Most wealthy families have stables, but they are actually just places for horses to rest.
The farm outside the city of the Zhenbei Marquis Mansion is not only for raising horses, but also for riding horses.
The farm covers a very large area, more than one hundred acres. In addition to the place for raising horses, there are also some woodlands for hunting. It is one of the best farms in the vicinity, and many people are jealous of it.
If Zhao Mingya really used that village as a bet, it would definitely be a lively scene.
When the people around heard that there was a bet, they all came over. When they heard that it was the fifth lady and Zhao Lin’s friends at the Zhenbei Marquis Mansion, they immediately understood.
The news that Zhao Mingya lost a courtyard to Fu Liqing last time had spread, and Zhao Mingya became a joke among everyone. No one expected that she would still dare to gamble this time.
"Is there something wrong with this Miss Zhao Wu's brain? She lost a whole courtyard last time, and she still dares to bet with others?"
Someone nearby spoke loudly, not caring at all that Zhao Mingya heard it.
"You're wrong. She doesn't have a problem, she's just too smart. Who made the bet with her last time? The daughter of Minister Fu. If you win, you'll make money. If you lose, it's like giving Miss Fu a gift. Kill two birds with one stone, why not?"
Another person explained.
"So what do you say this time?" someone asked.
The man chuckled and said, "Is there any need to ask? What do you think are Mr. Zhao's chances of winning the first place?"
Everyone around shook their heads.
This is the top scholar. Those who participated in this imperial examination were not just the scholars of the past two years, but almost all the scholars in the entire Shengjing Prefecture, a total of two to three thousand people. Which one of them was not well-educated in poetry and literature?
Zhao Lin wanted to beat them to the title of Jieyuan, but his chances were even smaller than if he won ten small Sanyuan.
"That's right. Mr. Zhao has a low chance of winning the first prize, but Miss Zhao Wu has a high chance of winning the bet. So, Miss Zhao Wu has a higher chance of winning. So, do you think Miss Zhao Wu is smart or stupid?"
Everyone nodded.
"So, Miss Zhao Wu is guaranteed to win?" someone asked.
The man stroked his beard and said, "I can't guarantee a win, but the possibility of winning is definitely greater than the possibility of losing."
The people who came over were either the candidates for this exam or their family and friends. They all had their own judgments and nodded, thinking that this person was right.
"Hmph, a shabby manor, I'm just betting with you." Su Di said with his head held high.
Zhao Mingya said to those around him, "Please bear witness. If Zhao Lin doesn't win the title of Jieyuan, this Mr. Su will lose ten thousand taels of silver to me."
"Don't worry, Miss Zhao Wu. We will bear witness."
"If he loses and doesn't give it to you, we'll help you get it."
Many people joined in the fun and shouted loudly.
Zhao Mingya snorted, glanced at Zhao Lin, turned around proudly, jumped into the carriage and left.
She was just passing by and happened to see Zhao Lin coming out. She wanted to come over and show off Zhao Chenhan's achievements to him, but she didn't expect to be forced by Su Di to make a bet.
The people around dispersed.
"Brother Su, you are impulsive." Zhao Lin said.
Sudi said disapprovingly, "It's only ten thousand taels of silver. Besides, I believe you."
Zhao Lin smiled bitterly.
This is the top scorer in the provincial examination, not comparable to the first place in the examination.
But Sudi had already made an agreement with Zhao Mingya, so Zhao Lin couldn't say much. He could only say, "I hope I won't disappoint Brother Su."
"Definitely not." Sudi said firmly.
…
Zhenbei Marquis Mansion.
Han Yuehua took Zhao Chenhan's hand and looked him up and down, her eyes red. "You've become thinner and darker. Don't go out anymore."
Zhao Chenhan smiled and said, "It's okay with Fifth Sister taking care of me."
"She? It's good enough that she can take care of herself, how can she take care of you?" Han Yuehua said dissatisfiedly.
Zhao Chenhan quickly said, "Fifth sister takes good care of me, and eldest sister also takes good care of me. I will definitely repay them in the future."
"Humph, this is their responsibility, no need to repay."
Han Yuehua smiled brightly when she heard what Zhao Chenhan said. She was very happy that Zhao Chenhan was so well-behaved and said, "Tell mom quickly what you did."
Zhao Chenhan said, "I didn't do anything. I just brought Shen Yuan and the others to my eldest brother-in-law. Through them, I caught the prince's men embezzling disaster relief funds. My eldest brother-in-law was very happy and decided to give me an official position in the prince's palace to practice first, and then arrange a formal position for me after I pass the palace examination."
"well."
Han Yuehua was even happier and said, "Our Marquis' Mansion and Prince Yu's Mansion share the same fate, so you must listen to your brother-in-law. By the way, were the people who embezzled the disaster relief funds the Crown Prince's men, or was the Crown Prince himself involved?"
Zhao Chenhan said, "My position is too low, so I don't understand some things. But seeing that my eldest brother-in-law doesn't look very happy, it seems that he hasn't been able to get involved with the Crown Prince."
"What a pity." Han Yuehua felt a little regretful.
Although the incident of embezzling disaster relief funds could not bring down the prince immediately, it was a huge blow to his reputation.
As the crown prince, he actually doesn't need to do much. As long as he behaves uprightly, waits patiently, and doesn't make any mistakes, the throne will be his sooner or later.
As the saying goes, the more you do, the more mistakes you make; the less you do, the fewer mistakes you make; and if you do nothing, you make no mistakes.
But the prince was not satisfied and wanted to show off his ability in front of the emperor, but he didn't expect to be caught by Prince Yu.
"As long as we can get a hold of the Crown Prince, capture a few of his followers, and insert Prince Yu's men into the group, we'll be completely victorious this time."
Zhao Chenhan analyzed, "The Crown Prince is the Queen's biological son, and the Queen's family is a duke. They have connections on both the military and political sides, so it's impossible to bring him down with just this one incident. However, we can use this to win over some neutral people, such as Fu Chengwang. Although he remains neutral, neutrality actually means support for the Crown Prince. As long as the Crown Prince encounters more problems like this, sooner or later Fu Chengwang will be completely disappointed and will side with his brother-in-law. The same will happen to others."
Han Yuehua looked at Zhao Chenhan with satisfaction: "Very good, very good. You have already begun to have the ability to advise on political affairs."
Zhao Chenhan said modestly, "Although this trip was a bit hard and tiring, I also learned a lot, and my eldest sister's husband is very satisfied with me. I heard from my eldest sister that she meant that as long as I could get a top three in the palace examination, she would arrange for me to surpass Bai Shiyuan and gain His Majesty's appreciation."
"Bai Shiyuan is nothing." Han Yuehua said disdainfully: "Do you really think that His Majesty appreciates him? No, he is giving face to the Bai family. Without the Bai family, he can't even enter the palace examination. He is a waste."
Zhao Chenhan said, "Mother, there's no need to belittle him like that. He's a talented man for being the top scorer."
"Very, what talent? Did you know that Bai Shicheng lost 50,000 taels of silver to Zhao Lin in a bet, and Bai Shiyuan actually gave it to him? It's really outrageous. How could a wealthy noble give so much silver to a lowly person? If he were to take charge of the Bai family in the future, he would ruin it sooner or later."
Han Yuehua said unhappily.
Zhao Chenhan was surprised: "Fifty thousand taels of silver? He gave Zhao...Brother fifty thousand taels of silver?"
"Not only him, Jiang Yichen also gave 50,000 taels." Han Yuehua said angrily.
"Jiang Yichen also gave 50,000 taels?" Zhao Chenhan's face twisted.
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