chengxing is still young. But Chengzhang passing the imperial examination is a joyous occasion for our family. Why don't we hold a family banquet today and celebrate together?"

Madam Meng smiled and nodded: "It is time to hold a family banquet and let Ayu come out of the Buddhist hall to celebrate together. There is a happy occasion in the family, so we will lift her confinement this time. If there is a next time, she will be severely punished."

Hearing his wife and mother's words, Meng Dongyuan's expression softened, and he nodded in agreement, "Then I'll trouble you to take care of it, Madam." As he spoke, he said to his second son with a gentle smile, "Chengzhang, although you have passed the county-level imperial examination this time, you must not be too proud. You still need to continue to work hard and strive to be on the list again in the autumn examination two years later."

Meng Chengzhang replied, "Your son will heed your teachings, Father."

Seeing his second son's calm and composed demeanor, Meng Dongyuan felt even more satisfied. Since his second son was more outstanding than his youngest son, he would invest more in cultivating him in the future.

When the second son of the Yongchang Marquis's family passed the imperial examination and became the top scholar, Meng Dongyuan had friends come to congratulate him. He chatted with his friends while taking his second son with him, completely ignoring his younger son whom he usually valued.

Meng Chengzhang originally didn't want to socialize, but his father was vain and dragged him out to show off to others without explanation. He could only patiently socialize for two days, and then went to the Marquis of Changxing's mansion to see his elder sister and made an appointment with Gu Xiuwen to return to Lingshan Academy ahead of schedule.

Meng Dongyuan's change made Meng Chengxing feel a sense of crisis, and he clearly felt that the position of the heir apparent was being shaken.

Meng Jinyu felt even more threatened. Her younger brother, who was born of the same mother, was useless, and she would have no one to rely on in the future. For this reason, she scolded Meng Chengxing severely and urged him to be more ambitious and strive to surpass Meng Chengzhang so as to maintain his position in the Meng family.

Meng Chengxing had been feeling depressed these past few days, and the reprimand from his own sister was so harsh that it really angered him, leading to a big fight between the siblings.

Meng Jinyu cursed him with exasperation, "Useless!" and then turned and left.

Seeing this, Meng Chengxing's face turned pale with anger. Looking at the huge gap between himself and his brother, he felt a sense of powerlessness. If his mother were still alive, she would definitely be able to help him, but now his mother was gone.

When Madam Dong heard the news that the siblings had quarreled, she pretended not to know. If it weren't for the fact that the siblings didn't like her in any way and occasionally made sarcastic remarks to her, she would have cared about it. But now she didn't want to deal with it, lest she end up doing something thankless.

-

As dusk settled and it was dinnertime, Gu Jingxi had not yet returned.

Seeing that it was getting late, Qingqiu worried that her master might be hungry, so she advised him to have dinner first.

Meng Jinyao waited for another quarter of an hour, but no one came back. So she ate dinner first. After dinner and a bath, Gu Jingxi returned from outside under the stars.

Upon seeing him return, Meng Jinyao quickly stepped forward and asked, "Husband, have you had dinner yet?"

Gu Jingxi shook his head: "Not yet."

"There's still some food warming in the small kitchen. I'll have the maid bring it over right away." After saying that, Meng Jinyao left the room and instructed the maid to bring the food from the small kitchen.

It was late at night, and eating too much would cause indigestion, so Gu Jingxi ate a little and put down his chopsticks when he was about four or five tenths full. He said to his wife, "Ayao, have the maid pack your things tomorrow. We're leaving the capital the day after tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao was immediately stunned, thinking she had misheard, and stammered, "Li...Lijing?"

Gu Jingxi nodded with a smile: "Yes, leave the capital."

Meng Jinyao then asked, "So where are we going?"

Gu Jingxi replied, "We're going to Huzhou Prefecture. We'll depart the day after tomorrow. Try to bring as little luggage as possible, just some commonly used items. We can buy anything we need when we get there."

"Why so suddenly?" Meng Jinyao was completely stunned, her mind a little blank. She asked, guessing, "Husband, you are an official in the capital. How can you leave the capital so easily? Have you been demoted?"

Before Gu Jingxi could reply, she comforted him with her understanding words, "It's alright. We're all working for the court and the people. It doesn't matter where you serve as an official. My husband is a talented man. No matter where he serves, he can do his job well, benefit the people, and share the Emperor's burdens. Huzhou Prefecture is quite good; it's a prosperous place."