Tanhualang

At the beginning of March, after the great victory in the northwest, the king of Yu led his three guards back to the capital.On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, the guard of honor entered Beijing, and that night, the Holy Majesty hosted a banquet for the officials in the palace to welcome the king of Yu.

Shen Jing didn't go to Prince Yu's Mansion this day, and only read at home all day.

At dinner, Xiao You asked curiously at the dinner table: "When the prince is back, you don't have to go to the palace?"

Shen Jing smiled: "I won't go to the palace anymore."

"why?"

Shen Jing said: "The class will start in May, and I'm going to try it out."

Xiao Meng said happily: "Then, isn't the gentleman going to be a high-ranking official?"

"You think it's so easy?" Shen Jing smiled, "Among the thousands of exams, three hundred people were selected. There are still half of the candidates. Why is it my turn to be an official first? Let alone do it High official'."

"You don't have to worry about that." Xiao Meng smiled, "Sir is someone close to the prince. As long as you pass the exam, whether you will be an official or not is not a matter of Prince Yu's words?"

He smiled quietly, without making a sound.

Just because he stayed by Zhao Heng's side, he had the label of "King Yu" on his body.If he can really enter the court in the future, if others know about it, his situation will be even more...difficult.

Nearly half of the courtiers and Chinese ministers were former students of Ouyang Jian, Duke of Mingde.And the discord between Queen Ouyang Min and King Yu Zhao Heng is almost known to everyone.

Thinking of this, Shen Jing couldn't help putting down her chopsticks: "Eat slowly."

"Sir, don't you want to eat?"

"I'm full." Shen Jing got up, "I'll go back to my room to read some books. You just need to rest early, don't wait for me."

Xiao Meng chased to the door with his job bowl in his hands: "Sir, take it easy. Don't go to bed in the middle of the night like last night, your body won't be able to handle it."

Last night when Shen returned to the mansion, he thought he would go to bed after packing up, but who would have thought that he would stay in the room and read until midnight.When Xiaomeng got up at night and saw the light in his room was on, he thought he had forgotten to blow out the candles, but when he took a closer look, he found that Shen Jing was still reading.

Shen Jingman responded and returned to the room, and sat for nearly two hours.After reading the book until his eyes were dimmed, he thought about putting down the book, standing up and walking in the yard.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the door was opened, Zhao Heng and Wei Zheng were playing chess under the porch of the main house by the lantern under the eaves.

He was taken aback, and hurried forward to salute: "Your Highness."

After finishing speaking, he turned around and blamed Xiao Meng: "Your Highness is here, why don't you come and tell me?"

Seeing him, Zhao Heng dropped the chess piece in his hand and stood up, smiling slightly: "I just arrived. The palace banquet was over and I happened to be passing by, so I came to see your new courtyard and recognize the door by the way. It's nothing urgent, Xiaomeng." He said you were reading a book, so he didn't ask him to disturb you."

Zhao Heng didn't wear formal attire easily, Shen Jing saw that he was still wearing a vermilion robe and a jade belt, so he knew he had just come out of the palace; smelling the faint smell of alcohol, he knew he had drunk wine, so he went to the kitchen: "I'm going to make tea."

Xiao Meng hurriedly pointed to the teapot beside the chessboard table: "Sir, I made tea."

Shen Jing stopped when she heard the words, looked at the Longjing tea that was not moving much in the tea bowl, looked at Zhao Heng, and hesitated to speak.

Zhao Heng seemed to know what he was thinking: "I drank some wine just now. Let's change to something lighter."

Only then did Shen Jing pick up the teapot on the ground: "Then let's change it to a white chrysanthemum."

Immediately, golden chrysanthemums were brewed and replaced the tea in the cup for Zhao Heng.Holding warm chrysanthemum tea in his hand, Zhao Heng asked casually while playing chess pieces, "Why are you working so hard to read?"

As he said that, he raised his head to look at Shen Jing with a half-smile and a half-smile: "Are you going to take the No. [-] examination?"

This question was just right, and it saved Shen Jing from racking his brains, how to tell him that he wanted to take the exam, so he simply bowed to Zhao Heng: "I really have that intention. It's just... right? I know how to tell Your Highness."

After hearing this, Zhao Heng put down the tea bowl, picked up another chess piece, twirled it between his fingers, and said with a smile: "The legs are on your body. What do you want, can Gu stop you? Just take the exam."

As he spoke, he looked back at Wei Zheng: "Is there someone to take care of the carriage outside?"

Wei Zheng comprehended, and then he saluted and went out: "Your subordinate, go and have a look."

Walking to the door, he turned his head and waved to Xiao Meng: "Mr. Meng, please come and help me. I'm not familiar with the alleys here."

Xiaomeng let out a "hey" without any thought, and ran over in a bumpy manner.

The quiet heart lifted up.

This is clearly an intention to distract others and to talk to himself alone.

Zhao Heng, however, seemed extraordinarily leisurely. Looking at the back of Xiao Meng running away, he said unhurriedly: "This kid is really smart, but his eyes are still lacking. It seems that he hasn't been trained by Ding Bao. In the future, if you If you really want to become an official in the court, if you still keep him by your side, send him to Xiaoyou and learn from him for a while. If you have a competent person by your side, you can count as a help."

The words were half-truth and half-false, after listening quietly, he had no choice but to thank in a low voice: "Thank you, Your Highness."

Zhao Heng turned his eyes to look at him, still with a smile that was not a smile: "Thank me for what? If you don't want to, then promise it with your body."

"..."

"Just kidding, you don't have to be afraid. Judging by the situation, you have put in a lot of effort for this." Zhao Heng stood up, took two steps with one hand behind his back, and stood in front of Shen Jing, fiddling with the court casually with one hand. The evening primrose that was planted just now, "I once said before that if you want to take the imperial examination, you will never be stopped. But."

He looked back at Shen Jing, paused, and then continued: "I still hope that you can think about this matter carefully."

"...I've already thought about it."

Zhao Heng raised his hand: "You don't have to rush to answer, let Gu finish first. Yu Gong, the court is chaotic and the overall situation is not yet clear. If you enter the court at this time, it will inevitably be affected. Besides, you have been by Gu's side before. After all these days, who in the court doesn't know that you are an lonely person? It's only a matter of getting the stamp of 'Prince Yu's Mansion' on your body. It's easier to attract criticism from villains."

"Yu private." Zhao Heng turned around and faced Shen Jing, "You should know the rule of Gu never making friends with courtiers. Gu's selfishness...does not want you to be an official in the court."

"..."

"I know what you mean, and I just want to use this matter to draw a Chuhe-Han boundary with me. But I still hope...you can think about it again." Zhao Heng said, taking another step closer, Looking down at Shen Jing, he said softly, "Shen Jing, Gu is not such a frivolous person. Before saying this, he thought it over and over again."

Quiet and silent.

He knew that for Zhao Heng's status, being able to say these words was already very condescending.

...not to mention the way he looked at him at this moment.

What flickered there was earnest affection and silent expectation.Shen Jing has never been considered a stupid person, he can see clearly.

But no matter how clearly he saw it, he could only pretend not to know, lowered his eyes and replied softly: "Your Highness, I have... thought it through clearly."

The yard was silent for a long time.

After a long time of silence, my heart began to feel a little... Regret.

Until Xiaomeng's grinning voice came from the door: "... There are stones at the door, brother Wei is looking at the road."

The silence in the courtyard was broken instantly, Wei Zheng and Xiao Meng came in, Shen Jing suddenly remembered, and asked Wei Zheng, "Why didn't Xiaoyou come out together?"

"The Holy Majesty awarded a lot of rewards. Xiaoyou is busy arranging the layout in the mansion." Wei Zheng smiled, looked back at Zhao Heng, and said in a low voice, "Your Highness, it's getting late."

"Yeah." Zhao Heng responded, turned around, and lightly threw the chess piece in his hand into the box from a long distance away, "Then let's go back."

With a sound of "jingle", the white chess piece fell steadily into the small round box.

"Tsk tsk." Xiao Meng carried a lantern and followed Shen to see off the guests. Seeing this, she couldn't help but admired quietly, "Your Highness is so skilled. It must be a trivial matter to walk through Yang with a hundred steps."

"Do you still know how to wear Yang with a hundred paces?" Zhao Heng heard it, turned around and smiled as he walked, "If you like dancing with guns and swords, let your husband take you to play in the school grounds of the Wangfu some other day."

"...Okay, okay! Thank you, Your Highness." Xiao Meng didn't expect Zhao Heng to hear his words, and responded shyly. Not only is he good at fighting, but also good-looking...and he has such a good temper."

"Does it look good?" Zhao Heng laughed after hearing this, and asked teasingly, "Then tell me, who is better-looking, Gu or your husband?"

Xiao Meng looked at him, then at Shen Jing, and said stammeringly, "...my husband is still good-looking."

"Okay." Shen Jing couldn't help but help her forehead, and stopped Xiao Meng, "I really don't know the heights of the heavens and the earth."

Zhao Heng stopped in front of the carriage, and looked at Wei Zheng with a smile: "This kid is interesting. Give me something."

Hearing this, Wei Zheng took out his purse from his bosom, took out two gold ingots, and stuffed them into Xiaomeng's hands with a smile: "Your Highness rewarded it, take it."

Rao Xiaomeng had gained some experience around Ding Bao, and he had never seen such a generous reward. A few words were two pieces of gold, so he hurriedly declined in fright.Shen Jing also wanted to decline, but it was for Xiao Meng, so he couldn't say anything, so he nodded: "Your Highness has rewarded you, so let's take it."

Watching the carriage go away, Xiao Meng stood behind Shen Jing and let out a sudden breath: "Sir, such a big two pieces of gold..."

Shen Jing smiled and patted him on the shoulder, then went into the yard: "You keep it. Keep it well, don't go out and spend it carelessly."

Xiao Meng looked at Shen Jing, hesitated for a while before saying: "Sir, what I said just now, is it too ignorant?"

After a pause, he explained in a low voice: "I didn't mean to talk too much to flatter... Just now, as soon as I followed Captain Wei into the yard, I saw that you and Your Highness were not looking well, so I racked my brains to think of something nice to say. Yes, turn around. I didn't expect... I didn't expect His Highness to reward you so generously. It won't cause trouble for you, right?"

"It's nothing, you don't have to be afraid." Shen Jing paused, and forced a smile, "From now on... Your Highness will not come to this courtyard again."