"What?! That wicked woman actually has feelings for you?!"
All the students present, including Meng Wenyuan, couldn't help but look at Su Fan with a mixture of shock and suspicion.
Shock is easy to understand; anyone would be shocked to suddenly hear that your classmate has a romantic entanglement with some unrelated woman.
As for the suspicion, that's easy to understand.
Although they all called Wan Shu a poisonous woman, they all had eyes!
That wicked woman had a beautiful face and a graceful figure, and she also knew how to make braised dishes, so she must be extremely wealthy.
As for Su Fan, he was hunchbacked, bald, and from a poor family. It was said that even the tuition fees for studying at Dongcheng Academy were scavenged from the homes of relatives and friends!
Such a beautiful and wealthy woman, what kind of crazy thing must she be to fall for Su Fan?
A student who didn't get along with Su Fan couldn't help but make sarcastic remarks.
"Brother Su Fan, you must be dreaming. That wicked woman is beautiful and rich. How could she possibly be interested in a poor, older scholar like you? And obey you so completely? Hah—"
He scoffed without any politeness.
Several other nosy students also joined in the mockery.
"Yes, Brother Su Fan, you've probably been reading too many of those 'young lady infatuated with poor scholar' sketchbooks. She's beautiful and rich, why would she be interested in you?"
"It seems that Brother Su Fan hasn't looked in a mirror for a long time."
“Mirrors are rare items. Brother Su Fan is poor, so he probably can’t afford one. It’s no wonder that he can’t afford one.”
Su Fan blushed with embarrassment at their mockery: "You, you Xiu people, are so prejudiced! This vicious woman is named Wan Shu. She is a widow and lives in Qingshui Village, which is next to mine. Before I passed the imperial examination, she harassed me in Xinghua Village every day. You can find out this by asking the people in the nearby villages!"
The villages near Xinghua Village are all poor; how could Yumantang possibly come here?
Fortunately, Liu Liang knew Wan Shu's name and immediately clapped his hands.
"Oh yes, I heard the manager of Jinzunlou call this poisonous woman 'Miss Wan,' and that she works hard every day traveling from Qingshui Village to the county town."
The students were all dumbfounded.
No way, could Su Fan, with his bald, hunchbacked, poor, and wretched appearance, really be noticed by such a beautiful and wealthy young woman?
Just how incredibly lucky was he to have found love?!
Waaaaah, they also wish they could be noticed by such a beautiful and rich young lady!
While marrying such a widow as a principal wife would be considered beneath one's dignity, keeping her as a concubine would be incredibly pleasant.
Many students' gazes toward Su Fan shifted from mockery to envy.
Since entering Dongcheng Academy, Su Fan has always been a student at the bottom of the food chain within the academy.
He had never been looked at with such envy by his classmates before. For a moment, he felt refreshed and invigorated, and his ego swelled up.
He held his head high, clearly smug, yet deliberately feigned humility.
"Wan Shu has always been fond of me and kept coming to my house to harass me. Although she is beautiful and can make money, I can see at a glance that she is malicious, so I have always refused and kept my distance from her. But even so, she is unwilling to give up and often sneaks to the gate of the academy to peek at me."
One of the students said.
"I think I really did see her at the entrance of the academy before, and she seemed to be asking the gatekeeper something."
Su Fan confidently stated, "They're definitely trying to find out about me, or maybe they want to buy some of my leftovers."
Meng Wenyuan was extremely puzzled: "Why would she buy things you've already used?"
Su Fan blushed slightly: "She was too infatuated with me, but she couldn't get close to me, so she could only try to buy things that I had used, such as water cups and toothbrushes, so that she could use them herself to comfort herself and ease her longing."
Meng Wenyuan: "..." I'm sorry, but looking at Su Fan's ugly appearance and thinking about the scene in his words, he really felt like vomiting.
However, most of the other students still showed envy.
"Heavens! I never imagined that poisonous woman would be so infatuated with Brother Su Fan!"
"Brother Su Fan is truly blessed with good fortune!"
"With Brother Su Fan here, Manager Liu's predicament should be resolved immediately!"
The student who didn't get along with Su Fan said sarcastically again: "Heh, what's the use of liking someone? This is related to money, and the outcome is still uncertain."
Upon hearing this, Su Fan instinctively wanted to refute, but then thought that he couldn't miss this opportunity, so he deliberately pretended to be troubled.
"Indeed, Wan Shu is extremely fond of money, so this matter may not be so easy to handle."
Upon hearing this, Manager Liu and Meng Wenyuan were about to show signs of worry when Su Fan suddenly changed the subject.
"However, today's matter concerns the survival of Yu Mantang. No matter the cost, I will protect Yu Mantang, so I have made my decision!"
Su Fan announced, word by word, "I will take this poisonous woman as my concubine!"
Su Fan was willing to take Wan Shu as a concubine for just ten taels of silver as compensation, let alone now that Wan Shu has built such a large business, who knows how much money she can make.
Moreover, it must be said that Wan Shu, who has now made a lot of money, is much more confident. Every smile and frown of hers is charming, and she is even more beautiful than before.
How could he let go of such a beautiful, rich, and easy-to-control woman?
However, on the surface, Su Fan still maintained an upright and dignified appearance.
"Although I dislike her as a vicious woman, Yu Mantang's survival is more important at this moment. Besides, I have made up my mind to use my own kindness to influence her and turn her into a virtuous and ladylike woman!"
In ancient times, many talented but lustful men liked to persuade prostitutes to reform themselves.
They are clearly lustful, yet they like to act like they are there to save you, which is truly hypocritical.
But these hypocritical words struck a chord with the fantasies of many students present, who immediately began to praise them.
"Brother Su Fan is actually willing to use his own selfish desires to influence her; he is truly selfless and great!"
"Su Fan has such a magnanimous heart. Compared to you, I feel ashamed."
Meng Wenyuan is probably the only normal person among them.
He listened to Su Fan's words and felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.
In addition, the students around him kept praising Su Fan, which made him get caught up in the conversation.
Meng Wenyuan scratched his head and could only say, "Since Brother Su Fan has this plan, I will thank you on behalf of Manager Liu. When do you plan to bring up the matter of taking a concubine?"
Su Fan answered without hesitation, "Now of course!"
He had to bring up this opportunity to shine in front of everyone, not only to enhance his status in the academy but also to make Meng Wenyuan look at him with new respect!
Su Fan lifted his long robe, striking a pose that he considered himself elegant, walked up to Wan Yao, raised his head, and spoke in a condescending manner.
"Wan Shu, congratulations, your dream has come true."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
