Climbing to the Top: A Reborn Queen's Journey-Chapter 345: Examination

This ambiguous and unclear statement made Song Yuan secretly alarmed.

The court has strict regulations regarding vassal king’s trusted aides, not to exceed five hundred. In the Gao Liang Prince Mansion in the Capital City, there are only five hundred trusted aides.

Prince Dongping, Prince Huaiyang, and Prince Wu’an all claim to have only five hundred trusted aides on the surface. The real numbers are only clear to them.

As for Nanyang County, it has exceeded the court’s regulations for several years. If the current military strength were to be uncovered by the court, it would be enough to charge with the intention of rebellion...

Song Yuan glanced deeply at Jiang Shaohua, "I understand the meaning, Commandery Princess. I will write to Commander Qin and Commander Meng tonight, instructing them to continue secretly recruiting trusted aides."

Jiang Shaohua nodded slightly.

This topic is hereby concluded.

After Song Yuan left, Chen Jinyu came in with a smile, "Commandery Princess, Mr. Kong is here to see you."

The Mr. Kong mentioned by Chen Jinyu is naturally Kong Qingwan.

Jiang Shaohua chuckled, "Please quickly invite Mr. Kong in."

A moment later, a slim lady dressed in an autumn fragrant-colored dress walked into the military tent. This lady, with her beautiful appearance and gentle demeanor, was Kong Qingwan.

Kong Qingwan was rescued at the age of eighteen, more than three years have passed, and she is now twenty-one, the prime age for a woman’s beauty. Even if she dresses deliberately old-fashioned, she remains radiant and charming. What attracts even more attention is her refined scholarly aura.

"Qing Wan greets the Commandery Princess." Kong Qingwan restrained her excitement and joy, and respectfully saluted.

Jiang Shaohua smiled warmly, "No need for formalities, rise and come over to talk."

After Xie En, Kong Qingwan carefully sat down. She was barely six feet away from the Commandery Princess and sat facing directly. A lift of the eyes revealed the Commandery Princess’s smiling face and bright eyes.

"It’s been over half a year since I last saw you." Jiang Shaohua casually asked with a smile, "How have you been recently in the military camp?"

Kong Qingwan replied softly, "Replying to the Commandery Princess, in the military camp, I work without worries about food, clothing, and housing. The trusted aides follow me in reading and writing, each at different progress levels with varying abilities. However, they all respect me greatly."

Jiang Shaohua laughed, "Before, the Personal Guard Camp had fewer people, and you only had to teach those at the captain level, which was manageable. Now the camp is divided into three camps, with increasing numbers and varying abilities. I fear you might be overwhelmed alone. I plan to invite two more teachers into the camp."

"By then, you’ll stay in the Third Camp, while the First and Second Camps will be handed over to the newly hired teachers. How does that sound?"

Kong Qingwan’s eyes brightened, "I came boldly to see the Commandery Princess today just to discuss this matter."

The First and Second Camp are not far from here, just a few miles. However, after a hard day’s training, riding to the Third Camp for reading practice was indeed troublesome.

Inviting two more teachers naturally resolves this difficulty.

Jiang Shaohua smiled, "Then let us settle this matter. The demands for the trusted aides to read and write aren’t high, and they’re not taking the Imperial Examination. Hiring two scholars to teach them will suffice."

Kong Qingwan smiled gladly, "The Commandery Princess is correct. Yet, this will add two more expenses to the military camp."

Chen Jinyu, who was beside them, interjected with a laugh, "Such expenses are negligible."

"Indeed, I can still support it." Jiang Shaohua laughed brightly, "By the way, during these days while I am in the camp, give the trusted aides a test. I want to see how well they’ve learned."

Kong Qingwan immediately accepted the order.

...

The trusted aides train during the day, while reading and writing is scheduled for the evening.

Thus, the trusted aides trained hard during the day were struck with the thunderous news upon entering the schoolhouse tonight.

"What? An exam?"

"It’s over! What did I learn yesterday? My mind is a blank, forgotten everything."

"Disaster! I heard this exam paper will be shown to the Commandery Princess!"

"Heavens! Who will save me!"

A group of sturdy young men cried out miserably in unison. Standing at the podium was the elegant teacher, smiling gently as she warmly announced amidst the wails, "The exam will start after one cup of tea; now everyone prepare paper and ink."

The trusted aides no longer had time for shouting; their hands, skilled in wielding knives and guns, clumsily prepared the paper and ink.

Kong Qingwan observed this with some helplessness.

She had been in the Personal Guard Camp for over three years, sincerely teaching them to read and write daily. However, in the world of martial artists, those with natural talent for studying were few, and even fewer could sit still and concentrate on studying. In the end, it was mostly about literacy.

The so-called exam was merely asking them to write common and simple words. In farming and reading families or prestigious clans, this would be the level of seven or eight-year-old children.

Even so, it caused quite a headache for the trusted aides.

Some gripped the pen like a knife, others had looks of deep anguish, and a few whispered to each other, undoubtedly plotting some mischief.

Kong Qingwan coughed lightly as a reminder.

Those few trusted aides immediately sat up straight and looked directly ahead.

The exam officially began. Kong Qingwan calmly recited all the words learned over the past three months. The trusted aides, scratching their heads and pondering, all managed to fill a sheet with writing.

Chen Jinyu, peeking from outside the schoolhouse, couldn’t suppress his laughter.

Jiang Shaohua saw this and also smiled slightly.

She had low expectations for the trusted aides—being able to read and understand battle reports was sufficient. If any of them could comprehend military books, becoming well-rounded like Liu Hengchang, it would be even better.

Out of so many trusted aides, not all could be dull, surely a few could rise to the occasion!

After the exam, Kong Qingwan began grading immediately.

This schoolhouse can accommodate fifty people, with most attending class being trusted aides at the captain level. Due to the First, Second, and Third Camp rotating north to deliver grain, recent attendees varied in number, resulting in varying abilities. Among them, there were a few promising ones.

Kong Qingwan’s furrowed brow slowly relaxed.

The trusted aides pretending to read quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

At this moment, a pair of young ladies stepped into the schoolhouse, one delicate and lovely, the other gracefully and elegantly wealthy.

The Commandery Princess and Chen Sheren were here!

The trusted aides straightened their postures instantly, eyes gleaming as they focused on their books, intensely as if they could see through the pages.

Jiang Shaohua stood beside Kong Qingwan, picked up the graded sheets marked with excellent grades, and nodded in satisfaction. Then she named the trusted aides with top grades.

The four whose names were called quickly stood, each wearing a proud expression.

Jiang Shaohua said with a smile, "You few achieved excellent grades in today’s exam, clearly showing your diligence in class. As a reward, I’ll provide each of you with a set of pen, ink, paper, and inkstone."