Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!-Chapter 653 - Losing Composure_1

The Emperor had no idea what the Crown Prince was thinking and continued to look further down the list. He had a good idea about the candidates in the front rows, and soon his gaze reached Shi Qing. The Emperor had not interfered at all with the selections for the imperial examination, and for Shi Qing to achieve such results despite his illness was commendable, fulfilling the Emperor’s expectations.

Then, as he continued to scan the list, the Emperor paused, his movement to stand quite pronounced. Seeing that the Crown Prince was watching him, he said, "I will take a walk."

The Crown Prince didn’t miss the astonishment in his father’s eyes, followed by the Emperor unconsciously standing up. After so many years, it was the first time his father had lost his composure, and the Crown Prince’s eyes closely followed him.

The Emperor controlled his pace, trying to appear normal, and walked slowly, step by step. He first made a round around the entire hall, and then started to walk row by row.

Finally, the Emperor’s footsteps brought him to the table marked number sixteen. His gaze landed on the name, Zhang Rongchuan—a familiar name, the boy raised by Zhou Shuren’s family. His gaze shifted to the earnest young man writing his essay, so similar, too similar, especially the profile, which seemed like a young man from his memories brought to life, one dressed in armor and the other in a scholar’s robe.

The Emperor’s eyes then fell on the essay, and he quickly read through it. Although not much was written, it left one anticipating the unwritten parts.

The Emperor stood still, not wanting to move as if he could never have enough of this sensation. His heart was joyous, a feeling he had not had in a long time.

Regrettably, the Emperor couldn’t stay there forever. He moved away and turned to Zhou Shuren’s third son’s table. Seeing the essay, he was full of admiration. Zhou Shuren indeed knew how to educate his sons, and he was more pleased that Zhou Changlian had not panicked due to his presence, a commendable trait.

In the entire hall, the Crown Prince was the one who understood the Emperor best. He looked toward the young man with a kind face, quickly realizing the resemblance to his second uncle and also to his maternal grandfather. After all, he had not seen his maternal grandfather or his uncle often—the grandfather’s health was poor, and the uncle with a hidden ailment seldom appeared in public, making the whole Ning Residence exceptionally low-key.

The Crown Prince scrutinized the young man carefully. He was good-looking and gave a feeling of familiarity. However, these were not reasons for his father to be so disturbed. The Crown Prince couldn’t figure out why his father had lost his composure.

The Emperor soon returned to the Dragon Throne. He had little desire to stay there any longer, his mind preoccupied with Zhou Shuren’s information, which he remembered clearly. However, he hadn’t paid much attention to this boy raised in the family—the tidings were scarce.

The Emperor went over it again in his mind. It wasn’t a conspiracy; he trusted Zhou Shuren. So, how could there be someone so strikingly alike? Could the concept of reincarnation really exist? Could this be Ning Shao’s reincarnation?

Despite appearing calm on the surface, Rongchuan was extremely nervous inside. Fortunately, he felt that the Emperor was kindly disposed towards him; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to withstand it. He steadied his mind once more, recalling the draft he had prepared, and continued writing.

Chang Lian stopped writing; he needed a break. He didn’t possess his father’s skills, and it had already been quite a feat to stay calm earlier. This was the Emperor, the Emperor!

The Emperor’s mind wandered. Although he should have been focusing on Shen Yang, he couldn’t help but let his eyes drift towards Zhang Rongchuan. He thought to himself, how genuinely pleasing the child was to look at, and wondered if Ning Shao would have been like this had he pursued literature.

The Crown Prince was feeling muddled; he was increasingly unable to fathom his father’s actions. Hadn’t the Emperor just been showing considerable interest in the sixth-place candidate? Why was he not even glancing that way now?

Feeling a bit confused, the Crown Prince wondered if he should further speculate.

The Emperor withdrew his gaze, finally noticing that the Crown Prince was almost directly watching him, and realized that he had been exceptionally indiscreet, "I will stay here. You may return first, the Crown Prince. There are some Zhezi waiting for you to handle in the government hall."

Bowing his head, the Crown Prince responded, "Your son takes his leave."

He had been standing for quite some time, longer than the usual court sessions. Though he had not been able to decipher his father’s thoughts, it was still good to leave.

The Crown Prince had not yet reached the government hall when he encountered the Empress in front of the hall; he quickened his steps, "Mother, what brings you here?"

In her hand, the Empress held some branches she had broken off in the garden, "I just came from the garden and brought some branches over."

Seeing the buds on the branches, the Crown Prince didn’t delegate the task to a Palace Attendant but took them himself, "I shall find a vase for these shortly."

The Empress asked, "Did you just come from the main hall?"

"Yes, Father told me to come back to deal with the Zhezi."

The Empress did not inquire about government affairs and casually said, "I hear that among the candidates who passed this time, there are quite a few young ones?"

Talking to Mother Empress allowed the Crown Prince to be much more casual, "Mother, it seems you are quite interested in this batch of candidates?"

The Empress smiled, "Sort of, I won’t disturb you any longer, I will go back first."

The Crown Prince respectfully saw his mother off. Today the Emperor was odd, and the Empress was odd too. The suspicions that he had finally managed to suppress rose again. The Crown Prince entered the government hall and picked up the Zhezi but couldn’t focus on it. He was sure that there was something his Father and Mother Empress knew that he didn’t.

In the capital, at the Zhou residence, Zhulan kept looking at the time, her eyes never leaving the hourglass. Her heart had not known peace. Currently, she had no news about what was happening inside the palace, but, based on her knowledge of the Emperor over the years, the Emperor was not one to act on impulse. This man was full of suspicions, just that she didn’t know if the Emperor had already taken notice of Shen Yang.

Zhulan’s mind was in turmoil. The Emperor’s thoughts were hard to guess, and thus the course of events was difficult to predict. However, she did not care about anyone else, only about Rongchuan. If it was a trap that had been set, then Rongchuan truly would be caught unawares.

Indeed, she and Zhou Shuren had been careful and cautious integrating into the ancient rules since arriving in the past. But somehow, they had managed to pick up the biggest trouble early on. Such are the unpredictable ways of the world.

Chang Zhong moved closer to his mother’s side, "Mother, are you feeling unwell?"

Zhulan reassured her youngest son, "Mother is fine, I just want to lie down for a bit."

If it weren’t for the need to be prepared for emergencies today, she would have truly preferred to sleep until evening without a care.

Chang Zhong didn’t believe her, his little chubby hand reaching out and imitating what his mother had done before, touching her forehead, "Mother, your forehead is hot, we should call the doctor."

Zhulan shivered from her son’s cold hand, "You just came back from outside; your hand is cold. Mother’s head is not hot, no need for a doctor."

Chang Zhong touched his own forehead then grinned, "Mhm."

Zhulan was charmed by his cuteness, "Go and play."

Chang Zhong took off his shoes and climbed onto the kang bed, "Your son will keep Mother company."

Zhulan’s heart warmed with love, her son was like a little warm jacket, "Alright." freeweɓnøvel.com

In Jinzhou, Zhou Shuren had already given up trying to guess. At this time, all he could do was to deal with things as they came, adopting somewhat of a carefree attitude, which greatly increased his efficiency at work.

Zhou Shuren waited until Master Wong came in, "These are the investigations sent from the counties, find some time to sort them out."

Master Wong felt that he preferred the old Zhou Shuren, the one whose mind was not on his official duty, which allowed him to have some leisure as well, "Sir, I still have unfinished business at hand."

Zhou Shuren, "Your efficiency is not up to standard."

Wong Ju chuckled, "Sir, there is but one Zhou Shuren in Jinzhou Residence."

Zhou Shuren, "I’ll take that as a compliment. Indeed, you can’t compare to my efficiency."

Wong Ju, "...."