Kengkeng and Wawa immediately came over and said, "Dad, I want candied chili peppers! I want sweet osmanthus cakes!"
Xiao Yu reluctantly took out some silver coins and said, "Okay, okay, we all have a share. But next time, don't scare people with live insects. It's not good to scare the flowers and plants."
"I know, I know!" Shen Weiwan waved him to go quickly, and sat on the bench to count the "tuition fees". At this time, several young masters came over and pointed at the pitted wooden board and asked: "Little Prince, do I really have to be pitted by you once before I can enroll?"
"Of course!" He puffed out his chest and pulled out a glass bead from his pocket. "See? This is a 'perspective bead' that can see through people's hearts! Trade it with your jade pendant, do you dare?"
A fat boy put his hands on his hips and said, "Who's afraid of who? Let's switch!"
Henkeng thrust the glass beads into his hand, and while he was looking down, he quickly untied the jade pendant from his waist: "Deal!"
By the time the fat boy realized what was happening, the jade pendant was already in Kengkeng's hands. He was so angry that he jumped up and down: "You are cheating!"
"Our academy believes in 'all is fair in war'!" He hung the jade pendant around his neck. "Next!"
In this way, Kengkeng and Wawa set up their stall at the door all afternoon, and "Keng" brought in a lot of "tuition fees": a low-quality jade pendant from a concubine's daughter, a worn-out ring from a poor young man, and hairpins secretly taken by a few maids. Chen Weiwan sorted these "tuition fees" into different categories and said to Chuntao, "Put the pure gold hairpins in the warehouse, and take all the broken copper and iron to the pawnshop on West Street. I'll exchange them for some small change for the children as pocket money."
Chun Tao looked at the "trophies" piled up like a mountain on the table and smiled from ear to ear: "Madam, the young master and the little princess really have such a business acumen like you! They are even more clever than the old shopkeeper on West Street!"
"Of course!" Shen Weiwan raised her eyebrows. "How can my child, Shen Weiwan, just study hard? He has to be as clever as me!"
At this time, Xiao Yu returned with candied fruit. Seeing the "tuition" on the table, he shook his head helplessly: "I say, you three should just open an auction house. I guarantee your business will be prosperous."
"That's a good idea!" Shen Weiwan's eyes lit up. "Let's call it 'Scam the World Auction House'. You'll be the shopkeeper, I'll be the accountant, and the kids will be the appraisers!"
Kengkeng immediately raised his hand: "I want to be the head shopkeeper!"
Wawa also shouted: "I want to be the second shopkeeper!"
Xiao Yu distributed the candied fruit to them and said with a wry smile, "Okay, okay, you have the final say. But first, I want to make a promise: you are not allowed to cheat Grandpa Huang and Grandma, or you will suffer the consequences!"
"I know, I know!" Shen Weiwan said perfunctorily, but in her heart she was thinking about how to prepare a "surprise" for the emperor and the empress dowager.
As the sun set, the plaque reading "School of Cheating" gleamed in the afterglow. Kengkeng and Wawa counted the pawn tickets and small change, piling the coins high. Shen Weiwan leaned on Xiao Yu's shoulder, feeling warm at the sight of the children's smiling faces.
"Look," she whispered, "this is what life is all about. Bustling and full of laughter."
Xiao Yu put his arm around her waist and watched the children stuff copper coins into his boots. He said helplessly but dotingly, "Yes, yes, with you here, it's hard not to have a lively day."
Hearing this, Kengkeng ran over and stuffed a piece of fake gold into Xiao Yu's hand: "Dad, this is your tuition. From now on, you should learn how to cheat people like us!"
Xiao Yu looked at the copper lump in his hand, not knowing whether to laugh or cry: "Come on, I'll be thankful that you three don't cheat me."
Shen Weiwan laughed so hard she collapsed, and Kengkeng and Wawa joined in the giggles. The courtyard of the Prince's Mansion was filled with the clinking of copper coins and the laughter of children. Perhaps in the eyes of others, their family might seem a little crazy, but Shen Weiwan knew that this was the happiness she wanted—a lover, children, and an endless supply of "tricky" wisdom.
Meanwhile, in the residence of the Minister of Personnel, Lin Yueru was still crying in front of the mirror. Her father, Minister Lin, was so angry that he slammed the table and said, "What a rebellion! How dare a baby trick our family! If this gets out, how will I face my old age!"
Madam Lin quickly advised, "Master, calm down. He's the Seventh Prince's biological son. We can't afford to offend him. Besides..." She lowered her voice, "That brat's brain is cut from the same cloth as his mother's. He's quite clever."
Minister Lin sighed, "Yes, quite clever. It seems that Yueru should stay away from them in the future, so as not to be cheated again."
But he didn't know that the reputation of the "Scam Academy" had spread throughout the capital. Many parents felt that letting their children learn a few tricks from Kengkeng and Wawa would make it easier for them to get into trouble in the future. They actually brought their children to "pay tuition" and register. Shen Weiwan smiled from ear to ear as she watched the increasing number of students. She specially made an account book for Kengkeng and Wawa to record their "scam performance."
Late at night, Kengkeng and Wawa fell asleep with their account books in their arms, clutching a few pieces of fake gold. Shen Weiwan covered them with the quilt and said to Xiao Yu beside her: "Tell me, if the children go to take the imperial examination in the future, will they cheat the examiner?"
Xiao Yu smiled: "With their abilities, maybe they can. But that's better, so we don't get bullied."
"Of course!" Shen Weiwan raised her eyebrows proudly, "Don't you even look at who their mother is!"
The two whispered to each other as moonlight streamed in from the window, illuminating the warm atmosphere of the room. The nights at the Prince's Mansion were still filled with unknown "surprises," but Xiao Yu knew that as long as Shen Weiwan and the children were there, he would be willing to jump into any pitfall, no matter how big. This was home, filled with love and laughter, and countless stories of "pitfalls." And the legend of the "Trickster Academy" had only just begun.
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