Charlie Bolton and Jack Bolton, the two brothers, are nothing more than a pair of spoiled little bullies, and their impatient tempers are actually quite easy to handle. Judging from appearances, Fletcher is at most competitive and eager to win, and probably doesn’t harbor any real ill will toward his nephew.

Suddenly, he remembered that he hadn’t seen the second cousin from the second branch at Sullivan’s place today, and couldn’t help but feel a bit puzzled. After walking a few more steps, he asked, “Mother, why didn’t I see Second Sister at Grandmother’s place?”

“Second Sister?” Bennett was stunned for a while before realizing who he was referring to, and immediately let out a snort. “The old lady prefers boys. Your second sister is both a concubine’s child and a girl, so naturally she rarely gets the chance to show her face in front of her.”

“I see.”

Because it was dark on the road, Bennett couldn’t see the thoughtful expression on James Bolton’s face. Thinking of how she had rarely received a few words of praise from her mother-in-law today, she felt as if she were floating as she walked. Her own family did have some money, but no matter how much, it couldn’t compare to the Zhang family’s foundation. Her two brothers were always good at currying favor with the powerful and stepping on the weak, so she couldn’t count on them much. She glanced down at her son, who was walking with his head lowered, and a vague thought arose in her heart.

Perhaps her husband was right—her son was their hope for rising up? He was her only son, her only support, so of course she was happy to see him eager to learn and make progress. If he could earn a title and military merit in the future, she too could hope for a grant of honor. Since Fletcher could rise in status through her husband, why couldn’t she, as a mother, gain honor through her son?

Mother and son returned all the way to the west courtyard, just as Henry Bolton, reeking of alcohol, stepped through the gate. Seeing her husband so drunk, Bennett was immediately annoyed and hurriedly ordered two maids to help him, then scolded, “Coming back drunk so late—if the old lady finds out, you’ll get a good scolding again!”

Henry Bolton was already so drunk that his tongue was thick, but he wasn’t angry at his wife’s complaints. Instead, he chuckled, “I’m happy today… not just for our son… but also for myself! Didn’t you want Second Sister-in-law’s pair of jade bracelets? I’ll… I’ll buy them for you!”

Hearing her father say this, acting like a little husband trying to please his wife, James Bolton almost burst out laughing. The two maids supporting Henry Bolton on either side wanted to laugh but didn’t dare, their faces turning bright red from holding it in, while Bennett spat in annoyance, “What nonsense! I have to serve the old lady every day—what would it look like to wear jade bracelets? I’d just be asking for a scolding for no reason!”

After helping her husband into the room at the east end, Bennett sent Qiuhen to take her son to bed, and didn’t even use the maids herself, but personally took off her husband’s boots and loosened his clothes. After helping him onto the bed, she was about to go check on her son, but as soon as she turned around, she was caught off guard when her wrist was firmly grabbed.

“Yingru, you’ve really had a hard time these years.”

Bennett trembled all over and slowly turned around, only to see her husband’s drunken eyes fixed intently on her. After a moment of silence, she smiled and said, “What are you saying, Master? Husband and wife are one—what’s this talk of hardship? Don’t we have Jamie?”

“That’s right, we have Jamie. He’s my only son. What I didn’t get back then, I’ll make sure to give him now…” As Henry Bolton spoke, he used a bit of strength to pull Bennett into his arms, then whispered, “Today, while drinking with them, I got some good news. Let me tell you…”

“Really?”

“Of course it’s true! Although the old lady is a bit closer to Jamie now, just like you said, who knows if she’ll lose interest in a few days. In two months, it’ll be the old lady’s sixtieth birthday. If we don’t have some achievement by then, we’ll be hard-pressed to prepare a proper birthday gift. After all, the old lady is the legitimate aunt of the Duke of England. If she could say just one word, Jamie’s future would be promising.”

And so, the delighted couple inevitably spent some intimate time together in the room, the creaking of the canopy bed drifting out through the gap in the curtain, making the two maids waiting outside blush, and causing James Bolton, already lying down in the next room, to sigh inwardly.

Honestly, for someone who was a night owl in his previous life, being forced to sleep so early was really tough. And now, with those sounds coming from next door, how was he supposed to sleep?

Yet, hearing those sounds, he felt a faint sense of relief and secret delight. He didn’t want his parents in this life to be a couple who were polite on the surface but estranged at heart, and judging from the past few days, their marital affection was certainly guaranteed.

Chapter Six: First Day at the Academy

The Zhang family’s clan school was quite famous, because a Jieyuan had once come out of it. Although a Jieyuan is not a Zhuangyuan, it’s worth noting that after Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Taizu dynasty began holding imperial examinations in the fifth year of Hongwu, he found that all the successful candidates were just young men, so for thirteen years he didn’t hold the exams again. It wasn’t until the eighteenth year of Hongwu that the exams resumed, so even a provincial Jieyuan was highly valued. Now, that Jieyuan from the Xiangfu Zhang family had risen to great heights in the court, making everyone else envious.

That’s right, that Jieyuan was Sullivan’s legitimate son, the eldest son of the Xiangfu Zhang family, David Bolton, who is now the Right Vice Minister of Works, a third-rank official.