By a twist of fate, the illegitimate son of the Marquis's family marries the county princess.

After the Lantern Festival, Wen Zongji's life became regular again. Apart from taking some time each day to serialize the story for Pei Rujing, he spent the rest of his time reading.

As the imperial examination approached, the atmosphere in the Marquis's mansion became tense. The servants walked carefully, afraid of doing something wrong and disturbing the two young masters' studies.

Wen Zongren also had to prepare for the final examination in April. Every day after returning home from the Hanlin Academy, he would go into his study and stay there until late at night.

"Two of bamboo!"

Madam Zhong sighed, "Wen-ge'er said last night before going to bed that he hadn't seen his father in a long time."

Wen Zongren left the mansion early every morning and went straight to his study upon returning. He couldn't even see Wen Ge'er, let alone anything else.

Wen Shuxuan looked at Pei Rujing: "If eldest brother is like this, third brother won't just stay in the study all night, will he?"

A few days ago, Zhao Hongrong, who had recovered from his injuries, came to the Marquis's residence to take Wen Shuxuan back, but Jiang Shi happened to be "sick" that day, and Wen Shuxuan had to stay to take care of her mother, so Zhao Hongrong returned empty-handed.

Before we knew it, it was already February.

The imperial examination will be held on the ninth day of the second lunar month!

It can be said that it is already very close.

Pei Rujing glanced at the cards: "30,000! No, but he comes home very late every night, and doesn't even have time to have breakfast with me."

The two could only talk during breakfast, but now, with the imperial examination approaching, Wen Zongji also eats breakfast in his study, so they can't talk all day long.

Wen Shuyu sat next to Pei Rujing, ready to step in at any moment: "Third sister-in-law, Third brother studies until very late every day, can his body handle it?"

Pei Rujing glanced at her, after all, she was her own sister: "Don't worry. After drinking medicinal soups for several months, he's perfectly healthy now."

Madam Zhong smiled and said, "Second sister, don't worry. The county princess knows best whether third brother is well or not."

Upon hearing this, both Jiang and Wen Shuxuan laughed.

Married women often speak with a hint of sarcasm.

Wen Shuyu is not married yet and doesn't understand much.

Although Pei Rujing and Wen Zongji had not yet consummated their marriage, they were only one step away from taking it to the next level; those who needed to know, knew.

After laughing, Jiang reminded him, "It's good to nourish the body, but you shouldn't overdo it."

Pei Rujing nodded: "We stopped the medicinal diet half a month ago, and the amount of tonic soup has also been reduced."

An old house where a treasure.

With Granny Feng around, Wen Zongji was naturally not in danger of overdoing it.

Madam Zhong smiled and said, "It's all thanks to the county princess for managing Yunguang Academy so well that my third brother can study in peace."

Pei Rujing accepted it calmly: "If he doesn't do well on the exam, I won't let him off the hook."

Wen Shuxuan offered Wen Zongji some advice in advance: "After all, this is Third Brother's first time taking the exam. It would be great if he could pass, but if he's unlucky and fails, he can just take it again. Third Brother is still young."

Pei Rujing looked at her and said, "Younger sister, you certainly know how to talk, but your husband has always been lucky."

Wen Shuxuan meant well, but Pei Rujing didn't like hearing others say discouraging things.

Madam Zhong laughed and said, "Third brother is lucky; everyone in the capital knows that."

After all, he was unlucky and couldn't marry Princess Anhe.

Madam Jiang said, "The provincial examination is better than the metropolitan examination. You don't have to stay in the examination room until the end of the exam. After each exam, you can go back to your residence to rest and have a good night's rest, which will help you better prepare for the next exam."

Madam Zhong also said, "It is indeed very important whether he can get enough rest. I heard my husband say before that when he was taking the imperial examination, he was not far from the outhouse and could always smell the stench during the exam. Fortunately, he can return to the mansion once every three days, giving him some time to recover."

Wen Zongren was, after all, a pampered young master who had never experienced eating and sleeping while smelling foul odors before.

Pei Rujing was taken aback: "Big brother is that unlucky?"

Jiang said, "The eldest is lucky; he's not too close to the outhouse. Those candidates who live right next to the outhouse are the really unlucky ones."

Pei Rujing couldn't help but imagine Wen Zongji answering questions next to the outhouse, and a chill ran down her spine.

terrible!

Hopefully, Wen Zongji's good luck will protect him from being assigned to the outhouse.

Seeing Pei Rujing's unusual expression, Wen Shuxuan took the initiative to change the subject: "Recently, Third Sister-in-law's mahjong club has become quite famous in the capital. Many women want to join your club."

Pei Rujing naturally knew about this: "Zuo San is a capable person. She's the one who brought in Madam Wu and Aunt Wei, among others."

Mrs. Zhong asked curiously, "Does Mrs. Wu and the others also attend the society's gatherings?"

Those are all wives of high-ranking officials and important ministers.

Pei Rujing shook her head: "Of course not, they will send out invitations to other people to come to the mansion."

To put it bluntly, Madam Wu and others joining the mahjong club was just a formality; they couldn't possibly actually attend any of the club's gatherings.

Even Pei Rujing did not attend every club gathering.

However, the reputation of Madam Wu and others was indeed useful. A month after the New Year, the mahjong club attracted many people to join, all of whom were quite good at playing mahjong, and the club grew significantly.

When the mahjong club was first established, everyone thought it was just a game, and no one expected it to turn out this way.

Wen Shuxuan said, "I've met Miss Zuo a few times, but I didn't expect her to manage the mahjong club so well."

Not only Wen Shuxuan didn't expect it, but most people didn't expect it either.

In the eyes of many ladies in the capital, Zuo Mingxuan was just a lively and cheerful girl who liked to have fun, and was incapable of doing anything significant.

Pei Rujing drew a "Nine of Bamboo" tile, a smile spreading across her face. She pushed the tiles in front of her over and said, "I won! She's always so interested in fun things."

Looking up at the sky, Pei Rujing stood up and said, "That's enough for today, I need to go back for lunch."

Wen Shuyu then got up.

Madam Jiang urged, "There are only a few of us, Your Highness, why don't you stay for a meal?"

Pei Rujing shook her head: "No need, my husband promised to have lunch with me today."

After saying that, she turned and left, her steps light and quick, and it was clear to everyone that she was in a good mood.

Madam Zhong remarked, "My third brother and the county princess seem to have a very good relationship."

No one would think the county magistrate was in a good mood because he won the game.

Wen Shuxuan watched Pei Rujing leave and said, "Yes, that was really good."

The world is impermanent.

Her carefully chosen marriage has now turned into a complete mess.

Despite their accidental marriage, Wen Zongji and Pei Rujing lived a very successful life together.

Jiang held Wen Shuxuan's hand and said gently, "The kitchen has prepared your favorite dishes."

Wen Shuxuan turned to look at Madam Jiang and smiled, "Mother, don't worry, I'm fine."

She had long since learned to stop feeling sorry for herself; she still had Rou-jie, and she had to think about Rou-jie's future.

……

Walking out of the main courtyard

Pei Rujing turned to look at Wen Shuyu, who was following her like a shadow: "Are you going to Yunguang Courtyard for lunch?"

Wen Shuyu took a step back and shook her head, saying, "Shuyu won't disturb my sister-in-law and brother."

Pei Rujing nodded in satisfaction: "Good girl."

After saying that, the two parted ways at the main gate of the courtyard, one returning to Yunguang Courtyard and the other to Yucui Pavilion.