Song Yingxing was not surprised to hear Zhu Youxiao say this. The reason was simple. This was not the first time he had met Zhu Youxiao. From the way he dressed, he could tell that his family was not ordinary and he must be one of the powerful people in the capital.

Just look at his entourage and you'll know he's no ordinary dignitary. So under these circumstances, it's normal that he couldn't take the exam.

Song Yingxing then asked with a smile, "So, my dear brother, what excitement did you see today?"

"It's quite lively indeed." Zhu Youxiao said with a smile, "I didn't expect so many people to come, and there are both civil and military officials. It's a bit surprising. But it can be seen that many people are still very happy."

After hearing Zhu Youxiao's words, Song Yingxing smiled and said, "Indeed. After all, this is an academy supported by the court and His Majesty. It's not surprising that it has received so many responses."

Zhu Youxiao nodded and said with a smile, "That's right."

Just as Zhu Youxiao was about to say something else, two people walked towards him quickly from a distance.

After seeing these two people, Zhu Youxiao smiled slightly. It seems that he had miscalculated a little.

The two people also had different reactions when they saw Zhu Youxiao.

The one on the left was a little older, and his expression was a little surprised when he saw Zhu Youxiao, but it was still normal.

The moment he saw Zhu Youxiao, he walked over, bowed, and said, "Brother Bai, I didn't expect to see you here today. Are you here to take the exam as well?"

Looking at Song Yingsheng who came up to greet him, Zhu Youxiao said with a smile: "I would like to, but unfortunately my family won't let me. There's nothing I can do about it."

After saying this, Zhu Youxiao turned and looked at another young man beside Song Yingsheng.

The young man's expression after seeing Zhu Youxiao was one of shock mixed with fear, and fear mixed with disbelief. In the end, his knees bent and he almost fell to his knees.

Qi Yuanfu, who was standing beside him, went over and supported him, quickly clamped his arms with his arms to prevent him from moving, and looked at him vigilantly.

Several people around also quietly gathered around.

Zhu Youxiao smiled and waved his hand, and the few people retreated.

After a while, the man's expression calmed down and he showed a smile that was uglier than crying. He opened his mouth several times, but didn't know what to say. It seemed as if his neck was being strangled, and his face turned red.

This person was naturally none other than the good friend of the Song brothers, Zhang Yu, Zhang Tuizhi.

Just because the Song brothers didn't know Zhu Youxiao's true identity didn't mean Zhang Yu didn't know either. He accompanied Feng Congwu to the palace every day, so this wasn't the first time he'd seen Zhu Youxiao.

Although Zhu Youxiao was dressed differently at this time, Zhang Yu still recognized him at first sight, after all, Xu Guangqi was standing next to him.

Seeing that Zhang Yu did not kneel down and pay homage, Zhu Youxiao also breathed a sigh of relief.

If this gets out of hand here, things will probably be troublesome.

Zhu Youxiao then turned to look at the Song brothers and said with a smile, "Did he come with you? Would you like to introduce him?"

Song Yingxing quickly said, "These are our close friends, Zhang Yu and Zhang Tuizhi."

"If we only talk about learning, Tuizhi might not be as good as my brother. But if we talk about strategy, he is the best among the three of us. He is also honest and upright, and a very good person."

Zhu Youxiao looked at Song Yingxing deeply, and then at Zhang Yu.

I don't know if there is a difference between our perceptions of people, or if you are just too stupid?

Is this Zhang Yu an open-minded person?

Although Zhang Yu did a lot of things, nothing could be hidden from Zhu Youxiao.

In Zhu Youxiao's view, Zhang Yu was a typical strategist.

I don't know where Zhang Yu learned this from. You have to know that in this era, the art of diplomacy was not popular, and it was also a school of thought that Confucianism disparaged. After all, playing with words was not a big deal in their eyes.

In fact, Zhu Youxiao felt that the Confucians had such thoughts as a form of revenge.

Their saints were not very popular during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Confucius, Mencius, and even Xunzi were not valued and had no chance to display their ambitions.

On the contrary, several of Xunzi's students were given important positions, but they were all Legalists. Some were also given important positions as diplomats.

Does that mean I am not as good as them?

After all, I wasn't reused, but they were. This is certainly unacceptable.

It’s definitely not me who’s wrong, it’s this era.

That is why there is a saying that there were no righteous wars in the Spring and Autumn Period.

Nowadays, a strategist like Zhang Yu is considered a rare commodity.

Zhu Youxiao looked at Zhang Yu with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Zhang Yu groaned inwardly after hearing Song Yingxing's words. He had never expected to see His Majesty here.

Why did His Majesty leave the palace?

What is this?

However, after listening to Song Yingxing's introduction, Zhang Yu quickly bowed and said, "Hello, Brother Bai."

Zhu Youxiao nodded.

He also knew that he couldn't stay here for much longer, so he said, "I wanted to catch up with you guys, but my family just sent someone to summon me, so I can't stay here any longer."

"I didn't leave you my address the last time we met. Now that I know you're at the Royal Academy, I'll come find you here next time so we can talk."

Song Yingxing smiled and said, "That's great."

Song Yingsheng next to him said modestly: "I don't know if I can pass the exam yet."

This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!