Chapter 109: There is Room For the Poor Daughter
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Chapter 108: Enemies on the Narrow Path
As Yan Wenkai and Yan Wentao shared what they had encountered at the academy, Daohua felt a mixture of emotions.
When she learned that they hadn’t even been able to see Xiao Yeyang’s face, she deeply felt the rigidity of ancient social hierarchies. It became clearer to her that, to Xiao Yeyang, the Yan family truly didn’t matter.
“Big sister, please don’t tell grandmother or anyone else about this. Eldest brother said it’s a test for us, so let’s not worry the family,” Yan Wenkai reminded her.
Yan Wentao nodded in agreement. “It’s not a big deal, we can handle it.”
Daohua nodded silently, her mood a little heavy. She had previously hinted to Madam Li to tell her father not to have too high expectations of Xiao Yeyang. But now, hearing that her brothers hadn’t even seen Xiao Yeyang once at the academy, she felt a sense of loss.
It’s like this with people: when something doesn’t happen to you, it’s easy to speak with great reason and logic. But when it does, you realize you might be even more stubborn and emotional than you imagined.
Before this, Daohua had thought that Xiao Yeyang might treat her and the Yan family somewhat differently, but reality showed her that she had been overestimating things.
She could understand why her father hadn’t been invited by the governor, as although his status was high, he wasn’t involved in the political arena and couldn’t influence those matters. But they were in the same academy, and Xiao Yeyang didn’t even bother to meet her brothers once, which clearly showed that he didn’t take them seriously.
Sigh.
Not only should her sfather not have high expectations, but she also shouldn’t.
Afterward, the three of them quickly returned to the old lady’s courtyard with the wine.
Inside the house, though Yan Wenxiu hid it well, Yan Zhigao, who had been an official for many years, could easily see that his eldest son had more to say but didn’t. Thinking about the gossip he had heard at the government office, his expression turned dark.
“The Young Prince didn’t care about the Yan family at all, otherwise, why wasn’t Lord Yan invited to this Mid-Autumn banquet hosted by the governor?”
“Exactly, I heard even the governor of the neighboring Fanzhou was invited.”
“Then why did the Young Prince stay at the Yan family before?”
“Who knows? Maybe he just found it amusing or something new.”
Thinking about these whispered remarks, Yan Zhigao couldn’t help but smile bitterly.
This really was an awakening!
First, the Young Prince stayed at their house, and then his eldest son and the others got the chance to attend Wangyue Academy. He had naively believed that the Young Prince was close to their family.
But now, the slap to the face came so quickly.
He had overestimated their importance in the Young Prince’s eyes. Truly, he had lost his self-awareness!
Yan Zhigao looked at his eldest son. “Seeking knowledge is not just about books, but also about people and relationships. The academy is like a small society where you’ll encounter all sorts of people. You need to observe carefully and know how to manage your relationships.”
“No matter where a person goes, as long as they have real ability, they’ll have a place. Help from others is always temporary.”
Yan Wenxiu understood the underlying meaning immediately. He stood up and bowed. “Thank you for the guidance, Father. I will remember it.”
On the side, Yan Zhiyuan glanced at the two of them, his expression shifting slightly before the corners of his mouth curled up.
It seemed that his three nephews weren’t living a very good life at the academy.
In that instant, his own dissatisfaction about his son not being able to attend the academy faded.
For this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival dinner, Madam Li prepared an exceptionally rich feast, and with the addition of the grape wine, the family enjoyed the meal thoroughly.
After staying for two days, Yan Wenxiu and his brothers had to return to the academy.
“Eldest brother, will you have a holiday during the Chongyang Festival?” Before they left, Daohua asked her brothers.
Yan Wenxiu nodded. “Yes, but it’s only a one-day holiday. We probably won’t be able to make it back.” The journey between the academy and Xingzhou City wasn’t short, and it took most of the day to travel back and forth.
Daohua sighed. “What a pity, the chrysanthemums I transplanted in the estate have all survived. I was hoping that if you came back on that day, I could invite you to a chrysanthemum feast.”
Old Madam Yan smiled and said, “If you’re not coming back, then so be it. You can look at your chrysanthemums anytime. When these three return from the academy, the journey is long, and they won’t want to be troubled.”
Daohua smiled and nodded. “Alright, if I can’t show you the chrysanthemums, we can still have chrysanthemum wine when you come back.”
Speaking of wine, Yan Wenkai immediately jumped in. “Big sister, can you bring me two jars of that grape wine?”
Daohua directly refused. “No, you’re supposed to be studying. How can you drink wine?”
Yan Wenkai shrugged. “I’m not going to drink it.” Then, he leaned close to Daohua’s ear and whispered, “I’ll give it to the coach who teaches us martial arts. He really likes it.”
Daohua hesitated and looked toward Yan Wentao.
Yan Wentao nodded. The coach who taught them martial arts did enjoy drinking.
Only then did Daohua agree, but still reminded him, “Fourth brother, you’re still young. You can’t drink wine outside. If you really want to, you can wait until the next holiday to come home and I’ll let you drink then.”
Yan Wenkai rolled his eyes. “Big sister, aren’t you younger than me? How can you act like a parent?” It was funny that the younger sister was acting like the older brother!
Daohua couldn’t be bothered to argue with him and directly turned to Yan Wentao. “Third brother, please keep an eye on Fourth brother.”
Yan Wentao replied, “Don’t worry, I will!”
Wangyue Academy was built on Mount Wuhua, the most famous mountain in Zhongzhou Province, and the Grand Canal passed right beneath it.
Huayang Prefecture, the second richest and most prosperous city in Zhongzhou Province after the provincial capital, was located at the foot of Mount Wuhua.
In the city, one could often see students from Wangyue Academy.
“Fourth brother, are you sure you want to send Coach Fang some grape wine?”
On the street, Yan Wenkai, carrying two jars of grape wine, was dragging Yan Wentao around as if searching for something.
Yan Wenkai grinned. “Of course! That Dong Xiangrong’s brat, the coaches at the academy all ignore us, but Coach Fang still teaches us a few things. I have to find a way to repay him.”
Yan Wentao shook his head, showing disapproval. “The academy has strict rules prohibiting the teachers from accepting bribes.”
Yan Wenkai interrupted. “Oh, Third brother, we’re not sending money or paintings. It’s just two jars of homemade grape wine. What’s the big deal?”
“Even though the academy forbids accepting bribes, it doesn’t mean we can’t show our gratitude. Look at the other students in the academy. Some of them, with families in worse situations than ours, still send small gifts to the teachers from time to time.”
“Trust me, it’ll be fine!”
Yan Wentao thought about it and realized that Yan Wenkai had a point, so he stopped arguing and helped him search for a suitable gift.
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This novel is translated by the Eternal Novel Hits translators. Please read it at https://eternalnovelhits.blogspot.com
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“Ugh, sister could have used a better jar to store the wine. Now I have to go find a new one just to send it out!” Yan Wenkai complained.
After searching for so long without finding a suitable jar, he was starting to get impatient.
Although he thought there was no problem with sending the coach the grape wine, he didn’t want to do it in front of everyone. He needed to sneak it over before the other students returned to the academy.
Yan Wentao defended Daohua. “It’s not like she didn’t want to, but you asked for it last minute, so she didn’t have time to prepare.”
Yan Wenkai made a clicking sound with his tongue. He was just complaining. Suddenly, his eyes brightened, and he pointed ahead. “That shop sells empty wine jars! Let’s go there.”
However, just as they were about to step into the shop, someone suddenly came out from the side and bumped into Yan Wenkai, causing the wine jar he was holding to fall and break on the ground.
“Crash!”
The sound of the jar shattering and the bright red wine splashing in all directions sharply stung Yan Wenkai’s eyes.
“Dong Xiangrong, you bastard! Give me back my wine!”
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