After the imperial examination, Nanchu took on a new look. The court was full of vitality as new scientific scholars entered the court one after another.
The prosperity of Southern Chu could not be concealed from Daliang and Wei.
Prince Yan of Daliang responded with praise, "As expected of her."
Taifu Qin looked at the prince and asked tentatively: "Your Highness, are you now..."
Yan Huisheng knew what Taifu wanted to say, so he smiled and said calmly: "I have already given up and now focus on Duanhua. I think she is quite cute."
Taifu Qin breathed a sigh of relief, "That's good."
It is easy to get or let go even if you have never tried to get it.
Yuanzhao, the crown prince of the Wei Dynasty, had dark clouds on his face when he heard the news from the spies reporting back to Nanchu.
As a defeated country, the Wei Dynasty was not injured in the war, but the whole country was shrouded in a depressing atmosphere. Even though more than half a year had passed since the war, the Wei Dynasty still could not recover, let alone prosper.
The Wei Dynasty is not prosperous now, but only lifeless.
Yuan Zhao naturally knew that this was not going to work, but the compensation for the land ceding to Daliang and Nanchu had already emptied the savings of the Wei treasury, so everything had to be done slowly and not in a hurry.
He called Nangong Zheng to him and gave him the secret report, "Take a look! I didn't expect that a branch of your Nangong family would be so valued by Su Rong because of your talents. And your great-aunt Nangong Xin is still there today. She is the queen of Nanchu, her life is very good, and she is treated very politely by Su Rong."
Nangong Zheng received the secret report and after reading it, his face was calm, "My aunt had been disloyal to the Nangong family since she hid the existence of Su Rong from my grandfather and the Nangong family. It is not surprising that Su Rong let her go and treated her leniently. After all, Your Highness, you already know that Su Rong is a tolerant person. As for the remote branches of the Nangong family, they had never come into my grandfather's eyes before. The Nangong family evacuated from Nanchu suddenly, and those people were not carried by the Nangong family. The scope was abandoned by the Nangong family, so it’s not surprising that Su Rong doesn’t target them now, bribe and win people’s hearts, and make them work for him.”
Yuan Zhao looked at him and said, "Gu naturally knows, but Gu doesn't want Southern Chu to prosper."
Nangong Zheng put down the secret report and looked back at Yuan Zhao, "So, what do you mean, Your Highness?"
“Try every possible means to cause chaos in Nanchu.” Yuan Zhao said, “Your Nangong family is in Nanchu and has a deep foundation. You still have people who stay in Nanchu, don’t you?”
Nangong Zheng did not deny it, "What Your Highness said should not be rushed. Even if I have people in Nanchu now, the flames of lamps and candles are not enough to mess up Nanchu. Even if I do it, it will be a small fight. And now the entire Nanchu has been suppressed by Su To control the situation, we need to take a long-term approach.”
Yuan Zhao took a deep breath and admitted, "Yes, I am anxious."
Who would have thought that Su Rong would appoint talented people as his relatives, and even people with the surname Nangong would be favored. What's more, it set a precedent for female Enke, including a woman named Nangong. As a result, throughout Southern Chu, the prestige of her concubine was unprecedentedly high, and she was respected by the whole country. Such prestige had the potential to flourish in the prosperous times, which really made him, the Crown Prince of Wei, uneasy.
She finally had the leisure to take Zhou Gu to the Ministry of Etiquette to see how the preparations for their wedding were going. Zhang Lixin, the Minister of Etiquette, saw the concubine and her husband coming to the Ministry of Etiquette in person. He thought that these two people finally remembered to care about his wedding, so he took the opportunity to complain to Su Rong, "My concubine, at the Qionglin banquet, what are you giving me?" All ministries have sent people, but the Ministry of Rites has sent the least. It is only a few months before the twelfth lunar month. If our work is done carefully, you will have to give two more people."
Su Rongxiao said, "Jiang Zhu asked four people to come to the Rites Department yesterday. If you think it's not enough, sir, how about I come and help the Rites Department?"
Zhang Lixin suddenly laughed dryly, "Madam, you are busy with things. How can I help you? The new boys are very rough... but they will be fine after a while of training."
Su Rong's memory reminded him very well, "Not all of them are men. I gave Liu Zhuxi to the Ministry of Rites yesterday. Sir, please don't think she is a woman, so you won't use her. She seems to be careful, and she is very suitable for the Ministry of Rites."
Zhang Lixin responded quickly, "Yes, Madam, don't worry, Master Xiaoliu is indeed meticulous, and the old minister has arranged a very important position for her."
Su Rong nodded and asked deliberately: "So, are you still short of people in the Ministry of Rites?"
Zhang Lixin wiped his sweat and said, "I don't dare to be short."
The main reason is that he doesn't dare to ask the concubine to help.
Su Ronghao said, "If there is really a shortage of people, let your granddaughter Zhang Xiyun come to the etiquette department to help! I think Miss Zhang has vision and exquisite talent, so she should be malleable. I will make an exception and make her a ninth-grade assistant. You can go back and ask her. I don’t think I’d like this official position.”
In the Golden Autumn Scientific Examination, because the imperial court was short of people, the students who stayed in the capital were all ranked at the lowest level of the eighth rank when they were conferred at the Qionglin Banquet. Zhang Xiyun failed the scientific examination and was awarded an unusual title. What Su Rong could give was the ninth rank.
This special title was naturally due to Mr. Zhang's age and his efforts in arranging the marriage for her and Zhou Gu. Especially when Su Rong and Zhou Gu returned to the dynasty, they were in a hurry to get married. His Majesty the King of Southern Chu After receiving the order to die, the Minister of Rites blistered at the corner of his mouth. Although he was almost crying at that moment, he had no complaints. He gritted his teeth and stood firm despite his age. This was a reward for him.
Zhang Lixin was shocked and thanked her hurriedly, "Thank you so much, my granddaughter. I would like to thank my granddaughter on behalf of my granddaughter. She did not get a place in the imperial examination in the golden autumn. If you make an extraordinary promotion, how could you not be willing to do so? She would definitely be very willing. I accepted the offer on her behalf." ."
Su Rong nodded, smiled and stretched out her hand to support him, "I remember that she had a handkerchief with Sun Keyi from the household of Mr. Sun, the Minister of Revenue? If this person is not enough for you, you can also ask Mr. Sun and Miss Sun. Ninth grade. If she also enters the Ministry of Rites, your household department will not be short of people, right?"
Zhang Lixin quickly handed over his hand and was very moved, "Thank you so much, Madam. I would also like to thank you for your kindness on behalf of Lao Sun and her granddaughter."
He just habitually complains when he sees the princess, which is a common problem for officials. He really didn't expect that the princess would be so easy to talk to, and it really solved the problem of missing two people he mentioned.
He felt a little ashamed for a moment, "I'm old. After you get married to your wife, I'll be old. You have to think about arrangements for my successor in advance."
Su Rong looked at him and said, "Sir, you can still serve the court for another one or two years, right? Are you so anxious to retire?"
"I'm anxious. I want to take a rest, take care of my old age, and play with my grandchildren. My arms and legs are hard to use, so I can't stand still. I have to give young people a chance." Zhang Lixin said.
Su Rong looked at his tired face and nodded, "Okay." (End of chapter)