Chapter 46 "Your Majesty? Guess who I am?"...

"It's all my fault."

Li Guanlan lowered his head, his eyes and brows filled with self-reproach: "If I hadn't been curious about the results of the questionnaire, and hadn't opened that paper after entering Zhao Xiaolang's dormitory, and then leaked the news when discussing it with Brother Zigu, the Imperial Academy wouldn't be in this state today."

He apologized to everyone around him one by one: "Chancellor, Zhao Xiaolang, Brother Cheng, Senior Brother Fan... and everyone on the committee, it's all Guanlan's fault."

He was referring to the riot at the Imperial College.

The idea of ​​"students growing vegetables" was originally just a joke in the draft, but it spread among the students of the Imperial Academy while Fusu was having a meal at the Eighth Prince's Mansion and browsing the market. Someone must have deliberately spread it.

The chief minister, Yang Anguo, gathered all the members of the food committee. After checking their records, it was discovered that only Su Shi and Li Guanlan had visited Fusu's quarters and seen the questionnaire he had written. Su Shi had not been in the prison for the entire afternoon, while Li Guanlan had discussed the proposal with Zeng Gong during dinner.

Perhaps that's when the news started to spread.

The food committee's reaction was very serious, and Li Guanlan felt extremely guilty.

“Not necessarily,” Fusu said with certainty.

"Don't forget who I've offended. If those people didn't want me to have a good time, they secretly sneaked into my dorm room, saw the investigation report, and then spread the word about my suggestion that students should farm, hoping to make me a target of public criticism. That's not entirely unreasonable."

Su Shi nodded repeatedly: "That's right! And even if you mentioned it unintentionally, so what? How can a baseless rumor spread throughout the entire prison in one night? There must be someone behind it all. I don't believe it."

Since meeting Zhao Xiaolang, his ability to formulate conspiracy theories has improved dramatically. There's no way around it; geniuses are always the target of envy.

Li Guanlan gave a weak smile: "Thank you for comforting me, my two junior brothers." But his expression softened slightly, and he no longer looked like he wanted to "atone for his sins with his death."

"That's enough. Let's put this matter aside as to whose fault it was." Yang Anguo said, "You all know that's not the point."

The key question is how to deal with the anger of the students at the Imperial College.

Fan Chunren said, "If we deny and suppress this news, we can certainly quell the students' dissatisfaction, but it will also cause the Dining Committee to lose credibility."

“But if we insist on carrying it out…” he slowly gave a bitter smile, “we will have to bear the students’ anger.”

The dilemma facing them went far beyond this. The Imperial Academy was, after all, the highest institution of learning in the country, and any disturbance there would attract widespread attention and be amplified. If someone were to say, "Oh dear, the Emperor just approved the stipends, and now the students of the Imperial Academy are causing trouble? Are they harboring resentment towards the Emperor?"

Well, that means it's all over.

The entire room remained silent.

Yang Anguo cut to the chase, directly addressing Fusu's name: "Young Master Zhao, you were the one who first proposed the idea of ​​students farming. What do you think? Should it be scrapped or promoted?"

“We must promote it,” Fusu said decisively. “It’s a good thing, it’s beneficial to the Imperial Academy, so why not do it?”

"But……"

"But we can't let our senior brothers go to the fields in a huff; we have to let them go in a cheerful mood."

Overjoyed? How could that be?

While some people were still frowning, Su Shi's eyes suddenly lit up: "Could it be that you mean..."

He suddenly lowered his voice, but what he said still made everyone's faces turn solemn: "...Your Majesty?"

Fusu nodded slowly but firmly. This was also the method he had initially planned to use to persuade the chief priest.

He gave an example: At first, everyone was interested in the Chengni inkstone that came with the questionnaire, but when they heard that the Food and Beverage Committee's work might reach the highest levels of government, they all said they didn't want the inkstone anymore and rushed to fill out the questionnaire.

This is still an indirect connection with the emperor. If one could directly meet the emperor's face and simply go to the fields in person, who wouldn't be happy? They would probably be more than willing to have their families offer up their land to the Imperial Academy for free!

Everyone gasped.

Su Shi bluntly stated: "Zhao Xiaolang, you're really ruthless!"

Fusu humbly stated, "Not at all, I only got the inspiration from collecting questionnaires."

Yang Anguo pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "Is it not too prudent of us to alarm the Emperor over such a trivial matter?"

Su Shi readily provided the perfect excuse: "But didn't the Emperor just give us a stipend for meals? The students, deeply grateful for this imperial favor, have voluntarily gone to the fields to work and supplement the school's income. As the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, why don't you come and see the students? Is there something wrong with it?"

Fan Chunren: "..."

Zeng Gong: "..."

Li Guanlan: "..."

Even Fusu had to applaud him: at such a young age, he had already grasped the essence of deceiving both sides; this child's future achievements are limitless.

Yang Anguo was speechless, pointing at Su Shi with his finger, but he was helpless against Su Shi's innocent, smiling face. He could only lower his hand, both amused and annoyed: "Considering that you are acting in the best interests of the Imperial Academy, I will let it go this time. But in the future, when you are an official, you must never make a living by deceiving others. You must be accountable to the officials above and to the people below."

"What? You're already tacitly agreeing that I'll become an official in the future?"

Yang Anguo tapped Su Shi's head: "If you don't take the job, who will?"

Of course, he didn't let go of Xiao Fusu, who had kept quiet and tried to keep a low profile: "And you, you're even more of a cunning monkey!"

Fan Chunren, Zeng Gong, Li Guanlan, and Cheng Hao: "..."

Their thoughts were remarkably aligned: They hadn't been explicitly named, but why did they feel insulted? Come to think of it, had they offered a single constructive suggestion? The two kids had fixed the most ridiculous problem. It made them feel utterly useless.

Li Guanlan tried to salvage the situation: "Then how can we contact the official family?"

Yes, that's the crux of the matter. If the Emperor's entourage cannot visit the Imperial Academy, all our previous plans will be in vain.

Among those present were many sons of officials. But only one person could truly face the emperor directly. All eyes turned to Yang Anguo, the Chancellor, who seemed ready to accept the heavy responsibility.

"I will submit a memorial to Your Majesty tonight to discuss this matter."

But he was merely the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, capable of submitting memorials to the Emperor's ears, yet his priority was far lower than that of the ministers and vice-ministers of the Three Departments and Six Ministries. When would the Emperor be willing to meet with him, or even visit the Imperial Academy in person? Yang Anguo himself had no idea. If things didn't go as planned, which friend should he turn to for help?

"I'll go too."

A tender voice suddenly rang out.

"...Zhao Xiaolang, you?"

The others immediately recalled Fusu's "special" identity. Right, his father was the Prince of Pu. Perhaps he had some special connections? But some people were skeptical; even Fan Chunren wasn't sure. The Prince of Pu, a mere insignificant member of the imperial clan—what was so special about him?

Only Su Shi suddenly realized the truth.

Prince Pu doesn't have one, but Prince Ba does! Prince Ba is the Emperor's uncle. If his uncle invites the Emperor to visit the Imperial Academy, how could the Emperor refuse?

On the other hand, Zhao Xiaolang is really going all out for the Imperial Academy. Su Shi knows the inside story: Zhao Xiaolang and the Eighth Prince have only met once in more than three years, and this afternoon was their second meeting. It seems their relationship isn't very good, right? And now, he's about to meet the Eighth Prince for the third time because of the Imperial Academy.

He clicked his tongue in approval and put his hand on Xiao Fusu's shoulder: "Zhao Xiaolang, I believe in you!"

"And the chief priest! I believe in you too!"

Fusu: "...?"

Thank you, but why do you look so inexplicably touched?

He touched his face again: What did I do?

"Then it's settled. Chunren, Zigu, Guanlan, you three go and arrange the fields to be cultivated immediately. You can let out some rumors about the government, but if anyone asks, you must insist that it's still uncertain, understand?"

"The students understand."

Yang Anguo gave Fusu a deeper look: "Young Master Zhao, I'll have to ask you for help with this matter."

Fusu shook his head three times: "No, no, no, if I hadn't written this suggestion on a whim, none of this would have happened today."

"You just said that encouraging students to work in the fields was a beneficial suggestion. Has your opinion changed now?" Yang Anguo asked seriously.

"No!" Fusu denied it outright.

"That's good then." Yang Anguo suddenly smiled. "Since it's honest advice, why blame yourself for the trouble and belittle yourself?"

"Moreover, I, like you, also believe that this proposal is beneficial to the Imperial Academy. If it is a proposal that benefits the Imperial Academy, then it should be implemented."

Me too.

"I think so too!"

"What a coincidence, me too."

"..."

"…………"

A genuine smile bloomed on Xiao Fusu's face: How wonderful! With such a group of companions around, whatever reforms he envisioned would surely succeed.

This was the first time Xiao Fusu had believed this.

as well as……

Fellow students of the Imperial Academy, come and welcome your fields!

-

The night in Funing Palace was cool and still.

Emperor Renzong stood with his hands behind his back, behind a desk made of rosewood. Around this time every day, a eunuch named Liang Huaiji would rush over under the cover of night, carrying a letter written to him by his son.

The length of family letters varies.

Some were written a little more elaborately, while others had only one or two lines. Some of the handwriting was so shaky that it was clear they were written when they were extremely tired, their hands trembling as they could barely hold the pen.

Emperor Renzong held the short page in his hand, his heart aching terribly. He even considered issuing an edict ordering Fusu to stop writing. But the thought of losing his only daily opportunity to contact his son made him reluctant to do so.

The Emperor sighed and lowered his head: "I hope Su'er can forgive his selfishness."

What impressed him most was Su'er's tearful letter, saying that she had been unintentionally assigned the entrance exam by the Chancellor, and that she would be utterly humiliated if she failed. "Father, how did you manage to memorize so many classic texts back then? I've been memorizing them day and night, and there are still so many left. I want to cry."

Emperor Renzong felt extremely guilty: He hadn't memorized it at all.

Back when Yan Xiangong was still Yan Zan Du, he had a very good temper and would simply pretend not to see when someone was being lazy. He used this to get away with things.

But the emperor still wrote in a very sanctimonious manner: "I also gritted my teeth and memorized it back then, Su'er you must be more serious."

He stared for another fifteen minutes, and just as he was about to impatiently send someone to search, Huang Duzhi suddenly said, "Your Majesty, Huaiji has arrived. Today, today..."

There was no letter, but there was a person.

Emperor Renzong, unaware of anything amiss, waved his hand and said, "Put the letter on the table."

But the person behind him seemed not to hear him, offering not even a reply. Not only that, but their light footsteps continued to approach. Once they stopped, they asked in a childish voice, "Your Majesty? Guess who I am?"

Emperor Renzong: "!"

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Author's note: I've written 200,000 words!

Thank you to all my readers for your support! I'm giving away 20 RMB red envelopes for this chapter!