"Grandfather..."
Song Yanzheng's expression was conflicted. Asking him to admit that his poor exam performance was due to his own incompetence was something he couldn't bring himself to say.
Yet, the thought of attempting Ye Shijie's exam questions filled him with dread.
"What? Are you afraid to try?" Emperor Yuanyou pointed angrily at Song Yanzheng's head. "If you refuse, so be it. I won’t force you."
Having such a grandson was truly shameful.
"Grandfather, your grandson is willing to take the exam."
Unwilling to leave Emperor Yuanyou with the impression of cowardice, Song Yanzheng steeled himself and agreed.
Emperor Yuanyou finally lowered his hand with a huff. "Then hurry back and prepare."
In the emperor's mind, even if Song Yanzheng's second attempt didn't meet the passing standard, it couldn’t possibly be as disastrous as his current exam—where every answer missed the mark.
If this exam were ever leaked, scholars across the land would mock him mercilessly.
So Emperor Yuanyou genuinely believed this was Song Yanzheng's chance for redemption.
After Song Yanzheng left, the emperor stewed in frustration for a while before pulling out Song Yu's exam papers to admire once more.
The gloom on his face instantly lifted.
This was the kind of descendant worthy of the Song family name.
"Where is His Majesty? I bring joyous news!"
Shen Mingwen's voice echoed outside the hall. Emperor Yuanyou quickly tucked Song Yu's exam papers beneath a stack of memorials and cleared his throat. "Is Minister Shen outside? Let him in."
Surely, Shen Mingwen had more good news to share.
Upon entering, Shen Mingwen first bowed to the emperor before speaking excitedly, "Your Majesty, Prince Song Yu's exam papers have spread throughout Great Qi. Countless scholars now seek to visit Ji'an Prefecture just to meet him!"
Having risen through the imperial examinations himself, Shen Mingwen understood the immense prestige Song Yu now commanded.
For scholars to revere him so—had the chief examiner not been Ye Shijie, such admiration would never have been possible.
Truly, no pain, no gain.
As Shen Mingwen marveled, Emperor Yuanyou's expression stiffened.
"Then why are you standing there? Summon Prince Qin and the princess back to the capital at once!"
The emperor grew anxious—what if his son and granddaughter were cornered by admirers?
Wouldn’t they be delayed in Ji'an Prefecture for months?
"Ah..." Shen Mingwen hadn’t expected this reaction and froze mid-smile.
"Wu Qi! Dispatch men immediately to escort the prince and princess back to the capital."
After months apart, he missed A-Huan dearly.
......
Ji'an Prefecture.
"He failed?" Song Yu burst into laughter after confirming the news. "Heaven has eyes! That little brat didn’t even earn a proper scholarly rank in the end. A-Huan, tomorrow we’ll pay respects to our ancestors."
In high spirits, Song Yu took Song Shihuan to the ancestral temple the next morning, standing once more before its gates in his full princely regalia.
Before the neatly arranged ancestral tablets, father and daughter knelt on separate cushions.
"By our ancestors' blessings, I have passed the imperial exams."
"Though it is only the humblest of titles, it marks a splendid beginning. I even ranked first in the prefecture, bringing honor to our forebears."
As Song Yu spoke, magpies chattered outside the temple, filling the hall with an air of celebration.
"And as for Song Yanzheng—he failed, assigned to the 'foul section' of the exam hall. Truly a disgrace to our Song name. Rest assured, ancestors, I will teach that boy a proper lesson."
With that, Song Yu pressed his forehead to the ground.
The unfilial descendant Song Yu hereby seeks forgiveness in advance.
Anyone who had ever humiliated Ahuan, whether they shared the Song family's blood or not, he would personally ensure their demise.
Even if it meant bearing the stigma of being cold-blooded and ruthless, he would embrace it without regret.
At the moment Song Yu knelt in reverence, Song Shihuan faintly noticed the candlelight flickering unusually bright, as if responding to Song Yu's silent plea:
"Father, the ancestors have shown their presence."
......
Three days later.
The usually desolate Ping Prince's Mansion was unexpectedly bustling with activity. The common folk had heard that the eldest imperial grandson of the mansion, Song Yanzheng, would personally attempt the examination questions set by Official Ye Shijie.
Having failed the academy exams due to being assigned a foul-smelling examination booth, the imperial grandson was determined to prove himself.
Under the eager gazes of the crowd, the gates of Ping Prince's Mansion slowly opened, revealing Song Yanzheng, who stepped forward with a composed demeanor—though his palms were slick with cold sweat.
He had sent Censor Han to seek out Qiu Ri, hoping for a preview of Ye Shijie's questions, only to be flatly refused.
So when Song Yanzheng's eyes met Qiu Ri's, he shot him a venomous glare. Yet Qiu Ri acted as if he hadn't noticed at all.
"Your Highness, please begin."
Joking aside, with the entire capital watching the imperial grandson, showing leniency now would be tantamount to begging for execution.
A gentle breeze swept through, and the onlookers murmured about how fortunate Song Yanzheng's timing was.
The weather was neither too hot nor too cold—perfect for peak performance.
But the moment Song Yanzheng laid eyes on the exam paper, his confidence shattered. The questions were impossibly difficult, and worse, they were "interlinked" questions—the kind Censor Han had assured him only appeared in provincial-level exams.
As time slipped away, Song Yanzheng grew frantic.
From dawn till dusk, many citizens lingered nearby, determined to witness the imperial grandson's performance until the very end.
"Time's up, Your Highness. Please put down your brush."
Qiu Ri's voice rang out as he unceremoniously collected the exam paper. Song Yanzheng shuddered involuntarily.
"This official will review Your Highness's paper alongside Grand Tutor Shen. As agreed, we will only inform you whether it meets the passing standard."
"Thank you for your trouble, Official Qiu." Song Yanzheng's smile was strained.
He knew better than anyone how poorly he had performed.
......
Amidst everyone's anticipation, the following afternoon, Qiu Ri sent a messenger to Ping Prince's Mansion. The messenger deliberately stood outside the gates to announce:
"Your Highness, after evaluation by Grand Tutor Shen and Official Qiu, your examination paper does not meet the passing standard."
At these words, the last thread of composure in Song Yanzheng's mind snapped.
His lips trembled, but no sound escaped.
The surrounding crowd exchanged uneasy glances—so even the imperial grandson couldn't pass the scholar's exam.
Some parents whose own children had failed found an odd sense of solace in this.
Meanwhile, in the Purple Palace Hall.
"You're telling me Song Yanzheng performed even worse this time than in that foul-smelling booth?"
Emperor Yuanyou was so furious his head seemed ready to explode.
"Your Majesty, please calm yourself. Official Ye's questions were exceptionally difficult—it's understandable the imperial grandson struggled," Shen Mingwen interceded, though even he hadn't expected Song Yanzheng to fare so poorly that both attempts would disgrace the imperial family if made public.
"Ye Shijie's questions were hard, but Song Yu still took first place!" Emperor Yuanyou slammed the table. "I can accept his failure, but not such a disgraceful one."
"Someone, have Song Yanzheng copy the Four Books and Five Classics for two hours every day, followed by one hour of the Classic of Filial Piety. Let him cultivate some real substance."
Relying solely on empty words will inevitably lead to exposure and humiliation like this.
