I, the villainous eldest prince, will suppress everything!

Finding nothing on the two men, Zhou Biao waved his hand, letting them enter the examination hall without giving Chen Shoutian a chance to greet Qin Li.

As Chen Shoutian entered the examination hall, he dressed while asking, puzzled:

"Wangju, where have we offended our benefactor?"

"Look how different he treats us compared to how he treats Cao Quan."

Chen Wangju's gaze was cold.

He felt he had been thoroughly humiliated.

He will remember this humiliation and repay it tenfold in the future.

Although he could never avenge this grudge in his lifetime.

As they entered the examination hall and searched for seats, Chen Shoutian, after much restraint, finally couldn't help but whisper, "Wangju, please don't do anything foolish. Didn't you hear what our benefactor just said, 'No mercy'?"

"We've studied so hard for so many years, isn't this all for today? We don't need that bag of gold."

"With your knowledge, I'm sure you'll pass the imperial examination with top honors. Wouldn't that be better than going back to be a county magistrate?"

"Even without a high school, we won't lose our heads. As long as we're alive, we can always make a comeback."

Seeing Qin Li today reaffirmed Chen Shoutian's resolve.

They couldn't write the name the man in black had told them to on their papers.

Smuggling cheat sheets into the examination hall is cheating, and doing this is even more cheating.

Chen Wangju glanced at Chen Shoutian: "Brother, I'm not stupid."

Hearing this, Chen Shoutian finally breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good, that's good. Oh, my seat is here, I'll go in first."

After saying this, Chen Shoutian gave Chen Wangju a few more instructions before entering his cell.

Chen Wangju paused to glance at Chen Shoutian a few times, then continued walking forward, searching for his cell...

……

Late at night, the team responsible for escorting the examination papers for the spring imperial examination finally arrived from the Ministry of Rites.

The leader was an old man with a white beard, Shi Zhiwen, the Minister of Rites.

They weren't late; usually, the test papers were distributed at midnight, so they were early.

Upon seeing Qin Li sitting in the grand chair at the entrance of the examination hall, Shi Zhiwen bowed and clasped his hands in greeting even before he reached him, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince."

An ordinary person would have gotten up to help him up, but Qin Li did not.

Because this old man wasn't one of his group, but he was very close to the Zhao brothers, Zhao Guanwen and Zhao Guanli.

Qin Li's fingers, resting on the armrest of the chair, tapped lightly and rhythmically.

"Minister Shi, you are already so old, it's really inappropriate for you to come and deliver the exam papers in person."

Shi Zhiwen, bowing his head, twitched his eyes twice and said awkwardly, "Your Highness is too kind. The imperial examination is a major national event. It is an honor for me, at my advanced age, to be able to come and deliver the examination papers."

"Rise."

Qin Li casually remarked, "I heard that the questions for this year's imperial examination were set by Lord Shi again?"

Shi Zhiwen first waved his hand and ordered someone to send the exam papers to the examination hall and distribute them on time.

Only then did he answer Qin Li's question, saying, "I am getting old and no longer able to take on the task of setting the exam questions alone. Fortunately, Prime Minister Xiao and others are assisting me!"

The exam papers for this year's imperial examination were created by these people together, including Xiao Yuanlu.

This was Qin Li's request, and also the will of Zhao Guanwen, Zhao Guanli, and Emperor Xuan.

Qin Li did this to prevent Shi Zhiwen, that old rascal, from playing dirty tricks on the exam questions.

The others agreed to do this because if the exam questions were leaked in advance, Qin Li would not be able to pin the blame on Shi Zhiwen alone.

In any case, they're both wary of each other.

Upon hearing this, Qin Li nodded, but the next moment, he suddenly reached out and patted his forehead, saying to the people around him, "Are you all wooden stakes? Don't you know how to remind me? Minister Shi has been here for so long, why is he still standing while answering questions? Someone, quickly bring Minister Shi a seat."

Originally, Shi Zhiwen was quite pleased.

Who would rather stand than sit while answering questions?

Not to mention he's quite old and his legs are already weak.

But when he saw the chairs that had been brought over, Shih Chih-wen's face immediately darkened.

Because the chair that was brought wasn't a grand master's chair like Qin Li's; it was just an ordinary small stool.

Shi Zhiwen wanted to sit, but he had to squat down to sit.

Even if he sat down, he would be several heads lower than Qin Li.

"Minister Shi, please have a seat."

Qin Li smiled and gestured for Shi Zhiwen to sit down.

Shi Zhiwen gritted his teeth in anger. Qin Li was doing it on purpose, deliberately tormenting this old man.

However, there was no other way. If they didn't sit, it would be an open act of defiance against Crown Prince Qin Li, giving Qin Li a handle to use against them.

So, Shih Chih-wen still managed to sit down with difficulty.

Shi Zhiwen had just sat down when Qin Li's voice rang out again:

"I've heard that my sixth brother, the sixth prince of our Great Zhou, is your student, Minister?"

Everyone knew about this, so Shi Zhiwen had nothing to hide and nodded in reply, "Yes."

"I heard he's also coming to participate in this year's imperial examination?" Qin Li asked knowingly.

Shi Zhiwen said, "Indeed, I must participate. His Highness the Sixth Prince came to me a few days ago and said that after studying for so many years, he also wants to see what level he is at and whether he can pass the imperial examination."

"The sixth prince certainly won't use his real name when he participates in the imperial examinations. Does Minister Shi know what name he's using?"

Qin Li asked again.

Shi Zhiwen shook his head: "This, I really don't know."

"How could you not know?" Qin Li deliberately scolded, "Sixth Brother is coming to participate in the Spring Examination, and as the eldest brother, I have to take care of him."

Shi Zhiwen knew Qin Li was doing this on purpose, and said in a panic, "Your Highness, the Imperial Examination is a stage for fair competition among scholars from all over the country. You must not favor the Sixth Prince, otherwise Your Highness will be talked about, and this Imperial Examination will be labeled as unfair. Please think it over!"

To everyone's surprise, Qin Li said the next moment, "Minister Shi, what are you talking about? When I said to take care of them, I meant to prepare food for them. They'll be staying in the examination hall for several days. What if they get an upset stomach? That would be terrible."

"What's wrong with an older brother preparing food for his younger brother? What's so fair about that?"

Shi Zhiwen was speechless for a moment, but he felt that he had still fallen into Qin Li's trap.

Qin Li's words just now clearly didn't mean that.

This was a trap set, waiting for him to fall into it.

"It was my foolishness that I did not understand Your Highness's meaning. Please forgive me, Your Highness." Shi Zhiwen quickly admitted his mistake.

However, this also served as a reminder to him that he had to be extremely careful of Qin Li during his stay at the examination hall.

This is just a minor mistake. If he falls into Qin Li's trap and commits a major error, he might lose his position as Minister.

Qin Li did not choose to press his advantage, but simply waved his hand and said, "It's windy at night, Minister Shi, you should go inside quickly. If you catch a cold, it will be my fault."

"Thank you, Your Highness!"