Chapter 536 Filial Son Wanwan
Meng Chengzhang remembered something important and said, "Elder sister, there's something I almost forgot to tell you. Third brother has fallen ill."
Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao was surprised: "On the day of Father's wedding, he seemed perfectly fine, not like someone with health problems. How did he suddenly fall ill?"
Meng Chengzhang smiled and said, "Yesterday was the day we were supposed to set off for Lingshan Academy. I was going back to the academy to study, and he was going to the academy to take the exam. But the night before last, he caught a cold and suddenly developed a high fever. His condition was so severe that it alarmed my grandmother and father that night."
These words sounded intriguing, and Meng Jinyao immediately understood. What a coincidence! Her useless third brother was probably trying to fall ill to avoid the Lingshan Academy assessment. As long as he was delayed and couldn't participate, he wouldn't fail the assessment and could still save face.
She said meaningfully, "This illness came at just the right time."
Meng Chengzhang nodded: "It was quite timely. After his high fever subsided, he said he wanted to set off as fast as he could to Lingshan Academy. Now, he can still make it there in time. His grandmother saw him lying sickly in bed and felt sorry for his health. She persuaded him for a long time before he finally stopped."
Meng Jinyao said, "The assessment was delayed, but someone offered him a way out. He has some cleverness, but he didn't use it for serious matters."
Meng Chengzhang said helplessly, "The year before last, I went to take the exam, and he went too. This year, the academy is recruiting students again, and he even tries to find something to do to delay his time during the exam."
Meng Jinyao replied, "Some things are like fighting a war. You can go all out at once, but then your energy will wane, and you'll be exhausted after a third attempt. Once you've failed, you'll become discouraged, lose confidence, and be afraid to fail again, so you won't dare to try again."
She paused for a moment, then continued, “In the imperial examinations, most people can’t pass every time and become a Jinshi. Someone like him who doesn’t dare to try again after failing is unlikely to enter officialdom through the imperial examinations. He can only rely on back channels, but his father is useless and can’t pull any strings for him. So this is how his life will be. But it’s not so bad. With his character, he’s not suited to be an official in the court.”
Meng Chengzhang nodded slightly and then said, "Elder sister, I will be setting off back to the academy tomorrow. I won't be able to come back for the Mid-Autumn Festival this year. The teacher is taking several students on a trip for a few months, and I am on the list of those going. I should be able to come back at the end of the year when the year-end is approaching."
Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao was overjoyed. Every teacher at Lingshan Academy was a renowned scholar with extensive knowledge. The fact that her second brother was on the accompanying list proved that he was outstanding and had caught the teacher's eye. She said gently, "Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. Just focus on learning from the teacher. Don't worry about me. Your brother-in-law will take care of everything."
Around noon, Meng Chengzhang stayed for lunch and then played with his little nephew.
Looking at her little nephew's face, Meng Chengzhang smiled and said, "Big sister, Wanwan looks just like you, and she looks more and more like you as she grows up."
“His father is much more lenient with him because of his face.” Meng Jinyao said, then recalled that when her husband came back yesterday and picked up Wanwan, Wanwan had wet herself again. Although her husband looked disgusted, he still changed Wanwan’s clothes himself and said to her, “Ayao, I’m doing this for your sake.”
She was confused at the time, so she asked, "Husband, what do you mean by that?"
Her husband replied, "If it weren't for the fact that this face looks like yours, I would have cursed this unfilial son."
Hearing his elder sister's words, Meng Chengzhang asked curiously, "Wanwan is so young, what could she possibly do to make her brother-in-law be so forgiving towards her?"
Meng Jinyao laughed and said, "Don't underestimate a baby. Sometimes he can be quite naughty. He has wet his pants more than once when your brother-in-law was holding him. He's definitely a very filial son."
Upon hearing this, Meng Chengzhang froze, looking at his little nephew in his arms with a strange expression.
Seeing this, Meng Jinyao was a little confused: "Second brother, why are you looking at Wanwan like that?"
Meng Chengzhang lifted Wanwan up, revealing the clothes that his little nephew had given him, and replied, "Big sister, look, Wanwan is indeed very filial. She is not only filial to her father, but also very filial to her uncle."
Meng Jinyao glanced down and quickly took the child, handing him to the wet nurse so she could take him downstairs to change his clothes. However, there were no clothes for young boys in her courtyard, so she thought of Xiuwen from the eldest son's family, whose height was similar to her second brother's. She said to Chunliu, "Go to the eldest madam's place and borrow a set of clothes for the third young master."
Meng Chengzhang said, "Elder sister, there's no need to trouble yourself. It's alright. The weather is hot now, and the clothes will dry quickly. Besides, I have to go back to the manor soon, so I can change when I get there."
Meng Jinyao frowned: "But how can you be like this?"
Meng Chengzhang said nonchalantly, "It's just a wet patch, it'll dry in a bit, and I won't catch a cold in this weather."
He insisted on not taking it, and Meng Jinyao probably knew that he didn't want her to trouble others. Unable to persuade him otherwise, she had no choice but to give up and let him go to the guest room to take off his clothes, and then have the maid help him dry them.
It was hot, so the clothes dried quickly.
After getting dressed, Meng Chengzhang bid farewell to his elder sister and headed back home.
-
In the evening, Gu Jingxi returned.
After dinner, Meng Jinyao told him about the Meng family's affairs, and then added, "Husband, I was right before, my stepmother is not someone to be trifled with."
Gu Jingxi was quite surprised to hear this. As far as he knew, women who married into the Meng family were all mistreated and none of them could truly live well. Even Sun was completely controlled by Old Madam Meng. Sun had authority over the servants, but she had to be subservient to her mother-in-law.
Gu Jingxi said, "She is quite capable to be able to keep her father-in-law under her thumb and also gain her grandmother's trust, and even make her blame her father-in-law for her sake."
Meng Jinyao sighed, “My father married four wives. The first three wives were all disciplined by my grandmother the day after they married into the family. Even a good woman like Aunt Dong was criticized by my grandmother. But after she married into the family, no discipline was imposed on her. According to my second brother, my grandmother doted on her and praised her highly. She was truly an extraordinary person.”
Gu Jingxi said, "Perhaps only a woman with this kind of temperament could be a daughter-in-law of the Meng family without being wronged."
Meng Jinyao smiled, her tone tinged with schadenfreude: "She's not going to be wronged. The only one who's wronged is my father. A man like my father deserves a shrew. Rather than letting him bully others and make them suffer, it's better for others to bully him."
Seeing her sly smile, Gu Jingxi's lips also curled up: "Ayao, if your father-in-law knew what you were thinking, he'd probably be furious."
Meng Jinyao's smile deepened: "He deserves it. A gentle woman suffered so much after marrying him. Now let him taste what it's like to be wronged."
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