On the street outside the women's academy, two figures on horseback were gradually riding into the distance.
Shen Zhishu, holding his riding crop behind his back, turned to look until the eaves of the women's academy disappeared from view. Only then did he turn to the man riding beside him and ask, "What exactly is the Crown Prince planning by allowing the top candidate of the Female Scholar Examination to enter the Imperial Academy?"
Bai Danyong, being merely a close attendant to the Crown Prince, had no way of knowing the details of court personnel reforms. Seeing Shen Zhishu's unhurried pace, he grew anxious and urged, "The Crown Prince must have been waiting for us in the city for quite some time, Lord Shen. We must hurry and not keep him waiting!"
As Bai Danyong made to spur his horse forward, Shen Zhishu quickly moved to block his path, wearing an awkward expression. After hesitating for a moment, he finally said, "Guard Bai, the Crown Prince... he is no longer in the city."
Bai Danyong's face immediately turned pale. "What did you say, Lord Shen?"
Shen Zhishu maintained his awkward smile. "Don't be alarmed, Guard Bai. The Crown Prince has gone north to have a look around. He'll return in a few days."
Upon hearing the words "gone north to have a look," Bai Danyong angrily snapped his whip and said in a low voice, "So Lord Shen's invitation to accompany you to the women's academy today was merely a pretext! Though you now hold an official post, you're still playing these childhood games with the Crown Prince, leading me around by the nose?" The corners of his eyes twitched as he turned his horse toward the northern part of the city. "Eldest Young Master, are you trying to get me executed this time? Where exactly has the Crown Prince gone in the north?"
Hearing Bai Danyong so flustered that he used the old form of address, Shen Zhishu quickly tried to reassure him with a laugh. "Why would you say that, Guard Bai? You've watched me grow up since childhood—how could I possibly put you in a position of disloyalty? But the Crown Prince gave the order, and I dared not disobey. You know the Crown Prince's temperament better than anyone—if he could be constrained by rules and regulations, would he still be the Crown Prince? As for where exactly he has gone, without his permission, how could I dare to speak recklessly?"
Bai Danyong tightly gripped his reins, his brow furrowed for a long moment before he finally said, "But if anything were to happen to the Crown Prince alone up north..."
Shen Zhishu continued to smile. "Set your mind at ease, Guard Bai. The Crown Prince has trained in martial arts with the palace guards since childhood and has received personal instruction from Prince Ping. How could any ordinary person harm him?"
Bai Danyong's face was full of bitterness as he sighed repeatedly. "If His Majesty finds out about this... who knows how furious he will be! Eldest Young Master, you and the Crown Prince put on quite a show yesterday, but you've truly placed me in a terrible position!"
"Don't worry, Guard Bai," Shen Zhishu said, already urging his horse forward. "If anything really happens to the Crown Prince, I'll cut off my own head and offer it as a stepping stone for you on the execution ground. How about that?"
Bai Danyong followed with a pained expression. "At a time like this, Eldest Young Master still jokes like this..."
Shen Zhishu chuckled but said nothing more. He merely raised an eyebrow and glanced northward toward the distant mountains beyond the city.
The ochre mountain peaks were tinged with emerald green, drifting among clouds as fine as cotton fluff.
He lowered his gaze. The road to the Qing Province military camp would likely not be as smooth as one might hope...
·
In the city, peach blossoms had just begun to bloom. Tender pink petals fluttered everywhere, attracting butterflies and bees in relentless pursuit.
Just as the three-day Metropolitan Examination for the Female Scholar Examination had concluded and Grand Tutor Shen had ordered the academy sealed for transcription and grading, thunderous news spread through Chongzhou City—
The Crown Prince had arrived in Chao'an!Traveling incognito and without prior notice to any officials in the Chaoan North Circuit, he went alone to the Qing Province military camp. Then, heading south, he inspected dozens of military strongholds along the Northern Frontier without anyone’s knowledge before galloping back to Chongzhou Prefecture.
Upon entering Chongzhou, the Crown Prince went straight to the Chaoan North Circuit Pacification Commissioner’s Office and issued an order for all officials involved in military affairs, from the Pacification Commissioner down, to return to the office and await his command.
This move stunned the officials at the Chaoan North Circuit Pacification Commissioner’s Office.
Who could have expected the Crown Prince to choose this moment to come to Chaoan? And who could have imagined he would inspect the Qing Province military camp?
The order was as sharp as a sword, and no one dared to defy it. No matter how shocked or fearful they were, they all obediently waited at the Pacification Commissioner’s Office, though in their hearts, they had no idea what the Crown Prince’s true intentions were.
·
The blue bricks of the Pacification Commissioner’s Office courtyard were covered with kneeling officials.
Though spring days were usually mild, the afternoon sun poured down like molten lava, scorching the men clad in heavy official robes. Even the most composed individuals could not endure such heat.
The backs of many officials’ robes were soaked with sweat, and almost everyone periodically raised their sleeves to wipe the perspiration dripping from their foreheads.
Someone muttered quietly, “The Crown Prince didn’t say a word about punishment. Why is Lord Dong making us kneel here and wait?”
The person beside him whispered, “Are you blind or just foolish? Can’t you see how furious the Crown Prince was earlier? Lord Dong having us kneel here is the best strategy—who knows how the Crown Prince might punish us otherwise!”
Another asked softly, “But is the laxity at the Qing Province military camp really worth such anger? Besides, Lord Dong was personally selected by Prince Ping back in the day. Surely the Crown Prince wouldn’t disregard Prince Ping’s favor…”
“What do you know?” someone in the middle interrupted. “Have you heard of the Chaoan Monk and Nun Case from ten years ago? The Crown Prince was only fourteen at the time, but his methods…” The speaker shuddered and drew a finger across his neck. “Even those who had fought alongside Prince Ping to secure the realm were executed—without even reporting to the capital!”
Those around him bowed their heads upon hearing this, not daring to speak further. The sunlight overhead suddenly felt chilling, and the sweat on their bodies seemed to vanish instantly.
…
The Crown Prince of the Great Ping Kingdom, surnamed Ying and named Gua, was the only son of Empress Ying Huan and Prince Ping, He Xi.
If there was one person in the realm whose ruthlessness inspired terror, it was undoubtedly Prince Ping. But if there was one person whose thoughts were the most inscrutable, it was Crown Prince Ying Gua.
From a young age, he had been taciturn, true to his name.
When the Empress and Prince Ping named him "Gua" (meaning "solitary" or "few"), it puzzled the people for a long time. Only a handful of veteran ministers who had served the two for years understood the profound meaning behind it.
Before the founding of Great Ping, the realm was divided into five states.
To the east was Ye Qi, to the west Tai Cuo, with Hu in the south, Jian in the north, and Tian Wan in the center.
The Empress was originally the ruler of Tai Cuo, while Prince Ping was the ruler of Ye Qi. For ten years, they fought and contended with each other, until one meeting bound them together for life, making each indispensable to the other.
It was a rivalry between two sovereigns, yet also a love story between two rulers.
Even after so many years, the elders in the kingdom still vividly remembered the intense entanglement beneath the iron curtain of that chaotic war.Rivers and mountains vast as the skies, weapons clashing amidst blood-soaked storms, countless armies clashing on the battlefield as five kingdoms ignited in war... Before them lay towering waves of life and death, behind them the unpredictability of an unstable realm. As fellow monarchs, their journey evolved from hatred to love, from suspicion to trust, from battlefield confrontations to joint northern campaigns. They successively crushed the kingdoms of Nangu and Zhongwan, yet halted before invading the Northern Frontier due to his severe, unhealing wounds.
None in the world understood why he ultimately relinquished his imperial throne to her.
People only knew that henceforth, they advanced and retreated together, while she renamed the kingdom with his princely title—Ping.
The founding of Great Ping coincided with the birth of the crown prince.
Naming him "Gua" (Solitary) wasn't intended to condemn their only heir to lifelong loneliness, but rather signified that this empire, steeped in their lifelong devotion, could only be inherited by this one child.
Crown Prince Ying Gua displayed exceptional intelligence from childhood. At fourteen, he began participating in court and military affairs, while Prince Ping withdrew from governance entirely. The Empress only involved the crown prince in decisive court matters during critical state affairs.
After Prince Ping abdicated and the Empress unified the realm under Great Ping, their former ministers from previous kingdoms merged at the new capital Suiyang during Qiande Year Three. Since then, court officials secretly split into Eastern and Western factions, engaging in political and military disputes for over two decades.
The conquered territories of Nangu and Zhongwan were reorganized into circuits. Chaoan North Circuit comprised the former northern lands of Zhongwan, bordering the Northern Frontier. Dozens of military strongholds along this border had consistently expanded over years, demonstrating the court's strategic emphasis on this region.
Thus, the crown prince's incognito inspection of Chaoan North Circuit—and his fury upon discovering Qing Province's garrison laxity—was entirely justified.
...
The government office's inner hall stood dark and chilly.
A man in his forties knelt in the center, bowing deeply as he pleaded, "Your Highness's arrival from the capital caught me unprepared—a grave offense. I beg Your Highness to calm your wrath."
"Lord Dong.The young man seated above spoke in a low voice.
It was Crown Prince Ying Gua.
Dong Yicheng remained prostrate before daring to lift his head. "I implore Your Highness's forgiveness."
Ying Gua's expression remained impassive, his voice frosty. "What offense exists in being unprepared? Rather, it is I who inconvenienced you by arriving in Chaoan without prior notice."
Dong Yicheng hastily lowered his head again, trembling. "I wouldn't dare!" After a pause, he added, "I've already dispatched investigators regarding the laxity at Qing Province garrison and thirty-seven northern strongholds. Those kneeling outside are all officials involved in Chaoan's military affairs—their interrogation and punishment rest entirely in Your Highness's hands!"
Ying Gua rose. "Since Qiande Year Seventeen, your Chaoan North Circuit has annually petitioned the court for provisions and military funds. Her Majesty, aware of the northern border's instability and wary of Northern Frontier's southern troops, never rejected your memorials. Whatever you requested was granted, solely to maintain northern peace."
Cold sweat dripped from Dong Yicheng's forehead as he stayed silent.
The crown prince swept several thick impeachment memorials from the table with a backhanded gesture. "For two years, bandits have plagued the northern border. What has your Chaoan Command been doing? How have you maintained the hundred thousand Imperial Army troops? The court isn't lacking impeachment memorials against you—Her Majesty suppressed them all. But how have you responded to imperial decrees? Have peaceful years made you believe the northern border could never erupt in chaos?"Dong Yicheng raised his eyes, wanting to argue, but when they met the young man’s piercing gaze, he found himself unable to utter a word.
Ying Gua spoke coldly, “Every time you come to the capital to report, you complain that court officials in the eastern and western prefectures look down on those governing the surrendered territories… Tell me, among the twenty-eight circuits of the Great Ping Kingdom, which circuit’s pacification commissioner has hoarded more silver than you, Dong Yicheng?”
“Your Highness, I have not…”
Ying Gua untied the sword from his waist and pressed its tip against the floor, raising an eyebrow. “Back when the Emperor and Prince Ping fought to establish this realm, no matter how difficult it was, they never shortchanged the soldiers. Now, the Qing Province camp and thirty-seven other military strongholds are weak in troops and horses, their walls and barracks crumbling without repair, and countless weapons and shields lie rusted. Where has all the silver the court allocates annually for military affairs gone?” He rubbed the hilt of his sword a few times before continuing, “If chaos ever breaks out on the northern border, executing every last official in your Chao’an Military Command would not be excessive!”
“Your Highness, spare me! Spare me!…” Dong Yicheng prostrated on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly.
With a cold glare, Ying Gua was about to speak again when a timid voice announced from outside the hall, “Your… Your Highness, the Examination Bureau has sent someone. Grand Tutor Shen has ordered them to bring an examination paper for Your Highness to review.”
Hearing this, Dong Yicheng scrambled up from the floor, dismissed the officials to return to their duties, and ushered in the messenger from the Examination Bureau.
The messenger, dressed in a short purple robe, bowed and retrieved a transcribed essay from his sleeve, presenting it as he said, “Though it is against regulations, Grand Tutor Shen ordered this humble servant to bring it for Your Highness to examine.”
Raising an eyebrow, Ying Gua took it and remarked, “Since the examination hall is locked and grading is underway, how can we break the rules? What does the Grand Tutor mean by this…”
The messenger lowered his head. “Grand Tutor Shen has already disqualified this candidate from the current Female Scholar Examination. Hence, the transcribed paper could be brought for Your Highness to see.”
“Disqualified?” Ying Gua frowned. “A decade of arduous study is no small feat. Why was this candidate disqualified?”
“The essay did not align with the assigned topic. The Grand Tutor said that although the candidate is highly learned, there was a tendency to show off and deviate from convention, so disqualification followed the regulations.”
His expression cool, Ying Gua thought for a moment. “If that’s the case, why bring it specifically to me?”
“The Grand Tutor said… out of regard for talent. He also mentioned that this essay might align with Your Highness’s views.”
Ying Gua fell silent, his long fingers lightly unfolding the transcribed paper. After a quick read, astonishment flashed in his eyes. He looked up and asked the messenger, “Do you know this candidate’s name?”
The messenger nodded. “Meng Tinghui.”
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