Chapter 248: Chapter 105: Returning Home in Glory (Part 3)

Chen Wanqing was swarmed by the enthusiastic elders, unable to get a word in edgewise. In the end, she gave up trying to speak, simply offering a light smile as she sat to the side and refilled their teacups.

While the Zhao family was bursting with joy, a bleak gloom hung over the old Chen family residence.

When Chen Song went to the old residence to share the good news, Chen Dachang was puffing away on his long-stemmed pipe, a rare look of pleasure on his face.

The displeasure and shame from having someone show up at their door to cause trouble yesterday vanished in an instant at the news of his grandson passing the Child Examination.

The old lady, however, wore a sour expression, as if she were looking at a debt collector.

"So, your De’an has made something of himself, and you’re all so proud. You can be proud in your own home, but what’s the meaning of running over here to act so high and mighty? Are you trying to show off how capable De’an is, and how useless Li’an is? Is that it?"

Standing to the side, Chen Lian’s face suddenly flushed beet red.

"Grandmother, what are you saying? Does failing the Child Examination make someone useless? By that logic, almost everyone in the entire county is useless."

Chen Lian wasn’t ashamed of failing the Child Examination. More than four hundred people had registered, but in the end, fewer than fifty were accepted. Not only had he failed, but the other two from his village had also failed, along with the more than three hundred other candidates.

’Does failing make me useless?’

’Does it mean I can’t hold my head high anymore?’

’Even the fingers on a hand are different lengths. A person’s worth isn’t determined solely by their studies. Maybe my talents just lie elsewhere.’

Chen Lian tried to console his grandmother. "Don’t be so narrow-minded. Try to look on the bright side. We’re a family of farmers. Now that De’an has passed the exam, our family has a scholar. When word gets out, won’t everyone look at us with more respect?"

"The families have already split. What the hell does De’an’s success have to do with us? Your great-uncle was a stepson I raised myself. He became an official, got powerful, and did I see a single bit of benefit from it? We’re fated to scrape a living from the dirt; we can’t get close to influential people. Li’an, you need to understand this. From now on, you have to walk your own path. If you expect someone else to pull you up, you’ll be waiting for nothing."

Chen Lian’s expression grew even darker. He desperately wanted to just walk away from it all.

But where could he go?

His family had conspired with Mr. Li, going behind Li Cun’s back to secretly arrange the marriage between Wanyue and himself.

By not exposing the plot, he had become an accomplice. He’d always felt incredibly awkward around Li Cun before. Now that the lie was exposed and Mr. Li had personally come to break off the engagement, his family had gotten into a huge fight with the Li family. He could only imagine how ugly the rumors must be by now.

His classmates already looked down on him. If they found out he had helped his family carry out such a malicious scheme, it’d be a miracle if he wasn’t thrown out of the private school.

Besides, he knew he wasn’t cut out for academics. Forcing himself to continue his studies would just be a waste of his family’s Silver Coins; there was no point.

Li’an hung his head, dejected. For the first time in his life, he truly hated the family he’d been born into. How could he have such outrageous parents?

’As their eldest son, not only did I fail to correct their behavior, I went along with their wickedness. Does that mean I’m rotten to the core, too?’

While Chen Lian was sinking into unparalleled self-loathing, Chen Song ignored the old lady’s tirade.

He simply told the old lady what had happened at the entrance to the government office and urged her to finalize the broken engagement with the Li family as soon as possible.

Things had come to this; the engagement had to be broken.

If they continued to use Li Cun’s future to threaten Mr. Li, they would be completely in the wrong.

Mr. Li had been pushed to the point where he had nothing left to lose. If he decided to throw caution to the wind and report the matter to the county government, the County Magistrate—who already disliked Mr. Li—would surely come to detest the Chen family as well. If he then charged the Chen family with "marriage fraud," it would be too late for regrets.

In truth, Chen Song was just saying this to scare the old lady.

The Lord County Magistrate wasn’t so idle as to spend all his time settling such trivial disputes. Most of these matters fell to him, Chen Song, to handle.

But then again, things had reached a point where calling off the engagement was unavoidable.

Rather than having a nasty falling-out and becoming a laughingstock for the entire county, it would be better to end things gracefully.

The old lady stiffened her neck, glared with her cloudy old eyes, and shouted, "On what grounds?"

"On what grounds?"

The second voice belonged to Chen Wanyue, who had just rushed out from the west room.

Chen Wanyue was trembling with rage.

"On what grounds do they get to arrange an engagement when they want and break it off when they want? Did they ever consider my feelings? My reputation? I’m just an ordinary girl! Why should I have to bear the consequences of their wicked deeds?"