Although Chen Cui was still a little afraid of Mu Yunchuan, since there was no way to avoid it, she could only comfort herself by saying that after dealing with it this time and Mu Yunchuan passing the college entrance examination, she would go to the provincial school to study.
By then, the emperor would be far away and they might not be able to see each other even once a year. She would be able to continue living the leisurely life of "a few days in the mountains, and a thousand years in the world".
Thinking of this, she felt much more at ease.
The news that Mu Yunchuan had won two prizes in a row spread like wildfire, and a few days later, the villagers also heard the news.
The original body had a bad reputation, and although Mu Cheng was from this county, he did not grow up in Shuiyun Village, and generally made a living in the county town, so the Mu family did not have much contact with other families in the village.
At most, sometimes Shen Cui would buy some eggs and vegetables from the village - although Zhou also raised chickens and grew vegetables herself, what she earned from her hard work was not enough for the whole family to eat and drink. Moreover, Shen Cui was too embarrassed to take her things, and would rather spend a little money to buy them from outside.
But since the news that Mu Yunchuan passed the exam came, the villagers suddenly became warm to them.
I don't want anything special, I just want to come and say congratulations, sit in, chat about family matters, and share in the good cheer.
If it were according to her original personality, when she knew that her stepson was going to become a scholar, she would definitely be so angry that her eyes would grow to the top of her head and she would wish she could shake them to the sky.
Chen Cui couldn't do the kind of exquisite things that her original self did. In the half day when she was free, whenever someone came to her house, she would invite them into the house to sit and chat for a while.
Of course, the villagers soon discovered her difference, and Shen Cui did not deny her change, saying: "My second fat man is now also a scholar, and as a mother, I naturally cannot bring shame to him."
Everyone in the village knew that Mu Erpang was a fool in the past. When they heard that the Mu family had hired a teacher and set up a school in their old house, they laughed at him in private.
But the situation is not like that now. Shuiyun Village has produced several scholars and a few rare juren, but there has never been a person who has won the second place in the imperial examination. In the eyes of the villagers, Mu Yunchuan is now like the God of Literature. Since he has a brother who is like a god, isn't it normal for his younger brother to become smart?
This statement is very credible. After all, Mu Yunchuan did not come out of her belly. She has no need to change herself for Mu Yunchuan, but for the sake of her own son, as a mother, she is willing to do anything.
The guests were entertained in this way, and in early May, Mu Yunchuan came back from outside.
In fact, he had rushed back from the provincial capital the day before, but compared to returning home, he had more important things to do - to write down the test questions and the entire paper from memory in front of the headmaster.
The same was true for other classmates who graduated in the same year as him.
Their papers will become a valuable educational asset in the academy in the future.
The headmaster was very happy after looking at his paper, but he didn't say much in front of others. Only after everyone had left did a genuine smile appear on his face.
"Yunchuan's essay is well written. It flows smoothly and is written in one breath. The words are gorgeous and meaningful. If you keep it up, you will definitely win the first place in the college entrance examination."
Mu Yunchuan still said modestly: "Mr. Shan, you are too kind. Yunchuan was just lucky."
The headmaster saw that his attitude was just as respectful as before, and the more he looked at him, the more satisfied he was. "The college entrance examination is still a while away, and you have been staying in the academy for a long time since the beginning of the year. It is indeed time for you to go home. I will give you a few days off, but you must not be distracted, and taking the imperial examination is the right thing to do."
Mu Yunchuan said that he had nothing to worry about, and would be back today after resting for a night.
He had just entered the village and had not yet reached the Mu family, but when the villagers saw him, they laughed and said, "The Star of Literature is back!"
Then they surrounded him and walked all the way to the Mu family.
Chen Cui calculated that he should be back in the next few days, and the daily routine of the academy was not announced during breakfast, so she did not stay in the academy, but waited at home like Zhou.
Hearing the noise outside, Zhou immediately stood up from the laundry tub.
When she almost reached the door, Zhou didn't dare to open it.
My husband is now a student and will soon become a scholar.
Whenever the villagers saw her now, they would smile and call her "Scholar's Wife", and their attitude towards her became many times more polite.
Zhou had always been sure that her husband would have a bright future, and had always been looking forward to his return home, but when the day finally came, she instead felt an inexplicable sense of uneasiness and fear.
The noisy voices were getting closer and closer. Zhou smoothed her hair and straightened her clothes, but still did not dare to open the door.
Shen Cui stood up, walked behind her, and patted her back gently.
The spring clothes were thin, and feeling the warmth on her back, Zhou took a deep breath and opened the door.
Mu Yunchuan just happened to arrive at the door of his house. When Zhou saw the gentle smile on his lips, which was the same as before, her heart finally settled down.
Mu Yunchuan glanced at her, and at the same time saw Chen Cui standing behind her, so he bowed and said, "I am an unfilial son, wishing you well, mother. I have not been by your side to serve you for several months because of the imperial examinations. It is my fault."
Chen Cui really didn't expect that Mu Yunchuan could do this to her after he had achieved fame and success. After a brief surprise, she took a handkerchief and wiped the non-existent tears from the corners of her eyes, then smiled and quickly walked forward to pull him up.
"I'm glad you're back! You've lost weight, you must have worked hard outside!"
"I can't say it's hard work, but I have achieved a little success, which means I have lived up to my mother's teachings."
The villagers followed over, just to share in the good times, but in fact many of them came to watch the fun - to see how Mu Yunchuan, now rich, would treat his stepmother who had treated him harshly for more than a decade.
The scene of "loving mother and filial son" between the two caught the eyes of the villagers and naturally caused a lot of discussion.
"Didn't Chen Cuihua treat Mu Dalang harshly in the past? Why do they seem to have a good relationship?"
"Master Mu Dalang must be very generous and won't argue with her!"
"That shouldn't be the case, right? I haven't been to the Mu family much before, but I came to sit for a while a few days ago. Chen Cuihua doesn't look like someone who would do such an extreme thing. Could it be that all the rumors before were misunderstandings?"
"What's the misunderstanding? Chen Cuihua has been a tough guy since she was a child. The elders in the village know it!"
Amid the villagers' discussions, Chen Cui received a reminder of the academy's daily tasks, asking her to cook a meal for everyone in the academy.
It was just right, she wouldn't have to be watched by everyone like a monkey in a zoo, so she picked up her basket and said she was going out to buy vegetables and cook a meal to reward Mu Yunchuan, leaving the socializing to Mu Yunchuan and Zhou.
Anyway, the more people there are, the more Mu Yunchuan will care about his reputation and the less likely he will dare to cause trouble.
After leaving home, Shen Cui went to the city to buy a pound of meat and asked the stall owner to give her a few large bones at a discount.
Zhou was good at everything she did except that she was too frugal. Her family was much wealthier now than before, but she refused to cook any meat dishes. At most, she would make some shredded or minced meat for each meal.
Shen Cui couldn't say anything to her, after all, she was really planning for the whole family, but she was really greedy for meat.
Later, Chen Cui bought the ingredients needed to make vegetable pancakes in the mall and returned home carrying a basket full of vegetables.
At that time, the number of people in the Mu family actually increased instead of decreased. Other villagers who did not see Mu Yunchuan return home all got the news and rushed here.
Then everyone surrounded him and asked him how the imperial examination was taken and what the provincial capital looked like.
The smile on Mu Yunchuan's lips never changed from beginning to end. He answered everyone's questions in a gentle and kind voice and with great patience.
Zhou couldn't get a word in. When she saw Shen Cui coming back, she followed her into the kitchen.
As for making baked vegetable cakes, Chen Cui was familiar with it the first time, so she started kneading the dough by herself.
Zhou was responsible for cooking the meat dishes.
This time, Shen Cui didn't need to specifically mention it, as she consciously didn't cut the meat into minced meat or shredded meat.
In just half an hour, Chen Cui's vegetable cakes were baked, Zhou also fried a plate of seasonal vegetables and stewed a pot of meat. Only a pot of bone soup was left, steaming on the stove.
Seeing that the villagers had no intention of leaving, Shen Cui thought about inviting them to dinner. It would be bad to chase away the guests who came to congratulate her.
But the villagers were conscious. They came empty-handed and didn't bring any gifts, so they didn't want to eat the food for free, so they took their leave.
The person walking at the end was an old lady who was very old and a little confused.
She didn't even know why others were there. She just followed everyone here in a daze. When she saw others were leaving, she followed them.
Seeing that her legs were not straight and she was walking slowly, Mu Yunchuan reached out to support her.
The old lady happily praised him as a "good boy" and before leaving, she took out a piece of maltose, saying that she had hidden it for a long time and was reluctant to eat it, so she gave it to him.
The malt candy was not wrapped in oil paper but stuffed into clothes. It had melted countless times and had been contaminated with countless dirt.
"Grandma is confused. How can she give such a thing to the future scholar?"
"That's right, this thing is so dirty, throw it away!"
Amid the complaints of the crowd, the confused old lady was like a child who had done something wrong, and was at a loss as to what to do.
Mu Yunchuan took the dirty candy in his hand without caring, "It's a treasure collected by grandma, how could I dislike it?"
"Only our future scholar has a good temper!"
Naturally, everyone praised him and then left together.
After everyone left, Zhou asked Shen Cui whether she wanted to set up the meal at the academy or eat at home today.
Without waiting for Chen Cui to make a decision, Mu Yunchuan said, "My brother's studies are more important. It's not that far away. Just do it as usual. There's no need to go to such trouble for me."
He has not seen his own Cuiwei Academy yet, and he is sensitive and suspicious by nature. He will definitely not feel at ease unless he is allowed to see it with his own eyes.
Chen Cui was upright and had nothing to fear. She had done nothing wrong and everything she couldn't let Mu Yunchuan know was in her mind, so she wasn't afraid of him seeing anything and just said she would listen to him.
Zhou took out the food box and put the dishes in one by one. Chen Cui followed closely. Mu Yunchuan said that he was a little thirsty and wanted to drink some water before going over.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law went out as usual. After walking a few steps, Zhou said in embarrassment, "Oh no, I forgot to take my husband's bowl and chopsticks."
She is not usually such a careless person. It is normal for her to feel dizzy and confused as she encountered such a happy event today.
Seeing that she had more things in her hands than she did, Shen Cui smiled and said, "You can send it first, and I'll go back and get it."
Because she had just gone out, the door of the Mu family was open. When Shen Cui walked to the door, she saw Mu Yunchuan, whose smile had disappeared from his face, washing his hands slowly by the well.
His hands were as handsome as he was, white, slender, with distinct joints.
At his feet was a piece of maltose whose original color could not be seen.
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