“Royal power struggles are fraught with danger,” Lili said. “But Lili feels that the eldest prince and the crown prince aren’t actually fighting each other.”
Grandpa Yang was full of suspicion.
Gu Zian used a variety of methods to win over the people.
Is this not considered a fight?
"No, no."
Lili said, "His Highness the Crown Prince seems to be at odds with the First Prince at every turn, and everyone knows that there are undercurrents between the two. But in reality, no matter what the reason, it seems that His Highness the Crown Prince just happened to expose the First Prince's actions."
The best strategy is an open strategy.
Gu Zi'an knew perfectly well that Gu Ziyi was behind it, but he couldn't retaliate or tell the emperor directly.
Because he himself knew what kind of rubbish he was doing.
He could only grit his teeth and swallow it down.
Grandpa Yang's concerns were not without merit, but his knowledge was incomplete.
Lili recounted those events in detail, telling him one by one, and Grandpa Yang immediately understood.
"Excellent, excellent!" Old Master Yang nodded repeatedly. "Others retreat to advance, but this young prince advances to retreat. Brilliant, brilliant!"
This time, Grandpa Yang's praise was not just verbal; his eyes revealed genuine emotion.
Although the crown prince is young, he is far from the rumored immature child!
"It seems I was too one-sided."
Lili smiled and said, "How could that be? Great-grandfather is just worried about Lili and Mother."
Old Master Yang sighed: "I'm old, and I may leave in a few years. The Yang family is no longer the Yang family it used to be. I was thinking of telling your mother about the past before I die, but now you, my little dumpling, have heard it all."
Lili blinked. Before, Grandpa Yang was a mystery to her, but now he was clear to her.
"How could that be? Great-grandfather can live for at least another twenty years!"
Moreover, he can return to the court and pursue his vision once again.
Grandpa Yang smiled and said nothing more.
"Alright, you're a person with your own ideas, and your great-grandfather believes you can handle things well on your own. But if something really goes wrong, your great-grandfather can only provide some money, or swallow his pride and write a letter to my former students."
Lili pestered Grandpa Yang to say some auspicious words, and Grandpa Yang just thought she was being sweet-talking and was happy to hear it.
The two entered the house, just as the divine physician Sikong finished his acupuncture.
After giving a few more instructions, the group headed back home.
Before leaving, Lili even took the two rabbits with her, claiming she would raise them herself, but really she just wanted spicy rabbit heads.
When Yang saw that Lili had brought back two rabbits, she realized that Lili had gone to the Yang family early that morning.
Looking at the divine physician Sikong beside her, Madam Yang suddenly understood, her eyes filled with tears, and she hugged Lili.
………
After Physician Sikong performed acupuncture on Yang Ji five times, the results of the imperial examination were released.
Before the list of commendations was even posted, the Shen family already knew the result: Gu Ziyi had come in person.
In the second round of testing, he ranked first.
In conclusion, Shen Laosan was the top scorer in the Nanlin County Imperial Examination!
The Shen family was in an uproar.
Gu Ziyi smiled and nodded: "Yes, I personally watched them copy the red list, and it will be posted at the entrance of the examination hall tomorrow."
Madam Chen's eyes widened dramatically: "My goodness, the top scorer! This, this is the best of the best among scholars!"
Mrs. Liu said with a smile, "Oh dear, it seems we'll be quite busy in a few days!"
Shen Laosan was the first scholar to emerge from Xinghua Village, and he even topped the list. Xinghua Village definitely had to hold a banquet to celebrate!
The Shen family members hugged each other joyfully, each one as happy as if they had just passed the imperial examination.
Yang hugged Shen Laosan so tightly she couldn't speak. Old Mrs. Shen and Old Mr. Shen stood by, wiping away tears, saying from time to time, "May our ancestors bless us, may our ancestors bless us..."
Shen Laosan felt relieved. He hadn't expected to win first place; he only hoped to finish the exam peacefully.
But fate smiled upon him, and he came out on top.
The Shen family learned the news in advance through Gu Ziyi, so they decided to keep a low profile and tell the villagers the good news after Shen Laosan went to the academy the next day.
Lili smiled, her eyes crinkling, and didn't forget to thank Gu Ziyi: "Thank you, Your Highness, for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come and deliver this message."
Gu Ziyi teased her, "Is there any thank-you gift?"
“Hmm…” Lili pulled out half a rice stalk, “This was picked from our own field and has been dried. It can be used as a bookmark.”
What is a bookmark?
"Yes, it's like putting it in a book so you can see which page you were on last time."
Gu Ziyi seemed thoughtful, then carefully put it away: "Thank you, I like it very much."
Lili smiled back, and Gu Ziyi took out another letter for her: "This is a letter from Miss Xia to you. The messenger happened to be spotted by my men in the prefectural city, so I took the liberty of bringing it back to you."
"A letter from Sister Xia Ning?"
Lili quickly took it and read it carefully.
"Pear Mirror: "
The capital city was a bit colder than Xinghua Village; it wasn't autumn yet, but people were already wearing autumn clothes. Life in the capital was the same as always, monotonous and dull, but I was happy to be home, though I missed Lili a little. A while ago, there was a banquet at home, and I led the young ladies on a tour of my boudoir. Sure enough, many people were interested in the little bed. Some thought it was novel and wanted to play with it, some wanted to give it as a gift, and some thought the headboard could be raised, which was very convenient…”
Lili read the letter word by word, then carefully folded it up and put it away.
Seeing that she was in a good mood, Gu Ziyi asked, "So happy?"
Lili nodded: "Yes! Business is here!"
*
Gu Ziyi was in a hurry to return to the border. After the Shen family had a happy meal, they began to busy themselves with the matter of Shen Lao Er's bed.
However, the Xia family left in a hurry and didn't have time to ask about the price. Xia Ning didn't know how Shen Lao Er priced things, so she asked a carpenter in the capital to estimate the price.
The carpenter had never seen such an amazing design before, and exclaimed that it was ingenious and even estimated a price of thirty taels.
The letter stated that six young ladies had expressed interest, and Xia Ning had already collected a deposit of fifteen taels from each of them to ensure that their interest was not just a passing fancy. The remaining fifteen taels would be paid upon delivery of the goods.
Xia Ning even asked her if she had charged too little, and thoughtfully told her that although these young ladies from official families were still young, they were all wealthy and didn't need to worry about overcharging.
Lili was both amused and exasperated, and then went to discuss it with Shen Lao Er.
When Shen Lao Er heard that it could be sold for thirty taels, he was so shocked that he dropped the hammer in his hand: "What? Thirty taels? Three taels is more than enough, isn't it?"
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