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

He rode his horse to the government office and returned to his lodgings at the stroke of midnight.

The government office arranged maids for him.

Ning Nan had them fetch hot water, and after taking a bath, she went back to her room to sleep peacefully.

I slept soundly until dawn.

The rooster crows three times.

After daybreak.

The mission members then began to move about in the morning mist.

Purchase supplies, conscript laborers, replace mules and horses, and nail anti-slip horseshoes to the mules and horses.

The Southern Dynasty delegation, which already consisted of more than 300 people, needed to select another 30 cavalrymen from Jiangpu City to escort them northward.

Most importantly, the Northern Dynasty delegation needed to send scouts ahead and provide support along the way.

Therefore, the entire mission will not depart until tomorrow afternoon.

When Ning Nan got up early to eat breakfast, he ordered Qian Sijin and Er Laizi to find San Zhuang and recruit him to go north together.

Cui Cui's wife said that when Liu Xinghan, the deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, saw San Zhuang, he said that San Zhuang was a good candidate for the army and it would be a pity if he didn't join the army.

Liu Xinghan then threw the three strong men into Jiangpu City and handed them over to Shangguan Yun.

Chen Shi (7-9 AM).

Xu Xiyin bought him the finest writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.

Although Master Ning was suspicious, he still wrote a so-called birthday greeting for them.

I wrote three drafts that were rejected.

Only after finishing the final draft was I finally satisfied and began to let the ink dry.

The content was just a typical birthday greeting: "May your happiness be as boundless as the Eastern Sea and your longevity as enduring as the Southern Mountain pine."

"Is that really okay?"

He glanced at the calligraphy copybook on the round table with a somewhat suspicious look. In the past few months of preparing for the imperial examinations, although he had been using the official script, he had been writing a lot and his wrist strength had gradually increased.

The calligraphy I wrote today, in the style of the Wei stele, is upright and grand, even surpassing my previous works.

Xu Xiyin glanced at it and nodded, saying, "Alright, thank you, young master."

The nun's eyes remained calm, but there was a hint of surprise in her tone.

Seeing that the nun agreed, Ning Nan didn't insist, only saying:

"If you say it's okay, then it's settled."

After letting the ink dry for a while, Xu Xiyin put away the calligraphy copybook.

Master Ning glanced at it and thought that the Taoist nun would probably be handed over to the people of the Heavenly Principles Sect later, and then given to Chen San.

Qian Sijin and Erlaizi returned before lunch, both looking hurried.

Erlaizi stared at Ningnan with wide eyes and said, "Big brother, Sanzhuang is in trouble."

Ning Nan was originally playing chess with Uncle Jing, who was dressed in a python robe, in a flower hall.

Jia Shi'an handled all the affairs of the mission, big and small.

They were both relatives of the emperor, but in reality, they were just idle managers.

As Prince Jing's uncle held a prestigious position, he still needed to socialize with officials of all ranks in Jiangbei, otherwise it would be a great loss of face.

He has a bad reputation, so people are more comfortable around him.

Upon hearing this, Ning Nan immediately stood up, frowning, and said, "Troublesome?"

Erlaizi didn't know the rules and went straight to Ningnan as soon as he entered.

As soon as Qian Sijin entered, his gaze swept over Prince Jing, and he paused, naturally bowing to the prince first.

Prince Jing, Zhu Enbai, with his composed demeanor, smiled and said, "It's alright."

He tapped the jade chess piece on the table.

"Bai Xuan, since you have important matters to attend to, you may go ahead and attend to them. Your Ninth Uncle is only here because he has nothing better to do, which is why he wants to learn a few moves from the famous Jia Wudi."

King Jing gave a wry smile: "Who would have thought that Bai Xuan was truly invincible, killing Ninth Prince Uncle without leaving a single survivor."

Ning Nan quickly thanked the Ninth Prince apologetically, but Prince Jing didn't mind at all. He smiled and then left with his hands behind his back.

Er Laizi's pockmarks twitched; he had never liked people who wore python robes or official robes.

Every time I see them, I feel uncomfortable.

These past few days, I've known that my sister-in-law is the emperor and that my elder brother is not only the top scholar in the imperial examination but also the emperor's son-in-law.

His servants' eyes lit up, and they seemed to be itching all over, walking unsteadily. They all received a good scolding from him.

The shrewd servants would often nudge him, saying, "Why doesn't Steward Lai ask the young master for an official position?"

He felt a chill run down his spine when he heard this.

I just feel that being an official involves kneeling and bowing, which is incredibly troublesome and makes me feel uncomfortable at all.

Fortunately, his elder brother never forced him to. When he was with his elder brother, he didn't have to bow to anyone, whether they were princes or officials.

Listen to Er Laizi and Qian Sijin finish speaking, one sentence at a time.

Ning Nan couldn't help but rub his forehead and said:

"How are San Zhuang doing?"

Erlai snorted: "He's still on the west training ground, waiting for those guys. He said he wants to vent his anger, he's like an ox, you can't pull him back."

Qian Sijin nodded hurriedly and said, "Don't worry, Your Highness. Brother Erlai has arranged for a few servants to be there, and I have also arranged for a few garrison soldiers to be there. Brother Sanzhuang has also brought a few friends he met here. There will be no problem."

Ning Nan nodded, then sighed and said:

"Let's go, let's go too. I'll go and drag this scoundrel back."

That's all.

He shook his head and walked outside.

Erlaizi then ordered his servant Wang Xiao to prepare horses.

We walked out of the government office gate.

The view suddenly opened up.

The curfew wasn't very noticeable at night, but Jiangpu City was quite lively during the day.

The shops on both sides are of all kinds; basically, everything that can be found in the capital can be found here.

Moreover, there are many dealers and shops that specialize in selling northern furs and mules and horses. The shop owners often wear hats, presumably because they have shaved their heads.

The people on the street came from all over the country, with all sorts of accents and clothes, and there were even quite a few foreigners. He saw a few red-haired Portuguese.

People were packed together, and the horses couldn't run.

Ning Nan and the others simply dismounted and led their horses away.

As he walked, he wondered if Jiangpu City, with its open commerce, wasn't afraid of spies infiltrating.

The female Taoist priest Xu Xiyin, who had come with him, knew a little about this and said:

"Young master, you may not know this, but these merchants can only enter and leave the city through the west gate. They are not allowed to enter through the other gates. In the west of the city, there is a special commercial district with a river that surrounds it. Whenever there is war, all merchants who are not from Daliang must enter this commercial district, and the drawbridge over the river will be lowered. No one is allowed to enter or leave."

Upon hearing this, Ning Nan immediately nodded in understanding.

It seems that the imperial court and Jiangpu City are also helpless. If there are no merchants, especially those from the north, to transport goods across the river to transport supplies, grain, and cloth to the 30,000 Jiangpu soldiers and nearly 50,000 people in the city, the Ministry of Revenue will be overwhelmed.

The Jiangpu Army's garrison was located in the west of the city.

After walking along the main east-west street and bypassing the Lishangfang shopping mall, the road surface became a bit wider.

They then mounted their horses again and rode towards the training ground where the Jiangpu army was stationed.

Ning Nan glanced at the sky.

Seeing that the sun was beginning to set, there was still time before San Zhuang's duel with his opponent.

Private fights are prohibited in the Liang army.

However, without weapons, ordinary wrestling and fighting are naturally unimpeded.

Master Ning sat on his white horse, sighing as he rubbed his forehead.

The trouble that San Zhuang caused was actually quite simple. After arriving in Jiangpu City, this kid was handed over to Jiang Luzhi as a personal guard by Shangguan Yun.

Because of his somewhat bad reputation in Jiangpu City, some of Jiang Luzhi's personal guards made sarcastic remarks about him, unaware of the relationship between San Zhuang and him.

San Zhuang got angry after hearing this, and about seven or eight days ago, he beat up several of his guards.

Jiang Luzhi considered that this simpleton was Shangguan Yun's man, and also that the kid was strong and sturdy, so he didn't punish him much, only gave him a scolding.

San Zhuang, however, was unconvinced and said, "What's wrong with my elder brother fighting the Tartars? Why are you cursing my elder brother after you were beaten by the Tartars?" With that, he took the golden gourd, led his horse out of the city, and said he was going to go out of the city to knock a few Tartars' heads off and bring them back to show them.

Later, Sanzhuang was indeed surrounded by a group of Tartars outside the city. Fortunately, a group of night guards passed by and saw that this simpleton was wearing the official robes of the Great Liang Dynasty, so they rescued him.

Several members of the night scout team died, and several others were seriously injured.

This time, San Zhuang violated military law and was given twenty lashes and imprisoned for several days. It was only because of Shangguan Yun's influence that he was punished; otherwise, the situation might have been much more serious.

Having just been released yesterday, San Zhuang was immediately subjected to some sarcastic remarks from Jiang Luzhi's personal guards, which led to another conflict between San Zhuang and these men.

Fortunately, the spanking on his butt still hurt, but he finally learned his lesson. He said he wanted to wrestle with those guards, and whoever lost would kneel down and call him grandpa.

Those guards weren't stupid; knowing they couldn't overpower him, they suggested a contest today, adding sarcastic remarks:

"What kind of skill is fighting? Is fighting the Tartars all about fighting? Horse riding, archery, spears... what do you know, you who only knows brute force?"