Chapter 128
On the day when the palace examination results were announced, Chu Huan wore a bright red top scholar robe and rode a tall white horse in a parade through the streets.
Along the way, he received countless sachets thrown by girls, among which there were also some for young men, and some children were laughing and playing to join in the fun.
The posture that seemed to be able to capture both men and women was too terrifying, causing a long distance between the second and third place winners and Chu Huan.
They were clearly the top three in the palace examination, but when they were paraded together on horseback, it gave the impression of "We don't know the person in front of us, do whatever you want, but don't bring trouble to us!"
Chu Huan: “…”
If you insist on keeping yourself out of trouble, don't blame me :)
[Tong'er is working, let me introduce the runner-up.]
system:?
It was originally busy counting how many sachets were thrown to Chu Huan, to see whether more were thrown to women or men. It also wanted to go back and tell Shang Lu to make the beauty jealous, but when it heard Chu Huan calling it to work, it became excited.
【Here we are~188 is dedicated to serving you! 】
This year's runner-up is Qu Jiancheng, who is 21 years old. He has no wives, concubines, or mistresses, and has no bad habits like prostitution, gambling, or drugs. He maintains a very clean life.
His ability to secure the second-place spot in this palace examination demonstrates his considerable knowledge of household affairs. He can read, understand literature, and write poetry. He can enjoy romance with his wife, yet also pay attention to the daily necessities of life. He makes a very good husband.
Of course, no one is perfect, and he did have his flaws. One of them was that he loved raising animals, naming them, making clothes for them, chatting with them, and even building graves for the animals when they died.
There is actually nothing wrong with such a hobby in modern times. Many people rely on this to become pet bloggers, shoot videos, and do commercials. Their income is much better than that of many office workers, and they have won the love and envy of countless netizens.
In ancient times, some cat and dog lovers could understand Qu Jiancheng, but more people still thought he was mentally ill.
In this respect, Qu Jiancheng and Shang Lu are somewhat similar, both having hobbies that people of this era cannot understand.
The difference is that Qu Jiancheng's family could understand and accept him, while Shang Lu's family thought he was a monster and let him fend for himself in the yard. Later, they expelled him from the family.
Qu Jiancheng's delicate face flushed red.
Someone in the Qu family is an official. Qu Jiancheng knows about Chu Huan and the system, but he can't expose and stop them at this time. He can only condemn Chu Huan with his eyes: Do you really need to do this?
Chu Huan seemed oblivious: [It's not really a minor flaw, is it? It's just a personal preference at best. We may not understand it, but we must show the most basic respect.]
The system agreed: [That's true, but most people can't understand it, so it's just a minor flaw.]
Compared to those who appear to be decent people but are actually extremely cruel and bloody in their actions, he is truly a much better person! He is so loving, compassionate, and merciful, and he is a holy father who loves and forgives everyone. He is truly wonderful.
Qu Jiancheng's face turned even redder.
He originally thought that Chu Huan was secretly taking revenge on him, but he didn't expect that both Chu Huan and the system respected his little hobby.
Being compared with bad guys who abuse cats and dogs made him unhappy, and he always felt very embarrassed, but the praise that followed immediately coaxed him into submission.
System: [Originally, Qu Jiancheng was going to get engaged three years ago, but when he heard that Chu Huan had postponed the marriage for three years to prepare for the imperial examination, he decided that as a grown man, he couldn't be any less determined than a woman, so he turned it down and focused on preparing for the imperial examination.]
Some people think that after passing the Imperial Examination and the Palace Examination, one's status is different, and the status of the girl who can be proposed to is also much higher, which makes them feel like they are being sold at a high price. Qu Jiancheng only cares about the imperial examination and his little animal, so he is relatively simple.
Even though he missed the top spot despite his best efforts, his kindness is still worthy of recognition. So, all the beautiful ladies around here who are still unengaged, please take a look at our runner-up brother, Qu Jiancheng.
In an instant, everyone's attention was focused on Qu Jiancheng behind Chu Huan.
Qu Jiancheng:!!!
He was so frightened that he almost jumped off his horse.
If he had known that Chu Huan and the system were planning this, he would have run away immediately!
The girls around were very obedient. They observed Qu Jiancheng riding on the horse and asked others about Qu Jiancheng.
Originally, the new number one scholar was the most sought-after candidate for a husband, but this year's number one scholar turned out to be a girl.
It does make women proud, but it’s a pity that they can’t get married!
The top two candidates in the imperial examination are both girls and cannot be taken home to be husbands, so the unengaged runner-up becomes the best candidate.
The introduction just now only talked about Qu Jiancheng himself, without mentioning the Qu family background, family style, and elders. They have to ask more before making a final decision.
Someone from the Qu family also came to watch Qu Jiancheng's horse parade. An unexpected accident happened, and they felt both proud and embarrassed.
Before long, Qu Jiancheng's body was covered with sachets thrown by the girls, and he smelled so fragrant that he sneezed several times.
Qu Jiancheng felt like a poor little white rabbit caught in a pack of wolves. Everyone wanted to tear him apart and eat him. He was so scared that he trembled with fear and just wanted to hide in the rabbit hole.
So this is what it feels like to find a son-in-law from the list?
It's so scary.
If he had known this would happen, he would not have refused the marriage his mother arranged for him!
Seeing this, Chu Huan quickly rode away on horseback, and Nangong Ling cleverly followed behind, leaving the smokeless battlefield to the runner-up alone.
A few days later, Chu Huan heard the follow-up from the system.
After every imperial examination, the trend of finding a husband for the person below the list becomes popular. This year, both the top and bottom place winners are women, leaving only the runner-up candidate. Qu Jiancheng was already very popular, and after my promotion, he became even more so.
Some people think his love of talking to animals is a bit neurotic, while others think his hobby is innocent and endearing, and that the matchmakers who come to his house are practically trampling down his doorstep.
Qu Jiancheng's mother had secretly set her sights on several girls from different families, waiting to arrange marriages after the palace examination. She took this opportunity to consult Qu Jiancheng and quickly finalize the marriages.
[They had to get engaged quickly. If the marriage wasn't settled, their family would have to entertain matchmakers every day. With so many matchmakers, they wouldn't be able to get anything done in a day. Fortunately, they had some information beforehand, so getting the engagement done quickly wouldn't delay anything.]
[Sister Huan, is this couple considered my matchmaking?] As they spoke, the system's focus shifted.
Chu Huan also followed suit: […Forget it?]
System: [Should I ask them for a matchmaking fee?]
Without Chu Huan's response, the system said dejectedly: [Forget about their matchmaking fees. I can't even eat the wedding candy for you and Lady Shanglu.]
Yes, after the palace examination results came out, Chu Huan and Shang Lu were going to get married.
This was decided three years ago. Even though it has been so long, every aspect has been prepared to the utmost.
On the second day after the palace examination results were announced, the emperor issued an imperial decree, adopting Chu Huan as his adopted daughter, naming her Princess Zhaoming, and ordering the Ministry of Rites to be responsible for the marriage between Princess Zhaoming and her husband.
Zhao means bright, shining and illuminating. This title is enough to show the emperor's expectations and appreciation for her.
The original time of issuing this imperial edict was after the efficacy of chemical fertilizers became known. Unfortunately, the research progress of chemical fertilizers was much slower than expected. Later, chemical fertilizers were promoted with the help of "The Biography of Chu Huan". There was only half a year left before the joint examination and the palace examination. At that time, it was not very appropriate to confer the title of princess on Chu Huan.
If she ranked among the top three, the people would think that the title was given because of her status as a princess and that she did not deserve it. If she did not make it into the top three, the people would ridicule her for insisting on taking the imperial examination despite her lack of talent, which would bring her a lot of unnecessary doubts.
Half a year is not a long time. After some consideration, the imperial edicts that had been written for several years continued to gather dust.
The time for issuing the imperial edict was changed, but Princess Zhaoming's mansion was built early, and only the interior was left to be filled.
As soon as the imperial edict was issued, the Emperor, Empress, Second Prince's Consort, Consort Shu, and others sent furniture, screens, and jewelry. The old Grand Tutor and Grand Preceptor sent several bookshelves of books, and General Xuanwei sent an entire martial arts training ground...
The officials sent so many things that within a few days, the princess's mansion was transformed from an empty shell into a real home, allowing Chu Huan and Shang Lu to experience the ancient version of "move-in with just your luggage".
Chu Hua comforts the system: [I can't send you any wedding candy, but you can keep some melon for yourself. Consider it my wedding candy.]
system:! ! !
The surprise came too suddenly.
Ever since Chu Huan cooperated with the imperial court, it has never been short of melon energy, and no longer needs to practice questions in the middle of the night, but the melon energy is only temporarily stored and can be used at any time.
It's not that it can't keep some of it privately. After all, other people can't see the system interface and don't know how much melon is left. But its conscience tells it not to do so.
An excellent system should work in both directions with the host to achieve a win-win situation.
Doing so might allow me to keep some private property, but if those old foxes find out...
Perhaps the imperial court was afraid to confront the melon-eating system due to its ability to collect intelligence, nor could it do anything about it, and even made compromises for this reason. However, in doing so, the basis of cooperation and trust between the two sides collapsed.
The emperor and his officials would wonder: If the system can falsify information about Gua Neng, could it also falsify information in other areas?
The imperial court had managed to save the melon energy, and did not prohibit it and Chu Huan from using it due to personal preferences and curiosity. The system did not want to be too greedy.
But now the host explicitly asked it to keep it for itself!
The system was so happy, its baby voice almost overflowing with joy: [Sister Huan, thank you!]
Chu Huan smiled: [I want to thank you too.]
More than two months later, Princess Zhaoming got married.
On that day, the emperor and empress came, and the second prince, the second prince's wife and other royal family members came one after another. Most of the civil and military officials in the court came. Those who did not come basically had work to do and could not get away.
Nearly 90% of the shops in the capital were having sales. Some people were given candies when they bought things in the shops. They said that the owners were happy about Princess Zhaoming's wedding and paid for the candies out of their own pockets.
Even some roadside stalls got involved. The stall owners either offered cheaper prices or gave more gifts. When asked, they said they were happy because Princess Zhaoming had passed the imperial examination and was getting married today.
Many outsiders are shocked but also understand.
The people were no longer afraid of smallpox, no longer afraid of infection, no longer frightened of malaria, no longer worried about food shortages... Life became more hopeful day by day. How could they not thank Princess Zhaoming?
Many families originally thought that girls were a loss of money, so they would just raise them for a few years and then sell them to human traffickers or marry them off with some betrothal gifts when they grew up. There were also many families who would simply drown their girls when they found out they were girls.
Nowadays... women can take the imperial examinations and become officials, just like men, so many families have decided to raise maids.
Princess Zhaoming recruited many female staff members, and while preparing for her marriage, she did not forget to find work for these staff members.
In the past two months, female officials leading a group of men and women working busily could be seen everywhere in the capital.
Some of them were paving roads, some were building houses, and some were working in experimental fields. Everyone had endless things to do.
Last month, the first cement road in Beijing was completed, and everyone was touching and jumping on the gray and prickly cement.
They had never seen such a flat road. They could walk with their eyes closed without worrying about falling, and they would not get splashed with mud on rainy days. The carriage did not shake as much when it passed over the road.
What surprised them even more was that Princess Zhaoming also made Eucommia rubber tires.
It is said that the original intention was to make rubber tires, but Dasheng did not have enough rubber at present, so they tried making Eucommia rubber tires first.
The wooden wheels of the carriage are equipped with Eucommia rubber tires, which, when used in combination with the cement road, provide excellent shock absorption and vibration absorption effects, and everyone who has ridden in it praises it.
The rubber yield of Eucommia ulmoides is not very high. It takes one thousand kilograms of Eucommia ulmoides leaves to make two tires of a horse-drawn carriage, which is really a waste of leaves.
A carriage could only seat a few people. In order to save resources, Princess Zhaoming summoned a large number of carpenters to make scooters, roller skates and other means of transportation suitable for all ages. The walking speed increased rapidly, and scooters and roller skates became all the rage.
Eucommia ulmoides is a traditional Chinese medicine. Once Eucommia rubber tires came out, the market demand was huge.
The bark, leaves and seed coat of Eucommia ulmoides can all be sold for money. The imperial court encouraged the people to plant Eucommia trees and was also responsible for guiding the people who wanted to plant trees. Many people found new ways to make money.
And many more.
Princess Zhaoming and her staff have done so much. The people are truly grateful, but they don’t know what to do. So they send their blessings on this great day.
After Chu Huan found out, she didn't ask anyone to stop it.
These are all spontaneous actions of the people, and it would not be a good idea to force them not to do them.
All she could do was to become an official and a princess, and after having greater power, do more things to make the people's lives better and ensure that the people would never regret having blessed her.
In the bridal chamber, Chu Huan looked at the gorgeous groom in red clothes and drank the wedding wine with a smile.
"Husband, happy wedding."
Shang Lu slowly approached and kissed Chu Huan: "My dear, happy wedding."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
