Zu An’s first thought was to teach the crown prince the way to guaranteed victory in five-in-a-row. After all, his era had already completely studied this game. As long as he went first, he would definitely win.

But after thinking about it, he still dispelled this thought in the end. Even though five-in-row was easy, the sure-win method had all sorts of variations as well. If the crown prince could remember every choice he needed to make, then he wouldn’t be known as an idiot.

He thought for a bit and then said, “With the crown prince as he is, we might have to cheat. What is he being tested on? We can give the crown prince the answers beforehand.”

The emperor replied, “The contents of the test haven’t been confirmed yet, but it will most likely be held by the Royal Academy. The academy’s staff are all stubborn and smelly, like rocks in a latrine pit. They would never agree to helping the crown prince cheat. Your idea won’t work.”

Neither side would be okay with the other side...