In order to eat, I signed a contract with the system

With this mind placed in the right place, life naturally became prosperous and he even made a lot of money.

As a major taxpayer in Anyang County, and because An Bihuai disliked those grown men who drank and visited prostitutes as being too rude and refused to go along with them, the county magistrate of Anyang County saw through it.

Before the old county magistrate left office, he specifically recommended An Bihuai as his successor. Anyang County was remote and small in area, with little room for development. The people above didn't care about anyone other than the county magistrate here, and they didn't have any of their own to arrange, so they agreed to the old county magistrate's recommendation.

In this way, An Bihuai was promoted to the magistrate of Anyang County. Although the position of magistrate was not high, the promotion from the eighth-rank county magistrate to the seventh-rank county magistrate still made the whole An family very happy. Even Ling Rong did not expect that one day An Bihuai would be promoted without her help.

No matter how low the seventh rank is, it is still much better than the eighth rank. At least this time when Lingrong goes to Beijing for the selection, she can call herself a proper young lady from an official family.

In 1722, Emperor Yongzheng defeated his opponents and ascended the throne with the support of Nian Gengyao and Longkodo.

Nian Gengyao's sister, Concubine Hua, was beautiful and domineering. She had been favored for several years and relied on the power of the Nian family and her brother to compete with the empress. The emperor was busy with state affairs and had not entered the harem for several days. The empress dowager, for the sake of the country and his descendants, advised the emperor to hold a selection of concubines every three years.

After receiving the news of the talent show, An Bihuai reported An Lingrong's name. Thirteen years later, An Lingrong, now sixteen years old, not only looks lovely and fairy-like, but is also proficient in all kinds of embroidery and perfumery, and has even dabbled in poetry and books, which she had never learned in her previous life.

After all, An Bihuai considered himself a scholar, and after he became rich, he hired a master to teach his only son and daughter. An Lingrong was originally smart, and with the spiritual power of the soul-summoning bird, her learning ability became even stronger. However, as she was naturally not interested in the emotions in poetry and books, Lingrong only learned the basics and did not study in depth.

This time, it was still Aunt Xiao who accompanied Lingrong to the capital, but in addition to Aunt Xiao, there was also a personal maid Baoli accompanying Lingrong. The carriages were prepared in advance. After arriving in the capital, Aunt Xiao and Lingrong first found an inn to stay in. Then Aunt Xiao went out alone to look for a pawnbroker. They planned to rent a small courtyard first and see the situation after the selection.

In the inn, Baoli was talking to Lingrong. Baoli was an orphan whom Lingrong met when she went shopping a few years ago. When Lingrong met her, she was selling herself to pay for her father's burial. Many richly dressed men surrounded her and wanted to buy her as a concubine, but they were all rejected.

Lingrong was impressed by her character and took the initiative to buy her. After talking to her, she found out that Baoli's mother died early and her father was a doctor. Baoli had learned a lot of medical skills from her father since she was a child. The reason why she was named Baoli was, firstly, to align with the maid in her previous life, and secondly, to remind herself not to be the humiliating "Li Fei" again.

Aunt Xiao was very efficient and rented a suitable courtyard in just one afternoon. That night, while it was still daylight, Aunt Xiao paid a maid to clean the courtyard thoroughly. The next morning, Lingrong and the others checked out of the inn with their luggage and moved into the courtyard.

On the day of the audition, Lingrong changed into a fresh but not dull outfit. She did not wear much jewelry, but simply combed her hair and inserted a few elegant jade hairpins.

This kind of dress just shows that Lingrong's family background is humble, which will not let others misunderstand An Bihuai's suspicion of corruption, and it can also highlight the delicate and fresh beauty of Lingrong, a Jiangnan woman.

However, even if Lingrong still dresses like in the plot, neither Aunt Xiao nor Baoli would think that Lingrong would fail. After all, Lingrong is really beautiful now. The so-called weak willow swaying in the wind and freehand elegance are the embodiment of Lingrong's temperament.

Arriving at the talent show venue, Lingrong stood aside from the crowd and did not take any tea to drink, so naturally she would not bump into Xia Dongchun and wet her clothes. Some humiliation is better to be avoided, anyway, Lingrong did not intend to accept Zhen Huan's kindness in this life.

It is futile to force your way into some circles. Under the unequal status, even if Lingrong did not receive help from Zhen Huan and was on good terms with Zhen Huan and the others, she would still be looked down upon and despised by them.

Soon it was Lingrong's turn to meet the emperor. As Lingrong walked, the charm unique to a Jiangnan woman instantly caught the emperor's attention. He asked Lingrong to come forward, and after Lingrong spoke, her sweet voice that sounded like the chirping of an oriole made the emperor very satisfied.

"You, raise your head!"

As Lingrong looked up, the Emperor seemed to see a lady from the south of the Yangtze River, and also seemed to have met a flower fairy in the forest. He was so stunned that he couldn't recover for a long time. Finally, the Empress Dowager couldn't resist and spoke first, wanting to put An Lingrong aside.

After all, she came here to find someone to deal with Concubine Hua, not to find the next favorite concubine. An Lingrong's status was low and she could not play any role in suppressing Concubine Hua, but she was extremely beautiful. What if her son fell in love with her again and it affected the empress?

For the Queen Mother, a woman of Shen Meizhuang's status was the one she wanted to find to balance Concubine Hua. However, the Queen Mother obviously did not expect that after she had spoken, the Emperor would choose to keep the name card regardless of her face.

Lingrong calmly thanked the emperor and left the palace. She was indifferent to Shen Meizhuang and Zhen Huan. She thought that anyone who had no conflict of interest with her was not worthy of her attention.

Soon the imperial decree came down, and the others still had the same positions as in the plot, only she had an additional title of "Jiao", which means beautiful appearance and figure. "Zuo Zhuan·Xiang Gong 9" has a record: If you abandon your position and are beautiful, you cannot be a chaste person.

Lingrong was quite satisfied with this word. Although she knew that the emperor bestowed this title to express her beauty, compared with other words that can be used to describe beauty, such as 'Yan', 'Mei', 'Rou', 'Wan' and the like, the word 'Jiao' is indeed more solemn.

Lingrong once thought about whether she would be granted the title of a concubine. Later, she felt that the status of the daughter of a seventh-rank county magistrate was too low. If the emperor granted her the title of a concubine, it would be a slap in the face of the fathers of other concubines who entered the palace.

You have to know that Ying'er is already a seventh rank official, An Bihuai is only a seventh rank official now, Changzai is a sixth rank official, and the fathers of other Changzai are at least fourth rank administrators, so Lingrong accepted the fact that she still agreed very calmly.

On the day of entering the palace, Lingrong brought Baoli to the palace gate in a sedan chair. Zhen Huan and Shen Meiyu had already arrived and were talking. After Lingrong got out of the sedan chair, she did not come closer but just bowed from a distance. When Zhen Huan and Shen Meiyu saw her, she quickly smiled and nodded.

Three days ago, all the concubines of the Manchu army flag had entered the palace. Today, only herself and four other concubines of the Han army flag, Xia Dongchun, entered the palace. However, when Zhen Huan and the others arrived, they knew that Concubine Xia had left early.

Therefore, the first time they saw Ling Rong, Zhen Huan and Shen Meiyu knew her identity. Although they were a little far away, Zhen Huan still saw Ling Rong's face. For a moment, she felt a little unwilling. She originally thought that her appearance was the best among the new concubines entering the palace, but she didn't expect that there was another concubine who was much more beautiful than her.

"No wonder the emperor gave her the name Jiao. She is truly beautiful."

Shen Meizhuang sighed, but she was not worried. After all, she prided herself on her noble status, and the other party was just a small promise. The emperor would not neglect her because of her.