Chapter 614: 294 Joyous Adversaries (Second update) Chapter 614: 294 Joyous Adversaries (Second update) An old minister at the level of Yuan, the Prime Minister, no longer needed to engage in meaningless social interactions; he could avoid even the meaningful ones.
After finishing his duties, Yuan, the Prime Minister, read for a while and then went directly back to the Yuan Residence.
Madam Yuan was originally from a scholarly family in Jiangnan, and as such, she oversaw the construction of their residence, which she made to resemble a miniature Jiangnan garden.
Yuan, the Prime Minister, did not take any concubines throughout his life, and none of his sons did either, with the exception of one who remarried after his wife died in difficult childbirth.
In the garden, a young Taoist nun in a blue robe was casually reading a book.
Not a scriptural text, but a chat book she got from a bookstore.
Next to her, a young maiden in a purple dress was using a butterfly net woven from spider silk and bamboo strips.
On seeing Yuan, the Prime Minister, approaching, the maiden’s eyes sparkled. She handed the net to her attendant, then raised her dress and without caring for her appearance, she ran over to him with enthusiasm, “Grandpa, Grandpa! You’re back!”
Seeing his granddaughter running uneasily, Yuan, the Prime Minister, felt a headache approaching, “Stop running, be careful not to fall.”
“I won’t fall!” She halted in front of him, performed a proper curtsy, then affectionately laced her arm through his, “Grandpa, Grandpa, why did you come back so late today?”
The Prime Minister responded: “I was reading for a while.”
“Oh.” Evidently disinterested in books, the maiden in the purple dress made no further inquiries.
The Prime Minister’s gaze fell on the young Taoist nun in the blue robe sitting on the stone stool.
The Taoist nun seemed to feel his gaze. Slowly, she put down her book and performed a formal Taoist salute. “Master Yuan.”
Yuan, the Prime Minister: “…”
The Prime Minister took a slow sigh: “Have you not renounced the world yet?”
The Taoist nun: “I haven’t.”
Yuan, the Prime Minister, glanced at the chat book in her hand: “Can you read such frivolous books if you do not renounce the world?”
“…” After a moment of silence, the Taoist nun replied without changing her expression, “In the eyes of Master Yuan, it may be frivolous, but in the eyes of this humble one, it is a world in and of itself.”
Yuan, the Prime Minister, again: “…”
“Enough, stop talking all this nonsense!” The maiden in purple felt her head ache. One person was her elder sister, the other her grandfather. She understood when either of them spoke separately, but when they started their exchange, she was entirely lost!
Yuan, the Prime Minister: “If you’re so clever, then don’t eat meat tonight.”
The Taoist nun performed a Taoist salute, her face pious, “Yes, Master Yuan. The saying is, ‘Wine and meat go through the stomach, but the Buddha stays in the heart.'”
Prime Minister Yuan once again: “…”
Eventually, Prime Minister Yuan conceded defeat and left with a disgruntled expression.
Who would have thought that a man like him, who a powerful official like Grand Tutor Zhuang could not subdue, would be bested by a little girl, his granddaughter?
In the end, it came down to indulgence.
This granddaughter of his was born with poor luck and almost died. Madam Yuan sought a Taoist to read her fortune and was told that the child needed the protection of the Immeasurable Heavenly Lord and needed to stay at a Taoist temple to grow up safely.
The Prime Minister originally didn’t believe this, but once Madam Yuan sent their child to the Taoist temple and the child’s health genuinely improved, he was swayed. However, a few days after being brought back home, she fell ill again.
After repeating this process several times, the child eventually lived in the temple permanently.
It was only a while ago, on her sixteenth birthday, that she was finally brought back home.
“Father.” Yuan, the Prime Minister’s eldest son greeted him outside the courtyard and paid his respects, “You came back late today, was there something happening in the cabinet?”
“Not official business.” Yuan, the Prime Minister, waved his hand and walked into the courtyard.
He took a seat on the official’s chair in the hall and a maid served him tea.
After sipping the tea, he slowly said to his eldest son, “Baolin is not getting any younger, it’s time to consider her marriage.”
Yuan Pei smiled, “Yes, it’s time to discuss her marriage. Father… Do you have a suitable candidate in mind?”
Yuan, the Prime Minister, paused for a moment, “I didn’t before.”
So that meant he did now?
Yuan Pei looked expectantly at his father.
The Prime Minister spoke, “The boy from the Zhuang Family is quite decent.”
“The Zhuang family? The one under the Grand Tutor Zhuang? The eligible sons of his family…” Yuan Pei quickly ran through his mind and was startled, “The recently ranked second scholar, Prince of An County?”
Yuan, the Prime Minister, nodded his head.
Yuan Pei pondered, “The boy is indeed good…”
He was known for his virtue, intelligence, and diligence. He went to Chen Country as a hostage when he was eight. The fact that he didn’t cry or make a fuss shows his character, and the fact that he returned alive shows his abilities.
This kind of man is rare in the world, but he is indeed a match for their Baolin.
Yuan Pei confusedly said, “Father, did you not resist intermarriage with these large aristocratic families?”
Yuan, the Prime Minister, held the principle to not get involved in court disputes. He was only loyal to Zhan Country.
The Prime Minister did not give a complex explanation but simply said after some deep thought, “The boy is more outstanding than I had imagined.”
The little Taoist nun did not know that her grandfather was already considering her marriage. She was dragged out of the Yuan Residence by her younger sister.
The purple-clad young woman tugged at her: “Sister, hurry up! There’s a lantern festival today! There are so many people! If we get there late, we won’t be able to squeeze in!”
The little nun rolled her eyes in helpless response.
All she wanted was to read the storybook.
Has the concubine that the prince married off been discovered by the princess yet?
Has the switched baby been recognized by the princess?
And when will the princess discover the true identity of the fox spirit that her widowed best friend has slept with countless times?
These storybooks are becoming more and more outrageous, written in such a heart-wrenching way!
The lantern festival is on Chang’an Avenue. There aren’t too many people there yet, but that might change soon.
“Alright, we stop here!” The purple-clad young woman called for the carriage to stop and hopped off, hand in hand with the young nun.
She was so eager that she didn’t notice another carriage coming from an alley on to their side.
The young nun did notice, but there was no time for the girl in purple to dodge slowly, she pulled her back immediately.
She did it a bit too abruptly and ended up pulling the girl from one side to the other.
Then the young woman in purple bumped into someone.
She lost her balance and fell to the ground with this person.
Her elbow happened to land on the softest part of his waist. That really hurt.
The man wasn’t prepared for that, and the pain caused his face to twist.
For the young woman in purple, because she was on top of him, she did not feel much pain. As soon as she regained her senses, she realized that she was actually with a man, falling together under broad daylight.
Her face turned pale, and she slapped him: “Scoundrel!”
He was dumbfounded and looked at her in disbelief: “What the hell? You’re the one who hit me! You’ve hurt my stomach! And I haven’t even asked you for compensation yet!”
The purple-clad young woman quickly got up from his body, wrapped her arms around her own shoulders, and looked at him vigilantly and angrily: “Compensation…for what! You should be ashamed! I, I, I, I warn you! Don’t think just because you’ve touched me, that you can take advantage of me! If you dare to spread what happened today, I’ll kill you!”
“I want to kill you too!”
The young man jumped up, his eyes full of killing intent!
The young nun stood in front of the girl in purple, watching him coldly.
Just at that moment, a deep voice gradually sounded from behind the young man: “What are you doing? Come back here!”
The young man reluctantly returned to the man’s side after shooting a fierce glance at the girl in purple.
The man apologized to the young nun and the girl in purple: “I’m sorry, my younger brother bumped into you.”
The young man instantly pointed to the purple-clad young woman: “Not me! But her!”
The purple-clad young woman defiantly pointed back: “It’s you!”
The small nun, looking at the handsome man, asked, “Who are you?”
“Gu Changqing.” Gu Changqing thought for a moment, and did not hide his identity.
In the Capital City, his family name was still quite useful, as the Gu family was not scoundrel-like.
“Oh.” The little nun said, “Never heard of it.”
Indeed, having just left the mountains, she really hadn’t.
She turned her head to the purple young woman and said, “Yuan Tong, come here.”
“Ha, are you called Cylinder?” Gu Chengfeng laughed out loud, “Are you a Yezi brand? Your name is Cylinder, haha! You might as well call yourself Two Bar!”
Gu Changqing warned sternly: “Chengfeng, shut up!”
This time, it was Yuan Tong’s turn to laugh. She put her hands on her hips, and said sarcastically to Gu Chengfeng: “Turns out you’re a big wasp! No wonder you’re so annoying!”
Yuan Tong: “Cylinder!”
Gu Chengfeng: “Big Wasp!”
The two kept at it, their faces flushing with anger.
“If you keep fighting, I’ll tell Grandfather!”
“If you keep fighting, I’ll tell Grandfather!”
The first sentence was said by Gu Changqing, the second by the young nun.
The two said these almost simultaneously.
The threat of this statement had a great deterrent effect, and both Yuan Tong and Gu Chengfeng shut their mouths.
Although they shut their mouths, their eyes remained open.
Both of them simultaneously rolled their eyes at each other!