Li Xinyue gritted her teeth in anger. This guy was surely taking revenge on her.
All she did was let him steal the show for one night and belittle two people. Was it really necessary?
Moreover, one of them was his junior apprentice. What's wrong with being belittled a bit?
However, she didn't know that Chu Junyi had no intention of stealing the show or being favored by others in the first place.
So he was angry!
As a result, the two of them were at loggerheads, making sarcastic remarks at each other throughout the day.
Finally, Li Xinyue slapped the table and shouted, "Let's wait and see! This princess can top the exam without your instruction!"
She decided not to go!
...
"Princess, why are you so impulsive! Without Mr. Chu's instruction, who else can you learn from?" Lian'er leaned against Li Xinyue's thigh, her face streaked with tears.
Li Xinyue thought to herself. If there was no top scorer, there was still the third-place finisher!
Oh, she had already offended the third-place finisher.
Then the one below the third-place finisher. Anyway, he was well-read. Teaching a half-baked student like her shouldn't be a problem.
Lian'er cried even more violently. "Can the students of the top scorer be the same as those of non-top scorers?
Moreover, Princess Fourteen is also eyeing that grace. Aren't you afraid that she will study hard with determination?"
Li Xinyue fell silent.
But she had already publicly announced that she wouldn't go. How could she go back on her word?
She didn't believe that a student not taught by the top scorer couldn't outperform a student of the top scorer!
"Go and find someone for this princess!"
The next day, Li Xinyue's people went to find that gentleman, cough, the imperial scholar.
But this guy had heard some rumors somewhere. He thought that Princess Yuanyang was looking for handsome men everywhere to fill her harem. To preserve his innocence, he actually jumped into the river.
As a result, the rumor indirectly became a fact. More people began to believe that Princess Yuanyang was robbing civilian men by force, was extremely lustful, and even the top three in the imperial examination had become her subordinates. Her promiscuity far exceeded that of the eldest princess.
Princess Yuanyang slapped the table in anger. "Dig three feet into the ground if you have to! Find that rumor-monger for this princess!"
"What about your studies..." Hongxiu paused, not daring to continue.
"This princess will teach herself and become a success!"
From then on, Li Xinyue decided to grit her teeth and finish reading these books.
She didn't believe it!
"The reeds are green, and the white dew turns to frost. The one I long for is on the other side of the water."
In the dead of night, drowsiness crept over her. Li Xinyue yawned, and her gaze shifted away for a moment. When she looked back at the book, she even had a hard time recognizing the characters.
She stared blankly for a while before reading the following lines, "... The reeds are lush, and the white dew has not yet dried. The one I long for is on the bank of the water."
A figure flashed past the window behind her. After avoiding the guards of the princess mansion, the person quickly climbed into the study and tapped lightly on her table a few times.
Li Xinyue slowly raised her eyes. After a while, her eyes widened.
Were the guards of the princess mansion all blind? They couldn't even see such a big person!
Chu Junyi, however, sat casually on her table as if he were at his own home. He naturally took the Book of Songs from her hand and glanced at it, slightly frowning.
The book had been issued half a month ago. Why was it as clean as if it had just been bought?
There wasn't even a name written on the cover!
What was she planning? To resell it to the bookstore after reading it?
He reached out his hand and beckoned to her.
Li Xinyue reluctantly handed over the pen.
Chu Junyi caught a glimpse of her expression from the corner of his eye. Finding it quite interesting, his mood improved a lot. Then he lowered his head to make annotations for her. He also took a blank notebook from the bookshelf and taught her how to take notes and how to understand the meaning of the verses.
After finishing, he tapped her head with the penholder. "When reading, you shouldn't just memorize mechanically. You need to understand the artistic conception of the verses, and then combine the artistic conception and understanding to infer the corresponding sentences.
In this way, you can not only memorize quickly but also master the skills of poetry writing. As time goes by, Your Highness will naturally be able to write poems."
He handed the notebook and the Book of Songs back to her together.
Li Xinyue looked at the densely written words. Although they were very neat, she didn't want to accept them.
Accepting them would be so embarrassing.
Chu Junyi couldn't help but laugh and wanted to tease her. "You can choose not to accept them. But in the exam half a month later, Your Highness claimed that you were going to top it.
If you can't, it will be very embarrassing."
When he said the word "embarrassing", Chu Junyi squinted his eyes proudly.
From Li Xinyue's perspective, this was just the look of a petty person getting carried away.
However, she really had no way to deal with him. If she had to choose between losing face in public and losing face in private, of course, she would choose the latter.
So, she reluctantly took the book and the notebook.
Chu Junyi raised his eyebrows in great satisfaction. Then he stood up and looked around.
"No wonder Your Highness is the most favored princess by His Majesty. Even the study is so big." It was even bigger than the kitchen he rented, at least twice as big.
Moreover, the decoration was so luxurious everywhere.
Just like the princess herself, not low-key at all.
It was just a pity for these excellent writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. It was really a waste in her hands.
Li Xinyue's sensitive nerves twitched slightly. She wanted to get angry but then thought of something and instead smiled proudly. "Although this princess doesn't read much, she uses the best things. Mr. Chu, isn't it annoying?"
Mr. Chu fell silent.
After Li Xinyue had enough of her pride, she leaned back in the armchair and asked, "Mr. Chu, you're helping me like this. Aren't you afraid that if I top the exam, you'll have to fulfill a request from me?"
She clearly saw that he didn't seem very willing. Just because she had let him steal the show and belittled the second and third-place finishers, the words he said in class clearly meant that he wanted to go back on his word.
Why was he doing something so contradictory now? What exactly did he want?
Chu Junyi:... He wanted her.
He had thought it over carefully all night. Instead of trying every means to prevent her from meeting Mu Rongxiu, it would be better for him to win Li Xinyue's heart before their meeting.
He would come every day, day and night. With such close contact, he didn't believe that this woman wouldn't be tempted!
Unless she was heartless!
Then it would be enough for him to be interested!
Clearing his throat lightly, Chu Junyi came back to his senses and seriously spouted nonsense. "I just don't want to give up on any student. If Your Highness really tops the exam, I will only be proud of you and won't have any complaints."
Li Xinyue fell silent.
She just couldn't think of any other reason, but she definitely didn't believe this one.
"Why are you involved with the Duke's Mansion? Since you're the student of the old duke, why didn't you go to the banquet?"
Oh - she understood.
He was a scholar from a poor family, and the court was in an uproar because of the debate over whether to fill the vacant official positions with scholars from poor families.
The Dingguo Duke's Mansion was a neutral party. So if Chu Junyi appeared at the banquet at this time, it would surely cause quite a stir for the Dingguo Duke's Mansion.
Thinking about it this way, he had a hard time too.
Chu Junyi said, "A few months ago, I encountered bandits on my way to the imperial examination. Fortunately, I was saved by the old duke and his wife who were on a spring outing, so I managed to escape. During that time, we talked about some national affairs and the way of governing the country. Then the old duke took me as his student."
"You're so good at martial arts. Why did you still need others to save you?"
"No matter how good one's martial arts are, the old duke and his wife couldn't just stand by and watch someone die.
Moreover, they had so many guards with them at that time. If they didn't step in, would their conscience allow it?"
"Just talk. Why are you looking at this princess! This princess is not... " heartless.
Didn't she compensate him with 500 taels of silver and promise to fulfill a request from him?