The Father's Chronicle
His daughter, Nian Jiaojiao, had become the new top scholar.
After hearing the news, he didn't sleep all night.
In truth, the Nian family wasn't unaware of their daughter's care for their household over the past two years.
Take, for instance, the sprawling residence they currently occupied in Qingzhou Prefecture. Without their daughter, no one in the Nian family would ever have had the chance to live in such a fine house.
Their youngest sister Nian's illness had also been cured by their daughter. The family members had all forgiven their daughter for the mistakes she made when she was young and ignorant. Of course, this did not include Nian Zhenzhen and her father.
Nian Zhenzhen persisted at the academy for a while but was eventually expelled. After all, how could a blind person continue to attend an academy?
Upon her return, Nian Zhenzhen seemed somewhat deranged. She constantly mumbled about studying and becoming the top scholar.
After the youngest sister Nian's illness was cured, Nian Zhenzhen's father pleaded with his wife to ask Nian Jiaojiao to cure Nian Zhenzhen's blindness.
His wife, unable to refuse, humbled herself and went to find their daughter. However, Jiaojiao was in the royal city at the time, and attempting to contact the Lei family directly proved futile. The matter was temporarily set aside.
He breathed a sigh of relief at the time.
For some reason, he always felt that his daughter would not agree to cure Nian Zhenzhen's eyes.
For over a year, everyone had grown accustomed to life in Qingzhou. Miss Tong would send some silver each month, calling it dividends from their daughter's investments, so the family never lacked for food or drink.
Although his wife publicly stated she would not forgive Jiaojiao, calling her a wayward daughter, he could see the sparkle in her eyes whenever she mentioned Jiaojiao.
Clearly, she was proud of her.
After becoming the new top scholar, their daughter returned to Qingzhou and became the Director of the Demon Exorcism Division.
His wife and he often received invitations from prominent Qingzhou families, and the husbands of those families treated him with great courtesy.
His status at home had also significantly improved, with his younger brothers constantly seeking his favor.
He knew that all of this was brought about by their daughter!
The only drawback was that when Nian Zhenzhen learned the new top scholar was Jiaojiao, she went completely mad. She bit everyone she encountered. His wife, helpless, had to confine her to a remote small courtyard.
However, when his wife went to find Jiaojiao and begged her to cure the now-mad and blind Nian Zhenzhen, she was, as expected, refused. Conflict arose between them again, and it seemed a rift had formed that could not be mended.
His wife stayed in their room every night after returning, working tirelessly.
According to his wife, Nian Jiaojiao was born from his belly, so they might as well try to have another top scholar. She vowed never to seek out that wayward daughter again!
Was this a blessing in disguise?
Jiaojiao sent a pill through someone. After taking it, he felt the heaviness of the past vanish, and his body became light.
He could also easily withstand his wife's nightly demands.
Finally, three months later, he conceived Jiaojiao's younger sister.
After the child was born, Jiaojiao personally came to visit and gave the baby a paper talisman, saying it had the effect of strengthening the body and warding off evil.
He was very happy.
But looking at the unfamiliar Jiaojiao before him, he sometimes couldn't help but wonder, was this truly his daughter?
Jiaojiao certainly was, otherwise, why would she be so kind to him and the newborn baby?
He dismissed the fleeting thought from his mind and lowered his head to play with his younger daughter.
Qin Binbin's Chronicle
The first time he saw Nian Jiaojiao, he simply thought she was a beautiful woman and approached her to strike up a conversation. To his surprise, he was rejected without hesitation.
He found it interesting at the time.
Because no one had ever rejected him before.
She was very busy, and he could rarely find her, which troubled him greatly.
Thus, he could only block her path at her doorstep time and again.
But her attitude was always to keep her distance from him.
However, the more she behaved this way, the more it ignited his competitive spirit, making him pay her more attention.
Knowing she was preparing for the imperial examinations, he waited outside the examination hall. On that day, on a whim, he changed back into men's clothing.
Yet, the other party showed no sign of admiration upon seeing him and once again evaded him with a clever stratagem.
He was unwilling to accept this.
Was he truly so unappealing?
His initial interest transformed into frustration.
At the Duan Prince's manor that day, he saw her husband.
He was a man as refined as an orchid, exuding an elegant scholarly aura.
Although her husband was admirable, he believed he was inferior to him in no aspect.
While chatting in the pavilion, he got into an argument with a man of striking appearance. He could clearly sense that she did not like this man, yet he felt a strange sense of aversion towards him.
That day, her eyes still held no regard for him.
She became the top scholar and married the Eighth Prince as her husband. He did not attend her wedding ceremony that day.
However, she chose not to remain in the royal city but returned to Qingzhou. The Nian residence was only three streets away from the County Prince's manor where he resided.
He believed their fate was not yet severed.
He always found excuses to visit, and by then, he had finally seen all of her husbands.
Among them were three men who made him admit that, in terms of appearance, there were times he could not compare.
And when he saw the tenderness in her gaze as she looked at her husbands, a tenderness he had never witnessed before, he understood at that moment that the other party did not like men like him.
That day, he left the Nian residence in a daze and never sought her out again.
His mother told him he was "fixated," that having never faced setbacks since childhood was the reason for his excessive attention towards her.
Perhaps so...
His mother arranged a suitable marriage for him. The intended bride was very spirited and a jinshi graduate. His mother said she was also very good to her husband.
He remained silent for a moment and then nodded in agreement.
In reality, it no longer mattered who it was...
If in another life, he could have met her earlier, would there have been a different outcome?