After transmigrating, I became a stepmother.

Anyone could see Prince Su's intentions, and everyone couldn't help but look at the three of them, mainly at Wen Tingzhu.

Even the emperor was no exception; his gaze was filled with scrutiny and observation.

Firstly, Yang Bo's performance was truly unsatisfactory, and Prince Su's words were also very straightforward. Secondly, Li Xuan himself came from a scholarly family, and his promotion was only a matter of time. The reason he hadn't yet was simply because his father was currently serving as the Crown Prince's tutor, a tactic of checks and balances employed by the emperor.

But Wen Tingzhu is different. He has no foundation in the court. If he can gain the favor of Prince Su, he can rise rapidly in rank.

However, it remains to be seen how much truth or falsehood Prince Su has in his words!

Despite being watched by so many people, Wen Tingzhu seemed completely oblivious and frankly said, "This humble subject believes that His Highness Prince Su's words may not be entirely reasonable."

"Oh, what do you say?"

Prince Su stroked his chin and asked with great interest.

“Your Majesty, you may not know this, but I only passed the imperial examination last year and still need to gain more experience. Yet I already have the insight to understand the relationship between two countries. This is truly due to Your Majesty’s favor. Such a ruler is exactly the kind of wise and virtuous monarch that we scholars dream of.”

After speaking, Wen Tingzhu bowed deeply to Emperor Sheng.

It must be said that his words flattered Emperor Sheng, who, though he could not show it, felt very pleased.

Isn't he just such a wise ruler?

Emperor Sheng was pleased, but Prince Su was very unhappy and sneered, "You certainly know how to flatter!"

“Every word I uttered comes from the bottom of my heart. Not only me, but all the civil and military officials of our prosperous country think the same way.”

As if to prove that Wen Tingzhu's words were true, all the officials of the Sheng Kingdom in the hall knelt down at the same time and shouted, "Your Majesty is wise!"

At this point, Emperor Sheng could no longer suppress his smile and quickly raised his hand to signal, "Get up, everyone. Prince Su and the others are still here. Aren't you afraid of making a fool of yourself in front of others?"

The tone and expression were strikingly similar to the smug look of parents showing off their children.

Everyone stood up at the sound, and the Crown Prince took over, saying, "Father, I must speak up for everyone. You all spoke from the heart, not to show off. His Highness Prince Su is so open-minded, I'm sure he won't mind."

Prince Su was caught off guard by the rebuke, and he had to swallow back the sarcastic remarks that had just slipped out. His face flushed red, but he had no choice but to agree with the Crown Prince: "Of course I don't mind."

His face, however, turned pale and then flushed, which was quite a sight!

The Anguo official who had been silent all along observed his expression, straightened his robes, and then said, "The outcome of the first round is decided, but I wonder when the second round will begin. I am rather impatient."

These words were clearly meant to help Prince Su out of a predicament and prevent Anguo's momentum from being crushed. However, there was indeed a clueless fellow in Shengguo who couldn't see the situation and actually chimed in.

"Your humble servant is ready and awaits your arrival at any time."

Yang Bo was afraid that the other two would rush to answer the questions first, just like they had done before, so he couldn't wait to speak up.

Everyone looked at him as if he were a fool, especially his uncle Yang Rui, who wished he could shut him up.

The original plan was to let him gain some fame along the way. As long as he didn't make any mistakes, he would always have some credit for volunteering. Now it seems that we should have stopped him back then.

To avoid making a fool of myself here, I only hope that His Majesty will not take his anger out on the Yang family because of this fool!