Chapter 119: Chapter 70 Scandal_2
Thinking of these matters, Pei Yunshu’s expression grew increasingly worried. Seeing this, Pei Yunng sighed and closed the teacup lid, "Sister, why do you always think the worst? Think about it the other way around. Yan Xu has a deep-seated affection for our mother; I am her son. To him, seeing
is like eting an old friend. Maybe on account of the old affection, he might even help ."
Pei Yunshu glared at him, "That was so many years ago. Mother is already married with children. He is still pining for a married woman; do you think this is so storybook? Where in the world is there such a foolishly devoted man?"
Pei Yunng’s gaze paused on the plate of green plums on the table, then he suddenly recalled the lingering sourness within the Palace Front Office for so ti. His eyes and eyebrows slightly stirred, and he tugged at the corner of his lips, "That may not be necessarily true. Perhaps there really are n in this world who fall in love with married won and can’t extricate themselves from their obsession."
"Stop spouting nonsense!" Pei Yunshu said irritably. Then, she paused, looking at Pei Yunng with so suspicion, "What do you an by that? Don’t tell
you’ve fallen for a married woman as well?"
Pei Yunng: "..."
As if she rembered sothing, she leaned closer to Pei Yunng and lowered her voice, "A few days ago when I went to the sumr viewing banquet, a lady told
it seed you had soone in your heart, but no matter how I asked, she refused to tell
who it was. It was so secretive; I thought she was just bluffing ."
She looked at Pei Yunng, her gaze intense, "Ah Ying, tell your sister, have you made a mistake?"
Pei Yunng was silent.
He took a deep breath and looked at Pei Yunshu with a smile, "You believe that narrative?"
"I do believe it," Pei Yunshu answered honestly, "You’ve been popular with the girls since you were young, but these years I’ve never seen you truly take anyone to heart. With your rebellious nature and boldness, if you really liked a married woman, it wouldn’t be impossible. You don’t care about other people’s words, and if you really liked soone, not only would you not feel a shred of sha, but you would probably quite enjoy it. Tell your sister honestly, which lady have you taken a fancy to?"
Pei Yunng: "..."
He said, "There’s no such thing."
"Really? There’s nothing?"
"Nothing."
Pei Yunshu looked at him intently for a while, and seeing his composed manner, not like one who is lying, she finally relaxed and sat back in her own seat sowhat disappointedly muttering, "So, there isn’t soone ..."
Pei Yunng was silent for a mont before speaking, "The Palace Front Office has been quite busy these past few days. I have to go out for a while. Don’t let Fangzi or Qiong Ying leave your side, and if there’s any issue, go to the Palace Marshal’s Mansion to find Deputy Envoy Xiao. He will help you."
He set the teacup down on the table beside him, stood up, and Pei Yunshu asked, "Are you going now?"
He glanced at the hourglass on the table, "The hour is late."
Pei Yunshu nodded and called for Qiong Ying to bring an umbrella while Fangzi helped her escort Pei Yunng to the courtyard entrance.
The rain was not as heavy as when they had arrived, and the misty world seed vast and indistinct.
Pei Yunng stood at the entrance, under the eaves where the dim lantern light mingled with the fine rain. The tall and upright figure of the young man stood against the endless night, resembling a painting from the mundane world hanging at the entrance to Yuxian Tower.
As he was about to leave with his umbrella, sothing occurred to him, and he turned back.
"Right, who was it spouting nonsense at the sumr viewing banquet?"
"The sumr viewing banquet?" Pei Yunshu was montarily taken aback.
Then, coming to her senses, she curved her eyes into a smile and said, "You an the one who told
you had a love interest? Actually, I’m not very acquainted with her. It was a bit strange when she ca up to talk to ."
"It was Lady Dong from Minister of Imperial Treasury’s household."
...
In Shengjing, the night rain drenched the mansions of high officials as well as the hos of common folks by the temple market.
The lights in the Trial Court were brightly lit.
The Examiner Official Fan Zhenglian sat at a table inside, the desk lamp illuminating his face and casting his superfluous fleshy cheeks as though they were coated in a layer of oil. His official robes, now a bit tight, strained against his fra like ropes binding a beast, threatening to burst any mont.
Usually, by this ti, he would have already finished his duties and gone ho, but tonight he lingered on, the patter of the rain accompanying the opening of the door, as a man walked in from outside, half-drenched by the rain and looking sowhat disheveled.
This was the Court Record Keeper, Qi Chuan.
Qi Chuan delivered a scroll from his arms into Fan Zhenglian’s hands. The scroll was wet, and Fan Zhenglian used his little finger to gingerly lift the scroll, shaking the water from it.
Qi Chuan stood to the side, respectfully starting, "This is the register for this year’s autumn examinations prepared for the Ministry of Rites, for your review, sir."
Fan Zhenglian grunted in response, slowly unfolding the scroll in his hands.
The first of next month marked the autumn examinations, a ti when countless scholars competed. Everyone wanted to rise, but there were only so many spots. With more monks than porridge, naturally, it was ti for everyone to pull out all the stops.
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