Upon hearing this, Lord Shi smiled and said, "I know, that's why I wanted to ask for this grace on Mu Chen's behalf."
"In that case, I will wait and see. I just hope Mu Chen won't disappoint me and Lord Shi."
As for Mu Chen, the reason why the emperor placed him in the Hanlin Academy was to see if he could keep his composure.
Unexpectedly, after a few years, this person has indeed become very patient.
Not only did he not use the name of Marquis Qingyuan to climb the ladder, but he also diligently performed his duties in the Hanlin Academy, which made it worthwhile for Lord Shi, the Grand Secretary, to treat him differently.
After Lord Shi left the imperial study, Eunuch Cao brought Lord Qin in.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you. Here is all the information about Concubine Shu's actions over the past two days."
Lord Qin presented the booklet in his hand to the emperor and stood in the center of the imperial study.
This crazy Concubine Shu wants the Qingyuan Marquisate to be criticized and reviled by the world just like the Xiao Mansion was back then.
[When the assessment results come out, there will be people who are mentally unbalanced and will cause trouble without her having to personally intervene. However, since she is in Baiyun Temple, she can hide away beautifully.]
The emperor listened to Yu Yiluo's thoughts while looking at what was recorded in the booklet.
"Your Majesty, I specifically asked my subordinates to record what Concubine Shu said, and I found nothing unusual."
[It would be strange if there wasn't something unusual. She must have told Xu Xiaoxiao something, otherwise why would she let things get so serious?]
[Quick, let me see what Concubine Shu said to Xu Xiaoxiao.]
Seeing her stretching her neck eager to see it, the emperor retracted his hand holding the booklet slightly.
After reading the above record, Yu Yiluo exclaimed in her heart, "Wow!"
[This seems to be for Xu Xiaoxiao's own good, but in fact it is telling Xu Xiaoxiao that although he doesn't love you, you can help him in his career and make him remember you.]
[The last sentence is the ultimate killer, telling Xu Xiaoxiao that Mu Chen still cares about her, and arousing the desire that Xu Xiaoxiao had suppressed in her heart.]
[Is this the art of speaking? No wonder Lord Qin couldn't see anything unusual.]
[I guess Xu Xiaoxiao is already thinking about how to help Mu Chen's career get better and better, so that Mu Chen will remember her kindness.]
The emperor raised his eyebrows slightly and put down the booklet.
Apart from arranging his plan to wait for leaks, Luo'er has always been a caring and considerate person in these matters, and analyzes everything clearly for him.
But he was not in a hurry. Concubine Shu set up this plan just to avenge the Xiao family and let the Marquis family fall to weaken his control over the government.
Now that he knew the other party's intention, the game remained the same, and Concubine Shu had no say in how to play it.
"You've done well. Keep people watching Concubine Shu."
"Yes, I obey your command."
Lord Qin was completely bewildered by the praise. He gained nothing, but the emperor still said he did a good job?
If the emperor had not said this with a smile, he would have thought that the emperor was mocking him.
【Did the tyrant see anything? 】
Yu Yiluo raised her eyes and stared at the emperor, feeling worried.
If Concubine Shu succeeds in this plan, then the Marquis of Qingyuan will definitely lose his Beijing Defense Battalion.
[Originally, the tyrant had taken the Jingfang Battalion from the treacherous King Yan Fan. Once this incident happened, Yan Fan would definitely take advantage of the situation and reclaim the Jingfang Battalion, which belonged to him.]
[This old witch's trick is really clever. She eliminated the Marquis's Mansion while weakening the tyrant's power.]
The emperor snorted coldly. Even if he didn't know about this matter in advance, let alone knowing it in advance, he would not let Concubine Shu succeed.
[This is so annoying. Concubine Shu's scheme is not unbreakable, but I can't speak.]
If I could just use my words to get the tyrant to act on his own will, I could not only use this opportunity to test Mu Chen's abilities and character, but I could also take advantage of this opportunity to test those ministers with ulterior motives and eliminate them all at once.
…
Just as Yu Yiluo thought.
Xu Xiaoxiao did have some thoughts because of what Concubine Shu said.
Before, she thought that as long as she could be with Mu Chen, it didn’t matter whether he had someone in his heart or not, but now she has figured it out.
Mu Chen is now fully focused on government affairs, so she will be his good wife and make him unable to leave her.
Thinking of this, Xu Xiaoxiao seemed to have made up her mind. She stood up with a firm look in her eyes, opened the door and went to look for Mu Chen.
Unexpectedly, when she arrived at the study, the servant told her that Mu Chen was meeting guests in the main hall.
"I'm meeting a guest, but do you know who it is?"
"I heard the young master call him Prime Minister."
Since marrying into the mansion, Xu Xiaoxiao rarely saw people from the court coming to look for Mu Chen. Did something happen?
"Go ahead and get busy."
Xu Xiaoxiao pursed her lips and turned to go to the main hall.
When he reached the door of the main hall, he saw Mu Chen respectfully escorting Prime Minister Li out.
"No need to send me off," Prime Minister Li looked at Mu Chen and said gently.
"Lord Shi was worried that his presence would lead to negative comments, so he asked me to come. You must not let down the Emperor and his efforts."
Mr. Shi is the one who sets the questions, so it is indeed inappropriate for him to meet Mu Chen, who is participating in the assessment.
"I will thank Master Shi after the assessment is over. Goodbye, Prime Minister."
Watching Prime Minister Li leave, a hint of fighting spirit appeared on Mu Chen's face.
He collected his expression and then noticed Xu Xiaoxiao standing next to him.
"Cousin, what do you want to talk to me about?"
The two walked into the main hall and sat down. Xu Xiaoxiao poured a cup of tea for Mu Chen and said softly, "It's okay. Judging from the look of my cousin, is there anything good going on?"
Mu Chen took the tea and was slightly surprised.
Before, Xu Xiaoxiao would never ask him about these things.
Thinking that there was nothing to hide, Mu Chen drank a sip of tea and said with great energy:
"It's indeed a good thing. The emperor has established an assessment system, and I will participate in this assessment."
"That's a good thing."
Mrs. Mu walked in with a smile and sat next to Xu Xiaoxiao. Then she asked Xu Xiaoxiao with concern how she was feeling.
"I'm fine, thank you for your concern, auntie."
"It's good that you're alright," Madam Mu took her hand, "Chen'er is going to take the test, thank you Xiaoxiao for taking care of him."
"What are you talking about, aunt? We are a family."
Xu Xiaoxiao looked at Mu Chen and said, "Cousin, just study hard on the exam and don't worry about other things."
Mu Chen nodded, stood up and said he would go back to his room to read first.
Xu Xiaoxiao looked at Mu Chen's departing back with a worried look on her face.
My cousin has not made any preparation. Can he pass the test?
Just now she heard that the person who set the questions was Mr. Shi. She had met Mr. Shi on the day of her cousin's wedding, and he was very kind to her cousin.
"What are you thinking about?"
Madam Mu interrupted Xu Xiaoxiao's thoughts, "Are you worried about Chen'er's assessment? As his family, we just need to trust him."
Her son is not bad and will definitely succeed.
For the next two days, Mu Chen read by lamplight every night. Sometimes Xu Xiaoxiao would wake up from a nap and find the light in his room still on.
Now he even fell asleep at the desk.
Xu Xiaoxiao gently put away the book he was pressing on and planned to ask him to go to bed and rest. But before she could say anything, Mu Chen woke up first.
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