Xiao Bin paused for a moment, then quickly found Gu Ziyu.

Gu Ziyu mingled in the circle of powerful and wealthy young people in the capital, and most of the emperor's personal guards belonged to this circle.

His access to information was naturally far superior to that of ordinary people.

"His Majesty should be in the garden."

The mansion belonging to Liu Yu's family was bestowed by the emperor, and it had everything from pavilions and terraces to gardens and waterside pavilions.

Lu Xingjian was taking a walk by the lake with a young girl.

The girl, dressed in bright red, chattered away, sometimes frowning, sometimes pouting, and sometimes jumping up and down, looking very charming and cute.

Lu Xingjian was gentle and polite, and smiled at the girl as if bathed in a spring breeze.

From a distance, the two appeared to be deeply in love, their relationship seemingly fraught with ambiguity.

The girl was none other than Yu Ji.

A group of young scholars were having a gathering in the waterside pavilion. When they saw this scene from afar, their lively discussion became even more intense.

Among this group, the most popular was none other than "Little Seat Master" Yang Zhen.

His father was the emperor's tutor and a Grand Secretary, and he himself was renowned for his talent from a young age, with a bright future ahead of him.

There are many, if not many, people who flatter him.

"It is truly admirable that the young master was able to obtain Prime Minister Li's handwriting for auction to raise funds for disaster relief!"

Grand Secretary Li Dongqian was a leader in the literary world, and his son-in-law was the Duke Yansheng, a descendant of Confucius. In the minds of scholars, he was an unattainable figure.

"Young Master, you will take the imperial examination next February. I'm afraid it will be as easy as taking candy from a baby for you to win a top-three spot."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Xie Pi, the third-ranked scholar who had been sitting quietly drinking tea beside him, chuckled:

"You can't say that. It goes without saying that Xiu is talented, but what good is it to be among the top three if he can't please that person?"