Chapter 198
A carriage slowly entered Qingshi Town. The coachman asked a passerby about the location of the academy and drove the carriage there. Li Mingwei and Liu Yizhu were waiting for him at the academy gate.
The coachman saw them from a distance and waved happily, "Master, Lady."
Li Mingwei waved back, "Xiao Lin, over here!"
Xiao Lin stopped the carriage and jumped down, bowing to them. He then lifted the carriage curtain, revealing neatly stacked books inside. "All the books on the list. Shall I bring them in?"
Liu Yizhu nodded, and together they carried the books upstairs. Li Mingwei placed the books on the shelves one by one, then inspected the place.
After their renovations, the academy looked much different than before. The desks, chairs, and stools were new, and even the walls had been repainted, looking beautiful.
Li Mingwei clapped her hands, "Done!"
They could leave with peace of mind. A few months ago, when Wang Chunhua fell ill, she and Liu Yizhu had returned here. Now that Wang Chunhua had recovered and left with Dong Lei, they had no reason to stay any longer.
Liu Yizhu walked to her side, putting his arm around her shoulders, and gazed at the courtyard outside. "The first time I saw you, you were standing here, walking around the courtyard aimlessly."
Li Mingwei shook her head, unable to recall that from so long ago.
"Tsk, we've really grown old."
"You!" Li Mingwei glared at him. "You make it sound like you're young."
"But my memory is better than yours."
"Then what was I wearing that day?"
Liu Yizhu smiled confidently, "Clothes."
Li Mingwei kicked him lightly. Of course she wouldn't be wandering the courtyard without clothes.
"You're such a tease," Liu Yizhu rubbed the spot she kicked and lamented, "A yellow dress that didn't seem to fit you very well."
"That was Sister Chunhua's."
Back then, Li Mingwei didn't have many clothes or money, so Wang Chunhua had given her a dress she wore before giving birth. It was a bit big for Li Mingwei.
"I figured as much," Liu Yizhu said.
Li Mingwei sarcastically praised him, "How clever you are."
"Thank you for the compliment."
Shameless as always, Li Mingwei ignored him and stretched her arms. "Shall we leave tomorrow?"
"Sure."
Xiao Lin didn't expect things to go so smoothly. He hadn't even mentioned going back to the capital yet, but the master and lady had already brought it up. He eagerly helped pack their luggage, only to find out they planned to go to Shaohua Mountain to watch the sunset.
Watching the sunset was fine, but they still wanted to go to the seaside after that. Finally, Xiao Lin couldn't hold back any longer.
"Master, Lady, let's return to the capital first."
Seeing his anxious look, Li Mingwei smiled, "What's wrong? Did Simo ask you to take us back?"
"No." Xiao Lin scratched his head. "It's Young Master Yancheng. He asked me to bring you both back to be on his side."
"What's wrong with him again?"
"Young Master Yancheng has taken a liking to the Fu family's daughter, but the Madam won't agree and is forcing him to consider other girls."
Li Mingwei hesitated, "The Fu family?"
"The one from the Ministry of Revenue?" Liu Yizhu understood why the daughter-in-law wouldn't agree once Xiao Lin nodded.
He sighed, "The Fu family has a marital connection with the Lin family."
"Lin Fu?"
Li Mingwei burst out laughing. What an odd connection! She had heard that Lin Fu had liked Liu Simo before and even had a dispute with Yan Yan, causing Yan Yan's maid to fall into a lake. Now Yancheng was interested in Lin Fu's daughter?
"Well..." Li Mingwei looked at Liu Yizhu. "Whose side should we take if we go back?"
They couldn't choose between the daughter-in-law or the grandson. It was better not to go back at all.
Liu Yizhu saw through her thoughts. "We should still go back and have a look, lest they hold a grudge against each other."
He remembered the Fu family's child was decent. He just didn't know about the daughter's temperament. If she was well-behaved, unlike her headstrong mother, it might not be a bad idea to let the two young ones marry.
Li Mingwei had no choice but to agree to return.
The seaside trip was postponed, and she grumbled all the way home, complaining about that troublesome grandson. When they arrived, she coldly pushed away Liu Yancheng as he rushed over.
"Grandma~"
"Don't call me that!"
Liu Yancheng was startled. Could it be that Grandma also disapproved of him and Fu Xiang? He looked sad, head drooping like a puppy denied a bone.
"Grandma doesn't love me anymore."
"How could I not love you!" Liu Yancheng was the youngest grandchild and thus the most spoiled. Whenever things didn't go his way, he would make a big fuss.
Li Mingwei tugged his ear. "Where's your mother?"
Yan Yan didn't want her in-laws to return so soon and hurried to welcome them. Seeing her youngest son kneeling before them, she felt a surge of anger. The little brat ran fast!
Suppressing her anger, she greeted them, "Father, Mother."
"Hmm." Li Mingwei waved for Liu Yancheng to get up before asking, "What happened?"
"The other day, there was a Hundred Flowers Banquet held in the palace to select consorts for the Fifth Princess. You know of her virtuous reputation, Mother, so I had hopes for our third son."
The third son had never amounted to much, and since they had the eldest and second sons to rely on, Yan Yan thought it might be good for him to try his luck. If he were chosen, he could live an easy life as a prince's consort.
"Little did I know, he took a fancy to Fu Xiang instead." Yan Yan sighed. "I have some old grievances with Lin Fu, so I really don't want to become family with them."
"How is Fu Xiang?"
Liu Yancheng poked his head out from the doorway. "Great, she's really great."
Yan Yan glared at him, and he obediently retracted his head.
She continued helplessly, "She's alright, I suppose. Lin Fu went to Jing'an Temple for two years to reflect after that incident and became more reserved when she returned. Her daughter's upbringing is decent enough, but..."
Li Mingwei smiled, "But you still feel uncomfortable about it?"
"Mother~"
Yan Yan indeed felt uncomfortable. It was well known in the capital that Lin Fu had once fancied Liu Simo. If they became in-laws, there would be inevitable interactions, and Yan Yan didn't want her husband to have too much contact with Lin Fu.
From outside the door, Liu Yancheng muttered, "If we get married, can we move out and live separately?"
"Get married?" Li Mingwei glanced at him. "Have you asked the girl yet before talking about marriage?"
"Heh heh."
Liu Yancheng took out a small pouch from his pocket and waved it at the doorway. Seeing this, Li Mingwei sighed, "Since they share mutual affections, you should bless their union."
"I have a small villa in the suburbs. We can let them move there, and you can just turn a blind eye to it."
With the in-laws' approval, Yan Yan had no choice but to accept this marriage. She went back and instructed the servants to send an invitation to the Fu family to discuss the wedding details.
The Fu family quickly responded with a date. Yan Yan glanced at it, snorted softly, and passed it to Liu Simo.
He looked it over and smiled, "Coincidentally, it's during my time off from teaching. I can pretend to have other matters."
Yan Yan felt a glimmer of joy but shook her head, "No need. Let's go together."
This meeting couldn't be avoided. It was better to be open about it.
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