It was already the third watch of the night, yet the light was still on in Cang Xuan's study. Through the window, one could see a figure pacing inside, hardly taking a moment's rest.
For this imperial examination's final round, he wouldn't be able to get a good rest these days. Su Yuanyuan frowned slightly, a twinge of pain welling up in her heart.
He had truly devoted a great deal of effort and energy to this special imperial examination. Due to the Wang family, he had been constantly targeted. Everyone in the court regarded him as a crafty and evil official and kept their distance from him. Fortunately, her father and the three chief justices of the judiciary stood by his side.
In the future, more people would be willing to follow him.
Without further hesitation, the young girl stepped forward and knocked on the door of his study.
"Come in." Cang Xuan's slightly hoarse voice came from inside. Su Yuanyuan pushed the door open and softly called out to the man, "Brother Yunjian."
The busy man stopped in his tracks but didn't turn around. He said coldly, "It seems the princess has come to the wrong place. Tian Shu, show the guest out."
Could he still be angry? Was that the reason he didn't come last night?
Unable to hold back any longer, the young girl took a few steps forward and hugged Cang Xuan's waist from behind. She said softly, "Brother Yunjian, I missed you."
The young girl's soft voice carried a hint of lingering tenderness. Suddenly, her slender waist was grasped, and she was pushed behind the bookshelf by the man. Her chin was pinched and lifted. Before she could say anything, she was completely engulfed by the man.
Su Yuanyuan had never seen him so crazy as he was today.
Even more out of control than the day when he saw her about to remove the beauty mark.
Even their movements knocked over the books on the bookshelf. The books fell to the ground, covering them.
Finally, just as the young girl was about to faint from lack of oxygen, Cang Xuan let go of the girl in his arms.
Due to the long - time lack of breath, Su Yuanyuan's head was dizzy. She couldn't come to her senses and could only lie limply on the man, her hands clinging to him like vines.
Amused by her dazed look, Cang Xuan gently wiped away the glistening moisture from the corner of her lips with his finger. He pecked her slightly swollen lips lovingly and asked in a hoarse voice, "Didn't the princess not want to marry me? Why is the princess throwing herself into my arms now? Could it be that the princess doesn't like to follow the rules and prefers to be furtive like tonight?"
The young girl rolled her eyes. Her round and bright eyes reflected the man's face. She smiled and said, "It's not that I don't want you to marry me. It's that I insist on marrying you. I insist on marrying you, the so - called crafty official."
She quietly hooked his little finger and whispered, "Aren't you going to collect the debt with interest? "
Cang Xuan's Adam's apple rolled up and down. He covered her eyes and softened his voice a little, "What's the rush? Who collects a debt all at once? What I'm collecting now is just the interest."
Saying so, he lowered his head and kissed her again. This time, it was much gentler, and the kiss was longer and more lingering.
I don't know how long it took before the man finally let go of the young girl in his arms. The two snuggled together and sat among the piles of books. Cang Xuan asked with a smile,
"It's so late. Instead of resting well in your room, you come to me. Could it be that you just missed me?"
"Or do you say you miss me on the surface, but actually you're here to find out the exam questions?"
Su Yuanyuan angrily pinched him and said, "I would never do such a despicable thing! Can't I just miss you purely?"
"I don't believe it." Cang Xuan poked her between the eyebrows with his finger and said, "You have a lot of tricks up your sleeve. You're no less cunning than me. You mustn't have come just for this one reason."
"I really came to talk to you about something serious." The young girl admitted. She told him the information she had learned and put forward her plan.
Her rabbit - like round eyes were full of schemes. The young girl said excitedly, "Brother Yunjian, how about we put on another show together? Let's rescue your mother from Jiutang Mountain, reunite the family, and uproot the villains!"
Cang Xuan's heart was surging with strong emotions. He stared deeply into the young girl's eyes and without hesitation, said, "Okay."
Three days later, on the day when the final round of the imperial examination began, Su Yuanyuan, Su Huaiyuan, and Su Huaisheng got into the carriage and headed for Qingyi Garden.
Qingyi Garden was a garden built by the royal family in the northern suburbs of Shengjing City. It was across the moat from the imperial palace. It covered a vast area with pavilions, palaces, rocks, flowers, trees, birds, beasts, insects, and fish. It could accommodate more than three thousand people to hold a palace banquet and grand ceremony at the same time. It was not only a holy place for the royal family to escape the summer heat but also the most commonly used place for the royal family to hold palace banquets during festivals.
Since the final round of the imperial examination was to be held here, the once - deserted Qingyi Garden became bustling again. Just as dawn broke, many carriages galloped towards the gate of Qingyi Garden from all over the city.
Besides carriages, there were also people on horses, in sedan - chairs, and on foot. They were all the top three in the preliminary examinations for various vacant positions in this special imperial examination.
For three hundred and twenty vacant positions, a total of nine hundred and sixty people were selected. With so many people gathering in one place at the same time, the scene was extremely spectacular.
Along the way, there was a small troop of the capital guards every five miles to protect the safety of these examinees. Although they were not densely deployed, they made the examinees feel at ease. So they were very relaxed all the way, chatting and laughing as if they were going for an outing.
The carriage of the Prince Qing's Mansion was moving slowly on the road. Inside the carriage were only Su Yuanyuan and her maid Chunxiao. Su Huaiyuan and Su Huaisheng rode their horses and followed on both sides of the carriage.
As they were walking, Su Huaisheng seemed to sense something. He looked back and saw Su Zeqian riding a horse far behind them, following at a distance.
"Tsk," Su Huaisheng whispered, "He's really like a piece of dog - skin plaster."
Su Huaiyuan also looked back and lowered his voice, saying, "Third brother, do you think he recognized that it was us who beat him up?"
Su Huaisheng chuckled, "He's not that smart."
Halfway through the journey, there was suddenly a commotion not far ahead. Su Yuanyuan lifted the curtain of the carriage and looked out. She asked, "Second and third brothers, what's going on up ahead?"
Su Huaiyuan and Su Huaisheng glanced at each other and urged their horses forward to find out.
A moment later, the two brothers came back, their faces looking solemn.
"A lot of refugees have come from up ahead. They've blocked the road and are trying to beg for food and money from the passing examinees. I think there are even more refugees than the examinees taking the exam today. The capital guards have gone to drive them away, but I don't think these refugees will leave easily for a while." Su Huaiyuan said.
Su Huaisheng said, "Don't worry, Yuanbao. We'll wait here for a while. After the refugees are dispersed, we'll continue on our way."
Unexpectedly, instead of staying in place obediently, Su Yuanyuan said, "Second and third brothers, let's go and help. What if this is part of the final round of the imperial examination? If we stand by and do nothing, it might be bad for us."