NCCnovel Chapter 170 The exam is over
Chapter 170 The exam is over
The three chatted and laughed all the way, and soon arrived at the lotus garden.
The lotus flowers in the pond stand tall and graceful. A gentle breeze carries their fragrance, and the lotus leaves spread out in layers.
Yu Wan took a deep breath and couldn't help but sigh softly, "It's still more comfortable staying here."
Sitting in the main hall, all I could hear was Li Moqing babbling on and on.
Wan Yuru nodded reservedly in agreement, while Xie Jingyao said directly, "My mother's mouth is really annoying."
Perhaps they were truly related, for the three of them got along exceptionally well.
Wan Yuru spoke less; it was mostly Yu Wan and Xie Jingyao who were chatting casually.
Xie Jingyao seemed to have thought of something and suddenly became lost in thought.
Yu Wan waved her hand in front of him, "What are you thinking about?"
Xie Jingyao took a deep breath and looked at Yu Wan seriously. "Cousin Wan, what do you think of the marriage that Aunt Qing mentioned earlier?"
Yu Wan was slightly taken aback, then smiled and asked, "Why do you suddenly ask that?"
Xie Jingyao scratched his head, seemingly lost in thought, and said, "My cousin only just arrived in Kyoto and doesn't know much about the people here. Aunt Qing wasn't exaggerating this time; Xie Guanqing is indeed a remarkable person, but..."
He hesitated.
Wan Yuru asked curiously, "But what?"
Xie Jingyao frowned: "I just always feel that he is a bit too perfect, which makes him seem unreal."
Yu Wan raised an eyebrow: "Oh? Why would Cousin Jingyao have such a feeling?"
Xie Jingyao scratched his head: "I can't really explain it, it's just a gut feeling. Besides, it's really strange that the Marquis of Kangping's mansion is in such a hurry to help him remarry so soon after the Princess of Huian passed away."
Wan Yuru said softly, "Indeed, according to the customs of our Great Zhao, one should wait at least half a year after the death of one's first wife before considering remarriage. However, Princess Huian has been dead for less than half a year. Even out of respect for the Prince Ying's Mansion, the Marquis Kangping's Mansion should not be in such a hurry."
Xie Jingyao pondered for a moment, as if she had thought of something, "Cousin, I suddenly remembered that I once saw Xie Guanqing at Wulan Pavilion."
Wulan Pavilion?
Yu Wan felt that the name sounded familiar.
Wan Yuru rested her hand on the stone table, propped her chin on her hand, and asked softly, "What kind of place is Wulan Pavilion?"
Xie Jingyao was surprised that neither of her two cousins knew about Wulan Pavilion. Her face flushed, she stammered for a long time before finally managing to say, "It's a place to find male prostitutes..."
A flash of white light seemed to pass through Yu Wan's mind, and those blurry memories became clear.
She remembered! Xie Guanqing! Wulan Pavilion! She wondered why it felt so strangely familiar!
Isn't Xie Guanqing the guy in the original story who almost mistook the female lead for a man and did *that* to her?!
It took Wan Yuru a while to realize where she was. Her face turned pale and then red, and she said in embarrassment and anger, "Why would he go to a place like that?"
Xie Jingyao shook his head: "Then I don't know."
“I ran into him once and asked him about it. He said he was going inside to find a friend.” Xie Jingyao frowned. “But that place… what kind of friend would he have in a place like that?”
He looked at Yu Wan and said, "Cousin, I think Auntie is interested in you, so I'm telling you about this. If Auntie and the others really want you to divorce and remarry, you must make them investigate thoroughly."
Seeing the worry on his face, Yu Wan thought to herself that men really do understand men.
In a sense, Xie Guanqing did not lie.
How can friends who sleep together not be considered friends?
She was now remembering the plot of the original novel.
In the original novel, Wang Wanshu was tricked into going to a brothel by Yu Wan. However, the female lead, disguised as a man, was so attractive that she caught the eye of the brothel madam, who drugged her and sent her to Wulan Pavilion.
Coincidentally, Xie Guanqing went to Wulan Pavilion for fun that day and fell in love at first sight with Wang Wanshu, who was dressed as a woman. He spent a lot of money to buy her virginity.
After the drug wore off, Wang Wanshu found herself in a room with a strange man. As she struggled, her hair came loose, and Xie Guanqing realized that she was actually a woman. He was so shocked that he immediately lost his erection.
The male lead, Yun Shang, arrives at the crucial moment, and Xie Guanqing's fondness for men is finally exposed.
Everyone outside thought that his first wife had died of illness, but in fact, it was Princess Huian of the Ying Prince's Mansion who discovered after marriage that her husband had no reaction to women and instead spent his days mingling with men.
Born into a prominent family and with a simple and innocent nature, she could not accept such a sordid affair and became ill from anger.
Most importantly, everyone thought Xie Guanqing was a rare and excellent son-in-law. Even when she went back to her parents' home to complain, her family comforted her, saying that she was overthinking things.
Lacking support from her family and long being neglected, Princess Huian became depressed and her health gradually deteriorated. She did not survive the winter and passed away at the age of less than twenty-two.
The fact that Lady Pingyang was in such a hurry to promote her nephew meant she must have received some kind of benefit from it.
Yu Wan snapped out of her thoughts and smiled faintly at Xie Jingyao and Wan Yuru, "Don't worry, I have no plans to divorce for the time being."
……
The Li family stayed overnight at the Duke's mansion and had dinner together. The Duchess of Anguo then called Yu Wan to the flower hall for a private talk.
"Wan'er." She took Yu Wan's hand affectionately, her face full of smiles. "Your Aunt Qing mentioned Xie Guanqing today, would you like to meet him?"
Yu Wan refused without hesitation, "Mother, I am already married. You yourself said before that there is no reason to divorce without cause."
Seeing that there was no room for negotiation in her words, the Duchess of Anguo gave up and said, "Never mind."
"Then I will explain it to your Aunt Qing tomorrow."
Seeing that the Duchess of Anguo's attitude was not particularly tough, Yu Wan swallowed back the words that were about to come out.
As long as Lady Pingyang stops causing trouble, she and Xie Guanqing will have absolutely no connection and may never cross paths again, so it's best to stay out of it.
During the three days of the imperial examination, Yu Wan was taken by the Duchess of Anguo to meet various relatives of the Duke's mansion. Over the three days, Yu Wan met nearly a hundred people, but she could only remember about a dozen of them.
The imperial examinations ended at 5 PM on June 16th, and candidates emerged from the examination hall one after another.
Most of the scions of noble families walked in groups of two or three, and the students from poor families also huddled together, but Yun Shang walked out alone.
It wasn't because he was unsociable, but because the young nobles saw that he had an extraordinary demeanor, but had never heard of him in Shengjing, so they didn't take the initiative to befriend him.
The students from poor families felt that the contrast between them and him was too obvious, making them look like his servants, and none of them dared to approach Yun Shang.
This led to Yu Wan, who was waiting outside the examination hall, seeing Yun Shang walk out alone.
Everyone else was in groups of three or five, but he was all alone, which looked both sad and funny.
Yu Wan couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Not far away, Yun Shang seemed to sense something and suddenly looked up.