Chapter 167 Not as Good as Xiu Hong
Shou'an Hall.
The younger generation went to Shou'an Hall to pay their respects to Madam Gu.
Seeing that Gu Xiuming, who had lost favor with Madam Gu, had now regained her favor and was now enjoying her affections again, everyone had different thoughts.
The most disappointed person was Zhang. She originally thought that her brother-in-law had helped her youngest son get into Lingshan Academy because he valued her son. However, she was disappointed with Gu Xiuming's willful and reckless behavior and wanted to give her youngest son to the third branch of the family.
Unexpectedly, not long after, Gu Xiuming suddenly repented, became ambitious and studious, regained favor, and became a loving and filial father to his brother-in-law. It seems that her son will not have the chance to be adopted into the third branch of the family as the heir.
For Madam Chen, this was a good thing. As long as Madam Zhang's son had no chance and couldn't show off in front of her, she was happy. Anyway, it had nothing to do with their second branch of the family who became the heir, and it would never be their Xiu Hong's turn.
Chen's calm gaze fell on Zhang, catching the resentment in Zhang's eyes. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly, and she turned to look at Meng Jinyao. Seeing that Meng Jinyao had a proper smile on her face and did not show any abnormality, she was a little curious whether the smarter Gu Xiuming could defeat Meng Jinyao.
Suddenly, Madam Gu asked her three grandsons, "Have you three brothers ever thought about giving it a try for the imperial examinations this autumn?"
The three brothers all had the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations) and were qualified to participate in the autumn imperial examinations. However, their grandsons were all quite young: Xiuyuan from the eldest son's family was eighteen, Xiuhong from the second son's family was seventeen, and Xiuming from the third son's family was sixteen. Madam Gu did not have high expectations. She thought that participating would be a good opportunity to gain experience, and if they could pass the imperial examinations, it would be an unexpected joy and bring glory to the family.
Gu Xiuhong answered first: "Grandmother, your grandson is going to give it a try."
Seeing that his second brother had participated, Gu Xiuyuan, as the eldest brother, certainly couldn't be a coward. Moreover, he was already eighteen this year and was about to become a father. If he didn't participate this year, the next time would be three years later, when he would be twenty-one. So he quickly said, "Grandmother, I also have this plan. Although I'm not very confident, I still want to gain some experience."
Gu Xiuyuan and Gu Xiuhong are both elder brothers. As the younger brother, Gu Xiuming wouldn't be ashamed if he didn't participate. But seeing that his two elder brothers were participating, he was stunned for a moment. After Gu Xiuyuan finished speaking, he didn't want to be left behind and followed up, "Grandmother, I also plan to give it a try, just to gain some experience."
When Madam Gu saw that all three brothers had participated, she was somewhat surprised. She said in a kind tone, "Since you all have this idea, then go and give it a try. But you are still young, and you will have plenty of opportunities in the future. Don't put too much pressure on yourselves. Just treat it as a test at the academy."
The three brothers answered in unison, "Yes, Grandmother."
All three brothers are going to participate in this year's autumn imperial examinations, and the three mothers have different thoughts on the matter.
Zhang was under a lot of psychological pressure, even more than Gu Xiuyuan. She was at odds with Chen. If Chen's son was on the list of successful candidates while her son failed, wouldn't she be ridiculed by Chen?
This time, Madam Chen didn't think too much about it. She only thought that if her son could pass the imperial examination, he would be willing to get married. Then she could find a good girl for him, get married next year, and have a big, fat grandson the year after, and live a life of enjoying her grandchildren.
Meng Jinyao was curious about the results. Gu Jingxi was very knowledgeable, and Gu Xiuming had been highly praised before. Recently, he had become so ambitious and often asked Gu Jingxi for advice. With Gu Jingxi's guidance, she wondered if he could make it onto the list.
After leaving Shou'an Hall, Zhang, who had always been lenient and indulgent towards her children, unusually adopted the demeanor of a strict mother, urging her son to study hard and strive to be listed in the imperial examinations.
However, without Zhang's urging, Gu Xiuyuan had already made up his mind that he had to study hard before the exam. Otherwise, if his two younger brothers passed the exam and he failed, where would he put his face as the elder brother? After casually replying to his mother, he went back to his study to study diligently.
Gu Xiuming was not to be outdone, so he quickly returned to Qingyuxuan to study. If he could make the list in this autumn examination, his father and grandmother would value him even more, thus securing his position as the heir apparent.
Gu Xiuhong watched their departing figures with a thoughtful expression before returning to his own courtyard.
The three families returned to their respective courtyards. Meng Jinyao, observing their differing thoughts, glanced thoughtfully in the direction Gu Xiuming had left.
Gu Jingxi walked beside her and, seeing her frowning in thought, asked softly, "What are you thinking about, Madam?"
Meng Jinyao's brows relaxed, and she replied with a smile, "I'm wondering which of the three brothers will pass the imperial examination, and which has a higher chance of passing."
Gu Jingxi then asked, "Then, Madam, which of them do you think has a higher chance of passing the imperial examination?"
Meng Jinyao stopped and turned to look at him, smiling as she asked, "Husband, do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"
Gu Jingxi raised an eyebrow: "Of course I want to hear the truth."
“I think my second sister-in-law’s son, Xiu Hong, has the best chance of passing the imperial examination.” Meng Jinyao answered without hesitation, her tone confident, as if she had great faith in Gu Xiu Hong.
Gu Jingxi looked at her with surprise, then asked, "How do you know?"
Meng Jinyao slowly said, "I don't really know Xiu Hong very well. I heard from my second sister-in-law that Xiu Hong often forgets to eat and sleep because of his studies. With such diligence and love of learning, he will definitely pass the imperial examination."
As for Gu Xiuming, with Gu Jingxi's guidance, he should be able to succeed, but she doesn't like Gu Xiuming and has a prejudice against him, so her heart leans towards Gu Xiuhong.
Of course, she didn't say those words aloud.
Gu Jingxi responded with a soft "Mmm" after hearing her words.
Meng Jinyao raised her eyes and glanced at him, asking curiously, "What do you think, my husband? Of the three brothers, which one has the best chance of passing the imperial examination?"
Gu Jingxi replied calmly, "I also think that Xiu Hong has the best chance of passing the imperial examination. Xiu Hong's studies are the best among the four brothers. He has always studied hard and has a good chance of passing this time."
Meng Jinyao was surprised, not expecting him to give Gu Xiuhong such a high evaluation. Suddenly curious about how Gu Xiuming was regarded by him, she asked, "Where is our eldest son?"
Gu Jingxi replied, "Not as good as Xiu Hong."
Meng Jinyao was taken aback, thinking that he was disappointed in Gu Xiuming because of all the terrible things he had done. After all, she had always had expectations for Gu Xiuming, and she had heard more than once that Gu Xiuming was very learned. So she asked, "Before?" After she finished speaking, she added, "I mean before he ran away from the wedding."
Upon hearing this, Gu Jingxi paused, understanding the girl's meaning, but still said, "Not as good as Xiu Hong."
Meng Jinyao was taken aback and asked in surprise, "I usually hear about how good the Marquis of Changxing's son is in his studies, but I haven't heard much about the other three. Isn't Gu Xiuming the best scholar?"
Gu Jingxi gave her a cryptic look and replied indifferently, "That's because his father is me."
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