After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

"Junior sister?"

"Junior sister, where have you been?"

"Is this the master you were talking about?"

"My niece, what's wrong with you...?"

"Junior sister, come sit here! Senior brother has an empty chair here..."

As soon as the woman stepped onto the stairs, everyone present was stunned and stood up in unison, shouting all at once.

The woman looked up, wiping the fine sweat from her forehead, her eyes clear and bright.

Upon seeing that the two people sitting opposite each other at the central chessboard were still the Tartar and Uncle Zhang, she breathed a sigh of relief and excitedly said to the man beside her:

"No, no! It's still Uncle Zhang! My grandfather hasn't even left the arena yet! Master! We still have a chance!" The female disciple's voice was unusually excited.

Ning Nan wiped the sweat from his brow, glanced at the female disciple who was breathing heavily and patting her small chest, and said with a wry smile:

"Take a break, take a break first."

Along the way, the female disciple made the coachman's face turn pale, ordering him to go faster and faster. The carriage was so bumpy that he almost threw up.

As soon as he got off the carriage, the other person pulled him along, and they ran all the way into the Kui Xing Tower.

Ning Nan rubbed his eyes and noticed that the eyes of twenty or thirty people in the room were all focused on him and the female disciple. He couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.

Look up.

An elegant and dignified old man was looking at him.

He recognized this person; they had met once before at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet at Prince Xin's residence, when the man was playing chess with Nalan Ruo.

Ning Nan took a few breaths silently to calm her pounding heart.

He stepped forward directly to greet her and said:

"This junior, Ning Nan, courtesy name Bai Xuan, greets Headmaster Gongsun."

He turned his head and greeted the crowd, saying, "Ning Baixuan greets all the esteemed sages."

Those who recognized him greeted him respectfully, saying, "Greetings, Brother Bai Xuan."

Ning Baixuan... Some great scholars and students who had never met him were stunned for a few moments before they remembered who this name referred to.

"Ning Baixuan?!" someone exclaimed, standing up in surprise.

This shout not only embarrassed Ning Nan, but also the other teachers and students of Bailu Academy. However, everyone was only annoyed by his rudeness and understood his point.

After all, it's understandable that one would be somewhat flustered to suddenly see such a talented scholar appearing so aloof and quiet.

Gongsun Yuliu nodded, arranged for the two of them to sit down, and didn't say anything more.

He heard Heng'er say that this time it was her "master" who saved her, and Heng'er praised this "master" to the skies.

When the Imperial Guards escorted Heng'er back, they were vague about the specifics, only saying that news of the Prince of Wu's rebellion had come from the palace.

He felt a chill run down his spine and asked no more questions. It was good that his granddaughter was back safe and sound.

As for his granddaughter seeking out this "master" to learn chess, he had always had some concerns. He worried that his granddaughter had fallen for him at first sight because of his unparalleled poetic talent and had come up with an excuse to get close to him.

Gongsun Yuliu sighed inwardly. His wife had passed away, and his daughter-in-law and eldest son were in Hangzhou. He could only guess at his daughter's thoughts.

He had inquired and learned that Ning Baixuan was married, so he had been secretly worried. However, seeing the two of them looking relaxed and at ease, and seeing that they didn't seem to have any inappropriate expressions, he felt a little relieved.

Gongsun Heng pulled Ning Nan to sit down, extremely excited, and asked around, "How is it going now?"

After the student next to her told her about what had happened in the arena, the female disciple was suddenly startled and looked up at her grandfather.

At this time.

Gongsun Yuliu said to Zhang You:

"Alright, Nanshan, since you're so inclined, then you may play another game. Don't worry about it; the outcome is entirely up to your teacher."

Zhang You gratefully clasped his hands in a fist salute, but in his heart he thought that even if he lost today, he would never make a decision on his own. He would endure the humiliation for ten years and go to the Northern Dynasty ten years later to fight Nalan Ruo and wipe away the shame of today!

Just as his expression darkened, and he was about to play another game with the Tartar,

But then Gongsun Heng stood up and exclaimed, "No, no, no!"

Everyone was stunned and turned to look at her. Seeing Gongsun Heng's face turning red and white and her eyes filled with anxiety, they couldn't help but frown and feel puzzled.

"What's wrong, junior sister?"

Gongsun Yuliu glanced at her granddaughter and saw that she was dressed in men's clothing. She already sighed slightly, but now that she was shouting and yelling, she had a headache. She didn't know what kind of family to recommend her to. With such a temperament, she was afraid that no matter who she married, she would suffer in the future.

The old man felt a pang of sorrow in his heart, but he didn't show it on his face. He frowned and said, "Heng'er, what are you saying is unacceptable?"

Gongsun Heng said anxiously, "If whoever wins breaks the Laurel Chess Formation, then I won't get a chance!"

Everyone was stunned upon hearing this.

Gongsun Yuliu's heart stirred at this moment.

He didn't really care about winning or losing. He would resign from his position as the headmaster of Bailu Academy tomorrow. If this Tartar wanted to become a disciple, so be it. He would never allow this person to study at Bailu Academy.

If it were my granddaughter who lost today, then so be it.

Gongsun Yuliu then smiled gently and said, "Well? Would Heng'er like to play chess with this Seventh Young Master?"

Gongsun Heng shook her head.

Gongsun Yuliu was taken aback, but then saw her granddaughter point at Ning Nan and look at him hopefully, saying:

"Could my master do it for me?"

Everyone was stunned, feeling a mix of emotions of sadness and regret. They felt that their junior sister was too naive and unaware of the situation the academy was facing. This was no time for fooling around.

The crowd glanced at Ning Baixuan with a hint of resentment. This talented Ning might know the Nineteen Paths of Martial Arts, but he was certainly no match for this melon-hatted fellow. He would lose if he went up against him... This was also why the crowd admired Zhang Nanshan. If he lost today, he would probably never be able to hold his head up again. Yet Zhang Nanshan still dared to volunteer for the challenge. He was truly remarkable... If he weren't afraid of losing... Ha... The crowd sneered inwardly... They would have rushed up long ago. How could anyone else have a chance?!

The lights on the third floor flickered.

The shadows of the crowd whispered amongst themselves on the ground.

Ning Nan was unaware of what the others were thinking, but after hearing the situation, he couldn't help but narrow his eyes, look up and take a closer look at Gongsun Yuliu, and let out a soft "Eh."

……

……

The bright moon shines.

The silvery sunlight shone on the Nanjing Imperial Palace.

The palace, with its red walls and golden tiles, stands majestically in the night, inspiring awe in those who behold it.

Qianqing Palace.

Twenty-four standing lanterns illuminated the entire palace.

A woman wearing a fitted yellow dragon robe sat upright on a dragon throne behind an imperial desk.

Her fair hands held a red-covered memorial, her eyelashes fluttering slightly as she calmly read it.

To her left, an elderly minister, around fifty years old, sat upright in a chair, his eyes bright and piercing.

To the lower right sat an elderly woman with a full head of white hair.

The old woman stood up and addressed the newly enthroned empress, saying, "Your Majesty,"

Although her face looked old, her voice was steady and powerful.

"Although this memorial was submitted by the Minister of Rites, it actually contained the wishes of the Empress Dowager."

The empress at the head of the table looked at the memorial, her pink lips curving slightly as she smiled:

"The Empress Dowager has been practicing Buddhism for so many years, but she still hasn't been able to truly internalize the Buddhist scriptures."

The white-haired old woman nodded and said:

"After all, the King of Wu was her own son, and the King of Qi was also raised by her. The bond between mother and son was very strong, and it was inevitable that she would be overly concerned and make mistakes."

The Empress shook her head and said:

"How could I possibly kill my own uncle? She's overthinking it."

She closed the folded document in her hand and put it down, then tapped it with her slender fingers.

There wasn't much inside. It was just the Minister of Rites saying that he was getting old and reminiscing about how grateful he was when the Empress Dowager promoted him to the position of Vice Minister of Rites. Then, he turned and began to recount a long story about how the late Emperor and her elder brother were so filial to each other.

His words were all about advising her on the concept of "filial piety." Finally, the Minister of Rites said that he wanted to retire.

The white-haired old woman skipped over the matter of the Empress Dowager and intended to settle the matter of the Prince first, saying in a somewhat heavy tone:

"Your Majesty, both the Prince of Wu and the Prince of Qi have been imprisoned... Dou Yuan of the Prince of Qi's residence is a talented man. When the Prince of Qi wanted to remove his spies in the capital garrison and actually block the palace walls to force the Prince to abdicate, Dou Yuan persuaded the Prince of Qi to stop.

"The Prince of Qi then only mobilized some civil officials, including the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, to force the emperor to abdicate and persuade Emperor Tianqi that the Great Rites should not be abolished, but he did not explicitly mention replacing the emperor with a new one... The Prince of Gui has already submitted a memorial, saying that if there is no clear evidence, he begs Your Majesty to have mercy on the imperial clan..."

The Empress remained noncommittal: "What about those traitors from the Heavenly Principle Sect?"

The old woman shook her head: "These scoundrels are stubborn. Seeing that the King of Wu's power is gone, they stopped trying to implicate the King of Qi."

The Empress pondered silently for a moment, then frowned slightly and said:

"Yan Qingjia, do you think they would cooperate if their leader tried to persuade them?"