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

Afterwards, Gu Taohua said to Tong Huaqiong, "Mother, I didn't expect Manager Sun to accept Master Wen as the head steward so quickly. I thought he would continue to make excuses to refuse."

Tong Huaqiong said, "Don't think of Manager Sun as such a petty person. Since he was able to be selected by He Chao to be the manager, he must be capable. No manager can be perfect. Manager Sun did look down on Master Wen before, but Master Wen showed his skills, and he was willing to put aside his prejudices. Otherwise, how could he have been a manager for more than ten years if he didn't even have this much magnanimity?"

“Peach Blossom, you’ll be the boss in the future, managing a whole bunch of things. You can’t just dismiss someone’s entire being because of differing opinions.”

Gu Taohua listened attentively as her mother gave her another lesson.

On the very day Tong Huaqiong left the prefectural city, Master Wen's joint event unexpectedly took a turn for the better.

Early in the morning, notices were posted at the entrance of the prefectural city and in prominent places throughout the city.

The list was a message delivered quickly from Shengjing.

Lu Zhaoyang achieved first place in the palace examination, meaning he was the top scholar of this year's imperial examination.

The Lu family home was packed with people, and Old Master Lu was spending money lavishly.

Mr. Huang and his wife, who had already left the Lu family and were planning to return to Yanguan Town with Tong Hua and Tao Hua, were so excited upon receiving the news that they turned back.

Tong Huaqiong naturally couldn't go back, so she had to go back to the Lu family to offer her congratulations, since Lu Zhaoyang was Gu Jingzhe's brother-in-law.

Magistrate Liu had returned home the day after Gu Jingzhe and Lu Zhaozhao were engaged, so Han Shi and Tong Huaqiong were riding in the same carriage. At this moment, Han Shi excitedly held Tong Huaqiong's hand and cried.

The entire prefecture was in an uproar; the people of the prefecture were even more excited than the teachers and students of Wanliu Academy.

Wanliu Academy has produced many top scholars in the imperial examinations, but before that, none of the top scholars were originally from Ningcheng; they were all foreign students studying at Wanliu Academy.

Lu Zhaoyang is the first local champion from Ningcheng. How could everyone not be excited?

When Tong Huaqiong, Huang Yuanwai, and others returned to the Lu family's residence, it was already packed with people.

I squeezed my way to the Lu family's door, sweating profusely.

"congratulations."

Tong Huaqiong congratulated Grandpa Lu.

Old Master Lu was so happy that his beard trembled. The butler brought out the lion dance team, the drum team, and the suona team that had been prepared in advance.

As a result, the entire street where the Lu family lived was immersed in a noisy and festive atmosphere.

Prefect Yao, dressed in bright red, rode his horse swiftly to the Lu family residence.

The elated old man Lu began to find Prefect Yao more agreeable. After all, his grandson had gotten married and become the top scholar in the imperial examination, so Prefect Yao and his grandson could only be fellow students.

If Prefect Yao knew what Old Master Lu was thinking, he would be so angry he would vomit blood.

"Manager Tong, you are a great benefactor to my Lu family. If it weren't for you, my Zhaoyang would not even have a life, let alone the glory of being the top scholar today."

After the crowd dispersed, Old Master Lu wept bitterly in front of Tong Huaqiong.

Master Huang knew of Tong Huaqiong's kindness to Lu Zhaoyang, and that Tong Huaqiong had been the matchmaker for his daughter. He thought that without Tong Huaqiong, his daughter might still be unmarried, and he himself would not have felt the excitement of having a top scholar as a son-in-law.

The thought that everyone in Yanguan Town would know he was the top scholar's father-in-law, Master Huang, made him even more excited. His gratitude towards Tong Huaqiong was no less than that towards Old Master Lu.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Master Huang expressed his gratitude to Tong Huaqiong and then began to choke up.

Moved by Old Master Lu's cries, Master Huang couldn't help but go from choking back sobs to weeping uncontrollably.

So, the two of them burst into tears in front of Tong Huaqiong. Tong Huaqiong: "."

Lu Zhaoyang's achievement of becoming the top scholar in the imperial examination signifies that the fate of Lu Zhaoyang and the entire Lu family will be completely reversed.

Grandpa Lu won't have to grieve for his grandson's death, and Lu Zhaozhao won't have to become an orphan.

However, Lu Zhaoyang was about to embark on his official career, and Tong Huaqiong did not know that he would become a treacherous minister like Gu Jingzhe in his previous life, but rather a capable one.

In any case, Lu Zhaoyang's career path may have some impact on the lives of everyone in this dynasty.

As a working woman of this dynasty, and since this matter was closely related to her own life, Tong Huaqiong naturally hoped that he would be a capable minister.

"I wonder if Zhaoyang and his granddaughter-in-law have enough money? I wonder what official position he was appointed to. He must not have enough to live on since he just received his salary. Steward Xu, take ten thousand taels of silver to Shengjing."

"By the way, I'm afraid Zhaoyang will have to stay in Shengjing this time. His current residence is a bit small and doesn't match his status as the top scholar. When I went to Shengjing last time, I heard that the Prince of Ruyang had a residence for sale. It's a five-courtyard house with fresh water from Shengjing, and the scenery is excellent. More importantly, it's very close to the palace, making it convenient for Zhaoyang to go to and from court. Well, Steward Xu, could you give another 20,000 taels of silver to buy the house for Zhaoyang to use for going to and from court?"

After crying for a while, Old Master Lu wiped away his tears and excitedly summoned the steward, instructing him to go to the capital to send money to his grandson to buy a house.

Blinded by his father-in-law's status as a top scholar, the wealthy Mr. Huang also followed suit, wanting to send silver to the capital. Everyone said that the wealth and power of Shengjing were dazzling, and he couldn't let people laugh at his son-in-law for coming from a small place.

“Old Master, the residence of the Prince of Ruyang is not suitable.” Even Prefect Yao shook his head upon hearing this.

"What? My grandson is the top scholar and doesn't deserve to live in that house?" Old Master Lu said to Prefect Yao in an annoyed tone.

Tong Huaqiong advised from the side, "Old Master, Lord Yao's reminder is correct. You just said that Zhaoyang has just entered officialdom and his salary is barely enough to support his family. If you buy the Prince of Ruyang's house and give it to him, how many people will speculate that Zhaoyang is only greedy for wealth and luxury? Moreover, who knows what the relationship is between the Prince of Ruyang and the Emperor? If the Emperor doesn't like him, and Zhaoyang lives in the Prince of Ruyang's house, wouldn't the Emperor think that the top scholar is going against the Emperor? He is the top scholar personally selected by the Emperor, and he must always make the Emperor think that he is on the same side as the Emperor."

If Lu Zhaoyang were to live in the prince's mansion, he would be so glamorous that he would go from a rising star in his career to a shooting star.

Master Huang calmed down and said, "My dear in-law, Manager Tong is right. We can't hold Zhaoyang back at this crucial moment."

After thinking about it, Old Master Lu realized that he had been rash.

As a royal merchant, he always acted cautiously whenever he went to Shengjing. This time, it was indeed his grandson's achievement of becoming the top scholar that made him lose his mind and become delusional.

Old Master Lu said, "Steward Xu, you still need to go to the capital to see how Zhaoyang is doing. Just pretend I never mentioned buying the house."

Butler Xu agreed and went out to prepare.

Just like Tong Huaqiong, the top scholar in the case of Gu Jingzhe, held a grand banquet, Old Master Lu also happily set up a banquet.

After all, he was the top scholar in the imperial examination, a joyous occasion that brought good fortune to the Lu family's ancestral graves, so the banquet couldn't be anything less than extravagant.

They hired the best chef from the city's best restaurant to slaughter cattle and sheep, and Old Master Lu even sent someone to buy a pig from Tong Huaqiong's pig farm in Qinghe Bay.

The banquet lasted for several days.

Tong Huaqiong celebrated for two days, then bid farewell and returned to Qinghewan on the second day.

Everywhere they went, they heard the news that the young master of the Lu family in Ningcheng had become the top scholar in this imperial examination. Whether it was in taverns and teahouses or in the countryside, everyone was talking about the top scholar.

Unfortunately, this is the first time a student from Ningcheng has achieved the top score in the imperial examination.

Even those who didn't know Lu Zhaoyang felt honored.

We look forward to this top scholar bringing tangible benefits to his fellow villagers after entering officialdom. (End of Chapter)