Planning to marry the third master

Two days later, there was a controversial person in the court among the candidates going to the north. That person was Feng Zhuoming, who had excellent grades in the Imperial College and even ranked A in the exam.

What is controversial is that the person is still young and has only a few days of experience as an official. With so many people strongly recommending him, it seems as if he is the only one to be chosen.

An official stood up and proposed again: "Beirong is a vast area with scarce resources. Young people may want to go there to gain some experience."

Prince Yan frowned and said, "Wouldn't it be better to directly appoint an official with a long career to go there? Why send someone who has just entered the officialdom to the north? Isn't this a superfluous move?"

King Hui said: "This is also a consideration for the talent reserve of our dynasty. What this person lacks is experience. Although he is young, he is not incompetent."

The emperor said, "There has been a debate about this person in the court these past two days. I have not yet met the person you are talking about. Well, let him come to the palace and then make a decision."

After the court session, the emperor asked someone to check Feng Zhuoming's background.

If you don't check, you won't know. Once you check, you will know it is a conspiracy. If you talk about calculation, the emperor is the one sitting at the top of the court, and he can see everything clearly.

He asked someone to bring Feng Zhuoming. He wanted to see if this kid really had the ability or was just suitable to be a chess piece.

A boy of seventeen who stood out in the Imperial College must be an enlightened person, but whether he has the ability remains to be seen.

It was Feng Zhuoming's first time meeting the emperor, so it was impossible for him not to be nervous. However, after coming to Beijing, he had seen big scenes. Prince Yan had already explained to him about the matters discussed in the court. Going out for training was a good thing for him, but the training place was the territory of his uncle Prince Hui. Among them, the one who had to be restrained in the end was General Qilin.

Prince Yan is not a pushover, and he has analyzed this matter clearly. Now, it depends on how the emperor arranges it. Of course, Gu Xingyan is confident that his father is on his side.

Feng Zhuoming bowed and said, "Your humble servant pays respect to His Majesty."

The emperor spoke in a deep voice, "Stand up."

Feng Zhuoming saluted and accidentally met the emperor's eyes. He immediately bowed and asked, "What does your majesty want to see me for?"

"Where do you work?"

"Assist the Secretary-General in handling affairs."

"So you also know about the affairs of the court."

Feng Zhuoming nodded and said, "I just met Prince Yan before coming here."

"Well, what did Prince Yan tell you?"

"There is a dispute over the whereabouts of the subordinate."

"Well, what do you think?"

"I am loyal to the emperor. I will do my best to obey his orders."

This made the emperor look at the young man in front of him more and asked, "Do you dare to play chess with me?"

Feng Zhuoming cupped his hands and said, "I dare not, but I can try to play chess with you."

"Well, that's a bit of guts."

Eunuch Yu Huai immediately went to set up the chessboard.

The emperor walked away from the table, coughed and gasped for a while, then sat down next to the chessboard and small table.

Feng Zhuoming lifted up his official robe and sat down.

The emperor gave him the black spot.

Feng Zhuoming was not polite and moved the black pieces to one side first, which was a prudent way to protect himself.

The emperor held the white pieces and placed them on his own side, with each of the four corners occupying two sides.

The emperor started chatting, "You have become an official at such a young age. Has your family arranged a marriage for you?"

Feng Zhuoming calmly played chess and replied, "No."

"Have you seen it?"

"Never."

"Why?"

"First, it's not the right time yet, and second, my sister told me to find someone I like."

"Why don't you listen to the elders at home?"

"My elder sister has always been the one in charge of the family, and the elders in the family also listen to her."

"Oh, you are General Qilin's wife?"

Feng Zhuoming nodded and said, "Sister has read more books than me."

The emperor recalled that he had never met General Qilin's wife. It was thanks to her that the mutiny was not a big mistake. This made him curious. He said, "You are lucky to have a good sister."

Gu Xingyan nodded and made his move.

Then the emperor said, "Don't give up the game."

Feng Zhuoming said: "I am not yet at the point of giving up the game." The game had just begun, so it was indeed not the point of giving up the game.

However, whether this statement needs to be considered or not, he learned from the president of the Imperial College, and the thing he talked about most was how to deal with the emperor and be a qualified subject in front of the emperor.

First, do not be slick, second, do not listen to others, and third, do not try to guess the emperor’s intention.

The emperor slightly curved his lips. The young man in front of him was handsome and looked like a good candidate for a civil servant, but he lacked experience and was not calm enough. In the eyes of others, he might be qualified to be an official, but in his eyes, he was still a little short of being able to do great things. He said, "Tell me about your sister and General Qilin."

Feng Zhuoming didn't know what the emperor meant, so he answered truthfully, "Yes, my sister was sent to the Xie family in Jinling to be adopted when she was ten years old."

Adopted daughter? The emperor had never heard of such a thing. He asked, "Why?"

"At that time, our family was in financial difficulty. It's not that we couldn't afford to support my sister, but my mother wanted my sister to live a better life, so she let my sister live with my aunt."

"My sister likes quietness and can't hang out with the young ladies in the Xie family. Therefore, she keeps company with books all day long and writes storybooks in her spare time. By the time we know about it, my sister has become famous. She has saved money and bought a big house. She paid the money for the Xie family's upbringing and returned home. It was also in the Xie family that she met General Qilin."

The emperor had an impression of it. Concubine De liked to read storybooks. There was another person outside the palace who wrote the storybooks. He said, "I have also read your sister's storybooks. They are well written, but not as good as everyone else's."

Feng Zhuoming nodded and said, "Sister said that obscure and difficult to understand books are difficult for girls in the boudoir to understand. Scholars have their own books to read, and those who like her are girls in the boudoir. There is no need to cater to her for the sake of high artistic conception."

"I see. I was just being superficial."

"Speaking of my brother-in-law, my sister and he haven't seen each other for a few years. My brother-in-law doesn't have a new love, so I guess he has a deep friendship with my sister."

The emperor agreed. On the city wall that day, he could see that General Qilin was a man of deep affection. Then he asked a question that Feng Zhuoming had to be careful about, "Do you know his intention of entering the Baili family?"

Feng Zhuoming paused while playing chess, and did not answer directly: "I know my brother-in-law's personality is that he doesn't like being an official, and my sister also likes a carefree life. I don't have much time to talk to my brother-in-law, but I know that when the time is right, my brother-in-law will definitely resign."

Xie Yunxiao had resigned from office once before, and the emperor believed what he said.

Feng Zhuoming didn't know that because of his words, the emperor was more willing to use Xie Yunxiao. The monopoly of power by relatives has always been a problem for the court, but if such a problem does not exist in a person, then he is really a rare minister.

After that, the two of them were silent. In the end, the emperor won, just barely winning half a piece.

Whether he gave in or not, only the two of them knew it. It was because Feng Zhuoming did not give in blatantly and did not let him lose ugly, and gave him a perfect answer sheet at the right time, that the emperor gave Feng Zhuoming affirmation in his heart.

After that, he was asked to go back without mentioning anything about going to Beirong.