Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!

Chapter 1810: Chapter 1810: Keeping One’s Place

Mr. Qi noticed the clever look and thought of his arrogant son-in-law, curling the corner of his mouth as he said to Gu Sheng, ”Come visit our home another day.”

Gu Sheng hurriedly replied, ”I certainly will.”

After chatting for a while, they heard the lively noises outside. He signaled to open the door of the private room, and sure enough, it was the Graduates taking the imperial exams discussing animatedly again. They talked about the people’s livelihood, from pharmaceutical factories to grain seeds, and finally mentioned the good farmland obtained from land reclamation.

Mr. Qi said, ”It’s great to be young, energetic, and lively.”

Chang Zhi nodded, ”Indeed.”

After sitting for a while longer, they left. As Chang Zhi descended the stairs, his steps halted, and Lau Mingsheng abruptly stood up, ”It’s you.”

Chang Zhi coughed, ”You’re here in the capital for the exams?”

He mentioned he seemed to have forgotten something, and upon seeing Lau Mingsheng, he remembered that Lau Mingsheng still owed him a handwritten copy of the Four Books, which he completely forgot to retrieve after returning to the capital.

After an initial burst of excitement, Lau Mingsheng calmed down. His impression of Scholar Zhou had been of someone attired in simple clothes, but now, even though he didn’t know much about clothing, he realized this was not something an ordinary person could afford.

Mr. Qi raised an eyebrow, ”Do you know each other?”

Chang Zhi coughed, ”Before I became the examiner of Chengchuan Province, I left the capital for a walkabout, and that’s when I met this gentleman.”

Chang Zhi said to Lau Mingsheng, ”I’m pleased to see you in the capital. Since you are here, it must be for the Spring exams. Might you tell me your ranking in the Qiu Wei exams?”

Lau Mingsheng was in a daze, four words repeated in his mind: Chengchuan Province examiner. So it turns out this isn’t just a Scholar on a study tour; his heart thudded with anxiety, ”Your... Your Excellency, the student did not disappoint you and ranked third.”

Chang Zhi raised an eyebrow. This was a bit unexpected for him, ”Not bad, a well-deserved accomplishment.”

Lau Mingsheng couldn’t help but ask, ”Are you really the Chengchuan Province examiner, Lord Zhou?”

Mr. Qi laughed heartily, ”That’s right, he is indeed Lord Zhou, known as The King of Hell.”

Chang Zhi cleared his throat, noticing many people looking in this direction, and said to Lau Mingsheng, ”I failed to keep my promise, so those Four Books are for your child now.”

Before Lau Mingsheng could speak, Chang Zhi and his party had already left.

Outside the teahouse, Mr. Qi asked, ”Aren’t you going to ask him more to stay in touch for the future?”

Chang Zhi shook his head, ”I never intended to take on students, meeting him during my walkabout was his opportunity, and this is just fine.”

Paying too much attention may not be a good thing for Lau Mingsheng.

Mr. Qi stroked his beard, ”I’ll be going first.”

Chang Zhi got on the carriage and signaled Gu Sheng to join him. He said to Gu Sheng, ”In the future, with the son of the Qi family leading you, learn from Young Master Qi.”

Gu Sheng understood well. Despite befriending a future prince consort, he couldn’t enter some circles. Today, Lord Zhou had given him an opportunity.

Upon returning, Chang Zhi did not go back to his courtyard but to the main courtyard. On the way back, he bought some pastries, ”Mother, I bought you the pastries you like.”

Zhulan was looking over books organized by Ming Rui and Ming Hui, rubbing her eyes tiredly, ”Did you go out of your way to buy them?”

Chang Zhi chuckled, ”With a carriage, it’s not far.”

Zhulan washed her hands and speared a pastry with a fork, ”I was just thinking about them, and you brought them.”

”If you like them, I’ll buy more for you tomorrow.”

”Eating them every few days is fine; too much and it gets sickening.”

Chang Zhi signaled the maids to leave, then personally poured juice for his mother, ”Have some juice to cut the sweetness.”

Zhulan didn’t eat much. After drinking the juice, she stopped eating, ”You’re back just in time to help Ming Rui with these books. Their summaries aren’t quite right.”

She felt a bit dizzy looking at the repeated records.

Chang Zhi took the book. It was about astronomy, and as someone who loved reading all kinds of books, after reading, he smiled, ”I’ll explain it to them in a while.”

”That would be wonderful.”

After sitting for a while longer, Chang Zhi left with the book. Zhulan breathed a sigh of relief, thinking how her grandchildren believed she was omnipotent!

The next day, Zhou Shuren entered the palace with a thick booklet. Seeing him, Eunuch Zhang reached out his hand, ”Mr. Hou, allow this old servant to help you carry them.”

Zhou Shuren avoided him, ”I can manage these myself. You must be tired standing all day.”

Eunuch Zhang said with a smile, ”This old servant can also rest.”

During the conversation, Zhou Shuren entered the main hall and saw the Minister of Personnel was there, noticing the Emperor holding a booklet. The annual evaluations had begun, and the Minister of Personnel had brought the list in advance for the Emperor.

Zhou Shuren was surprised that today the Minister of Personnel brought officials he didn’t recognize.

The Emperor motioned for Zhou Shuren to take a seat and wait a moment.

Zhou Shuren put down the booklet he brought. The Crown Prince came over and picked up the one Zhou Shuren brought.

This particular booklet recorded unsorted furniture, antiques, and other items from house raids. Farmland, shops, and houses acquired through the raids were easier to deal with, and no matter how much was seized, there was always someone willing to buy. The Emperor even bought several houses and estates!

Jewelry was also easy to refurbish and sell to foreign merchants. There were too many antique paintings and calligraphy; each batch required time to process. Furniture and ornaments were hard to deal with, too expensive nobody wanted them, too cheap one couldn’t bear to sell!

After a while, the Minister of Personnel left with the others, and the Emperor looked at the Crown Prince, who painfully said, ”Father, just have a look.”

The Emperor took a look, ”So much furniture has piled up?”

Zhou Shuren replied, ”Mm.”

In the Emperor’s eyes, all of this meant Silver Coin, ”Refresh them for sale?”

Zhou Shuren said, ”It’s not easy to sell.”

Many of these were dowries, all custom made.

The Emperor held back his pain while flipping through, ”If worse comes to worst, sell them cheap.”

Zhou Shuren nodded, ”Mm.”

The Emperor took the list sent by the Ministry of Personnel. Zhou Shuren’s sharp eyes briefly caught a mark made by the Emperor after Jiao Han’s name. The Emperor noticed, ”Do you know him?”

Zhou Shuren shook his head, ”No, I don’t.”

The Emperor said, ”I’ve heard Prince Qi mention him a few times. His daughter caught the attention of Empress Dowager Chen. You see, getting on this list means quite a bit of capability.”

Zhou Shuren figured out who it was, ”I’ve also heard my wife mention Miss Jiao from the Jiao family.”

The Emperor pointed to a storybook and newspaper, ”I’ve read that young girl’s stories, they really aren’t bad.”

Zhou Shuren didn’t believe the Emperor would pay attention to a young girl without reason, ”My wife likes reading them as well.”

The Emperor put down the list, ”I trust Empress Dowager Chen’s judgment.”

Zhou Shuren’s mind turned with speculation, realizing the Emperor’s intentions for the Third Prince. A sidelong glance caught the Crown Prince’s expression. With the Third Prince having a job, the Emperor was both pleased and intended to use this marriage to tell the prince to keep to his duties.

He had considered that the Third Prince’s bride wouldn’t be of high birth. The outcome was unexpected, though his wife mentioned Ms. Jiao was remarkable, and with Empress Dowager Chen’s endorsement, it would hardly be surprising if she was chosen.

The Crown Prince never interfered with the marriages of his half-brothers, though for his legitimate brothers, he surely would not only to control them but also to find someone who would understand and accompany them. He hoped his brother could lead a simple and happy life, much like their uncle’s.

In the evening, Zhou Shuren returned home with his speculation. Zhulan was quite surprised, ”Rongchuan said the Third Prince has a good temperament.”

Zhou Shuren remarked, ”The Third Prince wouldn’t deceive Rongchuan.”

This also confirmed that the Third Prince understood the situation well and was willing to accept a wife of lower status. Waiting steadily for his title while living comfortably was a good prospect, too.