Chapter 41: The Misses Who Were Displeasing and Pleasing

“How could I have failed?”

“On what grounds was I rejected!”

In the early morning, there was no peace to be found in the Duke of Ding'an's manor; even standing outside the courtyard, one could hear Yang Hui’s wailing from within.

Ever since Yang Hui had returned home crying yesterday, a cloud of gloom had descended upon the entire estate.

Accompanying the cries were the sounds of tea cups and vases smashing to pieces.

The commotion had lasted all night.

After an unknown amount of time, accompanied by the soft coaxing and comforting of the Duchess of Ding'an, Yang Hui grew exhausted and fell asleep in tears.

The servants and maids, who had stood both inside and outside the courtyard without a wink of sleep, watched as the Duchess emerged from within.

The Duchess looked exhausted, her eyes sunken. She reached up to pinch her forehead, her gaze sweeping over the servants in the courtyard: "Watch over the Young Lady closely. If anything happens to her, I will not forgive you."

The servants bowed their heads in response.

"Madam, please go and rest. You have been up all night," one servant advised.

The Duchess was indeed at her limit; the last time she had suffered such hardship was over a decade ago during the great chaos of the realm.

However, upon returning to her quarters, she could not rest. Instead, she lunged at the Duke of Ding'an, who was reclining in a rocking chair.

"How can you still sleep?" she barked.

The Duke of Ding'an, Yang Bin, was the eldest son of the late Duke. Now in his forties, though he hailed from a wealthy rural family, over a decade of being nourished by a capital peerage had given him a ruddy complexion and well-groomed sideburns, lending him an air of elegance and nobility.

Being jerked up like this by his wife, he felt both ashamed and annoyed, but he did not dare lose his temper. He merely stammered, "I haven't slept all night; I just lay down for a quick nap."

The Duchess shook him off. "What nap? It is dawn! Why haven't you gone to ask the Marquis of Yichun what happened? Did he actually convey our words to the Empress?"

The Duke said, "He certainly did. They even gave us the exam questions in advance..."

Having known the questions beforehand, they had selected the most suitable ones and written them out in advance for Yang Hui to memorize.

"Hui'er also said that those were indeed the questions."

At this, the Duke stroked his beard.

"Could it be that her answers were not good enough?"

His peerage was secure and his duties were leisurely; he had no need to maintain high-level strategists to plot his future. The aides in his household who helped manage daily affairs were of mediocre scholarship.

The Duchess slammed her hand on the table, shouting in anger, "What do you mean, 'not good enough'? What does this have to do with the quality of her answers! This is about whether or not they passed our Hui'er's name to the Imperial Academy!"

If the Empress agreed, she would inform them of the questions in advance and simultaneously instruct the examiners at the Imperial Academy that this specific person's paper was to be selected.

"Are they playing us?"

At this, the Duchess covered her face and began to cry.

"They are truly bullying us."

She wept with resentment.

"Our Yang family has already been humble enough."

"They don't even consider that if we hadn't yielded back then, how could someone with the surname Chai have become Empress—"

The Duke lunged forward to stifle his wife's mouth: "Stop talking nonsense!"

The Duchess's chest heaved violently, but she clamped her mouth shut, refusing to speak further, only sitting down with a resentful flick of her sleeve to wipe her tears.

Even within his own home, the Duke cautiously glanced outside before turning back with a sigh.

"Don't be so anxious, we don't know what is going on yet," he said. "I will go find the Marquis of Yichun to ask."

The Duchess took a deep breath and glared at him: "It is not about asking; it is about telling him that Hui'er must be allowed to serve as a study companion to the Princess. This is not just about being a study companion; the whole capital is watching. If Hui'er is not selected, it means our family counts for nothing before His Majesty!"

The Duke muttered, "It shouldn't have come to this..."

The Duchess slammed the table in anger once more: "It has! It very much has! Do not take this lightly! If the Marquis of Yichun does not wish to speak for us, then I will go directly to His Majesty myself." She let out a cold laugh. "When that time comes, let him not blame us for deliberately appearing before His Majesty."

The Duke repeatedly tried to soothe her: "Alright, alright, I know. I'll go right now." He then cautioned, "This is a small matter; we cannot let it reach His Majesty's ears. We mustn't lose our dignity or provoke the Chai family. Sigh, though His Majesty is currently healthy, the empire will eventually pass to the Crown Prince."

The Crown Prince held no affection for their family, and the Duchess knew this well. She clenched her hands, no longer shouting to see the Emperor, but merely gritting her teeth: "Go, then!"

The Duke dared not delay any longer and hurried out.

As the room fell silent, the Duchess's ears still rang and her chest felt heavy.

Clearly, the sins of the past were settled, and from now on, they should not have to live in fear; things should have gone smoothly.

Why had things suddenly gone wrong?

...

...

Yang Luo pushed open her door and stretched; it was already noon.

Mo Zheng was sitting in the courtyard chopping wood.

"Miss, even if the exams are over, you cannot be slack. Even if you don't hang yourself by your hair or prick your thighs with awls to study, you shouldn't sleep until midday, should you?" she said.

Yang Luo couldn't help but laugh.

After being selected as a study companion yesterday, she had enjoyed an unprecedented good night's sleep.

Moreover, her neck didn't ache as much as it used to after a good sleep...

"Just one day of laziness," she said with a smile. "I will study seriously from now on."

Mo Zheng nodded. "That's fine; it saves a meal." Having said that, she stood up. "I'll go make lunch for you now."

Yang Luo stopped her: "No need, let's go to a restaurant."

Mo Zheng raised an eyebrow. "To celebrate?"

Yang Luo nodded with a smile. "Of course we must celebrate." She then looked at Mo Zheng. "And I also need to thank A-Sheng."

With that, she walked over and gave a solemn bow.

If not for A-Sheng, she might still be helpless and hiding in Lu County. Even if she had made it to the capital, she might have missed the exams and Miss Liu's invitation.

Since her rebirth, keeping A-Sheng by her side had made everything go smoothly, as if her every wish were being granted.

Mo Zheng smiled. "You are too polite, Miss. Just give me a generous reward once my guard duty is over."

This young guard always had money on his mind, but in reality, he was not greedy at all. To be a bandit leader whom the imperial court feared, and to have subdued a hundred thousand followers, he must possess great character. Though he had taken a crooked path, he was still a hero of sorts. Yang Luo said no more and gestured, "Let's go..."

Just as she stepped forward, Mo Zheng stopped her again.

"Miss, you cannot go out like this," Mo Zheng said, eyeing her.

Yang Luo reached up to touch her face. "I've washed up."

Mo Zheng pointed to her face. "But you haven't used that face powder. You must remember, from the moment you are selected, you are Miss Liu of Fuzhou, every single moment."

Yang Luo realized her mistake. "I'll go do it now."

She hurried back to her room, sat at her vanity, and took out the box of powder Mo Zheng had given her earlier.

The powder was simple to use; she had already learned after one try.

As she applied it in the mirror, she couldn't help but glance toward the courtyard.

The young guard had set down his axe and was carefully washing his hands with water fetched from the kitchen.

This boy could chop wood, cook, and handle horses; it seemed he could do everything, seemed he knew everything, and seemed he feared nothing.

Are all hunters like this?

Yang Luo found it somewhat strange.

However, so far, these peculiarities had not been bad for her; on the contrary, they had all been assets.

Yang Luo withdrew her gaze and used the mirror to mask her face into another persona.

This time, she would ensure that those who harmed her and her mother would meet a miserable end. As for everything else, she did not care.