After Becoming the Cannon Fodder Live-in Spouse A (GL) - Chapter 37: The Thirty-Seventh Day

Chapter 37: The Thirty-Seventh Day

When Ye Fuguang woke up, she only remembered that her head hurt.

She squinted her eyes and looked at the daylight outside. She found that it was just dimly bright, so she stared blankly at the flower buds probing into the window from the garden until she felt that her head was really uncomfortable. When she sat up, her heel bumped into the edge of the bed and made a quite loud sound, which immediately woke up Ruyi who was guarding outside:

“Wangfei?”

“Uh… it’s nothing.” She shrank back her foot and rubbed the painful spot herself, asking vaguely, “Does Wangye not need to attend court today?”

Many ancient dynasties had different times for court assemblies. Some dynasties held them every three days or five days, while some dynasties held them only every ten days or half a month, mainly depending on the emperor’s diligence. But even the most diligent ones found it very difficult to hold court every day because some ministers’ residences were very far from the imperial palace, and attending court could not be late. Holding court every day was an extremely great test and torment for these ministers.

But who knew how unreasonably this meat novel would act to highlight the male lead’s diligence and virtue?

Ruyi thought for a moment. “Today is not necessary. In Dazong, court is held only once every five days.”

Oh.

It became reasonable here again.

Ye Fuguang sat there in a daze and heard Ruyi ask, “Does Wangfei want to get up and wash up, and send for breakfast?”

They were all used to her habit of liking to stay in bed, so they asked first before asking the kitchen to prepare it.

☉

Ye Fuguang pressed her head and felt that it was much better after she sat up. She pondered that her headache might not be because of the wine she drank yesterday, but because she slept too much. Thinking of those smells she smelled on Yong’an Street yesterday, she still wanted to go out to eat street food stalls, but she was afraid of encountering trouble.

She could only answer闷闷ly: “Mm.”

…

She did not know what Shen Jinglan was busy with. Last night, she heard that she rested in Yaoguang Pavilion.

Moreover, Yu Qing was not very happy to let people disturb Wangye, and Shen Si and Shen Liu guarded the door. In short, after seeing Wangfei eat and look闷闷 and unhappy all day, it seemed that she had no habit of leaving Wangye. Ruyi racked her brains to coax her, sometimes asking if she wanted to go to ‘Listening to the Rain’ to have someone catch fish from the pond, and sometimes asking if she wanted the kitchen to make some ice cakes and pastries.

Jixiang quietly guarded beside her. After a while, she said, “Does Wangfei want to go out of the mansion?”

Ye Fuguang still did not know that her current state was called wanting to resign but failing, so she had to continue attending this damn class in a sloppy manner. Hearing Jixiang’s words, she sat on the railing in Plum Garden watching the scenery and swung her legs. “Not very much, right?”

“…”

Not very much, so was it wanting or not wanting?

Ruyi was silent and tried to continue, “Wangye has already withdrawn Steward Yu’s order forbidding you from going out. If Wangfei wants to go out of the mansion, as long as she brings people, she can go wherever she wants to stroll—”

She thought and said, “Recently, it happens to be the day of the metropolitan examination. Many scholars from various places have come to Yong’an City. No matter the wine shops or flower buildings in the city, there are some spring banquet welcoming the examinees, with flowing wine banquets, a hundred kinds of fish sashimi, etc., all without restriction on guests. It is quite lively.”

Ye Fuguang: If you mention eating, then I am no longer sleepy.

“Wine banquet? Fish sashimi?” Light slowly ignited in her eyes. Eating banquet was great. The pot qi of the big pot rice flowing banquet was more tempting to the gluttonous insects than the exquisite dishes of the palace and restaurants.

Ruyi nodded.

Going out for food, and going to those places where serious examination scholars went, Ye Fuguang raised her head and chest again, thinking that Shen Jinglan would not forbid even this, right?

–

When the news that Wangfei was going out reached Qingfrost Courtyard again.

Shen Jinglan had just finished practicing martial arts with Shen Si and Shen Liu. She casually threw a red-tasseled spear back into the weapon rack, took a longbow handed over by Yu Qing. The bow’s curve was covered with zhe wood wrapped in tiger skin, the horns were made of ox horns, and the bowstring was a composite of tendons from various wild beasts twisted tight.

She hooked her finger and pulled slightly, as if turning the surrounding air into sharp arrows nocked on the string.

Her sharp phoenix eyes drooped low, as if she did not hear what the reporting person said. After testing the string’s tension, she took the handkerchief she carried, folded it, covered it over her eyes, tied it up, and only when she picked up the weapon again did she ask slowly:

“Where is Wangfei going?”

“Sister Ruyi said she wanted to go see the liveliness of the spring banquets outside.”

Shen Jinglan did not make a sound again.

But she seemed to have eyes on her back. When she picked up the bow, she accurately drew a long arrow with snow-white tail feathers from the arrow quiver on Shen Liu’s back with a backhand, nocked it on the string, and slowly drew this one-stone bow open. The sound of the bowstring continuously tightening and twisting came—

In the instant the arrow feathers whistled out.

Her voice also fell. “Then let her go.”

“Dong”

A sound rang out.

The slender long arrow pierced through the red center of the grass target fifty steps away. The sharp arrow tip even passed through the grass stack one chi behind it, and the arrowhead’s cold light shone brightly on the other side.

Shen Jinglan pulled down the handkerchief she used as an eye mask and casually handed the bow to Yu Qing beside her. “Too light. Change to another one.”

She had really lain in the mansion for too long. If she did not quickly recover her previous morning training, she would fear that in the future she could not even mount the warhorse she liked. And the most unruly one under her saddle had an especially fierce temper. She heard that previously when it was kept in the mansion’s rear stable, it could not be tied down and kicked several servants who fed it fodder. Later, it even ran to the outskirts of Yong’an and broke into the edge of Shen Jingming’s hunting ground, where it claimed kingship and hegemony on that fertile grassland.

Shen Jingming did not order people to drive away her horse, but let it frolic near his hunting ground. If in the future Shen Jinglan could not tame this horse back, the result of who would take it in laughing was very obvious.

Casually thinking to here, she turned back to look at Shen Si and Shen Liu. The tall little girl understood the elegant meaning upon hearing the string song. She had also heard about Wangfei’s various infamous deeds outside, but now she did not know what Wangye’s exact plan was, so she said euphemistically:

“Previously when going out, my father was somewhat curious about Yong’an’s specialties. Since it is lively outside now, may the general allow this subordinate to request leave to go out and stroll?”

Shen Jinglan glanced at her and did not speak.

The little girl happily cupped her fists and withdrew.

…

Ye Fuguang still did not know that a little ghost followed behind her carriage frame.

Her mind was full of expectations for eating the banquet and watching the liveliness. When the carriage arrived in front of a wine shop featuring garden landscape views, the surroundings were all men and women in coarse cloth clothes walking in, each with a quiet and elegant scholarly temperament.

At this time, Ye Fuguang finally had a bit of appreciation for this world’s outrageous setting again, because it divided men and women into Qianyuan, Zhongjun, and Dikun, so the original discrimination chain expanded into a class discrimination chain, instead diluting the one between men and women. Specifically, it was reflected in that men and women could be seen in all positions.

Including these people who wanted to come to Yong’an for the examination.

She happily got off the carriage and found that a line had formed in front of the door. At first, she thought that eating the banquet required paying money, so she had Ruyi prepare a money bag. But when it was almost her turn, she found out that it was to test talent.

One had to draw lots. Whatever keyword one drew, one had to immediately compose a poem around it.

If one really could not think of one, it was also fine to recite some famous poems of contemporary great scholars. That could also be considered paying tribute to the big shots. In short, wanting to come over with empty head and empty stomach to freeload on the meal was absolutely not allowed.

This scene was too familiar—

Ye Fuguang thought, was this not just reciting articles at later scenic spots to get free tickets?

The problem was that she, a university student who had gone through the most brutal college entrance examination and was already four years into university, where did she still remember so many poems?

She turned around without hesitation to look at Ruyi. “Is there a banquet that does not require reciting poems?”

Ruyi racked her brains to think. “No, right.”

The little Wangfei collapsed into a little dog-like b1tch face again.

This unlearned but very honest appearance amused a woman lining up behind them. The other party tied up her long hair with a cloth band, wearing an outer robe written with wild cursive calligraphy, inside was a black single garment. Although she wore it very plainly, and there were no gold, silver, jade ornaments, rings, or pendants around her body.

But Ye Fuguang saw it. Her outer robe would emit a faint golden color under the sunlight; it was the xingguang forged silk that Ruyi brought to ask her about two days ago, sold by the most expensive fabric shop in the city.

…In a game, it should be a hidden NPC.

At the same time Ye Fuguang looked over, she took out a volume of book from her sleeve and handed it to her, smiling and asking, “The most famous poems of Dazong, I have all copied in this collection. Want to buy? Fifty taels each.”

Ye Fuguang looked at her strangely.

Then she turned her head to ask Ruyi, “Do I look like a sucker?”

–

The line in front and behind was still very long.

Because the waiting time was too long, the people in the line inevitably had to find something to do. Some quietly pricked up their ears to listen to the people in front composing poems, silently assessing the strength of this year’s competitors in their hearts. Others watched the excitement. Now Ye Fuguang had become the biggest excitement in the line.

Her sentence “Is there a banquet that does not require reciting poems” was already enough to attract many people’s attention.

At this moment, she and her maid stood there, like two feathers that fell into the ocean of knowledge but could not sink no matter what, so illiterate so conspicuously among the crowd of scholars bitterly making boats.

Fortunately, those disdainful looks could not harm Ye Fuguang. After all, no matter how noble these people were, were they not also here to freeload on food and drink?

Everyone was begging for food. Who was looking down on whom here?

She very calmly rejected that calligraphy beauty’s suggestion. The other party laughed even happier, as if she found her quite interesting, and asked, “Then how do you plan to get in?”

After a while, that person had another flash of inspiration. “How about this? You give me twenty taels, we swap positions. I compose the poem first, then bring you in. How about it?”

Twenty taels was also one-fifth of Ye Fuguang’s monthly salary.

What kind of banquet was this to call this price?

She thought cautiously for a moment. “Twenty… coins?”

The calligraphy beauty: “…”

She was like a merchant whose price was bargained down to the main artery, staring at Ye Fuguang expressionlessly.

The little Wangfei touched her nose. She had not yet mastered the essence of bargaining in this era. Suddenly, she heard a woman next to her whose clothes had patches timidly say, “I… ten coins will do. Would the noble consider?”

Ye Fuguang and that beauty: “?”

Both were stunned. The surrounding onlookers seemed to see the excitement now. After carefully examining Ye Fuguang’s clothing, they began to disrupt the market with bids, one price lower than the other. Later, there were even those who saw she looked good and simply had thoughts of climbing relations, calling out a price of one copper coin.

The beauty “tut”ed and looked up and down at Ye Fuguang’s figure. “One copper coin, you would have made a huge profit.”

Ye Fuguang: “?”

…

Before the little Wangfei could decide whose poem to freeload on to get in, the line had already reached her.

The door boy impartially stuffed a paper slip to Ruyi.

Ruyi opened it and said: “Moon?”

Ye Fuguang dreamed back to high school, like being drawn by the Chinese teacher on the spot to recite, and conditionally reflected from the depths of her memory to find a poem that could connect to this word. “The moon rises over the willow tips, people meet after dusk.”

The door boy who had originally prepared to have servants come invite these two illiterates out was stunned and handed her another slip. This made Ruyi also stunned. “One sentence is not enough?”

The door boy gestured for them to look at the crowd squeezed together beside them, all not admitted in coarse clothes. “Just now these ten people all failed to compose. According to the rules, later people need to compose poems for all the slips they drew to get in. It can only be said that the two are unlucky.”

Ruyi conditionally reflected and looked at Ye Fuguang, handing over the second slip in her hand.

Snow.

“Lone boat with raincoat and hat angler, alone fishing in the cold river snow.”

Peach.

“Thousands of doors and myriad households bright in the sun, always replacing old charms with new peaches.”

Sun.

“Vast desert solitary smoke straight, long river setting sun round.”

The people who had been bidding and watching the excitement now all changed their expressions toward her.

Finally, they unified into the expression of “Damn, there is a pretentious person here.” They did not know how she casually picked up these sentence by sentence scene changes, encompassing pastoral poems, border poems, and those amorous and affectionate poem lines.

—If you said earlier you could recite poems so well, why did you just now ask someone to bring you? Big shot, bring them along!

Even for the ingredients like “mandarin fish” or “duck” drawn later, she could come up with lines that were even in tone and rhyme, and easy to read aloud. What kind of world-shocking great poet was this!

Ye Fuguang sighed. She knew that in this架空 era, Three Hundred Tang Poems would give them a little cultural shock. After drawing all the slips, she seriously added, “The above are not poems I made, they are works of some great poets I memorized before. Can I go in now?”

–

The door boy indeed let her in.

Then after Ye Fuguang sat at the banquet, she found that the calligraphy beauty who entered after her no longer had her outer garment, only wearing the black middle garment. The other party grinned widely and came over to her table.

“Miss has such talent, admirable. Are there more of those great poets’ works from just now?”

Ruyi saw her disheveled clothes and did not really want her to get close.

That person seemed to read Ruyi’s expression and said very frankly, “This is all thanks to your family’s master. Just now that door boy thought her poems had talent and wanted to find someone to record them down. I happened to have pen and ink, and very suitable clothing to record these poem lines. Just now I sold it to this shop’s manager for a hundred taels of gold—”

“He plans to have people collect it, along with the famous lines made by other talented scholars before, and after they succeed in the examination, hang them in the wine shop for promotion.”

Ye Fuguang: “…”

Her expression was complicated. “Is there a possibility that first, the authors of those poems are not in this world; second, I am not participating in this year’s imperial examination either?”

“Eh, all deceased poets?” The black-clothed beauty thought for a moment and did not know from where she pulled out a folding fan, fanning herself with it, then curiously asked, “But why are you not participating in the imperial examination? This year the court lacks people; it is a good opportunity to seek a future.”

She sat down beside Ye Fuguang’s table as if no one else was there.

Ruyi took a deep breath and could only pretend not to see her overly familiar action.

Now the wine shop they entered set up the wine banquet in the landscape garden outside the building, imitating the ancient elegance of flowing wine along the water. The delicacies made by the chefs were all placed in hollowed exquisite dishes, floating one by one in the water: pastries, cold dishes, fish sashimi, everything one could want. The people sitting on both sides could get to know each other, talk about poems and literature, and then enjoy the food.

Ye Fuguang looked at the flashy flowing banquet and thought of a buffet. There was nothing else in her eyes. She directed Ruyi to bring over the dishes she was interested in and perfunctorily answered.

“Because I am illiterate, and also have no future to seek.”

She had already married into Qiwang Mansion and become the side consort. What else needed effort? Effort to become the principal consort?

The black-clothed beauty snapped shut her folding fan. “You are very interesting. Shall we get to know each other? I am called Xu Leyao.”

Ye Fuguang had not reacted yet, but Ruyi looked at her again somewhat unexpectedly, then whispered to Ye Fuguang, “It is the Xu family of Longxi. Previously had a very good relationship with Yan Wang.”

If Ruyi knew more about the court, she would know that the Minister of Rites responsible for this year’s imperial examination was surnamed Xu.

…

Ye Fuguang’s attention, which had originally been on the dishes, finally slowly fell on Xu Leyao’s face.

She suddenly remembered a plot segment.

In the original work, after Qiwang died and the original host was executed, Ye Rong was punished but it did not affect Ye Yuge. In that year’s imperial examination, Ye Yuge participated normally. And before the examination, she had correspondence with a friend, and the two had a good relationship, often meeting in Yong’an.

After the examination, both were originally waiting for the results list. But somehow a scholar reported to the court, saying that they were too close to the examiners before and during the exam, suspecting they got the questions in advance. Thus, the emperor, to ensure the examination’s fairness, did not investigate much and simply removed the chief examiner, and without even asking the scholar’s name, ordered Ye Yuge and Xu Leyao to be thrown into prison as well—

The key point came.

After the emperor threw them in, he probably forgot about this matter. As a result, Xu Leyao became cellmates with Ye Yuge inside. The two thought of a way to fake death and escaped from the imperial prison. Then, since their official careers had no hope, they simply traveled together across famous mountains and great rivers.

Later, when Da Zhi invaded Dazong again, the two picked up Shen Jingming on the retreat road. From then on, one entered the court and became Shen Jingming’s left and right arms, racking her brains to plan military funds for him and continue supporting Dazong’s war against Da Zhi. The other had no interest in officialdom and wore a stinky face as a divine doctor.

Ye Fuguang blinked her eyes and looked at this good friend who was destined in the original plot to become cellmates with Ye Yuge and even inspire her to escape.

“Why is miss looking at me like this?” Xu Leyao thought she was shocked by her surname.

But the Xu family in the previous emperor’s time had bought into Jing Wang’s faction. After all, no matter from the perspective of legitimate or eldest, Shen Chaohui seemed able to become the crown prince and inherit the throne.

It was just unexpected that his old illness left on the battlefield was so fatal. Later, when he returned to Yan region, he did not survive a few winters, and the previous emperor was also heartbroken because of this and passed away early.

The Xu family, which had completely bought the wrong stock and originally had merit for following the dragon and could mix as a three-dynasty veteran, was not favored by the current emperor because they were firm supporters of the eldest prince’s party. The family now fully relied on her father in the Ministry of Rites to support it.

She saw that Ye Fuguang’s clothing was not bad either. Although she could not guess whose family she was from, she did not think she would look at her differently because of this… She could not possibly be from her father’s political enemy’s family, so especially targeting her?

While Xu Leyao was wildly recalling, Ye Fuguang finally slowly spoke. “Are you participating in this year’s imperial examination?”

–

Xu Leyao originally had great interest in this year’s spring examination.

She had even made many preparations for it.

But recently, one of her friends was heard to have offended the emperor and entered the prison of the Horse and Step Army Division before the hall. This made her quite distraught. After all, they had originally agreed to take the exam together and become officials together. But now only she was alone, and she did not know what the other had committed. Perhaps in autumn she would still have to go to the execution ground to see her off. Thinking of it made her even more annoyed.

So when Ye Fuguang asked, she was silent for a long time and self-mockingly said, “I originally wanted to participate, but now I do not know if I really want to participate.”

She thought this little girl would ask her the reason. But after hearing, the other party suddenly grabbed her sleeve and said solemnly, “You have to go.”

Xu Leyao: “?”

That person’s expression hesitated for two seconds, but still spoke, “Sister Xu, actually I have studied a bit of physiognomy. Believe me, if you participate in this year’s imperial examination, you will surely top the list as Zhuangyuan! You are the Wenqu Star descended to earth, the rising star of Dazong’s court!”

Xu Leyao: “…?”

She was amused by these exaggerated words, but what she cared about was, “How do you know I am definitely older than you, calling sister right away?”

Oh.

Then you must be younger than me.

Ye Fuguang thought to herself that this person looked about the same age as Ye Yuge, and even because Ye Yuge always had a straight face, she looked like the older one. But so what? She was Ye Yuge’s sister, and if that did not work, she had the age of two lifetimes. No matter how one calculated, she was older.

But at this moment thinking of her little sister still squatting in the big prison, she blinked her eyes at Xu Leyao sincerely and said, “Sister is a term of respect. If you do not like it, I can call you little sister.”

At the same time.

She pushed all the dishes in front of her, whether pastries or meat and cold vegetable dishes, entirely to Xu Leyao’s front, putting on the appearance she usually used to please Shen Jinglan, and said very sincerely, “Please, Zhuangyuan. On the day you enter the examination hall, I will see you off. When the results are announced, I will be there too. This friend, I am determined to make.”

Eat more while she could still eat. Later when she entered prison, there would be none.

Xu Leyao was amused to no end by her. Because her expression changed, Ruyi also changed her previous attitude and now very respectfully poured tea for Xu Leyao. So this future Zhuangyuan who had been painted a pie now happily raised her teacup, looking at her with a smile full of meaning:

“You say it so sincerely, I almost believe it.”

“But I still do not know what you are called?”

…

Ye Fuguang had never done this kind of small push for the plot before. Although she knew the other would have no danger later and even become a pillar minister of the court, after all, she was pushing her to go to prison. She inevitably felt a bit guilty.

When Xu Leyao asked what she was called, Ye Fuguang thought for a moment: “Ye Ying.”

Xu Leyao was quite surprised: “Eh, what a coincidence. You have the same surname as one of my good friends. Could it be that I have more affinity with the Ye surname?”

What affinity?

The affinity of going to prison?

Ye Fuguang laughed it off. “Yes, right?”

“Have you heard of my friend’s name? She is called Ye Yuge. She was originally going to participate in this year’s spring examination too. Her father is now the Imperial Medical Bureau’s envoy.”

“No, I have not heard.”

“What a pity,” Xu Leyao sighed in regret. “If she were here now, I would definitely introduce you to each other. I feel you two seem to have some similar temperaments. Perhaps you could become good friends.”

Heh, it would be good if she did not scold me.

Ye Fuguang quickly steered the topic away from her name and surname, then seriously asked about Xu Leyao’s recent itinerary, saying that before she participated in the spring examination, whenever there was a chance, she would invite her to eat.

Xu Leyao straightforwardly agreed.

–

At the same time.

Qiwang Mansion.

Shen Jinglan, who was preparing to go see her warhorse and practice riding and shooting again, took a letter from Shen Si’s hand, then looked at him expressionlessly. “Using Ghost Shadow Step to pass notes to Shen Liu?”

Clearly, in the army, it was a light footwork that could lead reconnaissance soldiers and approach the enemy camp without causing disturbance. But now it was actually tricked by that little girl into going back and forth to report to her every move of the little Wangfei outside. What was this for?

Before opening the note in her hand, Shen Jinglan pinched the bridge of her nose and ordered the two to stop, not to do such boring things anymore.

Then she lowered her head and saw a line of words on it: Wangfei called Xu Leyao sister (crossed out) little sister.

“…”

Shen Jinglan expressionlessly crumpled the note into fragments.

—How many good sisters did Ye Fuguang have exactly?