The internal official cannot help but worry.
At present, it is the scorching summer season, and ordinary people sit in the hall all morning feeling extremely uncomfortable when they have nothing to do. His Highness will also have to remain awake and keen at all times, examining the learning and character of so many scholars and how suffering it is when he has just recovered from a serious illness?
After the young Crown Prince finished speaking, his gaze returned to the roster and the corresponding information and resume attached to the back of the roster. He quickly finished reading it and then clicked on the next person.
The official sighed and dared not say anything more, bowing down and retreating.
The remaining people in the palace were somewhat surprised. The aristocratic family has many rules and regulations, and they are arrogant. The Crown Prince of Jiang, who was the most prestigious of all, will naturally be more than them. In some noble families, the head of the family only has one or two hours a day to receive guests who come to seek refuge. They thought this examination would last at least three or five days before it was over, but they didn’t expect this Crown Prince of Jiang to be willing to spend so much time receiving them.
In addition to a few short breaks fixed in the middle to help everyone solve internal problems, this entrance exam lasted until dusk. There were still a few people left, but when the official entered the curtain again, he found that the Crown Prince’s face had turned pale, and his temples were soaked in sweat, indicating that he was already feeling a bit uncomfortable.
“Your Highness, that’s all for today. The old servant will help you go in and rest.” Said the official.
Jiang Yun said, “Hold the candle ba.”
The inner official was a bit anxious, “But…”
“Hold the candle.”
The teenager’s voice was not high, but it brooked no argument.
“There are only a few left, and they have all been waiting for a day. Gu doesn’t want to delay until tomorrow.”
The internal official had no choice but to summon the palace attendants to come in.
The candlelight was lit up on both sides and four corners of the hall, shining on the quietly hanging golden curtain, refracting a brilliant and radiant light. Because of the candles inside the curtains, the young Crown Prince’s figure was vaguely revealed as a silhouette. But it’s only an outline. Anything more detailed is invisible.
The Crown Prince of a country selects his follower—not just cabbage, but a hundred people. Fewer than one in ten may end up with a “yes” rating.
Those who can pass the assessment are naturally overjoyed, while a large portion of those who fail cannot avoid feeling unwilling.
After all, the Crown Prince’s followers themselves possess no less glory than those who enter the court as officials. After receiving the result of his defeat, the middle-aged scholar who failed the assessment said, “This old man has a recommendation letter from Lord Situ, and it was after careful consideration that this old man decided to come to Lanxin Palace to serve. Isn’t it too unfair for Your Highness to think that this old man is not capable enough just based on a few questions and answers?”
This is obviously someone who takes advantage of being a senior.
The inner official frowned and was about to order the guards to drive him out. However, the Crown Prince behind the curtain raised his hand and slowly said, “It is true that the level of ability is not something that Gu can determine in a few words, but Sir may not know the rules of Gu’s Lanxin Palace. Using money to bribe the inner official next to Gu to try and gather insider information is useless here.”
The surrounding line of sight immediately landed on the old man’s face, either in contempt or astonishment. The old man’s face was on fire, from his neck to his face, red as a pig’s liver, unable to say a word, and he walked out in shame and anger.
The rest of the people chuckled a few times.
Fan Zhou, on the other hand, suddenly glanced at the golden curtain shimmering under the candlelight with great interest.
Another hour passed, and the people in the palace left one after another.
“Li Xian.”
Behind the curtain, the sound of the Crown Prince’s gentle voice echoed once again.
Outside the curtain, there was no response for a long time, but instead thunderous snoring sounded.
The inner official glanced around and found that there was only the disheveled man sitting at the bottom of the hall, who was as messy as a beggar. He quickly went over and called the person.
The inner official was dissatisfied in his heart. His Highness still sat behind the curtain, hadn’t even had dinner, and he is taking the entrance exam overnight. This person actually fell asleep on the table, it is really disrespectful.
The official shouted several times, but the person at the table showed no response. Instead, they snored more and more.
“Hey!”
It’s the first time he has seen such a strange man, he didn’t dare to do anything without authorization and went to seek Jiang Yun’s opinion. Jiang Yun closed the roster and said, “Forget it, since this gentleman is tired, let’s prepare a guest room and send him to rest first.”
“Remember to treat him with courtesy and never offend him.”
“Yes.”
These matters will be arranged by the palace attendants, and the inner official is more concerned about Jiang Yun’s health. He said, “If Your Highness is feeling unwell, the old servant had better go and call the Imperial Physician to come and take a look.”
Jiang Yun shook his head and said, “It’s fine.”
The Crown Prince’s bedchamber is still some distance away from here. Jiang Yun returned to his residence, and the palace attendants had already prepared the bath.
As usual, Jiang Yun asked everyone to step down and enter the bathroom alone.
“Deng Gong, I see that Your Highness’s complexion is not very good. We really don’t need to go in and serve?”
The old man guarding the entrance of the bathhouse shook his head, silencing the palace attendants to wait in the distance. He looked at the tightly closed bathroom door and sighed. Three years ago, his Highness followed his Majesty down to the imperial garden to hunt. When encountering assassination in the canal, he was seriously injured, and after three years of illness, his temperament has changed a lot. In the past, although his Highness was also quiet, but he would occasionally say a few common words to them, elderly people. Now, he seems to have completely sealed himself off and does not allow any palace attendants to serve him personally. Whether changing clothes, sleeping, bathing, or going to the library to read, he does them all alone and just leaves the palace attendants to guard outside.
Including him, he also lost the qualification to personally serve his Highness and only managed his daily clothing and food at most. It’s just about diet items, and his Highness’s situation is not optimistic either.
For the past three years, it seems that his Highness has suffered from stomach disease. He only eats plain congee three times a day and does not touch any meat or fish at all. He even rarely drinks his favorite Dongli wine anymore.
His Highness also suffers from an obsessive-compulsive disorder. Several times, when he heard the commotion and went into the bed to check the situation, he saw his Highness curled up in cold sweat, with sweat on his forehead and fingers tightly gripping the bedding. It is unknown whether it was a nightmare or a stomach disease that caused it.
But on the second day, his Highness was able to handle affairs with ease and without any fatigue.
He served his Highness from a young age and knew that his Highness had many grievances in his heart that could not be shared with ordinary people. However, this was the first time he felt that his Highness seemed to have sealed himself in an invisible and enticing shell, making it impossible for outsiders to approach him, and his Highness himself also refused to step out.
In the bathroom, Jiang Yun took off his layered clothes and soaked his entire body in the bathtub. He then leaned against the wall of the bathtub and gently closed his eyes.
The hot air fell on the dense and slender eyelashes, condensing into a thin layer of crystal-clear water droplets, reflecting the stunning jade-like face below.
After bathing, Jiang Yun put on the clean clothes that Deng Gong had already prepared and returned to the bedchamber. However, he did not immediately go to bed. Instead, he asked the inner official to retrieve a memorial that had not been approved during the day and sat at the table to continue flipping through it.
Deng Gong took a light lotus cake and placed it next to the table. Seeing that Jiang Yun had not tied his hair, his black hair was wet and draped around his shoulders and neck. He had intended to take a bath towel and help his Highness wipe it, but he restrained himself and asked, “Your Highness has been working hard all day, why not read these things tomorrow?”
Jiang Yun was in a good mood today. He looked up and smiled at him, saying, “It’s alright, Gu doesn’t feel tired.”
This is the truth.
He enjoys the feeling of being busy and being stuck in it all day long.
Deng Gong, who was still familiar with Jiang Yun’s temperament, was moved in his heart and said, “Did Your Highness meet a like-minded guest today?”
Jiang Yun didn’t speak.
Deng Gong no longer asked but moved the candle closer to make it easier for his Highness to see the words on the memorial more clearly. Since his Highness established his own mansion, he has had some memorials delivered daily for his Highness’s review. This level of decentralization surprised everyone.
The court also speculated about this.
After all, in recent years, His Majesty has always favored King Chu. Apart from his status as the Crown Prince, he has never given him any special favor in court affairs or daily life. Now, his Highness is allowed to open his own mansion, recruit subordinates, and cultivate his influence. And it’s also really strange to give his Highness the task of marking Qin Zhang in disguise, it is equivalent to dealing with such an important matter as state affairs.
It was said that King Chu has been going out with a green face recently. More than once he lost his temper with the palace attendants, venting his dissatisfaction and anger.
But His Majesty has been in charge of the government all these years, and he’s practically the king of the court. Even if King Chu was backed by the Shen family, now the Shen family dare not openly violate the king’s wishes.
There are rumors that His Majesty is only doing this because Jiangbei is becoming increasingly powerful, so he wants to use his Highness’s hand to recruit talents for the Jiang Empire.
His heart is unpredictable, no one can grasp the true intentions of the Emperor.
But his Highness doesn’t pay much attention to these rumors, and he remains calm about the various “favors” that His Majesty has suddenly bestowed. Unlike King Chu, who often goes to the Ziwei Palace to please His Majesty.
It was already late at night after the memorial was approved, and Jiang Yun had just taken a break before the inner official who was responsible for receiving guests in the palace suddenly came over and hesitated to report, “That Li Xian woke up and said he had urgent business and was leaving tonight. If Your Highness wants to take a test, take it now. If late, he’ll have to leave.”
The inner official was actually very dissatisfied with this person’s behavior, thinking that he was too disrespectful and looked down upon others. If it weren’t for his Highness’s orders that it is necessary to treat all the guests who came to seek refuge with courtesy. He would have had the guards drive him away already.
Deng Gong frowned tightly when he heard these words in the hall.
What kind of person is this? His Highness finally had the time to rest, and he came to disturb. Listen to this, he’s so arrogant to the extreme that it’s comparable to the Heavenly King.
But Jiang Yun’s eyes curved and he appeared to be in a good mood as he stood up from the bed and stepped out, instructing Deng Gong, “Fetch the garments. Gu wants to change.”
A moment later, Fan Zhou was led by the palace attendants into the main hall, where he had been staying all day in daytime.
The hall was filled with candles, as bright as day, and the young Crown Prince, who had already arrived in the middle of the night, sat back behind the curtain.
There is only one seat left on the ground.
“Li Xian.”
The clear and mellow voice rang out again.
“Sir’s talent is in literary writing, but no article has been submitted. Does Sir intend to do the article on site?”
