Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!-Chapter 647: Decisive Action_1

Before they knew it, two days had passed, and the announcement of the results drew ever closer. In the capital, Chang Lian and Rongchuan attended the invitation of Master Yuan’s son together.

Zhulan waited until Chang Lian and Rongchuan left before pulling out the information on Master Yuan to confirm that he had no relation to the Ning Residence, which eased her mind a bit.

Heaven knows, over these two days, her heart had been in her throat, fearing any sudden movements; this was far more vexing than waiting for test results.

Zhulan then took out Zhou Shuren’s reply. At this point, Zhou Shuren was also helpless. If there truly were a connection to the Ning family, she and Zhou Shuren could only let things take their course at this level.

Zhulan let go of her worries, but her heart was still heavy, filled with the anxiety of a quail. Not wanting to think anymore, she decided to sleep a while longer, knowing she wouldn’t worry if she were asleep.

At Yuan Residence, Chang Lian met Master Yuan’s second son, as they were acquainted with each other. When Chang Lian saw the second son of the Yuan family approaching, he said, feeling a bit embarrassed, "My carriage got stuck in traffic, and I was delayed."

The second son of the Yuan family smiled, "Not late at all, please come inside."

Walking beside the second son of the Yuan family, Chang Lian introduced Rongchuan, "This is Rongchuan who is betrothed to my younger sister, like a son to the Zhou family."

Whenever Chang Lian was with Rongchuan, he would introduce him this way, always mentioning the betrothal first. He did so knowing that the more who were aware, the less likely others would target Rongchuan. He had heard that in the past few days, quite a few promising young men had been marked.

The second son of the Yuan family hadn’t really noticed at first, his attention had been all on Zhou Chang Lian. Although Zhou Chang Lian was the third son of the Zhou family, it was different since the elder sons were not in civil service.

The second son of the Yuan family looked at Zhang Rongchuan and uttered a sound of surprise, "This gentleman looks familiar."

After careful recollection but unable to pinpoint the memory, he then thought maybe it was a passing encounter in the examination hall, and so he dismissed the thought.

Rongchuan felt somewhat distracted upon hearing this. Familiar or not, he didn’t know – all he knew was that he’d been harried by random thoughts recently, on edge, and fortunately, the second son of the Yuan family didn’t linger on the subject.

Upon entering the courtyard, many had come that day, and Chang Lian immediately spotted Shen Yang. He truly didn’t wish to see Shen Yang more than necessary, but unfortunately, since Shen Yang was unmarried and came from a decent family with good education and youth, he was seen by many as an excellent prospective son-in-law and thus, included in many invitations.

Shen Yang approached, "Third Master Zhou, you’ve come too."

The second son of the Yuan family smiled genially but was perplexed inside, noting how Shen Yang was always finding ways to stick close to Third Master Zhou, "Let’s not stand and talk here; we should go inside to chat." fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

Chang Lian smiled, "Please, Master Shen, this way."

Shen Yang didn’t sincerely want to befriend Zhou Chang Lian; he had always had everything go his way since childhood. What he wanted, he got, and Zhou Chang Lian’s aloofness bothered him. He simply wanted to prove himself, so he gave a dry chuckle, "After you, Master Zhou."

Rongchuan also nodded and then followed them inside. He didn’t like Shen Yang at all, a feeling deep-rooted and inexplicable. For the first time in his life philosophy, he found himself disliking someone so intensely.

Shen Yang also had little respect for Zhang Rongchuan, considering him nothing more than a boy raised by his maternal grandparents and dressed even more flamboyantly than himself, which he found distasteful, so he nodded coldly in response.

Within the Palace, Ning Xu arrived at the government hall. As soon as he stepped inside and saw several Princes were present, he fell silent, realizing he had come at an inconvenient time. Why had Eunuch Liu brought him in!

The Emperor spoke to Ning Xu after he greeted him, "You haven’t been here for a few days."

Ning Xu smiled, "I’ve been a bit busy with some matters recently."

The Emperor didn’t inquire further, "Take a seat for a while."

Ning Xu made himself comfortable without hesitation, "Yes."

Second Prince, Zhang Jingyang, felt a sting in his heart. When had his uncle visiting the father become so casual? Looking at the affectionate tone of the father, he felt as though he had drunk a bowl of vinegar, sour to his core.

The Third Prince kept his head down, thinking how diligent Marquis Ning was in coming to the government hall. The father had missed him the past few days. He shouldn’t dwell on it, for the more he thought about it, the more only he would suffer.

The Emperor glanced at his several sons and then directed at his second, "From now on, the fifth will be with you, and when you have time, you should teach him more."

The Second Prince, Zhang Jingyang, was stunned. "Father, Emperor."

The Emperor raised his hand. "The matter is thus settled, alright, you all may return."

The princes left, leaving only the Emperor and the Crown Prince in the hall. The Emperor called out to Ning Xu twice before Ning Xu came back to his senses, "Your subject was distracted."

The Emperor frowned. "Are you feeling unwell?"

Ning Xu said, "It’s probably because I haven’t been resting well lately."

Ever since he met Zhang Rongchuan, he had been plagued with dreams at night. He would dream of his older brother, of playing with him, learning martial arts from him, and even of his brother’s entombment. Every time he woke from those dreams, he would sit up until dawn.

At the Zhou Residence, Zhulan awoke and asked drowsily, "What time is it now?"

The old maid Song helped the mistress out of bed, "It is almost time for lunch. If you didn’t wake up, we would have had to call you soon."

Zhulan sat up, took a handkerchief, and wiped her face to clear her mind. "Have Rongchuan and Chang Lian returned?"

The old maid Song replied, "Not yet, but they should be back soon."

Zhulan put on her shoes and sat waiting for Song to comb her hair. "And what of Chang Zhong?"

Old maid Song smiled. "The young master is playing in the courtyard."

Zhulan chuckled. "He just can’t sit still; his energy is a bit too exuberant."

Old maid Song said, "All boys are like this. His vigorous energy shows he is healthy. You should be happy."

Zhulan indeed was delighted. She had always feared, being an older mother, that Chang Zhong’s constitution might be weak. A healthy Chang Zhong was a cause of secret joy for her and Zhou Shuren.

After her hair was combed, the little fellow came into the room with his hat drenched in sweat. Zhulan hurriedly took a handkerchief to wipe his forehead, "Look at you, about to turn into a little tabby cat."

The little fellow shook his head, pouting, "Mother, you sleep too much. Why do you sleep so long during the day?"

Zhulan replied, "Mother wanted to relax her mind a bit, so she slept a bit longer."

The little fellow did not quite understand. "Mother, I’m hungry."

Zhulan laughed, "What a carefree child you are. Alright, alright, let’s eat."

On the street, Chang Lian and Rongchuan were riding a carriage back to their residence. They should have been home for lunch, but the road ahead was blocked due to a collision between two carriages.

Chang Lian gestured for Jing Yan to check on the situation. Jing Yan quickly returned, whispering, "Ahead, the carriage of the Fifth Prince collided with that of a merchant."

Chang Lian lowered his voice, "This can’t be a coincidence, can it!"

Jing Yan whispered back, "It appears the Fifth Prince’s horse suddenly went mad and crashed into the merchant’s carriage, causing a series of collisions with many people in front."

Not wanting any further delay, Chang Lian decided decisively, "Let’s turn the carriage around and take a different road."

Jing Yan looked troubled, "There are carriages blocking the way behind us, and it will be some time before we can leave. We can only wait until the path behind us clears."

Frowning, Chang Lian made a swift decision, "We will get off the carriage and go by another route. You all follow, leaving only the coachman to wait it out slowly."