"Besides, I am indeed a vulgar person who likes the smell of money. In the future, Princess, you must stay far away from me and never let yourself get involved."
Princess Changning wanted to say something in rebuttal, but Qu Jingyun didn't give her the chance.
Qu Jingyun smiled and then said, "I've recently collected some ancient books. I wonder if anyone is interested?"
Without giving anyone time to react, she immediately had all the books brought out.
They were laid out one by one in front of everyone.
Everyone was stunned when they saw the book's title.
"These books are all unique copies, you can't buy them even with a lot of money. Where did Miss Qu get them?"
"Many of those books are even hard to find in our Imperial Academy. Our teachers have offered high rewards for their services..."
The puzzled looks of the crowd fell on Qu Jingyun.
Someone asked cautiously, "Miss Qu, what is the meaning of this? Are you going to auction these books off at a high price?"
Before Qu Jingyun could answer, someone impatiently said, "I want it, I'll take it no matter the price."
The speaker was Lu Weicheng, the richest man in Beijing. As soon as he spoke, everyone fell silent.
They don't have the resources to compete with him.
Lu Weicheng became increasingly smug and stepped forward to stand in front of Qu Jingyun.
He said directly, "I have plenty of money. I want all these books no matter the price. I believe there aren't many people here who can compete with me."
Just when everyone thought that Lu Weicheng was going to get his hands on these books, Qu Jingyun finally spoke up.
"These are not for sale."
The smile on Lu Weicheng's face vanished.
"What are you going to do with it if you're not going to sell it? Are you just making fun of us?"
Although some people in the crowd couldn't afford the book, they still showed anger on their faces after hearing Qu Jingyun's words.
Seeing this, Princess Changning quickly spoke up, "Miss Qu, this is going too far. Even if you are the owner of Tingzhixuan, you can't joke around with us."
"You really are as awful as ever."
Upon hearing this, Qu Jingyun snorted coldly.
"I haven't finished speaking, why are you in such a hurry?"
She gave Princess Changning a cold glance.
He explained, "These books are very expensive. I collected them from all over the years. No matter how high the offer, I will never sell them."
"But I also know how important this book is to all students, and everyone certainly doesn't want to miss it, so I made a decision under these difficult circumstances."
"Whenever you have free time, you are welcome to come and listen to Zhixuan copy books. The copied content will belong to you, and you can read it however you like when you get home."
"If you come from a poor family, you can make several copies and leave them in Tingzhixuan. I will then sell the copied ancient books and donate all the money I earn to the Imperial Academy to reward poor but talented people."
Seeing everyone's stunned expressions, Qu Jingyun explained, "I understand the difficulty of passing the imperial examinations, so I wanted to do my part. I hope that after you pass the imperial examinations and enter officialdom, you can serve the country wholeheartedly. This is also my way of doing my part for the people."
No one expected Qu Jingyun to have such a broad perspective, and they were all stunned for a moment.
Lu Weicheng was the first to speak: "Will Young Master Shen participate in the imperial examination next year?"
“Of course,” Shen Cong replied without hesitation.
"But haven't you considered that with these ancient books and the mysterious mentor of Young Master Shen, Young Master Shen will definitely be on the list? But if these ancient books are freely circulated among people, the situation will be different."
"Aren't you worried about creating an even more outstanding rival for Young Master Shen?"
Lu Weicheng wanted to buy these ancient books with this in mind.
He wanted to firmly grasp the ancient books and successfully outperform the other students.
“If my son is truly so useless, only able to pass the imperial examinations through such scheming, then he might as well not study literature at all. Even if he were to enter officialdom in the future, he would probably not be a good official.”
Qu Jingyun looked up at Shen Cong and asked, "What do you think of your mother's decision?"
“No, son,” Shen Cong quickly said. “Son understands mother’s decision and doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with it.”
"As my mother said, if her son is so useless that he needs her to plan for him like this, then he might as well not take the imperial examination."
The mother and son's words made everyone feel embarrassed.
They hurriedly bowed and said, "Miss Qu is very righteous; we admire her greatly."
"Can we watch?" a woman in the crowd asked cautiously.
Although both men and women are welcome to attend the banquet at Tingzhixuan, it is different for women.
Many women are talented, but their long-standing education has taught them that even if they come here, it is for a rich husband.
But some people are different.
The person speaking is one of them.
Her name was Gong Ling, and she was a well-known bookworm in the capital.
He is not interested in anything except reading.
Everyone says she'll have a hard time getting married.
"What use is it for a woman like you to read these ancient books? Not to mention, can you even understand them? We students are busy with the imperial examinations, so don't cause us any trouble." Someone in the crowd sneered.
Upon hearing this, Gong Ling's face immediately turned red.
He stammered for a long time but couldn't say anything to refute it, so he could only lower his head awkwardly.
She felt that what he said made no sense, but she didn't know how to refute it.
At that moment, Qu Jingyun spoke up.
"So you think I shouldn't read these books either? If I, as a woman, couldn't read these books, how could I be Tingzhixuan today? Besides, I don't think my talents are inferior to any man's."
After Qu Jingyun said this, the man who had been refuting her was speechless.
He could only awkwardly reply, "Miss Qu is naturally different from other women."
"What's the difference?" Qu Jingyun asked in return.
She wanted to say that the biggest difference was simply that women could not take the imperial examinations.
But this is not the woman's fault, it is the fault of the law, it is the fault of the world.
But these words must never be spoken aloud.
If word gets out, countless people will probably think she's committing a heinous act.
Qu Jingyun took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in her heart.
Her gaze towards Gong Ling softened considerably.
"Women are naturally welcome to visit as well. Miss Gong is welcome to come to Tingzhixuan anytime if she is interested."
Gong Ling nodded excitedly.
Qu Jingyun's gaze swept over everyone, and she snorted coldly, "If any of the students here look down on women and think that women are not worthy of reading and writing, then they look down on me, and naturally they look down on our Tingzhixuan. They don't need to come here anymore."
Princess Changning's expression was also unpleasant, and she glared rudely at the student who had spoken.
Although she had never liked Qu Jingyun, she had to admit that what the other party said was right.
If this man looks down on a woman, isn't he also looking down on her?
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