Consort Liu reacted quickly.
"Oh dear~" She smiled and took off a gold bracelet from her wrist and put it into Lin Wanyue's hand, saying, "We haven't been out much, and we've never seen the princess before, so we didn't recognize her for a moment. Please don't be offended, Princess... This is just a small gift from me. Please don't find it too much."
Who could possibly complain about such a large and well-made gold bracelet?
The family of Consort Su, who was standing next to her, was not as wealthy as that of Consort Liu, but with the Emperor and so many other people watching her, she could only grit her teeth, pull a gold hairpin from her hair, and hand it to Lin Wanyue: "This little princess is so cute, she will surely grow up to be a stunning beauty!"
"..." Lin Wanyue suddenly acquired two pieces of goldware. Even though she no longer lacked these things, she still smiled and showed her teeth.
"Alright, you may leave now." Qi Yuan nodded in satisfaction at their sensible manner before dismissing them.
He then took Lin Wanyue to other places for sightseeing, using a perfectly reasonable pretext.
Since Lin Wanyue promised to help deal with any ghosts she encountered in the harem, wouldn't it be more convenient for him to show her the way?
Watching the two of them walk away into the distance, Consort Su and Consort Liu finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
The two looked at each other and exchanged knowing smiles.
As they walked, the two remarked, "I wonder what this little princess's true identity is? She's gained the emperor's favor so much; the way she looks at him..."
"Shh, Sister Liu, you'd better watch your words." Consort Su's beautiful eyes darted around, but she didn't see any other palace servants. As for the maids and eunuchs following behind them, they were all honest and reliable, so there was no need to be wary of them.
Consort Su was relieved and said in a low voice, "I also took a look secretly just now, and I really can't see anything special about her. Although she is quite cute, how many people in our palace are ugly? Not to mention, when our sons were this age, weren't they also very cute?"
"Hmm..." Consort Liu nodded, feeling that her friend's words made a lot of sense, but this made her even more unable to understand.
"Well, we've never seen the Emperor treat other young girls this well before. Could there be another reason?" Consort Liu frowned as she pondered.
The head maid who had just been reprimanded whispered, "Your Highness, I saw the Regent holding the little princess when I went to the Imperial Garden a few days ago. The two do look somewhat alike, but all good-looking people in the world look alike, and I can't tell them apart."
Upon hearing this, both Consort Liu and Consort Su began to think in that direction.
"Could it be... that this little princess is really the Regent's illegitimate daughter?" Consort Liu asked tentatively.
Consort Su nodded as if she had suddenly discovered a great secret: "Doesn't that make sense? Otherwise, why is His Majesty so kind to his older brothers, nephews, and nieces, yet so devoted to this little girl... this little princess? Now that you put it this way, it all makes sense!"
Because everyone in the court knows that the reason Qi Yuan is still able to hold onto the throne is not just because he is the eldest son of the emperor.
Rather, it was because the person who could truly hold the fort in the court was Qi Sichen, who supported Qi Yuan.
It was precisely because he completely ignored those who were clamoring for his ascension to the throne and wholeheartedly supported Qi Yuan that the other princes dared not make any moves.
At least that's how it appears on the surface.
It's hard to say in private.
After all, their emperor has been in poor health for many years and may pass away at any time. They can't just hand over the position to the regent, can they?
Consort Su and Consort Liu did not continue to elaborate, but quickly led their people with two fresh roasted lamb legs straight to Chunqiu Pavilion.
The people at Chunqiu Pavilion were waiting for them. When they saw the two of them arrive, they all smiled and joked with them.
Consort Su and Consort Liu quickly recounted their encounter with Lin Wanyue and the Emperor on the road, embellishing the story and adding details such as the possibility that the little princess might be the Regent's illegitimate daughter.
Upon hearing this, the imperial concubines all looked enlightened. They didn't see anything wrong with it; instead, they added their own embellishments and imagined many more things.
Although they were just idle chatter, they gave these long-lived imperial concubines a few more topics to pass the time.
And that was the central topic of their discussion.
...
At this moment, Lin Wanyue was unaware that someone had fabricated a tragic backstory that even she herself was unaware of.
She pressed herself against the carriage window, lifting a small corner of the curtain to reveal a pair of large, bright black eyes staring at the entrance of the Imperial Academy outside.
With Qi Sichen's help, Lin Zhongyuan's entry into the Imperial Academy was easily resolved.
The Imperial Academy is a place that every scholar in the world wants to visit. It gathers almost all the famous teachers and scholars in the Great Yan Kingdom, and almost every teacher is a dragon among men, one in a hundred or one in ten thousand.
Especially in the imperial examinations, they were all seasoned veterans, capable of single-handedly navigating the challenges of the examinations!
When Master Cui explained to Lin Wanyue, his tone was incredibly sarcastic.
"Even if a student who can enter the Imperial Academy is a pig, he is definitely a pig that can become the top scholar in the imperial examination!" Master Cui concluded.
Lin Wanyue blinked and asked, "Can this pig still be used to make dumplings?"
Master Cui: "..."
Master Cui grabbed Lin Wanyue by the collar and shouted wildly, "That's the top scholar! The top scholar is the only one in three years when all the scholars in the world gather together!"
Lin Wanyue and the other ghosts were laughing uncontrollably.
Soon it was time to let out of school, and the young students, all dressed in blue robes, came out of the classroom.
Lin Zhongyuan was undoubtedly the most conspicuous one.
The reason he stands out is... because he's short...
Most people who entered the Imperial Academy to prepare for the imperial examinations were around sixteen or seventeen years old, or even older. It was not unusual for them to be married with children in their twenties or thirties.
Among these young students, Lin Zhongyuan, who was only twelve or thirteen years old, stood out.
He walked among his classmates, not chatting or laughing with anyone, his face expressionless.
It wasn't until the coachman shouted to him, "Here, here, here!"
Lin Zhongyuan looked up and saw his younger sister's cute little face, then smiled and quickly walked towards them.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
