No sooner had Madam Xin left than Lin Miaolian hurriedly arrived at Fan Qingqing's courtyard with her maids and servants.

As soon as they entered the courtyard, they saw their own daughter drawing portraits of men.

This morning I lied to myself, saying she was late because she stayed up too late reading.

But seeing her own daughter like this, it was clear she wasn't reading at all; she was obviously...

"Qingqing, what are you doing?" Lin Miaolian suddenly spoke, but she was facing away from the door.

The two people painting in the courtyard were startled.

"ah!!!"

Chunlian and Fan Qingqing were so startled that they dropped their palettes to the ground.

He knelt on the ground in great fear.

"Mother/Madam..."

Lin Miaolian glanced at the two people kneeling on the ground, then looked at the man in the drawing.

Isn't that Scholar Xin?

"Qingqing, your mother is asking you if the man in this painting is Scholar Xin?"

Fan Qingqing knelt on the ground, feeling both aggrieved and nervous.

But having to admit it, he nodded and said, "Yes, Mother."

Lin Miaolian was furious. Her daughter was really rebelling!

They haven't even started looking at anyone yet! How come they're already drawing portraits of men?

But why paint a portrait of this old man? Who could it be but this?

Why not find someone closer to your age? Why go after this old man?

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. With her hands on her hips, she said, "Explain yourself to your mother. How did you come to know that Scholar Xin?"

Fan Qingqing said tremblingly, "Mother, I went shopping a few days ago, but it started raining heavily..."

I had a chance encounter with Master Xin under a rain shelter on the street, and thus... My daughter admires his talent, my daughter..."

Lin Miaolian was speechless; she didn't want to hear her daughter's confession anymore.

She took a deep breath and said, "Qingqing, you've found someone so old, do you even have anything to talk about with him?"

Fan Qingqing nodded solemnly and said softly, "Mother, I had a very pleasant conversation with Lord Xin."

She felt that Lord Xin was better than any other man her daughter knew, and that's why she secretly fell in love with him.

Lin Miaolian shook her head. She shouldn't get angry, she shouldn't get angry. This was her own child.

Yue'er said that everyone should find what they like.

Lin Miaolian silently repeated Guan Zhiyue's words in her heart for a long time.

He then stopped and looked at Fan Qingqing, saying, "You two get up first."

"You should diligently copy the 'Precepts for Women' fifty times in the courtyard. I will report this matter truthfully to your father."

After saying that, he turned and left the courtyard, feeling somewhat dizzy and disoriented, supported by his nanny.

Why would her daughter fall for an older man?

-----

Fan Ziqian, who was still working as an editor at the Hanlin Academy, returned home from his evening shift...

He met his former classmate and friend, Li Sheng, at the gate.

"Brother Li, I didn't see you at your workstation today?" Fan Ziqian asked.

Li Sheng looked at the top scholar and said with a smile, "Brother Fan, you don't know this, but our department went to clean up the accounts today."

"How is it, Brother Li? How are you doing in your new position, you third-ranked scholar?" Fan Ziqian asked.

Li Sheng replied with a smile, "Ah, I still miss our school days. Those were truly carefree times."

Back then, all you had to do was read and debate; unlike now, where there are so many things to consider.

"But my mother is very worried!"

Fan Ziqian said with a smile, "Auntie, you wouldn't be asking Brother Li to start looking for someone, would you?"

Li Sheng blushed slightly, wore a somewhat helpless smile, and his eyes were full of tenderness.

His light blue official robe fluttered in the wind as he raised his head.

The setting sun seemed to be subdued by his smile, and then they both shone brightly together, making him dazzling and beautiful in the sunset.

That's what makes the third-ranked scholar so handsome; all three candidates in Fan Ziqian's year were quite good-looking.

Li Sheng was not short of beautiful women; wealthy and powerful men even sought him out as a son-in-law, but he politely declined them all. Perhaps this was the noble spirit of poverty!

He also harbored a deep-seated inferiority complex; Fan Ziqian was actually his best friend and classmate.

He was also the brother-in-law he had his eye on. He had wanted to bring this top scholar home to be his sister's husband, but he hadn't had the chance yet.

"With Brother Li's exceptional talent and handsome appearance, what kind of woman wouldn't he find?"

"Don't worry, you'll definitely meet the woman you love most, Brother Li," Fan Ziqian said with a smile.

The two walked side by side to the gate, where they parted ways. The scholar's family lived in a rented house.

Li Sheng is a true son of a peasant family, the kind of poor kid who has achieved his current status through hard work and dedication.

After the two turned around, Li Sheng remembered his sister's instructions and said, "Come to my house for dinner another day when you have a day off. My sister has asked you about it several times."

Upon hearing Li Sheng's words, Fan Ziqian replied, "Okay, I understand."

Please pass on a message to Sister Li, saying that I will definitely visit her during my day off.

Li Sheng nodded to indicate that he understood, then turned and left.

A slight smile crept into his heart; it seemed his sister's good intentions were going to come to nothing.

Their family is too high a social standing to be associated with; are they from an official family?

Li Sheng nodded, said nothing more, and hurried home with his head down.

When Fan Ziqian returned to the Fan residence, he heard some truly shocking news.

He was so frightened that he staggered. His brother-in-law, the third-ranked scholar, was he going to be unable to be brought back?

"Ah! Mother, is what you're saying true?"

"Qingqing, do you really have... you know... feelings for that person...?"

Fan Ziqian was shocked. He sat down at the dining table and looked at Fan Qingqing, who was sitting with her head down, eating her rice.

He glanced at his mother and father, both of whom looked at him with a mixture of disappointment and frustration.

"My dear sister, you were perfectly fine with the third-ranked scholar, all those handsome men, why did you go and find an old man?"

"Haven't you seen this year's third-place scholar?"

"So that's why you can't understand why you'd go looking for an older man? But I admit it..."

Lord Xin is indeed quite handsome, but he's still a full twelve years older than you!

"Isn't my classmate good enough? How about I introduce you to him another day? You can reconsider?"

Fan Ziqian praised his good classmate, wondering why his sister was so foolish.

Why would she go looking for an older man? What's in it for her? Is it because he looks old? Or because he's old?

Or is it because he doesn't wash his butt after showering, or because he grinds his teeth while eating and farts in bed?

He simply couldn't understand it; this man was far too old...