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A look of worry crept into Lan Yue's eyes. After a moment's hesitation, she whispered:

"Do you remember Zui Zhi, the head maid who used to serve Lady Qi? She was very popular in the household, but she just disappeared like that. That plague came strangely, and after that, Lady Qi lost an arm and gradually became less healthy than before..."

"You mean...?" Hua Mei looked puzzled.

Lan Yue fiddled with the gauze in her hand, and red bloodstains were gradually seeping out. Through the layers of gauze, it was no longer as shocking as before.

"Although the Lin family has a small population, the Qi family has been favored and domineering for a long time, and I'm afraid some people have already had enough of it."

Hua Mei's brow twitched, and she paused for a long while before finally speaking, though she only dared to ask haltingly, "You mean, Miss, she..."

Lan Yue raised her head, and through the lattice window, the hazy moonlight outside was faintly visible. Her tone was as light and airy as the mist over distant mountains, and it quickly vanished.

"The more unruly and eccentric the Qi family becomes, the more likely they are to bring about their own demise. And judging from the person quietly lurking behind the scenes, I'm afraid they won't let the peace last much longer."

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The residence of Princess Duanhe is located in Yong'an Ward, south of the imperial city of Mujing. As the only princess of the dynasty, and the only child of the reigning emperor, she enjoys unparalleled privilege. Not only is her residence situated in the most luxurious and elegant Yong'an Ward, facing directly across the street from the equally powerful Prince Mao's residence, but even her guards are selected from the most agile and skilled fighters in all of Mujing. With its vermilion walls and green tiles, it exudes magnificence and solemnity.

Lin Xu sat in a rosewood sedan chair. Through the thin gauze curtain, he could vaguely see that the gate of the Princess's mansion was still closed in the distance, with a group of guards in gleaming armor standing guard in front of the gate.

Qingwu whispered, "Miss, Princess Kunrou won't come out to see you anyway, so why should we wait here? Let's go back first." In her hands she held an exquisitely crafted lacquered wooden tray, on which were displayed several beautifully carved whistling arrows, the tips of which were carefully crafted from animal bone, both beautiful and sharp.

Recently, the young lady has been hiding in her room to study the craftsmanship of arrow fletching whenever she has free time. She even went out of her way to find the young master's bow and arrows to study them in detail, and asked him many questions about how to use the fletching.

After spending so much time and effort preparing for several days, I came here to express my gratitude. But after informing the guards at the door, Princess Kunrou said that she was unwell and would not see any guests. She wouldn't even open the door. Why should Miss wait here in vain?

"It's alright. Since Princess Kunrou refuses to come out and see me, let's send her a gift as a token of our gratitude. Princess Kunrou helped me out of that predicament in front of everyone that day, how could I not show my appreciation?"

Lin Xu remained calm. Even after being turned away and waiting here for two hours, she carefully wrapped each arrow feather in red velvet cloth and placed it back on the wooden lacquer tray. She lifted her light purple skirt with both hands, stepped out of the sedan chair, and walked gracefully to the guards standing in front of the mansion.

"Since Princess Kunrou is unable to receive guests today, I will take my leave. However, these whistling arrows were personally crafted and developed by me, and it took quite a bit of effort. They are all the most fashionable styles at the martial arts training ground. I would appreciate it if you could help me pass them on to the Princess. Otherwise, I would feel uneasy receiving the Princess's kindness without being able to repay it."

The guards were strictly trained and refused to accept any outsiders or their belongings, which was why Qingwu's pleas at the gate had been in vain. But now, seeing Lin Xu's gentle words and polite demeanor, and noticing the calluses on her palms and fingertips when she held the wooden lacquer tray, the guards exchanged glances, finding it difficult to refuse further. They took the tray, promising to pass it on to the princess.

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The next day, Lin Xu got up early as usual to go to the palace to study.

Now, she has been in Zhiqiong Hall for more than two months. Although her foundation was weaker than others before, after studying diligently day and night, she has gradually gained some favor from Doctor Fu Sheng.

Lin Xu is extremely talented, but her talent was previously hidden by her playfulness and arrogance. Now that she has calmed down, her talent is gradually becoming apparent.

Fu Sheng greatly valued talent, and his attitude towards Lin Xu gradually improved.

"You've been in school for a while now, and you can start preparing for the entrance exam soon. If your results are satisfactory, you'll be promoted to a companion student."

He looked up from Lin Xu's answer sheet, his tone as stern and calm as ever, but with a hint of concern in his eyes: "But if you want to become a study companion, it's not enough to just have excellent grades; you also need Princess Kunrou's consent."

Lin Xu was very grateful and gave Fu Sheng a thank-you smile.

After studying at the academy for many days, her greatest gain was becoming Fu Sheng's student. Mr. Fu was a rigorous teacher who treated everyone equally and never discriminated against her because of her status as a member of the royal family. Whenever she listened to his lectures, she felt enlightened and gained a great deal.

If only I had been fortunate enough to have met such a responsible teacher in my past life.

Song Jiaoling sat a little further away, engrossed in her answer sheet, writing steadily, but the next stroke she made suddenly veered off course.

Judging from what the doctor just said, he seemed to favor Lin Xu quite a bit, but clearly, in terms of talent and background, Lin Xu couldn't compare to her, who had been exposed to such things since childhood. She suddenly felt flustered.

Emperor Su of this dynasty implemented a new policy of frugality and diligence. In the past, when the eldest princess was studying at Zhiqiong Hall, she also had four or five companions. However, since this dynasty, both princes and princesses have only chosen one daughter from a noble family as their companion. This is to save expenses and also to avoid the problem of too many companions causing a multitude of princes' factions.

Before Lin Xu entered Zhiqiong Hall, only Princess Kunrou, a member of the royal family, had not yet been chosen as a companion for her studies. Song Jiaoling, being the daughter of the school supervisor, naturally became the most promising candidate. Moreover, she was respectful and considerate, and could usually exchange a few words with the aloof Princess Kunrou.

But Lin Xu's arrival made Song Jiaoling somewhat uneasy. After all, given her status, she couldn't stay in Zhiqiong Hall for long unless she became a companion to the princess.

Moreover, the princess is quite favored by the eldest princess and Emperor Su. If this relationship can be established, the Song family will naturally have another bargaining chip in the future. At least they won't be just an insignificant and weak family as they are now.

The selection examination at Zhiqiong Hall mainly consisted of essays on classical texts and policy questions, including the current policy questions learned recently and the required readings for the school, totaling ten essay questions. Passing six of them was considered passing. However, if one wanted to be selected as a study companion based on this, simply passing was definitely not enough.

Song Jiaoling had a solid foundation in martial arts and already knew all of this by heart. Besides, although Princess Kunrou was a bit cold in her dealings with others, she had always been quite kind to her. But thinking of how Princess Kunrou had saved Lin Xu that day, and what the doctor had just said, her heart pounded in her chest again.

If I am unfortunately not selected, how can I explain it to my father who has high expectations for me?

Her mind was racing with thoughts, and her writing became increasingly erratic. By the time she finished the entire answer sheet, the ink had blurred at the end, making the answers illegible and the whole sheet look rather messy.

Song Jiaoling, who had never seen such a terrible answer sheet before, couldn't help but panic. She always cared a lot about her answer sheets and the doctor's evaluation, and she absolutely could not hand in this one.

She looked around, her gaze finally settling on Princess Kunrou sitting not far away, and she gently bit her lower lip.