At this moment, the steward of the Jia family and the servant of the Lu family squeezed out. Before the good news could be announced, they could tell from their master's expression that they had heard about the rankings.

So they all urged them on.

"Young master, let's hurry home. The messenger bringing good news will probably arrive soon."

"Okay," Lu Zong and Jia Xu both agreed.

Jia Xu was fine, as the Jia family had many members, but the Lu family only had Lu Zong as their master, and he had to go back to entertain the relatives and friends who came to offer their congratulations.

After exchanging a few more words, the group dispersed.

The palace examination was scheduled for three days later. The top three candidates, along with the first, second, and third candidates, totaled 123 people, who all had to enter the palace to take the exam.

They'll get together again eventually, so a little longer reunion won't make a difference.

Soon, the Li family returned to the Earl's mansion.

Because Jiaren came in second place, the officials gave him priority in reporting the good news, especially since Lige'er also did well on the exam.

Almost as soon as they entered the mansion gate, the officials arrived.

They had to give a reward before Jiaren and Lige'er accepted their respective invitations.

During the imperial examination, this invitation was their key to entry.

As soon as the officials left, Liu Zhiheng's whole family arrived. Madam Liu brought Zhimin and Xiujie, and even Old Master Liu personally came to offer his congratulations.

Next came the Xing family of three, Guo Wenhao, Jiaren's close friends and classmates, Li Lao Er's colleagues and friends, and so on.

In the blink of an eye, the area in front of the Earl's mansion became lively.

Li Lao Er personally ordered that all servants be given an extra month's salary.

All the maids, servants, and boys were overjoyed. They served tea, snacks, and fruit, bustling about like butterflies flitting among the flowers, their faces beaming with smiles, their joy at the height of their happiness...

Most families are lucky to have one successful child, but the Li family had two.

This doesn't even include Jiayi, who killed Japanese pirates in the south, or Jiaxi and Jiaan, who brought back envoys from eight countries from their voyage.

The guests smiled and praised the guests, but in their hearts they were truly envious and jealous...

Inside Zhilan Palace, Jiayin almost wore a ditch into the bluestone floor under the eaves.

She was overjoyed when Mu Xu brought back the news that her eldest brother and sixth brother were both on the list. She jumped for joy and shouted excitedly.

"Princess, Princess! We've been under lockdown for ten days, and nothing has happened. Can we ask our royal uncle to let us out?"

The third princess, already impatient with being locked up, quickly spoke up in agreement.

"Of course, we're not birds, who would want to be locked in a cage every day? I'll send someone to ask Father Emperor right away!"

After saying that, she had someone bring a ladder and climbed up the wall herself.

Although Zhilan Palace is closed, there are people guarding it every day to prevent any incidents from happening inside and to relay messages promptly.

However, the eunuchs guarding the area were quite far away.

The third princess perched on the wall and called out several times before the eunuch in the distance heard the commotion and reluctantly ran over.

The Third Princess ordered without any politeness, "Go find Steward Yi and have him ask Father Emperor. Zhilan Palace has been sealed off for over ten days, and not a single person has fallen ill. Shouldn't it be opened? If it stays closed like this, the Princess and I will go crazy!"

The eunuch quickly kowtowed, then turned and ran away.

Soon, Steward Yi received the news. After thinking for a moment, he brought a pot of hot tea into the Imperial Study.

The emperor had a list of names placed in front of him and was chatting with the marquis.

"Those two lads from the Li family are really quite good. I originally thought they'd been tricked and would fail the exam. I didn't expect them to rank so high!"

The Marquis's eyes were full of smiles, as if his own child had been praised. He replied, "The Li family has a good family tradition, and the children are well-raised. They are wealthy but not arrogant, and when faced with difficulties, they become even more motivated. They are truly remarkable."

The Emperor couldn't help but laugh even harder, jokingly saying, "Look at how proud you are, people who don't know you would think they are your sons."

"However, the Li family's children are indeed good. The Third Princess and Fu Niu'er have been together for a long time and have both improved a lot."

As they were talking, Chief Steward Yi came in, bringing them hot tea as he said, "Your Majesty, the Third Princess is clamoring for the palace gates to be opened! Perhaps she's been cooped up for too long and is finding it all too boring."

The Emperor was taken aback, then laughed and said, "I'm afraid Fu Niu'er heard the good news at home and couldn't hold back anymore, so she urged the Third Princess to open the palace gates?"

The Marquis nodded and replied, "It's only natural that Fu Niu'er misses her brothers. It's been more than ten days since the palace was sealed off; now we can open the gates."

The Emperor thought for a moment and said, "Then let's open the gates of Zhilan Palace. As for Shou Kang Palace, since that person is pretending to be sick, let her hold it in for a few more days, and let the two maids relax a bit."

The imperial edict was quickly relayed.

The gates of Zhilan Palace opened, and Shou Kang Palace received a batch of food and supplies, ostensibly as a tribute from the Emperor to the Empress Dowager, to reassure her and allow her to focus on her recovery.

Regardless of what others thought, Jiayin and the Third Princess were overjoyed.

The two went hand in hand to the imperial study to pay their respects to the emperor and express their gratitude.

The two sisters, one dressed in peach pink and the other in willow green, were both wearing beautiful, new-style spring dresses made of thin fabric.

She even tied half of her hair up, braided it into two braids, and adorned it with a small red hairpin.

It made them look even more youthful and beautiful, just like flower buds.

It's so pleasing to the eye that it instantly lifts your spirits.

"Haha, the two little birds that have been cooped up for more than ten days have finally flown out!" The Emperor joked, personally helping the two little girls up, his face beaming with joy.

"I'm sorry you've had to endure this hardship these past few days! Now that the palace is open, feel free to go out and have fun if you want. Just be sure to bring a few more attendants to serve you, or some ignorant fool might startle you."

The Emperor's generosity saved Jia Yin from having to prepare a whole speech.

In her delight, she became even more eloquent, showering the emperor with flattery as if it were free, making him smile until his face ached.

Finally, when the Marquis left the palace, he was followed by a long line of people.

Jiayin and the Third Princess changed into men's clothing for ease of movement.

In their teens, when it's hard to tell if someone is male or female, they looked like two handsome young men from a distance.

Jiayin missed home, so the first thing she did was return to the Earl's mansion.

Sure enough, just as the family was about to hold a banquet, they were naturally delighted to see her bring back the Third Princess.

The third princess didn't stand on ceremony and treated the Earl's mansion like her own home, eating and drinking as she pleased.

This relieved Madam Liu and Madam Xing, and changed their opinion of the rumored spoiled and willful princess.

After the meal, as the sun began to set, the guests took their leave and departed.

The Li family, concerned about the village, unanimously agreed to return to Suijintan.

Sure enough, the village chief and all the villagers, young and old, had been waiting with their eyes red with anticipation.

They had been eagerly awaiting the return of the Li family, and the next morning they began slaughtering pigs and sheep to celebrate with a large feast.

Needless to say, people from several surrounding villages came to offer their congratulations. Whether it was vegetables or chickens and ducks, no one came empty-handed.

The Li family naturally wouldn't care about the size of the gift; what they valued was the sentiment.

The Third Princess stayed overnight at the Princess's residence with Jiayin. As usual, she changed into men's clothing and played with the village children in and out of the courtyard, watching the excitement. She was extremely curious about such a lively scene.

Today's update is here!