Joy of Life: Starting from Teacher Fan Xian

Chapter 40 The Spring Examination is Coming
Lin Ruo understood what he meant, and the carriage went to Prince Jing's mansion without saying a word.

The matter was just glossed over.

Originally, this trip was not to discuss any ideal goals. Life is short, and enjoying flowers, wine, and vegetable gardens is the right way for Li Zhi.

The carriage landed outside Prince Jing's mansion, and Li Zhi led Lin Ruo straight to the back garden.

There is a pavilion in the center of the back garden of Prince Jing's Mansion. The surrounding green lawn has been replaced by snow, and the vegetable garden is behind the pavilion.

Li Zhi rarely left his house all year round, so naturally he kept everything in his mansion in good order and full of vitality.

Walking on the path, the magnificent courtyard stretches out before your eyes, and there is an incredible tranquility on rainy and snowy days.

The lonely Prince Jing's Mansion had few guests, and even fewer guests that the prince could personally welcome. The servants, who were as silent as a mouse, could not help but stare at the stunning young man in front of them.

Lin Ruo smiled. Prince Jing would never have thought, and the people in Prince Jing's mansion would never have thought, that this place would be one of the most lively places in all of Kyoto ten years later, because the Prince Jing's son in the mansion always liked to hold a grand poetry meeting once a month, rain or shine.

When we reached the pavilion, we could hear the sounds of children playing.

Li Zhi was sitting in the pavilion, holding the two-year-old Princess Roujia in his arms and the five-year-old prince in one hand.

"Brother Lin, have you found a good spouse? I was already married when I was your age."

Lin Ruo shook his head: "No."

When Li Zhi heard this, he showed a look of contempt. He said that one should get married first and then start a career. Even those who participated in the Spring Examination were not alone.

"Look at my daughter. Isn't she much prettier than the damn daughter of Fan Jian's family?" Li Zhi pinched her cheeks, showing off Xiao Roujia's crystal clear porcelain skin.

Lin Ruo remained silent and rolled his eyes. Li Zhi scolded Fan Jian every day, but ten years later, the relationship between the two families was as close as family.

Thinking of this, Lin Ruo felt very annoyed. She should have brought Ruoruo with her so that she could meet her sister in advance.

"Why don't you say something?" Li Zhi glared angrily.

Lin Ruo smiled slightly and said calmly: "Your Highness, the young prince can compete with Lord Fan."

When Prince Jing grew up, he frequented pleasure boats and brothels, which was similar to Lord Fan's character when he was young. In this respect, they can be compared, Lin Ruo thought secretly.

Li Zhi naturally couldn't understand what Lin Ruo meant, and was feeling smug because he liked the looks of that damn Fan Jian.

As the afternoon passed, the bored Li Zhi took Lin Ruo to take a look at the vegetable garden he had carefully cultivated. The tender green leaves were covered in snow, but they still stood upright stubbornly, showing vitality.

When Li Zhi saw it, he was like a simple vegetable farmer. He picked up the hoe and worked for a while, then looked at the results with a simple smile on his face.

"Now that you've entered the officialdom, be careful, Lin Ruofu."

After returning to the central hall, Li Zhi changed his clothes during the meal and said solemnly, "You don't know, but I know it well. In the Jingdu case, Lin Ruofu helped the Liao family. Now he has been defeated. He may target you openly or secretly in the future. The power behind him is too big and complicated. You should avoid him if you can."

Lin Ruo agreed, but said: "Lin Ruofu doesn't seem like a petty person."

Li Zhi raised his eyebrows, a little angry: "Have you seen him? That's what you said."

Then he sighed again and said, "In a few years, he will probably rise to the top and become the Prime Minister. I hope he will be more generous and not treat you, a newcomer, harshly."

"Of course, if Lin Ruofu is really a petty and narrow-minded person, then I would rather hope that he can use all means in the Spring Examination to make you fail, so that you will not suffer in the future and fall into an irretrievable situation." Lin Ruo smiled and said, "Lin Ruofu will not interfere in next year's Spring Examination."

He was very sure in his heart, because next year's spring examination would be a grand drama of punishing evil and eliminating evil, and for the students who could participate in this spring examination, real talent and knowledge were the only way out, and this was fairness.

……

In the winter daytime, the lead-gray sky was covered with snowflakes. As Lin Ruo walked out of the gate of Prince Jing's mansion, a cold wind blew on him, and his thin figure swayed in the wind like the branches of a willow tree.

Sitting in the carriage that Teng Zijing brought to pick him up, Lin Ruo took a breath and relaxed for a long time.

When passing by Tianhe Street, Lin Ruo saw the group of children playing in the snow again. They were not wearing thick clothes, and they were grinning, holding up their red hands, and laughing on their red faces. The innocence of children made them feel sad and happy, but it did not give Lin Ruo a good impression.

"Gee, gee... gee."

On the busy Tianhe Street, a fully armed soldier waved his whip, ignored the pedestrians on the street, and rushed through the streets, shouting loudly: "The court is doing business, get out of here, all of you get out of here!"

Seeing this, the pedestrians around retreated and dared not say a word. In the face of this unexpected disaster, they could only blame themselves for their bad luck.

Lin Ruo couldn't help but frown when he saw it.

Teng Zijing drove the car and explained: "The war with Northern Qi has not yet ended. It should be an urgent letter from the border that has been sent to the palace in a hurry."

Lin Ruo said indifferently: "Eight hundred miles in a hurry? I'm afraid this is his usual style."

Teng Zijing remained silent. He didn't know how to answer. He had seen this kind of scene many times and was used to it.

The messenger rode his horse at full speed to the outside of the palace, rushed into the palace, handed the letter in his arms to the guard on duty, and then passed it to the eunuchs deep in the palace. After many twists and turns, it finally fell into the hands of Eunuch Hou, the chief eunuch.

"Your Majesty, good news, good news!"

Eunuch Hou ran into the emperor's study, fell to the ground, and respectfully presented the letter with both hands: "Your Majesty, good news, Northern Qi was defeated, and our army won a great victory!"

Emperor Qing, with dishevelled clothes, sat lazily on the small stool with his eyes closed, not caring much.

"Chen Pingping, help me take a look."

Chen Pingping took the letter and slowly opened it. He read a line of content without leaving a trace and then handed it over with both hands: "Congratulations, Your Majesty. Congratulations, Your Majesty. The three border cities have all fallen into our army's pocket. Northern Qi surrenders and will no longer be able to compete with our Qing Kingdom in the future."

Hearing this, Emperor Qing pondered for a moment before opening his sharp eyes and thinking, "Chen Pingping, what do you think I should do next?"

Without thinking, Chen Pingping said hurriedly, "It's almost the end of the year. With such a great victory, it's natural to reward the three armies, withdraw the troops back to the country, and announce it to the world so that they can share the glory of our Qing country."

"No." Emperor Qing shook his head repeatedly, "We can't do that. Letting the army continue to be stationed on the border will scare Northern Qi away. We need to scare them a little more."

Chen Pingping cupped his hands and said, "The world has been settled. Your Majesty is wise."

Emperor Qing shook his head again: "The world is far from being stable, and there are still too many people in Qing who have evil intentions."

"Your Majesty means..."

"The Spring Examination is approaching, so let's just give a warning. No one can act recklessly without my permission."

(End of this chapter)