043
Qin Baoyun deliberately lowered his voice, which echoed like a bell in the alley: "What are you all doing gathered here? The officials are coming, run!"
Caught off guard, the group of youths turned around and saw Qin Baoyun, who stood tall and straight like a pine tree, with a stern face and a large knife in his arms. Their expressions changed drastically, and they ran out of the alley like cowards.
After everyone left, a scholar with blood all over his head sat leaning against the wall. He spat out a mouthful of blood before looking up at Qin Baoyun and weakly saying, "Thank you."
As she spoke, she began to struggle.
Qin Sang walked in: "Why did they hit you?"
"What can they do? They're jealous that I'm more talented than them, and they're afraid I'll take the exam and take their place. Ha, a bunch of shameless bastards." The young man was about twenty years old, tall and thin. He stood up, leaning against the wall, and walked out of the alley.
Watching the young man's departing figure, Lingding muttered to herself, "That person is so rude."
“Knowledgeable people are often a bit arrogant,” Qin Sang said, picking up a purse from the ground. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s go back to the inn.”
***
At this moment, Xie Sui'an, weary from his journey, led Jinyun into the capital city and headed straight for the Prime Minister's residence.
Lanterns hung high in front of the Prime Minister's residence, casting a dim light. The old servant who was hanging the lanterns was so startled when he saw Xie Sui'an that he almost dropped the lantern. He hurriedly shouted, "The Second Young Master is back! The Second Young Master is back! Quickly! Go and report to the Master!"
"No need, I'll go see Grandpa myself." Xie Suian dismounted and swept into the mansion like a whirlwind. As soon as he entered, he shouted exaggeratedly, "Grandpa, your good grandson is back!"
This Prime Minister's Mansion was bestowed by the emperor and was the residence of a wealthy merchant from the previous dynasty. It covers a vast area, with pavilions and towers, deep eaves, small bridges and flowing water, and courtyards connected to courtyards, making it extremely grand.
Xie Sui'an made his way from the front courtyard to the middle courtyard amidst a great commotion. Maids, guards, servants and other servants all came out to greet him, and the once quiet mansion became unusually lively.
"Where did this thug come from, making noise for no reason? Get him out of here!"
Xie Sui'an heard a stern rebuke coming from nowhere. He looked in the direction of the voice and laughed, "Oh, Fourth Uncle, you're home too? Weren't you supposed to be traveling? How come you're back earlier than me?"
This fourth uncle is the prime minister's fourth son, Xie Xiao. However, he is a child born late in life and is also born out of wedlock. He is the son of a concubine whom Xie Zhongxu bought after Xie Sui'an's paternal grandmother passed away. He is not much older than Xie Sui'an and looks to be in his early twenties, which is quite young.
Xie Xiao walked over to Xie Sui'an with his hands in his pockets and asked, "Where did you go this time without saying goodbye? Did you bring back anything good?"
Xie Sui'an spread his hands: "I'll have good stuff if you give me money."
Xie Xiao slapped his hand: "You're such a money-grubber at such a young age."
Xie Sui'an smiled and said, "Is Grandpa home? I need to talk to him."
Xie Xiao sighed, "I'm at home, but I'm afraid I won't have time to see you."
Xie Sui'an: "Why?"
Xie Xiao: "Yingzhou has been suffering from drought for two and a half years, and not a drop of rain has fallen this spring. It looks like another year of disaster is coming. There's also the Ministry of Personnel's bribery case that shocked the court last month. I can tell that Father doesn't look well. It's best not to bother him now."
Xie Sui'an chuckled, "The country is so big, there's no place without disasters. His official duties are never finished. I'll just go see him and not upset him." He pointed, "Is he in the council chamber or his study?"
Xie Xiao pointed in a direction, and Xie Suian said, "Alright, I'll wait for him outside the study."
As expected, when they arrived at the outside of the bookstore, they were stopped by the Prime Minister's guards: "My good Second Master, can't you pick a time? You just barge in all the time."
Xie Sui'an said confidently, "Grandpa is always so busy no matter when I come back. How would I know when is a good time? As long as Grandpa doesn't hit me, I think it's a good time." Xie Sui'an laughed and shouted loudly, "Grandpa, Grandpa! I'm back!"
The guards wanted nothing more than to cover his mouth: "My little darling, you're dragging us all into this punishment..."
At that moment, a deep, hoarse voice came from inside the house: "Sui'an is back. Let him in."
***
Prime Minister Xie Zhongxu, a veteran of two dynasties in the Kingdom of Namo, is sixty-two years old this year. Although his temples are gray, he is still very vigorous. He was a famous handsome man in his youth, and although he has aged, he is still tall and spirited, with piercing eyes that make people afraid to look directly at him.
Xie Sui'an was not afraid of him, not because he was the eldest grandson and favored, but simply because he was thick-skinned and not afraid of being beaten.
He entered the study, where Xie Zhongxu had already covered up the official documents and said with a warm smile, "You're back so soon. I even made a bet with your father that you would stay away from home for another two months."
Xie Sui'an poured his grandfather a cup of tea and also poured one for himself. After taking a sip, he said, "It's fun outside, but nothing beats the comfort of home." He didn't intend to beat around the bush and quickly got to the point, "Grandpa, my parents are still arranging that marriage for me."
The prime minister picked up his teacup, blew on the tea foam, and lowered his eyes, remaining silent with a profound expression.
Xie Sui'an then began to whine, "Grandpa, I don't agree to this marriage. Please tell my father to give up on it. It's just a matter of a word from you. Why make things so difficult for your grandson?"
"You have a pretty good relationship with Xiahou Ye from the Marquis of Du Nan's family," the Prime Minister said slowly. "His sister grew up with you, and it wasn't an arranged marriage. What are you dissatisfied with?"
"It's not an arranged marriage, but we still need to be compatible in personality and share similar interests. Xiahou Yuan is a delicate and timid girl who will cry if you say a few harsh words to her. How can I afford to offend her? Grandfather... please consider that I am your grandson and will surely become a high-ranking official in the future. It wouldn't be good to marry an overly delicate wife. How can she manage the servants?" Xie Suian tried to offer his grandfather, the Prime Minister, a long-term plan.
The prime minister burst out laughing: "Become a high-ranking official? How can you become a high-ranking official? How old are you this year? Can you possibly outshine your peers in academics? Do you dare to take the imperial examination this autumn?"
“Why wouldn’t I dare?” Xie Sui’an saw this as an opportunity and immediately said, “If you ask my father to cancel the marriage with Xiahou Yuan, I will take the imperial examination. If I pass the autumn examination today, I can choose my own wife, is that alright?”
Xie Zhongxu glanced at Xie Sui'an without changing his expression, a half-smile that sent chills down one's spine and made one's hair stand on end.
Xie Sui'an continued shamelessly, "I think this suggestion is very good. Grandpa, you said that life should be lived to the fullest. If you can't even control the important things in life, what's the point of being a person and doing things in the future? When you were young, weren't you just a poor boy, and you still married my grandmother... So you see, anyone who does great things must first be able to follow their own heart and plan for themselves in order to last long."
"So you already have a wife in mind?" The Prime Minister, who had been silent, suddenly revealed the truth.
Even though Xie Sui'an concealed it very well, the momentary stunned look on his face betrayed him.
Xie Zhongxu didn't give him a chance to refute or make up lies, and asked, "Is she from the capital, or someone you met on this trip? Was she born into poverty?"
Xie Sui'an was speechless for once. He dared not imagine how his grandfather would react if he told the truth. If she were simply an ordinary woman, there would still be room for maneuver, given the Prime Minister's own example. But he also knew that Qin Sang's identity was very special, and marrying her would be planting the seeds of disaster for the family.
He had originally planned to proceed slowly, to find out his grandfather's plans for her, and at least to persuade his grandfather to bring her back as his adopted granddaughter, so that there might still be a chance in the future. But somehow, the conversation turned into something else entirely, and his grandfather had brought him here.
The old man was indeed sharp-eyed and deep-thinking.
He waved his hand dismissively: "That's still up in the air. I was just saying. In short, I don't want Xiahou Yuan. Even if I marry her, I'll make a scene. Grandpa, you don't want any trouble at home, do you?"
Xie Zhongxu smiled meaningfully, then lowered his head and took a sip of tea: "You were away for more than a month, and the first thing you did when you came back was to come to my study to talk about this?"
“Of course not,” Xie Sui’an scratched his cheek. “To tell you the truth, Grandpa, I just happened to run into Shen Que and his group on this trip.”
The prime minister lifted his eyelids to look at him.
He continued scratching his face: "They said they were on your orders to pick up someone." He lowered his voice and said, "Grandpa, I saw the person they picked up."
"You saw him?" The Prime Minister asked, somewhat surprised. "How did you see him?"
Xie Sui'an had been thinking about how to dissuade his grandfather all the way, and now the words in his mind came out as if they were coming out of his mouth. He said without changing his expression, "Who would have thought that I would go to the south on this trip? I ran into them on the way back. That woman, Grandpa, I feel like I've seen her before. I feel like I've seen her when I was a child?"
Xie Zhongxu withdrew his gaze and lowered his eyelids to adjust the lid of the teacup.
Seeing this, Xie Sui'an was a little unsure and continued to ask, "Grandpa, did you ask them to take that woman back to our house? I have a vague feeling of unease about it."
Xie Zhongxu: "What's bothering you?"
"Let me be frank," Xie Sui'an said with a defiant attitude, "Grandpa, isn't this woman you brought back from the Su family, the Minister of War whose family was raided back then? I'm on good terms with Su Erlang and Su Xiaomei. I even recognize her. Grandpa, please don't hide it from me. Did you use some means to protect her back then?"
The air inside the room seemed to freeze for a moment, except for a sudden, soft popping sound from the lamp, which startled Xie Sui'an so much that he trembled slightly.
Actually, Xie Zhongxu overheard Xie Sui'an, who was sleeping in the study's side room, giving Shen Que his orders. Xie Sui'an already knew who his grandfather had sent to pick up. However, the matter didn't seem to be kept entirely secret, as the study door wasn't even closed when Xie Zhongxu gave the orders.
Xie Zhongxu stared silently at his grandson, his eyes filled with unfathomable emotions. After a long while, he sighed, "You still recognize her? It seems that seven years is still too short."
Xie Sui'an didn't understand what Xie Zhongxu meant: "Grandpa?"
"The affairs of officialdom are too complicated. I'll explain them to you in detail once you officially enter the court as an official. Alright, if there's nothing else, go out and meet your parents. You came back without even changing your clothes, covered in dust, and left a pile of ash on my table."
Xie Sui'an was thus kicked out of the study without any explanation.
He simply couldn't understand why his grandfather didn't seem alarmed or surprised at all after he had revealed Qin Sang's identity. Normally, shouldn't he feel panicked and want to change his mind immediately after his secret was discovered?
Allowing a disgraced official's daughter to return home and give her the surname "Xie" would be tantamount to planting the seeds of disaster for the Xie family.
He couldn't understand it.
Of course, his own thoughts weren't much better. Whether his grandfather took her back as his adopted granddaughter or he married her himself, it made no difference.
The only difference is whether he can get what he wants.
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