“If His Highness can come, why can’t I?”
Shen Jinghong sat down on the threshold, looking even more at ease than he did at home.
The Third Prince was momentarily speechless. He picked up the teapot on the table and poured himself a cup.
The tea was cold, but he did not seem to mind. He drank more than half of it in one gulp.
Shen Jinghong pulled a neatly folded sheet of paper from his sleeve and handed it to Shi Huai.
“Here’s the annotated edition of The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons you wanted. I had someone track it down at a bookshop in Jinling. See if it’s the right one.”
Shi Huai took the paper and unfolded it, scanning the page.
The annotations were exceptionally detailed, with the source of every allusion clearly noted.
“This is the exact edition. Where did Brother Shen find it? I had people searching for more than half a year and still couldn’t locate it.”
Shen Jinghong leaned against the doorframe.
“I asked a friend to keep an eye out. He happened to see it at a bookshop in Jinling and bought it for me. It wasn’t expensive—only a few ounces of silver.”
He was not telling the truth.
He had searched through five or six booksellers, spent more than three months tracking it down across several provinces, and paid several hundred ounces of silver for it.
The Third Prince looked at Shen Jinghong’s casual expression and sneered.
“Young Master Shen certainly takes good care of Shi Huai. You even went out of your way to find an annotated book for him.”
Shen Jinghong did not even raise his eyes.
“We’re classmates. Helping each other is only natural. Didn’t His Highness help Shi Huai deliver letters as well? We’re even.”
The Third Prince’s face turned livid at the retort.
He was about to fire back when Shi Huai spoke first.
“Did the two of you come here just to argue? If so, don’t come again. I’d like some peace and quiet.”
The Third Prince and Shen Jinghong fell silent at the same time.
“If you truly have nothing better to do, help me take a look at this essay.”
Shi Huai picked up several sheets of paper covered in writing and handed them to the Third Prince.
The Third Prince accepted them. His gaze fell on the first line, and his brows drew together slightly.
Shen Jinghong rose from the threshold and walked behind the Third Prince, leaning over to read the essay.
The two of them fell silent at the same time.
The quiet room was so still that they could hear the snow melting on the pine branches and dripping onto the ground.
The Third Prince read the essay from beginning to end, then read it through once more. Finally, he raised his head and looked at Shi Huai.
“You wrote this?”
“Doesn’t it seem like it?”
The Third Prince shook his head.
“It does. It’s unmistakably yours—your writing style gives you away. But this essay is rather different from your earlier work. It’s more mature.”
Shen Jinghong snatched the pages from the Third Prince’s hand and read them from beginning to end himself.
“If this policy essay were submitted for the palace examination, it would place at least in the top three.”
The Third Prince turned to look at Shen Jinghong.
“You’re that certain? The metropolitan examination results haven’t even been announced yet.”
Shen Jinghong placed the essay back on the table.
“My judgment is never wrong. The argument is fresh, the reasoning rigorous, and the language polished without being showy. Most importantly, every point is supported by a source, and every proposal is practical. It isn’t the sort of empty rhetoric that sounds impressive but would bring ruin to the country.”
Shi Huai felt a little embarrassed by the praise.
“That’s enough. The examination hasn’t even been graded yet. The higher you praise me, the more embarrassing it’ll be if I fail.”
The Third Prince and Shen Jinghong laughed at the same time. When they finished, they exchanged a glance, then both looked away.
“If you have the time, help me see whether there’s anything else that needs revising.”
The Third Prince picked up the essay again, and Shen Jinghong leaned over beside him. Their heads nearly touched as they went through the pages one by one.
One pointed out that an argument was insufficiently supported; the other said an allusion was not quite appropriate.
Before long, they were arguing. One accused the other of pretending to understand what he did not, while the other called him impossibly picky.
Watching them argue until their faces flushed, Shi Huai could not help laughing.
“Stop arguing. You both have valid points. I’ll revise it when I get back.”
The Third Prince and Shen Jinghong fell silent at the same time. They both turned toward Shi Huai and said together, “There’s no need to revise it.”
Afterward, the two of them exchanged another glance and looked away once more.
The days passed one after another. Before long, Shi Huai had been staying at Dajue Temple for nearly a month.
Quite a few things had happened during that time.
Madam Liu had been confined to the Qingzhi Courtyard. At first, she smashed things and cursed at everyone, but gradually she grew quiet.
Every day, she took a walk around the courtyard or sat in the Buddhist hall, speaking very little.
Shi Youlan visited the Qingzhi Courtyard every few days. She would stand outside and speak to her mother through the door.
Sometimes Madam Liu responded. Sometimes she did not.
Shi Youlan would finish speaking and leave, her eyes always red when she did.
Shi Yuanzhi had the side courtyard’s woodshed torn down. He had it demolished completely, even digging up the foundation, and planted an osmanthus tree in its place.
He had personally chosen the sapling at the flower market, and he had also packed the soil around it with his own hands.
Shi Yuanping came twice.
Each time, he sat in the quiet room for a while, exchanged a few words with Shi Huai, and then left.
Everything he discussed concerned the metropolitan examination.
“The list of examiners has been finalized.”
“This year’s questions may focus more heavily on current affairs.”
“Be careful not to violate any taboos.”
Every sentence was useful. Not one was unnecessary.
No more letters came from Jinse.
The Third Prince said that the princess had recently been studying court etiquette in the palace.
The empress was personally overseeing her lessons, and she was accompanied by attendants everywhere she went. She simply had no time to write.
Shi Huai merely nodded when he heard this and asked no further questions.
The day before the metropolitan examination results were released, Shi Huai packed his things, took leave of the abbot of Dajue Temple, and returned to the marquis’s residence with Tangerine.
On the day the results were posted, a heavy snow fell over the capital.
After Shi Huai returned from Dajue Temple, Qinghe replaced the pot of narcissus in his study with wintersweet, claiming it was meant to “bring good luck.”
Nanny Zhou said “superstition” under her breath, yet her hands had already pasted a red paper character for “blessing” onto the doorframe of Shou’an Hall.
“Young Master, have some tea.”
Qinghe placed the teacup on the table, then stepped back two paces, rubbing her fingers over her apron again and again.
Shi Huai lifted the cup and took a sip before setting it down. His gaze fell on the old locust tree outside the window, its branches bent beneath the weight of the snow.
Tangerine crouched on the windowsill, its round eyes fixed on the sparrows hopping about in the courtyard.
“Young Master, how do you think you placed?” Qinghe had held the question in all morning and finally blurted it out.
“I don’t know. Once the examination is over, there’s no point thinking about it anymore.”
Qinghe opened her mouth, then swallowed whatever she was about to say. She turned and went to the kitchen to help Nanny Zhou prepare lunch.
When she reached the doorway, she nearly collided with a little maid rushing inside.
“Young Master! Steward Zhao sent someone back! He says you passed! You passed!”
The little maid’s voice was so shrill it nearly pierced the roof. Her whole body trembled with excitement, and her face looked as though she had just received an enormous reward.
The news had been expected sooner or later.
Shi Huai rose to his feet.
“What place did I get?”
“You came second—the second place in the metropolitan examination!”
Shi Huai paused.
There was no need to think about who had come first.
“Was the top scholar Lu Zhiyuan?”
