flstandardbreds Chapter 213 Little Demon 3
Chapter 213 Little Demon 3
After a month, Cheng's mother looked visibly more haggard. She was sweeping the fallen leaves in the yard with a broom, sighing as she swept and secretly glancing at An Yan.
An Yan lay on the armchair to bask in the sun, absorbing the essence of the sun and the moon, which would help her cultivation.
There is a plate of crystal clear grapes on the coffee table beside me. I put one into my mouth from time to time. They are juicy, fragrant and sweet.
Cheng's mother was envious. Yan Niang used to treat her with respect, but now she wouldn't even let her lick the skin. Such a good thing is hard to find in the whole town. I wonder where it came from?
At this time, there was a lively sound of gongs and drums coming from outside the door.
When someone knocked on the door, Cheng's mother immediately dropped the broom and ran to open the door.
Outside the door stood the county magistrate in official uniform, surrounded by a group of people watching the fun.
County Magistrate Yang smiled and bowed, "Madam Cheng is so happy! Scholar Cheng has won the top spot in the imperial examination and will be returning home in glory soon. The messenger has already delivered the good news to the county. Congratulations to the old lady in advance!"
"Really?! Hahaha, my son got into high school! I'm the top scorer!" Mother Cheng's dream came true and she couldn't stop smiling. Although she couldn't read very well, she still read the good news again and again with joy.
The people around were all congratulating her, praising Cheng's mother to the point of being flattered.
County Magistrate Yang gestured to his advisor to bring over a tray of silver. "It is a great joy for our county that Cheng has passed the imperial examination. This small gift is nothing but respect. I hope Madam Cheng will accept it."
"Okay, okay." When Cheng's mother saw someone giving her money, she accepted it without hesitation. She held the money and smiled so much that her old face wrinkled like a chrysanthemum.
Normally, when someone comes to announce good news, one should give the other person some money and scatter some money to the onlookers to show congratulations and share the joy.
But Cheng's mother didn't mean that. She had no money of her own and relied on An Yan for all her food, clothing and other expenses, so she was controlled. Now that she has money, she still wants her to take it out. She's dreaming!
An Yan walked over slowly, and everyone became excited again. Who in the county didn't know that Cheng Shuo's wife was a rich and generous person?
Magistrate Yang, who had been somewhat unhappy about not receiving the wedding money, regained his smile and congratulated An Yan, saying, "Top Scholar Cheng has now passed the imperial examination. Congratulations to your wife on becoming the wife of the top scholar. You will surely become a lady of imperial decree in the future. Congratulations!"
An Yan smiled lightly, "Congratulations, sir. Congratulations to everyone." Then she took out a handful of silver ingots from her sleeves, including a few gold ones, which made the onlookers' eyes sparkle.
I've only seen people scattering copper coins, but never seen anyone so polite. Everyone is ready to grab the wedding money and is eager to try.
But Cheng's mother snorted coldly, "What does my son's wedding have to do with her? Without a marriage certificate and without registering it with the government, my son has never married! Now my son has a bright future. Only a lady from a noble family is worthy of being his wife. No village woman should have any connection with him."
Behind her, An Yan's face suddenly turned pale. The hand holding the silver ingot paused, and suddenly she was unable to let go, and it fell to the ground with a shattering sound.
The lively atmosphere at the scene came to an abrupt end. Everyone present looked at each other in surprise, looking at Cheng's mother. Even if they disliked his wife, it would not be easy for them to say it so openly, right?
The Cheng family's situation is known to all neighbors. They relied entirely on Yan Niang to get to where they are today. But now this ungrateful behavior has chilled the hearts of many people and made them doubt Cheng Shuo's upbringing.
However, Cheng Shuo now has a promising future, so they would not say anything and offend his mother. What they felt more was pity for An Yan, the weak woman, and the wedding money she had not yet spent.
Magistrate Yang, a man who had seen many great occasions, immediately smoothed things over, "Madam Cheng, the good news has been delivered. We will return now. Please prepare to welcome the number one scholar."
"Okay, okay, take care, County Magistrate." After saying this, Cheng's mother went into the house with the silver. She had to find a place to hide it quickly to prevent Yan Niang from taking it away.
An Yan seemed to have just woken up from a dream. She covered her slightly red eyes with a handkerchief, forced a smile, and took out a stack of banknotes. "Please wait a moment, County Magistrate. It's reasonable to give some congratulatory money, and I also wish you a prosperous career."
County Magistrate Yang took only one and consoled her, saying, "Perhaps this is just Madam Cheng's personal opinion. Scholar Cheng is not such a heartless and ungrateful person. Madam, please don't overthink it. Madam, you should also keep some of these banknotes for your own use."
An Yan forced a smile and nodded, quickly picking up all the gold and silver on the ground. "It's a little dusty, I hope you don't mind." Then she distributed it as wedding money.
This time everyone was not so enthusiastic and they all comforted An Yan. Many people even returned the money they had received to her, asking her to prepare for the worst and think of a way out for herself.
After the crowd dispersed, An Yan restrained her distressed expression, revealed a playful smile, and quickly walked towards Cheng's mother's room. Leaning against the door, she watched her sticking her butt out to dig a hole under the bed to hide the money, and taunted her, "Have you hidden the money?"
"Ouch." Mother Cheng was frightened and hit her head on the bed. She came out angrily, covering her head with her hands, and her face was covered with dust.
An Yan waved her sleeves, and the silver that Cheng's mother had hidden with great effort appeared on the ground again. Cheng's mother screamed and rushed over but found nothing. She said angrily, "This is mine!"
An Yan snorted coldly, "Yours? Stop daydreaming and get to work!"
Cheng's mother yelled angrily, "I'm the mother of the top scholar, the future imperial consort, and you dare to make me do menial labor! How dare you! I'll have my son beat you to death, you vicious woman!"
"Really? Well before that, I'll kill you first." An Yan pulled out a scarlet whip and swung it in the air, making a thunderous sound. Mother Cheng trembled all over and ran to the yard. She wisely picked up a broom and pretended to be busy.
Over the next few days, people continued to bring gifts, hoping to curry favor with the future high official. Having been humiliated by Anyan, Cheng's mother found a sense of superiority in others, and she became increasingly receptive to all the gifts they sent. Of course, she moved into her own house secretly.
An Yan did not take these things away. All the overly expensive gifts given by others in the previous life were politely rejected by the original owner, for fear of causing trouble for Cheng Shuo, who had just entered the officialdom.
She had reviewed the gift list, which included gifts from many branches of local aristocratic families. The emperor had long been wary of the power of the aristocratic families and had intended to promote children from humble backgrounds to fight against them. He had single-handedly promoted Cheng Shuo, a man without any connections. But now that this had happened, he could forget about winning the emperor's favor and rising to prominence.
With Cheng's mother amassing wealth like this, he can forget about keeping his good reputation of being honest and polite.
The day for Cheng Shuo to return home soon arrived. He specially washed up in the county town, changed into a bright red top scholar robe, wore a top scholar feather on his head, rode a tall horse in high spirits, and returned home with music and drums all the way.