Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 243 Dialogue
The Duke's Mansion of Qi.

"Mother!"

"Mother!"

"Mother……"

After leaving the Sheng residence, Qi Heng suppressed his anger and frustration, trying his best to force himself not to think about the matter along the way. However, it wasn't until the Qi family's caravan returned home that he could no longer hold back and went directly to question his mother, Princess Pingning.

"Mother!"

Qi Heng strode up to Princess Pingning, blocking her path. His eyes were red as he looked at her and demanded, "Mother, why are you breaking your promise?"

"Why are you so determined to separate me from my sixth sister?"

"Can't you be a little more understanding of your son and respect his feelings?"

Even now, Qi Heng remains rational and dares not pressure his mother too much.

Regardless, Qi Heng still respected his mother.

That's something I have to commend.

"To grant your wish?"

Princess Pingning glanced at Qi Heng, who was blocking her way, and her tone turned icy.

"To grant your wish?"

"If I grant your wish, then who will grant mine? Your father's wish? This Duke of Qi's mansion's wish?"

Princess Pingning's not-so-tall figure suddenly became much more terrifying in Qi Heng's eyes.

"Heng'er, you must know that you belong not only to yourself, but also to the entire Duke of Qi's mansion!"

Princess Pingning did not stop talking; instead, she continued to expound on the "reasoning" in her heart.

"Yes, I did break you up with that sixth son of the Sheng family this time, but isn't that also your own fault?"

Princess Pingning knew Qi Heng's temperament, so she didn't intend to reveal her true thoughts—that is, no matter what, unless Minglan's family background changed, she would never agree to this marriage at this time.

Princess Pingning looked at Qi Heng and said something else: "If you pass the imperial examination this time, how could I, as your mother, stop you from finding your own happiness?"

"But, Heng'er!"

"You've failed the exam this time, which means you've already fallen behind others!"

In fact, as long as one can pass the exam, it's never too late. However, Princess Pingning deliberately used this as an excuse to prevent Qi Heng from asking further questions.

"If you don't find something to improve in other areas, how will you catch up with your peers in the future?"

"And how can we revitalize the Qi State Duke's Mansion and the An State Marquis's bloodline?"

Qi Heng was so exhausted by Princess Pingning's words that he failed to notice the problem in her words and simply followed her logic.

"Yes, Mother is right!"

"It's because of my failure this time that my mother did this!"

"The hardships I endured with my sixth sister were all due to my own actions..."

The more Qi Heng thought about it, the more convinced he became that his mother was right!
Frustration, pain, regret—endless negative emotions were all stuck in his heart, making him feel increasingly uncomfortable!
"Heng'er, you should think these things through carefully yourself!"

Princess Pingning felt extremely sorry for Qi Heng seeing him like this, but for his future, she could only harden her heart and pretend not to know anything, letting Qi Heng stand there by himself and think things through.

Even if Qi Heng eventually discovers the problem in Princess Pingning's words and understands the logic behind them, so what?

Anyway, by then it was too late, and no matter how much he regretted it, it was useless!
and so……

"go!"

Princess Pingning took one last look at her distraught son, then gestured to the maids behind her, instructing one of them to stay and look after Qi Heng to prevent him from harming himself. She then led the rest of the maids back to the inner courtyard. There, something else awaited her!

……

He didn't know how much time had passed, but when Qi Heng came to his senses, he found that he had unknowingly walked out of the Qi State Duke's Mansion and arrived at the gate of the Sheng family.

However, perhaps because of his guilty conscience, Qi Heng was not very close to the gate of the Sheng Mansion from where he was at the moment; in fact, the distance could be described as extremely far.

However, although it's quite a long walk, you can still see what's happening on the other side.

"This……"

Under the dark sky, Qi Heng stared blankly as lanterns bearing the character "Sheng" slowly rose into the distance, and were then hung in front of the Sheng family mansion by the servants.

"This...is the Sheng residence?"

"Not bad!"

"This is the Sheng family!"

Just as Qi Heng was feeling somewhat bitter because he had wandered near the Sheng residence, a familiar voice suddenly reached his ears.

"Who?"

Qi Heng quickly turned around, only to find himself facing the person he least wanted to see before, yet now most wanted to see—Sheng Changquan.

"Young Master, what brings you here standing before the Sheng family's gate this time?"

No one knew where Sheng Changquan had come from. He was carrying a food box in one hand and clenching his fist in the other as he strode towards Qi Heng.

"What...what are you going to do?"

At this moment, the little maid who had been following Qi Heng to prevent him from doing anything foolish suddenly ran between Sheng Changquan and Qi Heng and timidly warned, "You...you...don't hurt the young master!"

"me……"

The little maid, who had been saying "I" for a long time, still couldn't finish her sentence in the end.

Instead, it was Qi Heng, who was behind her, who spoke up.

"Chang Quan!"

He pulled aside the little girl in front of him and pleaded, "Changquan, I want to see your sister. Can you help me?"

"help you?"

Although Sheng Changquan did want to beat up Qi Heng before, he came to his senses after being reminded by that little girl.

At this moment, he had neither the right nor the strength to beat Qi Heng.

How could the son of a low-ranking official (a concubine's son) possibly harm the legitimate son of a first-rank duke?
Sheng Changquan released his right hand and slowly walked up to Qi Heng, staring at him with a forced smile and said, "Young Master, you are joking. How could I, the son of a minor official of the fifth rank, possibly help a princess's son like you?"

Sheng Changquan deliberately brought up Princess Pingning, just to make Qi Heng realize one thing—no matter what he wants to do, he can't get around Princess Pingning!
Therefore, whether he sees Minglan or not is not the key to solving the problem.

However, one thing has changed: previously, the key between Qi Heng and Minglan was Princess Pingning.

She's the one who's ruining this marriage!
However, things are different now. In addition to Princess Pingning, there is another obstacle between them: Sheng Changquan.

Sheng Changquan said that it was impossible for the two of them to be together!
"Changquan, you..."

"Young Master, you should just give up!"

Before Qi Heng could even finish speaking, Sheng Changquan said directly, "I will not do anything for you!"

"Don't forget, who really disappointed us today!"

Sheng Changquan stated his position directly and frankly.

(End of this chapter)