Chapter 38: The Palace Banquet. Be Extremely Careful at the Qionglin Banquet.

The moment the news broke, the entire Jing An Marquis Estate erupted.

The Number One Scholar! This was the Number One Scholar!

There was only one every three years.

What an incredible honor.

Old Madam Wen was especially pleased, so delighted that she chanted Buddha’s name repeatedly and once again ordered rewards to be distributed to everyone.

The Gu family was of the military aristocracy and had always valued martial prowess over literary pursuits. Although they had made an effort to cultivate their descendants for scholarly officialdom in recent years, the younger generation unfortunately showed no obvious talent for studying.

Now, seeing her nominal grandson achieve such success, Old Madam Wen was beside herself with joy.

The only regret was that Shen Ji’s surname was Shen, not Gu.

But it was alright. Shen Ji’s mother was the Gu family’s adopted daughter, and his future wife had also grown up in the Gu household. In the future, in his official career, how could he not support and be supported by the Gu family?

Old Madam Wen, who was already fond of Shen Ji, now had all sorts of fine things sent to Qingfeng Courtyard in a constant stream.

The commotion was so great that it could be faintly heard in the West Wing Courtyard, just a wall away.

Basking in Shen Ji’s reflected glory, many people came to the West Wing Courtyard that day to congratulate Su Zhenyue, calling her “Zhuangyuan Consort” one after another.

Even the eldest young miss, Gu Yuanzhen, joked with her, “Congratulations, Zhuangyuan Consort.”

—She had previously worried that Cousin Shen’s talent might not live up to his reputation, but to her surprise, he had taken the top prize in one fell swoop. It seemed she had worried for nothing.

Su Zhenyue smiled faintly. “Congratulations to you too, Zhuangyuan Cousin.”

Gu Yuanzhen froze for a moment, then the title “Zhuangyuan Cousin” sent her into a fit of giggles. After a while, she asked curiously, “Older Sister Su, how come you’re not the least bit surprised that Cousin Shen became the Number One Scholar?”

It was as if she had known all along that this would happen.

Su Zhenyue found it inconvenient to mention her dream and could only say, “Because I believe in his talent.”

“Oh, so it’s our Older Sister Su who has good judgment,” Gu Yuanzhen said with a grin, changing the subject. “I heard a lot of people saying today how fortunate you are.”

Su Zhenyue was taken aback. “Fortunate? Me?”

She had lost her mother at a young age, then her father, and even her grandmother had passed away, leaving her with no choice but to live under someone else’s roof for over a decade. Recently, she had been treading on eggshells, terrified that a single misstep would lead her to the same fate as in her dream.

Could this be considered fortunate?

“Yes, that’s what they’re saying. They say that even though you lost your parents, you were adopted by the Gu family and got to grow up here. And about you and my older brother, although it didn’t work out, you immediately turned around and were betrothed to the Number One Scholar.” Gu Yuanzhen thought for a moment and added, “They also said you must have burned a lot of high-quality incense in your past life.”

Su Zhenyue was stunned and silent for a moment.

Seeing her strange expression, Gu Yuanzhen thought she had misspoken and quickly said, “Older Sister Su, I just heard it and thought I’d tell you. Don’t take it to heart, those people are just being sour.”

“I know.” Su Zhenyue smiled. “Don’t worry, I won’t take it to heart. I’m just a little surprised.”

The past cannot be changed, she thought, but from now on, I will strive to make myself truly “fortunate.”

…

Many people thought Su Zhenyue was “fortunate,” and Sun Momo was one of them.

She couldn’t help but mutter to Chang Le Princess, “I really didn’t expect her to have such good fortune. A person like her, how is she worthy?!”

Wen Shan frowned. “Momo!”

She disliked Sun Momo gossiping about that Miss Su. What if word got back to the Heir Apparent and caused him to misunderstand? How would she be able to face him?

“Your Highness, do you think we should send someone to tell Young Master Shen?”

Wen Shan was confused. “Tell him what?”

“About that Su woman seducing the Heir Apparent in the past, of course. What man can tolerate such a wanton and shameless woman? The engagement would surely be called off,” Sun Momo analyzed earnestly.

Wen Shan felt a wave of exhaustion. “The engagement is called off? And then what? Momo, don’t you know that even my mother is helping to arrange her marriage? The better Miss Su marries, the more at ease the Heir Apparent will be. If she remains unmarried, he will never be able to stop worrying about her.”

This was a truth she had only recently come to truly understand. The Heir Apparent valued sentiment and responsibility. As long as Miss Su’s future was not settled, he would continue to be concerned.

“This…” Sun Momo thought about it and realized it seemed to make sense. “So, does that mean we have to hope she marries well?”

Wen Shan didn’t answer, only saying, “Stop keeping an eye on her from now on. Everything will be fine once she’s married.”

—When Gu Yuanchen had fallen ill, she had cared for him day and night, and their relationship seemed to have grown much closer. She didn’t want to stir up any more trouble.

Besides, in her opinion, so what if that Young Master Shen became the Number One Scholar? He was ultimately no match for the Heir Apparent.

“Yes,” Sun Momo agreed reluctantly.

…

Of course, Su Zhenyue was unaware of this little interlude.

With Shen Ji becoming the Number One Scholar, she, as his fiancée, basked in a great deal of reflected glory.

She, who rarely socialized, received several invitations to banquets, a first for her.

Moreover, Jing’an Hou and his wife decided to formally recognize her as their goddaughter ahead of schedule.

On the third day of the third month, the Jing An Marquis Estate held a simple adoption ceremony. The only people present were the entire Jing’an Hou family and some close family friends.

Su Zhenyue publicly served tea to Jing’an Hou and his wife, performed the rites, and changed her form of address to “Godfather” and “Godmother.”

They accepted and each gave her a prepared gift.

With that, the adoption ceremony was essentially complete.

In truth, Su Zhenyue felt that being recognized as a goddaughter didn’t make much of a difference. It was merely a title that sounded better to others. But since the Gu family had taken her in for eleven years, and Jing’an Hou and his wife wished to do it, she would go along with it.

It wasn’t as if it would do her any harm.

After the ceremony, Su Zhenyue returned to the West Wing Courtyard.

However, just as she entered the courtyard, she saw a person standing under the parasol tree.

Dressed in a brocade robe, he stood tall and elegant.

It was Shen Ji.

It was already the third month, and the parasol tree was no longer the bare, withered sight of winter. At some point, its branches had become lush and verdant again.

Shen Ji stood under the tree with his hands behind his back. Hearing the sound, he turned around.

This was the first time the two had met since he won the top honor in the Palace Examination.

Su Zhenyue took a step back, curtsied, and said with a smile, “I have yet to congratulate you on becoming the Number One Scholar, Cousin.”

Shen Ji’s brows lifted slightly.

In the past two days, he had received many congratulations, some sincere, some feigned. This one was the simplest, yet it pleased him the most.

Perhaps it was because of the person who said it.

Shen Ji gave a relaxed smile. “It was alright. I must thank the heavens for their blessing and His Majesty for his favor.”

—Although he was confident in his scholarship, he also knew that becoming the Number One Scholar depended on more than just talent.

Hearing him say “His Majesty for his favor,” Su Zhenyue was reminded of something. She hesitated for a moment, and just as she was about to speak, she heard him say, “I’ve been a bit busy these past few days.”

“Mm, I know,” Su Zhenyue replied, completely understanding.

The Spring Examination had just ended; how could the new Jinshi not be busy? Especially him, the Number One Scholar personally appointed by the emperor.

Shen Ji raised an eyebrow, seemingly a little surprised. “Then where would you like to live?”

“What?” Su Zhenyue was startled. Why the sudden question? Hadn’t she always lived in the West Wing Courtyard?

Shen Ji explained patiently, “I was looking at residences in the Eastern Market, preparing to buy a house. I wanted to ask your opinion on where you’d prefer to buy.”

He had been going to the Eastern Market frequently over the past few days, mainly busy with this matter. He could have waited until after his official appointment to look and buy at a more leisurely pace, but with their wedding date approaching, the matter could not be delayed.

—He couldn’t very well marry her while living in a relative’s home.

Hearing this, Su Zhenyue’s heart filled with even greater surprise. “You’re planning to buy a residence?”

“Of course.” Shen Ji glanced at her, a little confused by her reaction. “We are only guests in the Gu family. We will have to move out eventually.”

He had originally been considering whether to rent or buy. But now, after the Palace Examination, since he was the new Number One Scholar and would certainly remain in the capital, purchasing a new residence was very necessary.

Seeing her odd expression, Shen Ji assumed she was worried about money and took the initiative to explain, “You don’t need to worry about the funds. The Shen family is a major clan in Qingzhou with considerable assets. We may not be able to afford a residence like the Jing An Marquis Estate, but we can still afford a house with three courtyards.”

Su Zhenyue’s eyes widened in astonishment.

Seeing Shen Ji come to the capital for the examinations, stay at the Marquis Estate, and bring only one young servant, Ping An, she had assumed his family was just a moderately well-off household.

But what did he just say? He was going to buy a residence in the capital?!

In the eastern part of the city, no less, and a three-courtyard one at that.

Land in the capital was worth its weight in gold. Did he have any idea how much a three-courtyard residence in the eastern part of the city cost?

Su Zhenyue was a bit stunned and couldn’t help but ask, “Are you… very rich?”

“I do alright. My ancestors were quite good at business and accumulated some family assets. Our family is small, so there haven’t been many expenses over the years,” Shen Ji said with a faint smile, his tone light and casual.

Su Zhenyue was so shocked she couldn’t recover for a long time.

Her expression amused Shen Ji. “What? Did you think I was very poor? I’m temporarily staying at the Marquis Estate because the Old Madam insisted, and I should show some filial piety.”

But for their long-term life together, they couldn’t continue to impose on relatives.

Su Zhenyue said in a low voice, “I see.”

Shen Ji returned to the previous topic. “So, where would you like to buy? Or would you prefer to see the places in person before deciding?”

“There’s no rush for that,” Su Zhenyue said thoughtfully. Compared to the residence, she was more concerned about another matter right now.

Shen Ji chuckled. “Then what is the rush? If we buy it sooner, we can do some simple renovations before the wedding.”

Su Zhenyue composed herself and asked, “Cousin, when is the Qionglin Banquet?”

She remembered that in her long dream, after Shen Ji became the Number One Scholar, it was at the Qionglin Banquet that he angered the emperor for some reason and was dispatched to Anle County as a magistrate. On his way to Anle County, he died in a fire at a post station.

If he didn’t anger the emperor, would everything that followed not happen?

Under normal circumstances, the new Number One Scholar should be appointed as a Hanlin Academy Compiler.

Shen Ji didn’t hide it from her. “The evening of the fifth. His Majesty is hosting a banquet for the new Jinshi in the palace.”

“Can you not go?”

A flicker of surprise crossed Shen Ji’s eyes. He pondered for a moment. “An ordinary Jinshi might be able to, but I’m afraid the top three scholars cannot.”

That’s true, Su Zhenyue thought. How could one not attend a banquet specially hosted by His Majesty?

Shen Ji noticed her strange expression and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Cousin, I want to ask a favor of you,” Su Zhenyue said solemnly. “When you attend the palace banquet on the fifth, I must ask you to be extremely careful and cautious.”

As she spoke, she took a step back and curtsied again.

Su Zhenyue felt extremely regretful. At this time in her dream, she had already been betrothed to Yuan Ye of the Shu Region and was waiting for her wedding in the West Wing Courtyard, rarely going out. Although she had vaguely heard that Shen Ji had offended the emperor at the Qionglin Banquet, she didn’t know the specific reason why.

Even though she wanted to warn him now, she could only offer a general “be careful and cautious.”

She didn’t know anything more.

Since they had met, this was the first time Su Zhenyue had been so solemn, even using the word “ask.”

Shen Ji was surprised but nodded. “Alright, I’ll remember.”

—He was not an arrogant man who flaunted his talent; he naturally knew he had to be careful and observe etiquette at a palace banquet. But her special reminder was a sign of her concern.

He understood.

In the blink of an eye, it was the fifth day of the third month, the day of the Qionglin Banquet.

A banquet hosted by the Son of Heaven was a supreme honor.

Before the hour of Youzheng, the new Jinshi had already begun arriving one after another at the Imperial Garden.

All the new Jinshi were dressed in the uniform Jinshi Turban and Robe: a deep blue silk robe, a black leather belt, and black boots.

The only difference was the caps on their heads.

The new Number One Scholar’s cap was adorned with a golden flower personally pinned by the emperor, dazzling and magnificent. The Number Two and Number Three Scholars wore a secondary grade of silver flowers. As for the other Jinshi, they wore an even lower grade of velvet flowers.

After arriving at the Imperial Garden, everyone took their assigned seats in order.

The seats for the top three were special. To Shen Ji’s left and right were the Number Two Scholar, Zhou Anguo, and the Number Three Scholar, Xie Lanxiu.

Among the three, the Number Three Scholar, Xie Lanxiu, was the youngest, not yet seventeen. True to his name, he was as handsome as a fine orchid or elegant bamboo, with red lips and white teeth, possessing an androgynous beauty.

The oldest was the Number Two Scholar, Zhou Anguo. He was nearly forty, with a few fine lines at the corners of his eyes and a neat goatee, looking quite staid and steady.

As they had passed the examination in the same year and were seated together, they addressed each other as brothers and looked out for one another.

At this time, the sky had not yet darkened, the banquet had not officially begun, and the emperor would not arrive for some time.

Having their names on the golden list, and being feasted by the Son of Heaven, this was a time of great triumph in their lives. Seeing that it was still early, some of the more lively and bold new Jinshi picked up their wine cups, left their seats, and went around toasting others.

After the first one, many others followed suit.

—To be selected in the same examination cohort was a special kind of fate. Especially since the new Jinshi were about to enter officialdom, making more friends could also help build connections.

Shen Ji was an average drinker and was being especially careful at the palace banquet, fearing he might lose his composure after drinking. But when a fellow Jinshi offered a toast, he couldn’t just ignore it.

Thus, his mind turned. When someone came to toast him, he would pretend to take a small sip, and then, when no one was looking, secretly pour out the rest.

This way, he neither offended anyone nor got drunk.

The Number Two and Number Three Scholars at his side saw this and, without a word, quietly did the same.

Unfortunately, Xie Lanxiu was, after all, young and had never done such a thing before. In a moment of carelessness, he was caught red-handed secretly pouring out his wine.

The other party was also a young Jinshi, who grabbed his sleeve and laughed, “Number Three Scholar, this won’t do. You can’t be so disrespectful. You must drink this cup dry.”

Xie Lanxiu subconsciously tried to pull away.

However, in the midst of this tug-of-war, Xie Lanxiu accidentally bumped into a palace servant who was serving dishes from behind.

The palace servant hastily dodged, and as his body swayed, his arm moved, and the sauce from a braised fish dish tilted directly towards Shen Ji’s head. Shen Ji, who had been sitting in his seat, heard the commotion. As he tried to move away, his path was blocked by Zhou Anguo and another person. In his haste, he could only twist his body to the side.

The sauce splattered solidly onto his robe.

Several conspicuous, alarming stains now marred the deep blue robe from the waist to the hem.

The faces of everyone present changed.

In a while, when the emperor arrived, he would inevitably bestow books and ice. To show his favor, he would surely call each person before him for an individual reward, especially the top three.

To appear before the emperor in such clothes was a clear breach of imperial etiquette.

The palace servant’s face instantly turned pale, and he hurriedly knelt to beg for forgiveness.

Xie Lanxiu and the young Jinshi looked even more chagrined and both offered to switch clothes with Shen Ji. But both of them were a head shorter than Shen Ji; how could they possibly switch?

The Number Two Scholar, Zhou Anguo, also reacted, taking out a handkerchief to help wipe it. But how could such a stain be wiped away?

Shen Ji felt a headache coming on. “Is there any clean water?”

He himself had been careful and cautious, but he never expected someone else’s carelessness would bring him bad luck.

At this point, he could only console himself that it was still early. If he washed the stained area with water, it would air-dry. Even if it wasn’t completely dry by the time the emperor arrived, it was still better than having obvious stains.

Unfortunately, there was wine and tea at the banquet, but no clean water.

“There is, there is clean water.” A rather clever young eunuch at the side immediately stepped forward. “The Imperial Spring is not far, just a hundred paces or so from here. Number One Scholar, please follow me.”

Shen Ji thought to himself that a hundred paces wasn’t far. The round trip wouldn’t take too long, so there was plenty of time.

He gave a slight nod. “Thank you. I’ll trouble Eunuch to lead the way.”

He followed the young eunuch away from the banquet, walking west for several hundred paces before he heard the sound of flowing water.

After another few dozen paces, he indeed saw a spring.

Shen Ji breathed a sigh of relief and immediately lifted his robe to wash it. However, the braised fish from the banquet had a rich color and was quite oily, and the stains were very large, making them difficult to wash out quickly.

Seeing this, the young eunuch was very attentive. “Number One Scholar, please wait a moment. I know a place with a soap pod tree. I’ll go pick a few leaves.”

Shen Ji politely declined, “There’s no need. Thank you, Eunuch.”

—Night was not like day; a quick wash should be enough to conceal it. He was being constantly careful at the palace banquet. If not for the fact that his robe was truly filthy, he would never have left his seat so easily.

“It’s very close, no trouble at all. I’ll be right back.” The young eunuch was eager to make a good impression and ran off in a flash.

It was too late for Shen Ji to stop him.

Not wanting to cause more trouble, he quickly washed the stains and, without waiting for the young eunuch to return, prepared to leave.

However, at that very moment, he heard the sound of hurried footsteps approaching from a distance.

Shen Ji looked up and saw not the young eunuch from before, but a young man exuding an air of nobility.