Qin Su's gaze fell on a purple bamboo. The purple bamboo at Heshan Academy was well-trimmed and well-maintained, with hardly any insects.

Chongyang, unaware of her thoughts, simply asked, "Should this matter be reported to the master?"

"Need not."

Yu Shuo has been dealing with too many things lately, and it's really inappropriate to ask him to do this now.

"I'll do it myself."

"Give me a copy of the information on the Prince of Minzhou."

Chongyang naturally wouldn't refuse, and immediately sent a guard over to give him some instructions.

"Sister, have you finished talking with Brother Chongyang?"

Qin Su turned around and saw Qin Zhi, who was speaking, looking at her with his narrow eyes, tentatively and cautiously.

"Hmm, what's wrong?"

She had completely suppressed the surging killing intent she had felt earlier, and seemed to have returned to her usual self.

Qin Zhi then softened his expression and nodded, saying, "It's the dean. The dean said it's lunchtime, so he asked me to ask my sister if she's finished talking about her business."

Qin Su nodded slightly. Her gaze moved and, sure enough, she saw the Dean and the Abbot of Xishan Temple not far away. They had already put down the chess game, but they hadn't come over yet.

Perhaps it's out of respect.

Qin Zhi went to relay the message again, and the dean then came over with a smile and said, "I was afraid of disturbing Princess Chen, so I came up with this idea. Please forgive me, Princess Chen."

Qin Su raised an eyebrow. Did she really look that difficult to get along with? Was it really that serious?

Okay, her tone was indeed not very good before.

The dean asked Zuo Yuan to lead the way; it was the same chubby boy as before. He looked like a steamed bun, not greasy at all, but rather rather cute.

"Senior Brother Zuo is a student of the Dean," Qin Zhi explained to Qin Su in a low voice.

Qin Zhi probably saw that Qin Su was staring at that person, so he gave this explanation.

Qin Su raised an eyebrow and looked away. "Isn't it Xiao Zhi?"

Qin Zhi scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "It's not certain yet. The dean said it depends on my performance in this quiz."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Qin Su somewhat nervously, probably wanting to see her attitude.

Qin Su couldn't help but pat his head and comfort him, "Just do your best."

Regardless of the outcome, as long as you've tried your best, and looking back you have no regrets or remorse, that's enough.

The thing that can never be made up for in the world is regret.

Qin Zhi was somewhat unhappy. He asked awkwardly, "Doesn't my elder sister want me to be the dean's student?" He was also an ambitious person. Before he was adopted into the Marquis of Zhongyi's mansion, he had been trying to study in every possible way. Even if he didn't become the top scholar in the imperial examination, he still wanted to be a second-class scholar.

But things are different now; he really wants to try for the top scorer award.

It may seem a bit far off, but a scholar who doesn't aspire to be the top scholar in the imperial examinations is not a good scholar.

Whether you succeed or not is another matter; just do your best.

In that sense, what my older sister said doesn't seem to be wrong.

He wanted to salvage what he had just said, but the woman beside him spoke up: "How could that be? I'll support whatever Xiaozhi does, as long as she doesn't do anything illegal."

Qin Zhi smiled, and the small sense of grievance in his heart instantly disappeared. "Yes! Sister, don't worry! I won't fail the imperial examination!"

Qin Su naturally knew he wouldn't. In his previous life, he was already a second-class Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) even before he was adopted by his parents, let alone now.

Perhaps there is a better way out. She doesn't care about the specifics; she only cares about paving the way. What the future holds is up to him.

The canteen at Heshan Academy was very large. When Qin Su and the others arrived, there were very few people. Zuo Yuan helped Qin Zhi get his food.

Gradually, the cafeteria became more crowded. Qin Su even saw many students looking in this direction. They were all wearing blue scholar's robes, and it was difficult to tell who was who without careful observation.

Qin Zhi went to get food again, but before he could get any, a student grabbed him.

"Junior brother, who is that girl?"

When Qin Zhi saw that they were talking about Qin Su, his face immediately darkened, and he said irritably, "That's my sister!"

Few students at Heshan Academy knew Qin Zhi's true identity, which wasn't surprising given his silence. Heshan Academy emphasized equality, prohibiting anyone from bringing servants. All students were treated equally, leading to many being kept in the dark.

"Your sister is your sister, why are you being so mean to her?"

The scholar who had spoken didn't take offense and showed no anger. Seeing that Qin Zhi was about to leave again, he immediately pulled him back and asked, "Is your sister betrothed?"

The moment they entered, they saw Qin Zhi's sister; she was simply too eye-catching. Even a plain cloak couldn't conceal her stunningly beautiful face.

The scholar patted his chest and said, "Although my family is a family of farmers and scholars, we definitely have influence in Huaizhou! If I were your brother-in-law, I would certainly not mistreat you!"

Upon hearing this, another scholar immediately cursed inwardly: "This shameless bastard."

"Don't listen to him. My father is the prefect of Qingzhou, he's more powerful than him."

"I...I...I..."

"..."

Although Qin Zhi was young, he was very talented in his studies, so many students in the academy knew his name.

Qin Zhi was usually very kind and knew how to conduct himself appropriately; everyone who had interacted with him liked him. This was, in fact, the first time they had ever seen Qin Zhi speak so loudly.

But it's understandable, isn't it? If anyone coveted their sister, they would explode too.

But such a beautiful older sister shouldn't be wasted on outsiders, right?

Qin Zhi shook off the scholar's hand and said with a forced smile, "You're too late. My elder sister is already married."

The students looked at each other in bewilderment.

Qin Zhi thought these hotheads were finally going to quiet down, but just as he put his rice bowl on the table, they pulled him back.

"What are you doing?" He thought he had to hurry up, otherwise what if his older sister and the others got impatient?

"Hey, how's your sister and brother-in-law's relationship?"

"Exactly, is there any possibility of divorce?"

"We were classmates after all, so you must tell us if you ever get a divorce."

Qin Zhi: "..."

He said, "You may not have heard of my name, but you should have heard of the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Zhongyi, named Qin Su."

Several people nodded; they had heard of this before.

She's the daughter of that bandit leader.

Later, he was recruited by the imperial court and given the title of Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness.

Wait, Qin Su... Qin Zhi?

Are these two siblings?

The group was completely dumbfounded.

Qin Zhi grunted a few times, got his food, and headed back.

Then someone stopped him again.

He immediately became angry. "What is it now?"

"I don't care about your sister's background. As long as she gets a divorce, I'll marry her."

Qin Zhi almost smashed his rice bowl over this person's face.

"You're dreaming."

The man smiled and said, "Just because someone is ugly doesn't mean they can't have their own wild ideas?"

Qin Zhi took a deep breath, glanced at the group of people, and explained expressionlessly, "Qin Su, the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Zhongyi, is married to Prince Chen. She is the Princess Consort of Prince Chen."