am-books Chapter 168
Chapter 168
The Old Marquis's lips trembled, his mouth opening and closing as if he didn't know what to say. Finally, he just nodded vigorously, "I like it, I like it. My Jincheng has grown up and become so sensible!"
The Old Marchioness's eyes sparkled with tears of joy as she laughed so much her cheeks hurt. "Jincheng has really made incredible progress. I can see how happy your grandfather is—he’s grinning from ear to ear, his teeth almost falling out!"
The whole family burst into laughter.
Zong Jincheng attended to the Old Marquis, helping him wash his feet. The Old Marquis was quite uncomfortable with the gesture, but seeing his grandson's unwavering expression, he hesitantly placed his feet in the water.
He smiled, his eyes squinting into a thin line. "That’s enough, Jincheng. You can stand up now. Your grandfather can soak for a while by himself."
"I promised to help you wash your feet, and I won’t go back on my word. A gentleman's promise is as unbreakable as four horses pulling in opposite directions." Zong Jincheng now quoted proverbs with ease.
The Old Marquis relaxed into the warm water, feeling utterly content. Hearing this, he sighed, "Jincheng, in the future, you’ll definitely surpass your father. I’ve never seen Zhao'er talk as eloquently as you do."
The Old Marchioness thought to herself, "That’s because Zhao'er doesn’t like to talk much." But since her husband was showering Jincheng with praise, she was too happy to remind him of that fact.
Zong Jincheng unabashedly accepted the compliment. "Of course! I’m going to be a great scholar. I’ll surpass my father and be even better!"
This sent the family into another round of laughter.
A confident child always knows how to amuse the adults.
After the Old Marquis finished washing his feet, Zong Jincheng carefully dried them with a cloth. His attentive service made the Old Marquis feel like he was made of gold.
Finally, when Jincheng carried the large wooden bucket away, the maids quickly came to help. The others also left to tend to their own tasks.
In the room, the Old Marchioness reentered with a bowl of porridge. "You haven’t fully recovered yet. Drink this porridge to soothe your stomach. I’ll prepare something more delicious for you tomorrow."
The Old Marquis sat on the bed, grinning like a fool, occasionally blurting out, "I’ll have to brag to everyone. Who among my old buddies can be as happy as me?"
The Old Marchioness: "..." Still reveling in his happiness, huh?
She slapped him lightly to snap him out of it. "Drink your porridge before you starve to death."
The Old Marquis glared at her, his brow furrowed. "You’re jealous. Deep, deep jealousy."
The Old Marchioness smiled sweetly. "Are you going to drink it or should I take it away?"
"Drink, drink, I’ll drink it myself." The Old Marquis quickly took the bowl and gulped it down, then looked at her starry-eyed and murmured, "My grandson is so well-behaved."
The Old Marchioness: "..."
She stabbed him again!
"Fine, fine. I’ll brag to people outside the Child Prodigy Class!" Zong Jincheng pouted, his face full of irritation.
Xu Wan: "..." So, you’re just going to brag no matter what, huh?
And it’s going to be an all-out, world-wide announcement kind of thing.
Thank goodness Wenxiu isn’t coming today, or he’d be dragged into Jincheng’s endless embarrassing moments.
Getting off the carriage, Zong Jinchengwalked beside Xu Wan. As they passed, students he knew greeted him, with Jinchengrespondently:
"No, I’m not here for the exam. I passed the test a few days ago. This is for registration at the Child Prodigy Class."
"Ah, yes, yes, for registration at the Child Prodigy Class. I took the exam five days ago."
"The test was pretty hard, but out of the six of us who took it, only I passed."
"Oh, it’s nothing. Even harder questions wouldn’t faze me. After all, I’m a genius, a great scholar!"
"..."
Xu Wanciald have loved to cover her ears. Even she, not one to suffer from social anxiety, wished she could speed-walk through the campus just to avoid the cringe.
Jincheng, on the other hand, boasted all the way, feeling on top of the world.
Only when they reached the entrance of the Child Prodigy Class did his emotions settle slightly.
The principal and teachers were already waiting there, guiding them to pay the tuition and register Zong Jincheng's name. Since the Zong brothers weren’t studying at the academy, they didn’t assign him to a class.
Unexpectedly, Jinchengpeeked out from behind Xu Wan and said, "I want to attend a day of classes. Please arrange a class for me. It doesn’t have to be fancy—Qin Ye’s class will do."
After speaking, the young master continued to look around, trying to spot Qin Ye’s location. But all he saw at the windows were unfamiliar faces, likely meaning he’d have to go inside to find him.
After Xu Wan’s approval, the principal quickly arranged it, assigning a teacher to take Zong Jincheng to the class.
The little troublemaker, as expected, entered the classroom and spotted Qin Yeimmediately.
The arrogantly composed boy was seated in the very center, at the best spot in the room.
The teacher ran over to Qin Ye’s deskmate to explain something, and the person next to him glanced at Jinchengbefore quickly packing up and making space.
Even such a disturbance didn’t affect Qin Ye’s concentration as he focused solely on his studies, not caring who sat next to him.