The Sickly Beauty Substitute Called It Quits

73

"Ah Yu has written to Jiang HuaiQing so many times. He doesn't have any doubts about our identity?" Shang JunLin asked.

Shen Yu glanced at him obliquely. "Your Majesty read almost all of those letters. Doesn't Your Majesty know?"

In the beginning, Shang JunLin never cared about such things. He never asked in detail about what Shen Yu did. He didn't think it was necessary. As long as it was clear that Shen Yu had no intention of harming Da Huan, Shang JunLin didn't care. Later, his feelings changed, and he didn't ask because he didn't want to pry into Shen Yu's personal space. He wanted to respect Shen Yu as a person. The reason he cared so much about Jiang HuaiQing's letters came down to one word, "jealousy".

Shang JunLin pestered Shen Yu several times with this excuse. Shen Yu ended up reading every letter with him, which spared him from being hassled under this pretext.

Shang JunLin didn't have a shred of embarrassment at being found out. He leaned in close to Shen Yu's ear. "Ah Yu is the one who wanted to read those letters with this emperor. Don't blame me."

Every once in a while, the ministers cast restrained glances at them. Shen Yu wasn't in the mood to show off the closeness of his relationship with Shang JunLin. He pushed the man back. "He probably doesn't know."

If he knew, he wouldn't have written to Shen Yu as often, nor would he sound like he was writing to an old friend. Jiang HuaiQing was younger than when Shen Yu knew him in his previous life, but some things were engraved in his bones and hadn't changed.

"Maybe he doesn't just want to think about it." Shen Yu thought for a while and added, "The fact we live in the palace is actually a big flaw in our cover story. If he thinks about it deeply enough, he could probably guess our identity."

"Ah Yu is right. For example, Hè ChengYu who's frequently with him has probably guessed who we are." After Shen Yu's hint, Shang JunLin relaxed the arm around the young man's waist.

Shang JunLin's cold gaze swept the hall, and the ministers who were targeted lowered their heads in fear. They didn't dare to look again.

Finally there was no more staring. Shen Yu felt relieved.

"Hè ChengYu is the di son of the Hè family, the top aristocratic family in Jiangnan. It's reasonable for him to be perceptive." Shen Yu had learned about Hè ChengYu's background from Shang JunLin and wasn't surprised he'd seen through their disguise.

The officials who scored the exam weren't able to see the examinees' names. Even Shang JunLin wouldn't know which answer sheet belonged to which examinee until after the final scores were decided.

The results of Da Huan's palace examination would be announced the same day. The examination officials were ready before the exam even began. After the candidates left the hall, the officials immediately began to review the exam papers.

During this time, the candidates stayed in a special side hall, where food was presented to them. The dishes and delicacies were all mouth-watering, which could be regarded as a form of reward for the scholars who made it this far.

But not everyone was able to enjoy the imperial palace's food.

The side hall had a lot of space. Before the results were announced, the candidates could rest as much as they wanted. However, not many people were relaxed enough to enjoy it.

Jiang HuaiQing moved around a bit to loosen his arms and legs, then walked to Hè ChengYu. "ChengYu Xiong, how come you don't look nervous at all?"

Everyone in the side hall seemed to be tense and could hardly sit down. There were countless delicious foods on the tables, but nothing could ease the anxiety they felt at the moment. Only a few people were calm enough to sit down and taste the delicious food.