His return to his post now can be considered a sign of Lu Xingjian's favor.
Therefore, unlike the arrogant behavior of the Crown Prince's faction led by Liu Jin and Zhang Yong, they were more conventional in their actions.
Lu Xingjian had been carefully evaluating him, and after more than a year of observation, he had deemed him satisfactory. Only then did he place the task of recommending him on Xiao Jing.
This can also be seen as a test of Xiao Jing.
Xiao Jing did not take the opportunity to recommend his own candidates extensively, nor did he even mention their names. He only mentioned the instructors of the Inner Academy.
Very conscientious and dutiful.
Lu Xingjian nodded.
A few days later, several unfamiliar eunuchs from Qingning Palace went to the Inner Study Hall for lessons.
Yan Ge'er was also dressed as a palace attendant and mingled among them.
Today's lessons were taught one after another by excellent teachers from the Inner Academy, each with their own strengths.
His parents wanted him to come and listen, to see which teachers' teaching styles he preferred.
Yan Ge'er didn't get any special treatment and stayed up all day just like the other eunuchs.
He was surprised to find that the young eunuchs who came to study were all intelligent and quick-witted, and could almost fully understand and apply what the teacher taught.
Many things he didn't understand were known to the young eunuchs of similar age, who could recite them fluently and logically.
Yan Ge'er's competitive spirit was ignited.
In the past, when I taught Yan Ge'er, he was already satisfied if he could catch up and get a good review.
Now, kids who are about his size and age are all better than him.
He can't let himself be outdone!
"I want to study at the Inner Academy!" Upon returning to Qingning Palace, Yan Ge'er expressed his thoughts.
Lu Xingjian paused in his action of wiping his hands with a damp cloth. "Why?"
"I want to surpass them, I want to be better than them!" Yan Ge'er was full of fighting spirit.
He is his father and mother's child, how can he be outdone by a bunch of lowly eunuchs?
I'm not convinced! I'm extremely not convinced!
"..."
It's not impossible.
Lu Xingjian was both amused and exasperated.
"Alright, go and study for a few days first, and we'll choose a tutor for you after the New Year."
With more than half a month left until the Chinese New Year, Yan Ge'er felt that the time was a bit short.
But now that we've started, we can work things out slowly.
If Father disagrees, then we should ask Mother. If Mother agrees, Father should listen to her.
Yan Ge'er's studies at the Inner Study Hall were also progressing rapidly.
Because he was a eunuch in Qingning Palace, and the Emperor had recently been staying there frequently, many clever young men came to fawn over Yan Ge'er, hoping to have the opportunity to be transferred to Qingning Palace to serve him.
For the first few days, Yan Ge'er got along very well with them.
However, he had too many admirers, which affected his studies, and he couldn't handle it.
Not only was I unhappy, I felt it was a burden.
"Father, can you go back to the Qianqing Palace to live? Look at them, they practically worship me now." Yan Ge'er looked worried.
"Then do you think it's okay to associate with these people?" Lu Xingjian took the opportunity to teach him how to judge people and how to conduct himself.
Yan Ge'er shook his head blankly.
The next day, Lu Xingjian had a handprint drawn on Yan Ge'er's face and announced to the public that the emperor had returned to the Qianqing Palace to live.
As a result, many of the eunuchs who had once fawned over Yan Ge'er immediately fell silent.
A few days later, Yan Ge'er's face was covered with handprints every day, and many people began to mock him and even kick him when he was down.
Only a handful of people sympathized with him and brought him medicine to treat his facial injuries.
Yan Ge'er was deeply moved.
I have come to deeply understand that "it is easy to add flowers to brocade, but difficult to provide charcoal in the snow."
Back at Qingning Palace that evening, Yan Ge complained dejectedly, "Only Mao Jing, Shi Jun, and Ye Yi have remained steadfast in their loyalty to me."
Su Wanwan affectionately patted his head.
No one had the heart to tell him that even if these three people passed the first test, they might still betray him in the future.
"In this world, to have even one true friend who remains consistent is a blessing; to have two is a gift from heaven."
Yan Ge'er became happy, "I have three, no, including Yan Ge'er, that makes four in total, aren't I too lucky?"
Su Wanwan felt a pang of sorrow.
That's a good way to think about it.
In fact, being born in a monastery's meditation room already foreshadowed the difficult beginning of his life.
If Lu Xingjian hadn't refused to let go and Xiao Bin hadn't intervened repeatedly, Yan Ge'er might not have survived today.
Hearing this, Su Wanwan felt that she was also very lucky.
He also has Gu Ziyu, his close friend; Liu Qi, his unruly subordinate; and Wan Ying, his wonderful younger sister.
She is actually one of God's lucky ones.
Yan Ge'er was in much better spirits and began to recount the rumors about the Inner Study with great interest.
"Mother, do you know? They say that a prince is studying in the Imperial Academy!"
"Emperor Xianzong's eldest son studied in the Inner Academy and later became a famous eunuch who was feared by all the civil and military officials!"
"They say he'll achieve the same feat as Huo Qubing, sealing the wolf's lair and residing in the Xuxu!"
"He's really something, choosing to be a eunuch over being a prince!"
Su Wanwan's heart skipped a beat.
A foggy corner in my mind seems to be slowly becoming clearer.
Emperor Xianzong's eldest son... a eunuch, who achieved the legendary feat of sealing the wolf's lair and residing in the Xiongnu territory, Xiao Bin...
A barrage of information came crashing down on her like a tidal wave.
Su Wanwan felt a sudden pang of pain in her heart.
He blurted out, "Your Uncle Xiao is this prince's son."
"What?"
"What?"
Two voices with different tones rang out at the same time.
Lu Xingjian arrived at some point, his cloak still covered in snowflakes.
Su Wanwan asked in surprise, "Didn't you say you were going to rest at the Qianqing Palace?"
"It's just a smokescreen, a show." Lu Xingjian's face was ashen. "What did you just say?"
He actually heard it clearly.
Xiao Bin is actually of royal blood?!
"Why?"
Su Wanwan looked at Yan Ge'er, who also had a puzzled expression, and after a moment of silence, she explained the reason that she had just remembered.
"Xianzong's eldest son was Xiaoqizi. He did not want to be emperor and be trapped in the Forbidden City. He only wanted to be a general to restore the glory of the Lu family, so he concealed his identity."
"Wouldn't it be better to be a carefree prince?" Yan Ge'er asked, puzzled.
“Being a prince means you won’t have to worry about food and drink. The only problem is that you don’t have freedom. You can’t even leave the city to pay respects to your ancestors within your own fiefdom.” Lu Xingjian was quite clear about this.
"Won't they sneak out of the city?"
"Not only did they secretly leave the city, but many also secretly raised private armies and plotted rebellion."
"Therefore, the imperial court would send eunuchs, chief secretaries, personal guards, and local officials to monitor the prince's daily life, so that the court would not be unaware if the prince harbored rebellious intentions."
Yan Ge'er felt these ideas were not reliable: "Won't these people be bribed?"
Lu Xingjian patted his little head, saying, "This child is teachable."
"Of course. So once the local authorities are bribed, they can easily become a united front, and the imperial court is unaware of the specifics."
The topic has gone way off track.
Yan-ge'er, still thinking about the eldest prince who had sealed the wolf's lair, his eyes shining, steered the conversation back to the main topic.
"I also want to seal the wolf's lair and dwell in the Xuxu Mountains!"
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