This scoundrel is a bit of a swordsman.

The Crown Prince remained calm and composed. Since they wanted to intimidate the eldest son, how could they not prepare? The second and third questions were the real killers.

"you sure?"

"Of course, my mother specially obtained this test question from my father. Unless Xiao Jianxian is reincarnated, no one in this world can solve this question."

The Crown Prince responded confidently, while glancing at the Princess's gloomy face. A sense of satisfaction rose within him; the world ultimately belonged to him, and no one could take it away from him.

From birth, he has been overshadowed by the eldest legitimate son. Although both of them have been driven out over the years, the debate over the eldest legitimate son in the court has never ceased.

This is also why he has to stand here today and put the eldest princess in a difficult position. The arrival of the eldest legitimate daughter in the capital will inevitably bring about a major change in the court, which will be extremely detrimental to the political situation he has painstakingly managed for decades.

Not only was the eldest princess in a dilemma, but there were also many wise people among the people below the city walls. Even the strategist that the eldest princess had planted among the crowd frowned.

"I don't understand. What does this mean? How do I interpret it?"

Some people looked around in confusion; many were counting on their fingers, but they got confused and couldn't continue.

"Think about this question that could make you a king. If you find the answer, your life will be set for the heavens."

"This is so difficult, is this even a question set by a human?"

"How could one be made a king if it weren't difficult?"

"This second question is indeed a difficult one. Xiao Jianxian is truly a god. Not only is his swordsmanship divine, but his other skills are also so profound. The person who can solve this question is indeed a genius sent from heaven."

. . .

"Sister, what should we do?"

Huangfu Lingfeng's face was quite grim. If it were a poetry contest, they might still have a fighting chance, but this question was truly incomprehensible.

The princess glanced into the crowd and saw the strategist there, head bowed in deep thought, finally revealing an expression more unsightly than tears.

"The princess can calculate the time herself within half an incense stick's time, or she can offer another reward. Whoever solves it will be considered the princess the winner today."

Confucius spoke again, completely ignoring the murmurs of those below.

"Can a bounty be offered?" the eldest princess asked again, this time looking at the crown prince.

"Of course, whoever can solve this problem wins, it doesn't matter who it is."

The Crown Prince's booming voice rang out, but this did not relax Huangfu Lingxue; on the contrary, it made her even more solemn, because it meant that they were not afraid that anyone could solve the problem.

"What should we do, sister?"

"Don't worry, there are many talented people in the world. I don't believe that no one can solve this problem."

Huangfu Lingxue stood on the carriage, bowed slightly to the crowd that had gathered around her, and said loudly,

"Everyone, today I, Huangfu Lingxue, have encountered such a difficult problem. If someone can help me overcome this hurdle, I can grant him one request. Any request is fine, as long as I can do it. The whole world will bear witness, and I will never break my promise."

With a loud "boom," another tremor ran through the area below. Although an answer had earned him a promise from the princess, it still paled in comparison to being made a king.

"Your Highness, solving this puzzle will grant you the title of king. Is your promise more valuable than that?" someone questioned.

Everyone thought about it and agreed. If solving a riddle could make someone a king, then they could have anything they wanted. Compared to that, a princess's promise didn't seem so valuable.

"Unless the princess adds a condition that the solver can marry the princess, then that would be more like it."

Someone else suggested,

"Okay, I'll add one more condition: I'll marry whoever helps me solve this problem."

Huangfu Lingxue readily agreed, which made Ling Feng anxious, and he hurriedly tried to stop her.

"Sister, no."

"No problem, let's deal with the immediate issue first."

"Good, good, as expected of the eldest princess of my Great Qian. If any brave warrior can help my elder sister solve the problem, I will definitely send a congratulatory gift to congratulate you on marrying the eldest princess of my Great Qian."

The crown prince shouted, his face beaming with joy, seemingly quite satisfied with the situation before him.

"How about I find a beggar and have him answer?"

Huangfu Wuji's sudden suggestion drew the attention of all the princes.

"Third brother is indeed clever. Marrying the most noble princess of the Great Qian Dynasty to a beggar? That's quite interesting. Go and arrange it. Remember, give Mr. Kong a heads-up and just give him any answer you like."

The Crown Prince responded with a smile, confident of victory. In his eyes, Huangfu Lingxue and her brother were now like fish on a chopping board, to be cut up at will.

"Oh no, Huangfu Lingxue has completely sold herself out."

Xiao Xingchen, who had been silently observing everything, suddenly sighed softly. He was weighing whether or not to help the princess.

"How to say?"

"Look, now that she's made that promise, someone will definitely answer the question soon, and even Confucius will say it's correct. Then, will she marry him or not? This is happening in public, and there are quite a few nobles hidden among these commoners. She's in a bind now,"

Daji nodded, her face full of interest, finding it quite amusing.

"In other words, she deliberately pushed herself into the fire. Poor woman, she's a sword immortal! Are all the people of Daqian blind?"

"Let's wait and see. I reckon the Crown Prince will make his move. Huangfu Lingxue is going to lose this round."

"And you? Do you really know the answer to this question?"

"Yes, this question isn't difficult."

"You're going to help her?"

"I'm considering it!"

Xiao Xingchen's "consideration" was actually a question: Could it be that Xia Buyu was bored out of his mind and was using arithmetic problems from their world to amuse himself?

Or is there some other meaning? Because putting yourself in their shoes, unless someone is extremely bored, why leave such a question? Clearly, mathematical calculations in this world haven't yet developed to the point of solving equations.

This problem isn't difficult for modern people; even a junior high school student could solve it.

This is a very famous arithmetic problem called "The Number of Things is Unknown".

There is an unknown number of objects. When counted in groups of three, there is a remainder of two; when counted in groups of five, there is a remainder of three; when counted in groups of seven, there is a remainder of two. How many objects are there?

Such a simple math problem has caused such a commotion, which has really left him unsure of what to do.

Before encountering Xia Buyu, he wouldn't have thought much of it, at most just been surprised. But with the appearance of the two Silent Tablets, he realized that every step Xia Buyu took seemed calculated, all prepared for him, the ninth transmigrator. It was hard not to think more deeply about this.

Was this question also prepared for myself?

Otherwise, what a coincidence that this thing appeared right after I arrived at the gates of Yong'an City?

But what exactly is the secret behind it?

For a moment, Xiao Xingchen was unsure, so he dared not speak rashly. If he were to reveal himself, he would inevitably be thrust into the spotlight, which would be detrimental to his desire to maintain a low profile.

"You could be made a king and marry a princess—this is a golden opportunity for you to rise to the top. Are you sure you don't want to seize it?" Daji said with a smile, her eyes filled with inexplicable interest.

"The tallest tree in the forest will be felled by the wind; I don't want to die yet."

After mentally calculating again, I realized there are countless answers to this question, but the smallest one is twenty-three.

Is there any special meaning to telling yourself about being twenty-three?

He decided to wait and see, and sure enough, just as the incense stick was half-burned, a beggar emerged from the crowd.