Song Yu and Song Shihuan exchanged a glance before quickly rising to set up the soil they had previously worshipped as an offering.
"It actually worked," Song Yu murmured, feeling the blood in his veins flow smoothly once more. "Liuxi, go over the details again. I want to hear everything."
Seeing this, Liuxi recounted every misfortune that had befallen Song Yanzheng from start to finish, leaving nothing out.
Song Yu threw his head back and laughed heartily. "Bring me another bowl of rice!"
"Your Highness, Princess, these are the examination questions set by Minister Qiu Ri. Official Shen Qingping specifically sent someone to deliver them," Liuxi said, serving Song Yu another bowl of rice before presenting the exam papers.
After reading them, Song Yu fell silent for a moment. "Qiu Ri is no pushover either."
Though the questions weren’t as fiendish as Ye Shijie’s, they were undeniably ruthless.
Song Shihuan finished reading them as well and declared firmly, "This time, Song Yanzheng will definitely fail."
No one knew the limits of Song Yanzheng’s knowledge better than she did.
"Excellent," Song Yu said.
To ensure fairness in the imperial examinations, the Great Qi Dynasty had instituted a second round of evaluations after the main test, designed to verify the candidates' abilities. The format closely resembled the initial exam.
Song Yu completed the second round without a hitch, marking the true end of the provincial examinations.
"Brother Guo, the authorities said the results will be announced in ten days. Ling Ming and I have decided to stay at this inn until then—otherwise, we’ll be too restless," Zheng Fang said with a smile.
"I have matters at home and must return to Yong'an County first. I’ll come back in ten days," Song Yu replied, clasping his hands in farewell. "I wish you both success in advance."
Zheng Fang and Ling Ming hastily returned the gesture, watching Song Yu’s retreating figure until he disappeared from sight.
"The exam was extremely difficult this time. Even you and I were exhausted when we left the examination hall, yet Brother Guo strode out with vigor, his eyes alight with confidence. He’s bound to rank at the top," Zheng Fang remarked, skilled in reading people’s expressions and moods.
"Brother Guo is exceptionally talented. If we also pass, we should strive to follow his example," Ling Ming added. "He is no ordinary man—one day, he will achieve greatness."
"Wise words, Brother Ling."
......
On the day of the main exam, Song Yu had meticulously recreated his answers from memory and sent them via express courier to Shen Mingwen.
At the Shen residence, Shen Qingping had set aside all his tasks, sitting quietly as Shen Mingwen reviewed the papers.
After an hour, Shen Mingwen finally straightened up. "Third Brother, His Highness will undoubtedly be the top scorer this time. If he isn’t, it can only mean Ye Shijie tampered with the results."
"But didn’t you say Minister Ye wouldn’t interfere?"
"Which is why His Highness will surely rank first!"
Shen Mingwen’s beard quivered with excitement as he handed the papers to Shen Qingping. "It’s astonishing how quickly His Highness has progressed. Had he studied this diligently as a child..."
Shen Qingping examined the answers closely and, upon finishing, was thoroughly convinced.
"Just as you said, Father."
"After this exam, His Highness’s name will spread across the entire Great Qi," Shen Mingwen said solemnly. "With Ye Shijie’s impeachment fresh in everyone’s minds, the Ji'an Prefecture examinations are under intense scrutiny. The top scorer will attract all eyes."
"I wonder if that’s good or bad for His Highness."
Having risen through the ranks via the exams himself, Shen Mingwen knew that a promising scholar would inevitably draw attention from powerful factions, bombarded with invitations and poetry gatherings.
Balancing it all would require careful consideration.
"Father, you’re overthinking it," Shen Qingping chuckled. "Given His Highness’s temperament, no one can force him into anything."
If pushed too far, he might even relocate the entire Guo family without hesitation.
Shen Mingwen’s face stiffened momentarily.
Fair point.
After a pause, he picked up his brush and wrote a reply to Song Yu, assuring him that the top rank was all but guaranteed.
......
Meanwhile, Song Yu and Song Shihuan had returned to Yong'an County. With everyone preoccupied by the impending exam results, their movements went unnoticed.
At the Guo residence, a guard knelt on one knee before them.
"Your Highness, Princess, we’ve found the man."
"Bring him in."
At Song Yu’s command, a bound man was dragged forward.
"So you’re Bing Shi?" Song Yu lounged in his chair, legs crossed, every bit the spoiled noble.
Bing Shi studied the man before him, sensing familiarity yet unable to place the face.
"Who are you? Why have you brought me here?"
Watching his futile struggles, Song Shihuan smirked.
In her past life, she had painstakingly learned of a servant close to Song Ling named Bing Shi. She had even sewn shoes for Song Ling, hoping Bing Shi would deliver them.
But the response had been:
"I don’t meet just any stray cat or dog. No."
She had heard those words clearly through the courtyard wall.
Now, she stepped closer and pressed her foot onto Bing Shi’s hand. "After Song Ling’s death, all his servants vanished—except you, who ‘grieved so deeply’ at the funeral that you were pardoned and sent home. How clever of you."
As his darkest secret was laid bare and pain shot through his hand, Bing Shi paled in terror.
He had rarely left the prince’s mansion, attending only to daily needs.
Recalling glimpses of a figure he’d seen in the mansion, he suddenly looked up. "You—you’re Princess Fu'an?"
"And you—?" He turned to the seated man.
"What, don’t recognize me?" Song Yu grinned, his admission sealing Bing Shi’s fate.
"I—I heard nothing! Spare me, please!" Bing Shi kowtowed desperately.
"Song Ling’s stroke wasn’t fatal," Song Shihuan pressed on.
"Someone poisoned him, ruining his health to make it seem like a brief recovery before his death at the Ping Prince’s Mansion. Am I wrong?"
She advanced relentlessly, leaving Bing Shi no escape.
"Not every stray cat or dog gets to meet me. Consider yourself lucky." She increased the pressure under her foot.
Song Yu sneered. "Bing Shi, if you stay silent, only heaven knows whether your unborn child will live to see daylight."
"You can’t harm the child!"
After decades as a servant, he had finally been freed, married, and was expecting a child.
"Who poisoned him?"
"Speak!"
Bing Shi collapsed like a sack of mud, his eyes vacant.
But thoughts of his unborn child made him tremble and open his mouth.
