Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 283 Sun Zhigao Comes to the Door
The old lady didn't speak immediately; instead, she looked at him with a strange expression.

After a long while, when Sheng Wei felt increasingly uncomfortable, the old lady slowly turned her head and said quietly, "What is it?"

"You...you're regretting it?"

The sound wasn't loud, but the meaning behind it was indescribable.

"Mother? You..."

"What...what did you say?"

Sheng Wei's face turned pale, and he started sweating with anxiety.

"Why? Isn't it?"

The old lady, leaning on her cane, slammed it heavily on the ground and said in a deep voice, "Back then, I didn't agree to this marriage!"

"But it's you two who insist that the Sun family is a good match, and that Scholar Sun is also talented and will surely have a bright future!"

"But what now?"

The old lady sneered, her words like knives, stabbing viciously at Sheng Wei.

"Why are you having second thoughts again?"

"mother……"

Sheng Wei was speechless; he had no words to respond.

After all, what the old lady said was indeed true.

……

Sheng Changquan didn't waste much time. He simply asked Xiao Tao to go back to the West Mansion to retrieve the medicine box he had left at the old house, while he, along with Pinlan and Minglan, took a carriage to Shulan's husband's family, the Sun family.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"..."

Because the carriages at this time were made of wooden wheels and there were no springs to dampen the shocks, and the roads in Youyang City were not as wide and flat as those in Bianliang, it was inevitable that the carriages would sway and make noise when traveling.

"Sister Pinlan, what kind of family is the Sun family? And what are the personalities of the family members like?"

In the carriage, Pinlan and Minglan sat on one side, leaning against each other, appearing extremely intimate, while Sheng Changquan sat on the other side, resting with his eyes closed.

However, since the Sun family might be targeted next, on his way to the Sun family, he deliberately asked a question, trying to learn more about things he didn't know before from Pinlan.

Since Minglan hadn't explained the Sun family's situation to him in detail, Sheng Changquan wanted to learn more from Pinlan.

"The Sun family?"

Upon hearing Sheng Changquan ask this, Pinlan's originally happy expression immediately turned gloomy, and then a look of obvious disgust appeared on her face.

"The Sun family is nothing but a fallen household!"

"Oh?"

Sheng Changquan pretended not to know, and exclaimed in surprise, "Sister Pinlan, what do you mean?"

Pinlan hesitated for a moment, seemingly feeling that it was inappropriate to say certain things. However, she then thought that even if she didn't say it now, it would be difficult to keep it a secret for a long time after Sheng Changquan had been in contact with her.

Therefore, Pinlan only paused slightly before saying directly, "Brother Changquan, I'll be frank with some things!"

"Well, tell me!"

Pinlan glanced at Minglan beside her and curled her lip: "Actually, your sister also knows that the Sun family is a complete scoundrel!"

"Oh, Sister Pinlan!"

Minglan playfully pushed Pinlan, her words carrying a hint of reproach, as if she were criticizing her for using foul language and lacking the decorum expected of a young lady.

"Oh, it's nothing!"

Pinlan shook her head, not taking her family's coarse language seriously at all. She just looked at Sheng Changquan across from her and continued to explain, "Brother Changquan, you don't know!"

"Actually, if the Sun family hadn't married my sister and received my family's dowry, they probably wouldn't even be able to afford a full meal right now!"

"what?"

Sheng Changquan was actually not quite sure about this.

Although he knew the Sun family wasn't very wealthy, he never imagined they would be in such dire straits!
"Didn't they say that the Sun family produced a scholar?"

"How come we can't even get a meal?"

Sheng Changquan was genuinely puzzled: "Couldn't he open a private school or find a landlord to teach students to support his family?"

In this dynasty, although the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the imperial examination at the county level) would bring some privileges, these privileges were more reflected in political status than in monetary benefits.

Of course, the imperial court would pay great attention to the most outstanding scholars, but apart from these people, the rest would not receive any preferential treatment. If they wanted to become rich and powerful, they would have to continue to take the imperial examinations and become successful candidates.

Therefore, when some poor scholars could not receive the stipends from the imperial court, they would often work as tutors in the homes of wealthy people, educating their relatives' children in exchange for their livelihood.

Generally speaking, wealthy and powerful families would treat such tutors with great favor, after all, in addition to the status of the scholar himself, there was also an element of investment involved.

Who knows if one or two of these people will become successful candidates in the imperial examinations? And if they do, the situation will be very different.

"Ah!"

After listening, Pinlan shook her head and sneered!
"It's not that I'm being mean, but that scholar Sun is truly hopeless!"

Although her older sister Shulan had married Sun Zhigao, Pinlan rarely called him brother-in-law, except when they were together.

After all, there was no other way at the time; even if she didn't like it, she had to consider her sister's situation.

However, in private, Pinlan loathed him and had no desire to have anything to do with him.

At this moment, Minglan sat quietly to the side, not saying a word, just listening to Pinlan's constant complaints.

"That Sun Zhigao, to put it nicely, is a scholar, but in reality, he's a complete scoundrel! A scoundrel!"

"He is not only ambitious but incompetent, but also has extremely poor character!"

Pinlan frowned, her face looking extremely pale!
"Speaking of which, Minglan may know what kind of person Sun Zhigao is, but you certainly don't know, Changquan."

Pinlan shifted on the brocade cushions in the carriage, changing her sitting posture, while unconsciously kneading a handkerchief in her hand, seemingly regarding it as her "incompetent brother-in-law"—Sun Zhigao.

As she wrung out the handkerchief in her hand, she said, "Sun Zhigao was quite good at first. He started school at six and passed the county and prefectural examinations smoothly at the age of eleven, becoming a student of the lowest rank."

"Moreover, when he was twelve years old, he had some incredible luck and passed the imperial examination at the county level." Pinlan began to briefly describe Sun Zhigao's life, explaining the specific information about the Sun family to Sheng Changquan.

"However, after Sun Zhi passed the imperial examination and became a Xiucai, he lost all interest in studying. He spent his days either drinking and having fun with a group of cronies or seeking out so-called 'literary masters' to write poems and essays, hoping to make a name for himself!"

"But!"

Pinlan's tone shifted abruptly, starkly exposing the ugly faces of those "literary masters": "Those so-called 'literary masters' are nothing but a bunch of freeloaders and swindlers!"

"He's not some senior figure or renowned expert at all!"

At this point, Pinlan's face also revealed a strong sense of sarcasm, and she said, "These swindlers have actually been known throughout Youyang City for a long time. Everyone else ignores them and treats them as a joke, but Sun Zhigao treats them like treasures and treats them like big shots!"

"Not only were they provided with the best food and wine every day, but they also gave him a lot of money. In fact, if he hadn't squandered his family's fortune, he would still be just an ordinary person!"

"..."

Through Pinlan's narration, Sheng Changquan finally understood the specific situation of the Sun family.

It turns out that the Sun family was quite wealthy in earlier years. Although they were not extremely rich, they were at least able to ensure a comfortable life for the family members and also support Sun Zhigao's education.

If it weren't for the Sun family's good fortune, Sun's mother, Madam Huang, wouldn't have been able to raise Sun Zhigao on her own as a widow, and even support his education and help him pass the imperial examinations to become a scholar.

Speaking of which, when Sun Zhigao passed the imperial examination at the age of twelve and became a scholar, the Sun family's assets were already quite meager, because most of the Sun family's assets were previously land.

Over the years, Sun Zhigao's education has cost a lot. If Sun Huangshi hadn't sold most of the family's land, she would never have been able to afford to send Sun Zhigao to school!

However, after passing the imperial examination and becoming a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the lowest level of the imperial examinations), Sun Zhigao became arrogant and thought he was a great talent with the potential to become a Zhuangyuan (the highest-ranking scholar in the imperial examinations).

No, that's not right!

It should be said that from that time on, Sun Zhigao already believed in his heart that he himself was the future top scholar!

It seems that as soon as the time is right, he can immediately take the autumn examination, then the spring examination, and finally the palace examination. When he opens his eyes, he will be the top scholar personally selected by the emperor!

I don't know how the other person's thought process works, but that's really what he thinks, and he genuinely believes that he is that outstanding.

I don't know if this confidence is innate or gradually developed from hearing praise from others; in any case, it's very "mysterious"!
That being said, it was precisely because of the other party's reckless behavior that the Sun family declined so quickly, squandering all of its remaining assets in just one year.

Therefore, after losing everything they could lose, the Sun family, or rather Sun Zhigao, finally began to face their future.

The reason for saying this is that ever since Sun Zhigao passed the imperial examination and became a scholar, Madam Sun Huang has never cared about him again. She lets him do whatever he wants, allowing him to treat seeking pleasure as "making friends with important people" and being cheated out of food and drink as "gaining fame in the literary world"...

In short, the messy accounts Sun Zhigao made are simply impossible to calculate!

His mother, Madam Sun, didn't care and let him "live freely"!
Just when the Sun family had squandered all their wealth and were about to reach a dead end, the Sheng family sent people to them.

That's right, Shulan's marriage was actually initiated by the Sheng family.

However, out of consideration for Shulan's feelings, Shengwei and his group secretly asked someone to probe the Sun family to see if they had any intention of forming a marriage alliance with the Sheng family.

It was also a matter of chance; if it had been earlier or later, the Sun family might have actually rejected the Sheng family.

After all, if it had happened earlier, the Sun family might not have realized the importance of money, and therefore would certainly have refused to marry into the Sheng family because of the scholars' aloofness.

However, if they waited any longer, the Sun family might become even more greedy, causing the Sheng family to abandon the idea of ​​marriage.

Therefore, at this "just right" time, Sun Zhigao, "forced by life's circumstances," had no choice but to compromise himself and reluctantly marry Sheng Shulan!
It was precisely because of this that the Sun family naturally did not treat Shulan well, so Shulan's marriage was destined to have a bleak ending from the very beginning.

After receiving the money and shops provided by the Sheng family, Sun Zhigao's life returned to its former "carefree" state. He was busy from dawn till dusk, and sometimes he simply stayed in brothels instead of going home.

Therefore, one can imagine what Shulan's life was like in the Sun family.

……

"arrive!"

At the driver's prompting, the three people inside the carriage immediately stepped out one by one.

Sheng Changquan helped Minglan and Pinlan down from the carriage, and when they looked up, they saw an extremely luxurious mansion.

"The Sun residence!"

Looking at the gold plaque in front of him, which had a very postmodern and nouveau riche style, Sheng Changquan had a strange expression on his face.

"Is...is this the only unique taste the Sun family has?"

It's not that gold is bad, but ordinary people simply mix gold leaf into ink to write on plaques, dyeing the characters gold to reflect their elegance and sophistication.

But the plaque belonging to the Sun family was different. Not only were the characters dyed gold, but the outer layer was also dyed gold.

If it weren't for the weight of the gold and the fact that the Sun family had a gatekeeper watching over it, this "golden plaque" would probably have been secretly taken away long ago.

After all, gold has tremendous purchasing power!

"Humph!"

Minglan remained silent, but Pinlan snorted and said, "Brother Changquan, there are even more powerful ones inside!"

She winked at Sheng Changquan, her eyes full of meaning.

After saying that, Pinlan lifted her skirt and called out loudly towards the Sun family's gate.

"elder sister!"

"elder sister……"

……

Dongfu.

"mother!"

Sheng Wei opened his mouth with difficulty and tried to explain, "Back then, Scholar Sun... he... he certainly had reason to be proud!"

"At the age of twelve, he became a scholar, which meant he was definitely the most outstanding person in our Youyang City!"

"Betrothing Shulan to Scholar Sun was truly for Shulan's sake!"

Sheng Wei was not lying about this point.

After all, Shulan was his own daughter, so how could he and Li really want to harm her?
"Ha, what a joke!"

"If that scholar Sun is a good person, then what are you worried about now?"

Fortunately, only the mother and son were in the house, so the old lady didn't give Sheng Wei any face at this moment and directly scolded him angrily: "It's obvious that you regret it!"

(End of this chapter)