Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!

Chapter 1384: Chapter 1384: Husband Prosperity

On the day of posting the gold list, Ming Rui went to keep watch over the list with several younger brothers.

Liufeng saw Ming Rui and the others, ”Why have you all come?”

Ming Rui said, ”We care about our brother-in-law and don’t want to wait at home for the news, so we came to accompany our brother-in-law to keep vigil.”

Liufeng was touched and rubbed Ming Jung’s head.

Today, the Gu family also came with several people, everyone knew each other, and they formed a small circle occupying a significant spot.

Ming Hui looked around, ”Why haven’t I seen brother-in-law Wong Wei?”

Liufeng had also been searching for a while, ”There are too many people here, it’s not easy to find someone.”

Wong Wei had also arrived early, and the Wong family had many followers, not only brothers from other branches came, but also many descendants of the Wong clan, Wong Wei did not go to look for his brother-in-law.

The most numerous were members of the Wen family. The Wen family had many descendants, both legitimate and illegitimate sons, and nearly all of them came today.

Wen Rong’s face was expressionless. How many of his brothers genuinely wished for him to be the Top scorer today? Even his closest elder brother held deep grievances against him.

The moment to post the list arrived quickly; the government officer shouted for people to step back and placed the list in the most conspicuous location.

The first seen was the name of the Top scorer, Wen Rong. Many people on the scene went crazy, confirming they were not mistaken, a lot of them squeezed out of the crowd and ran out; they were those who had placed bets and had now won Silver.

Wen Rong was stunned. He was actually the Top scorer, his eyes locked onto the list. He thought the Emperor, to suppress the Wen family, would not grant him the top rank no matter how excellent his answers were, and he guessed that he would be Tanhua or the second-place scholar.

Never had he anticipated that the Emperor would really bestow upon him the Top scorer, completing the Grand Slam, what an immense honor this was.

Wen Rong shivered. He did not feel much joy but rather a sense of unease, a deep unease.

Wen Li was impatient and couldn’t help pushing his fourth brother, ”I called you several times and you didn’t respond, are you too delighted to react?”

Wen Rong came back to his senses, his face somewhat stiff with too many people watching him, he forced a smile, ”Ah, delighted to the point of stupor.”

Wen He, the eldest of the Wen family, watched Wen Rong carefully. He felt something was amiss. Wen Rong did not seem to be very happy.

Wong Wei also found his ranking, eighth. Grinning from ear to ear, he had not only avoided dropping but had actually risen one place. If the place had not been so crowded, he really would have wanted to shout out loud; he had passed the most significant hurdle of his life.

Ming Rui also found his brother-in-law’s position. This time he had fallen by fifteen places, ranking sixtieth.

Liufeng exhaled, he had not fallen out of the second rank. He hadn’t performed well in the palace examination, and the composure he showed these past days was all feigned, ”Haha, second rank.”

Ming Rui turned around, ”Congratulations, Brother-in-law.”

Liufeng’s eyes were filled with excitement, his eyes reddening, he hadn’t let his family down, he had made his father-in-law and uncle-in-law proud, he could now silence those who mocked his wife for marrying low.

Ming Hui was even more excited, Liufeng was his cousin-in-law, but Wong Wei was his direct brother-in-law.

He had been thoughtful since he was young, and he never told anyone about his worries that if brother-in-law Wong Wei didn’t do well in the exam, would the Wong family think his own sister lacked fortune or would the brother-in-law take it to heart.

Now there was no need to worry. His brother-in-law had done very well. Last time the Wong family was satisfied with his ranking, and with the rise this time, the Wong family would only be more pleased.

Ming Hui looked at the list, ”My sister brings her husband good fortune.”

Yes, look at how his sister brings her husband good luck. She got pregnant shortly after marrying into the family. How difficult is it for the Wong family to have descendants? For several generations, there hasn’t been someone who got pregnant right after marrying; it’s always been a few years before they had children!

Ming Jung blinked, ”Fourth brother, what did you say?”

Ming Hui pointed to the list, ”Did you see brother-in-law Wong Wei’s ranking?”

”I saw it.”

”Since our sister married over, hasn’t the brother-in-law been getting better and better?”

Ming Jung understood, ”My sister brings her husband good fortune!”

Ming Rui, ”...”

All right, as long as you guys are happy.

Liufeng laughed heartily, ”Wow, by that logic, my wife is also quite lucky for me.”

Ming Rui was amused, ”Right, our Zhou family’s girls are all lucky charms for their husbands!”

The group was having fun and joking around, yet the people nearby heard them and thought it made a lot of sense!

Just look at this year’s sons-in-law of the Zhou family’s next generation—they all performed well in the exams. This convinced some people.

Ming Hui took Ming Jung to congratulate his brother-in-law Wong Wei. They wanted to offer their congrats personally, totally unaware that their earlier conversation had already spread after they left.

Upon seeing Ming Hui, Wong Wei said, ”You’ve come as well.”

With a beaming smile, Ming Hui said, ”Congratulations to my brother-in-law for placing high.”

Wong Wei was fond of his wife’s younger brothers, ”After I’ve finished up here, I’ll treat you boys to tea.”

Ming Jung, the chubby little one, jumped up, ”Brother-in-law is the best!”

The Wong family’s younger generation is quite familiar with the Zhou family, so they quickly struck up a conversation.

Liufeng also came over and said to Wong Wei, ”Congratulations.”

Wong Wei replied with a smile, ”Congratulations to us both.”

Liufeng pointed to Wen Rong, who was surrounded by a crowd, ”Will we wait to congratulate him today?”

Wong Wei’s mouth twitched, ”Not today. Too many people, can’t squeeze through.”

At the Ministry of Revenue, Chang Yi was inwardly smug but outwardly modest as he saw off colleagues who came to congratulate him. When the unfamiliar faces had left, Chang Yi hummed a little tune to himself.

Sir Liu whispered, ”Your son-in-law isn’t likely to stay in the capital. What’s your plan?”

The Zhou family already had two members in the Hanlin Academy; it was not possible for another to join, even if he were the grandson-in-law!

Sir Liu, who had often heard his father analyze the situation, knew that the Emperor kept four Zhou sons in the Hanlin Academy to quickly bolster the Zhou family. There was a limit to this, so the chances of other Zhou grandsons staying in the capital were slim.

Chang Yi looked askance, ”You have a clear head, I see.”

Sir Liu, ”That’s why having a clear-headed in-law is good for everyone. Our family are all clear-headed.”

Chang Yi said nothing; after all, his daughter was still young, and the second young master of the Liu family was not of age either.

Seeing this reaction, Sir Liu was delighted; there might be a play here—oh, if there’s a play, it’s on.

Chang Yi was now contemplating his son-in-law. His father had spoken to him about the Zhou family’s current situation before the service examination began. Through his father’s accounts, he knew his son-in-law wouldn’t stay in the capital.

At this thought, Chang Yi felt sad about his daughter and son-in-law; the son-in-law would be sent out of the capital, and his daughter and grandchildren would have to follow.

In the Zhou residence, Zhulan had already received the news, and she was more concerned about Chang Qi, who had squeezed into the second rank in the palace examination—from the very bottom to the second rank, which was quite remarkable.

In the evening, Chang Qi stayed at the Zhou’s for dinner, and Zhou Shuren took him to the study for a private talk, after which Chang Qi was asked to stay over at the Zhou residence.

Upon her husband’s return, Zhulan asked, ”What did you talk about with him?”

Zhou Shuren, while washing his hands, replied, ”I asked him whether he wants to go to the north or to the south. The country is short on local officials everywhere; I can’t help him stay in the capital, but I can still assist with his posting.”

Zhulan inquired, ”What was Chang Qi’s response?”

Zhou Shuren dried his hands and gestured for his wife to massage his shoulders, ”He wants to go north.”

”He’s smart; he knows everyone will be pushing hard for the south.”

Zhou Shuren, ”He’s not young anymore; he also seeks stability. The north may not be as affluent as the south, but it has the advantage of not having as entrenched family clans as the south does, so he can better put his plans into action.”