Do You Know?: Rule the World

"No wonder my mother and grandmother said she was like a monkey."

Sheng Wei raised his hand and frowned, then said with a stern face, "If you don't behave yourself, I'll send someone to send you back to your hometown in Youyang tomorrow."

"Daddy!" Pinlan stamped her feet in anxiety.

Seeing this, Shulan smiled, and two shallow dimples appeared at the corners of her mouth, making her look even more gentle and lovely.

"Silly girl, Daddy is teasing you."

"I sent someone to Fanlou to buy some cherry pancakes. They should be on their way back now. Do you want to come with me to try some?"

Pinlan's eyes suddenly lit up, and she grabbed Shulan's sleeve again, impatiently running towards the kitchen, "What are you waiting for? Let's go!"

Shu Lan staggered when she was pulled by her. She didn't even bother to greet him. She just turned around and smiled at Zhao Han and Sheng Wei.

Until the figures of the two sisters gradually disappeared at the end of the corridor.

Sheng Wei retracted his gaze and said, "Tomorrow I will send someone to keep an eye on that girl Pinlan, so that she won't sneak over and disturb you while you're studying."

Zhao Han smiled slightly. "Uncle, you're too kind. These two girls of yours, one gentle and virtuous, the other lively and straightforward, are truly interesting."

Sheng Wei sighed softly and whispered, "To be honest, nephew, because Shulan is the eldest daughter in the family, her mother has high hopes for her, so it is inevitable that she is a little strict in her daily discipline."

"As for Pinlan, this girl has been noisy since she was little. Her mother tried to discipline her several times but to no avail, so she just let her temper take its course."

Sheng Wei's words were half true and half false. Shulan's personality when she was young was actually exactly the same as Pinlan's.

Although the eldest branch of the Sheng family is wealthy and has a house full of gold and jade, they are still a merchant family after all. No matter how much money they have, it cannot compare to fame and noble family background.

Sheng Wei's wife, Li, was of poor origin and was a concubine's daughter.

Even though Sheng Wei sent a large amount of money to the second house every year, Wang Ruofu, the legitimate daughter of a prominent family, always looked down on the first house and the Li family. She was polite on the surface, but there was always a sense of condescending distance in her words.

Many years ago, she had given Li a cold look several times, and Li had always remembered it.

She wanted Shulan to marry a scholar so that when her son-in-law became an official in the court, she would no longer have to rely on the Sheng Hong family.

Therefore, she tried every means to restrain Shulan and make her learn the behavior of a lady from a noble family.

Over the years, Shulan has indeed become more dignified, generous, well-behaved and virtuous, but she has also become more submissive and cowardly.

Sheng Wei has always acquiesced to Li's actions, and he also hopes that his family can produce an official.

As for Pinlan, Li did not have too many expectations for her. She just followed her temperament and sent her to the old lady to be raised for a period of time from time to time, which made her lawless.

As a result, Pinlan went to Youyang to fight, fish, and rob bird nests on trees. There was nothing she wouldn't do, just like a tomboy.

After giving a brief explanation, Sheng Wei went to the study, wrote a letter and asked a servant to deliver it to Sheng Mansion in Yangzhou at full speed.

For four or five days in a row, Zhao Han either studied in the study or stretched his muscles in the yard.

Pinlan came secretly several times and begged Zhao Han to teach her archery after he passed the imperial examination.

Looking at her watery almond eyes, Zhao Han couldn't bear to refuse.

At dusk that day, dusk fell and the sky gradually darkened.

Zhao Han sat alone in front of the window, reading carefully a yellowed volume of "Wen Xin Diao Long".

At this time, Chang Qing came trotting in and bowed, saying, "Brother, Gu's Erlang sent Shitou to tell him to take you to a good place. The carriage is already waiting outside the corner gate."

Zhao Han put down the book with a puzzled look in his eyes, went into the inner room to straighten his clothes, and then got into the carriage in the deepening dusk.

The carriage turned around the Imperial Street and stopped at a very bustling and prosperous place in just an incense stick of time.

When I got off the carriage, the first thing that caught my eye was three large gold-plated characters written in a flamboyant style: Guangyuntai!

Several gilded lanterns are hung high on both sides of the vermilion lacquer gate, reflecting the colorful light on the clear stone pavement in front of the gate.

"Mr. Zhao, my brother has been waiting in the elegant pavilion for a long time." Shi Tou said with a smile.

As soon as you step into Guangyuntai, a warm fragrance hits you in the face, and the sound of stringed instruments and the clinking of glasses are heard all around.

The dancers on the stage fluttered their wide sleeves, looking like startled swans and graceful dragons, and received bursts of applause from time to time.

In the elegant room on the second floor, the aroma of agarwood lingers.

When Gu Tingye saw Zhao Han, he hurriedly stood up to greet him and personally poured him a glass of wine.

"Brother Zhao, what you said is true."

"After I returned home and admitted my mistake despite being instigated by others, my father didn't punish me. In the past few days, he has often praised me in front of others for being sensible."

"I never thought my stepmother would actually want to harm me. No wonder she always tried to stop my father from punishing me. But the more she tried to stop him, the harder my father would beat me."

"At first I always thought my father hated me and wanted to beat me to death to clean up the Gu family."

"Now that I think about it, it turns out it was all her invisible instigation."

"Over the years, I've treated her with utmost respect and have never offended her in the slightest."

After Gu Tingye finished speaking, a hint of sadness flashed across his eyes.

He gave a bitter laugh and continued, "When my biological mother, Mrs. Bai, passed away, I was still an infant. When Madam Qin came into the mansion, I was only two years old. In my heart, the importance of this stepmother is no different from that of my biological mother."

As the candlelight flickered, Gu Tingye's voice became hoarse.

Zhao Han's eyes darkened. "Zhong Huai, have you forgotten these eight words? A common man is innocent, but he is guilty of possessing a treasure."

Gu Tingye was not a fool. He frowned and said, "I've been thinking about it for the past few days, and the only reason I can think of is the title of the Marquis."

"My elder brother is in poor health. He has been married for many years and still has only one daughter, Xianjie."

"I'm also a notorious playboy in Bianjing. I'm afraid my stepmother has already figured out who my father will give the title to in the future."

"If it weren't for Brother Zhao, I'm afraid I would still be intoxicated by the gentle paradise she has carefully crafted. Please accept Zhong Huai's greetings!"

After saying that, Gu Tingye suddenly stood up and bowed deeply to Zhao Han solemnly.

Zhao Han quickly raised his hand to help him up, "Fortunately, Marquis Ningyuan still has high hopes for you."

"Now that you have seen through Madam Xiao Qin's tactics, with your talent and intelligence, you will surely achieve great things in the future."

Gu Tingye sighed softly, "Brother Zhao thinks so highly of me? With my current reputation, I can't even marry a girl from a wealthy family, so how can I achieve anything great?"

"Forget it, let's not talk about these things anymore. Let's just wait for Wei Xingtou to show up!"

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Chapter 28 Wulingchun

"Wei Xing Shou is the top star of Guangyuntai. Not only is his appearance stunning, but his talent is even greater than Xie Daoyun's."

"He was still a courtesan, selling his art but not his body. His song Wulingchun was famous throughout the capital."

"The grandson of the Duke of Ling once spent a thousand taels of silver at Guangyuntai, but still failed to win a smile from Wei Xingshou."

"Tsk tsk tsk, this is really interesting. I have never seen such a proud woman."

Gu Tingye shrugged, a playful smile on his lips.

Zhao Han took over the conversation, "So Zhong Huai brought me to see this Wei Xingtou?"

"Brother Zhao, since you're new here, you might not know this. Today is Wei Xingtou's birthday. Anyone who has been to Guangyuntai knows that she loves talented scholars the most."

"Every year on her birthday, Governor Wei Xing would ask everyone to compose a poem. No matter if they were from humble backgrounds or high-ranking officials, as long as the poem caught her eye, they could enter the elegant pavilion and drink with her."

"Last year, a sour scholar composed a good poem, but Wei Xingshou only poured him a glass of wine. I really don't know what kind of poem would win her favor."

Gu Tingye patted Zhao Han's shoulder warmly and said, "Brother Zhao, you are very talented in poetry. Why don't you write another poem today?"

"If I'm lucky enough to catch the eye of Wei Xingtou, I can also take advantage of you, Brother Zhao, and drink and have fun with her!"

Zhao Han had no great interest in Wei Xingshou and was about to decline.

But not far away, there was an elegant pavilion with a pearl curtain lightly lifted and the sound of rings and jewelry jingling.

The laughter in the room suddenly stopped and everyone looked up.

I saw Wei Xingshou wearing a smoky green brocade skirt with floating light. She had a graceful figure, her eyebrows were like distant mountains, and her eyes were like autumn water.

There are only a few exquisite hairpins in the high bun, which makes her hair look simple yet charming.

"Brother Zhao, this is Wei Xingzu, isn't he stunning?"

As he spoke, Gu Tingye's eyes were dull as he stared straight at Wei Xingtou.

Zhao Han nodded and said, "No wonder she has the confidence to sell her art instead of her body even though she is in such a brothel."

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting for a long time." Wei Xingshou's voice was clear and pleasant, slowly floating into everyone's ears.

"Today, as in previous years, those with the greatest poetic talent may enter the elegant pavilion and drink together."

As soon as the words fell, the whole hall was in an uproar.

Many young talents and wealthy young men are ready to try, and they have been racking their brains and thinking hard a few days ago.

I just hope that I can speak eloquently today, make a splash, and win the favor of Chief Wei.

"Brother Zhao, you can do it!" Gu Tingye couldn't help but cheer for Zhao Han.

Before Zhao Han could answer.

Then Wei Xingshou turned around gracefully and entered the elegant pavilion. The pearl curtain was half rolled up, the candlelight was dancing, and the graceful figure of the beauty could be vaguely seen.

Outside the elegant pavilion, only her personal maid Huichun was standing there.

In just a cup of tea, more than ten people had submitted their poems, but they were all rejected one by one by Wei Xingshou, who gently waved his round fan.

Some of them sat at the table, sighing and bowing their heads, while others were secretly dissatisfied, but no one dared to question it.

At this time, a young man dressed in gorgeous clothes, holding a folding fan, but with a slightly shifty look, shouted loudly: "Captain Wei, please listen to me!"

His voice was sharp and piercing, attracting everyone's attention.

He was seen shaking his head and chanting: "The stone looks big from a distance, and it is a big stone when you look closely. It is a really big stone, the stone is really big..."

The air in the hall was stagnant for a moment, and then it erupted into deafening laughter.

A scholar in splendid attire burst into laughter, not even noticing that his folding fan had fallen to the ground. He pounded his desk as he laughed and said, "What kind of poem is that? I'm afraid any kid with a bun on his head on the street could write better poems than yours!"

The young master stiffened his neck and said, "What do you ordinary people know? This is called returning to simplicity and nature, great skill in simplicity, the so-called great way..."

Before he could finish, Huichun frowned and said, "Who is this bastard? He's disturbing my wife's birthday. Get him out of here!"

Two burly women came over and carried him out, one on the left and one on the right.