Another few days without a phone have passed. He had to correct the habit of reaching out to touch the alarm clock when he got up. One after another, Zhuang Dongqing saw Zhuang Father, the eldest young master, the third young master, and the fourth young lady again.

Seeing Zhuang Father mainly meant getting scolded. This time, he didn’t have to kneel in the ancestral hall, but he still received a bunch of roundabout insults that Zhuang Dongqing didn’t quite understand. In the end, he got a slap on the palm, which hurt a lot, leaving his palm all red. By the next day, Zhuang Dongqing was still pouting, secretly blowing on his palm.

The eldest young master, Zhuang Yue, was someone Zhuang Dongqing ran into when he was asking for leave from the academy. They didn’t say much, but Zhuang Dongqing could feel the intense vigilance in the other’s gaze. The third young master, Zhuang Ling, came personally to find Zhuang Dongqing, giving him a long lecture. Although he called him “second brother,” his tone was anything but gentle. He got interrupted a few times, which made Zhuang Ling a bit angry, but at least Zhuang Dongqing managed to understand what he was saying.

The fourth young lady was still young, and they exchanged greetings when they met on the road. “What do you think my friend, who helps me block drinks, is called?” Liu Fu replied, “Young Master Ji?” That must be a pseudonym. Zhuang Dongqing sighed, “He’s a noble person.” “How do you know?” How do I know? There are too many reasons.

First, there was the lady’s advice not to cling to the powerful, then Zhuang Father’s roundabout questioning about his friends, and finally, Zhuang Ling, who coincidentally focused on this friend of his. He wasn’t particularly clever, but the answers were all laid out in front of him. If he couldn’t notice them, that would be foolish. Zhuang Dongqing let out a breath, going through the three princes one by one in his mind, feeling lost. He couldn’t think of anything, so he decided not to. Let it be; he would know when the time was right.

Compared to the chaos outside, Zhuang Dongqing had plenty of problems to solve himself, the most pressing being his studies. The original body had just taken first place in the academy entrance exam. Even if he had hidden his talents before, he was still among the top. But for Zhuang Dongqing… Let’s just say that although he had entered the original body’s mind and could recall some of its memories, the knowledge didn’t flow into his barren brain in a painless, easy way.

Traditional characters? He could read and recognize them. That was it. Yes, that was it. Writing? Nonexistent. As soon as he picked up the brush, it turned into simplified characters. After living for over ten years, it was the first time Zhuang Dongqing clearly saw the results of compulsory education on himself. Oh right, speaking of picking up the brush, just practicing with the calligraphy brush, Zhuang Dongqing followed the example for three or four days… and still hadn’t mastered the wrist strength. His characters were all over the place.

Not to mention the calligraphy, poetry, and beautiful essays that the original body took pride in. The process of cramming was painful, and his already fragile mindset collapsed under Liu Fu’s casual mumble. It wasn’t anything too formal, but when Zhuang Dongqing couldn’t eat again, Liu Fu said, “Once the young master goes to the academy, it will be fine.” This remark triggered fragments of the original body’s memories. When he was very young, maybe around eight or nine years old, some life scenes flashed by.

Zhuang Dongqing looked at the table full of vegetarian dishes and smiled bitterly. So this was already an improved standard of living. Putting down his bowl and chopsticks, Zhuang Dongqing, who was trying hard to adapt, felt an impulse for the first time to just starve to death. That night, he lit an oil lamp to practice writing. There was one character with many strokes that he could never get right. Zhuang Dongqing was already in a bad mood, and after practicing a few more times, he finally got the strokes right, but the brush tip went wrong again, twisting and turning into a messy black blob on the paper, just like Zhuang Dongqing’s life, which was devoid of brightness.

He tried to be patient and wanted to practice again, but accidentally smudged a big blob of ink on his hand. Zhuang Dongqing instantly broke down. He pushed the door open and sat down on the steps, the night sky low, the moonlight like water, but he had no heart to appreciate it. Zhuang Dongqing’s studies could never return to how good they used to be. Over a decade of learning and practice was like the original body being unable to solve a hyperbolic equation, not knowing what mitosis was. Zhuang Dongqing couldn’t possibly master poetry, songs, and essays in just a month or two.

But, the barely manageable days were built on the foundation of his good academic performance. In his memories, the original body often had to settle for half a meal with Liu Fu when they were young. Occasionally, when the lady remembered, or there was an event at the residence, she would have a new outfit made for him to show off, and the charcoal fire was always insufficient… That bone-chilling cold, just thinking about it made Zhuang Dongqing unable to bear it. Without a government position, he had no value, and what would the future hold…

Zhuang Dongqing hugged his knees, burying his head deep in them, the frustrations, troubles, and helplessness of entering this world all erupted at that moment. For the first time in his life, he felt the bitterness of wanting to buy a house in socialism. So useless. How could he be so useless? His eyes grew warm, and Zhuang Dongqing gritted his teeth.

Liu Fu, who got up in the middle of the night, found the study empty and located Zhuang Dongqing sitting on the steps. Worried he would catch a cold, he tried to persuade him to go inside, but Liu Fu had no choice but to bring Zhuang Dongqing a cloak and kindly poured him a cup of water. Zhuang Dongqing slowly finished drinking, wiped his face, and after his emotions settled, chose to return to the study to practice writing. After waking up, his food, clothing, and living arrangements were all handled by Liu Fu. If it weren’t for Liu Fu, no one would even make him medicine.

Even if he couldn’t maintain the current standard of living for both of them, he could do a little, and that was enough, as long as he had a clear conscience.

It turned out that cramming at the last minute was still useful. Because just a few days later, Zhuang Dongqing received an invitation to the Spring Banquet. After learning more about it, he found out it was a gathering of scholars organized by various academies in the capital before the spring examination, lasting several days, with different topics each day, whether it was poetry, essays, or calligraphy competitions. Students who wanted to participate could join on the spot, and the top entries would be displayed prominently for everyone to read.

There would be no shortage of nobles attending, and in previous years, there had even been stories of the emperor himself attending. If these essays and poems were fortunate enough to catch the eye of a noble, the students would not only gain fame but also have a path into officialdom, becoming a celebrated tale. After asking Liu Fu, Zhuang Dongqing learned that the original body had started preparing for the Spring Banquet after the academy entrance exam. With this background, it would be unreasonable for Zhuang Dongqing not to participate.

Moreover, he had been confined to the residence since waking up, and by the time he learned about the various news from the outside world, it was already settled. Taking this opportunity to go out and see what was happening was also good. With his mind made up, the day of the Spring Banquet soon arrived. Zhuang Dongqing, along with Zhuang Yue and Zhuang Ling, took the Zhuang family carriage to the banquet.

The venue was at the academy, where Zhuang Dongqing had asked for leave before. Entering again, there were some changes from his last visit. Several pieces of calligraphy were hung at the entrance, and after verifying the invitation to enter, the paths on both sides were filled with potted flowers, with the seasonal blooming Yingchun crabapples swaying in the wind, and there were also bonsai orchids for the literati to admire, standing tall and aloof.

As they passed through the corridor, the calligraphy and paintings were hung at varying heights on both sides. Zhuang Dongqing couldn’t understand them, but Zhuang Yue and Zhuang Ling stopped several times to admire them, which must have been quite nice. When they reached the banquet, it was crowded with people. Zhuang Dongqing saw many classmates who recognized him. Every time he met someone, he had to explain that he had bumped his head and couldn’t recognize them. By the end of the round, most of the familiar faces were already aware.

He found a discreet spot to sit down, looking at the fruits and snacks on the table, secretly swallowing. No rush; soon it would all be his. He silently reminded himself, sitting up straight. But from time to time, his peripheral vision kept catching glimpses. Ah, pastries! He had never eaten them before, and they looked so exquisite. There was even meat jerky! He was touched and wanted to eat.

The loquats looked sweet and golden, but he had to hold back, hold back! In this internal struggle, Zhuang Dongqing followed everyone through the banquet process. The host’s speech was inevitable. Zhuang Dongqing listened to the academy head’s speech, which immediately confused him with its flowery language. Following that were the teachers and invited scholars, some of whom were well-known, and others were not low-ranking officials.

Occasionally, he heard whispers nearby, and Zhuang Dongqing strained to listen. “Didn’t they say the Crown Prince’s tutor would come? I haven’t seen him.” “That was said a long time ago, and besides, with the spring examination approaching… they’re avoiding suspicion…” Zhuang Dongqing searched his mind and vaguely remembered that the deposed Crown Prince incident seemed to be linked to the examination fraud case. Examination fraud… wasn’t that during the spring examination…

“The Crown Prince has arrived!” With a sudden shout, Zhuang Dongqing realized only after kneeling down with the crowd that the sharp voice announcing it was from the eunuch in charge of ceremonies. They knelt in greeting, shouting “Long live!” After the formalities were completed and they sat down again, Zhuang Dongqing dared to raise his eyes to observe.

The Emperor Shengwu’s sons were all born after he ascended the throne, so although the Crown Prince was the legitimate heir, he was actually under thirty. The Crown Prince’s name was Li Cheng. From a distance, Zhuang Dongqing could only see his elegant and dignified face in his splendid attire. When he spoke with the academy head, he seemed approachable.

Before long, the Crown Prince began to speak, and Zhuang Dongqing started to zone out again. Until that sharp voice rang out again, “The King of Dingxi has arrived—” “!” A beat late, he hurriedly followed the crowd to bow again; the voice calling out was different, likely from the prince’s attendants. Once seated again, Zhuang Dongqing felt a layer of cold sweat on his back. He hadn’t kept up with the bowing in time, which startled him.

Wiping his neck with his sleeve, looking at the loquat meat jerky in front of him, Zhuang Dongqing felt bitter; this meal wasn’t even good. After being startled like that, Zhuang Dongqing became much more cautious, lowering his head and sitting upright, only listening to the whispers around him. “Why is this terrifying figure here?” “How would I know? But the Crown Prince doesn’t look too happy.” “Who would be happy to see the King of Dingxi? The three guilty ministers were all dealt with by him…”

The King of Dingxi, Cen Yan, was the only prince of a different surname in this dynasty. A few years ago, he was summoned to the capital to assist the emperor and achieved great merit. After that, the emperor kept him in the capital, and despite several requests to return to his fief, the emperor did not allow it. In fact, Cen Yan had grown up alongside the male lead. When the old king was still alive, he was summoned to the capital as a companion to study with the other princes and was favored by Emperor Shengwu from a young age. After achieving merit, he became even more favored. However, he only obeyed the emperor and ignored the princes.

Thinking of this, the speeches before the banquet finally came to an end. During the break, the atmosphere became much more lively. The academy head and the suddenly arrived two great figures were chatting warmly, while the surrounding literati and students began to drink tea, chat, and eat pastries. Zhuang Dongqing quickly grabbed two pieces of meat jerky, stuffing one into Liu Fu’s hand and taking a bite himself. Wow, it was really meat, and it was quite tasty. He was touched.

All his attention instantly focused on the taste buds, and without realizing it, he raised his head. When he met the gaze of a figure standing in front, Zhuang Dongqing froze. The original body had damaged its eyes from staying up late reading when it was young, resulting in slight nearsightedness. From too far away, Zhuang Dongqing could only vaguely see that the person had high brows and deep eyes, with smooth features, likely… good-looking. He squinted, still blurry and uncertain, but he felt like the other person was also looking at him?

The academy head suddenly bowed to that person, and Zhuang Dongqing felt a chill at the back of his neck, instantly realizing that this was either the Crown Prince or the King of Dingxi. He quickly lowered his head… can’t see him, can’t see him! Then the banquet began. Liu Qi, who had just returned with news, stepped forward to replace the attending servant, serving dishes to Cen Yan while speaking in a voice only the two of them could hear, “The sixth prince has also arrived, just entered through the side door.”

After speaking, there was no response. Liu Qi looked up and found Cen Yan staring intently at the lower seats. “Master?” Liu Qi called out. Cen Yan finally came back to his senses, paused for a moment, and pointed in a direction, “Go find out who that student is.” Liu Qi looked down, peering closely, but for a moment couldn’t be sure, “Are you referring to…?” Cen Yan glanced again, pressing his fingers to his brow, “Yes, the one who’s eating without raising his head.”