The clingy concubine ran away, and the sickly prince lost control.

Luo Chengyong hasn't seen his ranking yet. He was very lucky in this autumn examination; he found that the essay he bought, after some modifications, perfectly met the requirements of the exam.

Fortunately, he was angry that day and didn't believe there was anything profound about it. He read the article he bought several times and ended up remembering the gist of it.

How lucky! Since the Master approves of that article, it's sure to be on the list.

"Brother, your name isn't on the list." Luo Haitang had already carefully looked at the list three times.

"How could that be? I must be involved," Luo Chengyong said angrily.

"Son! Let's not talk about this here." Sun and Luo Haitang pulled Luo Chengyong back.

Luo Qingyan wasn't surprised that Luo Chengyong had failed the exam. She quickly squeezed into the crowd to avoid being seen by the Sun family. Out of sight, out of mind; she no longer cared about that family.

"Qingyan!"

As Luo Qingyan walked, she heard Sun Shi's voice behind her. That shrill voice, which had once stabbed her a thousand times, seemed to hover above her head again, piercing down.

Despite the noise, Luo Qingyan pretended not to hear and walked straight ahead.

"Second Sister." Luo Chengyong pushed aside the person next to him, almost knocking them over, and stood in front of Luo Qingyan.

"What are you doing?" the man shouted angrily, shoving Luo Chengyong back.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Mrs. Sun said with a smile, apologizing repeatedly.

"Younger brother? I'm just passing by; I'm in a hurry to get to Kangning Pavilion."

Luo Qingyan is leaving.

"Qingyan, we are really not worthy of your respect now. They don't even put me, their mother, in their eyes."

Sun said sarcastically, "With so many people watching, let's see if Luo Qingyan dares to refute me."

Since returning, she had heard from Luo Haitang that Luo Qingyan dared to argue with anyone.

"Mother, you've been punished to do labor on the pleasure boat, and it's inconvenient for me to visit you. Are you blaming me?"

Luo Qingyan looked down and then up, her expression full of grievance.

"What nonsense are you spouting?" Madam Sun's anger flared up instantly.

That brat dares to bring up forced labor.

"Mother, I told you! My sister is completely different from usual." Luo Haitang chimed in beside Madam Sun.

A strange man walked by and glanced at Sun:

"Ah, I remember you. You're the woman who was punished by the Jingzhao Prefecture to do hard labor, just like my good-for-nothing wife. In the capital, you don't see many women being punished for committing crimes and being sent to hard labor in a year. You and my wife are the only ones who are punished like that."

The man gave a helpless thumbs-up.

On the day of Sun's verdict, he looked at it carefully and was absolutely certain that he would not admit any mistake.

People passing by while looking at the list gradually gathered around.

"Then you can't blame your daughter for not visiting you."

"I think it's better to sever ties with the family, so as not to damage the daughter's reputation."

"I was wrong before. My daughter is still young, and sometimes I have to say a few words," Mrs. Sun said with a forced smile. "I'm sorry!"

Madam Sun tried to pull Luo Qingyan to a less crowded place, but Luo Qingyan avoided her, asking, "Mother, did you need something from me?"

"Nothing, I just missed you. You haven't come to see me in so long. I saw you here today, so please come home and have a get-together."

Madam Sun smiled deeply. If Luo Qingyan dared to disobey her in public, it would be a great act of filial impiety and a disgrace to the Duke's Mansion.

"Little sister, I miss you too." Luo Haitang smiled smugly. Her mother was truly formidable; the word "filial piety" had completely crushed Luo Qingyan.

Luo Qingyan feigned fear and stepped back: "Mother, sister, you mustn't."

Everyone was puzzled. Why? But since they were family, they compromised and let it go.

"Mother, I remember you were sentenced to a year of military service, it's only been a little over three months, why are you suddenly back? What if you get caught..."

Those who were paid to perform labor service would temporarily stay at home and not come out.

The mother, on the other hand, paraded around in public.

They went to cause trouble when Kangning Pavilion opened. They even went so far as to look at the rankings without trying to be discreet, relentlessly targeting her.

Luo Qingyan looked troubled at everyone; it wasn't that she didn't want to go back.

"Me." Mrs. Sun choked.

"You must have paid money!" The same man shouted. He didn't have any money to get his wife out early, so she should be punished for longer. He was furious that she had secretly married her daughter off to an old man.

"So that's how it is." The onlookers pointed and whispered.

"Let's hurry up and leave, lest the authorities come and arrest us."

"It's better to avoid trouble. Didn't you see it? Let's go, let's go."

"Girl, you should leave quickly too. She's your mother, don't get implicated. You'd better hurry, just pretend you didn't see anything."

An old woman pulled Luo Qingyan away.

Luo Qingyan followed suit.

"Thank you, Grandma."

"You're welcome. Don't let my age fool you, my eyes are sharp. I can tell what's going on right away. Is your whole family ganging up on you?"

The old woman, her face full of wrinkles, straightened her bent back and looked at Luo Qingyan with loving kindness and sympathy.

"Sigh, Mother-in-law won't say anything more." Luo Qingyan swallowed her tears, her voice trembling with sobs. It was obvious to everyone that she had been trying to please the whole family for so many years without realizing it, always feeling that she hadn't done something right. Only now did she see the truth.

"Where is Luo Qingyan?" Sun was blocked by people coming and going to see the list, and Luo Qingyan disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"Mother, let's go back!" Luo Haitang was a little scared. If it really got to the Jingzhao Prefecture, the crime would be compounded. It was safer to go home and hide as little as possible.

"Let's go! Second Sister just doesn't want to deal with us." Luo Chengyong impatiently led the way.

She, Kangning Pavilion, will not have an easy time either, Luo Chengyong thought to himself, gritting his teeth silently.

After bidding farewell to the old woman, Luo Qingyan regained her cheerful mood. She no longer cared about the people in the Luo family. She found that after letting go, no matter how harsh their words were, she would not feel heartbroken. Instead, she could calmly think of how to deal with them. Just like today, if it were her previous life, she would not dare to expose her mother's shortcomings in public. She would only have endured the grievances.

"La la la, la la la".

Luo Qingyan, carrying the pastries she had bought on the way, returned to Kangning Pavilion. As soon as she entered, she saw Pei Shiyuan with a dark face: "Young Master?"

This is the time when Jing Bufan should be treating his illness!

"I'm so happy! Did you see the rankings?"

Pei Shiyuan's tone was icy.

Luo Qingyan rubbed her nose; the smell was so sour.

"Yes, Your Highness, if you didn't tell me, I could only look at the list. Shen Nanxun is the third-ranked scholar. You should have known that already." Luo Qingyan opened her eyes wide and suddenly leaned close to Pei Shiyuan's face to tease him.

Pei Shiyuan coldly turned his head away: "I am the top scholar."

Luo Qingyan nodded emphatically: "Shen Nanxun is not as good as you; he's only third in the imperial examination."

Instantly, Pei Shiyuan's hostility subsided.

Luo Qingyan scratched her head. Pei Shiyuan was noble and aloof, and had outstanding abilities. She didn't expect him to be so petty when he got jealous, but she found it quite amusing.

Otherwise, being serious and having a stern face all day long would be too boring.

"The day after tomorrow, the Imperial College will hold an archery competition. You and I will go together."

After Pei Shiyuan finished speaking, he rolled his wheelchair into the temporary study in Kangning Pavilion. He didn't believe Shen Nanxun was good at everything, so he would definitely test him in the archery competition.

Luo Qingyan laughed heartily the moment she saw Shen Nanxun, denying it even after she had said it.

Yuan Qing even joined in the nonsense, saying that Luo Qingyan didn't smile, at most she just gave a polite smile.

He acted as if he was the only one in the world who thought Luo Qingyan was smiling.

The day after tomorrow, I will definitely make Shen Nanxun look good.