Chapter 54 Chapter 54
Chapter 54
"Hello, Miss Su. My name is Meng Yiru." The woman said softly, her face flushed, and she was obviously embarrassed for her previous rudeness.
The maidservant beside her hurriedly bowed, with an apologetic look on her face.
Su Yinyin quickly said, "Hello, Sister Meng."
Su Xian explained: "Ms. Meng's third brother is taking the exam today, so I should be here to pick him up from the exam room."
So that's what is happening.
Why do you care who is around you?
"They're out! It's finally over!" Li Yuqing pointed at the door and said, "Go find them."
The two maids beside Li Yuqing also helped to look for people.
They obviously knew who they were looking for.
Li Xing and the third son of the Meng family walked out. The former was fine as he still had enough strength, but the latter needed the support of a servant in his family to walk.
"I don't want to take the exam anymore. I don't want to take it anymore. I've taken the exam three times. If I fail again, I'll become a county magistrate." The third son of the Meng family greeted his good friend Su Xian. Seeing the beautiful girl next to Su Xian, he quickly cheered up and said, "You must be the sister that Su Xian often talks about."
"Meet Sister Su."
Su Yinyin returned the gift and saw Li Yuqing and Li Xing out of the corner of her eye. She just looked at their expressions and the latter seemed to be unaware of anything.
Thinking back then, she was also so slow.
Looking at her brother and Sister Meng again, she understood why her brother reacted so quickly.
But his brother did not take the initiative to talk to him, but stood beside him, obviously trying to avoid suspicion.
After the examination, the candidates finally relaxed. There was a lot of noise around them, and most of them were thinking about this year's exam questions.
It’s all about farming!
Those children from poor families are lucky, because they are not ignorant of the five grains.
Li Xingze lived in the Su family. Although he still had some money on him, he had a good relationship with Su Xian now, and he needed to have a good rest after the exam.
The Su family naturally didn't mind this and vacated Su Xian's study room for him to live in.
As a result, Su Yinyin discovered that Li Yuqing came to her house more frequently.
He said he came to see her, but actually he just wanted to talk to Li Xing.
Although most of the time, it was her who spoke and Li Xing who listened, fortunately, there was a response to every word.
It was fine at other times, but when Li Xing called her Miss Li, Su Yinyin still took a second look at him.
Miss Li?
Jin Yanlei next to her quickly winked at her and whispered, "Don't ask."
That means, Li Xing doesn’t know that Li Yuqing is actually a princess?
This surprised Su Yinyin, and she couldn't help but think of something. Jin Yanlei interrupted her, "Is your new store about to open? How are the preparations going?"
Su Yinyin said, "Everything is fine, except that I want to make a special furnace that can make the temperature inside the furnace more uniform, but I can't find a suitable craftsman."
She will definitely need to make more snacks in the future, so she wants to upgrade her equipment.
Jin Yanlei seemed to be thinking about something, and then he said, "I'll help you find a craftsman later."
After listening to this, Li Xing also helped to analyze the reasons. When he was saving money for his studies, he worked for a country craftsman and knew a little about it.
After finishing talking about the stove, Su Yinyin went to the kitchen to help Jin Yanlei get some lemon black tea that he ordered.
Li Yuqing glared at Li Xing and said, "Why did you talk so much just now?"
Li Xing was confused: "What's wrong?"
"You see, you don't talk much to me." Li Yuqing felt a little aggrieved, "but you talk a lot to Miss Su."
"You don't like her."
Li Xing was shocked. "Don't talk nonsense. It will damage a woman's reputation. If you tell others, people will misunderstand you."
Li Yuqing knew that she had said something wrong, but she didn't want to admit it, so she whispered, "Misunderstanding?"
"Yes, the father and brother of the Su family have a bright future. My family is different from his family. For things like this, it's better to have a match between the two families." Li Xing, like before, still analyzed the matter seriously without a trace of special emotion.
Li Yuqing blinked.
In her opinion, the two families are similar.
The Su family's father and brother are good, but they are nothing in the capital. Even if Su Xian passes the imperial examination and becomes a juren or jinshi in the future, it will only be the beginning.
This seems like too big of a gap.
What about her?
The maid behind Li Yuqing carefully pulled the princess' sleeve and said, "Don't be in a daze, or you'll be noticed."
After Li Xing explained, he said solemnly: "You should apologize to Miss Su and never mention it again."
Li Yuqing already knew that she was wrong, and now that Li Xing brought it up, she honestly apologized to Su Yinyin and said, "I will never do this again, I promise."
Su Yinyin thought it was something serious, but seeing the princess lower her head still felt a little strange.
When everyone was about to leave, Li Yuqing thought about it, took the initiative to come over, and said to Su Yinyin: "I really didn't think about what I said just now, and it was not directed at you."
During this period of time, Su Yinyin also noticed it and comforted him, "It's okay, you've already apologized anyway."
"Then I can come to see you again in the future, right?" Li Yuqing was happy at this point, and whispered, "Also, I think you are really Little Matchmaker."
Su Yinyin heard this and said to her seriously: "Whether she is a matchmaker or not is another matter, but no matter what kind of relationship you have, it's best not to hide anything."
“It’s very sad for people who are kept in the dark.”
Su Yinyin seldom said this, she was always smiling, but she was afraid of being kept in the dark and also afraid of being deceived.
For example, when she was in an orphanage, someone said that they had found her parents, and they also said that the family had no money, could not support her, and had no time, let alone come to see her.
She ran away secretly, wanting to see her parents, but they had already started their own families and had other children.
It’s not that they don’t have money or time.
I just think she's troublesome.
She thought she had forgotten it all.
I didn't expect that I still felt sad and a little twisted.
"Don't lie to him."
Li Yuqing hesitated for a moment, then nodded seriously: "Okay, I'll tell you."
But what they didn't expect was that
After Li Xing knew Li Yuqing's true identity, he was only briefly surprised and had no other reaction.
The day before the examination results are announced.
The Su siblings, Li Xing, Li Yuqing, and the Meng siblings are all helping out in the Su family's new store.
When they say they are helping, they are mostly trying to relieve anxiety before the results are announced.
The third son of the Meng family took a deep breath, his nervousness almost written on his face. He was a student of the Shan Family Academy, and the questions of this year's imperial examination were quite to the liking of their academy. It was already his best performance in recent years.
On the other hand, Li Xing was the same as before. This was his first time taking the imperial examination, so it was normal whether he passed or not.
He also had a vague feeling that the articles he wrote should be good.
But there is no need to say it now.
Li Yuqing spoke very little today, she felt that she was the most nervous one.
I have to tell Li Xing my identity. What if he gets angry?
Or maybe he became like everyone else, knowing who her father was, and started to flatter her?
Whatever the reaction was, it was not what she wanted.
"I should have known better than to hide it."
Su Yinyin didn't care about these, she was looking after her shop.
The two ordinary ovens in the kitchen have been completed, and the special oven will take another three or four days. It is estimated that it will be truly usable by April 20th.
And she is going to open her business at the age of 25.
Hope all goes well!
This is the first time she opened her own store!
The Meng siblings have two different personalities. The third son of the Meng family is still shaking his legs, while Miss Meng mostly talks to Su Xian.
Su Xian looked fine, but in fact he spoke noticeably more softly.
Su Yinyin thought to herself that her parents wouldn't have to worry about her brother anymore.
Not long after, the Meng brothers and sisters had something to do at home and asked them to go back.
Li Yuqing became even more nervous when she saw this.
She's going to say it!
I really need to say it!
Li Yuqing took a sip of lemon tea and said to Li Xing, "If you pass the exam tomorrow, what are you going to do?"
Li Xing replied: "There is still the palace examination to prepare for."
That's also true.
"What happens after the palace examination?" Li Yuqing asked.
"I'm preparing to go abroad." Li Xing said more, "I want to show my ambitions after learning for many years."
This is the wish of almost all readers.
It allows you to showcase what you have learned and achieve success in your career.
Li Yuqing frowned: "The candidates around me all want to stay in the capital. If you are willing, I can help you."
Li Xing was surprised: "No, staying in Beijing has its advantages. Although being sent out is hard, it is the best way to exercise your abilities."
If this wasn't the first time Li Xing refused, Li Yuqing wouldn't be surprised. She continued, "My father is a prince, and his last name is Li. You can do whatever you want."
If others heard this, they would definitely jump for joy.
With Princess Li’s promise, you can rest assured for the rest of your life.
Li Xing was indeed surprised, and bowed earnestly, and finally said, "No thanks, Princess."
No anger, no fawning, no excessive emotions.
Why.
Su Yinyin was a little surprised, but her brother gave her the answer: "Because Li Xing had no expectations."
Without expectations, there won’t be too many thoughts.
is that so.
Her disappointment with her parents back then was actually expectation.
So they are afraid of causing trouble, being a burden, and spending too much money.
More afraid of being deceived.
Su Yinyin knew that she felt a little awkward, and she also knew that this emotion was wrong.
But I just can’t help it!
Although Li Yuqing did not hear what Su Xian said, she was two years older than Su Yinyin, so she finally reacted after a while.
"Are you a piece of wood?"
After saying this, Li Yuqing trotted away.
Li Xing is just a piece of wood, a big piece of wood.
Why doesn't he come to curry favor with me?
I can give him much more than others.
Li Xing was dumbfounded, but still had no idea what was going on. He finally said helplessly, "Let's have less contact in the future."
The two are completely different people with completely different interests and hobbies, so it’s better not to try to get close to someone who is not as good as you think.
"She just thinks I'm different. In fact, after seeing me more, you will know that I'm not suitable." Li Xing asserted.
However, as he walked out of the shop, he thought of Princess Yuqing's expression just now.
So a happy person shouldn’t be too sad, right?
Su Yinyin nodded in agreement.
That’s right, it’s really difficult for different people and different classes to get along with each other.
But Li Xing is a little different. If he can pass the imperial examination and rank among the top, the gap can be narrowed.
Su Yinyin didn't expect that this sentence would actually come true.
The results will be announced on April 15th.
Li Xing’s name is on it.
Ranked 13th in Class 2.
He ranked thirteenth in this year's imperial examination!
Such a result made Li Xing himself dumbfounded.
After years of hard study, I was lucky enough to pass the exam, but I was ranked thirteenth.
"Congratulations, you're number 13. Brother Li is so talented. He's really amazing."
"You are from Lingnan, right? My family is from Lingnan as well. We should get to know each other better in the future."
"Congratulations. It says on the list that you are still unmarried?"
The crowd almost drowned Li Xing.
But Li Xing turned around subconsciously and happened to see Princess Yuqing with an earnest look. He was touched for a moment, but he quickly looked away and thanked the people around him.
But Li Yuqing did not retreat but walked forward, walked up to him and asked: "Do you have a reason this time?"
At this moment in the East Palace, Guo Zhan was thinking back to what the Crown Prince had just said to Princess Yuqing.
"He doesn't like you."
Princess Yuqing replied: "But I have a response to every word I say."
"He likes you."
"But he didn't react at all to my deception. What should I do?"
Li Ruiyuan was silent.
He said it as if he knew what to do.
Guo Zhan closed his eyes, and the Crown Prince’s last words were.
"Then be shameless and keep pestering me."
???
Is this appropriate!
How did you teach?
In fact, Li Yuqing had never thought of asking the prince this question.
It was just that they happened to meet each other when she came out of the Queen's bedroom, and it was only when the Prince asked her that she expressed her doubts.
After coming out of the palace, she went directly to the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall.
What I didn’t expect was that Li Xing was so powerful!
Thirteenth place in the imperial examination!
These results are considered outstanding among the children in Beijing.
So she walked straight over, not giving the other person a chance to dodge.
Li Xing really had no way to avoid it, but he realized another point: in this respect, he was more cowardly than the girl opposite him.
But it's not his fault, it's just the difference between two people.
When the Su siblings arrived, the Meng siblings had already finished looking at the list.
The third son of the Meng family jumped up excitedly: "Second place! I made it to the second place! Great! I finally passed the exam!"
"Li Xing, where are you?"
Young Master Meng San was looking from the back to the front. He knew that he would not be among the top few, and it was already very good that he could score 196th.
When his younger sister Miss Meng pointed at him, he immediately became honest: "Thirteenth? That's amazing! My God, if I do well in the palace exam, maybe I can get the top spot?"
After saying this, he couldn't help but get excited: "From now on, I will have a friend who is the top scorer."
Li Xing looked at Li Yuqing, lowered his eyes and said, "I will try my best."
A few people walked back while talking, and agreed to find a restaurant in the evening to have a good meal, which would also relieve the stress of recent times.
But this time, he must go home to report the good news.
Only Miss Meng and Su Xian were left walking at the end.
Miss Meng comforted Su Xian, "When you take the exam again, you will definitely be on the list."
Su Xian smiled and said nothing more. He quickly caught up with the others, leaving Miss Meng feeling a little disappointed.
At night, the streets of Bianjing are still bustling.
Regardless of whether they passed the exam or not, everyone felt a lot less pressure.
When they arrived at the restaurant they had booked, Mr. Meng San was particularly attentive to Su Yinyin and introduced her to it, saying, "This restaurant has excellent food. I wanted you to come here before, but I was too busy recently."
Then, Mr. Meng San said, "Sister Su, is there anything you like? Just order it."
Su Yinyin declined politely, saying that was not necessary.
After the six people sat down, the topic turned to the imperial examination again.
Soon Li Xing and Mr. Meng San will take part in the palace examination, which is also the last step of the imperial examination.
Third Master Meng also said: "We will be able to see His Royal Highness the Crown Prince by then. Even though he only observed government affairs last year, he is extremely capable. With such a Crown Prince, the Wanlong Kingdom will surely be safe and secure for decades to come."
For a moment, half of the people at the table were silent.
Li Yuqing was the first to say, "He is indeed amazing. When he was young, no one else liked to study, but he studied every day."
Thinking of this, Li Yuqing thought for a moment: "Not really, it seems that I take one day off every three days, but I study very hard."
"You know all this?" Third Master Meng was shocked. "What does the prince do during his rest time? Let us learn from him."
The Su siblings touched their noses at the same time.
What do you want to do? Come to the Su family.
Teach Su Yinyin to read.
Thinking of this, Su Xian still felt a little upset. It was obviously he who was supposed to teach his sister to read, but the other party got there first, and he could still remember it now.
Li Yuqing said: "I don't know, maybe he is seeing a doctor? His health is not good. If the palace hadn't taken good care of him, he probably wouldn't be able to observe government affairs."
Thinking of what happened back then, Li Yuqing was still a little frightened. At that time, she was only three or four years old, and was protected by her mother in the secret room of the Prince's Mansion.
Even so, I still feel a little scared.
What’s more, the prince was abducted by the rebels.
Her father said that it was not easy for the prince to be safe and recover his health.
In fact, for a few years, everyone thought that the prince might not be able to hold on for a few more years.
Of course, I only say this at home and dare not tell anyone else.
The third son of the Meng family sighed: "It's not easy to be a crown prince."
After dinner, the group of young people still felt a little reluctant to leave.
Li Yuqing didn't want to leave either, so she simply said, "How about we just go for a walk? There's no curfew recently anyway."
"That's good. The streets are busy these days." Young Master Meng San agreed immediately.
But when he was paying the bill, the waiter said, "Someone has already paid."
who?
Everyone looked at each other.
The waiter continued, "It's a guest named Yuan, he just left."
Original sharp.
The Su brothers and sisters understood instantly and said, "He is a good friend of my family."
No wonder.
"Why doesn't he come say hello?"
Jin Yanlei could hardly laugh after watching all this.
Anyway, he wanted to eat on the ground while sitting at the same table with the prince with a cold face.
And according to his observation.
Whenever the man surnamed Meng at the table picked up some food for Su Yinyin, the prince's face would turn eight degrees colder.
He felt like he was experiencing winter early.
"Your Highness, why don't we go over there? Li Yuqing will definitely not dare to expose it." Jin Yanlei said quickly.
Li Ruiyuan said, "No."
You can no longer use Yuan Rui’s identity.
Otherwise, it will be hard to explain later.
How he showed up was already a big problem.
If he used Yuan Rui's identity, Yin Yin would definitely give him a fake smile in response.
Using Li Ruiyuan's identity, she would definitely show no mercy.
Using the identity of the prince?
I’m afraid she will bow respectfully.
He couldn't bear it even more.
There is only the last answer.
Persistent.
Su Yinyin looked around and met Li Ruiyuan's eyes, which made her feel a little guilty.
Her brother's words were still lingering in her mind.
Looking forward to it?
I look forward to the relationship with the other person.
That's why I get angry and stay away.
Because she is essentially an awkward person.
Coupled with the other party's identity, this expectation becomes particularly slim.
All she could do was take many steps back.
But at the same time, she understood that the more she retreated, the more she wanted to advance.
And more than one person has said that the prince is seriously ill. Is it anorexia?
From what they said, it was more than just this one thing.
Yuan Rui's mere appearance made Su Yinyin fall asleep in the middle of the night.
The next day I thought about it and decided not to worry about it anymore.
Let’s go to the new store and have a look.
All preparations for the new store are in final stage. Even the store clerks have been found and they have interned at Hui Nu Dim Sum before, so there is no need to worry about their proficiency.
All that's left is cleaning.
Since there is nothing else to do, why not start now?
Su Yinyin covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief, rolled up her sleeves and prepared to work.
There were a few knocks on the shop door, and it was Yuan Rui who was at the door.
After the imperial examination, he appeared outside the palace more frequently.
Guo Zhan greeted first: "Miss Yinyin, the new store is almost ready."
Su Yinyin nodded and said, "But the door is not open yet, so we can't receive customers."
"I'm not a customer, I'm here to help." Li Ruiyuan said in a deep voice.
Su Yinyin looked at his clothes and said simply, "I want to clean up, can you?"
This made Li Ruiyuan pause.
He hadn't cleaned it.
"I can learn. Can you teach me?" Li Ruiyuan imitated her and found a handkerchief to cover his mouth and nose.
Just looking at his eyes, they were less fierce and more gentle in an indescribable way.
Guo Zhan hesitated to speak and took the initiative to take charge of the store's hygiene, leaving the kitchen to them.
Su Yinyin was still thinking about what happened last night. She wanted to find an opportunity to pay him back, but she knew he definitely didn't care.
Furthermore, I would like to ask what disease he has.
There are too many questions, so I'd better not talk about them.
But now she also knows that it is not a good idea to waste time like this. Since Yuan Rui is unwilling to leave tacitly, they must have a chat.
Thinking of this, Su Yinyin calmed down.
After knowing each other for so many years, Yuan Rui is still very reasonable, and being friends in the future is the best option.
Who doesn't want a golden thigh!
Cleaning is not difficult, it is just tedious and requires patience and meticulousness.
When Li Ruiyuan had learned enough, he took over almost all the work.
After cleaning up the kitchen, Su Yinyin made a few glasses of lemonade and brought them outside for Guo Zhan to drink.
The remaining two cups were for her and Yuan Rui.
Su Yinyin thought for a while and said, "I'll just call you Yuan Rui."
The identity issue lies between the two of them, and everyone knows it.
Su Yinyin didn't want to expose it now.
Li Ruiyuan said, "My name is Li Ruiyuan."
"I'm sorry for not telling the truth."
Li Ruiyuan.
Original sharp.
The name is reversed.
Just as Su Yinyin was about to speak, the other party continued, "The situation was not stable at the time, so it was hard to speak directly. After all, I was abducted by the rebels when I was a child."
Abducted.
Rebel.
"Yinyin is so smart, she must have guessed my identity. The root of her illness must have come from that year."
These few words almost expressed all the doubts in Su Yinyin's mind.
The situation in the DPRK was complicated at that time.
No one has dared to mention it yet.
Fourteen or fifteen years ago, the Wanlong Kingdom was in a state of chaos with wars outside and bandits rampant inside.
The late emperor had been dissatisfied with the crown prince for a long time, thinking that he was too cruel and extremely partial.
Many corrupt officials in the court were subordinates of the former crown prince.
The older the late emperor got, the more he liked the present emperor, who was usually loyal and honest. Moreover, many of his trusted ministers in the court also liked the present emperor more.
In particular, the efforts of Prince Ning and others in the current emperor's party to defend the country from foreign aggression and pacify the internal affairs of foreign races had made the late emperor make a painful decision and change the edict when he was seriously ill.
Depose the previous crown prince and establish the current emperor.
But this kind of thing is destined to be full of blood and rain.
Fortunately, the emperor was well prepared, and with the full support of the civil servants from the queen's family, the situation was finally stabilized.
Just as the previous emperor passed away and the new emperor was about to ascend the throne.
The imprisoned deposed crown prince joined forces with his former subordinates to launch a coup.
It was at that time that Li Ruiyuan was abducted.
The emperor and the empress were extremely anxious. One of them was trying to stabilize the previous dynasty, and the other was trying to stabilize most of the power of the aristocratic families in the capital.
I didn't expect that my son was taken away.
The deposed crown prince is at the end of his strength and is fighting a desperate battle. He would rather commit suicide than reveal where Li Ruiyuan is.
From early winter to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month of the following year.
For three or four months, we had no idea where he was being held.
The emperor and empress searched the entire capital and finally found him in an abandoned dark room in the back mountain of the palace.
The three-year-old child was surrounded by corpses of people who had already committed suicide.
When the rebels learned that the deposed prince was dead, they knew there was no hope in their lives and committed suicide in a dark room.
There was such a panic at the time that these people no longer cared about the children. The real solution was to commit suicide to avoid torture.
By the time Li Ruiyuan had worn off the ropes that bound him, the rotten flesh of these people's corpses had already been mixed with the prepared food and was permeated with the smell of rotting corpses.
He also tried to escape.
But the hemp rope on his hands was broken, and there was no way to fix the chains on his feet.
Until dawn on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.
Li Ruiyuan was finally found and rescued from the dark room.
The then Prince Ning still dares not recall the scene.
Even though it was winter, the bodies of these people had been there for several months. There was a faint stench of corpses and decay, and it was cold and dark underground without any sunlight.
Any adult would collapse.
What's more, he is a three-year-old child.
From then on, Li Ruiyuan, who was originally quite lively, seemed like a different person.
Sudden changes in personality are already worrying.
What made everyone most uncomfortable was that he could only eat a little food every day. If he ate more, he would vomit it out, and he became extremely skinny.
The emperor and empress searched everywhere for delicious food but to no avail.
There was even an imperial physician who said that if the prince was still like this when he grew older, his body would not be able to bear it.
A slight illness can lead to disastrous consequences.
"Until I met you." Li Ruiyuan said finally.
"Or rather, I met you the day you were born."
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