What? Why not praise the Su family?
That must be because he's such a stubborn old man, why does he keep praising a divorced woman? Besides, the Emperor already knows that Lady Su is capable. But he doesn't know that a five-year-old girl can do accounts!
To pique the emperor's interest, of course you have to praise the five-year-old county princess to the skies!
So when Chief Minister Lin went to see the Emperor, the Emperor actually remembered this incident and summoned Chief Minister Lin to come and observe the battle.
He even specially sent his personal eunuch to watch the battle, so that he could be informed.
Grand Secretary Zhang followed behind, his expression also not good. When he saw Jiang Mingli looking over, he snorted coldly, "She's just a five-year-old girl. Is the Ministry of Revenue out of people? Can't they compare to a five-year-old girl?"
Ye An and Xiao Youran exchanged a glance, both seeing the same thing in each other's eyes: Grand Secretary Zhang, why are you so confident in the accounting abilities of the Ministry of Revenue officials?
Jiang Mingli knew he couldn't disobey the imperial decree. With Chief Minister Lin in charge, even if he was unwilling, he had no choice but to appoint six officials.
He also had a strange confidence that these six officials had been doing accounting in the Ministry of Revenue for more than ten years, so how could they possibly lose to Xiao You Ran?
The cabinet has three Grand Secretaries: Grand Secretary Lin is the chief Grand Secretary, and Grand Secretaries Li and Zhang are both deputy Grand Secretaries.
Thirty years ago, Grand Secretary Lin was the top scholar in the imperial examinations, having achieved the highest honors in all three levels of the imperial examinations. He was personally selected as the top scholar by the late emperor. His expertise in divination and numerology was beyond question, so he naturally became the chief examiner.
The six people lined up in a row, with the small Xiaoyou standing opposite them.
The scene was... hilarious!
Everyone thought it was a five-year-old girl who would be crushed by the six adults opposite.
However, in reality, the questions set by Grand Secretary Lin were entirely designed to overwhelm the six officials.
At first, the questions were simple numerology problems, which Xiao Youran answered almost instantly with her mind.
There may be some tricks involved; sometimes children's minds do work quickly, and the six officials didn't seem to care.
Meanwhile, in the imperial study, Emperor Shunqing put down his vermilion brush, stood up, and stretched.
"Consort Zhou has arrived!" the eunuch outside called out.
A woman in elaborate attire then entered and greeted the Emperor, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty."
She took a bowl of ginseng soup from the maid behind her and said, "Your Majesty has worked hard. Have a bowl of ginseng soup to relieve your fatigue."
Emperor Shunqing smiled broadly, "Consort, you're only just recovering, there's no need for you to overwork yourself."
"It's just a matter of instructing the imperial chef, how could it be tiring?" Consort Zhou said coquettishly, watching Emperor Shunqing drink the ginseng soup sip by sip.
A young eunuch rushed in and reported to the Emperor: "In the competition at the Imperial Pavilion, Chief Minister Lin posed ten questions in a row, and the young county princess answered them all mentally, very quickly."
Emperor Shunqing put down his soup bowl and asked in surprise, "Really?"
Then he burst into laughter, "This Grand Secretary Zhang has really bitten off more than he can chew, hasn't he? Hmph, let's see if he'll keep harping on this little thing! Let's go investigate again!"
The young eunuch then departed.
Consort Zhou asked in surprise, "The young county princess? Is it that Fengle County Princess?"
"Isn't it her?" Emperor Shunqing recounted the events of the morning and complained, "Grand Secretary Zhang is an old fogey. He keeps saying that women should not interfere in politics. But Lady Su is not a woman in the harem. What kind of politics is she involved in? There have been two female officials in the history of the Great Zhou Dynasty. I only gave her the status of a guest minister. She is not a proper female official. Yet he is so long-winded!"
Consort Zhou became interested. "They've both entered the palace? May I meet them?"
"What's so difficult about that? You're always cooped up in the palace. Once the competition is over, just summon them to keep you company."
Consort Zhou's eyes darted around. "Your Majesty, don't you want to go and see the scene of the little county princess competing with those officials?"
Emperor Shunqing was taken aback, then clapped his hands, "Isn't that right? Instead of thinking about how Grand Secretary Zhang was humiliated, we should go and see for ourselves!"
He stood up, grabbed Consort Zhou's hand, and started to walk out, saying, "My beloved consort, let's go!"
Consort Zhou smiled, but said, "It would be inappropriate for me to enter the Grand Pavilion, lest I give others something to gossip about."
"Who dares?!" Emperor Shunqing continued walking, instructing the eunuchs to prepare a sedan chair. "My beloved consort, don't worry. I know of a side door. We'll sneak in quietly without anyone noticing."
Only in this way can one truly appreciate the ugly expression on Grand Secretary Zhang's face.
Hmph!
Over at the Taige Tower, Chief Minister Lin had already set out several more complex problems, such as the chicken and rabbit problem, the long shadow of a bamboo pole, and lending money at interest.
Without exception, while the officials of the Ministry of Revenue were still writing and drawing on paper, racking their brains, Xiao Youran had already given the answer.
Grand Secretary Zhang's expression changed repeatedly.
Jiang Mingli dared not blame his superior for casually accepting the duel bet on his behalf.
Grand Secretary Li glanced smugly at Jiang Mingli, "Is this the standard of your Ministry of Revenue? You can't even compare to a five-year-old girl?"
These words were like a slap in the face to Jiang Mingli. He said with a very ugly expression, "Didn't you say you came here to compete in accounting? In the art of divination, there are superior and inferior masters, and it doesn't really matter, but in the end, it all comes down to accounting."
"Let's settle the score then. Who's afraid of who?" Xiao Youran chuckled.
Jiang Mingli glanced at Su Shi subconsciously. Was this the daughter she had raised? Although he didn't know what "a tiger is afraid of a tiger" meant, Xiao Youran's arrogant and haughty demeanor was simply disrespectful to everyone!
Su replied casually, "My daughter is only five years old. Even if she loses to you adults who have been immersed in accounting for decades, it doesn't mean much."
Jiang Mingli and Grand Secretary Zhang's expressions darkened further.
This means that if the officials of the Ministry of Revenue won, it would be an unfair victory; if they lost, it would be because they were less skilled than a child.
At that moment, a figure seemed to be moving behind the screen in the hall.
Xiao Youran glanced around and sensed that there might be some important person hiding behind them, so she asked, "Grandpas, if Xiao Youran wins the competition, what kind of prize will there be?"
She looked exactly like a five-year-old child, with a crisp, clear voice, which made Prime Minister Lin stroke his beard and laugh, "Does the young county princess have any prize she desires?"
Xiao Youran shook her head. "No, although I came here to compete by imperial decree, I am only five years old. The six uncles combined must be several hundred years old, right? If I lose, it doesn't matter. But if I win, shouldn't I get some prize money as a reward?"
Prime Minister Lin laughed heartily and said, "Alright! I'll make the decision. If the county magistrate wins, he can make one reasonable request. As long as it's within my power, I'll do it for you. How about it?"
Xiao Youran chuckled and bowed to him, "Thank you, Grandpa Lin!"
Prime Minister Lin's heart skipped a beat. It was the first time he had been called "Grandpa Lin," and for some reason, a warm feeling welled up in his heart. His tone also carried a hint of affection as he said, "Go for it, little county princess!"
Xiao Youran gave him a chuckle.
It was this smile that made Prime Minister Lin take a second look, a sense of familiarity rising in his heart.
Over there, Jiang Mingli had already had someone bring out the national treasury's account book from a small county town five years ago, extracting twenty pages from it and hanging them in a row on the wall for the seven people to watch and calculate simultaneously.
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