Wan Ning sat on the kang (a Jin Shanyao gently squeezed walnuts for her. Before long, a small mountain of walnuts had piled up in front of Wan Ning's table.
" Shopkeeper Jin... what would you do if someone deceived you?"
Jin Shanyao smiled and said, "I'm not one to hold grudges."
"What if you repay a debt of gratitude but mistakenly believe the wrong person... and that person continues to deceive you under the guise of being your benefactor? What would you do then?"
As soon as Wan Ning finished speaking, he felt the temperature around him drop sharply, and his body shivered inexplicably. He looked up and saw Jin Shanyao with a gloomy face.
"It's my fault for mistaking someone else for someone else; it's not their fault. If they dare to impersonate my benefactor and ask me to repay their kindness..."
Jin Shanyao, her eyes filled with a sinister light. "Kill them... kill them all! Dig up their ancestors for eighteen generations, grind them to dust, and chase them all the way to the Underworld until their souls are utterly destroyed..."
Wan Ning's lips twitched. Didn't she say she didn't hold grudges?
" Shopkeeper Jin... murder is a crime."
"Hmm... It's illegal for a person to kill someone... I'm not human..." Jin Shanyao the walnut in her hand and crushed it to powder.
Wan Ning picked up her teacup and took a small sip, thinking to herself that she was still too kind; until this moment, she had never thought of killing Ren Hanzhong.
She put down her teacup, rubbed her arms, and said with an embarrassed smile, " Shopkeeper Jin... I was just using an analogy, please don't get agitated."
"Am I excited? No, I'm not excited. Keep talking, I'm listening."
Although Jin Shanyao said this, she was quickly calculating in her mind... Her benefactor was worthy of her, her Merit were increasing, and her Inner Core was very stable.
Hmm... no error message.
" Wan Ning, Shopkeeper Jin... My heart is pounding, but I don't know who to talk to about it."
After calming herself down with the Jin Shanyao, she forced a smile. "A heart-to-heart talk... starts at five coins, with no upper limit, depending on what you want to talk about and how long you want to talk."
Wan Ning's money pouch was on the maid, and the maid wasn't around, so she took off her jade bracelet and placed it on the table, saying, "This jade is worth at least fifty taels."
Jin Shanyao picked up the jade bracelet and examined it closely. It was quite beautiful... She would give it to Meng Anzhi later. Thinking this, she tucked it into her bosom and smiled at Wan Ning, saying, "What do you say?"
Wan Ning was almost blinded by her radiant smile. A thousand words stuck in her throat, and she didn't know which one to say. " Shopkeeper Jin, I only found out yesterday that my savior wasn't my husband, but my brother-in-law."
Jin Shanyao had a look of sudden realization on her face. Wasn't this just like the story of "My Husband is Cold and Heartless, My Brother-in-Law is Passionately Affectionate"?
Now I'm thinking of repaying a debt of gratitude!
Jin Shanyao's heart tightened; this was truly a human tragedy... She picked up her teacup and gulped down a mouthful of water to suppress her shock.
Wan Ning looked at Jin Shanyao with pain and helplessness, "What should I do?"
"Huh... didn't you say murder is illegal?" Jin Shanyao stared wide-eyed at Wan Ning, looking completely bewildered.
Wan Ning was speechless. "We simply don't have a way to win without bloodshed."
"Understood..." Jin Shanyao up, opened the door, and called into the courtyard, " Qing He, go to my bedroom and bring me that copy of ' The Record of Admonishing Evil -- Prefectural Capital Chapter '." After saying that, she closed the door and sat back down next to Wan Ning.
"I don't usually show this book to others... but your experience of mistaking your benefactor is so tragic, I've decided to help you..."
The door was pushed open, Qing He walked in carrying two books. She handed the books to Jin Shanyao and turned to leave.
With Jin Shanyao fan, she turned a couple of pages. "Don't rush... Let me see if there are any relevant case studies. This book is personally taught by a master of domestic intrigue; it guarantees you'll win without shedding a drop of blood."
Wan Ning glanced at the spot in Jin Shanyao's arms where the jade bracelet was, and felt a pang of regret... She wondered if asking for the bracelet back now would be enough to get it back from Jin Shanyao.
"Found it..." Jin Shanyao turned the book around and pointed to a passage, saying, "First: Divorce. If you don't want a divorce, read on from the second one."
Article Two: To seize control of the household's finances. Article Three: To bring all the illegitimate daughters and sons to his side.
She looked at Wan Ning and said, "Do you know what 'huala' means? It means to rub with your arm..."
Seeing Wan Ning's blank expression, Jin Shanyao continued to explain, "You don't even understand 'Hulu'? It's just 'pa la', right? You should know what 'pa la' is, right? Pa la is..."
Wan Ning quickly interrupted her, " Shopkeeper Jin... that's enough, no need to explain anymore, I can see for myself."
Jin Shanyao her head, wondering, "Can you even understand this? This is all official language. Can you people from the capital speak official language?"
Sure enough, Wan Ning got stuck on the fourth point. She frowned, pointed to two words, and asked, "What does this mean?"
Jin Shanyao glanced at it and said, "Poke... in your dialect it's called sowing discord."
Wan Ning took a deep breath, "Sowing discord is a dialect term?"
"Hmm..." Jin Shanyao gestured for Wan Ning to look quickly; she treasured this book. Wan Ning smiled and lowered her head to continue reading.
She paused again upon seeing the fifth point, Jin Shanyao casually glanced at it. "Using words to pressure someone means using public opinion to coerce them."
There are only five points in total, concise and to the point, yet they capture the essence of the power struggles within the household.
Wan Ning held the book with obvious delight. She pulled out a gold hairpin and handed it to Jin Shanyao, saying, "Could I borrow this book for a couple more days?"
"That won't do..." Jin Shanyao hurriedly put the book away. This book was a treasure, and it would come in handy in the future. It taught her five sure-kill techniques, and she could only do it because they were both people repaying a debt of gratitude.
Seeing that Jin Shanyao disagreed, Wan Ning didn't press the matter further. He stood up and bowed to Jin Shanyao, saying, "Thank you for your guidance, Shopkeeper Jin... I know what to do now."
After saying that, he got up and left.
Jin Shanyao watched her retreating figure and sighed softly. She hadn't eaten a single walnut; she wondered if she truly understood anything.
More than a month passed in the blink of an eye, and on the ninth day of the second month, the day of the imperial examination, arrived.
Jin Shanyao and Meng Anzhi accompanied Meng Anci to the examination hall. Before parting, she comforted him, " Anci, keep a calm mind... clear your mind of all distractions. You've come this far because of your own strength."
Meng Anci a deep breath and nodded emphatically, "Auntie, don't worry, I'll stay calm." She then glanced at Meng Anzhi, "Sister... take good care of Auntie, I'm going in."
Meng Anzhi nodded, "Don't worry, I'll take care of things at home."
Jin Shanyao her tongue. What are those two kids saying?
The area in front of the examination hall was packed with people. Meng Anci turned around and disappeared. Jin Shanyao sensed that he had entered the examination hall by following the Spiritual Power, and only then did she feel relieved.
Holding his number plate, Meng Anci found his seat according to the assigned number. As soon as he sat down, an official approached to verify his information.
After the official finished checking the documents, he put them down and said gently to Meng Anci, "Answer carefully."
Meng Anci felt a sense of unfamiliarity when he heard someone call out from afar, " Zhen Shiqing, come here for a moment."
"They've arrived."
Upon hearing the official's name, Meng Anci suddenly remembered... wasn't this the top scholar from Qingzhou Prefecture a few years ago? He had heard that the official had never returned to his hometown since passing the imperial examination.
He regained his composure, arranged his brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, and waited quietly for the scroll to be handed out.
The imperial examination lasted nine days and six nights. Because it was mid-February, the candidates' hands would get cold as soon as they took them out of the examination room and hadn't even written a few words.
Only Meng Anci seemed oblivious to the cold, carefully answering the questions on the exam paper. The wooden hairpin in his hair emanated Spiritual Power invisible to mortals, enveloping his entire being.
However, in just a moment, that layer of Spiritual Power was shattered by a beam of light descending from the sky. A chill swept over his entire body, but Meng Anci slightly curled his fingertips and continued answering the questions.