Father, who is both a heir and a descendant, is still biased; the bound system has gone berserk.

"May I ask where Young Master Mei is from? And which academy did you attend?" someone asked curiously.

Mei Songyao cupped his hands and said, "I am from Yanzhou and study at Jiulu Academy there."

"So this is Jiulu Academy, not bad!" the man complimented with a smile.

The truth is, Jiulu Academy's reputation is too ordinary.

Mei Songyao could naturally see that these sons of powerful and wealthy families in the capital were only offering perfunctory flattery and did not truly believe in the merits of Jiulu Academy.

Despite the difficulty, no one showed any disdain because of Shangguan Fei.

At this moment, Ying Zhuoxiu smiled and said, "There used to be eight great academies in Jiangnan, and Jiulu Academy was one of them. However, due to some turmoil in the previous dynasty, Jiulu Academy became low-key."

He claims to be keeping a low profile, but in reality, he's down on his luck.

Xiao Baoyu smiled and said, "That's right. Although Jiulu Academy's reputation is not as good as before, everyone must have heard of the name of the dean of Jiulu Academy."

Everyone looked at Xiao Baoyu.

Xiao Baoyu smiled and said, "Yan Zhen, Mr. Yan."

Yan Zhen?

Everyone was taken aback.

Suddenly, someone exclaimed in surprise, "Could it be Yan Zhen, the son of the great scholar Yan Daosong?"

"Not bad!" Xiao Baoyu said with a smile.

"I suppose I don't need to introduce who Yan Daru is?" Xiao Baoyu said.

This great scholar Yan Daosong was once a close friend of the imperial tutor Jin Zishi.

However, Yan Daosong had no ambition for officialdom and lived a carefree life in Jiangnan.

Unexpectedly, his son Yan Zhen became the dean of Jiulu Academy; it was their ignorance that led them to this.

Mei Songyao smiled slightly. He could tell that Ying Zhuoxiu and Xiao Baoyu were doing this intentionally to enhance the reputation of his academy.

His smile held a hint of helplessness, but his heart was filled with gratitude.

The sons of powerful and wealthy families were all shrewd and eager to curry favor with Shangguan Fei, as were the people she brought with her.

The man who had asked the question earlier slapped his forehead and said, "I never expected that my question would lead to the involvement of the great scholar Yan. Young Master Mei is truly a man of great talent."

The man offered a stiff compliment, but then cheekily asked, "May I ask who Young Master Mei's teacher is?"

Mei Songyao's lips twitched.

The others also had slightly stiff expressions.

Has this person lost their mind?

Shangguan Fei glanced coolly at the person who had asked the question.

The person asking the question was Qin Hu, son of Qin Qianze, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

Qin Hu was always outspoken, but at this moment, Shangguan Fei really wanted to punch him.

Qin Hu's expression slowly stiffened. He was just curious and loved to ask questions; he absolutely had no intention of provoking or causing trouble!

Mei Songyao lowered his eyes and said in a slightly softer voice, "My master is Yan Daosong."

The air suddenly became quiet.

Everyone stared blankly at Mei Songyao.

Shangguan Fei also looked at Mei Songyao in surprise.

After an unknown amount of time, someone finally broke the silence.

"I'm so you're a student of Master Yan! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

It is Qin Hu.

Everyone then came to their senses and immediately became respectful.

"I never imagined that Young Master Mei was a disciple of the great scholar Yan!"

"I heard that Master Yan never takes on disciples... The only one who can be considered his student is his own son, Yan Zhen."

Everyone was looking at Mei Songyao.

Qin Hu then asked, "All scholars admire the great scholar Yan. I wonder if the great scholar Yan is still in good health?"

"My master passed away four years ago," Mei Songyao said.

"So that's how it is. I was being presumptuous." Qin Hu clasped his hands in apology.

"No worries, everyone dies eventually. My master died of old age and passed away peacefully," Mei Songyao said with a smile.

"Come on, everyone, let's drink." Xiao Baoyu raised his glass with a smile.

The Crown Prince sat in the head seat, gazing at the crowd from afar. It was noisy and crowded, and he couldn't hear what was being said. But Fu'er hadn't looked at him for a long time.

Feeling slightly aggrieved, he ordered someone to pull Feng Yuheng out of the bridal chamber.

It wasn't very late, and the guests were quite tipsy.

Feng Yuheng had gone back to his room earlier because Hai Mujin had been frightened that day, and he was worried about her, so he went in to comfort her.

Now that the Crown Prince has brought him out, he can't avoid being toasted.

He naturally started with the Crown Prince, who was in poor health and rarely drank alcohol, but today he actually drank some fruit wine.

Ying Yufu caught sight of that area and got up to walk over.

After drinking a cup of wine, the prince's cheeks flushed slightly, and he leaned his weight on her.

"Don't you know your own body? And you're still drinking?"

While scolding her, Ying Yufu chuckled to herself, thinking, "This counts as hugging the Crown Prince in public, right?"

She looked soft and harmless, with innocent-looking eyes. Standing beside the Crown Prince, she gave the impression that he was taking advantage of her.

A burst of snickers came from the surrounding area.

Xiao Baoyu and the others finally let Mei Songyao go, and the group walked toward Feng Yuheng with their wine glasses in hand.

"Young Master Feng, congratulations on finding a wonderful wife! May you and your spouse live in harmony, like phoenixes in eternal bliss, and soon have a son!"

"Thank you all, I'll drink this in one gulp!" Feng Yuheng, his face flushed, tilted his head back and drank the wine in his cup in one go.

"We should also take advantage of Prince Feng's honor to offer a toast to His Highness the Crown Prince. His Highness can simply use tea instead of wine."

Several people spoke again.

With the Crown Prince present, they naturally dared not neglect him.

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince smiled, picked up a cup of tea, and drank it with everyone.

"I, Yuan Shuohai, also toast Your Highness!"

Just then, a man walked over carrying a wine glass.

A glint flashed in everyone's eyes. Yuan Shuohai, the son of Yuan Bujin, the current Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was the Minister of Personnel whom His Majesty was preparing for the future Crown Prince.

Unless Yuan Bujin is so foolish as to plot a rebellion, the Yuan family will undoubtedly become powerful ministers in the court in the future.

"Please." The prince continued to serve tea instead of wine.

Yuan Bujin downed the wine in one gulp and said, "Thank you, Your Highness!"

After saying that, he brought over another cup, this time to Feng Yuheng, and said, "Congratulations on your marriage, Young Master Feng! Young Master Feng and Miss Hai are a perfect match, truly enviable to us all."

"Thank you, Young Master Yuan, please." Feng Yuheng also downed his drink in one gulp.

His face flushed, and he was soon dragged away again, where he was forced to drink more alcohol.

Yuan Shuohai quickly integrated into the ranks of the top noble families in the capital. Both sides were eager to make friends, and today was the perfect opportunity.

While things were bustling on one side, on the other side, some of the sons of local officials had a slight change in expression.

"Young Master Yuan, is that your younger brother, Yuan Shuohai?"

Yuan Jingchen's face was gloomy.

He naturally saw Yuan Shuohai.

His hands suddenly clenched into fists, and the veins on his forehead bulged.

On what grounds?

Why is it that, as sons of the same father, Yuan Shuohai can freely mingle among those people, while I can only mingle with the sons of local officials of the fourth or fifth rank?

Yuan Jingchen felt extremely unwilling.

He suppressed the gloom in his eyes and pretended to be calm, saying, "It's him. Even a spoiled brat like him has learned to fawn over people."

The children of several local officials exchanged glances but remained silent.

Given Yuan Bujin's current status and future potential, the Yuan family doesn't need to curry favor with anyone, right?

Is this young master Yuan out of his mind?

Indeed, that's true. Didn't you see that Madam Yuan and Madam Zhou were being approached by a group of noble ladies from the capital?

Even Princess Huaxi took the initiative to speak with her.