What kind of person is Chapter 125?
Prince An sat somewhat lazily in his study chair, listening to his subordinates report: "...The six ministers agreed that Miss Jiang would be appointed as the head of the Ministry of Personnel, but the prime minister suggested that she be appointed as the censor of the Ministry of Revenue, which is half a rank higher than the head of the Ministry of Personnel, making her a sixth-rank official. The emperor agreed and allowed Miss Jiang to take office in ten days."
Prince An remained silent after hearing this, while Prince Rui, who was sitting in the corner of the study fiddling with a bow and arrow, looked up and asked, "Miss Jiang should be a woman, right?"
Prince An turned to look at him and said casually, "Of course she's a woman. She's the granddaughter of the Duke of Chu."
Prince Rui gave an "oh," then lowered his head and fiddled with the bow and arrow in his hand, saying, "This time, my elder brother is quite enlightened, agreeing to allow women to serve as officials in the court."
When Prince An heard him use the word "enlightened" to describe the emperor's attitude towards the matter, he raised an eyebrow and waved for the Imperial Guard to leave. The Imperial Guard bowed respectfully, but before leaving, he glanced at the unreal Prince Rui, or more precisely, at the bow and arrow in Prince Rui's hand.
The main point is that any weapon modified by Prince Rui is much better than before. I wonder how powerful his modified bow and arrow will be this time.
After he left, Prince An sat down next to Prince Rui and watched him measure the bow and arrow with a ruler, occasionally writing down numbers on paper. After watching quietly for a while, he asked, "Uncle, what's the use of what you're writing?"
Prince Rui seemed not to hear him, his head bowed as he calculated on the paper. After finishing, he said, "You can't shoot an arrow the farther the better, can you?"
Prince An nodded, "Accuracy is what we need."
Prince Rui pointed to the symbols he had carved on the arrow and said, "Under normal wind speeds, pulling it this far will allow it to shoot three meters, pulling it this far will allow it to shoot four meters..."
Prince An looked surprised. "Really?"
Prince Rui was very confident, "Why don't you try it and you'll know?"
Prince An was somewhat excited. He picked up the bow and arrow and went outside. Prince Rui followed behind, then leaned against the door frame to watch him experiment. When Prince An returned with the bow and arrow, looking very happy, he asked, "Was it accurate?"
Prince An nodded, and Prince Rui returned to his seat, pointing to the formulas he had just calculated, saying, "I told you, everything has its own rules, and the bow and arrow are no exception. I've studied this for a long time, and as long as the force and speed are constant, the arrow will travel the same distance. You see..."
He carefully explained his calculation method to Prince An. Prince An listened patiently, though he didn't quite understand. Then he said, "Uncle, your theory will greatly enhance the army's combat power if this bow and arrow are used. You should report this to my father tomorrow."
Prince Rui, however, seemed unconcerned. "I'm not free tomorrow. You can tell your brother."
Prince An looked at him with a mixture of disappointment and exasperation, saying, "This is an immense achievement."
Prince Rui: "What use would I have for merit?"
Prince An: "..."
Yes, it's useless for him to seek merit. He's already a prince, and his title is unlikely to be promoted. He doesn't hold any official position in the court, so there's no possibility of promotion. The Empress Dowager and the Emperor both dote on him; he simply doesn't need it.
Prince An sighed, not out of envy or jealousy, but because he felt that living like Prince Rui seemed quite good.
"Your Highness, it's getting late, you should go back." The voice of Prince Rui's personal eunuch came from outside. Prince Rui turned his head and said, "I won't go back tonight, I'll stay here."
"Then this old servant will go and tidy it up for you." The eunuch said and left. Prince Rui had a courtyard in Prince An's mansion, where all the people he frequently used were located.
"Let me tell you, I have some ideas about how the wooden bird can fly," Prince Rui said, his eyes sparkling as he pulled Prince An closer.
Prince An was momentarily stunned by his pure gaze and asked, "What's your thought process?"
Prince Rui walked a few steps in the room, then turned around and said, "Humans can walk, run, and talk because our bodies have strength. Similarly, birds can fly not only because they have wings, but also because they have strength in their bodies. If I fill the wooden bird with strength, and its wings are balanced, wouldn't it be able to fly?"
Prince An smiled after hearing this, then nodded seriously, "That should be true."
Prince Rui, pleased with the affirmation, beamed even brighter. He pulled Prince An to the table, pulled out his drawing, and excitedly began to explain it to him...
The lecture went on for a long time, and even the eunuchs around Prince Rui came to urge him to finish. It was already past midnight when it ended. Prince Rui said he was a little hungry, so Prince An had two bowls of noodles made, and the uncle and nephew sat down together to eat.
Halfway through the meal, Prince Rui looked at Prince An and said, "Tell me about the story of the granddaughter of the Duke of Chu becoming an official."
It was rare for him to be interested in something, so Prince An gave a detailed account of the situation of the Duke of Chu's mansion and the twists and turns that Jiang Yu encountered when he was recommended for an official position. After listening, Prince Rui said, "It must have been quite difficult."
Prince An nodded, "It certainly wasn't easy."
In a court dominated by men, how could it be easy for a woman to become an official?
"Have you met Miss Jiang?" Prince Rui asked.
Prince An nodded, "I've met him a few times."
"What kind of person is he?" Prince Rui asked again.
Prince An thought for a moment and said, "Very...excellent."
Prince Rui nodded after hearing this, asked no further questions, and continued eating his noodles. After they finished eating, Prince An escorted Prince Rui to the courtyard gate. As he was leaving, Prince Rui stopped him and said, "Don't force yourself. Tell me if you have any difficulties."
Prince An was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Thank you, Uncle. I know."
Prince Rui waved for him to go back and rest, and Prince An watched him enter his room before turning to leave. Although his uncle didn't concern himself with court affairs, he understood many things. He understood his father's view of him, and he understood that his future path would be difficult.
Looking up at the not-quite-full moon, Prince An smiled and strode back to his residence. Everything was earned through his own efforts, wasn't it? As long as he was alive, who could predict the future?
...........
Jiang Yu was truly exhausted, and she didn't get up until late the next day. This was only because during the exam, her room had a bed and a toilet, and the Duke of Chu had delicious meals prepared and delivered to her, so she didn't suffer much, and it was only for seven days.
If it were a normal imperial examination, in the weather of March, in a cramped cubicle, with cold water and food, even if she were in good health, she would probably be severely injured.
After getting up and eating something simple, Feng, the old woman who served Lu Yifang, came and said that her eldest and second aunts had arrived, and that she would go over if she had rested enough.
Presumably there to offer congratulations, Jiang Yu tidied herself up slightly and went to Lu Yifang's courtyard. Both aunts looked at her with pride; her eldest aunt took her hand and said:
"You have no idea what my mother-in-law's expression was like when the news of your official appointment by the Emperor reached our household. She spoke to me with a sour tone, but I didn't take it to heart because I was too happy."
My second aunt also said, "Your uncle praised you a lot, saying that you answered such difficult questions, and that even Xie Ning'an from the Xie family might not be as good as you."
Jiang Yu felt a little embarrassed by the praise. She understood that for women in ancient times, a powerful maternal family was their greatest source of confidence.
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