Women Wearing Men: The Growth Path of the Bastards of the Aristocratic Family

The girl in front of her smiled with crooked eyebrows, her clear eyes were as bright as stars, she spoke lightly and quickly, with a playful ending, scratching her heart like a cat, with a slight itch.

Cheng Yan was stunned for a moment, the darkness in his eyes gradually faded, he reached out to pick up a piece of pastry, and smiled slightly: "Thank you, Miss Gu."

After eating the cakes, everyone was ready to go back to the mansion.When Gu Kaizhen and the others came, they did not take a carriage, but went shopping all the way to the Gongyuan. It was still early in the day, and Gu Yunji also wanted to take this opportunity to relax, so he was not in a hurry, and while walking leisurely, he talked with Father and brother chatted and walked slowly towards Gu's residence.

Cheng Yan's temperament has always been quiet, he just silently lingered behind the crowd and did not take the initiative to participate in the chat.

Gu Yunqiao was afraid that he would be left out in the cold, so she slowed down her pace calmly, walked slowly to his side, and pretended to ask casually: "The township examination takes nine days before and after, so the amount of questions should be very large? Are you sure that you are going to have a lot of questions?" Don’t you have to write non-stop to finish writing?”

Cheng Yan saw her kindness, warmed his heart, and replied, "Actually, it's not. The township examination is divided into three sessions, each three-day session. The papers will not be distributed all at once, but will be distributed sequentially at different times."

"Every once in a while, an official will print and stamp the answer sheet to know the examinee's answering speed..."

The two asked one by one and answered one by one. No matter how trivial and boring Gu Yunqiao's question was, Cheng Yan would answer it in detail without any sign of impatience.

Cheng Yan's voice is clear and gentle. At first, Gu Yunqiao just wanted to find a random topic to avoid embarrassment, but after listening to the other party's patient and meticulous explanation, she gradually forgot her original purpose, and she was absorbed in listening for a while.

"...Cheating methods emerge in endlessly, some put writing paper in food; The soles of the feet."

"The soles of the feet?" Gu Yunqiao's beautiful eyes widened slightly, both surprised and amused, "Then he didn't feel ticklish when he wrote it?"

Cheng Yan didn't expect Gu Yunqiao's attention to be so peculiar. Hearing this, his eyebrows raised slightly, and he followed her train of thought for a while, and couldn't help but laugh for a while.

"Perhaps." Cheng Yan smiled softly, "This kind of cheating method should be more beneficial to people with smelly feet, because as soon as he takes off his shoes and socks, the smell will make the inspectors shy away. It's easy for him to check carefully. I can get past it."

Hearing him joking in such a serious manner, Gu Yunqiao couldn't hold back immediately, and burst out laughing out loud.

The girl who was restrained and self-sufficient just now had a voice as crisp as a bell, her eyebrows and eyes were flying, as if she had broken free from the shackles of the rigidity, her face was bright and vivid, and Cheng Yan couldn't help but be infected by her emotions, and there was a gentle joy in her eyes.

Sensing that the passers-by around were attracted by the laughter and looked sideways at her, Gu Yunqiao hurriedly suppressed her smile, covered her red lips with her hand, and maintained the reservedness of everyone.

Seeing that the girl in front of her immediately lowered her eyebrows and drooped the corners of her mouth because of the looks from others, the lively look disappeared instantly, Cheng Yan's heart was blank, and a slight disappointment flashed in his eyes.

Tightening his fingers, Cheng Yan pursed his lips, wanting to say something, but he remained silent.

Sensing Cheng Yan's emotional changes, although Gu Yunqiao didn't understand the reason, she still changed the subject thoughtfully: "...I heard from my brother that Mr. Cheng didn't start school until he was ten years old?"

Cheng Yan responded gently: "Yes."

"Kaimeng at the age of ten, he was able to get the second place in the county examination at the age of 14, and his grades have always been among the top in Luxi Academy. After studying for a few years, he has already participated in the county examination." Gu Yunqiao's eyes flickered, bright and moving , "So, even my brother is not so fast, Mr. Cheng, you are amazing!"

Cheng Yan's talent is outstanding, and he has heard a lot of compliments since he was a child, but it was the first time he received such a sincere and straightforward compliment, and a faint joy suddenly surged in his heart, the disappointment in his eyes disappeared quietly, and his eyes brightened again.

Unexpectedly, Cheng Yan was not as modest as before, but asked suspiciously: "Really?"

"Of course it's true!"

Seeing that he didn't seem to believe it, Gu Yunqiao straightened his tone and said seriously: "Most people are enlightened at the age of six or seven, and then study for seven or eight years before they can earn a reputation as a scholar. , how can it compare to Mr. Cheng's talent?"

The girl kept talking, listing Cheng Yan's excellence in detail, as if she was afraid that he would despise himself, Cheng Yan listened quietly, the corners of her lips curled up unconsciously, her brows and eyes were full of tenderness.

Time passed slowly, and before they knew it, everyone had already arrived at the Gu residence.

After entering the mansion, Gu Yunji and his father and brother parted at the fork in the road, subconsciously thinking that Cheng Yan was following behind, so he casually called out: "Cheng Yan, let's take a bath and wash up first, change clothes before going to eat."

"...Cheng Yan?"

After a long time without getting a response, Gu Yunji stopped and turned his head to look for him. He happened to see him and Gu Yunqiao walking together.

A strange feeling suddenly rose in Gu Yunji's heart. It was neither angry nor sad, but it was neither happy nor joyful. He couldn't tell what it was, but it was just uncomfortable.

"Qiaoqiao, father is calling you." Gu Yunji walked in front of the two of them, and lied casually, "You go to the main hall and wait, Cheng Yan and I will take a rest and then go over."

"... Ah, good." Gu Yunqiao was still immersed in the conversation with Cheng Yan, and she was stunned for a moment before she realized, "Then I will go there first, and see you, Mr. Cheng."

Cheng Yan nodded slightly, and said politely: "Goodbye, Miss Gu."

Seeing that Gu Yunqiao had turned to leave, but Cheng Yan's gaze was still following her back, Gu Yunji's teeth were a little itchy, and he took a step forward calmly to block his sight, and asked seemingly unintentionally, "Did you have a good chat?"

Cheng Yan silently retracted his gaze, and said with an authentic expression: "Your sister is lively and cute, and she acts naturally, getting along with her is like a spring breeze, and I am really happy."

Cheng Yan's tone was sincere, his eyes were clear and clean, without the slightest hint of frivolity. Gu Yunji stared at him for a long time, but he did not find anything unusual. Then he relaxed, put aside the messy guesses in his head, and asked: "My father and the others are going to release the list. Go back later, what about you? Do you want to stay together or go home and wait for news?"

Cheng Yan said: "Let's stay with you, anyway, we will only stay for ten more days, I don't want to bother on the road."

Gu Yunji was a little surprised: "You have been away for so long and haven't come home, is it really okay? Yesterday was the Mid-Autumn Festival again, and the family should be looking forward to your return. At least you should send a message to them, so as not to worry them."

Cheng Yan was silent for a moment, lowered his eyes to hide the look of loneliness in his eyes, and said softly: "I don't have any family anymore."

Gu Yunji's heart tightened: "What?"

"I am the youngest son in my family. My father passed away when I was young. My mother is old and in poor health. My elder brother is supporting me at home. My elder brother is ten years older than me. He gives me food and clothing, and provides me with education. Yes. I was better than his own son. However, just a few months ago, he fell ill and passed away."

"After the eldest brother passed away, my mother couldn't bear the blow, so she went with her within a few days. My sister-in-law was having a hard time living alone, so she took her nephew back to her mother's house. After she left, there was no one in the family. While I was studying abroad, my uncles and brothers divided up the family's land and property, leaving only two mud houses for me."

There was desolation in Cheng Yan's eyes, and he smiled miserably at him, "Later, I begged for it many ways, and at least I got some pots and pans back, so that the room would not be left empty."

Gu Yunji's throat was dry, and he heard his own voice trembling: "...Why didn't you tell me such a big thing?"

Cheng Yan's voice was light, and his expression was surprisingly calm: "That was four months ago, just after Su Qi's northern expedition to Datong Town, you cared about Su Qi all the time, and you had to prepare for the exam at the same time, I don't want to say it Make you more trouble."

How can this be regarded as unnecessary trouble?
Gu Yunji's throat was uncomfortably congested, and his chest was sore and swollen. He wanted to say something, but he hesitated under Cheng Yan's calm gaze. In the end, he could only shut his mouth and fall into a slumped silence.

Cheng Yan is introverted, and under normal circumstances he will not take the initiative to attract attention, but this does not mean that he should stay in the corner and be ignored by others as a matter of course.

When Su Qi sent the letter back then, Gu Yunji clearly saw the strangeness of Cheng Yan when he received the letter from home, but he didn't take it seriously; after the academy was closed and returned to Huating County, Cheng Yan was so busy that he couldn't make time for several appointments. Although Gu Yunji had doubts in his heart, he didn't investigate deeply, let alone take the initiative to care about it.

Gu Yunji can't blame Cheng Yan for hiding something from him, because he was the one who ignored Cheng Yan first, and he didn't do what a friend should do first.

"...Cheng Yan, I'm sorry." Gu Yunji's eyes were flushed, and it took him a while to speak hoarsely.

"Yunji, you don't need to apologize to me." Cheng Yan smiled, his tone was as gentle as before, "It's all over."

Gu Yunji lowered his head, pursed his lips a little bit, and the heaviness in his heart was not relieved by the phrase "it's all over".

The so-called "passed" does not mean that it has really passed, but that it is not mentioned for the time being.Just like a sharp thorn inserted into the flesh, although the thorn is pulled out and the wound heals, the scar is still there, and it is impossible to pretend that nothing happened.

Fortunately, Cheng Yan was still willing to tell him these things, it's not too late for Gu Yunji to know.