The emperor looked quite regretful.
“Apart from your brother-in-law Mu Xinghe a few years ago, I haven’t seen such a talented young man in a long time. There is no shortage of talented people in the capital, but how many can pass the imperial examination at the age of fifteen? But how did your right hand become crippled?”
Qiao Lian'er also felt a little sorry. If Song Rui'er had a righteous mind, with his talent and intelligence, a broad and smooth road would definitely have been laid out in front of him.
But there are no "ifs".
"The Director of the Imperial Observatory said that Scholar Pang was wary of the emperor. I had the Ministry of Revenue check Scholar Pang's family background. He came from a humble background, and his parents were ordinary poor farmers. Whether it was his life story or his surname and name, there was nothing about him that would clash with me. Could he be an exception? I have been thinking about this and I don't know how to settle him."
Qiao Lian'er knew that the emperor's words were mostly a tug-of-war between cherishing the young genius and his concerns.
Having finally encountered such a promising talent, the emperor was reluctant to not use him, much less punish him.
However, guarding against one's master is absolutely a major taboo for a monarch.
In reality, given Song Ruier's usual aptitude, if it weren't for this incident, his performance in today's palace examination would have been at best mediocre.
However, his disabled right hand inspired even more of his potential, allowing him to perform exceptionally well. The emperor even wanted to make him the second-highest scorer in the imperial examination.
This was all while being surrounded and bothered daily by a whole bunch of eccentric members of the Song family.
This was something Qiao Lian'er hadn't expected.
Fortunately, Pei Shijiu had made preparations in advance; otherwise, he would have truly risen to prominence overnight.
She considered it carefully.
"His Majesty summoned me to discuss this matter."
“That’s right, it doesn’t seem like a big deal, but it needs to be thought about carefully.”
Qiao Lian'er said, "The Emperor is a wise ruler who governs the world with kindness and benevolence. He is protected by the will of Heaven. Who can truly guard against the Emperor?"
Her words were pleasing to the ear and touched the emperor's heart, but the emperor still frowned.
"But--"
"Your Majesty may use Pang You, but it is not advisable to give him important responsibilities for the time being. It would be better to observe him for a period of time first. If he does not perform well, then remove him from the list. If it is proven that the Imperial Observatory is overthinking things and Pang You has performed well, then we can make further plans at that time."
Judging from the emperor's attitude, he really wanted to appoint Song Ruier, so she might as well go with the flow.
If she were to stop the emperor now, it would only leave him with regrets and cause him to develop a grudge against her.
The emperor was still pondering, but his expression had softened considerably.
Qiao Lian'er continued, "Throughout history, there have been scholars whose talents clashed with those of the monarch. Even those with exceptional abilities would be given opportunities by the monarch, but they would not be placed in prominent positions."
The emperor thought about it and realized that there were many such precedents. Although what he encountered was the problem of disabled students guarding against their master, the situation was similar.
"Okay, let's do it that way."
Upon hearing that the emperor had met with Qiao Lian'er again, Song Rui'er felt uneasy.
He suspected it might be related to the palace examination. His performance today was beyond his expectations, but his right hand was disabled, and he was afraid the emperor wouldn't know how to deal with him.
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