Chapter 17 He was greatly surprised and immediately took her as a confidant…

An inconspicuous name appeared in the crowd.

From the very beginning, the names Tianmu mentioned were all prominent figures. Even the relatively unknown Zhuang Yuanchu was from a noble family. So who exactly is this Fang Jingruo?

Zhou Xuyan pondered for a moment: "I do not remember this person."

Emperor Hong'an was not surprised: "Since it's something that will happen several years from now, it's normal that you don't know about it."

A thousand miles away, there is a study.

Fang Jingruo leaned quietly against the window, looking up at the sky.

He was dressed in a scholar's robe, his hair neatly tied up, and ink stains of varying shades were imprinted on his hands, but he seemed oblivious to them.

Several familiar classmates exchanged glances and tentatively offered their congratulations: "Brother Fang, your future is bright, and fame is within your grasp. Congratulations, Brother Fang!"

Fang Jingruo was drawn back to reality by the series of congratulatory remarks, and smiled helplessly: "There are so many people in the world with the same name, and I am fortunate to be one of them, also named Fang Jingruo..."

It would be a lie to say I wasn't surprised.

After more than a decade of hard study, I finally passed the imperial examination last year, but I'm still missing the last step.

There's more to come...

He was lost in thought, unsure if this was truly him. The heavens continued to speak:

Fang Jingruo, a native of Datong, was indeed from a poor family. Of course, our understanding of "poor family" is somewhat flawed; in that era, a poor family referred to impoverished nobles. Therefore, according to the understanding of people at that time, Fang Jingruo could not be considered from a poor family; she was actually from a grassroots background.

This man had a fiery temper and began impeaching the crown prince in his very first year in office. He didn't care whether the memorials actually reached the emperor or who reviewed them, and smoothly secured his place in Ningguta.

Upon hearing the first half, Fang Jingruo paused, unable to contain her excitement.

He was indeed from Datong, and he was indeed of commoner origin.

But when he heard the rest, he was stunned.

His political career has come to an end just like that? Ningguta... what place is that?

Emperor Hong'an, who had just begun to show some curiosity, was also taken aback and said helplessly, "Too much rigidity leads to breakage, which is not a good thing."

He can tolerate others, but his fifth prince...

Hehe, let's not talk about it.

The Fifth Prince read through the names in the memorial from top to bottom. He was quite discerning; he figured Xiao Yichun and his ilk were not to be trifled with, so he decided to target Fang Jingruo instead.

Fang Jingruo was just a nobody with no connections, and even Xiao Yichun couldn't protect him. He thought going to Ningguta would be fine; the court was in chaos, and he didn't want to corrupt someone's innocent reputation. But the Fifth Prince, lacking any sense of martial ethics, actually sent men to secretly intercept him.

Dude, have you forgotten who you are? This pettiness has reached an unparalleled level; I can only say I admire it.

People under the sky: Scratching their heads like flies.jpg

This is the first time the Crown Prince has sent men to intercept and kill a seventh-rank official.

can't read.

The third prince hesitated for a moment, then cautiously took his first step, a master at sowing discord: "Father..."

He had barely uttered a name when his father glared at him with a harsh look.

"..." The Third Prince quickly withdrew his steps, pretending nothing had happened, but tears welled up in his eyes.

Damn it, why is my dad so fierce!

Unfortunately, there was a spy among the masses. As mentioned before, the Fifth Prince and Huai Leju did not get along well. As the minister the emperor originally planned to entrust to the Fourth Prince, and an enemy general who had betrayed the Fifth Prince, Huai Leju could not possibly gain his trust.

Two petty people together, neither can outsmart the other when it comes to cunning. But when it comes to intelligence, Huai Leju is far superior to Lao Wu.

On the way to exile, before Lao Wu's assassins arrived, Xiao Huai's reinforcements arrived first and conveniently steered the group towards the northern frontier.

[Jungjong's ministers +1]

With a burst of cheerful sounds, everyone's attention was simultaneously drawn to Huai Leju.

Zhou She scrutinized him carefully.

Tianmu has said "narrow-minded" several times, but just how narrow-minded is he? That punch he threw today...

Oh no, I hope he won't make things difficult for me!

Huai Leju remained expressionless, his bruised and swollen face turning slightly toward Zhou She, who clearly saw him reveal a gloomy smile.

First of all, we need to know that Xiao Huai and Zhongzong had a grudge against each other and their relationship was not good. Similarly, Zhuang Shi and Xiao Huai also disliked each other.

As everyone knows, these two have a total of 800 schemes, with Huai Leju possessing 801 of them and Zhuang Shi owing one.

Huai Leju described Zhuang Shi as "stupid and dull," while Zhuang Shi retorted that Huai Leju was "narrow-minded." Hmm, thinking about it, it's actually quite accurate. It seems my nemesis truly understands me best!

Zhuang Shi: "What the hell? Who knows him!"

Huai Leju: Hehe, you idiot.

Neither of them agreed with the assessment of the sky.

Nemesis? Does he deserve that title?

Inside and outside the palace, it's rare to see two people of the same age so in sync.

Because he understood his nemesis, Huai Leju knew Zhuang Shi's character all too well. Fang Jingruo was a hot potato, and although the Crown Prince was mentally challenged, he was a powerful and influential one, so he couldn't be ignored.

The person was rescued, but they couldn't just be abandoned, could they? After much thought, the dim-witted Zhuang Shi seemed like the perfect candidate. With that in mind, Huai Leju immediately shifted the blame to Zhuang Yuanchu, who was thousands of miles away—no wonder the child had spinal problems; it was Huai Leju's doing.

Once the topic shifts, the atmosphere becomes lively.

Putting aside the harsh criticisms of the Crown Prince's lack of respect, His Majesty the Emperor seems to have been angry several times already and has now completely taken a detached view of life.

The men who were bringing Zhuang Yuanchu to the palace were already on their way. Meanwhile, Zhou She secretly observed the emperor's expression, unable to discern whether he was happy or not, and tentatively said, "Lord Huai is young and promising; he is truly a worthy general for Your Majesty!"

Reminded by Tianmu, Zhou She remembered how petty Huai Leju was, so he decided to salvage his image to avoid future retaliation and also to ease the Emperor's less-than-pleasant mood.

But it seems like the camera hit the horse's leg.

Huai Leju turned his face away expressionlessly, not even glancing at him. It was Emperor Hong'an who, after being reminded by him, seemed to suddenly remember something and smiled, saying, "Zhou She, if you can learn even a tenth of Ziyou's skills, I will be at ease."

Zhou She felt a pang of unease, cursing inwardly, but readily agreed aloud: "Your subject will certainly reflect on myself constantly and learn from Lord Huai."

Huai Leju turned his face toward Zhou She again.

Zhou She could see clearly that there was no gentle emotion in those eyes, nor any smugness from being flattered; instead, there was a faint indifference.

Zhou She's anger flared up instantly, his teeth grinding together, and he almost punched Huai Leju in the face again.

The initial surge of remorse for hitting someone vanished instantly.

What's wrong with hitting him? He's such an annoying person, it would be abnormal not to hit him!

Zhuang Shi was indeed a bit dim-witted. Upon hearing that Fang Jingruo dared to defy the Crown Prince, he was immediately shocked and trembling with fear as he invited the man inside, without even asking whether the man was alive or not.

The two men entered Mingyuan Pass and bumped into Emperor Zhongzong. Emperor Zhongzong glanced at them and saw two handsome men approaching. He was immediately taken aback and quickly took them as his confidants.

Emperor Hong'an: "?" What the heck?

Zhou She: "?" Is this the thought process of a normal person?

The two were both taken aback. They glanced at each other and saw that each of them looked as if they had swallowed a fly.

Even Fang Jingruo herself was stunned.

This plot is written... like a play script?

Fortunately, Tianmu coughed lightly and exclaimed:

[Sorry for the mix-up. The previous segment was from "The Biography of Fang Hou," which not only praised Fang Jingruo but also the Zhuang brothers. No wonder everyone suspects that Zhuang Shi commissioned someone to write it.]

Zhuang Shi was not ashamed at all, but rather proud: "What's wrong with me finding someone to restore my majestic and domineering spirit?!"

His servant looked reluctant, but hesitated to speak.

Of course, that's not the case. In reality, when King Jungjong saw a scholar running towards him, his first thought was, "Is this another one that the Fifth Prince sent?!"

I'm really scared by those laymen; I'm a bit of a nervous wreck now.

Zhuang Shi, who had initially felt a little guilty, grinned from ear to ear upon hearing this. What a joke! This was clearly the cultured man he had brought over!

Zhuang Shi raised an eyebrow slightly: Of course I have foresight!

Of course, he dared not say these words aloud; he could only repeat them silently in his heart.

He himself was, of course, not very educated. We don't know the extent of Emperor Zhongzong's education, but judging from what Tianmu said, he was probably illiterate.

How can such a team be managed without scholars?

Zhuang Shi quickly reconciled with himself, even forgetting that he was still seen as a traitor.

Emperor Zhongzong was actually quite skeptical, but he himself lacked any real cultural refinement, having indulged in too much fun in his youth and now incurring the consequences. So, even though Fang Jingruo was just a Jinshi with little future prospects, he still generously accepted him as a candidate.

Zhuang Shi was still very happy, and he asked excitedly from behind, "So, the people I found for you will definitely come in handy in the rebellion, right?"

Zhuang Shi was speechless at home.

It wasn't that he didn't want to boast, but his door suddenly opened, and a row of strong men in iron armor appeared in front of him.

From the moment his name was pronounced, he had a bad feeling.

Now, his premonition had come true. He looked at the guards before him and gave them a fawning smile: "May I kneel to enter?"

Guard: "..."

King Jungjong didn't want to pay him any attention. Zhuang Shi was much more physically capable than the Second Prince. From the moment he went to the battlefield, he freed King Jungjong up and forced him to engage in a battle of wits.

Unfortunately, Emperor Zhongzong himself was not good at literary debates. It was common for him to be driven to death by nitpicking civil officials every day. Now, even his protector, Emperor Hongan, was in a deep sleep and could not wake up. His situation was not good.

But he didn't place any hope in Fang Jingruo. In his eyes, she was at best an unfortunate scholar who had been exiled; although she had backbone, could backbone put food on the table?

So he casually settled Fang Jingruo in, then went out to work and earn money, without thinking about the future.

Fang Jingruo was not disappointed.

It is already an extremely rare thing that he has been able to leave his mark on history.

One cannot ask for more. If he can achieve great things, that would be wonderful, but if not... to pass the imperial examinations and not be ashamed of oneself is already a difficult task.

However, Tianmu's next words quickly shattered his thoughts.