The Second Mermaid Tribe

March 12.

The Martial Examination and Imperial Examination were in full swing.

The former had reached its final contests, competing for the rankings of the Twenty-Eight Mansions, while the latter had finished its second metropolitan examination and entered a brief respite.

The capital had nearly fallen into a sea of fervor. One often heard of this person or that going to Myriad Flowers Pavilion, leaving behind a fine poem or lyric and staying the night without spending a coin, prompting everyone to race to recite it.

But none of that had anything to do with Liang Qu.

The snowmen in the courtyard were half black and half yellow. Behind two rows of snow trenches, River Otters hurled snowballs with all their might, leaving little white spots on the wall.

The house was bustling with women, their fragrant scents of various colors mingling together as they chattered away, discussing what might still be missing. The servants sent by Xu Residence were so busy their feet barely touched the ground.

"Take it all, take it all! Sunite mutton is delicious—no gamy smell at all. Ah, he'll be gone for two years. How long has Fang Su gone without eating it...?"

"Sister, didn't Wen Bin come back last year? You had him bring some then."

"Oh dear, I've gone muddleheaded." The woman repeatedly smacked her forehead, then turned to Liang Qu. "A Shui, you absolutely mustn't mix them up."

"Don't worry, Auntie! I won't mix them up—they're all separated! I guarantee they'll reach their hands." Liang Qu patted his chest in assurance, then directed the Xu Residence servants to send the slaughtered fat sheep into the ice cellar to freeze.

"Oh, Sister Liu, so what if they get mixed up? They grew up together—aren't they all the same? So what if they eat