The Red Mansion in its bustling glory

Jia Jue greeted the old lady with a smile and sat down beside her.

Sitting on the other side of the old lady was her beloved granddaughter, Lin Daiyu.

At that moment, Daiyu also looked at him, her eyes filled with joy.

I'm happy that he can finally relax after this exam; I'm happy that he's so talented; and I'm happy that he can finally take a good rest and doesn't have to work as hard as he did when he was preparing for the exam.

Jia Jue winked at Daiyu, who smiled gently and tilted her head.

These subtle movements were so well concealed that the old lady didn't notice anything amiss.

Only two people discovered it.

One is Wang Xifeng.

One is Jia Tanchun.

The two men looked at Jia Jue and Daiyu with strange expressions, then noticed that the other person was doing the same thing, and they exchanged knowing smiles.

The old lady was happy and said a lot, although Jia Jue didn't listen carefully.

He merely responded with perfunctory "uh-huhs" while secretly interacting with Daiyu.

Finally, the old lady said, "Jue-ge'er, you are now a scholar. Your younger brother is weak and cannot study for long. Your father often forces him to study. You should help him more."

Jia Jue inwardly grimaced, but had no choice but to nod in agreement.

At this moment, the old lady also said she was tired, so she said to him, "You should go back first. You were busy with the other family all day yesterday, you must be tired. Take a good rest."

Jia Jue was pleased with this, so he took his leave.

As soon as he returned, several maids came to report that someone outside was looking for him and had handed him a letter.

Jia Jue was puzzled. Who was this person who came and even brought an invitation?

Upon receiving the letter, he discovered it belonged to none other than the two men with the sword and the book.

Jia Jue couldn't help but smile. It turned out that these two knew he had topped the list and wanted to come and congratulate him.

Jia Jue said to the little maid who brought the message, "Go and tell them to go back first. I'll go find them myself later."

The young girl accepted the order and went off.

Before long, Jia Jue had changed his clothes and called Qingfeng and Mingyue. The three of them each rode a horse and arrived at the small courtyard where Chijian and Fushu lived.

Jia Jue dismounted and said to Mingyue Qingfeng, "You two stay here and keep watch."

After saying that, he went inside.

Upon entering the room, Jia Jue looked around and found it to be fairly clean. He then casually asked a few questions about the contents of the book on the back of the sword and observed the swordsman's recent martial arts skills. Seeing that both of them had made progress, Jia Jue nodded.

Fu Shu had already ordered food from the restaurant and bought a jar of expensive wine, waiting for Jia Jue to arrive so the three of them could celebrate together.

The meal was enjoyed to the fullest by both master and servant.

After the meal, Jia Jue suddenly said to the two of them, "I have a question."

The two men, carrying books and holding swords, waited quietly for Jia Jue to continue.

"In a few days, around May, I will likely be leaving the capital for Jinling. I wonder if any of you would be willing to come with me?"

If the sword-wielding and book-carrying servants were still his attendants, he naturally wouldn't need to interfere. But now that he had returned their indentures, even though they had always treated him with great respect, Jia Jue was grooming them as future assistants in his official career, so he still had to respect their wishes.

Upon hearing this, the two men immediately replied, "What are you saying, Second Master? If Second Master is going to Jinling, we'd follow you even if it meant our deaths! Wherever Second Master goes, we'll naturally go!"

Jia Jue laughed and said to the two of them, "You're both drunk! What's with all this talk of life and death? Since you two are determined to follow me, then follow me. I'll have two trusted confidants by my side then."

After saying this, the group chatted for a few more minutes before Jia Jue left.

Fang returned to the Jia mansion and entered his courtyard. Qingwen approached him and said, "Not long after you left, someone else came to deliver another invitation to you. Here it is."

As she spoke, Qingwen handed him the invitation.

Jia Jue took the invitation and saw that it was from Zhao Xing, who wanted to meet him the next day.

Jia Jue nodded and said to Qingwen, "I understand. Please find my dark blue arrow-sleeved shirt tomorrow; I need to wear it."

Qingwen nodded, said a few words, and left.

On that day, Jia Jue followed his instructions and went to the place where he was to meet Zhao Xing.

This place is a restaurant, located right next to Liuli Water.

Jia Jue went up to the restaurant and entered the private room, where he saw two people sitting inside:

One was Zhao Xing, and the other was Huang Huan.

Huang Huan was a candidate who took the exam with Jia Jue. The two took the county exam and the prefectural exam in the same venue. Sima He was another candidate who had such a situation.

All three of them passed the prefectural examination this year, but Jia Jue ranked first, Sima He ranked third, and Huang Huan ranked thirty-fifth.

After the three greeted each other, Zhao Xing said with a smile, "I invited you two out today to celebrate your success in the imperial examinations!"

Huang Huan laughed and said, "I was just lucky. Brother Jia is the real genius. Not only is he young, but he's also the top scholar. How can anyone argue with that?"

Jia Jue laughed and said, "No, no, it's just luck."

After a few more jokes and laughter, Zhao Xingcai said, "To be honest, although we are celebrating today, there is something I would like to ask you two for help with."

Jia Jue put down his wine cup without speaking, but Huang Huan spoke first—"What is it?"

Zhao Xing looked around and whispered, "I have some things here that concern the Second Prince and the First Prince."

Seeing that neither of them spoke, Zhao Xing continued, "If His Majesty were to learn of these things, it would be enough to ensure that Your Highness becomes the Crown Prince smoothly."

Upon hearing this, Jia Jue immediately sensed something was amiss—how could Zhao Xing, with neither connections nor resources, possibly possess such secret information?

Huang Huan clearly shared this concern, saying, "Brother Zhao, this is no small matter. Has it been checked?"

Zhao Xing laughed and said, "If you don't trust anyone else, do you not trust me either? Don't worry."

Huang Huan continued, "What favors does Brother Zhao need our help with?"

Zhao Xingdao said, "Although Master Xuanwu was my grandfather, and my father once held the position of Minister, both of our ancestors passed away early. Although we have relatives, we have no one in the court to rely on. My two virtuous brothers, one is the descendant of a Duke, and the other's father was a Minister of the Censorate. I only hope that you two can inform His Majesty..."

Jia Jue said, "Brother Zhao, you don't know this. Although I am a descendant of a Duke, my family is not well-off. I only have the title, and the court can't help me much. Although my father is an assistant minister in the Ministry of Works, he is also powerless."

Upon hearing Jia Jue's refusal, a complex expression flashed in Zhao Xing's eyes, but he simply nodded without saying a word.

Huang Huan lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then said, "I wonder if Brother Zhao has those things with him?"

After hearing this, Zhao Xing laughed and said, "Let's drink first, there's no rush."