Chapter 294 Qiongzhou Mission
Eunuch Yang serves Concubine Jing, who is only twenty years old now and is the concubine of the current emperor. Her family has no power and her father is an old county magistrate. She could not marry into the emperor's family, but was a concubine taken in by the emperor before he came to Beijing.
Unfortunately, Concubine Jing was stubborn and conceited about her talent, and loved to recite poetry and write couplets. Furthermore, the Emperor and Empress were a young couple, and they had supported each other all the way, so their relationship was very good. Therefore, apart from Concubine Jing, none of the other concubines were favored by His Majesty.
Especially after His Majesty ascended the throne, apart from symbolically promoting her to the position of concubine, she never set foot in the Frost Moon Pavilion again.
Today's Frost Moon Pavilion is just for show.
Sure enough, as soon as the storybook was mentioned, Jingpin's face immediately showed great interest.
The women in the deep palace are lonely. Every day they do nothing but grow flowers and plants, or do needlework and poetry. It is really boring.
"What kind of storybook is this that can make an old sly like you so engrossed? Tell me about it and let me hear it too."
Eunuch Luo immediately said, "It's strange. I don't know what the author of this storybook was thinking. He wrote about a man who was reborn into another world. That world is completely different from our Great Zhou Dynasty. It sounds like a fairyland to me."
Eunuch Luo, grinning playfully, pulled out a copy of Peach Blossom Spring from his bosom and handed it over. "I know Your Majesty loves it, so I brought the manuscript here! I'm not bragging, this is completely different from other storybooks. It tells the story of a man who ventures into a fairyland and builds a career. I've never seen or heard of a storybook like this before!"
"Peach Blossom Spring?" Jingpin glanced at the book cover, but was bored, so she just picked it up and started reading. "Okay, then I'll take a look too. If this storybook isn't well written, I'll punish you!"
Eunuch Yang could only nod in agreement and then retreat.
In the next few days, everyone in Shuangyue Pavilion only saw Jingpin as if she was possessed, reading a storybook day and night. She was almost glued to the chair, even eating carelessly. At night, the soybean oil lamp was lit until late at night, as if she was possessed by something.
The eunuchs and palace maids in Shuangyue Pavilion couldn't help but discuss it in private.
Eunuch Yang took the opportunity to bring up the novel "Peach Blossom Spring." It tells the story of a man in the Zhou Dynasty who repeatedly failed the imperial examinations, feeling unappreciated for his talent. One day, after getting drunk, he resurrected and traveled to another world, where he sought fame and fortune. That world was a dazzling and fascinating place, where people could travel thousands of miles apart, even meeting and writing letters. Not to mention the bustling streets and high-rise buildings, a heavenly realm.
This made all the servants in Shuangyue Pavilion fascinated. They just wanted to wait until Concubine Jing finished watching it so that they could shamelessly ask for a chance to see it too.
Finally, one afternoon, Concubine Jing closed the book with a sense of loss. Eunuch Yang had naturally been paying attention to her movements. When he saw her actions, he immediately walked in.
As expected, Jingpin sat there, as if she had just woken up from a deep sleep, with a bit of confusion: "Is there really a world like the one in the book in this world?"
Seeing Eunuch Yang walk in, Concubine Jing immediately asked anxiously, "Where's the second half of the book? Why does it only describe him starting a company halfway through and then disappearing? What about that woman named Qingmei? Did she really want to buy a house for her brother? This world is really strange. There are actually people who force their daughters to work to buy a house for their brothers. Her parents are really worthless!"
Eunuch Yang echoed her words, saying, "Isn't that so? It's said that men should establish themselves and support their families. But this book, 'Peach Blossom Spring,' I find so perverse that it turns all moral principles upside down. Some even say it describes a world where women are supreme!"
"Female Supreme?"
"It means women are respected. Think about it, Madam. The women in this book are all able to read and write, and can even be appointed as marquises or ministers. Some even have violent tempers and fight with their husbands at will. And yet they still expect men to follow the Three Obediences and Four Virtues. Isn't this a world where women are respected?"
"But the protagonist of this book is a man!"
"Right? Otherwise, how could it have caused such a sensation among the scholars? From what I've heard, this male protagonist is a truly remarkable character, able to establish himself in a completely unfamiliar world. No wonder some people call this a thrilling novel!"
"Shut up!" She didn't know what she was thinking about. Perhaps it was the phrase "women are superior" that made Jingpin alert enough. She quickly handed the book to Eunuch Yang, "Go away, what's with all this talk about women being superior? Can you really take what's in the book seriously? Go and burn this book! If the master sees it, everyone in this room will be in trouble!"
Eunuch Yang was frightened. He had not expected that Concubine Jing, who seemed to have a hot temper, was actually a timid person.
Helplessly, he put the book away, smiling humbly, "Indeed, although these are storybooks, they are too fanciful. The scholars in Bianjing City only dare to circulate them secretly. Your Majesty, being in the palace, must be cautious and prudent."
"Who says it isn't?" Jingpin was a little reluctant, as if still savoring that bizarre and completely subverted world. Then she couldn't help but smile bitterly, "It's just a storybook. There has never been a precedent for women serving as officials in our Great Zhou Dynasty."
Eunuch Yang deliberately looked as if he was about to speak but hesitated, and Concubine Jing immediately frowned: "You old rascal, just say whatever you want to say!"
"Your Majesty, I dare not tell you." Eunuch Yang looked terrified. "I am afraid that if I tell you, and the news leaks out, my life will be in danger."
Jingpin also became interested for a moment, so she used her eyes to signal everyone around her to leave, and then sat diagonally on the chaise longue, "You are just pretending. Now that there is no one around, go ahead and talk."
Eunuch Yang chuckled twice, looking honest and straightforward. He stepped forward to massage Concubine Jing's shoulders. "Okay, then I'll tell your Majesty. Speaking of women serving as officials, there's actually a place in our Great Zhou Dynasty that not only allows women to serve as officials, but also allows women to serve as doctors, and even female soldiers!"
Jingpin's shoulders tightened noticeably. Although she wasn't favored, she was by no means stupid. She simply disdained to compete for favor. At this point, her eyes rolled slightly and her words became cautious. "You mean... the Qingtou thief's territory?"
"The Queen also knows?"
"I'm constantly worried about the Green Head Gang. Who in the harem doesn't know about this? Speaking of our Great Zhou Dynasty, we're now in a three-way stalemate. It's said that the Green Head Gang has some kind of firearm. It's incredibly powerful. Even His Majesty the Ming King in the east was beaten and fled in panic. He hasn't even regained an inch of territory."
Eunuch Yang immediately flattered her, "Your Majesty is truly sharp-eyed and perceptive. I am the humble servant who is showing off my skills!"
"I remember your hometown is Jinzhou Prefecture, right? Are your parents okay?"
Eunuch Yang had a perfect smile on his face, "Your Majesty, I'm fine, very fine."
Then he lowered his voice again, "This is a very blasphemous thing to say, but life is so much better now than before. I received a letter from home a while ago saying that my little sister has been admitted to medical school. After a few years of classes and passing the exams, she will be a full-fledged doctor. Our family's situation will be much better. My little sister's income will be enough to support my parents in their old age!"
Jingpin was shocked when she heard this, but she remained calm. "Your little sister got into medical school? What medical school? The Qingtou Gang actually allows women to practice medicine openly?"
Eunuch Yang exerted a little force on his hands, with a humble look on his face: "Hey, Madam, if we discuss the affairs of the Qingtou Gang in the deep palace, I'm afraid..."
Jingpin glared at him, "It's just you and me here today. If this gets out, it's you who spread it!"
Eunuch Yang immediately looked horrified.
Seeing that the scolding had worked, Concubine Jing helped him up at the right time. "Alright, I've already said that it's just you and me here. You happen to be from Jinzhou Prefecture, so tell me about the situation in Jinzhou Prefecture. If the court can talk about it now, why can't we in the harem talk about it too? To be honest, I just want to share the worries of His Majesty!"
Eunuch Yang wiped the sweat from his forehead and said boldly, "In that case, I will tell you everything I know. The world in Jinzhou Prefecture is probably not much different from the world in the storybook you just read! Not only do they allow women to practice medicine, but they also have a special medical school with teachers from all disciplines. Doctors from pediatrics, medical sciences, and traumatology all teach there. It's no longer like our Great Zhou Dynasty where a doctor could only learn from one family—"
Jingpin immediately said, "Studying medicine should be about learning from all schools of thought. If you isolate yourself and only know the little that your own school has to offer, how can you treat patients more accurately?"
"That's exactly the truth! My little sister is so lucky. She's the dean of their hospital, and she's a female doctor. She treats them like her own children. Not only does she never hit or scold them, but she also cares about them all the time. She's truly a living Bodhisattva!"
Jingpin, however, was only concerned about women serving as officials, so she asked, "You just said that Jinzhou Prefecture actually allows female officials?"
Eunuch Yang looked around and confirmed that no one was around before lowering his voice and saying, "Your Majesty, don't you know? The rebel leader of the Qingtou Gang is actually a woman! Moreover, she is only sixteen years old, yet she commands a multitude of fierce generals, half of whom are female! It is said that when they were fighting against the Ming King's men for Jiangling Prefecture, it was a female general named Zhang who sent down divine troops from the sky, outflanked the Ming King from behind, and caught him off guard, allowing him to seize three prefectures."
Jingpin's breathing quickened. "Really? Is there really such a powerful female general?"
"The letters from home are indeed true. Many girls in my hometown have joined the army, earning only one ounce of silver a month. Isn't that better than doing needlework at home? Some of the smarter ones have even taken the exam to become female clerks. Don't worry if you laugh at me, but my mother told me that the girl I had a childhood friendship with is now the county magistrate! It's quite impressive!"
"County magistrate? There's actually a female county magistrate? I thought she was a female official like those from the Wei Dynasty hundreds of years ago, with only a rank but no real power..."
"My God, it's not just the county magistrate, now even the governor has a daughter!" Eunuch Yang said with deliberate exaggeration. "Think about it, that great king is a woman. To consolidate her position, wouldn't she have to recruit more girls to work for her subordinates? These days, the girls in Jinzhou Prefecture are really terrible. Each one has a temper worse than a man, and is more capable than a man. They even dare to go out in the middle of the night!"
Jingpin covered her mouth in shock: "Oh my God! What if she was kidnapped?"
"There are no kidnappers in Jinzhou Prefecture! Not to mention that the girls there are all strong and healthy, and strength is considered beautiful, especially the female officials. Ordinary men probably can't kidnap them. Besides, the Queen governs the people of Jinzhou Prefecture very strictly. Not to mention kidnappers, even if you glance at a girl on the street for a second longer, you might be forced to do hard labor. That's why my family is willing to let my little sister go to school alone."
Jingpin immediately became suspicious and looked Eunuch Yang up and down: "You understand it very well."
Eunuch Yang immediately smiled and said, "I'm not afraid of you laughing at me, but Jinzhou Prefecture is now promoting universal education, and my mother was forced to go to school to learn to read. Now everyone in the family can write, so we no longer need to pay scholars to write letters like we used to. My mother can write letters herself. She has nothing better to do, so she writes a letter every day. Thanks to my mother, I know more about the situation in Jinzhou Prefecture than most people."
Jingpin thought to herself that she was too suspicious, but now her suspicions were gone. She smiled and said, "So, in that case, the girls in Jinzhou Prefecture are all more capable than the boys?"
Eunuch Yang shook his head and sighed, "That's not the case. My younger sister is the boss now. She has the final say in the family. Who dares to provoke her?"
"Then do you know what exams are required to become a female clerk there?"
"I don't know about this, but my childhood playmate never touched a book in her life. She said she went to some universal education class and passed the exam to become a county magistrate after only six months of study. I don't think it should be very difficult. I did hear my mother mention that Jinzhou Prefecture doesn't focus on the Four Books and Five Classics, but instead values mathematics the most! Anyone who is good at mathematics will be employed by the Queen!"
"Mathematics?" Jingpin's heart tightened. Isn't this what she is best at? !
Eunuch Yang naturally knew that Concubine Jing was quite proud of her mathematical abilities. While carefully observing Concubine Jing's reactions, he quietly seduced her whenever he could. "Isn't it true? The Queen likes those who are good at mathematics, especially those who are good at it. They even have a research institute over there, which is quite impressive. Your Majesty, do you remember that screen-sized clock that the Fuzhou prefect sent to the Queen last month?"
Jingpin was shocked. "Of course I remember. They said it was the only one in the entire Zhou Dynasty. His Majesty saw that the Grand Prince and the Princess liked it, so he sent it to the Empress's palace."
Not only the eldest prince and the eldest princess like it, she likes it too.
That thing could tell time automatically. Every time the time changed, a small wooden bird would come out of the box and chirp to tell the time. The time was even more accurate than that of a copper kettle clepsydra.
Jingpin had never thought of getting something like this in her life.
She just wanted to take the clock apart and take a closer look at its internal structure.
She wanted to know what the principle of this thing was that could keep time exactly as it was.
She even pondered for a long time, risked her reputation, and went to pay her respects to the queen every day, just to take one more look at the clock.
"That clock was tinkered with by the people at the Jinzhou Prefecture Research Institute. It's a thing of that size, but it's already worth fifty thousand taels! It's said that the person who researched the clock is a young man with a great talent for mathematics!"
Jingpin's chest was pounding, "Fifty thousand taels?!"
"Yes, even at this price, the demand still exceeds supply! They also have a pocket watch, which is even more amazing. It's only half the size of a palm and can be hung around the neck. It can also calculate time. Such a small piece has been sold for 70,000 to 80,000 taels. The wealthy families in Jiangsu and Zhejiang don't like to wear jade jewelry anymore. Those who are really rich and powerful all wear pocket watches!"
Jingpin's face turned pale.
She was taught mathematics by her father, who was a good friend of Fang Zhi. Fang Zhi's mathematics level was probably the best in the Zhou Dynasty.
If she also went to Jinzhou Prefecture, wouldn't she also be able to be granted a title of nobility and become a prime minister like a man and leave her name in history?
Eunuch Yang naturally did not ignore the flash in Jingpin's eyes.
Very good, just as Miss Xu said, without making any noise, and moistening things silently.
Miss Xu always said that people of humble status can also have dazzling dreams.
Eunuch Yang's dream is to hope that His Royal Highness Prince Zhao will come soon.
He wanted to walk in the sun like a normal person, raise a few cats and dogs, drink tea under the grape trellis in his spare time, and chat with his childhood playmates.
In this way, he can retire with honor, reunite with his family, and no longer have to live on thin ice.
That day will surely come soon.
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"Your Majesty the Prince of Ming is actually sending an envoy to Jinzhou Prefecture?"
In the conference room, when the King Ming's personal letter of request for peace was delivered to Xu Zhenying, not only Xu Zhenying was shocked, but also everyone in the room.
Qian Zhenniang was the first to ask, "What does this mean?"
After Xu Yinxi returned to Jinzhou Prefecture on the pretext of Xu Lezhi's marriage, Xu Zhenying kept her. Currently, she is the secretary general of the secretariat office. Although it is a lateral transfer, she has become a close minister of the emperor after all. Therefore, many people secretly say that she was promoted in name only.
Qianzhou Prefecture was naturally handed over to Zhang Wanjun.
Xu Yinxi remained calm. "The letter didn't specify anything specific, just that we were discussing important matters, and that the delegation would arrive within a month."
Zhao Qiaonian, now the Minister of Supervision, naturally had more confidence and dared to speak up at a meeting like this. "On the eastern battlefield, they haven't been able to advance even a single step. The two sides have been fighting for almost a year. I'm afraid they can't hold on any longer and will ask for peace from us?"
Elder Lin shook his head. "From what I know about Ming Wang, he's aloof and arrogant, not one to give in easily. I'm worried his offer of peace is fake, and he's really trying to stir up trouble."
Xu Zhenying laughed: "After all, what he wants is nothing more than firearms."
Everyone was confused.
They wanted firearms, but they sent an envoy to ask for a meeting. Could it be that they wanted to buy them from them?
"Don't worry. If an enemy comes, we'll fight him. If a flood comes, we'll block it with earth." Xu Zhenying curled his lips and smiled slightly. "Isn't the delegation still a month away? Elder Lin, you know King Ming best. I'd like to ask you and Fang Xun to work together to draw up an emergency plan and sort out the possible situations and solutions should they arrive."
Zhou Houfang immediately reminded him, "Your Highness, we have never received a foreign delegation like this before. What are the standards for receiving them? Which department is responsible for the reception?"
"The Propaganda Department and the Logistics Department should take charge of this together."
Miao is no longer in charge of logistics. The new person promoted is a woman in her thirties named Pan, who was also exiled with them at the time. She has both the qualifications and the ability.
However, when she was promoted, she was trembling with fear for a long time, fearing that Miao would think she had taken her place.
Later, it was Miao who stepped in and comforted her.
Earlier, Xu Zhenying took advantage of the clerk assessment and recruitment process to transfer Xu Degui and Miao from the finance and logistics positions to relatively easier departments with less real power.
At first, Mr. Lin was worried that Xu Zhenying's move would cause panic among the people in Jinzhou Prefecture, and even make Mr. Xu and Mrs. Xu suspicious. He was even more worried about whether this involved issues such as imperial power and party struggles.
As a result, Xu Zhenying directly posted an official notice in all prefectures and counties under his jurisdiction, saying that the principle of avoidance should be implemented among officials, that is, direct relatives within three generations are not allowed to work in the same department, and relatives within five generations of the department head are not allowed to work in sensitive positions such as finance, personnel, and logistics.
The Minister of Human Resources and Social Security also responded positively and simply carried out a rectification and self-inspection, taking the lead in sorting out and transferring a group of officials and cadres.
The people applauded this and supported Xu Zhenying's bureaucratic style of "not recognizing relatives".
It is conceivable how much the common people dislike the clique-forming culture in officialdom.
This move cut off the source of the problem and silenced Lin Laogan.
He finally realized that Xu Zhenying had no imperial power at all, and his main focus was honesty!
Well, fortunately, Mr. Xu and Mrs. Xu did not mind. Instead, they willingly abdicated and even abdicated to the level of ordinary officials, without any real power in their hands, only the title of "Your Highness's Father and Mother".
To be fair, Old Lin felt that if he had a son who, after being made a marquis and a prime minister, did not seek a title for himself, it would be fine, but he might even abandon him and kick him out. He probably even wanted to kick his son out of the Lin family tree.
So it must be said that the Xu family is a group of people who do great things! They only talk about dedication and never talk about sacrifice.
But on the other hand, his daughter is already a king, so what's the point of caring about those empty things?
Without a title of honor, would the people dare to bully anyone from the Xu family?
Many times, reverence is an invisible line. Even without a title, no one in this world dares to cross that line.
Qian Zhenniang immediately accepted the order and asked, "Then what kind of reception should we follow?"
Minister Pan was even more cunning. "They came to Jinzhou Prefecture on their own initiative this time. They must be asking for something from us. Should we take this opportunity to show them some power and flex the muscles of Jinzhou Prefecture?"
"No need. I'm afraid they've had enough of this show of force on the battlefield."
This immediately made everyone in the room burst into laughter.
Isn’t it true? Ming Wang and his gang were knocked unconscious by firearms and they probably couldn’t find their way.
"Just treat them with courtesy. Let's see what tricks they come up with. If they have bad intentions, we'll play them right back!"
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