He conspired against her in his previous life, and he flirted with her on their wedding night again

Never be an enemy...

For two people who both want to compete for that position, it is destined to be nothing more than a beautiful hope.

The eldest prince said this, almost as if he was promising that as long as he gave up fighting for the position of crown prince, he would ensure his son a life of wealth and glory.

Xie Jingyan couldn't hear the eldest prince's hidden meaning, "I hope so."

The two walked towards the imperial study.

Although the eldest prince placed his hopes on Xie Jingyan at the critical moment, and Xie Jingyan really saved the eldest prince's life, it was not easy to open up to him as a member of the royal family.

When they were almost at the imperial study, the eldest prince asked casually, "Sixth brother, have you met the King of Jin these days?"

Although Xie Jingyin was demoted, the eldest prince was still used to calling him Prince of Jin.

Xie Jingyan said, "A few days ago, he stopped my carriage on the street and said a few words to me."

The eldest prince's expression changed slightly, and his voice unconsciously quickened a bit, "What did you say?"

Xie Jingyan said nonchalantly, "I didn't take these few provocative words to heart."

The eldest prince said, "You saved me and made him lose everything. He will not be willing to accept this. Fortunately, my sixth brother is wise and did not accept his instigation..."

When the eldest prince said this, Xie Jingyan suddenly stopped.

He looked at the eldest prince, "So what did the letter that the King of Jin used to lure you into the trap say?"

When Xie Jingyan asked the question, he looked into the eldest prince's eyes and did not miss the panic in his eyes.

However, the eldest prince was only flustered for a moment before he calmed down and said, "Didn't the King of Jin tell you?"

Xie Jingyan said, "He just asked me if I knew what was written in the letter, and didn't say anything else."

The eldest prince looked obviously relieved, and Xie Jingyan's eyes grew a little colder.

The eldest prince said, "The letter said that my mother's death was strange, and asked me to meet her."

When the late queen died, Xie Jingyan was in the imperial mausoleum.

Xie Jingyan didn't know the exact circumstances of her death. He only knew that the late queen fell ill a few months after his mother's accident and died.

Considering how cruel and ruthless Queen Song was, it is possible that the late Queen died a violent death.

But he didn't believe that the eldest prince was talking about what was written in the letter. If that was what was written, Xie Jingyin wouldn't have to stop him and say those words.

Seeing the eldest prince's panic and relief just now, Xie Jingyan became more and more certain that the letter was related to him.

Just then a palace maid came over and neither of them spoke, so the topic dropped.

Royal study room.

There were two test papers on the emperor's dragon desk.

Both test papers were written extremely well and could be said to be on par with each other.

Xie Jingyan and the eldest prince stepped forward and saluted the emperor.

Xie Jingyan didn't say anything. The eldest prince said, "I wonder why the emperor summoned me and my sixth brother...?"

The emperor said, "These two test papers, see which one is better."

The eldest prince didn't expect that the emperor asked them to come to look at the test papers. He took the test papers and handed one of them to Xie Jingyan.

They were all handed over to him, and Xie Jingyan took them.

He finished reading the article in his hand, and the eldest prince also finished reading it, and the two switched places.

The emperor was drinking tea. When the eldest prince closed the examination paper, the emperor put down the teacup and said, "Have you chosen?"

The eldest prince said, "Both of these articles are very well written..."

"There is only one number one," said the emperor.

In other words, we must distinguish between high and low.

The eldest prince looked at Xie Jingyan, "What do you think, Sixth Prince?"

Xie Jingyan said, "Didn't the Imperial Examination Hall send ten examination papers? These are only two."

The eldest prince, "..."

The emperor was asking them which of the two submissions was better. It was obvious that he wanted to choose the top scorer among these two and there was no need to look at the other eight.

He knew that Prince Ling had always been against his father, but selecting the top scholar was no joke.

The eldest prince was about to speak, but the emperor waved his hand, and Eunuch Yuan handed the remaining eight test papers on the dragon case to Xie Jingyan for review.

Well, the emperor not only let Xie Jingyan look at the other eight test papers, but also said to him, "You can also take a look, and you are allowed to express your opinions."

It took a while for the emperor to read the eight articles. He then stood up from the dragon throne and left the imperial study.

Xie Jingyan and the eldest prince went through the eight test papers, and just as they finished, the emperor came back.

The emperor asked, "Have you finished reading it?"

“Which one do you think is the best?”

The eldest prince said, "I read it through and found that the two selected by father are the best."

The emperor looked at Xie Jingyan, "What about you?"

Xie Jingyan said, "Of the ten examination papers, nine are from the perspective of the imperial court, and only one is from the perspective of the common people. Although this essay is not the most elegant, it is more to my liking."

"Father, are you planning to select this article as the first in the second class?"

There was a flash of surprise in the emperor's eyes. He really wanted to select this article as the first in the second class, but how did Yan'er see that?

The emperor asked, "Why are you so sure that your father will select this article as the first in the second class?"

Xie Jingyan said, "The first-class candidates are mostly admitted to the Hanlin Academy. The person who wrote this article is more suitable to be a loyal official and live in a corner. It's a pity for him to be admitted to the Hanlin Academy."

As expected of him being taught by him personally, he understood his father's thoughts very thoroughly.

The emperor was very pleased, and then he heard Xie Jingyan say, "Father knows how to appoint the right people, but someone who can write such an article will not be willing to stay in the Hanlin Academy."

For the emperor, there is not much difference between the first place in the first class and the first place in the second class. After all, there is a top scholar every three years, and there are four or five top scholars in the Hanlin Academy. Even the left and right prime ministers, who are the most powerful officials in the country, are not top scholars. The imperial examination only allows them to enter the officialdom. As for how far they can go in the future, it does not depend on beautiful articles. Being able to write articles does not mean that you can be an official.

But the upright minister revealed in the article is even rarer than the top scholar, no wonder the emperor cherishes him so much.

Just because the emperor didn’t attach much importance to the identity of the top scholar, it doesn’t mean that the students don’t want it. Who doesn’t want to be the top scholar and bring honor to the family?

The eldest prince stood aside, his brows furrowed in frown at some point and never relaxed since then.

He and Xie Jingyan were looking at the same test paper, so how come he didn't realize that the emperor intentionally selected this paper as the first in the second class?

Watching Xie Jingyan talking to the emperor, the eldest prince had a feeling that Xie Jingyan was the emperor's biological son and that he was adopted.

This feeling made him very uncomfortable.

The eldest prince looked at Xie Jingyan and asked, "Sixth brother, do you want father to select this essay as the top scholar?"

Xie Jingyan said calmly, "I can't influence my father's decision."

Can't you influence it?

The eldest prince felt even more unhappy when he thought of the court officials recommended by Xie Jingyan, who were promoted by the emperor.

The emperor sat on the dragon chair and looked at the test papers that Eunuch Yuan had placed on the dragon case. He waved his hand and said, "There is nothing for you to do now. Please leave."

Xie Jingyan turned around decisively, and the eldest prince glanced across the test paper.

He didn’t say which of the two articles he preferred…

My father's original intention was just to find Prince Ling to come to the palace and ask his opinion. He only asked him to do it as a side job, or in other words, to shut the Empress Dowager up.

If Prince Ling was allowed to participate in the selection of the number one scholar without him, it would inevitably lead to endless speculation if the news reached the ears of all officials.