Chapter 11: Prince Chen
Even the collected examiner was a bit surprised. “Will this gentleman be so kind as to elaborate on your answer?”
Jun Huang’s lips curled upwards as she slowly enunciated her response. “To use house rules to govern a home and a nation’s laws to govern a country. What is appropriate for the home is not for the land, and what is suitable for managing the entire world does not fit a kingdom.”
“Marvelous, how marvelous! Compared to this, the previous answer was as if a grain of rice vying with the moon for splendor!”
“I’d thought he was an arrogant cock, but he actually possesses brilliance!”
“……”
The audience instantly became lively after Jun Huang delivered her answer. Many applauded her loudly and showered her with compliments. She took in the crowd’s reaction and looked sidelong at the examiner with a faint smile. “May I inquire if this lowly commoner’s response is satisfactory?”
“Well…” The examiner paused as he stroke his beard, not having reached a decision yet. Just then, a pageboy suddenly ran out from the Prince Chen Manor and bowed towards Jun Huang. “His Highness invites this gentleman inside.”
“He passed, he passed! He actually passed!”
“The prince is personally receiving him, he’s going to soar into brilliance from now on!”
“Do any of you know who he is?”
“……”
The audience beneath the stage instantly ignited into an uproar, looking at Jun Huang with expressions of respect and admiration.
Jun Huang followed the pageboy into the manor, who stopped in front of a pavilion after taking few turns. The pageboy turned to bow, saying respectfully “Sir, the prince is inside.”
“Thank you.” Jun Huang nodded and walked towards the pavilion after the pageboy had left. The pavilion was situated in the middle of a pond, and the lotus flowers around it were in full bloom. Jun Huang was crossing the wooden bridge to reach the pavilion when the sounds of a zither abruptly rang out. The music hung in the air long after they had been played, resonating in her ears. Her steps slowed as she listened to the notes.
There was a zither with edges made of burned Chinese parasol wood 1 placed in the middle of the pavilion. A lit brazier was simmering beside it, and a man in luxurious clothing sat there, his hands strumming away at the strings. He had black hair and was dressed in white clothes, with handsome features and a striking air about his face. He exuded a natural sense of nobility, and the gentle melody coaxed out of the zither by his fingertips added a trace of serenity and distance to him.
Jun Huang stood silently to the side, only making her greeting after Qi Chen had finished. “Your Highness is an open and forthright person. Although your music evokes a distant mindset, it is quite grand. Your Highness must be an amiable and easygoing person.”
“Oh? Does the gentlemen possess some knowledge of music?” Prince Chen gently arched an eyebrow, but his tone was as calm as ever.
If the three questions Prince Chen had set before was the first test, then this performance was the second test. Jun Huang was well aware of this, but responded humbly, “My knowledge scratches but the surface.”
Prince Chen’s eyes creased as he smiled, but inwardly, he was shaking his head. He’d thought that this person would possess some wisdom, but who would’ve thought that he would be no different from the ones who’d come before?
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Pheonix Ascending(PA)
Historical FictionThis novel is not mine. For offline reading purposes only. Credits and acknowledgements goes to the author, translator(s), editor(s), and publisher(s). The heavens and earth change when the blood phoenix descends. She is the chosen one of the blood...
