"Chu Chu..."
"I'll go speak to the Emperor! You're ill, I need to take care of you!"
"Chu Chu, be good..."
"No! I won't listen..." Tears streamed down Chu Chu's face as she gazed through blurred vision at Xiao Jin Yu's pale, gaunt features. "Wang Ye, let me be your maid. I'll wait where you live, I won't wander around, won't speak to anyone, won't cause you any trouble..."
"Chu Chu..." Xiao Jin Yu's heart clenched with pain. He reached out to gently wipe away her pearling tears. Had it been any other matter, he would have agreed without hesitation, but not this time. "Help me pack some clothes, will you..."
"I won't..."
Xiao Jin Yu's voice remained gentle but firm. "After packing, have a proper meal with me... I'll leave tomorrow morning."
No matter how Chu Chu cried or pleaded, Xiao Jin Yu endured the heartache in silence, only soothing her trembling back with tender, lingering strokes.
Afraid that if he spoke, he wouldn't be able to resist granting her wish...
Left with no choice, Chu Chu wiped her tears and began packing for Xiao Jin Yu. Watching her distraught figure wandering aimlessly around the room, Xiao Jin Yu nearly cast aside his duties regardless of consequences.
"Chu Chu..."
Chu Chu sniffled, "Wang Ye... don't worry, I'll be good. I'll wait for you in the Royal Mansion... Please come back as soon as you finish being chief examiner!"
"Certainly..."
All night, Chu Chu held him tightly. Though the bed in One Heart Garden's bedchamber was spacious, she curled into a small ball in his embrace, tears rolling down even in her dreams, which Xiao Jin Yu softly kissed away.
Before Chu Chu woke, Xiao Jin Yu slipped away quietly. He truly didn't know how much resolve he could maintain against her, whether he could bear her reluctant gaze...
From the Royal Mansion to the Imperial Examination Hall, Xiao Jin Yu's mind remained filled with images of Chu Chu's pouting sleeping face, until someone stopped his sedan chair and demanded he step out for a search.
Wu Jiang's furious shout came from outside the sedan, "How dare you!"
Another voice, even angrier than Wu Jiang's, retorted, "Bullshit!"
The sharp sound of swords being drawn followed immediately, prompting Xiao Jin Yu to lift the sedan curtain.
The sedan had stopped in the front courtyard of the Imperial Examination Hall. Before it stood a burly man in iron armor, leaning heavily on a large sword planted firmly on the ground. His thick, dark eyebrows seemed to shoot toward his temples, and his piercing eyes bulged with intensity, like the reincarnation of a dark deity.
Wu Jiang stood opposite this formidable figure, holding back several young guards who were bristling with anger.
It wasn't that these guards were hot-headed—no one in the capital had ever dared speak to Xiao Jin Yu like this.
Seeing Xiao Jin Yu lift the curtain, the dark figure didn't kneel but clasped his fists around his sword, his voice booming like thunder, "General Wang Xiaohua requests Prince An to step down for inspection!"
Despite the earth-shaking declaration, the young guards nearly failed to contain their laughter.
Wu Jiang's jaw nearly dropped. "You... you're General Xiaohua?"
The dark face grew even darker. "I'm the Yunhui General!"
His roar only made the guards burst into laughter.
Wu Jiang inwardly sighed. He knew the officer leading the Imperial Examination Hall's guard was a third-rank general named Wang Xiaohua, freshly returned from the southwestern border. But hearing the name... he realized he'd imagined something entirely different.Xiao Jin Yu covered his mouth with a light cough, concealing the faint smile at the corner of his lips, and said calmly, "General Wang... please proceed."
Wu Jiang lifted Xiao Jin Yu, chair and all, out of the sedan. Wang Xiaohua immediately reached out to pat down Xiao Jin Yu's body. Xiao Jin Yu instinctively leaned back. Startled, Wu Jiang raised his scabbard and swung it toward Wang Xiaohua's grimy wrist. With a swift backhand, Wang Xiaohua seized the scabbard. Wu Jiang withdrew his hand, drew his blade in an instant, and with a flash of silver light, pressed it against Wang Xiaohua's neck. "Step back!"
"Wu Jiang..." Xiao Jin Yu's voice remained steady and composed. "Release him."
Wu Jiang frowned but promptly withdrew the blade.
Wang Xiaohua, his face dark with anger, tossed the scabbard he had grabbed back to Wu Jiang. "I'll settle this with you properly when I have time."
Wu Jiang sheathed his blade, positioning himself protectively in front of Xiao Jin Yu, and replied indifferently, "I'm never free."
"Wu Jiang..."
Keeping his eyes fixed on Wang Xiaohua, Wu Jiang retreated to Xiao Jin Yu's side. Wang Xiaohua snorted coldly and extended his thick, coarse palm once more. He removed Xiao Jin Yu's outer robe and shoes, thoroughly patting him down from neck to feet. He then opened the bundle Chu Chu had packed for Xiao Jin Yu and inspected the medicine chest, shaking out each item one by one. Finally, he picked up a stack of name cards tied neatly with thin string and held them up to Xiao Jin Yu.
His thick eyebrows arched high on his dark face as he spoke in a mocking tone, "Prince An, what are these for?"
Xiao Jin Yu regarded him calmly. "For you."
Wang Xiaohua was taken aback. "For me?"
"These are name cards left by examination candidates who sought an audience at my Royal Mansion... I have already annotated the calligraphy and composition on each card. However, there are too many cards, and the candidates reside in scattered locations, making it inconvenient to return them individually... I request that you dispatch someone to post these at the entrance of the Imperial Examination Hall and guard them carefully until they are claimed."
Wang Xiaohua stared blankly at Xiao Jin Yu for a moment, swallowed, and fell silent. He turned and led his stern-faced subordinates in meticulously searching Wu Jiang and several guards. Only after returning the disorganized pile of belongings to Xiao Jin Yu did he speak again, the hostility in his voice considerably diminished. "You may enter."
"Thank you for your trouble, General."
Wu Jiang accompanied Xiao Jin Yu to the chief examiner's quarters in the rear courtyard to settle in. Noticing how pale Xiao Jin Yu looked, he couldn't help but frown. "Wang Ye, did that brute harm you?"
Xiao Jin Yu shook his head slightly. "I caught a chill in the wind and have a bit of a headache... It's nothing serious."
Recalling how Xiao Jin Yu had been sitting in the early spring breeze wearing only thin underwear for so long, Wu Jiang hurriedly moved the charcoal brazier closer to him and poured a cup of hot tea. "Please rest on the bed for a while."
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