Chapter 1034: Hoping to be recognized

At night, Zhu Lan told Zhou Shuren her guess, "Do you want to test Shi Qing?"

Zhou Shuren rejected it without a second thought, "It won't do us any good whether we ask or not."

Zhulan wanted to ask who said that, she had even planned it, but then she thought, Zhou Shuren was right, it really was of no benefit to them, so what if they knew, so what if they didn't know, they were just there to watch the show and didn't want to get involved.

Zhou Shuren was thinking, "The ship is setting sail today, and I don't know if the journey will be smooth."

"We are on a diplomatic mission to a neighboring country, not a country far away from the sea. It is relatively safe to go south."

Zhou Shuren, "Tomorrow is a day off, so I can have a good rest. I've been really tired these past few days. Money, money, money is all I can think about. Taxes on the people cannot be raised. In order to develop the economy, taxes on merchants have been reduced a bit, but fortunately the taxes on maritime trade have made up for it. Yes, we also have to add that last year's salt tax was much better, otherwise, the national treasury would be in such a tight spot!"

"The current treasury silver reserves are already good. The Ministry of Revenue was in a difficult situation a few years ago."

The country had just recovered from ten years of war, followed by a series of major wars and then floods. The economy had just started to pick up, but the Ministry of Revenue was really suffering. Although it collected a lot of taxes each year, there were even more places to spend money.

Zhou Shuren pulled the quilt higher, "Don't think about it anymore, go to sleep, go to sleep."

Zhulan slapped away the hand that was pinching her belly. Ever since she gained weight, this man really treated her like a chubby pillow!

The next day, Zhou Shuren slept until he woke up naturally. When he got up, breakfast was already over for an hour. After breakfast, Zhou Shuren strolled in the yard. He didn't go anywhere, for he was afraid of meeting people outside. This day's rest was ruined again. The previous experience was too painful.

After breakfast, I lay down in the rocking chair, pulled the blanket over myself and didn't move.

Zhulan came back from the fourth room and saw her husband was going to sleep again, "......Who else is not enough?"

Zhou Shuren was unwilling to open his eyes, "Well, what did you do in Room 4?"

Zhulan sat on the chair. "Butler Ding sent me a letter a few days ago saying that the house in my hometown has been rebuilt and Changzhi and his wife want to go back home early. I asked them when they plan to leave."

Zhou Shuren was a little more alert, "They want to go back early?"

"Well, Changzhi has been in a slump for many years and now he just needs to review, so he wants to go back to his hometown to communicate more with the clan members who are going to take the provincial examination and help the scholars in the clan."

Zhou Shuren opened his eyes and said with relief: "This child has finally grown up and achieved success."

He had thought about it, but he just didn't have time to talk to his fourth son. His family was moving too fast, and the clan needed to pull more together to avoid a serious breakdown. The clan would always rely on his family, so he hoped for mutual help rather than the burden of the entire family.

Zhulan, "Changzhi means to go back without waiting for the snow to melt, so that it won't be easy to walk after the snow melts. I'll come and tell you later."

Zhou Shuren was completely alert, "Let's not take Mingjia and Yuwen away."

"Well, the two children stay."

Zhou Shuren sat up and said, "I remember you said Jiang Sheng would go back with you."

"Let's go back together. Once Changzhi has set a date, I'll tell Xuemei."

Just as Zhou Shuren was about to speak, Changzhi came in. Changzhi was stunned when he saw his hair was tied up and then he quickly responded, "Dad."

Zhou Shuren didn't care about his image. He was free to do whatever he wanted today. "Well, your mother told me that you have realized that people who are too independent can't go far. I am very glad that you can realize this. Your mother and I are waiting for you to come back in Beijing."

Changzhi watched his second brother enter the official career, and he also wanted to get his father's recognition in his heart, so he thought, what can he do for this family if he doesn't enter the official career? Now that he has been recognized, the fire in Changzhi's heart burns even more vigorously, "Dad, your son will definitely get good grades and come back."

"Well, when are you leaving?"

"Ten days later."

Zhou Shuren thought for a moment and said, "Shenxing will go back with you this time."

With the addition of the people given to Chang Zhi last time, and two people with good skills following him, he can feel more at ease. Not only for Chang Zhi, but also for some young people in the clan. They are the sparks of the Zhou clan. Don't extinguish them before they start, otherwise he will cry.

Changzhi was not happy, but worried. He thought the more his father valued his safety, the more dangerous it was. His old man had been very careful over the years, so he thought he should tell his wife to bring some people back. Fortunately, his wife also brought a lot of helpful servants as part of her dowry.

At the academy, Mingyun explained what Jiang Du didn't understand, and only after confirming that his cousin had understood it did he pick up the book to read on his own. Now that Gu Liufeng had passed the examination for the scholar status first, he had to wait.

Fortunately, Jiang Du was promoted to Class A. Thinking of Ming Teng in Class B, he gritted his teeth. Ming Teng was not ambitious. As for Ran Xun, if he didn't urge them, these two would have to stay in Class B for two more years.

In the B class, Ming Teng sneezed, "I don't know who is talking about me."

Ran Xun looked at his little friend, "I guess it's your eldest brother."

Ming Teng shuddered. It was horrible that his elder brother forced him to study every day.

Dong Zhan continued to study with his head down, while Jiang Du went to Class A. He also tried at the beginning of the year, but his grades were too far behind, so he pursed his lips. He was not very confident, especially after his aunt and uncle left Beijing to take up their new posts.

Dong Zhan originally wanted to go with his aunt, but his uncle-in-law didn't let him. He thought it was right for him to stay in the capital. However, without his aunt, he was the only outsider in the Zhou Mansion.

Ran Xun noticed Dong Zhan's expression. It was easy to guess what Dong Zhan was thinking. He felt uncomfortable living under someone else's roof. Looking at the book at hand, he thought about it and picked it up to read carefully. He was much happier than Dong Zhan.

At Zhou's house, Zhou Shuren still did not hide away. When it was almost noon, Liu Jing came.

Zhou Shuren changed his clothes and said, "Today is not a day off for the Dali Temple. Did you ask for leave?"

Liu Jing looked tired and nodded, "Yeah, I've been on leave for a few days."

Zhou Shuren knew that the two families had decided to marry, but Liu Jing had never come to visit in person. This time he must have come for something. "Do you have anything to tell me?"

Liu Jing was angry. His two sons, the eldest was going to take the provincial examination this year, and the second son was going to take the examination for students of higher learning. The second son was smarter than the eldest, and he got third place in the examination. The competition was fierce this time, and if he could get third place, the second son would have a promising future.

Liu Jing took a sip of tea and said, "You also know that my youngest son is very talented and is the youngest scholar of this year."

Zhou Shuren naturally knew that the Zhou family had also sent gifts. If it weren't for the big age difference between his granddaughter and Liu Jing's second son, he would have wanted to make the marriage closer. "Is there anyone who likes your youngest son?"

Liu Jing's face darkened again. "Well, after the results came out, someone talked to me about it."

Zhou Shuren understood that the conversation must have been unpleasant, and he might even threaten Liu Jing. Liu Jing was different from the Zhou family. He had the emperor behind him and sufficient political achievements. Liu Jing was always cautious in the Dali Temple and had been enduring all these years. "Whose family?"