I feel pity for the eldest son
A few nights ago, Master Shen had tormented her severely, so for seven or eight days in a row, when the children came to pay their respects in the morning, they did not see Ling Wan. Every day, Mother Yu, who was beside her, used different excuses to smooth things over for her stepmother.
Chen Tang and the two little beans were not surprised. After all, since Chen Yuanyuan traveled here, nine out of ten times when they came to pay their respects, the mistress was sleeping in.
Chen Huaijin didn't know Ling Wan's habits. As long as Ling Wan was not safe, he would come to Yan Xiju at the hour of Mao every day without fail.
This made Chen Yuanyuan even more puzzled. Didn't the eldest son hate her? In terms of status, there was no need to pretend. After all, all they wanted was peace and harmony, and there wouldn't be any trouble between the second wife and the eldest son.
The eldest son arrived earlier than usual that day. It just so happened that Chen Yuanyuan had slept later than usual the previous night. When Hongyue called her, she clutched the quilt tightly, still in a dream. "Oh, tell Mother Yu to find an excuse to get rid of him."
"It's early in the morning, and if he doesn't sleep, I'd like to sleep a little longer."
Hongyue had no choice but to ask Mother Yu for advice.
As the top confidant sent by the Xu family, Mother Yu would never allow her third daughter to be criticized for her etiquette.
Although the eldest son seemed to dislike his stepmother, he was polite and respectful to outsiders. Ling Wan's unintentional disrespect was a minor matter, but being labeled as "unreasonable and harsh" by those with ulterior motives was a major issue.
"Carry the lady to the dressing table to do her makeup." In response to Chen Yuanyuan's behavior of staying in bed, Mother Yu closed the window and gave Qingque instructions.
Qingque let out an "eh" and picked up his wife with great skill.
At the dressing table, Luyun and Hongyue had already taken care of their duties, one fetching water, one washing up, the other putting on makeup. After all this hustle and bustle, when Chen Yuanyuan was fully awake, her makeup was already done.
"Let's go then." Ling Wan sighed. Chen Cong's eldest son was so eager to cause trouble for himself, was he mentally ill?
As the group passed the corridor, they heard Zhu Chi in the front hall seeming to apologize, but the voice was so vague that no one could hear it clearly.
Ling Wan paused and frowned.
In the hall, Shen Huaijin sat upright. This time, Ling Wan came out before he had even finished half a cup of tea, which really surprised him.
The little thing that happened just now made his brows suddenly cold, but the moment he saw Ling Wan's figure turning around, he stood up, his brows calm as usual: "Mother."
Ling Wan said "hmm" calmly and motioned him to sit down.
The embarrassment that flashed across Zhu Chi's face and the maid who hurriedly retreated made her pay attention to Shen Huaijin today.
He seemed thinner, his eyes slightly darker. He wore a pale blue satin gown that accentuated his solemnity and elegance, a desolate demeanor reminiscent of a forest dweller, yet revealing a touch of dejection and desolation.
Very pitiful.
Chen Yuanyuan's heart softened immediately, and she began to secretly feel angry that she was going backwards as she grew older.
The eldest son was only seventeen years old, which would be a teenager attending high school in modern times. However, he treated this child who had lost his mother with the social policy of "repay me with a papaya and a jade pendant; repay me with a cold eye and a cold look."
From a practical perspective, as the eldest son, Shen Huaijin did a good job by not tripping her up, rejecting her or attacking her.
Ling Wan felt a surge of guilt in her heart, and when she looked up at Chen Huaijin again, her eyes had softened a lot.
"I heard from my mother that you will be returning to Songshan Academy in three days?" Ling Wan thought hard and found a topic to express her goodwill.
Chen Huaijin had made the usual preparations to stare at Xu Lingwan for a while, but he didn't expect her to suddenly ask about his itinerary today, and was stunned for a moment.
"Yes, I will be more diligent in the next spring examination." He reacted quickly, slightly bent his index finger under his sleeve, and looked indifferent.
Chen Yuanyuan immediately understood how destructive the saying "I'm not afraid of people with high IQs, I'm just afraid of people with high IQs working harder than you" was.
Chen Yuanyuan wasn't exactly familiar with Shen Huaijin's talent and reputation, but she knew everything she needed to know. After all, Tao had previously told her that he was the one mentioned most frequently in gossip about the wealthy ladies of Kyoto.
It wasn't that he had a reputation for being a playboy or a frivolous person, but rather that this young man from the Shen family, who had a distinguished family background, a refined character, and had passed the imperial examination at the age of sixteen, had long been betrothed to a daughter of the Wang family, arranged by his late wife. Consequently, every year, many aristocratic ladies in Kyoto lamented the loss of such a high-quality son-in-law.
Chen Yuanyuan is also a top student in modern times. She was admitted to a top university and studied a top major thanks to awards from major competitions.
She had her own pride. But she also knew that if her path to leveling up and defeating monsters was hell-level, then under the ancient imperial examination system, the difficulty of passing the exam was hell plus plus, not to mention that Shen Huaijin passed the exam at the age of sixteen.
"Diligence is good, but health is more important." After trying hard to suppress a sigh of disappointment, Xu Lingwan straightened his expression and frowned.
All things are inferior, only reading is superior.
Because of the difficulty, ancient people set the standard of studying too high, which led to all men with ideals pursuing the path of imperial examinations.
For example, a small country like Huai'an studies almost all its life for fame and to be considered on the right path in the eyes of the world.
But life is a wilderness, and life is even more of an experience.
In life, everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. If one loses composure in pursuit of a goal, fails to understand that hard work cannot make up for the differences in the pace of life at each stage, and fails to acknowledge that heroes are rare, then even the slightest setback in the future will be a devastating blow to a young person with limited talent.
However, Shen Huaijin is different from Shen Huaian and Shen Huaiyin after all. He is the eldest son who is highly expected by Mr. Shen Erye, and he is also the backbone of the family who will inherit the throne in the future. He has his responsibilities and rules.
Ling Wan didn't say much, so she just gently told him to take care of himself, get more rest, and drink more hot water.
Shen Huaijin has been paying attention to the changes in Xu Lingwan's expression.
I saw shame in her eyes, then pity, then shame about her inferiority, but in the end, it all turned into helplessness and sighs and disappeared in a faint smile.
What was she feeling guilty about, and what was she feeling helpless about? Shen Huaijin couldn't help but ask, where did her self-pity come from, and what was her endless pity for?
Is it for him? Shen Huaijin's thumb and index finger were pinched so tightly that they turned white.
"Huai Jin, although the autumn heat has not subsided yet, the mountains are different from Kyoto. Have you brought your winter clothes?" At the foot of Lushan Mountain, two hundred miles away from Songshan Academy, looking at the thin autumn clothes of her eldest son, Ling Wan felt that she was a qualified stepmother.
"I brought it." Shen Huaijin was silent for a moment, then lowered his head and replied.
"That's good. If you need anything, just send someone to bring a message home." In Chen Yuanyuan's eyes, the eldest son's expression seemed like she was the vicious continuator who was bullying him, the Snow White.
Well, I did bully him before. It was you, you little bastard, who got angry first.
"Forget it, forget it. In my opinion, we still have to send someone to Songshan Academy every month to bring you some food and clothes." Ling Wan frowned as she looked at his thin body.
Tao said that Songshan Academy pursues the concept of "entrusting great responsibilities to this person", so the food is very unpalatable.
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