Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 303 Letter for Viewing
……

What followed, however, went incredibly smoothly.

After Sun Zhigao nodded, Sheng Changquan directly stated his own requirements.

Because the divorce is not only a matter concerning Sun Zhigao and Sheng Shulan, but also a major event for both of their families.

After all, if this matter is not handled properly, it could easily turn the two sides into enemies and hostile to each other.

Of course, even if things are handled well, the relationship between the two families will not return to normal. However, in any case, it will be better than the former.

Therefore, Sheng Changquan's conditions were very simple: he asked Sun Zhigao to invite the elders of his Sun family clan, and at the same time, the Sheng family would invite the elders of their own clan. Then, both sides would invite some well-known elders in Youyang City to witness the finalization of the matter.

Of course, this move also had a deeper purpose, which was to bring the matter of the divorce between the Sun and Sheng families into the open.

If Sun Zhigao doesn't have any other ideas in the future, that's fine. But if he has any delusions and wants to renege on his debt, or wants to make a fuss about this matter again, then it will be absolutely impossible for him.

Because if he did that, the first thing he would face would be the methods of those elders.

After all, that would be a slap in the face to these old folks!

Coincidentally, these elders valued their reputation most, so the outcome was predictable.

Getting back to the main point, on the third day that Sheng Changquan and Sun Zhigao had agreed upon, Sun Zhigao and Sheng Shulan finally "satisfactorily" divorced in the presence of their two families and many respected elders in the city.

However, for the Sheng family, or rather, for the two heads of the eldest branch of the Sheng family, this time they suffered a great loss.

Not to mention that this marriage has ruined Shulan's life, the expenses incurred back and forth are definitely not a small amount.

Fortunately, Shulan eventually escaped the mess of the Sun family, and there will surely be happy times for her again in the future. This is something that can comfort Shengwei and Li Shi.

……

The Western Mansion, Shou'an Hall.

After Shulan's matter was completely resolved, the eldest matriarch led her entire family to Shou'an Hall in the West Mansion to personally thank Sheng Changquan in front of the old matriarch.

Because the two families are still very close, Sheng Changquan didn't say much, only saying, "Two Shengs can't be written with the same stroke of a pen." They are all family, so there's no need to be polite.

The Sheng family naturally refused, insisting on expressing their gratitude with a gift.

However, Sheng Changquan insisted on refusing these gifts.

After all, he never took action for these things.

At the same time, Sheng Changquan also planned to use this incident to establish a persona, intending to present a positive image of someone who cares about the family and protects relatives and friends in front of the clan.

Of course, his purpose was not only to use this persona to win the favor of Old Madam Sheng and others, but more importantly, he planned to use this persona to help him in his future actions.

For example, secretly targeting certain individuals without fear of arousing suspicion...

Therefore, with Sheng Changquan insisting on declining the offer, Sheng Wei and his group could only return empty-handed.

However, the two matriarchs of the Sheng family smiled when they saw this scene. They felt that with them as witnesses, the relationship between the brothers and sisters of Sheng Changquan's generation could become even closer, and the Sheng family would be able to prosper even more in the future.

……

After the people from the East Mansion left, Old Madam Sheng summoned Sheng Changquan and Minglan to her side.

"Quan'er, you did a great job this time!"

Old Mrs. Sheng had already heard everything Sheng Changquan had done from Xu Changqing, and knew exactly how he had "moved people with emotion and reasoned with them".

Although this approach is somewhat crude, it is relatively the most efficient and least harmful method.

In fact, this method is the best and most suitable for dealing with guys like Sun Zhigao!

"Grandmother, I'll be content as long as you don't scold me for being willful and reckless!"

This time, Sheng Changquan did not stand up to reply, because he knew that Grandma Sheng preferred the warm feeling between grandparents and grandchildren.

"Hey!"

With a slight smile on her face, Grandma Sheng shook her head and praised, "Quan'er, you're just fine like this!"

"He possesses the serene demeanor of a gentleman, understands the principles of righteousness, and is not burdened by literary fame. He can wield the swiftness of wind, forest, fire, and mountain, harmonizing yin and yang, and coexisting with heaven and earth. He is far superior to those pedantic scholars and tyrants!"

It's clear that Old Mrs. Sheng was quite satisfied with Sheng Changquan's performance this time.

"Hehe, thank you for the compliment, Grandmother!"

Since Old Madam Sheng had said so, Sheng Changquan simply accepted it.

Of course, he admitted that his purpose was nothing more than to make his grandmother happier.

really!

"ah!"

"Brother, I never knew you had such a thick skin?"

Hearing this, Minglan wrinkled her nose and joked, "Grandmother was just saying that to be polite. You actually admitted it?"

"Brother, why are you so unmodest?"

Minglan feigned surprise, staring wide-eyed at Sheng Changquan as if she were looking down on him.

Sheng Changquan also cooperated by pretending to be arrogant and domineering, simply raising his head high like a crowing rooster, unusually "unruly".

"Hmph, elder sister, am I not as outstanding as Grandmother said?"

"You know, back at the Sun family's place, I barely opened my mouth before that guy immediately admitted defeat and never dared to act arrogantly towards us again!"

"and……"

"..."

Sheng Changquan jokingly recounted his trip to the Sun family, but he added many "legendary" parts that were clearly embellished later, which made Old Madam Sheng laugh heartily.

"Hahaha……"

After playing around for a long time, Grandma Sheng was too tired to continue laughing.

She helplessly wiped away the tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes, and said with a laugh, "You two little monkeys!"

"It's such a waste that she's not a storyteller!"

"Oh dear, Grandma~"

Upon hearing Old Madam Sheng's "scolding," Minglan immediately ran to her side, pouting and saying, "Grandmother~"

How could you speak of your beloved granddaughter like that?

Minglan pouted, looking aggrieved, as if she were angry: "My brother and I just wanted to make you happy for a while, to make you smile more!"

Why are you like this?

"..."

"hehe!"

In Sheng Changquan's eyes, the interaction between Minglan and Grandma Sheng was just the way his older sister and grandmother acted coquettishly. So, he smiled to himself, but hid aside and quietly watched Grandma Sheng coaxing Minglan.

After a long while, once both of them had had their turn to laugh, Old Madam Sheng finally revealed the reason why she had kept Minglan and her brother.

"Quan'er, Ming'er, your father has sent a letter!"

Upon hearing this, the entire room fell silent.

Among them, Sheng Changquan remained calm and composed, his face as still as a deep well, showing no emotion whatsoever, as if he had no feeling whatsoever upon hearing the news.

Minglan, on the other hand, was the opposite!

Upon hearing what Old Madam Sheng said and learning that Sheng Hong had written a letter, her eyes immediately lit up, revealing a hint of longing in her pupils!
That is, children's longing for their father's love!
Once the room had completely quieted down, Old Madam Sheng turned around and spoke to Sheng Changquan first.

"Quan'er, your father already knows that your studies abroad are over, so he wrote a letter specifically asking you to return to the capital so that you can prepare well for this year's provincial examination."

Except for special imperial examinations, the provincial examinations were usually held every three years, but coincidentally, this year there was one.

It is the time when spring and summer are intersecting, and there are still a few months until this year's autumn imperial examination, so there is still time.

"The provincial examination?"

Sheng Changquan suppressed his smile, slowly raised his head, and his expression became much more solemn.

“Grandmother, Father is right. I really should go back to the capital to prepare for the imperial examination!”

"but……"

In fact, Sheng Changquan had already planned to return to the capital to take the imperial examination after returning home. However, before that, he still needed to arrange a marriage for his older sister Minglan so that she wouldn't be delayed.

"But what?"

Grandma Sheng clearly didn't understand Sheng Changquan's worries, so she asked, "Quan'er, what do you want to say?"

"But is there something you're worried about?"

"grandmother!"

Not only Old Madam Sheng, but even Minglan turned her gaze over and stared intently at Sheng Changquan.

In fact, if one were to rank the members of the Sheng family according to their level of interest in Sheng Changquan's imperial examinations, Sheng Changquan himself would undoubtedly be at the top of the list.

Next are Sheng Hong and Sheng Changbai, then Minglan and Old Madam Sheng, followed by Madam Wang and Shulan, and finally Changfeng and others from Linxi Pavilion.

Of course, Sheng Changquan himself is the most concerned about this matter, as he is the person directly involved.

As Sheng Changquan's father, Sheng Hong was determined to revitalize the family and make it a family of scholars and poets like the Hai family. Therefore, he was naturally very concerned about this matter.

Of course, to be precise, he was just as concerned about the imperial examinations of all three of his children, whether it was Sheng Changbai, Sheng Changfeng, or Sheng Changquan, he was almost equally anxious about them.

Sheng Changbai's starting point was similar to Sheng Hong's, but he was more rational.

Compared to Sheng Changfeng, he had higher hopes for his younger brother, Sheng Changquan, believing that he could elevate the entire Sheng family's potential with his talent and achieve even greater glory than his grandfather, Sheng Xu.

As for Minglan, she was somewhat inferior to Sheng Hong and Sheng Changbai. In her eyes, even if Sheng Changquan failed the imperial examination, as long as he was alright, everything was fine.

Although she also hoped that Sheng Changquan could pass the imperial examination with flying colors, thus elevating Wei Xiaoniang's rank and allowing her to be recorded in the Sheng family genealogy, and even become the source of a branch, as Sheng Changquan's older sister, in her heart, her younger brother's life was the most important.

Old Madam Sheng was much more rational than the previous ones, because in her opinion, even if Sheng Changquan did not take the imperial examination, he could still make a name for himself and achieve great things.

After all, she had a clear understanding of Sheng Changquan's martial arts skills.

Therefore, Old Madam Sheng was quite at ease and did not insist that Sheng Changquan must pass the exam.

Of course, passing the exam would be even better.

As for the later Wang Da Niangzi and others, they were just ordinary family members with expectations, which could not be compared with the previous four.

Of course, there is one last person we must mention: Lin Qinshuang of Linxi Pavilion.

She's probably the only one in the entire Sheng family who doesn't want Sheng Changquan to pass the high school entrance exam!
After all, she was extremely afraid that one day Sheng Changquan would find out what she had done back then and settle old scores with her.

However, she was unaware that Sheng Changquan already knew the truth and had even taken action long ago.

"grandmother!"

Sheng Changquan turned his head and looked at Old Madam Sheng in the hall, and said, "Actually, there is still one thing that I can't let go of!"

"Oh?"

"How to say?"

Grandma Sheng gestured for Sheng Changquan to continue.

"Grandmother, what I wanted to say is that my elder sister is not young anymore, so..."

"Then...shouldn't we look for a match for her?"

Sheng Changquan's expression was serious, and his words were indeed sincere; he wasn't joking.

"Or perhaps, does Grandmother have someone in mind for my elder sister to be considered?"

"Have you already made up your mind?"

Sheng Changquan knew that in the entire Sheng family, besides himself, only the old lady would truly care about Minglan. Therefore, he was certain that his grandmother had already considered Minglan's future. Thus, his words at this moment were merely an attempt to get the old lady to reveal something.

At the very least, she should reveal the candidates she has her eye on. Even if she can't reveal everything, she should at least hint at something so that Sheng Changquan can be mentally prepared.

"what?"

Before Old Madam Sheng could even speak after hearing what Sheng Changquan said, Minglan, who was standing to the side, couldn't stand it anymore!

"Ah... Brother!"

"What...what are you saying?"

Although Minglan had discussed this matter with Old Madam Sheng in private, it would be quite awkward for her as the older sister to discuss it in front of her own younger brother at this time.

Therefore, when she heard Sheng Changquan ask this question, Minglan immediately unleashed her fury, raised her fist and charged at Sheng Changquan, wanting to show him her authority as the older sister.

"You brat, I'll teach you a lesson for talking nonsense!"

"I told you not to talk nonsense..."

"..."

"Ha ha!"

Watching Minglan rush past her and give Sheng Changquan a good beating, Old Madam Sheng laughed again.

"Quan'er, you child!"

Grandma Sheng shook her head, but turned to Sheng Changquan, who was "busy" to the side, and said, "Quan'er, don't worry!"

"Of course I care about your sister, so you don't need to worry!"

Grandma Sheng offered some explanations to Sheng Changquan, but did not elaborate, only saying, "As for my choice, there are indeed two."

"However, it's not the final moment yet, so we can't say it now, lest it affect Ming'er."

Many thanks to the generous donations from the experts Flying Wings and Old Bird Flying First!
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(End of this chapter)