Chapter 23: Review Completed (Second Update)...
It's true that comparisons are the thief of joy. When Prince Duan saw his son so obediently going to study, he couldn't even imagine the extent of the trauma he had suffered in the palace.
Chen Zhuo was somewhat discouraged: "Father, do you know that the dam under construction in Qingyang is related to Ye Jianshan?"
Prince Duan sat up straight and asked carefully, "What do you mean?"
What happened to that dam?
Chen Zhuo said, "Ye Jianshan said that it was a method he came up with together with the students of the county school, and then the prefect adopted it..."
Prince Duan: ...
No wonder he suffered such a huge blow.
This is truly outstanding, exceeding their expectations.
"I just heard a message that a large amount of rewards have been sent to Ye Jianshan's courtyard."
Prince Duan thought the Emperor was just finding a pretext to reward Ye Jianshan, but he didn't expect this to happen.
"Not only that, the Empress Dowager also bestowed upon him a gold medal and a garden."
We haven't even recognized it yet. Once we do, there will definitely be many more good things to give it to.
Even if they don't give them to him now, these things will all belong to him once Ye Jianshan becomes the Crown Prince.
Chen Zhuo was a little jealous, as he had never received any rewards before; the only ones he had were small gifts from elders to younger generations during festivals.
Prince Duan suffered a heart attack: "The Empress Dowager directly bestowed a garden and a gold medal?"
“Hmm, even Uncle Ming didn’t receive this treatment.”
The Empress Dowager doted on Prince Ming, but even Prince Ming did not receive the same treatment as Ye Jianshan on his first visit to the palace.
The gold medal represented status and granted the right to move freely within the palace, a right none of them possessed.
Ye Jianshan, however, got it.
"Father, what should we do? Is there any way out?"
After more than a decade of stability, they had planned to wait for Chen Zhuo to come of age in two years before requesting him to be made Crown Prince to stabilize public sentiment.
Unexpectedly, Ye Jianshan appeared out of nowhere. It felt like as long as Ye Jianshan nodded, the emperor could write an imperial edict on the spot to appoint him as the crown prince.
"Let Father imagine."
Prince Duan was also at a loss. He was not very wise, so he pinned his hopes on his son.
But unexpectedly, neither father nor son was destined to ascend the throne.
Chen Zhuo was dejected, feeling that hope was fading.
At the Qi Prince's residence, the Prince was so angry upon hearing about the treatment and benefits Ye Jianshan had received that he nearly smashed the table: "Yang'er, Ye Jianshan is the same age as you. What he can do, you can do too. We must not give up until the very last moment."
The position of Crown Prince is so tempting.
Chen Yang: "Is there any way to prove that Ye Jianshan's identity is fake? I don't think a face alone can prove it..."
But as Chen Yang spoke, he found it absurd, since neither he nor his father looked exactly alike.
How can it be proven that Ye Jianshan is not the Crown Prince's biological son, since he looks exactly like the Crown Prince?
"Don't rush, Father has already sent people to Qinghe County."
King Qi has not given up yet.
He was determined to find out what was wrong with Ye Jianshan.
"Hmm, the timing of his appearance is too strange."
Chen Yang agreed. The father and son analyzed for a long time and concluded that all the evidence to refute Ye Jianshan's claims simply fell apart when they thought of his face.
Whose biological father and son look so alike?
The more similar they are, the more suspicious it is.
King Qi refused to believe it. When the Crown Princess died, the Crown Prince almost followed her in death. Yet she heartlessly left for more than ten years, raising the Crown Prince's child alone without returning to the palace. What was she after?
King Qi felt that the opportunity to make a move lay with the Crown Princess. He believed that the Crown Princess must have a grudge against the Crown Prince, otherwise she wouldn't have been gone for so many years.
Perhaps he could go and ask the Crown Princess first.
Once the King of Qi had a goal, he immediately ordered his men to take action.
When King Zhao saw his son return dejectedly, he comforted him, saying, "Go back and rest. Your father knows what happened in the palace. You are still young, so don't get involved. You can learn more from Ye Jieyuan."
Chen Zhi did not understand why his father said that.
"Father, don't you want me to be the Crown Prince?"
He had previously thought that he already had two older brothers and his chances of becoming the crown prince were slim, but he knew that his father had never intended for him to become the crown prince.
King Zhao smiled and said, "Just do your own thing and don't worry about the rest. Your father will help you get what you want."
Chen Zhi left the study and looked back at the door. It was pitch black inside, and the door seemed to swallow a person whole.
He knew his father was doing something mysterious, but his father himself didn't care about matters of state, so he didn't know if it had anything to do with him.
In the study, King Zhao's face was gloomy.
He had everything planned out, but then Ye Jianshan, the rumored biological son of the Crown Prince, suddenly appeared.
It completely ruined his decades-long plan.
Ye Jianshan returned to his residence and was quite overwhelmed by the sight of all the boxes in the room.
The rented courtyard is quite large, but with so much stuff crammed in, it feels a bit cramped.
"I'm thinking of moving."
Ye Jianshan looked at the piles of things and said with a headache.
“Let’s move. I’ve found a few courtyards recently. When you really become the top scholar in the imperial examination, we can settle down in the capital and bring your mother and the rest of the family over. That way, we won’t have to look for a house anymore.”
Ye Lei hasn't been idle these past few days. He's looked around everywhere. There are quite a few people living in the 14th Street area, and there are also houses for rent or sale.
They had enough money to buy a small courtyard house with three courtyards.
"Let's not buy it now, we can do it later. We didn't bring enough money this time."
Ye Jianshan doesn't have any requirements for accommodation; he just needs a place to stay.
Now they need to save their money for a rainy day, and if they spend it all on buying houses, they won't have much money left over.
Ye Lei thought so too: "If we can buy something better, we should buy something better."
Although this place is alright, it's still a bit unsafe with so many people coming and going.
"Um."
Neither the uncle nor the nephew intended to use the silver they were given as a reward today.
After settling in, Guo Yu came in and said something. Ye Jianshan called out to him, "By the way, Uncle Guo, my mother asked me to bring you a letter before I came. She said to contact you if I encounter any danger."
"Yes, your third uncle told me."
Guo Yu knew about the letter, but had never seen it.
"Look, I'm fine."
Ye Jianshan handed him the letter, and he read everything written in it. It was like a casual greeting between old friends. Then he asked Guo Yu to help Ye Jianshan out.
Guo Yu's eyes welled up with tears when she saw the familiar handwriting.
It's the Crown Princess's handwriting.
I never thought I would see the Crown Princess alive in my lifetime.
"Uncle Guo, could you tell me what exactly happened?"
He is still completely clueless about what happened between the Crown Prince and his mother.
"Please wait for the Crown Prince or Crown Princess to answer you; it is not convenient for me to say more."
Guo Yu bowed and then left.
Ye Jianshan: ...
They just ran away like that?
The news that Ye Jianshan had received a reward after entering the palace also reached the ears of people from all walks of life in the capital.
"This 14th Street has really developed. I heard that the top scholar who looks a lot like the Crown Prince lives there. My third uncle's second uncle has a house there, and the house price has doubled."
"What's the use of buying that? The top scholar won't live there forever."
"yes."
“If you don’t buy, some people will; there was even an imperial edict delivered today.”
"Imperial edict?"
"true and false?"
"The Emperor's reward is to commend Ye Jieyuan for his meritorious service to the people and his great efforts in flood prevention and control."
"Oh my, this young scholar has done so much at only sixteen years old. We are truly blessed to have him back."
"Who can argue with that? With such good grades, you must be very smart."
Do you think he has a chance of becoming the top scholar?
"I've already bet six yuan on him to pass the imperial examination."
"I bet on Cui Jieyuan, I bet ten taels of silver, and I feel like I'm not going to get it back."
"Me too. Cui Jieyuan was so popular before the exam, I thought he was in the bag, but who knew that Ye Jieyuan would come along after the exam."
Before the exam, it was popular to bet on which candidate would win the top score in the provincial and metropolitan examinations. Most people bet on Cui Jianbing, but unexpectedly, Ye Jieyuan emerged after the exam.
I heard he's already four yuan, the same as Cui Jianbing, and even younger than Cui Jianbing.
Maybe it'll be him this time.
As they talked, they started to feel sad. Although they hadn't bet a lot of money and were just trying to share in the good fortune, they were still envious when they thought about how those who bet on Ye Jieyuan had made a fortune.
Ye Jieyuan is too low-key.
Everyone knows there's a sixteen-year-old top scholar in the imperial examinations, but he never appears in public, so no one can discuss him.
The test takers fell silent upon learning this.
So why did they attend so many literary and poetry gatherings before? The people they really wanted to make friends with never showed up.
We don't know how things will turn out yet, but Ye Jianshan is already stealing the spotlight.
How did Ye Jianshan manage to keep a low profile and spend several months in the capital with that face on his head?
It's the same now. He didn't come out after the exam. No, he did come out; he went to the palace.
The other test takers had been hoping to relax after the exam, but now they don't dare to at all.
For a moment, the entire capital city was both bustling and quiet.
More than ten days passed, and the day for posting the results arrived.
People started queuing up at the entrance of the examination hall two days in advance, hoping to see the results as soon as possible.
Ye Jianshan has indeed been in seclusion during this period. The Emperor and Empress have also made many trips here. Apart from the two of them, everyone else has been ordered not to come and disturb Ye Jianshan's studies.
The Empress Dowager would also send things over from time to time.
Ye Jianshan's life is both busy and fulfilling.
Ye Lei was a little worried: "I used to be the one to check the results, but now the line is already a kilometer long."
It's no exaggeration to say that it felt like the entire capital city had come.
The vendors on both sides of the street have made a fortune delivering water and tea these past few days.
"General Guo has already gone to lead the Imperial Guards to maintain order, but he is too busy to tell us the results immediately."
Ye Lei also wanted to see his nephew's results as soon as possible.
But it was simply impossible to squeeze in.
"Third Uncle, don't worry. Sit down and have some tea. If you do well on the exam, everyone will rush over to tell me the good news. Just wait for the good news from the messenger."
Ye Jianshan comforted him, adding that he didn't believe those people in the palace weren't anxious about the results.
They will definitely send someone to check it out as soon as possible.
So there's no doubt someone will come and tell him his score.
Ye Jianshan calmly took a sip of tea.
After being confined to the examination hall for so many days, the Crown Prince finally saw hope of getting out.
The paper pasted with names was only torn off after the rankings were determined.
The crown prince was a little nervous for a moment.
The people around were already ready to start writing down the rankings one by one.
We were all a little nervous as we unfolded and wrote down the answers one by one in order.
It's unclear who will ultimately receive the title of Huiyuan, or whether it will be either Ye Jianshan or Cui Jianbing.
The Emperor and Empress in the palace were so anxious that they didn't sleep a wink all night before the rankings were announced to them.
I don't know if it's Ye Jianshan.
"Why are you moving so slowly this time? What is the Crown Prince doing?"
After having a grandson, the emperor became increasingly bold in criticizing the crown prince.
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Author's Note: Second update is here! There will be more tonight! [Please][Please]
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