Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 268

Chapter 268: Willing to Give

“Yes,” Pei Que said. “Although An Jing is an illegitimate son, the Twelfth Prince already has a legitimate son of the prominent Yun family as his study partner. Therefore, for this second study partner, the Emperor doesn’t prioritize legitimacy or illegitimate status, but rather family background.”

The An family’s pedigree alone wasn’t considered prominent. But An Xu married the princess, and An Zhi was betrothed to the Pei family. These were among the most prestigious marriages in the capital. Furthermore, the An family also had the powerful support of the Bai family in the northwest. With so many powerful relatives, it was truly hard to find another in the capital.

Now that the Eighth and Fifth Princes were constantly causing trouble, and the other adult princes in the capital had achieved little, the Emperor should indeed consider the Twelfth Prince, looking at his status.

“However, the Emperor’s desire to find a second study partner for the Twelfth Prince isn’t just about building him up with power, right?” An Zhi suddenly thought of the wealthy Yun family. “Ordinary princes only have one study partner, but now the Emperor wants another, and An Jing is still a candidate. Is it because the Emperor fears future power monopolization by his relatives and wants to find a family to counterbalance the Yun family?”

Seeing Pei Que nod, An Zhi couldn’t help but admire the Emperor’s foresight.

She had never met the Twelfth Prince and didn’t understand what kind of person he was. But a nine-year-old was still a child, and the current Emperor couldn’t say for how long he could live. If he died suddenly, he would undoubtedly need ministers to assist him. If the Yun family seized power and the new Emperor was still young, the empire would likely have to pass under the Yun family name. That was why the Emperor had this idea.

But given the current situation at court, no one could predict how the throne would play out.

Even if the Emperor was determined to support the Twelfth Prince, someone else might take advantage of the situation. Then, his current study partner would become the pretext for exterminating his entire family.

Even without considering the potential benefits, An Zhi had no intention of getting involved.

“Besides An Jing, whose children is the Emperor looking at?” An Zhi asked.

“There’s also the youngest grandson of the Duke of Chengguo, the youngest legitimate son of the Prince of Dingnan, the eldest son of the eldest branch of the Marquis of Yongding, and the eldest legitimate son of the Meng family,” Pei Que listed them one by one. “They’re all children from families that don’t support factions.”

An Zhi sighed. “Even if we don’t want to be a partisan, if the Emperor chooses us, it’ll be difficult to distance ourselves from them.”

However, after hearing the names Pei Que mentioned, An Zhi wasn’t too worried. Compared to the An family, which only had powerful relatives, the other families all had their own strengths.

But just in case, she still had to think of a plan.

Pei Que had already thought of this plan for An Zhi. “Isn’t your brother attending the academy now? The academy has exams every quarter. Let An Jing get an average score. If he gets sick again, the Emperor won’t be able to appoint him as a study partner.”

A study companion for the prince must be a top-notch talent. Someone far inferior to him was definitely not an option; otherwise, they might become a bad influence on the prince.

An Jing’s academic performance was good, so a poor score would seem a bit fake. But if he got an average score due to his poor health, it wouldn’t be wrong. With Pei Que mediating, the matter could be resolved.

An Zhi nodded in understanding. She pondered how she would tell An Jing tomorrow, her eyes cast down at the table, unaware that Pei Que was fascinated by her.

The two sat like this for a while, until An Zhi finally grew sleepy and realized it was getting late, so she told Pei Que to go back. As Pei Que left, he kept looking back. Finally, he stopped by the window and turned to An Zhi. “There are still thirty-six days left. Wait for me.”

With that, he jumped out the window and left.

At first, An Zhi didn’t understand Pei Que’s intention, but when she calculated what day would be thirty-six days from now, her face flushed.

—That was their wedding day.

~

Meng Jie also learned the next day about Xu Wenjuan’s midnight stomachache. So when An Zhi came to pay her respects, she let her go into the inner room alone with her.

“Zhi’er, Young Lady Xu has lost a lot of weight now, and you’re getting married soon. Shouldn’t you let her return to the Xu family?” Meng Jie had a bad impression of Xu Wenjuan. She was careless and impulsive. Since she had already taken her in, it would be better to send her back to the Xu family. However, she couldn’t say this in front of Xu Wenjuan; otherwise, it would seem like she was being chased away.

“I told her about this two days ago,” An Zhi, knowing what the madam was worried about, soothed her. “But it’s not appropriate for us to bring it up. Xu Wenjuan won’t stay with us for long, and even if she wanted to, Madam of Xu wouldn’t agree.”

Her daughter had finally lost weight, and Madam of Xu was busy taking her daughter out for social events. How could she bear to see her daughter waste such precious time? After all, Xu Wenjuan was already quite old.

After hearing An Zhi’s words, Meng Jie, remembering that An Zhi was getting married in a month and Xu Wenjuan would be leaving in a month at most, stopped discussing the subject.

An Zhi left the madam’s room and went to find her younger brother.

She didn’t plan to tell Madam or Concubine Cheng about the study partner issue, so she simply called her younger brother to the study to speak with him privately, using the pretext of teaching as an excuse.

An Jing, always obedient to his eldest sister, agreed without even asking why.

When An Zhi returned to her own courtyard, she learned that the Xu family had sent a nanny, who was currently conversing with Xu Wenjuan in the next courtyard.

Soon, the nanny arrived to express her care for An Zhi but said it was inappropriate to disturb her. She hinted that she wanted Xu Wenjuan to return.

An Zhi naturally had no objection and continued with the nanny’s words, then had the maid escort her away.

As soon as the nanny left, Xu Wenjuan came over angrily.

“My mother is such a fool! I don’t understand why she’s in such a hurry to take me home.” Xu Wenjuan, seeing An Zhi still leisurely sipping tea, curled her lips and cursed, “You don’t disagree with my mother?”

“No,” An Zhi smiled, narrowing her eyes.

Xu Wenjuan snorted, grabbed a walnut from the table, and cracked it hard. “I just don’t want to go back so early. Going out with my mother means I’ll definitely have to deal with some ladies. They all speak in roundabout ways; it’s exhausting.”

An Zhi, hearing Xu Wenjuan’s words, also found socializing a bit tiring. But if she were used to it, it would be effortless, and she wouldn’t be as resistant as Xu Wenjuan.

“You’ve become so much prettier now; don’t you want to amaze them?” An Zhi asked.

Xu Wenjuan looked disdainful. “Those people looked down on me before, and now they’re being affectionate just because I’ve lost weight. I don’t want to associate with them. Well, forget it, I can’t stay here forever. I’ll just go back. Heaven bless me to marry a man without a mother-in-law and sister-in-law, otherwise I’ll definitely argue with them every day.”

An Zhi thought, how could that be possible?

Three days later, Xu Wenjuan was taken back.

Meanwhile, An Zhi received a letter from the northwest.