Two days before the first session of the provincial examination, the officials will enter the regular examination room and then lock the door of the examination room and assign special personnel to guard it to prevent leakage of test questions and other fraud.

During the two days that the inner curtain officers were locked in the examination room, their work content was naturally to write questions. However, in their free time, they would also look through the list of candidates and arrange the positions of the candidates and related households.

Zhou Xu belongs to the old scholar sect, and he is relatively clean as an official. There are not many candidates with his connections. Therefore, the few dormitories he arranged are more eye-catching. Among them, Shen Yichen was placed in the orthodox three-year fire department. The newly built best dormitory was noticed by other inner court officials.

It's just that this kind of convenience has nothing to do with malpractice in the imperial examination. It doesn't matter even if it is made public, so everyone doesn't care.

Wang Yining had also heard about Shen Yichen. In addition to poetry, he also heard rumors about the fraud in the Chengguo government.

Rather than agreeing with Shen Yichen's true talents and knowledge, Wang Yining's thinking is more inclined to conspiracy theories without having had any contact with him.

That is to say, Shen Yichen's poems are most likely the shooters hired by Duke Cheng. With the results of the imperial examination, and with the evidence of fraud by Duke Cheng, I believe the credibility is not that high, right?

Therefore, in Wang Yining's eyes, Zhou Xu's arrangement was not because of Shen Yichen's knowledge, but because he recognized his father who was the Duke of the country!

Looking at it now, my guess was not wrong. Shen Yichen was really a bit too flamboyant. He had not yet entered the genealogy and became the concubine of Duke Cheng, so he didn't even pay attention to the provincial examination?

"Oh, it's actually Yichen."

Zhou Xu had an unexpected look on his face, but it was quickly covered up by a smile.

During this period, he and Shen Yichen had chatted several times about calligraphy and painting. In other respects, they could only be said to appreciate each other. But when it came to calligraphy, Zhou Xu could use the word "impressed" to express his attitude.

Because Shen Yichen's Taige style is too exaggerated. Zhou Xu was a colleague of Shen Du, a great calligrapher in the Ming Dynasty and the pinnacle figure of Taige style. Who else can see the gold content of fonts better than him?

It is no exaggeration to say that in Zhou Xu's eyes, Shen Yichen's Taige calligraphy already has nine points of Shen Du's charm. He is not the kind of person who is very familiar with Shen Du's calligraphy, and he can completely fake it.

If you want to write good calligraphy, you must work hard all year round, regardless of the cold or heat. How can a person with such perseverance treat the provincial examination as child's play?

Therefore, Shen Yichen must be fully confident when he submits the paper in advance!

Wang Yining looked at the smile on Zhou Xu's face, and now he didn't understand. Judging from his character, he would be very dissatisfied and angry when meeting such a playboy.

After all, this is a dormitory arranged for you, Duke Cheng, to save your face. As a result, your son didn't even take the exam well. Isn't it a slap in the face?

Looking at Zhou Xu's posture now, he is still smiling. Could it be that Duke Cheng Guo gave too much?

Of course, even if he had this idea in his heart, Wang Yining couldn't say it outright. After all, the most important thing for a literati is face and integrity. Even if you don't have this thing, you can't say it clearly!

So Wang Yining could only say tactfully: "Brother Gong Xu, this kid's behavior is too eccentric, I'm afraid it will have a bad impact."

"Perverse? People who become famous at a young age are probably arrogant. Brother Wentong, you still need to have more contact with young people."

This sentence immediately confused Wang Yining. Doesn't Zhou Xu usually hate young and frivolous people who don't understand etiquette the most? Why is he so protective of Shen Yichen?

It seems that Duke Cheng Guo really gave too much, and even a scholar like Brother Gong Xu, who regards money as something extraneous, has fallen...

On the other side, at the Longmen of Gongyuan, the guards on guard looked surprised when they saw that students had passed the examination so quickly. However, they were not qualified to say anything, so they opened the door lock with the key and let Shen Yichen go. came out.

After coming out of Gongyuan, Shen Yichen did not go back to the palace. Instead, he found a restaurant and had a hearty meal first. After all, the last meal was said to be breakfast, but in fact it was eaten in the middle of the night, almost a dozen times later. hour.

In addition, although Shen Yichen also brought dry food to eat, these things are not as delicious as hot meals after all. The best thing to do is to go to a restaurant after taking the exam...

After eating and drinking, Shen Yichen returned to Chengguo Duke's Mansion with satisfaction. A Niu was currently pacing back and forth anxiously in front of the Duke's Mansion.

Seeing Shen Yichen coming back, he immediately went up to him and asked, "Brother Chen, how did you do in the exam? Have you become a master of the exam?"

"How can it be so fast? Today is the first one, and there are two more exams after that. Even if the exam is finished, it will take more than ten days to mark the exam, and the final results will probably be released in half a month."

"Okay, I'm not impatient."

A Niu also knew that the results would not come out so soon, but when he saw Shen Yichen, he forgot all about it and just thought that Brother Chen would win the exam as soon as possible.

"Go in, don't make it seem like you're more nervous than me."

Shen Yichen reluctantly replied, it seemed that he was very calm every time he took the exam, but the people around him were very concerned about it.

Back at the palace, Shen Yichen was reading and writing as usual, without any sense that he had just experienced an exam that changed the fate of a scholar.

Just after nightfall, an "uninvited guest" came to the West Wing.

Zhu Yi walked into the small courtyard and happened to see Shen Yichen sitting at the desk, reading a book attentively, with a complicated expression on his face.

I have just experienced the first provincial examination and I can calm down. What kind of strong psychological quality does it take to do this?

"The eldest son."

A call broke the silence. A Niu happened to come out of the room and saw Zhu Yi standing at the door.

"I didn't know that the eldest son was coming, so I'm sorry that I couldn't greet him."

When Shen Yichen saw this, he stood up and saluted Zhu Yi with his hands raised.

"Yi Chen, there is no need to be so polite between you and me."

Zhu Yi smiled and replied that she and Shen Yichen were de facto brothers, and they were still in the Chengguo Duke's palace. They were polite and polite, but they were like outsiders.

Even some outsiders are not as well-behaved as Shen Yichen. The more it becomes a formality, the more unfamiliar and estranged it becomes between the two parties.

"I wonder why the eldest son came here at night?"

Shen Yichen did not answer this sentence. Although Zhu Yi had behaved like a big brother so far, it would be too naive for a prince's son to judge a person only by his appearance.

Before he had absolute trust, he would rather keep a little distance from Zhu Yi.

"It's nothing serious. Today is the first provincial examination. I came over to see how you are doing."

"fine."

"Are there any difficulties in today's test questions?"

"No."

"Do you need help?"

"Not yet."

After several consecutive conversations, Zhu Yi could also feel that Shen Yichen didn't have much intention to continue the conversation.

"Actually, when I came here today, in addition to being concerned about the provincial examination, I also have something to tell you. I will soon follow Prince Jingyuan, Wang Ji, to Yansui, Ningxia, and Gansu to inspect defense."

The Yansui, Ningxia, Gansu and other places mentioned by Zhu Yi are the famous Jiubian area in the Ming Dynasty.

Compared with the late Ming Dynasty, the honorary relatives had become mascots, and the descendants of the honorary relatives had become waste. At this time, the Tumubao Incident had not yet happened, and the first generation of honorary relatives who had been knighted because of the Fengtian Jingnan had not yet died, and the overall situation was still It can be said that the martial arts is strong.

The eldest son like Zhu Yi, who was expected to stably seize the throne, would not take the path of civil service. He was appointed to serve in the Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army early on in order to familiarize himself with military affairs and prepare for the future sequestration.

In addition, Zhu Yi's conversation is not as simple and rude as Cheng Guogong Zhu Yong's, but more similar to the literati style. In fact, according to the "Records of Emperor Xiaozong of the Ming Dynasty", during the Tianshun period, he competed with various military officials in the inner garden to test riding and shooting, and was able to jump Both shots from the horse shot hit the mark.

This level of riding and shooting is not something that ordinary people can achieve. It is enough to show that Zhu Yi's martial arts is not weak, and the second generation heir has not completely fallen.

As for Jingyuan Bo Wang Ji, he can be regarded as a legendary figure in the Ming Dynasty. He was a civil servant and led the army in three Luchuan battles, and was eventually knighted for his military merits.

The idiom "conferring a prince and worshiping a general" was abruptly implemented in reality.

"I heard that there has been no rain for several months in Shaanxi provinces and counties, and the people's life is very difficult. Many desperadoes have appeared. I hope that when the eldest son arrives in the border areas, he can report to the emperor to provide disaster relief and appease the people, and put the people first."

Regarding personal matters, Shen Yichen didn't want to talk to Zhu Yi too much, but it was a matter of justice and official matters, so he would definitely put aside his personal grudges.

"Oh, Chen Yi, the censor guarding Shaanxi Youdu, arrived in the capital five days ago. Yichen, you are so well-informed that you already know the current situation in the northwest?"

Jingyuan Bo Wang Ji's patrol this time was because of the severe drought in Shaanxi Province. Unexpectedly, Shen Yichen had already heard the news, and Zhu Yi was really surprised.

ah?

Hearing what Zhu Yi said, Shen Yichen was also stunned. He only remembered that a severe drought occurred in Shaanxi in the 9th year of Zhengtong. In addition, he had seen the miserable situation of refugees in Zhenjiang Prefecture before. The barren frontier land in the west was suffering. The disaster will only be worse than that in Jiangnan.

Therefore, out of frustration, he reminded Zhu Yi, but he forgot that the spread of news in ancient times was far less convenient than in modern times, and the imperial court had just received a memorial about the severe drought.

"I happened to visit Mr. Zhou that day, and he mentioned the severe drought in Shaanxi with compassion."

Fortunately, Shen Yichen reacted quickly enough and immediately pinned the source of the information on Zhou Xu.

Zhu Yi also knew about Shen Yichen's frequent visits to Zhou Xu's house during this period, so he nodded and didn't think much about it.

"By the way, there's one more thing I think you should know."

"Master, please tell me."

"I received a letter from home. Mother has already taken her second brother to the capital by boat to prepare for the Spring Examination next year. You may see each other then."

After finishing speaking, there was a trace of hesitation on Zhu Yi's face, and then added: "Yichen, mother and second brother are relatively narrow-minded. You must always exercise caution when dealing with them."

The mother Zhu Yi spoke of was naturally not his biological mother, but Mrs. Lin, Duke Cheng's step-sibling.

In other words, Zhu Ji and his mother will soon come to the Chengguo Palace in the capital, and Shen Yichen will be living under the same roof with them.

Zhu Yi knew very well the character of this stepmother and her brother, and they had been hostile to Shen Yichen and her son since they were young. Therefore, he said hello in advance to prepare Shen Yichen mentally to avoid making things difficult for him.

Hearing this, Shen Yichen just smiled faintly. He thought that Zhu Yi's visit tonight was an uninvited guest, but he didn't expect that the real uninvited guest was still behind.

It takes at least a month to get the family letter from Yingtian to the capital. Zhu Yi has received it now, which means that Lin's mother and son have already set off in July at the earliest.
Chapter completed!