Climbing to the Top: A Reborn Queen's Journey-Chapter 757: Ascending to the Heavens (Part 2)
Lu Zhen sat in the front row, neither too far nor too close.
There was a short distance from the Dragon Throne on which the Emperor sat, and by slightly raising her head, she could see the Emperor’s visage.
However, Lu Zhen had already received teachings and instructions from Master Li and Mr. Cui, and after entering the Jinluan Palace, she must not look around or casually raise her head to spy on the Emperor.
"Focus on the exam, earn a good ranking, and stay in the palace in the future to serve beside the Emperor. By then, you can see the Emperor every day."
Lu Zhen recited this to herself several times, then took a deep breath, calming her mind and spirit, and began to carefully examine the exam paper. After reading it, she felt slightly more settled, pondered for a moment, and then picked up the brush to write.
Having excelled in the Ye County Women’s Academy, Lu Zhen indeed possessed extraordinary talent. Once she entered a state of concentration, she was neither anxious nor flustered, her pen flowed smoothly.
Even when the Emperor personally got up to tour the room, Lu Zhen was not flustered, continuing to write without lifting her head.
Someone unlucky trembled when the Emperor approached and accidentally stained their exam paper.
In the past, such an unfortunate soul would be directly expelled from the Jinluan Palace.
Jiang Shaohua was in a good mood today and laughed, saying, "Minister Dong, give him another blank exam paper."
The exam time had not been long enough, as long as one acted quickly, it was still possible to barely finish the exam.
The unlucky person, eyes reddened with emotion, thought to themselves—what of being a woman? The Empress is broad-minded, possessing the temperament of a wise ruler, such an Empress is worth following throughout life.
Jiang Shaohua toured around and then returned to the Dragon Throne.
Invigilating this kind of task was indeed rather dull.
The examinees were to take the exam for a whole day, Jiang Shaohua naturally wouldn’t sit idly for the entire day. After about an hour, Jiang Shaohua signaled Minister Dong with a glance, and Minister Dong nodded, taking over the examination supervision duties.
Jiang Shaohua returned to the Imperial Study Room to review and handle governmental affairs.
Chief Historian Chen and Wang Zhongshu Ling were both present, as usual, they preliminary sifted through the memorials. This was a huge and complicated task. No matter how capable the Emperor was, it was still but one pair of eyes and one pair of hands. Even if not sleeping all twelve hours of the day, it couldn’t be managed alone.
Therefore, trusted close aides were necessary to first sift through and present important state affairs. Still, Jiang Shaohua had to spend a significant amount of time every day reviewing memorials.
Chief Historian Chen joked with a smile, "Why is the Emperor, the chief examiner today, back to reviewing memorials?"
Jiang Shaohua laughed, "The exam is all day, I will visit again before it ends. Also to prevent the examinees from being overly tense."
She also shared the joke about the unlucky person staining the exam paper.
Chief Historian Chen scoffed, "Such a person lacks resolve; being eliminated serves them right. Since the Emperor has granted favor, we shall see if he can seize it."
Wang Jin saw the Empress glowing with radiant mood, so he too smiled, saying, "I hear the Ye County Women’s Academy has produced a female scholar. Did the Emperor see her today?"
Jiang Shaohua raised an eyebrow in a smile, "Seated first, I saw her at a glance. Back in the days there were only five female students at the Women’s Academy, she was one of them. Later, as more students joined, she remained at the top among them. She originally was called Big Girl, her formal name was given by myself personally."
This was truly a student of the Emperor.
The palace examination hadn’t concluded, yet she was already recognized by the Emperor as someone capable.
Even Wang Jin couldn’t help but envy Lu Zhen’s good fortune.
"Is Wang Shu your cousin?" the Emperor suddenly asked.
Wang Jin collected his thoughts, nodded in acknowledgment, "She is a girl from the Wang Family’s twelfth branch, a close cousin of mine."
The female examination, naturally, the Wang Family would not miss it. Among the girls of this generation, Wang Shu’s appearance was plain, yet her academic talents were outstanding, and she had considerable opinions. When setting this candidate, there was actually some dissent within the Wang Family.
Mainly because Wang Shu possessed a rare strong-willed temperament among women and did not strictly obey the elders. It was only through Wang Jin’s strong support that Wang Shu was finalized.
Jiang Shaohua listened to Wang Jin’s understated remarks and understood, nodding slightly.
In the evening, Jiang Shaohua went again to the Jinluan Palace.
After a day of examination, the examinees were all visibly exhausted.
Only Lu Zhen remained vibrant, her large eyes shining brightly, standing out among the examinees in the hall.
Jiang Shaohua smiled slightly, her gaze sweeping past the girl behind Lu Zhen. This girl was somewhat older than Lu Zhen, her forehead a bit broad, and her nose bridge flat, not considered outstanding in appearance. However, this girl’s demeanor was calm and poised, even exceeding Lu Zhen.
This was Wang Jin’s cousin Wang Shu.
Wang Jin was detailed and cautious; having specifically mentioned this cousin showed Wang Shu had exceptional qualities.
Jiang Shaohua then looked towards another girl. This girl had fair skin and arched eyebrows with apricot-shaped eyes, quite beautiful, and was Li Boyuan’s sister Li Fangfei.
For the sake of Empress Dowager Li, Li Fangfei must secure a good ranking to stay in the palace in the future to serve.
Additionally, the girl from the Lu Family, Lu Qingqing, and Cui Yun’er from the Boling Cui Family, were among the twenty.
Upon Lu Xuan’s passing, Fan Yang Lu Family remained silent without causing a stir, thus receiving a favor in return. The Boling Cui Family, being the Imperial Family’s legitimate kin, equivalent to the imperial clan, should also be given due respect. And for the Fan Family girl, considering General Fan’s timely loyalty and dedication, she too should be supported somewhat...
Jiang Shaohua silently contemplated this in her mind, without revealing any of it on her face.
The new Advanced Scholars rose, bowed in unison, and shouted for the Emperor’s long life.
Unaffected by exertion, Jiang Shaohua began speaking, her voice clearly reaching everyone: "I will personally review and decide the top three rankings."
"You are the Advanced Scholars from the special exam during my reign, my students. From now on, I am your backing. I hope you all become pillars of the Da Liang Court, serving the country with fidelity."
The group of new Advanced Scholars were filled with fervor and enthusiasm, bowing once more to thank Xie En and shouted long life.
After everyone had exited Jinluan Palace, they began to head towards the palace gates. They dared not speak along the way, but once close to the gates, they started excitedly whispering to each other.
"The Empress is beautiful and majestic. I secretly glanced earlier and felt a radiance exuding from her."
"Your courage is impressive, I didn’t dare to look up at all. The Emperor’s voice is especially pleasant."
The women were even more excited and stirred.
Most of them came from noble families, their usual surroundings were domestic quarters, and the grandest occasions they had witnessed were meeting the Grand Empress Dowager and Empress Dowager in the inner palace for greetings. Such as Li Fangfei, who had once entered the palace with elder family members during New Year’s to pay respects to the Grand Empress Dowager.
However, how could this compare to entering the Jinluan Palace and meeting the Emperor?
In the future, they would be female scholars, having official positions like men, capable of holding office... even if unable to serve outwardly, they could still work within the palace, becoming official court officials!
Lu Zhen, originating from Ye County, was truly stepping up to the heights. Similarly, these ladies of noble birth were as well.
They had broken through the constraints on them, escaped the confines of the domestic quarters, and were about to enter the officialdom, writing a brand new life that belonged to them.
