Chapter 155 Beauty
Several potential princes-in-law selected by the Ministry of Rites were rejected by the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple.
Under his instigation, some officials were forced to stand up, resulting in a situation where many people opposed it.
In this respect, Li Xuanjing is different from others.
Other forces in the court use interests and power to bring some officials together.
When faced with issues concerning their personal interests, the entire small group will oppose or support them together.
Li Xuanjing used intimidation.
Whoever his eyes rest on has to agree with him.
Otherwise, that position might be taken by someone else before long.
The middle and low-level officials in the court have become accustomed to this.
However, this matter has nothing to do with Prince Chun's interests, so I don't know what he is opposing.
Princess An Ning's marriage is a family affair of the royal family. He is an outsider and has no reason to interfere. It is impossible that he wants Princess An Ning to marry his son, right?
Some time ago, there were some rumors in Chang'an about his son and Princess An Ning.
Speaking of which, the princess of Daxia is indeed popular.
Unlike the states of Chu and Zhao, once one became a royal consort, there was no way for him to enter officialdom again.
The prince consort of Da Xia does not have this restriction. After becoming a prince consort, his official career will be easier.
After all, he is a relative of the royal family, and the Ministry of Personnel will also understand the ways of the world when conducting the assessment.
But with Li Xuanjing's power, he doesn't care about having another identity as a royal relative.
Besides, his son was already married. No matter how powerful he was, it was impossible for a princess from the royal family to be his son's concubine.
Unless his son divorces his original wife, or makes his original wife a concubine.
No one knows what Li Xuanjing is thinking, but because of his opposition, this matter has to be put on hold temporarily.
…
Li Nuo left the Song Mansion, got on a carriage and went to the Ministry of Justice.
When passing by Yuyin Pavilion, he lifted the curtain and took a look.
The shops on both sides of Yuyin Pavilion have already started construction.
Yuyin Pavilion's business has been very good recently. I heard from Fenghuang that they have also bought the two shops next door and are planning to expand the store.
As Yuyin Pavilion became more and more famous, the previous space became insufficient.
The carriage soon stopped in front of the criminal department.
By the end of the year, the number of files sent to the Ministry of Justice for review from all over the country increased dramatically.
If this year's cases are piled up until next year, it will affect the performance evaluation of local officials.
Li Nuo certainly did not waste this opportunity and visited the Ministry of Justice almost every day.
He had already prepared almost completely for the imperial examination, let alone the small spring exam.
After arriving at the Ministry of Justice, Li Nuo first urged Xiao Gu to practice calligraphy. After all, her practicing was the same as his own practice. If she practiced, he wouldn't have to practice.
Then he sat in his seat and waited for Li Anning to come over.
Before he officially becomes an official in the Ministry of Justice, he cannot do without her for the time being.
She had to bring over all the files, seals, etc. from the Ministry of Justice.
Li Anning came a little late today and was obviously in a good mood. He was even humming a song when he came in.
She was indeed in a good mood.
At today's court meeting, the list of prince consorts selected by the Ministry of Rites was rejected again.
The next time would be the grand court meeting, where officials from all regions would take turns to report on their work. Time was already tight, so they would definitely not mention her affairs.
This delay will last at least another month.
She looked at Li Nuo with a look of satisfaction on her face.
He still cares about his own affairs.
However, she sometimes felt a little lost in her heart.
Her father ignored her marriage.
She couldn't even see her father.
However, other people's fathers were able to stand against the court etiquette and royal rules and veto the list of prince consorts twice.
Of course, the Dali Temple Minister did not do this for her.
His father was really good to him.
Even if it is an unreasonable request, he will be satisfied.
But soon, Li Anning's mood improved again.
The Dali Temple Minister dotes on his son.
The Dali Temple Minister's son doted on her.
The same.
She took out an apple from her arms, broke it in half, handed one half to Li Nuo, and asked, "How are you and your wife doing lately?"
Li Nuo took a bite of the apple and said, "It's good."
Li Anning glanced at her and asked, "I mean, has your relationship made any further progress recently?"
Li Nuo shook his head.
Although my relationship with my wife has always been harmonious, I have recently maintained the previous progress and have not made any further progress.
We are already close enough to sleep on the same bed. One more step will be the last step.
From two rooms to one room.
From under the bed to the bed.
From two quilts to one quilt.
From no physical contact to holding hands becoming a common thing, and playing the piano with my arms around her, she also got used to it and it became extremely natural.
Looking back to a few months ago, the two were like strangers. This progress was already fast enough.
Having been with her for such a long time, Li Nuo had a rough idea of what could be done and when.
But he didn't dare to say that he understood all the girls' hearts. He looked at Li An Ning and asked, "Do you have any suggestions?"
Li Nuo didn't trust others, but he still trusted Li An Ning very much.
Last time, if it weren’t for her careful analysis and sincere advice, he wouldn’t have been so determined about his wife, and their relationship wouldn’t have made such progress.
Seeing Li Nuo looking at her, Li An Ning immediately looked away, waved her hand and said, "No, what suggestions can I have? Just do whatever you want..."
…
As time entered the twelfth lunar month and the New Year approached, Chang'an, which was already bustling, became more and more lively day by day.
It happened to be the year of the imperial examination, and students from various states who were taking the examination also arrived in Chang'an one after another.
As the capital of the Great Xia Kingdom, Chang'an's prosperity was far beyond the reach of other states. Many people were dazzled by the prosperity when they came to Chang'an for the first time.
Accompanied by his wife, Li Nuo came to the Ministry of Personnel again.
This time I went to the Ministry of Personnel, I was not going to review any files.
The spring examination is jointly hosted by the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel. Candidates who wish to take the spring examination need to go to the Ministry of Personnel to register one month in advance.
There was a long line at the side door of the Ministry of Personnel.
I heard from officials from the Ministry of Personnel that the number of people taking the spring examination this year is several times more than last year.
This is also expected.
Due to the reform of the imperial examination this year, all major academies can no longer recruit students except through the spring examination. The spring examination has become the only way, and naturally there are thousands of people trying to cross this single-plank bridge.
Even though the tuition for the spring exam is not low, having increased from twenty taels of silver last year to one hundred taels of silver now, there are still people who want to give it a try.
Nominally, these silver coins are for examination room fees, invigilation fees, paper making fees, paper marking fees, horse farm and shooting range usage fees, pen, ink, paper, inkstone, pigment fees, etc. It sounds reasonable, but the prices are really outrageous.
If you take the test, you will be paid 100 taels. If you fail, you will not get a refund. If you pass, you will not get a refund either.
This one rule alone is enough to keep those poor students out of official careers.
Since his father-in-law is a doctor in the Ministry of Personnel, Li Nuo certainly doesn’t have to queue outside in the cold wind.
In fact, he didn't care. Li Nuo didn't want to trouble his father-in-law.
But as soon as he walked to the door of the Ministry of Personnel, an official from the Ministry recognized him and forced him in.
A moment later, Li Nuo sat in the warm greenhouse, leisurely drinking tea and reading a book.
After a short while, a clerk completed all the procedures for him.
Li Nuo took the exam guide with both hands and said, "Thank you."
The clerk smiled and said, "You are too polite, sir."
Song Zhe walked in from outside with his hands behind his back and asked, "How is the preparation for the imperial examination going?"
Li Nuo said: "Passing the spring exam shouldn't be a problem..."
Song Zhe looked at him a few more times.
Although the competition in the spring examination is not as competitive as the imperial examination and the requirements are lower, it still tests the six arts, and each subject must be rated B or above.
Song Zhe suddenly asked: "How many types of auspicious ceremonies are there?"
Li Nuo said: "There are 152 ceremonies in the Five Rites: one is the auspicious ceremony, which has 55 ceremonies. One is the winter solstice sacrifice at the Circular Mound, two is praying for a good harvest at the Circular Mound, three is the rain sacrifice at the Circular Mound, four is the grand offering at the Ming Hall, and five is the sacrifice to the Blue Emperor in the eastern suburbs..."
Li Nuo looked at him and asked, "Father-in-law, do you want to continue carrying me?"
Song Zhe waved his hand and said, "No need."
Li Nuo breathed a sigh of relief.
Actually, Ji Li only recited this part.
If he says even one more sentence, he will have to pay the price.
Song Zhe looked at Li Nuo with a slightly strange look in his eyes.
He was still skeptical about him at first, but seeing that he had memorized the five rituals so fluently, he must have put in a lot of effort.
He had seen his paintings, and although they were not the best, they were more than enough for the imperial examinations.
As for his Le Dao - it must be said that he completely inherited Li Xuanjing's talent. Even Song Zhe himself could not compare to him at his peak.
He is truly worthy of being his son!
He suddenly sighed, not knowing what he was thinking about.
If he had been enlightened earlier, some things would not have turned out like this...
The beauty will not be away from her mother for more than ten years, and the sisters will not be separated.
Compared to the beauty, the person he feels most sorry for should be her.
With my wife's personality, she must have had a hard time these years...
Song Mansion.
The wind was so cold that Song Ning'er's hands were shaking as she held the sword. She raised her red face and looked up at the woman, saying pitifully, "Master, it's so cold. Can we wait until it's warmer before practicing?"
The woman said calmly: "It's not cold at all, this is how you practice martial arts. If you can't even endure this little bit of hardship, you'll never achieve anything in martial arts, let alone catch up with Song Muer..."
Looking at the little girl dancing with a sword in the cold wind, a hint of reminiscence appeared on her face.
Compared to the Holy Maiden Peak of Sanqing Mountain, which is covered with ice and snow all year round, this little bit of cold is nothing. The suffering Ning'er is going through now is less than one-tenth of what she suffered in the past.
But when she thought of the little girl crying helplessly in the snow, something seemed to be touched in her heart.
She squatted down, covered the little girl's hands with both of her hands, circulated her Qi, and asked, "Are you still cold?"
Song Ning'er felt a warm current flowing into her body, and her whole body was warm. She said happily: "I'm not cold anymore, thank you, Master Sister!"
The woman brushed off the snowflakes on her head and said, "If you are tired, take a rest."
Song Ning'er shook her head, picked up the sword again, and said firmly: "I'm not tired, I will work hard to practice, and I must defeat Song Mu'er in the future!"
(End of this chapter)
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