The Marquis Mansion’s Elite Class

Xu Wan rolled her eyes to the sky.

She knew it.

Who would have thought that the wise and learned old scholar would be so easily deceived by the little devil? Truly, the little devil was worthy of his reputation. Full of clever schemes and tricks.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Fine, fine, fine. The pupil is indeed teachable. Zong Jincheng, your progress over the past month has truly impressed me. As the ancient saying goes, 'It's never too late to mend,' and since you are still young, there's plenty of time to catch up with your studies."

Baili Xi praised him while smiling, his eyebrows and eyes crinkling together, making him look just like the Laughing Buddha with his plump figure.

Zong Jincheng, finally feeling a sense of triumph, proudly raised his eyebrows at Xu Wan and placed his hands on his hips.

It was as if he was saying:

See? This round is a victory for this young master!

The mischievous and confident expression of the young boy was dazzling, making even Cui Zhi feel anxious for him.

The young master was getting carried away, truly carried away.

Xu Wan knew his true abilities, and yet here he was, boldly challenging her. If she were to reveal the truth—that he could only recite but not write—it would be easy to expose his shortcomings.

But after all, he was still a child.

Zong Jincheng's thoughts were simple, and his calculations were no bigger than a mung bean. He couldn't foresee the consequences of his actions and politely replied, "It's all thanks to your excellent guidance, Master. You've gone to great lengths for your student."

Seeing him become so polite and well-mannered, Baili Xi felt even more gratified.

He stroked his beard and arranged, "In that case, Zong Jincheng will join the others in studying 'Meng Qiu' from now on. I will come to teach you all tomorrow."

"Thank you, Master," the two children replied in unison.

Xu Wan stood up to see Baili Xi off the premises, politely adding on the way, "We are grateful for your efforts, Master. Zong Jincheng has indeed made significant progress, all thanks to your meticulous guidance."

"Madam, you flatter me. It's thanks to you that this child has been brought back on the right path..."

The two adults continued to praise each other, walking further away in the midst of their mutual admiration.

Left behind, Zong Wenxiu was genuinely happy for his brother. Over the past month, although Zong Jincheng hadn't been particularly diligent and hadn't spent much time memorizing texts, his talent was astonishing, and he had quickly caught up with his brother's progress. Zong Wenxiu felt a surge of pressure. Fortunately, Xu Wan had kept him from stopping his studies, or else he might have been surpassed by his brother.

As he turned to look, he saw his brother suddenly change expressions.

Zong Jincheng's smiling face instantly collapsed the moment the two adults left. He transformed into a fierce, intimidating child, carelessly tossing the book he was holding onto the ground, where it landed with a loud thud, its fresh pages now covered in dust.

He sprawled lazily in his chair, his feet propped up on the table, the dirty soles of his shoes knocking over the inkstone, spilling ink all over the floor. The culprit showed no remorse, acting like a carefree young master who didn't care about the consequences of his actions.

Zong Wenxiu, who had just been praising his brother, was stunned.

Wait, what just happened?

Didn't his brother just improve?

"Jincheng?" Zong Wenxiu tentatively called out.

The young master continued his relaxed pose, his tired eyes closed, as he wailed loudly, "I'm exhausted! Finally, this tough time is over. I'll never want to be a good Samaritan again. Hurry up, Shunzi, keep the door well. Once that woman returns, we'll immediately reclaim my silver and men. I swear I'll never recite another word of text in my life!"

Zong Wenxiu: "..."

Right, he had almost forgotten. His brother hadn't been studying willingly but for his own sake. Now that the agreement with Xu Wan had been fulfilled, would his brother leave the study?

Zong Wenxiu felt a tinge of disappointment. Although his brother had been late to rise, half-asleep during recitations, and often left early, he was still the only peer he could talk to in this grand mansion.

Shunzi, as Zong Jincheng's sole servant, diligently kept watch at the door, but after a cup of tea's time, Xu Wan still hadn't returned.

The young master, even with his eyes closed, was getting impatient. He looked outside and said, "What's going on? Has she run off without fulfilling her promise? This time is enough for her to see the master off three times."

Upon opening his eyes, he saw the outside was empty, with no maids in sight, just like the usual end of class.

Xu Wan... had she forgotten about them?

Zong Jincheng put his legs down from the table and just as he stepped onto the ground, he saw his cousin crouching on the floor, holding a clean cloth, meticulously wiping the ink stains.

It was the inkstone he had just kicked over.

The young master had done such things more than once or twice, and no one had ever scolded him. Even in front of his grandparents, his grandmother would kindly arrange for the maids to clean up.

Zong Wenxiu...

He was, after all, his elder brother.

Zong Jincheng suddenly felt an odd sense of guilt, an inexplicable discomfort. He stepped forward and pulled the boy up, "Let Shunzi handle it."

Zong Wenxiu smiled at him, "It's alright, Shunzi is busy keeping watch. I can clean it; it's not a hard task."

Zong Jincheng frowned and let go of him.

Then he watched as Zong Wenxiu quickly wiped the floor, switching sides of the cloth to keep it clean, the ink stains disappearing in no time.

After cleaning the ink, Zong Wenxiu placed the inkstone back on the table and picked up the books his brother had thrown, dusting them off and placing them neatly on the desk.

The young master had expected Zong Wenxiu to at least say a few words about how books shouldn't be treated that way, how scholars should be more particular, but instead, he said, "Did you put something in the inkstone to make the ink unable to write?"

Zong Jincheng proudly replied, "Hehe, I added some lard."

Zong Wenxiu couldn't help but laugh, of course.

"Madam must have noticed."

The young master shrugged nonchalantly, showing no fear, "If she noticed, so what? The master already let me pass. If she goes back on her word, she's a dog."

Zong Wenxiu shook his head.

It wouldn't be that simple.

He had heard about the agreement between Xu Wan and their grandmother. She wouldn't give up so easily on making his brother study.

But the person involved didn't seem to realize that.

Xu Wan had intended to settle accounts with the young master after seeing Baili Xi off. After all, she had worked hard to get him into the study; there was no way she would let him escape so easily.

As she was thinking about what to do, Baili Xi suddenly said to her with a cryptic tone, "Madam, in all matters, one should proceed step by step. Do not rush, lest you go astray."

Xu Wan blinked, looking at the smiling old man in front of her, and smiled back, "Thank you for your guidance, Master."

She had thought Zong Jincheng had truly deceived Baili Xi.

It turned out the old man was wise in his own way.

He hadn't bothered to argue with the little rascal.

After all, he was the one who had taught a champion scholar. His mind was as clear as a mirror.

Baili Xi nodded at her and returned home, confident that Zong Zhao's wife would handle the rest perfectly.

As Xu Wan returned to the inner courtyard, she thought through various plans, considering the possible reactions and constantly coming up with new strategies.

Suddenly, she thought of one thing.

Her steps came to a halt—

"Cui Zhi, how much is Wenxiu's monthly allowance?"