Regardless, seeing Zhao Lin so obedient and well-behaved, Li Xingye was very happy. After a few drinks, he said to Zhao Lin, "You are now a juren, and you are eligible to enter the government. I see that you have outstanding literary talent and good policy proposals, but you only lack experience. Would you like to come to my office and work as an aide, offering me advice and handling official documents?"
The whole scene was instantly quiet.
All the examinees except Sudi looked at Zhao Lin with envy.
Who is Li Xingye?
The Shengjing prefect is the mayor of the capital city, in charge of all matters big and small in the capital city, and holds a high position of power.
Li Xingye was also a Grand Secretary of Chongwenguan.
Chongwenguan was a very important government office. It was not only a school, responsible for educating the children of the royal family and high-ranking officials in Beijing, but also in charge of classics and proofreading books, which was very important.
As a Grand Secretary of the Chongwenguan, Li Xingye could participate in national affairs and lead academic studies. His status was very high, incomparable to that of a prefect of Shengjing.
The fact that Li Xingye could become the Grand Secretary of Chongwenguan represented the emperor's trust in him.
Especially since Li Xingye is a member of the royal family.
Yes, Li Xingye is a member of the royal family.
With the blessing of multiple identities, Li Xingye's position in the court is extremely important, no less than that of people like Fu Chengwang.
Li Xingye personally invited Zhao Lin to be his aide, which shows how much he values Zhao Lin. As long as Zhao Lin doesn't encounter any accidents, there will be no problem for him to make a great success in the future.
This is also the reason why these examinees are envious.
Zhao Lin was slightly stunned. He hadn't expected Li Xingye to extend an olive branch to him. However, Zhao Lin reacted quickly and immediately stood up and said, "I am deeply grateful for your consideration, Your Excellency. I will go through fire and water and will not refuse."
"Ha ha……"
Li Xingye laughed and said, "You don't have to go through fire and water. You just need to do what you wrote in your policy paper and ensure that the people live and work in peace and contentment."
Zhao Lin said: "Students must fulfill their duties in this area and assist adults in benefiting the people."
"Okay, okay." Li Xingye was very satisfied.
Zhao Lin is knowledgeable, intelligent, and smart, making him a very good helper.
As long as they are tested for a period of time and there are no problems, they can be trained as confidants.
Of course, recruiting Zhao Lin as an aide does not bring any great benefits to Li Xingye now. It is just out of pure admiration for talent and a desire to help Zhao Lin.
And Zhao Lin did not refuse Li Xingye's kindness.
With this relationship, the Bai family, the Jiang family and others would not dare to target him openly.
Even if the Zhenbei Marquisate wanted to deal with him, they would have to think twice.
The prefect of Shengjing, the Grand Secretary of Chongwenguan, and a member of the royal family, these three identities were enough to suppress almost all ministers of the third rank and below. He was not even afraid of the Minister of Rites like Fu Chengwang or even the Prime Minister like Li Chengqian.
Before the banquet was over, the news that Zhao Lin was invited to be Li Xingye's aide had spread.
Fu Mansion.
"Miss, I have good news for you." Lan'er came over excitedly.
Fu Liqing was listlessly holding his needle and thread, staring blankly: "Dad has changed his mind and is no longer planning to marry into the Bai family?"
Lan Er was speechless and said, "Miss, what are you talking about? How could a man like the master do something he would regret?"
Fu Liqing said unhappily, "Where's the good news?"
Lan Er said, "It's Mr. Zhao's news. If you don't want to hear it, then I won't tell you."
Fu Liqing immediately perked up and reached out to tickle Lan'er's skin: "Hurry up and tell me. You girl, you dare to tease me again."
Lan Er giggled and said, "Don't scratch it, it's itchy. I'll tell you, I'll tell you."
After Fu Liqing stopped, Lan'er said, "Today is the day when Shengjing Prefecture is hosting a banquet for the newly-appointed candidates. At the banquet, Lord Li, the prefect of Shengjing Prefecture, said that since Bai Shiyuan is the chief examiner of this imperial examination, Mr. Zhao and the others should call Bai Shiyuan their mentor."
Fu Liqing's expression changed slightly: "Mr. Zhao, are you willing?"
Lan Er said, "Mr. Zhao didn't object."
Fu Liqing did not relax: "He can't stand this kind of humiliation, right?"
Lan Er rolled her eyes at Fu Liqing. "Miss, what are you thinking? How can this be considered humiliating? Not to mention that Mr. Bai was the top scholar of the previous year, a scholar of the Hanlin Academy, and a favorite of His Majesty, but just because he's the chief examiner of this exam, it's only natural for the new candidates to call him mentor. Of course, that's not the point."
Fu Liqing said angrily, "Why are you talking about this?"
Lan Er said, "I just wanted to tell you all the news about Master Zhao. Lord Li invited Master Zhao to be his staff member on the spot, and Master Zhao agreed."
"Become Lord Li's staff?"
Fu Liqing was startled at first, but then delighted. "Lord Li is the prefect of Shengjing and a Grand Secretary of the Chongwen Academy. His staff is no less prestigious than those of fourth- and fifth-rank officials. With him as his protector, Master Zhao won't have to worry about retaliation from the Jiang and Bai families."
"So, he has one foot in the official career?" Lan'er asked.
"No!" Fu Liqing smiled. "As long as he doesn't make any mistakes and passes the imperial examination next year, Lord Li will definitely not hesitate to give him a push. And with his talent, his career in the government is already secure."
"Congratulations, young lady." Lan Er chuckled and lowered her voice, "Young Master Bai will also take part in the imperial examination next year. If he fails to pass the examination as well as Young Master Zhao, I wonder if he will have the nerve to marry you. Then the master will have to think twice."
Fu Liqing shook his head gently, sighed, and said, "Daddy is too stubborn. It's difficult."
Then she showed her expectation again: "I hope Mr. Zhao can win the first place in the imperial examination."
She just hadn't considered that even if Zhao Lin became the top scorer, would he come to find her?
…
Jiang family.
Jiang Yichen was playing a game of men and women with his concubine, and when his clothes were in disarray, Jiang Cha came hurriedly and said, "The master is here."
Jiang Yichen quickly pushed his concubine away, tidied his clothes, and came to the front hall. The current head of the Jiang family, Jiang Yichen's father, Jiang Zhijie, was already sitting there with a calm expression, showing no joy.
"Daddy never comes to my place. What brings you here today?" Jiang Yichen said with a smile.
Jiang Zhijie looked at Jiang Yichen and said calmly, "Today is the day when Shengjing Prefecture holds a banquet to entertain the newly-appointed scholars."
"Yeah, isn't this a common practice? What's wrong?" Jiang Yichen asked in confusion.
Jiang Zhijie ignored him and continued, "At the banquet, Li Xingye asked Zhao Lin and the others to call Bai Shiyuan his mentor, citing Bai Shiyuan as the chief examiner for this exam. Zhao Lin and the others did so."
Jiang Yichen was stunned for a moment and then smiled: "This Zhao Lin is quite flexible."
Jiang Zhijie continued, "Li Xingye publicly invited Zhao Lin to be his advisor, and Zhao Lin has already agreed."
Jiang Yichen was stunned and his face darkened.
Jiang Zhijie said, "Put aside the grudge between you and Zhao Lin first."
After saying that, Jiang Zhijie stood up and walked away. When he reached the door, he stopped and said, "You can treat him as an opponent, but if you continue to treat him as a beggar, then you should give up and let your brother inherit the family property."
After Jiang Zhijie left, Jiang Yichen sat in the seat where Jiang Zhijie had just sat with a gloomy face.
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