Chapter 700: Chapter 694-695: First Meeting with "Guo Xian" (Part 2)

"Take care, Brother Lin." Guo Ning cupped his hands and said.

Brother Lin quickly departed, and just as Guo Ning was also heading back to prepare for the palace examination, he suddenly saw a carriage stop in front of Prince Wei’s Mansion. Immediately, someone got down from the carriage, causing Guo Ning to raise an eyebrow in surprise, "Dai Tu?!"

...

At the mansion.

Chen Mo was just about to take the compound bow to the backyard, intending for the ladies to try it as well, when someone reported that another visitor had come to see him.

Upon learning it was Zhang River, Chen Mo quickly had him invited in and went to meet him immediately.

In the main hall, Zhang River and "Guo Xian" had just sat down when Chen Mo walked in.

"Greetings, Prince." Zhang River and "Guo Xian" promptly stood up to salute.

Chen Mo stepped forward and helped Zhang River up, smiling, "No need for formalities, no need. Brother Shui, you don’t need to be so polite with me. Please, sit down."

Hearing Chen Mo call him by his childhood nickname instead of his full name, Zhang River felt a sudden urge to cry. Brother Mo still remembered him and had not forgotten him. He felt deep remorse for the mistakes he had made in the past.

After Zhang River sat down, Chen Mo didn’t talk to him in a superior tone as he did with others; instead, he chatted casually with Zhang River: "Brother Shui, how have you been recently? What brings you to Xiangyang?"

Seeing that Chen Mo still cared about his situation, Zhang River felt extremely honored and slowly talked about his recent situations, then said, "Prince, let me introduce you to someone. This is Guo Xian, the top scorer of the local exam in Qingzhou and the forty-seventh place in the provincial exam. He is also my son-in-law."

"Oh." Hearing this, Chen Mo turned his gaze to "Guo Xian," then smiled, "Guo Xian, I’ve heard Elder Chen mention you, saying your exam paper greatly emphasized benevolence and filial piety. Now that I see you, you indeed live up to your reputation—you are truly talented. Brother Shui, you’ve found a good son-in-law."

Even if Chen Cultivator hadn’t said so, given that he was Zhang River’s son-in-law, Chen Mo would have had to praise him for Zhang River’s sake.

Moreover, seeing this "Guo Xian" with a kind face and handsome looks, being the forty-seventh place advanced scholar and his disciple, he deserved some praise.

When Zhang River saw the prince praise "Guo Xian," it brought a bright smile to his face.

"Guo Xian" immediately showed a modest and humble demeanor, stood up, and cupped his hands saying, "The prince praises me too highly; I am unworthy of such commendation."

Chen Mo nodded, having a good first impression of this "Guo Xian," so they chatted a bit more: "Do you have confidence in this palace examination?"

"Guo Xian" glanced at Zhang River beside him and said, "Returning to the prince, the candidates for the palace examination this time are all outstanding talents, both in looks and intelligence. For a student to claim absolute confidence would be to underestimate them. However, the student will do his utmost to apply what he has learned, not to disappoint his father-in-law and the prince."

"Well said." Chen Mo looked at "Guo Xian" more favorably. Just based on his calm demeanor now, he was much stronger than Guo Ning and Lin Zhong before him. Then, his gaze shifted to Zhang River: "So, Brother Shui came here this time to accompany his son-in-law for the palace examination."

Zhang River nodded, then said, "Guo Xian has agreed with Zhu’Er that once the palace examination is over, they will marry..."

Speaking of which, Zhang River cupped his hands towards Chen Mo and requested, "I hope the prince can act as the officiator for the two newlyweds at that time."

"Your daughter is also in Xiangyang?" Chen Mo asked.

Zhang River nodded.

Being a person who valued past relationships, Chen Mo thought for a moment and said, "I can do that. I will personally officiate the wedding for the two of them."

"Thank you, Prince." Zhang River and "Guo Xian" said in unison.

Chen Mo smiled and said, "Although you are Brother Shui’s son-in-law, the imperial exams are about fairness. At that time, I won’t provide you with any advantages."

Then, Chen Mo started chatting casually with Zhang River.

Zhang River had been with him from the start and was from the same village; he also knew some things others didn’t. Chen Mo had a deep friendship with him, and chatting with him brought back memories for Chen Mo.

After chatting with Zhang River and noticing the sky was getting a bit dark, Chen Mo took the initiative to invite him to stay for dinner.

Zhang River also wanted to stay, but since the prince’s mansion had many female relatives and he had brought his son-in-law, it would be inconvenient, so he politely declined.

Chen Mo didn’t push further, saying, "Brother Shui, feel free to come to the prince’s mansion more often."

...

At dinner, all the ladies were present except for Yang Qingqing and Yue Ruyan, who were in the capital. Chen Mo slightly frowned, thinking that he still had to share a room tonight with Song Min and Xiao Ya. To avoid spoiling the mood, Chen Mo didn’t say anything.

Han Anniang offered Chen Mo a piece of meat, saying, "Erlang, I heard Brother Shui came by today?"

As Chen Mo’s sister-in-law, Han Anniang had a deep impression of this old acquaintance who had been with Chen Mo for a long time.

"Ms. Anniang, are you referring to Brother Shui as Zhang River?" Xiaolu said.

"Zhang River? The one who was with my husband from the very beginning?" Wu Mi said. Calling him Brother Shui felt unfamiliar to the ladies, but hearing the name Zhang River sparked some memories since he was the first person to follow Chen Mo. Due to this connection, as long as he didn’t make any major mistakes, a prosperous life was almost guaranteed for him.

"That’s Zhang River," said Han Anniang.

"Wasn’t he always living in Pingting County? Has he moved to Xiangyang too?" Xiaolu asked.

"He came to accompany his son-in-law for the palace examination," Chen Mo replied.

"Son-in-law?" Han Anniang was mildly surprised, "Since when did Brother Shui have a daughter?"

"A concubine he married into the Zhang Family brought her along. The two newlyweds plan to get married after the palace examination. I promised Brother Shui I would officiate their wedding," Chen Mo said with a smile.

Han Anniang nodded and didn’t continue the topic; mentioning Zhang River was only because he was an old acquaintance of Chen Mo and from the same village, so it was casual talk.

"Hearing Ms. Anniang mention Zhang River, I suddenly remembered something. A while ago, my father told me that uncle had set his eyes on this year’s examination champion, wanting him as his granddaughter-in-law, but he was turned down," Xiaolu said.

At this remark, all the ladies were quite surprised, because, due to Yi Shiyin’s influence, the Yi Family was no longer that small family from Pingting County. It was unexpected that someone could refuse the Yi Family’s offer.

"Oh..." Chen Mo raised an eyebrow. He hadn’t heard of this before and felt a newfound respect for Guo Ning.

He certainly didn’t want those few promising disciples to all be drawn by the foreign relatives around him.

"Brother Mo, Ms. Mi, I’m full, so I’ll head down first." Song Min hadn’t paid any attention to the topic of conversation at the dinner table. She was entirely focused on tonight’s shared room situation. After eating a bit, she planned to leave early to prepare.

This statement immediately elicited teasing from all the ladies. Xiaolu even jokingly said, "Husband, you must be especially gentle with Min’Er tonight."

Song Min had a thin skin, and hearing the teasing comments, she turned red without waiting for a reply from Chen Mo or Wu Mi and quickly ran off with a reddened face.

Once Song Min left, the ladies immediately turned their eyes to Xiao Ya, laughing, "Xiao Ya, are you full yet..."

"Stop teasing, Miss Nalan is still watching," Wu Mi said.

Nalan Yiren: "..."

No one had even noticed her initially, but once mentioned, naturally Nalan Yiren felt too embarrassed to continue eating and found an excuse to leave.

Xiao Ya also ended up blushing deeply, shyly giving Chen Mo a glance before running off.

...

After dinner, Chen Mo didn’t immediately go to Song Min or Xiao Ya’s rooms. Instead, Wu Mi assisted him in taking a bath and changing into a white brocade robe made personally by Wu Mi.

"Not bad, it fits quite well." Chen Mo stood in front of a large copper mirror, turning around to look at himself.

"Don’t move." Wu Mi gently said as she tied on a jade-embedded belt for Chen Mo.

Chen Mo moved closer, wrapping an arm around Wu Mi’s fragrant shoulder, approaching her pale red cherry lips to savor her soft lips.

Wu Mi didn’t resist, and with delicate hands climbed up Chen Mo’s back, her cheeks flushed with a rosy glow.

Just as Chen Mo tried to advance further, she gently pushed him away, "Okay, stop it. The two younger sisters will be getting anxious."