Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 162 Guessing_1

Chapter 162: Chapter 162 Guessing_1

Wang Ru didn’t seem to intend to get out of the carriage; she held the curtain aside and scrutinized Zhou Shuren’s elderly parents, noting the drastic change. Her heart grew more convinced that her suspicion was correct, "Grandma Zhou, do you know who the Monkey King is?"

This was the result of her speculation over the past two months; she felt that she didn’t have the ability to make old Zhou become a "Scholar" by herself, so someone else must have traveled through time like she had.

Zhulan was able to keep a straight face, her modern compulsory course on managing facial expressions so as not to reveal one’s thoughts coming to good use, "Third daughter, what are you talking about? Grandma doesn’t understand? And you’ve just returned from Pingzhou? You’re not young anymore, going to Pingzhou all by yourself. Haven’t you and second daughter learned your lesson? You might not care about your own reputation, but you shouldn’t drag down your two older sisters like this!"

Even those who didn’t step out of their houses knew, thanks to Wang Ru’s reputation, that the reputations of the first two girls in the Wang family were already tarnished. When the Zhou family paid a visit, although it seemed to only involve second daughter and Wang Ru, it actually impacted the eldest daughter as well. Now, Wang Ru had left for over two months without anyone accompanying her and without an engagement, following an unrelated man without a proper match; this had brought shame upon both the eldest and second daughter, who now dared not to step outside their home, tarnishing the family’s reputation in the surrounding ten miles.

She also heard from Lady Li that the village scoundrels were loitering around the Wang family’s doorstep, ready to take advantage of the situation!

Wang Ru’s face darkened as she finally realized how important reputation was in ancient times. This trip to Pingzhou, where she stayed at the Shi family residence, even though she resided in Shi Qing’s courtyard, often found herself being bullied, all because her reputation was being trampled upon. No matter that she had no intentions of associating with Shi Qing, she knew from the snide remarks that her reputation was ruined, but luckily, she was still young.

Wang Ru suppressed her anger, staring into Yang’s eyes. Having experienced intrigue in the estate, she considered herself more cunning than Yang could ever be. All she could see in Yang’s eyes was contempt and disdain, which caused the anger she had suppressed to flare up once more. Internally cursing Yang for valuing reputation so highly, she had to admit that this was indeed a matter of the ancient mores—she had overthought it. The arrival of new variables was indeed due to her.

However, she was truly shocked that old Zhou had passed the exam and become a "Scholar." To console herself, she remembered what she learned from Shi Qing’s words that the provincial exam wasn’t easy, that not just anyone could become a "Graduate." Considering old Zhou’s advanced age and his physical condition, it would take another decade or two of exams, which his body wouldn’t withstand. Thinking this over, she felt much more at ease regarding old Zhou, huffed, and said to the coachman, "Let’s go."

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren watched the carriage drive away before they continued walking. It was only when they reached the side of a small river, with a clear view and no one around, that Zhulan said, "Wang Ru always suspects it’s me who is doing the scheming!"

She wasn’t afraid of Wang Ru’s suspicions. If the Zhou family changed so much and Wang Ru didn’t suspect her, then Wang Ru was truly hopeless. But Wang Ru wasn’t that much smarter either.

Zhou Shuren held Zhulan’s hand; finally, there was no one around and they had their private world. Seizing the rare opportunity, he said, "In the future, Wang Ru will continue to cast suspicions on our family, but it won’t be just limited to you; our daughter will become a focal point of such speculations."

Zhulan burst into laughter, "Luckily, we’ve never taught any concepts beyond those of ancient times to any of the Zhou children. Even we are living by the rules of ancient times, so Wang Ru’s speculations are pointless. In the end, she must think it’s her ’wings’ that are strong!"

Zhou Shuren scoffed, "Her ’wings’ are indeed pretty strong, dragging down the other two girls from the Wang family."

Zhulan wasn’t a person whose compassion ran wild; she didn’t feel sorry for second daughter Wang Rong, but she had sympathy for the eldest daughter Wang Xin, an honest girl whose future was bleak with a poor marriage, doomed to a hard life. But then again, had Wang Ru not arrived, the fate of the Wang household’s daughters wouldn’t have been much better, given that Mrs. Wang wasn’t a pleasant person either!

Zhulan and her husband treasured their rare moments alone without interruptions and didn’t wish to discuss Wang Ru further. Their association with Wang Ru was limited to this year alone, and after they moved to Pingzhou, there was almost no interaction. After Zhou Shuren’s success in the imperial exams, their social circles separated completely. Unless Wang Ru quickly got involved with the male lead, it was regrettable that her reputation was now ruined and she had been taken away by Shi Qing, causing the original storyline to deviate significantly. Originally, Wang Ru was only supposed to be running a business and never spent time with Shi Qing as the plotline now suggested. With such deviations, it was hard to predict what would happen next.

At the Wang family, Wang Ru brought back many gifts. As the family head Wang viewed the boxed gifts, he saw fabric, pastries, and alcohol. His wife Sun’s gaze, however, landed on the jewelry on Wang Ru’s head before finally settling on the several boxes in Wang Ru’s hand.

Holding her son, Sun asked, "Daughter, is that a golden lock for your brother in your hand?"