Troubled times: Start practicing spiritual practice by taking care of your sister-in-law.

Chapter 642: First meeting with "Guo Xian"

Xiangyang, the main hall in the front yard of the Prince of Wei's palace.

Even though the maid asked them to sit down and wait, saying that the prince would be here soon, Guo Ning and Lin Zhong still looked extremely nervous.

Although Guo Ning had said before that they could just go to the palace to pay their respects to the King of Wei, when they really got there, they were still very nervous, wondering what they should say when they met the King of Wei.

Lin Zhong felt similar to Guo Ning, but Lin Zhong was more excited. He never expected that the King of Wei would really be willing to meet them. You know, when they visited him, they were prepared to be rejected.

"Your Majesty."

As the maid's voice sounded outside the hall, the two who heard the footsteps hurriedly straightened their clothes and stood up straight. As a figure appeared outside the hall, they immediately bowed and saluted: "Greetings, King Wei."

Unexpectedly, the maid who poured tea for them came in first. The maid came in first just to pour tea for Chen Mo. Unexpectedly, she was embarrassed to see this scene. Her face turned red and she whispered, "The prince is behind."

He quickly walked to the hall and poured some hot tea.

Guo Ning and Lin Zhong looked back, both with embarrassed expressions. Just when they were about to ease the tension in their hearts, the host walked in from outside the hall, startling the two of them so much that they saluted again in panic:
"Students Guo Ning/Lin Zhong have met the King of Wei."

The two were so nervous that they couldn't even speak in unison. They looked at each other and wished they could dig a hole and crawl into it.

Chen Mo chuckled when he saw this: "Why are you so nervous? I won't eat anyone. Sit down."

"It's inevitable that students feel a little nervous when seeing the prince up close," said Guo Ning.

".Yes.Yes." Lin Zhong echoed.

"Why, do I look scary and make you nervous?" Chen Mo saw that the two men were about the same age as himself, so he couldn't help but make a joke.

The two were startled, and Guo Ning hurriedly said, "No, it's not scary. Your Highness is dignified, handsome, and a genius. You are not scary at all."

"Your Highness is both talented and handsome, and has an extraordinary talent and style." Lin Zhong said.

"He is a scholar after all, so his flattery sounds better than others." Chen Mo smiled.

"Your Highness, I am speaking the truth and I am not trying to flatter you." Guo Ning was afraid that Chen Mo would have the impression that he was fawning and bootlicking, so he quickly explained.

"Just kidding, stop standing and sit down." Chen Mo walked to the upper seat, sat down, took a sip of tea, and when he saw the two of them sitting down, he asked, "What do you two want to talk to me about?"

"Your Highness has requested the court to restore the imperial examination system and hold it in the four states of Qing, Yu, Lin and Huai. As for us, we should respect him as his disciples." Guo Ning stood up and bowed again to Chen Mo, who was sitting at the top of the table.

Lin Zhong could hardly keep up with Guo Ning's pace. After Guo Ning finished his salute, he stood up and saluted belatedly.

"Become a disciple and serve?" Chen Mo put down his teacup and looked at the two of them.

Lin Zhong bowed and said, "Your Majesty has asked the court to restore the imperial examination system, fulfilling the wishes of scholars all over the world, and has granted me an official position. I should accept this gift from you."

"Although the evil traitors in the court have been eliminated, the country is still in ruins and people's livelihood is declining. This time, I came all the way from the capital and found that bandits are still causing chaos and oppressing the people. If we want to completely quell the situation and bring peace to the world, we have to rely on you." Chen Mo said.

"Your Highness, I will definitely keep your words in mind." Guo Ning and Lin Zhong looked at each other and said solemnly.

Chen Mo looked at Lin Zhong and said, "When we were in the capital, Prime Minister Geng mentioned you to me, and he praised the policy paper you wrote. I hope that after you take office in Lu'an County, you can really do what you wrote on your test paper and don't let me and Prime Minister Geng down."

Hearing this, Lin Zhong seemed to be greatly encouraged. He nodded to Chen Mo and made up his mind that he must achieve some outstanding results after taking office.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Guo Ning bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I will take my leave."

Lin Zhongyi also saluted.

"Wait." Chen Mo stood up, walked down, took out two envelopes from his arms, handed them to the two of them, and said, "You can't accept the gift of the master in vain, so I prepared some principles of being a man and an official for you."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I will take my leave now."

After leaving the palace, Guo Ning and Lin Zhong breathed a sigh of relief. The latter said, "I was so nervous just now, but I didn't expect that the King of Wei is quite kind and not as scary as the rumors say."

"To establish a mind for heaven and earth, to establish a destiny for the people, to carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, and to bring peace to the world for all eternity - this is my lifelong wish, and I hope you will all remember it." Guo Ning had already opened the envelope of the letter from Chen Mo. After reading the contents, he froze in place in a daze. At this moment, he felt that all the hair on his body stood up, and his soul was sublimated.

He turned around and looked towards Prince Wei's Palace. The smiling young man in his mind was like a saint in his eyes.

"Establish a mind for heaven and earth, establish a destiny for the people, carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, and create peace for all generations." The content on Lin Zhong's envelope was the same as Guo Ning's. Although there were not many words on it and they were as light as a feather, in Lin Zhong's heart, each of these words weighed a thousand pounds and he was in awe of Chen Mo.

He turned around and bowed to the Prince of Wei's Mansion, then he bowed to Guo Ning and said, "Brother Guo, I was originally planning to leave tomorrow, but after learning about the prince's long-cherished wish, I felt that I couldn't waste my time. I plan to go back and pack my things and head to Cangzhou. I'll say goodbye to you in advance."

"Take care, Brother Lin." Guo Ning bowed.

Brother Lin left quickly. When Guo Ning returned to prepare for the palace examination, he suddenly saw a carriage stop in front of the gate of the Prince of Wei's mansion. Then a man got off the carriage. Guo Ning raised his eyebrows and asked in surprise, "Dai Tu?!"

……

At home.

When Chen Mo was about to take the compound bow to the backyard and let the girls try it out, someone below came to report that someone else wanted to see him.

When he learned that it was Zhang He, Chen Mo quickly asked someone to come in and went to meet him as soon as possible.

In the hall, just as Zhang He and "Guo Xian" sat down, Chen Mo walked in.

"Greetings, His Majesty/Prince Wei." Zhang He and "Guo Xian" quickly stood up and saluted.

Chen Mo stepped forward and supported Zhang He, saying with a smile, "No need to be polite, no need to be polite, Shui brother, please don't be polite to me, please sit down."

When Zhang He heard Chen Mo calling him by his nickname instead of his name, he couldn't help but feel like crying. Brother Mo really still remembered him and didn't forget him. He felt extremely regretful for the mistake he had made.

After Zhang He sat down, Chen Mo did not speak to him as he did to the others, but instead chatted with Zhang He about his daily life: "How is Shui Ge? Why did you come to Xiangyang?"

Seeing that Chen Mo was still concerned about his recent situation, Zhang Hemo felt extremely honored. He slowly talked about his recent situation and then said, "Your Majesty, let me introduce him to you. His name is Guo Xian. He is the first in the Qingzhou County Examination and the 47th in the Imperial Examination. He is also my son-in-law."

"Oh." Hearing this, Chen Mo's eyes shifted to "Mr. Guo," and then smiled and said, "Mr. Guo, I heard Old Chen mention you. He said that you were the most righteous and filial in your test paper. Now that I see you, it's true that your handwriting is like your personality. You are a handsome man. Brother Shui, you have found a good son-in-law."

Even if Chen Xiu didn't say so, as Zhang He's son-in-law, Chen Mo had to praise him for Zhang He's sake when they met.

Moreover, seeing that this "Guo Xian" had a friendly face, was handsome, and was the 47th Gongshi, his own student, he should also praise him. When Zhang He saw the prince praising "Guo Xian", he also felt proud and his smile became more intense.

"Mr. Guo" immediately showed an appearance of deep fear and stood up, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I am too humbled to accept your praise."

Chen Mo nodded. He had a good first impression of this "Mr. Guo", so he chatted with him for a few more words: "Are you confident about this palace examination?"

"Mr. Guo" glanced at Zhang He next to him and said, "Your Highness, the candidates who came to participate in the palace examination this time are all outstanding, both talented and beautiful. If I say that I am absolutely sure, it would be an underestimation and underestimation of them, but I will definitely do my best to put what I have learned into practice and not let my father-in-law and Your Highness down."

"Well said." Chen Mo looked at "Guo Xian" for a few times. Judging from his calmness at the moment, he was much better than Guo Ning and Lin Zhong before. He then turned his gaze to Zhang He: "Brother Shui came here this time to accompany his son-in-law to participate in the palace examination."

Zhang He nodded and said, "Mr. Guo has made an agreement with Zhu'er that they will get married after the palace examination is over."

As he spoke, Zhang He bowed to Chen Mo and requested, "I hope that Your Majesty can be the witness for the two newlyweds."

"Is your daughter also in Xiangyang?" Chen Mo asked.

Zhang He nodded.

Chen Mo was nostalgic, so after thinking about it, he said, "Okay, I'll personally witness the wedding for you two."

"Thank you, Your Highness." Zhang He and "Mr. Guo" said in unison.

Chen Mo smiled and said, "Although you are Shui Ge'er's son-in-law, the imperial examination requires fairness. I will not give you any convenience at that time."

Afterwards, Chen Mo started chatting with Zhang He about family matters.

Zhang He was the one who followed him from the very beginning and they were from the same village. He also knew some things that others didn't know. Chen Mo had a deep friendship with him. Now that they hadn't seen each other for a long time, chatting with him reminded Chen Mo of the past.

After chatting with Zhang He, it was getting dark, so Chen Mo took the initiative to ask him to stay for dinner.

Although Zhang He also wanted to, there were many female relatives in the palace, and it was not convenient for him to bring his son-in-law with him, so he declined.

Chen Mo did not persuade her any further and said, "Brother Shui, come to the palace more often if you have nothing to do."

……

At dinner time, all the women except Yang Qingqing and Yue Ruyan who was in Beijing were present. Chen Mo frowned slightly, thinking that he would have to sleep with Song Min and Xiao Ya tonight. In order not to spoil his mood, Chen Mo still didn't say anything.

Han Anniang picked up a piece of meat for Chen Mo and said, "Erlang, I heard that Shui Ge'er is here today?"

As Chen Mo's sister-in-law, Han Anniang had a deep impression of this old man who had followed Chen Mo for a long time.

"Sister An, is the Shui Ge'er you are talking about Zhang He?" Xiaolu said.

"Zhang He? The one who followed your husband from the very beginning?" Wu Mi said. When they mentioned Shui Ge'er, all the girls were unfamiliar with him, but when they heard the name Zhang He, they all had some impression of him. After all, he was the first person to follow Chen Mo. Based on this relationship, as long as Zhang He didn't make any big mistakes in the future, he would be indispensable for wealth and glory.

"It's Zhang He." Han Anniang said.

"Hasn't he been staying in Pingting County all the time? Has he also moved to Xiangyang?" Xiaolu said.

"Accompany his son-in-law to Xiangyang to take part in the palace examination?" Chen Mo said.

"Son-in-law?" Han Anniang was slightly surprised: "Where did Shui Ge'er get his daughter?"

"He brought a concubine to the Zhang family. The two newlyweds plan to get married after the palace examination. I promised Shui Ge'er that I would be the witness for them then." Chen Mo said with a smile.

Han Anniang nodded and said nothing more. The reason she mentioned Zhang He was only because he was an old man around Chen Mo and they were from the same village, so she just chatted casually.

"When I heard Sister An mention Zhang He, I suddenly remembered something. My father told me some time ago that my uncles had taken a fancy to this year's champion and wanted him to be their grandson-in-law, but he didn't expect to be rejected." Xiaolu said.

When these words were spoken, all the girls were a little surprised, because because of Yi Shiyan, the Yi family is no longer the small family in Pingting County. There are actually people who can refuse the Yi family's solicitation.

"Oh" Chen Mo raised his eyebrows. It was the first time he heard of this. At the same time, he thought highly of Guo Ning.

He didn't want these disciples who were given high hopes to be taken away by his in-laws.

"Brother Mo, Sister Mi, I'm full, I'll go downstairs first." Song Min didn't listen to anything Chen Mo and the others talked about at the dinner table. She was now completely focused on sleeping together tonight. After simply filling her stomach, she planned to go downstairs to prepare.

As soon as these words came out, the girls laughed. Xiaolu even joked, "Husband, please be more compassionate to Min'er tonight."

Song Min was shy, and when she heard the joke, she ran away with her face flushed without waiting for Chen Mo and Wu Mi to reply.

As soon as Song Min left, the girls immediately turned their eyes to Xiao Ya and asked with a smile, "Xiao Ya, are you full?"

"Stop making trouble, Miss Nalan is watching us." Wu Mi said.

Nalan Yiren: "..."

No one had noticed her in the first place, and after this was mentioned, Nalan Yiren naturally felt embarrassed to continue eating, so she found an excuse to leave.

Xiao Ya's face naturally turned red as well. She looked at Chen Mo shyly and timidly, then ran away.

……

After dinner, Chen Mo did not go to Song Min or Xiao Ya's room immediately. Instead, he took a bath and changed into a white brocade robe made by Wu Mi himself under the service of Wu Mi.

"Not bad, it fits me well." Chen Mo stood in front of a huge bronze mirror and turned around.

"Don't move." Wu Mi tied a jade belt on Chen Mo and said softly.

Chen Mo had already moved closer, put his arms around the beautiful woman's shoulders, moved close to her rosy lips, and kissed those two soft lips.

Wu Mi did not resist, and climbed over Chen Mo's back with her slender hands, her cheeks flushed.

It was not until Chen Mo took a step further that she pushed him away: "Okay, stop making trouble. The two sisters must be waiting anxiously."

(End of this chapter)