Compared to them, the crown prince is indeed too merciful. With the help of his life-saving grace this time, although it is not certain whether he will bring benefits to the governance of the country after he ascends the throne, it will definitely not be harmful to himself.

Tu Yufan glanced at the topic briefly and did not write any general remarks. He remembered that when he was the emperor, he had formulated some policies but found that the results were problematic. So he narrowed the scope and wrote about his previous experiences.

When I put down my pen, I found that the emperor had been standing behind me and watching for who knows how long.

Tu Yufan was not surprised at all. The candidate next to him also noticed the emperor, but he was not so calm. His hand shook slightly, resulting in a stroke of several centimeters long, which destroyed the beauty of the entire article.

This is such bad luck. Tu Yufan thinks he is in trouble. No matter how he performs in the examination, he will probably fall below the third place in the imperial examination.

The emperor didn't say anything and left quickly.

However, his behavior is understandable. Modern examiners cannot decide life and death, so they feel oppressed. But in this era, the emperor can decide the life and death of people at will, so he would naturally be worried.

In the hall, the emperor announced the first-class Jinshi, and Tu Yufan actually won the top spot.

I had been neither here nor there before, but suddenly I became the top scorer in the imperial examination. I felt like I was at a loss as to what to do.

"His Majesty must be very satisfied with your answer, so he appointed you as the top scholar." Zhu Xiaowei stroked his beard and said, "Or maybe it was because of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

For example, the emperor probably knew that he saved Xiang Chengting, so it could be considered a reward.

I thought my writing was so good that it caught the emperor's eye. Now that I heard this, it seemed like I was indeed benefited by the prince's influence.

Tu Yufan didn't care about these things. Passing the imperial examination would have achieved his goal, and the next step would be to pursue a career as an official.

After the results were announced, they were paraded through the streets. Tu Yufan wore a black hat with a golden flower on it, a red robe, and rode a horse along the way. People were watching him all around. It was said that there was a contest to find a son-in-law under the list, but Tu Yufan was almost 40 years old, so he was naturally ignored.

The runner-up and third place winners were both young men in their twenties, covered with handkerchiefs and sachets thrown by girls. However, their expressions looked very painful, with bitter smiles, probably because they were hit all over the head.

Tu Yufan looked up inadvertently and suddenly saw a familiar figure in the Golden Building.

It was Zhu Sang. She had been looking at Tu Yufan, but unexpectedly he suddenly looked up and made eye contact with her. Zhu Sang's eyes flashed slightly, the corners of her mouth slightly raised, and she nodded to express her congratulations.

Tu Yufan also smiled back. In the past two years, she would occasionally come to visit Zhu Xiaowei, and the two of them would occasionally talk to each other.

She is a very talented woman.

After the parade, one will officially enter the officialdom. The first-class Jinshi will enter the Hanlin Academy, and Tu Yufan will be no exception this time.

This time, Zhu Xiaowei said bluntly: "I want you to marry Sangsang."

"If Miss Zhu Sang doesn't mind, I will marry her."

In the past few years, Zhu Xiaowei has helped her to the utmost, and Zhu Sang, after getting along with her for these years, also knows what kind of woman she is.

"Sangsang's mother died young, and her father, my brother, remarried. If we divorce for a peaceful reason, there is no room for her at home. Although I want to give her a resting place, it is not convenient without a female elder in the family. I know you already have a son and a daughter, and you have no intention of remarrying. I just hope to give her a place to live."

"Miss Zhu Sang is calm and talented. She is a remarkable woman. If I could marry her, I would be very lucky."

Zhu Xiaowei smiled with relief. Sangsang had been clinging to him since she was a child, and Zhu Xiaowei had long regarded her as his own daughter. Unfortunately, he met the wrong person. He thought that they would be childhood sweethearts and would be able to have a happy marriage when they grow up, but he didn't expect that people's hearts would change easily, and lovers would also go to the point of getting tired of each other after a while.

Tu Yufan is a decent person and would never do such a shameless thing as that guy.

Alas, just a little bit can tell you the truth.

Zhu Xiaowei suddenly recalled the first time he met Queen Xia when he was young. She said that the greatest fortune in her life was to marry His Majesty. She never expected that time had passed and she had fallen into such a situation. He could not help but sigh helplessly, feeling inexplicably disheartened.