Chapter 1808: Straightforward

Zhulan looked at Su Xuan. Recently, some people were beheaded or exiled in the capital, and she really didn't pay attention to the follow-up.

Seeing that everyone was looking at her, Su Xuan said, "Lord Jiao arranged it. I heard that the Jiao family and the An family came to Beijing together and the An family helped a lot. When everyone was avoiding them, Lord Jiao came forward to arrange it and return the favor."

Zhulan knew whose house it was, "Ms. Jiao's house."

Su Xuan nodded, "Yes, it is said that Concubine Chen likes Miss Jiao very much."

Mrs. Zhao turned the handkerchief in her hand, "So the Jiao family is also afraid that Concubine Chen will think it's too cold to ignore it."

Li thought for a moment and continued, "That's only one aspect. The Jiao family's family tradition is still good. Otherwise, Concubine Chen would not have been in their eyes."

Su Xuan sighed, "I heard from Yu Wen that Miss An is arrogant and proud. Now that she is exiled from the capital, I don't know what her future will be like."

Zhao said, "How many lives have been lost by the An family's lending at high interest? The An family's young ladies are all stained with blood when they wear gold and jade. The An family's female relatives were exiled, but at least they saved their lives, but the people the An family harmed cannot be brought back to life."

Li said, "If you ask me, everything has a destiny."

In the Hanlin Academy, Zhou Changzhi's influence as an imperial examiner was still there for some time after he came back. Even though he still walked around with a teapot in his arms, no one dared to come forward and make fun of him.

Changzhi waited until Gu Sheng made some tea and handed it to him before he spoke, "You treated me as usual when I returned to Hanlin."

Now all the lives of those who were beheaded were blamed on him, and everyone talked about him behind his back.

Gu Sheng thought that he was indeed afraid when you didn't come back, but when he saw you again, he thought it through. He didn't have the ambition to reach the sky nor the deep scheming. He just wanted to live a peaceful life and not be afraid of Master Zhou. "I have never done anything to offend you. Even if you have a knife to kill people, it won't fall on me."

Zhou Changzhi took a sip of tea and said, "Do you know that I asked about you when I came back?"

Gu Sheng, “!!”

I really don’t know. I suddenly felt nervous.

Changzhi walked around Gu Sheng and said, "You are indeed stable."

Since he left, Gu Sheng has never entered the palace again. Anyone else would be nervous, but this one is very stable and does a good job. His daily routine life is quite comfortable.

Gu Sheng recalled that he had never done anything out of the ordinary, and said, "I don't ask for much."

Zhou Changzhi picked up the teapot and said, "See if you will have a good time after the imperial examination next year."

Gu Sheng waited until Lord Zhou walked away before he came to his senses. When he came to his senses, he pinched himself and it really hurt. It was a pity that he couldn't share this joy. He looked left and right and there was no one around him. They had all left the tea room because Lord Zhou came.

Time flies, winter comes with the first snow, the whole capital is covered in silver, the crisp cold wind blows through, and the frozen people just want to stay in the warm house.

Zhu Lan saw Jiang Ling and his wife and said, "It's so cold, you could have sent someone to deliver lotus roots, why did you come here in person?"

Shao Xun and Jiang Ling have already gotten married. Jiang Ling's dowry was generous, and the bricks representing the land opened the eyes of the villagers. Only then did Shao Xun realize how much wealth Jiang Ling had and how much dowry she brought into the Shao family.

Jiang Ling said, "Someone wants to hire students from the academy to be teachers in their home. I just happened to be giving you a chance to talk about this while I'm delivering lotus roots."

Zhulan had been feeling unwell due to a cold recently. She had not been to the academy for some time and did not know about this. "Has anyone accepted the invitation?"

Jiang Ling nodded, "The monthly salary for the contract is enough, and some people are already interested."

Zhulan said she understood. Some families could send their girls to college to learn to read and write, while some families preferred to teach them individually.

Jiang Ling asked again, "Madam, will the academy not interfere?"

Zhulan thought that the families who could afford to hire a teacher were all wealthy, and their houses would naturally be in turmoil. "The academy is helping to draft the contract, so we must not cause trouble and tarnish the academy's reputation."

Jiang Ling heaved a sigh of relief. She was worried that someone might take advantage of the school's reputation. "Now that I know what to do, I know what to do."

Zhu Lan added: "Since this has happened, forget about it if you are interested now. You can only be hired after you graduate. Otherwise, you can drop out of school."

Those who are tempted now should be eliminated, because those who are tempted are those who have too many thoughts.

Jiang Ling felt sorry for the students who were interested. She was losing the big picture for the small details. She also sighed at the students' age. She couldn't worry about everyone. She just needed to help the dean take care of the college.

Zhu Lan asked, "How is Shao Ting these days?"

Jiang Ling glanced at her husband and smiled, "She has been hiding in the academy recently."

"Why are you hiding?"

Jiang Ling also wanted to test the waters. She hadn't heard any news about Master Minghui since the Autumn Examination. She suspected that she was overthinking it. "My little sister was scared of the matchmaker's troubles. She said she was not in a hurry to get married and hid away."

Zhulan looked at Qingxue, who understood and quickly brought back a tray. Zhulan pointed at the tray and said, "These are the new jewellery. I think this set of white jade jewellery is a good match for Shao Ting. Please help me take it back."

Jiang Ling no longer had any doubts this time. She looked at her husband and saw that he was stunned. She could only speak, "I thank the madam on behalf of my younger sister."

Shao Xun came back to his senses. He had a lot of things in his mind but couldn't ask them out loud. After leaving the mansion, he asked, "What did the old lady mean?"

"That's what you thought."

Shao Xun said hurriedly: "Minghui helped me a lot, I was lucky enough to win the prize, our family background."

What is not said is already clear.

Jiang Ling thought for a moment and said, "You have already passed the imperial examination. You are still young and can plan for the imperial examination in the future. This will give me confidence. I am also from an official family. In addition, my sister is also confident that she is in the academy. Although we are marrying up, our family backgrounds are clean. Madam has expressed her opinion, so it is clear that the Marquisate has its own considerations."

Of course, it mainly depends on Master Minghui's wishes.

In the teahouse, Changzhong accepted Chengxiang's invitation to come out for tea. He has been very busy with his papers recently, so he came out today to relax. He looked at Chengxiang carefully, "You look rosy-cheeked, and you seem to be doing well recently."

Cheng Xiang opened the fan and said, "The capital is still prosperous. I have just visited all the interesting places in the capital. Look at my fan. I just won it from the examiner who came to Beijing to take the imperial examination."

Chang Zhong was speechless. "Your father has high hopes for you. You are like a kite with its string cut off when you arrive in the capital. Aren't you afraid that your father will come to the capital to punish you?"

Cheng Xiang closed his fan and said, "You are the only one I can rely on when I go to Beijing. I know my own limitations and you are busy with the Spring Examination. I can only explore on my own. There is no shortage of rich and powerful men in the fun places in Beijing. My father will not punish me. I have learned a lot of relationships recently."

Changzhong, "You must have spent a lot of money."

The dandies in the capital are not easy to make friends with. They are the most shrewd ones. Those who have made a name for themselves and have status are the hardest to approach. If you try to play tricks on them, you will just get what you want from them.

Cheng Xiang frowned, "There's not much money left from the money my father gave me."

Changzhong, "Then you'll treat me to the most expensive tea?"

"You are my biggest support. I can be stingy with anyone but you!"

"You are quite straightforward."

Cheng Xiang was about to reply when he heard a commotion downstairs, and then someone shouted, "Someone has been hit."

Changzhong signaled the servant to go and check, and when the servant came back he asked, "What happened?"

(End of this chapter)