Ever since he came back from the South Yue, Xue Mier’s attitude towards him had greatly changed, and this made him feel gratified.

Furthermore, she had the Xue Family and Wen Family to support her, so Qin Shuo was afraid that Hu Xiao would be in grief and indignation and chase Xue Mier out.

"No, Your Majesty. Imperial Consort Xue brought breakfast with her. Her attitude was sincere. She asked Empress for a paper." The eunuch explained the entire situation. After listening to him, Qin Shuo slowly loosened her clenched fists and relaxed.

It’s just that, what he found strange was why would the Imperial Consort Xue want Xiao Xiao to take the test.

This doubt spun in Qin Shuo’s mind, but he did not voice it out straightforwardly. freēwēbηovel.c૦m

Ten days later, the results were out. On the golden yellow piece of paper were the names of several women. When the Imperial Examinations were released, there were naturally those who were happy and those who were sad.

"Hahaha, I passed the exam. Did you see that? That’s my name, the famous Liu Zhiqing." Liu Zhiqing pointed at the name on the wall and said excitedly.

She was too excited. Before the exam, she had always been immersed in self-denial, always thinking that she could not do it. At one point, she wanted to abandon the exam and leave the capital.

"Ha, I’ve already said that you can do it. Now you see the result right? Although your ranking isn’t high, but you have the opportunity to serve the country." The woman standing beside her said with a smile. It was because of her persuasion that Liu Zhiqing had decided to stay.

Liu Zhiqing pursed her lips into a smile and hugged her tightly, as a way to express the gratitude in her heart.

After pushing their way out of the crowd, they saw a woman in the corner who had failed the rankings and was crying on the inside.

A trace of sympathy flashed across Liu Zhiqing’s heart. The happiness just now was completely swept away, and what replaced it was endless sadness. She thought, if she was unlucky, then maybe she would be depressed like them.

She stopped and stared at the woman who had failed. She did not dare to go up and comfort them.

"Zhiqing, let’s go. They need a quiet environment. It’s best if we don’t disturb them right now." He Tingting took her arm and walked in the direction of the inn.

The inn was a festive scene and was bustling with noise and excitement. The room was filled with women who had been ranked on the list. They were singing and dancing, but were too preoccupied with their own happiness and joy that they had forgotten about the woman who had fallen off the list.

"Sigh, if only we could pass and stay in the imperial court, how great would that be!"

"The results are out, everything has been settled. Don’t think about it anymore, let’s go back to the house!"

The women who had failed were all gathered together, looking extremely depressed. No one wanted to see themselves fail, but unfortunately, bad luck had befallen them.

Just as they were about to return to their rooms, they heard a crisp voice coming from outside the door.

"Empress has arrived."

Her voice was clear and powerful, after hearing it, the women lined up in a row, and respectfully bowed to Hu Xiao.

"Rise." Hu Xiao’s gaze swept across everyone one by one, and then revealed a pleased smile.

She had personally brought Zhi Lan here to nominate a woman for the rankings.

"When you get to the name, stand out and shout." Zhi Lan said in a serious tone. She unfolded the orange paper and read out, "Liu Zhiqing, He Tingting, Li Siyao ..."

Hu Xiao roughly calculated, there were seven to eight people, but not many.

She cleared her throat and solemnly said: "Congratulations to all of the rankings. I have always believed that hard work is rewarded, and the title of the Golden Ranking is the result of your hard work. When you become an official in the future, I hope that everyone will display their talents."

Hu Xiao’s beautiful eyes moved, and swept over them once more. All of them were exquisite beauties, some had looks on their faces.

"Yes, we will obey the Empress’s teachings." Liu Zhiqing and the others said in unison. Their voices were loud and broad, not one bit inferior to the man’s.

After Hu Xiao heard this, she was extremely satisfied.

Those who were unable to make it onto the list stood to the side with envious gazes in their eyes.

They also wanted to be like the women on the leaderboard, to offer up their weak strength to the country. What a pity ...

They shook their heads, a sad, frustrated look on their faces.

Hu Xiao’s sharp eyes immediately noticed their disappointment.

Hu Xiao looked at them and said with a soothing voice: "It doesn’t matter if you fail this time, there’s still a chance next year. The reason why you all did not pass is not because you all failed, but because you all were shocked the night before the exam and were somewhat unable to display your abilities."

Hu Xiao found an excuse for them, "Have you guys heard of it yet, failure is the mother of success, so don’t be discouraged, after this, the next time you take the test, you’ll have more experience."

Hu Xiao consoled them. Seeing their dejected looks, Hu Xiao had a very bad feeling in her heart.

She understood their feelings. After all, no one would be happy if they failed the exam.

The women lowered their heads and remained silent. They admitted that the empress’s words were reasonable, but they couldn’t get over it in such a short time!

Hu Xiao walked past them and circled around them, then continued to speak: "Isn’t this just a test, climbing back up from where you have fallen, women from the East Court s are not people who can casually admit defeat."

Hearing this, some of the women were moved. In their hearts, they did not blame Hu Xiao, and no one dared to blame her.

"Alright, I still have some matters to attend to. If you have any difficulties, you can come to me for help." Hu Xiao said passionately. With a smile on her face, the women felt that she was approachable.

Then, Hu Xiao turned her gaze towards Lu Yin and said smilingly: "Lu Yin, I’ll leave the rest to you."

Lu Yin nodded slightly, agreeing to her words.

Afterwards, the woman’s inn’s reputation spread far and wide. Not only was it famous in the East Court, it also became a hot topic on the streets in the other three countries.

"The East Court’s women’s test has already been carried out?" When the King of the South Yue heard this, he was extremely confused.

The East Court Kingdom was improving step by step. All these years, the momentum had already surpassed the South Yue. If this continued, the East Court would sooner or later be left behind.

This idea was suggested by his sister. Ai, what a misfortune for her to be married off. Her daughter was like a spilled bucket of water, not caring about her parents at all.

"If I were to return to the Emperor, under the insistence of the princess, the examination for the women in East Court would have been successfully concluded." The eunuch replied, trembling with fear.

Just then, Hu Qi walked in.

"This son greets Royal Father."

"This humble subject pays his respect to the Emperor."

Hu Qi brought a group of people in, and they half knelt on the ground as they spoke in unison.

King of the South Yue glanced at them, wondering why the crown prince had brought such a group of people here!

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