Chapter 136 The Mama's Boy is Being Sentimental Again
"Does that mean you'll be staying in the capital from now on?"
"Wow, impressive!"
"Shu Chenghao, look at him, and then look at yourself. I'm embarrassed to call you one of my cronies."
...
Inside the restaurant, Shu Chenghao listened to the murmurs across from him and couldn't help but roll his eyes.
Can't you speak properly?
What do you mean by "bad friends"? He's a scholar, an old man, after all.
Well, a scholar is nothing in front of a princess. For the sake of a table full of good food, Shu Chenghao swallowed his anger and endured the ridicule of his friends, trying his best to eat.
He wanted to eat his fill.
Although Shu Chenghao's family was not poor, that was in the county. Moreover, his grandfather was a very frugal person. He could spend a thousand taels of silver to buy books and antiques, but he would be stingy when buying vegetables with a single copper coin. He used to hang out with Song Jin often. Besides her bossy demeanor, he also got to eat meat every day by following her.
Compared to him, the young master, Yan Sheng, a poor farmer's son, looked more like a noble young master, eating slowly and gracefully.
Song Jin had eaten a lot of snacks before coming, and was full in no time. Wiping her mouth, she leaned back lazily in her chair and said, "Shu Chenghao, are you a reincarnated starving ghost? What's wrong, no money for food?"
She was puzzled because the person's head was buried in the food as soon as they arrived.
"Or did your bookstore go out of business?"
Shu Chenghao rolled his eyes, too lazy to say a word, his eyes only on the food.
Yan Sheng explained for him, "Ah Hao has been working hard these past few days, studying day and night, and hasn't eaten much."
The main reason was that Song Xingzhi's materials were precious, so they couldn't give them to the servants to copy. They had to do it themselves, and they couldn't delay too long. They wanted to return the copied materials to him, so they made the most of the time and finally managed to copy them all.
It was really tiring, but I also gained a lot.
As expected of the third-ranked scholar at the age of sixteen, his thoughts and insights are beyond what others can reach even in ten years. No wonder he rose from the ninth rank to the third rank in just ten years.
Yan Sheng felt ashamed.
Song Jin just felt that they were crazy. Whether they studied a day more or a day less, a day faster or a day slower, it was just a psychological comfort.
She pursed her lips: "I don't understand you intellectuals."
Yan Sheng laughed: "It doesn't matter if it's just one or two days, but over time, if you study for an extra hour each day, you'll be a month ahead of others in a year."
Song Jin shivered: "Let's not talk about that. I can't stand hearing about studying. Let's get back to what we were talking about earlier. Now that you're staying in the capital to work, what about your family? You're not going to bring them over too, are you?"
Yan Sheng's expression darkened, and he sighed, "I have the will but not the strength."
Back in the countryside, his family owned land and could live a self-sufficient life. But now that they've moved to the capital, firewood and well water cost money, and the family is running out of resources, relying solely on him – it's incredibly difficult.
As a low-ranking official, his salary was not high.
Song Jin said she understood and felt it was fortunate he was powerless to help, otherwise he would have just created trouble for himself. She then looked at Shu Chenghao: "What about you? Isn't Grandpa Shu going to come and see you?"
Shu Chenghao let out a burp, rubbed his stomach, and said dejectedly, "The old man said he was afraid I wouldn't pass the exam even after ten or eight years, so he didn't bother to come and see me struggle. He's going to set up a shop. But he sent me some money to buy a courtyard house, which I can sell later if things don't work out."
Song Jin clicked her tongue: "Look at your grandfather, and then look at you."
Shu Chenghao wanted to refute it, but after thinking about it carefully...
He couldn't even keep up with others in his studies, and he still had to rely on his grandfather for a living. Well, he accepted it.
Song Jin then asked Yan Sheng, "How many of you stayed in the capital this time? Did any of those assigned to other areas go to Si'an County? Speaking of which, Lao Xiao hasn't arrived in the capital yet? I've missed him quite a bit since I haven't seen him for half a year."
She probably wants to show off.
Magistrate Xiao has aged into an old man.
“Si’an County is a long way from here. Magistrate Xiao has been there for many years, with his family to support, and his wife is in poor health, so it will take him some time to settle in. He won’t be taking office for the New Year, so he should be here after the holiday. As for my colleagues here…” He paused here, his brows furrowing involuntarily.
"He's from the same region as this year's third-place winner, which is pretty lucky."
In fact, Yan Sheng felt that this matter was a bit too coincidental, but he was just a small fry and shouldn't be worth their trouble, unless he looked up at the person opposite him with his eyebrows raised.
Song Jin was surprised: "The third-ranked scholar? That pig, Zhu? Gou?"
Yan Sheng's lips twitched: "Chu, Chu Cheng'an, Chu Tanhua."
Song Jin: "Oh, it's him, that sickly guy."
As she spoke, recalling the melancholy and sorrowful expressions of the men she had encountered before, her gaze towards Yan Sheng was filled with undisguised sympathy.
Working with such a frail, sickly, and sensitive younger sister like Chu is going to be tough for him in the future.
Yan Sheng: "Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something wrong with him?"
Could it be that Auntie has already found out something? Or has Song Jin noticed something?
Song Jin shook her head, feeling sorry for him: "His health isn't good, he definitely won't be able to do any work in the future, so who will do those jobs?"
It must be someone like Yan Sheng, who has no connections or background.
She had taken care of similar young masters before, and those two months were simply indescribable. She would rather go out and fight to the death with strange beasts than experience that again. While she suffered temporarily, it was because of her strong abilities; Yan Sheng's situation was less certain.
Song Jin sighed, "What a stinking workplace."
Thankfully, she's now part of the evil ruling class, long live her!
Yan Sheng: "...The capable are often given more work."
Could it really be because of this? Compared to the outstanding third-place scholar from a prominent family, he, a person born in the countryside and of average social standing, is indeed very suitable for working and taking care of people.
Song Jin looked at him with sympathy. After all, he was a successful person whom she had raised. She couldn't just stand by and watch him be trampled on. Considering his honest nature, she began to teach him some workplace secrets.
"One word: endure. If you endure, it will pass. If you can't endure, you still have to endure. If you're weak, you'll get beaten."
"You have to be thick-skinned. If someone insults you, you should praise them. If someone beats you up, that's when you make money."
"It's not a blessing to suffer a loss, but a blessing to not suffer a loss in vain."
...
Although Song Jin is now a princess, with the Song family as her backing and Qi Zheng as her support, she is basically fearless except for the one at the very top. But before that, she was still a coward for many years.
Back in the countryside, she always dealt swiftly and decisively to ordinary villagers who robbed her, but she had to be polite and obsequious to the yamen runners and officials. She was quite experienced in being flexible and adaptable.
Shu Chenghao was able to become her close friend, so they were equally good at it.
The two of them spoke with great conviction (shameless).
Yan Sheng was greatly surprised and amazed by this, and humbly sought his guidance.
The three of them sat down at a table facing the street and started chatting.
Young men and women are nothing special in the open-minded Dayan, but two men and one woman are still quite conspicuous, not to mention that all three of them are exceptionally good-looking.
People would occasionally glance over, but Song Jin didn't care much. If she cared about other people's opinions, she would have gone to a private room in the first place. It's more interesting to talk badly about things outside.
Song Jin swaggered around, sharing her experiences. As she spoke, she started talking about Yan Sheng's various superiors, things she had overheard a lot while she was out and about.
True masters of gossip are always hidden among the common people.
"The Minister of Personnel is quite old and extremely lecherous. Just two months ago, he married a fifteen-year-old concubine, who is not even as old as his youngest daughter. He is shameless and probably doesn't discriminate between meat and vegetables. You pretty boy, stay away from him or you might get taken advantage of."
"And that Left Vice Minister, he has no skills but a big mouth. Last time he was shouting about promoting civil affairs and reducing military affairs, thinking that there were too many soldiers in Dayan and it was a waste of money and effort. I'll cripple that good-for-nothing. Two months ago, his good-for-nothing son lost a thousand taels at the gambling table. It's more useful to cripple this thing than anything else."
...
Before Yan Sheng had even officially started working, he had already heard all about his superiors' private affairs.
His eyelids twitched as he listened, feeling that the workplace environment ahead was extremely dark. He felt a chill run down his spine and was about to interrupt, wanting to leave some room for future possibilities so that he wouldn't only see darkness when he met his boss in the future.
A refined yet powerful voice came from behind: "Lord Sheng? Princess Mingguang? You're dining here too? What a coincidence."
Song Jin looked over, and her eyelids twitched.
That's why you shouldn't speak ill of others behind their backs. Isn't this just like saying "speak of the devil, and he shall appear"?
Yan Sheng stood up: "...Lord Chu is also out for a meal?"
Chu Cheng'an smiled and said, "Today the weather is fine and the sun is shining brightly. Since there is no need for court affairs, I thought I would go out for a walk. I didn't expect to run into Lord Yan and the Princess. I only heard that Lord Yan and the Princess came from the same place. I didn't expect you to be so familiar with each other."
Song Jin rested her chin on her hand and looked at Chu Cheng'an, who was smiling like a flower, and said thoughtfully, "You're the only one from Si'an County to pass the imperial examination this time."
The education in Si'an County is quite good. This time, three people went to the capital to participate in the imperial examination: Yan Sheng and Shu Chenghao, and Tao Zhiyi, who regarded Yan Sheng as his opponent and often spoke ill of the treacherous minister Song Shang.
This man had been infuriated by Song Jin countless times in the past. Now that he had passed the imperial examination and become a Juren, he had planned how to show off his power to Song Jin before entering the city. However, upon learning that she had become a princess, he did not dare to show his face. As soon as the results of the provincial examination came out, he ran away without stopping.
What a coward.
Yan Sheng paused for a moment, then said carefully, "There are two other students in the prefectural city whose scores in the palace examination are two places lower than mine. They have both been sent to other places."
Song Jin nodded, then looked at Chu Cheng'an thoughtfully: "You seem to know a lot."
Chu Cheng'an smiled and sat down, his expression gentle: "My uncle has been traveling around these past few years. He was teaching in Si'an County some time ago and thought highly of Lord Yan. He even wrote back to ask me to take care of him. However, there were many things going on in the capital recently. I saw that Lord Yan was confident and organized, so I didn't bother him too much."
Yan Sheng was caught off guard by what he was said.
This doesn't sound right at all. It sounds like the teacher is concerned about Yan Sheng, the student, but doesn't even remember to visit him.
Although it is true that Chu Shao took good care of Yan Sheng when he was in Si'an County, and was naturally indebted to him, after the incident in Si'an County, he left suddenly without leaving a letter, and is not in the capital now. Who knows what he is thinking?
Yan Shengruo's sudden visit would make him seem like he was trying to curry favor with someone else. Moreover, he is currently constrained by Chu Shaoxin and unwilling to get involved.
Yan Sheng glanced at Song Jin subconsciously. Seeing that her face remained unchanged, he breathed a sigh of relief, gave a wry smile, and replied, "Lord Chu, you have made me feel ashamed. I never expected to disappoint Master Chu's good intentions. It's true. Alas, when Master Chu left in such a hurry, I thought that our conversation that day had disappointed him."
Chu Cheng'an's eyes darkened, and he was about to speak.
Song Jin became interested: "What did you say? Did you offend someone? Come, let me give you some advice so you won't make the same mistake again."
Yan Sheng smiled wryly: "It's not a big deal. It's just that when the teacher wanted to introduce me to a beautiful woman, I refused. Maybe he thought I was too rustic and lacked the spirit of a scholar."
"These old men, tsk, don't listen to them. They all talk about being so virtuous, but look at their own wretched old bodies, yet they have the nerve to molest young girls. They're all a mess, probably infected with some disease. Hey, you guys should be more careful in the future, lest you catch something. Of course, I'm not talking about you guys."
Song Jin was somewhat disgusted. After thinking about it, she saw Chu Cheng'an and the others. She reluctantly gave them face, but still couldn't help muttering, "But it's hard to say. Men and women shouldn't touch each other. You guys can chat by yourselves. I'm leaving first."
As she spoke, she couldn't help but rub her hands together, walking with extreme caution, avoiding any contact with any of them.
These men are all devoid of male virtue; they have one at home and another outside. You wouldn't know unless you thought about it carefully. But if you think about it more, Song Jin is terrified that they might pass on some kind of disgusting disease to her.
What? You're sick, but you can't get infected by eating normally?
She disliked it too.
Song Jin left in a hurry, her disgust was impossible to hide, as if these men were all dirty, smelly things.
As old acquaintances, Yan Sheng and Shu Chenghao accepted the situation well; they were upright and had nothing to fear.
None of Chu Cheng'an and his companions looked pleased, especially the young men behind him. If there hadn't been outsiders present, they would have definitely started swearing.
Chu Cheng'an looked at Yan Sheng, this country bumpkin, with suspicion in his eyes, unsure whether it was intentional or unintentional.
Yan Sheng was embarrassed and gave a wry smile: "Jin Jin, the princess has always had this temper since she was a child. She means no harm. Please don't take it to heart, gentlemen."
Chu Cheng'an looked away and smiled amicably, "As a princess, how could we possibly concern ourselves with such matters? We just didn't expect Lord Yan and the princess to be so familiar with each other."
Yan Sheng said somewhat embarrassedly, "The princess and I are from the same town. I was fortunate enough to be able to study because of the princess and my aunt's financial support."
Chu Cheng'an: "There's such a story behind it all. Oh, right, I haven't introduced you to Lord Yan yet. This gentleman behind me is Shen Ji, the young master of the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and this is..."
The group of people exchanged pleasantries on the spot.
Song Jin's disdain is one thing, but not wanting to interact with people is another. She's not the kind of person who would sacrifice herself for her friends. She'd rather hold her breath and pave the way for them than actually do it in her dreams.
A real man should have ambitions beyond his hometown and strive for his own success.
The little man has nothing to do with her.
She left the inn, thought for a moment, and headed towards Wuma Street.
On the sixth day of the lunar new year, Xiao Mei, Xiao Er, A Mao, and Xiao Duo in the family were officially freed from their servitude and became independent. Now, they have a small courtyard, a mule cart, a shop, and savings. As long as they don't cause trouble, they can live a stable life even in the capital.
When Song Jin arrived, the others were still busy.
Of the four, Xiao Er is empty-headed, Xiao Duo is silly, Xiao Er is a source of joy, and Xiao Duo is purely a worker and a homemaker; they can be disregarded.
Xiao Mei and A Mao were both thoughtful, capable, and ambitious people. The first thing they did after gaining their freedom was to pool their money and take over the shop next to their blacksmith's shop to use as a food and charcoal store.
The two sides complement each other, and everything is thriving.
They hired two boys from Shangyang Village as waiters. They were two years older than Sheng Ge and Fu Ge, and were eloquent, good at math, and very clever.
When Song Jin arrived, Brother Fu was also there. He came to this shop to buy grain, which he would then take back to the wine shop to brew wine.
After much maneuvering, the group of people eventually formed a close-knit group.
This is perfectly normal these days; one person can't make a boat, and the more acquaintances you have, the better your business will be.
"Princess"
Ningning ran over with small steps, grinning with her tiny teeth, looking very happy.
She was ultimately not adopted by Yang Yanjun, nor did she return to the Xuanping Marquis's residence, continuing to live as an orphan without parents.
Song Jin didn't know if this little brat would regret it later, but at least he was happy now. She smiled and said, "Why are you everywhere?"
Ningning grinned proudly: "Ningning works hard, goes to many places, and saves up money to buy a big village in the future."
Song Jin raised an eyebrow: "Oh, not bad, not bad. That's the kind of ambition you need. Now go help move things."
Instantly, Ningning deflated: "I can't move it."
She's only five years old!
Song Jin laughed heartily, teased the little boy a bit more, and walked over to the blacksmith's shop.
The others had their own things to do and might not be here, but Xiao Duo, as a blacksmith, was a regular. However, today, besides him, Jian Gaoyi, with his stern baby face, was also standing nearby.
As soon as Song Jin arrived, she met Xiao Duo's pleading gaze. She took a step, turned around, and ran away.
Is it any of her business to meddle in her brother-in-law and son-in-law's affairs?
If things go wrong, Xiao Er will definitely start crying and nagging endlessly, and might even run home to complain to Niu Tielan. Song Jin won't cause herself that trouble; she has to choose her audience carefully when she's watching a show.
And so, she wandered around outside for a while, and finally walked home with a bunch of candied hawthorns in her hand.
When she reached the third street from the Song residence, she heard the sound of horses' hooves behind her. She very sensibly stepped aside, leaving enough space, and strode on while munching on a candied hawthorn.
"Princess."
The carriage stopped to the side, the curtain was lifted, and Chu Cheng'an reappeared. He was gentle and refined, with a scholarly air and a handsome and elegant demeanor. It was just a pity that he was too sickly, thin and weak, with hardly any flesh on his body, like a boiled chicken.
He looked at Song Jin with a delighted smile: "Princess, we meet again."
Song Jin said "Oh": "The car broke down again?"
Chu Cheng'an smiled helplessly: "If it breaks every time, what use are the grooms in the manor?"
Song Jin nodded: "That's true. Then you should go back quickly and not stay here in the wind."
To avoid her getting sick from the cold and then suffering the consequences.
Seeing her merciless expression, Chu Cheng'an's face darkened, and he sighed softly, "I've been in poor health since I was a child, so no one has ever wanted to get close to me. Outsiders say I'm lucky to have been born into the Chu family, such a large and prestigious clan. If I were from an ordinary family, I might have died young. If I could, I would rather have been born into an ordinary family and had good health..."
Song Jin munched on a candied hawthorn, listening to him ramble on like a monk chanting sutras; it made her head spin.
This wasn't the first time she'd heard this man mention these things. Admittedly, his poor health was quite unfortunate, but one has to move on. Her mother, a frail woman who used to be even weaker than him, never complained about it so much.
Song Jin sighed deeply, wanting to leave immediately, but then she thought of her own mother, who was also sick. After thinking for a moment, she took out a candied hawthorn and handed it to her, comforting her, "Try to think positively. What if you were born into an ordinary family and still looked like this sickly person?"
Chu Cheng'an's expression stiffened, most of the emotions he had prepared dissipated. Looking at the bright red, cheap candied hawthorn in front of him, a flash of disdain crossed his eyes, but he quickly smiled again, took the candied hawthorn, and looked somewhat wistful.
"My family is very strict; my mother never lets me eat these things. I secretly ate them once when I was little, but it resulted in my servant being punished. I never dared to try them again after that. Thank you, Princess, for the taste. You are truly amazing."
The word "good" hadn't even been uttered yet.
Song Jin snatched back the candied hawthorn. Under Chu Cheng'an's shocked expression, she coughed lightly and took two steps back: "It's my fault for not thinking it through. You're not feeling well, so you shouldn't eat anything indiscriminately. Go back now, I'm leaving first."
After saying that, she ran away as if there was a ghost behind her, and only after disappearing into the alley did she breathe a sigh of relief and pat her chest.
Mom
That was close! I almost got scammed.
Who could afford to mess with such a sickly, spoiled, and demanding mama's boy?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
