Li Ping'an said casually, "I know a little, just a little. It's only a pastime, nothing of much use.
"Unlike you, Young Master Yan. If you earn scholarly honors someday,
"with your standing in the Yan Clan as well, your future will be boundless."
Yan Shisan shook his head with a bitter smile. "You don't know the circumstances, Mr. Li. I've been registered among the lowborn. Scholarly honors are beyond my reach in this life."
"Oh?"
Li Ping'an raised his brows slightly.
He was a son of the Duke of Southern State's Residence. Even if he was unwelcome, surely that was no reason to register him among the lowborn.
Yan Shisan explained, "Under Great Sui law, all live-in sons-in-law are registered among the lowborn, in the same category as merchants."
Most so-called live-in sons-in-law came from families too poor to support them, so they married into their wives' households.
The earliest historical records of the term "live-in son-in-law" described the following.
A son pledged to a rich household as a slave was called a "pledged son."
If he was not redeemed by the deadline, the master would find him a wife, and he would remain a slave.
He was called a live-in son-in-law!
Hearing the bitterness in Yan Shisan's voice, Li Ping'an offered him some comfort.
"The road is long and fraught with obstacles, but walk it, and you will arrive. Keep walking without rest, and the future holds promise."
Yan Shisan paused, savoring the meaning of those words.
"Sir, do you think there's still hope for me?"
Seeing where the knot in his heart lay, Li Ping'an smiled faintly.
"If I thought there was no hope for you, would you jump into the lake right now and give up on living?
"You don't live for anyone else. Don't let