According to the rules of the dynasty, princes lived in the inner palace with their birth mothers when they were young. At the age of six, they were moved to the five eastern and western palaces of the emperor's sleeping quarters. At the age of fifteen, they came of age and were granted a fiefdom to establish their own residence outside the palace.
The eldest prince was seventeen years old at the time and had already established his own residence for two years. He traveled from outside the palace to inside, a journey that was relatively long.
The young man in black robes deliberately slowed his pace, arriving leisurely after two cups of tea.
The Hall of Supreme Harmony remained as majestic and grand as ever, though the bustling activity of hundreds of students was gone compared to the day of the imperial examination. It resembled a lonely, cold beast, lying alone on the ground.
The chief eunuch, accompanied by two apprentices, stood guard at the door. Upon seeing him, they shuffled over and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness, may Your Highness enjoy boundless blessings."
"Steward Wu, please rise quickly." The young man reached out to help him up, accepting only a half-bow. "You are older than the Emperor, and we juniors have all grown up under your nose. How can we accept such a grand gesture?"
There is a distinction between ruler and subject; the imperial family is supreme.
Even the chief eunuch is a servant who must bow, but the Fifth Prince singled out his age as an excuse and showed enough respect, so who wouldn't be happy?
"Not at all, it's only right to pay respects to Your Highness." Steward Wu stood up smoothly, feeling warm inside. "Your Highness must be here to see the Emperor. The First Prince went in before you had a cup of tea's time to drink, and he even brought the Emperor some pastries from outside the palace, which the Emperor was very pleased with."
This subtly reveals that the two people inside are a loving father and son, chatting happily.
The young man in black robes smiled, nodded his thanks to Steward Wu, and got up to enter the hall.
The eunuch had already informed them, and everyone in the hall stopped talking and looked over.
When the eldest prince saw the young man walking in alone, he smiled and said, “Father, it seems I was right. My fifth brother is indeed thinking about that scholar Xu and has come to plead for him.”
The personal guards standing outside the palace felt a chill in their hearts, and four words inexplicably came to mind: "The wicked accuse the guilty first."
The chief eunuch standing nearby added at the opportune moment, "Since the Crown Prince arrived, he has only mentioned delivering pastries to the Emperor, and has never uttered a single word about the palace examination."
The bodyguard's heart sank even further.
Everyone assumed that the eldest prince had rushed over because of Fang Yuan's position as the top scholar and to plead for the Fang family.
Instead of mentioning it, they dug a pit for the Fifth Prince in advance—implying that he colluded with the students and was suspected of plotting to seize power.
So the road forward and the path backward were both covered in mud.
Speaking out is tantamount to confirming suspicion, while remaining silent is tantamount to making a wasted trip.
Just as everyone was worried about the youngest prince, he calmly raised his head and said, "Greetings, Father Emperor, greetings, eldest brother. Eldest brother guessed right. Your subject here today wants to plead for Young Master Fang and earnestly request Father Emperor to grant him the rank of First Class."
He opened his mouth.
Before the eldest prince could even feel happy, his smile froze on his face.
Young Master Fang? Young Master Xu?
He couldn't help but question his fifth brother, wondering if he had mispronounced someone's name and why Fang Yuan had been dragged into this.
Even the emperor on the dragon throne frowned, puzzled.
"Please forgive me, Your Majesty, for inquiring about last year's imperial examination cheating case. I have also learned of the promised top three positions. Although the Fang family are civil officials who were originally military officers, this young master Fang is indeed capable. Missing out would be a tragedy for the Great Yu Dynasty." The black-robed youth continued to boast, "Putting aside everything else, his collection of taxes alone is a brilliant strategy for all time. His willingness to voluntarily pay taxes shows the magnanimity of a military officer combined with the charity of a civil official. If such a person cannot obtain the top three positions, who else can!"
His tone was sincere and his words were earnest, his praise for Fang Yuan reaching an unparalleled level.
For a fleeting moment, the eldest prince was in a daze, doubting whether he was the one supporting Xu Mo.
"Besides, the words of an emperor are golden rules. Since Father Emperor promised the Fang family last year, he should fulfill his promise now." The black-robed youth smiled and added.
Unnoticed by anyone, a flicker of displeasure crossed the emperor's eyes, which he quickly concealed.
Now that things have come to this point, it would be inappropriate for Fang Yuan not to be among the top contenders.
As for what is awarded, whether it's the top scholar, second-place scholar, or third-place scholar, the difference is almost negligible.
The eldest prince breathed a sigh of relief, feeling joy mixed with a hint of doubt.
Before he could figure it out, the black-robed youth cupped his hands again, "By the way, Father, the Fang family is very wealthy. I wonder how much silver we can pay this time? Is it enough to feed the border soldiers and provide them with winter clothes?"
The emperor, who had been pondering, and the eldest prince, who was secretly pleased, all looked up at the same time.
"What?" The black-robed youth looked completely innocent. "Father has already agreed to grant him the first-class rank, but the Fang family is going back on their word and refusing to hand over the money?"
"You..." The eldest prince was extremely shocked, but finally came to his senses.
The fifth prince kept talking about money, wanting the imperial family to tell everyone that the Fang family had bought their way into the top rank with money.
If they were to take advantage of the situation and impose a tax on the wealthy, it would be tantamount to turning the Fang family into an arrow aimed at the powerful families of Fengjing.
Unfortunately, neither he nor the Fang family could refuse, because it was Fang Yuan who brought it up, and it was the Fang family's way of securing a top-tier position in exchange for loyalty.
How can a military officer who can be bought with money win the respect of the people and complete the transition from a military general to a civil official?
No noise is permitted in the main hall.
The eldest prince held back his anger until the emperor grew tired and waved for him to leave, at which point he and the fifth prince took their leave together.
As he walked out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, he finally couldn't help but question, "What exactly do you want? You came all this way just to swindle money from the Fang family? What good will that do you?"
The black-robed youth turned around innocently, "What is Your Majesty saying? I don't understand. It's getting late, and tomorrow is the day the results will be announced. Your Majesty, why don't you discuss with the Fang family early on how much money is needed to qualify for the top rank?"
After saying that, he turned and left.
Once the two had separated, the bodyguard who had overheard the whole thing couldn't help but ask, "The Crown Prince is right about one thing. If Your Highness wasn't after Xu Huiyuan's ambition for the top rank, why did you get involved in this mess and needlessly offend the Fang family?"
The young man in black smiled but did not answer. Instead, he spoke of the current situation in Fengjing, saying, "Even the people of Fengjing mostly bet on Fangyuan, which shows that the Emperor's favor towards the aristocratic families is what the people want."
But if he were truly biased, why would he hesitate?
Imperial family, royal family, emperor.
Those who sit in that position would never like being restrained, but unfortunately the late emperor relinquished too much power, and the power of aristocratic families was unprecedented.
If the imperial family wants to control the powerful families, it must promote new talents—poor people, those without powerful families to rely on, and those who can only obey the emperor's orders.
Xu Mo is a rising star, while Fang Yuan comes from a prestigious family.
The former was what the emperor needed, and the latter was the emperor's golden word; to put them on the same level would be tantamount to undermining the fairness of the imperial examination system.
"So Your Highness is giving the Emperor a way out, so that the Emperor can smoothly grant Young Master Fang the title of First Class." The guard's surprise turned to joy. "Or rather, he is allowing him to be ranked alongside him smoothly."
If the Tian family wants to promote a new talent, Xu Mo, who has no backing, is the best option.
As for who will be the top scholar, it depends on whether the rising star or the aristocratic family holds more weight in the emperor's heart.
"Did you place your bet on the tie?" The black-robed youth walked away into the distance. "Were the odds high?"
"Great! Great! Your Highness, don't worry, we're going to make a fortune..."
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