My Sister Insisted on Swapping Marriages, and I Became a Marchioness Instead-Chapter 99: Scheming Scholars

Cui Ming and Hong Ye couldn’t help but exchange a glance, both a little suspicious.

Lin Ziqi was already the husband of the second young lady, so he should avoid certain things. Why would Young Master mention Lin Ziqi out of the blue?

Hong Ye asked, "Miss, what happened with Mr. Lin?"

Qin Yuan snorted coldly and said, "My cousin said Lin Ziqi invited him to form a society. The meeting place happens to be Yu Yuantang, on the day I mentioned. He wondered if Lin Ziqi might have heard the news and asked me if he should tell Lin Ziqi."

Hong Ye breathed a sigh of relief.

Cui Ming said, "This should be a good thing for Young Master. Why does Miss seem so dismissive?"

Hong Ye widened her eyes, looking at her.

Qin Yuan said, "He heard the news and rushed to invite my cousin, yet he didn’t tell him the whole truth. As the saying goes, ’there is no first place in literature, no second place in martial arts.’ If he sought others to form a society, each would have their strengths; how could he highlight his own excellence that way? He knew my cousin’s poetry wasn’t good and invited him to serve as a foil, to make himself stand out. If I’m not mistaken, he’s probably also invited others who are not good at poetry to accompany them."

He’s trying to stand out among lesser talents, forcefully making himself appear superior.

Hong Ye clicked her tongue, "And Young Master still wants to kindly tell him? Scholars can be so complicated. If it weren’t for Miss’s insight, who would have thought of this angle."

Qin Yuan said, "He’s always like this, never mind, don’t bring it up."

Cui Ming quickly said, "Right, right, let’s not mention him in the future."

Looking at the hour, it was time for dinner. Qin Yuan said, "Quickly ask the maid to serve dinner. I’m late today, with a lingering fragrance all over, even my hair smells. I won’t go to mother’s place tonight."

Cui Ming then instructed someone to prepare the meal and lit a small lamp.

Although it was still bright outside, the light inside was dim, but it was still possible to read. At Qin Mansion, they would never light a lamp.

Qin Yuan smiled slightly, noticing that Cui Ming was getting more used to life at the Marquis Mansion.

This was a good thing.

Qin Yuan carefully went through her cousin’s manuscripts. Qin Siyuan was not very talented in poetry, but he was always diligent, with a solid foundation. On several sheets of paper, he listed the common themes for seasonal poetry through the years and, as she suggested, marked those likely to be used as poetry topics at Yu Yuantang.

Qin Yuan nodded.

Her cousin’s serious and solid work ethic was evident in every detail.

Qin Yuan then reviewed the poems her cousin had written. They were neat but lacked novelty, with uninspired wording and a lacking artistic conception.

She reached out, took the ink piece on the table, mixed some water, randomly ground it a few times in the inkstone, and dipped a brush to circle a few words in each poem.

These words were the "eyes" of each sentence.

They needed to be replaced with better ones to make the lines beautiful.

As for the artistic conception, Qin Yuan thought it couldn’t be rushed and placed her own work among Qin Siyuan’s manuscripts, circling a few marked poetry topics to indicate they should be the focus of improvement.

Then she called for Shen Changle and instructed, "Take this poetry manuscript to my cousin Siyuan. He’s eager for it. Make sure no one else sees it."

Shen Changle agreed.

Qin Yuan added, "Tell my cousin, back when Mr. Dongpo was appointed chief examiner, he once gave a newly written essay to a friend while on his way to the examination hall. The friend happened to be out, and Mr. Dongpo’s servant, eager to return, entrusted it to the friend’s servant. The servant casually placed it on a hall table, where two visiting brothers saw it and thought it was excellent. They took it without permission to study at length. Mr. Dongpo’s friend never saw the article, and when the exam came, the topic matched the article closely. The two brothers fared well in the exams, while Mr. Dongpo’s friend nearly failed."

Shen Changle, being clever, immediately said, "I will surely find Young Master Qin and hand it to him personally. I’ll also remind him to be careful."

Qin Yuan nodded, "You handle things appropriately, which puts my mind at ease."

Shen Changle sighed with relief.

Qin Yuan continued, "Tell my cousin, discretion is the key to success. What I’ve told him must not be disclosed to others."

Shen Changle’s heart tensed again, uncertain about the gravity of the master’s business. The seemingly weightless scroll in his hand suddenly felt exceptionally heavy. He responded solemnly, "I’ll convey the message, Madam, rest assured."

Qin Yuan said, "Good, go."

Shen Changle, hearing her seriousness, did not know what major matter was at hand but could guess it concerned Young Master’s prospects. He didn’t rush out. Instead, he returned home, changed clothes, and took a bamboo basket, wrapping Qin Yuan’s manuscript in oil paper, with another layer of cloth, and placed it at the bottom, covering it with snacks and other items, before heading to Qin Mansion.

Qin Siyuan waited all afternoon without seeing his cousin’s reply, thinking he wouldn’t get it that day. He packed to return to the Imperial College, but as he stepped out the back door, Shen Changle, standing outside, called to him.

Qin Siyuan was surprised and asked, "Who are you?"

Shen Changle said, "I’m Big Madam’s attendant, returning to deliver some items to friends. Big Madam asked me to bring something to you and relay a message."

Qin Siyuan realized it was an attendant from Qin Yuan’s time at the Marquis Mansion and said, "Thank you for making the trip. Why didn’t you look for me in the courtyard but wait here?"

Shen Changle replied, "It was for a reason; I just wanted to be cautious."

Then he relayed Qin Yuan’s words and handed the empty basket to Qin Siyuan, saying, "Under this burlap are the items Miss gave you. I don’t know what they are. They’re wrapped in oil paper—would you like to keep the basket?"

Qin Siyuan thought for a moment and said, "Thanks for being thorough. I’ll take it now and return it when I visit Marquis Mansion."

Shen Changle laughed, "Big Madam gave me plenty of rewards. This basket is something my wife made; it’s of little value, so you needn’t take it back to Marquis Mansion. I don’t have anything else useful, just this. Please don’t mind."

"Not at all," Qin Siyuan said, "You’ve been careful and meticulous, while I’ve overlooked these details. Tell your Madam I understood and will act cautiously, not letting any information slip."

Shen Changle then bid farewell with a bow.

Qin Siyuan pondered, noting his sister’s meticulousness and realizing there was much to learn. He placed his package into the basket, bought some food along the way, put it in the basket, and went to the Imperial College.

The dormitory at the Imperial College accommodated three people, but fortunately, his roommates hadn’t returned yet.

Only then did Qin Siyuan have the leisure to open Qin Yuan’s manuscript, studying the annotations and Qin Yuan’s insights.

His mind buzzed suddenly, feeling as if all the books he had read over the years were for nothing.