Zhou Gu saw off Sun Chunwang, who had come to express his gratitude, and sent for Qin Ruo to enter the Palace.
After Qin Ruo entered the Palace, Zhou Gu said to him, "Go back and ask your sister, Qin Luan, whether she wants to participate in next year’s Imperial Examination, be nominated on the list, and enter the court with full legitimacy, or if she wants to enter the court now. If she desires to join the court, like Zhang Xiyun and Sun Keyi, I’ll confer a Ninth Grade official post to her."
If it hadn’t been for today’s visit to the Ministry of Rites, where Old Minister Sun pleaded his difficulties, seeing his silvery hair and exhausted, old appearance, she wouldn’t have thought that there were indeed few staff in the Ministry of Rites, and that elevating his granddaughter to an official post in an exception to the norms was also a chance granted to Sun Chunwang’s granddaughter.
Having accepted the Ninth Grade official positions, she naturally also thought of Qin Luan.
A person with ambition, who most desired to enter the court.
Qin Ruo knelt and expressed his thanks, "Thank you, Princess, for considering my sister. I will ask about her thoughts."
He was moved, considering that both the Minister of Rites and the Minister of the Revenue were old and respected, diligently served with honour, and had always been loyal to the King in court. After the Princess returned to court, they had lent her significant support. Their granddaughters, having failed the examination, were exceptionally promoted by the Princess, mainly out of favour towards these two men.
But his Qin family had not had such favour, and although he had followed the Princess to Nanchu and had merits in her seizing power, the official post that he himself had been conferred was not low, and he was highly trusted by the Princess. Seeing it this way, there really was no reason for his sister to be granted an exceptional official post. But since the Princess had shown interest, this could also be considered a form of regard for him and Qin Luan.
Zhou Gu continued, "If she agrees, though a Ninth Grade position is lowly, it would involve assisting me in managing the female study. This will be an important matter in the future of the court and will also enhance her own learning."
Qin Ruo nodded and thanked her again, "Yes, if she agrees, I will have her come to express gratitude."
Zhou Gu smiled, "I do not wish to bury any person of learning and ambition. With me, I want everyone in the world to know that though the Imperial Examination is important and certainly deserving of attention, as a path for securing a wife’s position and bringing glory to one’s family, it is not the only way to secure an official post."
Qin Ruo also smiled, "Following the Princess, we will definitely make Nanchu prosperous."
After leaving the Imperial Palace and returning to the Qin Residence, Qin Ruo did not change out of his official attire but went straight to find Qin Luan.
Qin Luan was waiting for Qin Ruo in the dining hall, and seeing him enter in his official attire, she put down her book and called out, "Big brother."
Qin Ruo nodded and said to Qin Luan, "Sister, would you like to enter the court? A Ninth Grade position, to assist the Princess in supervising the female study."
Qin Luan paused in surprise.
Qin Ruo looked at her and concisely explained the matter of how today the granddaughters of the Minister of Rites and the Minister of the Revenue had been given official posts, and how the Princess had especially summoned him to the Palace to discuss this, asking him to come back and consult with her.
After listening, Qin Luan looked at Qin Ruo and asked, "What do you think, big brother?"
Qin Ruo shook his head, "This concerns your own future, you must make your own decision. With your current learning, another year of study could indeed see your name on the list, and being placed in the third-class is without question, but whether you can make it into the second-class is uncertain. Next year, the number of women taking the examination should not be small, and there will probably be more men participating than this year. Moreover, with Nangong Ya setting a precedent, amongst the women, unless you can outshine all the scholars next autumn and make it into the first-class, you would not be renowned throughout the world."
As her elder brother, though he could not completely fathom his sister’s thoughts, he could guess at least half of them; she did not wish to live in obscurity, to become a common woman.
And Nangong Ya, having performed extraordinarily well in the Palace Examination, secured the second place in the second-class, a feat that even the men found difficult to achieve.
Qin Luan, being clever, had also thought this through. She sighed and said, "Big brother, hearing you say this, it seems I don’t really have a choice." 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦
"No, there are precisely two choices depending on which one you pick. The former is to participate in next year’s Imperial Examination and have your name inscribed on the gold list. The latter is, like the granddaughters of the two ministers, to seize the Princess’s favour and take the opportunity to join the court," Qin Ruo said, "Sister, you should know, as siblings, we have received much care from the Princess. I am of humble experience and on my own, I cannot ask for this favour. The Princess having thought of you is probably because she admires your indomitable spirit."
Qin Luan pondered for a while, making up her mind, "Big brother, tomorrow I will go to express gratitude. I will enter the court."
If she couldn’t surpass the first-class rankings, nor outshine Nangong Ya, why waste another year? Her aim was to enter the court. Although she didn’t know what had made the Princess consider her for an exceptional official post, supervising the female study was indeed a great matter.
Qin Ruo nodded. In his heart, he actually also preferred his sister to accept the official position. To refuse the grace bestowed by the Princess would be foolish; why suffer laboriously over books for a year, seeking to vie for a sense of pride on next year’s list?
Thus, the following day, Qin Luan went to the Palace to express her gratitude.
She entered the Palace early, waiting for the Princess to finish the Morning Court Meeting.
After the Morning Court Meeting, Zhou Gu didn’t leave immediately. He had matters to discuss with Su Rong, and it just so happened that he saw Qin Luan waiting outside the Imperial Study Room.
Since Su Rong joined the royal court, the Nanchu King split his Imperial Study Room into an inner study room and an outer study room. When Su Rong wasn’t in the Council Hall, he worked from the outer study room.
Upon seeing Zhou Gu and Su Rong together, Qin Luan was slightly startled and quickly knelt to greet them, "Princess, Master of the Imperial."
Su Rong glanced at her and smiled, waving his hand, "Dispense with the formalities."
Zhou Gu gave Qin Luan a quick look and said to Su Rong, "Let’s talk about my matter first and have her wait a little longer."
"Alright, you come in first," Su Rong stepped into the study.
Zhou Gu followed suit.
It was the first time Zhou Gu had followed Su Rong into the Imperial Study Room to discuss matters. Su Rong sent the servants away and personally poured a cup of tea for him, "Go ahead!"
Zhou Gu met her gaze and said, "I need to leave the capital to inspect the Southern three states. There’s a discrepancy in the accounts of the Ministry of Revenue, and theoretically, since you’ve been governing Lan Country and I’ve been working in the Ministry of Revenue supervising all its affairs, everything should be improving. But regarding the Southern three states, I feel the contributions shouldn’t be like this. Yet, there’s nothing obviously amiss in the accounts. I want to see for myself."
Surprised, Su Rong asked, "How long will it take?"
"At best a month, at worst three," Zhou Gu replied.
Su Rong sighed, "Have you discussed this with Old Minister Sun? When did you decide?"
"Hmm. Yesterday."
"Why didn’t you mention it last night?"
Zhou Gu stretched out his arms to embrace her, "I was afraid you’d miss me. I’ll leave as soon as we finish talking today."
Annnoyed, Su Rong stretched out her hand to pinch him, "You’re not allowed to go."
Zhou Gu chuckled softly and whispered, "I suspect the Nangong Family has some hidden resources in the Southern three states, and I don’t trust anyone else to go. Only I must go."
Su Rong pinched him harder, "Then why didn’t you tell me sooner? You can’t go today."
Zhou Gu sighed, "You really can’t bear to let me leave?"
"Isn’t that what I’ve been saying?" Su Rong glared, frustrated.
Zhou Gu bent down to kiss her, but considering they were in the Imperial Study Room, he restrained himself and quickly changed the subject, "Actually, I planned to leave in a few days. But this morning at the Morning Court Meeting, after hearing the memorials from the Southern three states, I think it’s best to set out as soon as possible. Cover for me, say that I left to meet my grandparents in a hurry, so no one will know I’ve gone to the Southern three states. Be good, I’ll return as quickly as I can."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
