Wanjin Lady

Chapter 274 Calculation
"During the banquet, the magistrate's wife met with me alone and specifically inquired about your absence. Upon learning that you had been studying diligently with Master Yao, she praised you highly. She also asked about your birth date and zodiac sign, and summoned Miss Sun to speak with me." The elder lady's eyelids drooped, but a hint of pride and relief could be seen in her usually emotionless eyes. "Do you understand the meaning of this?"

Cheng Yunzhang pursed his lips, his heart beating like a drum, but his mind was working fast.

but--

All that came to my mind was Wenwan's appearance.

Senior Brother Wei said... one point of like, five points of like, ten points of like... different degrees of liking lead to different choices.

So how much does he like Wen Wan?
Is it really necessary to fight against the whole world for her?
But at least he hasn't figured it out yet——

He needs time.

He is now twenty years old and is about to take the imperial examination. Without a reasonable reason, he cannot refuse this marriage.

Seeing her son remain silent, the elder lady couldn't fathom his thoughts, so she laid it all out, "I've seen the eldest daughter of the Sun family. She's beautiful and talented, not to mention innocent and well-behaved. Furthermore... the eldest daughter of the magistrate... is a perfect match for you. Our two families are well-matched, and there's no better match in all of Bozhou City."

"Besides, the cousin of the magistrate's wife... Madam Li is also interested in marrying Yuan Qi. We can become even closer..."

"Mother..." Cheng Yunzhang suppressed his impatience and spoke deliberately slowly, "This marriage is a good one, but I'm about to take the imperial examination, and I just want to focus on my studies. Besides, getting married right now is too hasty. If my son gets married, it will be a newlywed... It will inevitably delay his studies, which is not worth it."

What his mother cares about most is his studies. If he uses his studies as an excuse to refuse, perhaps there is room for improvement.

"That's fine." The elder lady seemed extremely optimistic about the marriage, not knowing whether she understood Cheng Yunzhang's subtle refusal. She smiled, her eyes narrowed into a line, and said, "If you're worried about delaying your studies, then arrange the marriage first. It won't be too late to get married after you win the first place in the imperial examination and have your name inscribed on the Wild Goose Pagoda."

Cheng Yunzhang pursed his lips, his chest rising and falling slightly, and looked at the cup of tea in his mother's hand.

His calm yet unwilling eyes were reflected in the teacup.

"If my son can't get into high school, wouldn't that be a disappointment to the Sun family?"

The elder lady was immediately annoyed. She slammed the table and shouted, "You study harder than anyone else. You are more talented than anyone else. Even if everyone else in the world fails, how could you fail?!"

After a moment, the elder lady's voice calmed down again. "Son, don't say such discouraging words. Go meet that Miss Sun... The young lady from the Tongpan family is well-read and will definitely be able to get along with you."

Cheng Yunzhang's mind was in turmoil. He was already at the age to get married, and there would be many such forced marriages in the future, but he had to get through this hurdle first no matter what.

"Mother, I don't want to get married now. Besides my academic considerations..." Cheng Yunzhang lowered his voice deliberately. "Master Wei has just arrived in Bozhou, and the Bozhou government is already in turmoil. The adults are speculating about why Master Wei suddenly came from Bingzhou to Bozhou. You should know the methods of my senior brother. At such a sensitive time... it is really not right to rashly engage him."

The elder lady's expression changed slightly.

She had naturally heard about the new governor-general in Bozhou Prefecture.

Wei Zheng, Marquis of Huai'an, was in charge of important military and political affairs in the Tianshui Prefecture. The Governor's Office was previously located in Bingzhou, but for some unknown reason it was suddenly moved to Bozhou some time ago. This incident caused a lot of rumors and speculation in Bozhou.

The elder lady frowned, "Isn't it said that... Lord Wei is also a disciple of Lord Yao? So you are his fellow disciple--"

“But… Lord Sun may not be clean…” Cheng Yunzhang’s voice was even lower. “Mother, just watch, there will soon be a major upheaval in the Bozhou officialdom. It might be inappropriate to rashly take sides at this time.” The old lady bit her lower lip, understanding the implication.

Wei Zheng's sudden arrival in Bozhou must be to rectify the officialdom. By then, it is unknown whether Lord Sun can protect himself.

No wonder Miss Sun didn’t discuss marriage earlier or later, but chose to do so at this time!

The elder lady has been active in the business world for many years and has long been keenly aware of the changes in the Bozhou officialdom. However, since the matter involves Cheng Yunzhang's future, the elder lady is naturally unwilling to take any risks.

"You're right! It's better to be still than to move at this time. We must not take sides rashly." Perhaps thinking of her late husband, the elder lady's eyes trembled. "As for Lord Wei...you call him Senior Brother on the surface, but he holds a high position of power and is the Queen's nephew. Our Cheng family is just a merchant family...he might not look down on us."

The elder lady now understood why Cheng Yunzhang chose to leave Bozhou at this moment.

In the midst of this turbulent time, the Yuan and Cheng families must use all their strength to protect Cheng Yunzhang.

"You need to leave Bozhou. The sooner the better."

"As for marriage...when you pass the imperial examination, you can find any girl you want."

"Let's just leave tomorrow. If we delay any longer, it will be even harder to travel in winter."

Cheng Yunzhang held his mother's anxious hand. "Mother, there's no need to be so anxious. It's just that the magistrate's wife is determined to marry into my Cheng family. If I refuse directly, I'm afraid she will be angry."

"This..." The elder lady also found it tricky.

During the banquet today, the wife of the magistrate asked Cheng Yunzhang if he was engaged. At that time, I was very confident in what I said, and my words also revealed my intention to make friends with him. Now that I have suddenly changed my mind, the wife of the magistrate will definitely be suspicious.

The two families failed to get married and became enemies, which backfired.

If Cheng Yunzhang decided to go to Kyoto, the other party would certainly suspect that Cheng Yunzhang looked down on the Sun family and wanted to go to Kyoto to find the more capable Yue family.

How to politely decline the kindness of a superior is a profound art.

Madam Yuan was not one to hesitate, and she made a decision immediately. "You go to Kyoto first, and I'll talk to Madam Sun about it later."

Cheng Yunzhang's restless heart finally calmed down.

As long as he could get his mother to temporarily give up the idea of ​​finding a partner for him, everything would still be possible.

"Mother, there's one more thing..." Cheng Yunzhang pondered for a moment, glancing at Madam Yuan's expression from the corner of his eye before he began calmly, "This trip to Kyoto requires a lot of connections. If my son passes the imperial examination, I'll need to go to the Ministry of Revenue to get him a good position in the capital. What I mean is... choose a capable person from my clan to accompany me to the capital."

The elder lady nodded repeatedly as she listened. "This is a big deal... Who do you have in mind?"

Cheng Yunzhang was silent for a moment, thinking it over. "It's not right for a son to speak ill of his elders, but honestly, all three of my uncles are unreliable. Among the younger generation, the only one who is reliable and thoughtful is my cousin Yuanqi from the third branch."

"Unreliable?" The elder lady sneered. She knew her three younger brothers' morals very well. "Your eldest uncle is greedy and lustful, your second uncle is impulsive, and your third uncle is a fool. If I hadn't been holding on to it all these years, this winery would have fallen apart long ago! Don't count on your three uncles for our family's affairs, but—"