The Marquis Mansion's Elite Class

Chapter 182

Everyone returned to their respective courtyards, and Little Demon followed the Crown Prince upstairs. Neither of them brought any servants, not even Shunzi or the Crown Prince's guards.

On the first floor, the scholars, professors, and students were all curiously intrigued, but no one dared to speak up, especially concerning the Crown Prince. They all tried to regain their composure and resumed the normal teaching of the intensive class.

The second floor had been cleaned and prepared beforehand. To create a conducive learning environment, Xu Wan had arranged a large desk that could seat five people side by side, fully equipped with ink, paper, brushes, and inkstones. A small side table held tea and snacks, everything meticulously prepared.

The Crown Prince, upon seeing this setup, raised an eyebrow and remarked, "She is indeed clever."

Little Demon, curious, asked, "Are you referring to my stepmother?"

The Crown Prince smiled and nodded, "Having her guide you will be of great help to your growth."

Zong Jincheng nodded honestly.

Since there were no outsiders present, he knew the Crown Prince wouldn’t share his little secrets.

The Crown Prince touched his head and smiled, "Come here, I'll teach you a new lesson."

"Hmm? You're going to teach me a lesson, Your Highness?" Zong Jincheng asked, a bit confused, "I thought we were just going to chat?"

The Crown Prince chuckled, "Yes, you can consider it a chat, since you won't need to read or write."

Upon hearing it was still a chat, Zong Jincheng immediately perked up with joy.

This kind of conversational learning was far more interesting than boring memorization. He straightened up, assuming a posture of a well-behaved student ready to listen carefully.

The Crown Prince calmly began, "Today, the first lesson I will teach you is about the appointment of officials."

Zong Jincheng's eyes widened.

He knew this topic!

In the Great Chu, the appointment of officials was designated by the Emperor, but the Crown Prince, the Prime Minister, the six ministry heads, and other high-ranking officials also had the right to recommend. Since the Emperor, being at the pinnacle of power, could not fully understand the character of those below, he often relied on the recommendations of these officials to make his decisions.

However, these were at least second-tier officials of the Great Chu...

Caught daydreaming for a moment, Zong Jincheng awkwardly laughed and coughed, "Nothing, nothing! Your Highness, please continue."

The Crown Prince resumed, "Such upright officials are the rarest, but also the most prone to offending many due to their straightforward nature. The worst fate befell Former Prime Minister Yan Zhun, who ended up with a broken family."

As Zong Jincheng thought about Qin Ye, who was also this type of person, envisioning his future in the civil service where he too would likely be targeted by rivals, the name of Yan Zhun interrupted his thoughts.

Zong Jincheng abruptly looked up, remembering that Yan Zhun was his brother’s grandfather!

"Yan Zhun had the talent to govern the nation, but he was merciless in his actions, even going against the Emperor's words. For a mere thousand taels of embezzled silver, he..." The Crown Prince seemed genuinely pained and regretful as he mentioned Yan Zhun.

Zong Jincheng blurted out, "So, could someone like Yan Zhun ever be saved?"

The Crown Prince looked at him with a hint of approval, "Do you also wish to save someone like him, Jincheng?"

Zong ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‍Jincheng nodded fervently, "Yes, he was a good man. He shouldn’t have ended up like that."

Moreover, as his brother's grandfather, if Yan Zhun had still been alive and the Yan family hadn't fallen, his brother wouldn’t have suffered for so many years.

The Crown Prince said, "There are three ways to save someone like Yan Zhun."

"Three ways?" Zong Jincheng's eyes widened as he leaned in closer to listen attentively.

The Crown Prince explained, "First, amend the excessively harsh laws to ensure that an upright official doesn’t get eliminated from the bureaucracy too easily. Second, they need to change their temperament—speak more tactfully, be careful not to antagonize too many people while maintaining their work ethic. Third, have someone in a powerful position protect them."

Zong Jincheng mused, "Changing one’s personality sounds difficult. The first and third options seem more feasible. But Your Highness, given that you knew these methods, why didn’t you protect Yan Zhun back then?"

The only positions higher than the Prime Minister were the Emperor and the Crown Prince, so the latter should have been able to protect him. From Zong Jincheng’s perspective, the Crown Prince seemed to have genuine sorrow over Yan Zhun’s fate.

The Crown Prince gave a bitter smile, "Because ten years ago, I was not yet the Crown Prince."

Zong Jincheng pouted, showing his dissatisfaction, "The Emperor delayed appointing you as the Crown Prince too long, denying you the chance to do many good things."

Otherwise, his brother could have had a much better childhood!

The Crown Prince chuckled lightly, "Perhaps only you think that. I have over twenty brothers, all of whom hoped that I would be appointed Crown Prince later, or wished for me to pass away prematurely, so they could have a chance."

At this, Zong Jincheng’s face grew red with indignation, involuntarily standing up for the Crown Prince, "What kind of brothers are they? Wishing for the Crown Prince to have an accident, all of them are bad people!"