By a twist of fate, the illegitimate son of the Marquis's family marries the county princess.

Chapter 105 Massage

Pei Rujing gave up Xinya Garden to be used as a place for judges to select storytelling scripts.

Xinya Garden will provide lunch for the judges, but will not provide accommodation; each judge will still need to go home to stay.

Pei Rujing returned to the Marquis's residence earlier than Wen Zongji.

After sitting down and taking a sip of tea, Wen Zongji asked, "How did the selection go?"

Pei Rujing looked disgusted: "I've been reading storybooks all day, and not a single one is pleasing to the eye. I'm starting to doubt whether I can even pick out three good ones."

"It's only been a day; there's bound to be something that catches our eye as we keep looking."

Pei Rujing, having spent the day reading storybooks, didn't want to bring up the matter again, and instead asked about Madam Wu's banquet: "Will you go?"

Wen Zongji nodded: "Brother Wu also sent me an invitation today."

"It seems that Madam Wu really values ​​this future daughter-in-law, inviting so many people."

After spending a long time with Wu Fengyuan, Wen Zongji also learned who his fiancée was.

"Although the Zhou family members do not hold high official positions, they are a family of scholars. The great Confucian scholar Zhou has students all over the world, and the women of the Zhou family have always been sought after by many families. I heard from Brother Wu that he composed a poem on the spot that moved Miss Zhou, which led to the engagement."

Logically speaking, Wu Fengyuan is the eldest son of the Grand Secretary, and there are few women he is not good enough for. The fact that he is so eager to marry her shows the reputation of the Zhou family women.

Pei Rujing rested her chin on her hand and looked at him: "It seems that you married me far too easily."

Wen Zongji: "..."

The county princess has once again forgotten why they got married in the first place.

But Wen Zongji certainly couldn't spoil the mood, so he said, "It was my fault. I will definitely treat the county princess well in the future to make up for it."

Pei Rujing was easily appeased: "That's more like it."

"The banquet is in the evening. I'll pick up the county princess when I get back from my shift. We'll go to the Wu residence together."

Pei Rujing nodded: "Okay."

……

For the next few days, Pei Rujing went to Xinya Garden every day to select storybooks.

Choosing three stories from dozens of traditional Chinese storybooks is no easy task.

Pei Rujing went from being enthusiastic at the beginning to feeling sick of reading storybooks and has lost all interest in them.

Zuo Mingxuan echoed her sentiment: "Princess, I recently heard a phrase, 'to endure hardship without effort.' Do you think it's appropriate to describe you?"

Pei Rujing glared at her: "How dare you mock me!"

Zuo Mingxuan wailed, "But reading these stories is so painful! How could these people write such awful stuff? Can't they see it themselves? And they have the nerve to submit it to a competition? It's an eyesore!"

Pei Rujing said impatiently, "Alright, these are the last few books. Once you finish reading them, you'll be free. We won't be selected for the second round of judging."

Zuo Mingxuan could only send some annoying messages; she still had to watch what she was supposed to watch.

Another day passed quickly, and they finally finished reading the storybook.

Mao Zheng and his men collected all the scripts selected by the judges and paid the judges their fees, all of which had been agreed upon beforehand.

The members of the mahjong club were all incredibly wealthy and didn't care about the ten taels of silver at all.

Zuo Mingxuan then decided to deposit the money into the mahjong association's public account for future use, such as association gatherings or purchasing items.

Seeing that the first round of selection went very smoothly, Mao Zheng respectfully thanked Pei Rujing, saying, "Thanks to the county magistrate for providing the venue, we have saved a lot of expenses."

Pei Rujing looked at him: "Is the money your husband gave you not enough?"

Mao Zheng hurriedly shook his head: "It's enough, but organizing the competition has already cost a lot of money, so I'm thinking of saving as much as possible."

Pei Rujing didn't say much, just waved her hand and said, "Since everything is alright, you can go now."

Mao Zheng bowed and took his leave.

Members of the mahjong club immediately surrounded them: "Princess, can we continue playing mahjong?"

"I haven't played for days, and my hands are itching to play."

Upon hearing this, Pei Rujing became interested as well: "Of course."

So, no one was in a hurry to go home; they stayed and played a few rounds of mahjong before leaving.

……

Yunguangyuan

Wen Zongji entered the inner room and saw Qinghe massaging Pei Rujing's shoulders and neck.

He took off his official robes, walked behind Pei Rujing, and took over Qinghe's massage for her: "Is today the last day?"

Pei Rujing nestled comfortably in his arms: "Yes, it's over."

"Thank you for your hard work, Your Highness."

Wen Zongji lowered his head and kissed Pei Rujing's cheek.

It's really not easy to keep my delicate wife going for so long.

Pei Rujing snorted: "If I didn't know this was a competition you organized, I wouldn't have put myself through this."

The county magistrate has never wronged herself.

Given her past personality, she wouldn't care about responsibility; she would stop doing it once she felt impatient.

The fact that they've managed to hold on until the very last day is entirely out of respect for Wen Zongji.

Wen Zongji certainly wouldn't spoil the mood by saying that Pei Rujing herself had requested to be a judge. He coaxed her softly, "I have a day off tomorrow. Shall I accompany the county princess back to the Princess's residence to visit her mother?"

Pei Rujing's eyes lit up instantly: "Really?"

Although she could return to the Princess's residence at any time, it felt different without Wen Zongji by her side.

Wen Zongji laughed and said, "Of course it's true."

Pei Rujing turned around happily and hugged Wen Zongji's neck: "Husband~".

Wen Zongji put his arm around her waist: "So happy?"

Pei Rujing nodded.

These days, as they were selecting storybooks at Xinya Garden, it was impossible for them not to talk. Pei Rujing heard many of the women complaining about their husbands.

One of these is the matter of visiting the wife's parents' home. Basically, their husbands will only accompany them back two or three times a year, namely, to visit their parents after the New Year and to celebrate their parents' birthdays.

Now Wen Zongji has taken the initiative to accompany her back to the Princess's residence.

Pei Rujing felt a surge of joy in her heart: "My husband is truly different from other men."

Wen Zongji looked at her: "What did you hear people saying again?"

Every day when Pei Rujing returned home, she would share with Wen Zongji what they had talked about that day and what interesting things had happened.

Pei Rujing shook her head: "It's nothing."

She wouldn't tell Wen Zongji, lest he go astray.

Wen Zongji didn't insist, and pulled Pei Rujing down to sit, continuing to massage her shoulders: "The day after tomorrow is Madam Wu's banquet. After visiting your mother-in-law tomorrow, shall we go and choose a gift together?"

You can't go to a banquet empty-handed.

Pei Rujing said, "Just let the nanny arrange it."

Granny Feng added, "This is my duty, young master. Do you not trust me?"

Wen Zongji shook his head: "Of course not, then let the nanny make the arrangements."

He just thought that since he had nothing else to do, it wouldn't hurt to pick out a gift himself.

Seeing that Pei Rujing had no such intention, they gave up on the idea.