Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Tapping

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Chen Kan declared, “I’m really panicking.”

He was about to face a tyrant who casually slaughtered entire families, after having just smacked the tyrant’s daughter on the backside—and his teacher had even instructed him to defy the man.

What was he supposed to do?

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“Chen Kan, come forward.”

Zhu Di finished speaking with Dao Yan and beckoned to Chen Kan.

With a nervous heart, Chen Kan slowly shuffled toward him. Bending at the waist, he clasped his hands and bowed.

“This commoner, Chen Kan, pays his respects to Your Majesty. Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!”

“Heh. Rise, and sit down.”

Zhu Di seemed to be in an excellent mood. At that moment, he was nothing like the Yongle Emperor recorded in the history books, the man who supposedly opened his eyes every morning with an urge to cut someone down. Instead, he resembled a kindly uncle from the neighborhood, wearing a warm smile that inspired instant goodwill.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“I heard that yesterday Prince Gaoyang recommended you for an official post, and you refused?”

Chen Kan: “...”

Who the hell told you that?

Why did everyone know about this?

Then again, even Fang Xiaoru knew about it, so it was hardly strange that Zhu Di did too.

Chen Kan accepted the reality of the situation and replied in a low voice, “Your Majesty, that is indeed what happened.”

“Oh? Why?”

Zhu Di was somewhat astonished. Throughout history, countless people had longed to become officials but could never find a way in.

Yet Chen Kan, an eighteen-year-old boy, had managed to resist the temptation of being personally recommended by a prince. Zhu Di could not help but look at him with new respect.

“Mainly because this commoner is still young. Moreover, my learning remains shallow. If I were to take office rashly, I fear I might harm rather than benefit the empire.”

Since Fang Xiaoru had forbidden him from becoming an official, Chen Kan simply repeated to Zhu Di the same excuse he had given Zhu Gaoxu the previous day.

“Is that truly the reason?”

Zhu Di was just a tiny bit skeptical.

Chen Kan nodded like a pecking chick. “It is absolutely true.”

Zhu Di did not quite believe that an eighteen-year-old boy could genuinely resist the allure of office and rank. More likely, Chen Kan had reservations because the person who had recommended him was a prince.

So he tested him. “What if I were to appoint you myself?”

Chen Kan shook his head. “My answer remains the same, Your Majesty. I am still too young.”

Seeing how decisively Chen Kan refused, Zhu Di narrowed his eyes slightly and said with displeasure, “You truly do not wish to become an official?”

“It is not that I am unwilling,” Chen Kan replied. “I merely wish to wait a few years, deepen my learning, and enter government through the civil service examinations.”

The moment he finished speaking, a flash of inspiration crossed Chen Kan’s mind.

He suddenly understood why Fang Xiaoru had forbidden him from becoming an official.

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The civil service examinations!

Fang Xiaoru wanted him to enter government through the examinations.

The Ming dynasty’s examination system was already highly developed.

And as Fang Xiaoru’s only personally instructed disciple, taking the examinations was naturally the proper path for him.

Only by entering government through the examinations could he rise higher and go farther in the future.

But if he accepted the official post bestowed upon him by Zhu Di, the scholar-official community would inevitably brand him as someone who had advanced through imperial favor.

Once labeled that way, how could he ever inherit Fang Xiaoru’s legacy?

Chen Kan understood.

And after thinking it through, he suddenly felt that this teacher he had acquired by sheer luck truly treated him well.

After all, Fang Xiaoru had not even paved the way for his own two biological sons.

“But the speech with which you persuaded Master Fang in prison was certainly sharp-tongued. I do not believe your learning is shallow in the slightest.”

Suspicion filled Zhu Di’s face.

Now that he understood Fang Xiaoru’s painstaking intentions, Chen Kan no longer harbored any resentment.

That meant he could not allow Zhu Di to lead the conversation by the nose.

So Chen Kan decided to lay his cards on the table.

After organizing his thoughts, he said solemnly, “Your Majesty, if there is anything within the court that requires this commoner’s assistance, I shall brave fire and water without hesitation. But as for becoming an official, I beg Your Majesty not to raise the matter again. I have confidence that I can enter government through the civil service examinations.”

“Oh!”

Zhu Di understood him now. So this boy looked down on the official post he had offered.

And then Zhu Di flew into a rage.

So the post he bestowed did not count as a real office, while only one obtained through the examinations was worthy of the name?

How dare this boy show such contempt for the Emperor!

“Chen Kan, you are extremely bold! You dare despise me and the imperial house. Do you think I am unwilling to kill you?”

“...?”

A string of question marks flashed through Chen Kan’s mind.

He could not understand how Zhu Di, who had been perfectly pleasant just a moment ago, had suddenly become like this.

Had he said something wrong?

Chen Kan was bewildered—and more than a little exhausted.

Was this the generation gap?

“Aah! Your Majesty, I have been wronged!”

Whatever had gone wrong in Zhu Di’s head, protesting his innocence first could never hurt.

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Chen Kan suddenly let out a howl, startling Zhu Di into a violent twitch. The Emperor could not understand why Chen Kan had abruptly begun acting this way.

But then his anger grew even stronger.

Did this boy mean to say that the Emperor was falsely accusing him?

“Then tell me. In what way have I wronged you?”

“Your Majesty, this commoner has been wronged! My admiration for Your Majesty is like a mighty river, flowing endlessly; like a great flood, once unleashed, impossible to contain. How could this commoner ever dare despise Your Majesty’s dignity? I beg Your Majesty to judge the matter clearly! I have truly been wronged!”

Zhu Di was stunned by this sudden torrent of flattery.

Then he slowly nodded. “Mm. That sounds more like something a human being would say.”

Chen Kan: “...”

He really wanted to slap that forty-two-sized shoe against Zhu Di’s forty-two-sized face.

But never mind. He did not dare.

With a sharp smack, Chen Kan dropped to his knees before Zhu Di.

“Your Majesty, please judge the matter clearly. I truly had no intention of showing contempt for the dignity of the imperial house.”

Zhu Di slightly restrained his anger and asked, “If you had no such intention, then why are you unwilling to become an official?”

Chen Kan wanted nothing more than to seize Zhu Di by the collar and slap him repeatedly across the face.

Could this man not understand plain speech?

He had already said he wanted to take the examinations. Did the Emperor even know what the examinations were?

But if he actually did that, there was a good chance Zhu Di would dismember him before he ever got the chance to sit for them.

After weighing the advantages and disadvantages, Chen Kan decided to swallow his anger.

He clasped his hands obediently and said, “Because my teacher hopes that I will enter government through the proper path of the civil service examinations. As the saying goes, once a man has accepted someone as his teacher, that teacher is his father for life. I dare not disappoint my teacher’s earnest hopes, and therefore I can only regretfully decline Your Majesty’s gracious favor. I beg Your Majesty to judge the matter clearly.”

Shifting the blame was one of the essential skills of a time traveler.

There was no way his thin arms and legs could contend with Zhu Di, so he had no choice but to change targets.

Threatening me here is useless. If you have the courage, go argue with Fang Xiaoru.

Sure enough, the moment Zhu Di heard that this was Fang Xiaoru’s idea, his expression softened somewhat.

Then he nodded. “I did not expect you to possess such filial devotion. Very well. Rise.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty!”

Chen Kan rose to his feet, feeling utterly exhausted by the effort of speaking with Zhu Di.

He wanted to go home.

He wanted his mother.

Zhu Di, meanwhile, was secretly amused.

Trying to play tricks in front of me, are you?

Indeed, whether it was his persistent questioning or his sudden anger, everything Zhu Di had done was meant to put pressure on Chen Kan.

For the past several days, Zhu Di had known everything Chen Kan had done and every word he had spoken.