Do you know: I, a commoner prime minister

Chapter 77 Shulan's Anxiety

"The fact that no crown prince has been appointed does not affect the establishment of officials in the Eastern Palace. Moreover, the Emperor has summoned Scholar Hu back to the capital and appointed him as the Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince, which makes the meaning quite clear," Guan Yan said.

"Too!"

Zhou An nodded; it seemed the Emperor was already planning to appoint a Crown Prince.

But he knew that the young prince was not destined to be the crown prince.

Because he clearly remembered that after the young prince died, when the court officials suggested adopting him, they referred to him as the prince rather than the crown prince.

A single word makes all the difference.

The title of Crown Prince needs to be officially conferred, and once conferred, the title is set, and the prince will remain the Crown Prince even after death.

Now that the Emperor has summoned Hu Yuan back to the capital and intends to establish a crown prince, it means that the young prince is about to die young.

"Scholar Hu truly deserves to be called a great Confucian scholar. He is able to take charge of the Imperial Academy, and I have benefited greatly from studying under him," Guan Yan sighed.

"De Kuan!"

Zhou An patted him on the shoulder and comforted him, "You have to think of it this way: we are also students of Scholar Hu. Scholar Hu serves as the Crown Prince's Junior Tutor, so in the future, we and His Highness the Crown Prince will be considered to be from the same school!"

"Haha, that seems to make sense!"

Guan Yan laughed. Although no one would acknowledge the relationship, it did indeed exist.

In the future, after they pass the imperial examinations with flying colors, they will often visit Hu Yuan with the courtesy due to students. Even if their official careers are not smooth, at least no one will easily make things difficult for them.

After all, the emperor only had one son, so his position was as secure as Mount Tai.

Hu Yuan was appointed as the Crown Prince's Junior Tutor, meaning he would become the future Imperial Tutor.

Zhou An smiled, wondering if Guan Yan would still be able to smile when the news of the young prince's untimely death arrived.

He was actually a little worried about Hu Yuan. The emperor had just appointed Hu Yuan as the Crown Prince's tutor, but the moment Hu Yuan arrived in the capital, the young prince died.

Who knows if the Emperor will think that Hu Yuan killed the young prince?

Although the emperor was known for his magnanimity, with his only son dead, who knew what rumors might circulate?

But thinking about it carefully, there shouldn't be any danger to his life; at most, he'll just have to go back to his hometown to retire.

It seems that Hu Yuan had already retired and returned to her hometown.

During the morning classes, Hu Yuan taught them as usual.

This made Zhou An wonder if Hu Yuan had refused the emperor's summons.

"Alright, that's enough for today!"

Hu Yuan smiled and said, "Yesterday I received an imperial decree ordering me to return to the capital. In these past few months, I have taught everything I needed to. All good things must come to an end, so I bid you farewell."

Apart from a few sons of officials, everyone else was stunned.

Although they disagreed with some of what Hu Yuan taught, Hu Yuan's reputation was undeniable.

The news of Hu Yuan's departure came as a surprise, and they found it hard to accept for a while.

"This student respectfully bids farewell to Scholar Hu, wishing him a safe journey!"

Zhou An was the first to stand up and bow.

"This student respectfully bids farewell to Scholar Hu, wishing him a safe journey!"

The others, upon hearing the sound, snapped out of their daze and rose to their feet to pay their respects.

Hu Yuan smiled and nodded, then turned and walked outside.

After he left, the students sat down in a daze, still unable to accept the fact.

Zhou An, however, continued packing his things. After the page from next door came over, with the help of Shi Tou, he finished packing and left the school with Guan Yan.

"Hui De, what are your plans next?"

Guan Yan asked, "Why don't we talk to Du Xuezheng and see if we can stay at the academy to continue our studies?"

"No need!"

Zhou An shook his head and said, "I'll be going to the capital for the imperial examination after the New Year, and I want to go home to spend time with my parents!"

There are only a few months left until the Chinese New Year. Although there are still a few months until the provincial examination after the New Year, candidates will go to Bianjing (Kaifeng) early in order to adapt in advance and prevent acclimatization problems.

Some even arrive in Beijing before the Lunar New Year.

In the months leading up to the Lunar New Year, I studied at Tongzhou Academy, but I didn't learn anything of substance. It was better to study at home on my own.

"Too!"

Guan Yan nodded and asked, "So when do you plan to leave?"

"In the next few days!" Zhou An said.

"Since that's the case, then I won't keep you any longer. Let's go to the capital together to take the imperial examination next year!" Guan Yan said.

"good!"

Zhou An smiled and nodded.

Back home, he told Shulan the news and his plans.

Shulan was happy to hear that she could go home, but there was a hint of unnaturalness in her smile.

Although the two had been married for less than a year, they had spent a lot of time together during that time, and Zhou An still keenly noticed that something was wrong with her.

"My lady, is something troubling you?"

Zhou An grabbed Shulan's hand and asked.

"No...it's nothing."

Shulan smiled and shook her head, saying, "I'm just happy thinking about seeing my parents-in-law and father when I get back!"

"You don't look happy at all!"

Zhou An said seriously, "We are husband and wife, what can't we talk about?"

Shulan was silent for a moment, then said sadly, "My lord, we've been married for quite some time now, but I'm useless; I still can't conceive. I..."

"What nonsense are you thinking!"

Zhou An said speechlessly, "We've only been married for less than a year. Even I, a man, know that it's normal for someone to get pregnant within two or three years of marriage!"

"But many women get pregnant very quickly."

Shulan felt that her in-laws agreed to let her come to Tongzhou with Zhou An because they wanted her to get pregnant as soon as possible.

It's normal that Zhou An couldn't conceive because she was away from home to take the provincial examination.

Several months have passed and I still can't get pregnant. Will my in-laws have any thoughts about this?

"alright!"

Zhou An reached out and put his arm around her, comforting her, "Don't overthink it. Your parents aren't unreasonable people. Besides, getting pregnant too early isn't a good thing."

Shulan looked at Zhou An in shock upon hearing this: "Does my husband not like children?"

"What are you thinking!"

Zhou An smiled wryly and said, "When I was a child, I often heard stories of wives dying in childbirth. This was very common among ordinary people."

But wealthy families are relatively few. Has the lady ever wondered why?

Shulan thought for a moment and said, "It's because wealthy families have the means to take proper supplements after a woman becomes pregnant. Ordinary people, even if they are pregnant, still have to work in the fields."

Although the Sheng family was well-off, they lived in a small place like Youyang.

She wasn't the kind of rich young lady from the city who didn't know the hardships of ordinary people.

"That's partly true, but age also plays a significant role!"

Zhou An said, "In ordinary families, it is common for daughters to get married at the age of twelve or thirteen, while wealthy families almost always wait until they reach the age of marriage before marrying off their daughters."

I think it's too risky for someone so young to get pregnant.

It was customary for wealthy families to have their daughters marry only after they reached the age of marriage.

After all, wealthy families value their reputation, and it's inevitable that they'd cause controversy if they rushed to marry off their daughters before they reached marriageable age.

Ordinary people wouldn't care about these things; it was very common for girls to get married at the age of twelve or thirteen.

"But isn't this true for the whole world?"

Shulan retorted, "Besides, I'll be eighteen after the New Year!"

Because Zhou An went to study in Jinling, she got married more than half a year later than other women her age.

Although Zhou An was considerate of her, many other women her age already had children.

It's understandable to be anxious if you can't conceive for a long time.