Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 232 Still Failing the Exam, Getting Married
"Uh……"

"My wife, what's wrong?"

After all, they had been married for many years. Although the Duke of Qi did not notice his wife's abnormality immediately, his sense of "certain danger" that he had developed over the years was still extremely keen.

However, after being stared at by Princess Pingning for a while, Duke Qi immediately sensed something was wrong!
"My lady, what... what are you doing?"

The Duke of Qi turned his head alertly and asked in a low voice.

What were you just saying?

Princess Pingning responded with a sharp look, and her words had the feel of drawing a sword.

"what?"

"No...nothing..."

The Duke of Qi looked flustered, but then suddenly remembered what he had just done.

"Oops!"

Duke Qi was secretly annoyed: "How could I say such things in front of my wife!"

"I'm so stupid!"

At this moment, the Duke of Qi regretted his actions and wished he could slap himself across the face in public!
But what could the Duke of Qi do under the sharp gaze of Princess Pingning?
It was nothing more than a helpless excuse, and a skillful way of making excuses.

Even though he had experienced this scene countless times, the Duke of Qi was still somewhat afraid. He nervously swallowed and opened his mouth stammeringly.

"me……"

"I...I was just talking about Heng'er!"

"He...he!"

"What this child did was wrong!"

The old Duke's eyes darted around, and he immediately thought of a reason to exonerate himself!

The old Duke transformed into a messenger of justice, taking the stand of Princess Pingning and launching a stern critique of Qi Heng!

"How can this child be so tactless?"

"Doesn't he consider his own status? How could he so easily fall for the daughter of a minor official?"

While observing his wife's expression, the Duke of Qi continued to try to please her, saying, "This child!"

"When he gets back, I'm going to give him a good scolding!"

"Make him deeply realize his mistake!"

"My wife, don't you think so?"

Seeing the Duke of Qi shamelessly trying to please her, Princess Pingning's anger finally subsided somewhat.

"Alright, stop putting on this act in front of me!"

Princess Pingning, whose temper had calmed down somewhat, glared fiercely at Duke Qi and said bluntly, "In front of Heng'er, when has it ever been me playing the good cop and you playing the bad cop?"

"If we really have to lay a hand on this child, won't I end up having to do it anyway?"

"hey-hey!"

Knowing he was in the wrong, the Duke of Qi quickly moved closer to Princess Pingning and said with a fawning smile, "My lady, aren't you the more capable one in this household?"

"I really can't bring myself to hurt Heng'er!"

Because Qi Heng was the only son of the Duke of Qi, the Duke of Qi, who was awe-inspiring outside, was a truly loving father at home.

The Duke of Qi was truly helpless against Qi Heng and couldn't bring himself to do it!
After all, Qi Heng was indeed a very well-behaved child who never made anyone angry.

"Humph!"

Princess Pingning turned her head away and ignored Duke Qi.

She pulled up the carriage curtain on her own and looked out the window.

His gaze fell upon the Sheng family's convoy.

……

After getting out of the car, Qi Heng immediately walked towards Minglan—oh, no!

This is the location where Sheng Changbai is.

However, when passing by the Sheng family's carriage, Qi Heng still bowed to Sheng Hong and his wife as a sign of respect.

After receiving nods of approval from Sheng Hong and Madam Wang, Qi Heng quickly took a few steps and arrived in front of Sheng Changbai.

……

"Alas, my lord, what a pity about this young master Qi!"

Standing beside Sheng Hong, Madam Wang beamed, "I really didn't expect that among Master Zhuang's disciples, only my Changbai passed the imperial examination this time!"

Because the Sheng family had sent their servants early on to get a head start and read all the lists, they knew that Sheng Changbai was the only one from the Sheng family academy to pass the exam.

"Shut up!"

Sheng Hong glanced at his wife with a headache and whispered, "What do you know?"

"The more critical the moment, the more we need to keep a low profile!"

How could you say such a thing?

"Do you intend to make an enemy of Changbai?"

"Huh? No, it's not..."

Madam Wang was immediately rendered speechless by Sheng Hong's words!

……

"Zecheng, congratulations!"

Since it wasn't a formal occasion, Qi Heng addressed Sheng Changbai and the others casually, simply using Sheng Changbai's courtesy name.

"Yuan Ruo, you've arrived?"

Upon seeing Qi Heng, Sheng Changbai's expression shifted, and a hint of joy appeared on his face.

Ultimately, Sheng Changbai is just an ordinary person with flesh and blood. Even if he is a bit old-fashioned, he is still willing to share his joy with his friends.

However, due to his personality, he only nodded to Qi Heng without making any other movements, let alone a smile.

But that doesn't matter, because Qi Heng understands him.

"Zecheng, if your family is going to hold a banquet, you must invite me!"

Qi Heng joked with a hint of bitterness towards Sheng Changbai: "Otherwise, I, as your classmate, won't stand for it!"

"Yuanruo!"

Seeing Qi Heng's slight unusual behavior, Sheng Changbai frowned, as if he had noticed something.

"you?"

"hehe!"

Qi Heng gave a wry smile and nodded to Sheng Changbai.

"Zecheng, I...didn't pass this time!"

"Yuan Ruo, you..."

Sheng Changbai's face darkened, and he felt sorry for his friend.
After all, given Qi Heng's knowledge, if he hadn't written his essay with the wrong theme, he wouldn't have failed the exam in this way!
"Yuan Ruo, you really didn't have to be like this!"

Sheng Changbai racked his brains for a pitiful way to comfort him, and said dryly, "After all, you're still young. It's not too late to take the exam again next time!"

Because Qi Heng is the same age as Sheng Changfeng, only a few months younger, he is only sixteen years old now. Just as Sheng Changbai said, it is not too late.

However, Qi Heng's disappointment naturally had a deeper reason.

At this moment, his face was full of bitterness, and his heart was filled with a thousand tender feelings and ten thousand sorrows!
Qi Heng looked at the person behind Sheng Changbai, his face gloomy.

As for why he looked at that position?
That was naturally because behind Sheng Changbai stood Rulan and Minglan.

Of course, Minglan is the main focus.

As for who is between Sheng Changbai and Minglan, the sisters?

That's obvious without even looking!

After all, the person who was deliberately standing up straight, completely blocking Minglan from behind, was naturally Sheng Changquan.

"Little father-in-law!"

Following Sheng Changbai's example, Sheng Changquan said to Qi Heng in a serious tone.

"Changquan, Zecheng and I have been friends for many years, and we were classmates for several years. You don't need to be so formal. Just call me brother!"

Qi Heng was trying to close the distance between himself and Sheng Changquan, and deliberately spoke in this way.

However, "No!"

Sheng Changquan stubbornly shook his head, feigning a respectful posture, and said loudly, "Young Master, etiquette must not be disregarded!"

"Moreover, Changquan has not yet obtained any official rank, so he dares not be presumptuous!"

Although Sheng Changquan had passed the preliminary examination, in the eyes of the world and the court, only the lowest level of officialdom was the Xiucai degree!
As for the title of "Tong Sheng" (童生), that is merely the most basic level.

So it's nothing!
"Changquan, you..."

Unable to get past Sheng Changquan's hurdle for a long time, Qi Heng suddenly became a little anxious!

"Cough cough..."

Seeing that the atmosphere was getting awkward, Sheng Changbai immediately spoke up to break the silence.

"Little Seven!"

Sheng Changbai turned around and winked at Sheng Changquan, signaling him to stop talking!

Although Sheng Changbai was unaware of the matter between Qi Heng and Minglan, he knew that Sheng Changquan's attitude towards Qi Heng had always been the same. However, given the current special circumstances, Sheng Changquan still needed to make some concessions for Qi Heng.

"Yes!"

Seeing his elder brother's signal, Sheng Changquan could only nod silently.

Although Sheng Changquan was not optimistic about the outcome between Qi Heng and his sister, he kept quiet and turned a blind eye because of Qi Heng's past care for him and Qi Heng's failure in the imperial examination.

As for why it's said to be closing one eye, it's naturally because he wants to "open one eye and close the other"!

……

the other side.

"So, Heng'er has taken a liking to the daughter of Brother Xiujin?"

The Duke of Qi was somewhat surprised, and then suddenly realized.

"That's true. Heng'er can only interact with these girls from the Sheng family."

"But I wonder which girl Heng'er has taken a fancy to?"

"Is it the girl in the pale yellow dress, or the girl in the light blue dress?"

Duke Qi hid in the carriage, speculating with great interest.

"Humph!"

At this moment, Princess Pingning sneered: "None of the girls will do!"

"what?"

The Duke of Qi frowned!
"My wife, what do you want to do?"

"Do you want Heng'er to be like me, spending her whole life devoted to only one person?"

The Duke of Qi was so excited that he inadvertently revealed his true feelings.

"Ok?"

Princess Pingning slowly narrowed her eyes, her face dangerous as she said, "What, are you feeling wronged by having to stay by my side?"

"Or rather, what inappropriate thoughts have you had, old man?"

"You want to bring someone into our house?"

"Ok?"

Princess Pingning unleashed her fierce power, grabbing Duke Qi's ear directly!

In fact, it was only in this enclosed carriage that Princess Pingning made such a move.

Otherwise, having been raised with the etiquette of the palace, she would never have done something so outrageous.

However, this also shows the anger in Princess Pingning's heart at this moment!
"Hey! Hey! Stop! Stop now!"

The Duke of Qi lowered his voice and pleaded softly, "My lady, my lady, please stop!"

He was truly terrified of his own tigress, and even now, the Duke of Qi was unwilling to retaliate.

You must understand that the prevailing social norms in this world are still based on male superiority and female inferiority. Even if the Duke of Qi were to give Princess Pingning a good beating and then cause a scene in the palace, the Empress in the palace would not be able to say a word against it!

"Humph!"

After being annoyed for a while, Princess Pingning gave up.

"My wife, don't you wish that Heng'er could have more children so that we could also enjoy the joys of family life?"

While rubbing his reddened ears, the Duke of Qi couldn't help but mutter some complaints to himself.

"Humph, what do you know?"

Princess Pingning glanced at the grimacing Duke of Qi beside her and said coldly, "Is Heng'er the kind of person who likes women?"

Princess Pingning naturally understood the meaning behind Duke Qi's words; he simply wanted her to agree to Qi Heng taking a girl from the Sheng family into his household.

However, she can enter the house, but only after Qi Heng formally proposes marriage!
In other words, the Sheng family's daughter must become Qi Heng's concubine!

"Hmm? My wife, what do you mean?"

The Duke of Qi also noticed something amiss and frowned, asking, "Is there something wrong with this?"

"Ah!"

Princess Pingning glanced at Qi Heng outside and said quietly, "Your good son, what he wants to do now is to get married formally!"

"Marry that girl from the Sheng family and make her the eldest daughter of the Duke of Qi's household!"

"what?"

Upon hearing this, the Duke of Qi's expression darkened.

"This is not okay!"

"Heng'er's wife must be someone who can help his future career; he can't choose the Xiu Jin family!"

Although the Duke of Qi spoke highly of Sheng Hong, when it came to the long-term plans of the Qi family, he still showed his disdain.

"That's right, that's what I think too!"

Princess Pingning nodded to Duke Qi and expressed her opinion: "Heng'er must not be allowed to act recklessly in this matter!"

That's true!

Duke Qi asked hesitantly, "However, my wife, you know what kind of person Heng'er is!"

"Right now, he has failed the exam again. If we were to take action directly, it might harm his health!"

The Duke of Qi asked worriedly, "My lady, how do you intend to dissuade Heng'er from his idea?"

"We can't let him..."

Before the Duke of Qi could finish speaking, Princess Pingning waved her fan and said in an icy tone, "Don't worry!"

"I'll have my own way of dealing with it when the time comes!"

……

In front of Donghua Gate, many disheartened people lingered before the list.

Among them was Gu Tingye, the second son of the Ningyuan Marquis's family.

"Master!"

Beside Gu Tingye, his personal attendant Shi Tou looked at him with a worried expression!
Stone's body was taut, as if he were preparing to support Gu Tingye if he lost his footing.

"Second brother!"

Just as the atmosphere between the two was becoming increasingly tense, Shi Tou suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from behind him.

He turned around and looked!
It's Gu Tingwei!

Gu Tingwei is Gu Tingye's half-brother and the biological son of Qin, the current mistress of the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion.

"Young Master, the Third Young Master has arrived!"

Shi Tou was aware of his young master's situation within the Ningyuan Marquisate, so upon seeing Gu Tingwei, he immediately issued a warning.

"Tingwei?"

Upon hearing this name, Gu Tingye finally reacted.

"Go! Stone!"

Ignoring Gu Tingwei who was running towards him from a distance, Gu Tingye's expression suddenly darkened, and then he said something directly to Shi Tou.

"Let's go back!"

For some reason, Gu Tingye had fallen out with the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion and was living alone outside.

(End of this chapter)