The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 397 This nephew is no simpleton

"Don't you want to be a Gu family woman anymore?"

Grandma Gu was furious; she was determined to control her eldest daughter-in-law's life.

Did she think that since the man was dead, he couldn't divorce her?

Just dream.

With the ancestral hall open and witnessed by all the clan members, the two elders could still divorce the madwoman on behalf of their son who was buried underground.

Tong Huaqiong said to Old Madam Gu, "Old Madam, do you want to divorce me? You don't need to divorce me, I can ask to leave myself."

Grandma Gu pounded the bed and cursed, "So that's why you dressed up like that, trying to impress someone! My son hasn't even been dead for three years, and you're already dressed in bright colors and wearing all that makeup, begging for a man. How could I have been so foolish as to let this jinx come knocking on my door?"

Grandma Gu started crying about her eldest son again.

At this point, Gu Youtian stepped in to smooth things over.

“Sister-in-law, what do you mean by 'resigning voluntarily'? Do you know that a widow's only option after leaving her husband's family is to remarry? At your age, how can you expect Da Shu and Jing Zhe to save face if you remarry? Mother and you were just talking in the heat of the moment, and neither of you should take what you said seriously.”

If Tong Huaqiong really leaves the Gu family with her brood of children, Gu Youtian's plan will be completely thwarted.

Gu Youtian then said to Grandma Gu, "It wasn't easy for my sister-in-law to support the family after my brother passed away. As her mother-in-law, you should be understanding of her."

Tong Huaqiong coldly observed everything before her.

Gu Youtian can actually speak human language.

It's because he wants something from her.

"Thank you for your understanding, Second Brother. It's understandable that your parents are saddened to think of your elder brother after they just returned. I have too many things to attend to, so please comfort them, Sister-in-law." Tong Huaqiong didn't even look at Grandpa Gu and Grandma Gu before standing up and instructing Gu Youtian.

"Grandpa and Grandma, we're going back now."

"Grandma, don't be too sad. Being sad will harm your health, and Dad will be upset if he finds out."

Gu Jingzhe, on behalf of the eldest son's descendants, comforted Old Madam Gu.

Tong Huaqiong then led a group of people back.

Grandpa Gu felt a tightness in his chest from anger. He hadn't even had a chance to suggest to Tong Huaqiong that Honglian live with her, and she had already left.

Jia and Gu Ruinian escorted Tong Huaqiong and the others to the door.

"Sister-in-law, is this child from the Da Han family?" Jia suddenly reached out to take Xiao Long's hand at the door.

Xiao Long snorted and refused to be pulled, running to Chen Sufeng's side.

After looking Chen Sufen up and down, Jia said, "You and your son have a good relationship."

Chen Sufeng wasn't stupid; she knew that her second aunt was used to feigning concern while speaking ill of others. So, she held her belly and said, "Xiaolong is a sensible child."

Jia secretly sneered; Chen Sufeng was truly good-natured.

After seeing the people off at the door, Jia returned home, while Gu Ruinian carried the lantern and escorted Tong Huaqiong and the others all the way home.

Gu Ruinian was quite close to Gu Jingzhe.

Gu Ruinian said to Gu Jingzhe, "Brother Jingzhe, I heard you are the best at reading. May I ask you some questions?"

Gu Jingzhe was rather distant and politely declined, saying, "It's late today, I went to bed early." Gu Ruinian persisted, saying, "It doesn't have to be today. I can ask you for help with my studies anytime in the future. I was too young to know how good you were at studying before, and I missed many opportunities to ask you for help."

Gu Jingzhe said, "Your studies are not bad either. You started your studies so late and got the first degree in the imperial examination on your first try. Why do you need to ask me for help?"

Gu Jingzhe genuinely believed that Gu Ruinian's achievement of becoming a child prodigy at such a young age was exceptionally remarkable. He secretly told himself that he didn't even need to look at the entire court; just looking at his own family, he had a cousin who was even more capable than himself.

In the past, Gu Jingzhe would definitely have felt resentful and frustrated. However, after a year of being trained by Tong Huaqiong, Gu Jingzhe was able to face people who were better than him and secretly vowed to work harder so that the second wife could not overshadow his mother.

"My passing the preliminary examination was just a fluke. Brother Jingzhe, the clan chief said the other day that only you and I are scholars in our clan, and we must bring honor to the clan. I plan to go to the private school in town in a while to study hard, and then go to the prefectural city with you in March to take the provincial examination. I hope we can both pass the county-level examination."

Gu Ruinian said this, but in his heart he was full of contempt for Gu Jingzhe and the group of private school students.

How can you ancient people who only know the classics and historical texts compare to a modern top student from a 985 university?

He approached Gu Jingzhe for two reasons. First, his family couldn't afford the books he wanted, and cultivating a good relationship with Gu Jingzhe would allow him to read his books, especially since he was taking the provincial examination next month. Second, he considered this cousin to be the second smartest person in the entire family, and he wanted to recruit him. If he wanted to rise to prominence and make waves in the world, he needed to have a few capable followers.

Furthermore, he always felt that the old lady's thinking was ahead of her time. He wanted to get to know the eldest son's wife better and find out whether she was from a modern society or a native of this world.

“Auspicious Year”.

Gu Ruinian was preoccupied with something, and it took Gu Jingzhe several calls for him to respond.

"Brother Jingzhe, is there anything I can do for you?" Under the moonlight, Gu Ruinian revealed an impeccable smile.

Gu Jingzhe pointed to the front gate and said, "We're home. It's getting late, so I won't keep you any longer. You should go back and rest."

Gu Ruinian originally wanted to follow Gu Jingzhe in for a late-night chat, but Gu Jingzhe immediately chased him away when they reached the door.

He was unhappy inside, but his face remained calm.

Gu Ruinian craned his neck to look inside and said, "Okay, I'll go back first, and I'll come back to ask you for help with my studies later."

Then he bid farewell to Tong Huaqiong, Gu Dahan, and others one by one, and his manners were impeccable.

Tong Huaqiong looked at Gu Ruinian's figure in the moonlight, lost in thought.

In Tong Dajiao's memory, Gu Ruinian was a worthless cannon fodder, unruly since childhood and with no great potential.

Now he can even hold his own against Gu Jingzhe.

In Tong Huaqiong's mind, it was unbelievable that a boy could suddenly become enlightened, study hard, and pass the imperial examination in less than two years.

Is it really that easy to pass the preliminary examination for the lowest level of the imperial examination?

She never underestimates the knowledge of this era.

Could it be that Gu Ruinian was also reborn, or that he came from the same hometown as her?
"Ruinian has changed a lot. I never would have guessed he was such a bookworm."

After entering the main room, Tong Huaqiong sighed.

Her tone was exactly like Tong Dajiao's, a mixture of disbelief and contempt.

Liu Yue'e chimed in, "I've wanted to say this for a long time. If someone like Ruinian could pass the imperial examination, I should have had Dashu take it too. I'm not saying this to be mean, but Ruinian is not as good as Dashu."

Gu Taohua chuckled and said, "In the past, my second aunt, in order to compete with my mother, made Fengnian and Ruinian learn to read and write. One was like a stick, completely clueless, and the other was like a maggot, sitting at the desk for less than an incense stick's time. Is it so easy to become a child prodigy? Even my third brother, whom Master Su said was naturally intelligent, has to practice hard in the coldest and hottest winters and summers for years. And there's Zhaoyang from the Lu family, Zhao Zhao said he also studied hard from childhood. I even suspect that Ruinian got into the child prodigy program by having someone take the exam for him or bribing the examiners."

Gu Jingzhe said calmly, "There are many uncontrollable factors in the examination room, so we can't be sure that Ruinian won't do well."

He was equally puzzled by Gu Ruinian's change.