Chapter 26 Rewards (Second Update)...

The Emperor continued, "Shan'er, you've won the top prize in the imperial examination. This is your reward from your grandfather."

The emperor directly gave Ye Jianshan the palm-sized jade pendant he always carried with him.

Ye Jianshan immediately felt overwhelmed; he knew without even looking that this jade pendant was extraordinary.

Ye Yun also reached out to stop him, saying, "Your Majesty, this is far too precious."

The Emperor insisted, "It's for Shan'er. Keep it safe. Grandpa will entrust it to you."

This jade pendant is of extraordinary significance; it should have been given to the Crown Prince, but it ended up in Ye Jianshan's hands.

Ye Jianshan held the jade and felt its exquisite texture; it was extremely comfortable.

"mother."

He glanced at Ye Yun, who was about to say something but was silenced by the Emperor's raised hand: "That's it. Yunniang, you've worked so hard all these years, raising the child to adulthood and educating him so well. I am truly grateful to you and the Ye family."

The Emperor expressed his gratitude.

No one knew what to say.

Ye Yun: "This is what a woman should do; he is my son."

"You know, Shan'er's future is not like that; he can reach the highest position."

The Emperor made it clear directly.

Once Ye Jianshan acknowledges him, he will be the Crown Prince, the future heir apparent.

Ye Yun: "This is why I came back."

Ye Yun also made no attempt to hide his ambition.

She has always been decisive; otherwise, she wouldn't have left for more than a decade without ever returning.

Since she chose to return to Beijing, she had already planned out her future.

There is only one road leading to this location in the mountains.

The Emperor enjoyed talking to intelligent people, and he found Ye Yun's words very pleasing: "Good, I like it when you say it like that."

He admires ambitious people.

Ye Jianshan remained calm; for him, it was all fine.

Although he never imagined he would be the Crown Prince, after interacting with people in the palace these past few days and spending time with the Emperor, Empress, and Empress Dowager, he realized that the palace wasn't as terrifying as he had imagined.

Of course, there are definitely bad guys lurking in the shadows.

But if he doesn't become the Crown Prince, those bad guys will be able to hide even better, and their attacks will be more ruthless and convenient, leaving him nowhere to hide.

"I'm ready."

Ye Jianshan answered seriously.

The Emperor patted his head: "You take after your mother, decisive."

Ye Jianshan chuckled and glanced at his mother, noticing that she was looking at him with great satisfaction.

Seeing that the Ye family was uncomfortable with him there, the Emperor chatted for a while and then left.

But as soon as the person left, a whole bunch of gifts came into the house.

Ye Jianshan was completely stunned. Old Man Ye and Old Woman Ye had never seen anything like this before: "It's so valuable, should we offer it up as a tribute?"

When they heard the storyteller's tale, they all said that imperial gifts should be treasured and treated well; damaging them would be disrespectful to the emperor and would result in execution.

Ye Jianshan said casually, "No need, we have to move. The yard is too small."

Ye Lei led his men to move all the things from last time into the room next door.

"so much?"

Ye Yan was a little surprised.

"This was only after Dashan persuaded me."

Ye Lei was used to it.

Eunuch Wang said, "In the box His Majesty just bestowed upon us, there is a land deed for a five-courtyard house, which is very close to the palace and the Crown Prince's residence."

The Crown Prince's residence mentioned here is naturally the former site of the Crown Prince outside the palace.

Just as they were talking about the Crown Prince, he arrived.

Fortunately, the house was tidied up, otherwise the prince would have nowhere to stay when he came.

When Ye Jianshan heard that the Crown Prince had arrived, he glanced at his mother's reaction. His mother sat quietly with little change in expression.

"Why are you looking at me? Go out and pay your respects to His Highness the Crown Prince!"

Old Man Ye and Old Woman Ye looked at Ye Yun with some worry, wondering what had happened between the two of them.

When the Crown Prince entered the courtyard, Old Man Ye and Old Woman Ye were stunned. They pointed at the Crown Prince and then at their grandson, and couldn't help but say, "He looks just like him, so much like him!"

No wonder Ye Yun had no choice; how could someone who looks so alike possibly hide it?

The Crown Prince first bowed to his elders: "Chen Jian greets his parents, elder brother, third brother, Yun'er..."

Before he could finish speaking, Ye Yun interrupted him: "This humble woman greets Your Highness the Crown Prince. Da Shan pays her respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Ye Jianshan cupped his hands and said, "This student greets Your Highness the Crown Prince. I had planned to visit and thank the chief examiner tomorrow, but I did not expect that the chief examiner would come to my door first. This student is truly ashamed."

The Crown Prince said, “It’s alright, Shan’er. I have something to tell you. You are my son and your mother is my Crown Princess. We were separated more than ten years ago due to a misunderstanding. I only realized that my Crown Princess was still alive when I saw you at the examination hall that day.”

The Crown Prince, fearing that Ye Yun would kick him out, blurted out everything in one breath, waiting for the Ye family's reaction.

Ye Jianshan glanced at his mother. Since she didn't say anything, he assumed she agreed. He said, "Grandpa just gave this to me and said he would let me sit in the highest position."

That is the throne.

No Chinese person doesn't aspire to be emperor; though he was young, he was still ambitious.

As Ye Jianshan spoke, he observed the Crown Prince's reaction. The Crown Prince's brow furrowed slightly, then relaxed, indicating that he understood Ye Jianshan's meaning: "Alright, your father will always stand behind you. If you want something, then you can have it."

Ye Jianshan shook his head: "I'm not saying I want it now, but at the very least I have to be worthy of it."

The crown prince was startled by his words, but it was expected: "Hahahaha, very good, very good."

Ye Jianshan was satisfied with his reaction: "I'm not playing house. I will definitely work hard to improve my abilities until I am worthy of that position."

So don't take his words lightly; he's really serious.

The Crown Prince nodded: "Of course I know."

"Alright, Your Highness, if there's nothing else, you may leave. My family is moving."

Ye Yun saw the guest off.

Seeing that she was willing to talk to him again, the Crown Prince quickly asked, "Where are you moving to? How about to the Crown Prince's residence?"

Ye Yun and Ye Jianshan: ...

This guy is really taking advantage of me. Just now, only Ye Jianshan was willing to talk to him, while Ye Yun didn't say a word.

"No need, Eunuch Wang is here."

As expected of someone who served as the deputy chief steward in the palace, Eunuch Wang was very efficient in his work.

The prince was unwilling to leave and turned to talk to Old Man Ye and Old Lady Ye.

"Over the years, my parents and brothers and sisters-in-law have worked hard to take care of Jian's wife and children."

The prince sincerely thanked the two elders.

Old Man Ye said, "Xiaoyun is our own daughter, and Dashan is our own grandson. There's no need to be so polite. It's only right that we treat them well, and they've been good to our family too."

Grandma Ye: "We're family, so let's not speak like strangers..."

"Yes, we are all one family, we are all one family."

The prince seized the opportunity.

Ye Yun had no idea when his skin had become so thick; he had always been taciturn before.

But she felt a little awkward and uncomfortable here. After all these years, it would be a lie to say that there were any feelings involved.

She returned to Beijing entirely for her son's benefit.

But she no longer wanted the title of Crown Princess. This title was too precious and had already cost her her life once. Now, she just wanted to live a good life.

Ye Yun went back to his room. The Crown Prince glanced at him, and Ye Yun did not come out again until he left.

But the crown prince was not discouraged; this time, things had already gone beyond expectations.

Ye Jianshan escorted the person to the door and said, "Tomorrow, I will be visiting the examiner's house with my fellow examinees to express our gratitude. Does Your Highness have time?"

"When you have time, Shan'er, you can call me Dad. Your mother and I are a legitimate husband and wife."

The crown prince sighed.

His son called him either "Examiner" or "Your Highness the Crown Prince," but never "Father."

"I can't bring myself to call her that. I'll say it later. I never thought my face looked so strange before... I don't look like my mother at all."

Ye Jianshan said frankly.

Crown Prince: ...

It was his fault.

"No, you have to be like me, otherwise I won't be able to find you."

The prince raised his hand to pat Ye Jianshan's head, but seeing that he did not dodge, he lowered his hand and gently rubbed Ye Jianshan's head: "Good boy."

Ye Jianshan narrowed his eyes: "Even if you praise me, I won't call you 'Dad' right now. Go on, see you tomorrow."

After saying that, he pushed the prince's hand away, slipped into the courtyard, and locked the prince outside.

The Crown Prince chuckled, recalling the first time he saw his son and his companion staring at each other in the examination hall. "That kid is really mischievous."

However, the Crown Prince liked Ye Jianshan talking to him like an ordinary father and son, which shortened the distance between them considerably.

As soon as Ye Jianshan entered the courtyard, he saw his mother standing there. He immediately went over and asked curiously, "Mother, what are you thinking? Tell your son."

"I didn't think about anything, I just came back to help you ascend the throne and prove yourself."

Ye Yun said frankly.

Ye Jianshan: ...

"OK."

His mother is a very honest person.

"So what are you planning to do about your relationship with the Crown Prince?"

Ye Jianshan asked with a hint of gossip.

Ye Yun pinched Ye Jianshan's mouth: "You think you can just make things up about your mother like that? Kids shouldn't meddle in adults' business."

Ye Jianshan rubbed his face, tears welling up in his eyes. "That's it, that's it, this is the kind of pain I'm looking for."

His mother used the same old spot.

Ye Jianshan complained, "You didn't tell me beforehand. After I arrived in the capital, I saw several people kneeling before me. I was terrified."

Upon hearing this, Ye Yun felt extremely distressed.

"Is someone causing you trouble?"

Ye Jianshan: "No, it's just very inexplicable."

Ye Yun felt a little guilty: "At that time, Mother hadn't made up her mind yet."

“You ignored me. When my third uncle and I boarded the ship, we met that tall man. His knees went weak as soon as he saw me. He kept bothering me on the ship. Now I realize that he had seen the Crown Prince and knew that my face looked just like the Crown Prince’s.”

Ye Jianshan understood all his questions after meeting the Crown Prince.