The Host is Clearly A Scumbag (Quick Travel)

After enjoying a hearty meal of iron-pot stewed goose at Mingting's home, Emperor Li single-handedly polished off an entire plate of white sugar cakes before leaving contentedly, cradling a large jar of white sugar.

Mingting was also very satisfied, 'Emperor Li was such a good boss! It's worry-free to work with such a leader!'

[Boss, do you think the Emperor will take your advice?]

After the Emperor left, Fengtian floated around in the air.

'He will.' Mingting strolled leisurely in the courtyard to digest his food.

'All the world's hustle is for profit, and all its bustle is for gain.'

'The Emperor has millions of subjects to feed and clothe, his considerations run deeper. To sway a ruler, you must show him tangible benefits. What truly moves an emperor is concrete advantage.'

Even though it was only the first time he met Emperor Li, Mingting felt that Emperor Li was a workaholic with strong execution ability.

When you meet such an emperor, as long as you show your value, you can get generous returns.

Not long after, Li Sheng came to inform Mingting that everything was settled.

If the Emperor of a country wants to protect someone, he can definitely hide him tightly.

Mingting was now officially the son of Jiang Xiucai's distant cousin, and both his parents are dead.

Every detail of his life before joining the Jiang Family had been meticulously documented, with witnesses and evidence to back it up. Song Yi, the scumbag father, wouldn't stand a chance at reclaiming Mingting as his son.

Mingting's biological mother's grave had also been moved to Xiaohe Village. When he returns to Xiaohe Village to worship his ancestors after the palace examination, Mingting could also pay his respects to his biological mother.

"Thank you, Brother! Please convey my gratitude to Foster Father!"

"No need for formalities between brothers…"

Li Sheng then talked about Song Yi's current life. His current wife is the daughter of Prince of Qi, Princess Dongyang.

She is the youngest daughter of the Prince of Qi and has been doted on since childhood.

Before marrying Song Yi, Princess Dongyang had a marriage, but her husband died early, leaving behind a daughter, Du Ruowei.

For her second marriage with Song Yi, they had a son, Song Mingqi.

"Princess Dongyang is extremely domineering. Once, when Song Yi had an affair, she slashed the woman's face and sold her to a coal mine."

"And that Du Ruowei's personality is exactly like the princess..."

Li Sheng was afraid that Mingting might suffer in a confrontation against Song Yi, so he gave him some information that the spies had found.

"In short, you'd better stay away from them."

Li Sheng was also relieved that Emperor Li had learned of Song Yi's misdeeds before selecting a Crown Princess.

Originally, Princess Dongyang had always hoped that her daughter could marry into the East Palace, and she had been trying to please the Empress Dowager and Empress over the years.

But with Du Ruowei's two-faced temper, which is sweet in public but whip-wielding in private, Li Sheng would never marry her!

…

When reading the information, Mingting noticed something very interesting.

Princess Dongyang and Song Yi had married in a hurry.

For a royal lady to get married, even if it was her second marriage, the wedding preparations should have taken time, yet they had wed within three months. Moreover, Song Mingqi was a premature baby.

Mingting wondered, 'Was Song Mingqi born prematurely, or was it because Song Yi and Princess Dongyang had an affair before marriage, and the pregnancy could not be hidden anymore, so they hurriedly married?'

Anyway, Li Sheng was not an outsider, so Mingting shared his speculation.

If calculated based on a full-term pregnancy, Song Yi hadn't even divorced his first wife at that point.

Which means the princess was rushing to be a concubine!

"No way?" Li Sheng's gossip-loving heart immediately stirred, "Brother Ting, don't worry, I'll get to the bottom of this for you!"

Li Sheng was already fifteen, and some of the spies under Emperor Li had been handed over to him.

In order to vent his anger for his sworn brother, he was determined to thoroughly investigate the matter.

In early April, the palace examination commenced. Mingting received the questions.

One was about lifting the maritime trade ban, another about the campaign against Western Xia, and the last asked what made a qualified minister.

Mingting felt that Emperor Li was giving him an advantage.

He had just made the suggestion not long ago, and now he encountered this topic on the paper of the palace examination.

This kind of imperial favoritism was truly rare in history!

Emperor Li had long wanted to reveal himself to Mingting, eager to see the boy's surprised expression.

He had been holding back behind the curtain for half an hour before he got up from the dragon throne and began to stroll among the examinees.

When he came to Mingting's side, Emperor Li stood still and stared at his answer sheet.

It is said that a person's handwriting reflects their personality, and their character can be seen from their handwriting. However, this rule didn't seem to apply to Mingting.

His calligraphy was neat and square, pleasant to the eye, but it is devoid of individuality.

From an examiner's perspective, this kind of handwriting is of course ideal.

But for Emperor Li, who liked deducing his ministers' temperaments from their handwriting, this was disappointing.

"Cough…"

Emperor Li cleared his throat, hoping to catch Mingting's attention.

Instead, Mingting remained absorbed in his answers, undisturbed. It was the examinee beside him that grew so nervous that he smudged ink across his paper, ruining an entire page.

Seeing that Mingting was entirely unfazed, Emperor Li had no choice but to move on.

At the same time, Shangguan Shi had also brought Jiang Meimei to observe the candidates' fortunes from the shadows.

Jiang Meimei had been thoroughly tormented by Shangguan Shi, who is simply a big devil.

In the past few years, Shangguan Shi has only given her the minimum luck requirement to maintain the balance of her body's luck, preventing her from dying of misfortune.

The rest of the time, Jiang Meimei functioned like a fortune-detecting tool, scanning the luck of officials and the royal family according to Shangguan Shi's requirements.

Today was another day for Jiang Meimei to shine.

She immediately spotted Mingting, who is shining brightly in the crowd.

Compared to a few years ago, Mingting's luck had become even more radiant now, gleaming like dazzling sunlight.

Jiang Meimei couldn't help but felt that time had flown!

Nearly four years had passed since she first saw Mingting in the Jiang Family's ancestral hall.

The frail child from back then had grown into a tall, upright young man, exuding nobility. Even with the Emperor nearby, he remained composed and unruffled.

On the contrary, she had become a prisoner, caged like livestock, locked in an iron cage day after day.

Jiang Meimei no longer harbored thoughts of escape. There was no way out, and the Great Immortal couldn't help her either.

Now, she and the Great Immortal were like brothers in hardship, relying on each other for survival.

In fact, the system was also miserable. As long as Jiang Meimei's misfortune reaches a certain threshold, it could unbind itself and gain freedom.

But Shangguan Shi, the cunning official, gave Jiang Meimei just enough fortune every day to keep her from meeting the unbinding requirement.

He is indeed a treacherous human!

Jiang Meimei obediently matched the examinees' fortunes one by one and reported them.

When she mentioned that Mingting's golden light had grown stronger, Shangguan Shi was surprised but recorded it faithfully.

If she wasn't mistaken, golden light represented merit.

She wondered what had Mingting done to accumulate so much merit.