“An Yina… That isn’t the name of a Dongqing woman at all. Is she a foreigner?” The look on Feng Jin’s face showed a somewhat negative look.

Jiang Pengji lifted her hand, pointed towards the north, and smiled meaningfully.

Feng Jin understood her tacitly, but he did not feel happy that he had guessed the identity of An Yina correctly. Instead, he looked ghastly pale.

“The emperor has already given his decree to sanction the marriage. It’s been decided that she’ll be the wife of His Fourth Highness… How dare Wuma Jun…”

He had an affair with the wife of his brother. Did Wuma Jun know what he was doing?

Jiang Pengji rolled her eyes slightly. “What Wuma Jun did was just promoting the virtues passed down by their ancestors. Moreover, An Yina has evil intentions by marrying into the royal family. She has seduced Wuma Jun and Wuma Jun has his own plans as well. The two naturally become one.”

According to Wuma Jun’s wild ambitions, even if An Yina did not seduce him on purpose, could he stay put? Both of them were up to no good.

Feng Jin hesitated to move forward and he struggled on the inside. “About this…”

Jiang Pengji responded in a low voice, “It’s the royal scandal. What are you worried about? Your father has resigned to avoid the disaster and observe the change in events. Do you still want to devote yourself to Dongqing? Even if you say that An Yina and Wuma Jun were having an affair, what evidence do you have? The marriage between Dongqing and the Northern Borderline is something that has been decided. Any obstacles along the way will be eradicated…”

The look on his face changed continually. He sighed after a long time.

“Whatever. It definitely has nothing to do with me…” Feng Jin knew very well about Wuma Jun’s wild ambition. Feng Jin could more or less guess Wuma Jun’s intention of seducing the Northern Borderline princess, An Yina. However, he had wild ambitions without having a brain and a good perspective of the overall situation. That was what Feng Jin despised the most about Wuma Jun.

Engaging with the royal family of the Northern Borderline through An Yina was no different than asking the tiger for its skin: He would be eaten up alive without leaving any bones.

Jiang Pengji tilted her head, looked at Feng Jin’s side profile, and said, “This has nothing to do with you. I’ll tell you something that’s related to you.”

Feng Jin’s heart skipped a beat. “What?” he asked her without changing his facial expression.

Jiang Pengji replied, “During the assessment just now, a scholar took the Hanshi powder and took off all his clothes in public… Yes, you heard it right. He went naked in front of all the scholars, my father, and the other deputy examiners. He even assailed Master Yuan Jing’s outstanding disciple, Wei Zixiao, with obscenities.”

Feng Jin was dumbfounded and he could not help but widen his eyes. “This––this… is ridiculous!”

Jiang Pengji told Feng Jin about the incident as a joke and derided him, “You should be glad that you didn’t go for the assessment because of your injured arm. Otherwise, the man of pleasure might have had his eyes on your charming face…”

Feng Jin was speechless. Why did he always feel as though his hands were itching to beat up the kid in front of him?

Jiang Pengji burst into a laugh. There was a relaxing smile in her eyes. “Forget it. You look so well-behaved. I won’t tease you anymore.”

Feng Jin had a stiff look on his face. He pulled a long face, but there was a genuine smile on Jiang Pengji’s face. They walked through the covered corridor. Looking from afar, they seemed to be talking and laughing.

When they were about to leave the garden, Jiang Pengji noticed a strange gaze. She subconsciously hid her smile and looked into the direction of the gaze. There was only a piece of clothing that disappeared from her sight.

“Did you see someone you know?” Feng Jin asked.

“I think so, but he has his guard up against me. I don’t know how I’ve provoked him.” Jiang Pengji shook her head. If Wei Ci liked to avoid her, then she would let him be. She wanted to see how long he could keep his secret for. “Huaiyu, how much do you know about Langye?”

Feng Jin looked into the direction of Jiang Pengji’s gaze, but he did not see anyone.

“Langye County? I had forgotten that you will be going to Langye with Master Yuan Jing to study. Be prepared. You should do your homework and understand the situation of the aristocratic families in Langye.” Feng Jin smiled. He thought that Jiang Pengji was worried about her future studies. “Langye County is located in a place that the militaries fight over. It’s also a place endowed with the fine spirits of the universe. It has nurtured many outstanding talents and it’s also the place where aristocrats gather.”

Jiang Pengji nodded. She knew about all of that. “I’ve heard that there are many aristocrats in Langye County and that they’re hard to deal with…”

There were many beauties in Hejian County. On the other hand, Langye County was rich in talents.

Many of the famous, revered, Confucius scholars were from Langye. The two had completely different statuses in Dongqing.

Feng Jin comforted Jiang Pengji, “They’re indeed hard to deal with. However, as long as you know your place, no one will deliberately make things difficult for you for the sake of County Chief Liu. Moreover, Master Yuan Jing will protect you when you enter Langye Academy. What are you afraid of?”

As long as the friend beside her was not that noisy, she would definitely have a good life in Langye County.

Jiang Pengji asked another question. “So, have you heard of the Wei family in Langye?”

Feng Jin frowned and thought for a long time. “The Wei family in Langye? I do have a slight impression. If I’m not mistaken, the Wei family in Langye is the collateral branch of the Wei family in Bianzhou, which was established shortly after the founding of Xia. However, they’re small in number. They’ve already gone downhill. They’re declining generation by generation.”

Bianzhou was located in Zhongzhao. The Wei family in Bianzhou was considered the first-class aristocratic family in Zhongzhao. They were very prosperous.

“Then do you know what the Wei family in Langye is like today?” Jiang Pengji asked.

“I’ve roughly heard people say that the Wei family in Langye has returned to the Wei family in Bianzhou, which is their roots. Actually, they’re depending on them for a living. If they don’t do that, they may have to live in poverty. They would thus become a poor, common family.”

The most important thing in the assessment was family background, which accounted for a large portion of the score. The poor, common people were inferior. If they went back to their roots, they were under the protection of the people of power and influence. They shared the same ancestors, anyway.

Putting their lives aside, they were at least still a famous aristocratic family and not a poor, common family.

Jiang Pengji frowned and said, “What you mean is that the entire Wei family in Langye has moved back to Zhongzhao?”

If that was the case, Wei Ci could not be from the Wei family in Langye. Was it just that he coincidentally had the same surname?

“Should be.” Feng Jin shook his head and said with pity, “Collateral branches of a family usually can’t return to their roots. The Wei family in Langye has made such a choice because they’re at a dead end, so they have no choice but to do it… Lanting, why are you interested in this?”

She shook her head and replied, “It’s nothing. I’m just curious.”

The two of them chatted while they walked. They returned to the banquet and watched some people singing and dancing.

Jiang Pengji saw that someone was consuming the Hanshi powder in public not far away. He looked like he was floating and enjoying it. She was stunned and suddenly thought of something. “Huaiyu, when did the Hanshi powder get popular in Dongqing?”

Feng Jin looked helpless and replied, “Lanting, you really think highly of me, but I don’t know everything. How would I know?”