Chapter 42

Chapter 42: I’ll Make Demands, but You Can Forget About Me Working

Gu Nan Xi’s expression didn’t look any better than Li Ao Tian’s.

A ball. Tongue and meaning together: ask.

Little Emperor was urging her to get moving.

And, just as plainly, Little Emperor was telling her that if she wanted to make demands, she should go ahead and make them.

“Mother… you don’t like the cuju ball?” Su Yun Yan took it from Gu Nan Xi’s arms with a long, helpless sigh.

This His Majesty, honestly. Even his gift-giving was crooked.

Mother spent all day in bed if she could manage it. Since when did she enjoy playing cuju?

Gu Nan Xi waved a hand weakly. “General Li, please relay this to His Majesty. Su Jin, the eldest son of the Su Family’s main branch, was once an Imperial Academy student. His grades were decent. Because of a misunderstanding, he was struck from the rolls. I ask His Majesty to be magnanimous and allow him to return to the Imperial Academy.”

Li Ao Tian stared at her for a long moment, something sharp and warning in his gaze. “Fine.”

Then, as if idly, he added, “Madam should remember her place. A woman should stay home, support her husband, teach her children. Don’t jump too high—falls are painful.”

He turned and left to report back to the palace.

When His Majesty heard the message, he frowned and fell silent, thinking hard. Then realization dawned, and he laughed out loud, praising the palace attendants at his side. “Worthy of Sister! She wants to plant a nail inside the Imperial Academy!”

He paused, head tilting. “No… this one’s in the open. She must have hidden nails too.”

His Majesty shook his head with amused disbelief. “So she doesn’t even trust me? Then that hidden nail must be someone of extraordinary standing.”

Meanwhile, the “expert” everyone revered was diligently slacking off at Marquis Yong Chang Residence.

“Madam,” Lu Mei reported, “Uncle is here. He says Young Master Su Jin successfully entered the Imperial Academy and wants to thank you in person.”

Lu Mei, in the privacy of her own mind, counted days with a troubled face. Madam had been sleeping far too much lately…

Could she be pregnant?

Gu Nan Xi rolled over. “Not seeing him.”

Lu Mei shot a worried look at Su Yun Yan.

Su Yun Yan considered for a moment, then lowered her voice as if sharing a secret. “Mother… Marchioness and the Men Behind Her has a second volume out. Do you want to go look?”

Gu Nan Xi shot upright as if struck by lightning. “Yes. Absolutely. That Scentseeker is downright vicious—she always stops at the most critical moment and leaves you clawing at your own heart.”

Volume one ended right when the Marchioness was about to be “treated” as a songstress by a general.

If you’re bold enough to write that kind of thing, then write it properly!

Gu Nan Xi hurriedly washed and dressed, then climbed into a carriage with Su Yun Yan.

Su Yun Yan had been roaming Capital for her own plans lately and knew the streets well. “Scentseeker is a contracted writer for the Gentleman Bookshop. Her books are only sold there, and they’re very popular. Volume two is released today.”

From far away, Gu Nan Xi could already see the long queue outside Gentleman Bookshop. Most of the people waiting were servant boys and stewards; very few noble ladies appeared in person.

“Mother,” Su Yun Yan said, glancing at the sky, “why don’t we sit in the teahouse nearby? We can send a servant boy to wait in line.”

Gu Nan Xi didn’t care about standing outside, but she had Su Yun Yan with her. She couldn’t risk gossip about the young lady of Marquis Yong Chang Residence freezing on the street, jostling among men.

“All right.”

Fu Quan Teahouse—thanks to its unmatched network of gossip and messages—sat at the very top of Capital’s teahouses. It was always packed.

All private rooms were already booked. Only seats in the main hall remained.

Su Yun Yan stood on tiptoe, searching for an empty table. Instead, she spotted familiar faces and blurted, “Mother—look! That’s Brother. Third Brother, Seventh Brother, Tenth Brother too!”

Gu Nan Xi followed her gaze.

Along the row of tea tables by the window, young gentlemen clustered in rings. They were split into two camps with a single tea table between them, the line drawn so clean it was almost comical.

At the head of each side sat Su Xuan Ming and Li Shao Yan. Every boy looked puffed up like a bellows, as if any second they’d start spitting sparks.

Around them, tea patrons lifted cups and pretended to drink, their eyes sliding again and again toward the young gentlemen.

“Yun Yan,” Gu Nan Xi murmured, “let’s go over quietly. Don’t startle them.”

Her curiosity was already lit.

Had these little brats learned nothing?

And Li Shao Yan—had the whip not taught him enough?

Wu Fa Tian lounged with one leg hooked over his bench, eyes full of malicious amusement. “Su Xuan Ming, I heard you’ve been looking for private schools lately. Has anyone agreed to take you?”

His servant boy chimed in like a trained comedian. “Young Master, Young Master Su has backbone—he withdrew from Song Shan Academy on his own. Oh? Then why doesn’t he go to the Imperial Academy? Is it because he doesn’t want to… or because he can’t get in?”

Wu Fa Tian shot him a sideways glare and put on an oily, mocking tone. “Careful. Don’t talk nonsense. What if Young Master Su runs home crying to Mother? We can’t compare—we don’t have such a capable mother.”

Li Ming De’s face went hard. “Wu Fa Tian—watch your mouth. Don’t be disrespectful to my Godmother.”

Wu Fa Tian sprang up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. “You lapdog! Always turning with the wind. You think one cup of tea wipes away old grudges, and suddenly you’re a righteous hero? If you’ve got guts, withdraw with Su Xuan Ming! Why are you still clinging to Song Shan Academy?”

A vein jumped at Li Ming De’s temple. His voice shook with rage. “You think I care about Song Shan Academy? A nest of snakes and rats, all in it together. Today I—”

“Third Brother.” Su Xuan Ming grabbed his arm and shook his head.

Li Ming De swallowed it down, chest heaving. Only then did Su Xuan Ming turn to Li Shao Yan, who sat to the side as if he were watching a play.

“Li Shao Yan,” Su Xuan Ming said tightly, “my grades are bad. I can’t enter the Imperial Academy—I admit that. But those private schools refusing to take me… was that your doing?”

Li Shao Yan rotated his teacup, indifferent. “Dumping a chamber pot on my head once wasn’t enough—you want to do it again? Who am I, that I can make every private school in Capital refuse you?”

Then he smiled as if he’d just thought of something delightful. “Or maybe heroes think alike. Maybe they all decided you’re rotten wood that can’t be carved, a dung wall that can’t be plastered. After all, even that merchant girl has thrown herself into someone else’s arms.”

Su Xuan Ming’s hand clenched, fingers curling tighter until his knuckles whitened.

The repeated setbacks, the sneers, the contempt in everyone’s eyes—it was like knives stabbing into wounds that hadn’t even closed, tearing them open again until they bled.

For a moment, Su Xuan Ming wanted to flee. To find a quiet corner where no one could see him and sit there, alone, until the burning eased.

But he couldn’t.

Mother had gone through endless trouble to help him straighten his spine. How could he bend again now?

His brothers and sisters were watching from behind.

Su Xuan Ming raised his head. His gaze turned fierce, bright with stubborn fire. “Don’t think these tricks can force me! One day, I will become Top Scholar!”

Li Shao Yan blinked, then threw his head back and laughed. “That’s hilarious. You’ve never even passed an exam, and you dare boast like that? By the time you become Top Scholar, I’ll be in the ground.”

The boys behind Li Shao Yan roared with laughter.

When their laughter finally faded, Li Shao Yan’s eyes fixed on the crowd—on Gu Nan Xi. “Madam Marquis Yong Chang,” he said clearly, savoring every word, “Su Xuan Ming says he’s going to become Top Scholar.”

Every head turned toward Gu Nan Xi.

No one knew how long she’d been watching.

Would she be angry?

Would she feel ashamed?