The seductive princess is no longer being pursued; the aloof prime minister is facing a crematorium.

Chapter 208 That Newly Appointed Top Scholar~
The man in the portrait has slightly upturned, almond-shaped eyes.

The painters in the Hanlin Academy were all top-notch painters in the entire Wan Jin.

In that portrait, the man had a cool and handsome appearance, with a charming look in his eyes, all of which was concentrated at the corners of his eyes.

The top scholar in the portrait is wearing a bright red official robe, the same one he wore when he passed the imperial examination with top honors.

Blindingly red.

For some reason, Pei Du frowned, staring intently at the man in the portrait, his throat bobbing and his voice slightly tightening.

"Has Your Highness seen this portrait?"

"Huh?" Eunuch Kang was taken aback for a moment, then realized what he meant and replied, "Your Excellency, the Hanlin Academy sent the portrait over to the Imperial Household Department after they had it organized. His Highness has not yet seen it."

Pei Du closed his eyes slightly.

He took out the portrait and handed it to Eunuch Kang: "Please trouble Eunuch Kang to have this one redrawn by the Hanlin Academy."

After a pause, Pei Du added, "Change your clothes."

"This..." Eunuch Kang glanced at the man in the portrait, looking troubled. "My lord, His Highness has already given instructions to the painters at the Hanlin Academy. Redrawing it... is unlikely."

Pei Du pursed his lips, his hand holding the paper tightened slightly, and after a long while he exhaled a breath of stale air before demurely returning the portrait to the album.

"It was I who was presumptuous."
-
Jiang Jinshuang spent the whole day at the mansion and was a little bored.

As darkness fell, she sat cross-legged in the armchair, cracking open the melon seeds Chun Tao had prepared for her.

Tomorrow we will go to the Zhenyuan General's mansion to offer birthday wishes. The birthday gifts are ready, and we are just waiting for tomorrow.

If you count on your fingers, General Qingbeishan of Zhenyuan was actually a subordinate of the Prince's uncle in the past.

Later, however, Uncle Wang led the Black Armor Cavalry to the border of Wan Jin to guard the frontier, and the branch from Qingbei Mountain was separated and left in the capital to protect the emperor.

It was precisely because of this relationship that she tolerated Qing Shan's repeated offenses to her.

—This can be considered as her way of showing filial piety to Uncle Wang.

When Chun Tao returned from outside, she saw her prince idly eating melon seeds.

She smiled, stepped forward, and stood next to Jiang Jinshuang's armchair: "Your Highness, why don't you go for a walk?"

Jiang Jinshuang smiled and said, "I was just thinking about how to ask my good brother tomorrow."

Chun Tao smiled, picked up the plate of melon seeds next to Jiang Jinshuang, peeled the shells with her hands, and placed the plump melon seeds next to Jiang Jinshuang for her to eat.

"It is said that General Zhenyuan is hosting a dinner tonight, and all the restaurants and taverns in Chang'an will be on credit to all the people in the capital, and it will all be charged to the Qing family's account."

"If Your Highness is bored now, why not go out for a walk? It's going to be quite lively tonight."

Jiang Jinshuang smiled and said, "If I were to actually appear on the streets of Chang'an, that would be truly lively."

Jiang Jinshuang was self-aware enough to know that it was best not to go out and cause trouble for others on the great birthday of General Qingbei Mountain.

Upon hearing this, Chun Tao understood Jiang Jinshuang's meaning and frowned with heartache: "Your Highness clearly did nothing wrong..."

Jiang Jinshuang couldn't stand Chuntao's behavior and quickly begged for mercy: "My dear Chuntao, I prefer quiet and don't like crowded places. I'm fine staying in the manor, so don't worry about me."

Upon hearing this, Chun Tao finally managed a smile: "Then Chun Tao will stay here with Your Highness."

At this point, Chun Tao's eyes lit up, and she smiled again, "This servant just went to find Young Master Yan Jue. Young Master Yan Jue heard that all the food and drinks in the dining hall were free today, so he went out early."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinshuang couldn't help but chuckle: "It seems some shops are going to suffer..." Chun Tao also laughed along.

She wanted to tell Jiang Jinshuang something interesting, so she thought of other amusing things: "By the way, Your Highness hasn't been paying attention lately, but I heard that the top scholar in the imperial examination was selected a few days ago, and he's a very handsome young man."

"I heard that a few days ago, when he was parading through the streets on horseback, many young ladies of marriageable age in Chang'an sent their maids to throw fragrant fruits and handkerchiefs at him."

Jiang Jinshuang raised an eyebrow slightly: "That's exaggerated? More beautiful than Pei Du?"

It wasn't that Jiang Jinshuang was biased; Pei Du's face didn't really need her to show favoritism.

It is said that on the day Pei Du became the top scholar in the imperial examination, not only the daughters of wealthy families from the capital, but also from other cities in Wan Jin, traveled thousands of miles to the capital just to catch a glimpse of the top scholar's "beautiful face".

That day in that year truly deserved to be described as a day when the streets were deserted and packed with people.

I heard that the procession that followed Pei Du on horseback through the streets was stuck on Chang'an Street, stopping every few steps, and it took them a long time to walk through the entire street.

Jiang Jinshuang also heard that the daughters of the top scholar Pei Du who had seen him that day were restless and unable to sleep after returning home, some even weeping and crying their eyes out.

Even more audacious individuals took advantage of the fact that the top scholar had only recently passed the imperial examination and that security was not tight enough. Some even sneaked into Pei Du's residence under the cover of night to boldly express their love and pursue him, hoping for a night of passion.

I heard that for several months in a row, the hotels and inns in Chang'an were fully booked every day, far more than the usual number of people coming to see the lantern festivals and temple fairs during festivals in Chang'an.

Of course, all of this was based on what Jiang Jinshuang "heard".

Jiang Jinshuang had never seen it in person.

She had never seen Pei Du ride a horse in Chang'an, nor had she seen the streets deserted by thousands of people, and naturally she had never seen women throwing themselves into her arms in such a shocking and unconventional way.

At that time, Jiang Jinshuang had already left the capital and gone to Baiyujing.

The scientific expedition began after she left the capital.

After she went to Baiyujing, she rarely mentioned anything about Chang'an.

I heard that even the historian, with his notoriously harsh pen, wrote nothing but praise for the scene and for Pei Du, the top scholar.

It was truly an unprecedented grand event.

Jiang Jinshuang, however, did not witness such a grand occasion.

These were things she had heard from men, women, and children in Bai Yujing.

The news of Pei Du's success in the imperial examination, a man of exceptionally handsome appearance and unparalleled beauty, reached her ears as quickly as water, without her even needing to inquire about it.

It's really bustling.

“Of course not,” Chun Tao smiled, but continued, “but I heard that this year’s top scholar is also very handsome. Although his appearance is far from that of the former prime minister, I heard… I heard that the eyes and brows of this newly appointed top scholar seem to be somewhat similar to those of the prime minister.”

Jiang Jinshuang raised an eyebrow slightly, showing some interest.

"Like Pei Du?"

Chun Tao scratched her cheek: "This servant is not sure either, this servant has never seen it."

After a pause, Chun Tao smiled and said, "However, I heard that General Zhenyuan also invited this top scholar to his birthday banquet. If Your Highness is interested, you can go to the banquet tomorrow to see him!"

Jiang Jinshuang's smile deepened: "Then I do indeed want to take a good look."

It must be said that "his eyebrows and eyes resemble those of Lord Pei Du" is an extremely high compliment for a man.

Jiang Jinshuang was indeed somewhat interested.