Chapter 103: The King Seizes His Minister's Wife If Line I Want to Be the Number One Scholar's Wife
While patting Qin Sizhao's back to comfort him, she couldn't help but shed tears.
"Shh... don't get into trouble... listen to me..."
She wiped the tears from Qin Sizhao's face, looked into his eyes and said:
"I brought back six hundred taels of silver..."
"Six hundred taels..."
Qin Sizhao couldn't help but exclaim, but Tao Jinrong covered his mouth.
"Don't get excited. We have such a large sum of money. We can't stay here. We have to leave quickly."
She looked at the carriage parked outside the window. The guard groaned in his throat, and with his belly sticking out, he reached out to loosen his belt, walked out of the carriage, and slowly wandered into the grove.
Tao Jinrong blinked and added:
"I'm leaving tonight."
After all, she had such a large sum of money on her, and there were also many gold and silver jewelry given to her by Gu Shi in the car. Would the guard who sent her home kill or rob her?
Moreover, she should not show off her wealth. If others saw her having money to buy a horse or rent a car tomorrow, they would probably have worries.
"He's gone out to relieve himself... Let's take advantage of this opportunity to rob his carriage."
She looked back at Qin Sizhao and said:
"Be quick and don't hold me back."
Qin Sizhao was stunned for a moment, then nodded immediately.
"Hurry up!"
Tao Jinrong pushed Qin Sizhao's butt and stuffed him into the carriage, then climbed up nimbly and grabbed the horse's reins.
The horse turned its head and looked at her unconvinced. She felt a little scared because she didn't know how to drive at all, but now she had to grit her teeth and go on.
"Hey! Damn kid! Leave my carriage behind!"
Qin Sizhao pulled open the curtain and threw the guard's men's wallet that had been left in the carriage straight out of the window - right at his face.
All in all, the horse ran in a mess and finally stopped in a mess at the edge of the county town.
It was still dark, but a blinding white light appeared on the horizon.
"A Zhao, let's walk. This carriage is too good. I'm afraid of being spotted."
She untied the horse's reins and recklessly let it go.
“Hey—whoosh—”
She climbed onto the carriage and took down the box filled with silks, satins, hairpins, and jewelry. The box was covered with a rather gorgeous blanket.
She threw the blanket into the dirt, stepped on it several times, and then put the blanket back on the box with satisfaction.
"That way you can't tell it's full of good stuff."
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and nose, smiled, and her eyes sparkled.
"But Sister Rong'er is dressed very beautifully too."
Qin Sizhao raised his head and looked her up and down.
She was wearing a dress made of orange-red fabric that he had never seen before, embroidered with exquisite patterns. Although she didn't wear any hairpins or jewelry, her hair was as black as clouds.
After she reached the age of 15, she quickly transformed from a tomboy into a graceful beauty. It would not be strange to say that she was the eldest daughter of a high-ranking official.
Qin Sizhao touched his face. He hadn't looked in the mirror for a long time... But even if he didn't look in the mirror, he knew that he looked pale and thin at the moment, and he probably didn't look very good.
If he walked beside her, they would probably be like a young lady and a beggar.
"Ah—what should I do then…"
She scratched her hair exaggeratedly, as if she had never thought about this question before.
When Tao Jinrong was a child, she played around outside and was nicknamed Black Monkey. It was obvious that she had not yet come to her senses and had not realized that she had become a beautiful young lady.
She thought about it carefully, took out the banknotes from her bra, panties, and shoe soles, and stuffed them into the soles of Qin Sizhao's shoes and the pockets on the sides of his panties.
"Sister Rong'er, I'm afraid the soles of my shoes will fall off while I'm walking... and the banknotes will leak out..."
"This is just a portion of the silver notes... I specifically exchanged a lot of small denominations, including copper coins."
"Forget it, you're so thin, it makes me feel bad. You must have been hungry for a long time. Let's go eat first."
She reached out and pinched his face. He was pale and thin, with not a single bit of flesh to be pinched out, and he hadn't grown at all.
Carrying the box, Tao Jinrong and Qin Sizhao found a small restaurant and each had a bowl of dumpling soup.
Qin Sizhao seemed to have not eaten white flour for a long time, and drank it all in big mouthfuls.
Although the process was a bit hectic, they finally rented a small courtyard near the private school here, bought decent new clothes for Qin Sizhao to wear to school, and the two of them settled down.
But Qin Sizhao seemed to be unable to sit still. Whenever he had free time, he would help people write. When things went well, he could earn a hundred dollars, but when things went badly, he could only earn a few copper coins.
Although she could not read many words, she was afraid that it would delay his study progress, so she said worriedly:
"A Zhao, this money is enough for your studies. Just study hard."
In the past six months, Qin Sizhao has grown a lot taller and is now as tall as her.
"Sister Rong'er, I can give you the money I earn. Your money is still your own. I can earn my own tuition."
At night, he lit a candle, held her hand, and taught her to read word by word.
It is really not good not to know big characters. It is like being blind. Although Tao Jinrong has a casual personality, he was able to learn under his careful explanation.
A year later, they moved from the county to the provincial capital to continue taking the exam.
One day, he came back with a box and pressed it into her hand.
She opened it and saw a jade bracelet inside.
"Rong'er, I passed the imperial examination... I went to the tailor and ordered some clothes for you. I wonder if you like them."
He blushed, lowered his head, and asked:
"What kind of wedding dress do you like?"
"You're only sixteen, and you're already thinking about getting married? You'll have no interest in studying after getting married. Didn't you say there would be an imperial examination after the provincial examination?"
Tao Jinrong blushed and spoke hurriedly.
She turned around with a hint of worry in her eyes.
She suddenly felt that she didn't really want to marry Qin Sizhao.
Firstly, she was hiding something from him and hadn't told him clearly. Secondly, she became an adult before him, and she always felt that he was still a child in her heart. She really couldn't associate him with that kind of thing.
She also had a time when she got addicted to it, but it was only in the middle of the night when she would secretly put her hand under her skirt and clamp her legs together.
But she never once had any such thoughts towards Qin Sizhao.
She subconsciously regarded him as her own brother.
"Rong'er, being a Juren is enough to support the family. I don't want to take the imperial examination. Besides, the examination is in the capital, and the expenses are too high. I'm afraid I don't have that much spare money."
"It's okay, use mine. I have money."
"That's your money, I can't use it."
"Then consider it as me lending it to you. When you pass the imperial examination and become the top scorer, return it to me."
She thought that if he became a high-ranking official in the capital, many people would introduce him to noble ladies, and he would definitely not mention marrying her again.
At that time, she could become sworn brothers with Qin Sizhao, and become their sworn sister, and naturally stay in his house.
"Rong'er, do you really hope that I will become the top scorer in the imperial examination?"
"Well, of course. The better you do on the test, the happier I am."
Qin Sizhao silently picked up all the books he had originally wanted to sell.
He turned his head and saw that the bracelet he had given her was already on her jade-like wrist, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
Then the two of them entered the capital.
Tao Jinrong touched the bracelet on her hand. Ever since Qin Sizhao bought her clothes, she only wore the clothes he gave her every day.
All those luxurious silks and dazzling jewels were hidden away in the bottom of the closet as valuable assets. She only took them out occasionally to take care of them, and then put them back.
That memory has also rusted.
She only remembered that she met a nobleman, fell asleep with him, and when she woke up she had no memory of who he was.
She looked at Qin Sizhao.
He had just turned seventeen and had grown into a young man, almost half a head taller than her. When she and he walked together, others would say that they were a good match. He never objected, but only blushed slightly.
Forget it, just wait until he finishes the exam. After he finishes the exam seriously, she will talk to him about getting married.
Qin Sizhao failed the exam.
After the results were announced, he said to Tao Jinrong in a grievance:
"Everyone else on the list is already married, but I'm still single. Rong'er, when will you marry me?"
"I just want to be more glorious. I'll marry you when you pass the imperial examination next year."
His lips moved a few times, and he managed to say something:
"Okay, I'll try my best, but I failed the exam today and I'm in a bad mood. Can you... kiss me?"
Tao Jinrong hesitated. She felt she had no good reason to refuse him, so she put her hand on his shoulder and said:
"I think you'll definitely pass."
He didn't say anything, just closed his eyes and waited for her to kiss him.
After thinking about it, Tao Jinrong kissed the side of his face.
She just gently pressed her lips against his face and then let go.
He grasped her wrist, pulled her into his arms, and asked:
"Just a kiss on the cheek?"
Before she could reply, he pressed his lips against hers.
Her cheeks flushed, and she struggled slightly. Feeling the strength on her wrist tighten, she immediately gave up struggling and let him bite her lips awkwardly.
"Rong'er, will you marry me?"
"Wait until next year. No matter how you perform in the exam, I will marry you."
If he really passed the exam and became a high-ranking official, there would surely be many high-ranking officials vying to marry their daughters to him...
She actually found herself vaguely hoping that he would fail the exam...
A month later, Qin Sizhao scratched his hair with some guilt and said to her:
"Rong'er, I've found a master and need to leave home for a year to concentrate on my studies. I'm afraid I won't be able to take care of you. I'll come and get married with you after I finish my exams. Wait for me."
"Just focus on your studies. I want to be the wife of the top scholar."
Qin Sizhao was not without news during this year. She received twenty-three letters from him.
After the exam, he came to find her in a hurry. He had lost a lot of weight. Although he was tall, he looked at her timidly with his peach blossom eyes.
She wondered if he was hiding something from her, but he didn't say anything and she didn't ask.
It was not until the day before the results were announced that he stammered to her:
"Rong'er, I... I think I can enter the palace examination, but I may not be able to get the top prize. The top prize is chosen by His Majesty himself... I... I am just a commoner... I am afraid I can't catch the eye of such a noble from the royal family."
Tao Jinrong couldn't help laughing out loud:
"Silly or not, I just said it casually. You want to be my husband, so I choose you as the first one, isn't that enough?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
