Chapter 170 The Crown Prince Questions Xu Wan

"Yes, we're at home. Let's go back quickly." Xu Wan pulled the kid into the car.

Compared with the little devil's excitement, Xu Wan felt that the prince must be feeling guilty, feeling guilty that Jin Cheng was implicated by him, otherwise he would not have offended Luo Jingfeng.

The carriage drove home quickly, and the key class of the Hou Mansion...

Crown Prince Chu Heng was sitting in the large study room reading Zong Jincheng's test paper. Baili Xi was not there today and Zong Wenxiu was called away by Baili Weihong. Only three private tutors were left, standing trembling by the side waiting.

Pan Hongzhi looked at Zhao Yin and wanted to ask him what to do, but Zhao Yin lowered his head even more than Cheng Zhidong.

Pan Hongzhi: “…”

After watching you two, I suddenly feel that I am still quite courageous.

But... help! This is the prince. It is extremely rare for a commoner like him to see the prince. Now he is so close to him. He is so nervous that he can hardly breathe.

The prince was obviously here for Zong Jincheng. He asked for Zong Jincheng's test papers from all stages of his school life. Seeing that the boy's knowledge was getting higher and higher but his handwriting was getting worse and worse, his brows relaxed and then wrinkled.

Every change scared Pan Hongzhi to death, for fear that the prince would say that he taught his child poorly and drag him out to be beheaded.

"Why doesn't Jincheng practice his calligraphy well?" The prince couldn't help but ask.

Pan Hongzhi's tense mood suddenly calmed down in the swaying. He knows the answer to this question!

"Your Highness, it's because Young Master Jincheng doesn't want to learn at this stage. He thinks practicing calligraphy takes too much time, and writing beautiful slow characters takes even more time, so he used the time saved to learn a little more." Pan Hongzhi was afraid that he would misunderstand, so he added, "But your Highness, don't worry, Young Master Cheng will still write slow characters during the formal exam so that the examiner can understand."

The prince asked, "Is there enough time?"

Pan Hongzhi said repeatedly: "That's enough. He can finish the test paper in just half an hour by writing cursive characters."

The prince raised his head, his lips slightly raised: "So fast?"

Pan Hongzhi nodded vigorously: "Yes, Young Master Jincheng is very smart and hardworking. He has now been admitted to the Tongzi Class. Next, he is preparing to take the Tongzi Class in the spring of next year. We all think he can pass the exam."

"Tongzike..." The prince muttered these three words silently, as if he was thinking of this unimportant exam.

Although the Tongzi exam was used to select child prodigies, since the exam content was mostly recitation and dictation, those who passed the exam would not be officially appointed as officials, but only given the opportunity to participate in the imperial examination as an exception. Moreover, few students from the Tongzi exam were able to perform well in the imperial examination.

Reciting and writing from memory are two different things from understanding and applying.

"Your Highness, Madam Zong and Young Master Jincheng are back." The guard reported.

The prince looked out, holding the book in his hand. The dazzling sunlight pierced him and he stretched out his hand to block it. The little devil's voice rang out joyfully: "Greetings, Your Highness. May Your Highness live a thousand years, a thousand years, a thousand years!"

The summer is scorching, but it feels like a cool breeze suddenly blows in and penetrates into the heart.

Xu Wan came in and bowed as well: "I have seen your Highness."

The prince nodded to them and said, "Come in and talk. Everyone else please leave."

"yes."

Pan Hongzhi and the other two felt like they had found a savior and ran away.

Soon, there were only three of them left in the room.

Xu Wan thought that the prince must have something to ask Jin Cheng, but he didn't let her go. Why?

But the next moment, the prince looked at her and said, "Have you met Zong Zhao?"

The tone of this sentence is mostly affirmative, with only a small amount of uncertainty.

Xu Wan was confused by the question.

She denied it, "Your Highness, you are joking. Zong Zhao has been missing for eight years and no news has ever been sent back. I and the people in the Marquis' Mansion have never seen him in these eight years."

The prince listened, but seemed not to have listened.

He asked calmly, "Your father is the current Shangshu, in charge of the Ministry of Justice, and holds a high position of power. As his legitimate daughter, you can marry into any other favored Marquis's Mansion, or even a Duke's Mansion... Why did you choose to marry into the Yuanyang Marquis's Mansion?"

Xu Wan thought, why...of course it's for money.

People here value agriculture over commerce and look down on businessmen, but we ordinary people would love to have that and would love to marry into a wealthy family and become a rich wife.

What's more, without a husband to serve and concubines to fight with, life is so wonderful. You men just don't understand.

But since the prince had asked, she couldn't tell the truth. She just evaded the question and said, "My mother died early, and my stepmother didn't treat me well. I have lacked the love of my mother since I was a child. I heard that the old lady of the Marquis' Mansion is kind and gentle, so I want to marry here. It is also a good place to go."

Zong Jincheng, who was listening to the adults' conversation nearby, opened his eyes wide.

So strange.

Did Xu Wan marry in because of her grandmother?

Now that she's grown up, does she really want her mother's love?

The little devil scratched his head, not quite understanding.

Zong Jincheng didn't have much life experience, and didn't know what a woman's family looked for when choosing a husband, so listening to the two of them talking about these things was like listening to a foreign language. He knew every word, but had no idea what they meant when they were put together.

Fortunately, after Baili Weihong's teaching, he knows that he should not interrupt when adults are talking. Even if he is anxious to open his mouth, he has to hold it in and look at this and that.

The prince had not yet finished questioning Xu Wan, and the questions one after another made her sweat profusely.

Xu Wan gritted her teeth and explained another question: "Jia Zhi Geng is just a method used to calculate the learning gap between Jin Cheng and the students in the academy. It is selected from the ten heavenly stems and has no special meaning."

After saying this, she felt even more fortunate that she had wanted to teach in a low-key manner earlier and did not directly use Arabic numerals instead. Otherwise, when she was questioned by the prince now, she would not be able to explain it at all.

Yes, test.

Although the prince's attitude was very gentle, the questions he asked her were very strange. First, he asked her about her motivation for marrying into the marquis's mansion, and then he asked her where she got her methods of raising children.

If she says she read it in a book, she will be asked which book it was; if she says she thought of it herself, she will be asked how she came up with it.

Xu Wan felt as if she had taken a civil service examination, and the chief examiner was the prince. While answering the questions, she had to quote classics to prove that she had the ability to come up with these methods, and to prove that her ideas were to serve the country, the people, and her children, and to be selfless.

Although it seemed like a peaceful conversation, Xu Wan felt like she was walking on thin ice and sweat broke out on her back.

Finally, the prince closed the book, smiled and said: "The fact that the Marquis's family can marry you is a sign of their good vision and also a blessing for Jincheng."

Xu Wan closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.

Passed.