Zhang Yan stood up to see her off, then remembered something and asked, "Yesterday when I went to pay my respects to the Concubine Dowager, Concubine Liang mentioned that she liked cats and asked me if there were any rules or taboos in the palace."

Zhu Youxiao was stunned for a moment, then pursed his lips.

Concubine Wang Liang must have heard about Xiaobai in the Qianqing Palace. She might have wanted to please him or she really liked cats, but her ultimate goal was to please him and gain more favor.

"If she wants to keep a cat, let her do it. I have one too!" Zhu Youxiao didn't care. After all, he had three wives, and no one wanted to stay alone in an empty house.

Zhang Yan smiled and nodded, saying, "Then I will tell Concubine Liang this."

Zhu Youxiao suddenly leaned closer, gave Zhang Yan a kiss on the face, then turned around and left the hall with a smile.

Zhang Yan was stunned for a moment, then her face lit up with joy. As a quiet and virtuous young woman, how could she understand what a goodbye kiss was?

Zhu Youxiao returned to the Qianqing Palace accompanied by palace maids and went directly to the East Warm Pavilion.

When he entered the East Warm Pavilion, he didn't see Zhang Yu'er in the outer room. Zhu Youxiao didn't care. Just as he was about to step into the inner room, his eyes flashed and he stopped with a smile.

A pair of shoe soles were clearly visible under Zhang Yuer's bed. What was this girl doing in there? Was she looking for a cat?

Not long after, the two feet slowly rubbed backwards, revealing the hem of the skirt. Xiaobai came out first, and when he saw Zhu Youxiao, he meowed.

Zhang Yu'er crawled out panting, with spider webs and dust on her hair. She just got up by holding the edge of the bed and turned around to see Zhu Youxiao who seemed to be smiling.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you." Zhang Yuer hurriedly knelt down and saluted again.

"Get up!" Zhu Youxiao touched his chin and asked curiously, "What are you doing under the bed? Is there a mouse hole and you're helping Xiaobai catch it?"

"No, Your Majesty." Zhang Yu'er stood up, lowering her head a little embarrassedly, "Your servant, your servant is here, hiding the money."

Zhu Youxiao blinked his eyes and understood.

Dismissing the palace maids means letting them leave empty-handed, and then they say with a clear conscience that providing them with food and lodging is already the most they can do.

Zhu Youxiao set the salary for the palace servants at six taels of silver per year, which was only five cents per month. He was really stingy.

But Zhu Youxiao had no choice. The treasury was limited, and any savings were appreciated. Besides, he could not afford to set salaries too high all at once, as he was not grateful for a little and resentful for a little.

The key point is that there was no such thing as salary before, but now five cents is given every month, which has made the palace people overjoyed and shout "The emperor's grace is great."

Moreover, Zhu Youxiao also paid him back wages, which was equivalent to receiving two years' salary at once.

So, Zhang Yu'er became rich, twelve taels of silver, which made the girl very happy and very worried.

I have money in my hand, but I have no place to spend it for the time being! You can't carry all your belongings with you every day, that would be too inconvenient.

After worrying for two days, Zhang Yuer finally came up with a good idea and found a good place, which was to hide the silver under the bed.

Once she made up her mind, she did it. While the emperor was not back and the other palace maids were not around, this girl started to act.

Zhu Youxiao shook his head. It’s only twelve taels of silver. Look how precious this girl is.

"My head is full of dust, hurry up and clean it up." Zhu Youxiao turned and went into the inner room, took out a few memorials, and went to the imperial study.

As soon as he sat down in the imperial study, Wang Tigan presented a box and reported, "Your Majesty, this was sent by the Pacification Office this morning."

Zhu Youxiao nodded, checked the seal on the box, opened it, took out the secret report inside and began to read it.

The first was about Zhang Heming, the Minister of War, who requested a border crossing but instead delayed his progress. The Imperial Guard estimated that Zhang Heming would not reach Shanhaiguan for at least ten days or half a month.

"Hmph," Zhu Youxiao sneered, putting the secret report away. Zhang Heming would be dismissed from his post in less than two weeks, so there was no need to respond to this cowardly fool.

The second secret report came from the Dongjiang Army after they captured Huanggu Fort. It mainly described the course of the Dongjiang Army's battle and the number of enemy casualties.

After reading it, Zhu Youxiao thought for a while and then put the secret report away.

According to secret reports, although the Dongjiang Army is newly established, its morale is very high. As for its combat effectiveness, with intensified training and increased equipment, there should be considerable room for improvement.

This made Zhu Youxiao more determined to establish a town in Dongjiang, and also gave him a deeper understanding of his analysis of "whether the Liao people can be used."

The third secret report was sent by the Embroidered Uniform Guard from Tongzhou, Shuntian Prefecture, and the investigation into the former Governor of the Grand Canal, Li Sancai, who had been dismissed, was basically completed.

Zhu Youxiao looked at the approximate figures listed in the secret report with an expressionless face. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he finally gave up the matter.

Zhang Yuer packed up quickly and carried Bai Niangniang into the imperial study.

Zhu Youxiao looked up at her, pointed at her, and said nothing.

Zhang Yuer understood, and obediently walked to her small desk in the corner and sat down, opened the "Thousand Character Classic", ground the ink and picked up the pen, and started writing.

"Your Majesty," Wang Tigan walked in and respectfully reminded, "It's time to attend the morning court."

Zhu Youxiao nodded, took a few memorials and walked out of the imperial study, heading towards the main hall of the Qianqing Palace.

………………

The joint examination ended on February 18th, and the palace examination was on March 15th, with a gap of half a month in between.

The results of the imperial examination were announced on February 28th. A total of 410 candidates became tribute scholars, and the top prize was won by a candidate named Li Yizao.

Although there was no palace examination yet, these candidates were already Jinshi or Tongjinshi.

Because the palace examination does not result in dismissal, it only ranks people, such as the top scholar, the second place scholar, the third place scholar, the first-class Jinshi, the second-class Jinshi, and the third-class Jinshi.

Therefore, the candidates who passed the imperial examination were excited and excited, as they had already achieved their goals. All that remained was to go further and strive for a good ranking, which would bring them greater glory and honor.

Those candidates who failed the exam also have two more chances this year, although many of them disdain it and even think it is a disgrace to the family.

"A civil scholar becomes a military scholar—"

Many of those who failed the exam curled their lips. This was not a leap into the Dragon Gate at all. Just having the word "Wu" in their name would lower their status by more than one level. Who would care?

"Candidates under the age of 20 can also apply to the Academy of Sciences to learn practical sciences such as agronomy, water conservancy, and the study of physics. After one year, they will be appointed by the court based on their talents."

All things are inferior, only reading is superior. What about agricultural technology, water conservancy, and the study of things? Aren't they just trivial skills and tricks?

Academy of Sciences, what a strange name. And the president of the Academy is Xu Guangqi, who believes in the Red Barbarian Religion. Can you make it in the officialdom after graduating from there?

Hey, there is also this: if you submit an article to "Daming Forum", you will get a fee if it is accepted and published!

Well, if you write a letter to the court and put forward suggestions that will benefit the country, the court will reward you and you may even be promoted to an official position. It's a bit like recommending your talents during the Han and Tang dynasties, right?