Farmer girl swaps husbands: buys a sickly villain and pampers him

Chapter 184 Drive away
As soon as Zhou Wangshu entered the lecture hall, he noticed that something was wrong and looked at Zhong Chushan and Chen Buyu behind him with a puzzled expression.

Zhong Chushan leaned closer and whispered, "The headmaster called Xiao Ci over and gave him a good scolding. Many people heard it. Xiao Ci was furious and said he wouldn't come to the academy anymore. He should be packing his things in his dormitory right now!"

"Brother Jiang, this Xiao Ci is truly arrogant. He's actually stopped coming to the academy altogether. With his ranking, he's not even as good as Zhong Chushan or Chen Buyu. Did you really think the headmaster and the teacher would try to keep him? But Brother Jiang, your family has to support two students. If he passes the exam and you don't, won't you be at his mercy from now on? He's married your sister now, so he's no longer your servant, he's family. Your mother's earnings will probably be spent on him. You'd better be careful, or you might get robbed of your family fortune." A student was trying to seduce Jiang Yihui.

Jiang Yihui scoffed: "I am the one with the surname Jiang. Even if he becomes a son-in-law, can he surpass me? My mother despises him now. How could she possibly hand over the family property to him? To tell you the truth, even if I never pass the imperial examination, it will not be his turn to inherit the family property."

"That's true. You have a son, so what is a son-in-law? Some people, even if they pass the imperial examination and become scholars, can't overcome blood ties. But Brother Zhou, you're different. Your wife has no brothers, so you're the pillar of their family. Besides, everyone says you're a dark horse, hiding your talents usually but shining brightly at crucial moments."

Zhou Wangshu said indifferently, "What am I? Didn't Brother Yang rank twelfth? If we're talking about who's more impressive, it has to be Brother Yang."

Many students from the academy made the list, but the highest-ranking student was a student surnamed Yang from the neighboring Class B. This student was taciturn and didn't have many friends, yet he was the most outstanding this time. It is said that because of his ranking, the academy has waived his tuition fees.

Besides these few people, there were about twenty others from the academy who made the list. This is why everyone was mocking Xiao Yanci. Before, everyone praised him, thinking he could really excel in the exam, but it turned out that those who fawned over him did even better. Such a huge discrepancy, no wonder so many people didn't take him seriously.

"Brother Zhong, Brother Chen, we are very curious. Your studies were indeed barely passable before, so how did you perform so well this time?"

Everyone looked at Zhong Chushan and Chen Buyu.

Zhong Chushan and Chen Buyu exchanged a glance, their gazes lingering on Zhou Wangshu in front of them.

The grueling training before the imperial examination had left a psychological scar on the brothers. They had never believed they could actually succeed. When Zhou Wangshu forced them to study, they simply felt that he was their sworn brother, and even if they had to kneel to complete the tasks he assigned, they couldn't betray his good intentions. They thought that once the exam was over and the results came out, he would understand that they were indeed not cut out for it, and that would be a complete relief. Now that the results were out, the real ordeal had only just begun.

Yesterday, their families all told them similar things: listen to Zhou Wangshu, do whatever he tells you to do, or his legs will be broken.

"Before our scientific expedition, we prayed to the Manjushri Bodhisattva at Lingyin Temple," Zhong Chushan said. "We heard that the Manjushri Bodhisattva there is very efficacious. Now it seems to be true. When we have time, we will go to Lingyin Temple to fulfill our vow."

"No wonder. Oh dear, I should have asked for help too. I did want to go before, but I wasn't feeling well at the time, so I couldn't."

The others were also extremely frustrated.

Zhong Chushan and Chen Buyu exchanged a glance.

These people would rather believe that they prayed to the Bodhisattva than believe that their talents were indeed superior to theirs.

The first thing the teachers did in class was to announce that Xiao Yanci was no longer a student of the academy. He instructed the students not to leak the academy's teaching materials to him, and also not to bring him into the academy. Following this, the teachers praised the students who had made the list, especially mentioning Zhou Wangshu and Zhong Chushan.

Peach Blossom Pavilion. Seeing that there were hardly any customers left, Su Yaoguang prepared to close the shop. Just then, she heard arguing coming from across the street. She stopped and watched for a moment, only to see Jiang Yihui pushing Xiao Yanci out and cursing at him incessantly.

"You, surnamed Xiao, get out of here. You're not welcome here."

"This is my home too, what right do you have to kick me out?" Xiao Yanci said angrily.

"Your home? Hahaha... You're just a slave, using your pretty face and silver tongue to trick my mother into marrying my sister to you, and you still dare to try and usurp my place." Jiang Yihui said disdainfully, "My Jiang family has sons to inherit our wealth, we don't need an outsider like you to covet our family fortune."

"Mother, is that what you think too?" Xiao Yanci looked at Zhong Lanhua.

Zhong Lanhua hesitated for a moment, looked at Jiang Yihui beside her, gritted her teeth and said, "That's right. I have a son, and the family business belongs to him. Others only look for sons-in-law if they don't have sons, but I have a son, so it's not right for you to stay with us. Before, when you and Huan'er had just gotten married, I was willing to give you time to prepare a house, but now that so much time has passed, it's time for you to move out."

Jiang Yihuan had just returned from delivering goods when she saw the argument starting again, so she quickly came to mediate.

"Mother, elder brother, please talk this out. We are family. Don't let others laugh at us."

“Huan’er, you and Xiao Ci have been married for so long, you should move out,” Zhong Lanhua said. “Now that we’ve talked it out today, you two should start preparing!”

"Mom, this is our home! Where are you making us move?" Jiang Yihuan looked at her with disbelief. "If it weren't for me, could this shop even open?"

The investors who opened this shop, the workers who renovated it, and Yang Quan, who was in charge of making the cosmetics—all of these were connected to Jiang Yihuan. More accurately, it was all thanks to Jiang Yihuan's personal charm. Every single detail here was built with the help of her admirers.

Zhong Lanhua didn't spend a single penny or exert any effort, yet she gained the status of a boss's wife and owned such a large business for free, and now they actually want to kick her out. Jiang Yihuan seemed to be meeting Zhong Lanhua for the first time, her eyes filled with disbelief.

She thought her mother was different from other mothers; even if her mother favored her brother, she wouldn't treat her badly. Even if she couldn't have the same status as her brother, she could at least get a share of things.

"What are you saying?" Jiang Yihui said. "Are you saying that my mother and I depend on you and can't do without you? Fine, from now on, you won't be needed for anything in this shop."

Jiang Yihuan was so angry she almost fainted.

Xiao Yanci helped Jiang Yihuan up and asked, "Huan'er, whose name is on the property deed and land deed for this shop?"