Chapter 057

Chapter 57: Results Posted

Zi Yuan puffed her cheeks and said, “No one upset me. People outside are just gossiping wildly.”

Yu Zhi Yi leaned back on a reclining chair, sipping milk tea made from Red Luan’s recipe and nibbling grilled meat from the little kitchen. The flavors bloomed on her tongue, and she squinted in contentment: “Oh? What happened?”

Seeing her miss in such a good mood, Zi Yuan did not want to spoil it. But since Yu Zhi Yi would hear it after she “came out of seclusion,” she let it out anyway. A few days ago, You Bing Yue revamped Nan Feng Bookstore. It used to be an elegant place for reading. The visitors were high officials and famous young men and women. Pride and polish showed everywhere. Because the guests had status and paid well for extras, the shop made a few hundred taels of silver each month. But even with profit, the bookstore was only known among the upper circle, and the visitors were the same fixed group. Everyone could see they were going for Chancellor Du’s name.

After You Bing Yue’s makeover, Nan Feng Bookstore exploded in popularity. Zi Yuan said, fuming, “She set up a free-entry rule and offered free tea and snacks to anyone who came in. She also started a prize-for-reading game. If you can answer the questions she sets, you get ten taels of silver.”

“At once the whole city rushed to Nan Feng Bookstore. The shop is packed. The line runs from dawn all the way to curfew. Now everyone praises her and says she is the Bodhisattva of Wisdom come to earth to spread knowledge.”

Books and learning had always been held by the rich. For common people, studying was very hard. Even the monthly tuition cost several taels of silver. After entering a school, more expenses came. And just sitting in class was not enough. To rise, you had to read many books. But where would the books come from? From great clans’ libraries, the Imperial Library Pavilion, or the shops on the street. Shops sold books for money. A basic set of the Four Books and Five Classics cost seven or eight taels per book. A whole set ran from dozens of taels to over a hundred. You also needed many other books and essays to help you study. These costs were too heavy. Poor farming families could not afford them. Even small merchants with some savings would wince. Many talented, hardworking people were stuck at the step called “books.”

Now one bookstore opened its doors to commoners. You could read and enjoy the same tea and snacks that only nobles used to taste. You could even win ten taels of silver, which many families needed two or three years to save up. How could people not be tempted?

Zi Yuan’s face dimmed and she added, “Someone with a big mouth even revealed her tie to Young Master Du. Now the scholars say she and Young Master Du are a perfect match. As for your earlier achievements, no one is talking about them.”

Yu Zhi Yi finished the milk tea and found it a little too sweet, so she ate some grilled lean meat. The salty, savory taste washed away the sugar. She lay on the chair and let the warm, gentle sunlight that did not scorch soak her skin. Life felt perfect.

Zi Yuan pleaded, “Miss, I know you do not care, but please, do not not care right now. Young Master Du is about to take the Imperial Examinations. With his grades, he will surely place in the top three. He might even be the top scholar. When that happens, he will have confidence. With You Bing Yue’s tricks added in, the chancellor and madam might really agree to them being together.”

Zi Yuan knew her miss did not care about Du Zi Heng himself, but she still cared about Yu Zhi Yi’s reputation. In Zi Yuan’s mind, it was fine if Du Zi Heng took many concubines in the future. He could have dozens, and she would not blink. But it must not be You Bing Yue. That woman was too troublesome, a thorn ready to jab. If she truly entered the Du home, who knew what chaos she would cause.

Yu Zhi Yi poured the rest of the milk tea from the pot into another cup. Seeing Zi Yuan about to keep scolding, she pushed the cup into her hands and said with a smile, “Red Luan’s recipe. Taste it. It is very good.”

Zi Yuan loved sweets and never refused dessert. The smell alone made her swallow the rest of her words and take a sip. At last, Yu Zhi Yi’s ears found some peace. She shut her eyes for a short nap and thought, calm as ever: [Let him bluster if he wants. A cool breeze still brushes the hillside.]

If You Bing Yue was famous, so be it. What did that have to do with Yu Zhi Yi? Being famous now did not matter; soon Yu Zhi Yi would be even more famous. If she got angry over You Bing Yue’s good name now, and later You Bing Yue’s name turned bad and she got too happy and lost control, it would shake her heart and harm her merit. Reputation did not matter, but merit must not be cut.

While Yu Zhi Yi was busy relaxing and You Bing Yue was busy growing Nan Feng Bookstore, Du Zi Heng finished the Imperial Examinations. The timing was just right, landing before the emperor’s birthday. Since the new emperor took the throne, the new top scholar, Second Place Laureate, and Third Place Laureate had all been invited to the emperor’s birthday feast. They got to show their faces early before all the nobles in the Capital. If they were lucky, a high official or a royal relative might pick them out, letting them leap up the ladder and become people above others. Some even dreamed of moving a princess’s heart.

Three years ago at the Qionglin Banquet, the emperor’s beloved Princess Rong Zhen chose that year’s top scholar. Soon they married. The wedding was so grand that every young lady in the Capital sighed with envy. Later, the couple was loving and kind. Even though the princess had no child after three years, the prince consort never showed any hint of complaint. He kept seeking famous doctors to treat her and collected rare treasures to make her happy.

Now, three more years had passed, and several princesses had reached marrying age. After a hundred years of steady effort, the Great Sheng Empire had raised the status of women, and prince consorts were no longer barred from power. Anyone with real ability could be trusted with heavy duties, just like the prince consort of Eldest Princess Jia Luo a century ago.

With the whole Great Sheng Empire watching and waiting, the Imperial Examinations results were posted.