I am the stepmother of my son, and the little villain has changed into a little cotton-padded jacket

Hearing Xiao Yizhuo's words, Wen Shutang raised his eyebrows. He didn't expect that the eldest son of the Zhao family had such a prominent background.

After learning about the origins of the Zhao brothers and sisters, Wen Shutang frowned immediately. If they really recognized Xiao Yizhuo, wouldn't all his efforts in hiding for so many years be in vain?

After thinking about the seriousness of the matter, Wen Shutang pondered for a moment, then slammed the table and made a decision.

"We will leave Fengzhen tomorrow and go to a nearby village to avoid them first. In any case, we must not let the Zhao brothers and sisters see you and recognize your identity." Wen Shutang said solemnly.

Xiao Yizhuo had the same idea, but when he saw Wen Shutang caring about him like this, he couldn't help but feel touched.

"Okay, I'll prepare the carriage tomorrow morning."

Xiao Yizhuo nodded, took out the map he was carrying in his arms and spread it out on the table.

He pointed to several towns and villages near Fengzhen and explained: "This, this and this are all small villages around Fengzhen. There are not many people there, so generally no one goes there."

Xiao Yizhuo thought for a moment and then said, "Perhaps it's because the provincial examination is approaching this year, and His Majesty has ordered court officials to come to the local area to preside over the provincial examination. Different court officials are selected every year to preside over the provincial examination. Fengzhen is relatively large, so the provincial examination is held here every year. Zhao Linhe may have come for this matter. So we just need to avoid them and not meet them. Zhao Linhe should be very busy during this period. He should not leave Fengzhen unless it is extremely important. We don't need to go too far, just go to a small village around Fengzhen."

He paused and then frowned, his tone unconsciously filled with a hint of doubt.

"The only thing that is puzzling is that the examinations in previous years were all managed by the Ministry of Personnel. I don't know why Zhao Linhe from the Ministry of Revenue intervened this year. Did something unexpected happen in the capital?"

Thinking of this, Xiao Yizhuo pursed his lips slightly, and he wanted to find Mu Yin, who had been waiting in the capital to gather information. He wanted to ask him personally what was going on.

After hearing what Xiao Yizhuo said, Wen Shutang touched his chin and thought for a while, then nodded in agreement.

"Okay, I'll listen to you, Zhao Fu, no, it should be Zhao Fuqiu. She seems to be very afraid of her brother, so she won't wander around by herself. I just happened to run into her today because she came to deliver a letter to Qingniang at Qu Jie's request."

Xiao Yizhuo immediately caught the other name from Wen Shutang's mouth and raised his eyebrows.

"Qu Jie?"

"Yes, do you know him?" Wen Shutang looked up at Xiao Yizhuo.

Xiao Yizhuo nodded slightly: "I met him a few times when I returned to Beijing to report on my work. He is a refined and elegant man. He has achieved great success at a young age. He is just a little younger than Zhao Linhe. Otherwise, with his talent, he could be compared with Zhao Linhe back then."

"Is this Qu Jie so amazing?" Wen Shutang raised his eyebrows, put away the food in front of him, and stared at Xiao Yizhuo with interest.

Putting aside Xiao Yizhuo's sensitive identity, she is actually very interested in the complicated and entangled relationships in the capital.

After all, there are not many opportunities to come into contact with such a real court. Who knows when she will return to the modern era?

If I go back to the modern era, I won’t be able to experience such fun things.

"Can you tell me more about the court?" Wen Shutang supported his head and looked at Xiao Yizhuo.

Seeing that she was so interested, Xiao Yizhuo showed a hint of tenderness in his eyes.

"I don't know much about Qu Jie. I only know that he is the top scholar from Fengzhen. He stood out from many students with his talent and knowledge, and finally won the favor of His Majesty and was promoted all the way. If I remember correctly, Qu Jie seems to be a minister now."

"Yes, Zhao Fuqiu also said today that Qu Jie is now the Minister of Personnel. Does this mean that he and Zhao Linhe are now on an equal footing?" Wen Shutang said with a blink of his eyes.

"It seems like that, but the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Revenue have different actual powers. However, both positions are absolutely important, and it is really hard to tell which one is higher. It depends on who Your Majesty values ​​more. I have been away from the capital for a long time, and I don’t know much about the current court situation. Anyway, I will not go back in the future, and the disturbances in the court have nothing to do with me anymore." Xiao Yizhuo had a faint smile on his face, looking at Wen Shutang and slowly explained.

Wen Shutang nodded: "Yes, but I have a question."

"You said."

She pursed her lips and asked after a while: "I want to know what the relationship between civil officials and military generals is like in the court?"

Hearing this question, Xiao Yizhuo was subconsciously stunned. He didn't expect Wen Shutang to ask such a straightforward question.

Civil officials and military generals have always been the two major forces. Power struggles have always occurred at all times, and there is no shortage of such things in the court now.

Xiao Yizhuo pursed his lips and put away his smile, looking at Wen Shutang seriously: "When I left, the civil officials and military officers were always at odds. A small number of civil officials were willing to interact with the military officers, but most of the civil officials felt that the military officers were vulgar and disdained to associate with them, so the gap was still very deep. Why did you think of asking this?"

After hearing his explanation, Wen Shutang responded and then shook his head.

"Nothing, just asking."

When I was studying history, I always heard my teachers say that there would always be disputes between the two schools of literature and martial arts no matter which dynasty.

On the one hand, she was indeed curious about this matter, and on the other hand, she wanted to know what position General Xiao Yizhuo held in the court.

"So which faction, civil or military, does Your Majesty prefer now?" Wen Shutang asked in a low voice.

Hearing this, Xiao Yizhuo pursed his lips tightly, and the hands hanging by his side unconsciously clenched into fists.

His voice was a little stiff: "In prosperous times, civil officials are in power. Once there is war and turmoil on the border, military generals will naturally be more useful."

Xiao Yizhuo didn't say it explicitly, but Wen Shutang understood it immediately.

Isn't this the case that when there is trouble, military generals go to the battlefield, while when there is nothing to do, civil officials enjoy themselves.

Wen Shutang frowned slightly, obviously dissatisfied with the result, but he couldn't say anything.

There was silence in the room for a moment, and Wen Shutang spoke first.

"Let's not talk about this anymore. Let's get some rest. We have to travel early tomorrow morning."

"Yeah." Xiao Yizhuo nodded. After Wen Shutang lay down on the bed, he extinguished the candle and lay down beside Wen Shutang.

The room was plunged into darkness, and it was quiet enough that one could clearly hear the two people's breathing.

Perhaps because the topic just now mentioned Xiao Yizhuo's sad story, the atmosphere was a little heavy at the moment.