Presented Scholar Su solemnly said, “Fang Yun, don’t act impulsively. You’re still young and have a long way to go. You need someone to help you. Although my Su family is not as prestigious as others, we have been a prominent family for three generations and can barely support you to become a third-rank official! If Yu Huan is sensible, she will forgive you for thinking about your future.”

“Yu Huan is kind-hearted and will forgive me.” Fang Yun replied.

Su smiled and asked, “You promised?”

“But I won’t forgive myself! I can disappoint everyone else in the world, but not Yu Huan!” Fang Yun said.

“You are so naive! It makes me angry!” Su scolded him.

Fang Yun replied slowly, “If I had agreed to marry into your Su family for my future before, it might have been wise. But now that I have learned from a great teacher, it would be too incompetent to rely on your Su family to advance in the literary world.”

Su examined Fang Yun carefully and finally laughed, praising him with regretful tone, “What a man of integrity! I didn’t misjudge you. I have a beautiful daughter who is twelve years old and a granddaughter who is eleven. You can choose either one of them in three years!”

“Your daughter is twelve? Mr. Su, you are still vigorous in your old age.” Fang Yun said.

Su blushed and replied, “My eldest son is already over thirty.”

“Thank you for your kindness, but I have made up my mind. I hope you can understand.” Fang Yun said.

Su sulked and ignored Fang Yun.

After all, the Su family was a prominent family, and Su loved his daughter very much. He didn’t want her to become Fang Yun’s concubine, whose status was too low. Once she lost favor, she would be worse than a steward and only be a senior maid.

Therefore, Fang Yun couldn’t let Yang Yuhuan become his concubine.

When they arrived at Fang Yun’s home, Su took out five silver tickets from his pocket and gave them to Fang Yun, saying, “You broke the record for Jing Kingdom. Congratulations! This is one of my congratulatory gifts, worth one hundred taels of silver.”

“This…is too much.” Fang Yun didn’t expect such a generous gift. He calculated it and realized that it was like giving a high school graduate tens of thousands of dollars as a gift. It was too generous.

But Su patted the other side of his pocket and said, “There are one thousand taels of silver tickets in here, not included in the dowry. Won’t you reconsider?”

“Thank you, Mr. Su.” Fang Yun took the one hundred taels of silver tickets.

Su sighed softly.

No one had ever given one hundred taels of silver as a congratulatory gift on the first meeting, let alone one thousand taels of silver tickets. The wealthy landlords in the county were willing to support outstanding Child Scholars and Talented Scholars, but they had never given such a generous gift.

The carriage slowed down, and the coachman outside said, “Sir, we’re here. It’s very lively. The banquet is set up for half a street.”

Fang Yun was about to get off the carriage when Su said, “I heard you took a cow cart to the exam?”

“Yes.”

“Then I’ll give you this carriage and three horses.” Su said casually.”Ah? No, I can’t accept this carriage. You’re too kind, Su Presented Scholar,” Fang Yun knew that Su Presented Scholar’s carriage and three horses were not ordinary. They were worth at least one hundred and fifty taels of silver. There were less than twenty people in the entire Ji County who could afford such a luxurious carriage.

Su Presented Scholar said, “I’m giving you this carriage because I admire your talent and integrity. If a genius like you doesn’t even have a carriage, it would be a shame for both Ji County and Jing Kingdom! With this carriage, you can easily go to Da Yuan Prefecture for further studies or travel elsewhere. You should think not only for yourself but also for your child bride and your status.”

“But…”

“You were decisive just now, why are you hesitating now? I’m leaving now, and my little maid is waiting for you at home. If you hit a wall, remember to come back!” Su Presented Scholar left in a carefree manner.

The coachman handed the whip to Fang Yun and followed Su Presented Scholar.

Fang Yun muttered to himself, “But I think it’s too expensive to keep three horses.”

Su Presented Scholar’s figure ahead trembled slightly, and he quickened his pace.

Fang Yun arched his hand towards Su Presented Scholar from afar, thanking him. He knew that Su Presented Scholar had some ulterior motives and was investing in him. However, no matter what, it was a great help to him now. After all, he would need money in many places in the future.

Fang Yun turned his head and looked towards his home. There were decorations and more than ten big red lanterns hanging on ropes in the air. Under the lanterns were tables with messy dishes and horse lanterns, shining on the joyful smiling faces.

The banquet had ended, but many people had not left yet. Many men were drinking and gambling, while the child bride and old women were chatting.

“Brother Yun is back!” Someone shouted, and everyone looked towards Fang Yun.

Then, Fang Yun’s family, relatives, neighbors, and classmates came out to welcome him.

Many people involuntarily bent down slightly, showing a humble smile.

Everyone’s eyes were filled with envy.

A few people regretted secretly. If they had known that Fang Yun would make something of himself, they should have treated him better before.

The first to come up were not family, friends, or neighbors, but seven or eight heavily made-up matchmakers. They suddenly became very powerful, almost like iron chains crossing the river, pushing away others and quickly approaching Fang Yun.

“Oh, Master Fang, you’re back!”

“Congratulations to Master Fang for passing the imperial examination. I congratulate you.”

“Congratulations to Master Fang. Oh, I even held you when you were a baby, and you peed on me. You had such strength, almost knocking me over. It was clear that you were destined to be the top scholar!”

Fang Yun laughed and cried. These matchmakers were too exaggerated.

Then, the matchmakers surrounded Fang Yun, some asking if he had any girl in mind, some asking for his requirements, and some introducing girls from the Zhang family or the Zhao family, etc.

In their eyes, Fang Yun would become a Presented Scholar in the future. How could he let a child bride become his wife, even if Yang Yuhuan was beautiful?

At this time, marriage was about matching families and statuses.Fang Yun was about to politely decline when he saw Yang Yuhuan standing at the door, looking at him and the matchmakers.

Yang Yuhuan was always like a sister and a mother to Fang Yun, never complaining or getting angry.

At this moment, Fang Yun saw deep worry in her eyes, like a kitten watching its favorite ball of yarn being taken away, only able to watch from afar, powerless to do anything.

Yang Yuhuan just looked at him, not fighting or grabbing, silently waiting like before.

Jiangzhou’s Xi Shi never abandoned the poor Fang Yun, how could he abandon the child bride!

Fang Yun suddenly felt very uncomfortable, and couldn’t help but shout, “Sister Yuhuan, pick a good day, I will officially marry you and make you my wife. I’ve been waiting for over ten years!”

The two looked into each other’s eyes.

The whole room fell silent.

Yang Yuhuan’s fair face turned red in an instant, and her dim eyes were brighter than the stars. In this moment, her peerless beauty seemed to light up the whole county.

All the men present were captivated by Yang Yuhuan at this moment.

“Nonsense!” Yang Yuhuan said coquettishly, raising her skirt slightly and running inside.

She walked lightly.

Many people followed with loud cheers.

The matchmakers’ faces changed, what was going on?

Fang Yun said, “Thank you, aunties. I will marry Sister Yuhuan, and I will never change my mind! You should go find someone else.”

The matchmakers looked at each other, but one of them smiled and said, “Others used to say that Miss Yuhuan was like a flower… ahem, that she was unlucky. But I always said that you two were a good match. Now, everyone in the county knows that you are worthy of Yuhuan. But, as a future presented scholar, even if Yuhuan becomes your wife, you still need concubines to accompany her, otherwise everyone will call her a jealous woman. I know several good girls from respectable families who are not willing to be concubines for others, but if it’s for you, they will be willing!”

“Yes, Grandpa Fang, you not only need concubines, but also maidservants. I know two good maidservants who are clever and beautiful. I’ll bring them to you another day for you to see.”

Fang Yun suddenly felt overwhelmed. He realized the biggest problem of ancient times, something he found unbelievable, was normal for these people, and they all considered passing on their family line as the most important issue.

Since experiencing the power of Liu Zicheng’s bookishness, Fang Yun’s sense of crisis was even stronger. He hadn’t even recovered from his physical condition, and he couldn’t think about wives and concubines.

“Xiaomao, watch over this carriage for me. It was a gift from Su Presented Scholar. Thank you all for coming to congratulate me. Eat and drink well, I have something to do and need to go back inside.”

Fang Yun bypassed the matchmakers and walked towards his house, with people greeting him along the way.

The cousins who used to look down on him or coveted Yang Yuhuan were all smiling and fawning over him, afraid that Fang Yun would seek revenge if he became successful, so they brought a lot of silver to give him.

The name of the top scholar was too big, and almost everyone related to Fang Yun came to congratulate him.

There was nothing in Fang Yun’s house, and the guests arranged a feast for themselves in the end.Entering the courtyard, Fang Yun intended to talk to Yang Yuhuan, but the place was filled with a group of drunken relatives and friends who came over to toast. He had to accompany them and drink.

While drinking, Fang Yun looked for Yang Yuhuan, but she deliberately avoided him.

After a few drinks, Fang Yun felt uncomfortable, so he pretended to be drunk and lay on the table.

Yang Yuhuan, who had been avoiding Fang Yun all along, became anxious and quickly walked over. She found some relatives to help Fang Yun back to the room and put him on the bed.

Yang Yuhuan asked everyone else to leave, then took off Fang Yun’s coat and gently wiped his face with a wet towel.

Finally, Yang Yuhuan covered Fang Yun with a blanket and sat by the bed, looking at Fang Yun in the dim moonlight. For the first time, she felt a sweet feeling in her heart.

The previous Yang Yuhuan had no time to think about feelings. She only had one belief in her heart, which was to take good care of Fang Yun, help him study and succeed, and when she died, she could give an account to Fang Yun’s parents. This responsibility had always driven her.

…

…

As a special update for book friend Xi’an who had a baby, congratulations! The sound of crying is like a beautiful voice, and the door of virtue shines upon the students.

A certain bachelor passed by…