Chapter 133 What to do
People in Beijing generally have a sense of superiority that except for me, people from the city, everyone else is from the country. Cheng Yingzhen doesn't have this feeling, mainly because she had been living under oppression before marriage, and after marriage she almost stayed at home and didn't interact with others because of social phobia. Su Yanli also didn't like making friends, and didn't give her more opportunities to contact the outside world, so she was not affected by this atmosphere.
But when she saw the Su family, she was still shocked. They were dressed brightly and had so much wealth and luggage that their lives looked better than her own family's.
Su Yanli's resume mentioned that the Su family was a gentry in Pingjiang Prefecture. After Su Ruojin saw it, she also wondered how much wealth one had to have to be called a gentry. Last night, the steward of the Su family came to inform her father that when he came to pick him up this morning, he mentioned that he had bought a large courtyard and had been in and out of it three times. She didn't expect to see the real person. Even though they had traveled all the way from south to north, the wealth and comfort shown by the Su family still shocked Su Ruojin, who was struggling in the lower class of the capital.
It seems that apart from Su Yanzu's admission to the Imperial College to bother his father, the Su family would not take advantage of him.
Having not seen him for more than ten years, Su Dekai felt dazed when he suddenly saw his son who had just become an eighth-rank doctor in the capital. It seemed as if his son had just left his hometown for the capital yesterday. His appearance had not changed at all. He was still as gentle and refined as ever and looked like he was not interested in worldly matters. If... he was willing to scheme for personal gain, he would probably be at least a seventh-rank doctor now, higher than a county magistrate. Wouldn't that make him more prestigious in his hometown?
When stepmother Qian got off the carriage, she glanced at the illegitimate son's family in front of her. They all looked good, but their expressions were slow, just like what the steward had inquired about. They were so poor that they still rented a house. If it weren't for the breakfast stall, they would have had trouble getting food.
Qian looked deliberately at the eldest son of the concubine. If she hadn't heard that he had the sons of Prince Jin and the Minister of Personnel under his wing, they would not have moved their family to the capital. She hoped that she would not be disappointed.
Su Ruojin glanced at her grandparents and saw that they were just staring at her father. She looked for her uncle who was said to have passed the imperial examination to become a scholar a year earlier than her father but failed to pass the imperial examination for nine years.
After searching for a while but not seeing anyone, I was just wondering when a middle-aged man who looked like a manager called out to the distance, "Second Young Master, the eldest young master and his family are here."
It turned out that her second uncle was standing in a waterside pavilion not far away, looking at the scenery, shaking his head at the willow branches hanging down from the roof of the pavilion, reciting some poem or composing some couplet. From the back, he looked very similar to her father. Could it be that he was also an elegant scholar like her father?
Hearing the shout, the young man finally turned around and walked towards this side with his hands behind his back.
Su Yanzu, twenty years old this year, is the son born to his stepmother when Su Yanli passed the imperial examination at the age of twelve. He not only has a handsome appearance but also a pair of charming peach blossom eyes. When he walks slowly, he exudes the aura of a noble man.
It has to be said that the Su family has pretty good genes. Su Yanli is handsome and elegant, and Su Yanzu is almost the same. He has an unrestrained temperament, which is in line with traditional aesthetics and makes people forget worldly things when they see him.
"Brother, long time no see, I hope you are well."
Su Ruojin: ...
When he doesn't speak, he's a gentle and handsome guy, but this mouth... why is it so rude?
You know you are my elder brother, but why do you talk like an ordinary literary friend about the past? All you hear is politeness but no sincerity.
But it's true. Su Yanli left home when he was seventeen or eighteen years old, either to study or to take imperial examinations. He really didn't have any feelings for his younger brother who was only a few years old at the time. The politeness he mentioned was just basic courtesy to his rumored brother.
After not seeing each other for more than ten years, the Su family members showed no emotion when they met, let alone crying. It was even more dull than a meeting between ordinary friends.
Su Yanzu spoke, and Su Yanli, with his wife and children, paid their respects to his father, stepmother, and younger brother one by one, politely saying a few words about the long journey and the fatigue, and then went straight to the topic of dinner, "I have booked a banquet at a restaurant in Beijing to welcome my father, mother, and younger brother."
Su Dekai did not refuse. He stroked his beard and listened to his eldest son's arrangements.
Su Yanli said, "It's Gaoyang Tower in the capital."
Su Ruojin really didn't know that his father had booked such a good restaurant. Although he was very surprised in his heart, he didn't show it on his face and followed the adults and listened to their conversation.
There are countless restaurants of all sizes in Bianjing City, but there are only a few first-class restaurants. In addition to the first restaurant that Su Ruojin has ever admired - Fengle Tower, there are a few others, including Gaoyang Tower.
It is related to "high". Everyone will understand it as soon as they hear it. It is related to the candidates who have passed the imperial examination. Every spring when the results are announced, the grand occasion is so grand that even Fengle Tower cannot compare to it.
At first glance, you can tell that Su Yanli attaches great importance to his family coming to Beijing and his brother's future.
But sometimes, the more importance is attached to the form, the greater the inner contrast of the parties involved. To put it bluntly, it is a kind of spending money to get rid of the inner resistance and perfunctory.
The Su family did not have the feeling of being like Granny Liu entering the Grand View Garden. They were dressed elegantly and went to the restaurant. The waiter attentively led them to the reserved private room and served a table of fine wine and food.
They left the city at dawn, returned to the city, and went to the restaurant to eat. After most of the day's trouble, Su Ruojin and Su Sanlang also picked up their chopsticks after the old couple Su Dekai started eating. They seemed to be silent, but in fact they ate heartily to fill their stomachs.
Su Yanli, on the other hand, had been away from home for too long and had no idea how to get along with his father and mother. He hardly started eating and was not good at urging people to eat or drink.
He is not good at it, but someone else is.
Su Yanzu raised his glass and said, "Thank you for your hospitality, brother. I'd like to offer you a drink in my spare time." After that, he drank it all in one gulp, showing both the elegance and grace of a scholar and the boldness and decisiveness of a businessman.
Su Ruojin ate while looking at them seemingly unintentionally. After looking at them for a while, she didn't seem to feel that he was a good-for-nothing, or was he just too good at disguising himself?
With Su Yanzu at the table urging people to drink and eat, the atmosphere finally became much better.
At the end of the meal, Su Dekai finally spoke, "Da Lang, your brother's admission to the Imperial College is now in your hands. I hope you won't let me down."
"I..." Su Yanli wanted to refuse, but couldn't open his mouth.
Su Ruojin lowered her little hand and poked her father under the table to indicate that he agreed.
Su Yanli almost turned around to ask his daughter why she agreed. Fortunately, he was not an impulsive boy. He nodded calmly and said, "Don't worry, father. I will do my best."
Qian didn't say anything until Su Yanli agreed. She said slowly, "Our house is big, so you can give up the rented house and live here."
These were not polite words, nor did Su's stepmother speak in a tone of negotiation. Rather, her tone was one of a gift that could not be refused.
This is because he is afraid that Su Yanli will not be fully committed to Su Yanzu's affairs, so he wants to keep him by his side to supervise him!
Su Ruojin looked at Su Yanzu. He clearly looked like a noble man who didn't need to rely on others for backdoor treatment. So why didn't he stop his parents when they asked for it?
Is he over his rebellious phase?
Hearing this, the first person to get anxious was Cheng Yingzhen. She couldn't even handle her biological mother, and now this mother-in-law in front of her was even richer than her biological mother and had a high attitude too. How could she serve her?
She got nervous and reached out to grab her daughter's hand, looking at me, "Ajin, what should I do?"
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