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

Lu Jing's face showed admiration, and he quickly stood up, bowing slightly as he said:

"Your Highness possesses extraordinary talent, even in the renowned Jiangnan region known as the 'Land of the Best,' where you achieved the highest honors in the imperial examinations, surpassing all others. Lu Jing, having lived in Jiangnan for so long, is far inferior to Your Highness, which is truly shameful."

Inside the courtyard, Hongfeng's servants, including Gui Cai, also wore smug expressions, looking at Lu Jing with arrogant eyes.

As servants, they naturally felt honored that their masters had become famous in Jiangnan.

Hongfeng glanced at Lu Jing and smiled, "No need to be modest. There are many talented people in Jiangnan. You were in the top ten in the first three examinations, which is already quite remarkable. These past few years at the Imperial Academy of the Southern Dynasty have not been in vain. You have worked hard..."

"Although I do not know whether you will pass the imperial examination this year, you have already brought honor to your father. After returning to the Northern Dynasty, His Majesty will reward you handsomely."

Lu Jing's father was a second-rank official in the Northern Dynasty. Hearing this prince, who was a hereditary nobleman, say such a thing, Lu Jing couldn't help but show a pleased expression: "This servant thanks Your Highness for your praise."

Hongfeng laughed it off.

Emerging from Anhe Pavilion, the embassy grounds are lined with pavilions and towers, all resembling the magnificent scenery of Jiangnan gardens. Even though most are desolate in early winter, the frost on the branches adds a unique charm.

Pass through an octagonal gate.

We bypassed a small lake shrouded in mist.

After walking through two more covered walkways, you will arrive at a courtyard called "Xianghe Pavilion".

The Seventeenth Princess lives here.

Previously, the Third Prince secretly went to Jiangnan with the delegation, but no one knew why, and he returned quickly afterward. Now, there's no need to pay respects to the Third Prince every day; you only need to pay respects to this Princess Bulbuza.

Standing at the entrance of Xianghe Pavilion, after having the servant of the Seventeenth Princess go in to announce his arrival, a group of maids came out and said, "Your Highness, please come in."

Hongfeng originally intended to go alone, but after glancing at Lu Jing, he decided to bring him along.

Lu Jing was a good person. He had previously lived at the Imperial Academy, but after I arrived, he also stayed at the delegation's residence.

He organized his writings and books every day, and often borrowed books from the Imperial Academy of the Southern Dynasties. Some of his classics were read by his three teachers, who were quite surprised and praised Lu Jing highly.

Hongfeng then wanted to give him a chance to pay his respects to the Seventeenth Princess.

Outside the carved vermilion gate.

"Hongfeng pays his respects to the Seventeenth Princess and greets her."

"This servant kowtows to the Seventeenth Princess and pays respects to her."

The two men, one in front and one behind, bowed and paid their respects.

The door was closed tightly.

A lazy voice came from inside.

"Get up~"

"Yes, sir." Hongfeng and Lujing stood up at the same time.

A lazy female voice hummed from inside, saying:

"Feng-ge'er, I heard from Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan that you're very famous now. When they went out to buy me rouge, they all heard about your great name, like how you passed the imperial examinations in three consecutive rounds..."

The two maids at the door, who looked exactly alike, froze, their faces turning slightly red.

Hongfeng looked at them with gratitude... It wasn't like he was saying bad things about Gege, so naturally Gege would like to hear as many of these things as possible.

Hongfeng said, "This servant was ordered by His Majesty to go to Jiangnan to form an alliance through marriage with the Southern Dynasty. Firstly, since the Southern Dynasty is ruled by an Empress, it would be more meaningful for this servant to obtain a Jinshi degree there. Secondly, His Majesty also wants to show the Southern Dynasty that our dynasty also follows the path of the Sages, and that they..."

He paused for a moment, considering that there were no outsiders in this pavilion, and then continued.

"If they submit to our dynasty, they can also serve as officials in our dynasty by continuing to promote the great principles of the sages..."

Hongfeng bowed and smiled, "That's why this servant had no choice but to achieve the highest honors in the Southern Dynasty, in order not to fail Your Majesty's trust."

The female voice inside snorted again, "Tsk tsk, I have no choice..."

Hong Feng paused, a look of embarrassment creeping across his face.

"I've heard..." the woman's voice hesitated, "that everyone in Nanjing is saying you're better than that Ning... Ning... who only has the reputation of being a talented scholar..."

"Ning Nan, Ning Baixuan," Lu Jing said at the opportune moment.

"Yes, yes, yes," the woman replied several times.

Seeing the princess inside agree, Lu Jingxin was overjoyed, but he didn't show it on his thin face.

A female voice said, "I heard... you're much more talented than Ning Nan?"

After pondering for a moment, Hongfeng looked at him with a sigh and said sincerely, "This is indeed a case of misinformation."

"Oh?" The woman's voice paused for a moment.

"Seventeenth Princess, you may not know this. The Way of Poetry is not the same as the Confucian classics. Saving the country and bringing peace to the people naturally requires the Way of the Sages and the Confucian classics. But poetry is not useless... Hmm... For example, if Seventeenth Princess would like to hear some folk songs, Ning Baixuan's poems are excellent works... So,"

Hongfeng laughed and said, "In Nanjing, it is quite an exaggeration to say that my talent far surpasses that of Ning Baixuan. I... well... I am only slightly better than those talented scholars from the North and South in terms of classical studies."

The female voice inside seemed to hesitate for a moment before nodding in agreement, "What you said makes sense. In other words, you are only better than Ning Da... um... you are only better than Ning Nan in terms of classical texts? And only by a little bit?"

Hong Feng's expression stiffened, and after a moment of surprise, he said:

"That's true. After all, I took the imperial examination in Jiangning with Ning Baixuan. I was favored by His Majesty and came in first place in the county, while he came in last and didn't fail. That's truly remarkable..."

"During the prefectural examination, I, your servant, took first place in the examination. He was ranked in the lower middle class, but he did not fail the examination."

"During the provincial examination, I, your humble servant, snatched the top spot and achieved the highest honors in all three categories. Ning Baixuan ranked ninth, which is truly astonishing..."

A woman's voice inside exclaimed excitedly, "He's that good? He ranked ninth in that exam?!"

"Huh???" Hong Feng and Lu Jing were both stunned.

Hongfeng's eyelids twitched, his noodles trembled slightly, and he remained silent, glancing at Lu Jing beside him.

Lu Jing immediately understood and hurriedly said with a smile, "Reporting to the Seventeenth Princess, if you ask me, the Prince is being too modest... This Ning Baixuan... ha... he seems to have passed all three examinations without failing, but in reality... he's just using his great-uncle's influence..."

Inside the ornately carved vermilion gate, the Seventeenth Princess exclaimed in surprise.

His Majesty's letter has arrived, and the negotiations for the alliance are nearing completion. The mission will not begin its return journey until December.

At that time, the Southern Dynasty will also send an envoy to Beijing to conclude an alliance with the Northern Dynasty's envoy. At the same time, the two envoys will escort the Seventeenth Princess back to the capital.

Lu Jing figured that the Seventeenth Princess must have been cooped up in Xianghe Pavilion for a long time, so he wanted to hear some interesting stories, and began to speak eloquently:

"Your Highness, you may not know this, but Ning Baixuan is the grand-nephew of Marquis Jingbei, Ning Changling. The Ning family were originally from the north. Back then, they were audacious enough to plot a rebellion, which angered the late emperor, who confiscated their property. Ning Changling disregarded the emperor's favor and fled south to the enemy country. After making some minor contributions, the Southern Dynasty treated him as a worthless traitor and bestowed upon him the title of Marquis Jingbei..."

A female voice inside complained, "And then what? What did Guan Ning... what's going on? What do you mean by 'borrowing his great-uncle's influence'?"

Seeing that the Seventeenth Princess seemed to be angry, Lu Jing felt a chill in his heart. He composed himself, stopped showing off, and lowered his head, saying:

"To the Seventeenth Princess... because the first three examinations were not anonymous... there were many opportunities to manipulate the results... before Ning Baixuan's county examination, the Marquis of Jingbei, in order to gain fame for his nephew, repeatedly went to the palace to meet the Emperor, and it is said that he even had several arguments with the Emperor Emeritus of the Southern Dynasty... after the county examination results were announced, Ning Baixuan ranked last, and the magistrate of Jiangning was demoted to the lowest rank by the Empress of the Southern Dynasty. It seems... this was all due to Ning Changling's efforts..."

As he spoke, Lu Jing continued, "Even in the prefectural examination, given Ning Baixuan's level of knowledge in classical texts, Prefect Liu ranked him as mediocre, which Ning Changling still found unsatisfactory... As a result, Prefect Liu was also demoted from the capital by the Empress. It wasn't until the provincial examination that Academician Dong ranked him ninth, and only then did he escape unscathed..."

Lu Jing laughed and said, "However, once the provincial examination arrives, this person will inevitably reveal his true colors and fail the exam... After all, even His Majesty of our dynasty would never select relatives or friends for the talent selection ceremony, lest he discourage the scholars of the land..."