During the Lunar New Year, the whole family stayed up late in the old lady's courtyard. Early in the morning, the Marquis went to the palace to accompany the Emperor in welcoming the New Year. He returned around noon.
Xu Di and Li Yuexi were still in the old lady's room when the Marquis arrived, and everyone quickly got up to pay their respects.
The old lady told the Marquis to quickly take off his shoes and get on the kang (heated brick bed) to warm up. Granny Shen had already arranged for someone to serve the Marquis hot tea.
The Marquis drank the hot tea in a few gulps, took a deep breath, and finally calmed down.
Before attending the morning court session, one cannot easily go to the toilet, so one usually goes on an empty stomach. Although there is a banquet afterward, the food is already cold by the time it is delivered from the imperial kitchen to the main hall. The main hall is not warm either, so the food is frozen cold. No one dares to eat it. Therefore, the Marquis has not eaten or drunk anything for more than ten hours.
The old lady naturally knew how hard it was, so she arranged for easily digestible food to be served early on. When the Marquis returned, a bowl of thick millet porridge, a few snacks, and a few side dishes were served piping hot.
Xu Di served the Marquis his meal, and after the Marquis rinsed his mouth, he began to speak with the old lady.
The Marquis said, "The imperial examination will begin at the end of February. I heard that His Majesty attaches great importance to this examination and plans to set the questions himself."
Upon hearing this, the old lady frowned and said, "His Majesty himself sets the questions? Many people know His Majesty's preferences. Wouldn't that allow someone to guess the questions?"
Upon hearing this, the Marquis smiled and said, "Mother, everyone says that the Emperor's mind is hard to fathom. How can His Majesty's thoughts be so easy to guess? Di'er could have passed the exam last time, but his father and Ru'er's husband disagreed, saying that Di'er was too young, so he was held back for one year. Otherwise, wouldn't our Di'er have been a Jinshi long ago?"
Hearing his elders praise him like that, Xu Di, despite his thick skin, felt a little embarrassed.
The old lady looked at Xu Di standing in front of the kang (a heated brick bed), then at her great-granddaughter-in-law playing with the girls in the family, and smiled kindly at Xu Di, saying, "Brother Di, when are you going to let our family have five generations under one roof?"
Xu Di really didn't expect to be pressured to have a baby on the first day of the Lunar New Year. He looked at his wife sitting outside chatting happily with her younger sisters and couldn't help but laugh. He simply sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), leaned against the old lady's shoulder, and whispered in her ear, "We plan to have a child after I pass the imperial examination. Grandmother, you have raised so many children and grandchildren, so you naturally know how to raise a child properly. We will have to ask you to take care of us and help us raise the child."
Upon hearing this, the old lady smiled so much that the wrinkles on her face relaxed, and she said to Xu Di in a soft voice with a smile, "Of course, I'm hoping that you, Di-ge'er, can give me a great-grandson."
Xu Di nodded and said, "Grandmother, don't worry. Yuexi and I will try our best to let you hold your great-grandson by next year at the latest, okay?"
The old lady smiled even more broadly upon hearing this.
The Marquis sat on the other side of the kang table, watching the old man and the young man enjoying themselves, and felt happy in his heart as well.
On the second day of the Lunar New Year, people from all walks of life began visiting relatives and friends. Xu Di, who was going to finish his exams at the end of February, only took Li Yuexi to the Chen family early on the second day to visit his maternal grandfather's family on behalf of his parents. After returning, he continued to bury himself in his studies.
On the surface, the capital city appears calm, but beneath the surface, a storm is brewing.
The eldest prince's maternal uncle, General Wang, who was stationed in the southwest, was only in office with two concubines. His legal wife and children were at home in the capital, where she was fulfilling her filial duties to General Wang's mother. It was said that the eldest prince intended to bring one of the Wang family's concubine's daughters into his household.
The second prince was the empress's legitimate son. The empress came from a family of great scholars. The second prince had gathered a group of scholars around him. They would get together every day to chat and discuss various topics. On the surface, they would hold various poetry gatherings, wine parties, tea parties, and flower parties, but in reality, they were trying to win people's hearts.
As for the Third Prince, he secretly cultivated relationships with officials at all levels by taking advantage of his uncle's position in the Ministry of Personnel.
Xu Di was naturally aware of these matters. Since he was raising Xiao Yuan in the family, he would definitely put in a lot of effort to help Xiao Yuan ascend to that position in the future. After all, there is only one position, but there are several people who want to sit in it. In such matters, no one will show mercy. It is a matter of life or death. What Xu Di needs to do now is to accumulate strength so that Xiao Yuan will have the strength to compete in the future.
Xu Di was destined to become a prime minister. Taking the imperial examination and entering the Hanlin Academy was the only path he could take. Although the Great Liang Dynasty had been established for less than a hundred years, it had inherited the system of the previous dynasty. Xu Di had carefully studied the laws and regulations of the previous dynasty. In the end, those who could become prime ministers were all Jinshi graduates. Although Juren could be recommended, they could not reach the highest position in the official career and go all the way.
Ning has recently been arranging marriages for Xu Yao. Xu Yao has already come of age, and Xu Gui, who is behind her, is even preparing to get married, but Xu Yao has not yet settled down, which makes Ning somewhat anxious.
As the legitimate daughter of the Marquis's heir, Xu Yao could easily marry a prince and become his wife. However, the old lady and the Marquis had instructed them not to get involved in the princes' rivalry over their children's marriages. Ning Shi understood the dangers involved, but she couldn't bear to let her daughter marry into an ordinary family.
With many things to do in the household during the New Year, Ning had to manage all the affairs, big and small, and also had to keep an eye out for a suitable young man like Xu Yao when visiting relatives and friends. After only a few days, Ning was already feeling overwhelmed.
When Xu Yao returned from Liaodong, she only visited a few close relatives. Ning Shi wanted to take her to more occasions and let other mistresses see her daughter. Unfortunately, Xu Yao really didn't want to go. Ning Shi also felt that Xu Yao had been hurt by that incident a couple of years ago and didn't dare to push her too hard. Who knew that in the end, she would end up forcing herself.
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